A big head and a thick neck—he was either a rich man or a cook.
Red-Foot Zeff's neck was indeed thick, but his head was normal. It was just that he had grown so thin that his face looked completely different.
Staring at that skull-like profile, Xia Nuo studied him carefully for a while before barely managing to match him with the face in his memories.
How miserable. Who knows how long he's been starving... In the original timeline, it seemed that Zeff and Sanji were rescued after holding out for eighty-five days. I should have arrived earlier, right?
Xia Nuo thought for a moment, then bent down, casually picked up a pile of food from the ship, and walked toward Zeff.
When he took over a million in cash from the secret room and left Asagiri Island, he had splurged and deliberately stocked up on tens of thousands of Beli worth of food.
He had thought he had bought too much, enough that two people couldn't finish it in a month. He hadn't expected it to come in handy now.
"Junichi." He hadn't forgotten Sanji either, so he ordered, "Take some food too. Go look around nearby and see if there are any other people. If there are, rescue them as well."
"Understood, boss!"
The wind and rain grew stronger.
Zeff did not vaguely sense the footsteps behind him until Xia Nuo was almost upon him.
"Hey, kid..."
Zeff continued staring into the distance, his eyes beneath his bangs seeming to be covered by a layer of shadow. "Why are you here? Didn't we agree? One person watches one side, and if a ship comes, the one who sees it calls out..."
Smack!
A bag of food was thrown out. It rolled down the rocky slope with a clatter and stopped at Zeff's feet. The old man glanced over at the sound, then froze. His eyes locked onto it and could no longer move away.
"Bread?"
His hand instinctively reached out, but suddenly stopped. He forcibly swallowed, sat up straight, and sneered. "What, did you decide I gave you too little food and come begging for more?"
"Didn't I already tell you? I'm an adult, and my appetite is several times bigger than yours, so naturally I need several times the food! I don't even have enough for myself. Don't expect me to share any more food with you!"
Several black lines appeared on Xia Nuo's forehead.
Damn it, this old tsundere. Who are you trying to fool? Do you think I don't know that the bulging bag beside you is filled entirely with treasure?
Instead of wasting time secretly drooling and struggling with your conscience, why don't you turn around and take a look at who this incredibly handsome man really is?
A mischievous impulse rose in him. He did not speak right away, but continued throwing the food in his hands over one item at a time.
Smack!
"Cookies?" Zeff exclaimed.
Smack!
"Canned luncheon meat?" The old man stared with his eyes wide.
Smack! Smack! Smack!
Cured meat, chocolate bars, compressed rice balls... even fruit such as tangerines and bananas. Xia Nuo threw them faster and faster, and before long, a small mountain had piled up in front of Zeff.
"...This, this..."
Zeff could no longer speak. Even the dullest person would have realized by now that someone capable of producing this much food could not possibly be Sanji.
Gurgle, gurgle~
His empty stomach happened to rumble.
Zeff suddenly tore open a bag of bread and began wolfing it down like a madman. In just a few moments, he had finished the entire bag, then immediately grabbed another.
"Cough... cough, cough!"
The dough, swollen from saliva, suddenly clumped together and caught in Zeff's throat. He hammered his chest repeatedly, producing dull thuds against his jagged ribs.
"Here, have some water."
Xia Nuo handed over a canteen. The old man immediately tipped back his head and gulped it down. Murky water mixed with bread pulp streamed through his beard. No one could tell whether it contained tears as well.
When he finished drinking, Xia Nuo took back the canteen and tossed him a can of luncheon meat.
"It's food. It's food... It's food!!!"
The old man held the can high and looked it over repeatedly. "It's real food! What an exquisite aroma and flavor..."
Click. Zeff's fingernail pierced straight through the can, and he pried it open with one hand.
The lid sliced into the web of his thumb, but he did not notice at all. He clawed out the dark-red meat and stuffed it into his mouth, swallowing it in huge gulps. His narrowed eyes were filled with bliss.
