A/N: This story was really just a way for me to practice writing scenes like this. It started as a short drabble and just sort of evolved into this big thing. And I can't tell whether I should be happy with it or not...

"Is it really worth it?" Ludwig sneered, his face dangerously close to Usopp's own. Rank, hot breath washed across the sniper's face, making his stomache curl in on itself. "Loosing your life for them, those fools, is it worth it?"

Usopp didn't answer him.

The Marine General's hand grabbed his chin, nails digging into bruised skin, and jerked the sniper's face back towards his own, making him look him in the eyes. "I said," He hissed out. "is it worth it?"

"I'm sorry Usopp."

The words were barely loud enough to be called a whisper but they were there. Hidden underneath the noise of the waves crashing beside them and the wind howling, covered up by the jeers of the mermen surrounding the two nakama and by the stifling pressure in the air; squeezing them and stopping their words from being said.

"I have to."

He could feel Nami shaking behind him as she slid one hand up to his chest, the other hand clenched the knife she'd been holding to his throat even tighter. One of the mermen laughed a cold, cruel sound and then suddenly the knife was heading straight towards his heart.

"Please forgive me"

Suddenly there was blood dripping down his front but it wasn't his. Her hand, knife buried deep into the back of her palm, had kept it from being his. Usopp's breath caught in his throat and suddenly all of the mermen were cheering, cheering for their 'Nami'.

"It's worth it, even if you don't."

He was flying through the air, barely able to catch a glimpse of his former-navigator, before he hit the water. Pain shot through his body as the cold waves tugged him under. Usopp's first impulse was to struggle, to flail and try to get to the surface and breath. But he didn't. Because, even if nothing had really been said between the two, he'd heard the unspoken.

He'd heard what Nami was fighting for, what she was trying to save, and he wasn't going to take it from her.

When Usopp didn't answer him, Ludwig slammed the back of his free hand into the side of his face. Pain shot up his neck as the Marine's grip kept his head from moving and laced it's way into his face. "Ngh..."

"C'mon, little boy, answer me when I speak to you!" Ludwig growled out. Letting go of his prisoner's face, the General lifted him up by the front of his torn and dirty overalls. Usopp's hands were bound behind his back, tethered together by a thick blood-coated rope, and he stumbled at the sudden foreward motion. A grin spread across his face, demented and crazed, at the pain-filled whimper escaping from the beaten man in front of him.

Usopp bit down on his bottom lip, hard enough that he could taste blood come from the chapped skin, in an attempt to keep any more noises from escaping him. His right eye was swollen shut, the other crusted half-closed with blood, but he could still make out the nasty sneer on his captors face.

It made him sick.

"Get her out of here, Usopp! Now!" Sanji's voice was a loud roar compared to the relative silence of the battlefield. Most of the men in their immidiate area were either knocked out, dead, or on their way there.

Which would normally give one pause for thought as to why Sanji was so upset. One look to their west though, in the direction of the town they had been shopping at, would give the answer. An army of Marines, atleast fifty in strength, were heading towards them. Guns raised, swords drawn, and a setting sun painting them all red.

It was a terrifying sight. A horrible sight. It made Usopp's blood curdle. And it was just the three of them out here too, himself, Sanji, and Nami; and all three of them were hurt. Nami wasn't even conscious anymore. Instead, her limp form had been draped over one of Usopp's shoulders; the sniper struggeling to keep them both up and standing despite the fact that one of his legs had been hurt.

"Usopp! Move her back to the ship, now!" Sanji barked out. There was blood staining one side of his face, matted into his hair and dripping into his eyes but Usopp didn't think that he'd ever been more serious.

Still, he couldn't just leave him here on his own. Not while he was hurt. "S-sanji, I ca-can't leave you out here! Y-you'll die!"

The look Sanji gave him was murderous. "Well then, it'll be worth it, won't it?" A pause as he pulled a ciggarette out of his pocket and turned back towards the oncoming onslaught. "Get here out of here."

And Usopp ran. Not just to get his injured crew-mate to the ship, to get her help, but to find help for the man he'd left alone.

"Don't ignore me!" Ludwig roared. With an angry grunt, he hurled the skin-and-bones boy across the room. Usopp's body hit the stone wall of the cave-turned-jail and the sound of breaking bones briefly filled the air.

A strangled scream, more air than actual noise, forced it's way through Usopp's lips. Fire shot up his side, burning and twisting it's way into his lungs. Usopp could feel the skin on his side pull taunt as it started to bruise and swell.

