Chapter Text
After another adventure on an island full of amazing animals and a pursuit by the Marines, the Straw Hat crew, having stocked up on everything they needed, set sail further along the Grand Line.
And even though they managed to leave the island virtually unscathed, it must be said that the Marines were no pushovers. After all, this was the New World, so no one was surprised by that anymore.
It was already evening, and everyone was waiting for Sanji to call them to dinner. The trio consisting of Chopper, Usopp, and Luffy, who were fishing on the Sunny's railing, was particularly impatient.
When Sanji was carrying drinks to the lovely ladies, he even praised these blockheads, as they had caught a rather rare fish. Laughing loudly and shouting their wishes for what dishes they wanted to see on their plates, they handed it over to the cook.
Sanji, with a smile, carried the fresh sablefish into the galley, running through his mind how best to prepare it.
And so, when the long-awaited words "Food's ready!" echoed from the kitchen, everyone instantly rushed to take their seats at the table.
— Here you go, dear Nami-san, — Sanji gallantly pulled out a chair for her with a bow.
— Thank you, Sanji-kun, — the girl smiled gratefully and sat down.
When Zoro walked in, the cook merely followed the swordsman's movements with furrowed brows, but said nothing. Besides, it was best to forget about that marimo, especially with such exquisite ladies nearby.
Everyone dug into the food; Brook ate while playing a tune on his violin, rubber arms zipped all across the table, and the rest defended their portions with forks. Laughter and stories from the ship flowed in an endless stream, and smiles never left their faces. The clatter of dishes and dropping forks filled the air.
Chopper and Luffy, having turned into giant balls, tried in vain to reach for one more meatball. Everyone praised Sanji's cooking.
After a while, Chopper, with chopsticks in his nose, was already doing his usual dance to Brook's cheerful music. Zoro was on his third bottle of sake, and when Luffy raised a toast to their victory on the last island, he raised his cup along with the rest.
The girls discussed plans for tomorrow and other everyday matters without getting too involved in the loud celebration. Franky, standing up on his chair, shouted "SUPER!!" enjoying himself with the others.
Meanwhile, Jinbe calmly sipped his alcohol, enjoying the fact that he had ultimately joined this crew.
When the feast came to an end, everyone wandered off to their quarters, except for Brook, who remained on watch, and Sanji, who was prepping ingredients for the morning.
—
It was already late at night, and the only nearby light sources were the bulbs in the Sunny's crow's nest and the faint glow from the women's quarters.
The guys were already snoring in their hammocks, which swayed on the waves to the rhythm of the Sunny, lulling them to sleep. Usopp was mumbling about a new heroic deed, while Luffy was chasing a piece of meat in his dream, muttering that he would catch it.
This day was ordinary for the Straw Hats, cheerful and loud — just as they lived most of their days on the Grand Line.
—
Sanji woke up earlier than anyone else, already busy making breakfast and preparing coffee for Robin-chan.
The smell wafting from the kitchen seeped all the way to the sleeping quarters; it was the aroma of fried eggs, tangerine sauce, and, of course, meat.
The first crew members were already awake and running out of the cabin onto the deck, eager to find out when breakfast would be ready. Surprisingly, the last one to wake up was Luffy.
Breakfast, as always, was top-tier, and it seemed that with every new dish, the cook reached a new level of culinary artistry. Which was actually true.
Breakfast wasn't too lavish since there were no special occasions, meaning food needed to be rationed in case of emergencies.
During the meal, Sanji stepped out of the galley so as not to ruin the aroma of the food with cigarette smoke.
He flicked his lighter, which produced a light metallic sound, brought it to his cigarette, and took a long drag. The smoke entering his lungs brought tranquility and those precious seconds of peace that couldn't last too long on this ship.
He had started smoking early — when he was barely ten years old. Sanji chuckled to himself, thinking about how many nerve cells this habit had saved him. Now, every time he pulled out his lighter, he could also see a precious item, which was another purely positive side to smoking.
When he was finished, he put out the butt with a Haki-infused hand and headed back to the galley.
The others had already scattered to mind their own business, except for the charming orange-haired lady who was drinking tea. Sanji first looked at her, and then at the table.
— Oh, Nami-san, I see there's still food left, — Sanji headed to the table to start clearing the dishes.
— Yeah, Luffy said something about "we gotta leave some for Sanji," — she laughed softly. — Surprising, isn't it?
