I am so grateful for the sheer amount of support this fic is getting, it really is a different fic in and of itself, and I hope everyone enjoys reading it as much as I enjoy writing it.

Zoro crashed through the underbrush, his gaze hard as flint even as he struggled to ignore the telltale burning in his sinuses. Swallowing the lump in his throat, the swordsman shook away the moisture gathering in the corners of his eyes while he batted at yet another overgrown fern barring his way through the forest. His mind was whirling, with thoughts, questions and stark fears clamoring at the door of his thoughts demanding his attention.

The main one being; what was wrong with him? It was just his katana, they were an extension of his body, of his very soul. So why couldn't he take them from Luffy and strap them to his hip like always? Hadn't he done so hundreds if not thousands of times before? What was so different now that he couldn't even touch them without going into the beginnings of a panic attack?

However the more Zoro thought about it, the more he realized that he couldn't, that things were different now. That he no longer deserved to walk the path of the swordsman, and that one thought that had been building in his subconscious was the main reason why he had been avoiding his blades. He was unworthy. Sandai Kitetsu would probably kill him the first chance it got because of its dissatisfaction with his current state, not to mention Kuina's blade Wado deserved a better master than him. Especially now. It was in this moment that Zoro finally came to an abrupt halt in the middle of a small meadow, and fell to his knees as his heart finally tore in half with an audible rip when a revelation fell him with a piercing blow sharper than any sword.

He was no longer qualified to be the world's greatest swordsman, he had tainted his honor and in so doing left the way of the swordsman and was no longer worthy of his dream.

A gasping sob wrenched itself from the depths of the swordsman's heart and Zoro clenched the grass between meaty fists as his frame began to shake. Lost, lost, it's all lost was the mantra repeating in his head as the trembling grew into harsh sobbing convulsions, despite the man fighting with all his might against the hopeless tears building in his eyes. Lifting himself up, Zoro drove his skull into the dirt repeatedly, striving desperately to gain some form of control, but it was not to be. He was already caught in a hectic spin, and the man had no idea if he would ever find peace again.

Wheezing cries held back behind clenched teeth echoed among the trees, as muscular hands gripped his upper arms and Zoro rocked himself while another wave of palpable sorrow overtook him. The green striped tail curled around him in almost a consoling embrace but Zoro couldn't draw any warmth from it. His heart was frozen in a block of ice. The grief tugged his soul deeper into the endless void of sorrow eliciting a low moan from the moss headed man before he slammed clenched fists into the dirt. The swordsman punched the ground until his knuckles bled, venting his frustration and rage on the surrounding plant life.

He would fight this! He had to. He may not be worthy of being a swordsman anymore, but he wouldn't let himself melt into such a pitiful state, he was stronger than this, wasn't he?

At this point, he didn't even know anymore…

….

Luffy strode forward, his cobalt gaze stern with childish wisdom glaring intently at the path ahead.

It wasn't hard to find Zoro, the man had unintentionally left a swath of destruction marking his passing to guide them. The captain's heart hammered against his ribs, he still wasn't entirely sure what he would say to bring his first mate back to his senses, but one thing he did know, enough was enough. Luffy had left Zoro alone for well over a month, seeing the man's need to think on his own and puzzle out the problem for himself. Unfortunately this plan had backfired, and Zoro was dangerously close to being lost to them forever.

The problem was though, this entire situation was so new to the Straw Hats.

True they had come across their fair share of heartache, and when Luffy lost Ace the boy came to a keen understanding of the agony suffered when you have to drag yourself to your feet and keep moving forward. But this? This was not something anyone expected to happen. Not only because surviving eating two Devil Fruit was impossible, Zoro was the one person on the crew that no one ever imagined would ever drop his dream, his hard work in training proved that to them every moment of every day. So how did they reach this terrible day where Zoro could not even bring himself to touch his swords? It was irregular, it was heart wrenching, and Luffy could stomach no more of it. They needed Zoro back, now!

Finally the boy came to a stop on the edge of a meadow, and there in the middle of it curled in a ball on his knees was the object of their search. The huddled form was shaking violently, but Luffy wasn't worried. He had seen Zoro have enough seizures during the two week coma that he knew at a glance it wasn't anything medical. Rather the burning in his gut accompanied by the fierce visage of the swordsman as he valiantly strove against the tears trying to leak through clenched eyelids proved to the captain that his first mate was far from alright, and that made Luffy feel a fury against Zoro that he had never entertained before in the history of their friendship.

Sandals slapping against the ground, the young man strode forward his straw hat shadowing his eyes while one rubbery hand clenched into a fist before coming to a pause beside his swordsman "Get up,"

One stormy grey eye opened to reveal a bloodshot orb swimming in a lake's worth of tears. He knew Luffy was standing there, could feel his captain's righteous fury rolling off him in waves, but he did not move, did not speak. He had given in to the depressing sorrow that now had him bound in its icy chains, links that were tightening with every gasped breath drawn into suffering lungs. A twenty ton weight had settle on his chest restricting his air and denying him the strength to stand, and for the first time in his life Zoro prayed for some form of release from his torment, something that would take the pain away and give him the peace he so craved.

