𝐑𝐈𝐃𝐄 • Roronoa Zoro

chapter eleven

Blade felt her eyes slowly open as the throbbing on her cheek became evident. One bad thing about wearing this mask was that it hurt like a bitch to get punched in the face. Then again, it usually hurt her attacker more than her.

She sat up slowly, noticing where she was. A well. The light from the moon shone in, lighting it up just enough for her to see Zoro, lying on the ground. His eyes were open. She scrambled over to him as he sat up, sitting beside him.

"I can't get out," he said.

"What?"

"I can't get out." He motioned to a rope tied around his waist. "I was gonna climb up, then yell down to you and use this rope to get you out, but I can't climb, and I can't get the rope up there. It's no use. We're gonna die down here."

"You're just giving up that easily?"

"What else can I do?"

"I've heard stories about you, Zoro. You don't give up. Isn't there anyone out there who you wanna get out for? Nami? Luffy?"

"I guess, but they'd be fine without me."

"You're a swordsman. You must've had a sensei, right? How would he feel if he saw you giving up this easily?"

"I think my friend taught me more than my sensei. Kuina. She'd get so mad at me when I said I couldn't do something. We fought with real swords. She always beat me. Then there was an accident, and she was gone. I was gonna give in there and then."

"But?"

"Miura." Zoro smiled at the mention of her name. "She made me promise that I'd become the world's greatest swordsman. I'd made the promise to Kuina originally, and I was gonna stop trying, but Miura told me that, even if Kuina was gone, I should keep up my end of the promise. Soon enough, she was gone, too."

Miura frowned. She was desperate to know why Zoro thought she was dead.

"How?"

"Have you heard of Solitude Island?"

"No." She lied.

"She moved there. Even thought we'd lost each other, I knew she was still out there, and I kept up my training in hopes that one day she'd hear my name and know that I'd made my promise to her and Kuina come true. But Solitude Island was overrun by pirates. I went over there the second I turned sixteen. I looked for her, searched the whole island. When I asked around, they all told me she was gone. I have no one to keep up my promise for now, so what's the point? It's not like anyone's here to appreciate my efforts."

Blade was dying to tell him, dying to say something, anything that would show him she was Miura. But she couldn't.

"How do you know Miura's dead?"

"I've asked every pirate I've come across if they know her. Not one has said yes. I've ran into most crews from the East Blue, someone would've known by now if she was alive. That's why I'm a pirate hunter. They killed the l- my best friend, and I won't stop killing them until she comes back to me. The Berry's just a bonus."

"I don't know if you believe in life after death, but I do. Kuina and Miura are still here, just not physically. Do you really wanna die down here then meet them in the afterlife just to tell them you simply gave up? That you went down without a fight?" Blade looked at Kuina's sword, then at her bandana. "You made a promise."

"You're right. We made a promise. Stay down here."

"What-"

"I said stay down here, I'll get you. I promise."

"Please, you have to know where she is!" Zoro said.

"The Miura family weren't here very long before the pirates came," an old man said, "The pirates, they took everything, including that family, and so many others."

"No..."

"I'm sorry, young man. We have a memorial sight right at the edge of the island."

Zoro ran to the edge of the island, with tears streaming down his face. He found it. 'Aoi Miura'. How could they give her a grave when they don't even know for sure if she's dead?

"I'll try my best to become the world's greatest swordsman, for you and Kuina. I promise."

Zoro was up quickly, and threw the rope down for Blade.

"You have to be quick," he said, "I'm pretty sure they think we're dead."

Blade climbed up the rope as quickly as she could, her arms shaking when she finally reached the top. She stumbled over, falling into Zoro, who caught her and stopped the two of them from falling.

"You okay?" He asked.

"Yeah," Blade said, "Thank you for not leaving me down there."

"I wouldn't. You remind me a lot of Miura, I'd like to keep you by my side."

"I do?"

"Mhm. I mean, she was a lot more emotionally available, and I don't like you the way I liked her, but you're close enough, even if you are a pirate when she wanted to be a hunter."

"She wanted to be a hunter?"

"Yeah. She used to make makeshift double-sided swords just like yours and talk about how she could collect two bounty's at once."

Blade smiled at how much he'd remembered about her. He must've really missed her.