A hard YANK on Zoro's tail disrupts the peaceful doze into which he's slipped, lulled by the gentle swaying motion of the warm water surrounding him, and he reacts instinctively, throwing a muscular coil around his attacker to drag them down to join him. Blasted baboons- why can't those furry bastards just leave me alo-!

His good eye, lids reluctantly parting to peer through what he expected to be murky water, has caught a surprisingly vivid cloud of billowing crimson fabric encompassing flailing limbs and all at once, he remembers. This isn't Kuraigana; he's not settled on the rocky bottom of one of the island's natural hot springs but on the smooth tiles of the ofuro in the bathhouse aboard the Thousand Sunny, and the figure struggling within his grasp isn't a mischievous baboon hell-bent on disturbing his rest. It's Luffy, scrabbling weakly at the muscular flesh wrapped around his middle as a mouthful of bubbles escapes his straining lungs via open mouth.

Alarmed, Zoro immediately releases his captain's waist and gathers his tail beneath him to propel them both towards the surface, hands seizing the younger man under the armpits to haul him along and thrust his head high into the open air. Listening to the resulting sputtering and choking noises with mixed relief and chagrin as he thumps Luffy's back to help him clear the water from his airway. "Sencho, what the hell were you DOING?"

"M-Me?" Luffy wheezes between huge gulps of air. "I thought- I thought you DROWNED!" He's managed to hook both elbows around the swordsman's neck, where he's clinging as though he's forgotten they're in the bathhouse and completely convinced that a wave might try to carry him out to open sea at any moment. "I came in 'n you were just-!"

Laying on the bottom of the ofuro with my eyes shut 'n my tail hanging over the side, Zoro realizes as he curls an arm around Luffy's waist to support him. "Oh jeez, Luffy, I'm SORRY." He hugs the waterlogged and panting younger man against his torso, one hand rubbing his back through the soaked fabric of his shirt. "I didn't mean to scare you- I figured I'd just close my eyes- eye- for a minute or two 'n I guess I fell asleep."

"At the- at the bottom of the bath? UNDER THE WATER?"

"Yeah, I- yeah. I would've come up when I needed air again."

"In your sleep?" Luffy demands incredulously. He frees one arm to swipe dripping hair out of his eyes before laying his hand on Zoro's chest, flat against his bare skin as it explores the expanse of his pectorals. His eyes widen. "Zoro, you're barely even outta breath!"

Maybe not, but the older pirate can feel his pulse picking up speed from the sensation of his captain's fingers trailing over his damp skin. "Ah, nah, I can- uh- hold it for a pretty long time. But yeah, I sort of- wake up just enough to surface for a second or two 'n then I can let myself drift back down for a few more minutes. I haven't actually tried timing it yet, but-" He swallows as the fingers continue moving, tracing the left side of his collarbone and dipping lightly into the hollow at the base of his neck. "I can- I think I can hold it for almost ten minutes. In shallow water, I mean, 'cause in deep water the pressure gets too-"

He stops talking, staring at Luffy. At the tiny droplets of water caught like miniature pearls in those dark eyelashes as the rubber man gazes back at him, the arm still slung around his neck squeezing a little tighter. Fingertips brushing his adam's apple on the way up his neck, stroking the underside of his chin and back along his jaw, and his heart's hammering hard in his chest when Luffy cradles his cheek and leans in to kiss him.

Zoro isn't sure how to respond at first. It's not that he doesn't want to kiss Luffy - he most certainly does - but he's afraid to return the gesture too enthusiastically, because what if his boyfriend's disturbed by the fact that his mouth doesn't seem quite right? That his tongue's split at the tip and his canine teeth are just a bit more pointed than they should be-? And if this happens to go any further- if it turns into anything more involved than kissing-

He doesn't know whether to be relieved or disconcerted when Luffy draws back slightly to murmur, "Chopper's been talkin' 'bout draggin' Zoro to the infirmary for a check-up 'n stuff now that all the fighting's over… but I wanted to get a look at him first." He strokes at the corner of the swordsman's mouth with his thumb, parting his lips gently but insistently as he slides the pad across the lower one. "I know about your tongue, okay? 'N your teeth. Nami told me." And with that, he closes the scant gap between them again.

This time Zoro kisses back more energetically- although he soon jerks back with a startled sound when he feels his partner's tongue attempting to delve past his lips.

