Chapter 9
Towards the future
Sanji absentmindedly wiped his last plates before putting them away in his cupboard. He then wrung out his sponge and wiped the last drops of water from his sink. Satisfied, he finally grabbed a towel to dry his hands and turned to lean against the counter. Sitting at the table, Zoro was finishing eating without rushing. The rest of their crewmates had finished a while ago but the swordsman had arrived late for breakfast and knowing the reason for his delay, the cook hadn't commented for once.
They had fallen asleep on the sand of the cove after their hectic night and it was only at the first rays of light that the blond had straightened up, astonished. He had woken the fencer with a nudge and the man had barely had time to understand what was happening that he was dragged towards the Sunny, his swords in one hand and his clothes in the other. The sullen swordsman had then gone to his room as soon as they arrived to resume his interrupted night's sleep while the blond was forced to bustle about preparing breakfast.
A few minutes later, the rest of the crew had turned up and if Luffy had been as enthusiastic as usual, the cook had immediately noticed the slightly rosy cheeks of the navigator when she was meeting the straw hat boy's gaze. The blond had wanted to shake his captain like a rag doll in front of his total carelessness: you didn't leave the smitten looks of a young girl unanswered because you were too busy stuffing yourself!
However, Sanji had refrained from commenting. On the one hand, he knew that the beautiful navigator wouldn't appreciate being the object of attention and on the other hand, she probably preferred that Luffy ignore her emotion. Indeed, Nami was an intelligent and proud woman, and Sanji himself knew how much feelings of love could weaken the most confident person. He had therefore continued to serve his friends as if nothing happened, even if he hadn't been able to prevent himself from kicking the straw hat boy when he had emptied the jug of mandarin juice without offering some to the navigator.
Zoro's absence hadn't raised any particular remarks either and when he had entered the room, the blond was starting to wash dishes. Sanji had given him the plate he had kept and the swordsman had begun to eat in silence without being asked.
Coming back to the reality of the moment, Sanji put down his dish towel and shoved a cigarette between his lips. To tell the truth, if he had been able to contain himself in front of Nami and if he managed not to get angry at the delay of the fencer now, it was mainly because his mind was busy with new thoughts.
His night with the swordsman by the ocean had ended up reminding him of a detail of capital importance: he had found the All Blue and his happiness knew no bounds but there was someone else who had devoted his life to the same goal. Someone who had put aside his dream to take care of a brat he didn't even know and who had agreed to pass all his knowledge on to him.
The blond bit his lips despite his cigarette butt. He felt like a real asshole now. How could he have forgotten about Zeff when he had been living on All Blue for days?
"What's wrong?"
Sanji looked up at the figure of the fencer who was quietly chewing his piece of bread, staring at him. "What do you mean?"
Zoro swallowed his mouthful loudly and the cook gritted his teeth seeing his lack of manners. "You don't talk, it's not like you."
The blond wanted to get annoyed because he was so transparent for his companion but in the end, he chose to enjoy it. He had blamed the swordsman enough for not opening up to refuse to share what tormented him today. He then leaned a little more against the sink, his hands clinging to the edges.
"I forgot the old geezer," He admitted, focusing on his shoes to hide his embarrassment.
Zoro raised a surprised eyebrow and the cook elaborated. "Zeff… That old fool. He's been looking for the All Blue for a good part of his life too and I only realized this morning that I didn't tell him…"
"You just have to tell him now," Zoro replied like it was obvious.
Sanji rolled his eyes. "Of course I can tell him now but I forgot all the same and it pisses me off!"
"Why?"
Sanji was taken aback by the simplicity of the question and he searched his pockets for his lighter while he gathered his thoughts. "Because… Because I forgot, that's all. He did a lot of things for me so…" Zoro couldn't know but remembering all the things he owed the old cook still oppressed him. He was far from healed from his childhood demons.
The fencer had now finished eating and he put his plate and cutlery in the sink, brushing past his companion who was about to finally light his cigarette. The swordsman was nonetheless faster and he closed his hand on his to draw his attention and divert him from his lighter. "I don't think he'll mind for a few more or less days."
