His Fault | Monster Trio

24

Zoro went silent when seeing a long streak of scratch marks and bruises tracing Luffy's arms, neck, and back.

Apart from the ones he had previously been marked with, the new scratch marks were deeper and scarred his skin far worse this time.

"Why didn't you do anything about this before?"

"Because I couldn't-"

"Yes, you could have." The Swordsman argued out of frustration, being blinded by the rage he felt growing inside of him in the heat of the moment.

"There're five men on this ship, you could've called out to any of 'em, Luffy."

Luffy shook his head in disagreement with his partner, giving him a disheartened gaze.

"Why not?"

"I didn't want them to get involved."

Seeing the bruises disappearing off into the boy's hoodie, Zoro had a feeling that Luffy was keeping something hidden from his view.

"This isn't a matter of being prideful, Luffy! How many times haven't I swallowed my pride in order to not worsen the situation for myself or others?"

The Captain dug his nails into his shorts, clenching his fist tightly.

"I wasn't doing it for my pride! I don't care about pride anymore, to hell with it!!"

"Then be straightforward! Did you fight or not?"

Zoro stood in front of the boy, and Luffy found himself unknowingly scooting further away from him as he realized how close he was to the man's midsection.

"Luffy..." Taking a gamble on the length of the bench he was sitting down on, Luffy moved a few inches more.

"Luffy?" While his first mate got closer to him, the boy was only one scoot away from landing on the ground.

A mist of delphic mental images clouding Luffy's mind had made his eyes grow foggy.

Soon, the fog began to clear off into a vision, unfolding a new scenery for him to be faced with.

~Flashback~

"You won't get away this time, you bastard!! Gum-gum no... Pistol!"

A bone-chilling smile crept upon an unknown man's lips as he watched Luffy's fist miserably fail to reach his face.

Though he was agile and persistent when it came to combat, the Captain's speed surprisingly couldn't compare to his enemy's velocity.

He dodged every single bullet that came his way in the form of a fist or a kick when Luffy was attempting to defeat him.

"Unlike the first time, I won't be needing sea prism to keep you under my control." He teased with confidence.

"Why not!"

The young boy coldly responded, losing his patience in wanting to alter the man's obnoxious grin into a toothless frown.

Challenging what little amount of patience Luffy had when staring into the eyes of such a shameless sea criminal, the pervert dug into his pocket.

"Why? Because I believe words are more violent, sometimes. And... Well, so are photos."

Luffy felt numb to the touch when the man pulled out a clear image of a person he knew well enough to see from a mile away.

"Sabo..."

"I love siblings, don't you?" The man eerily spoke, infuriating the younger.

"HOW DID YOU-" Attempting to reach the image, Luffy tripped over when the Evil Cook moved the photo away from his face.

"No?" If you don't... I could get rid of him for you. Is that what you want?"

Using the image as bait, he was able to lure Luffy in without even trying.

"Liar! Sabo wouldn't be defeated by someone like you. He's stronger than me!"

Seeing how visibly weakened the boy ended up when hitting him where it hurt the most, the Cook was delighted.

"That's what you thought about your own self, and now look at you."

The man turned around and started recreating the position Luffy was forced into while he raped him the first time.

This ruthless action of his was what finally set off the younger man.

"GEAR-"

"Go on and try it. If you do as much as touch me, I'll make sure you never see your brother again."

The steam emitting from Luffy's body dispersed into thin air when he was trapped by the older man's words, each time he mentioned his brother in any of his sentences.

"Don't underestimate Sabo! He'd kick your ass and toss you into a pit of fire or an ocean!!"

Luffy bravely stated, agitated by how lighthearted the predator spoke of his brother as if he knew him personally.

"Oh, but it is he who will be swimming with the fishes soon... Oh right, he doesn't know how to swim anymore!" The man glided his hand across one of the fish tanks as Luffy gulped.

"Don't screw around with me anymore. GEAR FOURTH!"

In a matter of seconds, the young man switched to one of his many special gears, hoping to get his revenge on the dangerous man...

But to his dismay, he stopped moving completely when he heard a familiar voice from afar.

"Luffy!? Luffy, where are you?" His eyes widened.

"SABO...!?"

Luffy immediately rushed towards a camera that was being broadcasted towards him, but the clip vanished when his enemy put the small camera away.

"Sabo! Sabo!! Give him back!" He punched the older man's chest continuously as if he were knocking against a door.

"If you want him to find you, unharmed, then I know just how to make that happen."

"How? Tell me!!"

Hypnotized by the man's proposal in seeing his precious brother again, the Captain slowly began to subconsciously submit to someone else's orders.

Meanwhile, submerged meters beneath the Sunny, rose a small submarine with a group of pirates and a small black fox that was being held in between someone's arms.

"HA! HA! HA! That poor kid will never know that this was a recording the whole time!" A group of barbaric suited men cackled.

"Joining forces with your Captain wasn't as bad as I thought it would be." A hidden voice spoke.

"It surprised us big time when you accepted his invitation."

"We had a lot in common, to say the least. One thing being our aspiration to seek revenge..."

A mysterious Marine soldier with a spoon in his hand divulged, intriguing those around him.

"And the other to fool the Marines."

~~~