Earth Land, Ishgar, Kingdom of Fiore, Mermaid Heel Headquarters.
May, x785.
After a day spent working on the first of Mermaid Heel's new training rooms, Alfonzo, closely followed by Ritsu, returned to the guild hall's main hall.
"Ah~~~! I'm hungry." Alfonzo said while stretching his arms over his head.
"I think you've earned a good meal after working nonstop for the whole day." Ritsu replied with a gentle smile. "So, what will you be making for dinner tonight?"
"Nice try, Master Unohana." Alfonzo said with a wry smile. "But I told you yesterday, I won't be cooking anymore… At least not for free."
"Tch!"
Hearing the sound of a clicked tongue, Alfonzo turned his head in its direction. More specifically, towards Ritsu.
"Master Unohana, did you just…?" Alfonzo asked in a tone of disbelief.
"Did I just… what?" Ritsu asked with a smile while tilting her head in confusion.
Although Ritsu was smiling, her smile gave off so much pressure that Alfonzo, although he was not intimidated, decided it was not worth it to push the woman in front of him any further.
"Nothing." Alfonzo replied while shaking his head. "I must have been hearing things because of hunger."
"I see." Ritsu replied with an approving nod. "Then, you should get something to eat. And while you do that, I'll let Tsunade know about the progress you made today."
"Sure." Alfonzo replied with a smile.
With that, Alfonzo and Ritsu separated. While Alfonzo moved towards the guild hall's bar to place an order for dinner, Ritsu moved upstairs to Tsunade's office.
A moment later, Alfonzo reached the bar. And when he did, he found Yoruichi sitting there with her left cheek resting in her left hand.
"Yo, Yoruichi, what's up?" Alfonzo asked casually while raising a hand to get the waitress' attention. "Hey, can I have a T-bone, medium rare, with a baked potato and green beans? Thanks."
"Sure thing." The waitress replied before taking the order back to the guild's chef.
"So, how's the work going?" Yoruichi replied while leaving her head resting against her palm.
"Just as I expected it to go." Alfonzo replied.
'Honestly, I could have this whole job finished in a few days if I wanted to.' Alfonzo mused. 'But if I did that, I wouldn't have the time or energy to work on my other project. So, I'll do this at a leisurely pace. Though, I'm sure Ritsu will report that to Tsunade, as well.'
And just as Alfonzo expected, Ritsu was currently reporting to Tsunade that he was not exerting himself fully. However, Tsunade casually dismissed it, stating that there was no hurry. Besides, the cost for the job would not change, either way.
A moment later, Alfonzo was pulled out of his musings by a rather intense glare. And when he looked to its source, he saw a beautiful young woman with long, honey blonde hair and pinkish-purple eyes wearing a white chef's uniform with a chef's hat staring at him with fire in her eyes.
'Is that Erina Nakiri?' Alfonzo thought to himself. {A/N: It's just a cameo. She won't get much many more, if any, appearances after this chapter.}
Breaking eye contact with the competitive chef, Alfonzo turned his attention back to Yoruichi.
"So, do you have any idea where Marin is?" Alfonzo asked. "I thought she'd be here by the time I was finished working."
"She took Wendy back to your house." Yoruichi replied. "Apparently training under Master Tsunade was more than she was ready for. She basically passed out on her feet after coming down the stairs a few minutes ago."
"Oh, got it." Alfonzo replied with a smile. "So, what's up with that bruise on your cheek?"
As he asked, Alfonzo pointed towards Yoruichi's left cheek, the one she was covering with her hand.
"*Sigh* That Marin has a hell of a right hook." Yoruichi said while rolling her eyes.
"So, I guess she told you the girls' decision, huh?" Alfonzo asked.
"Yeah." Yoruichi replied. "And she said I should probably expect a few more punches, too."
"Yeah, you probably should." Alfonzo said with a nod. Then, he continued in a much chillier tone. "Oh, and you should probably keep that little chihuahua of yours on a leash, too. Because if she turns rabid, I might have to put her down."
With that, Yoruichi lowered her left hand, revealing the large, swollen bruise on the left side of her face. Then, she pushed herself up from her seat at the bar.
"*Sigh* I know." Yoruichi said in an exasperated tone. "At first, I thought she was just watching her. But now, I can feel her killing intent from here. Marin was right, I really am going to have to cut her off if she doesn't get her shit together."
With that, Yoruichi vanished in a burst of speed. And somehow, she managed to leave the guild hall without the sound of any doors or windows opening.
"I gotta learn how to do that." Alfonzo muttered while waiting for his food to arrive.
