Draft 4: A scene from chapter 1 has been moved into this one to give just as much resolution with Sanji's character as Usopp's. Along with that, several other minor structuring and grammatical errors have been fixed.
A/n: Thank you for returning back to Making the Grade!
It's certainly been a bit, huh? I really do apologize, I intended for this to be out a while sooner. But, I am a university student. Making sure I'm doing alright grades-wise comes first, but I'd be lying if I said this chapter came out perfectly on the first go.
I originally planned for Usopp and Sanji to have separate chapters to explore their characters, but in the end I stuck to my original plan of having the two combine for a small adventure at… well, you'll see. On the good side of that, I'm much more prepared for future storytelling than I was back when I first started writing this chapter.
This chapter, while having small bits of inspiration from the original chapter 3 of the story, will mainly be its own thing. I hope you like the development of these characters. I really wanted to test myself with Usopp and Sanji this time around.
Hope you continue to enjoy my re-imagining!
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If there was one thing Banchina could expect from her days in the hospital, it was a story from her son at 4 o'clock sharp.
In a day stuck surrounded by sterile walls, food that had no flavor, and a television with no working speakers, she could deal with the illness. She could deal with the shady doctor (and their unending attempts to brag about their youthful appearance despite the fact she looked as though she could be her grandmother). She could even deal with using a bulky, overheating laptop to do some semblance of work and make pennies on the dollar of what she used to make.
All of it was just to get to Usopp's stories, anyways. Nothing could delight her more. He wasn't much more than a child, but something about his stories could always take her away from the sterile rooms she was kept in, off to somewhere bright and fantastical.
"And then, just as the mean warden thought he could escape with the princess… BANG! A big explosion just comes out of nowhere, splitting up our villain from his prisoner with a bright flash. She was finally out of his clutches, and just in the nick of time!"
"Who could save her? I thought the whole crew was distracted with other things by this point?" Banchina teased her son with a loving smile.
"That's just what the warden thought! So he looked back to the abandoned tower nearly half a mile away… only to see a small speck on top."
"No." Banchina grinned in excitement.
"Yes! It was Sogeking, with a well-aimed shot right at the top of the crumbling watchtower!"
"How could he make the shot? Didn't you say the building was taller than a skyscraper, and the bridge longer than a highway?"
"I did! Sogeking knew it too, that he could only barely see his fair princess from that distance. But… after all she'd done for him, how could he just give up now? Even with the tower in ruins, even with his friend's kidnapper what felt like miles away, and even with the wind facing him, he couldn't give up now. He knew that she would, after all."
"So does she escape? Does she-"
Before Banchina could ask another question, she noticed something out of the corner of her eye. Glaring up to the hospital room's door, Yasopp, her husband, leaned on the doorframe with a sullen face. Considering her husband's humor, even in times like these, a sullen face was never a good sign.
"Kid, I'm going to need you to go wait outside for a few moments. Alright?"
"But I was almost done!"
"Come, now." Banchina reached out of her bed and patted the young Usopp's head. "I'm sure your father has something important to talk about. We'll continue right where we left off after, okay?"
Usopp could only pout and exit the room, at least giving a small glint of acceptance to his mother before sinking into a worn stool outside the hospital room.
He would usually sit in the closest seat to the door, hoping to catch a glimpse into what they needed to talk about. But on that day, he caught a glimpse of bad news from his father's eyes. With the thought of bad news being… depressing, to say the least, he sat down a few stools down from his usual spot and just closed his eyes, letting the slow crawl to endless dreams slowly come over him.
His mother may not be feeling the best, but the world of being a boring, responsible adult was further from him than one end of a sea to another.
Being responsible was really starting to affect him, Usopp realized.
"Come on!" Luffy pouted as the two of them slowly made their way down a desaturated school hallway, its students' spirits slowly being dragged down into its lack of color through its overwhelmingly boring attitude. "The tokens are cheaper at the arcade if it's a school night, and no one else wants to go!"
"I told you, I can't. I promised my parents I'd come home right after school tonight."
"What a goody two-shoes." A voice from Usopp's other side teased.
"Augh!" Usopp nearly leapt out of his backpack in surprise, turning around to find none other than Sanji sucking on a lollipop. "You didn't have to startle us, you know!"
"Well, I could never startle him." Sanji motioned to Luffy, who wasn't even the slightest bit surprised. "But there's got to be another reason you're not going out tonight."
"I don't see you jumping at the opportunity."
"I have a job, a responsibility. One that very nearly aligns with my future plans. And you…" He glanced Usopp up and down. "Are probably just gonna play video games at home anyways."
"Am not!"
"Liar!" Luffy playfully called out. "You're doing just as bad as me in English, and you don't even want to talk to me about History."
Sanji's lips curled into a teasing smile. "Isn't that the class with that pretty blonde girl you're so fond of?"
"No!" Usopp lied as naturally as he breathed, but both Sanji and Luffy caught it immediately.
"Your nose is growing." Sanji quipped, leaning in close and letting out a chuckle. "So what, are you gonna be spending your evenings practicing how to ask her out?"
"Oh GOD no, I couldn't begin to imagine doing something like that right now. I just want to get to know her better first, that's all, and we… were assigned as partners for our first project in History."
"So you are going to do your homework for once? Good call." Sanji, now finished with his lollipop, tosses it into a trash can as the trio walk out of the building towards the parking lot. "Girls like a guy who's responsible."
"They do?" Usopp questioned, not exactly eager to take romantic advice from the same guy he'd seen be rejected several times in one day, with only a few weeks of school to achieve such an accomplishment.
"Of course. Even without meeting a woman face-to-face it's easy to assume they can desire someone with traits that would make them great partners, responsibility and respectfulness being top contenders in my eyes."
'He does have a point,' Usopp thought to himself. Here he was, in the prime position to showcase to his crush that he was responsible and any other traits that she might be into, and all he was thinking about was just using the project as an excuse to get to know her more. If there was any doubt in his mind that he had to take this situation seriously, then this is exactly what he needed to hear to brush those fears aside.
"Think about it." Sanji concluded. "It would make lunch worse if you were just moping around like some shithead child."
"That's comforting?" Usopp tried to rationalize whether or not Sanji was making fun of him or giving him some actual advice, right before the trio made it to a point in front of the school where they would have to split off.
"Bye guys! We gotta start planning when to go out after school, huh?" Luffy chuckled, at least partially implying he was pissed about not being able to hang out with anyone after school, before waving the two off.
