Thanks to Jheni Kuchiki and Jui Bhaskarrao for your reviews.

Enjoy your reading.

Chapter 42

Branded

It had been three days since the straw hat crew had sailed off and while Sanji was selecting his vegetables for the next meal in the kitchen, he was dutifully thinking.

Since his last argument with the fencer which had almost ended their relationship, nothing had disturbed their rediscovered happiness and he should have been delighted. Not that they were putting up with each other more than usual, but Sanji hadn't felt the need to make him talk or to make sure of his feelings. Really, he should have been happy, but he also knew he was still in the euphoria of the moment and the day would inevitably come when an event would undermine his peace of mind.

At this very moment, the cook would truly assess the price of his promise. And it's also at this moment that he wouldn't be allowed to make mistakes. However, he knew trust wasn't something that could be decreed. Confidence was about feeling, strong from all the bonds built over time. And Sanji couldn't foresee when he would trust the fencer enough not to ask him for what he couldn't give. He just hoped the gap he thought he perceived between them would close.

Besides, he was sensing his demand wasn't rational in this respect. He knew the swordsman and his stubbornness, his loyalty and his honesty. It was therefore not logical he didn't transpose this picture to their relationship. Thus, because of this impasse, he didn't know what to do for the moment than to blindly believe in them until their actions bring him the evidences he was looking for despite himself.

Sanji was therefore not completely satisfied with himself but his resolution was still important enough to give him the strength to stick to it and he finally decided that it was a good start.

Suddenly, exclamations were heard outside and he stopped his move, his vegetables ready to be put in the oven to be roasted. He quickly put his dish on the hotplate and went out while lighting a cigarette.

Outside, Sanji was surprised to discover huge wash troubling the sea a few meters from the Sunny. He approached the rest of his friends already all gathered on the left front deck and busy commenting on the strange state of the ocean.

"What is it?" he asked.

"Maybe an underwater whirlwind", Franky suggested.

"No, the shape isn't circular", Nami showed him.

"It may be a treasure that rises to the surface!" Luffy got enthusiastic, perched on the railing.

Strangely, wash suddenly stopped and everyone leaned forward, puzzled. A few seconds later, the foam reappeared ten meters further in the form of constant splashes and all instinctively backed away.

"It's moving, it's alive!" Ussop panicked.

"It looks like an aquatic ballet", Brook commented in wonder.

"Look!" Chopper screamed.

The crew stared wide-eyed before freezing in front of the red liquid slowly rising to the surface.

"It's-It's blood?" the little doctor stammered.

"Looks like it", Franky agreed, frowning.

"What's going on down there?" Zoro growled, putting a hand on his swords.

"The ocean floor is likely the scene of a battle", Robin noted.

Wash was no longer decreasing and suddenly, a huge spray of water rose to the sky. The crew members jumped as two forms fell heavily into the ocean at the same time, sending liters of seawater onto the deck.

"Did you see that?" Ussop yelled, his face dripping. "What was that?!"

Beside him, his friends were trying to wipe themselves and Brook shook his head.

"I didn't have the time to get a good look but it seems to me that it was..."

"Sharks!" Sanji exclaimed, pointing to them.

Two sharks of ten meters had indeed jumped out of the water again, their teeth trying to shred the other mercilessly. Nami had a start of terror when one of them bit his opponent on his side and the blood spurted again before they fell noisily into the water.

"Wow, they don't seem to be kidding!" Luffy exclaimed, leaning a little further to observe them.

Robin then grabbed him with a firm hand.

"Now is not the time to fall into the water, Captain" she kindly pointed out to him.

The two huge monsters continued to bite and attack each other relentlessly and Chopper became alarmed.

"It's awful, they'll end up killing each other!"

"They're coming in our direction", Zoro said, frowning.

Indeed, in the middle of their fight, the two animals were dangerously close to the ship and their leaps made the Sunny rock. Nami was the first to react.

"We're getting out of here, hurry up!" she firmly shouted.

The navigator's order woke up the other crew members and they were about to rush towards the sails when Ussop screamed in terror. His crewmates turned all at once towards the ocean and saw in horror the two gigantic fish leaped so high they were reaching the deck.

Everyone hurriedly backed away from the monsters that were too busy fighting to worry about their surroundings. Thus, on the next jump, one of the sharks hit the other hard in his side. The impact pushed his opponent away as far as the kitchen and he crashed into it with a thud, hitting at the same time half of the adjacent infirmary. The momentum of the other shark threw him on the level below into the aquarium and the crew was only saved by flattening on the ground as it passed in the midst of the panicked cries of Chopper, Brook and Ussop.

