Water 7.
Aboard a certain battleship.
Spandam, wrapped head-to-toe in bandages, had already made seven calls to Kaku, none of which were answered. Enraged, he slammed the Den Den Mushi onto the table in front of him.
"Bloop—" The Den Den Mushi rolled twice across the table but, miraculously, didn't break and remained intact.
On the ship.
Enel, acting as if the Den Den Mushi he crushed had nothing to do with him, yawned and walked past Kaku, indifferent. "Make sure you patch up the holes in the floor."
Kaku sighed, feeling both amused and helpless as he watched Enel leave. He glanced at the shattered remains of the Den Den Mushi on the ground and let out a soft sigh.
It seemed like it would be a while before he could contact CP9 again…
For the next week, on the way to the Sabaody Archipelago, the ship stopped briefly at two unknown islands to replenish supplies. Once they had what they needed, they continued sailing towards their destination.
One morning, Takumi sat at the bow of the ship, leisurely fishing.
Enel, sitting cross-legged on the deck, was reading through a stack of newspapers, catching up on the latest news.
Kaku approached Enel, glancing in Takumi's direction. After thinking for a while, he couldn't help but ask, "I thought our journey was supposed to be a 'go wherever we please' type of thing. But on the last two islands, we just stopped briefly to buy supplies and then left. Are we heading somewhere specific?"
"Of course we are," Enel said, flipping through the newspaper before tossing it aside in frustration. "Our journey isn't just aimless wandering. Where we go is decided by Takumi, and our next stop is the Sabaody Archipelago."
"The Sabaody Archipelago?" Kaku was stunned for a moment. He looked back at Takumi, especially noticing that he wasn't wearing a Log Pose. Kaku furrowed his brows. "Navigating the Grand Line without a Log Pose means we could easily get lost. Are we sure we're headed in the right direction?"
Enel looked at him with disdain. "You're doubting Takumi? You long-nosed fool! Don't underestimate him. Ever since I've been following him, he hasn't been wrong about directions even once."
"Not even once?" Kaku was a little skeptical. "How long have you been following him?"
Enel snorted proudly, "About two months, give or take."
Kaku couldn't help but chuckle awkwardly.
Two months? Was that something to brag about…?
Still, there was something that intrigued Kaku.
Every day, Enel would spend some time practicing his Observation Haki and Armament Haki.
But Takumi lived a very regular life. He was either sleeping, drinking, or fishing, as if he were in retirement.
Yet, Takumi appeared younger than Kaku…
"Is he really that strong?" Although Kaku knew that Takumi could use Geppo, he had never seen him fight since coming aboard. Even when they encountered a Sea King or two, it was always Enel who dealt with them. So Kaku still had some doubts about Takumi's strength.
Enel glanced at Kaku and then coldly smirked. "If you're that curious, and if you're not afraid to die, you can always try him yourself."
Enel then grabbed a banana from the nearby fruit bowl, peeled it, and took a bite.
Kaku was tempted to give it a try, but he had a feeling Enel was trying to set him up.
Lately, Enel had been acting as if he had second-in-command authority on the ship, always looking for reasons to zap Kaku with his lightning for no reason.
Kaku's physical skills and reflexes were already impressive, but with Enel's "training," Kaku felt like his reaction speed and his somewhat weaker Observation Haki were improving faster than they had during his own training…
After some thought, Kaku decided it would be best to go have a proper talk with Takumi.
Just as he approached Takumi, a fish bit the hook, and Takumi reeled in a half-meter-long, completely white fish from the water.
Kaku was about to speak when his attention shifted to the fish Takumi had caught. He was stunned for a moment, then exclaimed, "I saw this fish in a recipe book last night! They say you don't need any seasoning for this fish—just boiling it in water makes it taste better than regular fish. Hahaha, Takumi, you've got good luck! This kind of fish is hard to catch."
Takumi removed the hook from the fish's mouth and casually tossed the fish to Kaku.
Kaku quickly caught the lively fish, laughing. "Hahaha, I'll go cook it right now and see if it really tastes as good as the recipe said."
Takumi calmly replied, "Go ahead."
Kaku nodded, then hurried to the kitchen, where he quickly began cleaning the fish, removing its scales and gutting it. After washing it thoroughly, he put it in a pot of water and began cooking it.
As he placed the lid on the pot and grabbed a cloth to wipe the water off the stove, he suddenly froze mid-motion.
Uh… what was I just doing?
After a moment of silence, Kaku tossed the cloth aside, his face showing a mixture of amusement and frustration. "I must be going crazy. I should probably stop reading so many recipes…"
Half an hour later, the fish was done cooking.
Kaku thought for a moment, then decided to call Enel and Takumi into the kitchen.
The three of them sat around the table, staring at the bowl of boiled fish in the middle.
Enel looked skeptical and asked, "It's just boiled in water with no seasoning. Are you sure this will taste good?"
Kaku wasn't sure either. "The recipe said to boil it directly in water. Let's just try it and see."
"You didn't add any weird ingredients, did you?" Enel asked. Thanks to Kaku's earlier cooking experiments, there had been a few days on the ship where they had to survive on limited food supplies. Enel had been forced to eat some of Kaku's "dark cuisine," and the taste… well, it was something he'd rather forget.
Kaku shook his head helplessly. "This time, I really didn't add anything."
Takumi glanced at Enel, signaling him with his eyes to go ahead and eat first.
Enel sighed in exasperation.
After hesitating for a moment, he reluctantly picked up his chopsticks and grabbed a small piece of fish.
Both Takumi and Kaku watched him closely.
Enel, looking like a guinea pig, reluctantly put the small piece of fish into his mouth. After swallowing, he froze for a moment. "It's surprisingly sweet… and the taste is actually pretty good."
Hearing this, Kaku laughed, "Hahaha, I guess the recipe didn't lie!"
Only then did Takumi pick up his chopsticks and try a bite. Sure enough, the fish was just as Enel had described—slightly sweet, with no fishy taste at all. It would make a perfect snack with a drink.
Just as Enel was about to dig in for more…
Takumi picked up the entire bowl of boiled fish and walked away…
"Huh?" Enel froze, his hand holding the chopsticks suspended in midair.
Kaku burst out laughing. "Hahaha…"
A vein popped on Enel's forehead, and with a loud snap, he broke the chopsticks in his hand. "You long-nosed bastard, you're asking for it!"
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