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“Now, now, be a good boy and stop fighting. You don’t want your friend to get killed, do you? Doesn’t seem like it’d take much more to achieve that.”
The female pirate Captain grinned deviously, dragging her wet tongue across her bottom lip, bright red with a thick layer of lipstick. Her words elicited a row of raucous laughter from her crew, loud, unhinged and high pitched like a pack of hungry hyenas. Sakazuki tensed, eyes dark with smoldering hatred. He bared his teeth at the pirates surrounding him. His gaze shifted imperceptibly to the right, watching Borsalino being dragged away roughly, a trail of blood on the deck that made his heart clench with worry and no small amount of fury. His friend needed medical attention. They had been together for a while now, with Sakazuki being the one taking dangerous jobs to get the money. Out of what seemed like the complete blue to Sakazuki, Borsalino suddenly insisted on accompanying him to watch his back. The fool . Sakazuki had already told him that this job was too dangerous for a first timer, and Borsalino’s control over his fruit wasn’t that amazing yet, nor was his skill at fighting. He didn’t listen . And now he got captured because he was too weak .
He got captured because Sakazuki was too weak to protect him.
Shoving the guilt down far enough until he couldn’t feel it anymore, Sakazuki directed his sharp glare at the woman responsible for all of this, the pirate Borsalino and he had been hunting for the past month. “Go ahead and kill him,” Sakazuki dared, gripping the saber tightly, the handle slippery with blood. “I consider him dead the moment he got captured,” he said coldly, dark eyes ablaze with fire. He didn’t look back when he heard a weak, but familiar voice calling for his name, refusing to show weakness. “However, the moment you finish him , I’ll finish you all to avenge his death. And believe me, you don’t want to see what would happen to you lot the moment you have nothing to hold over my head anymore, scums,” he hissed under his breath, the words were spat out with all the poisonous loathing he could muster. In the face of his bold insolence, Sakazuki was swiftly punished. The blade that was placed over his throat cut a thin line, causing blood to well up and sluggishly drip down.
The pirate Captain narrowed her eyes angrily for a moment before she threw her head back and laughed loudly. “My, my, what bold words you speak, handsome,” she grinned darkly, gripping Sakazuki’s chin with one bony hand, long nails digging against his skin. Sakazuki glared and snapped but before he could bite, she already pulled her hand away. He didn’t understand what was so amusing about this but then again, they were pirates. What other reason would a pirate need to laugh cruelly over something? “Such ruthlessness. You’d make a good pirate, handsome. So why won’t you join us? I’m certain chasing down pirates wouldn’t put a meal on the table as well as being a pirate. Freedom to do anything you want, and more wealth than being a bounty hunter can ever offer. What more do you want?” she asked coyly, much to Sakazuki’s disgust and fury. What reasons would Sakazuki need to reject piracy ?! They were pirates . The Captain looked up at him, her eyes twinkled in dark delight. “Spend a minute to think about it, handsome. Remember, your friend’s life is in our hands. So we do, indeed, still have something hanging over your head.”
Sakazuki growled, knowing that she was right. He would actually prefer it if they would stop hanging Borsalino’s life over his head. It would hurt him deeply and badly if his friend died, but the stifling feeling of being forced under control made Sakazuki want to lash out and put this human trash down permanently. Sakazuki listened with a sense of growing uneasiness when there were muffled shouts and the unmistakable noises of scuffling. “Where are you keeping him?” Sakazuki asked, even though he already knew. Dread coiled tight in his gut, and like the blood that was slowly dripping down from his wound, it turned his fury cold. Borsalino didn’t do well in the dark. The fool had the biggest fear of it for some unfathomable reason and Sakazuki couldn’t even imagine what he must be going through right now being thrown in the dark and lonely space somewhere below the deck of the brigantine.
Sakazuki gritted his teeth, jaw clenching tight. This was exactly why he told him to stay behind while Sakazuki handled this job. One couldn’t half-ass bounty hunting and while it was admittedly... nice... to have a companion to watch his back, Borsalino needed training before he could actually handle threats. As of now, he was only holding Sakazuki back.
