Ch 26 - I am Waiting for Permission.
Emmy only had one feeling when Yosaku and Sanji broke through the wall of the Baratie with the bounty hunter's lower body trapped between the jaws of a panda shark.
Shame.
"Such a shame," she murmured as Luffy and the cooks rushed over to help the two men out of this bizarre situation, "We worked so hard not to damage the restaurant…"
"Oy! Yosaku, what's going on?" Luffy asked. He squatted next to the bounty hunter's head while he munched on a bone, "Where's Nami?"
"B-Big Bro Luffy," Yosaku rasped, "Get...me out of here."
"Eh?" Luffy asked and that's when he noticed the shark that was connected below his torso, "AH! What the hell?!"
"You just noticed?!" the cooks snapped.
The cooks and the rubber boy pulled the man out of his confinement and hauled the shark to the kitchen. Emmy couldn't help but appreciate how quickly the cooks made lemonade out of the lemons given to them. She helped Yosaku up to a chair and Sanji even brought over a blanket to warm him up.
"We...we...went after Big Sis Nami," Yosaku said, "And judging from the direction she was going, we figured out roughly her destination...And if our theory is correct, her destination is a crazy place. That's why I jumped out of the boat and swam back to get you. We will need your help, Big Bro Luffy!"
"Yosh," Luffy said, "I don't really get it, but okay. Let's go!"
"You can use one of our other grocery boats," Zeff offered as Luffy, Yosaku, and Emmy got ready to head out.
"Thank you, Zeff-san," Emmy said with a bow, "I hope one day I can come back and tell you my adventures over a lovely meal here."
"You're leaving to the Grand LIne as a waitress and wish to return as a customer?," Zeff chuckled, "Well, stranger things have happened. Good luck to you both."
"Thank you," Emmy said again and this time even Luffy nodded his thanks.
They started to walk towards the boat and they passed Sanji, who was leaning against a railing and lighting up a new cigarette. "Wait," he called out to them, "It seems we all have foolish dreams to follow."
"Huh?" Luffy asked as he turned to stare at the cook.
Sanji lifted the cigarette from his lips and blew the smoke out towards the sky. "In order to achieve my goal, to get to the All Blue…I'll come along on your journey to become the King of Pirates. I'll be your cook."
"Eh?" This time Emmy stopped to give Sanji her full attention.
"Yes or no?!" Sanji demanded, annoyed with how long it was taking for this rubber boy to just accept his request.
Luffy's teeth gleamed under the sun and he thrusted his fists into the air. "YESSSS!" he shouted victoriously, "All right!"
"Ah! Congrats, Big Bro Luffy and Lil Sis Emmy!" Yosaku cheered as he grabbed Luffy and Emmy by the hands and they begun to spin around in excitement, "We're gonna eat so well now!"
"Wahoo!" Luffy shouted as Emmy laughed.
"We have a cook now. We have a cook now!" the three of them sang.
Emmy noticed that Sanji was looking solemnly over into the restaurant and she quickly halted the group's little victory dance. "Enough," she said and gave a light push to Luffy and Yosaku's shoulders to get them to move towards the boat, "Let's give Sanji-san some privacy so he can say resign."
"B-But-" Luffy started to protest and Emmy smiled at him.
"We have to get the boat ready to get Nami-san and Merry-san, remember?"
"Oh yeah!" Luffy shouted and he dashed off with a reignited vigor.
With Yosaku doing most of the work, they got the boat all set for their voyage. Whatever Sanji had to say to his colleagues and the owner seemed to be pretty short as midway through their prep, the cooks came out to help Luffy load some food into the boat's pantry. The ratio of vegetable to meat were not quite to the captain's liking but it seemed to make the first mate pretty happy so Luffy didn't complain...much.
Soon the only thing missing from the boat was the new cook. Yosaku, Emmy, and Luffy sat at the stern, waiting for Sanji to start his new role as a pirate cook, and the rest of the cooks stood on the deck, waiting for their Sous Chef to leave.
