Hello everybody,

so here comes another chapter of the past, before we will return back into the present next time ;-)
I hope you'll enjoy

Extra Chapter 16 - Substitute

-Zoro-

To say he was in a bad mood would be the understatement of the century. The last few days had been annoying, so fucking annoying!

At first, everything had been fine. Sure, Mihawk had unnecessarily interrupted Zoro's Ultimate Training – it had mainly been internal bleeding, so nothing to get upset about – but Zoro had suddenly faced the opportunity to fight the red Shanks himself and that had been... really cool.

But, although the Shichibukai had promised Zoro that they would continue training the next day, nothing had come of it, because Jiroushin had suddenly showed up, talking about some meeting, Ray in his arms, only to stay in bed like a terminally ill person the next day.

Zoro knew that a few more days of grace for his body were maybe not a bad idea, but he lacked the patience for it, and even the complicated transitional training Mihawk had come up with so that Zoro could train his female body better had to be cancelled in the end because Zoro had accompanied Ray and Jiroushin to their home island – as Loreen, of course, otherwise it would have been a bit difficult being on board at the naval tanker – and even though Lirin was a friendly host, Zoro had been really unnerved and happy when the day had finally come to an end and he had been able to make his way to the port where the Shichibukai was supposed to pick him up.

And that was exactly the reason why he was really pissed off right now. The sun had long since set, it was dark, the horizon no more than a blood-red line separating the night-black sea from the equally dark sky. And Mihawk was not there!

Zoro was really anything but in a good mood. He stared at the sea, on the dock where he stood, his arms crossed, trying to ignore the urge to simply transform and just swim off, but he waited obediently while the Shichibukai took his fucking sweet time.

Voluntarily – more or less – Zoro had accompanied the sick Vice Admiral and his toddler, he would not have had to, it had been a favor. Therefore, it was difficult for him to blame someone else.

But it annoyed him how much time he was losing, once again, in the middle of a training they had only interrupted because Zoro's other body had been too weak. He was dissatisfied, he was angry, and his inner monster didn't make it any better. The impatience in his stomach was almost unbearable. He had to get ahead, get stronger. He couldn't waste any more time, he had to train, he had to...

Then he saw it, at last he saw the little Coffin Boat, which was heading briskly towards the harbor, and without thinking about it, Zoro ran off and jumped off the dock with all his strength in this weak body. But he had miscalculated, the anger had given him unnecessary strength and he had not properly perceived the distance. He almost flew over the small ship.

"Uah!"

But as expected, a strong hand grabbed his upper arm and so Zoro dangled over the water, into which he had only not fallen because the Shichibukai had jumped up in time.

"What are you doing?" he asked with a condescending snort.

"You're late!" growled Zoro as the other pulled him onto deck. "You wanted to be here before sunset! You said today we would..."

Mihawk groaned loudly and dropped onto his throne.

"Could you stop just once?" he commanded Zoro with sprawling arm movements. "I know! I know! Every second you cannot train is an imposition on you. And everything in your life revolves around your crew and your dream, everything else has to be subordinate to it. I am sorry, but we adults do not have that luxury! There are also other things that sometimes ruin a plan and that we have to take care of, no matter how much we do dislike it."

Zoro was absolutely unwilling to back down this time. "But you have..."

"I'm sorry I'm late!" the other snapped at him as the Coffin Boat started moving again. "I am sorry you had to wait and that I did not keep our agreement. But that is all I am willing to admit today, Roronoa. I understand you are in a bad mood, but I cannot deal with that today. So stop complaining like an ill-mannered brat and accept the facts. Tomorrow is the conference and until then, for once, your problems are not the linchpin of my thinking. Whether you like it or not, if you want to be taught by me, then you just have to endure it."

Mihawk leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms, closed his eyes. Zoro could hardly make out much more of his facial expressions in the flickering light of the coffin candles.

Zoro was furious and didn't see the point of taking a step back just because the other one was having a bad day – after all, he hadn't been the one who had to play babysitter for a terribly whiny baby, plus Ray – but just as Zoro opened his mouth, the other one raised a hand.

"Be as angry as you want, but there will be no discussion today. I am tired, so I would strongly prefer you giving me the silent treatment."

His fists were shaking, he was about to punch the other one in the face, and he knew that Mihawk knew that, could feel it. Did he want to provoke Zoro? Did he want Zoro to give in to this anger? Was this another game with a double bottom and marked cards? Or was it just an argument? Were they both just so pissed off by the current situation and couldn't do anything about it, so they took it out on each other?

