Wishfull-star: His reaction will be found... next chapter! Sanji's reaction is wholesome tbh.

Kae Membrana: Luffy goes cray cray in this many times, so look forward to that - In different ways. I love him, too. In my top 5 one piece characters. Those would be Ace, Luffy, Zoro, Law and Marco. Law is my fav to see distressed for some reason. Like, I do want him to succeed, but when he gets angry, it's beautiful lol.

The Baratie arc ended up being stupidly long, so this is just part 1 of it. I honestly disliked the arc reading it and watching it, but I had fun making Luffy even more annoying in it than cannon, and there are added bits of his more complex character history. But mostly it's just goofs in this chapter. Nobody wants to employ Luffy, seriously lol.

So I have two other crossovers for different series, and don't know which one to edit and post first. One is a crossover with Jujutsu Kaisen and the main characters are Satoru and cute, OP kid Luffy (who suffers a bit, of course) and the other is for Avatar: The Last Airbender and features Ace, Thatch, Marco and Zuko where Ace goes through some shit and then is loved by others and grows happy. Then there's a mystery, because of course I couldn't make him human lol.

Which one would you all like for me to post first? JJK one is shorter than the ATLA one.

"To a new ship and a new crew member!" Luffy cheered, all of them lifting their mugs of alcohol. Well, Luffy found he disliked the taste, so his was juice. Nobody made too much fun of him. They had a party, a first party on the ship, really. Three wasn't much, but four was good. "Next, we have to have a chef. We have a kitchen after all!"

"Can't you just enjoy this moment?" Usopp asked. Luffy pointed out parties would be even better with good food. "Ah, good point! Onwards to find a chef! Captain's orders!" Luffy hit his head. He was captain. He made the orders. "But I try to be a good captain, so I'll take your opinion in mind, but I'm still captain." Usopp just laughed and guzzled more alcohol. After they had some boring meat - Nami was not the best at cooking interesting food, but she didn't want any of them to start a fire, so she was the one to cook - Luffy and Zoro headed to their new room.

"I call the couch!" Zoro said, sitting on the single couch while there were other hammocks for more. The girl's room was much nicer and bigger. Nami said it was because it was designed originally for Kaya to use.

Luffy called the couch, too and flopped down on top of him. Zoro was comfortable with Luffy on his chest, his head tucked to his shoulder. Luffy was soft and squishy, and not that heavy. Not that Zoro couldn't handle any weight on him. "Luffy, even though we have the blood bags, will you still drink from me?" he asked quietly, even though Luffy could hear Usopp with Nami.

"I promise I won't get carried away again," he vowed seriously. Luffy smiled, and that was answer enough.

He added, "Drinking from a bag is nothing compared to a warm person. Plus, you taste really good." He kissed and licked his neck, but didn't bite, even though Zoro breathed a little faster in anticipation. He scowled when Luffy pulled away. "I'm sure I'll get sick if I have any blood this soon. I took way too much, even if it was to heal me," he explained, and Zoro lost his look of irritation.

They both ended up falling asleep before the other two, and woke up with a blanket over them that Usopp must have put on. At breakfast, they had burnt pancakes, but they were good nonetheless. Nami gave them all a glare, challenging them to insult her cooking. None did, and they chatted about where to find a chef.

Nami said they were far from an island, and the one they were closest to was uninhabited. Luffy slammed his face on the table. "But I want good food," he complained. Nami didn't argue; she knew she wasn't the best cook, too. "Well, we'll get one eventually."

"Man, what a swing," Usopp said. Luffy laughed, and put his hand on his hat. But it fell off, and Usopp saw his hair. "Whoa, did you dye that?" Luffy put the hat on quickly and said he was born with it. "That looks so cool. Zoro's hair is green and that's weird-"

"Hey!"

"- but spotted hair, that's really cool." Luffy's face morphed into a grin. "Do you not like it or something?" the teen only a little under a month older than him asked. Luffy said he just didn't want people to see it and think it was weird. It wasn't really a part of him he wanted people to focus on.

"Plus, this hat means a lot to me." He explained his relationship with Shanks, which turned into a more detailed story of the Red Haired pirates. Usopp looked forward to meeting them some day, too. Once he was brave and strong. Then he can face his dad. "Me too! I want to be super strong when I finally see Shanks again."

Zoro grinned. "Maybe I'll have beaten Mihawk by then and be much stronger," he said confidently. After breakfast was over, the table cleaned up, Luffy went out on deck and got the black flag they had, and drew their mark on it. Painted it. He'd known what he wanted it to look like for a while now.

It was a skull with crosses wearing a Straw Hat. "Tada! Our new mark!" he said proudly, holding it up. His crew then insulted it. "Hey, I worked hard on it!" he complained.

"Well, it's scary in its own way, I guess. But I just don't think it's a right flag for us." Nami was actually being nice about it, not saying how ugly or poorly drawn it was. Zoro just commented that it was abstract.

"Hehe, you're lucky I'm here. I'm a master artist with years of experience. Give me that, I'll fix it." Luffy was glad somebody could draw well, but all of them frowned when their new member made his own flag. It was drawn well, but it wasn't for their crew, and it wasn't what the captain requested.

That was actually really annoying. He crossed his arms and said that wasn't their flag. The other two gave disapproving looks as well, and Usopp shrunk a bit before redoing it to be the skull with a Straw Hat that the captain dreamed of. He moved on from the disrespectful moment, and grinned at it. "Now paint it on the sails!"

He helped with it, using his arms as bungee cords to hold him up high enough for him to paint the mark on their sail. It worked, and surprisingly, Luffy didn't get Usopp hurt at all. "The Going Merry is finally complete!" Luffy cheered, looking at his pirate mark with wide, extremely giddy eyes. He sighed in content.

Zoro walked up behind him and wrapped his arms around his waist. "Now all we need is something to name the crew," he commented. Usopp looked away when Zoro kissed Luffy's shoulder. It wasn't even graphic. Nami scoffed.

"If something like that bothers you, then you don't have very thick skin. I've seen them do a lot more," Nami said in dismissal. Luffy frowned.

"Do you have a problem with this?" Zoro asked, voice slightly cold. Usopp hurriedly shook his head, putting his hands up. He was red in the face, and explained his reaction honestly. Luffy was glad he was honest and didn't lie about it.

He said, "I've just never been around any couple. So… PDA will probably embarrass me for a bit." Zoro relaxed, and none of them were upset anymore. Luffy smiled, and rocked back and forth in Zoro's embrace. They went to their room for a bit when Luffy had a question to ask Zoro. Nami looked curious, but Zoro gave her a look. She grumbled, looking away and crossing her arms.

Luffy heard her complain to Usopp. "Now that we're on a bigger ship, I won't have anything to tease them with." Luffy snickered.

