Swords and Promises 5
Some angst, some fluff, and everything in between. (smile)
I don't own One Piece.
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Adviser Yuan filled in Tashigi on the nature of the meeting, on the way to the Shishinden.
"We are meeting with the Buggy pirate crew. We have been having problems with our deal with them, since they refuse to pay the intended price."
Buggy? thought Tashigi. That devil-fruit user and his accomplice Alvida had evaded the marines' grasp ever since Loguetown.
The meeting commenced immediately, without much introduction. Buggy the pirate captain was there, with some of his garishly dressed shipmates. On his side was the beautiful Alvida, with a huge spiked metal bat that she casually slung over her shoulders. The pirates began haggling their intended price at the council, which was very much less than the real value of the goods, let alone the cost of production. Shigatsu tried to keep things calm, stating the terms again and again, but Buggy's annoying voice would squeak whenever he refused them. The meeting/shouting match was reaching fever pitch, and Tashigi ears had taken just enough punishment as they could bear.
"I've had enough."
The word-exchange ended abruptly just as Tashigi strode down towards the pirate crew.
"And just who are you?"
"Sergeant Major Tashigi of the Marines. I would be rightly inclined to have you arrested now."
The pirate crew burst in howling laughter. "Bwahahaha! You think you can arrest us? In this place? Who let this funny person in here?" Buggy slapped his thighs in between laughs.
Smiling, she dug into her robes, then shoved the gray disk she pocketed earlier onto his face. Six metal clamps sprouted from its sides, latching the disk onto his round nose.
"What did you DO?" Alvida pointed her metal bat at Tashigi menacingly.
"Wha-what is this thing? Get it off me!" Buggy pulled at the disk, but it was firmly attached to him now.
"You may not want to move too much, Buggy-san, " Tashigi said, using one finger to push Alvida's weapon away from her. "That is a fourth-generation Shiratsuyu-class bomb. If you move even a foot, it will detonate. You have 3 minutes before it will explode in your face." She made a cutting motion on her neck, indicating the expected outcome. "And it won't take out just you, but the rest of your crew, in your direction."
As proof, the disk began beeping softly, one beep a second. But in the silence of the room, each beep became a thunderous sound. Alvida and the others began to back away slowly from their captain.
"Hah! I'll just move my body parts because I ate the Bara bara no mi fruit! Just watch--" But Buggy found that he couldn't break apart as usual.
"Eh?"
"Oh, I forgot to mention, the clamp component is made of Seastone. I should know because I designed it myself." Her earlier designs for this model finally came off the drawing board.
It was hard to tell if it was shock or the Seastone turning Buggy's face pale. He could hardly keep standing.
"Oh, and around here, I am known as Shigatsu Tashigi."
Alvida and the others had shock registered on their faces as well.
"So, if you want me to remove the bomb, we have 3 minutes to discuss our terms again with you." The members of the council had also backed away to the end of the room, leaving the two of them in the center of the hall.
"Now that I have your attention, I understand that we have a problem with payment?" She began circling around him.
"It seems that the Buggy pirate crew came across a huge shipment of gold intended for the Alabasta kingdom. I suppose that since it happened a mere few weeks ago, the gold is still on your ship, am I correct?"
Buggy began sweating profusely, dripping from his red nose, and onto the bomb, as an answer.
"So I suppose, too, that it wouldn't hurt to have a look at your stores on your ship?" Tashigi moved to the other end of the room. She motioned to two advisers, who nodded curtly, and left the room to carry out the order.
"I think that it would suffice, that we provide you with a hundred of the improved Buggy bombs we've made for you before, as well as not one, but two of our new invention, a lightweight programmable version of the Buggy bomb that you can try out for yourselves?
Buggy's mouth began opening and closing, in feeble protest, making him look like a fish out of water.
"Oh, were you saying something, Buggy-san?" she said, cupping her ear with a hand.
"N-n-no…"
"Are you telling me that you want to keep the bomb on your red nose?"
"Gyaah! N-n-no…"
"Good. Now tell me, who makes the bombs?"
The glint in her eye was pure evil.
"Y-y-you do."
"Very good. And who calls the shots here?"