"Likewise." Sanji noted, before giving the two a nod and making his way towards the city transit buses, where he could get easy transport to the Baratie.
"Oh-! Have a good one, then!" Usopp finally waved the two off, before making his way to the line of students getting on the school's buses. It would be nice to hang out with them, but he did have other, much more important things to take care of first…
"And at last, the crew of pirates had made it to Fishman Island, the home of mermaids leagues upon leagues deep within the ocean!"
Usopp proudly finished a story, kneeling intently next to a small, worn bed frame. His mother laid down in it, a wet towel covering her forehead. While certainly older than when Usopp was just a child, she certainly hadn't lost her youthful grin, shining brightly by the end of the story.
"That's wonderful, Usopp." She softly spoke, moving her hand up from the bed to softly caress her son's chin. "I'm glad they made it all okay."
"Well that great big octopus wouldn't have given much of a challenge to these guys, would it?"
"I guess not." Banchina whispered, before letting go of Usopp's cheek and sinking comfortably into her bed. She closed her eyes, letting the comfort of the bed alleviate her pains. "Alright, honey. Go get your chores done, and then try and get some homework done if you have time."
"Love you mom." Usopp quickly noted, before attempting to dash off.
"Trying to get something done tonight?" She called over to him, causing Usopp to quickly turn around back to her.
"Whaaat? I just love to work."
"You little liar." She teased. "Whatever it is, good luck."
"Thanks, mom." He called back one last time, before leaving her room.
After Sanji's words of advice, Usopp was determined to prove himself a responsible, capable member of their duo team for the upcoming project. Despite that, even winning over the girl of his dreams wouldn't come over helping his family with whatever needed to be done. Cleaning the house with his father busy and exhausted from work, babysitting the neighborhood kids, and telling his mother a bedtime story to help relieve the stress of her medications were all things Usopp almost looked forward to.
Almost being the word, and today especially that desire to impress his crush was floating over some of the chores he'd promised his father he would get done by the end of the night.
That didn't break his spirit, though, as he quickly made his way to the kitchen, beginning on cleaning a pile of dishes that had been sitting there all week. As the faucet spat on, a wave of hot steam emanating from the release of water, Usopp could only glance to the corner of his eyes, where the kitchen ended and the den began.
There was his father, passed out in front of the T.V with it still on, completely sunk into an old couch. There was a beer on the coffee table in front of him, but Usopp could never really blame his father for that. He didn't exactly work the most financially rewarding job as it was, and medication wasn't cheap. If he didn't respect that of his dad, he would essentially consider him an absent father most of the time, but they still had something to sleep under, and it was all thanks to him.
Usopp perked up even more. If his father could fight such rough battles as the corporate grind and still come back to tell the tale, then dishes and some homework were nothing for him. From one hand to the next, the dishes were soaped, then soaked, then dried, all in successive motions. After a quick break, peppy pop was blasting through a pair of cheap headphones, giving Usopp the energy to dance and clean at the same time. He could never bust-a-move in public, but with no one around to judge, it was nice getting to hit dancing beats to the rhythm of dishes sliding into place.
This was Usopp at 100% effectiveness!
Once those dishes were done, and other chores quickly dispatched of, Usopp nearly crashed into his bed. His playlist had finished up, and his energy to get any homework done at home was equally finished.
But he could just imagine what it would be like if he was ready and responsible for the next day…
"Oh, Usopp!" She would exclaim, looking down at all the work he had done. In her heart, realizing how responsible and knowledgeable Usopp was, she would nearly swoon over his desk. "This is all amazing! And such vivid, extraordinary research!"
"That was just the easy stuff to find. I just make every assignment I'm a part of that more interesting." Usopp would always talk in a deep, enriching voice, layered by the testosterone of bulging muscles and a confident attitude. That could never be fantasy, could it?
"I can tell…" She would nearly collapse in his arms, big enough to hold several women, but meant for only one. "Would you give me the honor of helping you complete this assignment?"
"It would be a pleasure."
"Are you Usopp?" A scholarly fellow would walk up to their desks a few weeks later.
"Why, yes I am. And this is my girlfriend." She would wave with a bright smile, blushing at the near mention that someone as cool as Usopp would be dating them.
"I've just read this paper of yours, and it's going to be submitted to the National Archives as one of the greatest reports ever written!"
"That's nice and all…" He would seductively grab his girlfriend's chin. "But there's only one person I care about appreciating my work."
"Oh, Usopp!" She would swoon again.
"Yes, yes."
"Yes… yes…" Usopp muttered to himself, before an uncomfortable wave of adrenaline shot him awake. That, and the light coming through his window.
"GOD-"
Usopp shuffled his body around like a zombie, sickly and with almost no effort, right besides Luffy as the two made their way down the hallways of Grand Line High.
All Usopp could do was barely hold himself together as the two made their way to their history class. He had just barely made it on the bus that morning after sleeping like a rock through the night. Not even a page of math homework was done, let alone any research on their project done. The only thing he could do was slowly imagine how terribly the encounter would go…
"Usopp?" Usopp snapped from his daydream, nearly unconscious in the hallway. Bringing himself back to reality, it was only a matter of time before he realized that Luffy was hunched over like a zombie.
"What are you-?" Before Usopp could finish his sentence, he realized what was going on: his mannerisms had gotten so cartoonish while daydreaming that Luffy was copying him as they went along.
"Luffy!" He leapt up from his poor posture. "Stop copying me!"
"What? I was just trying to see if you'd become a zombie or not."
"That's not… I'm just really out of it, I guess." Usopp wanted to explain what happened, but was too embarrassed to even fully explain to Luffy. To be fair, even a fully upright Usopp couldn't hold back the exhaustion he was facing.
"What are you two up to?" Usopp turned to see two girls making their way down from the other side of the hallway. The first one, and the one who called out to them, was Perona, a taller girl who used make-up and dark colored accessories to cover up any bit of the lame student uniforms they had to wear.
The other… was Kaya. In almost the exact opposite fashion, her lack of general accessories and bright blonde hair made her seem like the sun to Perona's moon. They were both skinnier girls, about the same age as the two freshmen, but Kaya was particularly petite for her age, whether it be a lackluster diet or some form of illness, she looked just a little skinnier than most of the girls the guys knew. It couldn't really bother Usopp though, when her smile was so bright.
"It looks funny." Kaya commented on the over-the-top movements Luffy was doing.
"Oh!" Luffy began. "I just thought-"
"It was nothing!" Usopp jumped in, nearly covering Luffy's mouth if not for the fact that it would be even more suspicious than just trying to cover up what Luffy said. He really didn't want to come off as dejected in front of Kaya, no matter how much of that he actually felt.
