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Chapter 2: The Pirate Hunter's Small Boat
1,277 Words
A few minutes passed.
"Shoot the tree with a bow and arrow?"
"How could you even think of that? If you're that strong, you could have just pushed the tree down. Wouldn't that be simpler?"
"What a stupid woman."
Zoro sat casually on the trunk of a tree, which now sported a large hole, scrutinizing the strangely dressed woman ten meters away.
Ganyu smiled nonchalantly, her own eyes scanning Zoro as if he were some rare treasure.
It wasn't surprising. A character from an anime was right in front of her. If she had her phone, she would have definitely run up and asked for a picture.
As for his "stupid woman" remark, she wasn't angry at all.
It had been less than an hour since she had transitioned from "he" to "she," and her mental gender identity had not yet shifted.
Since she didn't yet think of herself as a woman, the insult held no power over her.
"You..."
Zoro was slightly surprised that the expected flash of anger never came.
This woman has a pretty good temper?
He paused for a moment and then asked, "You want to leave the island?"
Ganyu nodded. "Yes, I want to find a group of people. I thought it would be difficult, but it seems quite easy now."
"Are the people you're looking for in the East Blue?"
"Mhm."
"Which island?"
Ganyu shook her head. "I don't know."
"Do you know where they are?"
"I have no idea."
"How could you possibly find them if you don't have any clues at all?!" Zoro was speechless. He felt it was becoming difficult to communicate with this woman.
Seeing that Zoro was about to get angry, Ganyu suppressed her desire to tease him. "Although the East Blue is very large, isn't there only one main route to that path?"
"The people you're looking for are going to the Grand Line?!" Zoro was shocked. He never expected that a woman he had met by chance would have such ambitions.
But then he thought back to the arrow that had carried frost earlier, and the subtle sense of threat emanating from her delicate body.
This woman seems quite capable.
Moreover, she's suspected to be a Devil Fruit user, so it's reasonable for someone like that to want to go to the Grand Line. So, who is she looking for?
Zoro narrowed his eyes and asked, "Are the people you're looking for pirates?"
Ganyu gently shook her head, stroking her chin. "Uh... they shouldn't be... yet."
Not yet, which means... Zoro came to the conclusion that this was a group of pirates who had not yet set sail, and the woman in front of him was one of the members handpicked by their captain.
He never imagined that Ganyu hadn't even joined the crew yet.
In his view, with this woman's strength and beauty, no pirate crew in the world would refuse her.
Zoro said casually, "Pirate? That identity doesn't really suit me."
Ganyu agreed. "It's not just that they don't match. Pirates and pirate hunters should be mortal enemies who fight to the death the moment they meet."
Zoro's pupils contracted slightly, a fleeting look of surprise crossing his face. "You know who I am?"
Ganyu's lips curled into a faint smile. "The famous pirate hunter, Roronoa Zoro. Who in the East Blue doesn't know you?"
Zoro suddenly stood up and strode away without looking back.
His silhouette cast a long shadow on the ground. It wasn't until he had walked several meters away that his deep voice drifted on the wind.
"My boat's on the other side of the island."
Ganyu asked with a look of surprise, having sensed his implied meaning. "Are you inviting me?"
"So verbose!"
Zoro paused, turned half his face to the side, and his sharp gaze swept over Ganyu from head to toe. Suddenly, he flashed a wild and untamed smile.
"Let me make this clear first. I'm not a good person. If you follow me, I might just kill you at any time if I don't like you."
On the other side of the island, a small boat, about five or six meters long, was moored on the beach.
"Get on the boat! What are you waiting for?"
Zoro had already leaped onto the bow, gripping an oar in one hand, and looked impatiently at Ganyu, who was still standing on the shore.
"You're going to sail in this boat?" Ganyu asked uncertainly as she lifted her high heels and stepped onto the small vessel.
The boat's appearance was truly disappointing. It looked more like a small raft than a proper boat.
It was even worse than the small boat Luffy stole from Alvida in the original story. Not only was it more dilapidated, but it was also narrower.
Fortunately, the interior was relatively clean, so she, who was a bit of a germaphobe, wasn't completely repulsed.
"How big of a ship did you expect it to be?"
Zoro casually tossed her an oar, then retrieved the anchor, which was just a rope tied to a reef. With a powerful push against the shore, the small boat slowly drifted away from the bank.
"Since you know my name, you should know that I have no companions. One person can't steer a large ship."
...Having said that, Ganyu had no way to complain about the ship anymore.
However, she still felt it was absurd to sail the vast ocean in such a tiny vessel.
Are we really not in any danger?
Such a small boat could be capsized by a single wave, not to mention that the oceans of this world are extremely dangerous, with sea monsters tens or even hundreds of meters long lurking in the water.
And there was one more crucial question.
Ganyu pursed her lips. She glanced at Zoro, who was rowing hard in front of her, and asked hesitantly:
"So... how do we handle personal hygiene?"
"Huh? What did you say?" Zoro looked up blankly, not having heard clearly.
"I said, how are we supposed to go to the toilet?" A blush crept across Ganyu's pretty face. She finally, and rarely, made use of this body's feminine charms.
Unfortunately, the man in front of her was the most clueless about romance.
"Does that even need asking? Just face the ocean directly..."
Zoro looked at her with an expression of utter disbelief, but as he spoke, he suddenly realized something was amiss and his voice gradually trailed off.
Yeah. This is a woman.
He had previously either gone to sea alone or traveled on other people's cargo ships. He had never gone to sea alone with anyone before.
So he never even considered that aspect.
Looking back now, he suddenly regretted letting this woman onto the ship.
Or should I just throw her overboard now?
"Are you thinking of throwing me back onto the island?"
Zoro's body stiffened abruptly as he sensed a dangerous gaze fixed upon him.
How could this woman know what I was thinking?
D**n it, are all women this perceptive?
Before he could even make a move, he was exposed, putting the renowned pirate hunter in an awkward position.
His lips twitched. He was somewhat afraid to meet that gaze and turned his head away.
"What nonsense are you spouting, you stupid woman? If I wanted to throw you overboard, I wouldn't have let you on the ship in the first place!"
"Oh. That's a relief."