River watched as Luffy carried a crate up to the front of the ship where the group was. Everyone was peaceful until Luffy dropped the crate onto the ground shocking everybody.
"Suckers heavy." Luffy huffed.
"What even is that?" River asked walking towards him.
"It's a crate full of cannonballs!" Luffy informed, smirking. "I figured since we have our own cannon now we could get in some target practice!"
"Just leave the cannoning to me!" Usopp bragged. "I harkin back to the time I was three years old and jumped on a passing cannonball riding at halfway around the world."
Yeah, no one is paying attention to him.
"How does it work?" River asked.
"Listen!" Usopp shouted.
"Zoro, know how to shoot this?" Luffy called out.
"Asleep." Nami informed him. "The guy sleeps constantly."
"He was just awake a few minutes ago..." River sighs.
"He's no fun." Luffy complains.
"You know just to the south of here is a reef that would make some excellent target practice." Nami said, showing the group her map.
"Let's go!" Luffy exclaimed. And that's when River wasn't able to understand who was talking due to everyone talking over each other...
"Ugh, shut up and let's go." River groaned.
-----
"That was way off the mark." Luffy said as he fired the cannon.
"Hey, what's so loud down there?" Zoro asked.
"They're playing around with the cannon." River answered, looking up at him.
"We're not playing around, we're practicing!" Luffy argued and River shrugged.
"Looks like playing around to me."
"Hey. Let me fire the thing, like I said, I am an expert at aiming things." Usopp said before adjusting the cannon. "Judging from the flying distance of the last one. This should do it! Fire!"
He hit it. The cannonball destroyed the reef on impact as rocks fell down into the sea.
"Awesome!" Luffy said, amazed. "You hit that thing on the first try!
"Woah, I did." Usopp responded, shocked at his own skill. "What ya think? I'm pretty magnificent when it comes to aiming, so are you impressed yet?"
"Yeah, you better believe it! So it's all settled, you'll be our sniper!"
"Wait, I don't get to be captain?"
"No! I'm still the captain!
-----
The group was in the cabin, while River was closest to the door, looking outside it.
"Whatever, I'll humor you for now, but the second you do something cowardly I'm taking your post." Usopp said to Luffy.
"I can live with that." Luffy agreed. "You know guys, I was thinking there's one other position we have to fill before we can make it to the grand line."
"You're right, the kitchen is really nice on this ship. Just pay me and I'll do it." Nami added.
"I suppose it is vital for long trips." Zoro agreed.
"No decent pirate ship should be without one!" Luffy announced. "A musician!"
River hit him on the back of the head. "That's not a priority!"
"Are you an idiot!?" Zoro scolded.
"What do you think we're doing out here?" Nami shouted.
"Just when I thought you were going to say something smart..." Usopp sighed.
"But we're pirates and pirates sing a lot, don't you know?" Luffy said, trying to defend himself, but River glared at him.
"People sing without music all the time-" River was caught off by the noise of something breaking outside.
"Get out here you damn pirates!" A voice shouted and River walked out the cabin, Luffy behind them.
"Who the hell are you and how'd you get on our boat?" They asked, bored.
"Shut up! None of that means anything, you stinking pirate!" He shouted before trying to attack River, who jumped out of the way.
"Hey guys, how many are there?" Zoro asked as the rest of the group was still in the cabin.
"Just one." Nami replied.
"Then let the kid deal with it."
"Yeah, they'll be fine!" Luffy agreed, watching the fight.
"Over the years I've lost count of all the pirate heads we've taken, and now you guys think you can kill my partner!?" The man shouts, raising his sword as River takes their own out and blocks it.
"I honestly have no clue what's happening, but calm the hell down!" River shouts, kicking the man in the stomach, making him fly into the wall. "Jeez."
"Johnny, tell me that isn't you." Zoro suddenly said, hovering over the injured man.
"Huh, who's saying my name like they think they know me or something?" The man (or I guess Johnny) said before realizing who was calling him. "Big bro Zoro!"
"Johnny it is you!"
"What are you doing here, big bro!?"
"What's going on right now?" River questioned, putting their sword away.
"Do you two know each other or something?" Luffy added.
"Where's Yosaku, isn't he with you?" Zoro questioned.
"Well..." Johnny trailed off as he ran to the side of the ship and looked down. There was a tiny boat beside the ship with a man in it. He had bandages soaked with blood on his chest and he looked extremely sick. "He's been sick!"
"Damn, guess he's dead." River said, looking down at the man before dodging Zoro's punch.
"No he's not, shut up!" Zoro scolded, making River shrug in response.
-----
"What is it?" Zoro questioned, looking down at Yosaku who was now on the group's boat.
"Up until a few days ago he was healthy and full of life and Now...he keeps fainting and getting really pale. I have no idea what's causing it! His teeth have been falling out and his old wound opened up and started bleeding! He just got worse and worse, and I don't know what to do. So I thought maybe if we just rested on a little island but then...a cannonball came flying from this ship!"
River glared at Usopp and Luffy who's mouths were hanging wide open out of shock. "I'm putting all the blame on those two." They said, pointing to them.
"We're very sorry!" The two apologize, bowing their heads to Johnny.
"Sorry isn't good enough..." Johnny responded, scaring the two. "Isn't that right, partner..." his cries got heavier. "Big bro...give it to me straight, is he gonna die?"
"So dumb..." Nami muttered, walking towards the group.
"Watch it!" Zoro threatened.
Nami ignored him and sat next to Yosaku, checking his tongue and his eye. Johnny, thinking she was doing something bad, grabbed her arm and shouted at her. "Stop it!" He shouted. "Whatever you're doing, stop! You're mocking his death! Damnit you'll-"
Nami interrupted him by pushing his face away. "Luffy, Usopp, we have some limes in storage. So what are you doing, bring them here, now!" She demanded.
-----
Luffy and Usopp were now squeezing the lime juice into his mouth, extracting as much juice as they could.
"He's got scurvy." Nami informed.
"Scurvy?" Johnny repeated.
"Mhm. If we weren't too late, he'll be just fine in a few days."
"Really, big sis!? Really!? Thank you, big sis!!!"
Nami pushed his face away again. "Please, don't call me that. It sounds so dumb."
"Isn't scurvy an old disease?" River asked.
"Yeah, it was caused by a simple deficiency of plant derived nutrients like vitamin C." Nami explained. "Pirates got sick because they didn't know how to store fresh fruits and vegetables but now we do."
