Part three of a five-part series, exploring what would have happened if Zoro joined Baroque Works when he was asked to ages ago. Because I like AU speculation like woah.

Note: There seemed to be some confusion in the last chapter about why Sanji wasn't mentioned at all. Remember this is an Alabasta Arc AU, and throughout that entire arc Sanji kept escaping the notice of the Baroque Works agents, which is why his Mr. Prince gambit was so useful later. Zoro is a Baroque Works agent at the moment, so of course, I can't have him catching sight of Sanji either! :)

Title: Baroque Works Saga: Duel
Theme: #2: Second Chance
Claim: Zoro
(Words:) 5,274
Rating: PG-13 for blood and swearing.
Warnings: AU-ness. Some events are mildly different. Mostly that it takes more time for the rest of the Straw Hats to get to Alubarna.
Disclaimer(s): I do not own, or pretend to own, One Piece or any of its subsequent characters, plots or other ideas. That right belongs solely to Eiichiro Oda. I do not own the prompts either—those are assigned by 30_OnePiece.

Zoro was not happy hear about the most recent turn of events.

The Straw Hats had shown up at the kingdom of Alabasta as predicted, but nothing besides that had gone according to plan. Zoro had assumed the crew would just head straight for Alubarna, so when the officers were given their assignments and Mr. 3 mistakenly revealed that he'd let the pirates escape, the swordsman had been all too willing to accept his orders of taking up a post at the capital. He didn't like being ordered around as a general rule, but Crocodile's orders coincided with his own agenda for now, and that was fine with him. Luffy and the others were sure to show, and he'd get a rematch that was actually finished this time.

But they hadn't shown. Zoro waited in Alubarna for several days, with increasingly less patience, but the Straw Hats didn't show up once. Worse, when he finally inquired over the company's den den mushi network, it was only to discover that the Straw Hats had arrived at Rainbase and were currently wreaking havoc—on the other side of the damned desert!

Zoro hadn't hesitated. Despite the frantic insistences of those idiots, Mr. 4 and Miss Merry Christmas, Zoro abandoned his post at Alubarna to head for Rainbase. Hopefully, if he was lucky, he wouldn't be too late. Christmas shrieked that she was certainly going to report his insurrection to Sir Crocodile. If he hadn't been in such a rush he probably would have responded with blades; as it was he just ignored her. Crocodile had hired him to fight the toughest battles. Luffy was the toughest battle. He was going to do his goddamn job, and Heaven help anybody who got in his way in the process, even other Baroque Works agents. They knew what they were getting into when they brought him on to begin with, anyway.

It took longer than expected to get to Rainbase, and it was at least an hour or two after dark by the time he reached it. Traveling around Alabasta had always been a pain in the ass, since nothing ever seemed to stay in one place. Now that he knew Crocodile was the boss, he suspected it had something to do with that sand Devil Fruit power. He wouldn't put it past the bastard to slide the buildings around just to fuck with peoples' heads; he certainly liked messing with people enough as it was already.

Unfortunately, by the time he'd gotten there, it was too late: he was informed that the Straw Hats had already left on the back of a giant moving crab. That just figured. His luck had been crappy recently, ever since he heard about these irritating Straw Hat pirates.

Fortunately he was in at least a little luck. Rainbase had a few more Baroque Works-friendly locations than Alubarna did, which meant Zoro had more resources at his disposal. Rain Dinners looked sort of beat up—presumably the Straw Hats had come to visit here, too—but he was able to order one of the high-speed F-wanis to be prepared so he could give chase. The frightened-looking Baroque Works officer said it would take some time to have the creature harnessed and ready—apparently the Straw Hats had also done a number on Crocodile's Bananawanis—so Zoro shrugged and ordered it to be sent out to the desert after him. Until then, he'd follow the moving crab's tracks, see if he couldn't figure out where the pirates were headed.

He'd expected it to be a very dull trek. What he hadn't expected was to find an enormous sinkhole not too far on the outskirts of the city, or to see the sand stained a deep red where somebody had been violently attacked. He skirted the sinkhole warily, familiar enough via stories with Crocodile's handiwork to know he didn't want to get near it even now. It seemed not all the Straw Hats had gotten away, after all. He grit his teeth and trudged around the sinkhole faster, searching for some indication of a body. Crocodile wasn't known for his generosity or honor in a battle; whoever had fought with him was likely dead, but if it was who Zoro thought it was—

He frowned as he started to make out a pair of shapes in the distance through the desert dark. As he got closer the shapes became more identifiable as people: a tall man in white robes he didn't recognize, crouching over a prone form laying still on the sand, with a straw hat laid out next to its head.

