I'll Be There

by Cooking_ninja

Summary:

The rebirth of my One Piece: Strong World Movie AU that I had originally posted on FF.net 6 years ago.

"What if Luffy wasn't able to save Sanji from Shiki during their first battle?"

No romance, just Nakamaship.

Notes:

Sanji will be slightly OOC since I’m trying to have less of the (what I find annoying) constant flirting and fawning over women. I know it’s a big part of his character, so it will still be there; just dulled quite a bit. I always like the more serious moments like in Water 7. I’ve also changed some of the dialogue that I get from the movie. What is said essentially remains the same, just re-worded at times. So without further delay, here is the beginning of I’ll Be There rebooted.

**Some quick notes:
-When a text is bold and italicized “like this”, it is when a character is talking but not physically present (like talking on a phone or recording.
-When a text is not bold, but is italicized, “Like this”, it is a flashback. I also center aligned these particular parts to make it easier to spot, because they sometimes appear rather suddenly.

Chapter 1: Hopeless

“You make quite a good team.  I must say, you’re pretty good for making me use my hand.” The Golden Lion smirked at the blonde pirate he currently held at his mercy.

 

“But now that I’ve used my hand, don’t expect me to hold back.” Sanji’s eyes widened as the grip on his foot tightened, emphasizing the threat even more as Shiki slowly began to raise his hand.

 

He distantly heard cries of concern from his crew members below, but found himself unable to move as time around him seemed to slow.

 

“Sanji!” Chopper cried as Zoro began to unsheathe his swords, but stopped once he noticed their captain preparing to fling himself at the two air born pirates. 

 

“Gum Gum…” No one seemed to register the slight tilt of Shiki’s head as he prepared for the incoming attack.

 

“Rocket!” The old pirate turned his head to the side with a smirk, and before Luffy could register what happened, he was crashing into the ground.

 

“Luffy!” Sanji shouted as the moment was enough to snap him out of his daze. He brought his free foot back, taking advantage of the Pirates momentary distraction, but a sudden sharp pain in his side brought that action to a screeching halt as he gasped.

 

“Dammit!” someone exclaimed from below them. 

 

“Let’s start with you.” Shiki says gleefully, shifting his foot from where it was buried in the cook’s side.

 

“Sanji-kun!”

 

“Stay back, Nami! Three sword style… 108 pound phoenix!” and to the crews relief, this seemed to catch the pirate off guard for him to finally release Sanji’s foot.

 

Using the only other opening available he kicked against the man’s chest, propelling himself off the sword and falling back to the ground; briefly landing on his feet before collapsing onto his knees and clutching at the wound on his side, clenching his eyes shut in pain. 

 

“Sanji!” Chopper cried as he rushed to his side, Nami right behind him.

 

“Sanji-kun!  Are you okay?”

 

“I’m fine, Nami-san, don’t worry about me.” He meant to smile at her, but it turned out as more of a grimace as Chopper inspected the injury. The navigator lightly smacked him on the head.

 

“Liar.” She said fondly. They looked up at the sound of laughter.  Shiki was still floating in the air in front of them, watching the scene with a kind of sick amusement; blood dripping from one of his bladed legs.

 

“Jeeehahahaha!  To think you’re able to fight on equal ground with me… it’s such a pain.  I’ll just get rid of you all at once.” With an almost graceful flick of his wrist, the ground began to tremble as it began to pull the crew towards the center of the field they had been fighting in. Chopper let out a surprised squeak as he was torn away from Sanji and Nami and tumbled into the center with everyone else. 

 

“Chopper!  Guys?! What’s happening?” Nami exclaimed, catching Sanji as he bit back a curse trying and failing to stand up. “What are you doing? You’re going to hurt yourself more!” she scolded as he tried getting up a second time.

 

“I can’t just sit here…” he said, trying not to let his frustration show as the wound on his side flared up with his movements.

 

“I think you’ll find that you don’t have a choice.” Shiki gloated as the ground came up to entrap the cook’s legs.

 

“What the hell?” he growled in frustration, trying to pull them free when another piece of earth shot out of the ground and hit him directly where the sword had been, knocking the air out of him.  The earth released his legs, and he collapsed in a heap; wheezing as he tried to protect the injury from enduring any further harm. 

 

“Sanji-kun!”

 

“Oh, Baby-chan~” Shiki almost sings.  Only then does Nami realize how quiet it had gotten.  Looking up, she felt the blood drain from her face at the sight.

 

“Everyone…” Zoro, Usopp, Chopper, and Luffy were all trapped and unconscious in a giant, twisted tower of stone. 

 

“You see, them… they don’t even deserve to be killed.  But this one…” she looked over in horror as Shiki held Sanji up by the neck, a smug look on his face as the cook weakly glared at him.

 

“No!  Leave him alone, I’ll go with you!” she cried, trying to figure out how the pirate got ahold of him without her noticing.

 

“You know what I think, Baby~chan?” the pirate said as his eyes darkened and he smiled.

