Vivi wrung out a washcloth, placing it onto Nami's feverish forehead. Sanji was sobbing behind her, Luffy and Usopp standing next to him. "It must be from the climate change…the one obstacle that all sailors who enter the grand line will encounter sooner or later is sickness caused by the abnormal climate. No matter how famous or strong of a pirate you are, helplessly dying at the hands of such illnesses is a common occurrence here in the grand line. Even the slightest symptoms can lead to death if ignored." She looked at the others. "Isn't there anyone on this ship with some medical knowledge?"

Luffy and Usopp pointed towards Nami and she sighed. She should have expected that. Luffy looked towards Sanji, who was wiping his eyes with his sleeve. "She'll get better if she eats some meat, right Sanji?"

The cook sighed softly. "Well, I obviously plan on giving her nutritious meals that are easy enough to digest even for a sick person, but even all that only goes so far as to be called nursing…it may not actually cure her." He looked towards Luffy and Usopp. "And in the first place, when it comes to preparing meals for Nami and Vivi, I put in a hundred times more effort than for the rest of you lot. I only use the freshest meats and vegetable to cook a perfectly balanced meal for them. The leftover scraps and ingredients on the verge of spoiling are then given to you."

"What?!" Usopp didn't seem pleased to hear that.

Luffy just smiled. "Still tastes good though!"

"In any case, as long as I'm the chef on this ship, there won't be any troubles related to malnutrition or such. So if someone is still sick, then that's because of a completely different illness. And unless I know what that is, I won't know what type of meal to prepare would be best either."

Luffy tilted his head in confusion. "Couldn't you just eat everything instead?"

Sanji sighed. "Not having enough energy to even eat is what we call being sick in the first place you idiot."

Vivi slipped the thermometer into Nami's mouth. She was sweating a lot and her skin felt hotter than it had earlier. After a few moments she pulled it back out and stared at it in shock. "F-Forty degrees!? Her fever rose again!" This wasn't good. Nami needed medical attention now.

Usopp folded his arms over his chest. "There should be doctors in Alabasta, right? Just how much longer until we get there Vivi?"

She clenched her fists, staring at the ground. "I don't know, but it'll definitely be more than a week."

Luffy frowned a little. "I've only been sick once, but that was because I almost died. Is it normally that painful?"

Sanji and Usopp tilted their heads to the side and answered together. "Dunno, can't say I've ever been sick myself."

"Are you people even human?!" And what did Luffy mean he almost died? "Of course it's painful! A forty degree fever almost never happens! In fact, it's enough to even put her life at serious risk!"

She regretted saying that as all three males started to scream and shout. "WILL SHE DIE?!"

"PREEZ DUN' DIE DABIIIII!"

She glared at them all. "Stop making a fuss and shut up!"

Luffy balled his hands into fists. "We have to go find a doctor and save Nami right away!"

Vivi held her hands out, trying to calm the captain. "Yes, I know, so just calm down or you might aggravate her condition further!" That was the last thing they needed.

"…no." The weak voice made her turn, rushing to Nami's bedside as the navigator sat up. "There's a newspaper, on top of my desk."

Vivi frowned and went to get it. Flipping through it, she felt her heart stop when she saw an article on Alabasta. "Wha-?!"

Luffy frowned. "What is it?"

"Is it about Alabasta?"

Her hands shook as she read. "Three hundred thousand soldiers of the royal armed forced switched sides to join the rebels?! Originally, the six hundred thousand strong royal armed forces could contain the rebels who were only four hundred thousand strong, but now the situation is completely opposite!"

Nami nodded slowly. "With that, the situation in Alabasta had entered its most critical phase…and that was the paper from three days ago. Sorry for not showing it to you until now…I didn't want to worry you any further since we were already sailing as fast as we could. Understand Luffy?"

Luffy folded his arms. "Sounds like an emergency."

"That's right. I'm surprised I managed to get through to you so well."