Sanji shrugged limply. He was feeling a bit lost but Zoro's warm hand on his skin was a pleasant feeling. "You don't know him, mosshead," He muttered after a few seconds. "He's gonna yell, that's for sure, but then I don't know what he's gonna do. Maybe he'll want to come but he also has the Baratie to manage and I don't think he'll leave it to those idiots who cook for him…"
"That's on him," The swordsman pointed out.
Sanji nodded distractedly, his fingers playing with those of the fencer without thinking while he was considering his decision. In the end, he retrieved his hand and put his lighter back in his pocket. "Anyway, if I wanna tell him, I need to find out how to do it. News Coo are gonna have a hard time going through invisible doors…"
Zoro just nodded and watched the blond come out of his galley without even having cleaned his dishes.
"The possibility of communicating by Den Den Mushi with the outside is a question I asked myself but I've never really been able to test it out," Liam explained to him.
Sanji had asked Lily where he could find the young man after he had confirmation that the News Coo were only used for communication between the islands of the All Blue. She had therefore pointed out his workshop in the west of the village which Liam had converted into a house when he had arrived.
Upon entering, the cook had discovered that the entire ground floor was dedicated to the scientist's workspace. The place was clean and fairly tidy, but the impressive number of books, spreadsheets and machines of all kinds attested to its studious atmosphere. The blond had also noticed lots of devices obviously used to measure sound or to trace sound waves in the middle of a multitude of headsets that the dark-haired man always seemed to have around his neck.
In the end, he had also found Usopp but especially Nami and Robin, to his greatest pleasure.
"Den Den Mushi use sound waves so in theory, communications can go through," Liam added.
"Could we give it a try?" He asked him. "There's someone I need to reach on the East Blue."
"You wanna tell that old cook we met on his restaurant boat?" Nami guessed.
"Yes, All Blue is very important to him too."
Liam nodded and pulled a huge Den Den Mushi out of a cupboard and put it on a large desk. Usopp approached immediately, fascinated, while the scientist caught several other smaller ones. "The waves must be strong enough to pass through the doors," The dark-haired man explained again, linking them to each other.
"We should use the door closest to the point of contact," Robin estimated.
"Absolutely." The young man opened a drawer and took out several carefully numbered sheets. After observing them for a few seconds, he handed one to the cook. "East Blue. I only picked up two doors there."
Sanji grabbed it immediately, amazed. He easily spotted the land and the position of two crosses on the ocean, but at their location, he grimaced. "The Baratie is on the ocean but much further west," He showed Liam, "Do you think it'll work?"
The man patted his headset to help him think. "The only test I've done is on the Vorgo island door, which is the closest. I installed an underwater transmitter to attract the signal and made a call to the island."
"What happened?" The sniper pressed him.
"I dialed a random number and it rang. Someone picked up, I think it was a pharmacy. But the connection was very bad, I hardly understood anything."
"Did you try to find out what happened?" Nami asked.
"No," Liam admitted apologetically, "I never wanted to contact the outside more than that. I'm fine here and when my crew left, I didn't have anyone in particular to contact so I looked more into how the doors work to spot them…"
"It already is an extremely valuable work," Robin reassured him.
"We can always try to call, we'll see!" Usopp got enthused.
"It can't hurt," The navigator agreed.
Liam nodded and Sanji handed him back his paper, his hands suddenly sweaty. Maybe he could talk to Zeff in a few seconds and let him know he had found All Blue…
The scientist made some adjustments and put the Den Den Mushi in the direction of the door closest to the Baratie. Then he turned to the cook to hand him his headset which he had connected to the animals. "All you need to do is dial the number."
Sanji took a deep breath and grabbed the headset to adjust it over his ears. He then sat down facing the main Den Den Mushi and dialed the number, shaking. Behind him, his friends held their breaths.
But nothing came. The silence stretched in the headset of the blond who ended up frowning. He was sure of the number but no ringtone was heard. He was about to lower the headset to let Liam know when a sizzle sounded before a distant ringing. Sanji felt his eyes bulge but the sound stopped abruptly. He remained on the alert for long seconds but only a few cracklings were heard before the silence settled down definitely.
Both disappointed and relieved, the cook took off his headset. "I thought it had worked but, in the end, I didn't hear anything," He sighed.
