OMG! I am so so sorry with how late this chapter is. Working retail during the holidays and going to school full time really kicked my ass this past month. I had a bit of writer's block towards the end of this chapter but inspiration hit at the last second so I think we're good.

I'm taking some advice from you guys and added a little scene between Johnny and Zoro at the end of the chapter. Still had a bit of a flashback to add a LuffyxZoro scene in there. I wanted Luffy to start singing cause there's a One Piece song that has Luffy singing with Zoro doing backup and it would've been fun but after hanging with my friends on New Years and staring at the moon, I thought this would be better. (The song's called Holy Holiday! If you haven't heard it, go listen!)

Big shout-out to all of my AWESOME READERS! You guys are absolutely amazing for sticking with me during this delay and now that the holidays are over, I shouldn't have any more delays. Again, you guys make me want to write and I treasure all of you!

The first movie one shot should be up next week. Because of the length of the movie I didn't do the entire story but I added every little ZoLu moment I could. Its a little longer than one of my normal chapters but still not super long. Hope you guys like it.

One Piece (c) Eiichiro Oda

Enjoy guys!

Living is the True Obligation

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"Gin!"

Luffy was a mix between furious and shocked, not quite believing the scene in front of her. She knew Gin, she knew he was a decent guy, an honorable man, so why... Why was he doing this?

The man in question glanced at her for a second before looking back down at the middle-aged chef at the end of his double-barreled shotgun. In that second though, Luffy was able to see a little of what was going through the other pirate's mind. In his own small way, Gin regretted what he was having to do but he was cornered, she could see it in his eyes. He felt like he had no other choice.

"Regardless of how great a man he was before, now he's just an ordinary chef. Blasting his head off is no problem now." Gin said quietly, flexing his hand against the handle of the gun before allowing himself to look at the blond chef.

"You want to save this man, don't you, Sanji?" His tone turned slightly pleading. "So just heed my word and get off this ship. I don't wanna have to kill you!"

The chefs weren't the only ones stunned by the brunette's words. All around the deck and even in the water, the rest of the Krieg pirates were watching Gin with slightly confused and disbelieving words, as if they couldn't believe what he was saying.

"Leave this ship?" Sanji repeated, as if he wasn't sure that he had heard Gin right. His brow furrowed slightly before he brought his cigarette to his lips and took a drag of the calming nicotine. The blond chef scoffed before glaring up at Gin, looking slightly annoyed.

"Not a chance!"

Gin's eyes widened in shock, his mouth open to reply but Sanji had turned his gaze away from the pirate and was now staring down at his mentor.

"You look pathetic, old fart. In that state, you don't deserve to order us fighting cooks around." His tone was calm, as if he was commenting on the weather and not speaking to a man with a gun pressed against his head.

Zeff just scoffed, appearing as unconcerned as Sanji as he frowned back up at the assistant Head-Chef. "I don't need to hear that kind of crap from you, you baby eggplant."

"WOULD YOU STOP CALLING ME NAMES?!" The blond chef screamed, practically snarling at the middle-aged man. "QUIT TREATING ME LIKE A KID ALREADY!" Sanji appeared livid, his hands clenched at his sides and his teeth gritted around the cigarette between his lips.

Many of the chefs jumped back slightly in shock, not used to Sanji getting this angry over the owner's typical name calling.

"That damned Sanji!" One snapped, a hand against his chest as he watched the argument with wide eyes.

Another made a slightly worried sound. "He's not gonna abandon the owner, is he?"

Everyone at the Baratie knew of the volatile relationship between the two head-chef's and the fact that they constantly argued and insulted each other. They had always thought it was their way of showing affection or how they dealt with working together but now... Some of the chefs began to wonder if Sanji even cared about Zeff at all. Did he want the older man to die?

Sanji pointed a thumb at himself and glared back up at Gin, appearing slightly more calm, if no less determined. "Hey Gin, ai-"

Suddenly, a hand latched onto the back of Sanji's suit, cutting off the blond chef as he was roughly yanked backwards. He glanced back in shock, eyes widening as he took in the small raven-haired girl standing next to him. She slowly released the suit collar before giving the confused chef a small grin even as she placed her other hand on his chest and gave him a shove. As she pushed Sanji back, Luffy took a few steps forward herself and turned to look at Gin.

"Hey Gin!" She yelled, spreading her arms out wide. "Aim that pistol at me."

Zeff started slightly and glanced up at the raven-haired girl confused.

From behind her came a sound of protest. "Luffyko-chan! What are you doing? Stay back please, you'll get killed!"

Luffy threw a grin over her shoulder, and winked, appearing slightly amused. "Maybe."

Gin's grip on his shotgun faltered somewhat and he stared at the small she-pirate with a disbelieving expression. "Girl... why? This doesn't concern you."

"If you're so eager to die, let me do the honors." The smooth and annoyingly familiar voice came from behind Sanji and the blond chef turned to see Pearl slowly forcing himself to his feet, looking furious. "I owe you one for my nose, you loud, obnoxious girl."