Perona gave Usopp an unimpressed glare. "Really?"
"Yeah…"
"What?" Luffy jumped back in. "I thought you said-"
"That it was nothing." Usopp gave Luffy a confident glare, hoping that he would catch on to what he was implying. Almost a worse response than just denying him, Usopp saw Luffy processing in real time that he could be wrong about what he'd just heard Usopp say, and simply give in to the idea.
"Yeah, that's what it was." Luffy said earnestly, with enough clarity for Perona to back off at least a little bit.
Usopp had gotten away with it, at the cost of completely gaslighting Luffy. He would repent for his sins later, most likely in the form of buying him a sandwich or something.
"Let's head inside." Kaya noted. "I think the bell's about to ring."
"Right." Usopp shook off any nervous feelings and followed the three into the classroom.
Within a few minutes, the bell had rung, their teacher had given them another speech on how to not waste their time with the project, and sent them off to do whatever they could do.
On one end of the classroom, Luffy was paired up with Koby to start figuring out who they should focus their project on. In typical Luffy fashion, he didn't fully understand what was going on, but he had the spirit.
"Is that the best you can find?" Koby asked nervously, staring down at a nearly-blank sheet of paper.
"Well," Luffy began. "I thought most of the guys on the list were really boring, so I only chose those that weren't boring."
"The only thing on the page is your name."
"Are you saying I'm boring?"
"No! I'm just-"
As the conversation went on, the rest of the history classroom were in deep discussion. By the end of the class the day before, the teams paired up for projects. They had to decide soon on what historical figure from a given list they wanted to write a report and give a presentation on. Some groups, like Luffy and Koby, were unsure of how to proceed. Other groups, like Shirahoshi and Perona, quickly came to an agreement on choosing a historical figure with a lot of information on them easily available, making research for them much easier than some of the others.
And Usopp was just trying to survive.
After being paired with Kaya, he was elated. He thought she was cute before the pairing, and the match-up for the project seemed like it would be a miracle. He could woo her with his energetic and courageous wordplay, and by the end of the project they would at least be friends.
But once it came down to it… Usopp could barely say anything in front of her. What if he got caught up in another one of his lies? What if she could tell that he wasn't very responsible, or that he wasn't very good in his classes? After a decently long bout of silence between the both of them, each examining the pages of a book on figures they could choose from, Usopp knew that saying anything would be better than whatever was going on at that moment.
"W-what about Mont Blanc Nolan?"
"The explorer? What do you think would be interesting to write about him?"
"Well, what wouldn't be interesting to write? He was one of the best explorers of the Romantic Era, from what I remember. The discovery of new worlds, the romance of braving the unknown, the thrill of-"
Usopp halted himself, glancing over to Kaya to see she was at least decently surprised by his quick, passionate stint on the nature of adventure. If he was with his friends, he would've easily doubled down on the story and exaggeration of it all. At least he'd be fine with Luffy and friends getting a good laugh out of it.
But since this was Kaya, someone whom he really wanted to impress, all he could do was halt himself and cough, as though that was the reason for him to stop the sentence.
"Anyways, I'm sure we can find a lot about the places he visited."
Kaya looked at him for a few seconds, her soft eyes deeply examining him. She even looked like she was about to say something, before holding herself back and looking back in front of her.
"Alright. That sounds like it could be fun."
"Are you depressed now?" Luffy nudged Usopp's shoulder, as he covered his entire face in his arms on the cafeteria table.
"What? Did you get rejected by that cute blonde girl?" Sanji teased, before using a small silver fork to dig into a packed piece of well-cooked meat. He wasn't as energetic in teasing Usopp as before, but it seemed more like he was tired than any lack of interest.
"That's not it…" Usopp spoke, dragging out each syllable as though he'd just woken up. "I'm just striking out."
"Aww." Sanji replied, still sarcastically, but at least putting a hand on his shoulder. "You've really got it down bad, huh? What are you even trying to do? Just ask her out?"
"Well, I want to ask for her number, but I think it'd be weird if we can't even have a normal conversation during class. I try, or at least I think I'm trying, but she seems pretty… quiet for lack of a better word. She's always choosing her words very carefully, and doesn't speak much when she doesn't have a lot to say."
"You've just got to be suave, mature. Like an adult trying to 'woo' a girl at the bar."
"Oh boy." Nami rolled her eyes. Sanji, a bit heartbroken, could only continue.
"If you can get her interested in yourself, then it doesn't matter what happens exactly since she'll want to talk to you. If you don't think you're being responsible, then maybe try doing some stuff to boost your confidence. Something you think you might be good at, that's also something you wouldn't mind using to start a conversation with Kaya about."
"That's… actually not terrible advice." Nami commented again. "If you're really trying to impress her, showing her you can be responsible by working it into a conversation wouldn't be a bad way of going about it. Especially if you're too stupid to actually make the project a success."
"Again, I don't know if I should find this encouraging or discomforting…"
"Alright, enough of your boring relationship talk!" Luffy waved Sanji and Nami off of Usopp, before handing him a sheet of paper.
"What's this?"
"We're trying to figure out times to go to that New World place."
"You mean that mall?" Usopp questioned, glancing over to Zoro as he'd probably be able to clarify. He gave him a nod.
"Yeah, that. We know that Nami can't go, so it'll be just us four, and Koby."
"Don't have to rub it in." Nami complained from the end of the table, now reading through a textbook. "I've wanted to go since they first opened. All the amazing clothing stores, new food options. It's a girl's dream."
"Don't forget about that indoor ski slope!" Luffy chimed in.
"A girl's dream." Zoro chuckled to himself.
"Alright, alright." Usopp waved the two of them off, filling out when he was free on the surprisingly well put together paper. When, at the bottom, it was revealed Koby had put it together, he wasn't exactly surprised. He was a busy kid, but organized to a fault. It would've probably drove him up the wall if anyone else had put together whatever they considered a schedule calendar to be.
"Here you go, Sanji- OH NO!" Luffy nearly screamed.
"What?!" The group nearly leapt up at his surprise scream.
"Sanji's depressed too!"
The group looked to the end of the table where Sanji was, exhaustingly resting his head in his arms.
"It's nothing like that." He muttered back to them.
"What's up with you?" Zoro teased. "No more girls to flirt with? Sure took you long enough."
"Quiet, moss-head!" Sanji grumbled in his arms. "I'm trying to get some rest now, if that's alright?"