Finally, the blonde showed up with his kitchen knives, stowed safely in a wooden briefcase, and a small cloth sack of his belongings. He didn't make it two steps out of the restaurant before Patty and Carne came charging at him from both sides.
Thwack! Thwack!
In one swift motion, the blonde kicked down the two cooks and continued on his way to the boat. No one made a move or said a word until Sanji stood directly in front of his new captain.
"Let's go," Sanji said as he tossed his sack into the boat.
"You don't have to say good-bye or anything?" Luffy asked.
"That's okay," Sanji replied and put one foot onto the boat.
"SANJI!," the owner's voice rang out from the second level of the restaurant.
Emmy smiled as the old chef leaned his elbows against the railings and chuckled to the back of Sanji's head, "Don't catch a cold."
Sanji's eyes flooded with tears and he immediately did a 180 turn on his feet. He sank to his knees and flattened his forehead against the ground. "Owner Zeff!" he shouted, "Thank you for all the damn things you've done for me over all these years. I'll never forget your kindness...for the rest of my life!"
"Wahhhhhh! You asshole!" Patty roared as tears streamed down his own eyes and from behind Carne's sunglasses as well, "I'll miss you, dammit!"
"I'll miss you!" Carne sobbed.
"You idiots!" Zeff grunted from his position as he wiped away the moisture that was just slightly dribbling out from the bottom of his eyes, "Men should part without a word."
"Shishishishi," Luffy laughed as Sanji got to his feet and climbed into the boat while still sobbing, "Let's go!"
Emmy bowed to the staff of the Baratie one final time as the boat started to pull away from the restaurant. Then she turned to face her brother and her new nakama. She handed Sanji a handkerchief and smiled at Luffy.
"Now all we need is a doctor," she said.
"And a musician," Luffy added.
"Thank...you, Emmy-chan. I'll wash this and return it to you when it's clean," Sanji sniffled as he stuffed the handkerchief into his pocket.
"It's fine," Emmy said and reached out her hand to take it back from him, "I'm in charge of all the cleaning and laundry on our ship."
"I can't let you do that!" Sanji gasped, "For such delicate hands to touch something as dirty and foul as Luffy's clothes would be an offense to the heavens!"
"What's wrong with my clothes?" Luffy demanded.
"It's fine," Emmy laughed, not moving her hand away, "It is my job as the first mate just like it's your job to cook. If anything, it would be more offensive to me if you don't let me do the laundry."
"Very well," Sanji sighed and reluctantly put the moistened handkerchief in Emmy's hands. He then picked up his case of knives and headed for the kitchen, "Then I might as well start my job then and cook."
"I want-" Luffy started to say.
"Shut it," Sanji said, "I already know what I'm going to make."
The door shut behind the cook and Luffy grinned excitedly at Emmy. "I wonder what food we get to eat."
Emmy laughed as her brother's mouth began to salivate. She took a step back and held her hands up in protest. "Control yourself, Luffy," she said, "You're making hungry just by being near you."
"Oh yeah!" Luffy shouted and then tugged gently at the bow on her head, "It's just us now. Why don't you try taking your headband off and see what happens?"
Emmy put her hand over his, stopping him from removing her headband, "It's the same case as when we're on the Merry-san, Luffy. I need everyone's permission in order to do that. Tapping into everyone's emotions for an extended period of time without their consent or knowledge would be a violation of their privacy."
"Yosaku! Is it okay of Emmy uses her devil fruit powers on you?" Luffy asked, turning to the bounty hunter.
"What? No!" Yosaku immediately shouted and then he gasped, "Wait! Lil Sis is a devil fruit user?!"
"Petty," Luffy pouted. He was already bummed out that they had been sailing this entire time with Usopp and Nami and yet Emmy was unwilling to practice with them, since the navigator refused to give Emmy permission. Now, even with another small crew, it seemed his sister still won't be able to do anything cool.
"Come on," Luffy whined and then his grin came back with another thought, "Hey! How about you take off your headband and do what you did to Gin with me?"
"Eh?" Emmy asked.
"Yeah! Yeah! You made all these hearts come out of him and you got connected to it in some way. You said it helped him, right? So why don't you try it with me?" Luffy said.
