The crescent moon illuminated the Bezan Black, which had been anchored near the Gecko Islands for almost a week.
"Captain Jango! It's morning already... Time to wake up!"
A Black Cat pirate member stood outside the captain's quarters, pounding his fist against the wooden door. Seconds passed with no response. He tried again with the same result.
"What's going on?" asked another crew member who had emerged onto the deck.
He looked back. "Captain Jango won't wake up."
"It's midnight... anyway, have you tried opening the door?"
"What?! How could I enter the Captain's room without permission?"
"Captain's a carefree guy. Go ahead and open it. I'll take full responsibility."
"Really?"
"Sure thing."
He faced the door and opened it. When he looked back for reassurance, he found the other pirate had disappeared.
Too late now. He peered inside the room, only to discover that Captain Jango was nowhere to be seen.
☠ ☠ ☠
Mihawk lugged the unconscious Jango over his shoulder as he stepped off the Armament Haki-coated piece of wood he'd used to sail to their ship and onto the shore. Zora could be seen resting to his left in the distance near the skiff.
Adjusting his grip on the bound pirate, he headed over. His approach didn't go unnoticed.
"Where'd you run off to after leering at my body while I washed? Don't think I'll let you get away with it," Zora said as she got to her feet, then spotted the man he was carrying. "Huh, who is that?"
Mihawk placed Jango, who was bound in rope, onto the ground and turned his gaze to Zora. She'd put on the clothes he'd gotten for her – a pair of black dress pants and a plain white shirt, clothing left behind by Merry that Kaya had been kind enough to give him.
"Captain Jango. One of the pirates planning to raid this island at dawn."
"Huh, and how do you know that? Nevermind, if they're not attacking until dawn, then that means there's still plenty of time..."
Zora unsheathed Wado Ichimonji and brought its hilt to her mouth, biting down, followed by the unsheathing of her other two katanas.
"Impatient, are we?"
"Shut up. It's a new day, which means I get to challenge you again. Are you going to fight me for real or just strike me in the back with your sheath again like a shameless coward?"
Zora wasn't waiting for a response and charged.
Meanwhile, Mihawk returned the Nameless Cloak to its tattoo state and removed the Kogatana from his neck. The memory of a certain duel at the Baratie inspired his next words.
"Frog in the well... learn just how big the world is."
"Oni..." Her speed increased as she closed the several-meter gap in a flash. "...Giri!"
Mihawk could see it clear as the sky overhead – the weak point of the three-way simultaneous slash, and just how slow her movements were.
With a casual extension of his arm, the tip of the Kogatana brought her attack to a standstill.
"Wh-What?!"
Mihawk watched Zora's body tremble while she stared at the point where her three swords had halted. Shock and disbelief clouded her features.
The slightest application of pressure sent her flying backward. A sharp, frustrated cry tore from her lips as her back struck the sand, the collision snapping her out of her daze.
She leapt to her feet, face contorting with rage. With a guttural roar that echoed across the waterfront, she charged again, abandoning any specific technique and instead attempting to overwhelm him through overwhelming force.
Even then, her three-sword assault remained predictable to his eyes. She unleashed her wrath without restraint, her heavy-handed attacks growing more frenzied by the second. He countered the relentless barrage with graceful precision, the small Kogatana flowing like water in his grip.
Metal clashed against metal, sending bright orange sparks cascading through the air. A horizontal slash from her right hand met his effortless deflection. Two simultaneous strikes from above were redirected with a casual parry.
The advance continued without pause. Diagonal cuts crossed and recrossed while he read every trajectory before her muscles completed their motion. Overhead chops alternated with sweeping cuts.
What she likely perceived as ferocious swordplay was to him nothing more than a series of telegraphed movements, each one effortlessly undone.
"Dammit!" Zora shouted as she continued to slash at him. They danced across the sandy terrain, her strikes growing more frantic. "This can't be! How can someone like you be the world's strongest—"
Her words were cut off when he sent her flying backward once more. This time she landed on her bottom, yet she rose again with ragged breath.
"Why? Why won't you use your blade on me? You had an opportunity. Is it because I'm a woman?"
"No."
"Then why?"
"Why would I bring harm to a companion?" he asked while placing the Kogatana back around his neck.
"You... I don't get it. Why are you like this? Has your title smothered your killer instinct? Your ambition? Your drive to cut down anyone who challenges you?"
Mihawk considered her words and troubled countenance before responding. "My ambition is to live a peaceful life one day."
"Peace?" Her voice rose. "And when is this 'one day' supposed to come?"
"After the World Government is no more. Governments will rob a person of their peace at the worst possible moment."
"So you'll destroy them? Your title has screwed with your head."
Zora sheathed her three katanas, each blade sliding home with more force than necessary.
"Of all the swordsmen, why did you have to be the st—"
"What happened?! Did we win?"
The Nameless Cloak materialized around Mihawk as Jango stirred awake nearby.
"Wait a minute..." Jango mumbled. "This isn't right! Did I... did I hypnotize myself into getting tied up? Oh, not again!"
Mihawk's gaze shifted to the confused hypnotist, then back to Zora. "Here's what will happen at first light."