Alright guys, here we go. I'm in a pretty tight situation this week. You see, starting tomorrow, the wifi at my house is gonna go down temporarily for maintenance. Now don't start worrying because it should be back by Sunday, so I'm all good for the normal chapter. But as for today, I could have very easily just gone ahead and posted one and done for the extras this week, but fuck it, heres a double upload. Sure, it may put me behind since I only technically finished one chapter ahead of schedule, but who cares? I'm really far ahead so here you go, enjoy, and see you Sunday ;)

Wealth, Fame, Power…

Chapter 22: Heart To Heart

Luffy and Sanji stood against the railings outside of the baratie. Well, to be more precise, only Sanji was standing. Luffy was sitting on the railing, looking out at the ocean. There was a comfortable silence hanging in the air over the two boys. The tension that was present before was no longer around now that Gin had left.

Looking over at the childish boy bouncing up and down in his seat, Sanji brought up an interesting topic. "Heh, you know, I don't think that Gin guy liked you very much."

The rubber man turned to the cook with a curious expression. "Yeah? What makes you say that?"

"You really didn't notice all the dirty looks he was giving you? Especially after you said that stuff about being Pirate King?"

"Hmm, wow, I guess I didn't. That's weird too, I'm usually pretty good at picking up emotions. He must have hid it really well," the straw hat teen said nonchalantly, clapping the bottom of his sandals together.

"He was definitely mysterious, I wonder what ticked him off so much?" The sous chef wondered as he lit another cigarette.

"Eh, who cares? If he has a problem with me he can say it to my face."

Sanji almost laughed at the boy's statement. "Yeah, good one kid. Try acting that tough in a real fight, you'll be dead faster than the cook time of a rare steak."

"Shishishi," Luffy giggled at the clever meat joke. "Yeah, you're right. I shouldn't get too cocky, he did look really scary after all."

For some reason, Sanji found himself developing a genuine smile on his face. This boy was so easy to talk to, it felt really weird. "What's your name?"

Wrapping up his small fit, the rubber man adjusted his hat and declared his favorite line. "I'm Monkey D. Luffy, the man who'll be King of the Pirates!"

Hearing the boy's declaration again, Sanji took another puff of his cigarette. "I see."

At the blonde man's minimal response, a sheepish expression made its way to Luffy's face. He had the boy right where he wanted him. "I just told you my dream, so what's yours?"

The sous chef remained calm at the personal question. But a small twitch of excitement still came through his masked appearance. "Don't be childish, I don't have a dream. All I want is to repay my debt to the old man, that's it."

This only seemed to egg the rubber man on even more though. "I know you're lying, you definitely have a dream. You can't fool me."

"Tch, shut the hell up. How would you know that?"

"It's obvious," Luffy began. "If you didn't have a dream, then you would've at least said something about mine. But instead you kept quiet. That's how I know you have a crazy dream, just like me."

Sanji's cigarette almost fell out of his mouth for the second time that day. Who the hell was this guy? It looks like he wasn't lying when he said he was good at reading people. "I…"

"C'mon, you can tell me. You know how many times I've been laughed at for my dream? It's not a big deal," the straw hat boy pleaded immaturely.

The cook sighed at the memories coming back. All the chefs who told him it was impossible to find and that it didn't exist. Who thought he was just a child for believing in the stories. But that was the cost of pursuing such a big dream, people were bound to laugh at it. Maybe this boy did know what it felt like.

Watching the waves push and pull against each other with glassy eyes, Sanji spoke softly. "Have you ever heard of the All Blue?"

The straw hat teen scratched the back of his neck at the boy's question, shaking his head and listening closely.

The cook's face lit up immediately at the boy's gesture. If there was one thing he loved more than cooking, it was talking about his favorite sea. "The All Blue, it's a mythical sea. It's where fish gather from all four oceans, and it's in the Grand Line. Finding it would be a wonderland for any great chef, I've wanted to find it ever since I learned about it all those years ago."

Luffy paid close attention to every detail the man gave to him. It sounded bizzarre, but the more Sanji talked about it, the happier his smile grew. By the end, the blonde boy's whole face only showed pure elation. "Wow Sanji, now I want you to be my cook even more."