"But...you already know how you're feeling," Emmy replied with a frown, "It wouldn't be the same. You know what you want. There's no need for me to help you with that."
Luffy's shoulders slumped and he nodded in agreement. "Meat. I want meat," he said. There was no denying it.
Emmy pulled out her deck of cards from her pocket. "How about we play a game instead?' she suggested, "Although, I have to warn you...I'm missing a couple cards."
"Oh then let's play Slapjack!" Luffy shouted and bounded over to the table that was set up near the stern of the ship.
"What's Slapjack?" Yosaku asked as he and Emmy followed Luffy and took their seat.
"You see a jack, you slap it," Emmy replied as she started to deal out the cards face down, "We each flip over our top cards into the middle pile. First hand on a revealing jack wins the pile. It's a game of reflexes and the point is to get all the cards."
"Yep! Slap all the cards!" Luffy shouted.
Thwack!
Emmy smiled patiently at Luffy while moving her hand out from under his. "You slap after I finish dealing, Luffy," she said.
Yosaku gaped at the girl's hand. It was already turning a bright pink from Luffy's harsh slap. He gulped and then looked up at the rubber boy's grinning face.
"I love Slapjack," Luffy laughed.
By the time Sanji came out to serve them their meal, there was already a slight dent in the middle of the table in the shape of a handprint. Yosaku was bent over his chair and blowing air to the back of his throbbing red hand. Next to him, Luffy was laughing victoriously at the mound of cards in front of him while Emmy started to clear everything away for the cook.
When Sanji got to the table, he almost dropped all the plates he was balancing on his two arms. Emmy's hands were redder than a tomato. "Emmy-chan! Are you alright?!"
"Yes," Emmy said, "I just need to work on my reflexes that's all."
"Oy! What the hell did you do to Emmy-chan?!" Sanji shouted at Luffy.
"Monsters...you're both monsters…" Yosaku whimpered as he leaned over the side of the boat to stick his hand into the cool sea water.
"Eh? Why are you calling Emmy-chan a monster?" Sanji demanded.
"Because she got hit more than me and yet she's acting like everything is okay," Yosaku said, "I think...I think Big Bro Luffy shattered all the bones in my hand."
Sanji blinked at Emmy who smiled politely back.
"I have a high tolerance for pain," Emmy said.
"Shishishishi," Luffy laughed, "Emmy is strong."
Sanji hurriedly set the plates down and picked up Emmy's hands by the wrist to inspect them. They did look slightly puffier than usual. "Oy, Emmy-chan. Pain is a way for our bodies to let us know when something is wrong. If you've broken something-"
"Then it'll be fixed," Emmy said and she pulled off her headband, set it on her lap, and held her hands out for Sanji to see, "Just wait…"
"For what?" Sanji asked as Yosaku leaned in to look too.
Their eyes widened when the swelling rapidly went down and so did the redness in her skin. Within seconds her hands had returned to normal. She smiled and put her headband back on her head. "It's apparently a side effect of my Feel Feel Fruit. I can heal any wound and injury placed on my body."
"Isn't it cool?" Luffy said excitedly as he started to shovel food in his mouth.
"That is pretty amazing," Sanji whispered and then he noticed the speed and amount that the rubber boy was consuming, "Ah! Slow down or else there'll be nothing left for the rest of us!"
While they ate, Emmy explained her devil fruit and her headband to Yosaku and Sanji. She was slightly taken aback by how quickly Sanji caught on to everything. She didn't need to elaborate as much as she had to do with Zoro, Nami, and even Usopp. The cook was even able to explain things to Yosaku in ways Emmy never even thought of.
"So basically the headband is the floodgates and if Emmy-chan takes it off, she'll drown in everyone else's crap," Sanji said, "Their feelings, their pain, their illnesses. Everything."
"Oh, I see," Yosaku replied and scratched his chin, "I was wondering why you were the only person who never came near me when I was sick. I thought it was because you were disgusted with me, Lil Sis."
"Me?" Emmy gasped, "No. I would never think that of you, Yosaku-san."