Usopp frowned. "But if we don't get you to a doctor soon…"

"It's fine. That old thermometer's broken anyways. There's no way a person would have a fever of forty degrees. I'm sure I just caught heatstroke or something. I'll get better just fine on my own even without seeing a doctor." Nami got out of bed and headed towards the door. "In any case, we'll continue to head for Alabasta as planned for now. But thanks for-" Her words were cut off when Luffy grasped her wrist. He lifted her bangs and placed his forehead on hers, frowning. "What are you doing?"

Rather than answer, Luffy gently picked Nami up and brought her back to her bed, setting her down carefully. "Stay in bed. I know Vivi's country is in trouble, but you're more important." Vivi clenched the newspaper, biting her lip. The situation in her country was dire…if she didn't get back soon enough, then millions of her people would die for no good reason. At the same time, Nami's fever was really worrisome. There was a chance she could die if she didn't get medical attention soon enough.

"I'm fine Luffy. We need to-"

"Find a doctor." Vivi had never heard Luffy so serious. "You're my crewmate and my friend Nami. You come first. Vivi said your temperature is dangerous and you could die. I won't let that happen."

Nami's eyes were wide. She held her captain's gaze for a moment before looking away, a tiny smile on her face as she nodded. "Can I at least make sure we're still on course first? I'm too worried to rest right now with Zoro being the one steering."

Luffy nodded. "Just to check the course." Vivi stayed where she was, staring at the newspaper but not seeing anything. Her duty was to Alabasta, but Nami was her friend. She couldn't just let her fever go unattended when it was so high. But if she didn't get back to Alabasta soon, a lot of people were going to die. Her country or her friend.

Squeezing her eyes shut, she crushed the newspaper. What should she do? Could they afford to make a detour? Was there any time?

Taking a deep breath, she placed the newspaper back onto the desk and made her way outside. Placing her hands on the railing of the upper deck, she looked down at the crew she'd grown close to. "I have a request to ask all of you. I know that it's not my place to make such demands since you've already let me on this boat and all…but with the emerging crisis in my country, I want to go there as soon as possible. Not even a single moment can be spared anymore! I ask for this ship to head for Alabasta, at the fastest speed!" And the only way this ship could go it's fastest was for Nami to get better. "Thus, we need to find an island with a doctor immediately. We have to see to it that Nami gets better as fast as possible, and then head for Alabasta! That'll be the only way this ship can sail at the fastest speed, right?!"

Luffy smiled. "You bet! Can't get any faster than that!" He jumped to the upper deck and put a hand on Nami's shoulder. "You check the course and had us change our direction." He carefully picked the navigator up and headed inside. "We'll take it from here. You rest." Vivi smiled at the care the captain was showing to his navigator. He truly cared about his crew.

Usopp's scream had her whirling around, eyes widening at the sight that met her eyes. A giant cyclone had appeared behind them. "Wait a minute…that direction is…!"

Sanji's cigarette fell out of his open mouth. "That's exactly where we were headed until just a moment ago! If we'd sailed straight, we'd have crashed right into it by now!"

Vivi couldn't believe this. Cyclone's on the grand line were said to be impossible to predict, yet Nami had done just that. It was like she was feeling the minute changes of the climate itself. "I've never seen such a navigator…" She shook off her wonder as Luffy came back out.

"Alright, let's hurry it up guys!"

Vivi nodded. "We'll keep heading south to find a doctor!" She hoped they'd find one soon, for Nami's sake.

Zoro stared at his captain. Ever since he'd send that weird guy flying, he hadn't moved from Nami's side. Even with everyone else passed out and the idiot cook keeping watch, he still kept watch over her. His hands were clenched together tightly and his head was bowed. Standing up, he moved behind Luffy and put a hand on his shoulder. "You should get some sleep. We'll continue our course as soon as the sun's up."

"What if we can't find a doctor in time?"

He squeezed Luffy's shoulder, eyes drifting to Nami. "We will." They had to.

