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imasimpforshanks · 3 years

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omg I am so sorry I completely forgot to put the alphabet 😅 E C J M T for Shanks for the angst alphabet! thank you and sorry for the mistake! ❤️

Angst Alphabet - Shanks

a/n: hiii! Thank y’all for requesting! To the second anon, I went with Shanks (I hope that’s ok!!!) 💗💗💗

LOLOL THIS MY HUSBANDDDDD 💍😍

A-Accident (would they blame themselves if you died in an accident?)

It would depend on how much he felt he could have prevented it. However, Shanks understands all to well just how cruel the world can be. He can’t constantly be in control of everything, so although it would be devastating, he would have to realize that this is reality.

B-Break up (How would they break up with you?)

Shanks would use the excuse that he is a Yonko. He’s no good for you, and you deserve so much better than an infamous pirate who only brings danger. While these are just excuses - ways to make breaking up with you easier - he really would be speaking from the heart. Shanks has always felt this way but never voiced it, but now it’s finally time to let you go.

C-Crying (how would they make you cry?)

He leaves for long periods of time and refuses to you along. You know he’s only doing it for your safety, but it hurts that he doesn’t think you’re strong or responsible enough to join his crew on their voyages (note: he doesn’t actually think you’re not strong or responsible – his pirate life is just extremely dangerous, even as a yonko).

D-Death (how would they react to your death?)

He’s seen and experienced a lot of death in his life so he’d be a able to cope with it a little better than others would. Even so, your death would still be heart-breaking (he would mourn privately though). Now, if he literally saw you get killed in front of him then RIP to the person who killed you because they will be the one/s to die next.

E-Emotion (what is one emotion they would try to hide the most and how would they do it?)

Shanks is quite an open book. If he’s angry everyone knows. If he’s happy everyone knows (etc.). But, if I really had to pick one… I suppose it would be sadness or grief. He feels obligated to put on a front for his crew (although they can see right through it). He tends to let out his sadness and grief when he’s alone.

F-Fight (do you two ever fight? How big are the fights? What do you fight about? Etc.)

He tends to crack jokes before your fights can escalate into anything too serious. Sometimes it’s intentional, but other times it’s just his personality shining through. And rather than serious fights there’s just a lot of teasing and taunts between the two of you.

If you were to have a serious fight, it would be about both of your safety (As would most fights with any of the One Piece characters).

G-Guilt (what is the biggest thing they feel guilty about?)

More often than not, Shanks finds himself able let go of a LOT of shit. But the one thing he can’t seem to stop feeling guilty about is his failure to show up to Marineford on time. He knows he’s not directly responsible for Ace’s death, but that doesn’t stop the overwhelming guilt. If only he had gotten there a few minutes earlier.

H-Heartbreak (what would cause them pain in the relationship? How would they deal during a break-up?)

Coming back to you after each voyage is something he always looks forward to. However, that happiness is short-lived when he realizes he has to leave again in a few weeks. It’s always so painful having to say goodbye again.

I don’t think he would be too different during a break-up. Perhaps he may crack a few less jokes, but other than that, his personality and demeanour when around others remains the same. It isn’t until he’s alone that he lets his smile fall.

I-Injured (how would they react if you are badly injured?)

Undoubtedly, he’d be concerned, but he knows you’ll pull through (you have to pull through). So, after that initial concern has passed, he’ll be feeling all types of pissed off. Whoever, or whatever, injured you will pay – and honestly, he may not even deal the perpetrator himself (his crew is already on it - you are like family to them).

J-Jealousy (what do they do if they are jealous?)

I honestly think Shanks is just the type of person to just tell you if he’s jealous. But he wouldn’t say “uhh I’m feeling a little jealous” or anything along those lines – no. Instead, Shanks puts on a little pout and does a massive fake sigh until you finally ask him what’s wrong. That’s when he hits you with the “I guess my attention just isn’t enough for you”, and you’re like “HUH?? MF WHAT?” He’s literally such a child HAHA.

But, if there’s one particular person he really does not like you being around and they won’t leave you alone, then he is not at all opposed to just shoving his tongue down your throat right in front of them. That’ll definitely get the message across.

K-Kill (would they kill for revenge?)

Shanks may be a goofy and laid-back individual, but he will resort to violence if the situation calls for it. So, it is very likely that Shanks would kill for revenge. Maybe he wouldn’t necessarily do it himself. But, if he orders it, it’ll definitely happen.

L-Loss (what is their greatest loss?)

Gol D. Roger’s death was probably one of the greatest losses in Shanks’ life. Roger is the reason Shanks is a pirate today, and young shanks was absolutely broken by his death.

(hard to write much for this one seeing as shanks’ character is still quite a mystery to us!)

M-Mistake (what is the worst mistake they ever made with you?)

One time he completely forgot a date night that you spent SO LONG planning. It wasn’t just any date night either. It was a date you planned on his final night before him and his crew had to leave again for a while. You spent hours waiting for to show up, but he was nowhere to be seen. Finally, he showed up at your place, breath reeking of booze. You just looked at him and it hit him (he was like “OH SHIT”). He started apologizing profusely. He didn’t try to make any excuses, he completely owned up to being a shitty boyfriend. But, the moment he knew he had well and truly fucked up was when you just nodded and waved good night to him, wishing him safe travels – you didn’t cry, get visibly angry you just left alone. Shanks knew that was far worse than any yelling.

N-Nightmares (how often do they have them? What are they about? How do they deal with it?)

I literally am not joking when I say this but I think Shanks practically drinks till he passes out so even if he were to get nightmares he wouldn’t wake up LMAOOOOOOOOOOOO (ok maybe I am joking with this one but also kind of not).

In all seriousness though, I don’t think Shanks has nightmares very frequently. It’s gotten to the point where any fear or things of that matter that could be nightmares for him, have become so common in his life that he almost finds it not frightening to think about.

O-Outrage (how and why would they get mad at you?)

He would get mad at you for placing yourself in unnecessary danger. He’d call you stupid and irresponsible, even though he doesn’t really mean any of those things – it’s just the image of him potentially losing you forever is replaying in his mind and it absolutely terrifies him.

P-Past (what has happened in your relationship that changed the way you saw each other?)

You saw him get serious serious once before. Like the kind of serious where he uses his conquerors haki and everything. It definitely caused a bit of a change in your relationship as it was terrifying to witness. You’ve always known Shanks was strong and intimidating when needed, but that moment really showed you what it meant when people called him an “emperor of the sea”.

Q-Quality (what is their most dangerous/toxic quality?)

Not wanting to openly express his sadness and grief in front of others can be a very unhealthy quality. Shanks doesn’t allow himself good enough opportunities to express him emotions in a safe and healthy manner.

R-Rejection (how would they react to you rejecting their confession (or the other way around))

(First of all WHY WOULD ANYONE WANT TO REJECT SHANKS ANYWAY LIKE HUBBA HUBBA I LOVE HIM ANYWHOOOOOOOOO…..) Shanks is the type to just shrug it off. He’d be a little disappointed, bc c’mon the hottest most amazing person he’s ever known just turned him down! But he knows not everything in life goes how you want it to. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, and this just happens to be one of the things he’s lost. So ultimately, he’ll just shrug it off. (he will definitely get teased by his crew though).

S-Scars (battle or self-inflicted)

Shanks has no self-inflicted wounds. But he does have a scar across his left eye given to him by Blackbeard. He also has a missing arm which he (heroically) sacrificed as he saved lil Luffys life (does a missing arm even count as a scar?)

T-Trust (have they ever broken your trust?)

He’s never given you any reason to not trust him. He’s always open and honest with you. Well, as honest as he can be without placing you in any danger. Trust was something needed from the get-go of your relationship because he would be gone for long periods of time. The two of you wouldn’t be able to last without trust.

Oh, also if shanks ever did do anything to break your trust you best believe his crew will beat his ass (especially Benn). You’re family to them.

U-Urge (how badly do they want to see you after you guys separated?)

My god does he want to see you. He would give his other arm just to be right by your side in an instant. He’s gone for weeks, sometimes months, at a time. Shanks loves his crew, they’re a lively bunch and he trusts them with his life, and vice versa. But they’re not you. They don’t provide him with that same feeling of home that you do. Sure, this could be fixed if he let you join the crew on their journeys, but he absolutely cannot place you in that kind of danger. You’re already in enough danger as it is simply being in a relationship with him.

V-Vicious (what do they do when they lash out on you?)

Rather than lashing out at you, Shanks tends to give you the silent treatment. He looks at you without a word and just turns away. He does this in an attempt to make you feel guilty and as if everything is your fault.

W-Weak (what makes them feel weak how do they try to avoid it?)

There isn’t much that makes Shanks feel weak. But, being unable to be near his s/o is one of the few things that does make him feel weak. It’s a constant struggle between wanting to have them around him constantly, but also not wanting to place them in any danger. Ultimately, he decides that not placing them in danger is the better choice, despite how much it pains him.

X-X-ray (what do they hate and show it most obviously?)

Shanks can handle being picked on and ridiculed himself, but he will not tolerate that sort of behaviour towards his friends. The second someone goes after a friend (or someone else he cares about) they are done for.

Y-Yearn (what is one thing that they want but can’t have?)

LMFAOOOOOO WHY DID MY BRAIN AUTOMATICALLY THINK “his arm back” OOP-

I’M SORRY BUT I LITERALLY CAN’T THINK OF ANYTHING ELSE OTHER THAN HIS ARM HAHAHAHAHAH

Z-Zero (what do they do/say in your dying moments?)

He’d try to crack a few jokes to at least help you feel better. Other than that, he just tries to make the most of your final moments together.

#one piece #one piece x reader #one piece headcanons #one piece imagines #red haired shanks #shanks #shanks x reader #angst alphabet #one piece alphabet

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yukipri · 4 years

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One Piece Mermaid AU!

Featuring Luffy as a rubber mermaid who can’t swim, and Ace who carries her on his back as they pirate together.

＊Genderbend warning, fem!Luffy

Sliding in last minute for MerMay, bc idk about you, but I need something to mark that May has passed this year...

PLEASE DO NOT REPOST, EDIT, TRANSLATE, OR OTHERWISE USE MY ART. To share, please reblog! Reblogs and comments greatly appreciated!!!

Base headcanons for this AU beneath the cut! ↓ �� ↓

Luffy's a mermaid who was raised in Fuusha village, just like in canon. And, just like in canon, despite being a mermaid, she SUCKS at swimming, a fact that Shanks finds absolutely hilarious. She still wants to become a pirate, she still eats her devil fruit and becomes a rubber mer(?), she still gets kidnapped by Higuma (who sees her as an excellent way to rake in cash, given how valuable mermaids are on the slave market), and Shanks still gives her his hat.

As a devil fruit user, Luffy's already atrocious swimming skills are now at zero. She can still breathe under water, but will sink like a stone, her strength sapped by the sea, and if she loses consciousness she'll stop breathing too. Needless to say, she stays out of the water, and the villagers come to accept that sometimes, mermaids just live on land.

Garp still comes back, and is still furious at her wanting to become a pirate (and inwardly, extremely concerned that a bandit tried to catch and sell her), and still takes her to live at Dadan's where she meets Ace.

Ace has no idea what to think of the weird fish-brat who he's now told is gonna be his sibling, and resolutely ignores Luffy. He's inwardly slightly impressed as Luffy continues to follow him through the mountain every day, not even particularly hindered by lack of legs and using a mixture of crawling, squirming, hand-walking, and ricocheting forward with rubber arms to move.

Luffy still meets Sabo the same way as canon, and is still caught by Porchemy, who at first is thrilled because a mer brat! That'll bring in WAY more money than the spare change Ace stole! But in the end, he loses his temper at Luffy's stubbornness and still beats her to a pulp.

Ace and Sabo still rescue Luffy, and they still exchange sake cups and become brothers.

Yes, brothers.

Because at this point, neither Ace nor Sabo nor any of the bandits, nor anyone really on Dawn island save Makino and Garp actually know that Luffy's a girl. Not even Luffy.

The three brothers promise to each other that they'll all leave the island when they turn seventeen, setting out to sea to become pirates (Ace and Sabo are honestly a little concerned, given how often people try to sell Luffy, and how despite aquatic appearances Luffy's vulnerable af in water, but decide to wait and see. They have seven years together, Luffy ten until seventeen, who knows how much stronger their baby brother will get in that time).

Sabo "dies."

Ace and Luffy continue to train, and things don't change until Ace is seventeen, shortly before he sets out to sea.

He's let Luffy crawl into his blanket to sleep with him (partially cold-blooded, Lu gets cold easily when inactive), and Ace realizes that his lil brother's chest feels a bit lumpy.

Concerned, he makes Luffy have it checked out by the bandits, who are shocked to find developing...breasts?

That can't be right...right?

Dadan makes a call to Garp, who snorts and says of COURSE Luffy's a girl, didn't he say granddaughter?

No, he had not, he had only mentioned "grand child."

Everyone is shocked, but none more so than Ace, who really doesn't know what to do with this new information.

(Luffy's not quite sure what a "girl" is, and when she asks Ace, Ace honestly doesn't know how to define "girl" either, so she doesn't get what the big deal is)

Ace realizes he's troubled because he can't remember the number of times he's rescued Luffy from potential traffickers, and the number of times he's heard the lament, "Pity it's not female, it'd be worth quadruple," from the kidnappers before he beats them to a pulp.

He already had doubts about letting Luffy go out to sea alone, three years after he's left. But now knowing that Luffy's a girl, and one of the most sought-after species that traffickers target...he knows the world out there is much bigger than a teeny peaceful East Blue island, and Luffy may not get lucky every time, and may not be strong enough in just three years.

But at the same time, it's not like he can order her to stay here. There's no way Luffy'd listen; the sea calls to her, freedom calls to her, and Ace understands that more than anyone.

Sabo, Ace thinks, what would you do?

The night before he leaves, Ace tells Luffy that there's been a change of plans.

He's still leaving for sea. He's going to get stronger, and work his way towards becoming Pirate King.

BUT, three years later, Luffy will NOT leave Dawn Island alone.

Ace promises that he'll come back, a stronger pirate capable of looking out for his baby brother (because girl or not, they exchanged vows of brotherhood, and that's something that can't be changed).

He refuses to let Luffy be his captain, he's still got his pride, but maybe, maybe if Luffy becomes strong enough, he'll let her be co-Captain.

Luffy is thrilled, because she wanted to be pirates WITH Ace, and grudgingly accepts the compromise, and promises to train and wait for Ace's return.