Snorting, Zoro dropped onto the low railing between the candles, causing the boat to sway. He didn't know and he didn't care. Okay so be it, he would let this bastard get his silent treatment, he didn't care.

Even Yoru's constant humming couldn't appease him. He didn't want to listen to the sword. Of course, it sided with the bastard who let it taste blood, and Zoro didn't want to hear about it.

A week ago, the current situation might not have upset him so much, but after the fight against Shanks... It was frustrating, so incredibly frustrating. He rubbed his face with both hands, through his hair, held his stiff neck, looked up at the sky with countless stars.

How could Mihawk not care? He had seen it too! What Zoro had felt at that moment! What he had done! In the fight against Shanks, thanks to Yoru! So why? So why wasn't he as eager as Zoro was for them to finally continue training?

Oh.

Damn!

"Urgh!" When Zoro thought about it, he was acting like an ass. No, Mihawk was the asshole, but Zoro was the complete idiot who couldn't read between the lines, and therefore didn't behave any better.

"Sorry," he blurted out between clenched teeth, refused to look at the other, but stared up at the sea with folded arms, "I didn't mean it that way."

But he didn't even get an answer!

"Arrogant...!"

He had fallen asleep. Mihawk sat on his throne with his arms crossed, his head leaning to one side, his eyes closed, his mouth slightly open, breathing evenly.

Slowly, Zoro crouched down again and in silence the little Coffin Boat continued its way.

When the Coffin Boat came close to the small port of Sasaki, the Shichibukai got up as if nothing had happened, left the boat, and moored it before Zoro also rose and got off.

He wondered for a moment why they didn't take the slightly longer detour around the village – which he preferred, because at this time of day there were still quite a lot of people around, who of course all greeted him in his current form, which he didn't feel like at all – but he kept his mouth shut.

The situation was still shitty, but he didn't want to provoke conflict again; he doubted it would do anything good at the moment. At least the Shichibukai was right about one thing, no matter what, Zoro wouldn't be able to leave this island before the end of the meeting, so there was no point in getting upset about it.

In the meantime, they had left the small town behind them and walked through the dark forest, at a leisurely pace. But as they left the forest and saw some light in the darkness, which belonged to the old manor, a dark figure hurried towards them.

"Your Lordship!" It was the housekeeper of the Mihawk family who approached them almost in panic. "There you are, I was terribly worried!"

"Kanan, please, lower your voice, you are too loud."

"You did not have to leave, Your Lordship. I could have sent one of my children." Now she stood in front of them, crumpled the apron between her hands. "In your current condition, going out on the high seas alone is extremely dangerous."

"Stop this nonsense..."

"Condition?" Zoro asked, looking suspiciously back and forth between the other two. "What's going on here?"

"Nothing is going on," the Shichibukai growled with a discarding wave of his hand. "Kanan is exaggerating with her unnecessary and absolutely misplaced concern. It is truly..."

"Your Lordship, forgive me, but I must disagree. Even blind one could see how badly you are doing, and if Cho Jiroushin is sick, then..."

"Enough of this fairy tale," grumbled the other, walking past the housekeeper. "Just because Jiroushin and I were sick at the same time in early childhood – like half the island, for that matter – you do not have to make a scene like this every time his immune system fails again."

All the rest of the way to the mansion, the two argued about some teething troubles that Mihawk had or hadn't had. Zoro, meanwhile, was examining the Shichibukai as they stepped into the brightly lit hallway. But he could not see anything, which, according to Kanan, was obvious even to a blind man. Mihawk looked as usual, pale, hard features, accentuated by his trimmed beard, and perfectly arranged hair, piercing eyes looking down on Kanan, a white shirt, with far too many ruffles. Nothing about him looked in any way like the Shichibukai was sick or even ailing, especially compared to Jiroushin, who had had to be fed chicken broth by a soldier after Zoro had firmly refused.

"Be that as it may," Mihawk interrupted Kanan again, "I still have some things to prepare for tomorrow. Dinner can take place without me; I just want to have my peace."

Then he turned to Zoro: "I do not care what form you want to be here, but please do not forget that we are not on Kuraigana. Be mindful, understood?"

Zoro only raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything. It wasn't as if Mihawk had sent him along with his best friend, just in case something happened, knowing full well that Zoro would have had to transform in case of doubt.

