Hey there guys! Hope you enjoy this chapter!

I'm Sorry

Flipping onto my hands, I spun around and knocked all the men around me to the floor. Whether I was just knocking them out, or killing them, I wasn't to sure anymore. With every kick I threw, my legs felt more numb. Normally I could just stick it out, brush off the pain, but it was starting to become more and more unbearable. Sure, Luffy and I had made it back to the ship, and us along with the rest of the crew had downed a rather massive pile of marines. But the real question was, would we ever make it back to land? If one of my Nakama asked me what I'd thought, I would tell them what I kept telling myself; yes we'd see land again. But if I had to tell them what I really thought, what I had truly believed, then I'd say no.

As the fighting raged on I kept tight tabs on the rest of the crew and not just the girls. I wasn't gonna let any pompous ass marines get the best of anyone. Not on my watch. I would rather die than see another of my Nakama sharing the same fate as Zoro. I can't go through that again.

Not again.

"Just die you filthy pirates! The world would be better off if without you!" A marine shouted. "Yeah, you murdering thief's!" Another joined in. They quickly caught my attention as they were both charging right at Nami. I clenched my teeth. There words were endlessly repeating in my head. Filthy... Just die... Better off without us? My body moved on its own, taking me face to face with the stupid marines that had the big mouths.

Those fucking marines.

They just had to open their mouths. They just had to piss me off even more than I already was. They don't know a damn thing about us, none of them do! Who are they to say those things... We aren't the bad guys! Sure I'm a pirate, but that's just a label. We aren't the stealing murderers that every damn marines makes us out to be! We do more good than we've ever done bad.

Why can't they just see that?!

"S- Sanji!" Nami yelled surprised. I'm not even sure when I lifted my leg, but the next thing I knew the one marine was out cold, and the other was screaming and clutching his shoulder. But I wasn't done yet. I wasn't even close. I started with pulling the one who was still conscious by his collar and I raised the sorry excuse of a man to his feet. And then... Then. I did something that even surprised me.

I punched him, hard.

I was furious. I don't think I've ever been so damn pissed off in my entire life. I even hit the guy! I never use my hands for anything, anything, but cooking. But I was just so angry... and one punch just wasn't gonna cut it.

I swung again and again. My hand connecting with the marines face faster and harder each time. It felt good. Hell... it felt great. Nami had started to protest, telling me that was enough, or I should stop, that I was killing him. By that point I'm sure the others noticed, but I didn't care.

"Sanji please wait!" Nami cried.

I raised my fist to strike the man again but I was suddenly stopped. It was Luffy...

"Sanji. Stop it, that's enough." Luffy demanded.

"But Luffy he... This guy- H- He's fucking scum!" I shouted, feeling my anger slightly returning. "Luffy he was-"

"I don't care what he did Sanji, just because he said something that pissed you off doesn't mean that he deserves to die for it."

I got what Luffy was saying, I really did... And I knew he was right. But the truth still stood, I didn't give a shit what happened to this man. Kicking him felt good. Punching him felt great. And I bet killing him would feel even better... After all, he was the one that called us murderers...

"Let it go." Luffy urged. I clenched my fist.

"Is this a-"

"Yes. Captains orders." Luffy replied. I sighed, now was definitely a good time for a cigarette.

"Tch! Your not even worth it." I muttered, as I released the marine from my death grip and he scrambled away out of sight.

After I ceased my punching, the full effects of what I did to my hand were eminent. It was throbbing like crazy and my knuckles were all torn up. Truth be told, it hurt like a bitch. It really wasn't like me to do something like that and jeopardize the use of my hand. I was a chef after all, I needed my hands. I decided to make myself a personally note never to do that again. I thought it best I stayed with what I was good at, my real strength was in my legs. Any marine across the grand-line could tell you that much.

"Alright everyone, back to taking out marines! But not permanently..."Luffy stated, looking right at me.

"Yeah, yeah... I got it alright. " I replied. Luffy laughed. Everyone else seemed to put their attention back on their own enemy's. I was glad for that... if only Zoro would do the same instead of watching me so damn intently! The whole time I was going at it, Zoro never said a word. He just watched, he didn't even try to stop me. It makes me wonder, if he were here right now... would he have done the same thing.

