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The crew looked on as they watched the old Groot say her last words, and leave the land of the living. Most of them were unaware of what had happened, with everything going on Sanji didn't have the time to explain the situation to them.
Still, the crying of the younger group had and the passing of a mother made many of the Straw Hats mournful. While they might have not known what had happened, many of them were aware of the pain of losing a parent.
Even Sanji shed some tears at the loss. For some time they stayed, and eventually, the little Groot cried himself to sleep. As it was already night no one had any mood to do any more exploring, so the crew called it a night.
Of course, Luffy made sure to stash the gold and Ark Maxim with Usopp's powers. He also wanted to explore the underground dungeon now that it was shut off, but going there alone wouldn't be fun or productive, so he left it be for tonight.
The young Groot woke up in a place that he couldn't remember. He panicked looking from side to side, only after seeing Sanji a bit far away did he relax a bit.
Though, the young Groot was curious as to what Sanji was doing. He was on a bed of sort, out in the open, with several camps and tents set up. Around them were tall trees, indicating they were still in the forest. In front of the bed was also a small table of sort.
It was still night, and in front of them was a large campfire of sorts, with Sanji in front of a large table filled with vegetables, meat, dough, spices, and other food ingredients. And he was chopping away at the vegetables with grace.
The crackling flames of the campfire cast dancing shadows around Sanji as he continued to work his culinary magic. The soft glow illuminated his face, highlighting his intense concentration and the beads of sweat forming on his brow. His hands moved with fluid precision, slicing through the vegetables like a seasoned samurai wielding a katana.
The scent of the sizzling vegetables filled the air, mingling with the savory aroma of simmering broth that bubbled away in a pot suspended over the fire. Sanji's culinary skills were unmatched, even in the most rustic of settings. Each chop, each stir, was a testament to his dedication to the art of cooking.
The night was filled with a serene calmness, broken only by the gentle crackle of the fire and the occasional sound of a log shifting.
For the young Groot this was surreal, he hadn't seen anything like this before. The different smell, and aromas of cooking was almost overwhelming. And for some reason, Groot felt a deep sense of hunger in him.
"Oh, you woke up?!" A little girl popped up from suddenly nowhere, scaring the young Groot.
"I am Groot?!" he exclaimed.
"Oh… then I'm Aisa," She said, "Are you hungry? Well, I am as well? But King Sanji said to wait! So I'm waiting!" she nodded cutely bobbing her head back and forth.
"I am Groot?" he looked at Aisa to Sanji, no wonder the human was so powerful. So he was a king here. A kind king.
Hearing both of them talk, Sanji moved his head to look at them and gave them a smile, "Oh, you woke up." He said, smiling, "let me give you something to eat."
"Hey, I want food too!" Aisa complained, before coughing, "I mean my king, I also want some food."
Sanji chuckled as he took two bowls with a gentle but confident touch, he delicately plucked the already-boiled noodles from the pot, ensuring they retained their perfect al dente texture. The noodles glistened in the firelight, each strand coated with a thin layer of steam.
Groot and Aisa had stars in their eyes as Sanji showed off his skills. They had never seen someone cook with this much elegance.
"What you are witnessing is a work of art!" Luffy said, suddenly appearing right beside Groot, surprising both of the kids. "This here is Sanji, the King of Chefs and the fastest man alive."
Robin chuckled, "He might not be there yet, but who knows? He might really take both of the titles soon."
The kids blinked again seeing her. And it wasn't only her either. The rest of the crew had also sat down in various places around the campfire, all of them appreciating Sanji's skills.
And Sanji wasn't working with only two bowls either, no there were at least two dozen bowls on the table as he worked on them.
He handled the steamy noodles as if they were fragile treasures, gently lifting and separating them with a pair of wooden chopsticks. The noodles seemed to obey his every command, flowing gracefully in his grasp like a dancer's ribbon. They hung in mid-air for a moment, suspended in the warm night breeze, before being lowered into the waiting bowls.
As he lowered the noodles into the bowls, they cascaded down in a perfect coil, creating an intricate, mesmerizing pattern. The simplicity of the act was transformed into artistry in Sanji's hands. The sight was awe-inspiring, a testament to his culinary mastery.
With a final flourish, he set the bowls down on the table, their contents adorned with colorful, sautéed vegetables and aromatic broth. And to finish it all off, he topped them with beef jerky and half-boiled eggs.
Sanji had turned a humble bowl of noodles into a work of culinary art, and the visual feast was as delightful as the taste promised to be. The kids gulped, already having water in their mouth, but they weren't the only ones. Luffy was gulping down saliva as well, gaining deadpans from them.
"What? I'm a kid at heart!" Luffy complained.
The kids didn't say anything and just returned back to watching Sanji's work. Just as the cook finished placing all the bowls with food, he took out fresh chopsticks and placed them above the bowls of food, and placed them on all five trays. Right after that a large octopus-looking man with six arms came along, taking the trays of food and going towards all of the crew, distributing it.
Groot blinked, only not noticing so many people and many of them looked different from one another, Aisa even had wings on her back. The young Groot wondered with excitement and anticipation at the wondrous world of outside. Though there was a tinge of sadness that his mother wont' be able to experience this.
Right then two bowls of food were placed by Sanji right in front of him and Aisa. "Enjoy the food!" he said with a smile, that made Groot almost forget about the tragedy as both Groot and Aisa dug into the food, enjoying their meal.
In no time, their bowls were empty and they were eagerly asking for seconds. Even though Groot had a limited vocabulary of three words, one could easily read what he wanted.
And the little guy wanted food, to taste everything and to experience new things. For Groot, this was an experience he would never forget and something that would make him decide the path in his life.
— — — —
A/N: I mainly wanted this arc to be centered around Sanji, for now it will go back to the whole crew base.
From time to time, I will base certain arcs or (a portion of the arcs) based on one or two straw hats. This will give them equal time to grow as characters.
Everyone will have their own time, to show how well they grow with the crew. This makes it easy for me to show all of their growths to the readers.
Luffy is still the main character, but with everything, his training and his plot knowledge, he won't get too many challenges. He knows the shortcuts and he's willing to take them.
And I don't like nerfing the main character, or make him take stupid decisions just for the story to go forward. Every challenge Luffy faced mostly were out of his own control, and a butterfly effect of sort (editor: also AU stuff).
That's why I will also go for other characters and their journey. How they see Luffy, and how Luffy's actions (training or suggestions) helped them in their journey.
I added the part of Groot and his mother to make Sanji more grounded. As unlike the canon Sanji, he's flaming for revenge, so taking care of a kid will make him realize what he's lacking. And appreciate Zeff more.
Speaking of Zeff, and other people in East Blue that are connected with the Straw Hats, they will also come back in the story. Luffy here is an ambitious planner, and he's not just going to leave them unguarded. Some might even join the crew as extended members, who knows.
This is also the reason why I gave Sabo the lightning logia fruit. He will also face challenges and I might do some side stories on him and his adventures.
So yeah.
Anyway, I will try to upload a few more chapters today. (If everything goes well) So see ya soon.