"Is Baratie really getting that busy? I thought it only accepted reservations?" Nami gave him a sympathetic look.
Sanji sighed, lifting himself up to fully reveal sagging eyes that were a bit hard to notice before. "I had a big shift last night. One of the workers for wait-staff called out at the last minute, and for several nights in a row. So now, I'm gonna be all over the place cleaning up their mess, and that's just how it goes because the apprentice is the most desperate to be in the kitchen. If I don't take it like a champ, there goes my chances of getting more shifts."
"And no one else can come in? It's a pretty big staff, if I remember what you told me."
"It is, but it's just a bad week. I think at this point they'd let anyone come in and help."
"Shit. Sounds rough buddy." Nami spoke as though she couldn't care less, with Usopp turning over to her revealing that she was already back to reading her textbook. Sanji couldn't seem to care less though. Without hesitation, he continued to complain.
"And that asshole goes on about being responsible, too. How would he feel having to do all the same shit except also going to school on top of it?! Lazy bum."
Usopp perked up at the word responsible. It seemed to be the only thing he could latch onto since yesterday, figuring out ways to win over Kaya, even if just as a friend.
He got up from his slump, and looked across the cafeteria to find Kaya's consistent spot. He'd noted (simply noted, he didn't want to be creepy) that she either spends time with girlfriends or a tall male student with sharp black hair and small glasses. She seemed relaxed enough with them, unlike any time the two of them would talk.
That day, the guy was there, lumbering over her with a quiet seriousness that he rarely saw in his student body. He didn't really know who he was, so Usopp just assumed they were friends, but what if they were more? How could Usopp compete with someone who looked so confident, so well put together?
They'd be perfect for each other, at least he thought to himself. But he couldn't give up, not when he still had a chance. He had an idea, one that was a bit crazy, but maybe just crazy enough to work. No matter how crazy his plan was, he had to try. If being responsible was the only way to get Kaya's attention, her real attention, then it would be worth it in a heartbeat. At the very least, it would make for a great story.
"Hey, Sanji?" Usopp nervously spoke up.
"What?"
"What if… I filled in for that waiter-guy?"
"Woah!" Usopp was in pure astonishment as the trio drove up to the parking lot of the Baratie Restaurant. It was a big lot, Usopp noticing it was mainly designed to be a shipping lot for boats before the whole waterside area was renovated to accommodate the restaurant. If there was that much parking, though, how busy was the place gonna get?
Even getting into the restaurant was an intimidating process, as Usopp, Sanji, and Zoro all climbed up a gangway leading to the main floor of the ship, which wasn't near the water. Entering into the massive dining room, Usopp could easily see why the height was important: The dining area was surrounded by windows with a clear view of the waterfront and a lake in the distance. He was sure that by nighttime the view must be spectacular.
By the time Sanji and Usopp arrived at the Baratie Ocean-going Restaurant, its lunch rush had slowed down considerably. The restaurant itself, which stretched for a good distance into the ship from the entrance, was about one-third full. This was pretty good for a time in between lunch and dinner, the two heavy-hitting times in terms of both reservations and walk-in customers.
Restaurant staff made their way between the tables, each with an intimidating rough edge yet still carrying on the delicate work of managing differing types of clients and trayful's of artistically plated food as they swayed and bobbed in waiter's hands. Light sounds of violins and harps strummed from hidden speakers throughout the massive complex, although a small stage in the middle of the dining room sat prepared with instruments itself for what Usopp assumed to be evening entertainment.
For lack of better descriptors, Usopp was certainly intimidated. By the class of it all, by the work required, and from the confidence exuded by each staff member, from the front-of-house staff to the cooks, as the two teenagers saw by passing through the sterile white kitchen. Usopp had expected from the surplus of men that things would be at least a little dirty, but the head chef was certainly running a tight ship.
With just a few more steps, they had made their way to a set of rickety wooden stairs, squeaking like rats stabbed through the heart with each step. Usopp nearly leapt out of his skin at the sound, but Sanji only kept moving forward through the dimly lit underbelly of the ship. Eventually they went through a more properly lit hallway, which looked like the remains of a cruise ship now abandoned. Every room they passed by was either a small room with the sheets removed from the beds, or storage for some form of food, tools, or anything else Usopp could imagine they needed.
"This is it." Sanji finally stopped, motioning over to a room near the end of the hallway. It was a quaint room which looked like it was only made for one bed, but somehow had two crammed inside amidst all sorts of random ends and oddities. Noticing Zoro's set of spare Kendo swords, Usopp could easily tell where they were, but it was odd finally seeing it. "On the other side's the bathroom, where you're going to get changed. That crap school uniform isn't going to cut it here."
With the whole of the location feeling overwhelming to Usopp, he almost didn't take the comment Sanji made to heart until several seconds after he'd said it.
"I- I'm going to change? Into what?"
Sanji, after changing first, was now adorned in what Usopp felt to be an iconic set of fine clothing. This included a dark blue pinstripe dress shirt and a black tie, which was mostly covered up with a black double-breasted suit coat adorned with golden buttons. To match this was a clean pair of black dress pants and sharp, polished shoes made for both display and practical protection against oil slipping. Overall, it was the most professional Usopp had ever seen Sanji. That might've been because half of the time he saw him was in the hallways, as he was struggling to flirt with girls. But still. It was classy and presentable, much more so than anything they'd be forced to wear at Grand Line High.
Soon after, Usopp came out in a similar set of clothes, mainly just missing the double-breasted coat, leaving his main features to be the dark blue dress shirt and the black tie. Considering Usopp's scruffy hair and overall less 'polished' demeanor, it didn't suit him as naturally as it did Sanji, but Sanji wasn't exactly expecting that from anyone who didn't care about their looks as much as someone like him did.
Instead of risking the overall design looking even worse and attempting to clean up Usopp, Sanji just let him be with his hair still messy and some of the clothes already folding into itself.
"You sure you don't want to just do dishes? If you're doing that then I can take over that vacant spot on the wait staff, and you won't be put on the spot as much."
"No, I want to prove I can be responsible with something like this. I mean, how hard can it be, right?"
Sanji nearly facepalmed. "Have you ever even worked in a restaurant before?"
"Oh, sure..." Usopp's lie was apparent.
"Well, come on then. Any experience at all?"
"I've set the table for dinner for my parents before."
"Good enough." Sanji, by that point, brushed off the lack of experience. "Just... imagine that, but you're doing it ten times faster, and if anyone doesn't like the way you do it you can kick them out."
"Really?"