"I promised to protect the people I cared about." Luffy clenched his fists even tighter. "I can protect my crew from enemies. From people who want to hurt us. Even from feeling sad. Why can't I protect anyone from this?" Zoro stayed quiet, small damp patches forming on Luffy's shorts. "I barely saved her from dying back on Little Garden. What if she dies now?"

Zoro removed his hand and picked Luffy up, carrying him outside. He sat down just outside the door and jammed Luffy's head into his shoulder, holding him there. "Listen to me. We're going to find a doctor. We won't stop until we do. This wasn't your fault Luffy. There's nothing you could have done to prevent this. Nami knows you're doing everything you can for her. We all do. Beating yourself up and asking what if isn't helping anyone." He pulled his captain back enough to look at him, ignoring the tears and snot on his face. "We need our strong idiot of a captain now. Wait until she's dead to mourn her, remember?" He felt the knot in his chest loosen when Luffy smiled a little.

"Yeah." He wiped his face on his arms and Zoro snorted.

"Go get cleaned up, then get some sleep. We're setting sail the second the sun's up."

He wasn't prepared for Luffy to wrap his arms around him. "Thanks Zoro." He grinned a little and put a hand on the back of Luffy's head instead of returning the hug.

"Anytime captain."

"You will turn around immediately, and leave this island at once."

Luffy stared at the large man, ignoring but fully aware of all the guns pointed at them. "We've come here for a doctor."

Vivi came up next to him. "We have a sick person on board!"

"Those lies won't work on us, pirate-scum!"

"This is our country, and we won't let no stinking pirates run amok on it!"

"Now pull your anchor back up and beat it! Or else we'll make you leave!"

Sanji blew out a stream of smoke. "Talk about a bad first impression."

"DON'T TALK BACK TO US!"

Luffy glared at the man who'd shot at Sanji, but held his arm out to stop the cook from trying to retaliate. They didn't have time to start a fight here. Nami needed a doctor. He dredged up memories of Makino's manner lessons she'd given to Ace. He'd never really paid attention to them, but some things had stuck. Such as how to ask a person a favor. He stared at the man who'd first talked to them and bowed his head. "Please. We only ask for a doctor. You can take me and turn me into the marines if you want. I don't care. Just please, save our friend." Vivi had told them this island was their only hope. If they didn't help, Nami would die. There was no time to try and find another island.

"…We'll lead you to our town. Follow me." Luffy stayed where he was for a moment longer.

"Thank you." Straightening up, he turned towards his crew. Zoro and Sanji were frowning at him, but he ignored it. "Sanji, go get Nami." The cook nodded and went to do as told.

"Let me give you one warning beforehand…" Luffy looked back at the man who'd agreed to guide them. "There is only one doctor in our country…and she happens to be a witch."

"Can she help Nami?"

"If she can't, there isn't anyone else on this island who could."

He nodded. He didn't care what she was. So long as Nami got better, it didn't matter. He glanced up when a hand was placed on his shoulder, finding Zoro frowning down at him. "You might not care what happens to you, but we do."

Luffy held his swordsman gaze. "A captain's duty is to protect their crew."

"And a crew's duty is to protect their captain. Don't go throwing your life away so easily. You can't protect anyone if you're captured or dead."

Vivi put a hand on his arm, speaking softly. "You did the right thing by asking politely, but you didn't have to offer yourself up. How would Nami have felt if she got better only to find out it was at the cost of her captain?"

"Put yourself in our shoes. How would you feel if one of us gave ourselves up to protect you?" Luffy glared at his swordsman. He would never want them to do that! Zoro tapped his forehead. "That's how we feel."

He slumped and nodded. "Sorry."

Vivi offered him a smile. "Let's go find this doctor so Nami can get better." He nodded, glancing over to find Sanji already on the shore with Nami on his back. He swept Vivi up in one arm and Usopp in the other before jumping to the shore.

"Don't do that!" He smiled slightly at Usopp who sighed and trudged over towards where Sanji was already following the big guy who was to guide them. Luffy glanced back at Zoro once more, getting a thumbs up, before jogging to catch up to the others.

