One Piece:

Theme: #36 – Precious Treasure
Pairing: ZoroxNami
Rating: K


The night lay thick on the horizon, he noticed, as he stared upward at the sky. Once again, he had chosen to slumber on the Thousand Sunny's deck. Only when he awakened did he discover what a poor choice it was. The harsh winds made him question if a blizzard was heading in their direction. He knew Nami would have mentioned it to the crew, so he truly had nothing to fear. However, it seemed nature was questioning her skill that eve.

Taking in a deep breath, he drank in the scene above his head. The stars were always so bright at a certain time in the night, and by sleeping on the deck, he was able to see them every so often. Though known as a man of carnage, he sincerely appreciated having such a soothing atmosphere cloak him so gently. It was what probably made sleeping during the night so interesting. Considering how he shouldn't need to, after all the naps he tended to have in a day.

"What are you doing out here so late?"

The moment her voice was heard, he knew where it came from and who owned the melody. His eyes rolled back a bit more, and then he met the sight of two chocolate orbs. She was leaning over the railing of the upper deck, that one long strand of orange locks dangling against her cheek. She giggled and began to walk down the stairs; he could hear her bare feet, surprisingly. Feeling as if he had been caught doing something inappropriate, he jumped to sit properly. His eyes stared hard at the bottom of the stairs as he waited for her arrival, "I was sleeping. What…are you doing out here at this time?"

"I decided to check if you were here. I can see that I was right to guess you were sleeping without any blankets or a coat. How can you enjoy sleeping in the cold like this? Is this another training tactic of yours?" She asked each question with a different emotion. It amazed him how each sound she made also accommodated her movement, until she sat at his side, "Nice sky though, right?"

"Yeah…" He couldn't help but feel like a child; it was his night sky, not hers to enjoy, "So why are you really out here?"

"Zoro, I got a question for you." She stated as her head dropped to stare at her joined hands.

"Answer mine first!" He exclaimed.

"What do you think it would be like if we never met?"

The question blew him away. It was so random, and required too much of him in the middle of the night. She looked dead serious from the profile he could make out of her. Though her eyebrows were not knit and her lips weren't creased into a frown, the gleam of her eyes made her look as if she was more mature then he knew her to be.

"What…kinda question is that?" Was all he could say.

"The type of question that I can ask you. What kinda question is that?" She retorted, her usual exterior replacing her uncharacteristic one. It made him calm for a second, before his mind reminded him of the question.

"Who asks that kind of thing? It's stupid to ask about things that never happened."

"What if us meeting never happened?"

"Stop asking me that!"

"Why? Is it bugging you?"

"Of course it is!"

"I was just asking."

"Don't ask something so stupid!"

"It's not stupid; it's a valid question!"

"Who asks a question like this? And in the middle of the night?"

"Me! Now answer!"

"No!"

"Why not?!"

"Because it's a stupid question!"

"You're being stupid for not answering!"

"No, I'm no—"

"Answer or I'll debt you ten million bellis with five hundred percent interest for every second that passes."

"Th-That's ridiculous—"

"One."

"You can't force me to answer something like that!" He huffed heavily. Staring strongly into her eyes, he panted with surprising vigour. She looked at him with the same amount of power, before she lost all emotion in her face and stared blankly.

"I never went to the village where Buggy lived."

"What?"

"I wasn't there to make Luffy meet up with Buggy. I never made you guy's fight his crew."

"Luffy would have fought him, no matter who was there. But—"

"We never crossed paths. You guys never fought Arlong—"

"Nami!"

"What then? What if we never met? What would life be like, Zoro?"

"Why…are…you asking me this? And why are you pushing it so much?" Something was strange about the redhead he sat with; she outwardly appeared to be the picture of perfect health. Her eyes were shining and her skin was its usual creamy tone. Nevertheless, the traits she was acting upon were unlike her. Perhaps she had a nightmare that had to do with separating from them? Or maybe, she dreamt of Arlong… No matter what the reason was, he wasn't happy with her.

"If you answer me, I'll leave already! Just answer me, you idiot!" Yes, her attitude and impatience made him assume that he was correct. He groaned inwardly; he was never one to deal with emotional situations. Females also had a tendency to be overly sentimental. With a past like hers…was there a correct way to answer this question, without lying?