"No. I mean, it's not the worst idea in the world, but only I can kick people out. Understand?"
"Why do you get to kick people out?"
"Because I know things. Like when a customer isn't worth it. That takes years of experience to understand. You're just here to help. Don't push it just because you want to show off as a classy waiter, alright?"
"Yeah yeah..." Usopp agreed, if not with a bit of annoyance. He was sure that, even if things got a bit crazy, that he could handle what would come next.
He couldn't handle what would come next.
Not for lack of any effort, though. The menu was incredibly simple considering the overwhelmingly posh presentation of the restaurant, and Usopp was good at making notes about what people ordered so they could be clearly conveyed to the cooks at the back of the restaurant.
But beyond that, the responsibility of handling snobbish and classy customers was nothing short of completely overwhelming. Whenever they would ask him a question about a menu item, which odds are he wouldn't know, he couldn't simply bluff his way out of the conversation; he either knew the answer or he had to run across the restaurant to ask.
He could bluff a bit more when it came to conversing with the customers, giving little jokes and gaffs in between grabbing them a new set of silverware or something like that. But even after that, most of the clients were so wildly excessive in personality, that Usopp would rather have to spend hours at a time in silence next to Kaya, embarrassing himself every second of the way, then try to make small talk with yet another piece of shit.
It was as though next to none of the customers he tackled even saw him as human. The experience was so degrading that Usopp began to wonder if Kaya would really be interested in him, talking about how another wealthy-looking couple pulled aside another waiter to make sure that he wasn't just faking the job and attempting to ruin their experience.
Sanji wasn't faring much better on the other side of the kitchen, much to his frustration.
He didn't exactly put himself in an ideal position, leaving Usopp to handle customers. If Usopp could take care of the dishes, ironically enough, it would've been easier for Sanji to go between cooking, prepping, and serving, as opposed to cooking, prepping and dishes. Considering the class of the restaurant, dishes went in and out of the dishwashing station faster than most, but when you're short-staffed, it's usually left to those with the least responsibilities to handle them.
Not only were dishes the metaphorical leftovers of responsibility, they were also partially hidden by an array of ovens, storage units, and prep tables. That meant Sanji wouldn't be able to see much of any cooking from his spot hidden away in the back of the kitchen, the one thing he tried best to avoid. Becoming a better chef was the only way he could see fit to encourage head chef Zeff to let him cook more, but until then…
"Crap-kid!" Zeff called out while searing a red, bloody cut of meat. "Less plating, more dishes! We're gonna run out of fucking forks if you're not careful! Patty, get on plates!"
"Yes, chef!" Under the hectic buzz of a late evening rush, all Sanji could do was leave the plating to Sous Chef Patty before rushing over to the pile of dishes set out before him. Sanji made sure to give Patty the finger as he trotted off, and Patty could only grin before doing the same.
The dishes were more intimidating than ever that particular night, leaning over Sanji like a mountain. He didn't like them, he couldn't do them that fast, and he was pulled away from what he really wanted to do… a real worst-case scenario.
"Sanji!" A cry came out from the dining room.
Maybe the worst-case scenario had yet to come, Sanji nervously thought before ditching the dishes to check on his friend.
Back out with the customers, Usopp was about to crack. By this, a particularly intimidating man and his lovely date were about to get up and leave. Sanji, arriving in the nick of time, tightened his tie and brushed his hair before fully addressing either of them.
"What seems to be the problem?"
"These dishes came out awfully… if it was just me I might have put it aside. I love this place. But now my date's dinner is ruined, too. Take a look."
Looking closely, Sanji couldn't notice any abnormalities with the food. As Sanji leaned in, Usopp whispered closely behind. "I thought the food looked great, but they just refused to pay up."
Sanji, shaking off a wave of frustration, gave the duo as warm a smile as possible. "Well, I'm sure we can come up with something. Would you like to substitute your orders with anything else on the menu?"
"Come on, let's go…" The date, a beautiful woman in her early thirties, pulled on the arm of her boyfriend. "Whatever they give us is probably gonna be crap anyways…"
"You got that right." The man muttered, although in a way that didn't really hide his comment from Sanji and Usopp. "An utter embarrassment from my favorite establishment. What are they doing back there, sleeping in the ovens? I'd rather-"
"SANJI!" The majority of the dining room came to a complete stop as Head Chef Zeff yelled out from the door of the kitchen. Snapping out of his complaints, the customer looked up to see Sanji ready to pounce on him, the only thing keeping them any further away being a strong pull from Usopp. After a few seconds of shock, the two teenagers turned to face the chef as well.
Within seconds, they were pinned to a wall back in the kitchen, away from prying eyes.
"Where do you get off on constantly attempting to ruin my reputation, squirt?" Zeff's eyes locked with Sanji's, filled to the brim with fury. "You bring in a nothing kid and let him roam around my dining room like a tourist, you plate steak like you're moving around dino-nuggets on a paper plate, and the dishes pile is a mile high."
All Sanji could do was fume. What else was he supposed to do? Yell back at the man who was giving him a place to stay, and an opportunity to become better? No, the only responsible thing to do was take the verbal abuse and-
"It was my fault, sir." Usopp muttered under his breath, causing both the Head Chef and Sanji to turn in surprise.
Usopp knew by this point that his attempts to have a fun story for Kaya were a bust. He rudely intruded into Sanji's professional life, almost making a game out of something that his friend took very seriously. If there was anything he could do to make up for it, he would certainly try. If waiting tables wasn't his passion, bullshitting excuses certainly was.
His head still hung in shame, Usopp began. "I don't have the hands to carry a lot of dishes like the other waiters here. Certainly not the muscles to carry out more than a few items at a time, and especially not the balance to carry delicate items like soups and bowled items. I know that lady got a soup, and she might not have liked it because the serving shook so much from the kitchen to the table. All the ingredients got jumbled up in a way that made it not so good.
"Same thing must've happened to that guy's steak. I don't know, you put butter on that, or something… maybe I shook it all off? That'd be pretty bad for the taste, wouldn't it?"
The two staring down Usopp were chefs, so they could tell that he was just bluffing to get the attention off of Sanji. Considering the intensity of his head chef, all Sanji could do was be surprised at his courage in the situation. Zeff, on the other hand, wouldn't let his friend get off so easily.
"Then… this shit." Zeff enunciated his words as harshly as he could make it, representing the stakes of a bad order on Usopp in the strongest way possible. "You take responsibility?"
Usopp straightened up, facing Zeff directly. Eye to eye. He might not have been an adult just yet, but it was time for him to start acting like one.
