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“Go! You need to get away now, the marines have the island surrounded.” Sentomaru yelled as he waved pirates, civilians, and scientists toward the right direction. Explosions went off in all directions and it was impossible to tell if it was caused by the canons being fired on them or the fight ensuing across Egghead.
“It’s been a long time since I’ve seen you so injured, Sentomaru-kun.” Kizaru looked at the chaos around him with a lazy smile, “Have you been slacking off in your training?”
“Ojiki.” Cursing, Sentomaru looked around to make sure no one would get dragged into the upcoming fight.
Kizaru pulled out a cigarette from his pocket and lit it with the tip of his finger. “Turning your back to the marines and becoming a traitor for Vegapunk…can’t say I’m surprised at your choice.”
Sentomaru scowled, “If you’re here to kill me, then get on with it already. But I won’t make it easy.”
Through the smoke he blew, he could see the image of Sentomaru shift into a smaller, more temperamental version of himself.
“Hey, who’s this ki~id following you?” Borsalino asked after he bumped into a small child that barely reached his knees.
Vegapunk turned away from his clipboard, “That’s Sentomaru-kun. He’s been helping me for two months now.”
“I’m his bodyguard!” Sentomaru exclaimed. “Go back to your base, marine. I’m the only protection he needs.” The boy crossed his arms and a frown that was far too cute to be threatening graced his face.
“...and he’s dead.” Sentomaru turned and saw that the marine was now pointing a finger at the back of Vegapunk’s head who was looking over their latest shipment of supplies, not caring about their antics. “You’re lucky I was sent here to protect him. You’re a lousy bodyguard~.”
“Try that again!”
Kizaru rushed, turning into light and aiming for the ship that held Vegapunk. He stopped at the last second, Sentomaru’s palm blocking his path. He smirked, “So you’re still able to move.”
“I was trained by the best.”
Borsalino couldn’t stop his lips from twitching. “And here you are, using your skills to help a traitor.”
“‘Punk didn’t do anything wrong!”
“He’s been researching a lot of things that the elders don’t want him to know.” Kizaru took a last drag before dropping his cigarette. “I’ve been ordered to take care of it. Give up now, Sentomaru.”
“You know I won’t. You taught me better than that.” Sentomaru armed himself with his axe.
Kizaru adjusted his sunglasses.
It’s been a week since he was assigned to be a bodyguard for Vegapunk and Borsalino was more than happy to chat with the scientist whenever he was experimenting. Reading was great and all, but talking to someone with a mind like Vegapunk was refreshing. He feels like he was toeing the line separating curiosity and treason and he was certain that he'd be executed akongside Vegapunk if it weren't for the scientist's usefulness.
When he gets bored, he goes to find Sentomaru. Most of the time, it was Sentomaru who found him though.
“I got you!” Sentomaru rushed forward, Borsalino side-stepped him and jumped just before a small knife was thrown his way.
“You shouldn’t play with knives, Sentomaru-kun. You might…get hut.” He chastised, smiling down at the child. “You will never be fast enough to catch me.”
Sentomaru pouted, “Just you wait, I’ll keep training and I’ll catch you!”
“You will never be able to catch me.” Borsalino smirked, “You can’t outmatch light when it comes to speed.” He winked, bursting into light and teleporting all over Sentomaru.
Sentomaru, having never seen Borsalino use his fruit before, was stunned. He tried punching at the light man, but always fell short. While turning, he stumbled, falling to the floor and looking up to see his knife mere inches from his face. He growled, clenching his fists and trying to keep tears of frustration at bay.
Borsalino felt a twinge of guilt for picking on a kid. Flicking the knife so the handle was extended, he called out. “Here.” Sentomaru grabbed the blade, but refused to get up from the floor.
Troublesome. “You’ll accomplish nothing if you keep moping, Sentomaru-kun.”
“I’m not moping!” Sentomaru got up, rubbing his eyes with his arm before glaring at Borsalino.
“Without power, you won’t be able to protect anything or anyone.” Borsalino was happy to see the spark of defiance in Sentomaru’s eyes again.
“You’re the fastest man right?” Borsalino nodded. “Then I’ll keep working until I can follow your movements. After that, I’ll keep working until I can block you. I’ll just keep training until I’m the best bodyguard there ever was!”
“Ooh~, what a scary look in your eyes.” Borsalino smiled. “Let’s see what you have then.”
Sentomaru charged, his axe swinging high and forcing Borsalino to move back.
“You won’t be able to beat me, Sentomaru-kun.” Kizaru shook his head. “It’s better for everyone if you just stand back down.”
