Chapter 77

Time t

Sanji had just arrived on the deck of the Sunny and he spotted the swordsman sitting cross-legged a few steps from the mast. The ship was quiet this mid-morning and the cook remembered that Robin and Nami had asked Vivi and Nojiko to join Lily for a girl's fishing trip. For the rest, he didn't really know what his other companions were doing and comparatively, he gave it little importance. Yet he had caught a rather strange scene just before heading towards the ship when Chopper and Usopp had desperately tried to make the captain embark towards Vorgo. Luffy had been really reluctant to follow them and the blond hadn't tried to understand the reason until Amy had waved at them from the edge of the beach.

Immediately, the straw hat boy had rushed towards her and a lively conversation had begun between them. Puzzled, Sanji had hesitated to join them before finally changing his mind. He had promised Amy to give her more independence and as long as she didn't seem in danger, he had no reason to ask for an explanation.

Besides, he really didn't have time to waste: he had less than an hour before starting to prepare lunch at the All Blue and he intended to use every minute of it to try to unravel the mystery that he was confronted with.

As he approached the swordsman, the cook chose to sit facing him while grabbing a cigarette and his lighter.

"Alright, mosshead, tell me again what it was like when you were connected with your swords."

Zoro simply raised his head to look into the piercing gaze of the blond who had just sat next to him. Sanji didn't stop asking him questions since he had officially opened up to the crew and especially since Zoro had decided to rely on him to try to overcome the vicious circle into which he had fallen.

In doing so, he knew that the cook measured the extent of the trust Zoro had placed in him and that's why he didn't miss an opportunity to come and find him. Personally, the swordsman didn't see any difference in the last three days, but the faith he had chosen to place in his companion hadn't diminished either. Like the previous days, he then tried to explain once again what he had always felt until this fateful fight.

"It was as if my will was transmitted to my swords." Sanji nodded while puffing on his cigarette and Zoro continued, "As if they… understood exactly what I wanted and I also knew precisely what they could do. Without words. Without anything."

"Convenient for you but not for us when we try to sort it out," the blond commented. Sanji stretched to grab the ashtray he had used last time and placed it between his legs to drop the ash from his cigarette into it. "Yesterday, you told me that you had always heard them more or less. What does that mean? Wasn't that steady?" He asked again.

Zoro shook his head. "As I trained, I learned to figure them out better. At first, it was like background noise and then it became clearer. It allowed me to improve some skills."

"Such as?" The cook asked, taking another drag on his cigarette before tilting his head back to blow his smoke skyward.

"Hm…" Zoro chose to close his eyes to search his memory and Sanji stopped himself from biting his lip in frustration as he observed him. The blond couldn't get the annoying feeling out of his head that they had all the necessary elements but just couldn't put them together. This was why he wanted to hear the same answers to the same questions again and again. He hoped that a clue would emerge from the swordsman's speech at some point.

"I learned not to cut paper and to cut steel," Zoro finally replied.

At these words, Sanji looked at him in surprise. "You don't know how to slice paper?"

Zoro rolled his eyes. "Of course I know how to slice paper, everyone can do it. What many people don't know is leave it intact when it meets the edge of a sword though."

The blond straightened up, puzzled. "So? How do you do it?"

"Did," the fencer immediately corrected and Sanji dismissed his remark with a flick of his hands. "Okay, did. How did you do it?"

The swordsman forced himself to take a long breath. Talking about his skills in the past tense was so painful that he lost the ability to breathe, but he refused to not face the truth.

"It happened during my fight with that guy who ate the Dice-Dice fruit in Alabasta," he whispered. "His body could become as hard as steel and I was trying to find a way to hurt him when I remembered what my master told me: a good swordsman can cut exactly what he wants and leave everything else intact, even the tiniest leaf on the tree. You just have to recognize the breath of the element you wanna cut and focus on it."

"So you heard every… what, every stone, tree, living being? It wasn't limited to your swords?" The cook noted with interest. Zoro nodded, "From that moment when I learned to focus on the element I wanted to hit, my swords managed to cut it. This is how I won my fight against this man."

Sanji let his cigarette burn without paying attention, thoughtful. "It was a breakthrough," he pointed out.

"I was deeply happy to see that I could continue to improve," the swordsman agreed in a nostalgic voice. "It was my first serious victory since my defeat against Mihawk…"

The cook brought his cigarette back to his lips. "That means that this communication that you developed with your swords or everything around you was a learning experience. Maybe unconscious or natural, but it is a process that allowed you to evolve and this is rather good news."