The giant smile on the sous chef's face turned slightly sad as he broke eye contact with the boy. "I will admit, it sounds fun. But I just can't leave this place, I owe too much to the owner here, I'm sorry."

Luffy craned his neck to the side, he'd heard the boy say that a lot already. "That tall hat guy? What do you owe him?"

Sanji visibly stiffened his posture at the inquiry, the happy expression vanishing from his face. "Sorry, I can't tell you about that one. Just know that I'm only alive because of him, so I'm gonna do everything I can to make him happy."

The straw hat teen looked at the cook with wide eyes. Now that was a scenario he could relate to. Shaking out of his initial shock, he punched his open palm in excitement. There was no way in hell that this guy was gonna get out of joining him now. "Alright, but I'm not giving up that easily. I'll change your mind eventually."

"Yeah, keep dreaming," the blonde remarked sarcastically. Throwing his finished cigarette into the ocean. "Right now, I've gotta get back to the kitchen. If we stay out here any longer that geezer is gonna kick my ass."

"Oh yeah, I forgot about my crew. I better get back to them before Nami gets cranky."

Sanji instantly halted his walk to the restaurant door and ran back to Luffy, grabbing his shoulders roughly. "Wait… Nami is on your crew!?"

Luffy couldn't help but feel uneasy at the way the boy was grabbing him, nonetheless, he replied. "Uh yeah, she's our navigator."

The cook's eyes widened as he thought of the orange haired goddess from before, his imagination going crazy. "Ok ok, hypothetically, if I were to join your crew, would I have a chance with Nami?"

…

…

…

"Hurry up and answer you idiot!"

"Um, what does hypnotically mean?"

Sanji stared blankly at the boy for a solid five seconds before shaking him violently by the shoulders. "I said hypothetically you dumbass!"

"Wah! I don't know what that means!" Luffy blubbered out, his vision becoming dizzy from the shaking.

The sous chef abruptly stopped shaking the poor boy, looking him in the eye and putting his question in a more simple format. "Just tell me what kind of guys she likes!"

Luffy couldn't hold back the bewildered expression growing on his face at the blonde's completely random question. "How the hell am I supposed to know!? Go ask her yourself!"

"Gah! You're completely useless!" Sanji yelled, dropping the boy and walking back into the dining room.

Unbeknownst to him though, a certain peg-legged head chef had been standing on the upper balcony listening to the whole conversation. With a sad smile on his face, Zeff slowly hobbled back into the kitchen. So that brat still has that dream…

As the pair moved into the dining hall, Sanji immediately split off from Luffy to head back to the kitchen. Shrugging, the rubber man looked around the room until he spotted his table, beginning to walk towards it. When he arrived, he noticed that one of his crewmates was missing.

"Hey guys, where's Usopp?" The teen asked, taking a seat at the table.

"Oh, hey Luffy… Don't worry about Usopp, it's a long story," the pirate hunter greeted, taking a big sip of wine.

Nami was next to speak to the rubber man. "Where were you all this time?"

The straw hat teen stared at the navigator quizzically for a few seconds before answering honestly. "I was talking to Sanji, I'm trying to get him to be our cook."

"Oh, that's good," Nami said softly. Lifting a glass of water to her lips to drink from it. When she finished it and glanced up at Luffy again, he was still staring at her with narrowed eyes. "Um, Luffy? Why are you staring at me like that?"

Not one to beat around the bush, the rubber man came out with his question. "What kind of guys do you like?" He asked innocently.

Out of nowhere Zoro spit out a mouthful of wine all over the table, luckily not hitting anyone sitting at it. "Luffy!?" The swordsman questioned in surprise.

"W-what?" Nami stuttered, Luffy was the last person she expected that kind of question from.

The rubber man wasn't taking it back though, repeating his question. "What kind of guys do you like? Sanji wanted to know and I wanna get on his good side."

Both crewmates breathed a huge sigh of relief at the clarification. Though Nami wouldn't lie that her heart rate was up there for a moment. Right as her breathing returned to normal and she was about to answer the boy's odd question, Luffy's name was called from the spiral staircase in the center of the room.

