Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece or it's characters. I only own my OCs.

So, two chapters in two days! That has got to be some kind of record. Of course, this means I might not update for awhile. I have a lot on my plate in the coming weeks. But I will be back!

If you all like how I write One Piece, be sure to check out my other stories: "Once Burned," "Questionable Conscience," and "A Short Dedication to Fire Fist Ace."

Oh, and if you've all been wondering how the 3D2Y Straw Hats arrived on Kāla, just wait. It will be elaborated on later in the story, no worries.

And, to be clear: Past Zoro- Zoro. Future Zoro- Roronoa.

Chapter 5: Two Years Make All the Difference

Time: Night in the Afternoon
Location: Undisclosed Area of Jungle on Kāla

"Where'd she go?"

"She was right there, I swear!"

"Find her! She's worth a lot of berris, so we can't afford to let her go!"

"Yeah, the boss will reward us for sure if we bring her and the treasure in!"

She remained high in the tree branches, waiting for her pursuers to leave. It was troublesome that the bounty hunters had followed them on to the island, but she had years of practice evading capture. Giving a group of expendable lackeys the slip was child's play at best.

As she waited for the men to stop their search, she turned her attention to the matter at hand. She had to admit, the sudden nightfall was peculiar. It was the second one in the last twelve hours or so, and both times, the phase of the moon had been different. First a waning gibbous, then a waxing crescent. It was strange, going from day to night to day to night again.

In fact, the island was strange as a whole, but that wasn't going to stop her. During her escape from the bounty hunters, she had heard an interesting tidbit of information while hiding behind a giant tree root. (She liked these trees. They reminded her of the ones on Skypeia.) The lackeys spoke of finding a treasure, and had called this island "Kāla." If this truly was the legendary island of Kāla, then there had to be some ruins somewhere. She could only imagine what she could learn here, given the chance. She might even be able to move forward in completing her dream, so she had to at least try.

She could only hope, of course, that none of her friends had gotten themselves captured by bounty hunters or eaten by one of the freshwater Sea Kings. That would be unfortunate. They were probably fine, though.

"Hey, there she is!"

"She's up in that tree!"

Oh, they had spotted her. She had been hoping to avoid a confrontation, but it looked like they weren't giving her a choice. Now, if only the bounty hunters would stop being so noisy. They were going to alert others of her position this way. She would have to remedy that.

"Clutch."

Time: Night in the Afternoon
Location: The Going Merry

"Zoro-ossan, wait up!" Luffy said, coming out of the galley door. "Where are you going?"

The rest of the crew followed their captain out on to the deck as well. It was still night out, and the stars twinkled brightly in the sky. Roronoa was already halfway across the deck, heading directly for the railing. Luckily, he stopped his stride and turned to face the Straw Hats.

"I've wasted enough time here," he replied, resting one hand on his swords. "Thanks for the food, but I really should be on my way."

"Y-You're leaving?" Choppered stuttered. "You can't leave yet! Your shoulder-"

"-Is not that big a deal," Roronoa finished for the reindeer. "I'll have my crew's Chopper look at it when I find him, okay? See ya."

"What do you mean, 'when you find him'?" Luffy asked, crossing his arms. "Don't you know where your crew is?"

Roronoa had been in the process of turning to leave again, but halted. He sighed. "No, I don't. We all split up to explore the island, except for the one crewmate who stayed behind to watch the ship. I went with someone, but he got lost. I need to go and find them now. I know they can usually handle themselves, but this time..."

"Does it have anything to do with that triple pose?" Vivi asked. "You looked really grim when you saw it."

Roronoa reached into his haramaki and removed the New World Log Pose, holding it up so everyone could see it.

"You see this?" he asked. They all nodded. "Good. It belongs to Nami."

"Yeah, you ripped it right out of her hands," Sanji said, sounding angry. Mosshead never did apologize.

"Not that Nami!" Roronoa shouted, pointing at Nami. "I meant my Nami!"

A look of sheer horror spread across Nami and Zoro's faces, and Sanji looked ready to faint dead away. Roronoa then realized how weird that had probably sounded. They didn't seriously think that...?

"You numbskulls, I don't mean my as in-!" He groaned. "I meant my crew's Nami! As in the one that's twenty, not eighteen! We're not- we would never- geez!"