Vivi was striking up a conversation with their guide. "What's the name of this island?"

"This country has no name as of yet."

"A nameless country? Is that even possible?"

Usopp screamed and fell to the ground. "It's a bear! Everyone play dead!"

Their guide bowed towards the bear. "It's just a hiking bear. It poses no danger, but mind your hiking manners and don't forget to bow." Luffy followed his lead and bowed to the bear. He led them through a small patch of trees and into a bustling town full of people and strange looking animals. "This is our town."

"Nami, it's a town! We're finally at a town full of people!" Sanji smiled back at Nami, the brightness dulling a bit when she didn't react.

Their guide turned towards the rest of the people who'd been at the port to welcome them. "Good work everyone. Those that aren't on guard-duty can now return to their normal jobs."

"You sure you can handle all of 'em yourself Dalton? They are pirates."

"They should pose no harm. Or at least, that's what my reliable gut instinct tells me."

Vivi looked around. "This country doesn't have any professional soldiers, does it?"

"No, they're all normal civilians. For the time being, come to my house."

Usopp grabbed his arm and whispered, "Look Luffy! A hiking bear!"

"Another one?!" He bowed as Dalton had told them to.

"Dalton, I heard there were pirates. Is everything alright?"

"Rest assured, everything is under control, madam."

"Dalton! I'll be looking forward to the elections in two days! Everyone says they'll be voting for you!"

"T-That's preposterous! I bear too many sins for such a position!" He led them into one of the houses. "You can use the bed over there. I'll go heat up the room right now." He turned to look at them while Sanji carefully placed Nami onto the bed and Vivi went about tucking her in. "My apologies for the belated introduction…My name is Dalton, and it is my job to guard this island. Please forgive our hostile welcome." He looked specifically at Vivi. "I'd like to ask you one thing…I get the feeling, that I've seen you before somewhere."

Vivi jumped a little. "Y-You must be imagining things. I'm sure we've never met before…more importantly, could you please tell us more about this witch? Nami's fever has risen to forty two degrees."

"A fever of…forty two degrees?!"

Vivi nodded. "Her fever's been rising steadily since three days ago."

"If it rises any higher, she'll lost her life…"

"Yes, but I'm afraid we don't know what the cause of her disease is, nor how to treat it…"

Sanji frowned. "It doesn't matter if this doctor's a witch or whatever, as long as she can cure Nami! So just where the hell is she?!"

"From the window…you should be able to see mountains…"

"Yeah, you mean those extremely tall-" Sanji cut himself off as he stared out the window. Luffy went and looked over his shoulder, eyes widening at the snow dragon.

"That's so awesome!" He wanted to go and build a snowman, but first they had to get to this witch-doctor-lady to cure Nami. Then he could play in the snow.

Dalton folded his arms over his chest. "Those mountains are called the Drum Rockies. Perhaps you can see a castle at the top of the tallest mountain in the middle?"

Luffy squinted. "That thing?"

"Presently…it's a castle with no king…"

Vivi looked back at Dalton. "So what about that castle…?"

"Dr. Kureha, the lone doctor in this entire country whom people call a witch, lives in that very castle situated on the mountaintop."

"What?!"

Sanji frowned as he stared out the window. "Of all the places she could be, she just has to be there…well, we better go call her right away then! This is an emergency!"

"As much as I'd like to, there is no way to contact her."

"What?! And she calls herself a doctor?! What's with this woman?!"

"Her skills as a doctor are undeniable, but she's a bit of a kook…and almost a hundred and forty years old at that, too."

"A hundred and forty?! And she's still alive?!"

"Other than that…ah, right. She happens to like pickled plums."

Vivi stepped forward. "Then what do the people of this country do when they're sick or injured?!"

"Well…she comes down from the mountain whenever she feels like it, find patients to treat, and afterwards…she takes anything she wants from their homes as payment."

