Thanks for the support on the last chapter. Now! Onto the new chapter, entering the Baratie!

"Alright!" Luffy exclaimed on the ship of the Straw-Hat Pirates, the crew had been trying to decide a design for their flag ever since they left Syrup Village, "This will be the design!" Luffy showed them all a drawing that you would think a five year old drew.

"Calling him artistically challenged would be an understatement." Usopp stated.

"Maybe it's abstract art?" Nami suggested.

"Pirate flags should be a symbol of death and this," Zoro took another look at the flag, "it's terrifying in its own way."

"Luffy." Naruto sighed.

"What'd ya think!?" Luffy grinned.

"Terrible! Lemme draw it!" Usopp told him and gathered some pencils, "Here!" He had drawn a new symbol perfectly, if it didn't look exactly like himself.

"You completely changed it!" Zoro and Luffy smacked up over the back of the head.

"Okay, okay." Usopp patted the back of his head and drew the symbol again.

"It looks perfect!" Nami exclaimed. It was like Luffy's drawing except…good.

"There we go!" Usopp exclaimed.

"It looks nothing like Luffy's old one." Zoro compared.

"Good! Draw it on the sail!" Luffy told him. And soon they were now a fully-fledged pirate crew, flag and all, "Alright! It's done! The Going Merry is ready for action!"

"Ah… I'm tired." Usopp panted due to the work it took to paint the sail. Nami lay next to him.

"I know…" Nami panted as well. They heard an explosion go off near the stern. They quickly turned and saw Luffy standing behind a cannon.

"What're you doing!?" Zoro yelled.

"Trying to shoot the cannon, but it isn't firing properly." Luffy answered.

"You're probably not doing it right." Naruto informed him.

"Let me do it," Usopp stood up and walked over to the cannon, "what were you trying to hit?"

"Those rocks over there." Luffy pointed to some rocks a considerable distance away.

"Okay!" Usopp started fiddling with the positioning of the cannon, "Judging from the distance, this should be good!" Usopp fired the cannon and it destroyed the rocks in one shot.

"Holy crap! You got it in one shot!" Luffy exclaimed.

"I know!" Usopp shouted, equally surprised, but then picked himself back up again, "I mean of course I did! I'm the best there is when it comes to aim! You can bow down before me and address me as captain!"

"I've decided! You can be our sniper!" Luffy told him, at this moment his stomach grumbled, "I'm hungry. Let's eat!" The crew gathered in the kitchen and ate what Kaya had stocked for them. While they were eating, Naruto was thinking heavily about his fight with Kuro.

'Kuro was faster than me, we aren't even in the Grand Line yet there are still people that can run so fast that I can't even keep up with them,' Naruto thought, 'if I hadn't used the Rasengan I would've lost for sure. I need to get faster, but how do I do it?'

"Naruto, are you okay?" Nami asked, snapping Naruto out of his thoughts.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Naruto responded.

"I've been thinking," Luffy started, "if we're going to the Grand Line there's another role that we really need filled."

"Yeah, we already have a fantastic kitchen." Nami added.

"An invaluable member for long journeys." Zoro nodded.

"Right! We need a musician!" Luffy grinned.

"Baka!" Zoro shouted.

"I thought you were gonna say something smart for once!" Nami yelled.

"Do you know what sailing is like!?" Usopp shouted.

"B-but a pirate's gotta sing!" Luffy defended.

"Come out you damn pirates! I'll slaughter all of you!" A voice shouted from the deck. Luffy rushed up to the deck and saw a man kicking barrels and trashing the ship.

"Who're you!?" Luffy shouted.

"Who am I? I should be asking you the same damn question!" The man yelled as he slashed his sword down, breaking some of the fences. Nami and Usopp were watching from the porthole.

"How many people are there?" Zoro asked.

"Only one I think." Usopp replied.

"Let Luffy handle it." He replied.

"I've killed countless of infamous pirates, yet a nameless person like you dares to attempt a murder on my partner!" He rushed at Luffy again.

"Partner?" Luffy questioned as he jumped over the oncoming attacker, grabbed his head on the way down and threw him against the deck, "I don't know who you are, but don't wreck my ship!"

"Ugh!" The attacker spat out some blood.

"Damn, what were you shouting about anyways?" Luffy asked. It was at this time that he could really look at the attacker. He was an average-sized man with somewhat tanned skin. He had a pair of sunglasses and had a black tattoo for 'sea' on his left check. He had short, black hair and was holding a nagiri sword with his right hand. He was wearing a dark blue jacket and black shirt with grey pants and brown shoes. Zoro opened the door to the kitchen and looked at the attacker.

"Johnny?" Zoro asked. The attacker looked up and saw Zoro, he jumped up immediately.

"Z-Zoro-aniki! Is it really you, aniki!?" The now identified Johnny exclaimed.

"Yeah, it's me." Zoro replied.

"Aniki! Something really bad has happened! Yosaku is sick!" Johnny shouted.

"Where's your ship?" Zoro asked.

"Just beside yours." Johnny answered.

"Bring him on." Zoro told him. Soon the entire crew was gathered around the sick man called Yosaku. He had a black shirt with a green coat and red headgear. He had plaid yellow shorts over unshaven legs and dark shoes. And like his partner he had a nagiri sword at his side.

"How did he get sick?" Naruto asked, taking on the role of temporary doctor.

"I don't know, he was fine just a few days ago, but all of sudden he became really pale and started passing out all the time! His teeth have been falling out! His old wounds have re-opened. We were resting on those rocks when we were shot at!" Johnny explained.

"S-sorry!" Usopp and Luffy apologized awkwardly.

"It's alright…Yosaku and Johnny, our names shook fear in even the most heartless pirates, we've lived and worked together as bounty hunters, how can it all end!?" Johnny exclaimed.

"Bakas." Naruto told them.

"What did you just say?" Zoro defended his bounty hunting partners.

"How dare you make fun of my friend's sickness kid!?" Johnny yelled at him.

"Oi, Luffy and Usopp go get some limes from the kitchen, squeeze them and bring the juices here." Naruto ordered, to which they did immediately.

"L-limes?" Johnny asked. The captain and sniper came back quickly and started feeding Yosaku the lime juice.

"He's got scurvy," Naruto informed them, "if we're not too late he should recover in a few days."

"A-are you telling the truth aniki!?" Johnny asked, ecstatic.

"Yeah." Naruto replied.

"Naruto are you a doctor?" Usopp asked.

"No, I know a bit of medical knowledge, but I'm not qualified enough to be considered a doctor." Naruto answered.

"Alright! I'm charged up on nutrients and ready to go!" Yosaku celebrated his recovery.

"Haha! My partner's fine!" Johnny exclaimed.

"You'll be down again soon if you keep jumping around like that." Naruto muttered.

"Sorry for the late introduction, the name's Johnny." Johnny introduced.

"And I'm Yosaku! Zoro-aniki used to bounty hunt with us!" Yosaku informed, "I don't know how to thank you, if it wasn't for you kid-aniki I would've died!"

"I never would've guessed that the infamous pirate hunter Roronoa Zoro would become a pirate himself!" Johnny laughed. Yosaku spat out a huge amount of blood, "Yosaku!"

"Get some rest," Naruto told them, he then turned to the rest of the crew; "let that be a lesson to all of you, if we don't watch our health we could die."

"We need to maintain a healthy diet so we don't contract something like scurvy." Nami told them.

"What we need is a cook!" Usopp told them.

"Okay! I've decided! We're gonna look for a sea cook, it's never bad to eat good food!" Luffy exclaimed.

"Aniki!" Johnny raised his hand like he was in school.

"What is it?" Zoro asked.

"If you're looking for a cook, I know the perfect place. But getting one to join you is a whole other matter," Johnny informed, "It's a sea restaurant!"

"Sea restaurant!?" The crew exclaimed.

"Yep! We should reach it in two to three days, but it's close to the Grand Line so we need to be careful," Johnny then leaned in, close to Zoro, "even the 'Hawkeyed Man' is seen to visit that place." Zoro grinned with some sweat.

"A restaurant on the seas!" The crew cheered, excited that they would get some food and hopefully a new nakama.

That Night

All was silent on the Going Merry. The only people who were still awake were Naruto, who was on guard duty, and Zoro, who was training on the deck. He had been training ever since Johnny told him of the 'Hawkeyed Man'; he had to be ready to fight.

"Your not gonna win." Naruto stated out of nowhere.

"What?" Zoro asked, wiping the sweat of his brow.

"Your training to fight Mihawk aren't you?" Naruto replied, still looking off into the distance sea.

"Yeah, what of it." Zoro answered, unsure of what the kid was getting at.

"If you fight him you'll lose," Naruto told him, "you'll probably die."

"How woudl you know!?" Zoro shouted in anger, refusing to have someone talk down on his dream, "If I win I'll have accomplished my dream."

"Do you honestly think you can win?" Naruto asked.

"Maybe-" Zoro replied.

"No," Naruto turned to face Zoro, "you have no chance in hell of winning. The only time you could ever win against him is if he was blind, only had one arm and dying. And even then you probably couldn't beat him." Zoro pushed Naruto against the railing and held a sword against his neck.

"Have you gotta problem with my dream!?" Zoro yelled.

"No, but the speed at which your going is what I've got a problem with," Naruto replied unfazed by the sword at his neck, "you've never even been to the Grand Line, your only a fish in a pond. Mihawk is a sea king in the ocean."

"And I suppose you've been to the Grand Line!?" Zoro yelled.

"I was born there." Naruto replied.

"You where?" Zoro asked, weakening his hold on his sword. Naruto saw this and ducked under the sword and pushed him to the ground.

