Chapter 331: Sibling Reunion
"..." There was silence on the other end of the phone, and after a long pause, Dragon's hoarse voice said, "We must try. The Revolutionary Army cannot stop because of these minor difficulties in achieving our goals."
"Even though the World Government, built over eight hundred years, may be decaying, its power is immense. To change the world, we need a great deal of strength. The Dawn Pirates, who share much of our ideology, are a perfect ally."
Kuma held the Den Den Mushi with one hand, "I trust your judgment, Dragon."
"Sorry for troubling you with this trip."
"No, everything is for the Revolutionary Army." Kuma's tone was unusually gentle. "I also need to return to report to the World Government."
"We'll contact each other again later."
"Click."
Kuma clicked the Den Den Mushi shut, lowering his crossed legs slowly as he stood tall to face the rising sun. His shadow shortened as the sun climbed higher. A light breeze passed, and his massive form vanished from sight.
...
Eric realized that their prolonged stay in the North Sea had raised the World Government's suspicion. Using the superior speed of their ship, the Without Fear, along with Chiron's unreasonably long-range vision, Wendy's flying ability with the Flo-Flo Fruit, they easily broke through the Navy's pursuit and escaped from the North Sea into the East Blue.
"Garp ." Sengoku's voice was pressed against the phone. "The Dawn Pirates have entered the East Blue. Report their location immediately. The command over all East Blue branches is temporarily under your responsibility!"
"Ah~" Garp 's thick fingers pushed his nostrils apart, fiercely battling to clear his nose, finally managing to pick his nose. His attention had been entirely focused on his nose. "What did you say? Say that again?"
"Garp !" Sengoku yelled into the phone, his words full of spittle. "Keep a close eye on the Dawn Pirates!"
Garp lazily scratched his nose, "I'm on vacation right now. Can you wait until I get back?"
"Do your job properly!" Sengoku snapped. "Or I'll make sure you never get another vacation!"
"I'll just sneak away while working, then."
"Garp !!"
"Alright, alright." Garp slammed the phone down, his face full of displeasure. "What's the big deal?"
"Garp Vice Admiral." His long-time deputy, Bogart, handed him a cloak with the word "Justice" written on it.
"These guys, not going to the New World to fight Whitebeard and Kaido for territory, just wandering around in other seas for no reason?"
"Let's go, or next time we meet Sengoku, who knows what that guy will yell at me about?" The white cloak billowed behind him.
As they walked, Bogart suddenly asked, "Vice Admiral Garp , it seems like you don't want to capture the Dawn Pirates?"
"Hmph, those guys have done what I've always dreamed of doing," Garp laughed heartily. "I really want to pull them into the Navy."
"Sengoku would never agree to that."
"True, hahaha..."
◇
In the East Blue, the Baratie, a renowned restaurant with a reputation for "combat," was the most famous in the East Blue.
Two years ago, after Zeff and Sanji were saved by Eric, they established the Baratie together, and the restaurant welcomed "reckless chefs" to join. In two years, its fame had soared.
"Crash."
A white porcelain plate fell to the floor and shattered, food and soup splashing everywhere.
"Hehe~" Young Sanji, his eyes sparkling with hearts, stared at a woman in a dress, giving a goofy smile.
"Not again!" Patty, holding a rag, shouted at Sanji. "How many times do I have to tell you not to get so obsessed with staring at women?!"
"Hmph!" Sanji, still cleaning, refused to stop, his eyes roaming as he sneakily glanced at beautiful women.
"I'm relieved that you're still full of energy, Sanji," a soft voice rang in his ears. Sanji's hands trembled, and the mop he was holding fell to the ground.
"Hey, Sanji!" another member of the Extreme Duo called out, scolding him. "We're busy here, hurry up and finish cleaning so you can work!"
Sanji froze in place, his face filled with disbelief. Slowly, he turned his head and saw the pink hue he remembered—Reiju!
"Reiju?!" Sanji exclaimed excitedly. "This isn't a dream, right?! I can't believe we're meeting again..."
Then, he suddenly realized something and started trembling. "He... he's not here too, is he?"
Reiju, of course, knew who Sanji was talking about. She smiled gently, "Don't worry, father doesn't know you're here. I didn't come to the East Blue because of his orders."