Zoro sped up, running over the sand now. Shit. His suspicions had been correct: Crocodile had engaged with Luffy, in which case the kid was already dead. And he'd never gotten a chance to meet him for that second, final duel, damn it!

The robed man was moving now, packing supplies back into a bag while speaking to the corpse. Zoro could make out the words now that he was closer. "—best I can do on such short notice, I'm afraid. Are you certain you don't need a doctor? I don't know if you can fight in this condition."

"I'm fine," the corpse answered back. "You found me plenty of meat, and I had a nice nap, and you even bandaged me up! So I'm good to go."

Zoro froze in place with a scuff of sand, shocked. Shit, that kid was good. He'd fought with Crocodile and managed to not die. His respect for the kid as a worthy opponent went up a couple more notches.

The man was helping Luffy to sit up now, although the pirate captain really did seem to be handling it well enough on his own. Apparently satisfied, the man set aside the bag of supplies and stepped back. In the splash of moonlight across his face Zoro suddenly recognized him: it was the guy working for the king, the one with a Devil Fruit that let him turn into a bird, or something like that. Pictures had been circulated among all the Baroque Works officers a while back of the major players in the government, although Zoro forgot his name at present.

The man spotted him as well, and his eyes narrowed fiercely. "Mr. Bushido. What with all the trouble being caused recently, I'm not surprised at all to see you here."

Luffy pulled himself to his feet and looked over his shoulder. Zoro locked eyes with him, but the pirate seemed unconcerned, and said casually, "Oh, hi again. You're Zoro, right?"

"That's me," he acknowledged. Without any preamble he wrapped his hand around the hilt of Kuina's sword, preparing to draw. "I'm here for my promised rematch."

Luffy seemed uninterested still. He did a few limbering exercises, not that he needed it when he was made of rubber, and said, "Sure, but not right now. After I kick Crocodile's ass and make sure my friends are okay we can fight." And to the soldier he added, "You said you could get us there fast, right? Let's go."

"No." Zoro shot forward quickly, but not to attack; he skirted the two and skidded to a stop in front of them on the sand, barring their path. "Our last fight was a draw because you ran away before we could figure out who the victor was. I don't like draws. And I'm not waiting for you to go hunt down Crocodile again." He snorted, gestured to the sinkhole now behind his opponents, glared at Luffy's bandaged chest, and growled, "You already almost died once. Next time you'll probably die for real, and I'll never get my win."

The soldier stomped forward angrily over the sand, bringing one hand to the hilt of his own sword, but Luffy raised a hand warningly at him and gestured for him to fall back. The man did so grudgingly, and Luffy turned his gaze back to Zoro. He looked much more serious than before, like this wasn't a game anymore, and when he spoke it was clearly a command, not a suggestion. "Get out of the way. Now. I have to go help my friends, and kick that damn Crocodile's ass."

"No," Zoro shot back hotly. "You promised me another fight back then, and I'm calling it in before you go get yourself killed by Crocodile." He'd already had one promised duel interrupted by an unexpected death; he sure as hell was not letting this kid get away if he could prevent it. Zoro's eyes narrowed. "Or are you one of those guys who doesn't keep his promises?"

Luffy looked offended at the accusation. "Fine," he said shortly. "We can fight now. But if Vivi or any of my other friends are getting hurt because you got in my way, I'll never forgive you." The pirate's eyes narrowed warningly, and promised very real pain if such a thing were to happen.

Zoro frowned across at his opponent. "They really mean that much to you, huh?"

"They're my friends," Luffy answered. "And I'm their captain." As if this was the most obvious thing in the world.

Zoro considered. Luffy really did take his friendships seriously. Zoro could see it in the kid's eyes, knew he was genuine. Zoro had never felt such loyalty to anything or anyone like that before, or not since Kuina at any rate. It felt a bit beyond his grasp, to understand his opponent's sincere desire to look out for and protect his crew. The closest he could come to that was Johnny and Yosaku, from years back. They'd been decent enough partners and friends, and he'd kept them safe as a matter of course, but not even that had been as intense as what he could see in the Straw Hat kid's eyes now. Those crew members were more than just friends to this kid. They were his family. They were everything.