"Get back to training." Naruto returned to his duty. Zoro gritted his teeth and got stuck back into his practice. He had to be ready to fight him. He would prove Naruto wrong.

Baratie

"We're here!" Johnny exclaimed, "Zoro-aniki! Luffy-aniki! Usopp-aniki! Naruto-aniki! Nami-aniki!"

"Why am I 'aniki'?" Nami questioned.

"Hm?" Zoro woke from his sleep.

"Oh!" Usopp exclaimed from the crow's nest.

"Ahhh!" Luffy exclaimed with child-like innocence.

"Cool." Naruto grinned at the sight before him. It was a large ship, it had an oval shape and had large masts at the bow and the stern and had a fish as the headpiece. It had a round bottom and a small array of cannons lined on the sides.

"What do you think everyone!?" The now healed Yosaku yelled.

"Wow!" Nami exclaimed.

"A huge fish!" Luffy shouted excitedly.

"Funky!" Usopp approved.

"Is anyone gonna notice the marines?" Naruto asked. The crew turned and saw a marine ship sailing beside them.

"When did they get there?" Luffy asked.

"A-are they gonna attack us?" Usopp stuttered.

"We aren't pirates!" Johnny yelled as he hid behind the railing.

"Someone's coming out." Yosaku told him. Out of the cabins came a marine in a white pinstripe suit. His pink hair was well combed and he had a scar under his right eye, he also had bolts attached to his knuckles.

"Hmm? Never seen that pirate flag before," The man said to himself, "I'm the lieutenant of the marine headquarters! I'm known as 'Ironfist Fullbody.' Who's your captain?"

"I'm Luffy! I made the pirate flag the day before yesterday!" Luffy introduced.

"And I'm Usopp!" Usopp introduced as well. Fullbody gazed over the crew before resting his eyes on Johnny and Yosaku.

"Wait a minute. I've seen you two before, you visit the government offices frequently," Fullbody told them, "If I remember correctly, you're small time bounty hunters. Yosaku and Johnny I believe."

"Hey, Yosaku, I think he's talking down to us." Johnny told Yosaku.

"We can't just let some guy call us 'small time' can we? We outta teach him a lesson!" Yosaku replied. The duo leapt at the marine with their swords pulled back.

"You cocky little prick!" They yelled in unison. Fullbody raised an eyebrow at their antics. In only a few moments they were both on the deck of the Going Merry in a bloody mess.

"H-He's pretty good." Johnny murmured.

"Y-y-yeah." Yosaku replied.

"You guys are really weak." Luffy noted.

"H-he's just really s-strong." Johnny argued.

"I-it was a close f-f-f-fight." Yosaku replied.

"Darling, enough beating up people. Let's get going already." A woman's voice came from the cabin.

"Ah yes, let's do that," Fullbody stated, "consider yourselves lucky pirates. I only came here to eat. But if you run into me when I'm off duty, you're dead." All around Johnny were sheets of paper, some with crosses in them.

"What's all this, Johnny?" Nami asked as she picked one up.

"Oh those? They're just bounty posters, aniki," Johnny replied, "if you kill any of them you get the reward on the poster." Nami was shaking and gripping the poster tightly, "Is something wrong?"

"N-no." Nami placed the poster down. Naruto looked at what she was looking at. It was blue man with a long, pointy nose.

"Guys, we're in trouble!" Usopp yelled, "The bastard's aiming his cannon at us!"

"What!? He lied to us!" Yosaku exclaimed.

"Sink them." Fullbody ordered an officer.

"Yes sir." The officer replied without hesitation, he lit the cannon and fired.

"Ahh!" Usopp shouted in fear. Luffy jumped onto of the railing and inhaled.

"Leave it to me!" Luffy reassured them.

"What're you doing Luffy-aniki!" Johnny exclaimed.

"Gomu Gomu no…" Luffy inhaled, "Fussen!" The cannonball hit Luffy dead centre got sent back at Fullbody.

"What the hell!?" Usopp, Johnny and Yosaku shouted in surprise.

"Have it back!" Luffy grinned.

"Wha!?" Fullbody exclaimed.

"Dumbass! Who're you sending it to!" Zoro smacked him over the back of the head. Luffy looked up and he realised that he sent the cannonball into the Baratie.

"Wha!?" Luffy yelled.

"Baka." Naruto sighed.

"Ugh…" Nami pinched the bridge of her nose.

Inside the Baratie

"Look the one sitting over there is Lt. Fullbody…"

"Look how graceful he is…"

"No way, a marine lieutenant is eating here?" The customers were all discussing the arrival of the lieutenant.

"Amazing you're the centre of attention." A beautiful woman who was dining with Fullbody stated.

"No, no, I'm sure they're all looking at you," Fullbody said sweetly, he smelt the wine delicately, "mm! This scent! It must be from micqueot of the northern lands! And this slight sourness mixed with a thick, dry taste…this wine must be…itelzbulger stein! Am I wrong waiter!?"

"Not even close," the waiter said. He was a slim, young man with long legs. He had blond hair and it brushed over the left side of his face. The most distincitive trait was his eyebrow. His right eyebrow formed a spiral at the outer end. He had jet black eyes. He wore a black, double-breasted suit with a tie and a long-sleeved, buttoned turquoise pinstripe shirt, "and by the way. I'm actually the assistant head chef. I'm only temporarily filling in for the waiters who all ran off yesterday, here's your soup sir. Enjoy it while it's still hot!" The man known as Sanji placed both bowls in front of them. The customers started to giggle at the lieutenant's expense.

"H-hey doesn't laugh."

"B-but he was so sure of himself! Pfft!"

"Are you knowledgeable?" The woman asked.

"Hmm?" Fullbody questioned.

"With wine I mean." She continued.

"Yes, yes. My tongue must be a bit off today." The lieutenant lied.

'What the hell's going on!? I specifically asked the owner to bring out that wine for me!' Fullbody thought. In another part of the Baratie, specifically the part that got hit by the cannonball, the cooks were running around in frenzy.

"Owner! Are you alright!?" One of the cooks asked.

"Do you think I'm alright!? Enough yapping! Get back to work!" The supposed owner yelled back.

"B-but sir! You body's…" the cook started to say.

"Are you trying to make me angry!?" The owner shouted back, "Are you planning on ruining my restaurant. Bakas!" The owner was an elderly man who had blonde hair covered by his extra-long chef's hat. He had a considerably long moustache and a beard. He wore a chef's uniform, with a blue ascot and a white apron. He also had a peg leg to replace his right leg, Two cooks burst through the doors holding Luffy.

"Sir! We brought the one responsible for this mess!" The cook held up Luffy.

"I'm so sorry!" Luffy apologized; he then saw the man's wooden leg, "Gyaaa! You lost your foot because of me!"

"Baka! I lost this a long time ago!" The owner yelled, "Your gonna have to pay for damages!"

"But I don't have any money." Luffy replied.

"Then your gonna have to work it off." The owner Zeff replied.

"Sure. I'll make it up to you." Luffy guaranteed.

"You'll work odd jobs around my restaurant without pay for one year. Only then will I forgive you." Zeff explained.

"A year!" Luffy exclaimed.

Dining Hall

"Ooh waiter!" Fullbody exclaimed.

"I already told you I'm not a waiter," Sanji told the cocky lieutenant, "my, my. What a beautiful lady we have here. A pleasure to meet you miss."

"Hey! Is it customary for this restaurant to serve it's soup with insects!?" Fullbody exclaimed, sure that his insect would work in embarrassing the assistant head chef, "What's with this damn bug in my soup!"

"I'm sorry sir. I'm not very knowledgeable about insects." Sanji replied, not falling for his trick. The entire room was filled with giggles at Fullbody's expense.

"Kyaa!" The marine brought down his fist on the table, splitting it apart, "Seems like you have no idea who you're dealing with."

"Now, now sir. Can't you still eat as long as I remove the bug?" Sanji tried to reason.

"What did you say!?" Fullbody exclaimed, "I'm a paying customer! Your pretty full of yourself!"

"Fullbody, stop! Forgive him please!" His date pleaded.

"Can money… fill you stomach?" Sanji asked ominously.

"We have to stop him!" The other cooks yelled.

"Get ready!" Fullbody launched himself at Sanji. All of the customers feared for Sanji. But less than half a minute later Sanji was holding the lieutenant by the head a few inches off the ground.

"Fullbody…" The woman murmured. Sanji glared at the battered, beaten lieutenant in his hand.

"Don't you dare waste food." Sanji stated.

With Zeff and Luffy

"Make it one week." Luffy demanded.

"What'd you say punk? You think that you can cause so much damage to my restaurant and make it up in only one week?" Zeff questioned, "You're working one year and that's final!"

"No way! I waited ten years to become a pirate! I'm not waiting another year!" Luffy shouted, "I'm working one week and then you'll have to forgive me!"

"Who gave you this right to decide this!?" Zeff sent Luffy into the wall via one of his powerful kicks, "I'm the one who'll decide whether I forgive you or not."

"But you're perfectly fine." Luffy told him.

"Shut up!" Zeff yelled.

"C'mon! Don't make me work a year!" Luffy begged.

"Fine…if you really want to, I'll tell you a faster way to get out of here," Zeff pulled out a hack-saw from seemingly nowhere, "you'll have to chop off one of your legs!"

"What!? No way!" Luffy refused.

"You think you can make it in this world by only saying no!? Brat!" Zeff jumped over Luffy, "Head Chef Drop Kick!"

