A/N: Within the month! Don't nickel and dime me to death, Nami!
Nami: ...fine. I'm only billing you 100,000 Beri.
A/N: ...and with that generous offer, I'll live.
Randy: Just start the story already.
Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece or any of its characters. I only own the original characters and any additional character exploration I create for this series.
"Talking"
"Thinking"
"Attack Name or Technique"
"Author's Notes"
Chapter 18: Clash of Swordsmen! Zoro vs. Hawk-Eye Mihawk
The Krieg Pirates were absolutely devastated. Hawk-Eye Mihawk had followed them out of the Grand Line, and had sliced their flagship in three pieces, perfectly cut. Now he was going to finish the job as they stood on the floating flotsam and jetsam.
"We're done for…" one of the pirates muttered.
"Dammit! What did we ever do to you, huh?!" a Krieg Pirate with dreadlocks demanded of the Shichibukai. "Why the hell did you have to follow us all the way out here?!"
Mihawk tilted his head in thought, his fingers woven together and his leg crossed over the other one. "…to kill some time," Mihawk finally stated.
"That's bullshit!" the dreadlocked pirate snapped as he whipped out two pistols and fired at Mihawk. Mihawk was silent, only moving his hand and reaching for his massive blade, Yoru. The Black Blade was pointed at the man, directly between himself and the bullets, and with a subtle twist of the wrist, the bullets we deflected off to the side.
"What, it missed?!" the Krieg Pirates yelled in disbelief.
"He deflected it," Zoro observed, having somehow silently moved behind the group in front of Mihawk. "No matter how many times you shoot him, the result will always be the same."
"And who're you, you bastard!?" the dreadlocked pirate snapped, Zoro ignoring him anyway.
"I've never seen such grace with a blade," Zoro commented. "Your skill is obvious to any swordsman."
"A sword without grace or skill is but a bar of iron," Mihawk agreed as he sheathed Yoru.
"Did you cut that ship with that sword as well?" Zoro asked.
"Of course," Mihawk confirmed.
"No wonder you're the World's Strongest…" Zoro said, grinning in anticipation like a demon. It was just then that the Krieg Pirates took notice of Zoro by the number of blades he had. "I set sail to meet you!"
Mihawk only looked at him, taking notice of who Zoro was. "…what do you aim for?" he asked.
"To claim your title," Zoro replied in a growl, tying his bandana on. "You said you're free, right? So let's have a duel."
"It's him! That's Roronoa Zoro, the Santoruyu-user!" the pirate who shot at Mihawk blurted out.
"The pirate hunter?" Krieg asked, a bit confused as Zoro was going after Mihawk, not himself.
"That's him?" Sanji asked, puffing out some CO.
"Hey, we're gonna lose sight of the Merry!" Usopp hissed.
"Usopp, that can wait," Randy said calmly, not even looking at him. "Nami's going somewhere specific."
"How do you know?" Usopp asked.
"Call it a hunch," Panala said, her own eyes focused on Mihawk.
"…pitiful," Mihawk scolded. "You're painfully unaware of your weakness." He stood up from his small, coffin-like craft and walked over, his eyes not edging from Zoro's gaze. "If you were a competent swordsman, then you'd know the difference between you and I without even needing to cross blades." His folded arms showed how relaxed he felt, not even caring about Zoro's reputation. "But still, you dare to challenge me. Does that bravery come from your conviction… or from ignorance?"
"It comes from my ambition," Zoro said, biting down on the Wado Ichimonji, "and a promise to a friend." The two stared at each other wordlessly for a bit. "To be honest, I never thought I'd meet you so early on in my journey…"
"It's a waste, if you ask me," Mihawk countered.
"The World's Strongest Swordsman versus the Pirate Hunter, Zoro," the Baratie Cooks murmured as we all watched from afar, my place on the Baratie's dock allowing me to lean on the air a bit.
"There's no one who can match our Bro Zoro!" Johnny and Yosaku proudly declared.
"That man… just what did he do to our ship…" Krieg mused as he watched Mihawk carefully, trying to figure out where the hell his strength came from. Zoro's gaze narrowed as Mihawk took his cross-shaped necklace off and gripped it by the smaller end of the cross.
"What are you doing?" Zoro demanded, curious as to why Mihawk wasn't using Yoru.
"I'm not so stupid as to use a cannon to hunt rabbits," Mihawk simply replied as he removed the longer part of the cross to reveal it was the sheath for a small dagger. "You may be the strongest swordsman in the East Blue, but the East Blue is the weakest of the four Blue Seas, all separated by the Grand Line and Red Line." He shrugged apologetically. "I am sorry, but I don't have a smaller blade on me now."
