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The battle on Onigashima was raging all around them. Zoro had taken on a powerful opponent and was now lying injured, his body covered in deep gashes and his bones broken in multiple places. After catching both Law and Zoro falling from above, the surgeon immediately ran away, not letting Sanji say a word.
"Wait! Explain the situation before you go!" Sanji called out
"Zoro-ya probably had 20-30 broken bones", Law spoke "Splint up his body, put him on his back, make sure he's conscious and breathing!"
"Why don't you look after him then?" Sanji said again, a bit frustration and anger grew in his voice.
"I have to stop Big Mom, you can at least tend to his wounds, right? I'll leave it to you Black leg-ya."
"I'm no doctor, and I don't have the time to tend to his wounds!" Sanji spoke, but realizing Law had ran far away, he had no choice but carrying the swordsman to another room where he found a bunch of dressing and started to bandage Zoro up.
"Do you even know how to apply a bandage, stupid cook?" Zoro finally regain his consciousness.
"It's probably the same as trussing a ham" Sanji answered thoughtlesly
"Am I a ham to you?" Zoro asked, his eyes were still closed
Sanji's brow furrowed with worry as he continued tending to Zoro's injuries. "You're not even that appetizing, idiot, don't try to act tough. These are serious wounds, I'm bringing you to Chopper right away."
As Sanji carefully wrapped bandages around Zoro's broken ribs, Zoro accidentally let slip what he was thinking. "If you kissed me, I bet I'd heal up in no time..."
Zoro's face immediately flushed bright red as he realized he had said that out loud. "I-I mean, uh, forget that! It's nothing, just ignore me."
Sanji paused, his hands still on Zoro's body, and stared at him in surprise. After a long moment, a faint blush crept across Sanji's cheeks. Slowly, he leaned in and placed a soft, light kiss on Zoro's lips. It was over in an instant, but it sent tingles through both of their bodies.
Sanji pulled back, his eyes downcast. "There. Now stay still shitty swordsman, I'm carrying you to Chopper." Without another word, he hurried off to the little reindeer and Dr. Miyagi 's place, then continue assisting the other Straw Hats in the battle.
Zoro was left staring at the man whose shoulders he was on top of, his fingers touching his lips in disbelief and his eyes opened wide. His wounds still ached, but the pain had dulled somewhat, as if Sanji's kiss had already begun the healing process.
The raid on Onigashima had finally ended, and the Straw Hats were preparing to depart the island. Sanji had been avoiding Zoro ever since that fateful night when he had kissed him. Whenever their paths crossed, Sanji would quickly make an excuse and hurry away, unable to meet Zoro's gaze.
As Sanji was loading the last of the provisions into the ship's pantry, Zoro suddenly appeared behind him. "Oi, cook. Why have you been avoiding me?"
Sanji stiffened, his heart pounding. "I don't know what you're talking about," he lied, keeping his back turned.
"Don't give me that crap. You've been going out of your way to stay away from me ever since that night on Onigashima," Zoro pressed.
Sanji took a deep breath, trying to steady his nerves. "Look, Marimo...what happened that night, we both know that it was just a momentary lapse in judgment. Our relationship should stay at the level of crewmates, or maybe rivals, nothing more. Especially now, when my focus is on helping Luffy become the Pirate King. So let's just forget it ever happened, okay?"
He tried to move past Zoro, but the swordsman reached out and caught him by the wrist. "Shitty cook, Luffy doesn't care about that kind of thing. He just wants us all to be happy and follow our dreams. If what you want is for me, then—"
"You don't understand, moss head" Sanji cut him off, "It's true that I wanted to be loved, I know Luffy and the crew loves me, and I love you all too but I wanted to be romantically loved."
Pulling his wrist free, Sanji stated again "Look, I can't afford to be distracted right now. Luffy's dream is the most important thing." With that, he hurried away, leaving Zoro standing there frustrated and confused.
But Zoro wasn't about to let Sanji avoid him any longer. He waited until the cook was alone again, this time in the ship's galley, and approached him from behind.
Sanji tensed as he felt Zoro's presence. "I thought I made myself clear, stupid marimo. There's nothing more between us. Also how much did you drink earlier?" Sanji continued as he smelled an awfully strong odour of alcoholic drinks surrounding Zoro.