Dining Hall

"What!? The customer!" A cook yelled. He was muscular and had lots of hair on his arms and legs. He had a shaved head, large lips, and a short black beard. He wore a navy blue short-sleeved shirt with yellow buttons on both sides. He had knee-length shorts that were the same colour as his shirt, along with brown shoes. He wore a white apron, a pink ascot, and an earring in his right ear and a white rope tied around his head. He had two heart tattoos on his left arm, "Sanji!? What the hell are you doing to the customer!? A marine lieutenant no less!"

"Hm? Oh, just the shitty cook, Patty," Sanji acknowledged the cook, "Don't use my name so casually."

"I ain't gonna stand by and let an even shittier cook call me a shitty cook!" Patty exclaimed, "It's our duty to serve our customers. How can you explain hurting our precious customer?"

"So what? He wasted our food and insulted me! I was only teaching him a lesson." Sanji explained.

"W-what's with this place…!? How can there be a restaurant that ill-treats its customers to this extent…!?" The bloody Fullbody yelled, "I'll close this place down! I'll report it to the government!"

"You're gonna report us?" Sanji asked, "Well, then I guess I've got no choice but to kill you."

"Wha!?" Fullbody exclaimed.

"No! Stop him!" The cooks shouted as they went to hold Sanji down.

"Hold him down!"

"Stop Sanji! You've made your point!"

"It makes me so angry!" Sanji yelled, "To see a spoiled son of a bitch like you! Who the hell do you think you are!?" Sanji glared darkly at Fullbody.

'W-whats with this guy!?' Fullbody thought. Before the situation could get too heated, Zeff and Luffy came crashing down from the upper floors.

"Ugh…" Zeff held his head.

"Wow, that was scary!" Luffy grinned.

"Shit! The ceiling of my beautiful restaurant!" Zeff exclaimed as he looked up at the ceiling, "This is all your fault! Damn brat!"

"You did it yourself!" Luffy yelled back.

"Sir! Please stop Sanji!" One of the cooks shouted. Zeff looked around and saw a group of cooks attempting to hold down Sanji.

"Sanji! Are you running wild in my restaurant?" Zeff asked.

"Shut up, shitty geezer." Sanji muttered.

"It's exactly as it seems sir! And this time, Sanji beat up some idiot marine lieutenant!" Patty informed.

"Are you trying to ruin my restaurant!? Little shit!" Zeff yelled as he kicked Sanji across the face with his wooden peg.

"Isn't that the guy who fired the cannon?" Luffy noted as he looked at Fullbody.

"Get outta my restaurant!" Zeff kicked the marine lieutenant to the ground.

"Gyaa!" Fullbody exclaimed.

'Even the owner!' Fullbody thought, 'Do they know who I am!? This barbaric and violent nature! It's just like a pirate ship! Are these guys really cooks!'

"Lieutenant Fullbody!" A marine appeared in the doorway, "It's an emergency! Sir! He's escaped from the ship's prison! The underling of the pirate Krieg has escaped! He's gone!"

"Impossible! He shouldn't even have the strength to move!" Fullbody shouted.

"A member of K-Krieg's crew?" The customers were getting scared.

"The same Krieg whose crew is the strongest in the East Blue!?"

"I-I wanna go!"

"Please forg-" Before the marine could finish he was shot in the back, "Kyaa!"

"A customer coming this way." Patty informed.

"He better not start any trouble." Zeff warned.

"A pirate?" Luffy asked. The man who shot the marine walked past Fullbody and the others and sat down on one of the chairs with one leg on the table.

"Anything will do, this is a restaurant isn't it?" The man was thin and had short, scruffy, black hair with a scruffy beard and a slight moustache. He looked as if he lacked sleep as he had dark circles under his eyes. He wore an open white jacket with a red sea-serpent design on each side with a green shirt underneath, white pants matching his jacket, a grey headband with blue stripes and two spherical earrings on each ear.

"Welcome, you squid-faced bastard!" Patty welcomed the pirate.

"W-what!?" The customers were shocked by the cook's audacity.

"I'm only gonna say this once. I'm a customer, so bring me some food!" The man ordered.

"That cook is dead." Fullbody muttered.

"Pardon me dumbass, but do you have any money?" Patty asked, to which the man held a flintlock pistol at his head.

"Do you accept lead?" He asked with a cocky smirk on his face.

"So you don't have any money." Patty concluded. Unfazed by the pistol, Patty slammed his giant hands down on the man, splitting the chair and table in two.

"What!?" Fullbody exclaimed.

"Damn it Patty! Stop breaking everything!" Zeff chided.

"Woah, he's pretty strong." Luffy noted.

"If you can't pay the bill, you aren't a customer!" Patty yelled. The customers cheered for him.

"Nice going!"

"Yeah!"

"Show him who's boss!" The pirate's stomach rumbled loudly.

"Oh, are you hungry?" Patty sneered.

"No, I was just farting bastard, now bring me some food!" The hungry man ordered.

"If you can't pay you aren't a customer! Get the hell outta here!" Patty started stomping on the pirate, "This restaurant serves paying customers! Not broke-ass pirate scum like you!"

"I've had enough of this restaurant." Fullbody crawled out of the dining hall, refusing to deal with any more nonsense. Once the man was damaged enough that he could hardly talk, Patty threw him out of the restaurant.

"Now then, ladies and gentlemen! Enjoy the rest of your meals!" The customers clapped and applauded Patty. The man was leaning against one of the rails around the other side of the ship, having escaped the cooks. A plate of rice and a glass of water was placed in front of him.

"Eat." Sanji ordered as he too leaned up against the railing. The pirate didn't have to be told twice as he immediately went started gulping down the food.

"I don't know what to say. I've never had such delicious food in my entire life," The man was failing in his attempt to hold back his tears, "I'm so grateful!"

"It's pretty good right?" Sanji grinned. Unbeknownst to them, a certain straw-hat wearing pirate was observing them from the above rail.

"Shishi! I've found a good cook!" Luffy cheered, "Lucky! You got some food!" Sanji and the pirate looked up at the to him.

"Huh?" Sanji questioned.

"You almost died before! Shishishi! Hey! Cook! Join my crew!" Luffy jumped down to the rail that they were leaning on.

"Oh…you're a pirate? Why'd you try to fire a cannonball at us?" Sanji asked.

"That was just an accident! It was self-defence!" Luffy argued.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Sanji asked, "Nevermind. But you better not try anything funny while you're here. The owner of this place used to the cook of a pretty infamous pirate crew. This restaurant's like a treasure to him."

"A treasure?" Luffy asked.

"Yeah, and the cooks who work here are hot-blooded and crude enough to be pirates." Sanji explained.

"It must be pretty noisy here." Luffy noted.

"Yeah…but it's daily routine for us," Sanji replied, "in fact, some of the customers come here just to see us beat up some pirates. Because of all the pirates the waiters ran away though."

"Ohhh, so that's why he asked for me to work here for a year," Luffy reasoned, "whatever. Join my crew!"

"Sorry, I'll have to refuse." Sanji told him.

"No! I refuse!" Luffy yelled back.

"What?" Sanji asked.

"I refuse your refusal! You're a good cook so you'll be my cook!" Luffy shouted.

"Hey at least hear me out." Sanji said.

"Fine, what's your reason?" Luffy asked.

"No reason to tell you." Sanji muttered.

"But you just told me to hear you out!" Luffy yelled.

"All I meant was that you should hear other people's opinions when talking! Don't make me chop you up! Damn straw-hat wearing shithead!" Sanji shouted right in Luffy's face.

"What'd you say!? I'll send you flying!" Luffy threatened.

"Sorry to cut in but-" The pirate started.

"What is it!?" Luffy and Sanji yelled.

"My name's Gin. I'm a member of the Krieg Pirates," The now known Gin introduced, "you said you're a pirate. What's your objective?"

"I'm gonna find One Piece! " Luffy revealed.

"If you're still looking for a cook, I guess you don't have many people in your crew yet, right?" Gin asked.

"With him, it makes five!" Luffy told him.

"Don't count me in!" Sanji yelled.

"You seem nice enough. Let me give you a piece of advice," Gin told the pirate captain, "give up on going to the Grand Line. You're young. You don't need to recklessly rush into things. Besides the Grand Line is just one part of all the oceans in this world. There are plenty of other seas for you to roam out there."

"You know something about the Grand Line?" Luffy asked.

"No…I don't…I don't know anything! That's why it's so terrifying!" Gin answered.

"For a member of Krieg's crew, you sure are acting pretty cowardly." Sanji noted.

"Who's Krieg?" Luffy asked.

"He's the strongest man in all of the East Blue," Gin explained, "He controls a giant pirate armada."

"So he's pretty strong." Luffy reasoned.

"Yeah," Gin replied, "anyway, Sanji. Is it alright if I could have a small sail boat, just to get back to my captain?"

"I suppose so." Sanji answered as he got up and dusted himself off. He pulled up a boat near the railing that Gin jumped in.

"Seya later," Gin waved, "and kid don't forget that I did warn you."

"I'm still gonna go to the Grand Line!" Luffy shouted back.

"Yeah, it's not like I have the right to stop you anyway," Gin replied, "and Sanji. Thanks so much for the food, you're my saviour. It really was the beast meal I've ever had. Would it be alright if I come here again?"

"Sure, anytime." Sanji smirked.

"Errand-boy!" A voice shouted from above them, "So that's where you were!" The voice was that of the owner Zeff.

"Agh! Old man!" Luffy shouted in surprise. Zeff looked at the pirate and saw some a bowl, cutlery and a glass. He was able to put the pieces together.

"Go Gin." Sanji ordered.

"Sorry…because of me you're going to get scolded." Gin apologized.

"Pardon me?" Sanji threw the utensils along with the bowl and glass over the railing and into the water, "How can I be scolded, if there's no evidence? Don't get caught again, Gin!" Gin bowed and set sail in the direction of his captain.

