"My soup?"
"HUH—BAM!!!"
Without the slightest warning, Zeff's fist came crashing down with overwhelming force, smashing squarely into Sanji's face.
Sanji was struck as if by lightning. The punch sent him flying straight to the ground, sliding several meters and knocking over multiple chairs before coming to a stop.
"Talking to me about cooking?"
"You're a hundred years too early for that, brat!"
Zeff looked down coldly at Sanji sprawled on the floor.
"I'm a man who's cooked all over the seas of the world! Your pitiful little tricks aren't even worth polishing my shoes!"
"Damn it… damn it!!!"
Sanji clutched his swollen cheek, tears welling up in his eyes.
Humiliation, anger, and grievance tangled together until he could no longer stay in this place.
He suddenly scrambled to his feet, turned around, and sprinted out of the restaurant.
As Sanji's back disappeared through the door, the tense atmosphere inside instantly dissolved.
In the sudden silence, only the sound of Luffy chewing could be heard.
Luffy walked over to the pot of soup everyone had just trashed, ladled himself a huge bowl, and gulped it down.
"Ah—"
He wiped his mouth and smiled in satisfaction.
"This soup is obviously super delicious! It's the best soup I've ever had!"
Zeff looked at Luffy, his gaze finally softening. He let out a sigh.
"I know that too. Sanji's cooking… everyone here recognizes it."
The other cooks finally dropped their act, guilt and reluctance written all over their faces.
"It wasn't bad at all…"
"It was really good. Way better than mine."
"Did I go too far just now? Sanji looked genuinely upset…"
"Yeah… this doesn't sit right with me either."
Zeff turned toward the still-swaying door and spoke in a low voice.
"But if we didn't do this, that stubborn idiot would never leave."
He turned to Luffy, the boy with those clear, bright eyes.
"Hey, kid."
His tone was no longer that of a commanding elder, but a request between men.
"I hear your ship needs a cook, right? I'm not really asking, but… can you take that brat with you too? To the Grand Line."
Zeff gazed out at the vast sea beyond the window.
"The Grand Line… that idiot's dream lies there."
The cooks suddenly started shouting loudly:
"My acting was pretty good, right?"
"Hurry up and get me a bowl of soup! I was too busy acting to drink any!"
"Me too! Me too! If we don't drink it now, it'll get cold!"
...
Outside, by the wall.
Sanji leaned against it, hands trembling as he lit a cigarette.
In the drifting smoke, tears were already streaming down his face.
"I heard it all… you damn idiots."
He took a deep drag, trying to suppress the lump in his throat.
So he wasn't being abandoned.
He was being loved.
These rough bastards had shoved him forward in the clumsiest way possible.
At that moment, the door opened.
Sanji stubbed out his cigarette and straightened his slightly rumpled suit.
He looked at Luffy. The confusion in his eyes was gone—replaced by a resolve to throw everything on the line.
"We've all got stupid dreams, don't we…"
"I'm heading for my destination. For ALL BLUE!"
"Luffy…"
Luffy looked back at him.
Sanji curled his lips into a cool, confident smile.
"Yeah. I'll go cause some trouble with you then—for that so-called dream of becoming Pirate King."
Luffy froze for a second, then his face lit up like the midday sun.
"I'll be your ship's cook! Is that okay?!" Sanji shouted.
"Yeah!!"
Luffy jumped up excitedly, both hands raised high.
"That's awesome!!"
Sanji turned around, facing away from the restaurant doors, and shouted loudly:
"Then that's how it is, everyone! Sorry for all the trouble I caused!!"
Dusk, aboard the Going Merry.
The setting sun dyed the sea a deep orange. The ropes had been cast off, and the Merry was ready to set sail at any moment.
Ronan, Luffy, Nami, Zoro, and Usopp stood on deck, watching the blond man approach step by step, carrying only a simple pack.
He walked slowly, each step feeling like he was treading on cotton.
But he never turned back, keeping his back to the floating restaurant that held his childhood, his growth, and all his memories.
"No need to say goodbye?" Luffy asked, leaning over the railing.
Sanji stepped onto the Merry's deck, lowering his voice to maintain his last bit of cool.
"No need. Grown men don't get all sentimental."
Just as he was about to enter the cabin and completely sever ties with the past—
A familiar, aged yet powerful voice pierced through the sea wind and distance, striking straight into his ears.
"Sanji."
Sanji's body froze.
Zeff stood on the second-floor terrace, arms crossed. He didn't make any grand speeches or emotional pleas.
Like a father seeing his son off, he simply said:
"Don't catch a cold."
Boom—
Those simple words shattered every last defense Sanji had.
All his pretense, all his strength, all his "coolness" collapsed in an instant.
Tears burst forth like a broken dam.
Snot and tears mixed together, leaving his handsome face a complete mess.
He couldn't hold it in anymore.
Sanji spun around, facing Zeff—facing the old man who had lost a leg to save him.
"THUD!"
He dropped to his knees on the hard wooden deck, both hands bracing the ground as his forehead slammed down.
"BOSS ZEFF!!!"
Sanji cried out with everything he had, his voice echoing into the sky.
"For all these years… thank you so much for everything!!!"
"Your kindness… I'll never forget it as long as I live!!!"
Every word, every sentence, fell to the deck along with scalding tears.
On the terrace, Zeff watched the child below—watching the fledgling who had finally grown wings and taken flight.
The tears he'd been holding back finally spilled over.
"Damn it…"
Zeff clenched his teeth, tears running down his mustache.
"Men… are supposed to part in silence!"
Patty and all the other cooks were crying too now, leaning over the railing and shouting at the top of their lungs:
"Sanji! You bastard! Do your best out there!"
"Don't disgrace Baratie!"
"We'll miss you, Sanji!"
Ronan watched quietly, warmth swelling in his chest.
This was the charm of One Piece—among these rough men flowed the most delicate emotions in the world.
"What a bunch of… lovable idiots," Ronan murmured.
Luffy tugged his straw hat down, then took a deep breath and shouted:
"SET SAIL——!!!"
The Going Merry raised her sails and, carried by the wind of the setting sun, headed toward the horizon.
Sanji stood up and wiped away his tears.
Standing at the stern, he waved his arms with all his strength toward the receding sea restaurant.
"GOODBYE!!! YOU DAMN IDIOTS!!!"
"I WILL DEFINITELY FIND ALL BLUE!!!"
...
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