"Too fast?" Luffy asks, peering up at him with unusual concern glimmering in his eyes.

"N-No. I mean, ye- I mean- … shit, Sencho, maybe this is just a bad idea. What if I accidentally bite you? What if I'm- like- venomous or something now? I-"

Luffy makes an exasperated noise. "ZORO, it'll be FIIINE. Now c'mon, I wanna KISS!" Then he goes still, looking startled. "Unless you don't. I mean, I do but only if you wanna too, 'n if you really don't, that's okay t-"

Zoro pulls him close, initiating their next kiss himself, and when his captain sags into his arms with a muffled sigh of satisfaction and contentment, rendered as boneless by his amorous embrace as the water in which he's more than halfway submerged, he makes a low eager noise in the back of his throat. Bracing the coils of his tail beneath him so their bodies are swaying slowly with their movements. His hands slipping under the back of Luffy's shirt to caress his spine. Luffy's fingers kneading his shoulders and the nape of his neck, roaming upwards to play with his spiky hair.

This time when the rubber man probes inquiringly at his lips, Zoro doesn't protest, instead tilting his head to deepen the kiss and pushing tentatively forward to meet his lover's. Luffy doesn't hesitate for a second, tongue plunging headlong into his mouth to investigate the changes there with eager lapping and swirling, laughing at the awkward efforts to twine his own unremarkable appendage with Zoro's forked one.

His laughter's not only a balm to Zoro's nerves- it's infectious, and while the older pirate's not exactly chuckling out loud, he's certainly grinning. Probably like an idiot, he muses to himself, but he's honestly too engrossed in returning Luffy's affections to really mind.

The kisses stay mostly lighthearted and playful until their lips stray from each other's mouths to one another's necks, and before Zoro can comprehend just how heated their exchange has become, he's latched onto a spot under Luffy's jaw with a lot of heavy sucking and light biting that's prompting some very desperate, very exciting noises and he's got a good portion of his tail wrapped around his captain's trembling body, his actions spurred by the hands petting and grasping and squeezing his pectorals.

When he begins to realize just how badly the scent of the skin under his mouth's fueling his ardor and tempting him to stop holding back, however, he reluctantly breaks the suction he's created, his breath catching sharply when he sees the dark oval he's made on Luffy's flushed throat. Shit. I didn't know just the SMELL of him could make me start losing control like that. He swallows. Better tone it down. Determined to ease the tension a notch lower, because the last thing they need is somebody wandering in here to find them on the verge of having sex in the ofuro. Because while he doubts Luffy would care-

"Whew," his partner sighs, grin mischievous as he makes a show of fanning his pleasure-dazed face with his hand. "I'm glad Zoro DID wanna kiss me, 'cause I've wanted to do somethin' like that since I first saw him at Rayleigh's place."

Zoro snorts. "Of course I wanted to kiss you, dumbass. After not seeing you for TWO YEARS? I fuckin' MISSED you."

The broad smile stretching Luffy's mouth melts into a smirk. "Uh huh. It wasn't hard to tell, 'cause- I mean, I'm pretty sure that-" His gaze drops to the surface of the water, or rather, to a point somewhere below it. "-ISN'T one of your swords. Since you left 'em outside the bathhouse door with your coat 'n stuff."

Oh fuck, oh FUCK- he NOTICED. Zoro feels his stomach perform a sickening backwards flip, his mouth suddenly so dry that it takes him several tries to find his voice as he hurriedly uncoils his tail. "That- that wasn't supposed to- I mean, I didn't-" He wants to push farther away from Luffy, put a little more distance between their lower bodies, but he doesn't dare, not with the dark-haired pirate weakened as he is by the surrounding water. "H-Hang on, okay, 'n I'll just-"

"It looks almost like you've got two of 'em, right? Your junk's forked now, same as your tongue," Luffy says calmly. "Like this." He lifts one hand with his index and middle fingers raised and spread in a v-shape. "It comes out from inside your tail, through the-" He frowns, squinting in concentration. "… ah, I can't remember what that hole's called but Marguerite told me about it 'n it starts with the letter 'C' 'n it's the same hole for everything else too, like pooping 'n peeing. Only the pee doesn't LOOK like pee, 'cause it's sorta chunky 'n white instead of watery 'n yellow."

Dumbfounded, Zoro can do nothing but stare at him.