Ace leaves Dawn island, and makes a name for himself on the Grand Line (he's PISSED when he finds out he's eaten a devil fruit, because now how's he supposed to rescue Lu from drowning when he can't swim himself???).

He even eventually makes it to Whitebeard, and eventually comes to admire the man. Whitebeard invites him to his crew, and Ace honestly replies that a large part of him wants to accept...but he can't. He promised his baby brother that they'll be pirates and co-captains together, and he can't join another pirate crew without Luffy agreeing too. Even so, and he knows it's selfish of him, he wants to call Whitebeard his father.

Whitebeard tells him that Ace is already his son, regardless of where his allegiances lie, and gives him his blessing to return to East Blue to fetch Luffy. Whitebeard laughs that he can't wait to meet the lil brat that Ace speaks so highly of, and for Ace to hurry up and come back to the New World so they can meet.

Ace plans on traveling light, his former crew all choosing to join the Whitebeard pirates except for his first mate, Deuce. Ace loves his crew, but they're also his crew, and knows that he wants to make their crew with Luffy. So he thinks he and Deuce will be a good starting point (You're just bringing me along bc you want someone who can swim on the crew, Deuce accuses).

As they're planning on leaving, Marco lets slip to fellow commander Thatch that he heard that Ace's "little brother" is actually a super cute girl.

The next morning, Thatch shows up too, insisting that he come along, because hey! He's been with the Whitebeards for ages and hasn't been to Paradise in a while, he wants some change! And won't it be nice to have someone as reliable as him along, just until they get back to the New World and reunite with the Whitebeards? Really he has no ulterior motives like wanting to check out Ace's supposedly hyper hot baby brother-sister!

Ace is suspicious, but Thatch is already on board and the other Whitebeards are already waving so he lets it go.

(Shortly after they leave, Thatch discovers a devil fruit. Deuce tells him to sell the damn thing, it'll taste like shit, but Thatch thinks boy wouldn't it be great to be able to woo Ace's hot brother with a really cool devil fruit power. So he eats it, and yeah it tastes like shit, but now he can control Darkness which is sorta badass?)

(Somewhere on the Whitebeard ships, Blackbeard is still waiting for someone to find the darkness devil fruit, and well, it doesn't happen)

Before Ace returns to Dawn Island, part of him still hopes that Luffy looks passably like a guy. Having been to Fishman island, having befriended Jinbe, he knows that while mermen can still be targeted, mermaids are exponentially more vulnerable. He's learned the kinds of clothing that can help conceal tails, and is hoping that there's a slim chance they might be able to be pirates without the world knowing that Lu's a mermaid.

His hopes are shot when Luffy rockets into his arms at the dock, and his face is immediately buried in enormous tits that definitely weren't there three years ago.

Despite Ace's growing concerns (and red face; why does he feel so hot??? It's not his devil fruit...), Ace lets Luffy give Deuce a beating (why me?!) to claim her position as Ace's Co-Captain of the newly established ASL pirates (because if we're pirates together, Sabo has to be with us too!).

Luffy's gotten a lot stronger, but is still utterly ignorant of the outside world and the dangers it holds (such as the drooling Thatch who immediately wins Luffy over with his cooking despite Ace's burning glares). She's reckless and falls into the ocean every damn day, and while Deuce dives in after her and they've discovered her useful ability to talk to fish to ask for help, it still gives Ace heart attacks.

They still pick up more crew members while in East Blue, including Roronoa Zoro, Usopp, and Sanji, a pervy cook who competes daily with Thatch for Luffy's affections through food (Luffy appreciates the food).

At Arlong Park, Luffy encounters fishmen for the first time in her life. Arlong mocks Luffy's choice of friends and family, and invites her to join his crew made of her own kind. Fishmen and mer are the superior race, and Luffy will make a fine wife, Arlong says.

Luffy breaks his nose off, and Nami joins their crew.

Luffy's chosen mode of transportation is on the back of one of her sturdier crew mates, usually Ace, but often Zoro too. She unfortunately hates all the long skirts/robes Ace suggested for her to hide her tail, and so Ace has decided that being as intimidating as possible while carrying his brother glued to his back is the only way to go.

Needless to say, news of the former Spade Pirates Captain + Whitebeard Commander Thatch (are they an extension of the Whitebeards??) establishing the new ASL pirates spreads fast. That, and rumors that there's a beautiful young mermaid on board who can't swim. And despite the strength of the crew and their attempts at vigilance, Luffy's still dumb and gullible, and is kidnapped (and rescued) a dozen times before they're even on the Grand Line.

(after a few times, Luffy's uncharacteristically quiet, and privately asks Ace if they can break up the crew. She's holding Ace back; she not only made him come back to her, but half their adventures just seem to be her crew rescuing her. She's strong enough to defeat enemies, but not save herself. Ace tells her to shut up, and never bring this up again; they're BROTHERS, and he's not going to leave her behind or make her abandon her dreams when she can't accomplish them alone, and that's his choice. Luffy doesn't bring it up again, but works harder than ever to become stronger and earn recognition as co-Captain when the world seems intent on thinking of her as Ace's pet.)

During one of these kidnappings, Luffy's successfully brought all the way to an auction house before her crew can rescue her. An auction house that unbeknownst to them, was under investigation by the Revolutionary Army.

Liberating slaves is an unfortunately common mission for them, and Sabo's doing final sweeps as Koala frees the last of them when he notices a tank stowed away in a corner. He's familiar with these tanks, used to showcase mermaids in the rare occasions one can be caught, and it looks empty but he's still drawn to it for some reason.

It's only when he gets closer that he notices a mermaid crumpled at the bottom of the enclosure. She's completely slumped over, and he's afraid she's already gone, even as something about her screams with familiarity.

He's cracked the tank and has reached in to pull her out, when the wall behind him explodes in flames, revealing a furious Ace who snarls at the strange man with his hands on his baby brother...

...and then Sabo's memories come back.

Something like that???? For an initial HCs dump????

This AU has continued! A LOT! Check out the comics, illustrations, and text stories for this AU under the Mermaid AU section of my One Piece Masterpost!

As always, REBLOGS, tags, asks, and comments greatly appreciated!

Advance posts for this AU and more are on my Patreon! (Patreon(.)com/YukiPri)

#One Piece #MerMay #AceLu #Monkey D. Luffy #One Piece Mermaid AU #Portgas D. Ace #genderbend #YukiPri art #text headcanons #fem!Luffy #Honestly not a CLUE if this is the kind of AU that would interest people ^ ^;#Started on a whim and trying to keep my investment on it light #I have more posts planned for Patreon but idk if they'll be going public #it really depends on response so please let me know if this interests you!#I've been less invested in posting publicly recently and am trying to get that back #but i also know people don't engage in content anymore so...we'll see!!

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kaizokuou-ni-naru · 4 years

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The Voyage So Far: Whole Cake Island

east blue (1 | 2) || alabasta (1 | 2) || skypiea || water 7 || enies lobby || thriller bark || paramount war (1 | 2) || fishman island || punk hazard || dressrosa (1 | 2) || whole cake island || wano

sanji is such a self-sacrificial idiot. and i know that’s not exactly a ground-breaking statement, but it does define the entire first half of whole cake island, so it may as well be reiterated here: sanji does not value his own life as much as he should, and fails to grasp that other people care about him outside of what he can offer them, which is why he’s so surprised when luffy later comes charging headlong into big mom’s territory.

zou is a really good little arc, and it also mirrors the themes of whole cake island in miniature. the minks collectively make a massive sacrifice and risk absolutely everything to protect raizou, and wci is essentially all about loyalty and sacrifice, whether its sanji giving himself up to protect the strawhats and zeff or luffy and the strawhats facing impossible odds to rescue him to pedro giving up his life to get them all out of there safe.

huge fan of this panel partly just because it’s cute and partly because it’s a great visualization of just how dysfunctional the heights are in one piece.

zou is one of my favorite settings in one piece just for the sheer creativity of it. zunesha is so massive and so mysterious and so strange. and she really looks unspeakably old just from how she’s drawn, looming over everyone and everything, eyes hollow and empty, an entire forest and an entire people growing on her back that have been there for thousands of years. it’s just so neat and so wildly inventive.

this applies to zou as a whole, but i think it’s really cool how all the little threads that will become important during wano are set up so effectively even before whole cake island starts. we get this shot here of kidd beat to shit and then forget it because so much happens between here and when he shows up again in wano, but then oda punks us into caring about him and killer so much and this retroactively becomes very important.

ever since his introduction sanji’s always been a character basically defined by his adherence to his principles: always feeding the hungry, never wasting food, never hurting women, never using his hands in combat. he’s probably the most firmly principled person on the crew, and that’s more obvious in whole cake island than in any other arc except maybe baratie.

sanji is very stubbornly good, which puts him in acute contrast to his siblings and their general cruel apathy. it’s something i really like about him.

i’m a huge fan of big mom’s introduction, which is also our introduction to tottoland in general. it’s cutesy and colorful and musical while simultaneously being deeply creepy, with lyrics about killing people for ingredients and making jam out of blood, which is a great summary of the core of big mom’s character. she’s an old lady all in pink who lives in a cartoon fairy-tale land- but she’s also a deranged cannibal, and all those singing trees and flowers are animated by the life she steals from her citizens as tax.

whole cake island draws on a lot of fairy tale motifs (especially with brulee), and the contrast that saccharine appearance creates with how fucked up the actual content is is super effective and memorable, i think.

honestly i find most of the content of sanji with the vinsmokes just plain upsetting, which i’m sure is intentional, so i’m not going to go into it a lot here, but i am including this panel of him kicking niji in the face.

sad as this scene turns out, luffy’s absolute thrill at finding sanji and the corresponding bafflement of the vinsmokes as to how the fuck he even got there always kinda makes me grin.

i always love seeing people’s underestimations about luffy get thrown right the hell out the window- because let’s be honest, he’s easy to underestimate, he’s like a five and a half foot tall rubber teenager and not very physically intimidating and all, and then he goes and pulls off the impossible without blinking.

the thing that makes luffy unique as a captain has always been his willingness to rely on his crew, and his willingness to openly admit that reliance, like he did all the way back in arlong park. most of the other contenders for the pirate king’s crown we’ve seen- big mom, kaidou, crocodile once upon a time- have been stubbornly individualistic people who explicitly shown not to care for their crew and allies, generally seeing them as disposable.

luffy is the opposite of all of them, because his crew are everything to him, to the point of being willing to sacrifice his dream for them. and the loyalty he wins from them in return is unmatched, as opposed to big mom and kaidou, who both get cheerfully betrayed not just by their own crewmates but by their own children.

brook is really cool in whole cake island, and honestly it comes at just the right time for him as a character. ever since his introductory arc in thriller bark until this point he hasn’t gotten a ton of focus, so it’s great that he gets to be the mvp here and demonstrate exactly why he’s a strawhat pirate and how much he’s grown over the timeskip.

oda is generally really good at introducing and handling characters contained to a single arc/saga, but i do think he absolutely knocked it out of the park with pedro. he has an interesting backstory, compelling motivations, and basically an entire sub-arc ending in his death that never distracts from the main plot, but only ever adds to it.

pedro really feels like a fully realized character who’s had a whole life offscreen, who we just happened to catch at the very end of his story. i think that’s super impressive.

i really love this moment, because for me, this is the moment where whole cake island becomes a tremendous arc, and where the tides begin to turn and the dominoes begin to fall, one after the other. this is sanji hitting absolute rock bottom. the one ray of light he pinned all his hopes on was a lie, and he can’t even light a fucking cigarette.

but one piece is, very often, a story about picking yourself up even when you feel like you can’t.

i think there’s something lovely about how much one piece emphasizes the value of honestly asking for help. luffy waits for nami to ask for help, and for robin to say she wants to live, and for sanji to admit he just wants to go home, and then says, “okay, i’ll make that happen.”

it just makes me so happy how happy the stawhats are to know sanji’s back with them. it reminds me a lot of how they all brush off robin’s thanks after enies lobby. sure, they’re going to have to crash the wedding and confront big mom directly and might all die, but who cares? they’ve got sanji back. i’ve said it before and i’ll say it again, i love how much they love each other.

i think the gangster outfits are super fun, and i love that oda is committed enough to his aesthetics to come up with an excuse to put them all in formalwear. it pays off, they all look extremely snappy.

i know i just said it in the dressrosa posts but i’m reiterating it here because this is my favorite example of it by far: i love when oda does this split-screen thing with his panels. the contrast between the two halves of pudding is so severe and yet they’re so clearly the same person i honestly just find this pair of panels fascinating to look at.

this panel also kind of gets at my favorite thing about pudding as a character, really. i know she’s a little controversial in fandom, but i’ve always found her entertaining (at least post-reveal), especially in the contrast between her unhinged evil side and her genuinely sweet romantic side and her post-wedding tendency to randomly ping-pong between the two.

i just always like reminding people that sanji is fast enough and his observation haki good enough to dodge a surprise attack, while thoroughly distracted, from katakuri.

sanji in this arc tends to get shit from a certain side of fandom for being ‘useless’ since he doesn’t have a big climactic fight despite being the focus of the arc, which i think is thoroughly missing the point. sanji is still plenty capable in combat, as demonstrated both here and later, with chiffon and oven. it just happens that his strength isn’t what saves the day ultimately, because combat ability isn’t everything, which is the entire point of the vinsmoke backstory/subplot. sanji saves the day just by being kind.

i’ll admit big mom’s flashback isn’t one of my favorites, taken in isolation- there are some parts of it that kind of unresolved (at least as of now- i still suspect they’ll be followed up eventually), and in general, although there is a tragedy to it, it doesn’t quite hit the way many of the other more effective flashbacks do. that said, i do think it does a really good job of succinctly explaining why big mom is the way she is in the present: she’s a child who was never told no, who never grew or matured past the disappearance of her adopted mother. that’s it, and that’s enough.

i’ve always been a little bit in love with how seriously and consistently one piece handles its themes of found family, and sanji outright disowning judge in whole cake island is maybe the most outright they ever get: family is found, not made. you owe nothing to your blood and are never beholden to your abusers.

and i just like that a whole lot.

i do think the tamatebako is one of the best uses of chekov’s gun i’ve ever seen. we’re first shown it at the end of fishman island, it’s revealed it got sent off to big mom rigged with explosives which is a minor “oh fuck” moment, and then it gets forgotten about, because the entirety of punk hazard and dressrosa happens in between! which is a lot!

