Straw Hat's Guardian

Chapter Eighteen: Commodore Creed and his Pirate Fleet! Lambo's Hesitation?

"Hey, listen pal.", Sanji says, sounding calmer, but still worked up, "I'm the Sou Chef in this place. What do you mean you don't need me anymore?"

"You fight with customers all the time. You flirt with any woman under eighty that walks through here. You can't even cook a decent meal.", the Head Chef answers with no hesitation, "Your more worthless to me than the chow after brunch. That's what I mean."

Lambo winced, feeling a small nudge from a memory he'd rather not get into from the back of his head.

'Hey Lambo, I have a very important job for you. Cleaning is one of the most respected jobs in the mafia you know! I have a list of things for you to do, although it's okay if you don't finish it.'

Sanji just stared at the Head Chef, gritting his teeth as he hears the chuckles and laughter from the other chefs at the top of the stairs.

"Oh! Let's not forget how the other cooks avoid you, like you were poisoned.", the Head Chef added at the sight of his employees.

Lambo felt himself go pale and began to slightly shake. This is all a little too close to home for comfort.

'I don't want to be with you anymore! Because of you, I have no friends! The entire school avoids you, they all avoid me too, because I hang out with a talentless dumb cow like you! But no more! You are no longer my friend Bovino Lambo! NOT ANYMORE!!'

"So just run off and be a pirate or whatever.", the older blonde continued, "Just get out of this restaurant."

'Go ahead, run away. It's not like anyone would care, if they even notice. We needed to find a new Lightning Guardian to replace you anyway. You really are worthless. What do you even do besides laze around?'

Lambo quietly groaned as he massaged the bridge of his nose. These memories and flashbacks are beginning to get a little annoying.

"That's how it is?", Sanji says testily, his visible eye narrowed at the sight of the older Chef, "You shoot off at the mouth and think that I'm just going to take it Old Man!?"

Sanji's voice was slowly rising in volume as he walked towards the Head Chef.

"I can blow off everything you said, but I won't listen to anyone trash my cooking. I'm staying here as a Sou Chef, and that's final!"

Sanji gripped the collar of the cook's shirt.

"You Hear Me!?!?", he shouts.

"What do you think you're doing!?", the Head Chef angrily yells, "Grabbing your boss by the collar!?"

He knocks Sanji's hand away and grabbed him by the neck.

"You Ingrate!!", the Head Chef shouts as he throws the Sou Chef across the room.

Quickly Lambo stood up from his chair and grabbed two plates of their food off the table, just as Sanji landed on top of it, causing it to break one of its legs.

Nami and Ussop both held two platers in their hands while Zoro held three, balancing the third perfectly on his head. Luffy just stayed where he was standing next to Zoro, staring down at Sanji's groaning form.

"Yikes, that must've hurt.", Lambo says as he peers over the upturned table's end at Sanji's body as it slid down the table, wincing for the cook's sake.

"Old... Geezer...", Sanji groaned.

The Head Chef just 'hmphed' as he stared at the chef's prone body.

"Enough with the games, you can try and kick me out.", Sanji says as he slowly pushed himself off the table and sits up, "But I'm staying, I'm not going anywhere Old Man. Not until your dead and gone!"