He acted before he could think about it, shifting his hand from the hilt of his sword to reach into his haramaki. Luffy drew back his fist, winding up to attack, but Zoro gave him a warning look that said very clearly not now, and miraculously, Luffy seemed to understand. His arm dropped and he waited, stared in puzzled surprise when Zoro withdrew the baby den den mushi each officer-level Baroque Works agent carried.

"This is Bushido," Zoro said shortly into the baby den den's receiver. "I'm requesting information on the Straw Hat Pirates' locations." The officers would assume he was asking in order to find them and kill them. It wouldn't be a problem.

Several voices laughed over the wide-range den den network, joking about how Mr. Bushido was asking for directions. Zoro ignored them and held the baby den den out at arm's length so that Luffy could hear better. He waited patiently.

The answers started coming in moments later. "Mr. Bushido? The Straw Hat reports are pretty sporadic. They were last spotted crossing the Sandora River and are reportedly traveling with Nefertari Vivi, four pirates in total. The rest of the officers are waiting outside Alubarna to engage the Straw Hats and capture Vivi, but so far they haven't been spotted. Straw Hat Luffy is reported to be dead via Mr. 0."

The baby den den went silent and sleepily closed its eyes. Zoro tucked it carefully back into his haramaki and calmly tied his bandanna off on his head before drawing his swords. "There. No one's dead or hurt. Satisfied?"

Luffy blinked at him and cocked his head quizzically. For a moment, Zoro had the very creepy sensation that the kid was trying to read his mind. It felt a bit like how he read his own opponents, but deeper than just pure combat analysis, like the kid was contemplating his soul instead. His expression was blank, but that didn't stop Zoro from getting the impression that the idiot was actually smarter than he initially appeared, at least in some regard.

But then he broke into a smirking grin and crouched at the ready, cracking his knuckles. "Yeah. That's good enough for me. Thanks."

"Whatever," Zoro answered shortly. He still wasn't sure why he'd done it; he probably didn't deserve any thanks at all. It wasn't worth thinking over. There was a battle to be had.

There was silence, for the barest of seconds, as the wind whistled past. Then, without warning, as if they were both on the same wavelength, the two simultaneously charged.

Just as before in their last battle, the two met each other evenly, force for force, blow for blow. Every one of Zoro's lighting-quick slices of the sword was countered by a block or a dodge on the part of Luffy; every one of the rubber man's power-filled punches and kicks were slapped aside by Zoro's blades or skillfully avoided. In brute skill and strength they were even. After several minutes of back and forth attacks without either one landing a single hit, Zoro had to admit that.

That meant it all came down to technique. He could tell both he and Luffy reached that conclusion simultaneously; he could see it in the kid's eyes, when that confident spark in them was replaced with a more serious intensity.

They moved simultaneously too. It was bewildering to Zoro how they could reflect each other so easily, like they existed on the same wavelength. "Bull Horns!" the swordsman shouted, executing the sword-rush attack quickly, at the same moment that Luffy shouted, "Gomu Gomu no Bazooka!" and smashed outward with two open-palmed strikes.

Zoro ducked away from the blow, already knowing how powerful it was from his last fight with the kid, but doing so ruined his attack once again. He didn't let it discourage him, instead spinning to charge Luffy's unprotected side while his arms were still extended and roaring, "Oni Giri!"

Luffy was equal to that. His arms were already drawing back, but he leapt into the air anyway, missing the three simultaneous sword slashes by a bare fraction. Clapping his sandaled feet together, the pirate used his now-superior height to launch a pointed double-kick like a spear, shouting, "Gomu Gomu no Yari!"

Zoro grunted as the hit connected with his shoulder, and the momentum kicked him back painfully, but he reacted instantly, unleashing another spinning Tatsu Maki blade-tornado. Luffy's eyes widened at the attack name—he recognized it from the last battle, clearly—but with his legs still extended it was difficult for him to dodge, and he yelled as the blade-storm gashed his skin in several places and sent him spinning before he smashed into the sand.

Zoro knew better than to celebrate just yet, and he was right. Even grounded, Luffy kicked out one leg suddenly and swung it outward with a yell of "Gomu Gomu no Muchi!" Zoro leapt over the sweeping attack, barely, and with the distraction of regaining his footing in the slippery sand Luffy bought himself time to come to his own feet as well.

