In the scorching heat of the sun, Akiko strains against the bonds that secure her legs and hands, a bead of sweat gliding down her tanned face. Zoro, adjacent to her, sprawls his legs in front, leaning against the pole to which he was tied and the night had slipped away, leaving the harsh sunlight glaring down upon the captive duo.

"Beautiful morning, isn't it? A bit hot for my taste, though," the blonde marine declares, smug with confidence, entering the sandy courtyard with two other marines trailing behind him and standing in front of the duo, "The Great Demon and The Mysterious Shadow! More like two misbehaving puppies tied up in the backyard. What do you say, puppies? Do you want to do a trick for me? Sit up and beg."

Akiko's eyes shoot towards the blonde as Zoro feigns a lunge, prompting the marine to jump back startles. He unsheathes Zoro's sword and points it towards him.

"Put it down!" Zoro threatens the man at the sight of the sword, Akiko glaring at him.

"Ooh. What's so special about this old thing? Hmm?" Helmeppo taunts, waving the sword around. Akiko's eyes focused not on the blade but on one of her kama's, discreetly tucked into the marine's belt. Her nostrils flare in frustration.

"Enjoy these seven days, 'cause when we get down from here, you'll be the one begging."

"When you get down? You think my father's going to let you go?" the son of the captain scoffs, "You are going to die in this yard. No shadow powers will save you. No sword skills will free you."

Helmeppo storms off as Akiko's head whips to Zoro, "You idiot. I told you we should've taken up the bounty elsewhere."

His jaw tightens, "Akiko, don't even start. Just focus on trying to get out of here."

"If you can't tell, Zoro. My feet are tied up, and my hands are too. Can't really do much here," she deadpans, her voice monotone.

One of the most frustrating things about Akiko's powers is that she has to walk into the shadows. She can't seem to find out how to bring them towards her. Well, not yet, anyway. Just maybe if her feet were free, she could step into the shadow from the pole, but for the right angle of the shadow, for her to do, it would be a few hours. Instead, the girl puts her head down, closes her eyes, and tries not to let the familiar scene overwhelm her.

A distant noise from a nearby grate shatters the tense silence, jolting Akiko's eyes open. The captives exchange a glance, looking towards the source of the sound.

Monkey D. Luffy emerges from the hole in the ground, standing in the middle of the courtyard, looking around until his eyes fall onto Akiko and Zoro.

"Oh, hey. You're the two from the bar," Luffy exclaims, a grin on his face.

Zoro rolls his eyes as Akiko begins examining the boy before her. He is still wearing the same straw hat he had on the bar, causing the girl to be able to recognize him quickly.

"Get lost," Zoro states, going to close his eyes again.

"I am lost," Luffy responds, looking around the courtyard with a confused expression, "I'm trying to get inside the base. Hey, I saw the way you two fought. How did they even arrest you guys?"

"They didn't," the annoyed boy chides, wanting to be left alone, "I gave myself up."

"Interesting choice," the pirate looks to the small girl who just seems to be staring at him, "I'm sure you two had your reasons- is there something on my face?"

Akiko and Zoro ignore the boy's last inquiry, "You don't know anything about us."

"I know that you protected that little girl from those Marines last night," Akiko's eyes don't leave Luffy as he approaches the two, "You are good people."

Akiko cocks her head at the boy's response, trying to understand the motives behind his odd behavior. She couldn't tell if he should be perceived as a threat or even worried about.

"I'm Roronoa Zoro, the pirate hunter. She's The Shadow." Zoro spits out, lifting his head.

"Well, I'm Monkey D. Luffy, and I will be the King of the Pirates. And I think the two of you should join my crew," he states, no uncertainty in his voice, leaning more forward.

Zoro lets out a laugh, looking to his companion, whose eyebrows are furrowed in confusion. His attention turns back, "What makes you think we'd wanna play pirates with you?"

"You're a great fighter. Her almost better. I'd say that together, we'd make a pretty good team."

"I kill your kind for a living. Pirate... hunter."