"Sanji! Errand-boy! Get back to work!" Zeff ordered.

Kitchen

"I'm Luffy! Starting today I'm the errand-boy!" Luffy introduced in the hallway. He looked around the kitchen; he was never any good at cooking so he wasn't sure what he was meant to do. He sat down on one of the chairs and listened to all of the conversations talking place.

"Is table six's dessert still not done!"

"Who took the order for that!?"

"Wasn't it you!?"

"Can't you see I'm busy!?"

"Yeah, busy spacing out!"

"The hell you say to me!" Eventually they noticed the lack of anything going on from Luffy.

"If you've got nothing to do, at least wash some dishes!"

"Okie-dokie." Luffy agreed as he walked over to the sink.

"Where's Sanji?"

"He's hitting on the customers in the dining hall."

"Again! For God's sake…"

"It sickens me to see a guy like him is the assistant head chef."

"Well, what're you going to do? He's been here the longest."

"Do you know why he stays here?"

"He's trying to become the next head chef right?" The cooks then noticed that instead of washing the dishes, Luffy was breaking them.

"How many plates have you broken already!?" Patty shouted.

"Ah, my bad. I forgot to keep count." Luffy apologized.

"You're not meant to count in the first place!" Patty yelled, "Go clean up instead!"

"You can count on me!" Luffy said as he grabbed the broom and started to eat some of the food meant for the customers.

"Oh God! That was the main dish!"

"Delicious!" Luffy grinned, "I'll clean the pot," Luffy walked over to the pot with a cloth in his hand, he tried to pick it up but, "Hot! Hot! Hot! Hot! Hot!"

"Just get outta the kitchen!"

"You're gonna talk the orders, okay?" Patty ordered, "Simple. Just ask what they want and come back here."

"Sounds easy enough." Luffy replied as he exited the kitchen.

"Being an errand-boy is tough. Coby must've had a hard time too," Luffy noted, "Hm? Ack! It's you guys!" Sitting on one of the tables waiting for their order, was the Straw-Hat Pirates.

"Hey errand-boy." Nami greeted.

"Working hard?" Naruto smirked.

"Heard you had to work here for a year." Usopp told him.

"Is it alright to redraw the ship's flag?" Zoro asked.

"You leave me here to work! And go off and eat delicious food all by yourselves! Selfish!" Luffy shouted.

"Damn, he noisy. Are those his crewmates?" Sanji asked across the dining hall.

"Hm, eat this." Luffy picked his nose and put a booger in Zoro's drink.

"We're pirates we can do whatever we want," Zoro replied, not noticing the crew trying to hold in their laughter, "the food here is great, don't take this the wrong way, but," he grabbed his glass and forced Luffy to drink it, "you're drinking this!" Luffy fell the floor clutching his throat.

"Ack! How could you do this to me!?" Luffy asked as he rolled around.

"I should ask you the same thing!" Zoro replied.

"O'blessed are the oceans for bringing me this fine day! O'love! Laugh if you will, at my poor self who cannot endure his tortuous passions!" Sanji exclaimed, as he appeared behind Luffy, "As long as I can be with you, I'm prepared to walk across any path, be it the paths of a pirate or a devil But alas! 'Tis tragic there is such a great obstacle standing between the two of us!" Sanji started talking to Nami with hearts in his eyes. Naruto didn't know why, but this made him feel…strange, to say the least.

"By obstacle, do you mean me?" Zeff asked as he emerged from the kitchen.

"Agh! Geezer!" Sanji exclaimed.

"This is a good chance, go and be a pirate," Zeff encourage him, "I don't need a guy like you here at all."

"Wha? I'm the assistant head chef, what'd you mean I'm not needed?" Sanji asked.

"You cause too much trouble with the customers, and when if they happen to be female you drool over them," Zeff explained, "you also can't cook a decent meal to save your life. You're just unnecessary baggage, holding us down. You're the weakest link. None of the other cooks want you here as well. Whether or not you're a pirate it's just good for you to get the hell out of my shop."

"That's what you wanted to say to me?" Sanji asked as he grabbed Zeff's collar, "I won't stand for someone insulting my cooking! I'm staying here! Got that!?"

"How dare you grab the collar of the head chef!" Zeff grabbed Sanji and threw him into the table.

"Damn…" Sanji muttered as he picked himself up, "you can try to chase me out all you want! But I'm gonna keep working here until the day you die! At the very least!"

"I ain't dying," Zeff replied, "I'll live for another hundred years."

"Shishi! He gave you permission. Now you can be my cook!" Luffy laughed.

"As if!" Sanji shouted back, he then appeared behind Nami with some wine and a bowl of fruit, "Forgive me for that ruckus now. As an apology, please enjoy-"

"Oi," Naruto gained attention to himself, "waiter, can you get us some food?"

"Yeah, what about us!? Gender discrimination! I'll sue!" Usopp argued.

"I already gave you some tea! At least say thanks!" Sanji replied.

"You wanna fight!? Go get him Naruto!" Usopp demanded.

"Fight him yourself." Naruto muttered in a lazy mood as he rested his chin on the table.

"Is something wrong?" Nami asked.

"No," Naruto answered, "just hungry."

"You haven't even cleared my plate yet!" Usopp pointed out.

"There are still mushrooms! Finish it off!" Sanji demanded.

"I left them on purpose! I was poisoned by some as a kid!" Usopp explained.

"Well they aren't poison so eat it!" Sanji yelled back.

"Please don't fight over me!" Nami said, taking advantage of Sanji's weakness to women.

"Anything for you miss!" Sanji immediately

"No one's fighting over you!" Usopp yelled.

"By the way Mr. Cook," Nami cupped his face, "the food here is a tad expensive."

"Then it shall be free of charge!" Sanji stated.

"Thank you so much!" Nami hugged him.

"You're paying though." He told the rest of the crew as he walked off.

"You're pretty manipulative you know that?" Naruto told her.

"I just like to get what I want, I'm not that bad." Nami giggled.

"Hey errand-boy! The hell are you sitting around and drinking tea for!?" Sanji shouted as he kicked Luffy on the head, "Bring out some hot towels when the customers are in."

"Yes sir." Luffy mumbled.

2 Days Later

"It's Don Krieg's Pirate ship!" The customers peered out the window of the Baratie to see infamous flag of the Krieg pirates.

"A skull with two hourglasses at its side, to threaten their enemies!"

"There's no doubt about it! That's Krieg's flag! Why is he here!?"

"This is real bad! We should run away!" Usopp advised.

"Aniki! Let's set sail! I don't wanna die!" Johnny and Yosaku pleaded.

"It'll be fun." Naruto grinned.

"Wow! That's a huge ship! Gin must've come here to repay the favour!" Luffy reasoned.

"Somehow I don't think that's the case." Sanji replied.

"Why'd you say that?" Luffy asked.

"That ship! It's in ruins!" In front of them was a large galleon ship, almost triple the size of the Baratie. The figurehead was that of a sabre tooth tiger and it had a large mast in the middle. The only thing that was wrong with it was that it was completely destroyed. Making it look like a ghost ship, "To turn a massive galleon of that size into that sad state…who could've done that?" All of a sudden the doors to the dining hall flew open, flying off its hinges. Revealing a bulky, large man.

"Sorry for intruding…but could I have some water…and food? If it's money want…I've got plenty." There, standing in the doorway, was one of, if not the most, infamous men in all of the East Blue. Don Krieg. He had short cut grey hair and long sideburns. He also had a gauze wrapped around his head and he had a fur-lined captain's coat.

"Wha? That weak looking guy is Krieg?" Patty asked.

"He looks like he's starving." Luffy noted.

"Wonder what happened." Sanji said. Without any warning, Krieg suddenly fell to the ground.

"Don Krieg!" Gin yelled in shock for his captain, "Please! I'm begging you! Please give him some food and water! Please save my captain! He'll die at this rate!"

"Hahahah! Perfect! Just perfect! This is the infamous Don Krieg!?" Patty laughed

"We have money this time! We're paying customers!" Gin explained.

"Hey! Get the marines immediately!" Patty ordered, "This is the perfect chance to arrest him and teach him a lesson. And don't let him have any scraps of food!" The customers agreed.

"Yeah! Who knows what he'll do when he gets back on his feet!"

"This is retribution for all the crimes he's committed!"

"It's only right that he dies after all that he does!"

"If he recovers he'll attack the restaurant!"

"I ain't giving him a single drop of water! None at all!"

"I…I won't…do anything if you give ...me some water…and food," Krieg pleaded, "So please…please…help me!" He bowed his head to Patty.

"D-Don't Krieg stop! A man such as you shouldn't be lowering his head to anyone! It's too shameful!" Gin told him.

"I'm begging you…I don't mind if it's leftovers or even the scraps. Please! Just give me anything!" Don Krieg pleaded.

"Hmph, trying to get some sympathy out of us?" Patty asked.

"Hey Patty, move," Sanji warned just before he kicked him in the side of the head, "here, Gin. Give this to him." He handed him a plate of food with some sauce.

"Sanji!" Gin exclaimed, happy to see someone who would help.

"Thank you!" Krieg immediately started digging into the food, not caring that he had to use his hands.

"Sanji! Take that food back at once!" One of the cooks stated, "Do you have any idea what kind of man he is!? He's the ruler of the East Blue! The king of deception! He's attacked ports, towns and other ships! Sometimes he even bares the white flag, only to attack his enemies by surprise! He'll stoop to anything to win! His strength isn't an exaggeration either! It'll be better for the world if that man were to starve to death!" Before Sanji could reply, the Don grabbed him by the head and threw him down. Shocking the entire restaurant, even Gin.