i remember when i reached the moment in whole cake island where we’re reminded that that bomb still exists and is still waiting to explode, i just started laughing hysterically out loud, because i’d completely forgotten, and now that i remembered i was just delighted to know it was going to definitely go off at some point, almost certainly in a very satisfying way.

pedro is, if i remember right, the first time the imagery of the coming dawn that will become quite important in wano really has attention drawn to it in-text- the recurring motif is there before this, of course, dating all the way back to the names of the first chapter (romance dawn) and first island (dawn island), but this is the first time it’s actively addressed in-story.

in doing so, oda essentially presents a fresh mystery for us, but one that has been set up so consistently ever since chapter one that it feels like it fits perfectly into the world and story.

luffy’s been punching way above his weight class ever since crocodile all the way back in alabasta, fighting enemies who clearly outmatch him but always managing to win anyways, but his fight with katakuri is maybe the clearest the sheer differential in strength ever gets, because katakuri’s powers are similar enough to luffy’s that he can pull off pretty much all of luffy’s techniques, but better. so luffy has to fall back on the two things that have always been his greatest strengths, again all the way back to crocodile in alabasta: innovation and sheer fucking stubbornness.

one thing i love about one piece is how no character is immune to being clowned on. absolutely nobody. everybody looks like an idiot sometimes, and it makes everything so much more fun than if the series took itself more seriously. katakuri basically actively tries to avert this by building up a fearsome, flawless, and utterly no-nonsense persona, but it winds up failing hard because it actually only makes the contrast and surprise of his actual personality and vices that much funnier.

i’ve always loved this one panel of carrot going sulong, because she just looks so monstrous, like a true werewolf. the same goes for the shift in big mom’s design when she starts going truly mad with starvation and gets even more threatening-looking (below). i just think oda should let women be monstrously scary more often.

i do really love that the entire climax of whole cake island hinges on the degree of trust and faith the strawhats, and sanji and luffy specifically, have in each other. they’re all facing massive challenges that would seem insurmountable to an outsider- luffy facing down a yonkou’s commander with a bounty of over a billion and sanji remaking a massive cake that took months to plan and make in just a few hours, the others evading big mom’s full forces and big mom herself for a full night- but none of them have even a shred of doubt that the others can manage it.

i wrote a meta post awhile back about one piece’s concept of ‘honor in a pirates’ fight, and what it came down to is this: honor can never be expected between pirates, but the best of them will show it anyways, and it can be a very telling judge of character. nobody would expect katakuri to do this, and luffy even calls him an idiot for it, but he has enough respect for luffy as a strong opponent to do it anyways, and that’s how we know for absolute certain that even though he’s an antagonist, he’s also a good, honorable person.

i really like the gesture of luffy leaving his hat over katakuri’s mouth, especially because until this point, we’re never even given any indication that he’s really noticed it, let alone that katakuri is insecure about it. he never reacts to or comments on it (which is in itself kind of unusual from someone who tends to nickname opponents by their appearances as often as luffy does) one way or another.

and then he does this, confirming all at once that he did fully notice and understand, he just doesn’t care. which i think sums up one of the more under-appreciated aspects of luffy’s character- he’s generally way more observant than people give him credit for, especially when it comes to people, it’s just that he has a very different sense of what’s important and what’s not than your average person.

i love the sheer contrast between big mom’s delighted, rapturous singing as she devours the wedding cake against the violence taking place on screen as her army rains fire and hell down on the thousand sunny. it parallels her initial introduction at the start of the arc perfectly, and is just an excellent way to close out the arc with a bang.

i said it earlier but it bears repeating here, for a different reason: luffy is not very physically intimidating. he’s shorter than most of the other main characters, he’s a lanky teenager, he dresses casually and his most identifiable accessory is a farm hat.

but then there are times when he looks like a captain, like a future pirate king, and it just looks so natural on him. i can never get over it.

i really like that, after spending a whole arc demonstrating just how different (and how much better) sanji is than the vinsmokes, it ends like this- showing us just how similar he’s grown up to the man he’s chosen as his real family, and just how proud zeff would be of him.

#the voyage so far #one piece #opmeta #arc: whole cake island #arc: zou #long post #not japanese

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softrozene · 4 years

Text

“Me… Me?!”

@bug-ahboo requested: Thank you so much! For even taking the time to respond. If it’s not too much trouble would it be alright if I requested a Shachi x reader Au where the boys are In a night club, And the readers a super pretty girl who makes all the boys take a second glance. But instead of heading over to law or Luffy’s friends she Decides she’s going to flirt with the redhead and it catches him off guard. It can end fluffy or really how ever you want it too. :) (again thank you so much! This means a lot!)

I had so much fun with this! This was my first time actually writing just for Shachi, so it was a bit odd but very welcoming! I do hope you enjoy it love and sorry for the long wait, Lovely!

Shachi x Female Reader

Warnings: Fluff, mentions of alcohol and flirty suggestions- They are at a night club, a bit on the comedy side (Can we please give Shachi some confidence here?)

Words: 1377

Shachi has never been to a club like this before. It was the hottest ones by far with so many people and insanely loud music- It would have been impossible to count all the bodies dancing. It felt exhilarating. That is what he and Penguin at least think. Their friend Law dragged them since he has been here before with their other companions who are here tonight as well: Luffy and quite a few of his own friends.

It is packed and Shachi loves it. So far- It is already the number one place he should visit in the future. With the smell of alcohol ad fun in the air while gorgeous human beings dance together. It nearly lit him on fire. Penguin felt the same way but their friend Law- He is upset since he knows he is going to be babysitting whoever gets shit faced first ad from the looks of it, Zoro is getting Usopp and Nami on that path.

Shachi thinks for a moment he wants to be on the path of drunken fun as well until they get further into the nightclub. Snagging a wonderful circle bench where they can all sit, chat, and take turns going out on the dance floor or getting drinks. He and Penguin feel like they are in heaven at all the beautiful ladies dancing.

It will not hurt to mingle right?

The thought was great until Penguin already points at their friend Law with Zoro (trying to stop Zoro from getting too many drinks already) and all the females in the area just stare them down. Welp… It was a nice idea to think he had a chance. Penguin is still going to try but Shachi knows when to not try.

He needs a second to feel glommed out before he returns to his partying self. Law and Zoro return with drinks while Usopp and Nami take a shot and head straight to the dance floor. Penguin follows so he can try and flirt with someone out on the dance floor.

“Where did Luffy go?” Shachi asks the two who are observing the night club.

Zoro answers, “Don’t know. He is around here somewhere.”

“Last time Luffy-ya made a new friend. I did not see her, but everyone made a big deal out of it. So, he is probably trying to find her if he invited her,” Law answers.

Shachi hums getting a glass of a fruity alcoholic beverage that the duo brought over. It is his guilty pleasure- Fruity drinks compared to the hard shit his friends down. Not that he would say it, but it is obvious from how much he drinks it. They usually would tease him slightly but this time Law and Zoro both seem to be wondering where Luffy went as well- In search of what stranger he could have possibly made friends with this time.

“Who are we waiting for to party?” Luffy asks right beside Shachi scaring the living life out of all three males.

Zoro huffs. “Weren’t we waiting for your friend?”

“Oh! (Name)?! I already saw her- She said something about scouting you guys. I don’t know what she meant but she should introduce herself soon! I’m going to dance!” Luffy announces.

His words leave the three males confused- Why would his friend scout them?

Shachi voices just that. “Why is she scouting us?”

“Well- last time we were here everyone made a big deal about her so maybe she is trying to see what kind of friends her new friend has? I am unsure but she sounds interesting,” Law murmurs.

Zoro says nothing his eyes already trying to find a female watching them. Of course- an impossible feat in a nightclub filled with too many people. Shachi sighs as he feels the fruity drink starting to get to him- Maybe he will have the courage to ask someone to dance? Or maybe he will end up pouting with Penguin as their better looking, in his opinion, friends get all the girls.

Either way- His hopes are going down but that makes the path to a drunken fun seem all the much better. The downer thoughts nearly make him miss the nightclub growing louder- In their area in the form of very loud, trying to be hushed and failing, whispers.

A hand lands on Shachi’s shoulders making him jump but quickly notice how all the heads in this area are staring in a certain direction. It is Penguin who is holding his shoulder as he points meekly in that direction.

Law and Zoro straighten up and their own eyes widen at who they see. Shachi nearly misses her- He sees no one at first until he does a second glance and becomes frozen. His heart stops. He is certain everyone is just like him now, feeling love at first sight (or with his certain friends like Sanji then lust at first sight).

“YO- YO, you need to look! Except for you marimo, no way is she looking at you. That absolute queen is staring at one of you guys! Well, now I guess me since I am over here as well,” Sanji murmurs beside Shachi and Penguin.

Law and Zoro remain silent- Their hopes also getting up because as everyone is fully aware of. This woman is beyond beautiful.

Shachi can’t take his eyes off of her until he realizes that she is… No way- Is she staring at him? That can’t be. He quickly tries to crush his own heart before life ultimately does for him. He looks away and scowls.

Penguin is shaking and that indicates that she is slowly making her way over here. Eventually, she is in front of their table and leans against it. Shachi refuses to look at her until she coughs.

“My name is (Name) and I am wondering if ‘that’ handsome guy would like to dance with me?” (Name) states.

Law, Zoro, and Sanji practically start to choke on air. When one of them calms down it is Law that asks, “You are (Name)? Luffy’s new friend?”

“Hm? Luffy- Oh you must be his friends then. I did not even notice. I was too busy staring at him,” She admits.

Finally- Shachi gives in and stares at her. His eyes widen as he makes eye contact with her… There is no possible way she can mean him… Not when his much better-looking friends, Law, Zoro, and even Sanji, are here beside him!

One of them finally asks- It is Penguin who is making sure- “Wait, wait a moment, who are you talking about?”

“The red-head,” She replies without a hitch.

Penguin and Sanji are staring at Shachi with full-on confusion while Law and Zoro merely huff- It was a nice thought that she could be one of theirs for the night.

Shachi finally asks in a surprised tone, “Me… Me?!”

You laugh at his cute and rather flustered expression.

“Yes, you, handsome. Won’t you tell me your name and dance with me? Or am I getting my hopes up?” You ask suddenly feeling embarrassed.

Though- You could have sworn that he was staring at you with those cute curious eyes. Maybe you had it wrong. Either way, it was worth a shot. You get ready to turn around when you see him jump up immediately.

“The name is Shachi! I would love to dance!” He says happily.

You reach for his hand and you can feel him shaking with nervousness. Cute.

“By the end of this night- I would love to give you my number. You seem like the type who enjoys going on actual day dates- Am I wrong?” You ask.

Despite the fast beat music playing on the dance floor- Both of you sway in a gentle manner. Shachi is so thankful for the low lighting on the dance floor- He would die of embarrassment if you saw how red his face was turning.

“No, you aren’t wrong at all! I would love to go on a date with you!” And now he wishes he could shut up.

Shachi just really can’t believe that you- A super pretty woman, actually saw him standing out instead of his friends. Yeah- This nightclub is definitely his favorite now.

#my writing #shachi x reader #one piece x reader #one piece #one piece shachi #fluff #fanfiction #one shot #one piece fanfiction #one piece one shot #x reader #female reader

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luccislegs · 4 years

Note

Hiiiiii Lunaaaaaa it’s me agaiiiiin ✨😘 soooo~ I have a request for an S/o that gets caught in a fight by a devil fruit users who can create unpoppable bubbles. While the crew looks on in horror from where they can’t reach them, they’re caught inside of one of the bubbles, and the devil fruit user fills the bubble with water till it’s completely full and they can’t get any air, then throws the bubble back to the crew. (1/2)

⇥ rules!

⇥ non-one piece requests open!

— — —

luffy:

He’s panicking. It’s unusual for him, to be sure, but usually it’s him in those situations, not his crew. And certainly not his partner. There’s only a single thought in his mind-- to beat the shit out of this bastard so he can rescue you.

But it’s dragging on, and he can hear the others screaming, their fists pounding uselessly against the impenetrable bubble as it fills slowly with water. He sneaks a quick peek, just long enough to gauge the terror in your eyes as you scrabble uselessly at the top of the bubble, your nails scraping along it even as Zoro takes a half hearted slice at it. There’s nothing for it though, and Luffy throws renewed strength into the fight. It’s another five minutes before he manages to defeat them though, knocking them out cold with one final, full strength Pistol.

The bubble pops with the most melodramatic sound, and there’s more screaming as Luffy runs back to your side. The ankle deep seawater is making him sluggish, but he’s fighting it with all his remaining strength so he can get to you.

You’re pale and blue and not breathing and he begins to panic.

Chopper pushes him out of the way, and he falls gracelessly into the water, watching the doctor work over you.

“One, two, three, breathe, dammit.” Chopper is sweating as he pumps your chest, and it’s several long seconds of deathly silence, all eyes on your unbreathing form before--

You jerk onto your side and several sets of hands hold you up out of the water as you cough up water and what could be bile, choking and spitting and crying and Luffy doesn’t care as he pulls you up into his arms, burying his face in your soaked hair. You still haven’t regained your breath but the familiar smell of the sea and what could possibly be barbeque invades your senses and you instinctively curl up into his arms. Your breaths are still shuddery and your lungs still hurt, and Chopper desperately wants to continue to check you out, but no one has the heart to pull you away from your beloved, heart broken captain.

sanji:

He starts out damn near panicking when he realizes he can’t just kick the bubble out of existence. Very few things can withstand his powerful legs, and he can’t think straight when you’re trapped in one of those things, the bubble slowly filling with water and your panicked cries filling his ears.

It takes him a moment to remember that you’re relying on him to save you, and that him panicking is doing absolutely nothing to help you. So he takes a deep breath and puts his hand to the bubble, promising you in as steady a voice as he can manage that he’s going to get you out of there.

He’s relieved to see that it does the trick, and your breathing evens out even if the tears don’t stop. You’re going to trust him, your prince who’s never failed you before, to get you out of this. Nodding at you, he turns to face the pirate who’s controlling the bubble, looking self-satisfied and smug. It pisses Sanji off to no end, but he still remains calm, considering the best course of action.

Zoro takes a stab at the bubble along with Luffy, but none of them are really willing to risk hurting you unless absolutely necessary. The rest of the crew surround the bubble, their hearts racing with fear as it slowly begins to fill with water, the Devil Fruit users doing their best to ignore the tiredness brought on by standing ankle deep in water, though they’re being held up by the others at that point. They all talk to you, telling you to hang on and that they’re gonna get you out of there.

