And here is the third chapter. I really hope you enjoy it :D Thank you so much for all the people who have favorited, followed and/or reviewed the story, it is super motivating and it makes my day :D


~In search of white~

Usopp awoke feeling slightly drowsy. The sleeping pill he had taken to put himself to sleep had been effective to say the least and as he sat up in his hammock he had to take a minute to properly wake up. When his brain seemed to be functioning as it should, he took a look around. There were four empty beds: Luffy's, Zoro's, Chopper's and Sanji's. This left Usopp with Franky and Brook, who were still under the effects of the sleeping drug and Usopp slipped quietly out of the Men's Quarters to not wake either of them. It would be best to allow them all the sleep they could get before the trials of the day started. Usopp went straight to the kitchen, because that would be the most likely place to get information about Luffy's condition. Upon arriving he found only Sanji in the room, meaning that the girls had yet to wake up. Usopp muttered a quiet good morning to Sanji and he was given a cup of tea. Usopp took his usual place at Luffy's left, which also happened to be the place closest to the Sick Bay. As people came through the door Usopp bid them a good morning to which he would just get a nod or a forced smile, but he thought that it was important to stay positive. Usopp knew that he was always the first person to voice the worst case scenario and his negativity was legendary, but when everyone was depressed the best way to counter it would be for the most pessimistic person to act optimistic, even if doing so was extremely hard and went against all his normal instincts. At least that was the conclusion which Usopp had come to, so no matter how worried he was and how bleak everything seemed, he would be sure to put on a smile and encourage the crew. Besides, this was Luffy and they were his crew. They had survived declaring war against the world, fighting zombies and being condemned by God. If they could make it through all that, then they sure as hell could make it through this.

Yet, even if Usopp was slightly faking his optimism and his smiles to hide his immense worry for his best friend, he somehow didn't feel the slightest bit scared. At least not anymore. When Sanji had first interrupted his and Chopper's herb search with panic written all over his face and through ragged speech tried to explain that something was wrong with Luffy, Usopp had been terrified. The three of them had hurried back and when Usopp had first seen Luffy lying in the bed drenched in sweat, gasping for breath and looking far from comfortable his heart had started racing and his vision had gone white. He had stayed with the rest of them in the Sick Bay by Luffy's side, and even though Usopp felt like he was having a mental breakdown, everyone had been so focused on Luffy and Chopper that no one had paid any attention to him. Usopp hadn't known what to do with himself until the moment Chopper gave the diagnosis and told them that Luffy was actually dying. In that single moment it was like all of Usopp's fears disappeared from his mind, because the one thing he feared the most was now a scaring reality, and it cleared Usopp's head. Usopp had known for a long time that Luffy meant more to him than anything else, it was the same for all of them, but Usopp had also found that the weaker Luffy appeared, the stronger he became. It had been the same in Enies Lobby. Although the enemy had been vastly different, it had been the same. Rob Lucci had been hovering over Luffy's almost defeated self, and while Usopp had been horrified through most of the ordeal, in that moment he had only thought of Luffy. He had only thought of his best friend lying on the ground getting ready to accept a defeat he would later come to regret and Usopp had challenged both Lucci and his dying captain to give him their worst. And just like that Luffy got up, Luffy fought and Luffy won just like he always did, and Usopp had faith that this time would be no different.

Around the time Usopp finished his tea, both girls had woken up and they were now sitting with Usopp by the table drinking their morning coffee. They were silent, their faces never giving away their thoughts and Usopp had noted how Sanji hadn't asked them about their morning or even talked to the girls, which freaked Usopp out if just slightly. Their attention was caught when the door to the Sick Bay slowly crept open and Chopper entered the kitchen. Usopp was about to ask about Luffy, but Chopper signalled that they wait and went straight to Sanji. Had it not been for the fact that Sanji was working at the same time, it would have been quiet enough for Usopp to hear what they were talking about, but the running of the water and the banging of metal drowned out most of the words, so Usopp eventually gave up on trying. If it was important and about Luffy, they would tell the rest of them later.