His question made the pirate Captain smile victoriously, as if sensing that with Borsalino’s well-being was indeed what was keeping Sakazuki from acting too rashly. “Somewhere you don’t need to concern yourself with, handsome,” she said, watching her lackey return and whisper something in her ear. Her smile widened. “Ah, it seems our little guest is not fond of the dark. He keeps trying to use his power to break out but he is too emotional to concentrate. Mercifully, my nakama has decided to knock him out so he won’t be scared anymore. Aren’t we nice? A pirate life isn’t so bad,” she tempted while Sakazuki seethed inside. These scum saw Borsalino panicking and knocking him out. How fucking dare they.
Before Sakazuki could continue stewing in his fury, a hand swept over his eyes and Sakazuki jerked when his old hat was suddenly snatched off from his head. He let out a low, guttural growl but the poised blade kept him in check. “Give that back!” Sakazuki snarled, barely able to hide his panic behind the fury. He could feel his hatred creep up to unbearable level, hot and intense, beating against his rib cage like heart beats. That was the last link to his past and Sakazuki was just not ready to part with it yet. Maybe one day, but not now. “I said, give it back, bitch ,” he snarled, hating the helplessness he was feeling. The moment he wasn’t surrounded with at least three weapons pointed at him at all times, he was going to kill them all for daring to take Borsalino away and then dare to hold his life over Sakazuki’s head, on top of taking away his possession.
Smack!
The woman backhanded him sharply, the slap hurt his pride far more than it hurt his face. “Be quiet, sexy. I might find you an eye candy, but you don’t need your tongue to look pretty,” she said, making Sakazuki’s cheeks flush angrily, cheek stinging. She turned his old hat in her hand, observing the word with a critical eye. “Justice? What a funny concept. Do you think by wearing this, your bounty hunting has a higher purpose or something? Don’t kid yourself, sweetheart. We are both still killers. You are just a dog working for the Navy to earn his scraps while we choose to take what we want by force,” she lectured, clicking her tongue. “Well, you have no need for this old thing anymore. You have no power over your fate. The weak don’t get to decide what to become of themselves. You are now a pirate by my desire,” she swept her eyes toward her crew, throwing the hat to the ground and casually stepped on it as she walked out. “Boys, soften him up and bring him to my chamber so I can enjoy him later. Make sure not to hurt his face, alright? I like looking at it.”
“Aye, ma’am!” the pirates chorused eagerly, turning to Sakazuki. “Boys, get ‘im!” a pirate cried, showing a missing front tooth, the result of Sakazuki’s strong uppercut.
At once, the pirates all descended upon Sakazuki, wrenching the bloody saber from his grip and beating him up savagely, kicking his shins or stepping on his chest. The only place they didn’t touch was his face, as per agreement to their Captain. Sakazuki gritted his teeth, forcing himself not to fight back even though it was taking every bit of his self control not to do so. If he fought back right now, he could potentially gain the upper hand, but then what would he do when they tortured Borsalino to ‘punish’ him? Give up again? No. They thought they were winning and even if Sakazuki’s pride was taking a bad beating, he knew it was better to wait. He needed to take them by surprise. The woman said he was going to her chamber next, most likely she was going to force herself on him. Alone, he could handle her. A ship without a Captain would surely fall apart.
“Not so tough now, ain’tcha? Shouldn’t have attacked us, brat!”
The sentence followed by a vicious kick against his chest had Sakazuki coughing up blood. He glared defiantly at the pirate who hurt him, not flinching even when he spat on Sakazuki’s face. “Go to where the sun doesn’t shine,” he spat, and hissed in pain when the beating turned up another notch but it was worth it watching the way the pirate’s face turned purple with rage.
After that, Sakazuki could only grit his teeth and hold out as blows and kicks were delivered cruelly. He refused to cry out in pain even when his hand was stomped on and ground against the deck. He held in pained moans when they kicked his stomach. He needed to endure. Finally, after what felt like forever, time blurred together when his world was nothing but pain, the beating stopped, leaving Sakazuki gasping for air but very much alive. He felt hands ripped his shirt apart, uncaring when the buttons were torn, flying every which direction. He bit down a hiss when strong arms picked him up and he was quickly shoved into the Captain’s Chamber. “Have fun, brat. Hope you satisfy the Cap’ enough for her to keep you around for seconds,” a pirate said with a lecherous grin, throwing Sakazuki on the bed without further decorum, shutting the door behind.