Zoro, Nami, and Sanji visibly relaxed. Luffy laughed, though he probably didn't even get what the problem had been.

"Thank heavens," Usopp said, wiping his brow in relief. "Can you imagine how awkward that would have been?"

"I don't get it," Chopper said, confused.

Usopp patted his head. "It's a human thing."

"Ahem!" Vivi cleared her throat. "Now that that's cleared up, you were saying, Mr. Bushido? The triple pose belongs to future Nami?"

Roronoa regained his composure and nodded. "Yeah, it's the one she uses to navigate the New World. She never lets this thing out of her sight." He turned to his young captain. "And you said you found it lying in the sand?"

"Yeah, it was buried under the beach," Luffy replied. "It's weird that Nami would just drop her log pose. Is she really forgetful in the future?"

"You dummy," Nami sighed. "I would never just drop my log pose."

"Exactly," Roronoa said. He tucked the log pose back into his haramaki. "You wouldn't have lost this unless something happened to you. I did tell you bounty hunters were following us when my crew came here, and I don't need to be a genius to know they have something to do with it."

"Was one of these bounty hunters the one you fought in the jungle? You keep bringing up a witch or something," Sanji said. He thought for a moment. "Was she pretty?"

"Think with your head for once, cook," Roronoa said flatly. "How should I know if she was pretty? I was a little busy trying to keep from being decapitated to pay attention to something like that. I can tell you she was a swordsman, and a good one."

"You lost to a girl?" Usopp snickered.

That earned him a dirty look from Vivi and Nami, so he stopped snickering.

"I didn't lose!" Zoro snapped. He paused. "I mean, he didn't lose! He said some other hunter showed up and hit him with the tranqs. Right?"

"Right," the older swordsman confirmed. "I was winning that fight until he showed up. And don't underestimate a girl, Usopp. They can kick your rear just as easily as any man. But I digress. The point is that these people were nothing to sneeze at. The witch was fast enough to keep me on my toes, not to mention she had a real pain of a devil fruit ability. Literally. And the red-eyed freak with the tranqs was clearly an experienced sniper. If there are more like them on this island, I have a feeling my crew is in for a rough time of it."

"So you want to find them and see if they're alright," Nami summarized.

"In a nutshell. I have faith in my crew's abilities, but this island is not natural. Anything can happen here." A slightly evil looking grin came on his face. "Besides, I owe that witch and red-eyed freak a rematch. It'd be rude not finish our fight, don't you think?"

That moron! Nami thought. All he's interested in is fighting strong enemies!

"I see your problem. You're missing your crew, and need to find them," Luffy said thoughtfully. He nodded. "Okay then. We'll help you!"

"No thanks," Roronoa said immediately.

A stunned silence hit the Straw Hats.

"Uh... don't you want to think about it?" Vivi asked.

"Yeah, we can help you look, we don't mind!" Chopper said. What he didn't say aloud was that he was curious in meeting his older self.

"I appreciate the offer, but I don't need help," Roronoa said. He turned to leave. "It's best you all stay on the Merry."

"Come on, Zoro-ossan! I want to find our crewmates too!" Luffy said. "We'll get to explore the mystery island and fight bounty hunters together! It'll be fun!"

Roronoa turned on his heel and glared at the rubber boy. "Luffy, I don't mind if you're laid back most of the time, but I need you take this seriously! This isn't a game! You know these kind of people can and will kill you, if given the chance!"

"So it's okay for you to risk your life, but not us?" Vivi asked.

He gave her a look. "As if you're one to talk, princess."

Vivi flinched, but didn't retort. What did he mean by that?

"Guys, maybe he's right," Usopp said nervously. "These bounty hunters sound really, really dangerous. It might be better for us if we remain here on the Merry."

"It's okay, Usopp. We're strong," Luffy said, flexing his arm and grasping it to emphasize. "I think we can take them."

"I'm with Luffy," Zoro agreed. He flicked one of his swords loose with his thumb. "These bounty hunters sound like they'd be interesting to battle. I want to see how strong they are for myself."

"And I'm interested in seeing the lovely lady who gave Future Mosshead a run for his money," Sanji added.