"Are you guys pushing the limes into his mouth?" River questioned, before swatting their hands away. "Don't do that. He'll choke.
"You two are smart!" Luffy complimented Nami and River. "You're like doctors!"
"She's more of a doctor than I am, I just know that stuffing shit in your mouth can kill you." River sighs.
"You guys are morons! Every sailor should know about scurvy!" Nami yells.
Yosaku suddenly sat up, shocking her.
"Hurray, hurray!" Johnny and Yosaku repeated as they danced.
"Nutrients cured me!" Yosaku cheered. "Hurray, hurray!"
"Now you're all better!" Johnny added. "Hurray, hurray!"
"You can't possibly heal that quickly!" Nami shouted.
They suddenly stood side by side, facing the group.
"Allow us to introduce ourselves." They said at the same time.
"My name is Johnny."
"And I'm Yosaku."
"Together we're the baddest pirate bounty hunting duo in the world!"
"Big bro Zoro there used to be one of us." Johnny explained.
"Glad to make your acquaintance." Yosaku added
"Small world, never thought I'd see you guys again." Zoro said.
"Well if you think we're surprised..." Yosaku started...
"We never imagined that the pirate hunter Zoro would become a pirate himself." "Johnny finished.
"Tell me about it." Zoro smirked, holding his hand out to them.
"Big bro!" Johnny said, grabbing his hand. Yosaku was about to follow him but passed out.
"Hey, partner?" Johnny questioned.
"Wow." River sighed.
-----
It was now nighttime and the crew decided to stay inside the cabin while a passed out Yosaku was in the room next to them.
"Let this be a lesson to you." Nami said, writing in a book.
"Yeah, this is the kind of trouble you'll run into when you choose a life of the sea." Zoro added.
"Which means when we're at sea, we really gotta think about how we can get the right amount of nutrients with very little food." Usopp said.
"Who even has all that knowledge?" River questioned, half asleep.
"A cook." Everyone answered at once.
"Yep, makes sense."
"Then that concludes it! This ship needs a cook!" Luffy announces, standing up. "Let's go find us a cook!"
"I'm in! Good idea! We'll have yummy food even when we're out at sea!" Usopp agrees.
"That's right! You got it! Heh heh!"
"A cook? I know just the place, and the food is gonna blow your mind." Johnny said.
"Alright, let's go! Where to?" Luffy asked.
"Consider yourselves warned." Johnny warned, standing in front of Zoro. "This place is close to the Grand Line and I've heard a lot of rumors lately that a certain Hawk-eyed man you're looking for is there."
Zoro clutched his sword with a smile on his face.
"Set a course north, north east!"
-----
"So...what do you think?" Johnny asked as the crew was now sailing to a sea restaurant called "Baratie"
"Wow, it's a big fish!" Luffy examined, looking at the restaurant's logo.
"How lovely." Nami added.
"This is the coolest place ever!" Usopp exclaimed.
"Just like I told you, right?" Johnny said.
A horn sound caused the group to turn around and a marine ship sailing with them. "Oh what the hell?" River muttered.
"A marine ship? All the way out here!?" Yosaku yelped.
"Hey, Luffy, they're not gonna start firing at us, are they?" Usopp asked.
"They most likely are." River answered, scaring the shit out of Usopp.
"It's just my luck, of course the marines would show up." Zoro sighed.
"But how did that ship..." Nami trailed off as Johnny snuck off and ran to where Yosaku was.
A man from the Marine ship appears, the first thing River noticed about him was his hair then looked at the rest of him and realized...
"Wow, he looks terrible..." River mutters.
"I've never seen that pirate flag..." The pink haired man says. "I am Ironfist Fullbody, but you can just call me sir. You there! Who's the Captain?! Identify yourself!"
Luffy stepped up and said, "My name is Luffy."
Usopp also stepped up and said, "My name is Usopp, got it?"
"We only made our flag the day before yesterday!"
"That's right marine and I-" River interrupted Usopp by dragging him behind the group before he could say something wrong.
"Oh really..." Fullbody says before looking at Yosaku and Johnny where they were hiding. "Hey, you two! Right there. I've seen you before...you're that bounty hunter duo who goes after the small fish, right?"
"Uh, yeah, well we..." Johnny stuttered.
"So you've finally been caught by pirates." Fullbody smirks.
"Well actually we..." Johnny trailed off.
"Well that's a laugh."
A blond woman approached the marine and wrapped her arms around his. "Hey, come on, baby, we should get going." She said.
"Sure." Fullbody agreed.
"Hey, wait a minute!" Johnny called out, reaching into his jacket before pulling out and throwing a bunch of wanted posters of pirates. "You think small-time bounty hunters would go after these guys!?"
The marine didn't see it as him and his...girlfriend? Had their back turned.
"He ignored us..." Johnny huffed. River ignored the rest of the conversation and focused on the other marine boat.
"They're going to a cannon." They said, "Have a way to stop them?"
"Yep, just leave it to me!" Luffy answered, without giving any explanation to what he was planning.
"Gods you scare me..." River muttered before the marines fired their cannon, it aiming more at the group than the ship.
"Gum-gum..." Luffy mutters, before the cannon ball hits him and stenches him far away, making Zoro and River dodge him. "Slingshot!" Right when he was about to let go, one of his arms broke off the head of the ship, hitting him in the face and turning him around so when he let his other arm go...it hit the roof of the sea restaurant before Luffy accidentally hit his face on the back of the figurehead.
-----
"What's taking Luffy so long?" Usopp complained.
"Yeah..." Nami whined.
"I'm hungry..." River muttered.
"Luffy should've just said it's the marines fault instead of being so freaking honest."
"Hey, let's go into the restaurant and just wait for Luffy to do his shit in there. We came here for both food and a cook so let's go." River said, going to the side of the boat to see the smaller one from when they first met the group.
-----
The four got on a boat and went to the restaurant. Once they were there, Usopp jumped out of the boat and tied it to one of the posts with rope. From the inside they could hear a loud CLASH. River immediately jumped out of the boat, ignoring the other's calls and opened one of the doors to see the marine captain from before had punched a table in half. His girlfriend(?) was standing out of her seat in shock and a blond boy with a black suit had a nonchalant look on his face. What is the happening in here?