"So, what happened between you and Yoruichi that's had her so mopey for the last two months?" A female voice asked from the seat next to Alfonzo.
"Hey, Anko, it's nice to see you, too." Alfonzo replied without even looking in Anko's direction.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm sure it is." Anko replied. "Of course, that would be more convincing if you were actually looking at me. Anyway, can you answer my question."
"Yoruichi hasn't' told you about it?" Alfonzo asked while glancing at Anko.
"Nope." Anko replied. "She always says that she'll tell me later. But later hasn't come yet."
"Then, if Yoruichi, someone you're clearly pretty close to, hasn't told you, why do you think I, who only met you yesterday, would?" Alfonzo asked curiously.
"Because I'm hot as hell." Anko replied cheekily.
"Yeah, you are." Alfonzo replied with a nod. "But I don't' see what that has to do with this."
"*Sigh* You're no fun." Anko replied in a deflated tone. "*Sigh* Yoruichi's my best friend. And I really don't like seeing her mope around like that. But if she doesn't tell me what's wrong, I can't help her with her problem."
"Unfortunately, there's nothing you can do to help her with this problem." Alfonzo replied while shaking his head. "Trust me on that one. Besides, going behind her back to get information like this isn't exactly cool."
"Yeah, I know." Anko replied while leaning forward and resting her elbows on the bar. "I just didn't know what to do."
At that moment, the doors to the guild hall opened. And through them, Yoruichi walked in while carrying Sui-Feng by the scruff of her neck.
"And just what the hell were you thinking?" Yoruichi asked exasperatedly.
"Since that girl used her right hand to strike you, Lady Yoruichi, she no longer needs it." Sui-Feng replied defiantly. "For disrespecting you like she did, I think I'm being rather lenient."
"*Sigh* Marin was right." Yoruichi said in a tired tone. "I really should have disciplined you more in the past. You overstep your bounds far too often."
Hearing that, Sui-Feng opened her eyes wide in surprise.
"Lady Yoruichi, surely you are not serious?" Sui-Feng asked in a scared tone. "But I was only acting to protect your honor."
"Without any input from me." Yoruichi replied sternly. "The one you have sworn to serve."
In response, Sui-Feng could only lower her head.
"It's not like your little sneak attack would have worked, anyway." Alfonzo said, casually inserting himself into the conversation from his seat at the bar. "Marin started injecting her magic power into her weapon the moment you started leaking killing intent."
Hearing Alfonzo's words, both Yoruichi and Sui-Feng looked in his direction. While Yoruichi was just as amazed as always at Alfonzo's ability to detect magic power, Sui-Feng's anger started growing out of control.
"This is all your fault!" Sui-Feng shouted. "If you had just been grateful and---"
*Smack!*
Before Sui-Feng could finish her tirade, she was silenced by a slap across the face from Yoruichi.
"I've had enough, Sui-Feng." Yoruichi said angrily. "I don't know how you became such a fanatic, but the Shihouin Clan clearly did something wrong while educating you."
"Lady Yoruichi…" Sui-Feng whimpered with her eyes open wide in surprise while she covered her reddening cheek with her hand.
"We'll be returning home." Yoruichi said sternly. "I need to see that you are properly reeducated. And right now, I can't trust you to obediently return on your own. *Sigh* And I'll probably be punished for my stupid actions, as well."
With that, and without another word to anyone in the, now, silent guild hall, Yoruichi dragged Sui-Feng towards the stairs, undoubtedly headed to Tsunade's office to inform her of her decision to return home.
"Wow, I don't think I've ever seen Yoruichi get so angry with her little bumble bee before." Anko said with amazement in her tone. "You must really mean a lot to her for her to get so mad on your behalf."
"No, that's not it at all." Alfonzo replied. "But if you knew the whole story, you'd be pissed off at Sui-Feng, too."
"Damn it, now I'm getting even more curious." Anko muttered.
"Order up." A female voice said from in front of Alfonzo.
"Looking in the voice's direction, Alfonzo saw the young woman he had just identified as Erina Nakiri placing his order on the bar top in front of him.
"Please, enjoy your meal." Erina said while staring at Alfonzo with fire in her eyes.
'I think I lit a fire under the Queen of the Culinary world with what I showed last night.' Alfonzo thought to himself as he created a fork and knife with his magic.
Seeing Alfonzo creating his own cutlery, Erina could not help blushing slightly. In her bid to show Alfonzo who was the better cook, she completely forgot about silverware. Then, again, that's why waiters are the ones who usually serve customers, and not the chefs.
Even so, she watched as Alfonzo cut into the steak and took a bite.