"Y-you do."
"Now I suppose we have a deal then?"
He nodded his head enthusiastically. The beeping of the bomb picked up its pace. The 3 minutes were almost up…
"Get this thing off me…!!"
Tashigi smiled from her side of the room. The beeping had stopped suddenly. Buggy toppled backwards with a shout. Time stood still in the anticipated moment of detonation…
Then the marine crossed the distance and snatched the disk off his nose, without missing a beat.
"The safety is on," she said, with a wink at the pirate. "New feature we added." She pointed to a tiny button on the side of the bomb.
The red-nosed captain had fainted into the arms of his crewmembers, who were then being escorted away by a legion of the palace guards.
After they had left, the elder Shigatsu clapped his daughter on the shoulder. "Well done, Tashigi."
She gave a yelp of surprise, then dropped the Shiratsuyu bomb on the floor. Good thing the safety IS on, she thought as she bent over to pick it up.
"Inspecting our stock and testing new equipment in the span of a day, very impressive. And your knowledge of the client is very advantageous in our business." She cringed. She had just used classified marine information for a business deal with pirates. The Buggy pirate crew, too, of all things.
"You are acting like a real Shigatsu. This is where you belong."
He began leading the way for the council to make their own exit. Tashigi hesitated, looking at their retreating backs with unhappiness.
"That's what I'm afraid of," she whispered, miserably.
-0-
Zoro spent the day training, lifting all the rocks he could find in the rock garden, and slicing them up when he couldn't find anything else to. But whatever he did, he couldn't take his mind off her. He just couldn't shrug off that feeling of concern. He wanted to look for her, but found it impossible to even return to the palace. At different times, he found himself back at the workshop, in the center of the orange grove, in a flower garden, and in the middle of the lake (literally). By the time he had made his way into the palace, it was past dinnertime, and a servant that had guided him to the dining area needed to rouse the cooks to serve him his evening meal, in the dead of the night. At least I don't have to see the roach-boy at all, thought Zoro, as he ate. But then, no Tashigi either.
He trudged back wearily to his room, still with the services of his earlier guide. At the door, the young serving girl bowed and quickly left (probably glad to be rid of him). Just as he entered, a disembodied voice spoke to him.
"Zoro."
He very nearly fell backwards in shock.
"YOU!? What are you doing in here? Again?" Aghast, Zoro had his arms in the air.
"Well, I was looking for you…" began Tashigi.
"No, I've been everywhere looking for you! Literally everywhere! I was…" He cleared his throat. He wasn't about to say that he was…worried…about her. Not aloud, anyway.
"Well, I figured this was the only place I could find you. After you getting lost this morning…"
"Don't remind me!" said Zoro, fuming. "Hey, are you alright?" He reached out to take her right hand. She flinched a little when he slid back her sleeve to expose her wrist. There was a large, angry red welt that was rapidly turning blue over her entire forearm. It would be a dark bruise tomorrow.
"I'm Ok, thankfully it isn't broken." Tashigi snatched her hand away from him.
She wouldn't meet his eyes as she said it, though.
"Anyway, I wanted to talk to you, about this morning. I've just had the worst possible day. Oh my God, I helped out the Buggy pirate crew! That's the most horrible thing! I should be killed for treason!" She cupped her face in disbelief.
Huh? Zoro scratched his head. "You wanted to talk about Buggy?"
"Uh, no…um, actually… I'm sorry you had to see that," Tashigi said, head snapping up as she looked at him.
"See what?"
She looked down at her wrist, sadly. He understood immediately. He motioned for her to sit down, and they both took a seat on the laid out futon.
"He wasn't always like this. When my mother died…"
Her eyes hazed, and she stared off, somewhere far in the distance.
"You see, my mother was a swordswoman, too, like myself. She came from a noble samurai house. She loved swords; she was the one who taught me all I know about them. She also trained me to fight at a young age. She gave me my first sword when I was 5. Just a tiny tanto." Tashigi held out her hands about a foot apart, indicating the length.
"But one day, pirates came here. I don't know how they got in, or what they wanted to do, I was only 13 at the time. They came at night, and somehow, they were able to bypass all our defenses. A whole bunch of them came to my room, and…and…" She seemed to struggle to get the words out.
