Chapter 48

Welcome aboard

"You can't be serious!"

Nami glared at her captain. Gathered around the galley table, the entire crew discussed the choice of their next cook after holding a contest on Cartage Island where they had disembarked. Luffy had hoisted a huge banner above the railing so that everyone could see it from the port. Drawn in large clumsy letters, he has written "Big competition: come cook for us!"

Usopp had objected that the advertisement may not be clear enough, but the straw hat boy's call had been successful and the next day, his crewmates had explained the rules to the crowd who had gathered in front of the Sunny: the pirates provided them with food and stoves and everyone had to make a dish within the given time.

The captain had been totally enthusiastic about tasting all the plates they had collected and although everyone also took the time to get an idea, Luffy hadn't taken long before choosing a winner. Yet the redhead intended to make her own position heard.

"Shuri can't join our crew!" She repeated, "That is simply not possible!"

"But his food is the best," the captain whined.

"There are lots of other people who participated, choose someone else!" She told him. She then scanned the sheet on which the impressions of all her friends were written to help her think. "What about Lindra?" She suggested. "Her dish was very good and one more girl wouldn't hurt. There's too much testosterone here."

"I want Shuri," Luffy mumbled stubbornly.

"It is true that his dish was the tastiest," Brook chimed in, sipping his cup of tea.

"I know it was very good but that's no reason," Nami protested.

"It wouldn't be conventional but maybe we could give it a try," Usopp suggested, undecided.

"Seriously? Come on, not you too!" The navigator reproached him.

"We'll be super careful," Franky promised her.

"It doesn't matter!"

"We'll need to arrange the galley," Chopper noticed.

"And a lot of other equipment," Robin added.

"No way, it'd be madness!" Nami persisted before sighing in front of the hesitant looks of her friends. She then turned to the swordsman who had remained silent so far, hoping that he would agree with her. "What do you think, Zoro?"

"Shuri."

The young woman glared at him. "Are you kidding me? Why him?!" She was indignant.

"His food is the best," he replied, shrugging his shoulders.

"And since when is it important to you?!"

"He's a cook. He's doing his job, that's all."

Nami dropped her head into her hands. "Tell me this isn't happening," she groaned.

"But, Nami, why don't you want us to choose Shuri?" The straw hat boy pouted, annoyed.

"Because Shuri is eight years old, that's why!"

Sudden silence fell in the galley and Luffy blinked. "But he's such a good cook!" He repeated as if this sentence swept aside all possible arguments.

"It's a child!" The navigator roared, infuriated, "It's a responsibility, not a toy!"

"It's unlikely that he can defend himself enough," Usopp admitted.

"If we have to protect him at each attack, it won't make our job any easier," Franky added.

"He grew up in the New World, maybe he developed other abilities," Brook pointed out, quietly finishing his tea.

"Or maybe he ate a devil fruit," Zoro mumbled.

"I wonder what his parents think about it," Chopper said.

"We need to talk to him either way," Robin approved. "In this way we'll know for sure and we can make a decision accordingly."

"Awesome! Let's talk to Shuri about coming with us!" Luffy agreed, jumping up.

Nami sighed as the door was already slamming behind the straw hat boy. She pushed her chair back and followed her crewmates outside. She knew the fight was far from over.

On the pontoon where the Sunny had moored and the contest had taken place, the competitors waited impatiently for the verdict and all straightened up when the crew reappeared, excited. Nami glanced down, struggling to realize that one of these people would soon join their crew. Indeed, today, they were really going to find a successor for Sanji.

Usopp had refused to talk about a replacement for their cook and he had suggested the term stand-in or substitute, but the pejorative connotation of these terms had made his crewmates grimaced. Nobody liked to realize that their friend's absence was going to be filled and at the same time, everyone was aware they needed to move onwards beyond Luffy's decision. So even if they were reluctant, they didn't want to make the newcomer uncomfortable and they tried to plan his welcome in the best possible conditions.

As they walked across the deck towards the railing, Nami looked around for Shuri among the many professional and amateur cooks. The navigator spotted him easily: he was standing closest to the Sunny, his eyes shining with excitement and delight fixed on them. The young woman began to think. She needed to find a way that was both delicate and honest to talk to this boy.

Turning to her friends to share her suggestion, she was caught off guard by her captain who jumped on the railing to overlook the crowd.

"The best dish was Shuri's! Come join us!"

A great clamor filled the audience along with sighs of disappointment from the other participants while the little winner shouted with joy.

