Secrets of Blood

What's Wrong With Luffy?

Enjoy~

It had been a day since they left the island that left Luffy different in some way. Luffy knew something was different, and he didn't like it. His food still tasted rancid, all except chocolate, which he snuck from everyone's (Usopp and Chopper's) candy stashes. It was quite obvious who it was, since Luffy was now obsessive about chocolate. He even punched Sanji when he refused him desert, which pissed Sanji off so much he kicked Luffy in the side, throwing him out onto the deck once again, thankfully the sun was down. He hadn't gotten burned again, but for some reason Luffy was afraid of the light and going outside. The crew noticed this.

Zoro was the only one who had been expecting strange behavior. He had been keeping an eye on Luffy, and didn't miss that after every meal, Luffy would run to the bathroom after slowly and casually walking out of the kitchen and throw up the food he ate. It was strange that Luffy hadn't looked bothered by this; no dark circles under his eyes, or losing weight.

The crew gathered on the deck across from the entrance to the interior of the ship, where Luffy was, watching the fish in the aquarium. If he was too scared to go outside in the sunlight and see the sea, then he would stay in there and pretend he was looking at the it from below. Too bad no sea kings could fit in the tank.

Nami had been the one who asked for a crew conference to discuss their concern for their captain. Zoro was the only one not standing tensely. He was leaning against the railing, like he does when he naps. He felt like he didn't need to be part of this conversation in the first place, thinking he'd noticed all the changes by himself already. Robin looked at him strangely. Zoro should be very concerned, although he was good at hiding his emotions.

"I think something is wrong. He looks sick all the time. He eats, but not as enthusiastically. And Sanji's food still tastes great," Nami said.

"Nami-swan is so beautiful when she compliments my food!"

"And why is he so obsessed with chocolate?" Usopp asked in a deadpan voice. "It's weird. He's always liked sweets, but this is ridiculous." The others nodded. It was indeed ridiculous.

"And he rarely comes outside anymore, at least in the day. Should Chopper maybe check his eyes? Maybe the light is bothering him," Franky offered.

Zoro was the only person not contributing to the conversation. He didn't mention the biggest problem, which was the breathing stopping, and Luffy's heart not beating. If Luffy didn't want to tell them what was wrong, it was his choice and Zoro wouldn't say anything, although part of him thought Luffy himself hadn't even noticed anything was different...

"He doesn't even come out to play with us anymore!" Chopper cried loudly. The group shushed him, even though they were in a completely different part of the ship from where Luffy was.

"At least he plays with you guys inside, so something is the same," Sanji added to the conversation.

Robin looked over to Zoro who was sitting against the wall. "Swordsman-san, have you noticed anything strange?" Zoro replied that no, he hadn't noticed anything other than what they had already said. Robin narrowed her eyes, slightly suspicious. "He's a convincing liar," she thought. But she didn't pry; she would watch over how Zoro and Luffy were acting without anyone noticing, especially not Zoro.

Luffy continued to throw up his food, which was getting old quickly. He'd rather just not eat, since losing the food seemed to not be hurting him in any way, but again, he didn't want his crew to know. Chopper would obsess about examining him and Sanji would be furious about the waste of food. He also knew his crew was noticing his strange behavior, especially how he never went outside anymore except to go to bed at night. Around two days after the crew's conversation, all the lying caught up to him in one act.