 

“Stop it!” the navigator begged.

 

“There’s always something you want to request from your nakama.” He moved in a blur, the sound of metal ripping through flesh, a gasp, and a heart wrenching cry.

 

“Sanji-kun!”

 

 

~0o0~

 

Smoke drifted up into the sky as what was left of the village burned; a tall, twisted tower illuminated by an ominous light.  The sound of a motor broke the eerie silence that had descended upon the space in the night as Franky, Brooke, and Robin searched for their nakama. 

 

“What’s this thing?” Franky asked, pulling the Mantis bike in front of the tower.

 

“Oh my… what a bone chilling sight.” Brooke said worriedly as the three of them gazed up at the pale faces of their friends.

 

~0o0~

 

“So it was Shiki that attacked the East Blue after all.” Robin mused as they all sat in solemn silence, Chopper attending to their wounds. 

 

“Nami must have gone with him to save us.”  Usopp said quietly.  Everyone remained in a heavy silence, until the Shipwright spoke up.

 

“Hey… where’s Curly Cook?” Everyone seemed startled by the question, as they began to look around only to notice that the cook was nowhere to be seen.

 

“He was pretty badly injured.  Do you think Shiki might have taken him?” Chopper asked worriedly as Zoro stood and began to walk around the area. 

 

“I suppose it’s possible.  He could have been taken to ensure Miss Navigators cooperation once on board his ship.  And aside from protecting us, another big motivator of her leaving would have been to protect her home in the East Blue.” Robin crossed her arms in thought.

 

“Oh… how horrible of me…” everyone turned at the new voice.  A teary eyed Xiao stood next to her mother, who carried her grandmother.

 

“You are from the East Blue aren’t you?  I said I wished Shiki would leave for the East Blue in front of her, who could say such terrible things?” she said, voice heavy with guilt.  Luffy had been oddly quiet through the whole thing until he approached the three villagers. 

 

“I agreed!  I wanted him to leave so bad, I didn’t even care what he was going to do…” Xiao cried, clutching something in her hands. 

 

“You deserve to be free though, don’t you?” the three looked up at the rubber man as he spoke. He smiled at them, a huge grin that stretched across his face. 

 

“I’ve never seen people as kind as you.” Xiao sniffed and offered him a small smile in return.

 

“Hey… is that a Dial you have there?” Usopp inquired, pointing to the thing in the little girl’s hands. 

 

“Oh, this?  I found it lying on the ground.” She held it out to Luffy, who gently took it from her hands.  The crew, minus Zoro who was looking at something on the ground nearby, gathered around their captain as he pushed the button.  Nami’s tearful voice greeted them.

 

“I’m… oh gods…” There was a pause, and sounds of sniffing; Luffy tightened his grip on the dial.

 

“That’s Nami’s voice!” Chopper said.

 

“She sounds so upset…” Brooke commented worriedly.

 

They waited for the voice to continue, as there were more sounds of distress as she tried to compose herself.  Zoro had moved from where he had been staring at the ground and began walking, as if following something. 

 

“P-please forgive me… for being unable to say farewell to you all directly.” The voice began, more composed, but with great struggle.

 

“I’ve decided to join Shiki’s crew as their navigator.  Shiki is a legendary pirate whom Luffy and you guys can’t oppose.”  Luffy shoved the dial into Usopps hands before he turned abruptly and walked away from the group.  Usopp flailed with the item for a moment before holding it out so everyone could hear the rest.  There was a loud crash as Luffy unleashed his frustration on a pair of boulders. Zoro stopped walking, blinking at the ground before looking up.

 

“Oi…” he almost whispered, eyes going wide.

 

“You…” There was a sob. “You will only be wasting your life if you come after me.” Another crash and a yell as another boulder was destroyed.

 

“Oi.” A bit louder this time, as the swordsman almost stumbled forward before kneeling down on the ground.

 

“I’m so sorry… I couldn’t stop him…” the voice whispered.

 

“Stop him from what?” Franky asked to no one in particular.

 

“That’s why I’ll say thi-“

 

“CHOPPER!” everyone was startled by Zoro’s sudden shout.

 

“Chopper get over here, now!” the reindeer flailed from where he had been perched over Usopp’s shoulder before jumping to the ground and running towards the swordsman.

 

“Are you okay?! What’s wro-“ the doctor went silent as the strong scent of blood hit his senses, and stumbled a bit at the suddenness of it, but continued on until he got close enough to see what had their swordsman so un-characteristically panicked.  

 

Once he got close enough to see the source of Zoro’s panic, he almost seemed to vanish from where he was and reappear in front of the first mate. 

 

“He’s not breathing.” He said simply.

 

The air around them seemed to go cold as a shocked silence descended upon the group, his words heard by them all as they approached the scene. Robin put her hands over her mouth as she stopped walking and took a step back. 

 

“Oh… that… that must be what…” Franky said, stopping by Robin’s side and putting a hand on her shoulder.