The large shield-man grinned menacingly. "Don't you dare move now. Move and Gin will blow your boss's head off." Gin cringed slightly, but didn't say anything as Pearl began to charge towards Luffy and Sanji.

"Luffyko-cha-"

"Don't move, Sanji!"

"Ultimate Killing Technique... Pearl Present!" Pearl jumped into the air and brought back one shield-covered fist before slamming it into the side of Luffy's still-smiling face, knocking the girl back. She tumbled to the ground and slid, coming to a halt when her back slammed into the wooden railing of the Baratie.

"Luffyko-chan!" Sanji shouted, starting forward even as Luffy pushed herself up into a sitting position and wiped at the small trickle of blood dripping from the left side of her mouth. "Luffyko-chan, why didn't you dodge that?"

The blond chef moved to kneel down next to Luffy and rested a hand against the girl's back to help her sit up more but Luffy just brushed his hands off and grinned up at Sanji.

"If I did that, then Gin'd pull the trigger."

Sanji's gaze moved to the brunette, who was watching the she-pirate like she was crazy.

"Why are you doing all this, girl? You said you were a pirate. Why risk your life for a stupid restaurant?" Gin couldn't understand what was going through her head but Luffy just smiled brightly at him and crossed her legs, her hands moving to grip at her ankles.

"This restaurant is important to Sanji. Sanji is my nakama and he wants to stay here. I'm not going to let you guys take this place from them. Besides, a silly little hit like that won't stop me." Her real goal was to get Gin to point his gun at something other than the old man but it wasn't like she couldn't take a few hits from the odd shield guy while she thought of a plan. They were like grandpa's stupid 'Fists of Love', and it wasn't like she was in any real danger of dying.

Gin turned to Sanji, his gaze beseeching. "Sanji, please! If you'd just abandon this restaurant, everyone will be saved!"

Sanji shook his head, squeezing Luffy's shoulder in a silent thank you, which caused her to turn her smile towards the blond chef. He returned the smile with a soft one of his own before standing back up and moving so that he was in between Luffy and the others. This time, he would protect her; he wouldn't allow a lady to be hurt in his presence.

"This restaurant is that old man's treasure." Sanji's words were forceful, growled between slightly clenched teeth as if he was angry that Gin had even suggested that he leave. Patty and Carne both stared at Sanji in surprise, watching as the fight seemed to deflate out of the assistant Head-chef all at once and he slumped forward slightly before continuing.

"I'm the one who took everything from that old fart." All of the confidence from his previous statement was gone as the memories flooded his mind. It was as if he was back on that tiny island made of rock with no food or water, a knife in his hand as he stared at the slouched back of Red-Foot Zeff.

"His power." Sanji remembered seeing the blood as Zeff swam down through the freezing water in an effort to reach Sanji, to save a boy he barely knew from drowning.

"And his dreams." Zeff frowned at the ground silently as Luffy and the others stared at Sanji with varying expressions of surprise. Luffy knew that this was what Zeff had silently warned her about earlier. She didn't know if the old man's dream had been to be the King of the Pirates but for some reason, Sanji felt that he was responsible for causing Zeff to abandon that dream. That was wrong though. Zeff didn't blame Sanji, Luffy knew that.

She watched Zeff quietly as Sanji straightened himself back up, his voice growing stronger and louder as he continued. "That's why, now... I WON'T LET ANYONE TAKE ANYTHING FROM HIM AGAIN!"

Zeff gritted his teeth angrily and Luffy recognized the expression as one Ace used to give her before he hit her because she was being stupid. Zeff was frustrated. He had always known that Sanji was foolish but his little idiot had gone overboard this time. Yes, he loved this restaurant but it wasn't his only treasure, didn't the kid understand that?

"Sanji, watch out!" Patty's voice cut through both Zeff and Luffy's thoughts and the raven-haired girl whipped her head around in time to see Pearl standing behind Sanji, his arms thrown wide.

"Pearl Cross!" The large man slammed the two shields on his hands together, catching Sanji's head in between them and causing the blond chef to let out a scream of pain. Luffy could hear the sounds of Sanji's skull cracking from where she was sitting, horrified as streams of blood began to pour from the blond's nose, mouth and ears. He slowly began to fall, Pearl's hit leaving his ears ringing as his vision slowly faded to black. He couldn't even hear the worried calls of his fellow chefs as he dropped to the ground with a thud, unconscious.

But even unconscious, his mind was full of memories.

"All Blue? The legendary sea where fish from the East Blue, West Blue, North Blue, and South Blue can all be found."

Sanji remembered the three cooks that he used to work with on the Cruise Orbit. Had they died during the storm? He never found out. Everyone had probably died in that freak storm, after all, it had destroyed two galleon-class ships.

That was where he had first met Zeff, the old man had been a pirate that had appeared during a run-of-the-mill evening storm, intending to rob everyone on the ship. Sanji had grabbed two knives and fought back, earning Zeff's attention.