As Zoro looked at him questioningly, Sanji nodded. "What you learned once, there's no reason you can't learn it again."

"I don't get it…"

The blond cook's knife sharply cut off the head of the turbot which fell into the trash can and Sanji immediately began fileting the fish in preparation for his papillotes. Despite the rather encouraging step they had passed that morning, he was not as confident as he let appear, but he refused to show Zoro his anxiety. The swordsman had placed his last bit of hope in him and there was no way he would see Sanji lose heart.

He always stumbled upon the same question. If Zoro had learned to use his environment over the years, why was he suddenly deprived of any perception about it? Apart from rare violent shocks, nobody woke up one morning no longer knowing how to read, and yet that was exactly what his companion experienced. And yet, regarding reading, there was physical therapy if the cause was identified but here, he couldn't even determine what was wrong so he could hardly do exercises to fix it. Assuming Zoro had actually suffered a strong enough trauma which had deprived him of this sort of sixth sense that he had apparently always possessed…

Shaking his head in annoyance, Sanji clanged the blade of his knife against his cutting board again and beside him, Malek glanced at him questioningly while grabbing the turnips and celery he had selected.

"Is the recipe not precise enough?" He asked while peeling them. Sanji stared at him for a second before realizing what his friend was referring to and he shook his head. He had completely forgotten Malek's presence. "Your recipe is perfectly clear, that's not what I was thinking of."

"Oh." The dark-haired man moved quickly to keep an eye on the simmering of his champagne sauce because the cream he had just added was making it sizzle and after stirring it to be sure of its consistency, he resumed cutting his vegetables. "Good, I was afraid it wouldn't be so appealing after all."

The other cook sliced another fish head. "No, it's a good idea. The emulsion brings a sophisticated touch to the dish and customers are always keen to experience new tastes."

"I hope that adding champagne will be tasty…"

"We'll just need to check carefully the reduction."

Malek nodded, promptly slicing up the rest of his vegetables. A few days earlier, he had submitted to Zeff and Sanji a recipe for fish in champagne foil that he had imagined and the blond had agreed to serve it if they successfully completed the testing phase. Lily had brought back some turbots that same morning so Sanji and Malek had decided to try it for the crew's meal in a few hours and that's how the two men had taken over the Sunny's galley before the start of the All Blue's evening service while the rest of their companions went about their respective occupations.

His previous cut completed, Sanji skillfully emptied two other fish and Malek finished peeling the celery and turnips before grabbing leeks and carrots. A minute later, the blond wiped his hands on his apron and took the liquid cream out of the fridge.

"What I don't get is this stupid swordsman," he continued with annoyance as he grabbed a spoon to measure it. "What's wrong with this mosshead that he's cut off from his damn swords but also from everything else? No matter how much I turn this upside down, I don't see what it could be…"

Malek shrugged awkwardly, surprised by the topic his crewmate was broaching. He had ended up witnessing this special bond that the others had told him about and which still bound the swordsman and the blond cook despite their tumultuous past. What Malek had observed had seemed so intimate and intense that he now almost felt like he was encroaching on their privacy when he met them both. Maybe it was because he had joined the crew not long before but he had the feeling of being a third wheel when he caught the former lovers exchanging a look or a word. He now understood all the better why Zoro had been so reluctant to welcome him and why the crew had been so understanding towards the first mate.

"I don't know, maybe he really got sick," Sanji mumbled again.

"I've never seen him sick," the dark-haired man replied cautiously, continuing to peel his vegetables. His friend agreed while sighing, "This idiot is never sick but that doesn't stop him from being hurt and coming close to death at every opportunity so he probably caught the most improbable disease on the Grand Line…"

"Wouldn't Chopper have noticed?"

"Yeah, he would," the blond agreed. "It's not that…"

Malek observed his crewmate surreptitiously. Leaning over the sauce, Sanji seemed totally absorbed in his dish but now Malek knew him better. In reality, the blond was an astounding chef and although he was clearly concerned about the fate of the swordsman at that moment, his preparations were each more dazzling than the last.

Sanji carried out a titanic amount of work every day as if it were the most natural thing in the world and he had visualized and even improved Malek's recipe in a few seconds when he had suggested it. He also had incredible ease when handling his tools and the only one who rivaled him was his mentor, Zeff. Malek had also immediately figured out where Sanji's rigor came from when he himself had been strongly reprimanded by the old cook after neglecting to add a spice during one of his preparations. The dark-haired cook felt almost a novice in view of their experiences but he had also seized the opportunity to learn more and he didn't regret it. The unique position of the All Blue at the crossroads of all the seas offered unlimited possibilities in terms of creations and Malek had learned more here in a few weeks than in his entire life in the South Blue and then on Cartage Island.

