Chapter 10: The Three-Sword Style
In the gap between two buildings at the corner of town, Coby sat on a step with his knees drawn together. Luffy sat cross-legged on top of a large barrel beside him. In front of them Rika sat with her hands in her lap, her eyes still slightly red from earlier.
Luffy had told her everything. That Zoro had eaten all the onigiri that had fallen to the ground. That Zoro said it was delicious.
Rika stared at him for several seconds after hearing that.
Then the sullen expression on her face changed completely.
"Did he really say that?" Her voice rose half a note. "Thank goodness."
Coby furrowed his brow. "So is Zoro actually a bad person the way everyone says?"
"No." Rika shook her head quickly, her tone shifting to serious immediately. "That person isn't bad."
She pressed both her hands together in front of her chest. "This is all Helmeppo's fault, the son of Captain Morgan. He only saved me from an attack by Helmeppo's pet wolf. That was the only reason he was captured."
Both of Coby's hands clenched against his thighs. "This is outrageous. Why is he so cruel. Why does the Marine just stand by and do nothing."
Nobody answered that question.
The sound of a plate shattering broke the silence from the direction of the building in front of them.
All three turned at once.
They ran toward the sound and entered a small restaurant. Inside several people sat still with faces that didn't know what expression to make. At the center table Helmeppo sat with both legs propped up on the table, one hand lifting a wine glass, his smile looking down on everyone in the room.
"Ah, that's right." His voice echoed in the suddenly silent room. "I've decided. I'm going to execute Roronoa Zoro tomorrow at noon."
He said it like someone who had just decided what to have for lunch.
In the corner of the room somewhat away from the center of the disruption, a woman with short orange hair sat alone at her table. Her eyes were brown. Her shirt had white and blue stripes. Her orange mini-skirt had two white circles on each side filled with orange and brown at the center. Her hand held a glass of drink casually, her eyes sweeping the room the way someone does who is used to noticing things others don't.
Luffy's eyes sharpened.
The floor beneath his feet cracked like a spiderweb.
Bugh!
The sound of a heavy dull impact filled the room. Helmeppo slid from his chair, dragged across the floor, crashing into table after table until his body stopped after hitting the wall at the far end of the room.
His eyes had gone white. Foam was coming from the corner of his mouth.
Everyone in the room froze. Nobody had managed to see Luffy move. One moment Helmeppo had been sitting arrogantly with wine in his hand, and now he was unconscious against the wall.
Helmeppo's two guards, only just realizing what had happened, ran toward their master calling his name.
Luffy still stood where Helmeppo had been sitting, his fist not yet fully lowered.
"Coby." He didn't turn. His voice came out in a tone that wasn't his usual. "I've decided. I'm going to invite Zoro to join my crew."
In the corner of the room the orange-haired woman had nearly dropped her glass when that impact sounded. Her eyes searched for the source of the sound and landed on the body of the arrogant Marine captain's son already unconscious against the wall.
Then her eyes moved to the young man with the straw hat still standing in his punching stance.
Her mouth opened slightly.
Then she closed it again. Her hand placed money on the table for her food and drink in a movement as calm as if nothing had happened. She stood and walked out of the restaurant.
Outside the restaurant people had already begun to gather after hearing the commotion from inside. The woman slipped between them without a sound and disappeared in the direction of the Marine base.
Luffy came back to the yard and stood before Zoro again.
Zoro raised his head slowly. "You again. What do you need."
"Hey." Luffy stood straight, his face plain. "I'm going to free you from your bindings. Join my pirate crew."
"Hah?!" Zoro stared at him. "What are you talking about. Why would I become trash like a pirate."
"Isn't that fine either way." Luffy shrugged. "You're already considered the demon bounty hunter of pirates aren't you."
"Hah! Those are completely unrelated things!" Zoro snorted. "And I already said I don't want to become a pirate."
"But I've already decided you're joining my crew."
"You can't just decide that, idiot!" Zoro's teeth sharpened like a shark's. "You can't decide that unilaterally!"
"How about this." Luffy had already turned and started walking toward the base building. "I'll get your swords back. You join my pirate crew."
"Hey wait I haven't agreed—"
But Luffy was already too far. Zoro's voice couldn't reach him anymore.