"Slow down. Don't choke again."
Xia Nuo sighed softly and sat down on the large rock behind him.
He suddenly felt something digging into him. Feeling around with his hand, he pulled out a filthy severed foot. It had rotted and festered, emitting a foul stench.
"..."
Xia Nuo retched and nearly threw the thing into the sea. But he quickly realized something, glanced at Zeff, who was still eating desperately, and quietly activated the sacrifice.
Sacrificial Offering: Red-Foot Zeff's severed foot Quality: Epic Value: 2,000 points Appraisal: The severed foot of the Great Pirate Red-Foot Zeff. He once shook the East Blue with his superb leg techniques and survived a year traveling the Grand Line. After being stranded on a deserted island, he gave all his food to Sanji and cut off his own right leg to eat. Sanji was saved because of this. Knowing he could no longer continue adventuring across the sea, Zeff pursued the dream of finding ALL BLUE from then on, passing the torch to Sanji.
Everything above the ankle was gone. It had probably been eaten clean by Zeff.
The remaining portion had rotted and spoiled, but that made it perfect for turning waste into something useful, providing him with a sizable number of points.
Xia Nuo did not immediately close the System Panel. Instead, he stared at the appraisal and remained silent for quite some time.
"This thing..."
He suddenly smiled, stretched out his empty right hand, and let the rain wash the grime from his palm. "Come to think of it, this scene made me shed quite a few tears back then."
A famous scene from a distant memory had suddenly replayed right before his eyes.
The feeling was rather subtle.
After the rain washed his hand clean, Xia Nuo turned his head. More than half of the small mountain had already disappeared.
At some point, Zeff had stopped eating. He clutched half a rice ball in one hand and held his forehead with the other, his back trembling nonstop.
Why is he crying now?
"I'm ashamed. I'm ashamed..."
Sensing his gaze, Zeff turned his head. He was grinning broadly, yet tears flowed uncontrollably down his face. "Benefactor, this is the best meal I've ever had in my life. I thought I was going to die. I was sure I was going to die..."
Zeff suddenly rolled over and knelt in the pouring rain, then slammed his head against the ground in front of Xia Nuo.
When he rose, his forehead was swollen and red, but the old man acted as if he hadn't noticed and forcefully knocked his head down again.
"There's no need for that. Really."
Xia Nuo hurriedly reached out to help the old man up. It isn't fair to let you be the only one bowing. I haven't even thanked you for the two thousand points you gave me for free!
"Benefactor, I have a companion too! I still have a companion!"
But Zeff remained kneeling and tugged desperately at his trouser leg. "There's another blond-haired kid on this reef. He's been starving for dozens of days, just like me. Please, benefactor, save him too!"
How has this old man been starving for so long and still has such terrifying strength? Xia Nuo felt as if his pants were about to be pulled off, so he hurriedly yanked them back up.
"It's fine. I came with a companion too. Don't worry. Before I came over, I had already sent him to look for the other survivors with food. He should find the child you're talking about very soon."
"That's good. That's good..."
Only then did Zeff relax. He sat back down on the ground, gave Xia Nuo a grateful look, and then lowered his head to resume wolfing down the food.
Xia Nuo turned to look toward the place where they had run aground, feeling puzzled.
Wait...
Where is Sanji?
What on earth is Junichi doing? This reef is tiny. How can it be so difficult to find one living person? Nothing has happened for so long.
"Uh, boss?"
At that moment, Junichi's somewhat guilty voice came from nearby. "Could you come over here?"
"What is it?"
Xia Nuo immediately rose and walked toward the figure appearing in his view. "Did you find anyone?"
"...This isn't a convenient place to talk. Come with me first."
Junichi gave an awkward laugh and pulled Xia Nuo all the way to the ship.
Under Xia Nuo's bewildered gaze, he swallowed, crouched down, and used all his strength to lift the ship a few centimeters, revealing a small figure in a cook's uniform underneath.
"Here he is. I found him, but... he's a little flat..."