Since he didn't really have any other choice, he followed Kanan into the kitchen and helped her cook – meaning, he was sitting there, and she talked incessantly about how bad Mihawk looked and that he belonged in bed – before they had dinner and Zoro just wanted to sleep. The day had been annoying, and he hoped that the coming one would be better.

He had already transformed and changed clothes and was now standing in the bathroom of the guest room and could see how his reflection judged him. The whole situation annoyed him, that days were lost to him again and he had to wait here at Sasaki until Mihawk had sorted out his crap. The fact that he couldn't train annoyed him. But it wasn't the first time such things had happened, especially when Eizen demanded it, always several days were lost because of something unimportant, and here it seemed to be at least something important.

Groaning, he gave in, stopped just outside the door, but he had already made up his mind. So he knocked and stepped into the Shichibukai's study.

Mihawk had just gotten up and seemed to be arranging several stacks of documents.

"Roronoa, what can I do for you?" he asked, obviously surprised, and dropped the papers in his hands. "I hope you do not want to persuade me to do another training session now. If this is your intention, then..."

"Calm down," Zoro grumbled, waving his hand. "I'm not here to argue, okay?"

"And why then?" Mihawk continued with his activity. "If Kanan sent you, then no, thank you, I am not hungry and..."

"Nobody sent me, I don't want to fight, I just want to..." Zoro hesitated as he slowly pulled the door shut behind him, then sighed again. "Sorry for the last few days. I don't know what's going on, why I'm so irritable, but I behaved in a way I shouldn't have."

The Shichibukai looked at him wide-eyed, before finally smiling and shaking his head and continuing to sort and put away papers.

"Once again you amaze me, Roronoa, and I understand your tension very well."

"Oh?" Now Zoro was the surprised one.

"Of course. It would not speak for you if you patiently waited out these wasted days after your battle against the Red Shanks. No, I understand you very well, believe me, and I wish I would not have to waste valuable time on administrative tasks."

Zoro shrugged his shoulders, rather suspicious of the other's moderate tone. "It's okay, it seems to be something important, right? Kanan said it's about some tomb or something? She said you can't just decide what you want but have to convince the other voters. Why? Aren't you the lord of the islands, I thought your word was law here?"

"I wish it were," Mihawk sighed and cleared away several folders. "But unfortunately, this case is about age-old decisions that my ancestors made that I cannot just ignore. I have to walk a very fine line to get my way without undermining my very own authority as a Mihawk. The most sensible way to achieve this is simply to achieve a simple majority. Oh, democracy can be so unnecessary."

All these words made little sense to Zoro. But he had often noted that political strategies were not necessarily logical.

"And what exactly is it about?" he asked instead.

"Oh, nothing interesting. The Mihawk family has always rested in a crypt in the cemetery of Suzuno Island. Normally, the remains are laid out so that the survivors can pay their respects." The Shichibukai was silent for a moment, and then turned to the dark windows. "But neither my mother nor my sister could be recovered. There is a memorial stone for them on this island here, erected by the Bosatsu family at that time, but no grave in the crypt. The board of directors of the cemetery and the representatives of these islands' faith would now like to change this, but I do not think much of just laying out empty coffins in a crypt out of a farce and removing the memorial stone in return. In addition, they are very angry that I do not intend to be laid out in this crypt myself. As probably the last of the Mihawks, they see it as my duty, so to speak, as the patron saint of these islands; almost a bit hypocritical, would you agree?"

"It's a bit morbid to discuss one's own grave," Zoro muttered thoughtfully.

"Pragmatic, but no less annoying. This crypt is a sign of the past and the idea of my body lying there embalmed among other dead disgusts me. Even my father intends to be buried in the cemetery of the marines, and even if I do not like to say it, I agree with him: it is time to close this tomb. But I cannot easily disagree with Mihawk Yakumo's word, which is almost godlike. It is extremely frustrating."

Zoro just agreed without saying a word. He didn't really understand much of these things, didn't understand why there was a discussion at all and why Mihawk had to have it in the first place, but one thing he did understand.

"You want your mother and sister's grave to remain here on this island and not disturb their peace, don't you?"

"Can you think of anything more dishonorable than falling in a battle just for some robe-wearers to have a doll made of you and set it up in a tomb next to withered corpses? It is degrading. And not even on their home island, what an irreverent farce." He snorted loudly. "Jiroushin is right that political finesse is needed here, but it enrages me that they even dare to put such a proposal on the agenda. Almost as brazen as the veiled demand on me to give the islands an heir."