Zoro watched the shadow of the straw hat growing smaller under the midday sun. The vein at his temple twitched.
"That guy..." His voice was quiet, almost to himself. "Is he seriously going to fight the Marines alone."
The Marine base building looked quiet from outside.
No sound. No guard at the door.
Luffy stood in front of it for a moment scratching his head. "This is a problem. I don't see a single person here."
His head tilted upward. "Is there someone on the roof up there? I think I heard people earlier."
He bent his knees and shot upward. At sufficient height his feet kicked against the air with Geppo, pushing him higher still, until he finally landed on the roof of the building holding onto his straw hat.
Up there dozens of Marines were pulling on large ropes tied to a massive statue. A statue of a man with an axe arm standing with an expression deeply satisfied with himself.
Every head turned toward the sound of his landing.
"Hey!" Luffy shouted toward all of them. "Does anyone here know where Roronoa Zoro's swords are kept?"
Every person pulling on those ropes startled at once and without meaning to let go of their grip.
The ropes released.
The statue tilted.
Then fell.
The thundering sound of impact came from below, followed by a cloud of dust rising upward. The statue split clean at the waist, its upper half shattering to pieces.
Everyone on the roof stared downward in silence.
Luffy stared down too with a guilty expression. "Ah. I'm sorry."
From another direction on the roof a large man with an axe arm stood with the veins on his forehead bulging with fury. His face was crimson.
"All of you!" Morgan screamed at his subordinates. "Capture him! I want him executed today! No, I'll torture him and make him an example for everyone in this town of what happens when they dare stand against me!"
"Understood, Commander Morgan!"
White uniforms immediately moved toward Luffy from every corner of the roof.
Luffy was no longer there.
In the corridor on the second floor of the base building, Luffy walked slowly along the wall.
The sound of a crowd of footsteps came from around a bend. Luffy pressed himself to the wall, held his breath, until the sound passed and moved away in a different direction. Only then did he continue walking.
"Where exactly are Zoro's swords being kept."
At the end of the corridor was a large room. Above its door was written: CAPTAIN MORGAN OFFICE.
Maybe Zoro's swords are in here, Luffy thought.
His hand had already reached for the door handle when the door opened on its own from inside.
Luffy didn't have time to think. His instincts took over and pushed the person opening the door back inside. The sound of a body hitting the floor came at the same time as the door closed again from Luffy's gentle kick.
"Kya!"
A woman's scream.
Luffy quickly covered the person's mouth with his hand. Outside in the corridor the sound of a crowd of footsteps was heard approaching.
"I heard a sound around here earlier! Search for him, he might be hiding nearby!"
Luffy pressed one finger to his lips, signaling silence to the person he was pinning down and sitting on top of.
The sound of the footsteps gradually faded.
Luffy turned downward to see more clearly the face of the person he was pinning and slowly released his hand from that person's mouth.
Short orange hair. Brown eyes.
Luffy's body froze.
A feeling that wasn't unfamiliar rose in his chest. He felt he had seen this woman somewhere before even though this was the first time they had truly faced each other directly.
"Hey!" The woman looked at him with anger. "Can you get off me?"
Luffy immediately stood.
The woman stood and brushed the dust from her clothes, but her eyes felt Luffy's gaze still not moved away from her. "What is it? Do you need something from me?"
"You..." Luffy looked at her directly. "Aren't you the one who stole all the treasure from Alvida's pirate ship?"
The woman's body stiffened for a second.
Her mind worked quickly. But she was absolutely certain not a single person had seen her at that time. Her face returned to calm and she crossed both arms over her chest. "What are you talking about. I have never stolen from anyone."
"No. You're the one who did it." Luffy didn't move from where he stood. "If not, why are you here?"
The atmosphere in the room suddenly went very quiet. Only the faint sound of footsteps from the corridor outside.
The woman assessed her situation briefly. Then her hand moved to draw a staff.
"Wait wait." Luffy raised both hands. "I'm not your enemy. I just want to invite you to join my pirate crew."
"Pirates?"
The woman's face changed. Not only her expression but something deeper than that, like a door that had suddenly slammed shut behind her eyes. Her voice dropped into something cold and full of hatred.