They paused for a bare fraction of a second, catching their breaths, getting their bearings, reading the opponent. Zoro, for one, was a little surprised. Luffy seemed more intense this time, less like he was enjoying himself, more like he was doing something that had to be done. He didn't know the kid that well, but he had a feeling his desire to protect his friends probably had something to do with that. It was...interesting...how much stronger that bond of loyalty seemed to make him, like it fueled him, kept him going. Zoro had been in the pirate-hunting business for a very long time, and he'd never seen anybody like this before.

This was also the first time he'd really, genuinely enjoyed a fight and deeply respected his opponent in years. There was probably a connection there, somewhere, but in the heat of battle Zoro didn't dare to try and waste time finding it. He respected the guy, no matter what fueled him. That was enough.

Once again, as if reading the same cues, both of them charged.

This time Luffy came at it with more power. "Gomu Gomu no Gatling!" he roared, and suddenly his fists were flying wildly, so fast they left blurred images behind as a series of rapid-fire punches began; it almost looked as though he'd grown extra arms, the way Nico did.

The barrage of punches was skilled. Based on what he'd seen of Luffy's attacks, it could probably take out a large group of opponents on its own, with the pirate's strength to back up the multiple hits. But Zoro was no ordinary opponent, and charged headlong into the barrage, twisting deftly and batting aside the wildly flung fists with precise sword parries. He slid into Luffy's range quickly and growled "Toro Nagashi" around the hilt of Kuina's sword as he slashed out with it at Luffy's stomach.

Luffy stopped his rapid-fire barrage and twisted himself aside just in time. The blade cut an angry red line in the white bandages wrapped around his torso, but Zoro could tell from the pull of the sword that it hadn't gone nearly as deep as the original attack had intended. Worse, Luffy managed to turn his teetering dodge into momentum for a new attack, flinging his left leg high and bringing it smashing down with a sharp cry of, "Battle Axe!"

Zoro could tell instinctively he didn't want to get hit by that one, and he was right. He threw himself sideways, but even the glancing blow to his left arm had him seeing stars, and the move made a small crater in the soft sand when it smashed into the ground, sending clouds into the air. He grunted in pain when he moved his left arm—it responded sluggishly now, even after that bare hit—and lashed out with another furious Tiger Hunt, using the temporary smoke cover to his advantage. Luffy grunted as well as he landed a minor hit, another pair of small gashes in his arms, and then once again they skidded apart to take a measure of the other one.

"You shouldn't be working for an asshole like Crocodile," Luffy said eventually, panting.

"Yeah? Why's that?" Zoro growled back, moving his left arm experimentally—still not as responsive as it should be. Damn. He'd bull through it anyway, make it work, but that was sure irritating as hell.

Luffy shrugged. "I can tell you take your fights really seriously," he answered. " 'Cause of your dream, right? Crocodile doesn't care about that sort of thing. He hates Vivi's dream too. That's why I'm gonna kick his ass."

Zoro snorted. "And I suppose you do care, is that why you're telling me this?"

Luffy shrugged again. "Dunno. Just trying to figure out if you're a good guy or not."

Zoro smirked. "Am I?"

He'd meant it as a morbid sort of joke—obviously since he was with Baroque Works, and currently aiding with the destruction of a country whether or not he actually cared about the plan, he wasn't a good guy. But Luffy looked perfectly serious when he stared Zoro straight in the eyes and said, "I don't know. Haven't decided yet."

Something about that answer sent a weird, tingling sensation down his spine. Like what the kid had said was inexplicably important, foretelling. Like the kid's final decision about him could alter fate; like he had that kind of power, even though logically speaking it was just some kid calling himself a pirate captain creating an opinion about one of his many foes. Still, it unsettled Zoro, and at the same time he had a strange urge to earn at least a little respect back from the kid, somehow.

That was probably what prompted him to do what he did next; because there was only one way to make himself really known to the kid when they were enemies, and that was in combat. Flipping one of his katana around into a reverse grip, he pressed the hilts together at angles and said firmly, "Fine. Make your decisions in your own time. For now, I'm finishing this."

Luffy's eyes narrowed slightly, and he stepped back into a crouching stance, at the ready. A smirk played at his mouth as he said, "Alright. Works for me. I've got to catch up to the others, anyway."