"There's a limit to how much I can be underestimated…" Zoro grumbled as he charged in. "You better not regret those words when you die!"
"Hear me, little frog in the well," Mihawk advised as Zoro crossed his arms across his chest. "It's time for you to realize the world is much bigger than the well you live in."
"ONI…" Zoro prepared for his currently signature technique. "GIRI!" However, as he tried to swing the blades, he felt himself trapped halfway through the swing. His eyes shot wide as he realized Mihawk had pinned the blades together at their intersection point, with nothing but the tip of the dagger he chose to fight with.
"That goes to show you… Mihawk is no joke…" Randy sighed, noting how cold and focused Mihawk was. And yet, there was a feeling of caution to him, as if he could feel… something in Zoro he didn't want to step on.
"Big Bro Zoro's Oni Giri was stopped cold!" Johnny and Yosaku blurted out. "That's his sure-kill technique!"
"I… I can't even move forward!" Zoro reminded himself. "There hasn't been a single man who's seen through this move until now! And he stopped it… with that toy!? This is ridiculous!" "AAAARRRRGHHHH!" Zoro roared as he pulled back and launched into a flurry of blows, trying desperately to land a single blow on Mihawk. "My goal can't be this far out of reach!" Mihawk tapped his blades, the sheer force knocking him flat on his back. "UGH!" "This can't be how far apart I am from him!" "RAAAAHHH!"
Zoro's berserker assault continued, Mihawk continuing with his calm defense as well. "Come on, Big Bro Zoro! Show him what you're really made of!" Johnny and Yosaku cheered on.
"Such ferocity…" Mihawk observed as he tapped away each of Zoro's swings, almost feeling bored.
"He's man-handling Zoro's Santoryu with that tiny thing!" a Krieg Pirate said, stating the obvious.
"I didn't train so hard… to lose against this stupid toy!" Zoro chided himself. "I trained to win!" Kuina's last moments with him flashed through his mind. Her self-depreciation from her gender, his scolding of her giving up despite being better than him, and their promise to each other. "I trained to defeat him!" His promise to Kuina's father after she passed, the pirates running in fear at the sight of him, and the first time he met Johnny and Yosaku.
"What burdens you so?" Mihawk asked. "What do you still desire at the extent of your strength, weakling?"
"How dare you call our Big Bro a weakling?!" Johnny snapped.
"We oughta teach you a lesson, you bastard!" Yosaku hissed as the duo grabbed their blades and tried to leap at the fight.
"OH NO YOU DON'T!" Randy and Panala yelled as they each grabbed Johnny and Yosaku respectively, Randy yanking Johnny back by his collar and Panala wrenching Yosaku's ear as they pinned the two.
"You're not going to interfere with Zoro's fight!" Randy ordered as he pushed Johnny to the deck.
"If you interfere, he's never going to forgive you," Panala said as she sat on Yosaku like he was a stool, the bounty hunter quickly cowed by Panala's intimidating glare.
"Randy… Panala…" Usopp muttered in respect to the two for their understanding.
Zoro was knocked away again with a quick flick of Mihawk's arm. Zoro rolled to his feet, and swung his blades behind his left shoulder. "TORA…" his mind flashed to his meeting with Randy as he announced his attack.
-X-
"The World's Greatest Swordsman, eh?" Randy echoed cheerfully. "Only the best for the King of the Pirates."
-X-
"GARI!" Zoro shot at Mihawk, intent on cutting him down this time. With a speed he recognized similar to… no far faster than Randy's own, Mihawk dashed through Zoro's guard, and stabbed him in the chest. As the pain bubbled through his torso, Zoro had to admit, the attack was fluid, strong, and precise. Mihawk had stabbed him in the lungs, sliding the dagger perfectly between his ribs. He was mere inches away from his heart.
"BIG BRO!" Johnny and Yosaku yelled. Panala's eyes locked on Randy's hands, which were splintering the rail of the Baratie's dock in their grip. Her gaze quickly went up, and she saw Randy gritting his teeth, sweat rolling down his brow.
"Randy… you know he's going to be fine," Panala pondered. "Why are you so worried?"
Zoro was stunned, he couldn't believe how outclassed he was. But no matter how bad his body wanted to, he didn't step back. Mihawk looked honestly surprised as he saw Zoro's body fighting his will.
"Do you wish for me to pierce your heart?" Mihawk asked him. "Why do you refuse to step back?"
"You know, I'm not really sure myself," Zoro admitted. "But I get the feeling… if I took a single step back now… I'd lose something very important to me. The oath I made, or whatever it is… it'd be broken forever, and I'd never be able to return back to where I'm standing now."