"Yes."
Zeff glared at him for a moment longer, waiting to see if Usopp faltered for a moment, before turning to face Sanji. "Just put the kid on the dishes, crap-head. You're back in on plating and serving."
"Yes, sir!"
"And you." Zeff pointed back to Usopp, who was as surprised as can be when the old man broke out into a calm smile. "I think you'll find dishes a lot more to your style than this crap-chef."
"What?" Sanji's face contorted with confusion. "What does that mean?"
"It means get back to work or you're fired. Both of you."
"Yes, sir!" The two exclaimed this time, despite the fact that Usopp wasn't employed nor was he getting paid anywhere near what he should be given the situation.
The next half hour was a bit of a blur for Sanji… going from one table to another making sure that the rhythm of serving hadn't been too messed up from Usopp's inexperience. To his surprise, it wasn't that bad, and Usopp's many bluffs and guesses of unknowing throughout the night led to a confident and comfortable section of the dining hall. After a bit of time, many of the customers Usopp had been dealing with left, and several more had come in.
They weren't the only thing Sanji needed to handle anymore, though. What was originally Sanji's want quickly became a curse, as balancing this new wave of customers was almost impossible with the addition of plating several meals and cooking side ingredients for major sections of the kitchen.
Finally, there was a moment for Sanji to take a breath and grab some water. Leaning against the wall next to the swinging doors of the kitchen, sweat dripping from his face, the stress was almost getting to him. Almost. He could only imagine how Usopp was faring, until finally turning over to give his friend a glance.
"This kid's the best!" Sous Chef Patty patted Usopp on the back, grabbing a large stack of clean dishes to bring back to his station.
"What the-?" Sanji's jaw nearly dropped, noticing the spotless, organized section that used to be a mountain of dirty dishes. Even with the time Usopp had, dishes were coming left and right for any reason. Dishes from the kitchen needed to be handled different from plates in the dining room, different from the silverware as well. There was so much chaos to it all, but Usopp handled it like it was nothing. In fact, everything was organized more than he'd ever seen it before.
"That's enough flattery, Patty!" Usopp gave the man an equal pat on the back, the two chuckling as each returned to their duties.
"What's got you so chummy?" Sanji spat out as Patty passed him by.
"The kid's a romantic, you know?" Patty said without a hint of sarcasm.
"What?"
"You're just a creep, but this kid's got stories for days. Did he ever tell you about his middle school stalker?"
"Or him trying to perform at a talent show?!" Another chef called from further into the kitchen.
"It feels like ages since I was a kid!" A third chef called out, his smile the first Sanji had seen that night. "Got any interesting stories from high school, Usopp?"
If Sanji wasn't already confused beyond belief, the utter attention many of the chefs gave as Usopp loudly proclaimed the start of his next story was enough to do the trick.
"Well, I do know this one kid, Koby. He was just the meekest kid you'd ever seen, like a little gremlin of a kid. Had this bully named Alvida, partially a beauty queen but mostly just a bitch."
"I hear that." Patty chimed in, a round smile on his face as he passionately seared salmon.
'What the hell is going on?' Sanji wondered.
"Scornful women are everywhere these days, my wife tells me." Another chef commented. "They prey on men's insecurities because they feel like they can."
"So what happened to the kid?! Did he beat her up or something?"
"Not exactly… but he did call her ugly in front of the whole school."
"DAMN!" Several of the chefs called out at once, laughing and just generally enjoying the story.
Sanji hadn't seen the kitchen this energetic in a while. It was almost disorienting, causing him to take another swig of his water.
"You surprised?" Zeff leaned on the wall next to Sanji, taking a deep breath of a cigarette. Sanji was startled at first, but then just let out a sigh.
"He's still kinda a friend of a friend… I didn't really expect him to last the night, to be honest."
"There you go again."
"What?"
Zeff laughed. "You're always expecting things to go a certain way. I don't know if hanging out with us boring adults has led you to think things go a certain way once you're too old to give a shit, but people are people. You get out what you put in, you know? So, you have been making good strides with your cooking, but-"
"But not with the staff?" Sanji interrupted.
"Bingo." Zeff enunciated strongly, before taking in another breath of smoke. "So stop putting a stick up yer' crap, and… get back to work!"
Sanji grinned from ear to ear. "Yes, sir!"
"Wow, that was crazy!" Usopp said, as the two climbed up a ladder outside the restaurant. "I mean, it was really stressful, and I have a dozen new fears, but-"
"Will you just save your breath for one second?" Sanji quipped, making it to the top of where they were going. Soon, Usopp settled at the top of the ladder and saw exactly where they were going.
On top of the main section of the Baratie was a small platform with a few chairs and a sealed cooler. The seats pointed outwards to the waterfront, where a river stretched on to the sides for what seemed like forever, and a forest matched that distance in front of them.
Letting out a sigh of relief, Sanji took off his coat, hanging it on the back of one of the chairs, before leaning back and closing his eyes. Usopp, while pretty tired, kept his eyes on the view in front of him as he sat down on the chair next to him. For a few minutes, the two just enjoy the silence of the late night while the riverside breeze keeps them comfortably cool.
Eventually, Sanji opened his eyes back up. "My advice was crap."
"What?"
"My advice about Kaya. Don't listen to it anymore."
"Why not?! I thought it was actually good advice! Nami agreed!"
"It was good advice for me." Sanji boldly stated.
"What do you mean?"
"I thought that, because there are things I can expect from dealing with women, that I knew everything. I'd still say I know more than you do, but I think I was forcing you to be someone you weren't, which isn't how you're going to win over someone you really like."
"But what about being responsible?"
"There are always good traits to have, and traits to avoid, generally speaking. But-" He paused, looking out to the river in front of him. "None of it matters if you're not being yourself. Being flirty, holding women up on a pedestal… that is me. But you have your own way."
"My own way?"
"Yeah."
Usopp, after letting it sink in for a few seconds, leaned back in the chair further. "Then what do you suggest? For me?"
"Just be yourself. Tell her a funny story."
"But what if-"
"Then it wasn't meant to be. If she didn't like who you are, then why would she like some manufactured version of yourself?"
"We all have some version of us made up for others, you know?" Usopp said, a bit more sincerely than he intended. "Not even Luffy knows the real me."
"First of all… Luffy is scary good at reading people, so don't even joke about that." Sanji chuckled, and soon enough Usopp did the same. "And second… you're just making excuses. Maybe it isn't a perfect line. Don't be an asshole if that's who you are deep, deep down, but there's got to be a part of you you're willing to let go. A small bit of pride, or something."