 

“Oi oi…What’s with all this blood?” Usopp whispered, shaking slightly. 

 

“Chopper-san… is he…?” Brooke approached, but still stayed a respectful distance away from where the doctor was working. 

 

“Sanji?” no one moved as the captain appeared right next to the reindeer, his hat hiding his eyes, fists clenched at his sides.  There was no response from the prone body on the ground. 

 

“His heartbeat is there… it’s really faint though.  We need to get him breathing again.  Robin, will you come help me?” the archaeologist shook herself and took a breath before approaching and kneeling down next to the doctor. 

 

“Was he not breathing when you found him?” Chopper asked.

 

“Yea…” Zoro responded, staring at the motionless and pale face of his rival as Chopper and Robin began to work on resuscitating him, thoughts drifting.

 

~0o0~

 

The swordsman had gone to inspect the last place he remembered seeing the cook once everyone realized he was missing.  Usually, he didn’t find himself too worried whenever the man went missing or seemed hurt since he could take care of himself and, though he would never admit it out loud, he was incredibly strong.  But considering the circumstances that led to the moment he couldn’t help the worry that creeped into him when he saw the dark stains of blood on the ground.  There shouldn’t have been as much as there was, even with the injury he had sustained.  So when he noticed drops of It leading away from the spot, he followed it.  People always gave him a hard time for getting lost in the most ridiculous situations, but as he followed the trail, an unusual feeling crept over him and he doubted that he’d be able to get lost in that moment.

 

As the stains grew bigger and less scattered, he had eventually hit a small puddle that had not absorbed fully into the ground yet and a sense of dread filled him as his gaze followed it to its source.  Which is how he found the Straw Hat’s cook lying in a large puddle of his own blood as it slowly continued to ooze out of the gaping wound that slashed across his chest.

 

Sanji had dark circles under his eyes that added to the already horrid image of death.  There was dried blood smeared across his face, the sides of his mouth, and streaks of it that ran down his chin.  While Zoro had been around blood and death plenty of times, seeing one of his nakama in such a state caused him to have a sense of panic that was very foreign to him.  So after he discovered the man wasn’t even breathing, he did the only thing he could think of at the time; he called for their doctor.

 

~0o0~

 

The swordsman was drawn out of his thoughts by a soft wheezing sound, shortly followed by a sudden, sharp inhale that was then cut short by a harsh, wet cough.  This went on for a few moments, Robin supporting his head as he fought to regain some kind of normal breathing pattern.

 

“Alright… good.  That’s good, Sanji. You’re doing great.” Chopper said gently as he pulled some supplies out of his medical bag.

 

“Let’s put some pressure on this wound to slow the bleeding.  I didn’t bring enough supplies to perform the kind of surgery he’s going to need, so all I can do for now is try and make him stable enough to move to the ship.” Arms sprouted around the cook as they put pressure on the various wounds. 

 

“He’s starting to feel a bit warm.” Robin commented as she dabbed at a gash on the cook’s forehead. Chopper nodded and picked up his wrist to check his pulse.

 

“His pulse is still pretty weak.  I’ll need to operate as soon as possible.  Did anyone find Sunny?” the reindeer asked without looking away from his patient. 

 

“Oh, yea.  It’s over by the mountains over there.” Luffy pointed beyond the ruins of the village into the distance. 

 

“That’s pretty far, though.  Maybe an hour or so away.  Would he be able to make it?” Usopp asked.  The doctor remained silent as he considered their options.

 

“We don’t have many other options, so we’re gonna have to try.  Franky, can you make some kind of stretcher that we could use?”

 

“You got it Dr. Chopper.” Franky saluted.

 

“I’ll help you get supplies.” Usopp offered as he ran off with the cyborg.  Their plans were cut short, however, when a sudden choking sound broke through the chatter.

 

“I think he’s got blood in his lungs.” Zoro said as they saw fresh red liquid bubbling past the cooks lips.

 

“Robin, tilt his head this way.  Yea, just like that.  That’s good.” The doctor instructed as he gently turned Sanji on his least injured side. The cooks body gave a shutter, an odd noise coming out of his throat, before fresh blood oozed past his lips and down his chin before dripping onto the ground.  More splattered onto the ground as a violent cough racked his body, and the crews hearts clenched when he made a sound of distress. 

 

“I don’t think he has that much time, Chopper-san.” Brooke said sadly.

 

“Chopper… Is… Is he gonna die?” the question was so quiet, and laced with a kind of fear that reminded the crew just how young their captain was.

 

“I…He’s hurt really badly, Luffy.  I promise, I’ll do everything I can to save him.  But he needs surgery, and in order to do that we need to get him back to the ship, and right now he wouldn’t survive long enough to get there, even if we used that mantis bike.  The Terrain is way too rough.” Chopper tried to ignore the pleading look Luffy was giving him. 