Usopp frowned. "That's one mean old hag."

Luffy nodded. "She's basically a pirate!"

Vivi frowned. "How does this old granny even get down from the mountains…?"

Dalton turned to look out the window. "According to certain eyewitnesses, she supposedly rides down on a sleigh on moonlit nights…that is why the people call her a witch. Others have reportedly seen a most bizarre creature travelling along with her."

Usopp screamed. "I knew it! I warned you guys! I told you guys about the snow monsters! I just knew there had to be witches and yetis lurking among the snowy mountain peaks! Please God! Don't let them find me!"

"Yes, although she's this country's only doctor, she's also someone who I'd prefer to have little to do with. In any case, I'm afraid the only thing you can do is wait until she comes down."

Sanji sighed in annoyance. "How the hell is it possible for there to be only one doctor in an entire country?!"

Luffy walked over to Nami. He gently slapped her face, ignoring the others who demanded to know what he was doing. "Nami. Can you hear me?" He waited until her eyes opened. "Listen. We can't get a doctor unless we go up a mountain, so we'll be hiking up."

Sanji frowned. "Are you crazy?! Just what are you trying to put Nami through?!"

He turned to look at the cook. "It's fine. I'll be carrying her." He wasn't going to let anything happen to her.

Vivi shook her head. "Even so, you're still going to exacerbate he condition!"

Luffy folded his arms across his chest. "We need to get Nami to a doctor as quickly as possible."

"Yes, but it's impossible as it is right now! Just look at how tall that mountain is!"

"I can climb it." He'd climb as many mountains as he needed to.

"Maybe you can, but it's still too much of a burden on Nami!"

"I won't let anything happen to her." He turned when Nami let out a weak laugh.

"I'll leave it to you then, Luffy." She brought one hand up to the top of the blanket and Luffy gently slapped it.

"Leave it to me!"

"What are these things?"

"They're big and white, so they gotta be polar bears!"

Sanji grimaced and jumped out of the way as one of the giant creatures leapt at them, claws out. "What in the world…how can it jump like that?! It's like a gorilla!"

Luffy frowned at him. "No, it's a polar bear!"

"No, it's a goddamn rabbit!"

"But didn't you just say it was a gorilla?"

"This must be the Lapin that Dalton was talking about! There's so many of 'em!"

"Sanji, stand back."

"Don't lay a hand on any of them!"

His captain scowled. "I wasn't going to!" Before Sanji could say anything, Luffy glared at the Lapin's. Sanji looked from Luffy to the Lapin's and back. For a moment, nothing happened. Without warning, half the Lapin's suddenly collapsed. Luffy grunted. "Only half."

"What was that?" He shook his head. There was no time for questions. "That took out half, but there's still a lot, and thanks to whatever you just did they're really angry!" He gave his captain a look. "Remember, don't lay a hand on them!"

"Why not?"

"You may be unaffected, but the impact of every blow you deliver or receive will be transferred over to Nami as well. So if that happens, she'll die for sure! Promise me you won't fight them!"

Luffy nodded. "I promise." He ducked a swipe from one of the Lapin's. "What should I do?!"

"Just dodge for now! Dodge and run away! But don't run too fast!"

"That's way too hard!"

"Flanchet…Shoot!" Sanji kicked the Lapin that had been aiming at Luffy back, scowling as it stood back up. "Damn it…hard to get any good kicks with both feet stuck in deep snow!" All the Lapin's twitched before charging. "They're all coming at once! I'll cover you, so run to the forest!" He followed Luffy, grimacing as he looked back at their pursuers. "We have to shake them off somehow. If we were to seriously fight all of them, we'd be stuck here until the sun goes down!"

"Damn!" Luffy jumped back as a Lapin broke a tree in front of him. He started to pull back his foot but stopped himself. Sanji grinned without any humor. They could always count on their captain to keep his promises. He ran forwards and kicked the Lapin away. Luffy used another as a stepping stone to jump onto higher ground and he followed.