Then he turned around.

"But this is not to be your concern. I will leave tomorrow at noon and will probably be back late. Use the time as you like, and then hopefully we will be able to resume your training soon." He stood back at his desk and arranged a small stack of sheets that Zoro recognized as notes from a speech. "I like your approach of focusing more on Lady Loreen and keeping this disadvantage as small as possible. I am going to think more about how we can implement this in your ultimate training."

"Mhm," Zoro said, reaching out for the notes the Shichibukai handed him with a questioning look. "Do you want to try it on me?"

"Excuse me?" the other asked with a slight laugh. "What are you talking about? Neither are you interested in this topic, nor do I have to practice my speeches. Unlike you, I am a natural and can be extremely convincing."

Zoro rolled his eye.

"And that's going to be exactly why it won't work. You say it yourself, you're angry and don't really see why you should have to convince someone. Besides, you're just an arrogant ass and if your speech is even half as condescending as you usually are, then half of the people will vote against you purely out of principle. This seems important, so you want to make sure you don't ruin it with your giant ego."

He met this look, almost enjoying the fact that the Shichibukai did not know whether to react stunned or angry. Then he snorted.

"You would not even understand half of the words."

"Just like the other half of the people who are going to vote."

"Why would you even do that? It is not like this would do you any good."

"It does me even less good if you go crazy because you didn't get your way."

Groaning, Mihawk grabbed his notes, which Zoro was still holding.

"Well, for all I care, but do not complain later, and woe betide you fall asleep."

Zoro didn't know exactly why he was doing it, but he sat there while Mihawk gave his speech, actually a born speaker, very different from Zoro himself. And Zoro listened, strove to understand, to comprehend, to do what Mihawk, Eizen, and Rihaku had tried to teach him.

He heard the speech a total of four times, only a few words different, only a few corrections that he had to note and even fewer that the Shichibukai had accepted, but Zoro himself had to confess that he was impressed, although it was about something that did not interest him at all.

"Well, I think we should call it a day. Thank you, Roronoa. Hopefully that will make me look a little more modest."

"Modest? No, never. You don't sound quite as much like a self-proclaimed god anymore, but that's about it." He stretched and, yawning, looked at his own wanted poster, which was still hanging there on the wall. "Tell me, is Kanan right?"

"With what?" the other remarked absently, rustling his papers behind Zoro.

"She said you were sick."

"Oh, nonsense!" the other snorted loudly. "She dramatizes unnecessarily. You should not pay attention to this talk."

With his hands clasped behind the back of his head, Zoro turned to him.

"Let's be honest, yes, you seem no different to me, but earlier you fell asleep, without warning. And you've slept little the past few days and sat in the library for hours with Jiroushin - who looked like a corpse the next day. So?"

He withstood this calculating look unimpressed.

"I am not sick," Mihawk finally replied, "but I admit that I am exhausted and need some sleep. Therefore, if you have no more objections, I would like to get some rest now."

Zoro just shrugged his shoulders and followed the other outside. He, too, finally wanted to go to sleep.

The next morning, he stared at the ceiling with the white decorations and wondered if he should get up at all. But then he thought of the training room and forced himself in an upright position.

Yawning, he finally left the guest room and almost ran into Kanan, who was hurrying down the hall.

"Oh, good morning, darling," she whispered.

"Kanan, what's going on?"

She stopped for a moment and Zoro could see that she was worried.

"His Lordship has not gotten up yet," she explained after sighing. "Even if he does not want to admit it, he's not well, and he shouldn't go on a trip or a council meeting in this state. But of course, he won't listen to me."

Now that she said it... It actually was unusual. On Kuraigana, Mihawk preferred to sleep until afternoon if he could, but on Sasaki he usually always got up early – damn early! – for whatever reason. Now it was even later than his usual time on Kuraigana when Zoro came back from his running laps. It only took Zoro a very long second to put two and two together and grudgingly he made a decision.

"Kanan," he said, looking at the housekeeper, "can you arrange for someone to take me to the council meeting today?"

Her eyes widened.

"But... but, child...? His Lordship would never allow..."

"Don't worry about that. If he can't travel, I'll go in his place, but for that I need your help."

He almost froze when she suddenly stroked his cheek, a motherly smile on her lips. He had never liked it when she acted that way, but he didn't know how to escape it either.

"You're really sweet."

