Waiting until Vahn had set Wendy down, released her, and caressed her head, Bonney, channeling Busoshoku Haki into her right fist, approached him with quivering, furrowed brows as she exclaimed, "You wishy-washy lizard! If you were going to appear randomly after a year, you should have just come with us from the start...!"
"It's good to see you, Bonney..." responded Vahn, maintaining his smile even as the pink-haired Pirate adopted her adult form, reared back, and directed her fist at the center of his face. He could have dodged it, but he instead chose to turn his face to the side, allowing her to strike his cheek and send him flying backward as Wendy, startled, covered her mouth with her hands and exclaimed, "Vahn...!" in a concerned tone.
'Mmmn...B-Rank Strength is nothing to sneer at...' noted Vahn, his body leaving a deep trench in the terrain before the build-up of dirt and stone debris stopped him around twenty meters. His Strength was only C-Rank since he couldn't consume Stat-Enhancing Crystals like an Ascendee, but with B-Rank Constitution, A-Rank Pain Tolerance, and near-instantaneous regeneration, his cracked molars had reseated themselves even before he hit the ground.
Before her friends and Party members could stop her, Bonney appeared standing over Vahn with her arms crossed, her expression fixed in a teary-eyed glower as she asserted, "That was the least you deserved..." before abruptly plopping down, landing heavily atop his lower abdomen. A sense of urgency swelled within Vahn as he feared she might try to kiss him, but she remained upright, her expression softening as she sat like a thug with her forearms resting atop her spread knees and asked, "How long are you planning to stay...?"
"Very likely to the end..." affirmed Vahn, offering a slight nod as he once again had to suppress his instincts, this time to avoid habitually placing his hands on and caressing Bonney's exposed sides. Instead, he caused her frown to deepen as he grabbed her knees and casually closed them.
"Do you got a problem with how I sit...?" asked Bonney, removing Vahn's hands from her knees and readopting her aggressive, unladylike posture as she asserted, "No one's forcing you to look, and even if you did, I don't give two shits. It's not like you haven't seen what's underneath..."
"I see you're still as feisty as ever..." noted Vahn, exhaling from his nose before placing his hands on Bonney's sides to prevent her from falling as he rose from the ground without needing to push off from it. She tried to wrap her legs around him in defiance, but before she could, he vanished, reappearing behind and catching her by her sides as he faintly muttered, "I would like to give you a hug and possibly caress your head...could you calm down for me?"
Having tucked her feet up to resist being set down, Bonney deliberated Vahn's request in the awkward position, only lowering her feet as Wendy, Fran, Carla, and Ghislaine made their way over, the white-haired Exceed exasperatedly sighing, "How uncouth...as a member of the same Party, I feel embarrassed for us all..."
"Bite me, fish-breath..." retorted Bonney, glaring at Carla but allowing herself to be set down. Then, turning around and raising her gaze to glower at Vahn, she crossed her arms and asked, "What makes you think you even have the right to hug me?"
"If that's what you believe..." conceded Vahn, his smile softening and his eyes gaining a hint of melancholy that caused Bonney's to exude a mix of frustration and apologetic guilt. In truth, she was more than happy to see him, but she felt she would be making a fool of herself if she pardoned his absence over the past year and leaped at him like Wendy had.
"Has Dragon God-sama come here for training, business, or pleasure...?" questioned Ghislaine, drawing Vahn's gaze to her cross-armed posture, remarkably muscular build, and nearly two-meter height.
"I suppose all three...?" answered Vahn, his smile regaining its vigor until Bonney barked, "Hey! Why are you suddenly chatting with someone else!? The two of us weren't finished...!"
Resisting the urge to close his eyes and inhale deeply, Vahn returned his gaze to Bonney, doing his best to appear and remain patient as he stated, "Then, please, tell me what you want, Bonney. I understand that you feel wronged by my absence until now, but entering here for training was your decision. I apologize for making you feel lonely, but my decision to remain outside and attend to my family and responsibilities as Dragon God wasn't wrong..."
"Then why are you even here...?" asked Bonney, fighting back tears and clenching teeth.
"Because, after reading your and others' messages and witnessing how quickly everyone was growing, I couldn't help feeling that I was missing out on one of the most important periods of your lives..." admitted Vahn, spreading his hands slightly and smiling hopefully as he added, "I know you don't view me the same way, but I can't help but view you as one of my children. And when I realized that I was missing out on witnessing my cute yet precocious daughter grow and mature into a strong and beautiful woman, I came as quickly as I could..."
"I swear, Vahn...you are insufferably dumb..." sighed Bonney, closing her eyes, cupping and massaging the right side of her forehead, and exhaling exasperatedly from her throat. At the same time, however, a notable blush tinted her cheeks before she glared up at him with a sidelong, determined gaze and asserted, "If you want to view me as your daughter, fine...but no matter what you say or do, it won't change how I view you. The moment I turn eighteen...I'm going to—"
"Ahem! That is quite enough...!"
Before Bonney could finish speaking, Carla coughed loudly into her right hand. She wouldn't have mentioned anything Wendy was unfamiliar with, but how she expressed her plans for Vahn would have doubtlessly been inappropriate.