Usopp really let the words sink in. Had he really been just holding himself back because he was scared? Was there really nothing more to it than just being himself? He expected that having a crush meant having to put on another brave face, like the kinds that he'd put on for the sake of his family and his friends. It wouldn't be perfect, but maybe he could let go of that, just a little…
"I'll… take that into consideration."
"You better. If you ever try to work here again I might try to punch you in the face."
"Woah! Why?!"
"I'd just… never seen the cooks that happy in a while. Maybe I need to let go a bit, too."
"Oh…! Are you jealous of me now?!"
"What? Of course not!"
Usopp grinned from ear to ear, giving Sanji a look from his chair. "I don't know. Looks like your nose is growing."
"Shut up." Sanji spat back, before closing his eyes again. "Just let me get some fresh air before we have to go back below deck."
"Alright… jealous."
"GOD-!"
"And he wouldn't stop trying to choke me!" Usopp spoke confidently as he finished his story. "It was pitch black up there, too, so I nearly slipped off the side of the roof and fell!"
"Oh!" Kaya replied back in surprise, looking up from the textbook in between them. "Were you alright?"
"Oh, yeah. A fall from that high up might've killed me, but Sanji said he'd been coming up there for years, so he was pretty confident in pulling me back to the platform."
"Good…" Kaya wiped a bead of sweat from her face. "It sounds so crazy at that restaurant."
"I know. It really was too much for me to handle." Usopp confidently admitted, causing Kaya to give him a surprised glare. "But it was really fun! Not as much fun as that time me and Luffy snuck into a warehouse, but-"
"A warehouse?" Kaya spoke doubtfully. "Wouldn't you get caught if it was a big warehouse?"
"Well…" Usopp began, leaning in closer to set the mood of it being a very serious story. Despite that, the biggest grin of his life couldn't leave his face. Kaya was entertained, and that's all he could ever ask for. No lies required. He could tell all the stories he wanted, and just... be himself.
Once that final bell rang Luffy dashed out of the school, hungry beyond belief. He knew the location of the school well, and also knew that just on the other side of the street was a small diner in a strip mall. Quickly dashing across the street (and nearly getting cars into several collisions in the meantime), Luffy grabbed the handle of the door before hearing a call from behind him.
"Luffy! Hey, wait up!"
Turning around, he saw Sanji waving at him from the other side of the street.
"Sanji!" Luffy, mimicking a gentleman, held the door open for his friend as the two made their way inside. The diner itself was decently spacious for fitting within a strip mall, with a long set of bar seats lined up along the back near the kitchen. A waitress who looked not too much older than anyone at the high school motioned for them to come sit at the bar, barely any customers filling the restaurant.
"Now, would you two boys want to start with anything to drink?"
Luffy and Sanji sat down at chairs opposite her, the blonde teenager trying his best not to take his eyes off the woman as he slid into a tall chair. Sanji lifted his hand, as cool and casually as he could be, twirled the lollipop in his mouth to the side.
"I'll take your finest coffee, madam."
"Well look here, it seems we've got a gentleman." She smiled with a homely charm.
"I try my best." Sanji spoke, letting out a suave chuckle while trying his best to smile.
"And you, sir?" She glanced over to Luffy.
"Uh…" Luffy thought for a moment, unsure of what to get.
"You're hungry, right?" Sanji asked, Luffy simply nodding in agreement. He quickly glanced back at the waitress. "I hear your burgers are divine. If we could get one of those for my friend, and just put it on my check."
"You got it." The waitress winked before heading back, sending Sanji's heart aflutter.
"Thanks, Sanji!" Luffy profusely bowed to him, happy he took care of the encounter. "Too bad you were barely at lunch today."
"Sorry we didn't get much time to talk before now… when beautiful ladies call, I just can't leave them hanging."
"Hanging from what?"
"That's not… it doesn't matter. Well… what brought you here, and right after school no less?"
"I went here just the other day with my Grandpa, but that was for breakfast. Now it's after school, and I thought I'd grab something before hanging out with Usopp later."
"I started coming here some days after school, hoping to get a cup of coffee before my shift at the Baratie. It almost feels comforting to be back here, after the summer break."
"That's the place you work at, right? The one Usopp helped you out with?"
Luffy looked away for a moment while talking as a fresh patty was placed on a grill in the back, only to turn back around and realize Sanji was gone. Worried at first he'd gained the power to turn invisible, Luffy patted the seat next to him only to hear a conversation further down in the restaurant.
"You must be Nico Robin."
"That would be me."
Luffy went down a row of tables to see Sanji on the other side of a booth, with the girl who had helped him out earlier, Robin, sipping on her own cup of coffee.
"Why, I can't just let a woman as beautiful as you sit alone in a quiet place like this. Allow me to give you some much-needed company."
"I'm just trying to catch up on a book I've been wanting to read all week, and this is the best place in the area to get something to drink before work. If you mind?"
"Absolutely not. I promise not to disturb you for a minute-"
"Oh! Hey Robin!" Luffy called over from behind Sanji, rotating to get a better view from the seat behind them.
"Luffy! Pleasure to see you again. Have you been feeling better after the other day?"
"Yeah! My leg feels better, and I got to punch that guy in the face!" Before Sanji or Robin could say anything, Luffy quickly shuffled over to join them. Now, the only three customers in the diner were all localized at this one booth.
"Sounds most intriguing." Robin, for her part, had moved her book to the side at the notice of Luffy, leaning her head into her hand as though to express rapt interest as he sat down in front of her to continue. "I did hear about something to that effect… Did he try to mess with you again?"
"He was just picking on a friend of mine, and he went down in one punch! He wasn't even worth it!"
"You certainly know how to make your entrances, don't you?"
"Yeah… I guess I do!" Luffy agreed with her, not fully understanding what she meant but appreciating the sentiment.
Sanji. Was freaking out.
It was incredible that he'd had the courage to walk up and talk to the Nico Robin. It was worth a shot, but rejection was par for the course for a flirt like him. Which then raised the question…
How was Luffy holding her attention better than him? And for what had to be a complete accident?
"You look different… Am I right?" Luffy guessed, observing her closely.
"Yes, actually…" She ran a hand through her hair. "I let my hair down outside of school. Tying it up helps to keep a presentable figure."
"I dunno… tying it up looks really stuffy. I think you look more… of a receptionist now, with your hair down and the glasses." Robin smiled, Sanji only able to assume she took the observation as a compliment.