Ignoring Sanji's words, Zoro stepped closer, closing the distance between them. He reached out and gently turned Sanji to face him. "That's not what I want to hear, dumbass cook."
"I'll love you," Zoro suddenly spoke up. Still, "I loved you, curly brows, romantically, and I don't even fucking know when, since I first saw you at that Baratie restaurant, since I saw you again after 2 years on Sabaody, since our kiss last night" he repeated.
"W-Why are you being so cheesy all of a sudden? What's with all the 'love' you're saying? You never used those words before." Sanji was flustered, no one has ever confessed to him like this before, or maybe Zoro was too drunk that he acted like a completely different person, his voice were so airy, so pleasant, so ethereal.
Sanji hates to admit it, that kiss was no mistake at all, he himself had fallen for the swordsman and even he couldn't tell when, but for the sake of the crew, he just bottled up all the feelings and butterflies that he felt whenever he see the green-haired man. Yet now there he was, standing just a few inches from the cook.
Before Sanji could protest further, Zoro pulled him into a deep, passionate kiss. Sanji's eyes widened in surprise, his body stiffening at first. But then, as Zoro's tongue explored the familiar flavors of his mouth, Sanji felt himself melting into the kiss. All his reservations and protests faded away, and he found himself returning the embrace, his own arms wrapping around Zoro's muscular frame.
When they finally broke apart, both men were breathless, their cheeks flushed. Sanji stared up at Zoro, his expression torn between desire and guilt.
"You...you can't just do that, you stupid swordsman," Sanji murmured, his voice wavering slightly. "What if the others see?"
Zoro reached up to cup Sanji's face, his calloused thumb tracing the cook's lips. "I don't care what they think. If you want to be loved, dartboard brows, you always have me."
Sanji closed his eyes, leaning into Zoro's touch. "You idiot, don't you dare get yourself hurt like that again, I can't stand seeing you so beaten up."
Zoro chuckled softly. "So does that mean we're a thing now?"
Sanji opened his eyes and stared up at Zoro, a faint blush still coloring his cheeks. "I...I guess so, you shitty swordsman." He reached up and lightly punched Zoro's shoulder. "But don't go doing anything reckless, you hear me?"
Zoro grinned and pulled Sanji close, pressing a gentle kiss to his forehead. "I'll try my best. For you."
As the Straw Hats prepared to set sail from Wano Kuni, Luffy noticed that Sanji and Zoro seemed unusually close. The two men were standing side by side, their shoulders brushing, and there was an undeniable tension in the air between them.
Curious, Luffy sidled up to them. "Oiii, Sanji, Zoro, is everything okay?"
Sanji immediately jumped away from Zoro, his face flushing bright red. "W-What? Of course everything's fine, Luffy! Why wouldn't it be?"
Zoro just rolled his eyes and gave Luffy a nonchalant shrug. "It's nothing, captain. Don't worry about it."
Luffy eyed them suspiciously, but decided not to pry any further. As long as his crew was happy and healthy, that's all that mattered to him.
Nearby, Nami and Usopp had been watching the exchange with keen interest.
"Did you see that?" Nami whispered to Usopp. "Sanji and Zoro were practically standing on top of each other. And did you see the way Sanji reacted when Luffy asked about it?"
Usopp nodded, his eyes wide. "Yeah, I definitely saw that. You don't think they're...you know, together, do you?"
Nami grinned mischievously. "Well, we'll just have to keep an eye on them, won't we?" She elbowed Usopp playfully. "Maybe we'll finally get some juicy gossip out of this crew."
Usopp chuckled nervously. "I don't know, Nami. You know how those two can get. I don't think I want to be on the receiving end of their wrath if we pry too much."
Having overheard the conversation, Franky laughed heartily. "Ah, young love! I knew those two had something going on between them. It's so super!"
Standing nearby him is Robin, the archeologist smiled knowingly. "Hmm, it seems our little crew is growing even closer, don't you think?"
It seems like everyone in the crew had been aware of Sanji and Zoro's relationship, except for Chopper, who had been oblivious to the whole exchange, suddenly perked up. "Oh! Did someone get hurt? I should go check on them!"
The rest of the Straw Hats chuckled and shook their heads fondly at their innocent little doctor. As the ship set sail, the air was filled with the familiar sounds of their lively crew, and Zoro and Sanji stood together, their hands brushing ever so slightly, a silent promise passing between them.