"You keep saying that, but is that all you are? And I didn't even get your name?" Luffy turns towards the girl who's stayed quiet, "Is your name Shadow? Because if so that'd be really cool! And I know you can talk. I saw you talk at the bar."

Akiko leans back, finally tearing her eyes from the pirate's face to glance at Zoro, "Akiko."

The girl doesn't offer anything more, which doesn't seem to bother him as he grins wider, "Is that all you want? To be a pirate hunter? To be known by just a nickname?"

Zoro looks away from the two, "I made a promise to someone a long time ago... to become the world's greatest swordsman."

"Impressive," Luffy responds with a smile, "What about you, Akiko?"

Looking down at her tied feet, she says, "I want... to be more than just what my parents made me to be."

Her friend scans her face as she refuses to make eye contact, his eyebrow's furrowing at the response, surprised at her openness with the stranger. The ropes around his arm begin to loosen, and he looks to see Luffy beginning to untie him.

"You can untie us, but I'm still not gonna join your crew."

"Okay," the boy responds, not seeming to be bothered.

"I mean it. I don't owe you anything," Zoro reiterates as Luffy moves to his other arm.

"I just think it's a waste of time for you to be hanging out here when there's something you want out there," he moves on, untying Akiko's wrists. She quickly begins untying her legs, muttering a quick thanks, "Good luck on the sword thing. And showing your parents you're an amazing person."

He moves to the grate, "Hey, can you close this behind me?"

Luffy disappears through the hole, leaving Zoro to rush to Akiko's side.

"That was odd," Akiko whispers as Zoro helps her untie her feet from the wooden post. A chuckle escapes his lips. His calloused hands lightly hold her arm as he examines her wrist to see if the rope left any marks. As soon he is satisfied with his search, he steps away from her and looks around.

"We need to find that asshole and get our weapons back."

The two split up, Akiko disappearing into the shadows to search the rooms on the right while Zoro burst into rooms on the left. The girl enters each room through the shadows cast under each doorway. She has no luck after searching several rooms until she hears alarms blaring throughout the base. Akiko rushes towards Zoro's end of the hall to see him emerge from a room, weapons in hand.

"You found them?" she questions, taking her satchel, kamas, and several knives from his hands.

"They were with the brat. Let's get out of here," he shortly responds as Akiko begins putting her weapons in their respective places.

"Did you kill him?" the raven-haired girl inquires, pulling the hood above her head and following the boy down the hall.

"No, I did something much worse."

The two enter the courtyard to see two figures fighting the marines. Zoro grabs Akiko's hand and runs towards the exit, trying to ignore the scene taking place. The girl stops abruptly, tugging his hand to prevent his escape. She looks over to the tangerine-haired girl getting kicked to the ground and marines wrapping their arms around Luffy, trapping him. Akiko stares at Zoro, giving his large hand a squeeze. He sighs, looking down at their hands intertwined, and squeezes it back. That's all it took for Akiko and Zoro to enter the fight.

Akiko leaps over the tangerine-haired girl and slashes the back of the marine with her two kamas in one hand, causing him to fall to the ground. The girl on the ground looks up in surprise and accepts the hand offered to help her off the floor. The two girls walk up to Zoro and Luffy.

"Aren't you that drunk from the bar?" Nami questions Zoro.

"Glad I made an impression," he responds. Akiko stands to the left of him, switching one of her kamas to her right hand, holding them in front of her as Captain Morgan approaches.

"The imposter, the pirate hunter, the spy, and the prisoner. Fancy that. The four of you working together," Morgan observes, standing before them.

"Yeah. We're a crew!" Luffy exclaims, stepping a foot forward.

"Nope. Not a crew," Zoro responds as Akiko looks at the optimistic boy in slight amusement.

"Not. Together." Nami states.

"No enemy has ever escaped my wrath. I alone defeated the Black Cat Pirates. I alone captured Kuro of the Thousand Plans. And I alone keep Shells Town safe from the scum of the East Blue," Morgan dramatically states, taking off his vest and throwing it on the floor before raising his axe.

Zuro and Luffy advance on Morgan while Nami and Akiko fight off the marines.

