Chapter 52 - New friends? -50
"seaweed..?"
Zoro clenched his teeth and held his breath as he did his utmost to catch up with the sinking Perospero. Once he grabbed the man's arm, he began ascending toward the surface.
The sea around him was filled with pirates skilled in swimming, trying to save themselves. Others, who couldn't swim, had drowned, and their bodies drifted down to the seabed.
After much effort, Zoro managed to drag Perospero to the surface.
Several pirates had already reached the surface and were helping their comrades climb onto floating pieces of wood.
One of them shouted:
"Lord Perospero! Has anyone seen him?!"
"Search for him! Dive down and look! Lord Perospero can't swim—we have to find him!"
Zoro heard their shouting and immediately responded as he lifted the unconscious Perospero:
"Over here! Is there a doctor? He swallowed seawater and needs immediate aid!"
The pirates cheered when they heard his voice. Instantly, a few of them grabbed onto a piece of wood and pulled both men over.
One of the pirate leaders, clearly of some rank, ordered some of the medics among them to tend to Perospero, while directing the others to continue rescuing those still in the water. Then he turned toward Zoro—who had taken off his soaked shirt—and bowed:
"Thank you, young man. If not for you, Lord Perospero would've been in grave danger."
Zoro wrung out his sleeves and didn't pay much attention to the gratitude. Instead, he commented with some curiosity:
"You're pirates, aren't you? Strange that your leader can't swim."
The young commander replied:
"Yes, we're pirates... but Lord Perospero has a special ability."
He then paused, realizing that the man in front of him was from the East Blue, where most people didn't know much about "special abilities."
As he was pondering how to explain, Zoro suddenly nodded, his eyes fixed on Perospero in surprise as the latter began to cough up seawater.
"So, he's a Devil Fruit user? No wonder he's so wild... just like my captain."
The commander responded in surprise:
"What? Your captain is also...?"
"Yeah, he's a rubber man. He can stretch his body. His power might seem silly, but it's full of surprises."
"A rubber man? Hard to imagine... but my lord's ability is strange too. He has the Lick-Lick Fruit. He can create candy with it."
Zoro laughed:
"The Lick-Lick Fruit? Is that why his tongue's so long? Why not call it the Candy-Candy Fruit then?"
"Who knows? That's just what it says in the Devil Fruit Encyclopedia."
...
While Perospero was slowly regaining consciousness, Zoro and the young commander exchanged a lively conversation.
But as things were getting more interesting, another pirate's voice called out:
"Raf! Come quickly! We found someone unbelievable!"
Raf, the commander, frowned and replied:
"What is it, Drew? I'm busy with medical aid. If it's not important, handle it yourself."
Drew responded, his tone hesitant:
"I can't handle this alone. You need to see it."
Raf sighed and turned to Zoro:
"My brother tends to exaggerate... but I think this time, it's real."
"Take your time. I'm good," Zoro replied with a smile.
Raf dove toward the source of the voice, while Zoro muttered to himself:
"Raf... Drew? Aren't those the names of the islands where One Piece is said to be buried? You were born to be pirates, huh."
Then he sighed:
"Finally found someone to take me to a sea restaurant, then a tsunami sinks the ship, and the old man falls unconscious... how am I supposed to explain this to Luffy?"
...
As for Raf, once he reached the spot Drew had pointed to, he was just about to scold him—until he saw who was behind him and froze.
A scorched body. Deep wounds. A face far too familiar.
Raf gasped, fingers trembling:
"Hawkeye?! Impossible! Why is he here?! And injured like this?!"
Drew nodded and replied simply:
"I was pulling someone out of the sea, thought it was my brother... but when I brought him up, it turned out to be Hawkeye himself!"
"What do we do? Should we kill him now... or save him?"
Drew was met with a slap to the head as Raf shouted:
"Kill him?! Are you insane?! We're Big Mom Pirates—we know exactly who Hawkeye is!"
"He's close to Red-Haired Shanks. If he dies and the news spreads, Red Hair will find out! Are you ready to face one of the Emperors of the New World?!"
----------------------------------------------------
"I had some personal matters yesterday and today, so I couldn't upload the rest of the Chapters."