Liam grabbed his device again and frowned before leaning over the Den Den Mushi. "The door is far and that of the destination too," He mused, "We must lack power…"
Sanji got up to make room for him and Usopp took the opportunity to approach in turn. "You probably need a transmitter like the one you built for Vorgo's door," He surmised.
"It'd necessarily increase our chances," Liam agreed, studying the graphs of the Den Den Mushi. "The problem is that I lack information about how the communication waves pass through those of the door. Both are sound waves and I don't know how they manage not to get lost or cross each other…" He reached for more charts, biting his lips as he thought.
"Let's experiment," Nami suddenly suggested.
Robin nodded with a smile and the boys turned to them, surprised. "It'd just be random experiments, I have no data," Liam reminded them.
"It'd be all the more interesting to create some," The archaeologist pointed out.
"But how?" Usopp asked. "You'd need to test the Den Den Mushi through the doors to get some!"
"Precisely!"
Sanji stared at the navigator, mouth agape. "N-Nami-san, you want to… attempt to create communications through the doors?" He stammered.
"That'd be absolutely great!" Liam had jumped up from his chair and was now rummaging through a large cabinet.
"We'll use Vorgo's door and try to establish communications at different distances," The redhead agreed with determination.
"There's another door a little further that would allow me to run other tests!" The scientist added excitedly, handing her a map.
"The Straw Hat Pirates on a scientific expedition!" Usopp got enthused.
"Will you have the possibility to build a new transmitter to reach the East Blue?" Robin inquired.
"Yes, I still have all the equipment I had when I was at sea," Liam assured her, "It shouldn't be a problem."
"What do you say, Sanji-kun?" The navigator asked him, turning to the hesitant cook.
"Well… Th-That'd be perfect," He stammered, "But I don't wanna force you to do all this just so I can reach the old geezer… I can send a News Coo from Vorgo's door…"
"And miss the opportunity to make priceless discoveries?" The redhead grunted. "No way, All Blue is a gold mine and its knowledge can pay off big!"
Usopp shook his head. "Even if I don't agree with your view of things, it'll certainly be the fastest way," He pointed out to the blond. "It's going to take months for a News Coo to get to the East Blue, not to mention the trip back."
"These discoveries could help the population," Robin added.
Seeing his friends unanimous, the cook finally nodded, convinced. "If reaching this old bear can participate in helping All Blue, I can't refuse…"
"What about here, Sanji, can you put a barbecue?!"
"We could put a terrace," His crewmate approved.
"Awesome!"
Luffy jumped up in joy to inform Chopper a little further while the blond turned again towards the open sea to admire the landscape, a smile on his face. It didn't take long for the rest of the crew to be made aware of their cook's project and quite naturally, the question of the old pirate's future restaurant had arisen.
Sanji had immediately thought of the old house overlooking the ocean that they had discovered the day before and all his doubts had flown away: he was convinced that Zeff would want to see All Blue and if he decided to settle here, Sanji would give him the restaurant he had always wanted to build. This way, his infinite debt would finally begin to be reduced.
"The old house of our watchman couldn't have found a better conversion," Lily smiled at his side, "This house will watch over the ocean as he did until his death."
"If the old geezer decides to stay, he won't agree to be retired and he'll try to feed you by all means," The blond warned her, his cigarette in his mouth.
At these words, the young woman chuckled. "It's not a character trait that can be blamed here."
She then turned to the cook, her eyes shining with emotion. "It must have been fate that led you here and if All Blue can stop seeing its population decline, I'd be eternally grateful."
Sanji tried to catch his breath in front of the young woman's radiant face and he ran an embarrassed hand through his hair. "You can count on us, sweet Lily!" He then declaimed passionately. "Just like me, he'll never let anyone starve!"
At that moment, Franky and Brook came out of the abandoned building and walked towards them. "Everything needs to be re-done," The cyborg told them, shaking his head, "Everything's super old and super damaged in here…"
"Do you think you can do it?" The cook inquired.
The shipwright scratched the back of his neck. "I'd need new materials for the frame, pine isn't very solid in the long term."