The fight is over quickly, the pirate unable to keep up with Sanji’s speed, but the bubble fills quicker than expected, the others screaming at Sanji to hurry up as water fills the bubble completely. All they can do is watch, while Zoro prepares to cut the bubble in two, praying it doesn’t hurt you too badly, as you float helplessly inside the bubble..

Just as you open your mouth and inhale, the shell shatters, flooding everyone with sea water. Luffy and Robin collapse, caught by Nami and Usopp and dragged to shore. Zoro was already holding Chopper and drags him as well, leaving you in Sanji’s arms. You’re coughing fiercely, expelling lungfuls of water as he carries you to shore.

Other than being pale, you’re unharmed and the only danger to you now is Sanji’s deathgrip on your body, and you have the fleeting thought that he isn’t going to ever let go and you’re just going to be attached to him forever. And then you’re laughing, loud, hysterical gasps of air that quickly turn into sobs as you realize how close to death you really were.

Sanji point blank refuses to let anyone else touch you, insisting on carrying you to the med bay and hovering over Chopper as he works. If he wasn’t such a professional, Sanji’s overbearing presence would have unnerved him. As soon as you’re given a clean bill of health, Sanji is once again all over you, insisting that you remain in bed while he cooks you a fortifying meal to help you regain your strength, and stays cuddled up with you as you eat, just staring as if he’ll never see you again.

zoro:

He’s a bit of a mix of Sanji and Luffy. He’s panicked, unable to stand seeing you so close to death, but he also knows that the only way to save you is to beat the enemy. So even though it pains him, he puts all his focus and energy into defeating the person. It’s irrational, but he’s a little afraid you’re going to be mad at him for ignoring you in your fear.

You’re in good hands though. The others can’t help you escape, but Robin’s soothing voice telling you that Zoro is going to rescue you and Nami’s loud, slightly hysterical screaming telling him to kick dude’s ass is enough to keep you calm and even laughing even as the water reaches your neck. You can’t tear your eyes from Zoro’s fluid, quick movements, but as it covers your mouth and you tilt your head up towards the hard surface of the bubble, you know he’s not going to make it in time.

The cold water finally covers your face and you hold your breath as long as you can, the salt water stinging your eyes until you have to take a gasp of air. Only there is none and your lungs fill with water. In the distance, you can hear Nami screaming and someone pounding with all their force on your prison. Your vision goes black and the weightlessness grows.

And just as you’re sure this is it, there’s a change and you hit the ground with a hard thud, your head saved by someone and there’s more screaming. You cough weakly, not enough to expel the water and then you feel a heavy pressure on your chest and an uncomfortable feeling welling up in your stomach.

You catch a glimpse of green at your side but you’re too busy doing what you can only imagine is throwing up water, the searing burn and pain almost enough to make you black out again.

You’re still trying to catch your breath, taking great, heaving gasps, but Zoro can’t wait anymore and gathers you up into his chest, ignoring the way you drench everywhere you touch and the smell of seawater all over you. The feel of your stringy, wet hair against his cheek is uncomfortable but he nuzzles it anyway, relieved to feel your breath puff against his chest and your fingers weakly curl into his lapel.

Chopper is busy fidgeting beside you, checking what vitals he can before commanding Zoro to carry you back to the ship. You complain weakly, stating you can get there yourself, but the not-subtle tightening of Zoro’s arms around you changes your tune in an instant, and you settle down further into his embrace, secretly relieved he didn’t listen.

After Chopper’s exam, Sanji brings you some dinner, eaten under the watchful eye of Zoro as if you’re going to choke on your food. Afterwards, when Sanji has cleared the tray away and the others have come to check on you and left again, you’re pulled tight into Zoro’s embrace again, almost smothered against his chest as he pets your hair and rubs your back until you fall asleep.

#monkey d. luffy #monkey d. luffy x reader #vinsmoke sanji #vinsmoke sanji x reader #roronoa zoro #roronoa zoro x reader #one piece headcanons

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kenbunshokus · 5 years

Text

this is a (super late) update to this fic rec post! i was planning to just keep editing and updating that post, but it’s been so old it no longer appears on tumblr search system and all, so here we are. be ready for some old school zosans in the mix

all complete

absolute favorites will be noted with a ♡

list will be updated as i find more

story count: 30 fics

last update: jan 5th 2020

CANON-VERSE

Goings On by clarify ♡

Zoro and Sanji understand each other, and sometimes have a very similar sense of humor. Even though they're worlds ahead of most, sometimes they can't help but to act their age.

easily one of my favorites. zoro and sanji are completely in character, being themselves and comfortable in each other’s spaces. for anyone who thinks zoro and sanji can’t get along in canon, this fic can easily prove them wrong.

Part Timer by 8ball ♡♡

Sanji really, really doesn't want to give Zoro a job at his restaurant. Zoro doesn't really even want to work there in the first place, but, well, there’s this thing with Sanji, and this thing with feelings and the whole thing is pretty damn stupid all together.

Zeff just wants grandkids. He’s too old for this bullshit anyways.

a wonderful, heart-wrenching, roller coaster ride of a post-series fic. this fic is not just a mere fic — it’s a zosan magnum opus with guest appearances by so many other characters, lots of crew hijinks and a must-read for everyone who craves for a happy ending for these good boys.

Say It Again by 8ball

Zoro tells Sanji how he feels. And then again. And again.

since we’re talking about 8ball i just want you to know i’d rec everything they’ve ever written, but special mention to say it again — a classic miscommunication trope fic done well where the miscommunication stems from fundamental misunderstanding of each other’s principles and views instead of just some plot-convenient coincidences. and soft zoro. god, he is soft.

The Wedding Night by cuethe-pulse (lj)

Zoro had never expected any of this.

major character death warning. don’t let the first few scenes fool you. note the warning; the last few lines were like a punch in the gut for me, except, you know, the good kind of punch. also, a quick rec of a drabble by the same author to soothe the pain after this one.

Roronoa Zoro: World’s Greatest Bug Killer by insaneidiot ♡

Sometimes, Zoro's life really sucks. He should've known better than to make fun of Sanji's bug phobia, though...

zoro’s internal monologue is hilarious — until today, this author is still my go-to expert on zoro’s voice, especially his more sarcastic side.

Quitting’s Easy by insaneidiot

Sanji decides to quit smoking. This is not quite so easy as he thinks it will be. Also, his crewmates (excluding Robin and Nami, of course!) are assholes.

fun, fun strawhat hijinks and oblivious sanji. the crew dynamics and especially sanji’s voice are pitch perfect. there’s a hint of luffy/nami that you can easily scroll past if it’s not your thing.

I can’t stop thinking that i can’t stop thinking by hieiandshino ♡

In which Brook changes tactics and Zoro is not amused. Everyone else is, though.

holy shit is this fic hilarious. i love comedy fics that manage to slip in thoughtful observations and character study in between the hijinks, and this fic pulls that off with flying colors.

The Walls See All by threesipsmore

Reiju hides a snail cam in her brother's room.

fun short fic from reiju’s pov. there’s never enough zosan set in whole cake island arc and this fic delivers.

Stormbird by Judin ♡

The Straw Hats' first landing in the New World is on Arashi Island, where it looks like they'll be spending a fun week attending the local festival and making new friends. Until they spot a strange pirate ship in the harbour, and Sanji starts behaving oddly. The Straw Hats become entangled with the mysterious Gently Pirates, a crew that harbour many secrets, and whose captain is a man out of Sanji's past who has the power to tear the Straw Hat crew apart.

it cannot be overstated how wonderful this fic is, and how it could’ve fit into the canon just nicely, like a better-written one piece movie, except with zosan. not only are sanji and zoro in character, every strawhat gets a spotlight and has pitch-perfect voices. brook is especially lovely in this fic.

Unintended Consequence by itsmylifekay

A group of marines charge, Zoro slices through them, and in that instant Sanji feels his own eyes grow wide. Because there, on the arm now outstretched towards him, steel glinting in hand, is the stupid bracelet he’d given Zoro. The bastard is actually wearing it.

there’s a reason this is the most kudo-ed zosan fic on ao3 right now — it’s so soft without being ooc, and there’s a quiet undercurrent of affection laid throughout the fic that will warm you up from the insides.

Somewhere Between Sorrow and Bliss by srididdledeedee

Sanji has never cared for winter.

He can see himself, is the thing. There are bits and pieces that poke through, but it’s not all him. It’s like staring in a fractured mirror. He knows, intellectually, that the person staring back at him is himself, but his face is splintered and his shape is distorted and his body is wrong.

a fantastic character study on trans!sanji and how he comes to terms with his identity with the help of his crewmates. supportive strawhats are always a lovely addition to a zosan fic

Give In To Love by libbylune

Zoro knows better than to think about it too much, but between the rowdy festivals and ancient unexplained temples on this island, it's hard to forget about wanting Sanji.

i love how this fic puts as much focus on the boys after the confession as it does before the confession. a good case fic with its own unique island adventure and i’m always a sucker for soft!zoro

Laundry by libbylune

Dealing with Sanji makes Zoro develop a lot of opinions about clothes.

there’s absolutely nothing hotter than bi!sanji who’s completely comfortable with his gender identity and sexuality. also gay disaster zoro fumbling his words whenever sanji is around is 1) accurate 2) hilarious.

Language of Swords by HaveMyWeedCookies ♡

It took them for a while but finally, Zoro asked if Sanji wanted to hold his sword.

i love fics that explore zoro’s relationship with his craft and his swords, and adding zosan into the mix is something i didn’t know i needed. an interesting outsiders pov zosan in the pov of zoro’s swords.

Ghost of a Chance by sabershadowkat

“I know, for sure, that I didn’t expect to miss everyone so much, including you.” Sanji cut a glance at Zoro and rephrased correctly, “Especially you.”

this fic handles tropes that are usually associated with character death fics, but manages to end it with a happy ending. zoro’s devotion here is heart-wrenching.

Idiot Romance by sabershadowkat

"This has to be a joke," Sanji muttered, poking at the colored petals. Zoro couldn't have just given him flowers.

a classic — this is literally the first zosan fic i’ve ever read — and a lovely one at that. sanji is oblivious and zoro attempts romance, not that zoro ever needed to.

festival night by thisislegit

“ANOTHER FEAT BY THE WORLD’S STRONGEST MAN, JORIRI.” The woman turned to Mr. Mohawk and with faux sympathy said, “Oh! Sorry, sir. Maybe next time. We can’t always beat the best, but we can do our best and that’s what matters. Do we have any other takers? ANY OTHER TAKERS READY FOR THE STRONG MAN CHALLENGE? HOW ABOUT YOU SIR? MADAM? YOU OVER THERE? ARE YOU INTERESTED?”

“What kind of shit name is Joriri,” said Zoro and Sanji in unison.

i’m an absolute sucker for fics that have zoro and sanji simply hanging out and enjoying each other’s company, comfortable in a way they couldn’t with their other crewmates, and this fic exemplifies that. just them being little shits and having fun with one another.

No Victory in Hesitation & the Past Has Its Lessons by EudaimonErisornae & vageege

Zoro has a lot of things he wants to say to Sanji, but he just needs one more day. || Zoro tries to fix a mistake he made in the past.

major character death warning. i died a little bit inside after reading this tbh. there are some devil fruits-explained time travel hijinks, but mostly it’s this looming, grim inevitability of death that’s written so pervasively throughout the fic that really got me.

Imperatives by dollcewrites

Zoro is confident in saying that Sanji is a man who doesn’t do what he’s told. Which is why, when a command accidentally slips from Zoro’s lips during foreplay, he is expecting to hear the cook’s scoff as he continues to do what he pleases.

i don’t tend to do pwp, but this isn’t just one — it’s a completely in-character piece about their relationship and dynamics.

when you say by bluewalk ♡

It's a long time in coming. Usopp can promise, but.

this fic is as much sanuso as it is zosan, and usopp here is — still very much usopp, but also a very beautiful take on his character as someone who spent a lot of time behind sanji’s back, and realizes that when he watches sanji’s back, he gets to see zoro’s, too.

a complete guide to falling in love by ThousandSunny

Sanji was trained in the Bridal Arts; this does not go unnoticed by the rest of his crew.

while the main ship is still zosan, the fic also focuses a lot on zoro and sanji’s relationship with the rest of the crew, and it’s one of those fics that really makes you realize how much of a family the strawhats is. a lovely read all around.

destructivity is a poison that run through our veins by wasteofmind

Zoro thinks that, someday, they are going to kill each other.

a dysfunctional take of their relationship. it’s fascinating in the same way a car crash is fascinating — there’s an undercurrent of something violent, something visceral. this is one of the fics that inspired me to write migratory animals.

ALTERNATE UNIVERSE

Ocean’s Child by 8ball ♡

Here's the truth: Zoro couldn't swim. He fell in the water and sank like a stone because there had never been anyone to teach him how to move his arms. He forgot that if he screamed for help the water would get in his mouth, and he even opening his eyes hurt.

Here’s the other truth, the one that stays a secret: a mermaid saved him.

a fascinating retelling of the one piece canon with mermaid!sanji. it feels a lot like a love letter to the seas, and it’s mesmerizing how sanji’s mermaid backstory is seamlessly weaved into the one piece canon.

with you by Cirro

How to find your life partner in three easy steps: 1. Punch them in the face 2. Insult their cognitive abilities 3. Embarrass them so much they agree to marry you

a wholesome two-part modern au series. my personal favorite is the second part, where sanji brings zoro home to meet zeff — complete with the two of them teasing sanji in their own ways.

The Proper Reaction (or What To Do When Your Son Brings His Boyfriend Home by three_days_late

Holidays at the Baratie were always hectic, but it's nothing Zeff can't handle. Sanji's new boyfriend, on the other hand...

on the topic of meet-the-family: the only thing more fun than zoro meeting zeff is zoro meeting zeff and the entirety of baratie staff. also includes one of my favorite line about bi!sanji: “sanji loves nice girls and bad boys”.

Exclusive by cuethe-pulse

Zoro loves Sanji, Sanji loves Zoro. Zoro wants to be exclusive, so Sanji should, too. Right?

this is a circus/bakery au. yes, you read that right, and yes, it works. i went into this fic with a lot of doubts and came out very satisfied with how fleshed out everyone in this au is, and i’m forever in awe with how the author can set up an entirely separate, vivid universe with so few words.