"Cloak-something?"

"… clo- cloaca? You mean the cloaca?"

Luffy brightens. "Yeah, that's it!" He gives Zoro a curious look. "What? I told you, the Kuja have snakes- A LOT of snakes- 'n they don't care about there being boy snakes on the island like they care about human guys. So there's lots of snakes there 'n I saw 'em doing ALL KINDS of stuff, like eating 'n pooping 'n having snake sex to make baby snakes!"

"O-Oh."

"Yep! 'N if Zoro's half snake now, he must work the same way, right?"

"… more or less…" Zoro agrees reluctantly.

"Oi, Zoro, I-" Luffy bites his lower lip and worries it briefly between his teeth. "I came in 'cause… I wanted to- y'know- get a good look at you before Chopper or anybody else got the chance. Not just 'cause I'm the captain, but…" He uses his grip on Zoro's shoulders to pull himself closer, tilting his chin upwards to press another firm, lingering kiss to the swordsman's mouth. "… I still- uhm, y'know- I still want you." His face is reddening again, although not prompted by passion this time; he's blushing. "You're still ZORO. Even with scales 'n a tail." He makes a small noise of bashful amusement. "… 'n two dicks…"

Zoro can feel his own face heating rapidly. "It's- uh- it's a little more complicated than that…" Upon seeing Luffy's head immediately tilt to one side in silent perplexity, he sighs, hoping he's not going to regret this. "Let- lemme show you 'n- then you can decide whether or not it's a little too- weird- to be- y'know- together, like we were before."

He helps Luffy regain his footing first, steadying the rubber man until his legs stop wobbling from the effects of being partially submerged and he's able to stay upright to clamber out of the ofuro on his own. An alarming amount of bathwater pouring onto the tile floor from his saturated clothing, and thank god for the numerous drains set throughout the room, because Zoro's pretty sure HE'S going to take nearly as much water- if not more- out of the ofuro when he exits it himself. Not in his attire, since he's not wearing any, but with the sheer mass of his lower body.

Getting in was a hell of a lot easier than getting out ends up being, he quickly discovers. Earlier, he'd simply grasped the edge, pulled his midsection over it with a modified push-up and slithered the rest of the way inside. Now, to avoid being forced to literally crawl on his belly across the floor, he needs to move in reverse. Tail sliding out onto the floor tip first and then forming a wide loop to support his torso as it follows, until he's finally able to push off the ofuro's side. A process far more complicated than required at the natural hot spring back on Kuraigana. And, as he expected, he takes a good deal of the ofuro's contents with him, sending a small tidal wave rushing across Luffy's feet, which have somehow- almost miraculously- retained their sandals this entire time.

Sensitive to his mood as always, his partner doesn't miss the expression of irritation and chagrin that flashes briefly across his face. The captain's gaze shifts to study the side of the ofuro and then its base, noting how it raises the entire tub slightly above floor level. "Huh… maybe we could ask Franky to put in some handles or something. Like, not just on the edge but-" He turns towards the far side of the bathhouse, opposite the bank of showerheads. "Maybe on the wall over there?"

"Please. Having this thing's awkward enough without putting on a show every time I wanna take a soak…"

After fussily arranging his coils beneath him for a few minutes, stalling, Zoro eventually drapes the last couple of feet over his left forearm with the underside facing the ceiling so the scutes are visible. He pokes a fingertip at a scale, the last of the broadest and widest before his tail begins tapering towards a point and the one that's got an odd sort of rippled shape to its edge. Gently thumbing it back to display the unarmored area beneath, soft pinkish-white tissue surrounding the distinctly puckered shape of his outer sphincter, which the ventral scale shields when laying flat and overlapping the other scutes farther below it. "So that's… pretty much my ass 'n- uh- everything else now."

Luffy's hovering, peering, but thankfully not trying to touch him. "They pop outta there, right? Your dicks?"