The couple sat on the bench, and Luffy asked immediately, "What did you mean when you said I can't drink from anyone else on the crew?" Zoro looked surprised by the question. "I mean… did you mean I can't have their blood at all, or just not drink from them directly? When I got stabbed, Nami was offering me some of her blood. I might have needed it then if Kuro hadn't been there," he explained in more detail.

"Of course I would want you to be able to have their blood. If I'm not there. I just don't want you drinking from them directly, yeah. It's too personal, y'know? I'd hate it if what happens to me would happen to them, too," he explained. Luffy smiled in relief and nodded. "It's nice Nami's so understanding about it. Curious and annoying at first, but ever since you told her, she's been accommodating with it."

Luffy smiled, "Are you finally glad she's with us?"

"For that reason. She's damn annoying the rest of the time." Luffy giggled and Zoro kissed him sweetly.

-x-

Luffy sat on the barrel of apples in the storage room, up because Usopp was asleep and wasn't there to see Luffy without his contacts in so they could be washed. He was also drinking a bag of blood in the dark. He didn't want Usopp to see him at all like this. He was still tired, but he felt he should drink and clean his contacts now that he could while Usopp wasn't around to possibly see.

It had been four days, so Luffy was due for some blood. Four days of having to hide it, which was kind of weird. For the last many, many years, he'd been around only people who understood. So it was strange and hard to get used to hiding it.

After the bag was done, he checked and could hear Usopp still snoring, and threw the bag over the side of the ship. Getting rid of the evidence completely. The ice chest was hidden behind everything and below a crate in the storage room, though they had to keep ice in it. He went back to the bathroom, and saw Nami coming out of her room.

"Oh, hey, your contacts are out. I just realize you never take them out. Isn't that bad?" Luffy said probably. But he had nothing to wash them with or a safe place to put them. "True. How are you doing? About Usopp…"

Luffy got his contacts and put them in, saying, "It's hard to get used to a bit. But I got up so early to have a bag and do this while he's not around. I wonder if I'll ever be able to tell him. He'd probably be scared." Nami didn't dispute this, but sadly nodded. She was going to make some breakfast if he wanted any.

Sitting at the table and waiting, Luffy said, "Thanks for being so understanding. And even offering me some of yours then. I'll only ever keep that as the last option. But as long as I have the medication, I should be fine without doing it to anyone else. Though Zoro likes it, so it's different for him. Hey, do you think Usopp doesn't approve of us?

"I mean, he doesn't really look like we gross him out or anything, but still. He just acts awkward," Luffy finished. He got some oatmeal, boring and bland, while Nami sat down.

She hummed before replying, "I don't think he's uncomfortable because you guys are gay, but he's just honestly never been anyone in your shoes. I mean, his only friends at his island were three kids and Kaya. He had no family, and the villagers didn't like him." Luffy smiled, glad it was like that. It made sense, really.

Luffy took a spoonful of oatmeal and said, "I'm glad. Did you tell him, too?"

"Psh, he doesn't need to know," Nami said, waving her hand dismissively. Luffy commented that Usopp was coming in.

"My contacts okay?"

"Yeah, they look fine," Nami said when the long nosed newcomer came in. He grinned, and then looked disappointed with the oatmeal. "Don't you say a thing! If Luffy doesn't complain, you as hell better not either."

"Y-yes, maam."

"It's miss. I'm not an old lady." Luffy giggled, and ate the rest of his oatmeal. Zoro came in not much later and gave Luffy a sweet kiss and got his food. He looked at it in disappointment but didn't really complain. They ate in relative silence, though it wasn't uncomfortable. After that, it was another day of smooth sailing, not running into anybody or coming into contact with anything.

To pass time, he and Usopp were messing around with the cannon. Zoro was irritated, as the noises were interrupting his nap. "I suck at this, don't I? I can't hit a single thing! I'm trying to hit that rock."

"Step aside, let a professional handle this," Usopp said confidently, and Luffy moved aside. The slightly older one closed on eye and aimed the cannon at a large rock pillar sticking out of the ocean. He fired it, and it hit the rock the first time. Luffy beamed and congratulated him. Usopp was surprised he'd hit it, but did his best to hide it.

"I wanna try again!" Luffy said, and failed again. Usopp proudly cemented his skill of canon shooting. "Well, you're in charge of the cannons now."

"Don't mess it up, cannon-boy," Nami said from a chair, sunbathing. "We wouldn't want to tarnish your reputation." Zoro snorted, and Usopp scowled.

Luffy also said, "You're our sniper now, too. Nami's the navigator, I'm the captain, Zoro's the swordsman, and you're the sniper. Now all we need is a cook, a shipwright, a doctor and a musician!" Zoro asked why a musician. He wasn't having any success with his nap, so he seemed to have given up on it. "Because a pirate crew has to sing!" He paused and sniffed. There was the scent of people out here. Nami raised her brows in question. "Nothing." The smell faded and there was no sound other than the ocean around them.

"I'd rather have a doctor and a cook first, please," Usopp chimed in, raising his hand. Luffy still thought a musician was a definite necessity. Pirates sang, that was that. Nobody could change his opinion. They went inside to have some lunch, and Luffy quickly heard people coming near when there was none before. He jumped off the table, knocking Usopp aside, and hurried out the door.

There was a guy there, some random, unfamiliar guy. Where did he come from? Why was he boarding their ship?! "I'm gonna slaughter all of you!" he raged, a sword drawn. He kicked one of the barrels, luckily empty. Luffy demanded to know who they were. He jumped down and grabbed his shirt. "Don't hurt our ship, jerk!" and he threw him to the ground. "Who are you!?" he repeated.

The guy brandished his sword at him. "Who am I… I should be asking WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?!" He kicked the railing and broke it! Luffy slammed him down. His crew hadn't come out yet, which was annoying. Luffy grabbed the hilt of his sword and tossed it to the side, able to wrench it out of his grip easily. He was weak.

Luffy wrapped him in his arm, around and around like a rope, and then got a real rope and tied him up messily. "I've killed countless pirates. A no-name like you is nothing!" He said this despite being tied up and without his weapon. Luffy put his hands on his hips in annoyance. "You killed my partner!"

"Hah?! I didn't kill anyone!" Luffy shot back. "I don't know what you're talking about, but don't hurt my ship!" For somebody who'd killed countless pirates, he wasn't very strong. All talk, it seemed. Like Usopp. Then Zoro came out. "Zoro, he says I killed somebody!"

"ZORO?!" the guy shouted in shock.

Zoro looked down and clearly recognized him. "Hey! Aren't you Jonny?" he asked lightly, though he sounded happy. Jonny was shocked to see Zoro here, but happy. "Where's Yosaku, isn't he with you?" Zoro wondered.