"Luffy!"

The three pirates turned to see none other than Usopp running towards the table as fast as he could. "Usopp! There you are. Why are you wearing an apron?"

Zoro and Nami couldn't help but giggle at the predicament the long nosed teen found himself in. "Luffy! You have to help me!" Usopp pleaded, getting down on his knees in front of Luffy's chair. "That owner guy is making me be his chore boy because we can't pay for all the food! Please, you have to get Nami to give me five million beris!"

Luffy didn't even wait for his friend to finish his sentence before he started laughing. His two other crewmates soon joined in after him.

"Don't worry Captain, I'm sure you can handle it," Zoro mocked sarcastically. Imitating Usopp's bluffing voice and earning even harder laughs from Luffy and Nami.

"Oh you think that's funny Zoro!?" Usopp boiled. "Take this!" The teen yelled, picking his nose and placing a sizable booger inside the wine bottle he was drinking from.

Luffy and Nami were the only ones who witnessed the act since the swordsman was too busy laughing. The rubber man's eyes turned into absolute saucers. He knew this could go very wrong if Usopp wasn't careful. Nami could believe the bold action of the sniper either, covering her mouth with both hands to try and suppress her shock.

When Zoro finally finished up his hardy laugh, he picked up the bottle and put it up to his lips…

Before taking a huge swig, much to the surprise of the captain and navigator, as well as the pleasure of the marksman. Once the alcohol had gone past all of the swordsman's taste buds, he looked down at the bottle strangely.

"Well how about that, this stuff randomly got stronger."

Needless to say, Zoro was very confused when his three crewmates fell into another fit of laughter.

The next two days went by abnormally slow at the Baratie, much to the disappointment of the long nosed sniper. With each dirty dish he washed, he felt more and more degraded. Luffy on the other hand, saw his friend's new job as a blessing. Since he now had all the time he wanted to try and break down Sanji and get him to join the crew.

On the morning of the third day, the Straw Hat Pirates awoke on the Merry to find a thick fog covering the ocean. In all honesty, it was quite eerie. The only one who didn't seem to care for the odd atmosphere was Usopp. And that was only because he was grumpy about all the chores waiting for him inside the restaurant.

"Uhh, I hate this! If I have to wash one more disgusting dish my arms are gonna fall off!" The sniper complained, tying his apron on behind his back.

"Don't worry Usopp, It's for a good cause. I'm gonna convince Sani to join us, so it'll all be worth it." Luffy encouraged, patting the boy on the back.

"Yeah," Nami piped up. "And besides, this place is great! The food tastes amazing, and it's all free!" She mocked, knowing exactly what she was doing.

"Yeah, only for you," the sniper grumbled. Clearly annoyed with the navigator's attitude. "And don't act like you're excited for that cook to join us either, you probably just want another slave to boss around."

Giggling a bit, the navigator winked at the boy's response. "It's not my fault all of you morons are so easy to manipulate."

It was at this moment that the door of the lounge on the second deck creaked open, grabbing the attention of the three teens. What really surprised them though, was the fact that three men walked out instead of two. Who was this third party walking behind Zoro and Johnny you ask? Why it was none other than Yosaku the bounty hunter. Back on his feet and ready to kick butt.

"Here they are Yosaku," the swordsman pointed to the trio. "The rest of the crew, Luffy, Nami and Usopp."

"Wow," the bald man started. "Nice to meet you guys, and thank you for taking good care of big bro Zoro. He's told me a lot about you guys."

While the three pirates took in the living appearance of the man, Johnny pointed something out to his friend. "Forget about those two schmucks Yosaku, it's that babe behind them that saved your life."

"Hey!" Luffy pouted. "What are you talking about? We helped!"

"Yeah!" Usopp supported.

"What did you just call me?" Nami narrowed her eyes at Johnny.

The bounty hunter ignored the girl's evil eye and looked to his partner, signaling for their signature pose. At the order, both men turned so they were back to back, flexing their muscles in the process.

"We are the greatest!" Yosaku began.

"Bounty hunting duo in the East Blue!" Johnny continued.