'Hmm… It feels like I've been transported to a field of grazing cows and bulls.' Alfonzo thought to himself as he looked around the mental illusion. 'And they're all showing me such love, as if I was the one who had been taking care of them all their lives.'
As soon as Alfonzo finished chewing and swallowed the mouthful of food, the illusion ended.
"Damn, that's pretty good." Alfonzo muttered as he decided to try the baked potato next.
Meanwhile, Erina could only look at Alfonzo with mounting frustration. Even though it was clear he was affected by her cooking, his reaction was nowhere near as exaggerated as the reactions the girls of Mermaid Heel had to his cooking the night before.
And while Erina was brooding over her perceived defeat, Alfonzo had tried all the food on his plate. Then, he stopped to think for a moment. And once that was done, he shrugged his shoulders. Then he looked at Erina, who was about to return to the kitchen.
"You're really good at what you do." Alfonzo said with a smile. "Why don't you come work for me? I'll pay double… no triple whatever Mermaid Heel is paying you."
Immediately, Erina turned around with the flames of anger burning in her eyes. However, before she could say anything, someone else addressed him from the landing in the middle of the staircase.
"Hey, Kid. I'd appreciate it if you didn't try to poach my guild staff." Tsunade said as she, Ritsu, Yoruichi, and Sui-Feng climbed down the stairs.
"She's a fucking awesome cook." Alfonzo replied with a shrug as he turned towards Tsunade. "Can you blame me for trying?"
"Even if you're one of the richest men on the continent, do you really think she'll gain more prestige in the culinary world by becoming your personal chef than working as the head chef in a popular guild. Or were you trying to poach her for Fairy Tail?"
"Nope." Alfonzo replied with a smile. "But trust me, accepting my offer would get her much more prestige than working here."
"Oh really?" Tsunade asked while crossing her arms under her breasts, emphasizing them more than they already were. "And just what kind of offer is that?"
"That's a secret." Alfonzo replied as he reached into his pants pocket and pulled out a business card.
Then, Alfonzo placed the business card on the bar top with its information pointed towards Erina. At the same time, he used his hand and [Metal Magic] to shield it from everyone else's eyes.
Scoffing at Alfonzo's attempt to be mysterious, Erina looked down at the business card, prepared to mock him publicly for trying to poach her. However, when she saw what was printed on it, her eyes widened in surprise.
'Sixth Sense Holdings. Alfonzo Marcus, Owner and CEO.' Erina read silently before raising her head and staring at Alfonzo in disbelief.
A moment later, Erina slowly walked back to the bar. Then, she picked up the business card with that same amazed expression on her face.
"You don't need to respond now." Alfonzo said with a smile. "But you should give it some consideration."
In response, Erina only nodded her head absent-mindedly before returning to the kitchen.
Meanwhile, Tsunade could only stare at Alfonzo with an annoyed glare. At the same time, Yoruichi and Anko watched him with interest and curiosity. Ritsu, on the other hand, watched the entire exchange with an amused gaze. Then, there was Sui-Feng, who was leaking so much killing intent that the rest of the guild hall was completely silent.
"Could you get her to reel that shit in?" Alfonzo said as he returned to eating his dinner. "It's making the food taste bad."
Instead of responding, Yoruichi chopped Sui-Feng on the back of her neck, knocking her unconscious. Although Alfonzo did not say anything, it was clear that if she did not do something about Sui-Feng, he would have. And he had no intension of being so gentle.
"Anyway, I'll be taking her back home." Yoruichi said as she slung Sui-Feng over her shoulder. "I don't know when I'll be back, but I'll miss you, Alfonzo."
"Have a safe trip." Alfonzo replied without looking in Yoruichi's direction. "And for both of your sakes, I hope the two of you improve while you're away."
"Yeah, I'll do my best." Yoruichi replied with a sad smile.
A moment later, Yoruichi [Flash Stepped] next to Alfonzo, kissed him on the cheek, then [Flash Stepped] to the guild hall's main entrance.
"Goodbye for now, everyone." Yoruichi said with her back turned to the rest of the guild.
"And I really am sorry for what I did, Alfonzo."
Then, she pushed the guild's doors open and left without another word.
"Damn it, you never told me what happened!" Anko shouted as she stood from her seat at the bar and rushed after Yoruichi.
With Yoruichi and Sui-Feng's departure, Mermaid Heel would be weakened for a while. Losing two S-Class wizards, while one of them was their current ace, would do that to any guild. However, with talents like Kagura and the new training facilities Alfonzo was installing, Tsunade hoped it would not take long for Mermaid Heel to regain its strength. On top of that, when Yoruichi eventually returned, they would be even stronger than ever.