---On the Shore, Zoro and Luffy---
The Straw Hats were locked in fierce combat with Dalmatian. Zoro danced around the battlefield, blades clashing with Dalmatian's fists.
"I've been in the East Blue for about a week now. I've heard your name mentioned quite a lot, Roronoa." Dalmatian chuckled driving his right fist against Zoro's crossed swords.
"Stop yapping." Zoro growled. He pushed forward, locking Dalmatian's fist in its position. Dalmatian scrunched his brows questioningly until—
"Gum-Gum Stamp!" From high in the air, Luffy shouted. He brought his feet together and launched a drop-kick that stretched down upon Dalmatian's head. Dalmatian forced his fist forward, effortlessly launching Zoro back a few meters. He then seamlessly leaned back, causing Luffy's feet to narrowly miss him.
Dalmatian appeared calm, but on the inside he was slightly alarmed. 'Out of the range of my haki?' He looked up at Luffy, who's feet were beginning to retract, but Dalmatian grabbed one of his legs. 'Was it on purpose or just a coincidence...'
Due to Dalmatian's interference, Luffy was being brought back down to his captured leg. Once Luffy was close enough, Dalmatian slammed him into the sand.
The sand clouded the air due to Luffy's impact, though it didn't bother Dalmatian one bit. His haki notified him of Luffy's position. So when Luffy repositioned himself for a counter attack, Dalmatian obviously knew. "Gum-Gum Gatling!" Luffy shouted as he released a barrage of punches.
'Iron Body.' Dalmatian spoke in his mind. He stood unyielding as Luffy's punches bounced off him. 'Seeing as he's perfectly fine after being slammed like that...blunt damage resistance?' Dalmatian questioned. He cocked his fist back and brought it down with great force.
*TING!*
But he didn't hear the sound he was expecting, instead it was like a clash between two metal objects. When he looked down, he saw a solid green dome separating his fist from Luffy.
Dalmatian wordlessly tossed Luffy aside as he turned to Orion. "I'm surprised that you're still able to walk, I even used haki." He spat his words as he scowled.
Orion smirked as he still clutched his aching chest. "Yeah, well. My grandpa hits harder than that~" He mocked.
Dalmatian's jaw clenched as the veins in his face bulged. He then disappeared from his position on the beach. Orion's spores screamed at the danger, but it was too late, Dalmatian's fist was already a centimeter away from his chin. Orion braced himself for the pain....wait a second. Braced himself? There shouldn't have been any time to do something like that. Noting how strange it was, he opened his eyes. A pair of chopsticks were in between his jaw and Dalmatian's fist.
A tired sigh echoed from the side of Orion. "You really shouldn't bully kids like that." Standing next to him was old man Soma. The old man flicked his rist, effortlessly launching Dalmatian's fist backward. He then leaned in forward and plunged his chopsticks into the side of Dalmatian's neck, knocking him out instantly.
"Jihihihi! You kids really like to play it dangerous, don't you~" The old man laughed. In not even a few minutes, Soma had ended their battle.....
The Straw Hats were now back together,, sailing the sea in the comfort of their own ship. The three of them...plus Soma sat around a rectangular table in the middle of the cabin.
"Yeah...I didn't expect marines to show up on the first island in our path. Especially one as strong as him." Orion sighed. Luffy waved off Orion's evident concern and stood.
"Forget about that! It's time for us to go to the Grand Line!" He shouted and spread his arms out high. Zoro was pulled from his own thoughts when Luffy shouted and joined the conversation. "Did you forget our main problem?" He sighed. "We still don't have a chart of the Grand Line."
Luffy stiffened in realization. He brought his arms down and rubbed his chin. ".....Oh."
"Well, actually...." Orion spoke up and walked to the crate he sat in the corner. He rummaged through it, and pulled out a tattered and worn book. "I picked one up not too long ago." Hearing Orion's words, Luffy shot up once more. "Alright then. The four of us are going to the Gra—!"
"We're not." Soma interrupted flatly.
"We're going to the Baratie. Did you already forget?" Soma turned to Luffy, who once again stiffened and slowly turned away.
Orion rubbed his head exasperatedly. "Well, our destination has been decided. We're going to the Baratie."
"... .What's the 'Baratie' anyway?" Orion questioned. Luffy nodded, it seems that he was wondering the same thing.
Soma's eyebrows raised at their question. "The Baratie? Jihihihi! It's a sea restaurant. The best food in the East Blue can be found there." As Soma spoke, Luffy's and Orion's reactions differed. Orion simply nodded, while Luffy's eyes sparkled at the mention of 'restaurant' and 'best food in the East Blue'. All the while, Zoro was lost in his own thoughts.
Zoro's mind flashed back to his encounter the old man he had met. 'Disconnect' echoed in his mind. The more he thought about it, the more astonished he was by the old man's attack.
Cutting a tree in half wasn't anything special for a decent swordsman, but doing so to every tree in the next few meters around you wasn't as easy to do. Still, he thought back on how the old man managed to do it.
'His aura changed the moment he drew his sword...' Zoro rubbed his chin. 'How would I achieve something similar.' As he analyzed his memories for answers, he finally noticed something. The old man wasn't looking at Zoro when he attacked...or at least he didn't seem to be looking at Zoro. 'It was more like he was looking past...no, through me.' Zoro wondered. 'Like some form of 'Total Concentration'.' His eyes widened in realization. He needed to feel that feeling as well...
To Be Continued....
(How many times did I say Zoro in the last four paragraphs....felt like a lot.)