"Hey Luffy, hang on a sec..." I wasn't very proud of the fact that I was really beat up, but I was. "Luffy, I'm not sure how much longer we can all keep this up." I muttered, eagerly awaiting Luffy's response. And when it never came... Well, I'm not to sure if Luffy ever really heard me or not, but just like that Luffy was gone again. He ran off, right back into the thick of it all. "Shit!" I yelled, quickly returning my attention back to the few marines who were still stupid enough to attack me again. I guess nothings ever that easy is it... ?

From that point onward, all the fighting seemed to move in slow motion. I couldn't tell you what time it was, or how long we'd all been fighting. All I knew was, the sun was nearly about to rise, and this time, I wasn't sure if I'd actually get to see it. To actually get to enjoy the warmth of another day... I hadn't watched the sun rise for quite sometime now. Those days feel so foreign at times like these... In fact, I think the day Zoro died was the last time I ever got up to see it...

Since starting this fight, I've tried to convince myself of something, trying to reassure myself that there's a way to end all of this. At first I thought maybe, just maybe we would all be okay and we'd get through it just like old times. But after seeing him and knowing that he's here somewhere, just watching, waiting for the right moment to strike... How can I be certain that anything will ever be okay again? I just don't see it anymore...

"Luffy!" Nami screamed. I looked over my shoulder just in time to see Luffy go down, and at that moment, any bit of faith that I had left vanished. They had him stuck in some sort of net. It must have been laced with sea stone because he it didn't look like he could get out on his own, and without Luffy, we were seriously screwed.

"Shit! Sanji Luffy needs help!" Zoro yelled.

"Oh no, Luffy! Chopper cried.

"They got him!" Ussop shouted.

"No, I'll get him!" I hollered, running over to Luffy's side as fast as I possibly could.

"Hey, you okay Luffy?!" I asked, my shaking hands fiddling with the net. I was trying to seem like I wasn't panicking... but I'm not so sure it came across that way.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I just feel a little weak from this stupid net!" Luffy yelled, still trying to get out on his own.

"Idiot! Don't keep touching it it's just draining your strength, I'll get it!" I yelled slapping his hand away.

"Bang!"

"Ahhh!" I screamed. My eyes widened at the sudden burst of pain in my right shoulder. It all happened so fast I almost forgot to scream.

"Cook!?" Zoro yelled, sounding just as shocked as I was.

"S- Sanji!" Luffy cried.

"Sh- Shit t- that hurts!" I muttered, clutching my shoulder. I looked up just in time to see the marine that I just so happened to spare earlier standing up ahead of me.

"Sanji! Are you okay!?" Chopper asked starting to run over.

"W- Wait! Stay were you are, don't come any closer!" I yelled. Truth be told, I was to occupied with the guy behind the marine to really be pissed off about it at the moment.

"Wha- Why? Your wound, you've been shot I should-"

"No! Forget about this just-"

I froze in place, the site in front of me draining all the color from my face, and the remaining words that had yet to leave my mouth stayed put. That voice, it was his... he was finally here. This was it for me wasn't it... ? The one that killed Zoro, haunted my dreams, and ruined my life... He was here again, he was back and I knew what he wanted. He wanted to finish what he'd started. That day, I cheated death. And now...

Now comes my punishment.

*Zoro's (POV)

After the gun went off, I took one look at Sanji and I knew. I didn't have to ask why he was so freaked out, he'd only ever made that face once before, and after the way he yelled at Chopper... Well, I knew what he was afraid of. He was afraid he'd end up killing one of the others... like he did me. When he looked at me the way he did, I knew what he was trying to say without him saying anything.

Goodbye...

At that moment, I- I couldn't really say or do anything but stare at him. I watched, I waited, hell... I even prayed. I wished that somehow, someway, everything would turn out okay. But after watching Sanji get beat up all over again just like before and reliving the horrible nightmare I would rather forget, that we'd both rather forget, I remembered. I remembered why I never prayed, or why I never believed in miracles in the first place.

They never happened.

No. Reality is much crueller than that. It isn't ever what you want it to be... just like right now. There's warm blood covering everything and he's screaming, he's screaming so much it hurts. The fear I can see in his eyes now, its overwhelming and sad. The Sanji I fell in love with would never of made a face like that, not in a million years... and definitely not in front of me. But no matter how much he screams or begs, he knows no one can help him now. He knows no one's coming to his rescue, and he's scared.