"A kid that wants to die so badly, just kill him off already."

"Like I'm gonna die! I... I have to get to the All Blue someday."

A large wave had struck the ship and he remembered being thrown overboard. Sanji had thought he was going to die but Zeff had come after him. A pirate that had looted his ship and beaten him up dove into the freezing water to save a single kid. To this day, Sanji still didn't understand the old man's reasoning. He had asked Zeff once what had happened that night. The chef had told Sanji that the storm had gotten really bad and wrecked both ships, Zeff and Sanji had both survived because they had already been under water at the time the large wave hit. However, Zeff's leg had gotten stuck in the debris and he was forced to use an anchor line to break and sever his right foot.

Sanji had woken up on a tiny, mushroom shaped island with only a small bag of food and no way to get any more. He couldn't even remember how many months had passed on that little island. Eventually, he had run out of food and was left to stare at the vast ocean, hoping that a boat would pass by and he could escape this nightmare. He and Zeff had sat on opposite sides of the island, hoping to have a better chance to spot something but it wasn't until later that Sanji learned that Zeff had given him all of the food, the older man's bag of 'rations' holding only treasure.

"Why? Why did you save me?! I don't remember asking you to treat me so kindly! Why?"

"You... You have the same dream as I do."

"Hey! Old man, don't die!"

"Wouldn't it be nice if there was a restaurant somewhere on this vast sea? If I manage to escape this hitch, I'd bet everything into building my own restaurant."

"Then, I can help you do that.

"Heh! For a weakling little eggplant like you, that'd be impossible!"

"I'll get stronger! I won't be a burden to you! So... don't die!"

As the memories faded, consciousness returned to Sanji and he clenched his hand into a fist as he remembered the last day on that hellish island. What Zeff had done for him. He was more determined than ever now and his knuckles slowly turned white and his hand shook .

"That old fart! He gave up his leg so that I could live."

The chefs of the Baratie watched Sanji with wide eyes as the blond shakily started to push himself to his knees. They had never heard anything about the relationship between Zeff and his protege but the fact that their assistant Head-Chef was going this far meant that they were wrong. Sanji did care about Zeff, more than they had ever thought.

Luffy was once again on her feet and made a move to help Sanji up but the blond held out a hand and shook his head at her, wanting Luffy to stay back. This was his fight. Luffy had already done more for him and this restaurant than she needed to. In Sanji's opinion, she had completely paid off her debt and he would handle the rest from here. With a last grunt of effort, Sanji was back on his feet. His face was covered with blood and he looked like he was barely able to remain upright but he stood his ground, sliding one hand into his pocket and gesturing to himself with the other.

"I too... If I don't place my life on the line as well, I won't be able to repay the old man for his kindness!"

Luffy stared at Sanji from her place near the railing of the Baratie, her mouth down-turned in a frown. Her expression was mostly blank but there was a slight flickering of anger behind her eyes.

Gin just continued to stare at Sanji, wide eyed, as if he couldn't understand why, why was Sanji standing back up. He must have voiced his question out loud because the blond glanced over at him and smirked.

"Staying down is a little too much like giving up. If I can make this restaurant last for a just one moment longer, that'll be fine."

"That bastard... is he trying to get himself killed?" Patty muttered, slightly worried. Even though Sanji was foul-mouthed and acted like a gangster with a bad attitude, he obviously cared about Zeff and this restaurant more than anything else. And even though they argued with him and shouted at the blond chef, Patty and the others felt the same.

"That stupid little eggplant," Zeff muttered quietly, annoyed. His attention was drawn to the left of his charge where Luffy was standing. The girl's eyes were shadowed under her hat but Zeff could tell from just the curve of her mouth and the shaking of her fists at her sides that she was furious. He didn't know what had pissed her off but she was obviously gearing up for another round for which he was thankful.

"Yet another refined speech," Pearl mocked, spreading his arms out as he gestured to the restaurant around them. "But now, this restaurant will be out of business. From now on, it will be a pirate ship!"

"THAT... IS... IT!" Everyone's attention was drawn to Luffy, a little shocked by the absolutely livid expression on the girl's face. She just let out another scream of anger and kicked her right foot straight up into the air, her skirt flaring up and revealing the small black short-shorts that Nami had insisted the girl wear after her first day at the Baratie.

Sanji averted his eyes, his face a bright red and this time, the small bit of blood dripping from his nose wasn't from an injury. It took him a few seconds to compose himself and realize what it was that Luffy was doing.

"NO! Luffyko-chan! What are you doing?! IF YOU ATTACK THEN GIN WILL KILL THE OLD GEEZER!"

The others just stared at Luffy, surprised. "What's that girl thinking?"

When Luffy's foot wouldn't stretch any higher she tore her gaze from it and glared down at the wooden fin beneath her feet.

