Fevered Voyage
AN: I own nothing in this story. This is for Kazima Kuwabara so enjoy! Please R&R.
The night air buffeted Sanji's face as the cook made his way towards Usopp, ready to take his turn for watch, when the blond noticed the long nose's sprawled out form near the stern.
"Usopp, what are you-" but then Sanji noticed the way Usopp's body was trembling, his eyes rolling into the back of his head. Picking him up, Sanji went as fast as he could towards the medical room, yelling for Chopper and aware of just how abnormal Usopp's body heat was.
It felt like the liar was burning up from the inside.
"USOPP'S GOING TO DIE?!"
Luffy's panicked yell was ended abruptly as Nami's fist made contact with his rubbery skull.
"Be quiet and let Chopper talk!"
Chopper cleared his throat and gave them his diagnosis.
"Usopp has a disease known as Lugett's Fever. It's very rare and although I've managed to stabilize his condition, he needs an antidote. We need to find a port so I can get the supplies to make a cure."
Luffy nodded, expression serious.
Later that evening Sanji was in the medical cabin, allowing Chopper to get some sleep while he watched Usopp. Sanji's right hand twitched reflexively, ready to bring a cigarette to his lips, but the cook couldn't smoke while he was here.
He stared at the still form of the sniper lying on the bed. Sanji replayed all the times he had saved the sniper's hide, all the arguments the two had had over mushrooms, and the times they played pranks on Zoro, Sanji's favorite being the one where they shaved his eyebrows.
"You're not going to die, I promise," Sanji said softly.
Three days had passed and the Strawhats had yet to find even one island.
Robin couldn't focus on her reading, her brow knit in concern over the young man that had conquered his fear to strike at Spandam and his underlings from such a distance.
Zoro tripled the amount of weights during his training, pushing himself to greater heights, and wishing that he could get strong enough to cut diseases as easily as he could cut steel.
Franky only drank one cola, the shipwright unable to feel super for the first time since he had joined the crew.
Brooke tried to come up with as many new skull jokes as he could, the 180 degrees gag he was very proud of, but his thoughts would turn back to his old nakama dying in front of him, their corpses becoming bloated with the sickness that had slain them.
Chopper stayed up late, checking time and again on Usopp's condition, hoping the storyteller would get better. But with each day that passed his thoughts turned more and more melancholy, the reindeer missing the stories of Captain Usopp.
Luffy sat on his new special seat, staring at the horizon, the future Pirate King wanting his best friend back and ignoring the doubt that assailed his thoughts. Usopp would get better. And then they'd go to the land of giants.
Evening had fallen, the crew retiring to their rooms, save for Nami and Robin, the archaeologist on watch duty.
The navigator was leaning against the front railing of the ship, staring out into the darkness with a blanket wrapped around her shoulders. Her eyes eventually found their way to her left hand and the faint scar tissue that marred it.
Her relationship with Usopp was a complicated one. At times she wanted to pummel him senseless, usually when he and Luffy had decided to run wild on the ship. Other times she found herself listening to his stories and even enjoying the less ridiculous ones.
She remembered the way his body felt on that day in Water 7, wanting to kill the ones responsible. Feeling that every time Usopp got injured that a part of her had been wounded as well. All the times she had cried for him, screaming his name in desperation. Her heart beat a little faster at those memories.
"Nami-san?" Turning around at the sound of the voice, she saw Sanji standing a few feet away. The cook observed her for a few silent moments, eyes taking in her flushed face. "Thinking about Usopp?"
"Yes..." Sanji came closer then, leaning against the railing and slowly exhaling a plume of smoke.
"You love him."
"I'm not...I mean why would-" but Nami was cut off by Sanji looking into her eyes. After a few seconds, Nami nodded.
"Tell him when he recovers." Nami attempted to move closer to the cook and entwined her hand with his.
"Sanji, I don't want to hurt you," she said softly.
"You should get some rest, Nami-san."
Again she nodded and headed towards her room, sparing one last glance at the cook.
A few minutes passed as Sanji gazed up at the heavens, smoke passing his lips every now and then.
"That was very admirable Cook-san." Sanji turned at Robin's voice and gave her a rueful smile.
"Sometimes the prince has to lose the princess to the storyteller, it's an old tale."
"And does the prince ever find another to call his own?"
"I don't know. The stories never do tell what happens to him," Sanji answered.
"Would you like to find out together?" Sanji's eyes widened at that but soon enough he smiled warmly.
"Yeah...I'd like to."
Luffy gave a shout of joy at the sight that met his eyes around late afternoon the following day.
"We found an island!"
The island was about two miles ahead and the crew could see a port city along with several Marine ships closing in from the east and west.
Cannons boomed and soon enough the Strawhats were deflecting the barrage as best they could. After several minutes of this, Luffy took in a great breath of air, his body expanding until he released it all in a mighty blast, shooting himself towards the nearest ship.
"GUM GUM GATLING!"
The ship became so much timber as the future Pirate King landed blow after blow, leaping from the remains of the mast towards the next ship. Soon, only one remained.
"Looks like he saved one for us," Zoro grinned, donning his bandanna.
Luffy landed back on the Thousand Sunny, panting a little, but eyes bright.
"Phew, that was fun!" A fist pounded on his head a moment later and he was looking up at his enraged navigator.
"You idiot! Stop enjoying this and let's get to that island!"