 

“I’m trying Luffy… I promise, I’m doing my best.” Chopper said, rubbing his arm across his face to wipe away the tears that sprang to his eyes. 

 

“Nm’i….s’n…” everyone’s attention zeroed in on the cooks face as he slurred out the words.

 

 

“Sanji?! Can you hear me?” the doctor asked, pushing back some of the blonde hair that fell over his eyes back. 

 

“If you can hear me, try opening your eyes.” The cook remained unresponsive after that. 

 

“Oi, Chopper.  Can he fly?” Luffy asked urgently.  Chopper seemed confused for a moment before he remembered. 

 

“Billy!  We could get Billy to fly him back.  That would be much faster and smoother!” the reindeer said excitedly.

 

“Where is he though?” Brooke asked.

 

“Billy!” Luffy shouted at the sky, walking away from them.

 

“Billy!  Please, we need your help!” they watched the sky for any sign of the bird. 

 

The bird that had now seemed to become the only thing standing between Sanji and death.   

Chapter 2: Drifting

Summary:

The crew works to get Sanji back to the ship.

Notes:

Part 2 of this chapter (parts separated by the ~0o0~) is from Sanji’s POV

Same rules apply from before as far as any flashbacks or off screen voices go.

Bold is from a character who isn't present

Italics is thoughts

“Gwah!” Billy’s cry broke the momentary silence that had settled over the group as he flew circles around them a couple of times before coming to land next to the rubber man, doing a little dance to show he was happy to see him as sparks flew off of his feathers. 

 

“Billy, I’m glad you’re okay but we really need your help!” Luffy said urgently.  The bird stopped his dancing and stood at attention, bringing a wing up in a salute. Luffy nodded in thanks.

 

“Do you remember where we found the ship?” he asked. Billy nodded quickly.

 

“Sanji is hurt pretty badly and needs to go back.  Can you fly him with Chopper?”

 

“And Robin. I’m going to need the extra hands.” The doctor added.

 

“Yosh, Robin too.” Luffy nodded.

 

“Gwah, gwah!” he saluted again as electricity continued to spark around his feathers.

 

“You might want to hold back the electricity though, Billy-san.” Brook said.  Billy seemed confused for a moment before realizing what he meant and taking a deep breath to compose himself; the sparks gradually vanishing as he walked over to his passengers and sat low to the ground. 

 

“Alright, nice and gentle.  Robin, can you keep the pressure there while we fly?” Chopper asked, indicating the extra hands that had sprouted on the cook’s side and were currently pressing down on the wound.

 

“Of course, Doctor-san.” She said as Chopper transformed into his Heavy Point and, as gently as he could, began to pick Sanji up.  Despite the extra care the reindeer took, however, the movements still seemed to bring more pain to the cook as a quiet whimper reached their ears and his lips were coated with a fresh layer of crimson, causing Chopper to immediately stop any movement.

 

“Oi, hold up guys!  Don’t be so hasty!” Usopp called from behind them.  Everyone turned their heads to see him and Franky running back towards them carrying hastily, yet well-built stretcher.  Stopping next to the reindeer, they placed it down on the ground. 

 

“I attached some webbing from one of those huge spiders.  The stuff is stronger than steel.” Franky said, holding up a strand of the webbing and pulling on it for emphasis. 

 

“If we secure Sanji to this, and then secure the stretcher in this hammock here…” Usopp began to explain, holding up what appeared to be a large net made out of the spider string.

 

“…and then secure the hammock to Billy’s feet-“

 

“Then Bird Bro can safely carry all of you, without causing any more damage or discomfort to Swirly Cook’s body.” Franky finished. 

 

“Wow you guys, that’s really impressive!  Great thinking!” Chopper praised. 

 

“I think you mean ‘SUUUPEEER impressive’ little doc.” Franky said, doing his signature pose.

 

“You can always count on the mighty Captain Usopp!” the snipper said proudly as the doctor, with Robin and Zoro’s help, carefully maneuvered the cook onto the stretcher and prepared for the flight.

 

 “Are you ready, Bird-san?” Robin asked once both her and Chopper were situated on Billy’s back.

 

“Gwah, gwah!” with one last salute, the bird took off with the most ease and grace that any of the crew had seen him use as he carefully pulled the stretcher into the air; soon enough, they had disappeared through the clouds of smoke still billowing through the sky. 

 

A silence descended on the group for a few moments as they continued to watch the sky, all wondering the same thing.

 

“Do you think he’ll be okay?” Usopp’s voice broke the silence. 

 

Zoro shifted his attention from the sky to look at the sniper, before glancing at the faces of his nakama.  Eventually his gaze fell upon their captain, who was still being unusually quiet as his fists were still clenched at his sides; shoulders tense, eyes still veiled by his straw hat as he looked down at the blood staining the ground. 

 

“Oi, go ahead and start making your way back to Sunny.  We’ll catch up later.” The swordsman addressed the rest of the crew, who simply nodded knowingly as they headed back for the mantis bike; Usopp throwing in a helpful note not to get lost.  After they had driven away, he turned back to the rubber man.