"Ah… yeah… they're sort of- well, the books about snakes I looked at said they're supposed to be sort of INSIDE OUT like- like POCKETS or something- while they're in there, so right now they're actually-" He extends another finger and traces double lines towards his tail's tip, slowing before he reaches midway because he's going by memories of the diagrams he'd found and isn't really sure how long the damn things actually-

"Uh, Zoro? That's like-" Luffy's holding up his hands with the palms facing, shifting them back and forth with a gap fluctuating in range between something like nine to twelve inches. "That's, um, pretty big…"

Please let the bathhouse floor just open up and fuckin' swallow me whole, RIGHT NOW, Zoro groans internally. "Y-Yeah, you'd think that, but the thing is- they don't-" He falters, his face burning. "They're kinda- squashy? They don't-" He raises his hand, balled into a fist, and allows one finger to uncurl in slow motion until it's pointed straight up towards the ceiling. "… get hard- like that- like a normal dick does. So they're really- not- THAT long- when they're actually- out. More- ah- chunky, but not solid-chunky? Kinda squishy-chunky…" Haha, oh god, I wanna die. "… 'n they're-" He clenches his jaw and then grits the rest out in a strangled voice. "-sorta spiny at the ends but the spines aren't sharp, they're more- r-rubbery, like soft little- spike- things…"

He refrains from relating how appallingly close he'd come to fainting the first time he'd actually seen one of the organs in question, when he'd witnessed it emerge from his cloaca with sudden, violent force while he'd been straining a bit too hard taking a dump. Despite the obvious lack of blood, the sight had quite literally scared the shit out of him. He'd been lightheaded, half-convinced his guts were coming out, but the bizarre protrusion of pink tissue had retracted just as abruptly, disappearing back inside him before he could start hollering for somebody to help him.

Paging anxiously into the later chapters of one of the resource books he'd been picking his way through, he'd been relieved to discover his guts were- in fact- NOT coming out and also grateful as hell that he HADN'T gotten the chance to shout for Perona or- even worse- MIHAWK. And it hadn't been long after the incident that- with the assistance of several diagrams of snake reproductive anatomy and through some awkward trial and error- he'd learned how to make one or even both of his new bits protrude from his cloaca by applying firm pressure on the underside of his tail and sliding his fingers from the tip towards his vent.

The first time he'd successfully ejected and made a more thorough examination of one of the things the book referred to as hemipenes, Zoro had been shocked.

Luffy, on the other hand, looks positively fascinated by the description the swordsman's reluctantly shared but he doesn't ask to see them- and Zoro doesn't offer. Even if LUFFY'S not grossed out by his new anatomy and seriously- HONESTLY- okay with it, HE'S not ready to take it quite that far yet. Kissing's fine. Even sloppy make-out stuff's not bad- not TOO intimidating. Anything involving hands or mouths or whatever else straying below the waist, though? Ha ha, NOPE.

"Oi-" Luffy says abruptly. "Wait a sec. If they don't get hard, then-" He's starting to frown, confused and annoyed with his own confusion. "When we were in the water, what was-?"

"Uh, yeah." Zoro grimaces. "You remember how I told you this started with my feet 'n worked its way up? Well, there's some shit it didn't have enough time to change- or maybe, didn't get the chance to FINISH changing's more like it."

Luffy's frowning harder, eyes roaming up and down his midsection, gaze moving over what used to be the juncture of his thighs and what now appears to be nothing but solid, mottled hide. "I don't get what you-"

Zoro shifts, bending his upper body slightly at the waist, where his human torso merges with his serpentine half not in a neat line but a jagged confusion of skin, scars and scales- and below his navel - its shallow cup still visible amidst the two-toned mess - a set of the scutes gape apart, offering a glimpse at the soft, pale and very recognizably human flesh tucked inside the vertical slot within their plated folds. "It's still- I'M still- here." He arches a bit more to peer down at himself. "Part of me, anyway. I don't know exactly where the hell my balls went, but I'm assuming they're in there SOMEWHERE, 'cause I still- uh-" He clears his throat. "Well, I might not piss from there anymore, but let's just say that part of me still works the OTHER way it used to…"

He risks a peek at Luffy. The younger pirate's staring, eyes slightly widened and mouth hanging ajar, and Zoro can almost see his brain grinding away in his skull behind that flabbergasted visage as he struggles to process what he's just been shown. Oh god, I hope I'm not gonna regret this…

For several long, uncomfortable moments, Luffy's absolutely silent, and then his mouth starts working. Soundlessly at first, but then- "Thr-three." His gaze lifts to meet his first mate's. "Three?"

"One plus two…" Zoro agrees, scratching awkwardly at the back of his neck.

"THREE?"