But the funny thing about prayer…is the answer to one doesn't always take the form you expect.

Luffy's lips curled into a snarl and the boy barked his command again, authority ringing in his tone like a bell from a steeple high over a city "GET UP!"

The man finally stirred, opening his mouth in a slow pained movement "And what…" Zoro rasped turning a lifeless eye to his captain "if I don't want to get up?"

"What if," the swordsman continued sheer emotional agony coloring his eye a darker shade of steel "I don't have anything left to live for, and getting up is beyond my power?"

Luffy paused before raising his head so to pin the man with a gaze of glowing brimstone "Then I'll make you get up."

Zoro released a cynical scoff while his lips twisted into a tormented grimace "This isn't something you can change through physical force, moron."

"Too bad," Luffy shrugged "I refuse to let you lose to this so easily, even if it means I have to drag you up myself."

The swordsman gave a groan "What's the point?" he asked in a humorless laugh that sounded almost like a sob "what do I have to fight for?"

"Do you really have to ask?" Luffy snarled "You'll fight for your dream!"

Zoro's features contorted into a grim slash of utter misery, as if his captain's words had torn out his heart and was squeezing it between mighty fists. Insurmountable grief clutched him in vise making him gasp for air even as his head drooped with the weight of all the shattered hopes that haunted his every waking moment for the past month. Why couldn't Luffy understand? His dream didn't belong to him anymore, it was stolen and he had nothing left. What right did he have to even consider continuing fighting for it?

"And what if I'm no longer worthy of it…?"

The question came out as nothing more than a whisper from the depths of a tortured soul. The very fear that had been haunting Zoro, stealing his sleep and eating him alive from the inside out had now finally been verbalized into words and hung in the air like a death knoll over a ghost town.

Luffy felt his chest heave as stark realization met an unbending rage and the two melted together to form a volcano of hurt "How dare you," he hissed.

Zoro had barely a millisecond before his captain lunged forward with a punch that sent him flying while bellowing "How dare you decide that without my permission!?"

The swordsman skidded across the grass, his body bouncing off the turf before coming to a stop on the other side of the meadow. The man slowly stood on shaky legs that threatened to buckle at any second, one wary eye on the captain who stood panting a scant twenty feet away. As the boy's words sunk in, Zoro felt a snarl of his own rip from his throat and a clawed hand clenched into a fist "You think I wanted to?!" he screamed "It wasn't my decision to make!"

"You're right, Zoro, because it's mine!" Luffy shouted back "You promised me that you would never lose again, not until you became the World's greatest swordsman. You gave that promise to ME, putting your dream in my hands. If anyone has any say about whether or not you're worthy of following that dream, it's me!"

Zoro reared back, stunned by Luffy's logic before shaking his head in disbelief "You can't possibly understand." He growled.

The moss headed man turned, intent on leaving the meadow and the conversation but a murmured "Oh yeah," from his captain made him pause.

Turning, Zoro could only gape as the maddened figure of his captain once again pelted forward, fist at the ready "Then make me understand!"

Zoro dodged the fist but did not see the uppercut swoop in on his left side. The hit collided with his jaw with a bang that echoed among the tree tops. Rolling with the force of the punch, the swordsman regained his footing turning to pin his captain with a serious gaze "Look at me Luffy, I'm a freak!" he spat.

"So am I," Luffy growled "but that doesn't stop me from working towards my dream!"

"How is anyone going to know if it was my strength that beats Mihawk, though?!" Zoro belted back throwing a punch that was neatly batted aside only to narrowly dodge a return hit from his captain "No one cares about how you win your battles, but in a duel between two swordsmen depending on a Devil Fruit to win is disgraceful!"

Luffy followed through with his punch, flipping forward so to capture Zoro's head between his legs and throw him to the ground "What does it matter what other people think, the only thing that matters is if you fight with honor when that day comes, everything else is a moot point!"

The swordsman bounced up his tail lashing behind him as he prepared for another attack "Even if I hold back from using my powers, it still won't be a fair fight. Mihawk deserves my best effort, and holding back even on my abilities is an insult to him!"

"Well, I think that's just stupid!" Luffy screamed landing a solid punch to Zoro's chest.

The swordsman blocked the blow, but only just barely, his already weak legs wobbled from the intense fury packed behind Luffy's fist "Luffy," Zoro grunted straining to keep the haki coated arm aloft "this isn't about you."

"Maybe it should be," the captain spat skidding across the dirt when Zoro finally gathered enough strength to fling him away.

"How does that make sense?!" the swordsman yelled his features becoming less sorrowful and more irate as he fell into the rhythm of the fight "How could you possibly understand what I'm going through?!"