"Whatever," he grumbled, and then walked down the aisle.

He knocked once, then entered.

Mihawk sat in his bed, one arm resting on his raised knee, rubbing his face. Nothing about him really seemed different than usual, he didn't seem sick, if at all exhausted, which was underlined by the dark circles under his eyes.

"Roronoa, what is the matter?" he asked, looking at him. "You know I do not have time for you today."

"Mhm," Zoro said, pulling the door shut behind him. He had the feeling that these piercing eyes seemed a little glassier after all, and somehow, he trusted Kanan's statement more than Mihawk's. Maybe because he himself was also someone who didn't get sick on principle and never wanted to be spared because of such nonsense, but maybe also because he knew what a damn proud liar the other was. "I have something to tell you and you won't like it."

"Oh, is that so?" came suspiciously from the other, who didn't even bother to get up.

"I'm going to travel for you to this council meeting today."

"Excuse me?"

Zoro crossed his arms. "Yes, I'm not happy about it either, but..."

"What kind of nonsense are you thinking up right now, Roronoa? Stop wasting my time and..."

"You're sick," Zoro interrupted. "You may be able to hide it from me, but Kanan is right. You fell asleep on the Coffin Boat, you overslept today. And you always tell me to take it easy if you're not fit, so that's exactly what you're going to do today and I..."

"You impudent brat!" Now the other pulled his blanket aside and stood up. "How dare you come up with this nonsense? Just because of some claims..."

"Hey!" Zoro was already taking a step forward, his hands outstretched.

The Shichibukai swayed for a half a second, then grabbed the back of his reading chair and closed his eyes briefly, taking a deep breath.

"Claims, sure?" Zoro asked, raising his eyebrow.

"Do not make a fool of yourself. I am fine..."

"You're the one making a fool of yourself." Zoro stood in front of the others. "Don't be so stubborn, you bastard, you're not doing well, no matter how well you can hide it."

Mihawk stared him down.

"Even if you were right, I have no choice. I have to go there today; didn't I make that clear enough yesterday?"

"No, the tombstone has to remain, but that doesn't mean you have to be the one who convinces the voters." He could see the other staring at him, rather stunned. "Let's face it, you're not a popular person, but people like Lady Loreen. Yes, I may not be able to compete with your skills, but I know what it's all about, and I know your arguments, I know your speech. I know how not to lose sight of the real goal beyond political negotiations. My chances of convincing the others are probably better than yours."

For a breath it was absolutely silent between them.

"Why are you offering this at all?" came from the other. "You hate such acts, so why would you do that?"

"Isn't that obvious?" grumbled Zoro. "If you're really not well and just keep dragging it out, then you're probably really sick tomorrow and then we'll have to postpone training for even more days. I can't really do much useful today anyway, but if I do that, you can rest, and we can continue training tomorrow. Besides, after I had to learn all this crap anyway because of Eizen, then I can use this knowledge for something important, at least then it was worth it."

Zoro wasn't nearly as convinced of it as he made himself out to be. But his decision had been made.

"I'll get it done. Kanan can get me a ride and pick out a suitable dress for me. Your arguments are logical and people like Lady Loreen, and I don't come across as an arrogant ass in discussions, so people will rather argue with me than with you."

He didn't even know why he wanted to persuade the Shichibukai to load up this crap upon himself, but it was true. He wanted to train, as fast as possible, and for that Mihawk had to be fit. And even if he didn't say it out loud, it would be a way for him to return the favor for the other's help.

With keen eyes, the other examined him, remained silent, showed that he was at least seriously thinking about Zoro's words.

"Jiroushin will not be able to accompany you. Mr Koumyou is on a neutral position in this debate and is one of those who need to be convinced. His wife may be admitted to the debate, but she does not have the right to vote and is therefore not allowed to participate actively. So there will be no one to cover up any wrongdoing on your part. No one will be there, should you..."

"I am aware. I know that if I do that, no one will be able to help me, and I know I have to be successful." He grinned. "But don't forget that I'm a pirate, those do-or-die moments are kind of my thing."

Again, the other was silent for several seconds.

"You seriously expect me to put such trust in you, despite your incomplete education and lack of oratory? If you fail, I will never forgive you; although of course it would be my mistake to even listen to your suggestion at all."

Yes, as if Zoro wasn't aware of that and he really wasn't that convinced of his idea, but he had decided to go through with it, now he couldn't back down.

"It wouldn't be the first time you'd underestimate me."