Delivery by styx_in_the_mud

Sanji is stuck delivering pizzas when Patty is out of commission for a while. Zoro likes to order pizza after training. Both of them are sort of idiots, but Zoro can be smooth as fuck if he puts his mind to it.

a fun, in-character au with good ol’ banter and cute get-together.

The End of It All by xpiester333xx

Humans have been forced underground due to the effects of a chemical weapon that has made surface life impossible. Sanji lives in one of these underground colonies and though he dreams of bigger things his life has been mundane; spent following strict rules and obeying higher commands. Or it was, until a stranger shows up and changes everything.

the author labelled it as sci-fi au, but I personally think it’s more dystopian-like? either way, while this fic is on the long side, it manages to keep everyone in character until the very end, which is something that can’t be said for a lot of fics.

well, there we go! feel free to drop me an ask if you want to rec me fics or ask for a more specific/themed rec list; i’ll also update this post regularly !!

i also have an ao3 donutsandcoffee if you want to see my take on these dorks o/

#opgraphics #zosan #roronoa zoro #sanji #opfanfic #one piece #fic rec #mine*#mine: fic rec #//#zoro #op

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0lshadyl0 · 4 years

Note

Holy shit- that last ask! Mind if I ask a little more about it? What if during when of those outings, the Kuja pirates come in and rescue S/O. Shanks doesn’t know that they have her and assumes she ran away or his plan backfired. But S/O lost her memory during that captured period and has no recollection of Shanks, thereby leaving her to get stronger on her own and then meeting up by chance. (Bonus if S/O unlocked conquerer’s haki) [Ps, I absolutely love your blog.] {♥️♥️❤️♥️❤️}

Well, dear, there are three possible scenarios that can come out of that situation, but yes, first, I must make clear that Shanks will not be very pleased with the situation and there is nothing more dangerous than an angry Yonkou

Second, here, as much as the Kujas are an island of strong and independent women, as well as Hancock being a Shichibukai, they are all at a complete disadvantage both in military power and in numbers, a Yonkou is powerful and has many allies and people who fight for him to have his favor

With that in mind let’s start

Scenario number one: Shanks conquers the empress’ heart and she returns Y/n to win his love

This would be the least violent scenario possible since everything would be a big manipulation plan from his part, taking his time he will seduce Hancock, although I think you are wondering, How is it that Shanks managed to make a woman as tough as Boa Hancock fall in love ?, simple, Akagami no Shanks has the personality of Luffy but Without being someone innocent, he can pretend that he is an idiot, good person with a good heart (most of the time and when it is not about anyone who tries to separate him from Y/n) and above all, an absolute devotion to Y/n, so Hancock’s power has no effect on him

Shanks, being immune to Hancock and his beauty, in addition to using his charisma, he would easily enchant the pirate empress as she would never have met a man other than a bloody abusive pig, as are the Tenryūbito and easily without passing long time she falls in love with Shanks, I mean, please, it’s not that hard to fall in love with him, it’s Shanks

Already with the empress kissing his feet, he will simply ask Hancock for having Y / n returned and take out the old but functional argument of ‘she is my precious Nakama, she is part of the family, she must come back to us’, yes, with that shit will convince Hancock as he winks and feeds the black-haired girl’s crazy fantasies

When Y / n returns to the ship and they leave the island promising to visit again, he also lies to her making a planned scandal stating that she was lost/kidnapped when everyone was traveling in search of a cure for a strange disease that she has, that has been killing her every time she overexerts herself with physical exercise, so no more training or battles, she has already shortened her life a lot being on that island, stop worrying your Nakamas so much and go to the bed!

Words more, words less the poor girl will end up confined in the captain’s bed because he also lied to her saying that she is his wife, where he will spend the rest of his days as the poor sick but complacent wife at night since that will be the only physical exercise he will allow you, you know what I mean about that exercise

In case Hancock finds out about this and gets jealous enough to want to end Y/n’s life, read scenario three, that would be her fate

Second scenario: an exchange

In this case, Shanks does not want to waste time trying to seduce the empress and he is also very irritated by the fact that it has been a long time since he had Y/n close to him, so he does not feel very pacifist at the moment

He will offer his protection to Amazon Lily in exchange for the return of her Nakama, who, at this point, noticing that she does not recognize him, will say that she is his beloved sick wife and that in case they refuse to return her he will be forced to take drastic measures, which he makes it clear that he does not want to do (lie)

The Kujas, speaking especially for Elder Nyon and Hancock are not stupid, they know that a Yonkou should not be provoked, especially if the person they have with them is nothing more and nothing less than his wife, in addition, that it would greatly benefit them that someone as strong as the Yonkou protects the island and its people, the Kujas would accept the deal and exchange Y/n for the protection of the pirate

When Y/n is returned, she will have the same destination as scenario one

Third scenario: eradication of the Kujas

In this scenario, it will have been a long time, about six months, that the captain had his beloved close to him, in addition to the fact that he sees that she is sailing around with the Kujas fighting, which he definitely does not approve of, Y/n’s goal is to be his wife and mother of his children, not a warrior, that will definitely make him angry because Y/n’s delicate soft body is losing its sweet shape, that is something that he is not willing to forgive

He will arrive and again, knowing either because he realized it or because someone informed him, Akagami no Shanks will demand that the empress return his wife, he will not be friendly and she will not react in the best way, a war breaks out among them

For the Kujas their attack is very brutal, but, above all, sudden, in less than a week the female warriors will be reduced to basically inert bodies in streets full of blood, the island will be completely destroyed, only leaving dry land

Y/n will try to fight to defend Hancock since he is immune to her devil fruit, but neither joining their forces, not even with the conqueror Haki of Boa and Y/n combined will be able to compete against the Yonkou’s Haki, especially because he will be terribly upset

Both Hancock and his sisters will be punished as onna holes by every crew member of the Shanks ship who wants to abuse them if any of them tries to fight, they will be severely punished, they will be whipped to exhaustion and their naked bodies will be hung on the bow where any boat passing near them can see their shameful naked bodies full of wounds and cum, then when both the other members of the boat get bored with them, they will be chained with marine sea stone chains and returned to the Tenryūbito

And Y/n will not have it easy either, as soon as she refuses to believe the lie of being the wife or simply does not want to accept being the wife of Shanks, much less reduce herself to a woman who would only cook and have children, she would also taste a bit of the Yonkou’s fury

This time he will let her fight to “obtain her freedom along with that of her friends”, he will make her best and most violent fighters beat her up until she develops a fear of blows and pain, something she will feel for a long time When she says she can’t take it anymore, the psychological torture will continue

she will be chained, she will be forced to see how they torture, humiliate and rape her friends, she will also be sexually abused at night but exclusively by the captain, he will fuck her slowly and romantically, being very delicate with the wounds that she has, which at this point, they are just beginning to heal, so that at night is the only time where she does not feel agonizing physical or mental pain thanks to guilt.

So, when she finally breaks, he lies to her saying that he will free his friends in exchange for her accepting that she is his wife, that she will never try to fight and will dedicate to taking care of the children, yes, by that point she will already be pregnant, (come on Shanks has been fucking her every night and always cumming in her pussy), without more, she will accept and finally, Shanks will have what he wants

#one piece #one piece imagine #yandere one piece #yandere posts #Akagami no Shanks #shanks #yandere shanks #yandere shanks x reader #tw rape #shady spicy

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soyouareandrewdobson · 4 years

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Alex ze Pirate Mini Review 5: Why I love One Piece and my final verdict

(Warning. Post contains initial geek out about One Piece that is meant to correlate to my opinion on Alex in general)

When I started this series of posts, one thing I asked myself was, how could I sum up my problems with the Sam story while also tackling some general issues with AzP without redundantly repeating major points of my previous posts.

… So I decided instead of giving a straight answer, I would first tell you how I came to fall in love with One Piece.

Around 14+ years ago, I began reading manga, with works such as Ranma 1/2, Pokemon and Dragon Ball being my starting point. You know, the average stuff everyone had read at some point. One Piece, already back then consisting of over 25+ volumes, was only something a friend started to lend me and I read the first seven volumes, not really quite getting why it was that popular. I did not hate what I read, but there was nothing outright standing out to me the way the story was told that got to me. And then I hit the Arlong arc with volume 8 and onwards. While it was mostly the adventure of Luffy with his crew against Crocodile and his Baroque Corporation that totally sold me on the manga later on, the Arlong arc was what really got my attention. Seeing the character of Nami betray her friends, pieces of worldbuilding that would years later play a role and so much more, made me curious where things were going. Particularly, why Nami would betray Luffy. And when I reached chapter 77 to 81, where I got to read Nami’s backstory, how Arlong killed her adoptive mother in front of her eyes when she was just a little kid and Luffy declaring he was going to help her and her village, I was hooked. This was the first time in my life as a manga reader, I was not just entertained, I was emotionally invested. Because not only was Nami’s backstory genuinely saddening to me, but seeing Luffy determined to help her and the ensuing battles was exciting. Exciting because it truly showed to me, how awesome of a character this goofball with stretching powers really is. Not because he was physically strong, but because he was willing to do all of that for someone just “because” he considers that person a friend. Seeing Luffy not just beat up Arlong, but destroying everything this bastard had build on the suffering of the village and in doing so setting Nami free of the past that haunted her, because he cared for her as a person not in a romantic but platonic manner, was satisfying on so many levels.

And ever since then Eiichiro Oda proved to me time and time again, even if he hits a bump in the road (seriously, fuck most of the Fishmen Island arc) he knows how to write a world that doesn’t just manage to be cartoonishly entertaining, but also filled with heartfelt moments, where true heroism is not defined just by physical strength, but the willingness of the main characters to help and care for each other and the people they meet across the journey. There are many stories out there where the power of friendship as a virtue, and the virtues it is build on are a theme. But in the world of shonen manga, One Piece for me is still the top.

And Andrew Dobson’s Alex ze Pirate is the complete antithesis to everything Oda EVER created in One Piece.

While One Piece has one of the most complex worlds I have ever seen in fiction, with Oda often times setting building stones for future story arcs years in advance (seriously, the thing with Brook and Laboon alone is worth mentioning) , Dobson can’t even bother to properly tell us in what part of the ocean Alex has her adventure or why there is a beaver dog thing walking around a bunch of humans.

While One Piece has some gorgeous artwork and unique designs with an insane level of cartoonish detail, Dobson has some very generic designs and draws like a 15 year old girl that read Spirou and manga too much and now starts doing scribble artwork.

While Oda draws chapters for over 20 years now, Dobson could not even bother to finish up the adventure of the crew getting properly together back in 2004, as only one volume was released.

While One piece tells a story that defines the shonen genre for over a decade, Dobson tells stupid newspaper strip jokes that are not even interconnected much.

While Oda’s Strawhats are the embodiment of the word nakama, Dobson’s characters only bring the following old saying to mind:

With friends like this, who needs enemies?

Bottom line, Alex ze Pirate is absolute garbage as a work of entertainment, particularly in the world of kids entertainment. It was so already long before Dobson wrote the three part story I reviewed in detail, but this story in my opinion was for anyone with a bit of brains the last nail in the coffin. Cause overall, this was likely Dobson’s last chance in his and the eyes of the readers.

The last chance, because he was going to put all his talent as a writer and artist into this one story to prove his critics wrong; That he could tell an engaging and emotionally fulfilling story in a multi part story, longer than his 15 pagers. But like with everything else I have seen so far, he failed.

He failed artistically, because damn does this not look even remotely professional compared to other professionally published work or even other silly webcomics like Cludscratcher or Housepets (which I highly recommend you to read).

He failed as a storywriter, because instead of emotionally engaging and well paced, this shit is rushed, works more on “tell, don’t show” than anything else and really just magnifies the worst aspects of his characters and Dobson’s mean spirited humor in general. Cause this is not a tale where we feel like Sam genuinely has found a family and friends in Alex and her crew. It is the tale of Sam just accepting that he has nothing better going on in his life.

He failed, because instead of actually putting care, effort and love for his characters and work into this, he likely just wanted to get it out and hope that just because he “put effort” into this more than usual, he would already get praise by default.

And once this thing was out, all that happened was the following: Even more people realized what kind of hack he is, that this project was not going to be salvaged even if actual stories instead of strip based jokes are told and he misinterpreted the disinterest as reason to just completely give up, instead of trying harder.

And as a result, even if Dobson still went on to do shitty redesigns and a few more pages for it, Alex ze Pirate soon after ended. Put into everlasting hiatus, where it joins such work as Pilote Candidate or Frank Millers All Star Batman and Robin.

Dobson, if you ever read this, let me just say it how it is: You failing to make even the most basic story about people appreciating their friends, particularly when within the last decade there has been an entire fandom of manchildren out there that was build on a show with “Friendship is Magic” in the title, just shows how bad of a storyteller and creator you are. You shouldn’t have gone to college in order to become an animator, you should have joined fanfiction.net in order to get some basic understanding on how to even write. Cause your writing is so bad, it makes fanfiction look genuinely complex and thoughtful. Well that and you should perhaps go out and find genuinely friends and not just online supporters that mistake you for some persecuted innocent artist, when in reality you are just a toxic idiot who attempts to manipulate people so he can profit of them and their fleeting interest in his substandard comics based on the lowest common denominator cartoons.

I wrap this review up. We will revisit Alex one day again, but for now, I just want to focus on something more positive. So within the next weeks, if I post something, I will try to make it focused on something NOT Dobson related. You know, stuff to genuinely enjoy. Till then, I just want to say thank you. Thank you @hypocricyofandrewdobson for reblogging my entries. Thank you to everyone who liked this, reblogged this or started to follow me because of it. I hope I managed to educate and entertain you all in a positive manner, without making myself come off too much like an assholish nerd with too many interests. Stay safe.

And hey, if any of you has his own two cents on Sam, Alex or the others, even ideas how to make them genuinely better, I am always open.

See ya.

#andrew dobson #syac #so you are a cartoonist #one piece #webcomic #comics #western animation #tom preston #adobsonartwork

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taurnil · 4 years

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Overgrown Garden

He hates the cook, the moment they meet. He hates the cook because the blonde sounds like her, even more than the witch does.

He hates the cook, because the cook has the same eyes as her, all tidal waves and flashing blues one moment, then calm seas the next. The first time he sees the cook, Wado hums in his hands and Zoro blinks like a deer in headlights because all he can see his Kuina.

She walks step for step behind the chef, and when Sanji slides by, groveling in front of Nami like the horn dog he is, Zoro thinks he sees Kuina wink playfully, before disappearing as though she were never there.