"You could've eaten it if you had just taken a bug out..." the blond boy say, crouching to where a puddle of wasted soup was and put his hand over it. "It would've been wonderful...it took three full days of hard cooking to prepare that soup for you and you wasted it."
The marine captain steps on the blond boy's hand. "Can't you see that you're biting off more than you can chew!?" He spat, digging his foot into the boy's hand. "I'm the customer here, you understand me!? I'm paying you!"
"Stop it, Fullbody!" The captain's girlfriend(?) begs, holding onto his arm.
"Shut up!" The captain shouts, pushing her to the ground.
"No, Fullbody...no..."
"Can your money truly satisfy your hunger?" The blond boy asked.
"What do you mean?" The captain demanded.
"I'm asking, can it satisfy your hunger?"
So the blond boy beat the shit out of the captain and is now holding him up by his neck as Nami, Usopp and Zoro come from behind River to see what was going on.
"Hmm. A fight." Zoro observed.
"Don't ever waste food around me again." The blond boy threatened. "At sea, if you ever provoke your cook, you're signing your own death for it, remember that."
-----
"Oh no, our customer!" A muscular cook with blue hair exclaimed walking to where the blond boy and the marine captain were. "Damn it, Sanji, what are you doing to our customer!? Can't you see he's a marine lieutenant?"
"You're a terrible cook, what makes you think that you can talk to me like that?" Sanji said.
"A crappy cook like you is calling me bad? Restaurants can't exist without their customers. They're our lifeblood so we don't wanna hurt them the way you seem to keep doing."
"But he deserved it. He didn't treat the food or me with respect. And he insulted all the cooks!" Sanji argued, dropping the man. "So I simply taught him a lesson."
"You're gonna regret this." The marine captain huffed. "All of you! No restaurant should treat its customers like this. I'll shut you down, do you understand me!? I will shut you down! This entire place! This whole restaurant is finished, do you hear me!?"
"Then maybe I should just finish you off now." Sanji fumed as he started walking towards the captain.
"Sous chef Sanji, stop it!" One of the cooks shouted as a bunch of them held Sanji back from beating the absolute shit out of the marine captain.
"Arrogant ass holes like you who think they're such big shots that can push anyone around really piss me off!!" Sanji snapped, struggling against the cooks. "You're not such a big shot now, are ya? Are ya!?"
Suddenly the ceiling broke as Luffy and an old man fell through. Luffy sat up, gasping for air. "I can breathe again." He said.
"Boss Zeff, what's happening here? You didn't hurt yourself did you?" One of the cooks asked.
"Damn it, my ceiling. Another thing that's gonna have to get fixed because of you." The boss said, shouting in Luffy's face. "This is all your fault, you brat!"
"Hey, how is it my fault, you attacked me!?" Luffy shot back.
"Boss, can you stop messing around and give us a hand?" One of the cooks holding Sanji back shouted out. "Sanji's gone crazy again!"
"Hey, Sanji!" The boss called. "Don't tell me you went on another rampage in here, you idiot."
"Put a cork in it, old man!" Sanji shouted back.
"Oh, now you're ordering me around?" Said the boss. "Just who do you think you're talking to? Do you want to sink my restaurant to the bottom of the sea? You punk!" The boss kicks Sanji.
"He didn't move at all." River noticed.
"You too," the boss shouted at Fullbody. "Get your ass out of my restaurant!" He demands, also kicking him in the face, making Fullbody land on the ground in pain.
"How can you deny our motto that the customer is king?" The muscular cook challenged, glaring at Sanji
"The only kingly customers are the ones who stomach the slop you call food." Sanji argued.
"That's it! If you two wanna fight, you'll keep it in the kitchen, you understand me?" The boss ordered.
"Lieu-Lieutenant! Lieutenant Fullbody!" A marine soldier called, running into the restaurant. "We've-We've got trouble!"
"Wow, this restaurant is crazy." Luffy observed.
"Sir, he's escaped! Pirate Kreig's henchmen attacked us and vanished!"
"Why didn't they take him to jail before coming to a restaurant with civilians?" Nami questioned, crossing her arms. "That's just stupid."
"Most marines are stupid. That's why so many people have suffered. It's how a lot of stories go too. Usually some sort of government is the enemy due to greed and being dum-" River got cut off by a gunshot, looking back at the marine soldier to see him lying on the floor, with a bullet wound. All the civilians in the restaurant ran out.
"It would seem we have a new customer, sir." The muscular cook said.
"He would do well to mind his manners and not start any trouble on my ship." The boss advised.
"A pirate, huh?" Luffy inquired.
River stopped paying attention at that point and focused on Sanji. The man intrigued them. He seemed to care a lot about food and respect. He also fights with his legs, which seems extremely hard to do?
Now they had all sorts of questions. Why does he smoke? When did he learn to fight? How has he not been fired yet? As a matter of fact, how is this restaurant still standing? One of the cooks said Sanji attacks rude customers basically every other day, and they've never been reported? Weird. Oh, where's he going?
They watched as he walked into the kitchen and quietly followed, noticing the boss looking at both them and Sanji. River gave the boss a side eye before walking into the kitchen.
"What are you doing, Sanji?" They asked, scaring Sanji.
"River!? What the hell are you doing here? Ugh, you're still weird." Sanji asked, cautiously.
"Wow, thanks perv. Anyways, why are you making food for the pirate? He literally just shot a guy."
"I don't know the guy he shot, so It's none of my business."
"You don't know the pirate either."
"Would you quit bothering me, kid?"
"Kid? you know I have a name. And I was just curious, because if I were you, I would've just let him starve to death."
"Not if you've seen the things I did." Sanji concludes, finishing the meal he made and walking out of the restaurant, River watching him walk away.
-----
River was now sitting with the rest of the crew (excluding Luffy) at one of the tables in the restaurant, drinking orange juice.
"Chore boy!" Nami called out, making River look up to see Luffy on the staircase, looking down at them in shock.
"What are you doing!?" Luffy exclaimed.
"We heard you had to work here for a whole year!" Usopp answered.
"Is it okay if we redraw the flag for our ship?" Zoro asked sarcastically.
"Wha- you're eating all this delicious food without me!? What kind of crew are you!?" Luffy shouted, running up the group. "How could you do this to me!?"
"What? You expected us to just starve? It's your fault for destroying the roof of the restaurant, we're not going to suffer because of your actions," River said, sticking their tongue out and making Zoro laugh out loud.