If you're still alive, Zoro thought privately, but out loud he shouted, "Santoryu Ogi: Sanzen Sekai!" while spinning his two handheld katana rapidly in front of himself. When their momentum picked up significantly he launched himself forward, hurling his most powerful technique at his opponent. For good for for ill, let the kid judge him after that.

Luffy's eyes widened at the display of such strength and skill. Zoro felt vaguely satisfied, at the back of his mind, that the kid was at the very least respecting his sword style. His Three Thousand Worlds maneuver was deadly both for the powerful momentum of the spinning blades and the wide range the attack gave. It was also all but impossible to dodge in even the best of circumstances for the opponent. He'd hit for sure.

And hit he did, though not quite how he expected. Luffy tried to throw himself aside at the last minute, meaning Zoro's attack did not quite hit central mass like it was supposed to. Instead he cut a pair of vicious gashes into Luffy's right arm, and a third in his side, spitting blood everywhere.

Luffy let out a yell of pain, but grit his teeth quickly, and out out of the corner of his eye, with their heads so close, Zoro caught sight of his expression. Determination. Raw, crazed determination to win, at almost any cost, glittered in the rubber man's eyes, and though he was wounded badly he clearly did not consider himself down and out just yet.

That was when Zoro caught sight of his other arm, the left arm, the one Zoro hadn't managed to hit—stretched far behind its owner, gathering elastic momentum for a powerful hit.

No way, Zoro thought, eyes widening, as he caught on to Luffy's tactics. He let himself take the Sanzen Sekai...just so I'd be in prime position to hit! This kid is insane!

He tried to twist away, but he'd caught on too late. "Gomu Gomu no Bullet!" Luffy roared, and the left arm, stretched so far back with so much potential power, rocketed back at near blinding speed. Zoro felt that rubber fist collide with his unprotected side at point-blank range, felt and heard something crack inside him as the blow connected. He clamped his teeth down on Wadou Ichimonji's hilt to keep from screaming and dropping it, bit so hard he was sure there would be permanent marks in the wrappings.

At such close range, the blow sent him flying a short distance, effectively tossing him away from his opponent. Luffy was still bleeding badly, and clearly the Three Thousand Worlds had damaged him more than he had bargained for, but he still drew back both hands one last time, stretching them far behind him with a cry of, "Gomu Gomu no Bazooka!"

Zoro tried to twist in midair, bring his swords to bear for a guard; he couldn't afford to get hit by that move. But when he struggled the sharp pain inside him increased, and he groaned past Kuina's sword hilt, barely managing to bring his other two swords up in a cross guard before him. They negated some of the force of the blow, but he was still sent flying, stars bursting across his vision from the impact, pain exploding in every sense across his body as the open-palmed strike connected.

Strangely, despite all the agony his body was suddenly being subjected to, he found himself able to think quite clearly. It was like his mind was detached from the rest of his body in that one singular moment. He knew with absolute clarity that the fight was over, just like that, and he also knew he'd lost.

Zoro detested losing, but just as strangely, he didn't mind this particular loss so much. Both he and Luffy had given it their all; they were evenly matched in almost every way, were both capable fighters, were both intensely strong. Luffy just seemed to have one single edge that Zoro didn't: devotion not just to a dream, but to others as well, others he felt responsible for and protective of and unquestionably, willingly tied to. Admitting that he'd lost to someone—and someone who wasn't even a swordsman at that—was hell, but he respected Luffy's intensity and skill all the same. The pirate deserved the win.

And with that single clear thought, the pain and his tenuous grip on reality returned just in time for Zoro to recognize that he was smashing into the sandy ground, swords scattering as he finally lost his hold on them. His vision swam and lurched violently, and he realized with a strange sort of detached calm that came with experience that he was very close to passing out. Damn. Luffy must have hit him even harder than he'd thought.

He shifted slightly, feeling rather dizzy. He attributed it to his fast fading hold on consciousness, until he realized the sensation was genuinely physical, and not just in his head. That was when he realized he was sinking, and after a quick, nauseating glance around he realized Luffy's final attack had pitched him straight into Crocodile's abandoned sinkhole.

Oh. Shit. That probably wasn't good.

He struggled against the sand, still dangerous even without its creator present. He was already half buried, making moving difficult, and that wasn't even taking into account that half his body was already responding sluggishly due to the fight. He hissed in frustration and struggled harder to free himself, twisting his head from side to side to try and keep it above the grains—and that was when he spotted Wadou Ichimonji nearby, already hilt-deep in the sand and vanishing rapidly.