His face took on a melancholic shade.
— Ah, and here I thought my lovely Nami-san left it for me, — he theatrically pressed a hand to his chest, sighing dramatically. — My heart is broken into a thousand pieces!
Nami ignored the cook's performance. Over time, such scenes had become something easily tuned out.
— Sanji-kun, we'll soon be passing by a summer island with a severe climate zone, so prepare something refreshing to your taste.
Sanji's gloom instantly vanished, his face brightened up at once, and hearts started dancing around him.
— Of course, Nami-swaaan! I'll make whatever you wish in the best possible way!
The cook cleared all the dishes in a flash and carried them to the sink. He'd probably still need to ask Zoro to help...
Nami gave a grateful nod and went out onto the deck to join the others, wanting to check the ship's course.
—
The sun was already beating down mercilessly, and there was hardly any wind. But the navigator's intuition suggested it would appear soon.
Today, even the guys weren't in the mood for fishing. They settled in the shade, diligently constructing a new device.
Zoro was in the Sunny's crow's nest, and although sweat was pouring off him in streams, he continued lifting weights. What saved them was that most of the windows were shut, so it wasn't as hot inside as it was on the deck.
The heat managed to stop even the hyperactive captain, who, despite stopping his running around on the deck, still continued to sit on the Sunny's head under the sun's rays.
His straw hat covered his eyes from the light, and by all appearances he was dozing, which was a fairly common thing for him.
When the temperature was reaching thirty degrees and everyone was literally melting in the sun, Sanji came out with a tray. He quickly approached the sun loungers where the girls were relaxing and presented them with cooling drinks.
He was wearing summer shorts, a floral print shirt, and sunglasses. Nami and Robin were dressed in swimsuits, and Sanji was delighted with these outfits, though he still tried to maintain the standard of a gentleman.
Brook was still sleeping off his night watch; however, such a sight would have instantly washed away all his fatigue.
Sanji handed over the glasses with a bow.
— Ladies first, — the girls thanked him, bestowing happy smiles that made him melt.
When the rest of the guys started demanding their drinks, Sanji merely sighed with sadness.
— They'll be right up, but don't even think I'm bringing them to you! Get them yourselves! — And he trudged back to finish prepping the portions for the rest.
The warm sunbeams warmed her skin, and cool gusts of wind combined with the drink brought unutterable delight. Nami was in a rare good mood.
Looking at her captain, who was roasting on the lion's head, she decided she would give him a small break and share her drink with him while Sanji was busy in the kitchen.
She walked up to the top of the Sunny's head.
— Hey, Luffy! — The boy responded only when Nami called him a second time, after which he turned to her.— Hm? — He tilted his head slightly to the side.
Nami extended her hand with the drink.
— Want some? — Luffy's reaction was predictable.
— Yeeeees!!
— And keep in mind: take a drop more than a sip and you'll instantly find yourself overboard, plus two million Belly will be added to your debt! — Nami threatened him with a gesture, a sly smile appearing on her face.
Luffy swallowed hard right away.
— Okay, okay! — He took the drink from her hands, making physical contact.
Nami shuddered slightly from the surprise, as Luffy's hand was practically ice-cold.
When the guy started taking a sip that was "a bit more," her hand found the captain's head on its own, leaving a large bump on his crown as a present. Luffy merely chuckled in response.
— So delicious!!
An idea flashed in Nami's head. She shook the drink a few times.
— Luffy, do you want more? — The captain nodded vigorously. — Then...
Nami grabbed Luffy by the arm and pulled him behind her toward the sun loungers. Robin was lying on one of them, reading yet another history book.
— Robin! I just figured out how we can cool off! — She smiled eerily, while Luffy stood beside her in confusion, blinking his eyes and waiting to get his drink.
Meanwhile, Nami quickly ran over to Usopp, snatched the water balloon he had just finished making (if Usopp had started protesting, he would have immediately gotten a fist to the head), and threw it at Luffy.
He got wet, and Nami quickly dragged him into the shade.
After that, with an unpleasant creak of rubber and some other tearing sound, she stretched both of his arms and tied them at the base of the umbrella.
— Voila! — The captain's arms were already quite cold on their own, and with water on top, they became a wonderful cooling element.
Robin glanced over Nami's setup and, with a light chuckle, touched Luffy's arm; he didn't mind, as he was already holding the straw of the drink that Nami had honestly given him in his teeth.
