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“You have a scar on your elbow! That’s a weird place to have one.” Luffy’s face draws closer to Zoro’s arm, scrutinizing every bit of the tanned surface. “And another here – I’ve never noticed this one before! Zoro has a lot of scars!”
Zoro is accustomed to Luffy’s antics by now, so he isn’t bothered as Luffy examines him while he rests his eyes lying on the grassy deck of the Sunny. He doesn’t open his eye even when Luffy lifts his arm, running a hand up and down his bicep.
“Where did your elbow scar come from?” Luffy presses, rubbing his thumb over the slightly raised skin. All that’s left is a pink line in the beginning stages of turning pale.
“Hell if I know,” Zoro grunts in response.
“What about this one?” Luffy pokes what looks like a small burn scar on the side of Zoro’s shoulder. Zoro opens his eye, lazily looking over at his captain.
“I don’t remember where I got any of my scars.” He pauses, then glances down at his bare chest. “Most of my scars,” he corrects gruffly, though he feels no negative emotions toward the scar Mihawk gave him years ago.
“Not even this one?” Luffy places a hand over Zoro’s scarred eye, head curiously tilting to the side. Zoro appreciated that no one in the crew had pestered him about his eye scar; it wasn’t something he particularly cared to talk about. But there wasn’t any nosiness present in Luffy’s question, just curiosity. Zoro lightly grabs Luffy’s wrist and brings the male’s hand away from his face.
“It’s not important,” He hums, a small smile forming as he watches Luffy narrow his eyes. His brows furrow, and for a few scary moments, he’s completely silent. Zoro is about to reach the point of concern for Luffy when he finally speaks.
“I wanna know about the permanent parts of you.”
Zoro blinks, slightly taken aback by the determination in his voice.
“Because everything about Zoro is important to me,” Luffy continues. “Zoro doesn’t have to tell me, but if he doesn’t, I’m going to make something up!” There’s a warning in his voice, but Zoro finds he isn’t able to take it seriously. He lifts an eyebrow, straining his muscles briefly as he sits up.
“Oh? Well, what do you think happened then?” He prods, amused by the turn in the conversation. He watched the afternoon sun reappear from behind a cloud, turning Luffy’s face golden in the light.
Luffy nods to himself, becoming very serious. “It was obviously given to you by a dragon.”
Zoro lets out a breath of amusement. “A dragon?”
“Yeah. But not a normal dragon – it must’ve been a really strong one… like the king of dragons! The one from Robin’s book! You know, with the big horns and the fangs that can bite through a mountain!”
Zoro frowns. “You read one of Robin’s books?”
“What? No, she left it open on the table in the kitchen.” Luffy frowns back at him. “That’s not the point! Zoro’s scar came from a badass, super-strong beast! Because Zoro is strong and cool!” Luffy waves his arms around nonsensically, attempting and failing to get a point across. Zoro affectionately tugs his hat down over his face, pleased at the noise of protest that Luffy makes from the action.
“That’s a good story,” Zoro appeases his captain. Luffy pulls his hat back onto his head, but his bangs have become messy. Zoro absently smooths them out.
Luffy is unsatisfied with the response. He pulls away from Zoro’s hand, tapping a foot and looking away. “No, something’s still missing.”
Zoro is about to reply, but Luffy cuts him off.
“Hey, Nami!” Luffy calls, jumping up and running over to her. He springs over the railing onto the higher part of the deck, where Robin is lounging with Chopper, and Nami is in the process of watering her tangerine trees. Luffy spots Robin and Chopper. “And Robin and Chopper too,” he adds, coming to a stop in front of them.
“What is it Luffy?” Nami’s tone isn’t rude, but it is distracted. She doesn’t look up from her task.
“This is important!” Luffy declares. Robin looks up from the book she had been reading with Chopper. Nami straightens up and turns around.
“Okay… You’ve got our attention,” Nami says cautiously.
“Zoro’s eye scar – how do you think he got it?”
Robin chuckles quietly.
“His eye scar?” Chopper asks, moving to sit on the edge of the lawn chair he was on with Robin. “Why don’t you just ask him yourself?”
“I did, but he wouldn’t tell me. I told him it was a dragon. The one from your green book, Robin! It has to be something cool like that,” Luffy reasoned.
