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Zoro, the King of Hell, sat on his throne and in front of him was Luffy, a soul still trapped in death.
“I want to stay with you, Zoro,” Luffy said with a grin.
“I won’t send you here.” Zoro couldn’t condemn him to Hell even if he wanted to, and he didn’t. He would never forgive himself if he took away Luffy’s freedom by locking him in Hell forever.
“Even if it’s an order from the captain?” Luffy tried his luck.
“You’re not my captain anymore.” Zoro felt like bugs were crawling on his skin as he said those words. Luffy would always be his captain. “If you want to stay here, become the freest of all beings.” It was the last thing Zoro said to Luffy before he decreed his verdict. Reincarnation.
“Hey, Zoro,” Luffy greeted him sheepishly.
They met again, Luffy told his stories from when he was alive, and in the end Zoro made him reincarnate.
Being truly free took time, but time was all Zoro had.
“I am free, Zoro. The freest of all.” Standing in front of the King of Hell was the Sun God Nika.
“Finally!” Zoro was relieved, he was finally free from judging Luffy. “What do you want to do?”
“I want to kiss you.”
“What’s stopping you?”
“Nothing.”
Luffy threw himself at Zoro, who slightly moved his back away from the support to accommodate him even more, and wrapped his entire torso around him, covering Zoro's arms with his own arms and legs.
While his entire face was covered in kisses, Zoro laughed and smiled, trying to hide a certain feeling that did not go unnoticed by Luffy.
“Why are you sad, Zoro?”
If there was no point in hiding it, Zoro would be completely honest. “I’m sad because you’re free and I’m happy because you’re free. You’re free to be in both Heaven and Hell. You’re free to walk on Earth. You’re free to be with me and you’re free to leave me.”
“Do you think I’m going to abandon you?” Luffy asked, feeling indignant.
“Nothing stops you.”
“And nothing stops me from freeing you.”
“Freeing the King of Hell from Hell?” Zoro raised an eyebrow.
“Yes! And then we can go wherever we want,” Luffy declared with a grin.
Zoro laughed with all his being and genuinely, like he hadn’t done in a long time. How could he forget? This was his captain.