"No!" He shouted frantically, lunging for it as best as his taxed body would allow, frantically snapping with his teeth to try and grip the sword, drag it back. Too late; with a dry hissing noise the sword disappeared completely below the surface of the sand. Zoro tried to lunge for his other two katana nearby next in a frantic daze, but his vision swam more alarmingly, and he realized it was starting to go black. He fought viciously against the grasping hands of unconsciousness, but it was a losing battle, and he knew it. They tugged him under, and the last thing he felt was blackness and pressure as the earth closed in around him.

Fucking Hell. Death by being buried alive. Kuina is going to be furious.

When Zoro woke up, the first thing he noticed was that the sky was still dark, and he was very cold. The second thing he noticed was that he was still alive, which he honestly hadn't expected.

His other senses kicked into gear a few moments later, and he realized a few other things: he was tired, he was in pain, he felt more than a little nauseated, and he was laying stretched out flat on his back, staring up at the night sky. Huh. Now that was funny. Last thing he remembered, he was in the process of being dragged under the desert in a sand pit designed by his sadistic not-quite-boss.

Being reminded of that also reminded him that he didn't actually know where he was now, and he sat up with a jerk. He regretted it almost immediately and pressed a hand to his side, where he was sure one or two ribs had been cracked. He was surprised to find it crudely if acceptably bandaged, and, puzzled, he looked around blearily at his surroundings.

He was alone in the desert, and the moon's position above suggested that it had been several hours since the battle, as far as he could tell. The sand pit was some fifteen feet distant, safely far away, and there were drag marks leading from it to where he was currently sitting. Somebody had pulled him out, and then roughly treated him before leaving him there. Only two people could possibly have even known he'd been thrown into the pit: the soldier of Alabasta, or Luffy. Why either one would save him, he couldn't fathom. The soldier definitely hadn't liked him, that was for sure, so it was probably Luffy, but that still begged the question of why. Luffy had clearly respected him on some level as an opponent, sure, and seemed intrigued by his dream to be the greatest swordsman, but that didn't explain—

Swords! he cut himself off sharply, and he stood frantically, intending to stagger back to the pit to search. He might be alive, but that meant nothing if his swords were still buried, especially Kuina's blade—

But the moonlight glinting off metal caught his eye. Turning, he was surprised to find all three of his swords sheathed and laid out beside where he'd been dragged to, one after another, as though they'd been waiting patiently for him to wake up. Kuina's was laid closest to where his body had been, followed by the two other ryo wazamono grade swords Baroque Works had provided for him.

A mix of emotions washed over the swordsman: relief for his precious blades, mixed with irritation at what their presence had to mean. He was absolutely sure now, without a doubt, that Luffy was the one responsible. He had no idea how he knew, and he had no idea why Luffy would go through the trouble of smashing him into the sinkhole and then fishing out him and his swords. But he had already established that the kid was crazy, and this definitely had Straw Hat Luffy written all over it.

Damn it all to hell. If there was one thing he absolutely hated, it was being indebted to somebody, and now he owed Luffy an enormous favor—both for saving his own life, and the lives of his swords. He couldn't think of any way to repay such a favor other than by saving Luffy's life right back, but the pirate was notably absent now, and Zoro wasn't sure how exactly he'd get the opportunity anyway.

Don't be stupid, he told himself firmly. He said he's going to meet up with his friends, and defeat Crocodile. According to the plans, Crocodile was heading for Alubarna, and so were the other Straw Hats by our reports. So that's where Luffy's heading, too.

He could decide how he handled things when he got there. For now, he just had to get there. He whistled sharply, wincing slightly as the sound seemed to pierce his own skull, and a moment later the F-wani he had requested hours ago came zipping up to stop before him. It had probably been aimlessly wandering the desert, looking for him and waiting for orders.

He climbed into the seat strapped atop it, ordered curtly, "Alubarna," and settled back in for a nap as the creature took off at blinding speed. Based on everything he'd seen and been through today, he had a feeling he was going to need all the strength he could manage to get back before the rest of this mess was finished.

For the record I've yet to figure out how Sanzen Sekai/Three Thousand Worlds is in any way practical...I mean, even by the already crazy Santoryuu's style, Sanzen Sekai is just...I don't understand how it will kill anything. Ever.

But hey it's a comic so stfu Karma and stop overanalyzing, amirite?

~VelkynKarma