Leading the Expedition

Late at night, the bright moon hung high in the sky.

Noki walked into the kitchen. The chefs had all gone back to rest, leaving only Tereina here, her eyes red as she cooked.

Only a small lamp was lit in the kitchen, illuminating the cutting board on the table.

"No, this won't be enough to beat that woman!"

"I need to make some more changes."

"The taste is a little too sweet. I'll use less sugar next time."

"..."

Tereina muttered to herself. Just as she focused on preparing the next dish, a hand suddenly landed on her left shoulder.

Tereina froze and slowly turned around. In the dim kitchen, she did not recognize Noki at a glance and only saw a dark figure.

She was already timid by nature. After cooking all day, both mentally and physically exhausted, she had become even more sensitive to every movement around her.

"Ah!!" The girl screamed and sprang up from the ground, jumping nearly three meters high.

Noki had not expected a mere touch to provoke such a huge reaction from Tereina. He instinctively reached out and caught her delicate body.

Tereina squeezed her eyes shut, her petite body curling up in Noki's arms. The sudden masculine scent made her feel safe, and she burrowed deeper into his embrace, even lifting her head upward.

Noki's face darkened. Was this girl doing it on purpose? Seeing her push her luck, he pulled his hand away.

With nothing supporting her body, Tereina fell with an "Ow!"

Actually, Tereina had recognized him the moment Noki caught her. She had wanted to use this chance to deepen their relationship, but it seemed she had been seen through...

Tereina sat on the floor, pitifully rubbing the aching, numb spot. Her large watery eyes seemed ready to spill tears, and her gaze was somewhat resentful.

The major general was clearly so gentle and considerate toward Tashigi and Dezaya. Why did he seem like a completely different person with her?

Seeing her look at him like that, Noki smiled helplessly.

If you didn't have improper intentions, would I need to treat you like this? We almost kissed.

Noki coughed twice and said expressionlessly, "I heard you're entering the cooking competition in Loguetown."

"Mhm. How did you know, Major General?"

"Your head chef told me."

Tereina secretly rejoiced. It seemed the major general did care about her a little, or why would he come to the kitchen in the middle of the night?

Noki continued, "I happen to have some insights into cooking. Perhaps I can help you win the competition. Consider it... repayment for working so hard to cook for me every day."

"You can cook too, Major General?"

"Mhm. I know a little."

Noki took a sheet of paper from his chest. "This is a dish I developed. The ingredients and steps are all written clearly on it. It should help you win."

"Buddha Jumps Over the Wall? What a strange name."

Looking at the complicated ingredients and lengthy procedures on the paper, Tereina could not help but marvel. "I've never seen a cooking method like this before. Did you really create this?"

Noki thought for a moment. "More or less. In this world, I'm probably the only one who knows how to make it."

Tereina took a deep breath and held the recipe to her chest as though it were a priceless treasure.

Just a few days ago, she had been wishing that the major general was also skilled at cooking. She had not expected her dream to come true!

This version of the major general made her heart race even more.

Exactly... exactly which woman stole my major general from me? I'll definitely take him back.

The major general belongs to me!

Mine!

Tereina noticed that many descriptions of the ingredient quantities on the recipe only said things like "a little" or "an appropriate amount," without specifying exact measurements. As one of East Blue's finest chefs, she could determine the proper quantities based on her feel for the ingredients.

But if she did that, would she not be giving up a perfect opportunity to get close to the major general?

"Major General, the recipe you gave me is truly amazing, but I've never seen many of these steps and descriptions before. Could you teach me step by step?"

"Sure."

Noki recalled that recipes in this world all measured ingredients in grams, clearly stating exactly how much of each ingredient to add. He cooked entirely by feel, so naturally he could not be that precise.

"It's too late today. Once you gather the ingredients, come find me. I'll make it once myself for you to watch."

"Alright, Major General."

"You should rest early. I'll be leaving first."

Tereina watched Noki's handsome back, her heart pounding. "Wonderful! I can be taught by the major general just like Tashigi and Dezaya.

"I need to hurry and prepare the ingredients. Then I can pretend to be clueless and make him teach me a few more times. Hehehe..."

Some of the ingredients for Buddha Jumps Over the Wall did not exist in this world, but after years of research, Noki had already found substitutes for them.

