Chapter 6 | "A couple of old friends."
They were all silent as Don Krieg revealed the old cook's past as Red Leg Zeff, the captain and chef of the Cook Pirates. He then went on about taking the retired pirate's journal forcefully since his crew, unlike Krieg's, was able to survive the Grand Line for years.
Luffy being Luffy, made himself known and openly opposed Krieg as the one who'd find the One Piece and become the King of Pirates. Though the boy was dismissed by him, promising that he'd deal with Luffy after he fed his underlings.
"Those who don't want to die can abandon the restaurant and escape. All I'm after are the logbook and this ship." Krieg announced before making his way to his beaten up ship.
As soon as he stepped out, all hell broke loose.
Most of the customers stampeded their way out of the restaurant, leaving a couple of daredevils who looked to be reporters being in the wrong place and wrong time — or, right place and right time, if you think about the scoop they were getting. The chefs shouted questions at the owner, asking him why the hell did he give that sack of food to the ones that would kill them, and why would he defend Sanji — the blond who they accused of being responsible for this whole thing.
"Shut up, all of you!" Zeff raised his voice, effectively shushing them, "Have you ever felt what it's like on the brink of starvation?!"
"What–What do you mean, Owner?" A particular buff chef asked, dumfounded.
"Losing food and water in the grand ocean... Do you know how scary it is? How hard it is?" Zeff looked pained as he said his next words. "The difference between all of you and Sanji is the fact that he knows."
Ah. Scarlett let her gaze drift from the old chef towards the blonde boy smoking on staircase. No wonder he looked familiar. She thought as a particular memory of her voyage surfaced in remembrance.
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FLASHBACK || 9 YEARS AGO
She was nineteen-years old, making her way to the East Blue when she came across a small, lone, rocky island. Normally, she would just dismiss it as it was but a mere rock standing in the middle of the sea with no plants nor game for her to hunt, but then as she got closer, her eyes caught sight of two silhouettes sitting atop of a small clearing.
So naturally, she called out to them.
The two silhouettes revealed to be a man and a boy, who introduced themselves as Zeff and Sanji, respectively. They'd been left stranded on the island for over two months due to an unfortunate storm incident that sunk their ship and the rest of their crew.
She felt for them.
Having been stranded in the sea for over a decade, she knew just how unforgivable the sea, the waves, the weather of Grand Line were.
So she helped them.
She gave them shelter — her boat, though small, was still big enough for an adult, a teenager, and a child to live in. She gave them food and water to replenish their nutrients. She cleaned and dressed their wounds that had started to ooze yellow pus. And she carved out a makeshift prosthetic out of wood for the man's missing foot.
"What are you going to do now, Peg Leg-san?"
"Hm, I've been thinking of opening a restaurant lately, retire from piracy and settle down as a cook."
"Really? Where are you thinking of opening it? Maybe I'll drop by someday."
"You should, Scarlett-san!! I'll cook you the best food you'll ever taste!!"
"Ohh, I'll look forward to that, Swirly-chan."
"Huh, who says I'm going to hire you, brat."
"I'm going with you whether you like it or not, old man! You're not getting rid of me easily!!"
They sailed together for over a month. And it was after they had entered East Blue did Zeff finally deemed it time for them to part.
The last time she saw them was in Logue Town, where they bid their goodbyes — tearily, in Sanji's case.
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Scarlett blinked back into the present when the cooks started declaring that they'd fight for Baratie, that they wouldn't run away from the Krieg Pirate.
"Well, isn't this a nice, dysfunctional family you have there," Scarlett cooed, bringing their attentions on her, including the two cooks she was familiar with. "I'm happy for you, Chef-san, Swirly-chan."
After a moment of them staring at her, Zeff let out a bewildered laugh. "Scarlett-kun." There was an unmistakable fondness laced within his tone, "You really do have an impeccable timing." He remarked, full of humour by an inside joke that they share. It seemed innocent enough to the outside, but the underlying context was a tad morbid if you ask her.
Sanji, on the other hand, flinched at the nickname. The blond stared at her with wide eyes, his jaw slacked enough that his cigarette fell out of his mouth. He stared for a moment at the hooded woman before knitting his curly brows together, "Scarlett...-san?"
"In the flesh, Swirly-chan." Scarlett smiled, not that he could see it through her mask. "Sorry, I didn't greeting you sooner, you grew so tall that I almost didn't recognize you."
Luffy turned to Scarlett, looking both surprised and delighted. "You know them, nee-chan?" He asked, which earned them a shocked look from both of her acquaintances.
"Yeah, they're a couple of old friends of mine."
Her brother grinned widely at that, turning to her two friends with an excited gleam in his eyes. "Were you in Grand Line with nee-chan?!" He asked giddily, if not with a little hint of envy.
"Impossible." The underling Krieg had left, Ghin, breathed with disbelief that had Luffy frowning.
The straw-hatted boy looked like he was about to tell the man off for doubting his favourite sister — she's his only sister — but decided against it when he saw the haunted look in the man's eyes. Instead, he asked, "What happened to you? You said you didn't know anything about the Grand Line even though you've there?"
Ghin swallowed audibly and looked down as he recounted the hellish experience that he had in the past week. "It's still true that I don't know. I don't know if it had been a dream or reality, and I still haven't been able to come to terms with it..." The man admitted shakily, "At the seventh day after we entered the Grand Line, our 50-ship fleet was was wiped out by a single man.
"It happened so suddenly. As soon as this man appeared, he sank the ships one after another. If that storm hadn't happened, our main ship would've been completely destroyed as well."
His statement made those who hadn't been to the dangerous part of the ocean let out a sound of shock. Even some of those who had been there, drew sharp breaths. While the Grand Line was inhabited by some of the strongest people in the sea, to have the ability to destroy fifty ships in mere moments was still a feat on itself.