Roronoa felt like tearing his hair out. How could they be so dense? This situation was potentially lethal, and all they cared about was fighting?

... Holy crap, he was turning into Nami if he was starting to think like that.

"Look, you can't come and that's final!" Roronoa declared. "I'm perfectly capable of finding my friends alone!"

"Says the man who got lost finding his way back to my village," Nami huffed.

"That wasn't my fault! They kept moving the place!"

"You can't move a village! You'd think in two years you'd gain some sort of sense of direction."

"CAN IT, SEA-WITCH!"

"Don't talk to Nami-swan like that, sword freak!" Sanji barked.

Roronoa ignored him. His behavior was making the crew very confused. Why was he so adamant against them helping him? Didn't he remember all the enemies they defeated before? They could fight a group of bounty hunters. Why was he being so stubborn?

"Zoro-ossan, just let us come," Luffy insisted. "Past or future, they're still my friends and I want to find them just as much as you do. I'm willing to fight a few bounty hunters to do that. Besides, your shoulder is still busted and Chopper said you can't strain yourself. You could use the help."

Roronoa rubbed the shoulder in question. "I get that. You just don't understand. These hunters..."

"Understand what?" Chopper asked. "What's bad about these bounty hunters?"

"These guys are New World bounty hunters!" Roronoa snapped. "You all aren't ready for that kind of enemy yet!"

Chopper went to hide behind Luffy. Roronoa was scary when he yelled.

"Come on, how tough can they be?" Sanji said, exhaling some smoke. "We've kicked the asses of the biggest names in the East Blue and have managed to survive the Grand Line so far. Maybe these bounty hunters are a challenge to a cyclops like you, but we can handle ourselves."

"CYCLOPS-?!" Roronoa began to yell and draw his black sword, but he stopped and rubbed his temple. "Okay, you know what? Forget it. I'm not wasting my time fighting someone weaker than me."

"WEAKER?!"

"Is that the problem? You think we're too weak?" Zoro asked. He knew ever since that incident with the wax he had to get stronger, but being called weak by someone who was basically your older self...

"I don't think, I know," Roronoa corrected. "I'm completely aware of how strong I was before arriving in Alabasta." There was an icy look in his eye. "You'd last ten minutes in the New World, if you were lucky."

Zoro began to unsheathe Wado. "Care to test that theory?"

Roronoa frowned and crossed his arms. "Didn't I just say I wasn't going to fight someone weaker than me?"

While this exchange occurred between the two swordsmen, Sanji had begun to edge his way on to Roronoa's blind side. So he was weak, huh? Well, how would the Bigger Idiot Mosshead like a kick right to the blind half of his face? Yes, it would be a dirty move on his part, but Sanji was seriously annoyed. He wasn't about to let the older sword freak get away with calling him weak.

"Hold on, Zoro, you can't fight yourself!" Usopp shouted.

"Yeah, do have any idea how stupid that sounds?" Nami added.

"Don't fight period!" Chopper squealed. "Roronoa's going to pull his stitches again!"

Luffy said nothing, instead watching his swordsman challenge the future version.

"I'd listen to your friends if I were you," Roronoa said.

"You are me," Zoro pointed out. Roronoa's attitude was getting on his nerves. And somehow, it was oddly familiar...

"In that case, you should be able to recall the last time you underestimated an opponent," Roronoa said. His hand went to his chest. "If I recall correctly, I almost got cleaved in two."

Zoro didn't respond to that, except gritting his teeth.

Roronoa narrowed his eye. "If you were a competent swordsman, you'd be able to see the difference in power between us."

Zoro slowly slid Wado back into its sheathe. That last sentence was a revelation as to why Roronoa's attitude was familiar; he was acting exactly like Mihawk had back at the Baratie! And like before, every word was pissing him off.

"Zoro-ossan, I don't doubt you can battle these guys by yourself, but that doesn't matter," Luffy spoke up, stepping in front of Zoro. He grinned. "We're going to help you find your crew and take out the bounty hunters, whether you like it or not. So I guess you'll just have to deal with it."

Sanji was in position. He lifted his leg...