"…Unless you're too stupid to answer." She whispered and crossed her arms with a lazy pout.

"YOU—"

"Fine, fine! Don't answer. Go back to star gazing or whatever it is you do out here at night!" In seconds, she was up the stairs.

"Ack! I don't do that!"

"Shut up!" Somehow, the missing sandals he thought she would have worn collided with his head from above.

Hissing, he roughly rubbed the back of his head and glared down at the 'blunt object' that intended to cause harm upon him. But as he stared, he found himself studying the style and shape of her unique footwear. Almost like a dog he sat, staring at them curiously. It was then he decided to take her challenge of a question.

Alone on the deck, he pondered over her words.

'What do you think it would be like if we never met?'

What did that question entail, really? To look back on his life, like he never had before, and imagine it without her? As he replayed his last thought, he realized how important she must be to him, if he couldn't even imagine not knowing who Nami was. Nevertheless, he tried. Closing his eyes, he focused and meditated. He decided to look back to the very town she had mentioned to him. Picturing his first steps onto the island of that town, he replayed his goal in his mind: to retrieve his captain.

It was then his eyes shot open. How else would that event occurred if she wasn't there?

No, he refused to believe that she was as vital as his mind was proving. She was the navigator of the crew, and nakama to him, but she could not be more then that.

So, he chose another memory. He decided on the time they met Usopp. Exhaling soundlessly, he closed his eyes half way. He realized a second in time: they never would have met Usopp if Nami hadn't directed them to Syrup Village. And they never would have gotten the Going Merry.

That example proved she was incredibly important as the navigator for the Straw Hats. Could he not say to her that he couldn't imagine how his journey with Luffy would have survived without her? Wasn't that answer enough?

Something was telling him that was a foolish wish.

Sighing, he picked up one of her sandals in his right hand and looked it over. He sat there for a large portion of the night, mauling over the troubling question his so called friend had bestowed upon him and him alone.


Nami awoke, with the feeling of a dead woman. She was so exhausted from her trip during the night, and the frightening thoughts she had had. Both mentally and physically wasted, she wondered why she had opened her eyes so soon. Her hand flew to her mouth as she yawned, and small tears gathered in her eyes. Rolling onto her side, she was a bit surprised not to see Robin still in bed. She was curious; what time was it?

Accepting what was before her as a new day, she stood shakily and began to get dressed. It was as she unbuttoned her flannel shirt that reality struck her; she had gone to Zoro with a personal, emotional question last night, had she not? Gasping, she halted her actions. She stood still for a few moments, then gulped and closed her eyes. It would be interesting to see how he reacted to her today, she concluded. But as long as she acted like her typical self, she knew she would be fine.

After slipping on her decided attire, she looked herself over in the mirror, smiled, then walked to the door. Just as she swung it open though, she received a surprise.

"Z-Zoro!" She sounded more alarmed by his presence then shocked.

"I thought I should return these." He sounded lifeless, and looked it too. It took her a few seconds of examining his tired eyes perform she noticed anything else. She tilted her head downward and noticed her pair of orange sandals. Sighing with relief, she grinned. So she had finished the conversation acting normal. How refreshing.

"Good boy." She giggled as she took them in her hands. He growled, but it was a fleeting note as she walked into her room and stored them in her closest.

"By the way," she heard him mumble from her doorway, "I can't imagine what it would be like if I never met you. That's a stupid thing to ask, anyway." The last of his sentence faded out, due to his retreating figure and his low voice volume.

But still, she heard it, and again she froze. In front of her mirror, she happened to be staring at herself. She got to see first hand what it looked like to be caught off guard by a someone's sweet nothings being uttered to her. She did a double take as she could have sworn seeing one side of her lips perk up. However, seconds later, she found the biggest smile spreading across her face. Once she accepted the grin, she ended up giggling at herself.

As they both recalled the last moment they shared, from opposite sides of the ship, they thought unknowingly in unison about how precious memories and times spent together can be. No matter the beating a sore throat you experienced afterward.