"Why would I want to become ocean trash like you." She walked to the door. "Move."
Luffy followed her out into the corridor and tried to invite her again. But the woman only walked without turning, without answering, as though Luffy's voice was something that didn't require a response.
Suddenly from the end of the corridor the sound of a crowd of footsteps was heard approaching. Luffy turned to look behind him. A group of Marines was running toward them with weapons in hand.
"Hey! We need to run—" Luffy turned to his side.
The woman was already gone.
"There he is! Capture him immediately!"
Luffy immediately ran in the opposite direction, avoiding the pursuing Marines with Soru, turning at corridor bends until the sound of the footsteps chasing him could no longer be heard.
After he was certain he had left them far behind, Luffy stopped and went back to walking slowly along the corridor while scratching his head.
"Where exactly are Zoro's swords being kept."
At the end of the corridor a young man walked while holding his swollen cheek, his eyes still slightly unfocused.
Helmeppo.
From the direction behind Luffy the sound of a group of Marine footsteps was heard again, this time from a different direction. Luffy immediately ran toward Helmeppo and grabbed his collar before Helmeppo could react.
"Where are Zoro's swords being kept?"
"In—in my room—" Helmeppo stammered.
Behind them the line of Marines appeared from around the bend with rifles already raised. "There he is! Fire!"
Luffy immediately pulled Helmeppo in front of his body.
"If you want to shoot, go ahead and shoot." He tilted Helmeppo forward as a shield and began walking toward the line of rifles at a casual pace.
Helmeppo, seeing the ends of the rifles pointing directly at his face, screamed in a voice that had lost every last remnant of his former arrogance. "Don't shoot! Don't shoot me!"
Not a single rifle moved.
Luffy had already passed through the line while dragging Helmeppo whose feet were scraping along the floor.
Helmeppo's room wasn't difficult to find.
Inside on the wall rack were displayed three swords each in their own scabbard. Luffy tied all three to his back with rope he found on the floor.
In his other hand Helmeppo had already lost consciousness. Being dragged the whole way there had apparently been too much for someone who had just had his face punched and had nearly been shot by his own men's rifles.
Luffy looked out the window.
In the yard below, Coby stood surrounded by several Marines who had already pointed their weapons at him. Zoro was still tied to his post in the center of the yard, watching the situation around him with sharp eyes despite his body clearly being exhausted.
Luffy tightened the last rope on his back and jumped out the window.
In the air his feet kicked with Geppo, pushing him forward and downward, then Soru combining the kicking technique made his movement through the air something that couldn't be predicted, turning, accelerating, turning again, until he landed in the center of the yard right between Coby and the line of Marines who had already raised their weapons.
The sound of gunfire rang out simultaneously.
The bullets struck Luffy's body and bounced back in every direction. The Marines who saw it stepped back several paces, their faces unable to hide their confusion.
"Who exactly are you?!" Zoro stared from his post with an expression that for the first time since Luffy had met him was not entirely controlled.
Luffy turned and smiled. "I'm Monkey D. Luffy. The person who will become King of the Pirates."
"King of the Pirates?!" Zoro furrowed his brow. "Do you understand what you're saying?!"
"That's right!" Coby stood behind Luffy with his fists raised in front of his chest. "Luffy-san is the person who will find One Piece and become King of the Pirates!"
Zoro stared at the pink-haired boy shouting with full conviction for several seconds with an expression that was hard to read.
"Which ones are your swords?" Luffy had already untied the rope from his back and raised all three swords to the front. "I saw there were three swords so I brought all three."
"All three are mine." Zoro's eyes moved to the three swords. "I'm a three-sword style user."
"So what's your decision." Luffy looked at Zoro with an expression just as casual as when he asked about food. "Stay here and die, or join my crew and become a pirate chased by the Marines."
Zoro went quiet.
His eyes moved from Luffy's face to his three swords then to the line of Marines still surrounding them then back to Luffy.
"I'm tired of being a bounty hunter." Something changed in his eyes, turning sharp and cold in a way different from before. "I'll join you. But—"
He looked directly into Luffy's eyes.
"If someday you get in the way of my becoming the world's greatest swordsman, I won't hesitate to cut you down."
Luffy looked back at him. No expression of surprise on his face. No hesitation.