"Is that so? Well, that's good." Sanji relaxed and smiled happily. "Reiju, come try my cooking. I've learned a lot of new recipes..."
At that moment, Sanji noticed a group of people behind Reiju. The once noisy restaurant became eerily quiet. The sound of spoons hitting bowls ceased, and only his own voice echoed in the restaurant.
Patty and Carne, usually fearless, froze where they stood, their faces pale like zombies. Sweat droplets rolled down their cheeks.
"Beauty!" The perverted Sanji, with only the beautiful women in mind, immediately noticed Esdeath, Kurumi, Akame, and the others. His perverted nature immediately surfaced as he moved past Reiju. "Are you here with Reiju? Come, come, we have space here..."
"Hey! Kid..." Patty's large, muscular arm reached out from behind and grabbed Sanji's shoulder. "Don't go over there!"
"Eh? Don't stop me!" Young Sanji couldn't resist Patty's strength as he was dragged back.
"Sorry, customers," Patty said with a wide smile, rubbing his hands together, and greeted the man in the middle. "The kid doesn't know any better. What would you like to eat?"
"..."
"Gulp." The pressure in the air made the sweat slide down their skin.
"Give us a private table. The food must be clean," Eric said, glaring at Patty's thick arm hair. "If we find hair in our food... you know what will happen."
"Y-yes!" Patty immediately gestured to the back, "This way, please~"
"What? It's you." Sanji finally recognized the person. "That bastard pirate surrounded by a bunch of beautiful women... Uh!"
Carne quickly covered Sanji's chattering mouth, signaling him to be quiet with a "shh."
"Your waiters aren't very polite, huh?" Eric sneered. "I heard of your Baratie's reputation, came all the way here for a meal."
Patty, who usually solved problems with force, now acted like a meek lamb. "The kid doesn't know any better, please don't be angry."
He even helped Sanji avoid responsibility.
"Hey, Sanji, hurry and bring the dishes!" Zeff pulled back the curtain, walking out from the kitchen with his prosthetic leg. He scanned the whole Dawn Pirates, then turned back to the restaurant staff. "You're here to eat, right? Patty, Carne, bring out more chairs!"
"Yes!" With a clear leader, Carne held onto Sanji tightly and, along with Patty, slipped into the storeroom.
"I thought this restaurant would need reservations." Esdeath sat down at an empty spot. "It's great that you're reasonable."
"We can't just kick hungry customers out," Zeff said, glaring at Akame. "As long as there's someone hungry, I'll cook for them."
With Akame's "gurgling" sound, his words became very convincing.
Akame reluctantly pulled out a lollipop and handed it to Akame. Akame's eyes lit up, and she greedily devoured it.
"Aren't you going to kick these people out?" Esdeath gestured around.
Zeff replied, "The restaurant doesn't chase customers away."
"Well, seeing them, I'd like to leave immediately."
The ordinary customers in the restaurant were terrified by the presence of the Dawn Pirates and dared not move, sitting as straight as elementary school students during class.
"Ha..." Zeff sighed. "Let them go."
"Go on."
The customers sighed in relief, their chaotic footsteps weaving around the Dawn Pirates, leaving the restaurant in an orderly fashion.
"Let's bring out Sanji." Once the room was cleared, everyone found seats, and Eric pointed at Reiju. "I brought her specifically to see her younger brother."
"Ah!" Zeff's eyes widened slightly as he carefully observed Reiju's eyebrows.
Hmm, they were family.
"I see now," Zeff called out with a sigh of relief. "Carne, Patty, let Sanji out!"
Inside the storeroom, Patty and Carne stopped tying up Sanji and loosened his bonds, removing the cloth from his mouth.
"You two bastards..."
"I'm doing this for your own good, you little brat!" Patty yelled angrily. "If you want to die, go ahead, but don't Dragon us into it!"
"Exactly." Carne's thick beard brushed Sanji's face. "That's one of the Four Emperors! We're no match for them!"
"Four Emperors?" Sanji paused. "What's that?"
"In the age of pirates, the kings who rule the seas!" Carne's face almost pressed against Sanji's as he continued talking, but Sanji had to lean back to avoid it.
"That guy?" Sanji rubbed his face, still stinging from Carne's beard. "I think he's just a pervert."
Patty and Carne both sighed in unison: "You're the last person who should be saying that!"
