Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece. Oda does.
Warning: Angst/Drama story, just a friendly reminder. And unintended OOC, and minor grammar errors (working on those, but some still slip by).
Author's Note: I've been getting really good feedback on this story, so I'm very very grateful for everyone who has read reviewed :) Honestly, I had planned for this to be a one-shot, but after writing the first chapter, I had the idea for the second, and well, it evolved a bit. To address some comments/messages, Zoro's just sort of lost at the moment so it will be some time before he gets back in the story (besides flashbacks I mean), but I pretty much have things set, just need to write them down.
Anyway, thank you so much, and hope you enjoy!
Flashbacks are in italics.
A year and a three months ago...
Former Admiral Kuzan is lazy guy.
He doesn't deny it, never has and never will. In fact, he even revels in it. He was strong and because of his devil fruit, he was practically invincible. But he was still human. And humanity meant a certain amount of fear. He had never feared death, never backed down from any fight. He practiced lazy justice, but that doesn't mean he wasn't up for any battle. But as a human, there was still a certain amount of fear in him.
Today, it was fearing that his lost of fear for death was gone.
He laid on the bed that was custom built for him. He couldn't help his height, it was genetics. His pillows were fluffed, and the windows were open to let the salty air in. He was given breakfast in bed, a hearty one of ham and eggs and freshly baked bread. He was getting spoiled by the woman that was called the devil's child.
"Would you like some more orange juice?" Nico Robin asked, as she gathered the tray from his lap.
"Nah, but maybe some sake."
She smiled, but shook her head "Doctor's orders, Kuzan-san."
He was going to argue against it, when a coughing fit racked his body. Old age. To die of being old, instead of being in the brink of an epic battle.
Somehow, this doesn't seem right.
She set the tray on the floor and sat beside him, rubbing his back. Her stoic face had a only hint of concern, not because she was uncaring, but because she was so used to hiding her emotions. Her hands were small compared to him, but the circular motion on his lower back helped ease the coughs.
"Thank you." he said, settling back down on the fluffy pillows "Maybe some water would be best."
She smiled, picking up the tray before she left, leaving the door open. A green haired fifteen year old came, holding a thick book, smiling widely at him.
"Do you want me to read to you again, Grandpa Kuzan?" He asked, before settling down on a chair beside the bed.
"Of course Saul" he said, patting the boy's head "What volume are we now on?"
The boy named Saul flipped the book so Kuzan could see the title. Rainbow Mist. Volume 9.
"I think we can finish this today and start on the tenth one tomorrow" Saul said, his enthusiasm so addicting that Kuzan couldn't help but smile.
Saul opened the book, and started reading about the adventurers stuck in Ape's consort, while his grandfather listened. Kuzan glanced outside the window. The weather in Tora was really nice.
Kuzan still liked riding his bike, even with his icicle of a leg. But that doesn't mean he didn't enjoy other such luxuries, such as riding the sea train. The Puffing Tom was a marvelous machine, and he always felt this wonderful sense of awe whenever he rode it.
He watched the waves outside as the train pulled out from the port of Water 7. He had no particular destination in mind, but he had heard that the island of Barma had a nice spa.
Something to soothe old and tired bones.
Kuzan was about to fall asleep, when someone tripped on his long limbs. The green haired boy, who looked no older than six years old, fell face down, his book sliding through the end of the car.
"Oh!" Kuzan heard a woman say, as he helped the boy up. He had green hair, and brown eyes, and now, a bruised nose.
A lady knelt down by the boy, assessing his face "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine" The boy said with a smile, then looked straight at Kuzan "I'm sorry I tripped on you, mister."
"It's fine, kid" Kuzan said, slightly taken aback by those big brown eyes. So familiar to him.
The woman gasped, and that's when Kuzan remembered where he last saw those big brown eyes. On a certain eight year old, years ago in a burning island.
"Nico Robin" he said, sounding casual.
Their relationship was a peculiar one. She stopped showing fear of him, that night at Water 7, when she had told him she had found the place where she belonged. The time her bounty increased to 80 million beris. While he kept his eyes on her, like an angel of death, ready to strike her down if need be.
So much has happened since then. The defeat and death of Blackbeard, the success of her captain in becoming the Pirate King, the return to power of a stronger than ever Whitebeard pirates. The shifting times are the only reason why two former enemies now sat in front of each other, drinking fruity drinks, with a green haired boy enthusiastically telling him about the workings of the great sea train.