— Nami, that's very creative. — The brunette laughed, appreciating the usefulness of what Nami had constructed.
What was even more pleasant was that Luffy wasn't warming up and remained cold, so after a while, the others also wanted to touch something refreshing.
However, such a privilege was granted only to the reindeer, who handled the heat poorly. Robin simply couldn't resist the cuteness of those eyes; cute things were perhaps her only weakness.
When they left the island's climate zone, it became cool again, and Luffy was safely untied, after which he rushed to the kitchen for snacks.
As he ran, he noticed that part of one arm didn't obey him right away and didn't snap back immediately, but it passed in the very next second, so he didn't give it much thought.
Terribly hungry, he burst into the galley, where Sanji's silhouette could be seen in the evening twilight.
— Sanji-i-i-i! Give me food!! — The captain burst into the kitchen, literally collapsing onto the edge of the table.
— At least wipe your nose, you black hole, — the cook, without turning around, flipped a portion of fried meat in the skillet.
Despite his words, he placed two plates of snacks in front of the captain to make the wait until dinner a bit more pleasant.
After Totto Land, Sanji had become more lenient toward Luffy, though not enough to treat him on par with the ladies (he would never reach that level).
It brought him pleasure to see the happy face of his captain turn even happier and more joyful time after time. This time was no exception.
Luffy snatched a sandwich from the plate and stuffed it into his mouth; he hesitated for a second, and then, as if nothing had happened, his face lit up with the happiest smile.
— Sanji-i!! This is amazing!! Thank you! — After this sentence, the cook melted into a smile, laughing quietly and continuing to prepare dinner.
Luffy grabbed the plates, which were still full of sandwiches with various fillings, and ran toward the kitchen exit, continuing to laugh.— I'm gonna go share with the others! — Sanji shifted his gaze to the door that had already closed, noting to himself that this was the second time he had heard Luffy talk about sharing food with someone.
"Nami-san probably taught him a good lesson," Sanji thought with a smile.
—
Dinner was top-notch. This time, Chopper ate more food than the rest, possibly beating the rubber captain for the first time.
When Sanji pointed this out, the reindeer immediately threw his tiny hands—small compared to his body—into the air with a triumphant, enthusiastic shout.
— Hahaha, Chopper, looks like you're becoming a serious competitor! — Luffy laughed merrily, holding a hot drink in his hands.
A bit earlier, he had asked Sanji for something warm, and the cook had made him fruit tea. It helped warm up and restore mobility to his slightly numb fingers.
After all, cold rubber didn't stretch well, which wasn't very pleasant and slowed down certain actions.
—
A few hours later, everyone was already sleeping in their hammocks. From the side, it might have seemed that these people were calm even when awake, but that wasn't true at all.
Some were snoring, someone was sniffling or rocking their bed. And someone, on the contrary, slept quietly, without making a single sound.
From these tiny details, a cozy picture was formed out of people who valued each other.
Luffy didn't notice how he woke up with a faint smile on his lips. He blinked a few times. Had he not closed his eyes at all?..
That must have been it, because the whites of his eyes stung unpleasantly, and no matter how tightly Luffy held his eyes shut, the uncomfortable feeling wouldn't go away.
Added to this was an ache in his arms. It was strange, considering he was made of rubber and shouldn't feel pain from ordinary impacts against objects.
The guy rolled onto his side. His clothes unstuck reluctantly, as if something sticky wouldn't let them peel off. He pondered, trying to remember who was on watch tonight; it seemed to be Robin.
Without second thoughts, Luffy grabbed his hat and headed to the crow's nest. Robin was on watch alone. Her devil fruit made life easier in many aspects on the ship, including this one.
The archaeologist greeted the captain with a light smile, setting her book aside.
— Luffy? — She was surprised that the captain wasn't in the cabin with the rest, but wandering around the ship. — I didn't expect to see you here.
— Yeah, I just woke up by accident and thought maybe you were lonely! — He yawned widely and walked closer to Robin.
His eyes were still sleepy, and his movements were slightly sluggish. The rubber in some places was longer than in others, making it awkward to control his limbs.
— Ah, that's very sweet of you, Captain. Would you like me to read something to you? — Luffy sat down on the sofa next to Robin and nodded.