The other looked at him for a long moment, then took a deep breath and just walked past Zoro.

"Hey!"

"Kanan!" he shouted down the aisle.

"Your Lordship!" Almost immediately she appeared at the staircase and hurried over.

"Don't ignore me..."

"Have you arranged Roronoa's transportation yet?"

"Of course, Sir."

Mihawk sighed.

"Fine, you will accompany him."

"But, sir, I..."

"I trust you to make sure Roronoa returns safely from this trip without giving himself away – or getting lost." At her silent nod, he pointed down the corridor towards the study. "There is a power of attorney in my desk drawer that confirms that Lady Loreen is allowed to act on my behalf. Make sure that this is available along with all other necessary documents."

"Of course!" She turned and hurried away.

Zoro looked at the other, who took another deep breath before looking down at Zoro, hard features, nothing about him just seemed in any way not absolutely superior. But Kanan had to be right, otherwise the Shichibukai would have never agreed.

"Change and get ready to leave. After that, come here, I only have about an hour to prepare you, so hurry up."

"You know that the point is that you should rest?"

Wordlessly, Mihawk waved his hand and went back to his room. What kind of shit had Zoro gotten himself into again?

They came back late, very late, the meeting had lasted until well after midnight, and in relation to all the negotiations to which Zoro had had to accompany Eizen, this one had been... it had been like trying to teach spoiled children to share. Zoro had even learned something, and that was that local politics sucked.

He had been worried that it would get noted, that he had absolutely no idea, but very quickly he had understood that he actually had more idea than at least half of the people present, which was kind of sad considering that he was just some guy from the East Blue.

When he had accompanied Mihawk to the annual general meeting of the five islands back in the days, he hadn't really noticed it – probably because he had hardly understood anything – but most of these wanna-be politicians didn't even know what they were talking about, and often simply stuck to their opinions on principle.

It had been really exhausting to have so many grown people who weren't able to let each other speak out and were getting louder and louder to drown each other out. Compared to that, even the discussions in his crew were civilized and they were never civilized.

He really had wanted to punch someone in the face – especially this guy whose only argument had been that it had always been done that way, and therefore he thought it should stay that way – but Zoro had held back – which he was really proud of – and after a lengthy discussion with a lot of fake smiles and thousands and thousands of repetitions, he had done it.

However, he hadn't thought about the fact that more than one topic was discussed at these meetings, of course he had had even less idea of the rest, and so it had become a very long day.

But he had now earned his training so much!

Kanan had persuaded him to stay the night and not leave right away, but the next day they would finally get started. Satisfied, he strode through the dark mansion, quite surprised that Mihawk had not waited for him downstairs on his chair, as he usually would, especially on such an important subject.

So he paused in front of the Shichibukai's bedroom before finally knocking softly and opening the door.

In the light of the moon, he could see the silhouette of the other, his constant breathing filled the silence, he hadn't even woken up yet. Shaking his head, Zoro closed the door again, he certainly wouldn't be sitting by the other's bed until he woke up, because he could certainly do better things, like catching some sleep himself.

The next morning, Zoro woke up late and once again no one was there.

He saw Kanan outside chopping wood and since coat and hat were missing, he assumed that Mihawk had also left the house. At first, Zoro didn't care, but at some point, he got restless, so he decided to go to the village, where he would probably find the other.

But he didn't end up at the village, but sometime later deep in the forest by the cliffs, where he had been before, when he had been supposed to go grocery shopping for Kanan. And there sat Mihawk, at the cliff, in front of a tombstone.

"Did I not tell you to be careful in this form?" he asked as Zoro approached without looking up.

"Oops, sorry, forgot." Behind the other, he stopped, looked at the tombstone, read the inscriptions. "I did it," he said calmly.

"Of course. I would not have let you go if I had even the slightest doubt that you would succeed."

"Sure." He crossed his arms and was silent. At that time, he hadn't thought about why there was a tombstone here in this place. He could not remember that the Shichibukai had ever mentioned this place before, and certainly he was nobody, who often visited a tomb. "How are you?"

"Better, though still quite exhausted," came a surprisingly honest answer. "I am sorry you lost so much time on your training."

"It's okay, this here was important."

So he stood there staring at the vast sea.

"Yes, this here was indeed very important," Mihawk finally replied. "Thank you, Roronoa."

Zoro looked down at the other and then crossed his arms before taking his eyes off again, his cheeks uncomfortably warm.

"You're welcome."