Sanji had jumped forward to protect the navigator and after making sure she hadn't suffered, he noticed with dread the frightened shark on the first floor that was struggling with all his might to return to the ocean, destroying a little more his kitchen with each unfortunate tail stroke. He then rushed in his direction with the firm intention to remove it, Franky and Brook on his heels.

The shark on the lower level wasn't to be outdone and he was also struggling with all his strength in this universe he didn't know. So before the rest of the crew could react, a sound of broken glass was heard and everyone froze, deducing what had just happened. Confirming their fears, a tidal wave soon broke on them when the huge amount of water in the aquarium flew into the deck. Nami and Ussop yelled, perfectly panicked, and Robin nimbly jumped on the stairs to avoid the wave. She was thus able to use her multiple arms to secure Nami, Chopper and Ussop as best as possible while Zoro was firmly holding on to his captain whose forces had left him in contact with salt water.

"Oh, n-no, the-the aquarium", Ussop stammered while straightening up, soaking wet.

"If this keeps up, they'll destroy the whole ship!" Chopper coughed, spitting out the water he had swallowed.

Luffy and Zoro then rushed to what was left of the aquarium and found that the shark had not only destroyed the room but was now taking advantage of it to devour all the fish within reach.

"Gum-Gum Bazooka!"

The new power of the captain's fists knocked out the fish but the damage was done and only broken glass and wood remained all around them. Zoro approached the shark and examined its wound.

"They were going all-out", he noted. "I wonder what got into them..."

"Maybe a territory thing?" Luffy suggested, grabbing the animal to put it back in the water.

"Maybe..."

The fencer helped his captain and they quickly threw the shark while trying to avoid the pieces on the deck that Nami, Robin, Chopper and Ussop were starting to clear.

Zoro then looked up at the first floor and winced. Even from here, he could see the kitchen had been ravaged and the infirmary had also been damaged. A huge noise of water was then heard at the back and the swordsman realized his three crewmates had got rid of the other shark.

Seeing the cook dark face as they came down toward them, he wanted to question him but Robin's voice interrupted him.

"There are more of them!" she showed.

Brook leaned over the rail at the stairs.

"It looks like these are other shark fights", he informed them with surprise.

"It's weird", the blond mumbled, staring at the ocean.

"No way these things land here again!" Franky got angry. "They ruined my beautiful Sunny, those bastards!"

He unscrewed his left hand to reveal a weapon and he was about to aim it when Nami stopped him.

"Let's not take any extra risk and use a Coup de Burst to get away from the area", she decided.

"But the Sunny is never going to make it, have you seen the state he's in?!" Ussop shouted.

Everyone turned to Franky and this one grinded his teeth.

"The structure isn't damaged, it should be okay. However, we shouldn't ask for more after that."

Nami nodded and immediately gave her orders. Her friends then dispersed on the double to prepare for takeoff.

"Nami, tell me we're almost there", Ussop whined, slumped on the sunny deck in the middle of his crewmates.

"It should be soon", the navigator repeated, just as exhausted as the others.

Since the crew had escaped the sharks three weeks earlier, bad luck had struck them. First of all, the Sunny was still in a pitiful state because Franky didn't have enough wood to fix it entirely. He therefore had favored the kitchen and the infirmary while part of the reserve and the entire aquarium were missing. Then, they had really diverted from their initial trajectory as a result of the Coup de Burst and the two weeks planned crossing had turned into more than three weeks because of the lack of wind adding to their new route.

However, the worst part was that the straw hat crew members had nothing left to eat. The first shark had destroyed the aquarium and the second the kitchen and its reserves. Sanji had only been able to save a few foods and a dozen fish that hadn't been devoured. This shouldn't have been a problem if a strange phenomenon hadn't been added to their already precarious conditions: they had managed to catch only three or four fish since their unexpected flight. As if the ocean had suddenly emptied of its inhabitants.

Sanji was particularly puzzled about this and he had asked Robin if she had ever heard of it, but she had replied in the negative. However, this sudden disappearance wasn't the most urgent.

"Sanji, please!" the captain whimpered, crawling on the ground. "I'm hungry!"

"There's nothing left since yesterday", the cook grunted in a bad mood. "I did everything I could but there wasn't much left."

"And we've been rationing for a week, I'm exhausted," Chopper whined.

"The best thing would be to follow the example of our swordsman", Robin noted, pointing to the sleeping man.

"How does he do that?" Ussop got annoyed.

"Franky is running out of cola too", Nami worried. "We mustn't come across the Marine or a hurricane..."

"Those damn sharks!" the gunner shouted. "To say I saved us from these merciless monsters that directly attacked our food reserves!"

"But of course", the navigator sighed. "In the meantime, if only there was a little wind, we could hope to disembark tomorrow during the day..."

"Why isn't there a single fish?" the doctor wondered, raising his empty fishing rod once again.