"GUM GUM... AXE!" Her foot began to retract, building up speed as it raced back towards the deck and Luffy slammed it angrily into the floor beneath her, cracking the fin and sending water everywhere.

Water rained down on the deck, a part of the aftereffects from Luffy's strike. Luffy continued to kneel, one hand digging into her bent knee as she glared down at the cracked portion of the deck beneath her. Sanji just stared at the small girl in front of him, the rocking of the deck piece he was on forcing him to sit down heavily. Gin couldn't take his eyes from the raven-haired girl, the shotgun in his hand shaking slightly as he gaped at her. The girl was crazy, absolutely nuts. Even back then, when she had smiled as she talked about the Grand Line, he had known she was crazy even back then. Why was he even surprised anymore?!

Underneath the heel of Gin's boot, Zeff smirked slightly. The lass had guts, he had to give her that. Maybe destroying the outer part of the fin would talk some sense into his idiotic, self-sacrificing protege. Zeff could only hope.

Across the gap on the destroyed galleon, Krieg was less than happy.

"The fin... The Fin is destroyed!?" The large wooden fin had been split into five pieces of varying sizes. The cracks in the wood all traced back to a central gap where Luffy's attack had connected with the deck, the girl in question kneeling mere inches from the edge of her broken section.

Luffy just smirked at Krieg's furious tone, her eyes hidden by the brim of her straw-hat. She slowly pushed herself completely to her feet, still staring down at the wood beneath her feet.

"That bitch... Is she planning to destroy MY ship?!" Krieg ground his teeth together before jabbing his finger towards Gin.

"Gin! Blow his head off!"

The brunette flinched back slightly, his eyes widening as he glanced between his captain and the man held hostage beneath him.

"Hurry up!" Krieg snapped, seeing his subordinate's hesitation.

"B... But... He's the one who gave us enough to feed our men!" Gin's voice wavered slightly and he sighed, looking slightly downcast. His quiet words only seemed to anger Krieg further.

"Gin, you bastard." He snarled, furious. When had his trusted lieutenant become so soft-hearted.

"I wasn't fighting back at you." Luffy's words caused everyone's attention to turn to the raven-haired girl as she calmly turned to look at Krieg with a relaxed expression on her face. "I only destroyed the fin."

The calm and almost reprimanding expression on the girl's face seemed to infuriate Don Krieg even more as veins of anger began to appear on the man's forehead. His teeth ground together and he looked about ready to blow a gasket.

Sanji didn't appear to be very pleased either. "Luffyko-chan!" He snapped, his voice taking on a slightly harsh tone. He had never really raised his voice to a woman before but this girl was actually starting to frustrating him. "What are you trying to do?! Do you have any idea what you've already done?!"

"I'm gonna sink it." she said, as if it was obvious.

"What?!" Sanji couldn't believe what he had heard. Was she serious?

Luffy turned away from Krieg to glance over at Sanji, fixing the chef with a determined expression.

"I'm going to sink the ship." She repeated.

Her words caused the chefs in the water to stare at her in shock, as if they couldn't believe what she had just said. Even Krieg's pirates were surprised by her words, many watching her with fear in their eyes.

"Are you joking?!" They shouted, some of them even waving their fists in her direction. This girl was crazy! First she had taken Pearl's hit in an effort to defend the restaurant and now she was trying to destroy it herself!

Sanji shook himself out of his shock and forced himself to his feet before running over to where Luffy stood, rocking slightly on the broken pieces of deck as he moved.

"Luffyko-chan! I thought you were gonna say something else!" He grabbed the girl's shoulders, shaking her slightly as he continued. "No, what were you thinking? You can't sink this ship!"

"But if I destroy the ship, they can't get what they want." Luffy just watched Sanji calmly, appearing unconcerned even as Sanji's grip on her shoulders tightened.

Unnoticed by the both of them, Zeff smirked, his chest swelling with appreciation for the she-pirate.

"And what do you know about this!?" Sanji snapped, letting go of Luffy and shoving her back slightly. His anger was overriding his normal doting demeanor and, staring at Luffy, he no longer saw a woman to fawn over but an infuriatingly stubborn pirate who was bent on driving him nuts.

"What do you know about the immensity of my debt to this place?!"

Luffy just crossed her arms over her chest and glared at the fuming blond chef in front of her. "So you're going to die for a crummy old restaurant? Are you stupid?"

Luffy's words caused Sanji to grind his teeth together and he stared at the small girl in shock. "What did you say?"

The raven-haired girl uncrossed her arms and took a few steps forward before shoving Sanji in the chest, sending the chef back a few steps.

"It's not about death!" She growled, shoving him again, her face contorted in anger. "Dying isn't paying him back! That's not what he put his life on the line for!"

Her words caused Sanji to flinch slightly, as if he'd been slapped and Luffy continued, jabbing a finger into the center of the blond's chest.

"He saved you so that you could live, yet you want to die!? Only a weak person would act like that! You idiot!"