"They're still after us! Just keep running all the way to the top!" He and Luffy kept running, but stopped when the Lapin's suddenly appeared further in front of them.

"The heck are they doing now?"

"They stopped chasing after us, but now they're up to something else…" Sanji had a bad feeling. He watched as they kept jumping up and down and his eyes widened. "W-Wait…it can't be…they couldn't possibly be trying to…" His cigarette fell out of his mouth and tears gathered in his eyes. "Those damn rabbits really did do it…please tell me I'm dreaming…"

"What is it Sanji?"

"Luffy! Start running!" He did just that, wanting to get as far away as possible.

"Run? Run where?"

"Anywhere's fine! Just as long as it's far away from here! Because there's an avalanche headed right for us!" Sanji ran at full speed, Luffy right next to him. "I swear that the next time I see those damn rabbits I'll grill them with my own hands!"

"What are we gonna do Sanji?!"

"How should I know?! Only thing I know is first, we must protect Nami. Second, third, fourth, and even fifth, we must protect Nami with our lives!"

"I know, but how can we protect her?!"

Sanji pointed in the distance. "There! See that cliff? Let's run there! As long as we stay there we should be okay!" He ran headlong after Luffy, stopping at the top of the cliff and turning to look at the avalanche, eyes widening. "What?! We're not high enough!" He jumped at the same time as Luffy, but fell right back into the roaring snow. Before he could be pulled under, Luffy's glove covered hand appeared in front of his face. He grasped it automatically, flying back towards his captain and landing on one of the broken trees.

"We're safe, but we're going back down the mountain!"

"Are you kidding me?! We spent hours trying to climb this far! We were so close to the top! Can't you find a way to stop this?! Damn those rabbits! I swear I'm going to put them in a hot put next time!" His mouth fell open in shock when the Lapin's appeared around them, using tree trunks to sled down the mountain like they were. "WHAT THE?!" These shitty rabbits just wouldn't quit! "Run!"

"What's with them anyway?!" Luffy jumped one of the Lapin's strikes while Sanji ducked another's bite. His heart stopped when he looked up.

"Luffy! Look out!"

"A rock?! We're gonna hit it!"

"But you're carrying Nami! It's gonna hurt her too!" Sanji refused to let that happen. He grasped Luffy's waist and tossed him and Nami into the air. "A man should be gently with a lady!" The tree they'd been using hit the rock and splintered, sending him into the air. He collided with one of the falling Lapin's and fell into the avalanche a second time. This time he was pulled under. He felt something grab his hand and tried to hold on, but the snow was too strong and he was swept away as the world went dark.

Luffy stopped at the base of the mountain, staring up. "I can't see the top." Setting Sanji down, he made sure Nami was tied securely to his back and kicked off his sandals. Stretching his neck down, he bit the back of Sanji's coat and hauled him up. He didn't care about the cold. He didn't care about the snow raging around him. He didn't care about the extra weight he had to carry. All he cared about was getting his friends to the doctor at the top.

He coated his fingers and toes in haki, jamming them into the mountain. It'd be faster to make his own grip then it would be to try and find natural ones. He pulled himself up, keeping his pace slow enough he wouldn't disturb his friends and wouldn't run out of stamina before he reached the top. All he thought about was getting to the doctor.

He was almost halfway up when he jabbed his fingers into the mountain again, only to scream in pain as they tore open. His eyes widened and he looked down to see Sanji falling, quickly stretching out his neck and biting the front of his coat. He carefully pulled his cook back up before bringing his right hand in front of his face. He frowned when he noticed his fingers were bleeding and no longer coated in haki. He tried to coat them again, but felt a wave of exhaustion wash over him instead. He looked up, noting how far he still had to go, and grit his teeth. He'd have to finish the last bit without use of haki.