Spending a few seconds to regain his bearings, Sakazuki opened his eyes only to see the face of the Captain, looming over his own critically. “Well, at least they didn’t hurt your face. I like your jawline too much to see it harmed,” she smiled, tracing her longer finger across his skin. Sakazuki glared, breathing heavily but said nothing as she advanced, letting her believe that she had won. “Ah, so they did beat some manners into you after all. Good, good, I don’t like being insulted while I’m having fun,” she smiled, discarding her clothes on the floor and getting on the bed smoothly. “Shall we have some fun? Or, well, I suppose it’s only me. I don’t care whether you have fun or not,” she chuckled, crawling on top of Sakazuki’s body.
Sakazuki narrowed his eyes at the words, gripping the bed sheet tightly with clenched hands. He felt the woman’s hands on his stomach, unguarded and immediately, he sprang to action, shooting upward, pushing through the pain to fight back. His hands swept the offensive appendages from his stomach, face twisted in rage. The pirate Captain let out a surprised ‘oof’, flailing in shock. She obviously didn’t expect Sakazuki to have any fight left at all. Her mistake. It would cost the pirate her life. Sakazuki’s leg pinned one side of her body, hips arched up, arm locking against her flailing limb. With one smooth move, his other leg swept her off her dominating position, forcing her on her back. “ You don’t get to decide my fate, bitch. Only I do,” Sakazuki sneered, snatching the pillow on the bed and smothering her face with it to keep her screams silent. “Fuck you. I won’t let anyone make me feel helpless ever again!” he whispered darkly, enduring the fists hitting his sides while he kept the pillow on her face.
Slowly, the fighting ceased but Sakazuki didn’t loosen his hold. Not even when the pirate’s body went limp on the bed. He continued smothering her, counting to 100 in his mind. When she didn’t even twitch, Sakazuki allowed himself to relax, slowly pulling the pillow away. He felt for her pulse. A grim smile tugged at the corner of his lips when he detected nothing. He was still good at this, at least.
Getting off the bed slowly, Sakazuki listened carefully to the door with baited breath, waiting to see whether he had made too much noise. When nothing happened, Sakazuki turned back to the room, narrowing his eyes as he spotted the woman’s sword lying against the wall. She was a fool, too. Did she honestly think he was some green bounty hunter on his first hunt? If he hadn’t smothered her to death, he would have found a way to grab her weapon and kill her with it. As it was, she conveniently left a gift for him in her death. Sakazuki spat on the ground before grabbing the weapon. “Have fun in Hell,” Sakazuki glared at the dead body, carefully creeping out.
He had a pirate crew to deal with.
As the last pirate fell, a large bulky fighter, the sword slipped from Sakazuki’s hand and dropped to the ground, slicked with the blood of the lives he had ended. He held his side, trying to stem the blood from an unlucky strike he had received while he was busy fighting another member. He was exhausted, the pain from the beating combined with all the fights had left him drained. They weren’t strong , per se, but they were plentiful. Even an ant hill could cause troubles if one stepped on it. Sakazuki was just glad he had decided against taking on the entire crew at once and instead, opting for taking them out one at a time. He leaned against the wood wall for a moment, studying the darkened sky. He hadn’t realized it was getting that close to sunset. He had taken far too long. The beating he received earlier certainly didn’t help. So much for bragging that they could bag the woman before lunch. Sakazuki’s lips tilted up in a humorless smile. Youths. He supposed he was just as arrogant and idiotic as Borsalino had been when he said that. They had been overconfident. Sakazuki had been overconfident.
His eyes moved from the orange sky to the deck, expression dead as he observed the various corpses littering the place. It was eerily silent, and the only sounds Sakazuki could still hear were his own heart beats, and nature taking over where humans failed to conquer. The wind ripping through the air only to cradle through his hair, the waves lapping against the hurl, like a siren singing a haunting melody and the dead pirates were the unfortunate sailors doomed to be swallowed up by the merciless Blue.
Picking himself up painfully, Sakazuki reached down to take the sword, the handle sticky now that the blood had time to dry. He grimaced, gingerly limped toward a small, white object on the far corner of the deck, picking it up. Those bastards had stepped on it, their dirty boot prints were a mark of shame against the once yellowed but well kept hat. Sakazuki had rectified the matter though. Now, their dark red blood staining one side of the cap, seeping all the way until half of the kanji for ‘Justice’ turned brown. It was utterly unusable now. Sakazuki knew. This much blood never washed out completely. Muttering curses under his breath, Sakazuki put it on his head again, ignoring the dirt and the blood. He walked toward the door leading down to the holding area, stopping for a moment to look at his hands, dyed red by his own deed.