"… three…"

"Three," Luffy says again, quietly, almost to himself. "Zoro's got three dicks." He stares at Zoro, blinks once, twice- and then bursts into laughter so uproarious and LOUD that the swordsman jolts, uttering a curt hiss and rearing upwards in surprise. It doesn't seem to faze Luffy. "ZORO- ZORO, YOU-!" he wheezes, slapping his hands frantically against his thighs. "THR-THREE!"

"O-Oi-" Zoro protests, taken aback. Goddamn it, I figured he'd be- I don't know- either disgusted or- maybe he'd just say it didn't matter, but I didn't think he'd do THIS, he thinks, stung, unsure how to respond. His tail tip's lashing back and forth, however, because his embarrassment- and subsequently his anger- is rising. "OI- LOOK- I DIDN'T ASK FOR-"

His rebuke's cut short as Luffy startles him again by lunging forward and going on tiptoe to fling both arms around his neck and kiss him soundly on the mouth. "Zoro- Zoro, I'm sorry- it's not you, okay? It's just-" Swallowing another burble of laughter. "Thr- three swords, Zoro. Three SWORDS. You-" Choking on hysterical giggles he's barely managing to contain. "Three sword style, y'know? You use three sword style but now you c-can-" He breaks down completely before he can finish, but Zoro's got a pretty good idea of what he was about to say.

"If you make so much as ONE three DICK style joke," he growls, "-I'm gonna drown your ass in the fuckin' ofuro."

"I'm sORRY," Luffy wheezes. "Zoro- Zoro, c'mon- PLEASE, don't be mad, okay?" He tightens his grip and tries to kiss the older pirate again but breaks off snickering madly.

"SSS-" Fuck. He can't enunciate an 'S' properly when he's this agitated. "-ehn-CHO-"

"I'm not- I swear- I'm- not laughing at ZORO," his captain manages between gasps for air. "It's just the- three thing- that's funny. Promise. I PROMISE." He takes a deep breath, visibly forcing himself to calm down because Zoro's now glaring at him. "Oi oi, c'mon, Zoro, don't scowl at me like that…"

He seems sincere despite his outburst and genuinely distressed that he's injured his partner's pride, so it's not long before Zoro concedes to the kisses and little caresses intended to coax him into a better mood, relaxing so Luffy no longer needs to stretch so high to reach him.

"I- told you," he mumbles past the lips pressing repeatedly against his mouth and chin and cheeks and the tip of his nose. "-that it was- weird. I shouldn't've-"

"So what if it's a little weird?" Luffy draws back to protest. "I'M weird!"

"No, you're n-"

"Zoro, I'm a RUBBER man. That means I got a rubber DICK too, remember? A rubber dick that can stretch longer than I'm tall, if I want it to," Luffy huffs, eyeing him as if questioning whether or not he's gone daft. "Having three dicks isn't THAT much weirder than being able to tie your own schlong in a bow, IS IT?"

"N-o-o-o," Zoro agrees reluctantly. "… but seriously, though, you're really sure- like, really REALLY sure- you don't think it's just a little too-?"

"I LIKE weird, Zoro. I think it's NEAT my boyfriend's got three dicks." And with that, Luffy's eyes brighten with mischievous intent. "OH, OH MAN, I can't WAIT to tell Usopp 'n Sa-!"

"DON'T YOU DARE." Before he can glance towards the room's exit- much less take a step in that direction- Zoro coils around him in a flash, moving with a burst of speed made possible by the slick surface of the flooded bathhouse floor beneath his wet body. "Don't you dare sssay ANYTHING to ANYBODY."

"Sanji's gonna be jeeealooous," his captain remarks in a sing-song sort of voice. Trying to look coy but failing miserably because he's grinning so damn wide. He's not intimidated by the muscular loops of snake flesh wrapped around him, either; he's leaning comfortably into them, the fingers of one hand toying idly with the scattered single scales embedded here and there in the human skin of Zoro's waist.

"I don't- I don't CARE," Zoro sputters. Realizing he's probably made a mistake, because with his lower body curled so snugly around Luffy's legs and midsection and their faces so close, he's once again aware of how damn GOOD he smells. "I'm already gonna hear enough bullshit when those guys figure out snakes have TWO. I mean, I'm pretty sure ROBIN knows already, 'cause that woman ALWAYS knows too much for everybody else's good, but I've been hoping she won't SAY anything." He's pauses to take another breath, intending to continue- and his tongue flickers out of its own accord to brush Luffy's cheek, causing the rubber man's heavy, undiluted scent to flood his serpentine olfactory organ with enough force to make his entire upper body sway.