"World's greatest swordsman." His smile appeared slowly. "What a great dream."
Then both his hands shot up into the air.
"Yeah! I finally got one member!"
"What are you doing hurry up and free me!" Zoro glanced at the line of Marines who had started moving again with swords and rifles in hand. "Before they reach us!"
Luffy immediately moved toward the ropes binding Zoro and began pulling.
The more he pulled the tighter the ropes became.
"OW!" Zoro let out a sound between a groan and a shout with every pull. "What are you doing?! Are you trying to kill me?!"
"This is strange." Luffy scratched his head with the hand not pulling the rope. "Why does it keep getting tighter."
"Just give me my swords!"
Luffy threw all three swords toward Zoro's still-bound hands. Zoro caught all three and in one motion the ropes binding him fell to the ground in small pieces.
Zoro stood upright for the first time in days.
The Marines who had arrived nearby immediately swung their swords. Zoro faced all of them with three swords in his hands, deflecting every attack in a way that sent each attacker stumbling backward one by one.
Behind the Marine line several people standing near Morgan stepped backward. One of them spoke in a voice quiet but audible enough to carry.
"Captain, this is impossible. The straw hat alone is already nearly impossible to capture. On top of that there's this bounty hunter. None of us can fight them."
Morgan's fury rose to a point even his face could no longer contain it. "I don't need weaklings in my base! Anyone who still hesitates shoot yourself in the head!"
The faces of the Marines around him shifted into reluctance and unwillingness. The hands that had been holding weapons didn't move anywhere.
Luffy, seeing that, shot toward Morgan through the Marine line using Soru and threw a punch forward.
Morgan's axe rose to block.
"Someone ordinary like you is unworthy to be my opponent!" Morgan pushed back with his axe, his voice filling the yard. "I am the captain of this Marine base! Axe-Hand Morgan!"
His coat was flung into the air.
Luffy raised both hands in front of his face and smiled. "I'm Luffy. Nice to meet you."
Morgan's axe began to crack from the point where Luffy had struck it, the cracks spreading outward in every direction like a spiderweb, and in one second the axe shattered to pieces.
Morgan stared at his wrist that was now holding nothing.
"What?!"
Luffy shot forward.
"Gomu Gomu no Pistol!"
The fist struck Morgan's stomach with a sound that echoed across the entire yard. Morgan's large body flew backward, hit the iron fence at the edge of the yard hard enough to bend it, then stopped after his head struck the building wall behind him.
The wall cracked.
Morgan didn't move again.
Zoro, who had watched all of it, slid his swords back into their respective scabbards. "Looks like you're genuinely strong, Captain."
"Of course." Luffy smiled casually.
Around the yard the Marines still standing looked at each other. Nobody moved for several seconds.
Then someone among them took off their cap and threw it into the air.
Others followed.
Then others still.
Until white caps were flying through the air above the yard of the Shells Town Marine base together with shouts from people who had held them in for a long time.
"We're free! We're finally free!"
Luffy watched all of it with a confused expression. "What's wrong with them. Their captain got beaten but they're all actually happy about it."
Coby who had arrived behind Luffy smiled wide though his eyes were a little watery. "Because they were all only afraid of Captain Morgan! They aren't bad people, they were just too scared to do anything other than follow orders."
Luffy didn't answer right away.
His eyes swept the yard. The caps flying through the air. The faces that suddenly looked far lighter than before. Marines crying while embracing their comrades.
"But if that's the case they were just puppets following orders from above and turning a blind eye to the injustice on this island." Luffy turned to Coby. "Coby, do you also want to join and become like them?"
Coby went still.
The smile didn't come right away this time. His eyes moved across the yard, to the faces he had thought must be evil but turned out to be only afraid. Then to Morgan who was already unconscious. Then to Luffy.
Something in his head worked in a way different from before.
Thud.
Every head turned toward that sound.
Zoro lay on the ground in the middle of the yard, his swords still in his hands, his body toppling sideways in a way that was not dramatic at all.
"Zoro-san!" Coby ran closer. "What happened to you? Are you injured?"
Zoro opened one eye from the ground. His voice was quiet but carried clearly.
"I'm... hungry."
End of Chapter 10