"I realize that now," Yosaku said with a grin and then his eye widened when Luffy's hand stretched over the table and made a grab for Yosaku's plate of pickles. Yosaku's hand was still too raw for him to reach out in time to stop the rubber boy but thankfully, the girl was able to do the honors for him.
She grabbed Luffy by the wrist and frowned at him. "Don't be rude," she said.
Luffy sighed and looked over at Yosaku. "May I have some of your food," he mumbled. It was in a statement and not a question.
"Please," Emmy said.
"Please…" Luffy repeated with a scowl.
"You can take one, but that's it," Yosaku replied and Luffy pouted.
"Say thank you," Emmy prodded. She released her grip and continued on to eat her own food.
"Thank you," Luffy grunted and picked up a pickle with his two fingers. He shoved it into his mouth and crunched it noisily in his seat.
"SHHH! QUIET!" Sanji hissed suddenly.
"Eh?"
The trio looked over at the cook, who was leaning over the side of the boat and staring down into the waters. "Listen," he whispered to the group.
They all tilted their head and tried to hear whatever it was that got the cook's attention.
Mooooooooooooo.
"Tch. It's big," Sanji clucked just as a large sea king burst through the surface of the water. It looked like a giant cow with green markings instead of black and a golden ring around it's nose. However, it also had greyish scales in the front of it's body.
It's giant eyes blinked at the group and then it moved to the table.
"It wants the food!" Yosaku screamed.
That was the green light for the rubber boy and his punch went flying straight up the sea cow's jaw. The sea cow fell back into the water, causing the boat to sway violently. "Stay away from my food!" Luffy ordered.
The sea cow floated back up to the surface and he glared over the side of the ship.
"Ah! You made it mad!" Yosaku shrieked.
"Then how about this!" Luffy shouted, "Gum Gum-"
"Idiot! Don't beat up someone who's hungry for no reason!" Sanji seethed and kicked Luffy to the side before the captain could do anymore damage. He picked up a plate of meat and held out to the creature, "Here you go."
"Ooh. What love," Yosaku marvelled.
Emmy blinked at the sea cow, who gazed longingly at the dish and then at Sanji. "But...Sanji...it's not hungry."
"What?" Sanji asked.
"This creature...I don't feel any hunger from it…"
"Oh. I see," Sanji said. A polite smile crossed his lips, "It's just a glutton then."
Thwack!
Sanji's leg sailed upwards while the cook held the plate perfectly balanced in one hand. His heel hit right where Luffy's fist had landed originally and sent the sea cow back into the water.
"What happened to that love you had?!" Yosaku shouted but Sanji didn't hear him. He was too busy getting ready for his next move.
The sea cow came charging at them and Sanji leapt into the air. "Collier Shoot!" His kick went straight into the center of the sea cow's neck. It rendered the creature unconscious and it went back into the water for the last time.
Sanji landed on the boat and he stuffed his hands into his pocket. "Damn hippo," he cursed as he returned to the table with the plate of meat and offered it to Emmy, "Seconds, Emmy-chan?"
"I'm full. Thank you," Emmy said.
"Alright! More for me!" Luffy cheered.
"You're all crazy…" Yosaku groaned but then he sat himself down at the table, "But that's why I came back to get you, Big Bro Luffy. Big Sis Nami is heading right towards the infamous pirate, Arlong. She might even be at his compound as we speak!"
"Arlong?" Luffy and Sanji asked.
"Arlong," Emmy said softly. She had heard that name in the newspaper before but she couldn't remember why. Her daily readings with Dadan consisted of so many names and dates it was very hard for Emmy to keep track of everything. The fact that she even remembered Arlong's name meant something about him stood out but Emmy couldn't put her finger on it just yet.
"Yes. Big Sis Nami had been staring at his bounty poster ever since you went to work at the Baratie, Big Bro Luffy. She's definitely after his 20 million bounty!" Yosaku said.
"No. You're wrong," Emmy stated.
"Eh?" Yosaku asked.
"Nami-san isn't going after Arlong-san," Emmy said and she looked at her brother, "She's returning to him."
