The blades of the Wado Ichimonji and the red sword clashed together, making a sharp sound that pierced through the calmness of the night. Zoro used the dull side of his sword to fight her—his instinct kept telling him that she really was Kuina. In that case, he didn't want to hurt her. He stared straight into her eyes, and he noticed something strange. Her eyes were different. They weren't the eyes that Zoro remembered from his past. Her eyes were…deeper, and darker…

"Owarino Nai Yoru!"

Zoro snapped out of his thoughts and attempted to raise his katana to defend himself, but he was too late…or rather—she was too fast. Zoro felt a flash of pain in his waist as his blood splashed the ground beneath him. Before he knew it, Kuina had already attacked him and was standing behind him, charging at him once again. He spun around barely in time to guard himself. Once again, the Wado Ichimonji, and the red sword now stained with more red, clashed together, sending another sharp rip through the air. Concentrating his strength, Zoro managed to push Kuina away and distance himself from her.

"If you don't go all out on me, then you will lose your life. My sword is the Jubaku, one of the twelve greatest swords ever made in the world. This katana has never been broken and this sword could easily kill you. If you want to save yourself and your nakama, fight seriously, Zoro." A demonic smile spread across Kuina's face. Zoro frowned slightly. This didn't look like Kuina, not one bit. He never remembered this devilish smile. He was confused, but now was not the time to think about that. Kuina or not, if his focus wavered for even a split second, not only would he be killed, but one of his nakama would die. Trying not to hurt her would be impossible now that he got a taste of her skills. His life wasn't the only one at stake now—his nakama's was. Figuring out her identity would have to come later—after he had won the fight. Zoro tied his black bandana around his forehead with his free hand.

"That's more like it." As the same smile appeared on her face, she launched herself at Zoro.

This time, he was ready, and taking a step back, Zoro brought the Wado Ichimonji up against her sword. Then he pushed forward, trying to push her back. However, she was strong and held her ground. She was also persistent, blocking all of Zoro's attacks, and adding her own in between. It took all of Zoro's concentration just to keep up to her attacks.

Penetrating clangs of Zoro and Kuina's metal swords rang through the island. The Strawhats watched the fight silently as the two swords kept striking, trying to thrust forward and refusing to back down. None of the Strawhats dared to move or even breathe, so they stood there and watched, praying for Zoro's victory. The fight went on for what seemed like ages. After every strike, Kuina and Zoro pushed away from each other, panting, but soon collected their breath and lunged forward once more.

"Not half bad, are ya? Just as good as I remember." Zoro smirked.

"You've gotten much better, you're not that weakling who lost against me so many times anymore. Let's see how much more you can handle." Kuina sneered back. "Ryū no Honō!"

She dashed towards Zoro, her sword waving in a curved motion. He was ready to block her attack, but at the last moment, she sped up. If Zoro had felt that she was fast before, in that one moment, she was unbelievable. He suddenly felt an agonizing throb in his chest, as he tasted blood in his mouth. He was familiar with this pain and he realized at once where Kuina had cut him.

"Zoro! His wounds from Mihawk's fight re-opened!" Chopper panicked. Fresh blood dripped down Zoro's wound. "I have to treat it now! He's going to lose too much blood if he keeps fighting with that wound!"

Chopper tried to dash forward, but realized that his movements were extremely restricted due to the handcuffs. Chopper's eyes watered with tears as he watched Zoro helplessly. Luffy, through his gaze, told Chopper that Zoro would be fine. Of course, he was Zoro. He wouldn't fall, not before he beat Mihawk.

Zoro's chest throbbed badly—the previous injury in his waist was nothing compared to this. Moving just an inch burned the already painful wound, but Zoro wasn't even close to giving up yet. He had faced worse during the fight with Mr.1. Zoro blocked out all the pain and concentrating purely on his technique, he charged forward.

"Hiryu: Kaen!" Zoro yelled.

"Tsuki no Kage" Kuina whispered.

Again, Zoro and Kuina's katanas clashed, but silence soon followed. Zoro looked up at the red blade that reflected the horror in his eyes as memories flashed in his mind. With the flat side of the Jubaku, Kuina had completely stopped Zoro's attack. She looked exactly the same as Mihawk when he had blocked Zoro's Oni Giri. Flashback of the memories caused Zoro to become aware of the injury in his chest, and the pain he had been blocking out instantly rushed back to him. He felt a stinging burn as Kuina pushed him to distance herself, setting up her last attack.

"Tora no Hōkō!" Kuina roared with ferocity.

Move. Bring your sword up to block her attack. You're going to die. Your friends are going to die, Zoro kept telling himself, but even so, he was not physically, nor mentally prepared to defend himself properly. Her katana clashed with his as Zoro flew backwards, smashing against a tree. Kuina inched towards him.