Luffy carefully continued his climb, clenching his teeth in pain as his fingers and toes tore open and his fingernails cracked and broke. I won't give up! I'll reach the top! I'll find the doctor! His new handheld broke and Luffy screamed with his teeth clenched so hard they started to crack as he slid back down a few feet. Tears were in his eyes as he squeezed them shut when he finally stopped, breathing ragged. Doctor. He moved a little to the side to avoid the slippery blood trails he'd left behind, painfully resuming his climb. Doctor. Doctor. Doctor!

Luffy hauled himself over the lip of the mountain, crawling away from the edge before letting Sanji fall to the snow. "F-Finally. I'm here." He stared up at the castle covered in snow. "What a beautiful castle." His vision wavered and he allowed himself to collapse. "Doc…tor…" He felt the ground start to crack and the feeling of falling, but had no energy left to move. He felt a presence nearby and someone grabbed his wrist, hauling him back onto solid ground. Doctor…h-help my f-friends…please…Luffy's fuzzy vision finally faded out as he let himself succumb to his exhaustion.

Sanji slowly sat up. Everything hurt. He looked around the room, frowning. The last thing he remembered was being buried in that avalanche. His eyes landed on Luffy, softening slightly when he saw the tears streaking down his sleeping captain's cheeks. "Nam'…Sa'ji…dn't go…" Standing up, he shuffled over to Luffy's bed and sat near his head, reaching out run his hand through the rubber teen's hair.

"We're not going anywhere captain." Luffy leaned into his touch and Sanji used the edge of the sheets to wipe away the tears as he took stock of his captain's injuries. Bandages were wound around the entirety of his arms and legs, going as far as to cover his bare fingers and toes. Sanji felt his gut twist. I can climb it. Luffy must have climbed the mountain with his bare hands and feet while carrying both him and Nami.

Reaching down, he picked up one of the bandaged hands and brought it to his lips. "You idiot." He kept his voice soft, not wanting to wake his sleeping captain. "What if you'd damaged your hands?" His hands were his life. Without them, he wouldn't be able to cook. He'd never be able to forgive himself if someone lost the use of their hands because of him.

Luffy groaned a little in his sleep and rolled over, taking the hand Sanji held and tossing it over his legs instead. "'l pr'tct you."

Sanji couldn't help the small smile that appeared as he snorted and gently knocked his captain's head. "You need protecting more than we do." Luffy got into more trouble than any of them – except maybe moss head – but always came out of it unharmed and normally with a huge smile on his face.

"Hungry…"

"I'll make you as much as you want once you wake up. Promise." His captain smiled in his sleep and Sanji ran his hands through the rubber boy's hair one more time before standing up and pulling the blanket up over him. Now that he knew Luffy was okay he needed to find Nami and check on her.

Just as he turned to leave, a hand caught his wrist. He looked back and found Luffy still sleeping, his arm stretched slightly to reach Sanji. "Nami…" Sanji rolled his eyes in amusement. Leave it to Luffy to know what he was thinking while still asleep. He tried to pry the rubber hand off him, but his captain just tightened his grip.

"Alright, fine." He didn't want to hurt Luffy's hands even more by forcing him to let go, so he wrapped the blanket around the sleeping teen and picked him up. "Let's go find Nami."

"What are you doing out of bed?" Sanji turned, spotting an old woman dressed like she was fifty years younger standing in the doorway.

"I'm gonna take a guess and say you're the doctor Dalton told us about." She was old, but for supposedly being a hundred and forty years old she looked pretty good.

The woman crackled like the witch she was called. "That's right. I'm Doctor Kureha, but you can call me Doctorin. I'll ask again – what are you doing out of bed?"

"We're looking for our friend. Is she alright?"

Doctorin took a drink from a bottle clutched in her hand before answering. "She's resting next door. A few days of rest and she'll be back to normal."

Sanji felt relief flood through him. Nami was going to be okay. He moved towards the door. "I'm going to check on her." Even though the doctor had said she was going to be alright, he needed to see her with his own eyes.