"Luffy, this isn't like storming Arlong Park or taking out Don Krieg!" Roronoa shouted. "In those cases, you had at least a vague idea of what you were up against in terms of power. These people will be on a whole other level than you. The New World isn't the East Blue, and it isn't the beginning of the Grand Line either. There's a reason no one's been able to conquer it since Gol D. Roger! You have to be crazy strong to sail there, or you'll die! It's no place for a group of overconfident rookies!"

Sanji's leg shot forward, his kick aimed directly for Roronoa's face. However, it never made contact. Roronoa easily caught the cook's foot in his hand before it could.

"What the hell?!" Sanji shouted.

"Sanji, what are you doing?!" Vivi scolded him.

"HE CAUGHT IT?!" Usopp and Chopper exclaimed.

Carue (who had been next to Vivi the entire time) quacked in surprise at well.

"He wasn't even looking!" Nami shouted.

Luffy's eyes widened.

That came at him from his blind side, Zoro thought, looking somewhere between shock and awe. But I saw his hand. It was up before the cook even finished kicking his leg out. Did he... did he somehow know it was coming before it came? My senses are good, but to predict an attack before it's made...

Sanji pulled his foot free and took a few steps back. "How did you-?"

Roronoa smirked. "What? Don't tell me you seriously thought I wouldn't have figured out a way to compensate for a blind eye. I don't remember you being that ignorant, Dartboard."

Sanji scowled, then pivoted one foot into the deck while kicking out the other one towards Roronoa's chest. "Poitrine!"

Roronoa rolled his eye and calmly stepped out of the way of the kick.

Sanji's visible eye widened. He tried again, dropping down to a one-hand handstand. "Côtelette!"

This time the kick was aimed for his ribs, but Roronoa avoided it, moving only moments before Sanji even attacked. Normally, Sanji would have followed that up with a Selle, but the fact that the previous attack didn't make contact meant he didn't have the momentum for it. The cook jumped to his feet and began a series of rapid fire kicks. Roronoa didn't dodge, this time just blocking the kicks with his still-sheathed black sword as they came. To add insult to injury, he did it with only one hand, barely moving at all.

Sanji was getting aggravated. How was this possible? It was almost as if Roronoa knew where the kicks would land before he even landed them. Zoro had always been decent at guarding against his attacks, but never at this level. It was evident by the bored expression on Roronoa's face that the swordsman was barely trying, while Sanji was already getting out of breath.

Sanji tried one last kick, aimed at the older swordsman's face. Roronoa not only avoided it, but he stepped forward and was practically nose-to-nose with the blonde. Before Sanji had a chance to react, Roronoa partially unsheathed his black sword, ramming the hilt right into Sanji's gut. The cook went flying into the mast, hung comically there for a few seconds, then slid to the deck.

"Sanji!" Chopper yelled worriedly. He rushed over to his crewmate's side.

Nobody else moved, only staring at the scene before them. Zoro and Sanji fought all the time, but neither of them ever actually won against each other. Those skirmishes always ended in a draw. Roronoa, however, had won. To bring a duel to a tie, Zoro had to fight on par with Sanji. Roronoa had won by barely even trying.

Zoro's face managed to remain stoic in appearance, but if you really knew him, you'd be able to see that he was on the verge of a major-freak out. How was he able to do all that just two years later?

"Do you get the idea now?" Roronoa asked, sliding his sword back into his sash. He gestured to Sanji. "The love cook is usually able to at least keep up with my younger self, and I just curb-stomped him."

"You did not curb-stomp me, you-!" Sanji started to argue, before going into a coughing fit. Roronoa's last attack had knocked the wind out of him.

"Stop talking and let me check you over!" Chopper scolded him. "I need to see if you hurt your back again!"

"I've trained to take on the New World," Roronoa went on, again ignoring Sanji. "If the cook can't even keep up with me anymore, what does that say about your chances with bounty hunters who have most likely been there longer than I have?"

There was no immediate reply. The crew probably didn't know what to say.

"Uh, Luffy?" Nami said at last. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but maybe we should listen to Roronoa. Zoro's strong as it is, but..."

"This guy wasn't even trying!" Usopp yelled panickedly, waving his arm rapidly at Roronoa. "What does that say about other people from the New World?!"