Luffy glared at Zoro for laughing and picked his nose before dropping a booger into Zoro's drink, making River look at it in disgust while the other two members snicker quietly.
"You know, I have to say the food here is really quite delicious." Zoro said, picking up his drink and bringing it close to his mouth. "Good stuff, yes it is...I feel bad for you but-" he suddenly shoves the glass into Luffy's mouth. "YOU SHOULD BE DRINKING THIS YOURSELF!"
Nami and Usopp laughed out loud as Luffy gagged on the drink before shouting, "I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU DID THAT!"
"Yeah, well I can't believe you did that." Zoro snapped, standing above the captain.
"Ew..." River muttered, slightly shivering at the scene before glaring at Sanji who supposedly appeared out of nowhere and pushed their chair away so he should kneel in front of Nami with a rose.
"Oh, ocean, thank you for these treasures you have shared from your depths." Sanji said with love in his eyes. "Ah, yes, my love, I can't bear this hardship of loving you from afar, it is too difficult, I am now prepared to sail to the ends of the earth as a pirate if it means someone of your rare beauty will be by my side."
Zoro and River looked angry, Luffy and Usopp just looked confused.
"To be together sailing the seas, but how tragic a great obstacle blocks our way."
River kicked him in the face, sending him to land on his back.
"Sanji, no. Don't flirt with our navigator like that. It's like watching someone flirt with my sister." River said, glaring at Sanji. "I don't care if you come along with us, but don't be so goddamn weird..."
"Hey, watch it." Sanji threatened, glaring back at them. "Only reason you got a hit on me was because I was distracted, I can still kick your ass."
"If just having a girl in the proximity will make you lose your focus, I don't know how you still work here. They'd be wise to just fire you now. Between fighting and flirting with customers, you seem to only be useful when you're away from other people."
"It's true." The boss of the restaurant said, making Sanji turn to glare at him. "I have no need to keep you here at my restaurant."
"Hey, I'm the sous chef in this place, what do you mean you don't need me anymore?" Sanji inquired.
"River explained it better than I ever will, besides adding the fact that you can't even cook a decent meal. You're worthless to me than the chum after brunch. That's what I mean."
"Oh, and let's not forget about how the other cooks avoid you like you were poisoned." The boss continued. "So just run off and be pirate or whatever but get out of this restaurant."
"Woah." River whistled, sitting back in their seat.
"Hey, River." Nami whispered, pulling the teen towards her.
"What?"
"I know you mean well but we can use this to our advantage to possibly get some good food and free of charge!" Nami said with stars in her eyes, confusing the poor teen. "So, if you just stop trying to kill the cook, I'll see if I can get you some of the best desserts they have, deal?"
"Desserts?" They repeated, stars also forming in their bland eyes. "Sure, I won't kill the pervert."
"What do you think you're doing, grabbing your boss by the collar?" The boss exclaimed, having the two turn their attention back to the argument, that most likely has now turned into a fight because the boss grabbed Sanji's collar and threw him. Sanji was about to land on the crew's table so everyone grabbed a few plates before he landed. The food is more important after all.
"Dumb geezer." Sanji groaned, sitting up on the now broken table. "Enough with the games, you can try to kick me out but I'm here to stay. I'm not going anywhere old man, not till you're dead and gone."
"Dead?" The boss repeated in amusement as he walked away. "I've got another hundred years of kicking your ass left in me."
"He's always got to have the last word..."
"See, he said it's cool." Luffy said, patting Sanji's shoulder. "Now you can become a pirate!"
"Shut up!" Sanji yelled before fixing the table. "My apologies." He said to Nami before basically giving her a whole meal... "I hope I can make it up to you with this delightful fruit Macedonia my princess."
River glared at Sanji and he glared back. Nami noticed and quickly said, "Thank you, it looks wonderful, but may I ask that my friend here could get one of your best desserts, you see, it's their birthday and because I love them so much, I want them to cherish today and not have to worry about me if you would be so kind."
"Of course, my dear!" Sanji immediately responded, running into the kitchen and coming right back out with multiple plates of stuff like macarons and cake before setting them in front of River who looked star struck. "Happy birthday, brat..." Sanji muttered, before looking back at Nami with hearts in his eyes.
"Woah, woah, hey! What about us?!" Usopp complained. "Where's are Macedonia and Desserts!?"
"This tea should be more than adequate for you." Sanji said, getting in Usopp's face with a cup of bland tea in hand. "In fact you should be thanking me."
"What!? You wanna fight!? You're gonna regret this...take him out, Zoro!"
"You take him out." Zoro replied, not caring at all about the situation.
"Stop it!" Nami fake pleaded. "Please don't fight because of me."
"Of course, my dear." Sanji replied.
"Who said it was about you!?" Usopp shouted.
River rolled their eyes before looking away when Nami started to get in Sanji's face.
"...That all of the food here is just delicious...but it's a little expensive for me and River..." Nami whined, rubbing Sanji's chin.
"Relax, it's free for you two." Sanji said, the heart eyes coming back.
"Oh, thank you!" Nami said happily, hugging Sanji.
"You guys still gotta pay though." Sanji announces, looking at Zoro.
"WHAT!?" Usopp yelled.
"How very generous of you..." Zoro said sarcastically as Luffy laughed, in the background before getting kicked in the neck by Sanji. (Thankfully he's made of rubber so his neck just stretched.)
"What are you sitting around for?" Sanji demanded. "You're not here to lounge around."
"Right..." Luffy sighed.
The crew looked in concern as he dragged Luffy back to the kitchen by his neck.
-----
"We've been sat around, twiddling our thumbs for four days now!" Usopp complained as the crew, excluding Luffy, went back to the boat. "How long do you think we're gonna be here anyway?"
"Who knows." Zoro replied.
"He said he'd stay a year, but I'm already bored."
"Quit whining." Nami scolded. "This place is great. Plus, all the food here is free."
"Yeah, for you and River." Zoro said.
River shrugged in response. "It's either that or I kill him."
"Actually, about that. Do you two know each other?"
"Hm? Yeah, why?"
"That would explain things like fighting style and the fact that you said his name before he even introduced himself..."
"Well, me and my brother basically explored the entire East Blue. And that includes the Baratie. He also taught me how to fight with my legs sense I can't throw an actual punch for shit."