There wasn’t an inch on his body that wasn’t discolored one way or the other. If it weren’t black and blue from the beating, it was red from his own blood or the blood of the enemies, creating a macabre picture of death and untold horror. His boots squelched wetly with each step he took, leaving behind bloody prints like he needed to be reminded of the violent life he led.
Sakazuki looked down at a corpse stationed right at the door, watching dispassionately how their blood had reached the gap beneath the door and was surely dripping down the stairs toward the dark space Borsalino was being kept. It wasn’t ideal. He hadn’t wanted Borsalino to be captured, nor had he wanted to let his friend see this side of him so soon, covered in the blood of the enemies without a shred of regret. Actually… no. That wasn’t true. He had one. His only regret was that he had been too weak to finish it quicker.
Steeling himself, Sakazuki pushed the door open and walked down, allowing the dying sun to trickle in, shedding light to the damp and depressing space. His silhouette cast on the ground, a big lumping monstrosity dripping blood with each heavy step it took. The wood groaned, straining under his weight. Sakazuki paused when he heard it, a soft noise from a dark corner, small and heartbreakingly sad. “W-Who’s there?” Sakazuki’s stomach flipped at the question but he didn’t reply, the bundle of keys he had taken out from the Captain’s cold body rested heavy in his pocket. “I-I’m not afraid,” Borsalino’s weak voice called out again, cracking at the end, obviously shaken but less scared now that he could see some light. How long had he been sitting there panicking alone in the dark, accompanied only by the smell of blood and screams of pain?
Sakazuki stepped into the shadows to hide his appearance from Borsalino completely. He dug out the keys from his pocket, watching as Borsalino looked up sharply in surprise at their chiming. Sakazuki threw them towards his friend, ensuring they landed within arms reach.. “Sakazuki?” Borsalino called cautiously, voice surer than before. No response. “I can hear you... I know you’re there,” he tried again. Sakazuki still didn’t reply, fists tightly clenched. “Please answer me, Saka-san. I...I don’t want to be alone...”
Finally, the plea had an effect and Sakazuki found the words slip out before he could stop himself. “Yeah, it’s me. I... handled the situation,” he said simply, keeping his voice an impassive monotone. “You should unlock yourself and leave the ship. I’ll teach you how to collect the money later. Don’t look back.”
Borsalino said nothing for a long moment, trembling badly as he freed himself. He rubbed his wrists, shivering in his freezing cell, vulnerable in a way so rarely seen. It made Sakazuki so angry. He had to stop himself from storming back up the deck to get a few more hits in the people who had harmed his friend.
Too bad they were all dead.
Alas, there was no sense in exacting vengeance on people who couldn’t feel it anymore. All Sakazuki could do now was focus on his friend who was still very much alive. Borsalino bit his lip, pulling his hat down as if trying to cover his ears. “What...” his voice cracked. “What did it cost?” His friend whispered. He looked pained. Heartbroken.
Sakazuki stiffened. He scowled fiercely. “It doesn’t matter,” he said firmly, rubbing his stomach where the ex-Captain had tried touching him only to pull away when his bloody hand only dirtied his clothes further. He was alive and that woman didn’t even manage to stay on his body for more than a minute before he took her out. The cost was acceptable comparatively to the outcome.
“It matters to me,” Borsalino insisted. He looked directly at the shadow where Sakazuki was hiding, like if he stared hard enough, he could see through Sakazuki’s front. Sakazuki shifted, gripping the sword tightly. “How much did it cost you to save my life, Saka... Sakazuki ?” Borsalino rephrased, placing the keys down on the ground and leaned forward to try and see him.
Was Borsalino feeling guilty over all the pirates Sakazuki had to blow through to get to him? That was some foolish, misplaced guilt. It didn’t matter. Sakazuki would have killed them even without having to rescue Borsalino. There was no logical sense in Borsalino tormenting himself, especially over some dead pirates Sakazuki would have gladly gotten rid off even without being paid for it. He didn’t see what the big deal was anyway and he didn’t understand Borsalino’s upset. But... There was one thing he did know. “I’d pay more, if I had to,” Sakazuki admitted quietly, voice soft in its genuineness.