A leather-covered foot dug it's way into Usopp's stomache as Ludwig let out another enraged snarl. The acidic taste of vomit crawled up his throat, accompied by the copper taste of blood, as his stomache clenched and he started hacking. The sad thing was, all that came up was a few mouthfuls of red-tinged liqued and he was left dry-heaving on the floor.

"You're bleeding." The accusation was simple, words calm, despite the seriousness they implied.

Weights clattered to the floor with a grunt. Red bled onto white, staining and ruining and promising a lecture from Chopper later. Zolo didn't seem to care. Actually, it was obvious that Zolo didn't care. He never did.

Usopp cared though. Usopp always cared. So, whenever he could, he would sit out and watch Zolo. Make sure the older man didn't push himself too much, that there was going to be something left of him when the others woke up and he wouldn't just be a mass of white-stained-red on the floor.

"It's worth it." The response was simple, words calm, despite everything that they meant.

So Usopp settled himself down and watched as the swordsman struggled to pick the weights back up again.

Another kick slammed into him, this time hitting his chest and not his gut, and Usopp found the hacks turning into gasps for air. In the next second, a shoe was on the back of his head shoving his face into the floor.

Ludwig sneered down at the boy he held to the ground, grinding the toe of his boot against his head, and laughed. "C'mon little boy, don't be shy. Answer my question." The last word was accentuated with yet a third kick, this time to the side of Usopp's head.

A pained whimper left the sniper's mouth as his head snapped back, slamming into the wall behind him. Black splotches appeared in front of his eyes and vaguely he could make out the feeling of blood sliding down his face; whether it was from where he'd been kicked, where his head had hit the wall, or when he'd been coughing earlier though, he couldn't tell. For all he knew, it could be all three. Actually, it probably was all three.

They didn't realize he was there, Usopp was sure of it. No one knew that he was there, crouched behind one of Nami's tangerine tree's with his sketch book in his lap. He'd been trying to draw an image from earlier, when he'd seen Nami carefully tending to the plants, but then Chopper and Franky had shown up.

And they were talking.

And they didn't know he was there.

And Usopp couldn't get himself to stop listening.

"Why're you doing this, Franky?"

"Doing what, Gorilla-reigndeer Bro?"

"Staying with us?"

"..."
"I mean, it's just, before..."

"I know Bro, but..."

"I-it's okay if you don't want to tell me! I was just wondering..."

"...I stay 'cause it's worth it. That's all."

"...Yeah...Yeah, me too."

Taking a few steps back from his prisoner, his prey, Ludwig let a predatory grin settle on his face. He knew that his men had been trying to get the navigator of the crew, someone that the Straw Hat's would be dead without, but he'd been quite happy with the man they brought to him instead. Someone easy to break. Atleast, that's what he'd thought to begin with. Instead, this marksman was proving to be quite resilent. A lot more fun than he'd expected him to be.

In one swift motion the burly General leaned down and wrapped his hand in the boys matted hair, yanked him up onto shaky legs, and kneed him in the stomache. Usopp let out a pathetic gurgle, blood spurting from his mouth and choking him as he tried to bring the air back into his lungs, and crumpled down to the stone floor.

Masks; to cover up feelings and longings, to hide hopes and dreams, to stop others from seeing the pain and misery and show them only what they want to see.

"I know it's you under there, Longnose-san." Robin cast the masked man an amused look. It was obvious as to who it was, the mask he wore did little to hide his true identity. The fact that she had never seen someone with the same nose as his was just another small clue.

Across from her, where he was perched on the very edge of his seat, Usopp curled around to clench the cushioned water-train seat, his head bowed slightly. A heavy silence filled the air, one that Robin felt no need to break. If the man wanted to interrupt on what was no doubt her last chance of thinking her life over on her own then he could break the quiet himself.

Only, when he finally did speak, his voice held an empty tone. "I'm not Usopp, Robin. I'm Sogeking."

One corner of her mouth twitched up in amusement. "Sogeking, eh? Well, Mr. Sogeking, what is it you want with me? Or are you just a good-natured hero trying to cheer up a damsel-in-distress on her last days?" It was obvious what answer the kind-hearted man would giver her.

"I've come with a question from my dear friend, Usopp."

Or maybe not. Her mouth dropped back down into the thin line it had been earlier. "Really now? And what might this question be?"

Another silence. "Usopp would like to know if it was worth it. Did leaving them get you what you wanted? Were you able to accomplish what you were trying to get done?" Darkened eyes leered out from behind the deep green and blue mask, trying to peer past her defences and see into her soul as he spoke. "He wants to know...If you regret it."