"D-Don Krieg! You promised you wouldn't harm this restaurant!" Gin shouted, to which Krieg grabbed his shoulder and started squeezing it, "Gyaaa!"

"Ahh. That was a delicious meal. I'm back to my normal self again. Good," Krieg looked around the restaurant, "this is a good restaurant. I'll take it."

"Agh! Sanji! I told you, this is the real Krieg! He's gonna take our ship!" The cook declared. The cooks started to gather up the customers and take them to one of the boats docked near the Baratie in order to get them out of the soon to be warzone.

"Get on the boat!"

"We've gotta get out of here!"

"We'll get surrounded!"

"Don Krieg…what about your promise…?" Gin questioned, practically crying.

"Gin! Are you alright!?" Luffy asked.

"Hmph," Don Krieg held his cocky smirk, "my ship's wrecked and I've been wanting a new one for a long time. I have around a hundred subordinates on my ship; they're all starving and critically wounded. Prepare enough food and water to feed a hundred people. And make it quick."

"We can't just prepare food for a hundred people, knowing that you'll attack us after!" The cooks shouted

"Seems like we have a bit of a misunderstanding," Krieg glared at them, "I'm not asking you, I'm ordering you!"

"S-Sanji…I'm sorry…I…never intended for things to turn out this way." Gin apologized.

"Bastard Sanji! It's all because of you we're in this mess!" Patty proclaimed, he then saw Sanji start walking away from the rest of the cooks, "Hey! Where do you think you're going!?"

"To the kitchen, where else would I go?" Sanji answered.

"What!?" The cooks exclaimed.

"Sanji!?" Gin shouted.

"Sanji." Luffy stated. All of a sudden all of the cooks encircled Sanji and pulled out pistols and pointed them at him.

"Who the hell do you think you are Sanji!? Krieg's secret agent or something!?"

"We ain't gonna let you take one step in the kitchen!"

"We've had enough of your insane and reckless actions!" Sanji smirked and held his arms out.

"Fine, if you wish. Shoot me. I know that they don't deserve to be fed. But none of that matters. It's a cook's duty to feed the hungry. Is that alright!?" Sanji questioned, to which Patty smashed him against the back of the head sending him to the floor.

"Hold him down!" Patty demanded, "Sanji! I know you feed the customers that I chase away! I've turned a blind eye to it, but this time I'm not going to let you do it! I'll protect this restaurant myself if I have to! Fortunately we only have Krieg to deal with alone. Even if he's strong what can he do against all of us!?" He turned around and pulled out a lobster-shaped bazooka from underneath one of the tables, "If you're finished with your meal, here's the dessert! Shokuatari Meatball!" Patty fired the bazooka and sent a cannonball into Don Krieg's stomach.

"Don!" Gin cried out.

"Agh, damn it. I ended up destroying the entrance. The owner's gonna be pissed at me." Patty sighed.

"It's fine. It's just some collateral damage from protecting the restaurant…he'll be fine with it." One of the cooks told him.

"What're you planning to do with his underlings?" Sanji asked.

"Well, maybe we should butter up his ship and set it on fire." Patty joked.

"That's the best dessert you can make? Lousy cook." A voice came from the rubble.

"Wha!?" Patty exclaimed.

"Serving a pile of crap for dessert. This is worst restaurant I've ever been to." The dust revealed Don Krieg clad in golden wootz steel armour, which was fur-linded like the rest of his attire. The armour consisted of a chest plate, shoulder guards, torso guard, and elbow guards. His Jolly Roger was painted on each shoulder guard.

"Woah! His body's all gold and shiny!" Luffy exclaimed.

"Bastard and his armour! Get him!" Patty ordered as he and the rest of the cooks charged at him with giant cutlery, "Let's go!"

"Annoying pricks!" Krieg exclaimed as he revealed multiple pistols from underneath his shoulder guards, chest plate and torso guard, along with the ones he carried around.

"Agh!" The cooks cried out in pain as the Don shot at them several times.

"Guns!?" Luffy exclaimed.

"From all over his body!" Sanji pointed out. Gin was holding his head in an attempt to keep down the tears.

"You think you can defy me!? I'm the strongest! This steel arm is more powerful than anything else! This body of steel is tougher than anything else!" He pulled off his glove to reveal a diamond-incrusted fist, "And this diamond fist can pulverise anything! My entire body is a weapon! I'm the fleet admiral of fifty ships and the commander of five thousand men! I've never lost a battle! So if I tell you to prepare food for my men, shut up and do it! Nobody goes against the Don!" While he was talking Zeff walked up to him and dropped a large sack in front of him.

"Owner Zeff!" The cooks cried.

"There's enough food here to feed a hundred people, hurry up and bring it to your men." Zeff told him.

"Did…did they just say…Zeff?" Krieg questioned.

"Sir! How could you give them food! What's the meaning of this!?" The cooks questioned.

"That's only if they have any fighting spirit left," Zeff replied to the confusion of the cooks, "isn't that right? Defeated warriors of the Grand Line."

"W-what!? Don Krieg defeated!" The cooks started shouting.

"The strongest man of the East Blue!"

"The pirate fleet admiral of fifty ships!"

"Even he was utterly defeated by the Grand Line!"

"Grand Line!?" Luffy exclaimed.

"You're Red-Leg Zeff!" Krieg exclaimed as he stared at Zeff, "I never would've thought that you're still alive. The peerless captain and cook of his own crew."

"And? So what if I'm alive?" Zeff asked, "I've got nothing to do with you. I'm a mere cook now."

"Hahaha…interesting to hear it like that, but from what I can see. You didn't become a cook by choice, there's nothing else you can do," Don Krieg explained, "the way you are now, you can't even wear your infamous 'red shoes'. Red-Leg Zeff, the master of kicking who refused to use his hands in battle. A pirate whose destructive kicks could pulverise bedrock and leave a clear imprint even in steel. Your name is Red-Leg because the blood of your enemies would soak your shoes. While I've heard rumours that you died, it seems you're still alive, even at the cost of one of your legs, without it you shouldn't be able to fight anymore. Well not very well at least."

"I may not be able fight very well, but I can still cook," Zeff replied, "what are you getting at exactly?"

"Red-Leg Zeff! The man who once sailed the waters of the Grand Line, and return without an injury! You must've kept a log during your time in the Grand Line. What I'm getting at is…hand that log over to me!" Krieg demanded.

"Cool! You've been to the Grand Line!" Luffy exclaimed.

"You're right. I do have a log; I've kept it to this day. But I'm not handing it over to you," Zeff responded, "That log is the pride of me and my men who ventured the Grand Line bravely together as a crew. It's way too valuable to give to the likes of you!"

"Then I'll steal it!" Don shouted, "It's true I was defeated on the Grand Line, but that was from lack of information! I'm still the mighty Don Krieg! I simply didn't know enough! If I steal you log it will reveal the secrets of the Grand Line and allow me to sail through it easily!"

"Hell no!" The cooks protested.

"If we lose the Baratie, we don't have anywhere to go!"

"This place is the only place to take us in!"

"Owner Zeff is the only one who accepted us!"

"You pirates aren't stealing our home!'

"Silence!" Krieg commanded in a regal manner, "The difference in strength between us is clear as day and night! Don't you dare forget! I'm the strongest! Once I obtain Zeff's log, I will return to the Grand Line, find the One Piece and become the Pirate King!"

"Hold up!" Luffy announced, "The one who'll be the Pirate King is me!"

"E-Errand-boy!" The cooks cried.

"Back down errand-boy! You'll die!" Patty cried.

"Luffy…" Sanji mumbled.

"I'm not backing down, especially not now." Luffy grinned.

"Did you say something? Brat? If you apologize I'll let it slide." Krieg frowned.

"I didn't say anything to apologize for, I was stating the truth." Luffy grinned.

"This isn't a game." The pirate fleet admiral informed.

"I know." Luffy smirked.

"Did you hear that? Krieg couldn't even make it in the Grand Line!" A customer yelled.

"Yeah, he's weak." Another customer replied.

"I'm just saying that we should give up on going to a place like that!" The first one said back.

"Just shut up," The other customer told them, everyone turned to face the voices, they were greeted with the sight of Usopp, Naruto and Zoro sitting around a table, "you planning to fight Luffy? Want help?"

"Oh, hey guys," Luffy greeted, "no, I've got this."

"Ha…" Don Krieg started laughing, "Hahahaha! Those are your crewmates!? Pathetic! They're quite a small bunch aren't they!?"

"Hey! I've got two others as well!" Luffy replied.

"Hey, you just counted me in didn't you?" Sanji stated.

"Don't joke around punk! Not even my fleet of fifty ships and five thousand pirates could match up to the Grand Line! We were decimated by the devilish sea in only seven days!" Don Krieg announced, to which the cooks shouted in panic.

"S-seven days!?"

"The entire pirate fleet was annihilated in just a week!?"

"W-What happened to them!?"

"Did you hear that!? Fifty ships destroyed!? In just a week!" Usopp announced.

"Yeah, he is really weak." Naruto's beliefs were confirmed.

"Heh, sounds interesting." Zoro smirked.

"Even as a bluff, your comments just show how completely ignorant you are to the reality of that sea! I hate your empty boasting! Keep saying stuff like that and I'll kill you right on the spot!" Krieg declared as he walked over to the sack of food and grabbed it with one hand, "As for the rest of you…you have a slight extension. I'm going to give this food to my subordinates and then return here. I'd suggest you leave this place within that time if you don't want to die. If any of you still feel like dying even after I've warned you, then be my guest! I'll bury you at the bottom of the sea for eternity!" He walked out of the restaurant leaving a shaking Gin near what used to be a doorway.