Sanji gaped at the tiny girl glaring up at him, his own words drying up in his throat as hers echoed in his mind, running circles through his head. He almost couldn't believe that this was the same person he had spent the past week with. Luffyko had always acted happy; she was energetic and even a bit naïve but Sanji had thought that she was adorable. This woman in front of him was different though. She was strong, passionate, and frustratingly stubborn. Sanji would almost find her beautiful if she wasn't getting in his way.

Sanji had always respected women. They were beautiful and delicate creatures that deserved to be worshiped like the jewels that they were. Their intelligence and poise made each one unique and Sanji had always loved getting to know each and every woman that came through the Baratie, doting on them in an effort to show that they were appreciated. But Luffyko-chan was the first woman to actually frustrate him and that left him speechless.

Gin watched Luffy and Sanji argue, his gaze focused more on the she-pirate. He was almost as enthralled as Sanji, the girl's determination and self-confidence causing him to admit to himself that he respected the small girl. He glanced down at the middle-aged man that he was holding hostage and frowned, knowing that he couldn't bring himself to shoot the defenseless man. The girl, Luffy, deserved more than that. He would take care of this himself.

"Oh, both of you. Stop arguing." Sanji turned his gaze from Luffy's still frowning face to glare over at the annoying shield-man that Luffy had knocked out earlier. Apparently, he had decided that he hadn't had enough.

"Fighting amongst yourselves at a moment like this is just laughable," Pearl smirked, forcing himself to his feet and flapping his hand dismissively in their direction. "But, regardless, you can't do anything now because we have a hostage in our hands."

Sanji cursed under his breath, knowing that he was right and Luffy just stared at the shield-man, looking slightly annoyed.

"How unfortunate for you that you had to face us, the Don Krieg Pirates."

Gin's finger twitched against the trigger of the shotgun at Pearl's words, his eyes shadowed by his gray and blue headband even as the other man began to laugh.

"Now let my Fire Pearls, Burn you down!" Pearl slammed the two shields on his hands together, covering them in the odd blue flames before he charged towards Luffy and Sanji.

Gin's shotgun clattered to the ground next to Zeff's head, startling the middle-aged man slightly as Gin disappeared from his place behind the Head Chef. Before Luffy or Sanji could move or even think to counter attack Pearl's approaching attack, a blur shot between them, shoving the two teens to the side as it charged towards Pearl. As Luffy stumbled to the side she noticed Gin approaching the shield-man, two baton shaped weapons with metal balls the size of cannonballs at the end gripped in his hands.

Gin ducked under Pearl's attack and slammed the cannonball shaped end of the weapon into the center of the large shield on the odd man's chest, completely shattering it with one strike.

"Gin!" Sanji's eyes widened with surprise at the brunette's move.

"Why? Gin..." Pearl mumbled, falling to his knees as the air was forced from his lungs. The large man couldn't believe that his crew-mate had attacked him, especially Gin.

"Sorry, Pearl." Gin slid his eyes to the side to take in his, now unconscious teammate, and muttered quietly. "Just stand aside." The brunette didn't even flinch as Pearl crashed to the ground, his eyes returning to staring straight ahead.

"Gin." Krieg growled, his whole body almost vibrating with anger. "You're betraying me?"

"Forgive me, Don Krieg." Gin said, bowing his head slightly in a sign of respect. "This person saved us. I don't want him to die like this. At least..."

Gin turned back to face Sanji, resting the ball of one of his Tonga weapons against his shoulder. "At least... Let me finish him with my own hands."

His calm words and relaxed demeanor shocked Sanji and the others around him but Krieg just sighed in resignation.

"That's just great." He remarked. "My pirate fleet 'Battle commanding officer' has completely lost his marbles."

Ignoring the odd words of the brunette pirate, Patty and Carne made their way across the broken pieces of wooden deck towards where Zeff was slowly forcing himself up into a sitting position.

"Owner, are you ok?" Carne asked, kneeling next to Zeff and placing a supporting hand against the middle-aged man's back.

Patty's words were less kind. "Owner, get a grip on yourself!"

Sanji glanced back at the three chefs, his lips twitching in a small smirk. He was glad that Zeff seemed to be ok, but there were more pressing matters that demanded his attention. Speaking of which...

"Battle commanding officer-" Sanji muttered, his words drawing the attention of Zeff and the others.

"So he's not a regular crewman." Patty gulped, a little afraid because he had been the one to deny the brunette food and kick him out of the restaurant.

"Yeah," Carne remarked. "He broke the shield of the Iron Wall Man. What a frightening power!"

Luffy sighed slightly, looking frustrated at the new turn of events. Gin saved Sanji from Pearl so that he could kill him instead because Sanji deserves to die against a real opponent and Gin is the only opponent that has that right... It was all making her head spin. Still...

"It looks like my decoy strategy to get Gin to release the old man worked." Luffy giggled, placing her hands on her hips and grinning widely.

"I thought you wanted to destroy the ship?!"