Therefore, it was not difficult for Tereina to gather them. Just in case, she paid out of her own pocket and prepared six full sets of ingredients.

She was not afraid of something going wrong. She was afraid that nothing would go wrong. There were still three days until the cooking competition.

She was confident that she could definitely learn it in three days.

Tereina was not worried about whether the dish Noki taught her would be good enough to surpass Carmen.

At worst, she could keep taking second place.

There would be plenty of competitions, but there was only one major general.

After comparing the two, Tereina chose the latter without hesitation. Although she desperately wanted to shed the title of "perennial runner-up," it could not compare to her desire to win Noki.

Hmph!

No matter how good Carmen was at cooking, she was still an old maid. Once I get myself a boyfriend, she'll be green with envy!

Tereina's calculations were quite shrewd.

When the Marine base's chefs saw Noki enter wearing an apron, every one of them widened their eyes.

"The major general can cook too?"

"What a good man."

"Isn't he just perfect?!"

Everyone in the kitchen looked at Noki. Tereina, standing beside him, was affected as well, her face flushing red. She wanted to turn back and scold them, but she was afraid of ruining her "perfect" image in Noki's eyes.

Ignoring everyone around him, Noki began preparing the ingredients, while Tereina proactively assisted him.

As a professional chef, Tereina could always anticipate what was coming. She knew what Noki wanted to do next with just one look.

Buddha Jumps Over the Wall took a long time to make.

Setting aside the other steps, the slow simmering alone took five or six hours.

When was a man at his most handsome?

Everyone probably had a different answer.

Tereina felt that a man was at his most handsome when he cooked in the kitchen.

Watching Noki's skillful movements, Tereina became completely entranced.

She drifted closer to Noki, intentionally or unintentionally making little moves, touching here and poking there.

Such firm muscles.

His skin is smoother and more delicate than a woman's!

His face is full of collagen!!

Noki could not bear it any longer. Raising an eyebrow, he said, "Have you touched enough?"

"Not enough, not enough. A lifetime wouldn't be enough..." Tereina blurted out the truth without thinking.

"Hm?" Tereina's little face instantly turned red as though it were about to explode. "Major General, I meant..."

Noki shifted aside with a look of disgust. "Stop staring at me and watch how I cook!"

"Oh~"

About an hour passed.

Noki put the lid on the pot, pushed away the Tereina clinging to his side, and clapped his hands. "Alright, now all that's left is to wait. You stay here and watch it. I'm going back to get some sleep."

"Major General, wait." Tereina reached out and grabbed Noki's arm.

"What is it?"

Tereina looked at him with her bright, watery eyes, appearing utterly aggrieved. "Major General, I... didn't understand some parts. Can you teach me again?"

"You didn't learn it?"

"Mhm, mhm." Tereina nodded repeatedly.

Noki was speechless. Given Tereina's culinary ability, he felt she should have had no problem after seeing it once. "You really didn't learn it?"

Tereina nodded solemnly.

"Fine. I'll teach you once more. Do you still have ingredients?"

"Yes, yes."

"Watch carefully this time."

"Don't worry, Major General."

So Noki followed the same steps and made it again. After placing the lid on the pot, he took a deep breath and asked, "You learned it this time, right?"

Tereina shook her head, still wearing that pitiful, aggrieved expression.

Noki understood now. This girl was simply looking for an excuse to spend time with him. His face sank as he snapped, "Tereina, as the commander of the Loguetown Marine base, I'm busy with official duties. It wasn't easy to find time to teach you, yet you're still fooling around. Did you learn it or not?"

Tereina was scared to see him like this, but did she not know the major general's daily routine?

Other than going out for walks and teaching Tashigi swordsmanship after returning to the base, all he did was sleep. Where were these busy official duties?

The major general could lie without even blinking...

Tereina gritted her teeth and went all in. "Major General, I've never heard of many of the steps in this dish, so I learned slowly. If you don't believe me, you can ask the other chefs here whether they've ever seen this kind of cooking method."

The other chefs all nodded. At this point, even if they had seen it before, they had to say they had not!

Noki sighed. "Forget it. That's enough for today. We'll continue tomorrow."

"Mhm, mhm. Thank you, Major General!"