A large shadow cut off Luffy's reply. Looking up, the Strawhats saw an enormous bird, bigger than any they had ever seen, one wing alone three times the size of the Thousand Sunny.
"Looks like our information was on the money," the bird spoke, intelligence showing in it's gaze. "Strawhat Luffy and his crew. That'll be quite a feather in my cap."
"Chopper what Zoan is that?" Sanji asked. The little reindeer was sticking out from around the corner, in the opposite direction as normal as he answered.
" A Roc Zoan. I thought they were just a myth."
"Where are my manners? I'm Captain Silver and this is my crew," the roc said. Several figures leaped off his back then while the rest dropped ropes and began to descend towards the deck of the Thousand Sunny.
Nami blocked a sword strike with her Clima Tract and quickly knocked out her opponent with a swift blow to the ribs. Glancing around she saw Franky and Chopper dealing with three dozen men while Robin had disarmed and disabled dozens more. Brooke had sent several to sleep with his odd technique while Zoro was dueling with a large man covered in plate armor, the man's broadsword standing up to the former pirate hunter's strikes with ease. Luffy was in the air, trying again to injure Captain Silver, the rubber-man's techniques having seemingly no effect.
"Nami-san, don't help me!" Sanji cried out, the navigator recognizing the lovestruck tone in his voice. The cook was dodging attacks from four female marines, all the while blowing kisses and attempting to flirt with his opponents.
A dark cloud soon appeared over their heads and lightning struck the cook along with his opposition.
"Idiot..." Nami muttered angrily. It was then that she saw a Marine slipping past their defenses and heading into the ship.
Usopp...
The Marine, one Mitsuda by name, chuckled to himself at the sight that met his eyes as he opened one of the many doors in the hold. One of the crew members was here, lying on a bed, Mitsuda recognizing the signs of fever in the young man.
"Easy pickings," he said to himself, unsheathing the dagger at his side. "They might even promote me for this!"
Approaching the still form, he raised the dagger, plunging it towards the long nosed pirate's heart. But instead of the sound of flesh being pierced, Mitsuda watched as the pirate suddenly turned in his sleep, effectively dodging the stab. He was about to try again when he stiffened and then slumped to the floor, passing out.
Nami spared a moment to make sure the Marine was out cold before checking on Usopp. The sniper gave a loud snore then and tossed around a little causing the navigator to shake her head.
"You're always making me worry," she said quietly.
"NAMI-SWANNN!"
Sanji had arrived on the scene, heart shaped eyes scanning Nami and any sign of danger.
"We're both fine Sanji, I stopped him before he could get to Usopp," Nami assured the cook.
Mitsuda's eyes blinked rapidly before consciousness returned. There were two pirates in front of him, a blond and an orange haired woman. Moving as stealthily as he could, he started to aim his dagger...
"Excuse me for a moment Nami-san," Sanji said, kicking the Marine behind him with enough force to send the man flying through two other rooms. That dealt with, he returned his attention to Nami.
"We should head back to the others." Sanji nodded at this and the two left to rejoin their nakama, sparing a last glance towards Usopp's slumbering form.
Three hours later, give or take a Gear or two and after sending the Marines sailing over the horizon, Usopp was sobbing loudly.
"Thank you guys!" He was currently hugging onto Zoro tightly, much to the first mate's annoyance.
"You're welcome, now will you let go?"
Luffy started laughing at the antics of his best friend and swordsman before an idea came to him.
"Captain's order: Group Hug!"
At that Nami, Franky, Chopper, Luffy, Brooke, and Robin all hugged around Usopp. Sanji, however, was reluctant to join in, for the only person he could hug thanks to the press of bodies would be Zoro. Zoro recognized this as he met the cook's gaze.
"You're not hugging me, ero-cook," Zoro muttered.
"I would never do that marimo," Sanji growled back.
However a moment later both men were pushed together by two pairs of disembodied arms.
"Robin-chan...why?"
The last Oraharan just gave him one of her mysterious grins.
"Captain's order, Cook-san."
This set Luffy off on another round of laughter and he stretched his arms to wrap around everyone.
Evening was approaching as the Strawhat's finally moved about the ship, Chopper in his office, going over his supplies while Franky was fixing the parts of the ship that had been ruined during the fighting. Zoro was taking a nap and Brooke was perfecting his latest joke: the 900 degree Pelvic Smasher.
Sanji sat outside a slightly opened door, smoke escaping from his lips into the air as he exhaled slowly. He could hear snatches of the conversation between Nami and Usopp until the sniper suddenly gave a shriek, the noise silenced a moment later. He didn't need to look inside to know that the two were now kissing.
"There are things only he can do after all," Sanji said to himself, taking a drag of smoke.
Luffy wandered past the cook then, chewing on a drumstick, when he stopped and glanced towards the door.
"They finally told each other, huh?" That observation caused Sanji to nearly swallow his cigarette.
"You knew?!"
"Well yeah, I'm the captain, comes with the job. Hope you and Robin do well." Luffy continued his walk then while Sanji tried to regain his composure. "Oh and Sanji?"
"Yeah?"
"We're all out of meat," Luffy said, still chewing on the drumstick.
The cook's eyes started to turn red at that and Luffy ran, Sanji hot on his heels.
"Come back here!"
Robin observed the chase developing from where she sat near Nami's tangerine grove with an amused smile on her face.
Never a dull moment on this ship, she thought to herself before returning her attention to her latest book.