"Yes, that is defeat," Mihawk clarified for Zoro.
"Hah… then that's why I can't step back," Zoro realized as his footing stabilized.
"Even if it means your death?" Mihawk asked, testing Zoro.
"I'd much rather die than break that oath!" Zoro eagerly answered.
"Such resolve… to choose death over defeat…" Mihawk mused. "Kid… tell me your name."
Zoro moved his blades in front of him, holding them so they formed a triangular pinwheel-like formation from the front. "Roronoa Zoro," the injured swordsman gave.
"I shall remember it, for your strength is not often seen in this world," Mihawk stated as he sheathed the dagger, and reached for Yoru. "And to pay my respect to you as a fellow swordsman, I shall end this duel with my black sword, the World's Strongest Sword."
"He's using it! The sword that cleaved our ship apart!" the Krieg Pirates yelled.
"So this is it… If I miss here, I'll die…" Zoro mused silently. "To be the World's Strongest Swordsman… or to die here and now…"
"DIE!" Mihawk bellowed, as if to make the situation even more tense.
"Big Bro, that's enough! Please stop!" Johnny and Yosaku begged as Randy's grip on the Baratie tightened even more. Zoro only started to spin the two blades in his hands, in reverse clockwise directions to each other.
"SANTORYU OUGI!" Zoro bellowed, Mihawk's eyes widening ever so slightly as he realized the technique coming. "SANZEN SEKAI!"
The pair passed each other, Mihawk passing by Zoro as Zoro took his step forward. The air was stagnant for a second, before a new wound appeared on Zoro's chest and his two black-handled blades shattered.
"I lost… I'm no match for him…" Zoro realized as he held his shattered blades, blood welling up in his throat. "I never even considered I could lose." He quickly removed Wado Ichimonji from his mouth and sheathed it carefully. "So… this is the strength of the World's Strongest…!" Mihawk turned on heel to cut Zoro, but stopped as he saw Zoro stand, leaving his arms wide open.
"What…?" Mihawk asked as he basically saw an odd mix of surrender and staunch resolve.
"A scar on the back is a swordsman's shame," Zoro chuckled, grinning at Mihawk. He felt relieved, ashamed, and proud all at once.
"Splendid!" Mihawk agreed with a matching grin as he drew Yoru across Zoro's chest from shoulder to hip in a beautiful gliding stroke.
"ZORO!" Randy roared from his spot.
"Don't rush to death so fast, young one," Mihawk advised spiritually.
"BIG BRO ZORO!" Johnny and Yosaku blubbered.
"This is the power of the Grand Line… The power of the real world…" the Krieg Pirates yelped. "Even Pirate Hunter Zoro didn't stand a chance!"
"Why…?" Sanji asked himself.
-X-
"Ever since I've decided to become the World's Greatest Swordsman, I threw away my attachment for life," Zoro revealed to Sanji from his seat. "The only one who has the right to call me an idiot is me and me alone."
-X-
"The damn bastard's out of his mind!" the blond cook continued. "His enemy is the World's Strongest! Of course he's going to lose! Even if it means you're gonna die, just throw that damn ambition of yours away!" "You idiot! Why didn't you just abandon your dream?!"
"Because he is willing to die for his dream, it is his life," Mihawk chided mentally, before he felt something unsettling as Zoro fell into the water. He refocused as he heard wood snapping and the air popping.
"YOU BASTAAAARRRRD!" Zoro's companion in the straw hat roared.
"The young swordsman's comrade?" Mihawk asked as he saw the red-vested youth leap into the air.
His Haki kicked into overdrive, and his vision blurred to a new scene. The swordsman's comrade, rapidly closing in on him by kicking off the air at least ten times in a split second, and… a black fist swinging for his head, barely visible from the blur it was. He snapped back to reality as Randy vanished from normal sight, and reappeared just in front of him. The black fist swung for his head, but he had been warned by his spirit. He quickly sidestepped the blow, letting the youth smash into the broken piece of deck where he and Zoro were fighting.
"What the hell?!" Sanji snapped as he had to refocus on the spot in the air where Randy was standing just a split second ago, and then to the spot where Randy had buried his hand into the deck. Mihawk noticed something just as odd as finding the Color of Armaments in the East Blue, the color quickly fading from the youth's arm as it was pulled out of the water, all but fading away as the youth flexed his hand.
"What was that!?" the Krieg Pirates shrieked. "Was that a Devil Fruit?"
"The Devil Fruit…" Krieg muttered. "No wonder that brat's so cocky."