"Not even the Aqua Laguna can break the tracks!" The boy said, waving his arms in emphasis "They actually built it to go with the flow of water, rather than fight it, so it doesn't snap."
Robin was smiling, watching him. Kuzan, though had a permanent frown, was indeed enjoying the boy's talk.
When he was done talking, he gulped down the rest of his drink and asked to be excused so he can run in the playground, before actually running off, leaving the two adults to their own devices.
"He's very polite" Kuzan said, breaking the silence.
Robin smiled brightly at him "I take that more as a compliment for me, if you don't mind."
He shrugged "It was. How old is he?"
"He's four, a bit tall for his age."
"Ararara, I was taller when I was three."
She chuckled to the back of her hand "I would think so, Aoikiji-san."
"Not an admiral anymore Nico Robin, that title got dropped too."
She nodded "I remember."
He took another sip of his drink. They were right, the island of Barma was nice.
"Where's straw hat? Or should I say Pirate King?"
Robin became thoughtful, her brows furrowed ever so slightly "I think they're currently near Alabasta."
Kuzan did not hide his surprise "Then what are you doing here?"
"Raising my son."
Kuzan looked at her, her face not showing any other emotion than happiness. "Is the swordsman the father?" It was more of a statement.
She chuckled "However did you guess?"
He watched the young boy at the slide, his mop of green hair unkempt and messy. He remembers a girl, a little older than he was, a scruffy, thin thing. He remembers the bruises on her arms, the sand on her face and hair, and her tears stained cheeks. He remembers her snotty nose and her gasping cries.
Such a sad, sad child. Might have been better to kill her then.
He looks back at the woman before him, a face of contentment and serenity. And she looked back at him "Is there something on my face?"
He shook his head, leaning back on his chair "So you live here?"
"No" she pointed to the east "We live in Tora, you need to take a ferry from here to there."
Silence again, but this time, she broke it "How have you been?"
"I've been better" he watched as the boy made quick work of the monkey bars, and ran up to the swing "I've been traveling."
She took a sip of her drink, and he asked "I never got his name."
He looked at her, a smile on her lips.
"His name is Saul."
Saul stopped reading when his mother came in the room. She handed Kuzan a glass of water, while setting the tray with a pitcher filled with more water on the table besides a basket of fresh bananas. She smiled at her son, and sat on the foot of the bed, where a section of his left leg and foot should have been.
"I was thinking about dinner." She said, massaging his right leg "What would you boys want?"
"Sake" Kuzan said, the last time he had it was months ago when the doctor advised him to scale back on the alcohol. Robin took that as sign to eliminate all alcohol.
She gave him a pointed look, giving his leg a pinch.
Saul chuckled "We want to keep you longer, grandpa" he said, setting the book down and climbing up the bed, sitting on the other side of his leg.
"Arara I'm not dying yet, boy" he said, frowning deeply at Saul, who only laughed.
"Yeah, but you're still an old man."
"And old men drink sake!"
They continued their banter, as Robin watched them with a smile on her face. She used to be so apprehensive of him.
Afraid.
"How about sea king curry?" She asked, interrupting their conversation.
"Make it spicy." Kuzan said.
"Alright then." She stood up, fixing his blanket over his form, "I'll just head off to the market, do you need anything else?"
"Oh, can you see if the bookstore received the new books" Saul said, with his wide eyes.
"And get me some sake." Kuzan said, pointing to himself "S-A-K-E."
Robin chuckled, leaving the two of them.
"She's not getting you sake, grandpa" Saul said, picking up the book. But instead of moving to the chair, he sat where his mother was sitting earlier, tucking his feet in under him. Kuzan was still amazed at how much he looked like the green haired swordsman, only inheriting Robin's brown eyes. But he was glad that he grew up to be a smart kid. He leaned back and closed his eyes, listening to the continuation of the story.
"Come on Saul, fix your form." Kuzan said, brandishing a shinai. It has been two years since he moved in their guest room, a customized longer bed made for him.
The seven year old in front of him was panting heavily, using his shinai to lean on the ground "But I'm tired grandpa!"
Kuzan knocked the shinai, toppling the boy to the ground. But he didn't cry. Saul never cries, much to Kuzan's pride, even if he was being beaten badly by a former marine admiral.