"They were about to kill me, when my mother rushed in and began fighting them all. But it was too much to handle, she was overwhelmed by their number. She just grabbed me and shielded me from the blows. Then, my father came in and killed everyone, killed every single one of them. But it was too late. My mother…"
Her voice cracked as she continued. "She died in my arms that night. She died because she protected me."
"After she died, my father changed completely. He focused on our business, and drowned himself in work. He stopped making swords. And he forbade me to ever touch a sword again. Like flicking a switch, everything was gone. Like I had lost him along with her."
"That's why I left. I ran away. So I could be free to chase my dreams on my own, give my mother the justice she deserves."
"You see, Shigure is my mother's sword."
Zoro's heart jumped a little.
"Every time I use it, I feel like she's still alive. I'm sure she would have wanted me to use her sword to protect other people, and to protect the swords she loved so much."
Zoro looked at her then, eyes full of sudden realization. He hadn't known. He hadn't known anything.
She sat there, weeping silently, looking very small and vulnerable. Zoro's hand itched, and he wanted to put an arm around her, to draw her close to him, but stopped himself. Who was he to take…advantage…of her? Who was he to…
"I'm talking about myself again," she said, forcing out a laugh as she wiped at her tears with a sleeve. "What about you?"
"Uh, what about me?"
"I hardly know anything about you. Where did you grow up? And where did you train for sword fighting?"
"I was an orphan. Fought my way out of the streets. Then I joined a dojo that took me in."
She had an image of a young Zoro, green hair all askew, battling a hoard of people just to get some food. Her own mostly happy childhood seemed to pale in comparison to the rough-and-tumble upbringing he must have had to endure.
But there was one thing she wanted to know, something that bothered her ever since that day they first fought. "The friend of yours, the one…the one that…looks like me. Was she from the dojo?"
His shoulders gave a small twitch. Closing his eyes, he turned away from her abruptly.
Did she say something wrong?
She may unknowingly have scratched open an old wound.
"S-sorry, Zoro" she said suddenly. "I should go."
She swiftly made her way to the door, then paused.
"Thanks," she said, softly. "for listening to me."
He stayed silent.
She put a hand on the sliding door, pushing it open slowly…but she heard footsteps, and saw a flash of dark blue…someone with glasses was headed in her direction.
With a strangled cry, she launched herself backwards. In her head, all she could say was hide. HIDE fast.
"What's wrong?" he said, senses suddenly on the alert.
"Otou-sama, I just saw him…he's on his way here! He can't see me here! I have to hide! Quick, where do I go?"
He stood up suddenly. "Uh…"
Tashigi was in a panicked state, flailing about the room. The closet was too small, and far away. The footsteps were right outside the door!
What happened next caught her off guard. Zoro picked her up and unceremoniously dropped her on his futon. He flung the blanket over her, covering her up. He then placed pillows on top of her then leaned back onto the pile, looking like he was lounging on a particularly big mound of pillow.
Crouched under the blanket, pillows, and now Zoro's weight, she let out an "oof" which was quickly shushed by the pirate. Just then, the doors slid open and in came Tashigi's father.
"Good evening, Zoro-kun. I apologize for this late night disturbance, but I feel compelled to speak with you, regarding today's events."
Zoro got off the pillow mound and made his bow of respect. "Shigatsu-sama," he said in deference, but his senses were still ready, to watch for an oncoming attack like that morning. There was no trace of the fighting aura about him now, though.
"Please," the elder Shigatsu waved at him. "Let us do away with the formalities. It is I who is disturbing your rest." He lowered himself gracefully onto the tatami-covered floor next to the futon.
Don't look at the pillows; don't look at the pillows, chanted Zoro in his brain. He was trying to send a mental command to Tashigi's father, but, too late, Shigatsu was now eyeing the suspicious heap carefully.
"I-I like to sleep with a lot of pillows," Zoro said, patting the pillow mound rather enthusiastically. Tashigi winced silently at every blow, thinking, I'm going to KILL him when I get out of here.
