Zoro was quite the muscular man.

A swordsman like him needed a well-built body and a strong heart. The constant exertion of his body and brain all eventually paid off in the long run. It started in his youth when he swore to become the greatest swordsman in the world, and it did nothing but escalate from there.

Even before he joined the Straw Hats, he always had a natural burl about him.

His physique made other bounty hunters cower in fear. However, it was his personality that made their blood run cold.

That cold, unshakable determination mixed with harsh unpredictability made him renowned among all swordsmen.

Training was essential for all of the Straw Hats, and that only added to his already impressive build.

At this point, Zoro was used to training by himself — besides the occasional interruptions for food and other crewmembers asking to spar with him.

Perseverance and consistency was what drew him in from the beginning. Your resolution to become as strong as him wasn’t lost on Zoro. It showed in the way you fought — the way you’d smirk when the two of you were face to face — that stupidly smart move you’d learned to catch him off his guard. All of it just made him want to blurt out his feelings right there in the training room.

It impressed him. You impressed him.

He’d even catch himself sometimes as your door, trying to find the words to ask if you wanted to train with him. However, he never could do so, and always just walked away, defeated.

Each day, without fail, you showed up to the crow's nest with the biggest smile on your face, sometimes even earlier than him. That earned him a rough smack on his back as he took amusement out of your excitement.

You, though? You were different.

Zoro agreed to your request for a spar because he thought it was going to be a one-time thing. Just a little training match before you moved on to someone else.

That was, until you started appearin to him daily.

He was training in the Crow's Nest as usual, completely shirtless as he lifted dumbbells heavier than Luffy in one hand and doing pushups with the other.

It was nothing out of the ordinary — if anyone else had seen him, nobody would have batted an eye.

He wanted to become stronger — not just for himself, but all the Straw Hats with it. Zoro strived for it, muttering numbers under his breath with strong resolve behind each word.

You were wandering among the Thousand Sunny, wanting to share with Zoro the platter of Onigiri in your hands that Sanji gave you. It was originally meant for the other members, as he thought Zoro would be too absorbed in his training to care — but after a bit of persuading, Sanji said you could give him one.

What you saw was anticipated, but still never failed to make you flush.

There, you saw Zoro — shirtless — one hand lifting and holding dumbbells that probably weighed more than him, and another weight in his mouth, exercising his jaw muscles.

"Didn’t expect visitors." He said, allowing the dumbbell in his mouth to drop with a loud thud, rolling onto the floor. His workout ministrations slowing to a stop as he stood upright.

He approached you, taking one of the rice balls and taking a bite.

"You didn’t need to come all this way, you know. I wasn’t even that hungry." He huffed out begrudgingly, his arms then folded over his chest.

"But.. thanks."

You could have sworn you saw a smile.

It was small and imperceptible, but it was there.

Zoro took the platter off your hands with a small nod and an acknowledging hum, setting it on the windowsill before going back to his training.

He had expected you to leave, even tease him a bit on your way out.

However, all you did was walk behind him, taking a seat where he could see you in his peripheral vision.

Now was his best chance to impress you.

Then, he shifted positions. The weight that was on the floor suddenly found its way back into his mouth, maneuvering his body upwards as he now used only one arm to support all his weight.

Oh, he was showing off now.

"66..67!" He grunted, louder this time, sweat beading into his forehead.