Borsalino swallowed, eyes clouded over like he was about to cry. “I know,” he whispered, pained and still so endlessly sad. “That’s not reassuring,” Borsalino looked up, trying to separate Sakazuki’s form from the dark shadow of the room. “I want to see you.”
Sakazuki sighed, and stepped out of the gloom so that Borsalino could see his face, bracing himself for his friend’s reaction to seeing all the gruesome blood on his body.
The tiny gasp from Borsalino was expected, but surprisingly enough he didn’t recoil or back away, disgust and fear missing from his face. Instead, Borsalino reached out for Sakazuki’s bloody fingers, his clean ones curled around the dirty digits. The significance of the contrast wasn’t lost on Sakazuki although its higher meaning escaped him completely. Sakazuki found himself tugged gently to come down to Borsalino’s eye level. He did so without a word, staring straight in Borsalino’s shining eyes, the corners wet with unshed tears. “Your weakness is a liability,” Sakazuki said harshly and frankly. Borsalino inhaled sharply, eyes filled with hurt and mouth dropping open in shock. He looked like he didn’t know what to say to defend himself for his weakness.
Face softened, Sakazuki leaned forward, forehead dropping on Borsalino’s shoulder. He hid his face in the wiry slope of the other’s frame. “...but I’m glad you are alive,” came the admittance, soft and quiet, filled with hidden relief.
Borsalino’s hand hovered uncertainly in the air for a moment before it came to rest on Sakazuki’s back softly, like it wasn’t him who had been captured and scared out of his mind for hours, but Sakazuki. Slowly, the fingers moved, gripping his shirt gently.
The tenderness of Borsalino’s hand as it touched Sakazuki like he was spun glass was far more effective at breaking him than the dark delight of the pirates’ punches and kicks could ever be. “I’m glad we are alive,” Borsalino corrected, not bothering to hide the thick tears in his voice. In turn, Sakazuki blinked rapidly to get rid of the urge to cry. At least one of them had to be strong.
Sakazuki said nothing to the words, pulling away after a moment and helped Borsalino to his feet. It was never kind when life reminded them how much further they still needed to go, despite getting as far as they did. “You need to get your power under control,” Sakazuki said after a moment, all business again. “What’s the point of having a Devil Fruit if it fails you when you need it the most?” he asked, eyeing Borsalino from under the rim of his hat. “And you are sparring against me from now on. We need to get your fighting skill to an acceptable level as soon as possible. If you can’t pull your weight, don’t come with me. I can’t keep watch over a weak partner all the time.”
Sakazuki’s speech had Borsalino lowered his head, his shoulders slumped just a tad further before a smile plastered on his face again. He raised both hands placatingly and replied with a cheerful “okay, Saka-san.”
Sakazuki eyed the other for another minute before turning away. “For what it’s worth... I failed, too, on my first bounty hunt,” Sakazuki said gruffly. “I was lucky I wasn’t killed. I got thrown overboard and had to swim ashore all by myself. I was overconfident and took on more than I was capable of at the time...”
Borsalino perked up at that. The cheerful fake smile turned more genuine. “Hmm~? I didn’t know Saka-san failed. You never told me,” the smile grew bigger when Sakazuki’s cheeks took on a darker hue. He refused to meet eyes with Borsalino, looking at somewhere off to the side. “Can you tell me that story while we work, ne~?” Borsalino prodded.
Sakazuki nodded stiffly. “It was the time when I agreed with your insane plan to eat bananas for a week straight. It wasn’t that I like bananas, it’s just that I failed to get us enough money to buy real food,” he confessed, remembering the humiliating experience that seemed to make Borsalino smile for some odd reason. “I was looking through the list of bounties, and I decided that I would go after a really high one, to get us set nicely for awhile...” he began, making his way up the stairs with Borsalino. He kept the story going even as Borsalino’s face whitened and he inhaled sharply at the sight of the carnage before him. It took the other a few moments longer to recover to ask questions so Sakazuki could answer and continue his tale. As one, they worked to collect their first shared bounty. The poster said ‘Dead or alive’. This worked.
It wasn’t as if they didn’t have their personal demons to battle with, and it wasn’t as if their relationship was perfect, or they were perfect. But as long as they stuck together, the nights were far more bearable than they used to be.
On this day when Death came to pay his visit, he spared two souls on the lonely husk of a pirate ship, one in yellow and another in red.
It was just perfect that the last of the sunlight was orange, and their silhouettes stood side by side.