"Impossible… This boy can wield Haki… but it just vanished, as if he never had it in the first place…" Mihawk pondered as he watched the angered youth, his surprise masked by his curiosity. "Fear not, the young man is still alive," Mihawk revealed as Randy landed beside him, immediately relaxing and from what Mihawk felt, a bit of self-depreciation and embarrassment.
"Big Bro Zoro, answer us!" Johnny asked as he and Yosaku brought Zoro to the surface. Zoro coughed up some blood as the guys got Zoro on the bounty hunting duo's boat.
"I am Dracule Mihawk! It is far too early for you to die!" Mihawk declared. "Learn yourself, learn of the world, and become strong, Zoro!" Johnny and Yosaku quickly applied medicine to his wounds and were trying to patch him up. "No matter how many months or years pass by, I will be waiting for you here at the top of the world! So forge on ahead with that fierce conviction of yours, and try to surpass my blade! Surpass me, Roronoa Zoro!"
"C'mon Big Bro Zoro, answer me!" Yosaku pleaded.
"To think Mihawk would say such a thing," Zeff mused, Panala giving a chuckle.
"Zoro left a good impression," Panala commented. "And I think my Captain did the same." "Randy, you knew he was gonna live, you dork! What the hell was that about?"
"Boy, what do you aim for?" Mihawk asked Randy, now curious as to the boy who allied with his awaited challenger.
"To claim the One Piece, and become the Pirate King," Randy answered strongly, not giving Mihawk a flinch or moved gaze.
Mihawk could only smile once more, if ever so slightly. "A tough path indeed," he chuckled. "One even more difficult than defeating me."
"And we'll forge those paths side-by-side, you can count on it," Randy countered, turning back to the others, minus Panala. "Usopp, how's his wounds?"
"We've treated them, but he's far from fine!" Usopp said, being the only one on the ship not bawling his eyes out. "He's alive, he's just out cold!"
"C'mon, Big Bro Zoro!" Johnny begged.
"Answer us, please!" Yosaku pleaded. Zoro answered by unsheathing Wado Ichimonji and pointing it skyward.
"Zoro, you still with us, buddy?" Randy called out, concern lingering in his voice.
"R-Randy… can you hear me?" Zoro asked, blood still seeping from his wounds.
"Loud and clear, Zoro!" Randy answered eagerly.
"Sorry for worrying you… I know… that if I don't become the World's Greatest Swordsman…" Zoro huffed out, still holding the sword high. "It'll only embarrass you…" Zoro hacked up some more blood, cutting into his soliloquy.
"Bro, please take it easy!" Johnny and Yosaku begged.
"I SWEAR! That I'm NEVER gonna lose again!" Zoro swore, tears flowing freely as he rested his free hand on his forehead. "Until the day I defeat Mihawk and claim his title! I swear I'm never gonna lose again! Is that alright with you, Pirate King!?"
Mihawk noted Randy softly sighed, as if all was right with the world once more. "That's fine with me, you green-haired jerk!" Randy laughed.
"You two make a good team," Mihawk commented as he turned to walk towards his ship. "I'd like to see the two of you again in the future…"
"Oh, Mihawk, wait," Randy cut in, drawing the Swordsman's attention back to the youth. "If you see happen to meet Red-Haired Shanks, can you pass a message onto him for me?" Mihawk felt a semblance of confidence, as if Randy knew he could very well do that.
"…I'm listening," Mihawk asked, looking back at Randy.
"Tell that red-haired drunk that I'm on my way, and I'll explain everything to him soon," Randy eagerly recited, as if he'd been mulling over this moment for a long time.
"If I see him, I'll pass it on," Mihawk commented, holding back a smile at the very accurate description of his former sparring partner.
"Hawk-Eye!" Krieg cut in, a bit too eagerly for Mihawk's taste. "Didn't you come all the way out here for my head? The head of the infamous ruler of the East Blue, 'Don Krieg'?"
"For a while, yes, but I've had my fun," Mihawk curtly replied. "I think I'll go back to my nap now."
"No need to be so curt," Krieg suggested. "You may have had your fun, but I sure haven't!"
"D-D-D-Don Krieg! Why is he trying to stop that man from leaving?!" the Krieg Pirates whimpered.
"Why don't you die before you leave!?" Krieg asked, unloading his body-mounted arsenal of flintlocks.