Noki left the kitchen, intending to return to his room for a proper rest. Before he had taken more than a few steps, Dezaya, wearing a Marine uniform with her coat hanging open, pounced toward him.

"Master, you said you'd teach me more advanced martial arts after I passed the test. When do we start? I can't wait any longer!"

Tashigi also rushed over, holding Shigure. "Major General, are we canceling today's sword training?"

Noki suddenly understood how formidable Marine Chief Instructor Zephyr was. Teaching only three people already felt troublesome, let alone the sheer number of Marines in the recruit camp.

"Hmm! Tashigi, Dezaya, come with me to the training ground. I'll teach swordsmanship and martial arts at the same time."

"Alright!" Dezaya was thrilled.

After a busy day.

Noki returned to his room that night and fell asleep the moment his head hit the bed.

"Major General, Bartolomeo and his group are outside our base. They say they're here to see you."

Corporal Carter pounded hard on the door and shouted from outside.

Noki looked out the window. The sunlight was somewhat blinding. "Didn't they say half a month? They got here pretty quickly."

Noki put on his Marine coat, washed up with clean water, and left with Carter to meet Bartolomeo.

"Senior Noki, we're here!"

Bartolomeo stood outside the base with all his followers, looking as though a gang were staging a show of force.

Anyone unaware of the situation might have thought the Marine base had been occupied by the underworld.

"Carter, give each of them a few Marine uniforms. Also, please explain the Marine rules to them."

"Yes, sir!"

Noki looked at Bartolomeo and the others. "The most important thing after joining the Marines is following the rules. If any of you violate military discipline, no matter who you are, I will not go easy on you."

Bartolomeo bared his demon-like fangs and patted his chest in assurance. "Senior Noki, with me keeping an eye on them, there definitely won't be any problems."

Noki said flatly, "You're the one I'm most worried about. When we first met, your actions left a deep impression on me."

Bartolomeo scratched his mohawk and smiled awkwardly.

The dormitories and supplies for Bartolomeo's group had already been prepared by Corporal Carter a week ago.

Dezaya had been searching everywhere for Noki when she discovered that Bartolomeo was here too. "You got here pretty fast, huh? Master, I've picked up a few tricks from the martial arts you taught me yesterday. Come quickly, I'll show you."

Bartolomeo immediately objected. "Hey, hey, Senior Noki is accompanying me while I get familiar with the new environment. Can you respect first come, first served?"

"Hmph, the major general personally agreed to take me as his disciple. Who do you think is more important, a disciple or a fan? Of course he should prioritize his disciple."

"That's too sneaky! Senior Noki, let me become your disciple too."

"Hehe, aside from using your Devil Fruit ability, do you have any other skills? Even if Master took you in, what could he teach you?"

"Whatever you can learn, I can learn too."

"Pah, stop boasting. I endured a week of hellish training. You wouldn't even last one day."

"I think you little brat need a beating."

"..."

The two grew more and more animated as they argued.

Noki's head began to ache from listening. He roared, "Enough!"

"Senior..."

"Master..."

"Dezaya, do an extra thousand push-ups today. If you don't finish them, don't call me Master again."

"Ah!"

"What are you yelling for? Get going already!"

"Oh~"

Dezaya reluctantly headed toward the training ground.

"Hehe."

Thinking Noki favored him more, Bartolomeo made a face at Dezaya.

Then Noki turned around and scolded him as well. "Do you find it interesting to trade insults all day? Since you said you can do anything Dezaya can do, starting tomorrow, you'll train with Dezaya."

"No problem, Senior Noki!" Bartolomeo agreed happily.

At that moment, a Marine ran over, gave a crisp salute, and respectfully presented the document in his hands with both hands. "Major General, this is a message that just arrived from Headquarters."

Noki opened it and looked it over. The contents stated that a warship from the Third Marine Branch had been destroyed by the fish-man pirate Arlong, and not a single Marine aboard had survived.

"Arlong, huh? Since word has reached me, I can't just stand by and do nothing."

Corporal Carter asked from beside him, "Are you leading an expedition?"

"Mhm."

Noki glanced at Bartolomeo. "I used to worry that trouble might arise in Loguetown without me here. Now that Bartolomeo is here, that is no longer a problem."