"Sanji…please forgive me! I had no idea…no idea any of this would happen…I" Gin tried to find the words to describe the situation.

"There's no need for your apology," Zeff stated, "the cooks of this fine restaurant acted on their free will, and this is a result of that."

"Sir! How could you of all people side with Sanji on this!? What' the meaning of this!?" Patty questioned.

"That's right! He's the one to blame for this!" The cooks declared, "He just wants to destroy the Baratie that's so important to you, sir!"

"Silence!" Red-Legs commanded, "Have any of you every been hungry enough to die…? Do any of you know just how terrifying and painful it is, to be stuck in this world deprived of food and water!?" Sanji and Naruto both nodded slightly at his words, and how true they were.

"Wh-what are you talking about sir?" Patty asked.

"If you've got time to start crying over spilt milk, then leave now!" Zeff told the cooks, who started to reconsider their actions.

"I'm…I'm gonna stay here. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I just left without a fight." Patty replied, the other cooks agreed.

"Same here, this is the place I live and work."

"Not like I've got anywhere else to go…" soon enough there was a giant horde of cooks with giant kitchen utensils, ready to fight off whatever threat there was to the restaurant."

"W-what are you doing!?" Gin yelled, "Haven't you realised how strong the Don is by now!?"

"Hey Gin." Sanji replied, "Let me tell you something. As a cook it's my duty to feed anyone who's hungry. But the ones who're coming have already been fed; so don't complain when I kill them. I will kill anyone who tries to steal this place, even if it's you."

"Heh, you save someone then you kill them? Some guy you are." Patty told him.

"Shut up, shitty cook." Sanji lighted a cigarette and started smoking it.

"See! What'd I tell you!?" Luffy sat on the table that the rest of the crew were sitting around, "He's pretty good right?"

"Who cares about that!? If we don't get outta here now we'll die!" Usopp cried.

"Calm down. Our enemies are wounded pirates." Zoro pointed out.

"Plus, it'll be pretty fun to be in this fight." Naruto stated.

"That's right and besides, I have to fight that guy. If he is truly strong, then we're gonna butt heads eventually!" Luffy pointed out, "Oh yeah, Gin! You said you didn't know anything about the Grand Line, but you've been there!"

"What I don't know is the truth…I just can't believe it…if those seven days were real…or if they were a nightmare!" Gin told him, "How could all fifty ships of the Krieg Pirate Fleet be destroyed by one man!"

"What!? One man!?" The restaurant exclaimed.

"When we had no idea what was going on, our ships sank one by one," Gin explained, "and if it weren't for that storm that whisked us away, even our main ship would've sunk…I don't even know how many of our ships were destroyed. It's just too terrifying to believe! I don't even want to think about it…that Hawkeyed Man! I don't! I don't want to think about him!"

"What!?" Zoro exclaimed.

"How could an entire fleet be sunk by one man!?" The customers yelled.

"I-I…d-don't know!?" Gin was shaking on the floor in fear of the memory.

"Hm. It was no doubt the work of the Hawkeyed Man," Zeff concluded, "the fact that he sunk your entire fleet is more than enough proof to know that it was him."

"H-hawkeyed? Who's that?" Usopp asked.

"Beats me." Luffy replied.

"He's the man I'm searching for." Zoro told him.

"Huh?" Usopp and Luffy questioned.

'He's too strong for you Zoro, don't fight him.' Naruto thought as he stared at Zoro.

"Hawkeyed Man, huh…" The cooks began to murmur about.

"It might be the red-eyed man who came here before."

"Oh yeah! You mean the guy who got so piss-drunk his eyes turned red."

"Yeah, that baka caught on fire and blew up."

"Heh heh, quite a sight that was."

"Johnny that baka got his information mixed up!" Zoro muttered.

"What about Johnny?" Luffy asked.

"Never mind." Zoro sighed.

"Has he got some kind of grudge against you guys, for him to destroy your entire fleet?" Saanji asked.

"I don't remember anything like that! He just attacked us all of a sudden!" Gin answered.

"You might've woken him up from a nap." Zeff offered.

"That's bullshit! You mean to tell me he destroyed our entire fleet for that!?" Gin yelled.

"No need to get so mad, it was just an example," Zeff replied, "that's just the kind of place the Grand Line is."

"A place where even the abnormal is normal, huh." Zoro stated.

"Shishi! That sounds so cool! We definitely gotta go there!" Luffy exclaimed.

"Could you at least try to think of the danger!?" Usopp told him.

"Yeah, but with this it looks like my own goal is tied with the Grand Line. Considering that 'he' is there as well." Zoro stated.

"Bunch of bakas. You lot are the type to rush their deaths." Sanji told the crew.

"True, but I'd rather have you leave out the 'baka' part," Zoro replied, "Ever since I've decided to become the world's greatest swordsman, I threw away attachment to life. The only one who can call me a baka is me."

"Yeah! Me too!" Luffy raised his hand.

"As a real man the same goes for me!" Usopp declared.

"Me too." Naruto smirked.

"Psh, what a load of crap." Sanji told them; little did they know Zeff was listening to their conversation.

'Sanji…' Zeff thought.

"Hey retards! Haven't you realised the situation we're in right now!?" Patty exclaimed, "There's a gigantic galleon belonging to the pirate fleet admiral Don Krieg right outside our door! The ship of the strongest pirate in all of the East Blue! You can continue your conversation after we've gotten ourselves outta this mess!"

"Don Krieg isn't the strongest." Naruto informed him.

"What'd you mean!?" Patty asked.

"The strongest pirate in the East Blue is right here." Naruto gestured his hand to Luffy.

"Yo." Luffy waved.

"And the only special thing about his crew is the numbers, they aren't individually strong." Naruto informed.

"That kid's the strongest in the East Blue!?" Patty and the rest of the cooks exclaimed in disbelief.

"Want to fight him and see?" Naruto smirked, "Don't worry, with us you don't have to worry about anything."

"I-if you say so." The cooks mumbled, still not completely believing that that kid was very strong at all.

Don Krieg's Ship

"Woohooo!" The crew was cheering for their recovery. Within seconds of eating the delicious food they felt as if they were back at full strength.

"We're saved!"

"It's like a dream!"

"We've finally escaped from that nightmare!"

"We've returned alive from the 'Pirates' Graveyard!"

"Yes…" Don Krieg stated, "And we're going back to the Grand Line after this." To the absolute shock of his crew.

"Wha!?"

"Hmm? What's with your expressions?" Krieg asked.

"We're going back there…?" A crewmember asked, he was responded to with a lead bullet straight through his head courtesy of the Don.

"Well?" Krieg asked, "Anyone else who disagrees with me?"

"N-no sir!" They answered.

"Hail Don Krieg!"

"First, we'll abandon this battered old ship and take over the floating restaurant. Your enemies are a bunch of measly cooks, this should be a piece of cake." Krieg informed them as they started jumping off the galleon and onto the Baratie.

Dining Hall

"I can hear them coming! Brace yourself!" The cooks yelled. The cooks all clutched their giant cutlery as they prepared themselves for the fight.

"You're gonna die!" The pirates declared. But before anyone could make the first move, the giant galleon was split in two, just like that, out of nowhere.

"Wha!?" The cooks exclaimed as everyone rushed out to the railing to see what happened.

"What!?" The Straw-Hat Pirates exclaimed.

'He's here.' Naruto thought grimly, already knowing the fate of Zoro.

"What was that!?" Don Krieg exclaimed.

"Don Krieg!" The pirates who were still on the ship exclaimed, "Aghhh! Our ship's been cut!"

"Cut!? The hell do you mean cut!? How can a huge galleon be cut!? It's impossible!" Krieg refused to believe that his ship was cut in under a second.

"Crap! Our ship was outside! Nami, Yosaku and Johnny were still inside!" Luffy exclaimed as he rushed to where the Going Merry was docked with his crew following him, "It might be too late!"

"Raise the anchor!" Zeff commanded, "Our ships gonna be dragged under!" Johnny and Yosaku were struggling in the sea due to the intense waves and winds from the ship.

"Aniki! Zoro-anki!" The duo exclaimed.

"Yosaku! Johnny! Are you alright!?" Zoro asked, "The ship! Where's our ship!? What happened to Nami!?"

"About that…we're sorry aniki…she's not here anymore!" They exclaimed.

"What the hell do you mean she's not here anymore!?" Naruto demanded.

"Nami-aniki took the treasure and sailed away!" They answered.

"Wha!? What!?" The crew exclaimed. Near the dining hall, Zeff noticed a lone man on a small boat sail into the middle of the action.

"That man!" Zeff exclaimed.

"Agh!" The pirates and cooks screamed together.

"W-what's going on!?" The cooks yelled.

"I don't know... maybe their munitions supplies exploded!?" They continued to shout.

"We're sorry aniki!" Johnny apologized thoroughly, "She took the treasure and sailed off! She said that she was never a part of your crew! She was a thief! She just ran away! We're really sorry!" The crew pulled the duo up out of the water.

"Damn that woman!" Zoro cursed.

"How dare she pull a fast one on us!? Especially during this crisis!" Usopp yelled.

"Wait! I can still see our ship!" Luffy announced.

"What!?" The crew exclaimed, still angry with the girl.

"It's the Going Merry!" Luffy told them, "Oi! Do you guys still have your ship!?"

"Yeah." Yosaku answered.

"Zoro! Usopp!" Luffy started.

"Just let her go. Nothing good will come of chasing that thief." Zoro told him.

"B-but she took our ship! Our ship's important!" Usopp told them.

"Plus, where can we find a navigator as good as her?" Naruto asked.

