"No."

"But Bryn—"

"I said no."

Sabo's shoulders dropped, and Brynlee sighed. She knew her friend only meant well, but she was growing rather tired of his insistence. He'd only been back for a little over a week, now, but she already had half-a-mind to kick his ass right back to Foosha Village.

"… I can't leave the island, Sabo," she finally settled for saying, trying to soften her voice a bit. "Even if Miss Belo herself was to accompany me, I wouldn't do it. It's too risky. If, someone, somehow, uncovers my existence and word gets back to the marines…"

"We'd protect you!" he insisted, stubborn. "No one will ever hurt you, Bryn! I promise!"

"You…" She was a bit taken aback by his bold declaration, but a familiar warmth spread in her chest as his words sunk in, even though she still tried to reason with him. "Sabo, that's dangerous. Don't make a promise you can't keep—"

"I will keep it! I'll become stronger, just you wait! And one day, if the World really tries to mess with you, then I'll fight them all off! Even the Admirals!" he announced firmly. "If you ever need my help, then I'll come, no matter what! Because we're friends!"

"… thank you, Sabo. I think I really needed to hear that." They exchanged a smile, before she turned on her heels and started walking away. "I'm still not going to Foosha to meet your brothers, though."

"Oh, come on! You'll love them! Luffy's an idiot and he's gotten even bigger, and Ace is so stubborn and won't admit to his feelings. You'd have a blast!"

"I can and will knock you out again!"

Had she known bringing his memories back would turn Sabo into an insufferable simp for his brothers, she wouldn't have bothered.

No, that's a lie, she corrected, slapping her hands over her ears as Sabo kept on ranting about his "adorable and lovely brothers". But I'll definitely knock his remaining teeth out if he doesn't shut up about them!

Another… come on, just one more… just one more…

But no matter how many weeds Brynlee ripped out, the long-awaited notification for a completed side quest never showed up. She was exhausted, covered in dirt, her hands ached, and she was even running out of weeds to pull, but she'd lost count at some point and there was simply no telling just how far she was, still, from the 20,000 mark.

Ugh… It's for the money, Bryn, she told herself, forcing through her despair to get back to work. Think only of the cash prize that lies ahead! With just one more… one more…

"Nojiko, Nami, Sabo, Koala – this is Sanji! Sanji, these are my other friends!"

"It's nice to meet all of you!" beamed Sanji. "What can I get for your guys?"

"Sanji's the second-best cook in the entire East Blue," added Brynlee, her grin widening when a distinct blush warmed Sanji's cheeks. "And his smoothies are incredible!"

"Ooh, I want to try one too!" instantly said Nami.

"That's where your obsession with them comes from," sweatdropped Koala.

Sabo grabbed Sanji's shoulder, looking him dead in the eyes with a serious expression. "Do you want to see something absolutely adorable?"

Nojiko knocked him over the head. "Stop showing every person you meet pictures of your brothers! They're literally as old as us, it's weird!"

While the two started bickering, Sanji moved closer to Brynlee, a bit bemused.

"Are they always like this?"

"Noisy, you mean? Unfortunately. By the way, where's Chef Zeff?"

"Training some new cooks in the back. You want to talk to her?"

"It's fine, I'll go later. Why don't you take your lunch break to eat with us? I'm sure you and the others will get along well."

"Are you sure? I don't—"

"Come sit next to me!" beamed Nami, gesturing to the empty chair beside her.

Sanji's blush returned tenfold, and Brynlee bit back a grin.

It was nice to see all of her friends getting along.

"You want me to train you?"

"Not as extensively as Sanji, but if you could allow me to join you guys once every few weeks, I'd really appreciate it. I'm currently learning Fishman Karate, but I don't want to overlook the strength in my legs while I'm focusing on fighting with my upper body."

Chef Zeff nodded slowly, rubbing her chin as she observed the girl before her. Frankly, she didn't have anything against her joining them, but…

"We'll come by Cocoyashi once every two weeks so that you and Sanji can train together for a few ours," she decided. "Training Sanji here is one thing, but the Baratie won't stand a chance if a Lunarian starts kicking at full-power inside."

"That's… fair," winced Brynlee. "Thank you. I'll compensate you for the trouble."

"Nonsense. Sanji needs to spend time with his new friends, anyway. It won't do him any good to solely focus on work, even less so at his age." Her eyes then gleamed with distinct interest. "Also, I'm pretty curious about the company I heard you've been keeping over there. Some with more… revolutionizing ideals, let's say."

Brynlee was half-tempted to ask how Chef Zeff could possibly know that, but ultimately decided against it. If there was one person she'd learned not to cross so far, it was the former Pirate Captain – because unlike the other adults, she wouldn't hesitate to kick her ass if Brynlee annoyed her enough.

Why do I have the feeling that she'll use our training as an excuse to do just that…?

And another chapter down! I'll try to post the next one a little faster, promise.

Thank you all for your continued support~