While Sanji and Chopper were talking, Franky and Brook arrived and Usopp bid them a good morning as well. Franky replied with a little smile that quickly faded, but Brook was much like Usopp and answered with the cheeriest greeting he could muster even if it wasn't any convincing at all. Chopper then disappeared back into the Sick Bay and Sanji started setting the table. When food was all ready Chopper came back with a grumpy Zoro in tow. As Sanji made his way around the table with food, he enlightened the crew about his and Chopper's plan. Chopper then went on to explain to each person what they were supposed to be searching for and Usopp tried his best to memorise the different herbs he was tasked with finding. Usopp had always been good with finding unique herbs and was also quite good at telling them apart, especially after having befriended Chopper, whom he quite often accompanied in herb searches, so he was happy with the task he been given. Zoro had been the only one to outright protest about his job, but then again Usopp understood. As much as he wanted to be with Luffy, there was something comforting about being someone who helped in curing him rather than just sitting around. Zoro had been given the title of 'bodyguard' but if nothing actually happened that would be the most frustrating job of them all. However, even if Zoro had protested Sanji had set him straight in a way only Sanji would have been able to. Say what you will, but those two had a special way of communicating and Usopp knew that if it had been anyone but Sanji who tried to convince Zoro that he should just stay put, he would have flipped the table and started a fight... which Sanji would then have been forced to stop.

After the plan had been explained the only conversation to be heard was one between Robin and Chopper. Usopp was only half paying attention as it didn't have anything to do with his job, but suddenly a voice joined their conversation and Usopp looked around the table to identify who had said something. Apparently he hadn't been the only one to do so, because all around him he found confused stares, until the voice spoke again and they all looked towards Luffy who was standing by the door to the Sick Bay. Usopp's first thought was to go directly to Luffy's side, but he knew that Zoro would do exactly that so he headed to a cupboard where Sanji always kept some spare blankets in case they were having a cold morning, took one and wrapped it around Luffy. From the look on Zoro's face and the way he acted around Luffy, it was clear that he, just like Usopp, had been expecting Luffy to be a lot worse, but Luffy carried himself as he normally would have and took his place between Zoro and Usopp, who both neglected their seats and just hovered around their captain instead.

Sanji got Luffy a cup of tea and Luffy continued the conversation from earlier about the mysterious flower he had found at the top of the volcano. Usopp once again didn't really listen to the conversation, but he did pay attention to both Luffy and Zoro, and Usopp watched as Zoro's expression got more and more worried for reasons Usopp was unaware of. It wasn't long until he found out that the worry had been unnecessary and it had all started with a weird sun-like mark on Luffy's wrist. After that the conversations continued and Usopp noticed as the crew looked more lively now that Luffy was there with them. Even if he was the reason of their worry, he still managed to lighten everyone's mood in a way that only he could... but the moment had to end with the rising of the sun. It was time to get to work.

Sanji had been packing bags with food to all of the crew members leaving the Sunny and was handing them out to people as they left the kitchen. Just like everyone else Usopp packed his bag with a few extra things as well, mainly weapons, but also some special tools to pick the herbs with and containers for them. Usopp was about to leave the ship when he was stopped by Zoro.

"Aren't you worried at all?" Zoro asked in a very monotone voice which kind of gave off the feeling that he himself wasn't all that worried... or emotional, but Usopp knew better.

"What do you mean? Of course I'm worried," Usopp said as a matter of fact, but Zoro still wouldn't let him leave and Usopp elaborated, because he knew why Zoro was acting like he was, "I'm worried, but I also know that we, that Luffy, can pull through this, and if staying optimistic can get us to that point faster, then I don't want to waste time on negativity."

And just like that Zoro smiled and let out a slight chuckle, "I guess I've been underestimating you...". The statement came out as whisper, but Usopp still heard every word. He too smiled and went off into the jungle.

As it was still morning it was nowhere near as hot as it had been the first two days, and combining the slight chill with the fact that he was all alone in an unknown jungle really didn't do well on Usopp's nerves. However, he had promised himself that he wouldn't let his anxieties get the better of him, even if he was alone and no one could see, as it would just hinder his job and Luffy's life was on the line.

Usopp's task was essentially three different things all involving herbs. The first thing he had been tasked to find was white willow. It was a herb which helped reduce fever and Chopper had asked him to find that one first as it wasn't a part of the actual medicine which wouldn't be done until after the full moon in two days. The herb was meant to prevent the venom from spreading too fast and to ease some of Luffy's pain. The remaining two things were for the medicine, so Usopp had more time to look for those. Usopp already had a good idea of where to start looking for the white willow and if he calculated correctly it would only take him about an hour to get to the spot. As Usopp walked through the jungle he came to the small pond where Luffy had been given a ride by the giant turtle. Unlike the first time where they had chased all the animals away by making a path, the animals were still there when Usopp arrived. There were mostly the same animals as when they had first found the pond, but there were a few new birds that Usopp hadn't seen the first time. The turtles were also there, but Usopp noticed that they were one short of the amount they had originally been. Usopp couldn't waste any time by the pond admiring the animals, so he ignored what he saw and ventured deeper into the jungle.