"No, Mr. Sogeking, I don't regret it. And you can let Longnose-san know that. Infact, you can go ahead and tell the rest of the crew that too. Let them know not to bother coming to Enise Lobby. I don't want them too." And she meant it. Robin meant every word that had just left her lips with every fiber of her being. She didn't want them to come save her, she didn't deserve to be saved.

Across from her, the masked man stood up and moved across the small compartment in stiff strides. He paused at the window, open only from his entrance into the military gaurded train, and cast her a look over his shoulder. "I'll let him know, Robin. And you should know this...The Straw Hat crew is already on their way after you. Whether you want it or not."

Slipping his arms outside of the window, Usopp let his gaze fall to the ocean speeding past them. The dark blue of the waves and the milky white of the foam all merged together to form a dizzying mess. "He'd also like you to know that he is no longer a member of said crew so, though he wishes he could do something to help you, he's not able too."

"Now all of this could have been avoided, little boy. But I'm sure you realize this now, don't you?" The sneer on Ludwig's face deepened as he watched the sniper try to struggle to his feet. The weakling couldn't even get his arms, shaking and thin, to lift himself up onto his knees correctly.

"You realize that if you had just told me what I wanted to hear, I wouldn't have had to do this to you." As Ludwig spoke, he reached down and grasped the sniper's nose. With a hard jerk, he yanked the boy to his feet. There was an awful snapping noise as the nose, already broken several times since he'd been captured, broke in half again.

Usopp let out a strangled howl, blood bubbling out of his mouth. His legs shook, trembled really but not out of fear anymore, before giving way beneath him. He was stopped from hitting the ground, however, by a hand several times larger than his own wrapping around his throat.

"Now, I'll give you one last chance. Answer my question." There was a pause, one that sent chills down Usopp's battered spine. "Or I'll kill you. Tell me how to take down the rest of your crew."

"I don't get it Luffy." Usopp let out a sigh as he dropped down next to the bandaged boy, legs neatly tucking themselves underneath of him.

Beside him, Luffy tilted his head to the side in confusion. "What don't you get, Usopp?"

"I don't get you, Luffy. I mean, you're always risking your neck for people that don't know you." The 'for us' was tacked on the end of the sentence, silently. Usopp ran a hand through his hair before continuing. "I mean, I know why you do it. I just don't get it...but that doesn't really make sense, does it?"

Luffy was silent for a few minutes, eyes locked onto the endless blue in front of him. Then, as a gust of wind blew his hair away from the bandages wrapped around his head, he let out a chuckle. "I know what you mean, Usopp! And the answer is that it's just worth it. That's it."

Simple as that, but Usopp didn't get it.

And just like that, it all made sense. Usopp tilted his head back as far as he could, the grip around his throat just tight enough to make breathing difficult for him, and sent the nastiest glare he could at the Marine holding him. With the dirt coating his skin and the blood running down into his eyes, it was a rather good glare to. One filled with all the hate that he'd ever felt, and all the determination he'd ever been able to muster.

With all the strength he had left in his body, Usopp spat a mouthful of blood at Ludwig. The blood hit the Marine on his face, dripping down his cheek in a disgusting pattern. "I'll die before I tell you anything."

And, for the first time, there was no stutter to his words. There was no stammer, no fear of dieing, no fiery determination and boastful lie. It was just the truth. Because, right then and there, he was willing to let himself die to keep the rest of his crew safe.

It was worth it.

It was truly worth it.

The blackness suddenly creeping into his vision as the hand around his neck tightened, tighter and tighter and tighter, was worth it.

He was ready to die. For the first time in his life, he had accepted it. But then there was a scream and blood sprayed onto his face as he was dropped to the floor. Ludwig stumbled backwards with a pained howl, left hand flying to grasp at the arm that had been holding him; blood was pooling from a long cut that ran from his wrist to his elbow.

Usopp hit the ground with a thud. Pain laced through his body as he was jolted, bones scraping bones and skin tearing as it met the ground, and he let out a gurgled groan. His vision had gone hazy, breathing suddenly became a lot more difficult, and he couldn't make out much more in front of him except for a blur of black and yellow and green and red and then...nothing.

The next thing that he was aware of, beneath the under layer of pain that he had almost gotten used to, was that he was no longer laying on the hard stone floor. Instead, Usopp could feel something soft and warm, like a bed, under him. But that didn't make sense. In the entire time he'd been a captive, which he thought was around a week but could have been closer to a month or three, he hadn't seen any sign of a bed. When he wasn't in that God-awful cave then he was strung up by his wrists in some cell on a higher level. The thought of the rusted shackles sent a twinge through his wrists, which in turn sent the rest of his arms a flame with pain.