"He actually taught you? From what we saw, it sounded like you hated each other." Nami spoke up.
"Oh, we do. But Zeff, the boss, tolerated me and my brother so he kinda forced Sanji to do it."
"Hey, Luffy!" Usopp called out to the captain who was carrying a large bag of garbage. "What are we still doing here? Come on, let's just get out of this place!"
"Just sit tight a little longer." Luffy urged. "I'm gonna try and make another deal with the wonder."
"Ugh...well hurry up!"
"There's a big pirate ship right in front of us." River said, pointing to something covered in fog. The rest of the crew followed their gaze when it was clearer and the ship started to cast a shadow over the restaurant.
"Guys don't panic!" Usopp shouted, definitely panicking. "But I think this is our cue to leave right now!"
"Look at the sheer size of that galleon!" Nami said.
-----
The group was now watching as a bunch of civilians ran out of the restaurant to their ships.
"Hey, see that?" Usopp questioned, watching the civilians with a frightened look. "It looks bad, what do you think is going on in there?"
"Don't know. Let's go inside to see." Zoro announces.
"What!?" Are you serious!?"
"Sure am. You sound scared."
"I am not scared!"
"You know, the ship looks like something you'd see during Halloween." River observes. "Like a monster attacked it and some of the people who died on that ship are now ghost, still directing the ship but can't leave, so they wait for people to come into it before also killing them so they'll-"
"Okay, shut up." Nami interrupted. "You read too many horror books and you're freaking us out!"
"What? I'm not freaked out at all!" Usopp argued, hiding behind Nami.
"GET OFF OF ME, DUMBASS, I'M NOT YOUR SHIELD!"
-----
"What's going on, Luffy?" Zoro asked as he and River grabbed their swords. "Need a hand?"
Zoro, River and Usopp were on the stairs leading to the restaurant floor. They had no clue what Usopp was doing there when he was clearly trembling.
"If you don't need help, that's okay too!" Usopp said with a shaky voice.
"Dude, go back to the ship if you're so scared." River scolded.
"Oh, hey guys." Luffy greeted. "I appreciate the offer but I think I can handle this clown."
"Aw, too bad." Usopp replied as the two swordsmen put their swords away and glared at him. "But if you say you don't need any help then who am I to argue? Us awesome fighters are just gonna sit this one out, holler if you need us."
Zoro elbowed him in the stomach, knocking him off the floor.
"What'd you do that for, Zoro!?" Usopp demanded.
"Shut up already, weirdo." Zoro countered.
"If Luffy's good then I'm going to go grab some macarons to bring back." River announced, walking back up the stairs.
"Are those three your crew?" The villain laughed at Luffy. "That's a pretty small crew you got there."
"That's not all! I've got two more!" Luffy argued, holding two fingers up.
"I'm not a part of your crew!" Sanji yelled.
-----
River walked back to the ship with their hood on, silently walking and seeing Yosuaku and Johnny look at Nami with a concerned expression while Nami looked like she was trying to hide something.
"Hey, what's wrong?" River demanded.
"Like I said, it's nothing." Nami said, smiling.
"Okay then, but if you need help then ask. Especially if it's some bad guy, this crew is a lot better at fighting than counseling, okay?" River said, going into the cabin to get a bag of macarons.
"Okay..." Nami muttered as River then came back out, pat Nami's shoulder and exited the ship.
-----
"For that fifty ship fleet...to be completely eradicated by a single man." River heard the tiny villain pirate say, making them pause on their way downstairs.
"Eh?" They muttered, continuing to walk where the rest of the crew was, noticing the big villain disappearing. "Hey, where did the big ass villain go?"
"You mean Don Krieg?" Zoro questioned. "Went to feed the men on his ship."
"Oh, okay." They responded, starting to lose focus on what's happening and silently ate their deserts. Before their eyes went to Zoro when he gripped the railing as hard as possible. They went back to not caring about the rest of the story until their captain shouted.
"That's so awesome! This is gonna be such a blast!"
"Do you understand the concept of danger!?" Usopp exclaimed.
"Finally, my life's goal will be achieved on the Grand Line." Zoro concluded, leaning on the wall.
"What!?"
"My rival. He's out there somewhere, and I'm gonna find him."
"Are you that stupid?" Sanji said. "It's idiots like you guys that end up dead."
"I could say that about you feeding this guy and not just letting him die, and now it seems like we're all gonna end up dead because of that, huh?" River said, rolling their eyes. "Damn, guess you would be perfect for this crew, we're all dumbasses."
"Wait, even me?" Luffy questioned.
"Especially you..."
"Enough!" The muscular cook demanded. "Do any of you maggots understand the current situation? That enormous galleon moored in front of our dear little restaurant is none other than Don Krieg's flagship, so why don't we check back into reality and deal with this?"
"ATTACK!" They heard Don Kreig shout.
"Heat that? They'll be here soon!" One of the cooks said.
"The restaurant is ours and I'll fight to the death to keep it that way!" Another one said, holding their weapon up.
Suddenly, as Don Krieg's men were starting to get off the ship, it split into threes, the commotion from the big ass ship causing Baratie to move around violently, the boss cook ordering another cook to raise the anchor.
"Oh, shit, what about our ship and the three others on it!" River said, jumping off the railing and onto the outside of the boat, the rest of the crew following them. While searching, they also had a much clearer view of the sliced ship sinking.
"Hey, big bro!" Johnny called out to Luffy as he and Yosaku were swimming towards the sea restaurant.
"Yosaku, Johnny!" Luffy called back, running to where they were. "Are you okay!?"
"What happened to this ship!? Where's Nami? Is she okay!?" Zoro questioned.
"I'm sorry, big bro...I don't know how to say this but...she's gone." Yosaku answered. "She took all the treasure and sailed away...!"
"SHE DID WHAT!?" The crew yelled at once.
"I'm not even surprised..." River groaned before helping Luffy put Yosaku and Johnny back on the ship.
"It's him..." Zoro muttered, gaining River's attention. "He's here...Hawk-Eye."
-----
"Zoro, I get your goal but it isn't smart to do it right now." River scolded as Zoro was holding onto one of his swords. "You're not stronger than him, at least not yet. And we still might have to focus on Don Krieg and the fact that Nami stole the fucking ship and is getting farther and farther away!"
"If I don't do it now, when will I ever have a chance to meet him again?" Zoro questioned, it being apparent that he's half listening.
