"539."
"540..."
On the Dream Chaser, Goku was doing frog jumps while carrying a large rock on his back. He had found it on an island a few days ago specifically for weight training.
He circled the deck of the Dream Chaser leap after leap, fine beads of sweat forming on his forehead under the scorching sun.
Just then, Sanji's voice called out from the side, "Hey! Goku, Nami-san, it's time to eat!"
Mid-jump, Goku looked toward the ship's rail and saw Sanji standing on the second-floor balcony of the Baratie, looking his way.
"Got it! I'll be right there!"
Goku shouted back, quickly finishing his six-hundredth frog jump before setting the rock down.
"Carrying this is still a bit inconvenient," he muttered, staring at the stone.
With the rock on his back, his hands were restricted, preventing him from training his arms and legs simultaneously like he could with a turtle shell.
'I wish I still had Master Roshi's turtle shell.'
He wiped the sweat from his face and leaped across, landing on the Baratie next to Sanji.
"Sanji, I'm here!" he greeted with a bright smile.
To thank Goku for helping them defeat the enemy, and knowing he hadn't eaten his fill earlier, Zeff and the others decided to use their finest ingredients to prepare top-tier dishes for Goku and Nami.
That was why Sanji had come to find them.
"Where is Nami-san?"
Seeing that his goddess hadn't appeared, Sanji's eyes desperately scanned the Dream Chaser.
"She had something to do and left."
Goku answered casually, leaving the chef behind as he dashed toward the restaurant, his face full of anticipation for the feast.
"She left?"
Sanji blinked in surprise. Seeing that the Dream Chaser was indeed quiet and empty, he finally gave up and dejectedly walked toward the restaurant.
'Ah—Nami-san! My Nami-san!'
...
Inside the restaurant, as Goku pushed the door open and rushed in, Patty immediately pulled him to the far corner and sat him in one of the only two remaining chairs.
"Where's Miss Nami? Isn't she coming to eat?"
"Oh, she had something to do and left."
Hearing this, one of the nearby chefs immediately hid the final chair.
Goku blinked, not quite understanding what they were doing.
Seeing his confusion, Patty quickly explained, "Goku, just focus on your food for now. We're going to put on an act for Sanji to force him to go to the Grand Line with you."
Goku nodded half-comprehendingly, signaling he understood. He then buried his face in his food while curiously watching Patty and the others out of the corner of his eye, waiting to see what kind of play they were putting on.
A moment later, Sanji walked in alone.
Seeing every seat in the restaurant occupied, his expression didn't change in the slightest. He simply picked up his own plate of food and sat on the floor to eat.
Patty and the other chefs exchanged glances, all seeing the same confusion and surprise in each other's eyes.
'Hey, why isn't this brat saying anything? Shouldn't he be asking why we didn't save him a seat?'
'How should I know? Ask someone else.'
They communicated rapidly with their eyes.
'Whatever, we have other methods ready anyway. He definitely won't be able to stand this.'
'Right, if we insult his cooking, he'll definitely start yelling. You go first or should I?'
'I'll start.'
Patty made a show of scooping up a mouthful of the soup Sanji had prepared. After swallowing, he slammed his spoon onto the table.
"Pah! This soup is terrible. I have no idea how anyone could make something so foul."
Carne followed up with his own performance once Patty finished.
He lifted the soup to his nose, took a sniff, and frowned in disgust. "You're right. This soup reeks. It smells like piss."
The rest of the chefs joined in the mockery. "Ugh! It's awful! I feel like I'm drinking the worst soup in the world!"
They continued to belittle the dish while secretly watching Sanji's reaction. To their shock, Sanji remained completely unfazed, continuing to eat his own meal as if he were deaf to their insults.
The group looked at each other, wondering if Sanji had lost his mind.
Given Sanji's personality, he usually got incredibly upset if someone criticized something he had meticulously prepared, let alone such malicious insults. It wasn't like him at all not to jump up and start a fight.
At that moment, Zeff stopped eating and raised a hand to silence the group.
He stared at Sanji, who was quietly eating in the corner. His eyes flickered as if he had realized something.
Thus, Zeff, who was supposed to be the final act to break Sanji's mental defenses, didn't say a word. After signaling for silence, he simply went back to his meal.
For a while, the restaurant fell silent.
Goku, who had been watching the whole time, blinked in confusion. He didn't understand what they were doing.
'Acting? This is acting?'
Ten minutes later, Sanji finished his food. He wiped his mouth with a napkin, slowly lit a cigarette, and exhaled a cloud of smoke.
Then, he stood up, looked at Goku, and said calmly, "Hey, Goku. You said your ship was short-handed, right?"
Goku looked up and nodded. "Mm-hmm!"
"In that case, I'll join your crew as a chef. How about it?"
Goku froze for a second, then his eyes lit up. "You mean you're agreeing to go to the Grand Line with us?!"
"Why else would I say that?" Sanji replied with a question of his own.
Once confirmed, Goku didn't even care about his food anymore and jumped up immediately. "Woo-hoo! We finally have a third partner! Now we can finally head to the Grand Line!"
Patty and the other chefs watched this scene with their mouths agape, staring at each other in disbelief.
Wait, what? They hadn't even started forcing Sanji to leave yet. Why did he just agree?
Sanji gave them a slight smile and said, "Everyone, as you can see, I'm leaving."
"Also, your acting really sucks."
Patty and the others froze.
"You... you knew? Since when?"
"Heh, I heard everything while you were plotting. In the future, remember not to let people notice when you're conspiring."
After speaking with a hint of mockery, Sanji turned his gaze back to Goku.
"Goku, when do we set sail? By the way, you said Nami-san left for something. What's she doing?"
Goku shook his head. "I don't know exactly, but she told me to wait here and that she'd be back within two days."
"I see."
Sanji held the cigarette in his mouth, appearing deep in thought.
After a moment, he asked, "Do you know which direction she went?"
Hearing the question, Goku walked outside, looked around, and pointed. "That way. Nami left in that direction."
Sanji walked up behind him and looked where he was pointing.
A moment later, his eyes narrowed.
"That direction... if I remember correctly, that's the territory occupied by the Arlong Pirates."
"Hey, Goku. Can you tell me everything that happened from the start?"
Since Sanji was now a crewmate, Goku told him everything, including Nami needing to earn a hundred million Berries to finish something.
After listening, Sanji's brow furrowed deeply. With his sensitive nature and 'woman-intuition,' he felt that Nami was carrying an incredibly heavy burden, and that her departure this time might lead to danger.
And that danger likely came from the Arlong Pirates!
He shared his concerns with Goku, letting Goku decide whether to follow Nami's words and wait here, or to pursue her to ensure she wasn't in any danger.
Just as he expected, Goku didn't hesitate for a second.
"Nami might be in danger? Then we're going after her right now!" Goku said with a serious expression.
Even if he got scolded for not keeping his promise, he didn't care anymore.
Because to him, Nami's safety was his top priority!
[Reviews - Power St0nes - Comments are highly appreciated to keep me going.....(+50 chapters) patre0n.c0m/talecrafter]