"It's my win, again. You still can't beat me, even after all those years? You're pretty pathetic, Zoro." Kuina scowled. Suddenly, to Zoro and the Strawhat's surprise, bringing her katana up, Kuina got in position to strike Zoro, to kill him. Zoro, shocked by her actions, couldn't move his body. He was stuck.

"Zoro!" The Strawhats shouted in terror. Everyone tried to run towards him, to somehow stop her from killing him, but they couldn't—they were stuck in those pitiful handcuffs.

"Dammit! Don't you dare kill Zoro! His life was never a part of this stupid deal! Stop!" Luffy shouted desperately, realizing that his first mate was on the brink of death. He wanted to help so badly, wanted to do something, but he couldn't—Luffy felt so…helpless.

Zoro stared straight into Kuina's eyes. Her eyes were filled with murderous intent. She was really going to kill him. Now, Zoro started to doubt himself. Was she really Kuina? Was she the Kuina he used to know, the one he respected so much? Was she really the one who inspired him to the extent where he could throw away his life to keep his promise? Zoro started regretting. Regretting that he had tried so hard to become like her—someone so heartless, someone so cold.

He reflected as the glistening Jubaku held in Kuina's hand slashed downwards. Zoro waited for the agony, the shock, and death. He waited for all his hard work and his dream to crumble down. He waited…

But it didn't come. Zoro looked up, and his eyes widened at what he saw. Kuina's eyes had changed. In her eyes, he could see…horror, fear, and panic… It was nothing like what he had seen just a few seconds ago. Her sword had stopped right above him, and her hands were shaking, as if she was conflicting against herself. Through her eyes she seemed to say to him, "Move, Zoro…I don't want to kill you… you must leave here. I'm not who you think I am. Take your nakama and leave."

Then, her eyes changed back, but in that instant Zoro was able to roll himself on the ground just in time to escape her sword that pierced through the thick trunk of the tree.

All of a sudden, Zoro realized. He realized why her eyes had changed, why she looked so alien, and why she hadn't killed him at the last second. Because he knew why, he couldn't leave this island…he had to do something about it. But he needed to know more. He needed to beat her to get more information. He also had to do it quick, he had lost too much blood and was already starting to lose focus. He had do end this in one attack.

"Ittoryu…" Zoro concentrated with all the strength he had left, "Sanbyakurokuju Pound Ho!" A small tornado spiraled towards Kuina.

"Burakkuhōru!" Kuina howled. Similar to Zoro's attack, a small blackhole-like projectile whorled towards Zoro.

With a huge explosion, the two air-compressed attacks collided. The ground shook with such fierceness that caused nearly half of the trees on the island to collapse. Dust and smoke filled the air, blocking everyone's vision. Even the sturdy wooden house behind them shook dangerously. A huge hole had formed where the attacks had collided, as if a meteor had just struck the earth.

Slowly, the dust cleared up. The Strawhats were barely standing due to the impact of the wind, except for Chopper and Nami, who had helplessly fallen down.

"What happened?!" Sanji asked. Everyone had the same question in their minds. They looked around for the answer, and they soon found it lying beside the wall of the wooden structure. All the Strawhats rushed to Zoro, who was covered with blood.

Zoro was standing in front of Kuina, the point of his blade pointing directly at her neck. His green coat was soaked in dark red, and his swords dangled at his side. Kuina lay on the ground, the cracked Jubaku thrown meters away from her. Somehow, everyone's handcuffs had already disappeared. Everyone ran towards him, but no one spoke a word. The atmosphere around Kuina and Zoro told them that it wasn't time to celebrate yet.

"I've traveled with my friends, half way around the grand line. I've met strong adversaries and I've lost too. But I've also practiced, and have improved." Zoro said, his sword still pointing towards her. "I want to know the truth—what happened, exactly who you are, and why you are here. I've won the deal, so spit it all out."

"I think I can answer your question." A new voice spoke to them. Everyone turned towards the figure walking towards them, "Kuina, you hopeless child…have you lost…?"

Hi, thank you for all who have commented on my work! This was my first try on action, and it was TOUGH, but phew~ I got it done :)

I have a few translations to include. I thought of Kuina's attacks and her sword myself, and I checked on the OP wiki that I hadn't copied any of Oda's work. Here are translations for Kuina's sword and her attacks:

Sword: Jubaku: Curse

Attacks

-Ryū no Honō: Dragon's Flame

-Tora no Hōkō: Tiger's Roar

-Burakkuhōru: Black Hole

-Owarino Nai Yoru: Endless Night

-Tsuki no Kage: Moon's Shadow (defense)

Again, thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it! Please review or leave a comment! I will update the next chapter ASAP!