He's too stunned to comprehend the subsequent sputters emerging from his own mouth, but he must be cursing because Luffy's regarding him with bewildered concern, frozen in place while watching him retreat until his back bumps the side of the ofuro and he sinks to the floor in a huddle, trying to disappear within the haphazard tangle of coils he's thrown around himself.

"Zoro, what's-?"

He lifts a hand. "Just- stay- stay there, okay? Gimme a minute or two. I don't know what the hell's going on, but the smell of you's driving me totally NUTS."

"My WHAT?" Luffy raises an arm, its sleeve dripping, to sniff suspiciously at his armpit. "I don't get it. I don't smell anythi-" He stops, shooting a suspicious look at Zoro. "Oi… you're not gonna try'n EAT me or something, are you?"

"No," the swordsman assures him. "This is more like- I think I might, uh, need a cold shower…"

"Ohhh…"

"… you don't gotta look so damn pleased with yourself, jeez." Taking a surreptitious peek downwards to make sure any incriminating appendages are hidden from view, Zoro leans his shoulder against the ofuro. "I don't get it. This wasn't a problem before. In the bubble, I mean, when I was wrapped around you like a freakin' scarf."

"Yeah, but we weren't MAKING OUT in the bubble either," Luffy points out. "-'cause it was cold 'n you were fallin' asleep 'n Sanji was right there." He hesitates, then adds, almost shyly. "… 'n… it's only a problem if Zoro's gonna let it be a problem."

Zoro's able to prevent himself from snapping his head up to stare, but he can't do anything about the way his heart's started slamming itself repeatedly against the inner wall of his rib cage. "You- you really mean that, huh…"

His boyfriend doesn't bother rattling off assurances but just gazes back at him in expectant, remarkably placid silence and continues dripping water all over the tiles, and for the first time it dawns on him that Luffy's bandages are soaked as thoroughly as his clothing and beginning to unravel here and there.

Chopper's gonna fuckin' MURDER me, not only dragging Sencho in the bath 'n nearly DROWNING him but then tryna HUMP his soggy ass while suckin' his face off, RIGHT after he needed a freakin' blood transfusion…

He sighs, fighting off the urge to bury his burning face in his hands. "O-Okay. But look- even if you're cool with this-" Waving aimlessly to indicate his lower body. "-I'm still pretty freaked out by some of it 'n I don't- I don't really TRUST myself yet. Especially not with you, like that. Y'know? So can we just sort of take it slow for now, until I figure this out?"

He's fairly confident Luffy won't have any issues with such a request, considering he's- THEY'VE BOTH- always been relatively lackadaisical about the whole sex thing. While they'd never exactly made a concentrated effort searching for opportunities to indulge their admittedly lazy libidos, they also certainly hadn't been adverse to taking advantage of those moments when they'd both experienced the drive to do so- AND found the privacy. Which hadn't always been the easiest feat on a ship crowded with crew mates.

It's been two years since then, however, and who knows what might've changed in the time they've been apart, so he's more relieved than he'd like to admit when Luffy snorts and says, "… well, YEAHHH. I mean, that stuff's only fun if you both wanna do it, right?" and then promptly dismisses the matter by asking, "Oi, IS Zoro hungry? 'Cause I'm STARVING 'n if we don't gotta fight anybody else, then maaaybe we can finally eat some of those fish Sanji promised to cook!" And before Zoro knows what's happening, he's being given one last chaste but undeniably affectionate kiss and shooed under the showerhead and ordered to "hurry up 'n get washed 'n dried off 'n dressed" so he can join Luffy in the dining hall, where the younger man will be saving a seat for him- and likely getting his rubbery fingers repeatedly smacked for snacking on whatever the swirly-brow cook's attempting to prepare.

And although he's grumbling about bossy captains and their whims as he reaches for the faucet handle, his protests lack any real venom and he can't help smiling to himself, because even though he's changed- even though THEY'VE changed, he quietly amends, casting a glance behind him for one last look at the starburst emblazoned on Luffy's chest as he bounds dripping from the room- everything that truly matters here and now in this moment has somehow remained the same.