Nami closed her wide open mouth, in shock. At her side, her crewmates were also stunned even if most of them sighed or shrugged very quickly in front of the characteristic attitude of the straw hat boy.

When Luffy came down from his perch, she grabbed him by the ear, furious. "What don't you understand when you're told to talk to him first?!" She fumed.

"We can talk to him now," the captain tried to reply while wincing in pain.

"It's too late, you idiot, you told him he won!"

"But, Nami, I'm hungry!" He whined.

"You're completely irresponsible!"

"Uh, the prize of the competition wasn't very clear, you didn't specify what he'll have to make…"

The crew turned sharply to a young man with dark skin and wavy black hair who was trying to channel an overexcited little boy on the green grass of the Sunny. Luffy immediately rushed towards them, a huge smile on his face.

"He can cook whatever he wants as long as it's as good as the dish we ate! I'm hungry!"

"All right… Maybe a paella then? There are always fresh catches at the end of the day."

"And then meat!" The straw hat boy insisted. "Skewers, barbecue, chops, legs of lamb!"

"I don't think he'll have time to make everything," the young man pointed out, surprised.

"Of course he will! He'll have all the time in the world since he's our cook!"

"Your cook?"

"Yeah! He won the contest, he's the new cook of the Straw Hat crew!"

"Wh-What do you mean?"

Nami approached in turn and punched the captain on his head to bring him down to earth. "Please excuse the total recklessness of this moron," she sighed in front of the young man who had visibly turned pale. "We haven't really decided who the winner is yet…"

"Was that the prize? The winner becomes your cook?" the man realized, horrified, while Shuri screamed with joy.

"His dish was the best," Luffy repeated while massaging the bump that now adorned his head.

"Yes, it was, but obviously, we should have put age restrictions when we launched this contest," Nami lamented.

Robin approached the little boy who had lots of freckles and still couldn't believe his luck. "Are you a chef?" She asked him with a smile.

"I am, I'm the best in school!" He replied confidently.

"A cooking school?" Usopp inquired in turn, curious.

"No, the city school! I'm always the fastest to finish preparations at the workshop!"

"Are you used to cooking large quantities?" Franky wanted to know.

"I cook for all my friends!" He nodded forcefully.

"Do you know how to defend yourself?" Zoro asked.

"Well… I do judo and I always win fights!"

"Do you-"

"W-Wait a minute!" All faces turned to the young man who was staring at them in astonishment. "You-You're seriously talking about taking an eight-year-old out to sea on the Grand Line?!" He stammered.

"Finally someone in their right mind," Nami noted with relief.

"He'll be our crewmate and if he's in trouble, we'll protect him!" Luffy assured him.

"But-But-" He shook his head, trying to find his words. "Th-This is a misunderstanding! I never signed him up to board a ship; I thought it was a technique for your crew to get a free meal! It's always prestigious when you cook for pirates, it opens some doors with the local chefs so I just wanted to take advantage of the opportunity!"

"I did say that this banner could be confusing," Usopp muttered, "It also explains why there were so many people…"

"Come on, Malek!" The little boy suddenly begged him, "I won!" The young man stared back at him before returning his gaze to the captain, his eyes wide with dread. "His parents are gonna kill me!"

Nami sighed sympathetically. "Don't worry, we're not gonna take him-"

"What do you cook?" Luffy had squatted down to Shuri's height, his gaze suddenly serious, and the boy bit his lip. He probably realized that this was the real test that would determine his admission into the crew.

"I know how to make shepherd's pie, paella and stew," he said. "I can also make vegetable gratin and braised pork chops… And I'm learning how to cook lamb stew and chicken with olives!" He then swallowed, nervous. "I'm not very good at pastry yet, but Malek is gonna teach me the techniques of choux pastry and also the different types of sauce," he admitted, looking for the young man at his side.

At these words, Luffy glanced at the man who sighed. "Shuri's the most gifted of my students at the elementary school in town. I do cooking workshops twice a week in addition to my job there."

"Are you a cook?" The captain asked as he got up. "Sort of… I take care of the children's lunch and because some of them are interested in cooking, I offered to open this little workshop."

"So it was with you that he learned the dish we tasted?" Chopper asked him, impressed.

"Oh yeah. It's a very simple tagine recipe that I taught to all the children in the workshop." He scratched his head uncomfortably then. "Shuri wanted to test his skills somewhere other than the school kitchen to see what he was really worth, that's why I signed him up. If I had known…"

"This dish was particularly tasty," Robin assured him.

"Malek is such a good cook!" Shuri instantly agreed, "He makes super creamy carbonara pasta and his pancakes are just… Mmmmh!"