Jonny started crying, and Luffy wondered if his friend was really dead. Well, Luffy definitely didn't kill him! And he was sad if the guy died because Zoro knew them and seemed to be on pretty friendly terms. Luffy had never heard their names before. He realized he knew very little about Zoro's past. It made him sad, suddenly. He'd talked about his brothers and childhood multiple times, but Zoro never returned it back.

He drooped visibly, but Zoro was paying attention to Jonny. "Yosaku… he's sick!" His partner was laying on deck, which Luffy hadn't noticed at all.

"Hey, you told me I killed him!" Luffy snapped. He was in a bad mood, now. Both because the ship got damaged, and upset he'd never heard a thing about these two guys. He had his arms crossed. Nami and Usopp came out now, wondering who it was now that the shouting stopped.

Jonny explained how his friend or partner or whatever got sick suddenly a couple days ago. Luffy wasn't paying much attention, trying to get rid of his bad mood. He didn't want to bother Zoro about it. He just wished he knew more. Maybe that was being nosy. It wasn't like he'd asked to learn about Luffy's childhood. But he also hadn't asked about his. Still, he wished Zoro gave him the information without needing to be asked. Man, Luffy was sour. Nami and Usopp noticed, and Nami raised her brows in question. Usopp whispered what he was mad about. "I don't know, how should I know?"

"His teeth have fallen out, he keeps passing out, his old wounds have reopened! I don't know what to do anymore!" Then they definitely hadn't caused that with a cannon ball. Jonny was crying, and Luffy did feel bad for him. His friend was really sick. He couldn't imagine having his teeth all fall out. That would be terrible!

Jonny, despite how easily Luffy tied him up, thought he and his partner were infamous and dangerous to East Blue pirates. Yet his partner was so sick. The guy looked to be in really, really bad shape. He was getting blood on the deck. He and Yosaku were really close, and Luffy felt anger at him slip away. It turned into pity.

Zoro didn't look okay with this at all, worry etched onto his face. But then Nami shouted, and the conversation took a turn. "God, how dumb could you get?!" she shouted. Zoro wasn't happy with this, and Jonny snapped at her, too. But there had to be a reason she called them stupid. "Luffy, Usopp, go get some damn limes from the storage room!"

They hurried inside, and got a large crate of limes. Luffy had wondered but didn't ask why they had so much. Maybe they were important? Luffy knocked off one of the crates with flour, and the ice chest was shown. He shoved the crate back on top quickly. "What's in that?" Usopp wondered.

"That can wait, we have to get the limes to them!" Luffy said urgently. Usopp nodded and hurried outside with him. "We got them!" Usopp shouted. She told them to pour the juice out and they did, and then poured it down the sick guy's throat. Nami explained his illness like it was no big deal. It made his teeth fall out, of course it's bad!

She said, "He has scurvy. If we're not too late, he should recover in a few days."

"What about his teeth?!" Luffy asked. Nami gave him a deadpanned look. "Obviously he can't regrow all of his adult teeth. But he'll be fine later as long as it didn't last too long."

Luffy finished pouring the lime juice into Yosaku's mouth and then licked the inside of the bowl, stretching his tongue out. "That's really gross," Usopp commented. He was just jealous. "I don't want devil fruit. Unless it's really cool and useful."

"Hey! Rubber is super cool and useful!" Luffy said indignantly. "I'm not hurt by blunt injures, I could fling around, and I'm good with it at fighting." Zoro chimed in that he was also squishy and soft. Jonny looked confused. His eyes flicked from Zoro and Luffy multiple times before he pointed at both of them.

It should be obvious, but Zoro simply said, "We're together."

"Like, together together?" Jonny asked in shock. Zoro nodded. Luffy flung over to him and jumped on his back. "Oh! I never expected big bro Zoro would actually like someone like that!" Zoro scowled and Nami giggled. Usopp was just watching Yosaku since everyone seemed to have forgotten about him. "Well, I'm happy for you. Big Sis, were you telling the truth when you said he'd be fine?!"

Nami nodded, and added, "Don't call me sis." Luffy asked what it was. Was it the plague?! "Of course not, I just told him the guy would be fine! It's sickness from lack of nutrients found in fruits and vegetables, not the plague or any contagious disease. Though it can kill you if you have it too long."

Jonny was so relieved he started to cry. Zoro was smiling lightly. "Nami's the best," Luffy said with a smile. "She's like a doctor!" She snapped at this though. Forgetting Luffy just complimented her.

"If you're going to sail you should at least know the basics like this! God, you're so stupid sometimes you're going to get yourself killed!" Luffy's face fell, and he looked down. Nami immediately looked guilty at Luffy's reaction. He got off of Zoro's back and walked inside with his head down. Zoro followed after him, flipping Nami off and promising her death when he got back out.

Luffy was sitting at the table with his upper body laying on it. "Am I a bad captain?" he asked sadly. "I didn't know this, or a lot of stuff. What if I am so stupid everyone will die?" he asked, moping intesnely. Zoro sat next to him, rubbing circles on his back.

"It's not like me or Usopp knew either-"

"But I'm the captain."

"Even the captain doesn't have to be the doctor," Zoro pointed out. "Not everyone can do everything. Isn't that why there are specific roles for those on a ship?" Luffy sighed, but knew he was right. Still, he felt stupid. He was called it a lot, but it neve got to him because it never felt like he was truly being insulted in a mean way. The tone Nami used… was definitely mean. "What else are you upset about? You seem to be in a bad mood."

Luffy looked away. It was nothing. "It's not nothing, just tell me." He did. He felt bad for not knowing anything about Zoro's past. All he knew was that he had been a scary bounty hunter. Other than that, he didn't know anything. And Zoro knew about his stuff. A lot of his stuff. "I didn't mean to keep the information from you or anything," he said quickly. "I just didn't really think about it. I feel like my life started over when I decided to join the crew. And then I liked you. It just didn't feel pressing."

He then promised to tell him everything when they had some privacy. "I don't want the others to hear about it." Luffy raised his brows, wondering why. "Is there something else?" Zoro asked, voice soft. Luffy jerked up, and told him about Usopp seeing the ice chest. Zoro stood and left the room immediately, heading to the interior storage room, Luffy trotting along behind him like a duckling following its mother.

He grabbed the ice chest packed with ice and blood bags and brought it to Nami's room. He walked right in without a care. But both teens knew that she wouldn't be upset about this if it was to hide the truth from Usopp. It was too soon for him to know and freak out. Zoro stuffed the chest under her bed.

"There, it should be fine."

"What the hell are you doing in my room?" Nami's voice asked dangerously from the stairs. Zoro turned and told her bluntly that they needed to relocate the ice chest. "Why?"