"Hmph, you never learn, do you?" Mihawk asked as he reached for Yoru. "Farewell." And with one swift stroke, Mihawk cut the part of the shipwreck between himself and Krieg, deflecting the rain of bullets and knocking a wall of water between himself and the arrogant Don. "Just another large frog in a small well…" He quickly reached out with the Color of Observation, trying to find Randy's aura, and was satisfied to find he'd escaped back to the Baratie, unharmed. "So, the swordsman's comrade made it…" Mihawk smiled to himself as he let his Haki quell for a bit, quickly making his escape. "Roronoa Zoro… that is an interesting man you follow. You two will shake the world, no doubt."
-X-
-Panala-
-X-
"That was too close, you idiot!" I scolded Randy with a quick rap upside the head. "And what was with that berserker bum-rush? You know how strong Mihawk is!"
"Sorry, sorry, I just got really concerned," Randy apologized, leaning in close. "Temporal causality is still a bitch."
"No kidding, dork," I sighed, looking for Mihawk. "He's gone already."
"Usopp, get going, or you'll lose Nami!" Randy ordered as Usopp grabbed Randy's straw hat, Johnny and Yosaku quickly patching up Zoro's still somewhat bleeding wounds.
"Zoro and I will definitely bring Nami back, Randy!" Usopp called out as he tossed the straw hat towards us. "So make sure you get that Cook to join! Once we have six people in our crew, we'll head for the Grand Line!"
"You know it!" Randy said, snatching his hat out of the air and donning it once more.
"You're sure brave for being ready to piss your pants at the mention of the Grand Line earlier, Usopp!" I called out, earning a wild take from our sniper.
"You shut your mouth, Panala!" Usopp barked as they sailed away from our battlefield.
"They're finally arriving," Sanji mulled over as the Krieg Pirates drifted back within boarding range on the scraps of their flagship. "The damn pests."
"We still holding to that agreement, Zeff-san?" Randy asked, looking at the braid-stache'd cook. "I help get rid of Krieg, and I pay off my tab?"
"Do whatever you want kid," Zeff gruffly answered.
"You sure you don't want a weapon?" one of the cooks asked me as he held his fork-spear tight. "Not sure what kinda fightin' style you use, Miss."
"No thanks, I'll use my head." I grinned, tapping my forehead and then jerking it forward and making a crunch sound.
"If you say so," the cook replied as I honestly was trying not to shit myself. "No formal training outside of brawling, and I'm staring down experienced killers and fighters. I have no idea what my powers entail aside from turning me into a girl, and if I'm lucky, it's more than just that." I looked at the Krieg pirates, my adrenaline pumping through my veins. "And Randy and Sanji will have my back no matter what, even if Gin tries to kill me. I should be fine. …I hope."
A/N: Finally! We got that animal done!
Panala: You're not gonna make little ol' me fight the big nasties, are you?
A/N: You wouldn't have it any other way and you know it.
Panala: Spoilsport.
Nami: Anyway, onto the reviews!
A/N: But first, collective review answer for anyone else in the future who wants to make a comment at how unoriginal I was for like, the first six or seven chapters. I get it. I screwed up, I sucked at writing, it's just a rehash. But I'm not gonna go back and just change that and make your comments invalid because of it. This story continues to grow with each person that makes a comment. Unless you all freakin' DEMAND that I go back and change things, I'm not gonna.
Randy: ...someone's salty.
To gamelover41592:
Randy: Hope you enjoyed reading Zoro get the snot kicked outta him.
To bennyf5302:
Luffy: Ew, why would I do that?
Nami: Yeah, good luck doing that when I took all my money back plus your own. You can't out-money-thief me.
Panala: It's true, we tried!
Randy: No, I can't do the Dovakin Thu'um. ...but I'll get back to you on that one.
Panala: I am a petite girl of five-foot-five with raven locks down to my shoulders, glasses framing my lovely green eyes, a figure that is a little more hip-heavy than Nami's current one, and currently I'm wearing a purple t-shirt and black pants. And no bra~
Randy: Tease. And as for Panala's powers... well, you'll have to see later.
To sarahgri99:
A/N: Thanks! I hope you enjoyed this chapter as well!
To DeathDragon456:
Randy: Thanks a lot! And nope, my Devil Fruit is not related to either of those!
A/N: I hope you made it to this chapter too!
To Intata:
A/N: Thanks for that, I didn't even realize it. I'll try to skip the exposition for things the fans would already know in the future.
Randy: And glad to see you liked the cat puns. Just a little hinting that I knew more than Kuro was letting on as Klahadore.
A/N: That's all the reviews for now! And so, next time...
Panala: Next time on Sexy Magical Warrior Panala-Chan...
Nami: And Nami-San!
Panala/Nami: We're gonna fleece these boys dry!
Randy-A/N: OH GOD SOMEONE HELP US!
Luffy: But we don't have sheep's wool.