"This seems perfectly delicious," Brook was amused.

"When I grow up, we'll have a restaurant with Malek, he promised me!"

"Sounds super!" Franky got enthused.

"We still have time; we have a lot of things to do and learn before," the man dampened the boy's enthusiasm before turning up to Luffy again. "Look, I know Shuri's got talent, but he's too young to go to sea. Besides, his parents are counting on me to-"

"Shuri won so he has the right to have his prize, it's only fair." Malek stared at the captain, disconcerted, while Shuri beamed again. "But-"

"He's gonna cook our dinner tonight. He can use the Sunny's galley, it's on the first floor next to the infirmary."

"Awesome!" The little boy yelled, still beaming. "Malek, are you coming?!"

"Uh, I…" Shuri dragged the young man up the stairs and the crew glanced at the captain who was looking at them, clearly determined. He then pulled his hat over his eyes and turned towards the figure head, a smile on his face.

"We found our new cook."

"God, I can't remember how long it's been since I ate so well," Nami sighed with delight.

"I'll tell you when: since Sanji's gone," Usopp replied, filling his plate with paella for the third time.

Seated on the deck of the Sunny to enjoy the mild evening air, the crew reveled in the hearty meal prepared by the lucky winner of their competition.

"Did Shuri cook?" Franky asked as he peeled another shrimp.

"Under the supervision of his mentor," Brook said, grabbing a piece of bread from the basket.

"My stomach is gonna explode but I can't stop eating!" Chopper waddled in his chair with delight.

"His wine isn't bad," Zoro commented while drinking straight from the bottle.

"This is a grape variety that usually doesn't match with this type of dish, but I must say that this combination is delicious," Robin, who had also poured herself a glass, approved.

Beside them, Luffy noisily put down his plate before taking a deep breath. "Shuri! Malek! I'm hungry, it's so good!" He yelled in the direction of the two cooks still in the galley.

A second later, the little boy pushed open the door, a huge plate of rice in his hands. He ran down the stairs and placed it on the table, his cheeks red. "Will… you still be hungry afterwards?" He asked breathlessly.

"Of course we'll be hungry!" Luffy exclaimed, laughing, "I'm always hungry! And then I want dessert!"

"Oh…"

Nami shook her head as Shuri ran back to the galley. "We have failed to mention the mandatory stamina and patience that our cook needs to possess. He also needs to ignore the non-existent good manners of most people on this ship," she noted while finishing her green salad.

As if to answer her, Zoro burped loudly and Luffy started to fight against Franky and Usopp to get the rice dish. Between them, Chopper was squealing to get his share and Brook somehow caught the bottle jostled on the table.

The navigator gently dabbed her lips with her napkin. "Actually, it'd be a miracle if someone wanted to embark knowingly with us."

On the other side of the table, Robin laughed softly.

"Do all your parties end like this?"

"Depends but usually, yeah, I like to party!" Luffy confirmed.

"I started to suspect it when your shipwright insisted on rehearsing a choreography and the little reindeer asked the musician to play his song," Malek laughed.

"Oh yeah, they're so much fun!"

When Luffy had finally pushed his plate away with satisfaction, the meal had started almost three hours ago and the quantities that Malek and Shuri had planned hadn't resisted the captain's ogre appetite. They had dipped into the crew's stock then and Shuri was exhausted when he had placed the last desserts on the table.

Shortly after, the straw hat boy had asked for music and Brook had grabbed his violin. Shuri had then attended the party until Malek had called him to clean up and do the dishes with him. As an aspiring cook, the little boy had complied willingly but at the end of the service, he was sleeping standing up. Malek had sent him to join the crew and he had finished tidying up the galley on his own.

When he had come out, the young man had noticed that everyone had fallen asleep in various parts of the deck. The little reindeer was lying on the belly of the cyborg in the middle of the lawn, the skeleton was snoring at their feet, the swordsman was sleeping against the mast, the sniper was slumped on the helm seat and the two girls were leaning against the railing.

He had walked towards Shuri who had fallen asleep on the bench then, but before he could join him, the captain had appeared at his side. They had both settled around the table and the little boy had quite naturally come to lay his head on the knees of his cooking teacher.

"Shuri spent an unforgettable evening, thank you," Malek continued, looking down at his exhausted student.

"He's really cool and his food is so good!" Luffy nodded.

"He's talented. With a little practice and technique, he'll become an excellent cook." The young man let his gaze rest on the various members of the sleeping crew then. After a moment, he turned to the captain who was looking at him and nodded towards the galley. "I'd like to know… Why do you need a new cook? All their things are still here and they have some of the most beautiful utensils I've ever seen. All their tools are immaculate despite being used so I was wondering… Why did they leave them when they're no longer here?"