I'm scared.

*Sanji's (POV)

As I'm thrown roughly into the ship's wall, I strongly debated if it was pointless to get up or not. My head was pounding and my mind raced. There's nothing left that I can do here... That thought kept crossing my mind over and over again, but when I wasn't happy with that answer myself, I just got up again anyway. I tried my hardest and put up with the pain, I scrambled to me feet, and damn it I wasn't gonna just die like this. Not without putting up a fight, my pride wouldn't let me. In my situation most people would of already given up by now, but I just can do that. There's too much at stake here. My friends... My family... They're all in danger, so I have to try. Even though I'm scared... That doesn't matter. I kept telling myself that. After every kick to the stomach, every hard tug to my hair, and every hard slam I got to the floor. It took a few broken bones and a whole lot of my blood getting splattered a crossed deck for me to realize... I wasn't coming back from this.

"Z- Zor..ro..." I uttered in a strained voice. My mind hardly even registered the hand the crept its way around my throat and pulled up holding me to the wall firmly.

"Ahh! W- Wait! Nngh!" I whimpered, trying to wither my way out of the death grip I was in. I couldn't breathe and the feeling felt all too familiar. The hand around my throat, the screaming voices in the background, the fear, the pain, and-

"S- Sanji!" Zoro screamed.

"So any last words Blondie?!" Doflamingo chuckled.

"Kh... G- Go to hell!" I yelled spitting blood in his face. That earned a stronger grip around my neck and a hard slam against the wall behind me. Any type of anger or pride that was put into that remark was suddenly obliterated, and replaced by fear. Some part of me realized it was pointless to keep moving. Sure, I could try, but it wouldn't be long before I ended up back here again, and the result would be the same.

"Grip!"

"Ha! Gha!" My hands quickly found their way up to my neck. I tried to free myself, but the grip was just too strong...

"No! Stop It!" Luffy screamed. Doflamingo made sure Luffy stayed put, he never even made it out of the net. Franky and Brook were trying their best to free him, but they just couldn't get to him, the marines just wouldn't let up. This was all just a sick game to Doflamingo after all, and he was sure Luffy got a front row seat to the main event.

"Oh god... He's gonna die isn't he?!" Nami uttered, tears running down he face. She looked absolutely terrified.

"Nami I wish you'd stop saying that..." Ussop replied. When there was no smart remark and only silence, I guess Ussop was thinking the same thing I was. I wanted to be strong and keep it together for the crews sake, but in the end I failed at that too. After just hearing Luffy, I lost it. Warm tears made their way down my face. I know longer cared about my damn pride, I just wanted to live, with them. I- I didn't want to die...

"Ngh! H- Help..." I muttered through my tears. "He..lp me, Zor..ro."

I don't think I've ever, ever, seen Zoro look like that before.

"Huh? Zoro... wait. You mean the one I already killed? Ha ha! He can't help you now! But don't worry, you'll be joining him soon enough!" Doflamingo replied.

"Z- Zoro... ?" I heard Nami uttered in confusion, just as I begin to slip away in and out of consciousness, and the darkness begins to take me. I could still see Zoro standing in front of me, looking absolutely desperate. He's calling out my name and the panic in his face, his eyes, its evident.

"Ple.a..se..." Was the last thing I managed to choke out before everything I knew started to slip away from me. It was like I was in a trance. I could still hear the others yelling in protest, but I could no longer tell what they were saying, and all I could seem to focus on was Zoro's face. He'd moved in closer to me and said something... but I couldn't understand what he was saying, and then even his face began to fade. Along with my guilt, my fears, even the pain all started to seem so faraway, almost like it never even existed in the first place. It was like I was dreaming it all, and it was time to wake up.

The more I faded away the more Zoro was starting to freak out. He was frantic, yelling and screaming at me along with the crew, but I couldn't hear anything, not anymore. I wanted to smile at him, tell him everything was alright and try to ease the obvious pain he was in, but before I knew it the hand released me and I was falling. When I hit the ground, I was gone.

Sorry guys, I just had to end this chapter here for now. I'll get the next chapter out as soon as I can! Feel free to comment, love to here from you guys! :)