"Exactly! I want her to be our navigator no matter what!" Luffy proclaimed.

"Fine," Zoro sighed, "why do I have to have such a troublesome captain. C'mon Usopp, we're gonna get her."

"Right behind you!" Usopp chased after him as they went to Johnny and Yosaku's boat.

"Zoro-aniki! We're ready to set sail!" The duo announced.

"Luffy, Naruto, what about you guys?" Usopp asked.

"Sorry, I can't. I still haven't paid this restaurant back for what I did." Luffy answered.

"I wanna fight." Naruto answered simply.

"Well, be careful, the situation's getting pretty crazy." Zoro advised.

"Yeah, don't worry." Luffy replied.

"It's him!" Voices shouted from around the other side of the Baratie, "It's him! The one who destroyed our fleet! He followed us all the way out here! He's come to kill us!"

"B-bastard…" Krieg muttered.

"H-hawkeyed…Man?" Zoro started sweating in anticipation.

"He's the one…who sank a fleet of fifty ships!?" The cooks were discussing outside the dining hall.

"Then…he must've…been the one who destroyed Krieg's ship just now!?"

"He looks like any normal guy."

"It doesn't look like he's carrying any special weapon."

"If you're looking for his weapon, then it's on his back." Zeff told his cooks.

"Wha!? Y-you mean he cut that gigantic galleon by swinging that!?"

"Yes…that 'Hawkeyed' Man is a renowned swordsman. In fact he's considered the greatest swordsman in the world," Zeff announced, "Dracule Mihawk!" The man sailing on the small ship was tall and lean. He had a short beard, moustache and sideburns that pointed upwards. He had strangely coloured, yellow eyes, which resembled that of a hawk's. He wore black and red ornate clothing with a crucifix pendant. He had a wide-brimmed black hat decorated with a large plume, and a long, open black coat with no shirt underneath with red, flower-patterned sleeves and collar. He wore white pants held up by a decorated belt that tucked inside his large boots. This was Dracule Mihawk, the greatest swordsman in the world.

"We're done for…" The Krieg Pirates muttered.

"Damn it!" One of the pirates yelled, "What did we ever do to you!? Why the hell did you follow us all the way out here!?" Mihawk cocked his head over to the pirate.

"For entertainment." He answered in a calm yet dangerous tone.

"That's bullshit!" The pirate pulled out two flintlock pistols and shot at the swordsman multiple times. Mihawk pulled his sword over his back and held it out straight, deflecting the bullets, "Wha!? I-It missed!?"

"He deflected it," A voice stated from behind them, the pirates turned to see Zoro, "it'll be the same no matter how many times you shoot. He changes the bullet's trajectory with the tip of his sword."

"Who are you!? Bastard!" The pirate shouted to which Zoro ignored.

"I've never seen such graceful movement." Zoro told him.

"A sword without grace is nothing but a steel bar." Mihawk replied.

"Did you cut this ship with that sword?" Zoro asked.

"Yes I did." Hawk-Eyes replied.

"There's no doubt, you really are the strongest." Zoro smirked. The pirates around Zoro started mumbling.

"T-three swords? Could he be…"

"I set sail to meet you!" Zoro revealed.

"What do you aim for?" Mihawk asked.

"To be the best," Zoro untied his bandanna around his bicep and tied it around his head, "you said you want entertainment right? Let's have a duel. It should give you some entertainment at least."

"It's him! Roronoa Zoro of the Santoryu!" The pirates cried.

"The pirate hunter?" Don Krieg questioned.

"Him…!?" Sanji exclaimed.

"Hey! We're losing sight of the ship!" Usopp yelled, he, Johnny and Yosaku sailed the boat around to where Zoro was with Naruto sitting on the railing and Luffy watching intently.

"Pitiful weakling," Mihawk stated, "if you're a competent swordsman by any means, then I can demonstrate the clear difference between you and I without needing to cross blades at all. But still, you dare to challenge me. Does your bravery come from your conviction or ignorance?" He stepped out of his ship and walked onto a piece of the galleon that Zoro was using as a platform.

"It comes from my ambition, and a promise to a friend," Zoro revealed, "and to be honest I never thought that I'd meet you so early on my journey."

"Too early if you ask me." Mihawk told him.

"The world's strongest swordsman versus the pirate hunter Zoro!" The cooks exclaimed.

"There's not a chance someone can match aniki!" Johnny and Yosaku proclaimed.

"That man…" Krieg mumbled. Mihawk grabbed his pendant and pulled it off his neck and revealed a dagger within the top part of the cross.

"What're you planning to do with that?" Zoro asked as he placed one of his swords in his mouth, entering his battle stance.

"I'm not some kind of stupid brute who goes all out to hunt a mere rabbit," Dracule answered, "though you may be a somewhat of a renown swordsman this is still the East Blue. The weakest of the four seas separated by the Red Line and the Grand Line. Unfortunately I don't own a blade smaller than this at the moment."

"There's a limit, to just how much you can underestimate me!" Zoro shouted, "You better not regret it when you die!" Zoro launched himself at man with his hands over his chest with his swords pointed upwards.

"Hear me, little frog in his well." Mihawk started.

"Oni…" Zoro rushed at his opponent, "Giri!" as if he had done this a thousand times. Mihawk held out his small dagger and blocked all of the incoming swords easily, "Wha!?"

"Zoro?" Luffy exclaimed.

"Aniki's 'Oni Giri' was stopped!" Johnny yelled.

"His signature attack! It sends opponents flying all the time!" Yosaku shouted.

"Don't say I didn't warn you Zoro." Naruto muttered.

'I…can't move…there hasn't been anyone who could see through this technique! How can he stop me with that toy!?' Zoro thought to himself, 'This is ridiculous!'

"Arghh!" He started throwing slashes and stabs all of the place, but Mihawk just seemed to keep blocking them one by one, not even breaking a sweat.

'My goal can't be so out of my reach just yet!' He thought as he continued fighting a losing battle, 'There shouldn't be such a vast difference between us!'

"Ugh!" He exclaimed when Mihawk sent him to the ground with a simple flick of his wrist, "Arghh!"

"Come on aniki! Show him what you've got!" Johnny cheered on.

"Come on!" Yosaku added.

"Such ferocity." Mihawk commented as he continued to block all of Zoro's strikes.

"He's easily taking on Roronoa Zoro with that little thing!" The pirates exclaimed.

'I didn't train so hard just to fight against this stupid little toy!' Zoro thought.

"I trained to win!" He announced, "I came to beat you!"

"What burden do you carry?" The greatest swordsman in the world asked, "What do you desire so much that you will use the extent of your strength to reach? Weakling?"

"How dare you call aniki a weakling!?" Yosaku yelled.

"We oughta teach you a lesson, bastard!" Johnny shouted. They both jumped off the boat only to be stopped by Luffy.

"Stop! Don't interfere!" He grabbed their heads and kept them on the railing, "Stay put! Right here!" Usopp looked over and noticed that he was shaking and sweating profoundly.

"Luffy…" He mumbled, seeing the pain that watching the fight was causing him.

"Oof!" Zoro exclaimed as he was sent down again, "Tora…" he held his two swords behind the one in his mouth pointing downwards, "Gari!" He attempted to attack but was instead stabbed in the chest by the little toy that was humiliating him to such an extent.

"Aniki!" The bounty-hunting duo cried.

"Zoro!" Luffy cried. Naruto simply watched on, to a bystander it looked as if he didn't care. But to someone who had spent more time with him than most would understand that he felt the same way as Luffy, except he was better at controlling his emotions. Zoro continued standing, even when he was stabbed in the chest.

"Do you me to pierce your heart?" Mihawk asked, "Why do you refuse to step back?"

"Beats me…" Zoro answered, "but I get the feeling…that if I were take even one step back, I'd lose something very important to me…a promise or an oath…or whatever it is would be irreversibly broken, and I'd never be able to return to where I'm standing right now."

"Yes, that is called defeat." Mihawk informed.

"Haha…" The wounded man laughed lightly, "That's why I can't step back."

"Even if it means death?" Mihawk asked.

"I'd rather die." Zoro stated with as much conviction as he could muster up.

'What conviction he possesses!' Mihawk thought to himself as he pulled the small dagger out of Zoro's chest, 'To rather choose death than defeat…'

"Tell me your name kid." Mihawk ordered.

"Roronoa Zoro." Zoro replied as he got his swords in a position that made them look like a pinwheel.

"I'll remember it," Mihawk said as he placed his small dagger away and pulled out his main sword from his back, "strength such as yours is not often seen in this world. To pay my respect to you as a fellow swordsman, I'll end this duel with my Yoru, the strongest sword in the world."

"He unsheathed it!" The Krieg Pirates exclaimed, "That sword he used to cut our ship with!"

'So this is it…if I stuff up here I die…to be the world's strongest…or to die here and now…!' Zoro thought.

"Die!" Mihawk exclaimed as he pulled his mighty sword back in preparation for a slash.

"Aniki! That's enough! Stop!" Johnny and Yosaku pleaded.

"Santouryu Ogi…" Zoro started rotating his swords rapidly creating a lot of momentum, "Sanzen Sekai!" Zoro launched himself at such a speed that it looked as if he had nearly disappeared and reappeared behind Mihawk. However, with all of his speed and power, it was still no match for the well trained and more experienced Mihawk. Both his swords in his hands broke, leaving him with only one; the one in his mouth.

'I lost…I'm no match for him…never even thought about the possibility of losing…this is the strength of the world's greatest.' Zoro sheathed his white sword, stood up and faced Mihawk with his arms stretched out.

"What?" Mihawk questioned.