Sometimes the softness of the furniture on the Sunny reminded him of the clouds on Skypiea, making lying on them even more pleasant.
Robin picked up another book and began reading a story about adventures in search of treasure. Luffy listened enthusiastically for a few minutes, after which he lay down completely on the sofa, though he didn't fall asleep.
Robin spawned several hands and covered the captain with a blanket. From time to time, he fidgeted and rolled over.
The story the archaeologist was reading came to him in fragments; he didn't fully understand how the heroes got to the island, who they fought, or how they obtained the gold.
Falling asleep and waking up by turns, he heard Robin's voice, but it was as if he couldn't comprehend what exactly the story was about.
She called Luffy by his name several times when she saw that his eyes had been half-open for quite a while. Or did she? Maybe he dreamt it?
He grunted something in response and raised his head slightly. A gentle hand settled on his crown, laying him back down on the sofa and starting to run smoothly through the strands of his hair.Through a blur, he saw several pink flowers appear before his eyes. But they disappeared as quickly as they had appeared, as if they had never existed at all.
The desire to plunge back into a short sleep took hold of him, and he closed his eyes again, letting out a quiet sigh.
Robin continued reading the story while stroking Luffy's head and keeping an eye on the ship's surroundings.
—
Luffy finally fell fast asleep only toward morning. It might have felt like a cruel joke, but today was his turn to be on watch.
All day long, he tried to fall asleep in the most varied places: on the Sunny's head and railings, in the crow's nest, in the kitchen—though Sanji kicked him out almost immediately—and even the hammocks didn't help.
In the end, a light blue tone settled under his eyes, and throughout the day, yawns accompanied him wherever he went.
Chopper gave him some herbs, but they smelled pretty bad, to put it mildly. So he discarded that option.
The young man sat in the crow's nest, propping his heavy head up with a hand, looking out the window while simultaneously checking the area around the ship with Haki.
The clock showed 4 AM, which meant he had to endure for at least another hour until Sanji woke up.
The silence was cut by the sound of someone coming up the stairs. But even before that, Luffy felt the familiar smell of tobacco and the pleasant aroma of food.
— Not asleep up here yet, Sencho? — Sanji walked up to the sofa with a faint smile, holding a cigarette between his fingers.
— Oh, Sanji! — Luffy instantly perked up, turning to face the cook. — You're early today, did something happen?
— You happened. You've been walking around with a sleepy aura all day yesterday. Nami-san and Robin-chan even placed a bet on whether you'd fall asleep. — The blond sat down on the sofa next to the captain.
— Shishi, so who won then?
Sanji took a drag, then answered:
— Ha, Robin-chan. She said your captain's sense of duty wouldn't let you fall asleep.
— That's right! — He yawned loudly. — Sanji... what's that smell? Did you already cook something? — Luffy crawled closer to the cook with excitement in his eyes.
— I had no doubt you'd smell it. I made something for you.
— Is there meat? — He swallowed his saliva.
— There is, there is, — Sanji laughed at such a silly and obvious question from Luffy. — Shall we go?
He didn't need to be told twice, and a minute later, they were together in the galley.
The hungry teenager sat at the table, swinging his legs back and forth and rhythmically tapping his spoon and fork against it.
Sanji placed a large bowl of cream soup in front of the captain, filled with pieces of beef and decorated with a few parsley leaves. On another plate was a soft omelet shaped like a spiral.
The aroma of tender meat and rich broth caressed his taste buds. The soup's smooth texture without any lumps was poured into the wide bowl in a perfect layer.
Luffy immediately devoured the food, scarfing it down on both cheeks with the happiest face in the world.
As soon as the last spoon of soup was finished, the captain muttered under his breath, closing his eyes, "So delicious..."
After that, before he even had time to drop the spoon from his hands, he rested his head on the table. The galley filled with Luffy's quiet snoring, creating a pleasant atmosphere inside.
Sanji looked at the captain from the other side, leaning on the table. He moved the empty bowl aside so the brunette wouldn't get dirty, even though the dish had been licked spotlessly clean anyway.
— Passed out right away, and yet he was so against drinking Chopper's herbs... Well, you won't find out about it anyway, — he whispered. — Man, didn't fall asleep on watch, and didn't make it to bed either... — Sanji smiled and placed a hand on the coal-black hair, lightly ruffling it. — Looks like it's a tie between Nami-san and Robin-chan.