"It really is strange", Brook pointed out.

"We mustn't be discouraged", Nami claimed. "We're going to catch something eventually."

Unfortunately, in the evening, a single tiny fish had been caught in their nets. Sanji would have liked to give it to Robin and Nami but in front of the others' protests, he had resolved to cut it into seven parts, which was barely more than a mouthful each.

The dinner therefore took place in an increasingly usual silence in recent days: Ussop was staring at his plate looking put out, Nami was looking out the window to watch for the slightest sign of wind and Luffy tried to eat his share as slowly as possible, that is to say, he swallowed it in a second before contemplating his plate, tears in his eyes. Feeling sorry, Chopper gave his share to the captain who thanked him as if he had just saved his life. For his part, Franky sipped his last glass of cola and Brook played a sad little melody. As for Robin and Zoro, they ate their shares silently while Sanji gave his to the two girls.

Finally, Brook took the watch and the cook had little to do to put his dishes away.

Too quickly, everything was cleaned in his new kitchen, but Sanji was feeling slightly anxious and his state annoyed him. He then decided to busy himself and grabbed his cookbook. However, flipping through pages of delicious recipes wasn't helping him, and he quickly closed his book.

He tapped his fingers nervously against the table for several minutes before pushing back his chair and going out to clear his head on the deck. The sea was still calm and the night air did him good. He settled against the mast, his cigarette on his lips, and then raised his eyes to gaze at the stars. They were shining with a cold and unchanging glow. For ages and ages.

Sanji shivered. In reality, he shouldn't stay here. So he got up and went to his room. Sleeping would make him feel better and time would pass more quickly.

When he entered it, Zoro was busy methodically cleaning his swords and he hesitated, not knowing what to do. Finally, he sat down on the other side of the bed and took off his jacket before silently lying down. He then stared at the ceiling and focused on the sound of the soft cloth the fencer was passing over his blades. He tried to let himself be lulled but he wasn't in the right position so he turned around. Again. And yet another time.

"Are you done moving?" the man next to him got annoyed. "It's a precision job that I'm doing right now."

The cook sighed and sat down on the bed again.

"What's with you?" Zoro asked.

"Nothing. I'm gonna take a walk."

His crewmate frowned before shrugging and continuing his work, letting him go through the door again.

Sanji came out of the bedroom and leaned against the door. He was now feeling genuinely nervous despite his attempts to relax and he lit another cigarette before taking a few steps and sitting against the spared railing. The ship was strangely quiet. It was barely advancing due to the lack of wind and all of his crewmates had quickly gone to bed except Brook, seated in the back, to play the violin without disturbing his friends. He then looked up at the sky again, which seemed to be watching him with all his greatness.

The cook took the cigarette out of his mouth and slowly breathed out. He knew it was ridiculous but that kind of night associated with their lack of food reminded him of his weeks of starvation that had almost got the better of him and the old Zeff... He wondered what had become of him. Probably still berating his team on the Baratie.

"What are you doing?" the swordsman who had just joined him suddenly asked.

"Nothing..."

"You're weird tonight, darts eyebrow", Zoro noted, contemplating him.

"Quit spouting your nonsense", the blond grunted.

He slowly got up and blew the smoke from his cigarette absentmindedly towards the stars before throwing the butt. The swordsman then took the opportunity to get closer and kiss him hungrily but the blond answered him half-heartedly.

"Spit it out, cook", the fencer sighed, ending their kiss. "I know you're out of sorts."

Sanji looked up at him and wryly smiled.

"It's just one of those nights, marimo..."

"What's with it?"

"It's the same as in my memories."

"Your memories?"

"Yeah... When I was stuck on that damn rock in the middle of the ocean with the old geezer", he sighed.

Zoro looked at him, puzzled. He knew more or less what the blond was referring to but he didn't know the details of his story.

"With this guy who taught you how to cook at the Baratie?" he asked.

"Yes... He saved me from drowning and we ended up on a small island, alone for weeks. We had some food but it wasn't enough..."

He tapped the railing nervously and lit a new cigarette to relax.

"He sent me to the other side of the pebble to watch for a possible boat with my share, but when I came to the end after several weeks and as we were still grounded, I came back to him. I was so hungry, I'd have done anything to steal him some food if he had any left..."

The fencer took care not to question him further. He wanted to listen to Sanji but especially not make him talk about his past if he didn't want it. However, the cook spoke again after a few moments of silence.

"I was just a kid and I didn't realize that... this moron had given me all the food from the start", he then whispered.

"You mean he didn't eat for weeks?" the swordsman wondered. "How did he do that?"

"Of course he ate, marimo", the blond grinded. "In fact, this madman ate his leg to survive..."