He followed a path which he and Chopper had made the day before, though it was hardly visibly anymore due to all the new vines and trees that had started growing there and were closing up the openings which they had made. Usopp paid no heed to the fast growing jungle around him as it was the Grand Line, and after seeing everything that they had seen, a little weird jungle was nothing surprising. Even though the path was hard to follow, Usopp soon arrived at the place where Sanji had suddenly appeared before the two of them the day before to bring the news of Luffy's sudden illness. This was also why Usopp knew where to look for the white willow as Chopper had specifically said that they were likely to be in the area they hadn't had time to explore. Around the time it got hot enough for Usopp to shed his shirt, he made it to an area where the trees were shorter, but standing even closer together making it hard to move around. Usopp knew that this was what he had been searching for, so he hung his bag on a branch and started searching amongst all the plants. Usopp threaded carefully as the entire ground beneath him was covered in different plants and herbs, and accidentally stepping on the plant he was searching for wasn't what you could call the best start to curing Luffy.

Usopp had been slowly making his way through the small area, when he suddenly heard a noise. He immediately looked up to determine the threat and was ready to hide behind the nearest tree, when he saw a stag. It was not a full grown stag, but it was still quite big and it could probably trample Usopp if he didn't pay attention. However, the stag was stuck and couldn't move, so Usopp dared to venture closer. It had somehow managed to get it's antlers stuck in the trunk of a tree, which Usopp first found weird as a stag of this size would have broken its antlers if it tried to charge into a tree. But this was the Grand Line and Usopp had seen weirder, so he pulled out his knife and started to cut the stag free from tree. As Usopp worked, he noticed how there were two smaller trees lying on the ground and all the plants around them had been trampled. It wasn't unusual for animals to fight each other and stags were especially prone to fight for leadership, so Usopp thought of it as natural animal behaviour. It did not take Usopp long to free the stag and only a small piece of its right antler had been damaged, so Usopp was quite happy with his work. It seemed that the stag was too and licked his hand in gratitude before taking off.

Not long after having helped the stag, Usopp found what he was looking for and collected a good amount of it. He then made his way back to the Sunny, where he would give Chopper the herbs and then return to collect what he needed for the medicine. It took Usopp near two hours to make his way back, but just before he stepped unto the beach he looked to the Sunny and immediately he knew something was wrong. And to be fair anyone would know that something was up because the main sail was on fire. Usopp quickly pulled down his goggles and took a closer look without leaving his location. There was a battle on deck and about twenty enemies trying to take out Sanji who was defending the ship. None of the enemies looked strong, but Usopp knew that looks could be deceiving, Luffy being a good example. Usopp immediately climbed the nearest tree to gain some height and a better perspective and got ready to attack. Usopp thought a bit about how to angle his first attack, as he had the advantage of surprise. He tried to determine who was either the leader or the strongest, but in the end his hand got forced as Sanji was about to receive a deadly blow from behind, which he had no possibility of dodging as he was occupied with two swordsmen, who almost had him cornered. So Usopp shot the person who would have killed Sanji and the surprise attack allowed Sanji to take out a good five people as they all looked around to see where the attack had come from. Usopp then assisted Sanji and made sure that no one could sneak up on him, and together they managed to take out the enemies.

After the fall of the last enemy, Usopp ran to the deck of the Sunny where Sanji had collapsed in exhaustion. As much as Usopp wanted to ask what the hell had happened, he decided to tie up all the enemies first just so that they couldn't try anything. Sanji helped him when he was halfway through the job and knocked out all the people who either faked being unconscious or were just to injured to fight anymore. And then Usopp noticed something which he should have noticed as soon as he saw Sanji fighting. Where was Zoro? Zoro had actually been forced to stay on the ship in case things like this happened, so why was Sanji the only one fighting?

"Sanji..." Usopp said slowly and Sanji just looked to him, "Where is Zoro?" Sanji looked away again and tightened the rope binding their enemies.

"Chopper is tending to him..." was the answer and Usopp's eyes widened. Had Zoro fallen in battle? That wasn't right. Zoro wouldn't have lost to these guys, Sanji had only had problems because he had been outnumbered and a great deal of them had been swordsmen, which were people Sanji trouble fighting as he couldn't guard himself against blades. Zoro on the other hand should have been perfectly fine. Usopp left Sanji to finish the work and hurried to the Sick Bay.