Finally, after exiting the storeroom, Sanji stopped talking nonsense, making the Extreme Duo sigh in relief.
"Reiju, how did that guy let you out?" Sanji understood his father's personality—he would never let Reiju go easily.
Unlike himself, who was a "failure," Reiju possessed superhuman abilities and extraordinary skills. How could that bastard father give up on such a great warrior?
Sanji's gaze shifted to Eric, and he shook his head, refusing to think further. However, those cold-blooded bastards weren't worth regretting their deaths.
As though she knew what Sanji was thinking, Reiju smiled and casually linked her arm with Eric's, saying jokingly, "Father has betrothed me to Eric."
"What?!" Sanji shouted, pointing at Eric. "This guy is a pervert, and he's surrounded by beautiful women... Hey, no way!"
"You have no right to say anything," Eric glared at Sanji. "You're the one who can't even move when a woman's nearby!"
Sanji urged, "Reiju, don't marry him!"
"Hehe..." Feeling the long-lost care of family, Reiju smiled, "I've already married him..."
Already married, already... married...
Reiju's words lingered in Sanji's mind.
Sanji turned into a stone, turning to dust in the wind.
Eric leaned in and whispered, "Hey, when did this happen?"
Reiju whispered back, "I was just messing with him."
Feeling some discontented gazes behind her, Reiju helped Sanji, who was sitting on the floor, and gave everyone an apologetic look. She turned to Zeff and asked, "Sorry, could we have some private space with my brother?"
"Patty, take them to Sanji's room." Zeff said as he got up, clacking his prosthetic leg on the ground, and walked into the kitchen to prepare meals for the Dawn Pirates.
...
In the room, Sanji urgently asked, "Reiju, is everything you said true?"
"Although we're not officially married, father did betroth me to Eric, as a political marriage."
"..." Sanji thought for a moment, his face turning serious. "Reiju, you need to run away!"
"Eh?"
"Don't care about anyone else, live for yourself!"
"…"
"I don't want to see the only family I have suffer."
"...Then what about you?"
"..." Sanji fell silent.
"What about your future, Baratie?" Reiju gently touched Sanji's head. "Thank you for thinking of me, but I'm very happy now~"
"Eh?" Sanji was stunned.
"Eric won't force me to train, and he won't make me do things I don't want to do. The people on the ship are great, and the months I've spent on the ship have been the happiest time I've had since I was with mother."
"Mother..." Sanji heard the word and recalled his mother's voice and face. His nose tinged, and tears quickly filled his eyes.
Reiju saw her brother, now looking so much like a human, and smiled with relief.
Reiju said seriously, "Sanji, you can't die."
"Huh?"
"You can't die for mother's sake."
Sanji's eyes widened. "What do you mean?"
"When mother was pregnant, she fought with father. She strongly opposed turning you four into emotionless machines. But the operation was still forcibly carried out."
"Afterward, in order to stop father's ambition, mother drank a powerful drug that affected the modified genetic factors. But her desperate action was meaningless. The brothers born after that showed abnormalities far beyond humans."
"You grew up as a human, while mother, because of the side effects of the drug, gradually weakened."
"Did I... did I cause mother's death?" Sanji, still young, showed signs of emotional breakdown.
"Don't think like that!"
Reiju's rebuttal stopped Sanji.
"Mother was truly happy from the bottom of her heart." Reiju smiled with the same smile as Sora's. "Now, I understand what mother's smile meant: whether it was for you or for her own choice, she had no regrets."
Sanji cried uncontrollably, tears and snot streaming down his face, but he didn't care to wipe it away. His emotions, full of joy, anger, and sadness, were expressed vividly.
When Sanji's crying died down, Reiju continued:
"Even though mom is gone, the love is still in your heart. You are not a failure. You are the child who was born with emotion, fought for by mom, Sanji."
"Wuuuu..."
"To borrow someone's words: As long as we remember mom, she will always live in our hearts."
Finally, Sanji and Reiju left the room, their eyes red and swollen. No one said anything more.
"Leaving so soon?" Akame turned and asked, "It's a reunion between real siblings, you could have stayed for a day or two longer. Don't you think so, brother-in-law?"
"Mm."
"No need. Staying here too long will trouble them." Reiju smiled slightly. "I'll call him when I miss him."
Akame asked, "Won't you let your brother contact you?"
"He's a man."
(END CHAPTER)
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