“Luffy.”

 

“That bastard is gonna pay…” the man’s voice trembled with rage.

 

“He threatened the South Blue, he manipulated and kidnapped Nami and he…” he paused a moment, his voice lowering to a tone that would warn even the most vicious of predators of danger.

 

“He tried to kill Sanji.” And with that, he began stomping off in the opposite direction of the ship.

 

“And where do you think you’re going?” Zoro said, grabbing onto Luffy’s shoulder; not at all surprised by just how much it was shaking.

 

“I’m gonna kill him.” He said simply.

 

“So, what?  You’re just going to go storm his strong hold by yourself?” the swordsman asked.

 

“Did you already forget how well it went the first time?” the captain said nothing as he shrugged out of Zoro’s grip and kept walking.

 

“Luffy!” he called.  Suddenly the man turned and slammed his fist into the remains of the stone tower, causing it to shatter as pieces flew in various directions.  Zoro stood calmly as large chunks of stone landed around him. 

 

“I’m not just gonna stand here and wait for him to hurt anymore of my nakama!” Luffy yelled, turning his enraged eyes to Zoro for a moment before turning again and smashing another boulder. 

 

This went on for several minutes; The swordsman standing silently as he let his captain work through the rage that had been building up since this whole shit storm started.  Finaly, the crashes ceased as the rubber man was left panting for breath; fists still clenched, but shoulders considerably less tense. 

 

“Luffy.” Zoro started; the man’s head tilted towards him to indicate he was listening. 

 

“We’re all pissed, and that bastard deserves everything that is coming to him.  But you can’t just go after him fueled by nothing but rage and no backup.  You’re our captain, and we trust you to be clear headed when the fight gets rough.  So get rid of any other distractions you might have, ‘cause you’re no good to the cook if you go and get yourself killed.”  Luffy stared hard at his first mate a moment before he seemed to realize something.

 

“Oh yea, Sanjis’ probably gonna want to kick his ass too.” 

 

“Yosh!” the rubber man said as he threw his arm back before launching it forward  to grab something in the distance behind the swordsman. 

 

“Let’s get back to the Sunny!”  Zoro felt his face go pale at the look on his captains face. 

 

“W-wait just a second, Luffy!  I’ll just walk baAAAAACK!” If anyone asked later, he would deny, on pain of death, the high pitched scream that he emitted as Luffy sent them both flying through the air.

 

~0o0~

 

He was floating, or at least it felt like he was.  Did he fall asleep lounging in the water or something? Wait, there wasn’t time for this, he had meals to prepare!  When he tried opening his eyes, however, he still found himself floating in the same darkness as before.

 

The hell?

 

He tried moving his arms; nothing. 

 

What about feet? Head?

 

Nothing obeyed his commands, so he just continued to float while trying to focus on his surroundings. 

 

“…him so angry…” what was that?  It sounded like Chopper’s voice.  He slowly began registering other sounds as well; clinking of dishes, footsteps, something bubbling nearby. 

 

“Neither have I, but you have to remember what the cause of his anger is, Chopper-san.  We may not express it in the same ways he does, but events have cut us all just as deep.”  There was a pause, followed by a sigh.

 

“I know…but we can’t go anywhere until Sanji gets better, his body is too weak.”  There was another pause and some shuffling, followed by an odd sensation he couldn’t quite pinpoint.

 

‘Gets better’?  Was I hurt? He was beginning to notice a dull throb across his chest as well.

 

“I’ve told Luffy that he should take you guys and go get Nami back, but he refuses to make a move until everyone can go.” 

 

Nami? Images slowly began to seep into the darkness he was floating in.

 

“Have you told him how long that might be?” Brook questioned.

 

There had been a fight with someone for… some reason.

 

“Well, it’s already been three days and his fever hasn’t gone down.” The odd sensation returned once again.

 

Okay, well that’s apparently cold. He thought as he felt a shiver wrack his body and the dull throbbing on his chest began to burn.

 

“And he knows it’s going to take time for Sanji to heal enough to travel, let alone fight.  But he just comes in here every day and says ‘get better’ when he sees that nothing’s changed.”

 

What’s going on?  What happened to me? His thoughts were becoming more worried as his body still refused to cooperate with him and the burning steadily grew worse.

 

“Our captain has always shown concern in somewhat unusual ways, hasn’t he?” Brook says, his voice accompanied by the clink of a cup.

 

“Yea… I know, it’s just…” the doctor paused again.

 

They sound like someone died. 

 

“Sanji almost died that day.”

 

…Oh.  Wait, holy shit… That bastard tried to kill me! In front of Nami-san!

 

And finally the rest of his memories came flooding back.  Flashes of floating islands, earth rising from the ground, swords dripping with blood, and a heart-wrenching scream.  The burning on his chest decided to take front and center of his thoughts as he suddenly realized he was gasping for breath.