Usopp found Chopper tending to an unconscious Zoro and for a minute he just stood there speechless. It was almost a perfect replica of Thriller Bark where Zoro had been unconscious for a good three days while Chopper had tended to him non-stop. Zoro was covered in bandages, some of which already needed to be changed, and the blood transfusion was well under way. Zoro looked like he was in extreme pain, and taking a quick glance at Luffy who lay awake in the bed next to him, Zoro seemed worse off than their actually dying captain, which spoke levels of what Zoro was going through.

"What..? How..?" Usopp muttered, not quite knowing what he wanted to ask and what answers he wanted.

"His injuries from Thriller Bark haven't yet healed..." Chopper said as he worked, "I knew they weren't healed, but... I didn't think that it was this bad..."

"Don't blame yourself!" Usopp spoke hurriedly, "He's still alive thanks to you, so don't blame yourself."

"I know, but... I shouldn't have let him fight! Sanji and I kept him here to ensure that he wouldn't get hurt any further, and yet, as soon as we were attacked... There was a really strong guy, a devil fruit user, and the others were stalling me and Sanji, so Zoro had to take him on, and... he just went beyond his limit to take him out, even though he got hurt!" Chopper was mumbling at this point, so Usopp calmed him down and gave him a hug.

"Chopper, you are our doctor. Your job is to heal us after we get injured. What we do to get injured is not your fault! Zoro and Luffy have both been through worse than this, and as long as you're here, they'll make it."

"You're right," Chopper sighed, "It's no use crying over spilt milk, I just have to patch them up. Did you get the white willow?" Usopp handed it to him and Chopper started mixing them into some weird paste, which Usopp decided that he wasn't going to question. Instead he sat down by Luffy's bed and removed the cloth on his forehead. He knew he should be going to look for the remaining ingredients, but it was hard to leave Luffy's side, especially now when Zoro was down for the count. Luffy seemed to understand his worry and smiled up at him and Usopp reached out to move some hair away from his sweaty forehead. His fever had definitely gone up and Usopp just prayed that the herbs he had brought back would help reduce some of that fever if just a little bit until all the ingredients had been collected. It was hard to see his captain and best friend in pain like this.

Usopp placed the now cool cloth on Luffy's forehead and whispered: "We'll save you, Luffy, I promise."

Luffy took his hand before he could leave and whispered a weak: "I know," before letting him go again. They smiled at each other and Usopp left to find the remaining ingredients on his list.

He passed Sanji on his way out and it occurred to Usopp that he hadn't gotten a good look on Sanji before now. He had deep cut over his right eye and there had been blood dripping down over his eyelids and it had left a trail all the way down to his chin. The blood was mostly dry now, and there were signs of Sanji having attempted to wipe some of the blood away which had left most of his visible face in a slightly red colour. There were also blood all over his clothes. Sanji had been wearing a pink, short sleeved shirt and a white vest, along with some white shorts. Usopp wondered whether his clothes would ever get clean again. The only comfort he could take in looking at all the blood was that most of it probably didn't belong to Sanji, but his enemies who had had the misfortune of getting kicked into oblivion. Still, there was more blood coming from Sanji than just the cut by his eye. He had small cuts up and down his arms and single long one that stretched from his right foot to his knee, the cut wasn't all that deep, but that didn't mean that it wasn't painful. From the way Sanji held himself, Usopp speculated that he had taken some damage to his ribs, and he could only hope that they weren't broken, just slightly damaged. Usopp promised himself to get his job done as fast as possible so that he could make it back and ease some of their workload. Even if there were no more enemy attacks, Sanji was still required to cook and they had to maintain their ship in case of a storm or other weird weather conditions. There was so much to do on the Sunny and right now the only one who wasn't injured was the doctor, and under no circumstances could Chopper be allowed to fall. That would surely be the end of them.

So Usopp set out, but unlike last time, he didn't know where to start looking. Chopper had said that his best bet was on the southern side of the island, which was a good four hour walk away, so even if he was lucky and found what he needed immediately, he still had to sacrifice eight hours, so he prayed that there would be no further incidents on the Sunny at least until someone came back.


A little more action in this chapter, still not much, but I promise there is a good fight scene coming up in next week's chapter :D I think I have made the foreshadowing in this chapter more obvious than in the first two, but again, let me know what you think I'm hinting at here.

As per usual, please fave it you like the story, follow for more and leave a review with your thuoghts. All the support is much appreciated.