"Usopp saw it," Luffy explained simply. "I won't get any dirt or anything in here, promise." Nami frowned, but was understanding. It was important to keep that safe and sound. Luffy depended on it, and Usopp just didn't know them well enough to completely accept it like Nami had. Well, Nami and Zoro both accepted it really soon. But Usopp was different. Some day he'd know, but that time wasn't for now.

Nami then looked ashamed. "I'm sorry for saying that to you. It was… mean. Insensitive. So, I'm sorry I blew up at you. You weren't the only one who didn't know, either. I targeted you, so I am sorry. I didn't mean to insult you." Luffy smiled, and forgave her. The three left, and saw Usopp still talking with Jonny while Yosaku was still out.

But suddenly, Yosaku woke up and jumped up and cheered about being healthy now. Nami grumbled before shouting, "There's no way you can recover that fast! Just rest for awhile, you'll only make yourself sick again if you overdo it." Yosaku asked where they were before he saw Zoro.

"Big bro Zoro!" he shouted excitedly, and then promptly vomited blood. Zoro put his face to his hand. "Anyways," Yosaku said, wiping the blood from his mouth that Luffy had no feeling about, and introduced themselves. Apparently they used to bounty hunt with Zoro. "Nice to meet you all!" Luffy wasn't in a bad mood anymore. Zoro would tell him about stuff later, and hadn't ever meant to hide it from him. He just didn't think about it.

"Yosaku, big bro Zoro is in a relationship," Jonny said loudly.

The other gasped. "What?! With you?!" he asked, pouting at a sour looking Nami. Both she and Zoro immediately cleared that up. "We're not together!" The green haired teen introduced him to Luffy, his face a bit red. "Oooh… I'm surprised! You were always so indifferent!" Zoro blushed harder, though it might have just been from irritation about them focusing on his relationship things.

"Well, Luffy's different. Let's stop talking about it," Zoro said in a grumpy voice. Luffy giggled quietly next to him. The older said nothing of it. "Shouldn't it be more surprising that I became a pirate than anything else? Remember, I was deemed the 'pirate hunter'."

Luffy grinned. "Maybe you were just hunting for me that whole time. Shishishi…" Zoro's face went bright red and he glared at Luffy, who laughed again. Everyone else blushed at it, with Nami having her hand in front of her smile. Zoro took a deep breath, and demanded that they move on.

"Anyways, we should have someone to monitor our diets. Right, to stay healthy? What if we got sick with something else and Nami didn't know what it was? We need a skilled chef," Usopp said. They were all sitting on deck by now, Yosaku finally resting and not standing or jumping around. They nodded, even the two guests, which was kind of weird. Luffy definitely didn't want them to join the crew.

"And a doctor," the youngest chimed in. "And a musician. But I guess the other two are more important." He sounded upset for admitting that. "But it would be weird to have a new diet. I've only eaten meat for ten years!" They were all shocked, and Nami slapped the hand to her face.

She pointed out, "You know you might only like meat because you've had nothing else, right? You're just used to it by now. And I can't believe you survived on meat alone! You need more than just protein in your diet. Fine, don't listen to me," she said in irritation.

"What?"

"Oh, forget it. Moral of the story, we need a chef so we don't get sick and die in an embarrassing way." Zoro added it needed to be a top notch chef. Not some loser who can only bake cake. Usopp and Luffy laughed, along with the two bounty hunters. Yosaku didn't vomit blood which was nice. He would be the one to clean the puddle up.

It was only a beat of silence before Jonny thrust his hand in the air. "If you're looking for a chef of the sea, I know a great place to find one. Of course, getting one to join is another matter." Luffy said he'd find a way. "What do you mean?"

"Well, I first blackmailed Zoro into joining, and then me and Nami formed a pact to sail together, and then Usopp just joined in a boring way. Shishishi!" Zoro made it clear he didn't feel like he was blackmailed anymore. "I know! But I did that in the beginning."

This was the first time Usopp had heard of that, and he was shocked. But he didn't ask, seeming to not want to know. Maybe he thought the blackmail had been inappropriate or something. He didn't know an example for it, but maybe his imagination was running wild. "Well, where is the place?" he asked.

"The place is only two to three days from here. We'll guide you if you want! The place is close to the Grand Line, so you gotta be careful of the customers there sometimes. They're bat shit crazy!" Nami said you had to be to enter the Grand Line.

Then she smiled. "I guess we're all crazy for doing that." Luffy beamed and agreed. "Well, a sea cook is better than a cook on an island. They won't know much about meals exclusively from the ocean." Luffy just thought of a horrifying thing. "What's that face for?"

"What if he can't cook meat from on land?!" he asked, eyes wide in worry and horror. Usopp said he was sure he could cook the basics. Meat was easy to prepare. After all, Luffy had been doing it for years, hadn't he? "Well, yeah, I guess. I'll be the cook if necessary."

All three of his crew members gave him a definitive no, even Zoro. They didn't want him to burn the kitchen down. He pouted, but agreed. He wouldn't cook. Zoro wrapped his arm around Luffy's waist. "No more oatmeal and burnt food," he sighed. Nami threw her shoe at him.

"I do my best, asshole," she said defensively. Her face was red in embarrassment, maybe. Luffy chimed in that she was good enough. "That still sounds rude, you know. But it's not like I enjoy making the food. It's not that good to me either, you know? But we can't just eat apples and jerky now that we have a kitchen. It would be a total waste."

Yosaku picked up the conversation that had been derailed again. They seemed to bounce around topics without finishing one before going to another. "That hawkeyed man you've been looking for has been sighted there before," he said casually, looking at Zoro, though. Zoro gave a grin.

Luffy wondered how that would go. He was confident in Zoro, but also kind of worried. Hawkeye was the greatest swordsman in the world, right? But Luffy would never interfere with Zoro's dream, even as his captain. Even as his boyfriend.

It was at dinner that Usopp brought up the ice chest. Zoro and Nami did an excellent job on not reacting. Luffy said, "It's some medicine I have to take."

"You're sick?!"

Luffy frowned, not sure how to answer. "Without the medicine, I get sick," he settled with. "Let's not talk about it." But Usopp was still really curious. He asked why he hadn't said anything. After all, Usopp wouldn't think anything wrong with him if he had some condition.

"He said he doesn't want to talk about it," Zoro said firmly. But Usopp could see both Zoro and Nami knew about it based on their reactions. "It's nothing concerning, so you don't need to worry." The newest member looked hurt about being out of the loop. At least for now.

-x- R Scene -x-

That night, Zoro asked for him to drink. "You're not feeling sick anymore, right?"