"Oh, I see," Shigatsu said, adjusting his glasses. "Anyway, let us go back to the matter at hand, the incident this morning."
He gave a small cough. "My little girl has always been so headstrong. We've always clashed heads over her beliefs. I've allowed her to dabble in sword fighting, but I have had to draw the line somewhere. When I did, that's when she left. I found out that she had joined the army, of all things. I had hoped that with the betrothal, she would agree to come home for good, and abandon this tomfoolery she's put herself in."
Zoro let the information sink in. After hearing her side of the story, he was bothered by how lightly her father regarded her achievements.
"She needs to know where her real place is," the elder Shigatsu continued. "It is here, heading our dealings. Her business acumen is unrivaled. Her presence in the meeting we had greatly affected the turn of events; she sealed a deal I had been hoping to make for months. If she stays, I am sure our efficiency would double."
Zoro was silent for a while. Then, he spoke out with unexpected intensity. "I think she has chosen where she wants to be, on the path to become a swordsman."
"Hah," Shigatsu barked out a laugh. "It is futile for a woman to pick up a sword."
Something sprang to life in the pirate's chest, something like old demons he had been fighting from times past.
"That isn't true. You should let her show you. She has grown stronger, and will continue to do so, if you let her."
"No," the older man said, coldly. "I don't believe she will. She will forever be too weak to protect anyone else with a sword."
It must be painful, thought Zoro. The person under the pillows had heard it all.
"Goodnight, Zoro-kun."
Zoro bowed his green head. He slid the door shut after his guest had left. Turning around, he looked at the unmoving heap on his futon. It stayed quiet.
"You Ok in there?" he asked softly. He waited several moments before he heard her tiny voice.
"No," came the reply, muffled slightly by the blanket. "You heard what he said."
"Come off it," he said, sitting down next to her.
"And you! Feeding him lies again like 'she has grown stronger'! He's not going to buy that, it'll only build the case he has against me!"
Zoro crossed his arms angrily. "Again, it wasn't a lie. I meant what I said."
There was a pause.
Whimpers emanated from pillow pile. Zoro raised the edge of the blanket to look at her. From inside the blanket, her sad eyes glistened with tears as she looked up at him. He couldn't handle being looked at like that. Not with that face…
"I don't," he started, voice a bare whisper. "I don't like it when you cry."
"Then don't look at me!" Tashigi snatched the blanket edge from him and buried herself once more. "And stop patronizing me! I don't need it!"
Grumbling, Zoro collapsed onto the futon, angrily putting his hands under his head. "I don't know why it's SUCH a big deal. As far as I can tell, you've already proven yourself to him. He just refuses to accept it. You've made your choice; you've dedicated yourself to the sword, in memory of your mother, to seek justice for her. Isn't that why you're doing all this, so you can go back to the life you decided on?"
"Isn't that why I'm here?" he added, in exasperation.
Tashigi stayed crouched under the blanket. She let his words dig into her heart.
Why did he always know what to say?
It was true; she had decided a long time ago to escape the life seemingly handed to her on a platter. She was her own person, and not a slave to the ideals of her family. This was a chance to break free from the shackles they had set on her. A chance to honor her mother whom she loved dearly.
Isn't that why I'm here?
And he was helping her. He was here to make it all easier. An enormous wave of gratitude washed over her heart.
Thank you.
She wanted to tell him that.
She peeked out of the blanket, but found him sound asleep. The worst part was that he had fallen asleep on top of the blanket edge, and on top of one of her ridiculously long square sleeves. Her eyes widened in panic. She tugged and tugged, but couldn't get herself free. He didn't even stir a little. Uh oh.
"Um, Zoro? Wake up, p-please?"
No response.
"ZORO!"
But she found that no amount of shouting, pushing, or pulling could make him budge or at least wake up. Is he really this hard to wake up?
Tashigi was trapped! Well, at least for the moment.
Ok, she began in her head, trying to suppress the panic. What if I take my clothes off? No way in hell, won't risk it! Do I cut it off? No, this kimono is a hand-painted heirloom and is my third-best kimono, absolutely no way I'll do that! Do I…
Zoro, all of a sudden, rolled towards her, effectively trapping more of her sleeve and pulling her closer to him. The movement brought her face up to his, their noses nearly touching. She gasped as she took a look at his sleeping face.