Zoro shot towards his captain like a bolt loosed from a bow sending Luffy on the defensive as he replied with his own punch "It's my honor that's been damaged, my dream that's been ruined; what on earth does that have to with you?!"

"YOU IDIOT!" Luffy bellowed in an enraged shriek before pummeling the swordsman with a barrage of hits "You always carry everything by yourself! On top of that you refuse to let your crew, your family, help you bear the burden! Haven't you figured it out yet that your dream is our dream too?!"

Zoro staggered, managing to block most of the blows with only a couple sneaking through his defense. Finally the rampage ended with Luffy gasping for air, but his eyes once so full of conviction were now overflowing with betrayal "Your dream is our dream too," he repeated in a breathless sob "we want you to achieve it as much as we want to achieve our own dreams. You're not in this alone, you moron!"

Luffy's words, so simple yet they had made a huge impact on the moss headed man and he slowly sunk back down to his knees shaking his head as the last of his defiance burned like a dying ember "You don't get it, your dream allows to be whatever you want to be, but mine comes with a specific set of rules, ones that cannot be broken on pain of death. Don't you understand, I'm not worthy of it…not anymore…I don't deserve to wear my katana."

Sanji stood at the edge of the meadow, his eyes wide and jaw hanging agape not daring to make a sound and intrude on this singular moment that would decide the very future of their swordsman. He knew in some part of his heart that it would eventually lead to this, but seeing it now in front of him, even his wildest imaginings could not do justice to the awesome power displayed by their captain. The cook shivered as he slowly realized that the crew often took the youth for granted, but it was moments like this that reminded them that Monkey D. Luffy was truly a force to be reckoned with.

"Who told you that you aren't worthy?" Luffy snapped the question out garnering the first mate's attention, his eyes hard and unyielding "because as far as I know the only person saying that is you."

"As I am, there's no way to prove that it was my strength alone that defeated Mihawk, there will always be some measure of doubt." Zoro persisted albeit weakly.

"Then find a way!" Luffy bellowed "Isn't that how you created the Three-Sword Style?! You wanted a way to gain more power and so you decided to put a sword in your mouth and made that part of you just as deadly as your hands. If there isn't a way available for you, then make one! Even if you have to fight tooth and nail, make your own path to your dream!"

Zoro glanced up, and met the glare of his captain head on only to be stunned all over again by the power held within the diminutive frame. Luffy stood erect, head held high without the slightest bit of doubt or hesitation in his words. His fists were clenched at his sides, knuckles pearly white from the conviction that squeezed them into tight balls. However it was his eyes that made Zoro stop and stare, those cobalt eyes that now burned with passion fueled by the fire of a thousand suns, but what he saw standing proudly in their depths was confidence. Confidence in his first mate to make the right decision, and suddenly the tears that Zoro had been working so hard to keep at bay were streaming freely down his cheeks.

What was it about this bold and brash young man that was capable of bringing the stoic swordsman to tears? First after his fight with Mihawk when he had made his solemn vow and in turn swore his allegiance to Luffy, and now when this very same youth rekindled the flame of determination within one lost soul struggling to find his way through the darkened streets of his pain. Zoro wasn't sure how Luffy was able to make him confront the parts of himself that he would rather never meet, but the man was forced to acknowledge that it was this troublesome trait that helped him grow into the man he was today.

Luffy watched as Zoro finally caved to the tumultuous emotions roiling within his heart and allowed himself to well and truly grieve over his experience. The captain knew that the man had never actually mourned what had happened, preferring rather to stuff it away under a façade of gruff well-being. It was Zoro's way, and had been his way of dealing with things for years now, but after the battle of Marine Fjord, Luffy learned an important lesson. Sometimes you have to mourn, sometimes you must allow yourself to grieve all the horrible things that had befallen you even if it meant crying like a baby. It didn't make you less of a man, it was a simple fact of life that there were some emotions, some experiences that were too big to be swept under the rug.

And so with caring arms and a face full of understanding, Luffy knelt down and pulled his first mate into a hug holding the sobbing convulsing mass as Zoro finally learned to lean on someone else for a change. Meaty hands reached up and clutched Luffy's vest like a lifeline and the broad shoulders shuddered as the man released broken cries muffled by a rubbery shoulder. Sanji snuck away from his post, allowing the two the privacy needed for such a fragile moment between first mate and captain. He knew that if he were in the same position, he wouldn't want an audience watching him bawl like a baby, and to be honest the cook was relieved that someone was finally able to get through that thick moss brained skull.

Lighting a cigarette, Sanji leaned his head back and blew smoke rings into the air watching them dance among the sunbeams as he walked through the trees in search of a decent kill. And as the blond strolled underneath sun drenched boughs he could honestly say that for the first time in weeks, his heart felt bright with hope that things were starting to turn out for the best.

Wow….I hope that turned out ok, I'm horrible at writing fight scenes.

Please review, and I will see you next chapter!