"Are you sure? There's a lot of people here, now," Luffy said. Zoro grinned, and dragged him to the storage room, which he pushed a crate in front of. He sat down with Luffy in his lap. He pulled his shirt aside, where bruises already were, with little marks. So he went to the other side. Luffy trusted him when he had told him he'd never do what he did last time. He'd never lose control.

Luffy licked the skin, kissing it first, feeling Zoro's heart beat speed up in anticipation. Luffy bit down and drank slowly, not too fast to end up how it did that one time. Zoro didn't grab at him or anything, he ran his hands up Luffy's back and traced his shoulder blades, touching him softly and lovingly, no groping or anything.

It was… really, really nice. He felt adored. Zoro was sighing at the feeling, but keeping his hands under control. To not upset Luffy at all. After Luffy thought it had been enough, he pulled away to see Zoro's face was red, and he was panting a bit. Luffy looked down and blushed. Zoro was really turned on by it. He felt kind of guilty about it, though he couldn't control that it felt good for his partner. Zoro gasped when Luffy palmed it through his pants, he grabbed his hands, stopping him.

"You really don't need to," he said, not panting anymore. "I've always been good at just willing it away." He didn't sound embarrassed. It was clear from the start that it totally turned him on. He was surprised it was this time that did it, and not that really intense time.

Luffy replied, "Well, it's covered, so it's not that bad." Zoro laughed and said that was fine then. Luffy didn't really know what to do, but rubbed it up and down as Zoro bit his lip. Luffy lapped up the little amount of blood, which made Zoro climax in his pants. But there was no wet spot since he was wearing underwear.

"Um, Zoro? I… I've never done anything like that before."

"Well, I assumed, I'm your first partner." Luffy's face turned red. "Oh. You mean to yourself?" The other nodded. "Oh, wow. Would you ever want to, with me?" Luffy wasn't sure. He didn't know if it felt that good. "It does. I promise. Can I try? I mean, you're wearing pants, too."

Luffy didn't want to embarrass himself further, but he said he could try. Zoro worked slowly, and it was hard with there being two layers over it. But he managed to do it by kissing and likcing Luffy's collar bone and then pulled his shirt up to trail his fingers over the marks, and then moved his mouth to Luffy's nipples.

That got it, and after that, Luffy came incredibly quickly. He was embarrassed. It hadn't been that fast for Zoro. "Luffy, you've never even touched yourself, that's to be expected. I'm just happy I got something," he said and nipped at his bottom lip. "Did it feel good?" Luffy nodded. It felt really good.

"We should do it again some time," Luffy said brightly, though his face was flushed, too. Zoro agreed with a big smile. They both went to clean up before they went to bed. The others were asleep already, and didn't wake by their entrance.

-x-

Luffy was trying to beat Usopp at a card game on deck when he heard and smelled people. "We're here!" he shouted, running to the side of the ship to see the restaurant floating on the sea in one place, not drifting at all. It really was a floating restaurant out on the sea. Usopp hurried over in awe as well.

"Wow!" he said. Everyone else was at the railing, too, now.

"Hey, maybe me and Zoro can go on our first date!" Luffy exclaimed. Nami made a cooing noise and a giggle. Zoro took his hand and intertwined their fingers. He agreed, saying "Why not?" Luffy beamed. They docked there, a marine ship appearing at the same time to dock right next to their ship. It was bigger than the Merry, but not as big as Garp's ship was. Or as big as the Red Force, Shanks' ship.

Usopp worried, "They're not going to attack us, right?" Luffy was worried, too. He wanted their time to be uninterrupted. He just wanted to enjoy food and get a new member. He wasn't leaving this place without a member, he just knew already, but couldn't explain it. His stomach rumbled in anticipation for some of the good food wafting from the open windows. It had the head of a fish and a large deck.

Luffy could not smell that many people. Maybe it was expensive. Or just not a lot of people came to it, since it was out on the sea.

The marine guy belittled their ship and their crew, since he'd never heard of them. Jonny and Yosaku got pissed at him, and ended up getting punched with metal knuckles. What were they called? Brass knuckles! Well, that showed his punch wasn't so strong. "Hey! Why do you use brass knuckles?" Nami hit his head.

"Don't talk to the enemy!" she scolded. Fullbody, as he boasted his name, narrowed his eyes at him before a female voice from inside said, "Darling, enough beating on weaklings. Let's go in already," she said. Well, that solved their problems easily. The guy took her advice, and the two of them got off of their ship to walk into the restaurant, promising them pain if he ran into them when he wasn't on break.

Zoro scoffed. "All talk. Using brass knuckles is shameful." Luffy nodded. If your punch was weak like that, then why not use something other than punches? When Yosaku was hurt, a bunch of papers fell onto the deck.

"What's all this, Jonny?" Nami asked, crouching down.

"Oh, wanted posters," he said, rubbing his bleeding jaw, sitting up like he wasn't just beaten bloody. He and his partner sure moved on from things fast. But Luffy smelled a sudden burst of sweat from Nami. He walked over, and she yanked the paper away. Luffy pulled it back anyways, and she glared at him.

The wanted poster was of a fishman, Arlong. He'd never seen a fishman before, but Shanks told him stories of Fishman Island. The guy had a big bounty for East Blue. "He's the pirate that took over your village, isn't he? I didn't forget. I'm sorry we don't have enough money to buy it back." Luffy had not forgotten about Nami saying she was temporary, even if she didn't act like she wanted to be.

She had wide eyes at him. "It's none of your business…" she said, but there was no bite in her voice.

"Sure it is. You're my friend. I don't want you to be upset. I don't know if we can collect that much money, but we can try!" he said with conviction. "Or we could just go drive them off. Me and Zoro are strong, right? And I'll be a step ahead with my senses and all. Or maybe I can scare him off. I wonder what fishman blood tastes like."

Nami let out a small, sad smile. "You're too nice for your own good." Luffy laughed.

"I thought I was too stupid for my own good! I like this one more though." Luffy let out a real smile, and he helped her up. "Let's just eat some nice food and then talk about it? Besides, you've been there for me with tough times, like after the Kuro incident. We'll be there for you, too."

"Damn straight," they heard Zoro say quietly, giving both of them a small smirk. Nami wiped her eyes a bit. The three got up, and Luffy took the wanted poster and threw it over the side of the ship. She didn't need to see it any longer. She followed after them, a small smile on. But they were startled out of that when they found out via Usopp that Fullbody was aiming his cannon at them. "He fired!"

"Leave it to me!" he shouted, and jumped up. Zoro screamed his name in worry, but Luffy took in a ton of air, inflating his body to throw the cannon back. "Gomu gomu… balloon!" he shouted, protecting the ship. "You can have your cannonball back!" he shouted. Jonny and Yosaku were shocked at this, while Zoro was grinning until they realized where the cannonball was heading. "Oh no!" Luffy shouted.