Moreover, since he had seen with his own eyes the restaurant that the blond had managed to open to make his dream come true, Malek couldn't help but imagine the day when he would do the same with Shuri like Sanji had done with his mentor.

"You were there?"

Confused, the cook turned to the blond who was looking at him questioningly. "Where?"

"When Zoro fought against this Vice-Admiral, were you there?" Sanji repeated, watching him with a frown.

"Uh, yeah, we were all there," his friend remembered.

"Good. Tell me."

As Sanji brought his attention back to his preparations, Malek's eyes widened. "You want me to tell you about their fight?"

"Yes, and as precisely as possible if you don't mind. That's where he lost contact; something must have happened there and we can eliminate anything related to physical trauma thanks to Chopper."

"Okay but… Wouldn't Zoro be the best person to talk to you about it?" He pointed out to him. "Or even… another crewmember? You know, I don't know him that much…"

The blond shook his head, still focused on his pan. "You're precisely in the best position to describe the events in a neutral way. And frankly, do you really think that this idiot could describe anything to me? He already struggles to figure out what is happening in his own head and he's got ten words to express himself fully… Believe me, I know what I'm talking about."

Malek didn't dare to add anything. He couldn't deny that Zoro was one of the quietest people he'd ever met, and even though Robin was often discreet too, when she spoke, the archaeologist used very nuanced and precise words. Conversely, Zoro only asked for his food and to be able to rest peacefully.

He shook his head while cutting the last leeks.

"Well, it started when Luffy learned of his brother's death. We had been at sea for a while and we came across a small island full of Marine officers. On one of them, there was this Vice-Admiral and he was the one who told us about what had happened. Luffy was so shaken up by the news that he unleashed a powerful wave of Conqueror's Haki that swept away three quarters of the officers but not their commander. Then he collapsed and the Vice-Admiral wanted to take advantage of it. That's when Zoro intervened…"

Back on the All Blue beach, Sanji took a deep breath of the cool night air, the sea breeze blowing his blond hair around his face. Since he had rushed to Vorgo at the end of the afternoon, his heart had not stopped beating loudly in his chest throughout the hypotheses and verifications he had carried out all evening and a good part of the night. His crewmate's speech had finally made sense of everything he had observed and he remembered the exact moment when his mind had connected the different clues he had piled up here and there. He had been left breathless by the force of the revelation, but he had also quickly understood that he needed to verify his assumptions before he could share them with Zoro.

He hadn't been able to delay this confirmation, even for a minute. He had turned towards Malek and brutally taken off his apron while asking him to replace him at the All Blue during the evening service. The dark-haired man had stared at him for a second before simply nodding, probably understanding that his companion finally had the lead he had been looking for so long. Sanji had stormed across the deck and disappeared towards the beach. He hadn't told anyone.

Now his excitement was still as strong as ever, but the solemnity of the moment was also catching up with him. He was now certain of what he was going to say, but revealing the key to the mystery didn't determine its resolution. And now knowing the explanation, he knew that only Zoro could take the final steps.

Sanji suddenly raised his head and looked above him at the moon which shone intermittently among the clouds. This chiaroscuro from one moment to the next perfectly illustrated the part of shadow and light that would soon be fighting inside the swordsman and Sanji wanted to see it as a sign. Zoro was a creature of the night but the moon had always lit his path and today more than ever, Sanji wanted to believe that it would be his guide once again.

Leaning against the wall of the crow's nest at the other end of the room, Sanji got caught up in contemplating the figure of the swordsman. Like all their other companions on the Sunny, he was asleep, but this innocuous fact no longer was because of the fencer's daily ordeal. Indeed, the cook knew that Zoro was now fighting to get to sleep and he had taken the opportunity to observe him as he had not done so for a long time.

He had immediately been fascinated by the shadows that danced to the rhythm of the wind through the large windows onto his resting body and Sanji no longer dared to move. His heart sank painfully when he noticed that this body that the swordsman cherished so much was exhausted, devastated by the mental and physical ordeal he had been undergoing for weeks now. Even in his sleep, his jaw was clenched and his muscles tense and it reminded Sanji that Zoro suffered day and night from the loss of his most faithful allies.

