271. Hometowns

They arrive in Baratie Restaurant in just a few hours. It's quite far, but the weather here is nothing compared to Grandline, so they can sail without any disturbance here. That's why they can sail much faster than when they were in Grandline.

Their arrival at Baratie obviously causes a lot of ruckus. After all, no one expected the Pirate King crew would come here all of a sudden. Almost all customers don't believe that the infamous "Black Leg" Sanji was working here, after all.

But now, no one will doubt it anymore because a lot of people see the workers here act very friendly with some of the Straw Hats who came from East Blue. It won't happen if they are just normal acquaintances or even more, strangers.

Sanji quickly brags about the things he did with the crew to the other cooks and Zeff. They get into an argument quickly though when they talk about cooking skills. So they go to the kitchen to compare their cooking skills and it becomes a competition for all Baratie cooks.

The Straw Hats are more than happy to be the judges for their competition. They believe in Sanji's cooking skill, so they are quite shocked by the result. Sanji actually loses to Zeff even though it's a close match with everyone in the restaurant as the judges.

"Heh, who has taught you to cook? It was me, right? Everything you learned here was from me, but you shouldn't think that I've taught you everything, you little squirt."

"Tch, damn you old man."

Zeff grins widely, but deep inside he is very relieved he still can maintain his dignity as the teacher. It was a very close call, after all, because he could see Sanji's cooking skills have improved tremendously and can surpass him anytime.

Sanji himself is also relieved by this result even though he looks pissed. He always looks up to Zeff as his teacher, so he may feel disappointed if he can surpass Zeff that easily. But he also knows he can surpass Zeff. He just needs more experience.

Anyway, the crew is having a really good time in Baratie. After all, no one will hate having good food until their stomachs bulge. All of them are gluttons too, so they will clean every plate of food given to them.

They only stay in Baratie for 3 days and before they leave, they beat up a pirate crew that tries to dine & dash. There's even a Marine unit trying to catch them even when knowing who they are. But they just leave without fighting the Marines even though it's easy for them to win.

Their next destination is Syrupp village. The villagers are surprised to see them and they all are very happy seeing Usopp returns. He may be a liar that pranked people in the past, but they all knew why he became like that and he is actually loved by everyone.

Though maybe the one who loves him the most in Syrupp Village is the young doctor, Kaya. She has successfully become a doctor now after studying hard since Usopp joined the Straw Hat Pirates. Although her skills can't be compared to Chopper, she has helped the villagers a lot as the village's doctor.

She's so happy seeing Usopp returns that she hugs him very tightly. The kids who were with her take the Straw Hats to walk around the village so the 2 can enjoy their time. The crew wants to tease Usopp, but they decide to do it later and just give him time with Kaya.

There aren't many things the crew can do in the village. It's just a peaceful normal village, after all. But it's good to have a peaceful and relaxing day like this every once in a while. They just laze around and play with kids while Usopp is being lovey-dovey with his girlfriend.

There's no major thing during their stay in Syrupp Village. It's only Usopp enjoying love, the Straw Hats lazing around, and they visit Usopp's mother's grave. They just enjoy some happy days in the village before leaving.

Obviously, they plant their flag on the island to show that this island is under their protection now. Even if East Blue is the most peaceful sea, it's not void of danger. This village has experienced that when Captain Kuro did his scheme here, after all.

As usual, Jon also left some marks on this island so he can always teleport here. He always left his marks on their territories or important locations and gave marked kunais to important people. Kaya also gets one, but Jon only gives it after Usopp asks because it isn't right for him to just give it to Usopp's girlfriend.

Their next destination is Foosha Village, Luffy's hometown. It's just a small village at the outskirts of Goa Kingdom. But it's the place where the new Pirate King grew up. So this place can be the next Loguetown if Luffy ever gets captured and executed.

That probably will not happen anytime soon because unlike the sick Roger, Luffy is very healthy and still very young. Furthermore, his Grandpa still has a big influence in the Marines and his dad is the leader of the current World Government, so it's very unlikely that Luffy will get executed like Roger.

Anyway, their arrival in Foosha Village causes a big commotion. All the villagers are making a ruckus about Luffy's return. They quickly hold a party to celebrate Luffy's achievement. The old village chief is angry they make a celebration for a criminal, but he still joins the party and talks with Luffy happily.

They party for a whole night and the next day the Straw Hat Pirates go into the mountain with the bar owner, Makino. She has a baby with the same green hair as her. Jon holds the baby as they walk up the mountain so Makino can walk easier.

"Brother, brother, I also want to hold him."

"Sure, but be careful."

Jon hands over the baby to Jane who looks very curious and excited. She holds the baby very carefully to avoid hurting him. Makino smiles seeing them and says that Luffy has found really good friends.

Soon, they finally arrive in front of a wooden house. They just enter the house and some people are already waiting with a surprise party for them. These people are the mountain bandits that raised Luffy and Ace under Garp's order.

The crew has yet another party in the bandit hideout. Luffy is really happy to meet them again and they talk about a lot of things. He tells them the stories of his journey since he left this place and started his pirate life.

They all get emotional over Ace's death and Sabo's survival. The news of Sabo being alive is not known to this place and even if they heard about Sabo from the Revolutionary Army, they won't think that it's the little kid they thought to be dead.

While the crew enjoy their stay in Foosha Village, Jon actually sends some White Zetsu and shadow clones to Goa Kingdom to gather information. He doesn't really plan to get anything important. He is just having fun by infiltrating a Kingdom.

Again, they are having fun in Foosha Village and the mountain. But they don't stay for too long, only 2 weeks. They explore Goa Kingdom without causing any ruckus, which is a miracle in itself. Then they leave quietly and go to the next place, Cocoyashi Village.