The cannonball crashed into the ship. He was shocked and horrified, and fell onto his back. Shit. When they got on board, Luffy was unsure of whether to play it off or apologize. Well, he didn't even have the chance to make that choice before he was dragged away by angry chefs. "I'm sorrrryyy!" he said, being dragged. "Save me!" he shouted.

"You kind of deserve a punishment," Usopp said with a sympathetic voice.

"Traitors!" he shouted as he was dragged up the stairs. He went down the hall and the door opened to show an older man with a long, braided mustache and a very tall chef's hat. "I'm sorry, mister! Ahhh! You lost your leg for it! Where is it?! Stitch it back up!"

"Shut up! Your blunder didn't lose me my leg!" Luffy sighed in relief. "But you still damaged our ship. What will you do about it?" Luffy thought for a moment. He had no idea. But he apologized. "If apologies were all that were needed, wars wouldn't happen."

Luffy whistled. "That's pretty deep, mister."

"Not mister, head chef Zeff. If you don't got the money to fix this place, you'll have to work it off," Zeff said. "You'll do odd jobs around my restaurant without pay for a whole year. Only then will I forgive you." Luffy's jaw dropped. A whole year?

"How about one week?" he asked hopefully.

"No! You damage my restaurant, and critically injure me? One year and no less!" Zeff demanded. Luffy looked up at the hole. He suggested making a skylight. Those were pretty cool. Zeff looked frustrated. "One year and that's final!"

Luffy protested further. He'd waited years to become a pirate, he couldn't waste a whole year here! "Alright, it's settled. I'll work for one week here and you'll forgive me." Zeff, unsurprisingly, didn't agree to this, and drop kicked Luffy in the face. "Hey, you said you were critically injured," Luffy grumbled. "You're perfectly fine! Lying isn't a good trait. Shishishi."

"Shut up!" He took a deep breath. "Alright kid, if you don't have the time, then I'll tell you a faster way to get out of here. You'll have to leave behind one of your legs!" Luffy's jaw dropped. He didn't think the guy was serious.

"Um, I know you probably want your missing leg back, but mine is made of rubber, so I don't think it would work for you. And I'm not giving you one of my legs! Are you dumb, mister?" Luffy wondered.

Zeff looked at him like he was absolutely hopeless. "Were you dropped on your head as a baby?" he asked blandly, though there was an angry tick on his face. Luffy laughed, saying it was possible. Then he paused, hearing a commotion down stairs and smelling blood.

He lightly said, "I think there's a fight down in your dining room."

"Damn it!" he shouted and hurried out of the room, Luffy trotting after in interest, finding a chef hat on the counter and putting it on over his hat without a second thought. He looked cool now. The captain saw a blonde guy in a suit holding up a bloody Fullbody. Whoa! He was brutal! Luffy wondered what happened. The table was destroyed, too. Zeff started yelling at Sanji for being a "damn moronic brat!"

Sanji didn't stop, and when Fullbody said he would close this restaurant, Sanji said, "Then I guess I'll have to kill you now." Luffy burst into laughter, reminded of when Ace and Sabo threatened to kill him. It was the same. Sanji was interesting! And he had a cool curly eyebrow. He wanted him for sure. He was strong, clearly. Maybe kind of violent, though. Well, Zoro would keep him in line.

Plus he worked here, and the food here all smelled delicious. So he would have to join them for sure. He watched in interest. "Go Sanji! He's a jerk! Shishishi." Zeff turned to him and told him to shut his piehole, yanking the chef hat off his head. Luffy just laughed some more. Maybe he would annoy Zeff so much he let him go.

"Are you trying to ruin my restaurant, you brat?!" he roared. Then he turned on Fullbody, kicking him out with his wooden leg. Only for him, it had to hurt when it hadn't for Luffy. Man, being rubber was the best, no matter what Usopp thought. "And you get outta here!" Fullbody got up and ran, bloody and defeated.

Then another marine ran in, interrupting everything. Luffy watched in interest. "Sir, he escaped from the ship's prison!"

"Man, this place sure is noisy," Luffy mused, adjusting his hat on his head. He looked around and saw the kitchen. He was hungry, and went inside to eat some of the food before running out. He heard shouts of confusion about the missing food. Luffy got away with it, holding in some giggles.

Just that small taste made him want to eat this food even more. Luffy hadn't been paying attention to the freaked out marine, the smell of food much more pressing. Besides, they were on a ship in the middle of nowhere. Anyone they captured could just be recaptured, right? So he wondered why they were making it a big issue.

Everyone heard the name "Kreig" and started to freak. Luffy wondered who that was. But then a gunshot was heard, and the marine dropped to the floor, shot from behind through the chest. Luffy leaned forward in interest and shock. Who was that? Was he the prisoner that escaped? Wouldn't he just have ditched? Maybe take a smaller boat? Well, that wasn't very fun and he might feel like a coward.

But Luffy wondered if it was worth it to shoot somebody. Patty, as Luffy heard, Sanji and Zeff all had different reactions. Luffy jumped down, in the group, interested. "A pirate?"

"Who are you?" Sanji asked, smoking.

"I'm Luffy. I'm going to be the next Pirate King," Luffy said calmly.

"I see," Sanji replied just as casually, turning back to the pirate in the doorway.

The guy was already bruised and bloodied, but now he was in charge with the gun. "Bring me food. Whatever I want. This is a restaurant, isn't it?"

"Wow, what a bad attitude," Luffy mused. Zeff told him his was worse in a different way. Patty, the chef with big forearms and a buzz cut, walked up the "customer" and welcomed him. "Welcome, squid faced bastard. Pardon me, dumbass, but do you have any money?"

The enemy pirate pressed a gun to Patty's head. "Does lead count?"

Patty was not bothered. "So you don't have any money?" he asked in a monotone voice before slamming his fist down on him, breaking the table underneath him. Luffy thought this place was awesome. He would totally work here for a week. Not a year, definitely not.

"Damn Patty broke a table."

"Ah, this place is interesting. He's pretty strong," Luffy said. Everyone ignored him. Patty told the man he wasn't a customer if he couldn't pay. Luffy heard his stomach rumble very loudly. He was really hungry. While he didn't think his attitude was the best and he shouldn't have shot somebody, it would suck to starve.

Well, he was being dramatic. He wouldn't starve. But then his stomach rumbled louder so everyone could hear him. And mocked him. "If you have no money, you're not a customer! Get the hell out of here!" Patty roared. "I ain't gonna give a single bread crumb to broke ass pirates like you."

"Man, what a jerk," Luffy mumbled. "I thought he was cool at first."