Sentomaru’s eyes were filled with fire. “I don’t have to beat you, I just need to block you until they can get away.”
Was this how Zephyr felt, Borsalino wondered. Having his former students attack him with everything they got. Their instructor got the death that he wanted—in battle, surrounded by his students, giving one last lesson. Perhaps the comparison would be closer to Garp’s situation though. Having Kuan, his first disciple, turn traitor to the marines and side with pirates. Almost as an afterthought, Borsalino wonders about Kuzan and his recent adventures. Maybe he can sneak out and get a drink with the new pirate soon.
His thoughts were interrupted as Sentomaru launched a flurry of attacks, his movements slower and sloppier due to fatigue.
Borsalino lit another cigarette. “Let’s get this over with then.”
Kizaru turned into light again, bouncing off every surface he could to confuse Sentomaru before trying to kick the younger man in the face. His foot was blocked by Sentomaru’s fist and he was pushed back. He narrowed his eyes before flashing back to Sentomaru’s blind side and emitting light from his fingers to blind him.
Sentomaru cried out in surprise, his axe passing over light, Borsalino’s body untouched. The admiral then tried to sweep Sentomaru’s feet from under him, but the younger man was able to jump away. They knew each other too well, knew every weakness to exploit and, knew every trick that the other will pull.
“Come on, Sentomaru. If your goal is to have the ultimate defense, you’ll need to be able to match my speed.” Kizaru grinned at the exhausted young man before him. “Have we reached your limit?”
“Shut up, old man!” Sentomaru yelled. It was roughly a year after Borsalino was assigned as Vegapunk’s guard and unofficially assigned as the instructor of Sentomaru. The m arine captain sent a kick toward Sentomaru and the other blocked it with some difficulty. “I’ll give you this, you’re getting better.” He twisted mid-air as he was pushed away, spinning forward and drop-kicking his trainee in the head. “But not enough it seems.”
“Damn you, you used your powers that time!”
“You need to expect what your opponent will do. And no, I did not use my powers that time.”
Kizaru pointed a finger at Sentomaru and fired a laser which the other easily dodged. “You’re not even trying, Ojiki.”
Kizaru remained quiet. He bit his cigarette to stop any words from coming out of his mouth.
“You’re usually the mouthy one between us, what’s wrong with you?” Sentomaru swung his axe again but missed.
“Ha! I finally caught you!” Sentomaru cheered from his position on the floor clutching Borsalino’s ankle. The marine smiled lazily at his excitement.
“Good work. Now, you just need to learn how to stop me.” He turned into light and teleported behind Sentomaru. Instead of the pouting and moping he expected, he saw the boy smiling at him with determination.
“You’re on!”
Borsalino kicked Sentomaru, the other blocking it with his arm. For a few seconds they stayed like that, frozen in time, but eventually Borsalino won out and Sentomaru was sent flying back.
Kizaru lifted a finger and aimed it square at Sentomaru.
“I can’t keep calling you marine and Borsalino-san sounds way too formal. I’m just gonna call you Ojiki from now on!”
The light from his finger dimmed for just one second, a moment of hesitation as the past and oresent melded into one in his mind, the he was sent flying back, Sentomaru’s palm hitting him straight in the chest. He felt his ribs break and blood spouted from his mouth.
He blinked.
“I think I'm getting the hang of it, Ojiki!” Sentomatu smiled, his arms coated with haki.
He was too slow to fully avoid the axe swinging his way. Instead of planting it on his chest, it merely grazed him but still ruined his suit. He heard Sentomaru curse. Th axe wasn’t even black with haki.
“Stop going easy on me, Ojiki! How will I improve if you keep holding back?” Sentomaru groaned. He has grown taller through the years, but the same pout was firmly on his face.
“You’re not at that level yet, Sentomaru-kun.”
Kizaru wiped the blood off his chin, looking down and hiding his eyes with the glare of his glasses. “I have my orders, Sentomaru.” Light burst from his fingers, reflecting off debris to confuse Sentomaru and overwhelm him. As the light dimmed and the smoke cleared, Borsalino took a drag from his cigarette before tossing it aside.
He didn’t hit any organs and Sentomaru wasn’t bleeding out. Even still, he made a call informing officers to arrest the former captain where he was. He inspected Sentomaru’s unconscious face and frowned. Stepping forward, his knees nearly buckled under his weight and he cursed.
The cut on his torso was deeper than he thought and he had a lot more broken bones than he initially assessed. Surely that was the cause of the twinge he feels in the place where his heart should be.
After all, Kizaru was a heartless man who did as he wished and obeyed his orders.
"I don't care if you're an admiral now, you're still Ojiki to me."