"The food is enough to last for five days. At least one or two ships will pass by within five days!"
A yellow-haired kid sat hugging his knees on the ground, looking at the food he had arranged around him and speaking as if to comfort himself.
"But just to be safe, I'll divide the food into twenty portions. A ship is definitely bound to pass by within twenty days!"
This kid was naturally Sanji. At this moment, he and Zeff had just been stranded on this reef, and Zeff had given him a bag of food that didn't look like much.
Why didn't it look like much? Because compared to the large bag beside Zeff, his own bag was pitifully small.
Sanji felt dissatisfied, but even if he did, he had to hold it in. He had witnessed the ferocity of this man before him.
Fortunately, the other party still had some humanity and gave him a bit of food. Otherwise, he would really be done for!
Looking at the food he had portioned out, Sanji was full of confidence. This food would definitely last until the day of rescue.
Thinking of this, Sanji found a rock nearby and drew a white vertical line on the ground.
"Good! Today is the first day. Let's have a piece of bread first!!"
After saying that, Sanji randomly took one piece of bread from the few pieces and put it into his mouth.
As the food was swallowed, the feeling of his stomach being slightly filled came over him. Sanji couldn't help but show an expression of enjoyment on his face, and it further solidified his determination to become a chef.
He would definitely become the best chef in the world and find the All Blue!
Boom, rumble—
Suddenly, rumbling thunder sounded in the sky above. Sanji instinctively looked up.
"Is it thundering?"
The next second, visible confusion appeared on Sanji's face.
The sun was shining brightly in the sky, and the vast, clear sky was dotted with a few white clouds.
This scene before him somewhat challenged his common sense. Since when could it thunder in such weather?
"Hey! Eating so lavishly?"
Just as Sanji was still confused, an unfamiliar voice unexpectedly came from behind him, causing his body to jolt. He hurriedly turned around.
What met his eyes was a black-haired 'youth' clearly taller than him by at least a head, his face still showing obvious youthfulness.
On the other side, sensing the movement, Zeff immediately turned around. His gaze was extremely grave as he stared at Kyle's back, asking in a serious voice:
"Who are you?!"
Zeff was utterly shocked in his heart at this moment. He considered himself a pirate of considerable strength, at least before he lost his leg.
But he had completely failed to sense when this person had appeared here. If the person hadn't suddenly spoken, he would have had no idea that a third person had appeared on this reef.
Kyle glanced back at him and spoke calmly:
"Marine, Kyle!"
"Marine!!"
Upon hearing this, Zeff's expression immediately changed dramatically. He spoke in a deep voice:
"Are you here to capture me?"
"Capture you?"
"Heh~"
Kyle chuckled lightly.
"Red-Leg Zeff, don't think so highly of yourself. You're not worth me rushing all the way here from Marine Headquarters, traveling thousands of miles at breakneck speed just to capture you!"
Kyle had literally flown all the way from Marine Headquarters. Otherwise, how could he have arrived so quickly?
He had arrived before these two even had a chance to feel any despair.
"Marine Headquarters?!"
Hearing this, Zeff was shocked once again. This kid before him came from Marine Headquarters?
He was a pirate who had once ventured into the Grand Line. He knew what Marine Headquarters meant. It was where the vast majority of the Marine's strongest gathered, completely incomparable to ordinary Marine branches.
"I came for him!"
Kyle said calmly, shifting his gaze toward Sanji.
Sanji was stunned for a moment, instinctively taking several steps back and pointing at himself.
"For me?"
"Right!"
"Why?"
Sanji asked instinctively. Then, as if he thought of something, visible fear appeared on his face. He fell back onto the ground, beads of sweat seeping from his forehead as he looked at Kyle, trembling.
"Y...You couldn't be..."
"No!"
Before Sanji could finish, Kyle directly interrupted.
"Germa isn't qualified to order me around!"
"I came for you purely, because I see your potential. That's all!"
!!!
Hearing this, the fear in Sanji's eyes grew even stronger, his heart pounding wildly.
'This... this person knows my identity!!'
'He...'
Before Sanji could continue thinking, Kyle spoke again.
"Sanji, the purpose of my coming here is to invite you to join the Marines!"
"Huh!!!"
Sanji was dumbfounded once again.
"Invite me? To join the Marines?"
"Right!"
Kyle nodded. After saying that, he didn't continue speaking. Instead, he just looked at Sanji, giving him time to think and waiting for his answer.
Sanji's expression kept changing, finally calming down a bit. He looked up at Kyle, his tone still carrying a trace of fear.
"Since you know my identity, there are some things I don't need to hide. I think you might have misunderstood. I don't have any potential. Compared to Yonji and the others, I'm just an ordinary person, completely inferior to them!"
Speaking to this point, Sanji lowered his head slightly, a hint of disappointment in his eyes.
If he could have been like Yonji and the others, not appearing so mediocre, perhaps he wouldn't have received that kind of treatment, perhaps he wouldn't have...
But soon, this hint of disappointment was completely cast aside by Sanji!
No, he preferred things as they were now!!
He really didn't want to go back to that place, Germa, especially after his mother passed away.
The entire kingdom was filled with indifference, completely lacking any warmth between family members. His father's gaze toward him was always so cold and detached.
The only person inside he still cared about a little might be his sister Reiju. If not for his sister, he wouldn't have been able to escape.
But no matter what, even if he died outside, he didn't want to return to Germa, to live a life of imprisonment, seeing not a shred of hope.
"I don't care about what you think, and I don't care about what they think. I only care about what I think!"
"It's enough that I think you have potential!"
!!
Sanji suddenly looked up, meeting Kyle's deep eyes. Suddenly, his body trembled. A feeling called a sense of belonging quietly emerged in his heart.
But he still instinctively said:
"But... I want to become a chef?"
"Is there any conflict between becoming a chef and joining the Marines?"
"Can the identities of a Marine and a chef not coexist?"
A slight smile appeared on Kyle's face as he asked in return.
As soon as these words were spoken, Sanji's eyes suddenly brightened, and they grew brighter and brighter. Without hesitating for long, he directly said:
"I'm willing to join the Marines!"
Right at the second Sanji agreed, the system's prompt tone timely sounded in Kyle's mind.
[Ding!]
...
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