"Hmmm..." Luffy brought a finger to her forehead and tilted her head in a show of thinking about it. "If that's what would have saved everybody than yes."

Sanji opened his mouth to argue back with her but was interrupted by Gin calling his name.

"I wanted you to get off this ship so that I wouldn't have to hurt you," The pirate said calmly. "But, it doesn't look like that's gonna happen."

"Yeah. I won't go," Sanji agreed, shrugging his shoulders. "This restaurant, I won't give it to you even if it costs my life."

"Then at least, let me kill you with my own hands. I can't make this right or wrong."

"Thanks," Sanji snorted, lighting another cigarette. "Eat shit."

Gin turned to look over at Luffy. "The same goes for you, Straw-hat girl."

"Not necessary," Luffy said, looking completely uninterested. "Because I won't lose to a bunch of weaklings like you." Luffy's words were said without a hint of inflection, as if she was stating a fact or talking about the color of the sky.

Gin clenched his teeth at the insult, not believing that the girl had dared to say those words with such an indifferent air. Gin wasn't the only one in shock. The rest of the Krieg pirates were absolutely furious that the small girl had dared to insult their Second-in-command to his face.

"You little bitch!"

"How dare you talk to our commander like that?!"

"Calling him weak to his face!"

"We are the Don Krieg Pirates! The strongest in East Blue!"

Luffy's brow furrowed slightly in confusion and she crossed her arms over her chest before tilting her head to the side. "Don't you mean, the ones with the most people?"

That did it! Luffy's words had completely destroyed what pride the Don Krieg pirates had left and they were absolutely furious.

Sanji snorted. "Looks like you hit 'em where it hurts."

Luffy giggled and stuck out her tongue at some of the pirates shaking their fists in her direction. "I guess so."

"We'll kill this bitch ourselves!" They shouted, pushing themselves up onto the wooden planks and charging the raven-haired girl.

"BACK OFF!" Krieg's crew halted at the angry shout, some of them flinching as they all turned to look at their captain with varying levels of shock.

"Don Krieg!"

"But-"

Krieg stood up from his spot on the deck of his ruined galleon and crossed his arms over his chest, addressing his men calmly. "When a guy gets flustered because someone calls him weak, it's proof that he recognizes he IS weak."

Don Krieg sat back down heavily and rested his hands against his knees before continuing. "Let the outcome determine the weak and the strong. I'm still here. So don't make a fuss."

"Aye!" The crew shouted, grinning happily, Luffy's previous sleight against them completely forgotten.

"Gin. You're responsible for killing that cook." Krieg ordered, turning his attention away from his commander and the blond chef to glare at the raven-haired girl.

"As for the insolent, little bitch." Don Krieg smirked slightly. "Leave her to me. I have plans for breaking her before I make her our new crew mate." Sanji's frown deepened and his eyes narrowed at Don Krieg's tone. He didn't really want to let that asshole anywhere near Luffyko-chan but it would be difficult if Gin really was serious about trying to kill him. Even just watching the man move, Sanji knew that the brunette would be a difficult fight.

"I understand, Don Krieg." Gin conceded, nodding to his captain before turning back to face Sanji.

Luffy glanced over at Sanji calmly, appearing completely unruffled by Don Krieg and Gin's words as she watched the blond chef take a drag of his freshly lit cigarette.

"Little girl!" Luffy's attention was pulled back to Krieg and the purple-haired pirate captain fixed the girl with a serious look. "I'll show you the power that conquered East Blue. I don't care if you've eaten a devil fruit. You will come to understand such a thing is meaningless against me." He would teach her easily. Devil fruit or no, the girl was small and thin and he had his battle armor on. The raven-haired bitch stood no chance against him and after he proved that, he would take great pleasure in breaking her. By the time Don Krieg was done with her, she would be an obedient little weapon.

As Krieg talked, Luffy's calm expression began to harden into one of annoyance. Finally, having had enough, she scoffed and shook her head. "You never shut up. I want to kick your ass. That's it."

Krieg's own expression darkened and seeing this, Luffy smirked, her expression sarcastic and yet still excited. "Shall we start now? You just wait right there for me."

"You arrogant..." Krieg was beyond furious now and he gritted his teeth, thinking of all the ways that he could break the raven-haired girl grinning cockily at him. The pirate captain was distracted in his musings by the tense atmosphere coming from his battle commander and the blond chef.

The two combatants were locked in a staring contest, neither one willing to break eye contact first even as the atmosphere grew thicker with each passing second. The Krieg pirates in the water watched the brewing tension with wide eyes and grins on their faces. They knew full well that the thuggish blond cook stood no chance against their vice commander.

"That guy can't tell strong from weak," one pirate laughed, already feeling victorious. "This time that cook will be finished!"

"Yeah," another agreed, nodding his head. "If Gin takes out that weapon- he's serious!"