"Oh my god, fine." River huffed, "if you die, or are close to death, I'm not helping you, I'm just going to let you die."
"I'm fine with those terms." Zoro nodded before leaving Baratie and going onto Don Krieg's boat. So now they have to watch Zoro and Hawk-Eye go at it. River already knew the outcome of the fight and was just pissed at this point for having to waste time with it. They didn't understand how this was so important to Zoro and why he couldn't wait until later.
"I've never seen a sword handled so gently and with such grace." Zoro said to Hawk-Eye once he was right next to him.
"There's no strength in sword play based on force." Hawk-Eye answered.
"Did you also use that sword to slice up this ship?"
"I did."
"Then it's true, you're the best. I set sail for only one reason, to meet you." Zoro announced, pulling his bandana off his arm and tying it on his head.
"And what is your goal?" Hawk-Eye inquired.
"To beat you."
"How foolish."
"Whoa! It's him, Roronoa Zoro!" One of Don Krieg's pirates said. "It's Zoro of the three sword style!"
"It is?" Another man asked.
"A fight? You're a weak pitiful creature, if you are in fact a competent swordsman, you should see the disparity in our abilities even before we cross swords. I must ask why you challenged me, could it be your courage or is it simply your ignorance?" Hawk-Eye questioned, standing in front of Zoro.
"My ambition drives me. Also I made a promise I intend to keep." Zoro answered, putting the handle of the sword in his mouth while drawing the others.
"There isn't a person alive who can defeat big bro!" Yosaku cheered. "He's already the best in the world!"
Hawk-Eye took the cross necklace off and unsheathed it to show a tiny dagger. Wow. That's embarrassing.
"Funny. What do you think you're gonna do with that?" Zoro asked.
"It'll be more than adequate, after all you wouldn't kill a fly with a cannon, would you? You may have quite the reputation on the East Blue, but that doesn't mean much to me. This sea is by far the weakest of the four. Unfortunately I don't carry any blades smaller than this one."
"Ouch, he just insulted all of us." River said, continuing to eat their macarons.
"I've had just enough of your attitude, now you die!' Zoro demanded, running towards Hawk-Eye.
"You have no idea how big the world really is." Hawk-Eye said, preparing to attack.
"Oni-Giri!" Zoro shouted, trying to attack Hawk-eye with all three swords but blocked them with just a small dagger.
"Zoro..." Luffy muttered.
"Wha!? Big Bro's Oni-Giri was stopped!?" Johnny exclaimed.
"I tried to tell him." River sighed.
"I am not that far behind the world's strongest!" Zoro raged, attacking Hawk-Eye recklessly who just blocked everything before hitting him back, causing Zoro to hit the ground.
"You're just toying with him, right? Fight for real, big bro!" Yosaku cheered.
"Big bro!" Johnny added.
"You can't be that much better than me!" Zoro shouted, charging at Hawk-Eye once again.
"He's not doing a lot to dodge and block him." River said, leaning over the railing. "It's embarrassing."
"Big bro's not embarrassing! Like he said, he has ambition!" Johnny yelled.
"Yeah! Why don't you try to take on the strongest swordsman in the world!? I don't see you challenging him!" Yosaku agreed.
"Believe me, I want to fight him too, but I already know I'm not strong enough to defeat him. Look at Don Krieg's boat, do you think me or Zoro could do this? No." River said, glancing at Luffy who was looking back at them. "Challenging people is cool, and nice, and it helps you get better, but you know, it usually doesn't work when you're dead."
"You think big bro Zoro's going to die!?" The duo shouts.
"I certainly don't think he's winning."
All of a sudden, Zoro tried to lunge at Hawk-Eye who dodged and hit him in the back of the neck with his hand.
"What is it then?" Hawk-Eye asked, looking down at Zoro when he tried to lunge at him again and ended up on his back. "What weight do you carry upon your shoulders? Speak up, weakling!"
"How dare you call him a weakling! You'll pay for that!" Yosaku shouted.
"We'll teach you a lesson!" Johnny joined, the two both pulling their swords out and getting ready to fight before Luffy stretched his arms out and grabbed the two, pulling them back.
"NO! Yosaku, Johnny! Just stay put!" Luffy shouted as River and Usopp just watched.
"No, I won't lose. I refuse to be defeated." Zoro emphasized, standing back up. He then put his two swords behind the one in his mouth and called out, "Tiger Trap!" He then lunged forward.
Hawk-Eye then stabbed him in the chest.
"You are defeated, yet you won't step back." Hawk-Eye observed. "Why not?"
"I don't know. But I will not run, even if I retreat a single step, I would be shattering the promises I made. I can't run, I would lose my honor. You see, without that there would be nothing left for me." Zoro answered, blood coming out of his mouth and nose.
"That's what defeat is."
"Then I won't accept it."
"Then you'll die."
"I'd rather die than give up."
Hawk-Eye backed away from Zoro, pulling the blade out and putting the cover back on. "Sir, state your name." He demands.
"I am Roronoa Zoro."
"I'll remember it. No one as strong as you has come around in quite a while." Hawk-Eye states before taking his largest sword from his back. "So as a swordsman's courtesy I'll use the world's strongest black sword to finish you.
"Thank you...I appreciate it. Three sword style: Secret technique..."
"Fall!" Hawk-Eye shouted, lunging forwards.
"Three thousand worlds!"
Both ran to each other and landed. Zoro's swords broke and blood came out of his chest as his arms dropped to the ground. He then took his blade out of his mouth and put it back in the sheath before standing up, turning around and holding his arms out.
"But why?" Hawk-Eye asked.
"Scars on the back are a swordsman's shame." Zoro answered with a gin on his face.
"Fine." Hawk-Eye said with a smirk before slicing Zoro's chest.
"ZORO!!!" Luffy cried as blood flew out of Zoro's chest.
"You shouldn't rush these things, young man." Hawk-Eye scolded.
"Zoro!" Usopp also shouted.
"Big bro!!!" Johnny and Yosaku cried..like actually cried.
"NO!" Luffy shouted.
"DON'T BE STUPID!" Sanji suddenly shouted as Zoro fell into the sea. "GIVE UP YOUR AMBITION AND LIVE!"
"DAMN YOU!" Luffy shouted at Hawk-Eye rightfully enraged and stretched his arm to Don Krieg's boat.
