Sanji and Zoro sprinted, leaping simultaneously off the ship's edge and onto the back of the beast.
Before Zoro could slash it, the creature had dived into the sea with great force, forcing him and Sanji to hold onto its bony appendages. Luffy had thankfully bounced back to the ship, he was still beaming.
"HoooOoooOo! That was close!" He exclaimed, tilting his treasured straw hat.
Sanji and Zoro held their breath, as they endured the wettest rollercoaster of their lifetime.
The massive and serpentine sea king resurfaced, sporting two significantly more drenched competitors. It followed up with an attempt to take a bite out of the Sunny. Sanji, still dripping with saltwater responded with a massive blow aimed at its head. The sea-king flailed, sending enormous splats in every direction but still not able to rid itself of the humans persistently thrashing it and holding onto its body.
"Franky!" The Navigator barked.
"Already on it." He initiated the coup de burst they needed to avoid being flipped over by the beast.
Time to end this ugly thing. Zoro muttered, doing his best not to slip, he was eager to finally use his blades to draw some blood for a change. A powerful HYAKUHACHI POUND HO! Later, the water around the beast sported a dancing red cloud.
"Oi Marimo! Did you just KILL the thing?"
"Nah, that would be heartless. And too easy."
"As opposed to this…" Sanji said judgingly, then hopped back into the sea to swim back to the Sunny.
The bandana clad party did the same.
Maybe… Maybe this isn't the end of everything. Sanji contemplated as he climbed back on the main deck. His crewmates were watching the Sea King, still eyeing them carefully from a distance and at them with contempt. It accepted that this ship was not going to be its late lunch. Zoro and his katana made it back onboard right as it dove away again. I've never seen a monster look so annoyed before Usopp narrowed his eyes while he mumbled under his breath.
"Oi… Marimo. If I promise to stop calling you names…"
Zoro was panting from exertion, he produced an attentive albeit still annoyed look at Sanji.
Will you leave Robin-chwan alone?"
"LIKE HELL! WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU!"
Robin couldn't resist chuckling affectionately in the distance.
Her sensual voice only seemed to rub the saltwater deeper into Sanji's figurative wound, so went for Zoro's flanks, but wound up with a throbbing blow to his mid-section.
He bent over in pain…
"BAsTARRRRDD!"
He threw a successful kick, soggier than previous ones, at Zoro's outer thigh. The swordsman, in his exhaustion could not angle his sword well enough in time to dodge Sanji. He did manage to nick Sanji's trouser leg however, leaving a red slit in the man's calf.
"What if we split her affection?" Sanji struggled to breathe properly, shit… the blow earlier must've hit my lung. He winced.
"Split her af- ? HOW MUCH SEA-WATER DID YOU JUST GULP DOWN? GIVE IT UP ALREADY.." Zoro roared.
Sanji fell to his knees, his tears pouring waterfalls.
AFTER THE LIVING HELL OF DEFENDING MY GENDER FOR TWO YEARS…"
He lifted his head.
ROBIN-CHWAN ? WITH AH….. WITH … I… WITH…."
His eyes were glassy with shock and exhaustion.
This idiot Marimo... Ha—HasHas a girlfriend… Before me…"
He slammed his fist into the floorboards of the ship repeatedly. "THIS HAS TO BE A BAD DREAM." Sanji hunched over, resembling a desolate man deep in prayer.
UHUHULHUHLUHUH huh-HAaaaAaaAAAhH"
"Are you sobbing?" Usopp, Luffy and Nami asked blankly, in chorus.
After a second Sanji lifted himself off the ground slowly… Corpselike in demeanor.
His glistening cheeks snapped straight into a frown.
THESE ARE TEARS OF RAGE!"
He leapt into the air one more time.
FLAAAAAAMBAGE… SHOT"
He warmed up a hot whirlwind serving of Diable Jamble on the spot. His body a flaming tornado by the time he leapt at the swordsman. Sanji's mentioned so-called fury exploded into his legs, causing them to turn bright orange as he spun performing a combo kick.
Zoro's defenses had once more been insufficient, he received several hot servings of foot to the chest, one burning smack to the cheek, and fell backwards. Collective concern spread across the other straw-hats as Sanji was readying another attack. Luckily Zoro managed to roll away and get back on his feet before getting trampled. Sanji lit yet another cigarette.
Sporting his light burns as motivation, Zoro hadn't given up yet. He was only getting more miffed.
"Actually…" Sanji said.
"This is my own fault." The cook was significantly calmer, as if he'd deposited all his frustration in the blows he dealt earlier.
His back was turned to Zoro, who was not letting his guard down. Roughly two years ago he would have been seething. Before Mihawk drilling the importance of emotional control into his head, he would have lunged right at his opponent.
Instead, did his best to calm down and focus. If nothing else, his companions would have evidence of his personal growth before them. Most significantly, Robin would have evidence.
"I should've known there was something going on…" Sanji spun around to stare Roronoa in the face and walk toward him slowly.
"Maybe this isn't obvious to a narcoleptic caveman such as yourself!"
"But when the flower of a woman's spirit is caught in the whirlwind of love, she undergoes subtle spiritual~~~ and ~~~ PHYSICAL~~~CHANGES!"
He performed a swirly dance towards the object of his affection.