"Sanji fulfilled his dream so he stayed on All Blue."

"All Blue?"

"It's an ocean he's been looking for since he was little and he found it!" The straw hat boy answered, a huge smile on his lips.

"Oh. Wow."

Luffy nodded quickly, delighted. "It's so beautiful and there are all the fish in the world in it!"

"I didn't know there was such an ocean… So is that why he left? Why he left your crew?"

"No, Sanji's still part of the crew! He'll come back!"

"Oh, it's a temporary job then."

The captain shrugged. "Having two cooks would be really cool! I'd have twice as much food!"

The young man smiled amusedly. "I see…"

"Where did you learn to cook?" Luffy suddenly asked him with curiosity.

"Me? Well, it was my mother who made me love cooking in the beginning. I'm from South Blue and we were a big family, we had to help. And then later, I offered my services in the restaurants in town. I learned a lot and I was going to get hired as a sous-chef when the war broke out…"

His face darkened and Luffy glanced at him, puzzled. Malek sighed.

"I took my things and left. There was nothing left to do back there, not a building left standing and who would have wanted to spend money in a restaurant when no one could afford food anymore?"

Finally, he shrugged.

"I embarked on the first ship that hired me and it was sailing towards the New World. I stopped here because the inhabitants were welcoming despite the violence that reigns in this territory. I found this job of cook in the city school less than three years ago and I stayed. The kids are really great."

His gaze drifted to Shuri who was still sleeping soundly against him and he shook his head.

"They're growing up in a hard world and I like the idea of helping them get by. At first, I had the idea of not staying too long and continuing to travel to learn as many recipes as possible, but in the end, there was Shuri and all the others… I've never been able to leave."

Luffy gave him a beaming smile then and Malek smiled back. "You guys are pirates but you're not like most of those I've met," he noticed. "You seem like good people…"

"I'm gonna become King of the Pirates!" The straw hat boy proudly asserted.

"Oh. Well, it looks like you all have very ambitious goals. I wish you to achieve them just like Sanji achieved his then," he sincerely said.

Afterwards, the silence of the night enveloped them until the wind blew through the folded sails of the Sunny, making Shuri shiver. Malek then grabbed his jacket from nearby to cover the little boy. "Thank you for giving him this evening but I hope you understand he won't be able to follow you. Even if he's enthusiastic, I think he realized that he still has a lot to learn and that being a cook on a ship is a lot of work. You have done him a great favor actually, and I'm grateful to you."

"When do you wanna pick up your stuff?" The captain suddenly asked.

"My stuff?"

"Yeah, we'd like to leave as soon as the Log-Pose is reloaded and that's tomorrow!"

"But Shuri can't come, I told you…"

"Not Shuri. You."

Malek's eyes widened, staring into the clear gaze of the straw hat boy who was watching him as if nothing could be more natural.

"Me?"

"Of course! You taught him everything and you're such a good cook! You are our new cook!"

"But I-"

"You wanna travel to discover other cuisines and I need to travel to be the Pirate King and I'm always hungry so you have to come!"

"Uh, when you put it that way, it makes sense, but I don't know if…" His gaze lingered again on the little boy sound asleep in his lap and he shook his head. "I got very attached to them and I got involved. What will they think if I leave now…"

Malek seemed to get lost in thought and for a few minutes, no more sound was heard on the Sunny. In the end, he looked up dreamily at the galley, his hand unconsciously stroking his jacket to warm Shuri.

"I have a feeling your previous cook was really good… He jotted down a lot of recipes with ingredients I don't even know and if…" He suddenly bit his lip, passion brutally taking hold of him. "If I could just learn a little bit more about the cuisines of the world, I could come back here to teach the kids more things and when I open the restaurant with Shuri, we'd have a better chance of succeeding…"

At these words, Luffy jumped up, startling him. "Awesome! We got a new cook!"

Awakened by the cry of his captain a few steps away, Usopp sat up abruptly in his seat before blinking in the direction of the young man, haggard.

"Welcome aboard, Malek…"

He then collapsed again among the other sleepers and past the surprise, the young cook couldn't help laughing. Moments later, he turned his attention back to his little protege though and stared at him intently.

"You'll see, Shuri. When I return, our restaurant won't be just a dream. I promise."

I'll take the time so that you get to know Malek better in the next few chapters.

I know it's not easy but just like the crew, try to welcome him warmly!