"LUFFY, STOP!" River shouted, grabbing onto the boy's shirt. Didn't really work though as the two were now flying into the air and crashed into the ship. "What is wrong with you!? Are you trying to kill yourself!?"
"No! I'm trying to teach him a lesson!" Luffy said, trying to get his head out of the boat while River was glaring at Hawk-Eye, their hand on their sword if he actually tried to fight.
"That's trying to kill yourself, dumbass."
"Are you two that swordsman's comrade?" Hawk-Eye asked, looking at the two with a blank expression. "I'm impressed with the two of you for not interfering. There's nothing to be upset about, your friend will live."
"No, there's a lot to be upset about...I mean, nothing concerning you, I'm more pissed at Zoro and Luffy for trying to fight you without expecting to lose, VERY quickly." River said, turning to glare at Luffy who finally got out of the boat.
"Huh, what?" Luffy questioned. "I stopped listening after I heard Zoro was okay."
"Dumbass."
"Big Bro, say something please!" Yosaku begged, making River and Luffy's attention focus on the four on the boat.
"Oh, shit, yeah he might...actually will definitely die if they don't bandage him up as fast as possible." River muttered.
"WHAT!?" Luffy shouted.
"Stop shouting into my ear, you can literally see Usopp bringing medical supplies for him."
"It's still too far early for you to die." Hawk-Eye announced, loudly. "My name is Hawk-eye Mihawk. You're strong but there is still much for you to learn. No matter how many years it takes, I will hold this title as the greatest in the world and wait for you, until that day you must hone your skills, then seek me out Roronoa Zoro!"
"Please say something." Yosaku pleaded.
"Anything!" Him and Johnny said.
"You two, what are your goals?" Hawk-Eye demands turning to Luffy and River.
"To be the king." Luffy quickly responded.
"Your ambitions are even loftier than your friend's." Hawk-Eye said with a smirk before focusing on River. "And you?"
"None of them are as big as these two. I'm just trying to explore the world for my brother."
Hawk-Eye hummed at that before turning away.
"Luffy, can you hear me?" Zoro called, raising his sword to the sky.
"Yeah." Luffy responded.
"I'm sorry for disappointing you. I know you need nothing less than the greatest swordsman in the world, I've let you down. Please, forgive me..."
"Stop talking, you're just going to make the bleeding worse!" River shouted, seeing the man cough blood.
"I solemnly swear, from this moment forward, that I will never lose again. Until the day comes when I defeat him and take his title. I will never, NEVER be defeated." Zoro vowed. "Is that okay...King of the pirates!?"
"Yep!" Luffy agreed, smiling.
"You're a good team, I hope to see you again someday." Hawk-Eye said, walking to his boat before Don Kreig stepped down behind him.
"Hey, Hawk-Eye!" He called. "I was under the impression that you had come here to take my life, weren't you here to kill Don Krieg: Ruler of the East Blue?"
"The thought had crossed my mind, but I had enough fun for today so I'm going home to get some rest."
"I'm a be honest, I genuinely didn't think he had a home." River whispered to Luffy.
"Same..." Luffy whispered back.
"I don't care if you've had enough, I haven't even got started." Don Krieg says, taking all his guns out declaring, "Now it's time to die!"
"He just won't learn." Hawk-Eye mutters, taking his sword off his back. The collision with the bullets and his sword caused a big explosion, with people flying everywhere. Luffy, thankfully, stretched his arms to hang on to the sea restaurant. (With River on his back.) but he also almost fell out, scaring the shit out of the two because neither of them can swim.
"Ah, damn, he escaped." Don Krieg cursed once all the smoke cleared.
"Usopp!" Luffy called out.
"Luffy!" Usopp called back.
"Go on ahead, we'll leave Nami to you!"
"Don't you worry bout a thing, Zoro and I are gonna get her right back, and make sure you two get that cook to join our crew, and then on the Going Merry, the six of us are going to set sail to the Grand Line!" Usopp announced, throwing Luffy's hat to him.
"Yeah!" Luffy and River cheered.
-----
"All right!" Luffy cheered. "They wanna fight too, huh? Now this'll be fun!" He then helps River onto the boat and looks up at The boss cook. "Okay, Pop, you promised me, remember? If I run those pirates off then my debt to you is clear, no more chores!"
"That's the deal. There's no telling how much more of my restaurant you can screw up if you stick around." The boss agreed.
"Hehe, yeah!"
"So kid, when you said you were going to be King of the Pirates, were you serious?"
"Well, yeah. Of course! I'm definitely going to be King of the Pirates someday!"
"I've seen a whole lot of pirates in my day, but you're the first to state your desire so clearly and without a doubt."
"No, he's just incredibly simple minded." River interrupted, lightly hitting Luffy on the head. "Only two things Captain talks about is either how he's going to be King of the Pirates or meat. To be honest, I think he talks about meat a lot more."
"What's wrong with that!?" Luffy argues.
"Everything. Dude, you're our Captain yet sometimes we have to be in charge of making a plan for stuff because you're most likely not thinking about it because you're hungry."
"Well, you're still a part of the crew even if you like it or not!" Luffy says with a smile.
"True..." River sighs.
"What is wrong with these two..." Sanji mutters.
"Men! If we can capture that ship, the Grand Line will be ours for the taking!" Don Krieg announced. "No more pretending to be Marines or raising the white flag of surrender. None of our enemies will suspect with a ship like that. In the boat it will always be a sneak attack.
"He's right, that boat would come in handy." One of his men said.
"No one would suspect such a ridiculous looking ship." Another one said.
"Right, but Don...even if we enter the Grand Line again using that vesil, what if we come across someone like Hawk-Eye Mihawk again? Then what will we do?"
Don Krieg groaned in annoyance and shot the man, making him fall into the water. "I really appreciate the input sailor, anything else, huh!?" He asked, aiming his gun at the other men. "Do you think an ordinary man could cut up a sailing ship like that!? That man probably has the power of the devil fruit. Although those with devil fruit powers are rare and legendary to us, I assure you they're commonplace on the grand line. Mihawk must've used some sort of strange power when he sliced our ship to ribbons. When we're on the Grand Line those powers won't be special, even the straw hat freak will be considered normal."
"That was a lot..." River muttered.
"That old geezer, Zeff, sailed those seas for a year. It stands to reason that he had strategies for dealing with those monsters. The techniques for surviving that parade of weirdos must be written in the old man's log book! Along with...clues to the One Piece."
