Luffy was frustrated with himself.

When he thought that he was alone in the dining room, he let his mask slip. And in that brief moment, Sanji had seen him. Why hadn't he checked to make sure the room was clear first? It should have been obvious that Sanji would stay behind to wash the dishes... Ugh! Why am I so stupid?!

"Are you okay?" Usopp asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah, fine."

"Alright! Then let's go fishing!"

Fishing would definitely help improve my mood... "Yosh! Let's go!"

Back in the kitchen, Sanji was beginning to piece things together. After everything that had happened back in the Sabaody Archipelago, Impel Down, and Marineford, all the strawhats had just expected Luffy to bounce back, like he usually did. They had been worried about him at first, what with Ace's death and everything, but when they met again after those two years, Luffy had been his usual smiling self. They all thought he was okay after that.

But maybe all of those events had taken more of a toll on him than they had originally thought. Luffy was never one to share his past, or even his pain. So maybe all those weights added up on his shoulders, and now he just can't take it anymore.

Sanji finished putting the last dish away with a sigh. He couldn't just go up to Luffy and ask him if Ace's death was still bothering him. No, he definitely couldn't do that.

He heard noise and looked up to see Nami and Robin entering the room. Immediately his eyes turned to hearts as he clasped his hands dramatically. "What can I get for you my beautiful swans~?"

Nami just gave him an annoyed stare. Robin didn't even chuckle. Whatever they wanted, it was serious.

Eyes turning back to normal, Sanji pulled out another cigarette and lit it. "Did you come to talk about Luffy?"

Nami exchanged a quick glance with Robin. "Yeah."

"I'm assuming that you have given it some thought, cook-san." Robin stated, blinking slowly.

Sanji nodded.

"And what is your conclusion?"

Blowing out a cloud of smoke, Sanji exhaled leisurely. "I think that he's actually pretty messed up about the war and Ace's death."

"That's exactly what we were thinking." Nami blinked, almost surprised that Sanji had come to the exact same conclusion that they had.

The three stood there in silence for a moment, the only noise being their steady breathing. Finally, Nami spoke again. "Should we talk to him?"

"We should. I mean, he is our captain after all." Sanji answered while snubbing out his cigarette in a glass dish. He then pulled out a new one and lit it.

"Yes, but the question is how to approach him. It must be a very delicate subject for him to be acting this way," Robin rested her chin on her palm in thought.

"Maybe we could tell him stories of our past, and get him to open up to us?" Nami suggested.

"An excellent idea, Nami-swan," Sanji said, without the usual exclamation. This topic was much too serious for that.

Robin nodded. "That's a great idea. We can start later today, at lunch."

While this was going on, Luffy, Usopp, and Chopper were fishing out on deck. The fish weren't biting, so the three sat there, bored.

"Come on, Luffy. Let's go do something else." Chopper sighed, reeling in his empty line.

Luffy was laying on the ship's railing, hat covering his face. He was more tired than anything else right now, so he didn't want to play with Chopper and Usopp. "I think I'm going to go take a nap," he yawned.

Chopper glanced at Usopp. Luffy taking a nap in the middle of the day? Weird. But then again, Luffy was weird, and he had done much stranger things before.

"Okay, come play with us later then," Usopp said as he and their small doctor walked away.

Finally alone, Luffy could relax. He liked Usopp and Chopper, but being in their constant company all day long could get tiring.

The ship's railing wasn't that comfortable to lay on, so he decided to go and see what his first mate was doing. Figuring that he would be in the crow's nest, Luffy climbed the ladder. Inside, Zoro was lifting weights.

"What do you want, Luffy?" Zoro asked, a little irritated at being interrupted training.

"Nothing," Luffy said.

Zoro raised his eyebrow. Luffy wasn't really acting like himself. I hope he doesn't want to talk to me or something, Zoro thought, since he knew he wouldn't be good at communicating his feelings with anyone. He would rather his captain go talk to some other crew members who would be able to sympathize better than Zoro would.

Luffy went over to the bench by the circular window, and laid down on it. Curling up with his back to the swordsman, Luffy relaxed in the heat provided by the sun. Zoro continued watching him, confused on his captain's behavior.

Shrugging, Zoro continued to lift his weights, while Luffy fell into a peaceful sleep.