They couldn't see Luffy's expression, for his face was shadowed by his hat. The others didn't know it, but Luffy didn't really care about the beating Sanji just received. Sure, the way Roronoa caught his foot before was cool. However, his mind was too busy repeating the words Roronoa had said before to really appreciate it.

It's no place for a group of overconfident rookies!

Or more accurately, the way he said those words. He'd obviously been trying to hide it, but he had sounded... worried, like he was dreading what would happen if his crew came along. Roronoa may have been from the future, but he was still Zoro. Zoro had only ever sounded like that once before, back when he'd been sure his captain was about to die. Luffy didn't like that Roronoa sounded like that. Not one bit.

"Luffy...?" Vivi asked quietly.

"Zoro-ossan," Luffy said finally. "You're from the future, but I'm still your captain, aren't I?"

Roronoa's expression softened slightly. "Of course you are."

Luffy lifted his head, revealing he was smiling. "Then this is a captain's order. You have to let us come with you and find your crew. No arguing."

Roronoa's eye widened to almost comical size. Luffy was pulling the captain card on him? Seriously? Not only was it a low blow, but it was the one card in Luffy's limited psychological deck he had no counter for. A captain's orders were absolute, past or present.

"You're trying to make this hard for me on purpose, aren't you?" Roronoa sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose.

Luffy crossed his arms, still smiling. "It doesn't have to be hard. All you have to do is agree."

Roronoa threw his arms in the air, exasperated. "Okay, fine! You all can come, but on one condition. Will you let me have that much?"

"Sure! What's your condition?"

"You can't fight anyone unless I either say it's okay, or you absolutely have to." He held out his hand. "Do we have a deal?"

Luffy hesitated, shifting his gaze between the hand and Roronoa's face. Finally, he grasped his first crewmate's hand in a firm grip.

"Deal."

Vivi yawned, making her way from the girl's room to the galley. It was still technically the afternoon, but she was as tired as she would be at night.

Not surprising, really. The day had been exhausting as a whole. First getting dragged to this island, then finding Roronoa on said island, and everything that had occurred after their dinner-for-lunch.

Once the deal between Luffy and Roronoa had been struck, Tony announced that Sanji's back was fine except for a slight bruising, and Roronoa hadn't pulled any stitches loose. Sanji, naturally, tried to avenge his humiliating defeat. Only instead of attacking Roronoa, he planted a kick straight into Mr. Bushido's stomach. The crew left those two to work out their differences themselves, and returned to the galley to finish their now cold food. Most of it ended up going to Luffy. Afterwards, Roronoa had wanted to start the search for his crew right away, but Nami pointed out Tony's earlier observation of it being too dark. They would never find anyone in the jungle at night. It took a little talking down and threats of raising his debt, but the elder swordsman eventually agreed to it. By that point, everyone was both mentally and physically exhausted, so it was unanimously agreed that they would go to bed and start their search the next time the sun rose. Whenever that would be, anyway. With this island, who could tell?

Nami and Carue conked out almost right away, but Vivi was having a harder time with it. She was very tired, but her body knew it was still the afternoon and refused to fall asleep. She ended up deciding to head down to the galley and have a cup of the tea Sanji had brewed before going to bed himself (his fight with Mr. Bushido ended in a draw, of course, though both had been fighting harder than usual). Maybe it would help her sleep.

She climbed up the ladder leading up to the deck and pushed the trapdoor open. Sure enough, it was still night out. She sighed, pulled herself up onto the deck, and started making her way to the galley.

"What are you still doing up?"

Vivi jumped about a foot at the sudden deep voice. She turned to see Roronoa lying against the railing, arms behind his head.

"I could ask the same of you, Mr. Bushido!" Vivi panted, trying to calm her rapidly beating heart. "I thought you went to sleep in the boys' room hours ago!"

Roronoa shrugged. "Couldn't fall asleep, so I came up here."

Vivi raised a skeptical eyebrow. "You, Roronoa Zoro, couldn't fall asleep."

"So you do know how to say my name," he said with a slightly derisive smirk. It quickly faded and he shrugged again. "It's too quiet around here. You'd be surprised by the gap three missing voices leave."

Vivi blinked, confused. "Missing voices...?"

"Never mind," he sighed. "Forget I said anything. So what about you? What are you doing on deck?"