"I see, you're a genius!" One of his men complemented.
"All we have to do is get the logbook in the ship, then we'll be able to find our way to the One Piece again!"
"Ya hear that boys?! Now let's get to it! The restaurant will be ours!" Don Krieg declared with his men cheering behind him.
-----
After the fight...
-----
"Hey, River." Sanji called, noticing River was behind him, watching him cook.
"What?"
"Where's your brother? I haven't seen him since you got here. Did you two split up?"
"He's most likely dead." River answered honestly. Sanji looked at the teenager with both shock and sadness as they continued. "Pirates basically attacked our old home, Koa tried to fight them off and died doing it."
"Shit. That fucking sucks."
"You know he really didn't like you, right? Why do you care about his well-being?"
"Well first off, he's a lot better than you. And I don't know, it's probably respect if anything. I don't like either of you, but it's not like I'm going to party or some shit if I knew one of you died. I'm not a monster."
"You sure?"
"Shut the hell up. I still don't like you."
"Likewise, and sadly you're going to join the crew..."
"No, I'm not. What? Did Luffy say I was?"
"No. It's just that I know you'd actually be a good addition to the crew. Aaannnddd we need a cook so hitting two birds with one stone."
-----
River was sitting on one of the tables in the restaurant, chomping down on a bunch of desserts. Some of the cooks were thanking them for helping with saving the restaurant and others were looking at them in concern for how much junk they've eaten.
"Hey, River." Luffy greeted as he and Sanji sat at their table.
"Yo. Happy you're not dead, Captain." They say, still eating their desserts.
"You don't sound that happy..." Sanji muttered. "Surprised you're not at the big tables with the cooks."
"Why would I sit with a bunch of strangers? I'm a lot more comfortable by myself. They seem to be acting like pricks to you anyway, so I guess I'm lucky I don't have to sit around them."
"Yeah, they're a bunch of jerks."
"Hey, what is this!? Who prepared this soup this morning!?" The muscular cook demanded, standing up.
Sanji looked over at him and raised his hand with a smile saying, "Oh, I did! The stuff is pretty good, huh? I think I really outdid myself."
"Is that a joke!? I can barely hold this slop down!"
While Sanji and the muscular cook were arguing, River and Luffy looked between the two while still eating their food.
"I thought someone like you would like slop, it makes sense to me seeing as that's what pigs like."
"Damn." River muttered.
"Ha! Just face it, Sanji, your soup sucks!" The muscular cook says, giving Sanji a thumbs down. "It's disgusting!"
"That soup is nothing short of a delicacy. There's something wrong with your taste buds!" Sanji snapped as another one of the cooks tried the soup and spit it out.
"Ugh! That's gross!" He shouted and a number of cooks started voicing their complaints, pissing off Sanji more and more.
"What the hell's going on you bastards!?" Sanji demanded.
"We're sick of the way you run things, you're a sham of a sous chef and everybody knows it." The muscular chef answered.
"You can't just settle every single little disagreement with violence!" Another one added.
"If the food's bad then we're gonna say something."
"What'd you say!?" Sanji fumed as the boss chef continued eating his soup.
"Don't forget that we're seafaring cooks. So you better not waste even a single drop of that soup." He said, finishing the soup before throwing the bowl on the ground, breaking it into pieces.
"Boss!?" The cooks shouted in confusion.
"You geezer!" Sanji insulted.
"That disgusting little dish tasted like garbage! If we ever serve that kinda trash here, we'd go out of business!" The boss complained.
Sanji ran up to him and held him up by his collar, shouting: "Are you really this stupid!? Just how is my soup any different from the stuff you make!? How!?!?
"You think they're the same!? Don't flatter yourself!" The boss shouts, punching Sanji in the face, knocking the boy to the ground and shocking the crew.
"The boss punched him..." One of the cooks said,
"He didn't kick him..." Another added.
"You think you can lecture me on the art of cooking, do ya!? Fat chance! I'm a man who was cooked on more seas then days that you've been alive!" The boss shouts as Sanji sits up.
...
"Dammit!" Sanji suddenly shouts, standing up and running out of the restaurant. "I'm not a little brat anymore!"
While Sanji was out there kicking random shit and the rest of the cooks were watching, Luffy and River tried out the soup.
"What's all the fuss about? This soup's really good!" Luffy complimented.
"It tastes like soup." River shrugged, going back to eating their desserts.
"All of us know the soup is good." The boss admitted. "I know he's an outstanding chef, everyone here on the Baratie does."
"Yeah, he's great."
"Besides Chef Zeff, he's the best we got."
"That was scary wasn't it. He definitely snapped."
Luffy and River listened to all the chefs before River quickly pulled the ladle away from Luffy as he was about to put it in his mouth.
"Hey, what was that for!?" Luffy whined.
"I don't think they'd appreciate having to wash their ladle again after all that." River shrugged, using the silverware to get some more soup.
"Hey, you two..." The boss called, getting the teenagers' attention. "You were saying that you needed a cook for your ship, right? Well this isn't something I wanted to ask anyone but, would you two mind taking that little brat along with you? Take him to the Grand Line, that would be best for him...the Grand Line is his dream."
"Geez Boss, you sure made us put on a hell of a show!" The muscular cook said.
"Aw man, I was worried he was gonna figure it out because of your bad acting!" The cook next to him said, making the muscular cook burst out laughing.
"Come on, your acting was way worse than mine!"
-----
"So what do you say kids?" The boss chef asked.
"No way." Luffy answered, shocking the crew.
"But earlier you mentioned you needed a cook for your ship? Just what are you trying to say? That he's suddenly not good enough for ya?"
"Oh, he's good and I'd love it if he joined the crew and came with us." Luffy said, taking a big bite of his food. "If it seems as if he really wants to stay here and cook with all of you guys."
"So we'd kinda be kidnapping if we just took him." River added before going back to focusing on their food.
Suddenly there was shouting outside and a big explosion went through the wall and they could see Sanji being crushed by a giant fish that had Yosaku in its mouth.
"Woah, it's Yosaku!" Luffy realized, making River perk up at that, finally paying attention to their surroundings.
"Oh, hey, big bro Luffy..." Yosaku greeted as Luffy crouched down.
"Uh, why are you here by yourself? And how did a shark get to you?" River asked, walking up to the two.