Gin removed the tonfa from his shoulder and began to spin it by the handle, the ball at the end forming a perfect circle as he picked up speed. Soon, the weapon was spinning so fast you could barely see the individual features of the baton and still Gin continued to spin. His eyes were narrowed in a look of pure concentration, his gaze dark and menacing.

This was going to be a rough fight and Sanji knew it. His eyes never left the other man's face even as he prepared himself mentally. Gin had managed to destroy Pearl's shield with one hit, that alone proved that the brunette pirate's strength was above Sanji's. He himself had not been able to land a single scratch on the large shield, but Sanji also had his speed to factor in.

"They call him the Devil-man." Sanji heard the Krieg pirates continue to talk and couldn't help but listen in even as he tried to stay focused on the opponent in front of him. "No matter how much his opponent pleased for mercy, he would always kill him without any hesitation. A Devil-man. A human with no feelings."

Sanji let all emotion fade from his face, putting on his mask of calm indifference even as he began to tense. Gin's expression was slightly unnerving, nothing like the weak and pleading man he had been the first time that Sanji encountered him. Now... now he was deadly.

"I'm sorry, Sanji." Gin finally said, his tonfa spinning faster and faster. "You can't defeat me."

"I guess we'll see, small fry." Sanji was baiting Gin with the casual way he said it but he couldn't really help himself.

Gin's leg muscles tensed and he leaned forward, his eyes half shadowed by his headband as he prepared to attack. Sanji felt his eyes widen slightly in shock as the brunette began to charge him and he quickly raised one leg in preparation of a counterattack.

'Here we go.'

Zoro sighed and leaned back against the wooden plank that made up the bow of Johnny and Yosaku's small ship. The wounds he had received in his duel with Mihawk throbbed and burned under the bandages but Zoro could hardly feel them, his gaze and attention on the horizon behind them. Johnny told him that he had been unconscious for a while and that he and Usopp had sent Yosaku back to report to Big sis Luffyko once they realized where Nami had taken the Going Merry. The fight at the Baratie was probably in full swing, if not completely over by now, and that thought left Zoro feeling irritated. One of his hands slid along the sheathe of Wado, the sword propped up against his shoulder, as he subconsciously tried to soothe himself.

At that moment, Johnny stepped calmly from the small cabin in the center of the boat. His eyes flickered over Usopp, who was sleeping on one of the side passages that led to the back of the boat, before he turned his gaze to Zoro. Honestly, Johnny was amazed that Big Bro Zoro was still alive, let alone sitting up and appearing as if he wasn't even in pain, but the stark white bandages across the man's chest attested to the fact that he was far more injured than he appeared. The bounty hunter sighed when he took in the pirate-hunter slowly sliding his thumb across his beloved sword, even as the man's steel gray eyes stayed focused on the path they had come from.

Johnny kinda wanted to tease the green-haired swordsman about how worried he appeared, knowing that a certain raven-haired girl was occupying the other man's thoughts, but thought better of it. He had been on the receiving end of Big bro Zoro's anger when it came to Big sis Luffyko and he didn't need the swordsman reopening the wounds he and Usopp had barely managed to get under control.

Still...

"You know, Big sis Luffyko will be fine." He said, a small note of teasing entering his voice.

Zoro jerked slightly at the sound of Johnny's voice and the bounty hunter watched, amused, as the swordsman blinked a few times before focusing in on the dark-haired man standing in front of him.

"I know that." He grumbled, glaring up at Johnny as the hand holding Wado tightened slightly. "Luffy can handle herself."

"It seems like there's a 'but' there..." Johnny prodded, moving to take a seat in front of the green-haired teen and holding out a bottle of sake as a peace offering. Zoro smirked slightly and took the proffered bottle, immediately chugging down a large portion of the bitter alcohol.

Johnny waited a few seconds for Zoro to reply and when the other man didn't, he sighed. He shouldn't really be all that surprised, Zoro had never been the most open person to begin with. Hell, it had taken months for Johnny and Yosaku to learn that the green hair was natural and even longer to learn Zoro's age and birthday. Even now, neither bounty hunter knew the story of their big brother's prized white sword, they only knew that it was his most important possession.

'Big-sis Luffyko's probably a close second now, though.' Johnny grinned slightly even as he watched Zoro turn his attention back towards the horizon.

His own thoughts drifted back to his and Yosaku's first day on the Going Merry. Johnny hadn't believed it at first but after just a few hours of watching his big bro, it was easy to see how much the small she-pirate meant to him. When Yosaku had awoken again, Johnny had told him about his hunch but the other bounty hunter hadn't believed him at first.

"No way. This is Big bro Zoro we're talking about. The only thing that he cares for is booze and sleep." Yosaku shook his head and grinned at his partner. "That, and beating Hawk-Eyes."

Johnny shrugged good-naturedly, not disputing Yosaku's words but wagged one finger in the air in front of him. "True, but you haven't seen what I have. Big-sis Luffyko's got Big-bro wrapped around her finger and she doesn't even know it. C'mon, I'll show you."

