54: Chapter 54 Rice Balls! A Delicious Treat"Oh.thank.thank you."
The little girl, still shaken and with tears streaming down her face, timidly thanked Luffy.
Coby quickly slid down the ladder the little girl had brought and ran to Luffy's side, anxiously asking, "Mr.Luffy!Are you alright?"
He then looked at the little girl with concern, "Little sister, are you hurt?That guy was so mean!Does anything hurt?"
Inside the training ground, Zoro, bound to a cross, witnessed everything.He stared intently in the direction Helmeppo had gone, his eyes burning with cold fury, and he forced out a few words through clenched teeth:
"You.bastard."
Helmeppo, who had already reached the side door, stopped when he heard Zoro's voice, turned around, and wore an exaggerated, mocking smile:
"Oh my, you're really lucky!You've been tied up for so long, exposed to the wind and sun, and you're still alive?"
Hmph!What if you want to last a whole month?
Well then, you'd better 'try' to survive!Hahaha!He laughed smugly, and once again took his affected gait as he walked out of the training ground.
Zoro stared at the closed side door, as if he could see Helmeppo's repulsive face through the wall.He said in a low, powerful voice, "I.I only have ten days left."
His voice wasn't loud, but it resonated clearly deep within his heart, "I must.become the greatest swordsman in the world.carrying her will."
Outside the wall, Coby was still grumbling indignantly, "They've gone too far!Mr.Luffy!Don't you think so?It's utterly unreasonable!"
He turned around, only to find that only the little girl was left beside him; Luffy, who had just saved her, was nowhere to be seen!
"Mr.Luffy?"
At the same time, Zoro on the cross suddenly felt that part of the light was blocked.
He looked up and saw that the boy wearing a straw hat, with clear eyes and a slightly silly look, had silently appeared in front of him, looking up at him curiously.
".I heard you're a bad guy." Luffy got straight to the point.
"Hmph.So you're still here." Zoro snorted and turned his head away.
"Being tied up here and displayed like this, are you really that strong?" Luffy continued to ask, his tone purely curious, without any provocation.
"Mind your own business." Zoro's tone remained cold and harsh.
Luffy, completely unfazed by Zoro's indifference, took a few steps closer, looked at Zoro who was tightly bound and baking in the sun, patted his stomach, and spoke with a mixture of admiration and bewilderment:
"If it were me.I would have starved to death in three days!How could you have lasted this long?"
Zoro's eyes flickered slightly as he looked at Luffy again, his arrogant gaze revealing an unwavering determination.
"My willpower is different from yours.I will definitely live on and show you."
He paused, then said with unwavering conviction, "Absolutely!"
"What a strange guy."
Looking at the unwavering determination in Zoro's eyes, Luffy grinned, revealing a row of white teeth, and said in a relaxed tone as if discussing the weather, "Well, then let's try our best to survive!"
After Luffy finished speaking, he seemed to think the conversation was over.He casually waved to Zoro and turned to leave.
"…Wait a minute." Zoro's deep voice suddenly stopped him.
"Huh?" Luffy stopped and turned around in confusion.
Zoro's gaze shifted with difficulty to the edge of the training ground, where the rice ball remains, trampled by Helmeppo and scattered on the ground, were covered in sand.
"Could you help me.get that?" His voice had a barely perceptible hoarseness.
Luffy followed Zoro's gaze and immediately frowned: "Eh?That?Do you want to eat it?It's all sand!"
"Shut up!"
Zoro turned his head sharply, staring at Luffy with a piercing gaze, and said in an unquestionable, commanding tone, "Just let me eat it!"
"...All right."
Luffy scratched his head, feeling somewhat puzzled, but still obediently walked over and carefully picked up a few dusty, almost shapeless pieces of rice balls from the ground.
He walked back to the foot of the cross, stood on tiptoe, and laboriously brought the sand-covered rice ball fragments to Zoro's mouth.
Without hesitation, Zoro lowered his head, opened his mouth with difficulty, and swallowed the dirty rice ball fragments along with the sand with great force and large gulps!His actions were filled with an almost tragic stubbornness!
"Hmm.I told you.it's dirty." Luffy muttered under his breath as he watched Zoro swallow sand.
However, Zoro seemed not to hear him.
He swallowed the last bite with difficulty, raised his head, and without a trace of disgust on his face, but rather as if he had completed some sacred mission, his eyes filled with a strange satisfaction and determination, and he said loudly:
"It's delicious.I'm.full!"
Looking at the green-haired man in front of him, who was clearly swallowing a trampled sandy rice ball but was showing an expression as if he were tasting a delicacy, Luffy was stunned at first, and then seemed to understand something.
He couldn't help but cover his straw hat, lower his head, shrug his shoulders slightly, and let out a low, hearty laugh.
"snort..."
Zoro's lips twitched slightly as he watched Luffy's reaction, before he returned to his usual cold and hard expression.
Luffy finished laughing and didn't say anything more.He just gave Zoro a deep look, his eyes no longer filled with the simple curiosity of before, but with a hint of recognition and.expectation.
He turned around, and this time he really left the training ground.
Outside the wall, the little girl waited anxiously.
Seeing Luffy emerge from the side of the base, she immediately ran forward, her blue eyes filled with hope:
"Really.really?What Coby said.Zoro.did he.he really eat it?"
Luffy looked at the little girl, a smile brighter than the sun, and nodded vigorously:
"Yes!I saw it with my own eyes!That guy.ate it all!He said it was delicious!"
"Very good!"
The little girl's face instantly lit up, and tears welled up in her eyes again, but this time they were tears of joy and emotion.
Koby, standing nearby, still looked suspicious.He scratched his head and muttered to himself:
"Zoro.is he really the legendary villain?This.he doesn't seem like it at all."
Upon hearing Koby's words, the little girl immediately raised her head, her face filled with urgency and seriousness, and retorted forcefully:
"No!Zoro isn't a bad guy!"
Her voice choked with sobs, "Because.because that older brother was tied up in our place!"
"In place of you?"
Luffy's smile faded, and his eyes became serious.
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