"Thank you… I'll have to see if I can pull it off sometime during school hours, if you think it looks nice."
Just as Luffy was about to say more, and Sanji was on the brink of passing out, a small buzzing sound came from Robin's pocket.
"Oh! My apologies, but I have to take this."
"Absolutely…" Sanji trailed out, almost loopy from delirium.
"Good luck! I hate phone calls!" Luffy waved the older girl off as she similarly waved to the waitress. The waitress, in turn, brought Sanji's coffee and Luffy's burger to the table where Robin was.
"Was that a friend of yours?" The waitress asked, motioning to Robin in the back as she gathered singles from a sleek, black purse.
"Yeah, was she?!" Sanji finally snapped from his mental state, staring at Luffy with rapt curiosity.
"Oh yeah, she helped me up the other day when a guy tried to ruin my hat."
"That's it?!"
"Yeah, that's it…" Luffy nervously spoke back, grabbing the burger off of his plate and taking an equally-nervous bite while his friend looked at him panicked.
"Well, I won't keep you two hanging… I'll go and grab all your receipts." The waitress spoke up in between them, before heading off to a register at the far end of the counter.
"Do you even know who she is?"
Luffy tried to say 'no' through a mouthful of burger. Sanji motioned for him to finish his food, and after a few more seconds of chewing, Luffy got it all down. "Nope! I mean, yes, but no? How does this work again? I remember you telling me a while back…"
"A beautiful woman such as her? She's the daughter of Mr. Crocodile, CEO of Baroque Works! It's the steel and manufacturing company that most of the places in this city are built from!"
"That sounds kind of boring. Why would you want to talk to her about that?"
"That's not the point!" Sanji sighed. "Well, whatever. It was probably a fluke anyway a woman such as herself struck up such a good conversation with you."
"That means I'm lucky, right?" Luffy questioned, before grinning and patting Sanji on the back. "Thanks, man!"
Sanji could only hope to change the topic at this rate. "So… you said you had plans after this?"
"After this… aha! I'm going to hang out with Usopp later. I asked Zoro already but he's going to the gym after school. I also asked Nami and Koby but they said they 'busy with schoolwork', whatever that means. And you have to go work?"
"Yes. I got a late-night shift at the Baratie restaurant starting in a little bit. Terrible hours for my sleep but the best place in the world to cook."
"Cool! I'll have to eat there sometime."
"Sorry, Luffy. I'll only be able to let you in if you have a beautiful woman accompanying you. I'd actually be surprised if…"
As Sanji's voice began to go through one ear and out the other, Luffy pondered for a moment.
He was thinking. He was actually thinking.
If it was for food he'd think of anything, from the most complex of math equations to the heartiest of literature. He didn't intentionally seek to be bad at any particular subjects of intellectuals, but the act of using critical thinking, or simply just putting new, generally unimportant knowledge into his brain was a nightmare. And that made this occasion all the more impressive.
Now, he knew he wasn't the best expert on defining beautiful women. In fact, he was confident in saying he would be the worst person to define what 'beautiful' was. It just didn't really matter to him. At best, he knew it meant a lot to people, so maybe… 'beautiful equals delicious'? No, no. Couldn't be. Sanji talked about being beautiful outside of a context with food.
What did he say again… yes! That Robin was beautiful!
Without hesitation, Luffy turned to see Robin heading back through the doors of the diner, ready to leave.
"Robin!"
"Luffy, what are you-" Sanji began to speak, but froze in nervousness after looking at Robin once again. His first reaction was to turn away, as though some kind of tragedy was about to unfold in front of him. Unknowing of Luffy's recent bout of brain activity, Robin could only turn around with the general rapt curiosity she had for the teenager in a Straw Hat.
"Yes, Luffy?"
"Do you want to get food with me? Sanji thinks you're beautiful, and I want to go to this fancy restaurant, so how about it?"
Sanji froze in fear as the waitress in the back burst out laughing. Robin, for her part, thought about it for a moment. As Robin seriously considered it, Sanji began repeatedly slamming his hand into his face.
"I'm afraid I'll have to decline, Luffy. I'm usually very busy after school, aside from this little time I get. Will I still be able to talk to you during school?"
"I don't see why not!" Luffy spoke back, unsure of what she meant. It was almost as though Sanji could just see the layers of context that Robin thought Luffy was implying flying over him as they spoke. "Thanks!"
She showed a small, relieved smile. "No problem. Now, apologies for taking up your time together, but I have to meet up with my father. Enjoy the rest of your day, Luffy and Sanji." Giving the duo one last nod, she walked over to the cashier to pay for her check.
"Well, I guess I'll have to find some more beautiful woman to ask out." Luffy complained, taking another, smaller bite of his burger before leaning against the table. "Do any girls count? How about imaginary girls?"
At that point, Sanji could only let out a relieved laugh. His friend hadn't changed a bit since they'd first met, and that was worth more to him than he'd care to admit.
"You're a delightful idiot, you know that?"
Luffy thought about the question for a second, thinking that the phrase 'delightful idiot' was contradictory. "Is that good or bad?"
Sanji calmed down for a moment, thinking back on his encounters with Usopp, then even further back to how the two had met in the first place. It was all frustrating, to be sure, but he wouldn't want things any other way.
"Good, Luffy. Really good."
BTS (Behind the Scenes) CH.3 -
The big thing I was working on with this chapter were the actual scenes in the Baratie. They're the most focused on saying what I wanted to say in this chapter, so every change I made to the scenes there had effects on what was around it. Over time, the goals of Usopp changed a lot, so I hope it feels like Usopp's story specifically feels very rewarding without stepping on the same grounds that the main story does.
Sanji also got a bit of an overhaul too, with me coming up with his arc fully about halfway through scrubbing original ideas from Usopp. The fact that their problems seem so similar but both come from different places, and can be bonded over between the two, really makes the chapter stand out for me.
One final big change I made was to the last scene with Sanji. While the spirit of them running into Robin during the second chapter remains the same, one thing I thought of while working on the Animatic for the introduction was the idea of just how quiet and intimate the scene really could be. We never get a lot of scenes before Whole Cake Island exploring the deeper friendship between Luffy and Sanji, and when I had a voice actor run the line "You're a delightful idiot, you know?", I realized they said it in a much more innocent context than Supreme-King had intended. If there's anything I want to do on my own for this story, it's that I want the Straw Hats to feel like real friends, even though they're in a different world leading different lives to how we've known them before.
Next time, we're going on a trip! Hope you stick around until then!