"Alright, you damned cat! It's go time...!" exclaimed Bonney, blasting past Wendy and Fran to try and grab Carla by the layered, white lace dangling from her ruffled, gem-studded collar. Instead, her hand clasped empty air as Carla rose tens of meters into the sky within the blink of an eye, having prioritized increasing her Dexterity, Intelligence, and Charisma to become as fast, smart, and refined as possible.
"Hmph! As if I would simply stand still and allow you to inflict violence upon me!" huffed Carla, crossing her arms with a notably smug look on her face as, while she could bound a considerable distance into the air, Bonney couldn't fly without assistance. The thought that Vahn could see up her skirt caused her cheeks to warm, but since she was wearing black pantyhose, she didn't think he could see anything he shouldn't.
"You...you...!" growled Bonney, clenching her fists but holding back the rest of her words since, as much as she and Carla butted heads, she still considering her and Wendy her friends.
"Please calm down, Bonney..." muttered Wendy, stepping forward and wrapping her arms around Bonney from behind. Fran similarly stepped forward, but instead of joining the hug, she placed a hand on Bonney's shoulder and shifted a yearning, uncertain gaze to Vahn.
Backing Vahn's suspicions, Sis speculated (She must want you to hug her or pet her head as you did Wendy, but since she and Kakashi are a couple, she isn't sure it's appropriate.)
'Then the solution is simple...' thought Vahn, approaching the trio of girls and wrapping his arms around the entire group, his eyes closed and voice deep and soothing as he softly asserted, "It's fine for friends to fight and compete against one another, but I never want to be the reason...let's all take a step back and settle down..."
Releasing his hold on the three girls, Vahn was relieved to see them separate and Bonney turn around with her ruddy cheeks puffed, lips pursed, and brows furrowed in a vexed, unintentionally adorable pout. Puberty had made her even more volatile and emotional, but she was quick to calm down and turn embarrassed when held.
"As adorable as you look while pouting, I much prefer when you smile..." muttered Vahn, taking advantage of their closeness to extend his right hand and caress Bonney's head. Seeing this caused Fran's pointed black ears to angle back and her shoulders to droop, so while he could imagine Kakashi giving him a disapproving frown, Vahn promptly extended his left hand to tousle her hair before just as quickly removing it.
Though her frown deepened when she saw Vahn shift his attention to and caress Fran, Bonney didn't lash out as he looked back at her, retracted his hand, and proposed, "Now, how about I get started on your meal? What would you like to eat? Pizza...?" with a smile that invariably made her heart skip a beat.
"Whatever..." muttered Bonney, crossing her arms and turning her face huffily to the side as she, Wendy, and Fran reverted to their fourteen and sixteen-year-old forms. Their heights didn't change much, especially in Fran's case, and with a healthy diet and more than a year of growth, she wasn't far behind where Asia had started. Meanwhile, Wendy became as lithe and streamlined as a swimmer, causing her to stare down at herself, cup her chest, and sigh despondently.
"No need to be sad. You're plenty cute as is..." assured Vahn, caressing Wendy's head with his right hand, restoring her smile. Bonney clicked her tongue at this, but since she had mostly calmed down, she didn't lash out too explosively and instead kicked Vahn's left shin, stating, "Hurry up and get to cooking. I'm hungry..."
"As you wish~" hummed Vahn, snapping with his left middle finger and thumb, causing their surroundings to change to the interior of a spacious stadium with dark spectating stands on a well-lit arena outfitted with four stainless steel cooking stations. The design was based on the Shokugeki Arena from the world of Shokugeki no Souma, and with four stations, the girls would have something to distract themselves with while he prepared their meal.
"Hooo...as expected of a God..." muttered Ghislaine, thoughtfully cupping her chin and scanning the area with her contrasting crimson and glowing, pale green eyes. She had never witnessed what Vahn was capable of, but since he was the head of an organization filled with monsters she couldn't imagine defeating, she was impressed but not surprised.
"This is more an expression of authority than actual ability," stated Vahn, changing into a dark grey, nearly black Chef's outfit and casually rolling up its sleeves as he asked, "More to the point, what would you like to eat? I'll be preparing made-to-order dishes for everyone."
Surprised by Vahn's words, Ghislaine blinked several times before tilting her head to the side and questioning, "You're planning to cook for me, one of your servants? That would never happen in my world..."
"Well, news flash—this isn't your world, and lizard breath here is anything but ordinary..." stated Bonney, heading to the nearest cooking station to check its cooler. She knew little about cooking, but after learning about the true nature of her Toshi Toshi no Mi from Dr. Vegapunk and becoming more familiar with its usage, she could manifest future versions of herself, including hypothetical futures where she was a completely different race.
"Distortion Future...a future where I'm a great Chef..." muttered Bonney, her body briefly becoming enveloped in a bright pink glow and her height increasing by around ten centimeters. She was somewhat annoyed by the realization she was much older than her standard adult form, suggesting it would take her many, many years to become a skilled Chef, but instead of mulling over the particulars of her transformation, she stole a sidelong glance at Vahn before getting a jump start on preparing the ingredients he would need to prepare everyone's meals...
'She may be terrible at expressing herself, but she's still a good girl deep down...' noted Vahn, his expression softening before he turned to Wendy, Fran, and Carla, causing the latter to cross her arms and turn her flushed face to the side as he casually caressed her silky hair and suggested the three of them work together to prepare dessert...
...
..
.