"You had six broken ribs and cracked your backbone." No wonder he hurt like hell. "You shouldn't be out of bed, let alone carrying someone else." Sanji frowned and looked down at Luffy. Doctorin didn't wait for him to ask. "He had a serious case of frostbite and tore up his fingers and toes pretty bad, but he'll be fine. It's mostly exhaustion."

"His hands will be alright?"

Doctorin took another drink from her bottle. "Doubt they'll even leave a scar. They were already starting to heal when I bandaged them." He felt himself relax. Luffy wouldn't lose his hands or feet because of him. He'd come along to help, but in the end he'd just been a burden on his captain. He'd have to do better next time.

"Nami…"

Sanji sighed but his lips twitched into a small grin. His captain wouldn't rest easy until he'd made sure he and Nami were alright, awake or not. Now that Sanji had proven he was alright, all Luffy's worry had switched towards their navigator. The doctor rolled her eyes and moved. "Fine, go check on the girlie, but once you're satisfied I want you both back in those beds. None of you are completely healed yet and I'm not gonna let you leave until you are."

He nodded his head. "Thank you." Doctorin waved him off and left. He shifted his sleeping captain a little and made his way towards the room next door. He opened the door slowly, careful not to drop Luffy or make too much noise in case Nami was still asleep.

He hadn't needed to worry since she was sitting up in bed, looking much better than she had the past few days. "Nami! Are you feeling better?" He made his way over to the bed and sat in the chair pulled up next to it.

"Much better." She looked down at Luffy who wound a hand around her arm the second Sanji sat down. He smiled and Sanji felt him fully relax when Nami put her hand over his. She frowned as she gently stoked the bandaged covered hand holding onto her wrist. "What happened?" Nami looked up at him and her eyes glided over his bandaged state as well.

Sanji wished he had a cigarette. "I got caught in an avalanche and our idiot captain climbed the mountain with his bare hands and feet while carrying both of us."

Nami's eyes widened. "An avalanche?" She shook her head and frowned at Luffy. "What was he thinking, climbing a mountain without protection?"

"He was thinking about saving you two." Sanji turned towards the door, finding Doctorin coming in and a…deer?...trying and failing to hide. She grabbed a free chair at the table nearby and sat down. "We found you three collapsed at the edge, injured and nearly dead. Even so, that young man managed to stay awake long enough to beg us to save you, saying you were his friends." She took another drink from her bottle. "It takes a special kind of idiot to scale a five thousand foot mountain like that to save his friends."

"F-Five thousand-!" Nami's eyes widened as she turned her attention back towards the blissfully sleeping Luffy. Sanji shook his head. His captain was something else. How many hours did he have to climb with them before he reached the top? He looked over at Nami, seeing the unshed tears gathering in her eyes. She wiped them away with her sleeve and laughed a little. "Our captain is a one of a kind idiot, but he always comes through for us when it counts."

Sanji snorted in laughter as Luffy's stomach growled and he moaned about Sanji needing to feed him while unconsciously curling closer to him. He shook his head while Nami giggled, reaching forward to brush her fingers through his hair. Their captain was an idiot, a trouble-magnet, and got them into more dangerous situations faster and more often than he'd thought possible, but Sani wouldn't follow anyone else. Because as much trouble as he was, Luffy always put his crew first and did everything in his power to keep them safe. Because he believed in his crew's dreams and never doubted they'd come true.

No matter how much he complained about it, Sanji was proud to have Luffy as his captain.

Been a while, but here's the next chapter. Originally, I wasn't going to post it until I finished Drum Island, but I think I like this as an ending spot. That, and I've made you all wait a long time for something I already had written, sooooo...

Anyway! More bonding, Luffy scales a massive cliff, and the part with Sanji and Luffy's bandaged hands is based off a fanart I saw forever ago and have no idea how to find again. But, I loved that fanart and it's cute and lets them kinda bond a little more. As for why Luffy didn't wake up when Sanji did, he overexerted himself with using Haki, so he's going to take a little longer to wake up. Next chapter will have Chopper though, so yay!

As always, let me know what you thought!