 

“…ji!  Brook, get me that-“ the voices began to fade in and out as his struggle to breathe through the pain became too difficult to focus on anything else. 

 

There was a pinch on his arm as a silence settled around him; the cooling sensation returning to his head, bringing some relief to the burning that had spread through the rest of his body. 

 

Finally, whatever Chopper had done seemed to start taking effect as his body relaxed and the burning in his chest dulling to a manageable level; his breathing returning to a somewhat regular rate. 

 

“…ji.  There you go, you’re gonna be okay.” The doctors calming voice returned to the clarity it had been before. Even in his current state, he could still feel the tension filling the space. 

 

Is he now?  You sure about that? Shiki’s voice mocked him even when the pirate wasn’t there. 

 

Fuck you and your stupid brush head, you cocky sword legged bastard!

 

“Sanji?  Can you hear me?” he felt Choppers hoof gently tapping his cheek. 

 

What?

 

“Alright, good.  That’s good.  He seems to be conscious.  Well, mostly.” The doctor said.  Had he actually been talking?

 

Suddenly the darkness he’d been floating in was harshly ripped away and replaced momentarily by a blinding light, until it too eventually faded into blurs of color.

 

He couldn’t open his eyes much more than a squint, and it took everything just to keep them from closing again as another light passed across his limited field of vision. 

 

“Hmmm… Pupillary response is a bit slow.  His eyes aren’t focusing correctly, so he can’t properly see anything right now.” Chopper said as the light vanished, and the pink in his field of vision moved away for a moment as he heard the clinking sound of the reindeer digging through his bag. 

 

“But he’s actually conscious this time, right?”  a new voice spoke up.

 

Wait… is that Zoro?

 

Sure enough, when he manages to look in the general direction the voice came from, there was the signature green floating off in the corner.

 

Heh… it actually looks like moss growing on the wall right now.

 

“Mostly.” The doctor repeated. 

 

“For now.” There was the sound of water running through a faucet and his gaze moved to, what he was assuming was, a glass filled with said liquid that appeared in front of him. 

 

“Here, drink some water, then let yourself rest more.”  He felt a hoof slip under his head and support it while he drank; the refreshing liquid seeming to ease even more of the pain as his vision began to darken once again.

 

“You still have a pretty high fever and you aren’t out of the woods yet so… just… just rest okay, Sanji?” the doctor finished, poorly disguised fear in his voice.

 

Why does he still sound so scared? As the thought crossed his mind, he recognized the sound of a harsh wheezing that seemed to be coming from his own lips, and while the burning on his chest was dulled, there was still a heaviness to it that made it hard to breath. 

 

Then, after another moment, he realized he had stopped breathing completely.

 

“….ji!  He’s not-“

 

He vaguely registered the panicked cries of his nakama as they scrambled to help him; his grip on consciousness fading quickly. 

 

Sanji-kun!

 

The hell am I doing?  I’m not done here, dammit!

 

Whether through sheer force of will, dumb luck, or some other miracle, he finally managed a sharp inhale after a few long moments. 

 

“Gods, that was too fucking close, you stupid cook!” he heard Zoro say, sounding uncharacteristically concerned.

 

Oh well now I HAVE to make it through this just so I can give him shit for that later. Joking thoughts aside, as he finally drifted off, Sanji knew he had more than enough reason to fight. 

Chapter 3: Treasure

Summary:

The crew continues to look after their injured nakama.

Notes:

SPOILER WARNINGS: I’m adding some new stuff to the story regarding the current manga arc, so there will be spoilers pretty much from chapter 810(?) until the most recent. So I’ll add spoiler warnings from here on out just in case. Nothing major for this chapter, just some dialogue.

Italics means its happening inside Sanji’s head mostly, and only once or twice inside someone else’s head.
As usual, sections end with the ~0o0~ break.

‘Help me! Sanji-kun! Please help me!’

 

‘Nami-san!’

 

He stood back in the vast darkness that he had been floating in before, frozen.  The navigators tear and pain filled eyes pulled at his heart, and Sanji wanted nothing more than to wrap her in his arms to keep her safe from the dangers of the world. 

 

Letting out a growl of frustration as his legs refused to budge, he looked down to see them encased in stone. 

 

‘What the…’ A deep laugh echoed through the darkness; one that seemed to come from a few feet away.

 

He looked up to see Nami standing closer than before, her eyes suddenly shifting to reflect anger and betrayal.

 

‘How could you?  Leaving me to suffer at his hands… You betrayed me!  How can you call yourself my nakama when you couldn’t even protect me?  You can’t protect anyone and you’ll never be able to!  You don’t deserve to live.’ Her voice became more and more distorted with each word, a second voice underlying her own.