"'~~ROBIN-CHWANNnN, I KNEW YOU'D BEEN LOOKING EXTRA BEAUTIFUL LATELYyy~~"
"Oi..." Zoro called out.
Sanji whipped around, switching over from amour toujours to a frown.
Mr. Santoryu was smiling, but to call his expression a well-intentioned one would be inaccurate. He raised his voice through the pain of a battered chest.
"That's my girlfriend you're flirting with."
Sanji fell against the nearest wall, sliding down it in resignation like a bizarre, oversized house cat. Once he reached the ground, he turned over, head bobbing upwards with his brow furrowed and eyes closed.
After a few moments of complete silence, Sanji managed to respond.
"…I."
"I guess…"
He looked about ready to cough blood.
"I GUESS YOU'RE RIGHT!"
Sanji shook with exhaustion, spirit wilting as he attempted to get up. Then he actually coughed up blood.
He sat there, still as a sculpture.
"That still….
"Doesn't mean…"
He was raising his voice again.
"I'm going…. To let y-"
Zoro was tensing up, expecting another attack.
Before Sanji had straightened out completely Robin took a few loud steps from the sidelines into the center of the invisible fighting arena, between her man and his opponent. Her shiny high heels clacking a stop to the whole affair.
She looked sternly at Sanji for a second, then at Zoro.
GENTLEMEN."
Robin frowned. Visibly angry, but as always she remained dignified about it.
Enough." She sharply added
Both of the boys stared in disbelief, pupils shrinking on the spot in genuine fear from her keeping direct eye contact as she spoke to them.
"Zoro."
"Mm."
"At this point, you are hurting Sanji more than is necessary.
This is not behavior befitting the world's greatest swordsman."
A small noise of indignation escaped Roronoa, mostly because he knew she was right. Satisfaction crept onto Sanji's face but disappeared promptly as she looked over at him again.
"Sanji."
She took a deep breath.
"Zoro is rough around the edges, and his manners fail him sometimes. It's true…"
"…But you know as well as I do. That he is an incredible man!"
She shut her eyes.
"So…"
"…Whether you like it or not,"
Her hands tensed into knuckles at her sides, as passion took hold of her and she cried out:
I CARE A LOT ABOUT HIM!"
The recently mentioned man thought carefully for a moment, then did the extraordinary.
Brook's jaw dropped onto the floor.
Pirate Hunter Roronoa Zoro, the most fearsome swordfighter of the new world… Let go of his swords. There was a loud CLINK as they hit the ground in respect for another person. He followed this action up with a steady walk toward the woman before him, and stationed himself next to her with as much poise as one can manage after having their entire form beaten and worked out for the duration that he just had. He contemplated for a split second, before suddenly and firmly grabbing her hand.
"I'm finished if he is." Zoro said in his gravelliest tone possible. Doing his best not to appear vulnerable, most likely.
Sanji pulled out a fresh cigarette and lit it, far more calmly this time. He took a self-medicating breath of tobacco. The pair in front of him waiting patiently with their hands still intertwined.
"Robin-chan."
He exhaled the fumes out of his nostrils, avoiding the two standing in front of him.
"I respect your decision."
He inhaled some clean air.
"Furthermore…"
"… I may never understand how this farce occured… And while I certainly won't be happy that a lady as magnificent as yourself is saddled with this…"
Zoro frowned.
"This man." He settled for man… Not wanting to upset Robin.
"I can see on your face how much this means to you. I would be a pretty shitty guy to get in the way of that."
He looked at his beloved lady and lit up. "Your happiness is more important to me than my pride and jealousy…"
"After all…"
"THAT IS WHAT IT IS… TO BE….."
He followed up with a dramatic pose.
･ﾟA TRUE! LADIEEEEEEEEEEES MAAAAAAAAAAAAAANNN!" ･ﾟ*
Robin's full warmth returned to her upon the statement, upon seeing her happy, Zoro's face softened further as well.
Chopper ran over, bandaids held in his hand-hoofs as they wiggled in the breeze. "ZORO! SANJI!" He cried eagerly. "I CAN FINALLY FIX YOU UP!" They went on to insist, covered in bruises and blood that they were fine.
Luffy was happily seated on a rail. He produced one of his many noises of enthusiasm then followed up with a "Sanji! I'm hungry!" for good measure.
"Ahh, I love a happy ending to an intense emotional storm." Brook sniffed. "The blossoms of peace, grown in adversity, are the most beautiful. Would you not agree, Franky-san?"
The half-robot was taking a long swig of cola. Wiped his mouth with a content "Ahhhhh".
He then responded. "That was quite a show… No mistake about it. Not a boring moment on this ship…" He struck a pose and added the phrase "Llllllllllove it!".
Usopp breathed a deeply relieved sigh and Nami ran over and hugged Robin. Her dramatizing face pressing into the tall woman's shoulder.
"THANK YOU!" She cried "I thought they were going to keep their idiotic stunts up for eternityyyyugh.
Robin's response was a warm chuckle as Nami ran off to scold Luffy who was making a run toward the newly opened pantry.
The infamous Devil of Ohara threw a mischievous glance at the man rumored to be a demon in human form. He looked back at her with a tiny trace of a smile.
"Girlfriend huh?" She teased.
"After this nonsense… You'd better believe it."