Like she hasn't been for eight years.

The longer Zoro stares, the more confused he gets. They aren't alike, not in the slightest. Sanji seems to see and covet everything in a woman-- in this ideal of women-- that Kuina always hated and that Zoro hates by extension.

Sanji smokes cigarettes, and Kuina would never ruin her lungs in that way. Its incomprehensible, completely unthinkable for fighters like them, who's techniques depend greatly on their breathing.

Its even more strange to see the blonde take up such a habit, when his cooking hinges directly on his ability to taste. Zoro hears a voice whisper that he does the exact same thing with his inhuman alcohol consumption and he snorts, mentally telling her to shut up.

Well, he supposes that's something Kuina and Sanji seem to have in common. They annoy the ever living shit out of him.

He watches as the blond flits from table to table, hands so skilled in their craft of cooking and serving that it was almost impossible to compare them with the pale long fingers soaked in crimson, holding up a man nearly twice his size.

Zoro feels a tickle in the back of his throat as he jumps out of his seat and makes his way out of the restaurant and to the open ocean-- where Mihawk is waiting. He steals a mug of ale-- a shot of courage, perhaps-- as he glides past a table, ignoring the old man's cry of complaint and throws the doors open.

He meets the gaze of the infamous man, and he asks himself if he's ready to die. He thinks of Kuina, training day and night, strong. Stronger. Always the best. Zoro knows that if it were Kuina in his place right now instead of him, then there'd be a new strongest swordsman. Somewhere inside, he realizes that he's not ready.

The fight is brief, so brief that it is in fact, nothing short of a merciful slaughter. Through the haze of fog and blood and frustration, he hears a strangled yell.

"Just give up on your ambitions!"

It slices through the sounds of his heartbeat and his pulse thrashing and even in the midst of accepting death over defeat, Zoro feels his blood begin to simmer dangerously. Because how dare the blond tell him to give up, when this is all he's been chasing. There is no purpose, if there's no sword fighting. He simply is nothing without Kuina.

Mihawk seems impressed, and he offers Zoro his respect, dealing the last blow with careful precision and a tiny smile gracing his stony features. He falls back into the ocean and the last thing he sees is Sanji's hunched figure. The sight makes his heart wrench in an unfamiliar, painful way, and he finds himself apologizing quietly to the open air.

His vision is darkened around the edges, he thinks he hears his beloved childhood friend tell him to find another purpose. To find something for himself, and only himself. Zoro remembers the boy with dark hair, and worn in straw hat. He remembers gifting the kid with the title captain with chest heaving Zoro smiles, tears falling down his cheeks, mingling with blood.

He declares his life, blade, and loyalty to the 2nd Pirate King. The boy who could stretch, who Zoro knows without knowing how, will shake the world to its core, as his own name reaches the heavens.

Its possible, also, that he vows to make the blond smile one day, to make up for the mess he caused.

Zoro realizes, albeit belatedly, that perhaps Sanji is unaware that he doesn't hate him. And that, in turn, the chef can hardly stand to be in his presence. It fills the swordsman with unease, he doesn't like the disappointment that follows every harsh insult. He doesn't like the very real, very serious way that Sanji snarls whenever he's near, and the way he makes it absolutely clear that Zoro only gets fed because of decent morality. They are not friends, and the knowledge makes his throat tighten, air way blocked and a sensation like dragging thorns.

The swordsman is miffed, and responds using the same energy he receives, throwing jibes as quickly and fluently as he receives them. He makes fun of the chef's eyebrow as much as he can because it is the only imperfection that he can spot and that baffles the 19 year old.

On a logistic level, he knows all of Sanji's bad habits. He can list them off, even in his sleep, but when faced with those tumultuous eyes, those eyes that scream they suffer, he can only pick the least inconsequential characteristic.

Luffy notices, and corners him. Luffy's eyes are dark and his voice grave as he says, "Sanji isn't ready yet. He doesn't get it." and its scary how well his captain knows him. Its downright terrifying to be seen through so easily, with such little effort.

Sanji comes, Sanji goes, more consistent than the tides and Zoro can't help but continue to make metaphors because there is nothing more fitting for the chef than the ocean. They are one in the same, so shifty and yet steadfast. The swordsman has no idea what to make of it, the way the chef seems to scramble his feelings with the same ease as an egg.

The thought of Sanji leaving him is so painful he almost doubles over, spending the day picking fights with the chef, relishing in each small, solid touch. Taking comfort in each kick and the following knowledge that the chef is here and not another phantom that will slip through his grasp.

Zoro clutches his heart and wonders if this is what love is like. A constant state of fear and worry, coupled with the rush of standing at the edge of a cliff.

He is falling. He is scared, so scared. The last person who fell had died.

Zoro is not afraid of death. Zoro is not afraid of falling. He is afraid of what might happen in the slim to none chance that the chef begins to slip as well.

So Zoro pushes him away. Far away from the edge, away from the precipice.

He is only like this with the chef, always careful with his words, despite what it appears from the outside. Luffy knows, because Luffy always knows and he doesn't like it. But Zoro doesn't care, and keeps his distance.

Always watching, studying. He learns by watching the cook. He learns that the blond's grace is not natural, it is forced, movements careful and contained, folded inwards and kept small. He learns that the blond, despite broadcasting his masculinity, treats his body in the stereotypical actions of a woman. He sits with his legs closed, fusses over his appearance and fawns over compliments sent his way like a demure village woman.

Sanji makes himself smaller and Zoro learns in Thriller Bark that its because he think's that others deserve the space more.

Its a ridiculous notion, a conclusion only someone as stupidly selfless as the cook could come up with. He shields the swordsman, offering his head and the 19 year old feels a thrum of panic.

This sacrifice is completely different from his own. This sacrifice is born from a sense of inferiority and worthlessness. This sacrifice is Sanji finally making himself small enough for the rest.

Sanji is saying goodbye.

Sanji is falling, but not in the way he wants, not in the way that matters. Sanji is falling into despair, Sanji is falling into self depreciation. Sanji is falling into himself, crumbling away from the inside. Sanji is going, going, sand slipping between his fingers so Zoro runs, Zoro surges forward and snatches the blond by his arm.

Without his consent, or maybe it's some hidden part of him, the part that he tries to gag and shove into the recesses of his mind. The part that fed him dreams and gave his heart hope. Perhaps it is that part that grants his body permission.

Allows him to finally grab Sanji's hand in his own, watch the blond's smug expression at having finally gotten his death wish granted, only for it to turn to shock when Zoro grabs fistfuls of the black suit jacket, straddling the chef and shoving their lips together in a messy clash.

The sensation of euphoria that he feels is unlike anything he's ever experienced in his life, which was says something considering the fact that Zoro is pretty sure they're doing it all wrong. Sanji hands are stiff and awkward on his back, tentatively stroking up and down as though he were a troubled teen in need of comfort. And are their noses supposed to be mashed up like that?

Let alone the fact that his arms are starting to cramp up from the odd bent angel they're in, still clutching the fabric.

It's totally armature, without a doubt. But Zoro finds that it's still ranked as the best feeling in his whole life, second only to the time he once came close to beating Kuina.

He knows that Kuma is there, that Luffy is knocked out, that if they don't act soon their captain will be dead. He knows there's no time, so he rakes his eyes over Sanji's flushed, bloody face and stokes creamy blond locks.

"Don't leave." He whispers, burying his face in crook of the chef's neck. "I love you. Don't leave me behind."

Like a coward, he knocks Sanji out, before the latter can respond.

He stands, facing Kuma and prepares to die.

Zoro never did make Sanji smile.

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swampgh0stt · 5 years

Text

Day 9: Favorite Pairing

Ace x Luffy

Another surprise, to absolutely no one.

Your typical friends-to-lovers trope, with undying loyalty to one another. I’ve written about them so many times, but I’ll repost what I wrote:

A cup of sake is not a legally binding contract, no matter how you spin it. Just because you share drinks does not mean you are 100% committed to that. On top of that, Garp is not a legal guardian of Ace. As far as the World Government is concerned, Ace didn’t exist. Garp isn’t even that great of a guardian; he had one fucking job to take care of Ace & he dumped the boy on bandits. If anything, Dadan is his parental guardian figure, because Garp immediately left him there & then fucked off. Ace & Garp’s relationship revolves around Garp beating the shit out of him for “training” & trying to form Ace into something that would only have gotten him killed quicker. This is also the man who actively assisted in Ace’s execution by punching Marco out of the fucking sky & trying to keep Luffy away.

With Luffy’s case– Yes, Garp is his grandfather, but we don’t know the circumstances surrounding his getting Luffy & I honestly believe Garp took Luffy. Dragon is too protective of his own son & too supportive to have just dumped him somewhere. Therefore, neither of these boys– even by legal adoption standards- are adopted. We also should note that this is a shonen manga & doesn’t focus on romance. Children sometimes just consider those they’re close to their siblings. Even I had the issue of calling my first love my “sister” (she called me her sibling respectively) before we figured out just what it was between us because children don’t have a grasp on romantic notions when they’re younger (as it should be).

When we got older, we realized just what it was but back then? We had no idea. The way society was, there is such a huge taboo against same-sex couples that heteronormativity forces the ideal that “men & women can’t be friends but same sex groupings are always friends/siblings” etc. That’s where the whole “Gal Pals” jokes comes from with lesbians or the “Two Bros” joke with the guys in the hot tub together.

You don’t get to move the goal of morality to suit your anti-shipping standards, I’m sorry.

So, with my own upbringing so close to it, ofc I’m going to read Ace & Luffy as lovers. Started out young, calling each other siblings, grew up to realize that wasn’t the case at all.

Luffy dropped fucking everything to go save Ace from execution, & Ace has admitted that Luffy is the reason why he has a will to live at all. Hell, Ace even threw himself to the wolves (Blackbeard & Co) to keep Luffy safe after they admitted their plans to track down & kill Luffy to hand him over to the World Government. His last words were not to tell Luffy when they were handing him over. These two are so fucking dedicated to each other that nothing is coming in between them.

But also, this exists:

They’re canon– as canon as Oda can arguably make a ship in this franchise & I’m not going to hear otherwise.

#acelu #one piece #30 day one piece challenge

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lunnamars · 5 years

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Spiral

First of all: As I simply fell in love with this couple again recently, I decided that I could contribute a little despite my zero writing experience. So I hope you guys forgive me for any mistakes, especially because english is not my first language! ;)

Second of all: this whole story happens after Punk Hazard, but it is not related to any canon arc.

Disclaimer: obviously, I don't own anything on One Piece because if it was, Luffy and Nami would be together, just like Zoro and Tashigi. So, there it is.

You can also read on AO3 or FFNET

“I admire you, Roronoa.”

Zoro would be lying if he said he wasn't surprised. Tashigi, the extremely prideful Marine, saying such words to the pirate she supposedly hated so much. Ah, but he was very much surprised indeed. But Zoro was better than that. He would show none of his surprise neither would acknowledge the very strange feeling that bloomed in his chest.

Oh, no. He would do no such thing. Because not thinking about anything remotely related to her it's what he's been trying to do since she joined momentarily the Strawhats. Nope, another lie. Since Punk Hazard probably.

Or since Loguetown.

And he would be lying once again if he said he had succeeded.

But no matter, nobody has to know. Especially the copycat.

Then he just merely glanced at her. The swordswoman simply stared straight ahead, speaking as if alone, whispering words in the wind. The weather was very pleasant and the horizon even more beautiful than usual due to the approaching sunset, creating an amazing scenario. They both sat at the deck after a hard workout day (because he said they could push a bit more since the weather was nice), in a welcoming silence, watching the view and the crew playing with Luffy.

“Gotta admit that I never expected to hear those kind of words from you, Glasses.”

“I know. But it's the truth for a while.”

She continued to watch Nami shaking Luffy for jumping over her while the girl read. Zoro couldn't quite put his finger on how that relationship worked. But, once again, what the hell does he know about that kind of thing. Love is not exactly what he was looking for - at least, not until he achieves his life goal.

“You saved me in Punk Hazard and accepted to train me, but I never got the chance to properly thank you. So I thought it'd be nice by telling you some truth.”

“It's not like I asked that, stupid.”

“I just thought I should tell you, you jerk.”

“Haaa?? Who are you calling jerk??”

Tashigi just laughed and the sound made the strange feeling show its face again, almost as if the laugh he provoked made him proud. Their relationship has been following along those lines - always bickering (and Zoro would never voice how much fun it was to annoy her), her continuous insistence on competing with him any free time she had, both staying in comfortable silence or Tashigi laughing at him for some reason. Especially because of the boy's lack of sense of direction.

Sometimes, he'd be influenced by her laugh and would, eventually, laugh at himself too.

But now, Glasses had a sad look that the swordsman refused to accept in her face. A crestfallen expression definitely didn't match her and he decided that he didn't like to have been the possible cause of it.

And with that, Zoro felt a pang in his heart. He knew he had been rude, but it seems he couldn't act properly around her most of the time. Initially, he thought the reason for that was because of her similarity with Kuina and that it never ceased to bring back sad memories, so he simply could not face Tashigi. But nowadays? He had absolutely no idea of what it could be. So he’d take turns between having these stupid outbursts or staying silent. Something tells him that he was better with his mouth shut sometimes.

However, the moment she asked him to train her, he decided to keep his mouth shut for a few minutes out of astonishment, when, in fact, he should have said something or at least thought twice before answering. Zoro remembers how she bowed politely while making her request like he was someone super important and was on a whole nother level.

I mean, they were on different levels, but that doesn't mean she couldn't get better. Honestly, Zoro actually believed she could get better indeed because she had so much focus and was so persistent - characteristics that reminded him of a version of himself as a kid, always wanting to beat Kuina.

Right off the bat, he denied her request claiming that the had no patience or interest whatsoever. He stood up and prepared to leave, but turned around to glance quickly at her before fleeing inside the ship. And he swears his heart simply stopped at the sight of Tashigi's bleak expression. Instantly, Zoro knew what she was thinking.

Surely, Tashigi took his answer as a sign that she was too weak - and not because she was a woman, which is something he was able to get the hell out of her head with so much struggle - and that even he wouldn't be able to help her become stronger. Zoro waited for the moment when she would try to bite his head off, saying how stupid and unpleasant he was, but no sound reached the swordsman's ears.

The girl just nodded and left without a word. And he didn't feel quite well.

