Hey everyone! Sorry this chapter was so late, I just didn't have much inspiration or time for it… hopefully I can get the next one out sooner.

Sanji trudged quietly behind Zoro, trying to ignore the pain. His whole body hurt, but his hands were the worse. They throbbed, each time sending a horrible wave of pain over him. He imagined they must look terrible, but he couldn't see them because of the cloth Zoro had wrapped around them. He was glad. He didn't want to see them if they looked as bad as they felt.

Zoro had said that Chopper could fix them, but he wasn't so sure. It wasn't that he didn't believe in Chopper. No, he knew that if there were a way, Chopper would fix his hands perfectly. But Sanji wasn't sure there was a way to fix them. He had seen the hammer coming, felt it smash into his hands… He knew there were a lot more than just a few bones broken, and probably some nerve damage. He just wasn't sure if they could be fixed at all, no matter how good a doctor Chopper was.

Zoro didn't understand that… He thought anything was possible. Though most things were in their crew, maybe not this time. He stopped walking as a wave of dizziness passed over him and reached out to a nearby tree for support. Zoro also stopped when he noticed and turned to look at him with a questioning look.

Sanji removed his hand from the tree and took a step forward. Only to have his leg collapse under him and fall to the ground. He cursed mentally as his vision began to darken. He didn't even know if he would make it to the ship at this rate.

Zoro stopped waling when he heard Sanji's footsteps stop behind him. He turned around and look at the cook questioningly. Sanji didn't look like he was doing very well. He was even paler than when they'd first left the prison and blood was still seeping through Zoro's makeshift tourniquet albeit slowly. He watched as the cook tried to take a step forward only to fall to the ground. Zoro's eyes widened and ran over to Sanji, kneeling in front of him.

"Hey, wake up," He shook his shoulder. But it didn't work.

"Come on, we need to get back to the crew quickly," he tried again. When he still got no response, Zoro sighed in frustration, and hefted Sanji onto his back. They really did need to hurry if Sanji's condition was getting this bad. He began to walk in what direction he hoped the town was in.

Zoro found himself wondering again, how hard it would be for Chopper to fix Sanji's hands. While he had full faith in the little doctor, he knew the procedure couldn't be easy. Especially that one bone that even stuck out of his hand… Zoro shook the thought from his mind. Thinking about those things wouldn't help him. If anything, worrying would just slow him down.

He just needed to hurry through this area to the town, hopefully before night. Zoro knew he wouldn't be able to find his way in such a forested and mountainous area with no light, and Sanji's condition could grow much worse if they took another whole day to reach the crew.

He glanced up through the tree branched at the sky. The sun was shining brightly directly above him. He could probably get back to town in time if it was only mid-day. At least there was some good news that day…

Zoro sighed, still feeling angry about what had happened. He tried to suppress it, but it was difficult. He knew the marines weren't as perfect as the public thought they were, but he didn't expect something like that. Though he should have. Maybe then, he could have done something to prevent this from happening. Maybe if he'd just gotten away from the marines holding him back a little sooner. But there was no use dwelling on what could have been. What happened wasn't going to change. He just needed to deal with the results.

Luffy sat on Sunny's head, staring out at the town. The ship was unusually silent and everyone seemed a little on edge. Ussop quietly approached Luffy, fiddling with his hands.

"Uh, Luffy, do you think we should go look for them?" he asked nervously. It had been two days since they had seen Zoro and Sanji. He was sure something must have happened; otherwise, they would have been back by now.

"No."

"What!?" Ussop's eyes widened in shock.

"But what if something happened? Luffy-"

"They'll be back," Luffy said, complete assurance in his voice. Ussop sighed, plopping down on the deck behind Luffy. He didn't know how their captain could have so much faith, and then make him feel that same faith with just a few words. It was uncanny but comforting at the same time.

"Hey Luffy! I think I see them!" Brook waved down at them from the crow's nest. Luffy stretched out his arms and flung himself up to the skeleton. He looked to where Brook was pointing, and saw them emerge from the forest. But something didn't seem right…

"Chopper!"

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