The Shimotsuki Family truly has no shortage of talent, huh? And this craftsmanship?
Xiano was somewhat surprised. He bent down, preparing to tap the wooden leg to test its feel, but just as he squatted, he found himself face to face with a certain blonde, curly-browed kid.
"Xia... Xiano big bro!"
Sanji was a little nervous, stammering, "Thank you! The old man told me everything. If it weren't for you arriving in time, we would've starved to death on that deserted island!"
Such an adorable voice… Is there a Chopper hiding in there?
"I don't deserve that much credit." Xiano chuckled and ruffled his little head. "You should thank Zeff more for surviving."
"I know."
Sanji nodded vigorously.
He had only woken up in the clinic this morning and finally understood the situation. He had immediately clung to Zeff's severed leg, crying his eyes out.
Zeff, however, just laughed and comforted him, saying how could he let a kid with the same dream starve to death? That only made Sanji cry even louder, and it wasn't until they were about to leave that he finally calmed down.
"Uncle Zeff."
Xiano held the wooden leg and looked up, asking, "It seems like daily activities aren't affected, but what about combat? Can you still use those kicking techniques from before?"
"Huh?" Zeff was stunned. "Benefactor, so you… you knew about my past identity?"
"Of course." Xiano clapped his hands and stood up. "Captain of the Chef Pirate Crew, Red-Leg Zeff. You're quite famous in the East Blue."
In fact, it wasn't just fame. Zeff had ventured into the Grand Line for a year and returned unscathed. Back in the East Blue, he was practically a hidden boss.
Xiano had also seen his bounty poster in the newspapers—50 million Berries, which was practically unmatched in the East Blue.
"And yet you're so calm. I'm a pirate, shouldn't you be scared?"
"Are you the kind of person who'd bite the hand that feeds you?" Xiano gave him a strange look. "If not, why should I be afraid?"
Pirates indeed had a terrible reputation among the public.
But as someone who knew the story, Xiano naturally wasn't foolish enough to judge people solely based on their affiliations.
In this turbulent era of pirates, he couldn't strictly apply the moral standards of his previous modern society. He had met decent people on both the Navy and Pirate sides, and Zeff was undoubtedly one of them.
"This…" Zeff was momentarily speechless, suddenly realizing that the young man who had saved him wasn't an ordinary person either.
He glanced around.
Koshiro was still smiling as if the earlier conversation hadn't affected him at all.
So none of them are ordinary, huh… Zeff couldn't help but burst into laughter, and the faint sense of restraint he had felt earlier completely vanished.
"As for kicking techniques, I can still manage to use them, but their power has greatly diminished!"
Zeff said cheerfully, "With what little skill I have left, I wouldn't survive in the Grand Line. I can't go back to being a pirate, but that's fine. At my age, it's time to take a break."
But Xiano could still see a hint of sadness in his eyes. After a moment of thought, he asked, "So, what are your plans now?"
"Well… I'm not sure."
Zeff looked at the kids training energetically in the dojo and suddenly said, "Hey, Mr. Koshiro, does your dojo need a chef?"
"Huh?"
Koshiro was somewhat surprised and shook his head, "Where would we get the money to hire a chef? In the past, Kuina and I took turns cooking. It's only in recent years, as more children have come to learn swordsmanship, that we've had the old lady next door come to help."
"How about letting me give it a try?"
Zeff chuckled, "It just so happens that no one has had breakfast yet. Let me show off my skills!"
"You're still recovering from your injuries. How is that appropriate..."
Koshiro instinctively wanted to dissuade him, but Zeff had already waved his hand and strode towards the kitchen. Only after he entered did his loud voice echo out, "Curly Brow kid! Come here and lend a hand!"
"Coming!"
Sanji's eyes lit up, and he hurried over.
What is this? How can we let an injured guest cook? Koshiro helplessly rubbed his forehead, glanced inside the dojo, and instructed:
"Kuina, Zoro, you two go and help as well."
"Yes, Father."
Kuina nodded, put down her bamboo sword, and expressionlessly grabbed the ear of a certain Mosshead who was struggling and shouting, "I don't want to!" as she dragged him towards the kitchen.
...
In the kitchen.
Zoro angrily chopped onions with a kitchen knife, his face looking as if someone owed him five million Berries.
What the hell!
To interrupt his training and make him come here to do such menial work!
"You're Zoro, right?"
A blond head suddenly popped up beside him, friendly and enthusiastic, "Nice to meet you, I'm Sanji. I've worked as a professional chef in the galley of a passenger ship. If there's anything you don't know, you can ask me."
"If there's anything you don't know, you can ask me~~"
Zoro repeated sarcastically, "There's a lot I don't know, after all, not everyone likes to spend all day in a place like this."
"I really like it," Sanji scratched his head and smiled brightly, "Cooking is one of the most interesting things in the world, don't you think? Oh, by the way—"
He pointed at the mutilated onions under Zoro's hands.
"There's a technique to cutting onions. First, remove the top and bottom roots, then make a horizontal cut in the middle and turn it over. It's easier that way..."
"Shut up!"
Zoro turned his head and roared irritably, "I don't want to hear this nonsense! And why do I always feel like crying when I hear you talk!"
"That's because of the onions, not me..."
Sanji looked at Zoro, who was crying profusely, with a speechless expression, "Well, you can actually breathe slowly through your mouth, and you can also put a bowl of water next to the cutting board when you're chopping..."
"Still don't want to hear it!"
Zoro bared his teeth and shouted, "Are you a man? Or just a girl who just got a short haircut? How can a man know so much about this stuff instead of training hard in swordsmanship!"
"Huh?"
Sanji's eyes widened, and he also got angry, "Who are you calling a girl? Someone who can't even cut onions properly, aren't you afraid you'll accidentally chop yourself to death when you swing your sword?"
"Proud of being able to cut onions? I hate onions! All those layers, they make me sick just like your eyebrows!"
"What did you say! You green-haired plant who can't even tell salt from sugar in the kitchen!"
"Pansy who swings a spatula ten times slower than my sword!"
"Single-celled organism who thinks with muscles!"
The two little guys were practically nose to nose, completely oblivious to a dangerous figure slowly approaching from behind.
"You two brats…"
Zeff gritted his teeth, grabbing each of them by an ear. "If you keep arguing in my kitchen, I'll chop you both up and make you today's main course! Got it?!"
Thud!
One minute later.
Zoro and Sanji were kneeling in a dogeza position in front of the sink, washing vegetables with utmost obedience. A row of swollen bumps rose on their heads, faint wisps of smoke curling upward.
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