"Fear us! The mighty Johnny and Yosaku!" They finished together.

Nami shook her head in annoyance. What kind of idiots would think that entrance was cool?

"Woah!" Luffy and Usopp exclaimed in unison, their eyes lighting up in complete amazement.

"No wonder you guys are so strong! That was awesome!" The rubber man clapped in enjoyment.

"Yeah! One of these days I've gotta come up with one of those epic entrances!" The long nosed boy stated.

"Yay! They liked it!" Johnny and Yosaku shouted, sticking their arms out and linking them for a happy dance. "Hooray hooray! Hooray hooray! Hooray hooray!"

The navigator just rubbed her temples, trying not to get angry. In all honesty she was upset at herself for forgetting who she was dealing with here. "Ugh, you're all a bunch of morons! Especially you two, just shut up already!" She yelled, pointing to the two bounty hunters.

The statement from the girl immediately shut down their joyous dancing. Johnny even went as far as to argue with the girl. "Nuh uh! We're not morons big sis Nami!"

"Yeah!" Yosaku joined in. "Would morons be able to take down all these big bounty pirates!?" He questioned loudly, reaching into his jacket and throwing out a wad of wanted posters.

Nami just scoffed at the pile of paper on the floor, reaching down to pick a few of them up. After further inspection of the pile, it was easy for her to see right through the dou's bluff. "What are you guys talking about? All these bounties are pathetic! I don't see a single one bigger than five million!"

Johnny spoke up first, trying to defend his bounty hunter honor. "O-oh, well um… Here, let me help you look. There's gotta be a big one in here somewhere."

Yosaku didn't wait for an invitation either, joining his partner on the floor in an attempt to save their pride. After going through pretty much every single wanted poster on the floor, he pulled one out and smiled at the amount on the paper. "Ha! Check it out, six million berries! We aren't morons!"

"Wow! Good eye Yosaku!" Johnny complimented his friend as they linked arms once again.

"Hooray hooray! Hooray hooray! Hooray hooray!" They cheered together, happy that they were strong bounty hunters.

But the navigator had already stopped listening by the time they began celebrating. Her mind focused on the wanted poster in her shaky hands, reminding her of the hell she had been desperately trying to forget. What am I doing? Why am I acting so comfortable with all these pirates! I told myself that this would be temporary and here I am helping these guys recruit someone else!

Her thoughts were put on hold by the captain of the ship drawing everyone's attention onto the foggy horizon. "Hey guys, what's that huge shadow over there?"

Zoro was the first to spot the giant object in the distance, widening his eyes at the shape it was forming as it got closer. "That's not just a shadow, It's a huge ship. My guess would be pirates."

"Wow, are you sure Zoro? If that's a pirate ship, then it's even bigger than that cat guy's, and his was huuuuge!" The straw hat teen over annunciated.

"I don't know, but we should at least go inside the restaurant and warn everyone. You can never be too safe."

The look on the rubber man's face said that he was totally on board with the swordsman's idea. "Sounds good to me! I haven't had breakfast yet!"

"Oh no you dont!" Usopp warned. "You're not eating another bite! Do you want me to be a chore boy for the rest of my life!?"

"Shishishi," Luffy giggled as he ignored his friend's anger. Looking around at the rest of the ship, he acknowledged the two bounty hunters, as well as the unusually silent navigator. "You guys coming?"

Johnny and Yosaku gave one more look at the incoming ship and gulped at how big the silhouette was getting. "Nah, we're fine right here. It's probably just a big passenger vessel." Johnny said hopefully. His partner nodding his head in agreement.

"Ok, what about you Nami?" The boy asked, making eye contact with the frazzled looking girl.

The girl quickly put on a fake smile and hid the poster she was looking at behind her back before answering the teen's question. "Oh um, you guys go ahead. I'll meet you guys down there."

Luffy looked at her suspiciously for another few seconds before flipping his facial expression completely, busting out a trademark grin. "Alright! See ya later!" He exclaimed as he jumped off the Merry and onto the Baratie, Zoro and Usopp following him.

Nami took a deep breath, letting herself calm down so she could think clearly. I… I don't belong here.