Zoro frowned and Sanji heavily breathed in on his cigarette, hands trembling. He never spoke of what had happened with Zeff, let alone aloud. So doing it tonight was moving him just like the first day.

"After that, we waited for days and days... We lost count, we started to rave... We really thought it was the end."

Zoro understood a little better the strange attitude of his partner and he sighed. The fact there was nothing to eat for days was bringing back his memories of that terrible moment and he watched him crush his burnt cigarette butt.

"You shouldn't have given your share to the girls", he pointed out.

"Did you think I was gonna let Nami-san and Robin-chan settle for less?" Sanji got annoyed.

"Meanwhile, it's you who's driving crazy now."

"It's not because I skipped a meal that I'm gonna die", he swept aside. "I lasted much longer."

"Yeah, and you're still traumatized", the fencer grumbled.

"Defying death with blades isn't the same as seeing you dying slowly for weeks, stupid!" the cook sharply replied, glaring at him.

The swordsman winced and tried to make up for it.

"That's not what I meant..."

"Yeah."

Sanji was about to take another cigarette when the fencer stopped him with one hand on his arm.

"Go back."

"I won't sleep", the blond grumbled.

"Go back", he insisted.

The cook finally shrugged and followed him. Once in the bedroom, they got rid of most of their clothes before falling on the bed.

"I wonder what becomes of him, that stupid Zeff", the blond thoughtfully said.

"He seemed to be able to go the distance, that old man", Zoro remembered. "I bet he still kicks the ass of those who piss him off."

"There's a good chance..."

"So he was the one who taught you how to cook?"

"My ass, he made me scrub the whole kitchen. I had to take notes on the sly when his back was turned and I was guessing the ingredients he was using while tasting the rest of the dishes..."

"Weird", the swordsman agreed.

The cook softly shrugged.

"In fact, I realized much later that it was his way of testing my will. His dream was to open a floating restaurant and I promised to help him if we survived this nightmare. We came through and I wanted to learn to cook, but I think he didn't take me seriously at first. I had to prove it to him."

"Stubborn as you are, you probably quickly change his mind", the swordsman sneered.

"The old man is worse than me", the blond muttered. "We never stopped yelling at each other. We never knew how to talk otherwise and that's also how I learned cooking."

At these words, Zoro turned to him, amazed.

"Damn, now I get why you react so excessively all the time!" he exclaimed.

"Shut up, cactus head", the blond grunted, hitting him in the ribs.

Zoro smirked before leaning on his left elbow to better look at him.

"So he taught you how to cook, but after? Why didn't you wanna leave your restaurant to find the All Blue? It was already your dream, wasn't it?"

Sanji sighed.

"This old fart taught me everything about cooking and I owe him to be still alive. Do you fucking realize? He ate his own leg so that I could eat! I couldn't leave like that and even today I feel like I still owe him something..."

"Just tell yourself you'll find the All Blue for the both of you", the fencer suggested. "He believes in it too, doesn't he?"

"Yes. Yes, he believes in it too..."

Silence settled and Zoro gazed at the concerned face of the blond by his side. He understood that nostalgia was catching up with him tonight but he definitely preferred to see his arrogant little smile than that upset look.

"So... What if I distract you?" he innocently asked.

"I don't know, marimo", the cook sincerely replied.

"Okay."

Zoro sighed before lying down, both frustrated and uncomfortable.

"I can go to sleep somewhere else", the blond suggested, feeling his confusion.

"No."

"You can go then, I don't hold you back."

"I told you no."

Sanji gave him a puzzled look before shrugging.

"I'm just trying to help you."

"And I'm telling you we're staying here."

"If you want to."

The cook dropped the idea of following the reasoning of his partner. He was suddenly feeling too tired and weary. Having shared his past with the swordsman had drained him of all his energy.

For his part, the fencer was furiously racking his brains. It was rare that they stay like this without ending up enjoying each other so he didn't really know how to behave. He watched the blond who seemed lost in his thoughts again and he felt the need to bring him closer without really knowing why. He then put an arm under his waist and pressed him against his body before sliding the sheet over them.

"Sleep", he ordered him more dryly than he wanted.

The swordsman gesture towards him surprised Sanji but he immediately noticed he was enjoying the warm arms around him and he relaxed. He then turned to him to kiss his chest and settled comfortably before letting himself drift off to sleep.

After a few moments during which he was feeling a little awkward in this unusual position, Zoro closed his eyes in his turn. He was finally satisfied to see the cook was calming down thanks to his move and he quickly fell asleep.

It's about Sanji's past this time! I love his background, there are endless possibilities!

Anyway, I hope everyone is staying safe out there. Here in France we're in lockdown, life is strange but it matters to stay home! Take care and see you soon.