The first marine launches a powerful strike, aiming to catch Akiko off guard. She sidesteps with effortless grace, the blade of her kama deflecting the attack. In a fluid motion, Akiko retaliates with a series of lightning-fast slashes, sending the marine stumbling backward. Akiko disarms the next marine with a swift twist of her kama, sending the sword flying into the sand. She spins gracefully, meeting the next assailant with a powerful kick that sends him sprawling.

The marines surround Akiko. They attempt to overwhelm her with a barrage of strikes. Akiko, however, moves with a fluid grace, effortlessly weaving between attacks and delivering swift counterattacks. Her kamas moving like extensions of her own body, striking with lethal accuracy.

Akiko vaults over the head of one marine, landing behind him and swiftly incapacitating him with a powerful kick. In a final, decisive move, Akiko incapacitates the last marine, leaving him sprawled in the scorching sand.

She turns around to see Luffy land the final kick, sending Morgan flying across the courtyard. His arms shoot up in victory, laughing happily.

Zoro, his black bandana on his head, observes Akiko, examining her body for any injuries that might have resulted from the fight. The girl does the same, not noticing any and nodding to herself in relief. She approaches Zoro as he begins sheathing his swords.

"Gum Gum Whip?" Zoro questions, glancing at his friend again to ensure she was unharmed.

"Yeah! All the great fighters call out their finishing moves," Luffy exclaims.

"No, they don't," Zoro mutters.

"Hate to break up this beautiful moment, but we need to get this safe out of here. Maybe if we find a rope or something," Nami steps up to the safe lying in the middle of the courtyard. Akiko raises her eyebrows at the sight, not knowing exactly what went down before she joined the fight.

Zoro easily picks up the safe and hauls it on his shoulder, exiting the courtyard.

"Or we can do that."

The four race to the dock, where Nami quickly jumps onto her ship and begins to ready it for sail. Zoro drops the safe onto the boat, causing her to look over and hiss. "Careful with that."

"Whatever you say. Oh wait, I don't work for you," Zoro retorts.

Akiko climbs onto the ship, surveying the area.

"I'm sensing a little bit of tension amongst the crew," Luffy observes, staying on the dock.

"Not a crew," erupts from Nami and Zoro's mouth as they continue to ready for the ship to depart.

"I can't leave without my friend."

"Can't wait. The marines will be here," Zoro states.

"The marines are here already. You're under arrest," Helmeppo states, coming around the corner and facing the four with a gun in each hand.

Akiko's eyes dart to the man's new haircut and a large smile appears on her face.

"What's wrong with his hair?" Luffy questions, giggling and pointing at the marine.

"Yeah, I might've done that," the pirate hunter says, smiling. He looks back at Akiko, and his smile widens as he spots hers.

The marine fires a warning shot toward the group, "I won't let you make a joke of me. I'm taking you in and handing you over to my father. I'll be the hero. I might even get a medal or something."

A punch lands across the blonde's face, sending him to the ground.

"Koby?" Luffy exclaims, running to his friend and putting an arm around his shoulder, "No time to explain, but we gotta go. This whole island is trying to kill us."

Koby stops at the dock, not boarding the boat. Akiko stops pulling the rope before her to watch the interaction taking place.

"I'm not coming with you. Before we met, every choice was made for me. But now I'm gonna do what I want to do," Koby states, causing the girl's eyes to soften, "I'm gonna be a marine. I want to help people that can't help themselves. Next time we meet, we may be enemies."

"But for now... we're friends."

SARA SPEAKS⋆ ★⋆ ★⋆ ★⋆ ★

Hey guys! Second chapter is done, and all of the first episode is done as well. I hope you guys like the little moments between Zoro and Akiko because even though they're small, they truly show how much they care for each other.

Both are very closed off and the amount of affection showed in the beginning will be minimal, but it will improve I swear!

Feel free to comment and vote, I hate asking but it goes to show that people actually like my story that I am writing and it encourages me. I am also writing for mainly my pure enjoyment, but it does help. Anyways, love you all and thanks for reading.