Saul stood up from the ground, dusting himself with his hands. "Why do I have to study the sword anyway? Can't I just shoot things like Sogeking?"
They heard chuckling from his mother, who had been reading a book under a tree.
"Well it's true!" Saul said emphatically "That way I won't get hurt and I'll be able to sneak off! I don't like getting in fights anyway!"
Kuzan pinched his cheek "Don't be cowardly, brat!"
"Being non-confrontational doesn't mean being cowardly, old man!"
He definitely had Robin's brain, much to Kuzan's relief. "If you want to travel, you better be knowledgeable in several weapons."
"Then I want to learn how to use a slingshot!"
And, from what he learned of the Strawhat pirates, both of his parents' stubbornness. He could see Robin tense up, she was about to stop the training.
But Kuzan wasn't about to give up.
"How about this" Kuzan said, crouching down so he was lower, but because of his height, still wasn't face to face with the already tall boy "If you continue your training, without any complaints, I'll get you a book every week."
Saul's eyes widened "Every week?"
Kuzan nodded "Every week, you get a new thick book, and it can be on any age appropriate subject." He added the last bit remembering the wrath he faced in the form of several Robins when he accidentally brought home a book for Saul. He hadn't checked the contents, and only found the title Kama Sutra funny. Good thing Saul had only read the foreword.
Saul became thoughtful, then nodded slowly "Okay, grandpa." he said.
He assumed the proper form "I'm ready."
That night, a sore Saul went straight to bed, too tired to even complain about having to go to sleep early without finishing a chapter of his new book. Kuzan sat outside looking at the stars, and Robin sat beside him, offering him a cup of sake, which he took gratefully.
"He can learn to be a sniper, you know" she said, while looking up at the stars "He doesn't have to be a swordsman."
"His father is a swordsman" Kuzan said, after downing his sake "Would be a waste to not hone his natural talent."
"Just because his father is a swordsman, doesn't mean he has to be one."
Kuzan looked down at Robin. She sat beside him, hugging her knees to her chest, eyes focused on the stars. He was so tall, and she looked small besides him.
"Your mother was an archeologist, that didn't mean you had to be one."
He felt a slap on the back of his head, from a phantom limb that disappeared in a flurry of petals.
"Not the same thing."
"Arara, I think you mean not the same extremes." He patted her head, something he found himself doing ever since he started living with them. At first, she would flinch, but like him, she grew accustomed to it. "Then how about the long nosed sniper and the red hair's Yassop? Or that cyborg and the fishman?"
Robin kept quiet.
"Saul is still his son" Kuzan said, he stopped patting her head, just kept his hand on it.
Kuzan was right. Saul had grown to be quite an adept swordsman, albeit he still devoted more time to studying and reading. It was only a year and a half after those backyard training sessions when they had to find a proper sensei for Saul, since his skill had grown from the basics that Kuzan knew. Saul might never be the greatest swordsman in the world, but he would prove to be a great opponent.
"Hey grandpa" Saul said, prompting the older man to open his eyes.
He was surprised when the teenager hugged him. "I wasn't sure if you were breathing and thought you had died." And his mother's morbidity.
He heard the kid sniffle, and his eyes widened in utter surprise.
Saul was crying.
End of Part 4.
To someone Walang anuman! Salamat din ulit!
To Ryoko aww don't cry, happy memories are coming, happy memories :)
To Thank you so much for the review! I'm glad that you think I'm keeping them in their personalities, I've been so afraid that I might be making them a bit too OOC.
To Pentastic Let's just say they would meet earlier if Zoro just realizes North doesn't mean Up. Oh, and yes, I do think that in the series itself, Zoro would not be the one to leave, ever. He's the most loyal crew mate, so his abandoning is really just a dramatic thing. About the Nami thing, well in a few chapters :)
To Seis Fleur Yes you deserve it! You, and about two more writers, actually had me writing fanfics again. I was so fine with just keeping ideas to myself, but nooo I had to start posting them because yours were so good! And Kuzan, yup I like him too, as evidenced by this chapter. He's a pretty cool guy (plus helped launch Zorobin further into possible canon with his first encounter with the Strawhats).
And to the 2 guest anons, thank you! I'm glad you're enjoying it, as much as I'm enjoying writing it!
Also I'm currently facing a busy week, so the next update will be sometime next week . Apologies!