Zeff turned around. "Who are you talking to! Just shut up and stay still!" he said angrily. Luffy apologized in a laugh. With the pirate kicked out, Patty told everyone to resume their meal. Even though there was blood all over the floor and two broken tables, glassware shattered. Luffy saw Sanji walk upstairs and out of sight. "Go get an apron on and get to work," Zeff snapped. "I don't know if I could even handle you for a whole year. Don't mess up my restaurant, brat."

Luffy went upstairs only to not go get an apron, but find that chef and make him stay. He found him on the deck, and looked over the balcony to see he'd given the pirate free food. "Lucky! You got some food! You were almost about to die before, too! Shishishi! Hey cook, join my crew, will yah? Be the cook on my pirate ship! I'm sure you'd get along really well with everyone, and Zoro, too!"

Sanji looked shocked. "Hah?" Luffy jumped down onto the deck and sat on the railing. Sanji asked why he threw that cannon ball at their ship. "That was an accidental misfire in self-defense!" Luffy insisted. "That head chef guy is scary. So is everyone else, but also really cool. But I'm glad you got food, even if you were a jerk before. Going hungry sucks!"

The chef took another drag of his cigarette. "You better not mess with this ship. Shitty geezer'll kill ya. He's a former pirate. All of the people here are crazy, which is good since we get a lot of pirates in these parts. Except for you."

"Haha, yeah. But that keeps it interesting. But he can't kill me, I'm too strong," Luffy said simply. "So is it always this crazy? And thanks for getting rid of Fullbody, he's the one that fired the cannon in the first place. He was a jerk."

Sanji nodded. "It's never quiet. And that jackass wasted food, the ultimate sin. Though worse is when you go hungry or let people go hungry."

"See, you'll do good on my ship," Luffy stated. Sanji just looked at him like he was mentally handicapped and was trying to not be too mean about his feelings towards the rubber teen. "So, join," Luffy said simply. But Sanji refused, though he did it politely.

"I have my own reasons to keep working here," he said calmly. Luffy frowned and glared. He crossed his arms defiantly, and said he refused. "Refuse? Refuse what?!" Now Sanji was getting a bit irritated. Luffy simply stated, "I refuse your refusal! You have to become the chef on my ship because it'll be fun, so you have to. You're a good cook and I need one so it's natural that you come to be our chef."

"How does that make sense?! And at least hear me out," Sanji said.

"Fine, then, what's your reason?"

"I'm not telling you."

"You just told me to hear you out!" Luffy said, getting irritated. He should just say yes already! Why was he refusing? Luffy said it would be fun, and who doesn't like fun things? Crazy people! He knew he was in the right. Besides, his first two crewmembers declined initially, but now look! Zoro was Luffy's lover, and Nami liked being with them.

Though he really couldn't stay a whole year when she had to get her village back. He had no plan to go collect money, those pirates could always come back once she paid, stealing her money. They needed to be dealt with by force. He didn't know who they were or what they did, but the captain upset his navigator and friend, and that wasn't okay.

"Are you listening to me?!"

"Huh? Ah, I got distracted. What were you saying?" Sanji was raging, Luffy laughed, apologizing if he thought he was annoying.

"That's not a proper apology! You're making it sound like the person being annoyed is at fault when you're the one being annoying! You stupid Straw Hat, don't make me cut you into pieces!"

"Don't insult my Straw Hat or I'll kick your ass!" Luffy shot back. They both glared at each other, Luffy making sure not to growl. Not that he'd done that in while, though. Then he laughed. "Ah, I'm not doing very well to recruit you. But, you'll come anyway." Sanji pinched the bridge of his nose and took some deep breaths. "You know smoking is bad for you." The blonde didn't respond.

Their arguing was cut short when the guy introduced himself. He was Gin, a member of the Kreig pirates. Again, Luffy had never heard about them. He asked if they were tough. "Yeah."

"But you're weak, right?" Sanji didn't argue. "Well, I have a weaker guy on my crew, but he's still great, so I guess I can't judge. Shishishi." Gin looked a bit unsure of how to talk to Luffy. When he was asked about it, Luffy confirmed his crew was small. "Now there are five."

"I said no! Don't count me in, you stupid shitty rubber!" Sanji shouted, but Luffy was paying attention to Gin. He bluntly told Luffy to not go to the Grand Line. He wouldn't agree to that. That was the place he would find the One Piece in, and become the Pirate King. He would also have more fun and get stronger in the Grand Line. There was no debate about whether to go or not.

Luffy wondered what Gin knew about the Grand Line. Luffy had a basic concept of it. Crazy people, crazy ocean, and crazy islands. So, in other words, super fun and neat. Well, Sanji told him to listen to other's opinions, so he'd listen to his story. "There are plenty of places to go in the world as a pirate other than the Grand Line."

"Do you know something about the Grand Line?" he asked curiously, wanting to know Gin's opinion. His, so far, was very different from Shanks'. Gin pulled his knees up and put his face in his hands, suddenly trembling.

"No, I don't know anything about it. That's why it's terrifying," he said, voice shaking. He was a scaredy cat, why'd he try going there in the first place? If he regretted it. Luffy knew Usopp would be scared, but he could handle it with them. Luffy didn't respond directly to Gin's words, but asked who Krieg was.

Just a strong pirate who entered the Grand Line, but then got scared and left. "That's not a very brave pirate… to give up at the beginning and run away." Sanji nodded silently. Gin said it was all he had to say. He stood up and looked at the ocean; he had no way to get out of here. The teenage chef stood, and offered him a small boat to leave on. He really was nice.

"Just so you know, I'm still going to the Grand Line."

"Haha, well, you're free to do as you like. I can't stop you. And Sanji, thank you so much for the meal. It was the best I'd ever had. Would it be alright for me to come back and eat here?" he asked with a genuine smile. Food cures all. Sanji nodded.

Luffy added, "Well, it won't be him cooking your food next time, cause he's gonna be my chef. Shishishi." Sanji finally kicked him.

"Errand boy! So that's where you've been!"

"Agh! Old man!"

When Gin worried Sanji would get in trouble over him, the chef just dumped the plate over the side of the ship. No proof, no punishment. Luffy liked that. Wow, he really liked that. He knew he'd be using that some day. "Don't get caught again!" Sanji called, looking genuinely happy. Luffy grinned.

"You're a good person, aren't you?" Sanji looked away and didn't respond before Zeff ordered both of them to get back to work. Luffy went to the kitchen and wasn't sure what to do. Nobody paid attention to him either, so he found a chair and sat on it, creaking it back and forth as he watched the chaotic environment. How could they hear each other over the loud talking and clinking of dishes?

His presence started to annoy them, and the creaking of his chair was getting really irritating, so he was ordered to do the dishes. He looked at the plates. He'd never done the dishes before. He started to rub them with his hands, not even using soap, but the plates were slippery, and he kept dropping and breaking them. He was paying attention to the scene of the chefs yelling and cooking.