At this very moment, the three swords glittered against the adjacent wall under the moonlight and the cook's attention was automatically focused on their changing reflections. Sanji smiled. He had always known that Zoro would become the best swordsman in the world and tonight, he had had absolute proof.

"Zoro."

The swordsman jumped up from his makeshift bunk on the bench and he instinctively reached for his swords before lowering his arm upon recognizing the blond's figure in the shadows of the room. He straightened up before sitting completely towards him, running a tired hand over his face.

"What's going on, cook? More questions?"

His companion shook his head and took a step towards the center of the room to step into the light. "I have no more questions. I'm here to give you answers."

Zoro immediately raised his head, attentive, and when their eyes met, the swordsman knew that this moment would be decisive for the rest of his life. He slowly moved to get more comfortable and took a deep breath. "So?"

"So it was so obvious that I don't know how I missed this."

The swordsman didn't move and Sanji decided to take an extra step in his direction, taking care to still give him enough space. In the middle of the crow's nest plunged into the darkness of the night, he fixed his gaze on that of his companion who had put on his mask of indifference as if to better protect himself from what the cook would say.

"I figured out how you communicate with your swords; it's through Haki. Actually, you've been using Haki for a long time. Probably for years."

A deafening silence settled and Sanji gave the swordsman time to process his words. He knew it wasn't easy to understand, and even more so to accept. Zoro had sought to master Haki in the same way as all their companions during their stay in the New World and being told that he possessed it probably felt like a monumental slap in the face because he had not recognize and even less use it when he would have needed it most.

"How did you know?"

The swordsman's voice was calm and Sanji took the opportunity to continue his explanations. "I asked Malek to tell me about your fight with the Vice-Admiral this afternoon and among the description of your tricks with your blades, I had a hunch."

"That's why you weren't at the All Blue tonight."

Sanji nodded. "I wanted to check; I went to Vorgo library."

"So you're sure."

"Everything fit together perfectly," his companion agreed. "You've been describing your use of Haki extensively for all these days in reality, we just never thought it was that. This natural communication, this instinctive perception of your environment. This is the precise definition of Observation Haki, Zoro."

The swordsman didn't answer, but the blond saw his jaw clench violently and he tried to let a few more seconds pass.

"I think that it's thanks to your Observation Haki that you've developed particular techniques with your swords," he continued afterwards. "And through your attacks, you have demonstrated that you also possess Armament Haki."

This time, Zoro looked up at him and Sanji sensed his question. He looked back at him then. "That last attack you used to get rid of the Vice-Admiral, what was it?"

"Ashura," the swordsman replied immediately.

"Ashura," the blond repeated, nodding his head. "I bet you concentrate all your spiritual and mental strength when you do that."

"I always need to concentrate during an attack," Zoro pointed out to him.

"Maybe, but how many of them allow you to divide yourself until you appear in triplicate and give your opponent the impression of being sliced by nine blades at one?"

When the swordsman didn't answer, Sanji lowered his voice. He was aware that what he was saying was difficult to accept.

"Armament Haki allows you to protect yourself from powerful attacks but also to create them, and this technique is a concrete illustration of your Observation Haki to transmit your Armament Haki to your swords. This is how you manage to create unique and formidable attacks."

Silence fell between them again and Sanji let it last this time, until finally, Zoro decided to get up and stand in front of one of the windows, his gaze hard.

"You done?"

The cook stared at his figure, tension filling the room. He had immediately known that it would eventually happen but he had also decided that he would talk about all the details of his discovery even if it would anger the swordsman.

"I'm not."

"If it's to talk about this Haki that I had and lost, I don't wanna hear it," Zoro warned him with a muffled voice.

"Well, you have to."

The blond's voice had become sharp and Zoro turned towards him with defiance. Sanji could only appreciate this attitude. His crewmate had shown such resignation in recent days that he was happy to see that beneath his shell of despair was still the fiery swordsman he had known.

"It's you who doesn't accept the truth," Zoro growled, "You just told me that I didn't know how to use it. What difference does it make to tell me again and again?"

"That's not what I said. I simply showed you that you've been using Haki for years," the cook corrected him.

"But if I can't communicate with my swords now, it doesn't matter!" The swordsman reminded him angrily. "What are you trying to do? I thought you wanted to help me!"

"This is what I do, you idiot, so stop hiding behind your wounded pride and listen to me!" The blond fumed, "Why do you think Mihawk left you alive when you met him, huh?! It's because he saw your potential and unconscious use of Haki that day! He didn't laugh in your face and thought you'd never be able to use it!"

"Well, he was wrong."