“The King Dragon hasn’t been seen in centuries,” Robin comments neutrally. “Perhaps our swordsman is strong enough to warrant its reappearance?”
“I don’t think that scar was given by a claw,” Chopper adds, unconsciously puffing out his chest in a way he always did when he was showing off the knowledge that he had. “It’s too clean and straight and not wide enough to be from a big dragon’s claw.”
Zoro listened to the conversation, not wanting to get involved but also feeling it was necessary to be with them in case the discussion went south. He stands up and wanders up the stairs to where they sat around chatting. They barely acknowledge his presence as he leans against the railing next to Luffy.
“Well what do you think happened then?” Luffy presses, frowning since his idea was shot down so quickly.
Chopper glances at Zoro, looking a little nervous as he replies. “I think it’s a blade injury.”
Nami sighs. “It was probably just a training accident-“
“What was a training accident?” Usopp asks as he and Franky appear from the kitchen, followed a moment later by Sanji carrying a plate with three drinks.
“Zoro is too strong and cool to get something like that by accident!” Luffy argues. Chopper stands up on the chair, nodding in agreement.
“Yeah! A super strong enemy must’ve given it to him!”
“Zoro’s scar?” Franky asks, moving to stand in a place that blocks the encroaching sun from hitting Robin’s face. She gives him a smile of appreciation for the gesture. “No doubt about that. It must’ve come from a super swordsman!”
“Well, Mihawk gave Zoro a scar in the past. Maybe this one is from him as well?” Usopp ponders aloud. He notices Zoro’s quiet presence for the first time, startling briefly.
“Just ask the shitty mosshead yourselves if you all want to know so bad.” Sanji sounds bored, but his face lights up as he offers the drinks to Robin and Chopper, and then to Nami.
“Zoro is stronger than Mihawk now!” Luffy protests, though his opinion wasn’t based on any sort of logical reasoning other than his utter faith in Zoro.
“I seriously doubt that,” Usopp counters, though he quickly begins backpedaling. “Uh, I mean, not that you’re weak, Zoro, it’s just that Mihawk is crazy strong! I don’t think any of us could beat him in a fight, not even me!”
Zoro gives a vague shrug in response. They weren’t all that far off from the truth – not that he would admit it. His scar had been given to him by a powerful swordsman.
“No! It can’t be Mihawk! Zoro already has a scar from him. It’s gotta be a different story!” Luffy spins around to face Zoro. “It’s not from Mihawk, right?” He interrogates.
Zoro smiles smugly at him. “Could be.”
“What are you even talking about, Luffy?” Nami asks, her exasperation laced with faint traces of fondness.
“Who’s strong enough other than Mihawk to give Zoro-bro such a wicked scar?” Franky muses aloud.
“Zor-oooo…” Luffy whines, turning to face him with a pout. He reaches over with stretchy arms to latch onto Zoro’s cheeks, pulling them to extend his face. “Just tell me!”
Zoro bats Luffy’s hands away from his face, to which Luffy responds by jumping on Zoro and crawling over his body like a tree. Zoro puts up a fight for show, but there’s no real intent behind his hands to actually pull Luffy off of him.
Luffy wraps his arms and legs around Zoro’s chest. With his own scarred chest pressed to Zoro’s unmarred back, Luffy rests his chin on Zoro’s shoulder, his expression displeased. Zoro relaxes, letting Luffy have his way and pretending not to notice the eyerolls from their crewmates. He was a sap, and all of them knew it.
Robin watched the pair unblinkingly, scrutinizing the way Luffy squished his face against the side of Zoro’s head. She tilts her head slightly as a thought crosses her mind. Perhaps it was merely a coincidence that it was Zoro’s left eye that had been afflicted, just as Luffy sported a scar just underneath his own left eye.
She knew the lengths of Zoro’s loyalty far too well, being privy to his secret actions on Thriller Bark. She also knew the extent of her own guilt, which stemmed from two years ago, upon finding out about Ace’s death and Luffy’s failure to save his brother.
Out of every crewmate, she imagined Zoro had taken it the hardest.
If Mihawk truly hadn’t left this mark, Robin could only think of one other swordsman who was strong enough to do so.
She smiled softly, her expression sad.
“Who is strong enough, indeed?” She murmured, watching as Luffy affectionately tugged on Zoro’s ear. She was fairly certain she knew the answer.