 

Sanji remained frozen; whether because his legs were still trapped or because of the completely foreign look on the navigators face, he didn’t know. But that voice… 

 

The menacing form of the navigator suddenly appeared in front of the cook; her eyes calling for blood as a dagger appeared in her hand.  Sanji felt himself start to tremble as her face almost seemed to begin melting away, revealing another underneath.  The face smirked as the dagger-less hand came up and gripped the cook’s throat.  He gasped at the sudden lack of oxygen as the navigator’s distorted voice spoke once again; a twisted smile forming on the eerily familiar face.

 

‘Weak!’

 

With that final word, they raised the dagger and brought it back down to pierce his heart.

 

~0o0~

 

 

Robin had been sitting quietly, reading by her nakama’s bedside when a quiet noise of distress caught her attention.  She looked up from her book to see the cook mumbling in his sleep as his head weakly tossed from side to side.  A hand sprouted beside him and took the cloth that had fallen from his forehead and let it soak in a bowl of cool water on a stand next to him before returning it to cool his burning skin.  She was about to turn her attention back to her book when something caught her eye.  Looking up again, she frowned as a tear made its way down the side of his face.

 

“What is he dreaming about, I wonder?” she mused quietly as another tear fell.

 

“Nami…san…” Robin’s eyes saddened

 

Ah, of course… putting down the book, she moved to sit on the side of the bed as she began running her fingers through sweat soaked locks. 

 

“We will get her back, Cook-san.” She soothed as he continued his fevered mumblings.

 

We will…

 

~0o0~

 

‘You’re a disgrace!’

 

‘You can’t save anyone!’

 

‘Who would be idiotic enough to call you Nakama?’

 

‘Just die already!’

 

‘Weak!’

 

“He does seem to be talking in his sleep a lot more…er, well, more mumbling than talking I guess.” Usopp commented from where he sat at the cooks bedside; watching as Chopper prepared medicine from his worktable.

 

“Is he dreaming?” Luffy asked as he leaned over Sanji’s pale face.

 

“I think so?” The sniper replied, leaning in closer as well until two disembodied arms gently pushed them away.

 

“You mustn’t crowd Cook-san.” Robin didn’t look up from her book as she continued to pry the two crew members away enough for the reindeer to get to his patient. 

 

“Yea guys, he burning up enough as it is.  We’re trying to cool him off, remember?  Give him space.” The doctor said as he hopped onto the bed carrying a small vial of medicine. 

“Usopp, can you go get the blanket soaking in the tub?”

 

“Uh, yea sure!” the sniper quickly left to room to do as he was asked. 

 

The reindeer didn’t have to say anything else as arms sprouted from the bed and carefully maneuvered Sanji into a seated position.

 

“Thank you, Robin.”  Chopper slipped a hoof behind the blonde’s head to support it before slowly tipping the contents of the vial into his mouth.  The cook spluttered and coughed a few times and it by no means was a clean process, but soon enough the medicine was gone and Usopp was coming back in with the blanket.

 

“Why’d you have a blanket soaking in the tub anyway?  It wasn’t even cold water.” The sniper said, handing the blanket to the reindeer.

 

“We don’t want it to be cold.  Rapidly decreasing his body temperature can be dangerous, so using lukewarm water is safer.” As Robin continued supporting the cook’s body, Chopper carefully wrapped the blanket around him as she piled up some pillows before laying him back to be half laying and half sitting.

 

“Hopefully this will make it a bit easier for him to breath.  I’ll have to change his bandages again in a few hours.  Are you staying for a bit, Luffy?” He glanced at the captain as he hopped off the bed and walked over to his workbench.

 

“Oh, yea.” The rubber man answered simply, not taking his eyes off the cook.

 

“Robin, why don’t you go get some rest.  You’ve been in here for a while now.” The doctor said as he opened the infirmary door.

 

“I can make us some rice.  I have the greatest rice cooking skills in the world!” Usopp declared as he walked out the door. The archaeologist put her book to the side and stood.

 

“I will make some coffee then.  Would you like anything, captain?” the boy looked like he was about to uncharacteristically decline, but then seemed to think better of it.

 

“Meat.  And some tea please?” he asked, glancing up at his nakama briefly before turning his attention right back to Sanji. 

 

“Of course.” Robin smiled as she walked out.

 

“Call me if anything changes, or something seems more off than usual, okay?  If he wakes up let me know and we’ll try to get him to drink some water.”

 

“Got it.  Thanks, Chopper.” He looked up and offered a large smile to the reindeer. 

 

“You’re the best!”  a blush immediately covered the doctors face as he jumped away from the door and started dancing out of the room.

 

“S-stupid!  Complimenting me won’t make me happy, asshole!” he beamed as the door closed behind him and the infirmary was plunged into silence once again.  Or, as silent as it could be.

 

In the blink of an eye, Luffy had moved from where he had been sitting at the end of the bed back to hovering over the cooks face.  He continued to stare at the flushed skin as the man had once again started mumbling in his sleep. 

 

~0o0~

 

‘What an embarrassment you are.  A stain on our family name!’

 

‘You’re useless.’

 

‘You’re just a tool.  A useless, expendable tool.’