"What?" Yosaku gasped while Luffy just tilted his hat over his eyes and nodded at his sister.
"Yosaku. Tell me about Arlong," Luffy said, "What do you know of him?"
"Arlong...Arlong is a fishman who used to rampage throughout the Grand Line," Yosaku said. He was slightly confused by what the girl had said about Big Sis Nami returning to a dangerous pirate but he continued on anyways. Big Bro Luffy needed to know what he was getting himself into.
"Fishman?" Luffy repeated.
"Ahhh," Sanji sighed, "I hear the mermaids on Fishman Island in the Grand Line are absolutely beautiful."
"They are," Emmy said, "And the merman are just as attractive."
"Really?!" Sanji swooned and he clasped Emmy's hands in between his, "You've seen them. Emmy-chan?! Have you been to Fishman Island?"
"No. I've never been to Fishman Island," Emmy said slowly, "I've just seen Fishmen and mermaids on display."
"Display? Like a dance performance?" Sanji asked, too hypnotized by his own imagination to notice the tense look on the fellow blonde's face, "Oh, That must be a sight to behold."
"Emmy!" Luffy called out from the side and he held out a sketchbook with a doodle of a fish with four legs scrawled over it, "Look! Is this what a Fishman looks like?'
Emmy took one look at the drawing and started to giggle. "No," she said.
Sanji burst into laughter too. "That's a masterpiece, Luffy."
Luffy grinned at his sister, happy to have made her smile instead of nervous.
"You guys are too relaxed!" Yosaku lectured, "Ugh! It looks like I have to start from the very beginning. On the Grand Line, there are three powers-"
"The Shichibukai, also known as the Seven Warlords of the Sea, the Marines, and the Yonko, also known as the Four Emperors in the New World," Emmy interrupted and smoothed out her apron.
"Oh, so you do know?" Yosaku asked.
"Warlord?" Luffy repeated and wrinkled his nose, "You said something about that earlier too, Emmy...What was that about?"
"The Shichibukai are basically 7 government-authorized pirates. Mihawk-san was one of them. The Warlords are allowed to go on their pirating ways as long as they give some of their cut to the government. They are also strong enough for the Marines to call upon to help take out other pirates," Emmy said.
"In other pirates' eyes, they're no more than 'government dogs' but they're strong," Yosaku added, "And one of the Shichibukai is Jimbei, a Fishman pirate just like Arlong."
Emmy stiffened. That's why I remembered his name...Arlong-san the Fishman Pirate...just like Jimbei-san...and the legendary hero, Fisher Tiger-san…I wonder if Arlong-san ever knew Fisher Tiger-san and the Sun Pirates...Is he freeing slaves as well? Is that why Nami-san went to him? No...It didn't feel like she was looking at a savior back when she first saw his bounty poster...It was definitely a master. So...Arlong-san isn't like Fisher Tiger-san then…But as a Fishman, shouldn't he understand the pain of being forced-
"Emmy-chan?"
"Lil Sis Emmy?"
"Oy! Emmy!"
Thwack!
Emmy jolted out of her thoughts by the warm sensation of Luffy's forehead suddenly butting hard against hers.. She leaned back her head and looked past Luffy's to see that the other two were staring at her with confusion.
"Are you okay? You seemed to have spaced out when Yosaku was talking about Arlong and Arlong Park," Sanji asked and then glared at Yosaku, "Oy, you bastard. Watch what you say in front of the little lady, alright? She's delicate and-"
"It's fine," Emmy said and then she lowered her head to push back against Luffy's, albeit much more gently than he did to her. "I'm fine."
Luffy grinned with satisfaction and then marched back to the table, returning to his meal.
Emmy took a deep breath and smiled. "Actually, speaking of Fishman and Fishman Island, that reminds me of something. I heard a rumor that pirates used large sea kings to pull their ships to Fishman Island. Why don't we use the sea cow to get to Nami-san faster?"
"Oooh!" Luffy leapt to his feet and scrambled around to find some rope, "Let's ride the sea cow!"