Sanji glared at the swordsman, blood boiling in his veins. He would never get used to seeing Zoro so resigned that he refused to see what the scope of his discovery really meant. He swallowed, pale with fury.

"Now you're gonna listen to me, you bastard. Think for a minute: when Luffy used Conqueror's Haki upon hearing of his brother's death, he passed out and you all assumed it had something to do with the news but the most likely is that the triggering of this force drained him of his energy! Malek told me that he woke up completely haggard and I know that Chopper's medications are strong but it's Luffy we're talking about and you're not gonna tell me that a few sedatives can stop him!"

"So what? What difference does it make?" The swordsman replied dryly, also furious.

"So Haki doesn't last indefinitely! Each user has their own limit that they surpass with training and to reuse it after heavy use, you gotta wait a certain amount of time!"

Sanji saw the exact moment when the flame of hope reignited in the eyes of the swordsman a few steps away from him. It relaxed his face and body to illuminate his entire being for a brief second before the harsh reality returned and its glow was reduced to a simple spark fighting against the wind of doubt.

"It's been weeks, I should have been able to use it again now. Luffy recovered in just a few hours."

Sanji didn't reply immediately. He had reached the balance point where he could only show the swordsman the way without being able to walk it with him.

"You're right."

The glint in Zoro's eyes faded and he looked away towards the window as the blond saw his throat constrict in an attempt to suppress his anger and disappointment.

Sanji sighed softly. "What I'm gonna say, you won't find confirmation in books because it is my intuition but you have trusted me until now so I ask you to believe me once again."

Zoro turned towards him again and the cook stopped himself from flinching in front of the distress he read in the swordsman's eyes. Taking a short breath, he focused his attention on the swords against the wall.

"My hypothesis is that your fight against this Vice-Admiral pushed you to the limit. During your final assault, you told me that you heard your swords screaming and I'm willing to bet that at this precise moment, the surge of Haki was colossal. You should not have survived it and yet, here you are."

As if moved by a sudden impulse, the blond walked towards the blades he was contemplating and crouched down to better observe them. Not far from him, he felt Zoro's gaze following him with curiosity so he respectfully grabbed his treasures before slowly turning around. He then looked down at the swords to point them out and the swordsman followed his gaze again.

"I think that at that moment, they tried to protect you, Zoro. You could communicate thanks to Observation Haki and they used this channel to repel your opponent by tapping into your strengths, in your Armament Haki. You have not mastered it consciously and in doing so, they have not only drained you of your energy but they have also offered to carry a power for which they were not prepared."

The blond slowly raised his eyes to those of his companion to try to gauge if the swordsman could see where he was taking him. And seeing the look of astonishment that Zoro cast on his blades, he didn't have many doubts. He turned his own attention to the sheaths in his arms which still shone in time with the appearance of the moon and a wave of tenderness seized him.

"You've always perceived the rest of your environment through the prism of your swords and today, if you can't hear anything, it's because this fight has consumed them," he whispered. "They have sacrificed themselves for the dream you share, exactly like you would have done."

The realization of the extent of his swords' devotion to him stabbed Zoro right in the heart, leaving him as petrified as he was terrified, and Sanji slowly approached to place the swords in their owner's hands which had begun to tremble.

"You taught me that a broken blade can be repaired and today, your swords need you. Only you can break the silence into which they have fallen to protect your dream."

Zoro closed his fingers on his swords before looking up at his companion, overwhelmed, and Sanji felt his own emotion constricting his throat.

"You surely recovered your Haki, you just need to learn to master it to go get them and as soon as you restore this connection between you, nothing can stop you. Thanks to them, you'll become the best swordsman in the world, Zoro."

The man's fingers turned white around his swords under the force of his grip and the cook let his gaze focus again on the three blades, a strange feeling of gratitude seizing him at their sight.

"I always knew that you could give your life for them and I know that they would do the same for you now… We all owe them to know that you're alive today and I thank them for that."

At his side, Zoro fell to his knees and Sanji leaned close to place a gentle hand on his back when tears finally flooded the swordsman's eyes before rolling down his cheeks. He then backed away when Zoro leaned forward until his head touched the floor, his three swords pressed convulsively against him because of his increasingly loud sobs.

The blond chose to sit a few steps away then, leaning against the wall, faithful and silent as a shadow. The weight that was compressing the swordsman's heart was only beginning to release and Sanji didn't try to appease him this time.

This moment belonged only to Zoro, and his swords.

Here you go! I wonder what you think about it!

In the next chapter, we'll take time to discover the concrete implications of this revelation.