He wore such a tranquil expression that she wasn't used to seeing on him. The hard lines between his brows had smoothed out, his eyes were closed without an ounce of anger to contort them. She drank in his aquiline nose, the strong jaw line, the smooth, bronzed skin that covered the corded sinews of his strong neck, and the muscles of his chest that strained against the neckline of his robes.
God, he's so handsome, she thought, looking at him with peaceful features. She tried to imagine him as a young boy, bravely trying to survive on his own, then giving everything he had to his training. He must have been a cute kid, she assumed. Her eyes then moved up to rest on his slightly parted mouth. She then remembered the kiss they shared, how his lips felt like on hers…
She was very glad the darkness hid her madly blushing face.
But then she felt an evil voice pop an idea in her head: Surely he wouldn't mind another tiny kiss?
WHAT?! Where the hell did that come from? As she battled the errant thoughts that wreaked havoc in her mind, she found herself inching closer to him anyway, till she could feel his breath on her…
But an ounce of better judgment that she had left made her pull back. Who was she to take advantage of him? Who was she to…
Just then, Zoro gave a grunt, moved his head forward until his lips caught hers.
Tashigi's eyes went wide; he was kissing her! Was he? Already, her lips were rapidly feeling the heat from his own…
And then he gave another grunt and his head dropped to his chest, breaking the kiss.
He was still asleep! The amazing lout had accidentally kissed her while still being asleep!
WHO was being taken advantage of here?!
Still blushing furiously, she tried to calm herself down. If she had a right mind, she would have given him a rightly deserved Mega-punch to the face right now!! But then…
Thanks, for being here with me.
She smiled.
I'll let it slide this time, on account of your being really cute right now, well, in an if-you-tilt-your-head-90-degrees way, yeah, that's right. I'll admit that, but I'm not telling you.
She tried to stifle her laughter.
But if you cross the line again, I'll break your neck, buddy.
The vestiges of sleep came, and she couldn't resist. Her lids became heavy, and she fell asleep there, next to his warmth.
-0-
A shout out to the ff. amazing people: Cloner4000, XxStrawberryKittyxX, LonelyRage, Psike666, Fhulhi the Crazy, Ryan, mischeifmaiden, ameo66, Half-elf, kiril, Silverchild of the Winds, adriennelouise, AnimeBabe1031, TheOptimisticPessimist, nabiqi, Xstarlight-dragonX, NopeJustMe, inuzukapau, Troy Thomas!
Thank you so much for your continued input and support! I really appreciate it! May you have showers of good fortune come your way! (sprinkles stars and good-luck potion)
Tashigi is kick-ass in two things: swordfights and confrontation. Hehe (evil laugh)
In the OP universe, you don't go chasing your dreams without having a (dramatic) reason for it. Tashigi needed one, too. (smile)
I drew some stuff for this fanfic. Just rough pencil sketches, nothing fancy (grin). Visit my profile page for the links!
Notes:
Shishinden – literally 'throne room', the white building where they met Shigatsu Kanemitsu and his council for the first time (in Chapter 3).
Shiratsuyu – lead ship in the destroyer class of the Imperial Japanese Navy. Made in the early 1930s, sunk after collision with tanker Seiyo Maru in 1944 near Surigao strait. (Great surfing over there!) Name means "shimmering dew". Just thought it sounded appropriate.
Still am no bomb expert. I just figured that if they did make those kinds of bombs in the OP universe, watch out, Luffy! If the marines ever get their hands on them…yikes. Seastone + motion sensor + directional detonation equals scary.
Tatami – a traditional type of Japanese flooring, made of woven soft rush straw, and traditionally packed with rice straw (sometimes with styrofoam). Individual mats are made in a uniform size and shape, bordered by brocade or green cloth. Japanese homes today usually have one room with tatami, called the washitsu. Also used in religious rites, martial arts training, and the tea ceremony.
Futon – sleeping mattress designed to be placed on top of the tatami mat. It is rolled away in the day time to let the mat breathe, and to lend more space in the room.