Zoro didn't see her until the time she left for her night shift. She still didn't seem at peace which made him start to get really worried. Had he really crossed the line? The green-haired man thought he was surely getting crazy by the day with her stay on the Sunny, because he hated the fact she was his first thought in the morning and the last before bed. And suddenly, he realized what bothered him at the moment she made her request.

He was Kuina in this situation and she was the small Zoro from years ago.

He was the one she wanted to reach, just as he wanted to reach his dear friend as a child.

Zoro sighed heavily and walked in her direction, sitting at her side and not receiving even a glance in his direction. He knew she was not angry per se - which, particularly, was something new and troublesome the fact he was able to read her little by little and that definitely didn't make him happy - because judging by her frown, he knew she was racking her brain to find a way to convince him to train her.

The swordsman gave a crooked smile and tried to hide the good feeling of being really admired by someone, especially by Glasses.

He acted like an idiot, he knows that. It wasn't needed that much of time in her company to know how much of pride she had to swallow to make a request like that. And deciphering that made him gaze almost affectionate at her, even if against his own will.

But only when she wasn't looking.

Finally, he decided to break the silence and warn her he'd be waiting for her at the deck at 5 a.m. And she didn't dare to be late because he does not take it easy on trainings.

And cross his heart, but he has never seen such a beautiful smile in his whole life. His heart stopped on its tracks again and that was starting to piss him off. If this continues to happen every time she does something different around him (because, like, this smile could not be directed at him, it's simply not possible), he would definitely treat it with Chopper.

And at 5 a.m., there was a Tashigi waiting for him with a sword in hand and the most determined expression he has seen on anyone's face recently.

She has kept waiting for him religiously for the past three months.

At first, their relationship was a bit complicated - Zoro was very rough around the edges and Tashigi was too proud. The trainings always ended in a heated discussion between them, followed by a whole afternoon without talking to each other until a wild Luffy (being typical Luffy) somehow would making them talk civilly again at night.

But the day the green-haired man simply snapped at her without thinking and screamed at her he was trying to teach her the same way he would teach any person, whether being a man or woman, but she couldn't put her stupid pride aside because he was not underestimating her and that he truly believed she would continue being an idiot, but a stronger idiot - was the moment where their relationship change slightly, but deeply.

He knew the whole crew was staring at both of them, but Zoro couldn't focus on anything else but the annoying woman in front of him. Why the hell couldn't she understand he was capable of being friendly and thoughtful?

Okay, fine, calling her idiot wouldn't help that much.

Tashigi merely stared at him for a couple of seconds without blinking and momentarily Zoro thought she would just brush aside everything he said and just focus on the word idiot. So, imagine his surprise when she simply bowed and apologized. When she straightened, she just unsheathed and held the sword firmly in both hands, telling him in a serious tone that she would no longer contest him, and that, please, do not give up on her.

And since that day, they never argued again during training. Out of training hours, however, they did because, you see, Tashigi was really stubborn and he was a person who got angry easily. But nothing major. Zoro started to feel that their relationship reminded him the one he has with Sanji, but somehow, he knew it was pretty different.

Zoro firmly believed it had nothing to with the fact that he thought she looks incredibly cute when pouting every time he was right about something. But at the same time, he started to consider this option, since he just wanted to beat the shit out of the ero-cook when he acted like that.

The same way he wanted to punch Sanji when he drooled over Tashigi for too long, especially when Nami or Robin didn’t give him the time of the day. The marine was too nice to shoo the pervert away and he knew it was mainly due to the fact she thought she owed the crew so much for saving her from certain execution.

Ah, there’s that, but it’s a story for another time. The swordsman couldn’t even remember the events without his stomach churning. The memory of her in chains and with a rope around her neck still haunted his dreams. And unfortunately, every time he ended up remembering, an uncontrollable rage would take over - exactly the same fury he felt at when he saw her so defenseless. Well, at least it helped him defeat the enemy faster than ever.

Ever since, fueled by her strong sense of justice, Tashigi believed she owed them her life and would do everything in her reach to repay them.

Only she had already paid, the sword nerd. But she didn’t realize that just the fact of being sent to execution for protecting them of an unfair capture made by the Marine corrupt pigs was already payment enough.

And gradually, the pair got used to each other’s presence and Zoro judged that a sort of friendship has been formed. Or a truce. But he doesn’t know and also didn’t want to know. If possible, he wanted to stay far away from her and forget that somehow she really seemed to belong to the Strawhats.

With him.

Probably it was because of that approximation that Tashigi was able to say she admired him. He also knew that she must have struggled a lot to swallow her pride once again, but she was too sincere to keep that information to herself. And kind! Zoro couldn’t understand where that much kindness came from honestly. After she slowly overcame her inherent revulsion that came with the word “pirate”, the swordsman saw a very different side of the marine.

Kind. Kind with the crew, kind to the people they met on their adventures, stupidly kind with Chopper, because let’s be honest, it’s too freaking hard to not like the reindeer.

Kind to him.

After so much time getting frustrating expressions and angry scowls from her, the kindness made him not knowing what to do. Angry Tashigi? Sure, Zoro knew how to deal with that. Tashigi being stubborn because they disagreed? No problem, piece of cake. Tashigi babbling about different swords they find when visiting some new island? Completely cool, he even liked to hear what she had to say.

But Tashigi being nice to him? What now, how to go from there? Does he try to be kind too? Does he stop with the obvious attitude of dancing around each other, always far away but so close? Or does he just realize that her eyes are so pretty in the sunset, even with the glasses and her lips seemed so soft on her pale skin-

“Nee, Roronoa.”

Perfect timing to drag him out of the spiral of thoughts he was getting into. A very dangerous spiral that, if acknowledged, there would be no turning back.

“Hm?”

“You want to become the greatest swordsman in the world because of that friend of yours that looks like me, right?”

Her voice turned so soft and that took him out of the dangerous spiral he was almost setting one foot in and led him to Kuina.

And then back to Tashigi. They were not the same, he knew. The physical resemblance eventually faded over the years, even though Zoro was still astonished of how could it be possible for a stranger to look like so much like his late friend. What kind of cruel joke the fate was playing?

But then again, they were not the same. Not emotionally. Kuina really struggled with her swordsman identity because she was a woman. Tashigi was proud of being a swordsman and a woman, despite her thinking that everyone would always look down on her.

Zoro made a mental note to ask her about this trauma. Where it came from, why she can’t get over it, who did this to her. And if it was someone, he’d like very much to know if he was alive so he could beat this person to a pulp.

But with that, he has just set a foot in the spiral. And oh boy, how scared he was. If not for the years of mastering his composure, he’d have jumped out of spite when he realized she had turned around to stare at him, probably waiting for an answer.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t want to intrude on your personal affairs.”

Tashigi gave an apologetic nod and turned the attention to the gentle waves in the sea. Zoro continued to stare at her and noticed how extremely welcoming that scene was. For unknown reasons, the swordsman felt at peace, the same way he felt when meditating.

“Yeah, that’s right. I promised her before she died. That’s because of her that I carry Wado Ichimonji too.”

The marine turned toward him so quickly as if she had sensed some danger and her eyes widened. She probably didn’t expect him to answer. Zoro is aware that he’s a closed person and the biggest example of that is the fact that no one on the crew knows his true story.

“This is… very noble of you, Roronoa. I’m completely sure you will make it. And I think your friend believed in you too.”

And there it was again - the most beautiful smile he has ever seen was, once again, directed at him. That made him feel somewhat… special. And he realized he wanted to be someone special to her. He wanted that smile to be his and no one else’s. Did she smile like that to another man? Was this just an ordinary smile she offered to any kind person like her?

Did she think about him when they are not together?

So, without looking back, Zoro put both feet inside the spiral and went down. He was not good with words, but a little better with actions and she was so close so close and she reached her hand to rest on top of his, squeezing lightly to assure the words that just fell out of her mouth and now the smile faded slightly and she was looking at him with so so bright eyes and Brook was playing a soft and slow song somewhere on top of the Sunny-

That was a lot going on for him, so he decided that screw it and hugged her. But it wasn’t a light hug, it was strong like he really needed that. It was a hug that screamed thank you thank you thank you. He didn’t even know what the hell he was thanking for because all of the Strawhats already believed in him and his dream. He didn’t need the faith of no else. Is it the fact of the resemblance again and that made him think it was Kuina’s ghost uttering those words?

No. It wasn’t. While holding her, he was sure that Tashigi’s belief mattered because she was just and true. And that meant it was a faith completely free of second thoughts or hidden meanings. It was real. It was sincere. Despite their differences - the whole issue of pirates and marines - she believed he was worthy of the title he would eventually achieve.

He realized that deep down she didn’t admire him for what he would be in the future. She admired him because he is also an example of perseverance. And something tells him that even if he did not become the greatest swordsman in the world, she would still want to reach him. And surpass him someday.

Zoro noted that he wouldn’t mind if it was her.

She was deserving of the title too.

Then he continued to hold her with his arms firmly on her back, being careful not to hurt her and completely enveloped her, pressing her against his chest so she could stay closer closer closer.

Has anyone already hugged her like this? Has any man gotten so close to her to the point of being able to feel the heat emanating from her? Zoro thinks so. Because it was not possible for a woman this honest to not have found a man as just as her. But reluctantly, he was surprised when he thought he didn't want her to find anyone.

Meeting someone means she would have to leave and he didn’t want her to go away, especially in another man’s arms. He got used to her presence during practice and even during the meditation. This was nice. It didn’t have to change.

So engrossed in his own reflection that he almost missed the moment when Tashigi returned the hug with the same firmness. She made space to better accommodate her head on his shoulder and his heart just flipped and oh my God, he's sure she heard that because it was going to come out of his chest anytime.

And all his sanity went out the window the moment she turned her face to rest in the crook of his neck and he felt her breath. Suddenly a shock ran through Zoro's spine and breathing became very difficult. The shock gave way to a warm feeling and the swordsman needed to do something. Either shove her away or bring her closer.

Both options were equally dangerous.

“Roronoa.”

“Zoro.”

“Ahn?”

“You can call me Zoro.”

She took a deep breath again and his brain was beginning to form incoherent ideas. He needed to do something.

“Zoro.”

That was enough for him to give up on any insecurity. Zoro. She spoke his name in such a soft way and that awakened something inside him that he never dared to analyze. He needed to do something.

Zoro knew what he wanted to do.

“Tashigi.”

Reluctantly, he pushed her way enough to look into her eyes because he needed to know if what he was about to do was welcomed, if it was right, if she'd hate him for the rest of his life. He didn't know if they were already this close or if he had leaned in unconsciously, but they were so close to the point that their noses were almost touching.

She didn't stop staring at him at any moment, but he couldn't decide if he kept looking at her eyes or her lips. Zoro didn't know if he should blame the weather or the slow and peaceful song that came out of Brook's violin or the soft sound of the waves crashing in the ocean or if it was simply her breath so close, but he decided to throw caution to the wind.

Zoro gave Tashigi enough time to move away if she wished so.

She didn't.

Then Zoro closed the distance and kissed her. The world stopped spinning. The noise of the waves faded away, Brook's music was just a distant noise, the crew's noise seemed to be muffled, the birds flying close to the ship made no sound, the wind itself seemed to have gone silent, leaving only their breath and the noise of his own heart beating so loud that now he was sure she could hear it.

But he wanted more. Way more. Just brushing his lips over hers was not enough. Zoro needed her closer closer closer until there was nothing separating their bodies and their breath was one. Hesitantly, he licked her lip as if he was asking permission and in the blink of an eye, Tashigi gave her consent.

Right at that moment, there was nothing or anyone in the world that would stop him from kissing her like there was no tomorrow. At first, he tried to be as calm as possible, but after Tashigi bit his bottom lip, his world came crashing down. Zoro didn't have enough self-control and what he wanted most was to just kiss her senseless. Even though he was a guy with zero experience in this area, his instincts normally worked perfectly.

And it seemed right.

Even if this kiss wasn't the most correct one, he didn't care anymore. It seemed right and Tashigi made him believe it was right judging by her almost inaudible moan and the slight tug on the thin hair at the nape of his neck.

Zoro no longer had any coherent thoughts at all, and his body was completely on fire because the moan made him draw her closer (he didn't know how it was still possible), made one hand get lost in her hair and the other in her waist.

But especially made him want to move, made him conjure images in his mind of Tashigi hugging him with nothing more than a sheet covering the two of them. Tashigi underneath him, panting, moving along with him. Tashigi speaking his name over and over again-

However, all creatures need to breathe and he wouldn’t be an exception. He didn’t know how long the kiss lasted, but it seemed a pleasant eternity. And when he opened his eyes, the sight of a Tashigi with a messy hair, with swollen lips, blushing fiercely and panting like him provoked a somewhat uncontrollable pleasure for being the responsible for the state the Marine was in.

Of course, he wouldn’t voice that with the intent of making fun of her because he knew he was in the same state. It would be the pot calling the kettle black.

They kept staring at each other for several seconds, immersed in that little feeling of bliss where nothing mattered - not even Usopp, Chopper and Brook spying on them through the opening in the railing. Zoro knew he would have to endure Sanji’s jokes, Nami’s mocking smile, Franky’s “manly” tears… Luffy would be probably the only one that wouldn’t bug him about it.

I mean, that’s what he hoped anyway because since the boy decided that Nami was the person he wanted to be with, the rubber man definitely didn't think twice about making up for the lost time. Zoro has lost count of how many times he has caught them making out in several places in the Thousand Sunny. At first, Zoro wanted to punch the couple for being publicly indecent, but after this kiss, he could definitely understand.

Tashigi was the first to break the eye contact and once again, that downcast expression was present. What the hell was that now? What the hell did he do wrong? Didn’t she like it? Maybe she already had someone else she liked and couldn’t imagine kissing him?

“I really thought you couldn’t stand me. I mean, at best you put up with me because of the resemblance to your friend.”

“Is that why you are sad?”

Tashigi quickly turned her attention to him and Zoro decided, once and for all, that he liked when her focus was on completely on him. The same way when they train, where she would absorb all of his teachings without blinking. Even when they argued, the marine would always listen attentively before getting angry about something she didn’t agree with.

“Did you like your friend? I mean, like a girl?”

“Haa? Why are you asking me that?”

“Is that why you kissed me, Zoro?”

Then his eyes widened and he finally got it. He finally understood why she would glance away every time he would seem a little bit indifferent or when she would talk about something and he’d simply nod, not saying a word. Or why she would get so annoyed at the thought of him thinking of her as weak, even after joining the crew. Or even when he ran at full speed to save her from imminent death when she was captured.