 

He couldn’t believe he was back here again… back in that hell he thought he’d escaped all those years ago. 

 

He couldn’t move or even speak.  Everything was completely black, no shred of light to be seen anywhere.  All he could do was listen.

 

Did he die and this was Hell?  It certainly felt hot enough to be Hell.  He supposed it was something to be expected… since he certainly deserved it.

 

‘Sanji…’

 

…That voice was different.  It doesn’t belong in a place like this.

 

‘What’s going on in there?  Do you want some meat?  I’ll share it with you if you wake up.’

 

There was a ‘thump’ followed by a muffled apology.

 

‘Okay, I can’t give you meat.’

 

…Luffy?

 

‘Oh, yea!  That’s me, I’m right here!  Can you hear me?  Chopper, I think he can hear me!’

 

Wait… of course, what a dumbass he was.  He wasn’t dead. There was already an internal discussion about this wasn’t there?

 

A shiver suddenly wracked through his body, jolting his chest to remind him just how not dead he was and just how much his body currently hated him. 

 

~0o0~

 

“Sanji, you don’t have to force yourself to do anything.  Just let your body rest.  You will be moved around occasionally, but we’ll be as gentle as possible.  As for right now, I’m going to lift you up a little so you can drink some water, okay?” the doctor didn’t really expect much of a response, but he did receive a weak grunt.

 

After giving him some water, which went down about as smoothly as the medicine, Chopper unwrapped the now warm blanket from around the chef’s body and headed towards the door once again.

 

“I’m gonna get another bowl of cool water for the compress.  You can stay on watch for a while longer if you’d like, but I’ll get someone to take over for you when the food is ready.” He addressed the captain before heading out the door and closing it softly behind him. 

 

“Shishishishi, with him as our doctor you’ll be better in no time!” Luffy said while beaming at the door.  The smile slowly faded as he once again looked at his nakama, a thoughtful yet concerned expression crossing him face as he sat in silence for a few moments. 

 

“I don’t know what’s going on in there…” he began, lightly poking Sanji’s forehead a few times. 

 

“Chopper said that being sick like this can make your head get all weird and make you think about bad things.  You’ve been making a lot of sad noises, so whatever you’re thinking about doesn’t seem very fun.”  He paused for a bit as Chopper came back in and set a new bowl of cold water down on the nightstand next to the bed; giving him brief instruction on making sure the compress stays cold as he placed it on the cook’s forehead, and to call him if anything happens before leaving the room once again, but the door wasn’t closed this time. 

 

Luffy remained silent for a while, simply observing until a thought struck him.  Pulling his hat off his head, he held it in front of him; gazing at it like the solution to all of their problems was hidden within the weaving. 

 

“You know, I’m sure Nami probably figured out where Shiki keeps all his treasure by now.  Shi shi shi! She’s probably got it all piled up and ready to take for when we get there.” He smiled to himself. 

 

“We all have treasures we want to protect.  You’ve got your hands, I got my hat…” he looked away from the hat for a moment only to see that the cook’s eyes were cracked open, looking in his general direction.

 

“But my hat isn’t my only treasure anymore.  Just like I’m sure your hands aren’t yours.  And she’d probably zap me with her lighting thing for saying this, but I’m sure Nami feels the same way too.  She loves money, but it’s not her treasure… right?” he looked up again when he heard a sound, and noticed they had an audience; the crew had gathered around the infirmary door to listen. 

 

“I get stronger so I can protect my treasure, just like you.” He said, looking back towards the bed.

 

“We’ll always be there to look out for you, and you’ll be there to look out for us.  And we’re pirates, so when someone takes our treasure from us we gotta kick their ass.” There was a murmur of agreements from the doorway, though it was hard to hear over Franky’s sobbing.

 

“Luffy, you’re my treasure too!” Chopper cried as he ran across the room and leapt over the bed into the captain’s arms.

 

“Mine too!” Usopp blubbered as he hugged the captain from behind.

 

“Waaaah! Dammit!  I love you guys!” Franky sobbed on while Zoro, Robin, and Brooke looked on with varying kinds of smiles. 

 

“You guys are silly!” Luffy laughed.

 

“Oi, Luffy.  Foods ready.  Take a break and go eat, I’ll stay with the cook for a bit.” Zoro said as he sat in a corner. 

 

The rubber man looked one last time at Sanji as he got up from the bed while everyone else ambled back out to the kitchen.  The man’s eyes were no longer open, but there seemed to be a small smile on his face; it may have been the sweat that still covered his face, but there also seemed to be fresh tear tracks as well. Leaning down towards the bed one last time he gently lifted one of the cook’s precious hands and placed his hat underneath it before setting it back down and running out of the room.

 

“Feed me!” he yelled, and the infirmary door shut behind him. 

 

“Big softy…” Zoro muttered as he settled down for his watch.

 

“Yer one to talk…” he heard weakly slurred from the bed.

 

“Shut up and go back to sleep, dumbass.”