"We'll also need to draw plans for the interior, there's no more furniture," Brook informed him.
"Yeah, about that. I'm a shipwright, not an architect," Franky reminded him, "Houses ain't my thing…"
"You can do it on the model of a ship," The cook reassured him. "This restaurant has to honor All Blue."
"I think I can do it then," His friend approved.
"A vegetable garden will be perfectly suited for fresh fruits and vegetables!" The musician got enthused, noticing the wide field.
"Have you thought of a name?" Chopper wanted to know, trotting along with the sniper.
"Not yet," The blond admitted, "I'd like to leave that to the old man actually."
"Do you think he'll come all the way here?" Usopp inquired.
"I'm sure he will. That fool won't believe me until he sees it with his own eyes," The cook grumbled.
"You think he's gonna have a heart attack?" Luffy asked him, joining them like a tornado. "He ain't that young, it could be tough on that old man!"
"Luffy, stop talking about it or it'll come true!" The sniper got indignant, smashing his head flat with his fist.
"If he feels bad, I could treat him!" Chopper agreed.
"I'd be surprised if he even passed out," The blond said, blowing his smoke. "This guy's tougher than the plague."
As his friends continued to chat happily, Sanji took a few steps away. He was still drawn to the magnificent view stretching over the ocean and he enjoyed it once again, dragging on his cigarette butt while the soft voices of the navigator and archaeologist were reaching him a little further. In the end, the cook spotted Zoro sitting against the cherry tree and slowly walked over to him.
"You decided to call and build him a house on the same day," His companion mockingly pointed out when the blond came up to him.
Sanji ignored the provocation and shrugged, blowing out his smoke. "I have to. I know he'll want to see how my cooking has evolved and if I'm on the Sunny, he'll say that I'm resting on my laurels."
"Seems like he leaves nothing to chance," The swordsman noted.
"It's worse than that, he's a real pain in the ass," The blond growled, "Being on the All Blue will just increase his level of requirement."
"That's exactly why you're here too, aren't you?"
Sanji couldn't help but nod with a smile while his gaze was dipping down to the ocean below. "The quality of the ingredients here will allow me to become the best. The best cook of All Blue and of all the Grand Line," He affirmed with determination. "I'll certainly not leave this title to this old geezer."
Zoro then got up to face him. "You're gonna stay here for these three months, aren't you?"
Sanji abruptly took his gaze away from the blue sea and turned to the swordsman, surprised. He didn't even think Zoro heard the conversation he had with Nami and Liam earlier. The two specialists had indeed planned a journey passing through several doors which was to last about ten weeks. And if the Sunny's crew was obviously well suited to make the trip, the cook hadn't yet said anything about his own intentions.
"I'll see with Luffy if it's okay with him," He admitted. "It'll give me a chance to get used to the ingredients of the All Blue but also to work on the plans of the restaurant."
"Watch out, cook."
Sanji raised his head to stare at his companion. He thought Zoro was going to disapprove of his decision and truth be told, the blond wasn't very comfortable with leaving his friends for a while so he mentally braced himself for some legitimate rebuke.
However, it was a look of mockery and not of disappointment that he met. "If the old man shows up, I'll compare your food and I won't go easy on you."
Immediately, Sanji narrowed his eyes, all unease gone. "You always do nothing but criticize my cooking, what difference is it gonna make?" He sharply pointed out. "You ain't objective and you never wanna admit that everything I put in your mouth, nothing tasted better."
In turn, the fencer frowned at his double talk and Sanji dragged on his almost completely consumed cigarette one last time, delighted with his effect. "Exactly, mosshead, I'm sure you've never eaten anything as delicious as what I serve you. Day or night."
"That's what you think but I could always use these three months to compare," The swordsman replied, unable to let his companion off the hook so easily.
In return, Sanji defiantly looked him straight in the eyes. "Nobody knows your tastes better than me, cabbage face. You're wasting your time."
Zoro stood tall, a predatory smile on the corner of his lips. "Don't forget you're supposed to get better, curly. I won't settle for your usual stuff when we get back."
At these words, the cook's provocative smile widened. "I got an idea about that…"
That's it, it's starting to move!
Let the adventure begin…