"I couldn't sleep either," she admitted.

"I'm not surprised. It's technically only 3 in the afternoon."

"Yes, I know. I figured I'd go get myself a cup of tea. Do you want one too?"

"Nah, I'm good. Hope it helps."

"Thank you."

She moved on ahead and was about to open the galley door, when she stopped. A question had been nagging at the back of her mind for hours now, and since Roronoa was just sitting there all alone, now would be a perfect time to ask. She slowly walked back over to him, and saw his eye was now closed.

"Mr. Bushido?" she said softly.

Roronoa's eye cracked open. "Hmm?"

She put her hands behind her back. "Remember earlier, when I asked why we couldn't also risk our lives if you were going to?"

He lowered his arms and sat up a little straighter. "Yeah. What about it?"

"Well, I was just wondering what you meant when you said I shouldn't be one to talk."

Roronoa gazed up at her for a long time, before exhaling through his nose and leaning back again.

"You're too self-sacrificing, Vivi," he said, closing his eye. "But then again, I guess I'm not one to talk either."

Vivi crossed her arms. "You're not going to give me a straight answer, are you?"

"Nope."

"Jerk."

"Completely nice guys don't become pirates. Given you were a bounty hunter for two years, one would think you knew that already."

Vivi frowned, but decided not to push it. The fact he wasn't giving her a straight answer meant that it fell under the category of "The Future," and Luffy had ordered them not to ask about that anymore.

"Alright," she sighed. "Thanks anyway. Good night."

"Night."

Vivi entered the galley and closed the door quietly behind her. Once she was gone, Roronoa opened his eye and stood up. He walked over to the mast and looked up.

"You coming down," he called up to the crow's nest, "or are you going to stay up there acting like you haven't been listening in all night?"

A minute later, the crow's nest's occupant jumped down to the deck. It was none other than Zoro.

"When did you figure out I was up there?" the younger swordsman asked, standing up straight.

"I knew from the moment I came on deck," Roronoa replied. "Care to explain why you were spying on me?"

"You're me; you tell me why."

"... You don't trust me."

It wasn't a question. It was a solid fact and both swordsmen knew it.

"You got that right," Zoro said with a scowl. "I know you're hiding something from us, and it's not a future adventure or whatever. Don't think I haven't noticed all the looks you've been giving Luffy."

Roronoa didn't reply.

"So, care to tell me why you keep glancing at Luffy with such a guilty look in your eye?" Zoro asked, his tone venomous.

Roronoa's hand slipped down to his Wado Ichimonji. Not in a threatening way, but more in a "just making sure it's there" way. Zoro recognized the gesture. He did the exact same thing when he was either thinking of Kuina...

... Or thinking about his promise to Luffy.

"When we were in the fog, we heard voices," Zoro continued. "Voices of people we knew, people we didn't know, and our own. I heard my voice say I couldn't protect my captain. Does that have anything to do with it? What exactly about my crew's future do you represent?"

The elder swordsman's gaze grew steely as he looked sharply down at his younger counterpart (Roronoa was a good inch or two taller). Zoro's mouth suddenly felt dry. The air around them felt thick and heavy.

"Don't make assumptions about events you know nothing about, brat," Roronoa said coldly.

Roronoa turned on his heel and stepped away from the younger swordsman. He then started climbing up to the crow's nest. About halfway up, he looked back down at Zoro.

"Once I find my crew, you never have to worry about me again. Or for the next two years, at least. Now get to bed. We have a long day tomorrow."

Roronoa climbed into the crow's nest, leaving Zoro standing there. The younger swordsman did eventually go to bed, but he didn't get much sleep. He couldn't get his older self's steel gaze out of his mind.

It was the gaze of a man who had been cracked in several places and welded back together. A man who had not quite been broken, but came pretty close. And that alone shook Zoro down to his very core.

Next Time:

The paper kept getting farther and farther. Luffy reached out for it... then he suddenly felt a strong heat come straight for him. He looked up to what looked like a fist, only it was gloppy and burning. Whatever it was, Luffy didn't have to be a genius to know that if it hit him, it was going to hurt.

Then out of nowhere, the fist stopped. Red beads scattered...

...and fire and blood were the only things Luffy could see.