Morgan glared at the soldiers Zoro had blocked, his voice dripping with venom. "What are you all gawking at? Crush them already!" The soldiers flinched in terror.
"Duck, Zoro! Rubber! Whip!" Zoro ducked as Luffy's rubbery leg swept through the air, scattering the Marines behind him. Morgan stared in disbelief.
As Luffy retracted his leg, a small box slipped from his pocket and landed unnoticed on the ground.
"Just what exactly are you..." Zoro asked, eyeing Luffy's unnaturally stretchy body.
"I ate the Rubber Fruit!" Luffy declared, kicking his leg out with a grin.
"So you're a Devil Fruit user after all! The Great Sea Treasure... You bunch of losers! I don't need incompetent subordinates!"
Luffy charged at Morgan, his fist slamming into the captain's axe.
"You nameless scum don't even have the right to oppose me! I am Marine Captain Axe-Hand Morgan! Die!" Morgan ripped off his cloak and swung his massive axe into the ground. The shockwave sent the box flying, snapping its ropes. The lid popped open, and a white snake slithered out.
Luffy froze, then stiffly turned to stare at the snake on the ground, cold sweat pouring down his face. "Oh crap!" He spun around, forgetting all about Morgan, grabbed Zoro by the scruff of his neck, and bolted for the wall, leaping onto it.
Zoro, choking, rolled his eyes back. "Luffy! What the hell are you doing? Why are we running away?"
Luffy hid behind Zoro. "I forgot about Orochimaru! We locked him in that box for so long—he's gonna be pissed! Let him take it out on Morgan first." He figured if Orochimaru beat up Morgan, he'd be too tired to come after him.
"Orochimaru? What's that?" Zoro asked, bewildered.
Luffy pointed to the shattered box in the clearing, where a small white snake was stirring to life. "That's him! That's Orochimaru, my Vice-Captain! He's a Devil Fruit user too. An angry Orochimaru is terrifying!"
Meanwhile, inside the box, Orochimaru had initially been awake but groggy from being in the wooden barrel. A sudden, deafening crash shook the box violently, making him even dizzier. When he woke again and pushed against the lid, it wouldn't budge. Assuming Luffy was still trapped with him in the barrel, he went back to sleep, figuring Luffy would wake him when it was safe.
The next thing I knew, I tumbled out of the box with a *thud* and went rolling across the ground like a loose barrel.
Seeing Axe-Hand Morgan standing before me, it all clicked. Either I'd completely forgotten, or I'd conveniently forgotten. Either way...
"Excellent. Just excellent."
Orochimaru raised his upper body, gradually transforming into a colossal python over 20 meters long. He slammed his tail down with tremendous force, kicking up a cloud of dust. After several repeated strikes, he lifted his tail and glared at the unrecognizable Morgan below before turning toward the two figures perched on the wall. With a fluid motion, he slithered toward them.
Zoro watched as the colossal serpent shrank, its upper body now human and its lower half a massive snake's tail. The sullen figure swam toward him, and Zoro instinctively tightened his grip on his katana.
Orochimaru's voice, raspy as always, cut through the air: "Luffy... care to explain yourself?"
"Shishishi..." Luffy scratched his head, then bowed deeply at a ninety-degree angle. "My bad! I completely forgot!"
Orochimaru punched Luffy skyward. "You did that on purpose! What's with the rope around the box?! Do you think I'm blind?!"
After a relentless barrage of punches that left Luffy battered and bruised, Orochimaru held him aloft by the scruff of his neck. "Sorry! I won't do it again!" Luffy blurted out, then pointed at Zoro to distract him. "Hey, I found a new crewmate! Though he's not a musician."
Orochimaru's veins bulged with fury. 'There won't be a next time,' he thought. Taking a deep breath, he reverted to his human form, straightened his clothes, and stopped ten paces away from Zoro.
"Greetings, Roronoa Zoro. I've heard of you. Our inept captain has likely been causing you trouble, I presume? May I ask, have you joined our pirate crew?"
Zoro stared, taken aback by the man's sudden shift in demeanor, then nodded slowly.
"Then we're comrades now?" Orochimaru asked with a smile.
"Uh-huh," Zoro nodded, puzzled.
"Comrades should be able to speak frankly with each other, right?"
Zoro nodded again, even more confused.
"In that case, please forgive my rudeness. Earth Release: Earth Flow Wall!" Orochimaru's low, gravelly voice echoed as three massive walls of earth erupted behind and beside Zoro, completely encircling him. The walls blocked everyone else's view.
Immediately after, Orochimaru swiftly wove hand seals, murmuring, "Water Release! Surging Wave!" A torrent of clear water erupted from his hands, slamming into Zoro, who was trapped in the center of the enclosure. The powerful current ripped apart Zoro's tattered clothes, activating the mosaic censor. Still stunned, Zoro was thoroughly washed clean.
"Wind Release! Ultra-Weakened Kamaitachi!"
Orochimaru produced a small folding fan from seemingly nowhere and waved it, creating a warm breeze that dried the water droplets clinging to Zoro's skin. Wind-whipped and still bewildered, Zoro had never seen such a technique before.
As Zoro stood there dazed, Orochimaru suddenly appeared before him, pressing a hand against Zoro's abdomen. A mysterious green energy flowed into Zoro's body, bringing a comforting warmth. The pain in his stomach vanished, replaced only by a dull hunger.
After completing his examination and restoring some of Zoro's damaged functions, Orochimaru withdrew his hand and casually patted Zoro's abdominal muscles. "Physical functions restored. You're in excellent condition."
With a flourish, Orochimaru conjured a neatly folded set of clothes from thin air—a complete set from innerwear to outer garments, including brand-new shoes—and placed them in Zoro's hands.
"Please get changed. Sorry, you were a bit smelly earlier, with a rather indescribable odor. My apologies," Orochimaru said with a smirk. Zoro, still reeling from Orochimaru's earlier display of power, instantly flushed crimson. One thought dominated his mind: *I'm going to kill that smirking snake.* Remembering his current state, he quickly turned away to change, his hand trembling violently on the sword hilt.
Luffy patted Zoro's shoulder sympathetically. "Give up. You can't beat him. Orochimaru used to do the same thing to me when I was little." He didn't mention the humiliating part about being dangled and shaken like a rag doll. Luffy considered himself quite hygienic these days, even using other people's clothes to wipe his nose. Sister Makino used to call it "clean freak tendencies"—being unable to stand messy people. But even Luffy thought Orochimaru's antics were undeniably filthy.
That's why Luffy was used to Orochimaru's post-rampage changing routine. Even Grandpa couldn't escape it. Orochimaru would whine sweetly until Grandpa gave in, and Grandpa, fully aware of the act, couldn't resist his spotless grandson's sugary cries of "Grandpa!" Still, Luffy always suspected Grandpa had been plotting to "teach Orochimaru a lesson" for ages, just waiting for the right excuse.
To be continued...