Letting out a small half-whimper, hoarse and quiet coming from his sore throat, Usopp forced his eyes open. If he was going to die, he wanted to see who was going to kill him. The only thing that he could make out though was a hazy yellow and black blob; one that sent a comforting feeling coursing through him.

As his vision cleared, revealing that the golden-yellow color was hair and the face of the person it belonged to held a kind expression, Usopp felt himself relaxing into his bed. It looked like he was already dead, if the fact that there was an angel leaning over him was anything to go by. Pain must follow a person into the afterlife.

"Usopp?" The angel questioned.

It was odd but Usopp swore that he recognized that voice. There was a heavy fog over his mind still that kept him from placing it. Blinking hard in an attempt to clear his vision the rest of the way, Usopp opened his mouth and tried to force out a question. His throat was too dry to get much more than a grunt out though.

Suddenly, there was a gentle hand on his back pushing him up and a cup pressed against his lips. "Here, drink this."

Swallowing the cool, crisp, clean water in a few gulps, Usopp waited until he had been lowered back onto the bed to look at the angel again. Only to come to the conclusion that it was no angel, but Sanji; perched in a chair next to his bed with what could be classified as nothing but concern on his face. "S-sanji?"

"How you feelin' Usopp?" The blond questioned, voice thick with something that Usopp couldn't quite place. But then, everything was still sort of fuzzy so he figured he'd just blame it on that. The same thing went with that horrid thought a moment ago, a trick of the florescent lights above him that had made Sanji's hair glow in an almost golden way, and a lack of sleep to boot.

And Usopp would never tell anyone that he'd actually thought Sanji was an angel, come to finally bring him to see his mother once more.

"...Fine, I g-guess..." Usopp rasped as he forced his mind back to the present. It was obvious that he was in the med-bay of the Going Sunny. What wasn't obvious was how he'd gotten there. Or what had happened to the awful man he'd been in the cell with, or the other prisoners scattered about the island that Usopp had seen in passing once or twice; all of them broken looking, as though there was nothing they wanted more than to finally be put out of their misery. "H-how'd I get here?"

Deft hands pulled a cigarette and lighter from his pocket, setting the smoke ablaze with a practiced ease. It was the only thing that Sanji could think of doing to keep his hands from so blatantly shaking. "We brought you here, you idiot."

A small 'o-oh' drifted from the bed in front of him as Usopp attempted to burrow himself deeper into the cocoon of blankets around him. It obviously wasn't the answer he was looking for.

Sanji took his time taking a drag off his cigarette, relishing the way the smoke felt as it crept through his lungs, before delving any deeper into his explanation. "We been lookin' for you since that bastard dragged you off. It took a while to get an idea of where you'd been taken, too."

Usopp gave a small, feeble nod. He didn't really have the focus to pay attention to a detailed story so Sanji's brief explanation worked great for him. He was sure that he could get Luffy to tell him all about it later, too. Whenever later was. Honestly, Usopp didn't really care at that moment. All that mattered to him was that he was safe and warm; as content as he could be with half of his body covered in a grotesque array of bruises and cuts.

And it was fine for Sanji, too, because he didn't think he could explain what went on after Usopp was captured even if he tried. Charismatic was not something he could claim to be, at least not when it came to retelling a tale of some sort, and he didn't think he'd be able to find the right words.

Describing the horror and the anger that they had all felt would be impossible.

Trying to explain away the worry and the guilt; because if someone else had been there to help and it wasn't just Usopp and Nami getting those groceries, then the sniper wouldn't have been taken.

Working out how to say that they were all starting to think Usopp to be dead; it had been weeks and, honestly, they didn't think that Usopp had it in him to hold himself together during full out Marine torture.

The main reason that he stayed quiet though was because if he did manage to say all of that then he would have to tell Usopp that when he first walked into the dungeon he was being held him, just as he was spitting into the face of someone so much stronger than he was, Sanji had mistaken him for a demon.

It was the horrible lighting and the blood and dirt all over Usopp, but that was all that Sanji could think. That it wasn't really his friend there, because Usopp just couldn't do something like that live through something like that say something like that, but a demon that had taken his place.

Those words would never leave his lips, forever locked away in a dormant corner of his mind to try and be forgotten; even if that image was all Sanji saw whenever he closed his eyes.

So they both sat in a comfortable silence, one of Sanji's hand gingerly resting on top of one of Usopp's, despite the fact that Sanji had been instructed to get Chopper the minute that Usopp woke up.

At that moment, the warmth of companionship they could both feel was worth the scolding they would both no doubt get from the smallest member of the crew later.

It was worth it and so was everything that had happened to bring them there.