Yosaku sighed and glanced around the small storage room. "It's past midnight, Johnny. They're probably asleep!"

"Nope!," Johnny grinned, looking triumphant. "Big-sis Luffyko had first watch tonight and Big-bro Zoro has second so he's probably still awake so he can keep an eye on her."

"Or he's just drinking." Yosaku argued.

Johnny waved off his partner's protests and dragged the half-complaining man out of his bed and towards the storage door. With a gesture to be silent, the bounty hunter cracked the wooden door to the deck and peeked out. A smirk appeared on his face almost instantly at the scene that greeted him and he yanked Yosaku forward so that the other man could see.

Zoro stood on the upper deck of the ship, near the galley, appearing completely bored with one hand shoved in his pocket. His other hand, however, was being held by Luffy as the raven-haired girl stood on the railing of the ship, walking slowly along it as if she was on a balance beam. Johnny could barely make out the outline of a glass bottle in the girl's other hand which he assumed was some kind of alcohol.

Luffy giggled happily and spun to face Zoro, grinning down at the green-haired teen, her cheeks flushed from the drink.

"Zoro, look! The moon's smiling!" She wobbled slightly and Zoro removed his hand from his pocket to brace it against her waist.

"Idiot, be careful Lu." He shook his head with a sigh and smirked slightly. "No more alcohol for you. I should've known you had no tolerance for it."

Luffy just giggled again and shook the bottle playfully. "This stuff tastes weird. How can Zoro drink it all the time?"

"I'm used to it."

"So, what does Zoro think the moon looks like? Maybe a banana... or a crazy white mustache!"

Zoro rolled his eyes and grabbed the bottle from the she-pirate before downing the rest of the alcohol in just a few gulps.

"The moon's just the moon, Lu. You're just imagining things. Like when you see pictures in the clouds."

Luffy pouted slightly and stuck out her tongue. "Boo, that's no fun."

The she-pirate hopped down from the railing but Johnny noticed that Zoro didn't remove his hand from her hip or release his hold on her hand once she was back on solid ground. In the bounty hunter's opinion, the swordsman's hold was quite possessive.

Luffy didn't seem to notice, however, and instead smiled up at her first mate, bouncing slightly from foot to foot as she stared into steel-gray eyes. They stood in a comfortable silence for a few minutes, content just to stare at each other, before Zoro finally opened his mouth and spoke.

"Your smile..."

"Hmm?" Luffy tilted her head at the soft words and Zoro glanced away, embarrassed, before clearing his throat.

"You said the moon looks like it's smiling. But your smile is brighter than the moon's. You smile like the sun, Lu."

The raven-haired girl smiled even wider and Zoro returned it with a soft one of his own.

"Zoro's so silly," she laughed, rubbing one finger under her nose in embarrassment. "Even if Nami calls you a brute and Usopp says you're scary, Zoro's just a softie, isn't he? You should smile too. I love Zoro's smile."

Zoro flushed slightly under the praise and Johnny chuckled as the green-haired swordsman turned away from his captain before bringing the hand that had been resting against her waist up to ruffle at her hair.

"Zoro!"

Johnny chuckled slightly, causing Zoro to glance at him funny as he remembered that night. He and Yosaku had stayed to watch for a bit longer but had quickly scurried back to the hammock room at the end of first watch. They didn't want Big sis Luffyko, or especially Big bro Zoro, to catch them spying. It had taken a few more days of pointing out little moments between the she-pirate and her first-mate but in the end, it was watching Big sis Luffyko curl up next to Zoro during one of the swordsman's afternoon naps that had finally convinced the second bounty hunter that the green-haired teen was in love with the small girl. Yosaku had never seen Zoro allow anyone so close to him while he was asleep and at the same time, the swordsman had seemed to relax even further when the girl was within arms distance. The former bounty hunter had seemed happier and more open in the past few days than he had been in their years of traveling with him.

Johnny followed Zoro's gaze to the horizon behind them and he frowned slightly. 'Be safe Yosaku... Big sis Luffyko.'

I had a bit of trouble deciding how to end this chapter but I think I'm satisfied with how it turned out. I hope you guys enjoyed it!

My reasoning for having Luffy stand up to Pearl and Gin instead of Sanji was that she knew that she could take a blunt hit without it really causing any damage thanks to the fact that she is rubber plus she was still trying to think of a way to get Gin to point the gun away from Zeff. At the same time, she wanted to protect the restaurant because it was important to Sanji. However, once she learned that the chef was willing to die for it her opinion changed. In Luffy's mind, nothing is more important than staying alive, like Ace said after Sabo "died". Repaying someone by dying for an object goes against what she believes. Luffy knows that Zeff wouldn't want that and it pisses her off that Sanji doesn't see that.

Anyway, let me know what you guys think! Reviews are motivating and I love getting advice from you guys. I try to incorporate as many ideas from you guys as I can so keep 'em coming!

Til next chapter guys!