He was able to hear them talking about Sanji, information he wanted but couldn't ask for. He wanted to be the head chef, and had been working for years there with Zeff. They started to insult him over picking fights in the dining room.

"It sickens me to see a guy like that as the assistant head chef."

"Hey, that's not very nice," he said bluntly, dropping and shattering a dish in the sink. He was either not realizing or just didn't care about breaking the dishes because there were a lot of broken ones in the sink. Patty marched over and scolded him about the dishes. "And you don't know shit about this place, so don't butt in. Go take a broom and don't break anything!"

Luffy didn't argue and got a broom. On his way to sweep, to try and not do anything wrong, he picked a piece of meat off of a dish and ate it. "Mmm~ you guys are good cooks!" he said with a grin.

"Don't take the food!" Luffy stated he did before, and he hadn't been in trouble. "Because no one noticed!" Luffy put his hands up and said he wouldn't do it again, though he was amused the whole time. It wasn't amusing to the chefs, and they kicked him out of the kitchen. On the way, he made another mistake, only this one hurt. He badly burned his hand and destroyed pretty much every dish in the kitchen from him waving his hand around in pain.

"GET OUT!"

"My hand!"

He was dragged out of the kitchen by Patty, and ordered to take customers orders. He could do that. "But I'm not very good with people sometimes."

"Yeah, well Sanji isn't either. Doesn't mean you can't go work, runt!" he was shoved forward, and pouted as he left the kitchen. He grabbed another chef's hat and put it on over his straw one once again, just because it was cool and funny. He walked around the upper floor, exploring before he hurried to the stairs to look like he was doing his job. He honestly wasn't trying to be a nuisance. His loved ones put up with a lot, didn't they?

He headed into the dining room. "Heh, this is the life of an errand boy. Coby must have had it rough," he mused. Then his face fell. He still felt bad about knocking him out and feeding on him, even if it was only a little. Really, only a little. But still, he felt he'd betrayed him. He was so glad Zoro was there for him. Loved being there for that.

His cheeks turned red as he looked around to take orders. Then he saw his own crew eating good food without him! He ran to their table and angrily demanded to know why they were eating without him. "Hey, errand boy. Heard you have to work here a full year."

"I bet he's already destroyed the kitchen," Nami said, taking a sip of her drink. Luffy affirmed that. "I'm not surprised," she added casually. Luffy laughed about it, and snatched some food from Zoro's plate. He didn't complain. They talked loudly, and Luffy said he'd found them a chef. "Ooh, which one."

"That one," Luffy said, and openly pointed at Sanji. He rolled his eyes and poured another glass of wine. "He's interesting."

Nami sighed. "And I had hoped it was a girl chef."

"Nope, only guys. Did you see them beat up Fullbody and this other pirate? They're crazy! And interesting, too," he said. Zoro wondered if that's why Fullbody left crying and bloody. Luffy laughed. "He was so scared! Man, how embarrassing. But I won't forgive him for shooting the cannon ball. He should be the one doing this. Well, he can't be worse at it than I am, even though I'm trying my best, shishishi."

Nami laughed. "Well, at least you're honest, right?"

Then Sanji came over, and started fawning over Nami, hearts in his eyes. Zoro and Usopp watched him in confusion. Nobody pointed out that Nami would not be interested in him. She could do that if she wanted herself. Zoro asked if they were really taking this guy. Luffy told him to get along, he was coming with them.

"So, you agreed then?"

"No, but he'll come anyways," Luffy said bluntly. Nami said she assumed that was what would happen. "I know, right? And I don't even gotta blackmail him or anything. Shishishi!"

Sanji didn't pay attention, still serenading Nami. She was being a good sport about it, or maybe thought she could use him. Maybe a bit of both. "If only a great obstacle were not standing in our way of love!"

"Yeah, Nami's preferences not being him is a pretty big obstacle," Zoro whispered to Luffy, who started laughing. Zoro grinned. "I wish we could have gone on a date, now you have to work here. Though you sound like you're failing spectacularly already."

Luffy nodded. "Spectacularly," he agreed. "But we can go on a date after they forget about what I did."

"Errand boy, get back to work!" Zeff shouted, and yanked the chefs hat away once again. "And stop wearing the chefs hats, boy!" He moved his gaze to Sanji, having been listening to him the whole time. "That obstacle is me, right? It's a good chance. Just go and be a pirate. I don't need someone like you in my restaurant." Luffy grew very angry.

And it continued. Zeff pointed out every negative thing about Sanji he could think of, insulting him and telling him he wasn't needed. Luffy hated watching all of it, his face twisting in anger. He thought Zeff hadn't been a bad guy, but now look at how he was treating Sanji! Dismissal like that, pawning him off like he was nothing, saying he wasn't wanted…

Ace went through all of that and it took a long time for Luffy to convince him he was worth everything! Well, the same happened the other way around. They were both insecure and forgotten about when they were young.

"Luffy?" Usopp asked, seeing the anger on his face. He knew none of them had ever seen him this angry. Zoro patted his head, and Luffy managed to calm down. But he had to say something. "I hope you know that's very hurtful to pawn someone off that you're supposed to like and act like they aren't worth a thing." He said it loud enough for Zeff to hear.

Sanji put his hand up. "Thanks for trying to help, but it's not a big deal." He turned back to Zeff, and vowed he'd work there, no matter if he wanted him gone. Until the day he died. He was slammed down, and Zeff left.

Nami asked why Luffy got so upset about it. "It was mean, yeah, but you totally lost your cool. Which is weird." Luffy simply said his brother was treated like that. He didn't mention himself, too. They didn't really need to know that much about what his differences had done to his mental and emotional state when he was young.

"It took me years to convince him that he was worthy of love and care and effort. I just got really mad, thinking about how he felt after all of that. Sorry I got involved, Sanji. It's none of my business." His crew members' faces softened, and even Sanji looked a bit touched.

"Well, thanks for the sentiment. But I'm not your brother and I'm not a child," the blonde said. He gave Nami a fancy dessert, goo goo eyes, and then walked away. Nami watched after him.

She said, "He'll get annoying, but he seems like a good guy. And he's a great chef, too. It's so good." Luffy scowled. He was the captain and would be making the final decision, so he should at least get some food to try out! But he was called back inside to work some more. Though he didn't know what kind of work they wanted him to do.

I touch on Ace's psych in this a lot in passing, and how Luffy went through time trying to get Ace to love himself, since in canon, Ace is just an emotional mess even as an adult. So I highlight that to show how close the two really are, even when apart. So, I don't make Ace a whiny cry baby, I just show how he really was in relation to Luffy and his emotional problems as well. Two "monsters" in very different ways. :(