Tashigi thought that she would always be a copy of Kuina to him.

And that at the same time, she wasn’t Kuina enough for him to consider her a friend at least. Let alone fall in love with her.

The thing was that Tashigi honestly didn’t know that Zoro wasn’t being indifferent or didn’t want to talk to her, he just didn’t know how to have a conversation with her without being a complete buffoon. She didn’t know he didn’t think of her as a weakling, but as an formidable opponent.

She didn't know he ran like a maniac to save her not because he "couldn't lose her again" - which particularly stung a little the moment the words left her mouth because he got the hidden message that he couldn't see someone that looks so much like Kuina die again and in front of him - but because he had never been so terrified at the thought of Tashigi no longer being in the world to torment him.

She didn’t know he no longer found her a copycat and that slowly they became companions despite their differences.

She didn’t know that only now he realized he was in love with her indeed.

“It’s okay. I get it. It was a mistake, right? It’s fine.”

Tashigi gave a small strained smile that if she had crossed him with a spear it wouldn't hurt so much. She stood up and got ready to leave, but the swordsman was quicker and gripped her arm.

Because he realized she didn’t know any of that because he never told her.

“It wasn’t a mistake. I don’t see you as Kuina anymore because, in the end, you both are very different. And I… I don’t want you to leave.”

“L-leave? I-I never said I was leaving.”

“I know. But that day is likely to come and I don’t want you to go away with some stupid and noble marine.”

“S-s-some stupid and noble m-marine??”

“Yeah. I want you to… stay here. With us… with me.”

Zoro knew this moment was crucial. He gambled everything he had with no guarantees. And he definitely isn’t a careless man or the kind of person to not think before doing something, but he doesn’t know what is wrong with this woman that makes him take risky decisions. The one who planted the idea of a not so lonely future, the idea of having someone to come back to, someone to be by his side when he finally achieve his dream.

Someone to share. Above all else, someone that understands him.

And understanding was what she did. Tashigi got the meaning behind Zoro’s few words. Of the promise he was making for the future and his sincere desire for her. I mean, she could only have understood because the smile that was on her face again screamed happiness to him.

“Unfortunately, no marine can compete with you, Zoro. Especially if we are talking about a bad sense of direction.”

“Tch!”

Tashigi laughed at his scowl but stopped when Zoro pulled her straight to his lap. He had never seen her so red in his whole life. The girl was redder than Luffy’s cardigan! That made the swordsman smirk and whisper hoarsely in her ear:

“I don’t think you’ll keep laughing when I really show you why no man will ever compete with me, captain Glasses.

#zorotash #zoro x tashigi #tashigi #one piece #roronoa zoro #opfanfic #fanfiction

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makeste · 6 years

Text

BnHA Chapter 142: HHAH!! *GRUNT* *PUNCHING NOISES*

Previously on BnHA: Tamaki faced off against three villains on his own. At first he managed to keep them at bay by generating a bunch of giant kraken arms, which was badass. But then it turned out one of the villains had an eating quirk and just kept eating the damn arms like fucking Gluttony or Monkey D. Luffy or something. The other two villains worked together to beat Tamaki up, but then Tamaki neutralized one of their quirks and fucking absorbed the other one’s quirk and used it against him. Needless to say, he beat them, and it was pretty cool, although I’m not quite sure it was cool enough to warrant an entire chapter being devoted to it, but what are you gonna do. We’re moving on now anyway, so that’s that.

Today on BnHA: Tamaki passes out after winning his fight. We cut back to the rest of the heroes as they make their way down the neverending corridor. Mimic starts messing with the walls again and tries to crush Aizawa, but Fat Gum knocks him out of the way and takes the hit for him. At this point things become very jumbled, but basically FG and Kirishima end up separated from the rest of the group, and find themselves in a pit somewhere with two new villains. One of the villains is a big guy who likes punching shit, and the other is a Buddhist monk who likes to stand around and do absolutely nothing at all. The punching guy punches FG and Kiri a bunch, and Kiri has trouble withstanding it even with his quirk. FG yells at him to not give up and to maintain his will to fight no matter what. He and Kiri face the bad guys in determination and are all “we’re gonna punch ‘em some more, goddammit.”

(As always, all comments not marked with an ETA are my unspoiled reactions from my first readthrough of this chapter. I’ve read up through chapter 175 now, so any ETAs will reflect that.)

all right kids. it’s been two weeks since I last read a chapter. I just did a quick refresher of the past dozen chapters or so, partly to remind myself of everything that was going on, and partly to remind myself of all the cool things that have happened in this arc. it kinda helped. somewhat

Tamaki’s fight didn’t really drag on that much. it was just two chapters. it felt like an eternity -- despite the fact that I actually like Tamaki a lot -- but it really wasn’t that long

and yeah, it’s been like four chapters since they started this raid, and all they’ve basically done so far is run down a few hallways. but I feel like things have to pick up soon, so we’re going to press on

BnHA got the Jump cover again! hopefully that means things are about to get exciting

ooh and there’s a color page too

basically, now that he’s finished beating these three assholes, he’s dosed them with a bit of poison to keep them in check, and now he is passing out. shit

also, “that was far more trouble than it should have been” is one of the more accurate summaries I’ve read in some time

so now we’re finally getting back to our badass 1-A boys! yesssss. I missed you lunkheads

I kinda just want the rest of the arc to be them busting through wall after wall of the labyrinth until they finally catch up to where Mirio is. then Aizawa neutralizes Overhaul’s quirk and they knock him out and rescue Eri and everything is happy and good again. and Nighteye announces that All Might is not going to die after all, and it turns out this whole time he was just misremembering an old cliffhanger episode of the canon All Might anime. and they all live happily ever after etc. etc.

(ETA: you know that anon ask about what I’d change about this arc? scratch everything I wrote in response to that. pencil this in. done and done)

but SOMETHING TELLS ME this is not going to happen

all right, so we’re back in the ol’ villain labyrinth

I’m having so much trouble spelling the word ‘labyrinth.’ I keep mixing up where the y and the i are supposed to go. stupid English language

what the fuck is this title

lol wtf

(ETA: now that I know the meaning of this title, I simultaneously have new respect for the title itself, and new exasperation towards Horikoshi for somehow still failing to see the problem with this extremely dull matchup. listen dude. no one fucking cares if “defense wins championships.” I’m just a poor soul trying to stay awake during panel after panel of blurry punching action. please never do this to us again)

Kirishima’s all “is senpai gonna be okay”, and no one fucking knows, Kiri

but no. he’s not. why on earth did you all leave him. whatever

FG is annoyed that they’re doubting Tamaki

um, no, this is the kind of stupid policy that this series has so far done its best to avoid. in fact, FG, I’ll see your point and raise you one “a true hero offers help even when it’s not asked for”, which is almost the exact opposite of what you’re saying. so WHAT IS THE TRUTH

oh my god Kirishima is immediately doing a 180 from being worried about Tamaki to being all “HE’LL BE FINE”

so am I to understand that you can get Kirishima to say or do anything just by implying that it is or isn’t manly

...actually, yeah, that checks out

so Kiri is fiercely saying that he’s still worried, but he has no choice but to believe in him

meanwhile Rock Lock, whose name was actually mentioned back in like chapter 138 but I missed it but I picked up on it when I went back to refresh my memory, is being annoyed by their enthusiasm. yet again

I feel like Rock Lock actually loves these kids now. right? they’re so fucking lovable. how can you not

(ETA: everyone gives in to class A’s charms eventually)

so now they’ve found some stairs and they’re all “let’s take these stairs”

but then they’re like “maybe we shouldn’t take these stairs”

this kind of indecisive bullshit is exactly why this arc has taken 500 chapters so far you guys. come the fuck on already

Aizawa is suspicious because wth happened to that guy who was manipulating the corridors before

well wasn’t he high af though? so maybe the quirk enhancing drug just wore off and he passed out?

Aizawa is speculating that his range might be limited and he can’t sense them all the way over here. or maybe he’s distracted by the other guys who were still fighting him earlier

I’m tired of trying to sum this all up so I’m just gonna post it

this is the room where Tamaki just finished kicking these guys’ asses. oh shit

now Irinaka’s eye is peeking out, and he’s all mad that the three of them lost to just one guy

and now for some reason we’re cutting back to where Bubble Girl and Captain Cockroach (I forget his name. but it was basically something like that) are restraining the villains who they previously stayed behind to battle

they’re questioning why the villains who were in hiding came out of the woodworks to attack them when they could have potentially gotten away if they’d just stayed put

but one of the villains says that if they’d done that, “Overhaul would have our heads”

this is why I don’t really understand villains like that last bunch who are so fucking loyal to a guy who clearly could not give less of a shit about them

and it seems like most of the current Eights are more loyal to the previous boss than to Overhaul

clearly the previous boss should have picked a 13-year-old peace-loving suburban Japanese kid to be his next heir rather than Chisaki. this is what happens when you don’t have Reborn around

anyway, even though these guys are all complaining about Overhaul, they’re all certain that the heroes aren’t going to succeed in capturing him

-- WHAT IN THE

DID A GIANT BATTERING RAM THING JUST EXPLODE OUT OF THE WALL AND SLAM INTO AIZAWA BECAUSE HOLY SHIT?!

AND NOW IT’S MAKING A HOLE IN THE WALL AND SHOVING AIZAWA INTO IT SHIIIIIT

LEAVE AIZAWA ALONE FOR ONCE, HE NEVER GETS TO DO ANYTHING IN THESE ARCS. LET HIM KICK SOME ASS

Fat Gum is tackling the giant wall hand and knocking Aizawa away from it!

so now Fat Gum has been punted through the hole in the wall instead

I’m relieved Aizawa is still with the kids, but we’re staying with FG, and I s2g if we have to spend another two chapters away from the protagonist watching characters who -- as lovable as they are -- we’d never even met before the start of this arc, I’m not gonna be super happy

-- OH MY GOD

KIRI YOU BLOCKHEAD WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE

motherfucker, he jumped in to take the hit for Aizawa too and then Fat Gum obliviously jumped in behind him and Kiri got sucked in and FG didn’t even realize

well this is just fucking great

so now some guy is emerging from the shadows ready to have fisticuffs!

and Kiri is going into Unbreakable mode again!

should you really be using your trump card right away like that. the trump card which you can only hold for a very short amount of time

um what in the

I’m not really enjoying how blurry and indistinct and difficult-to-follow these action panels have been getting as of late. it’s starting to feel like this series is finally entering a sophomore slump. get it together BnHA, c’mon

anyway, this guy looks to be punching Fat Gum really hard and possibly repeatedly. kind of like when All Might fought the Noumu at USJ

hmm

honestly it sounds like this guy was born to fight Kirishima in an epic showdown

“people oughta kill each other using just the power they got in their bodies” oh, you wacky Honorable Villains. you guys are always all over the place

FG’s turning to Kirishima, but OH SHIT

relax, I’m sure he’s fine though

ah, yes, good

this is probably gonna look really cool in the anime which will make up for this panel being something of a blurry mess right now

(ETA: just to clarify, when I originally read this chapter, I wound up with FA’s original scanlation which was significantly lower in quality. I’ve since found their version 2.0 which used cleaned-up scans which are very much improved.

here’s the original for comparison:

so yeah, the improved scans alone help to make this fight a significantly better read this time around. it’s still dull, but at least it’s readable now lol)

now FG is... trying to punch the other guy, but like. well, take a look

FG is very confused

and now another villain is there! were you there this whole time omg

okay so it must be his barrier then, right?

must... resist... urge to call him Chance the Rappa. no one else thinks it is funny. just you

but you know what. it’s my recap though. so

(ETA: honestly, this association is the only reason why he’s one of the few Eight Expendables whose names I actually recall)

so now Chance is punching FG again and it looks like it hurt him. damn

you know what I didn’t sign up for here. another fight with a tier 3 character where there is no plot advancement and where the villain’s quirk appears to just be “I punch stuff real hard.” wtf. goddammit BnHA, I’m rooting for you so get your shit in order already

so now the barrier villain is referring back to the title and clearing all of that up

actually, Kiri is spear and shield all in one. just saying. boy knows how to throw a damn good punch. who do you think was smashing through all your labyrinth walls earlier

so now Kiri is climbing back to his feet and thinking that the dude’s punches hurt him even in his Unbreakable mode

now there’s a single flashback panel of Bakugou, and my god. I’ll take it. where are you, son. how’ve you been. how’s my other son. I’ve been stuck in a villain labyrinth with side characters for the past half dozen chapters. I hope you’re off having a nice time somewhere

Kirishima is looking like he’s about to get all When The Going Gets Tough THE TOUGH GET GOING

oh! what’s this??

is this... flashback Kiri???

are you telling me he’s not a natural bright flaming redhead. what the hell. next you’re gonna tell me Mina’s not a natural pink and that Deku’s been dying his hair green since childhood

although in Kirishima’s case, he did look up to that Crimson Riot guy seemingly in the same way Deku, Shouto, and Kacchan admired All Might, didn’t he? so maybe it’s got something to do with that

FG is shouting at him not to let up his Unbreakable mode, and that if his spirit breaks that’s when he’ll really lose

and the last page is just Kiri and FG looking gritty and determined. but Kiri’s in his Ben Grimm mode so it looks weird lol

look, I’m hella down for some Kiri flashbacks. I just don’t want this fight to take longer than one and a half chapters. that’s it. that’s my limit. starting a timer... now

BONUS:

I think maybe this bonus page is supposed to go with chapter 143, but eh. it works here too

so Rappa’s quirk is explained in another omake, and basically it’s something that allows him to rotate his shoulders really fast so he can punch a lot. to think, he could have been the next Michael Phelps, but instead he wound up being a third-rate villain in the most boring arc. such a waste

Tengai’s whole character just makes no sense to me whatsoever. why are you a villain. you’re so boring. nothing in your personality or backstory offers up any type of explanation for why you would be working for a murderous crime syndicate. it’s a complete mystery, but not in a cool way, more of a “none of this adds up in the slightest” type of way. just because you never open your eyes when you talk doesn’t make you cool you asshole

#bnha #boku no hero academia #amajiki tamaki #fat gum #kirishima eijirou #bnha spoilers #mha spoilers #makeste reads bnha #why do Cool Anime Characters always do that anyway #open your damn eyes #it's not cool to just not look at things #'look at me look at how much of a shit I don't give. I'm bored by everything'#listen here asshole #unless you're a character in fma and your name is ling yao chances are you're doing this wrong #this isn't fucking bird box okay

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