"A wound on one's back is a swordsman's shame." Zoro answered with a grin on his face.

"Splendid." Mihawk smirked, knowing that the child in front of him and a bright future if he continued with his journey of conviction. He swung down hard on Zoro from his right shoulder down to the left side of his hip. The strike cut deeply, blood spewed out of Zoro like a fountain.

"Zoro!" Luffy cried out.

"Aniki!" The bounty-hunting duo did the same. Zoro dropped his sword and started swaying on his feet.

'Don't rush your death child.' Mihawk thought wisely.

"Ahh!" Luffy cried out, tears forming in his eyes.

"Zoro!" Usopp cried.

"Aniki!" Johnny and Yosaku yelled.

"Shit!" Naruto muttered. Everyone was worried and scared for the wounded swordsman.

"This is the power of the Grand Line…even Roronoa Zoro couldn't come close!" The Krieg Pirates yelled, frightened by the fact that monsters like that even existed.

'Damn bastards' out of his mind! His enemy was the strongest in the world! We all knew the result from the start! Just throw your ambition away!' Sanji thought.

"Just throw it away! Throw away your ambition, it's simple!" Sanji yelled as Zoro fell backwards into the sea.

"Damn it!" Luffy threw his arm back and launched it at the swordsman, "Damn you!"

"Aniki!" Johnny and Yosaku immediately dived in the sea to retrieve their fallen brother. Mihawk easily sidestepped the fist sent by Luffy, but instead of punching the rubble behind the man, he grabbed hold onto one of the rails and pulled himself down.

"What's that!?" The cooks of the Baratie exclaimed.

"Argh!" Luffy exclaimed as he soared towards him, Naruto following behind him.

"That brat…must be an Akuma no Mi user." Don Krieg concluded.

"You must be a comrade of the young swordsman," Mihawk concluded as he placed his sword back in its sheath on his back, "you must've seen what transpired." He dodged the flying Luffy, making him fly right into the platform.

"Rasengan!" Naruto shouted as he held his hand out with a sphere of swirling energy. Mihawk took close notice of this.

'Is that…' Mihawk took out his dagger from around his next and slashed the orb, causing it to dissipate and then grabbed Naruto and threw him to the ground. He then turned back to Luffy.

"Fear not, your friend is still alive." Mihawk stated.

"Aniki! Answer us! Aniki!" Yosaku and Johnny pleaded as they lifted Zoro above the water.

"Zoro!?" Luffy exclaimed.

"Hurry up! Get him on the boat!" Usopp told them as he helped Zoro onto the boat.

"I am Dracule Mihawk!" Mihawk announced, "It is much too early for you to die. Know yourself. Know the world. Become strong, Roronoa. No matter how many months or years pass by, I shall stand here at the top of the world and wait for you! So forge on ahead with fierce conviction and try to surpass my sword! Surpass me! Roronoa Zoro!"

"Aniki! Answer me!" The crew were applying the medicine to Zoro's wound.

"To think someone like Mihawk would say something like that." Zeff mumbled from above the dining hall.

"Boy, what do you aim for?" Mihawk asked Luffy.

"Pirate King!" Luffy answered.

"A tough path, even tougher than surpassing myself." Mihawk stated.

"Whatever! I'm doing it!" Luffy stuck his tongue out, "Usopp! Is Zoro okay!?"

"Like hell he'd be alright! But he's still alive! He only lost consciousness!" Usopp answered.

"Aniki…please answer us!" The bounty-hunting duo pleaded. Without any warning, Zoro raised his only remaining sword in the air.

"Zoro?" Luffy questioned.

"L-Luffy…c…can you hear me…?" Zoro asked weakly.

"Yeah!" Luffy confirmed.

"Sorry…for worrying you…I know…that if I don't become…the greatest…in the world…it will only embarrass you…Guh!" Zoro sputtered out blood.

"Aniki! Please don't talk anymore!" Yosaku pleaded.

"Aniki!" Johnny added.

"I swear!" Zoro shouted, tears flowing freely from his eyes, "I will never lose again! Until the day I fight him and win! I swear…to never lose again! Are you alright with that!? Pirate King!?"

"Shishi! Nope!" Luffy grinned.

"You make a good team, I hope to meet you two again in the future," Mihawk turned around to face Naruto, "now onto you," his infamous eyes scanned all over his body, as if it were looking for something, "how are you able to use chakra at such a young, tender age?"

"The hell's chakra?" Naruto asked, unsure of what the man in front of him was talking about.

"Clueless child," Mihawk sighed, "chakra is what you just used to form that technique."

"Huh?" Naruto questioned.

"Just know that you are very lucky, most people have to train for decades in order to obtain the ability to use chakra." Mihawk told the boy.

"O-other people…can do what I do?" Naruto asked, he always thought that he was the only one that possessed the ability.

"There is only one other person alive who has the same abilities as you, to my knowledge," Mihawk answered, "expand your creativity and knowledge on chakra. It will be useful in the future." Naruto nodded, still unsure on the topic.

"Hawk-Eyes!" Krieg shouted as Mihawk started walking to his boat, "Did you come all the way out here for my head? The head of the infamous king of the East Blue, 'Don Krieg'!?"

"For a while, yes. But I've obtained plenty of excitement and entertainment. I think I'm going to return to my nap." Mihawk replied.

"No need to be so curt, you may have had your fun, but I haven't!" The Don exclaimed with a smug grin.

"D-D-D-D-Don!" His crew yelled, "W-why's he purposely trying to stop him from leaving!?"

"How about you die before leaving!" Krieg revealed all of his pistols like he did earlier on the Baratie and shot at the man multiple times.

"Hmph, you never learn," Mihawk pulled his Yoru out of its sheath and slammed it against the platform, causing even more damage. The shockwave shook the rest of the pieces of the galleon and caused intense waves.

"Aghhh!" The crew screamed.

"Gone already?" The Don questioned when he realised that Mihawk had mysteriously disappeared.

"Usopp! Go on ahead!" Luffy yelled to his nakama.

"Right! Zoro and I'll definitely bring back Nami!" Usopp held up Luffy's straw hat that had blown off when he flew at Mihawk, "Make sure to get us a good cook!" He threw the hat over the water and right into Luffy's hands, "Once we have five people, let's head to the Grand Line!"

"Yeah! For sure!" Luffy grinned as he caught his treasure.

"They're finally coming," Sanji stated, "Damn bastards."

"Hey old man! If I chase them away for you, will you let me off the hook?" Luffy asked.

"Fine! Do as you wish!" Zeff answered.

"This'll be fun." Naruto smirked.

"While that was a bit of a nuisance, it doesn't matter at all," Don Krieg informed the crew, "we were going to abandon the ship anyway so it doesn't matter if it's been destroyed. Look at that ship, if we have it we don't need to fear the Grand Line anymore, that ship will be much more useful that waving the white flag or anything of the sort. It would lower our enemies' guards and we'll be able to sneak closer to enemy ships than ever before, it's the perfect disguise."

"I see…nobody would ever suspect that there'd be pirates lying in wait, on such a stupid looking ship like that." One of the pirates agreed.

"With this, rebuilding our pirate fleet will be a piece of cake." Don Krieg smirked.

"B-but Don! W-when we go back to the Grand Line, what if we…came across another monster like Hawk-Eyes?" A foolish pirate questioned, to which he was shot in the face like the last person who questioned him.

"Your still afraid of that bastard!?" Krieg yelled, "Do you really think a normal person can cut down a gigantic galleon!?"

"What'd you mean Don?" They asked.

"Isn't it obvious!? He's got some strange power from an Akuma no Mi!" Krieg shouted, "Monsters like those…the Grand Line is full of 'em! There's no doubt that Hawk-Eyes has some strange power, even that straw-hat wearing punk and the blonde bastard have a weird ability, but people like those are just another run of the mill pirate in the Grand Line! But Red-Leg Zeff spent a year in the Grand Line! He must've found out some sort of method to deal with those monsters! He must've written that method down in his log! There might even be information about the One Piece in his log as well!" The crew were nodding in agreement.

"As expected from the Don!"

"So that's how it was!"

"All we gotta do is get our hands on that log!"

"All the treasures in the world will be ours!"

"Alright! Let's take over this restaurant!" Krieg ordered.

"Yeah!" The crew responded obediently.

"Woah! They're pretty fired up!" Luffy pointed out.

"Yeah, but all they have are numbers." Naruto reminded.

"Hey old man! It's a deal right?" Luffy asked.

"You don't have to ask me twice, my restaurant would be a wreck if you worked here for a full year." Zeff replied.

"Where's Patty and Carne?" Sanji asked.

"They're busy with the battle preparations," One of the cooks answered, "those guys are really reliable in times like these!"

"Only in times like these," Sanji muttered, "you better go open up the 'fins'."

"Are you sure? That'll just give our enemies a foothold!" He replied.

"Doesn't matter, the geezer will be pissed if we fight inside the restaurant and won't shut up about it." Sanji explained.

"You say something brat?" Zeff asked.

"Yeah, I said you wouldn't shut up." Sanji replied.

"On it right away!" The cook rushed to the control panel to open the fins.

"Hand over the ship!" The pirates yelled.

"Time to get things started Naruto!" Luffy yelled with a grin on his face.

"Yeah!" Naruto grinned. Luffy held his hands on the railing and walked backwards until his arms at stretched a considerable distance.

"Gomu Gomu no…" Luffy leapt up from his crouch and soared across the water, "Rocket!"

"He's flying right at us!" The pirates cried.

"Followed with…" Luffy stretched out both his arms, "Ogama!" his outstretched arms hit multiple Krieg pirates, sending them into the sea easily.

"Wah!"

"Oof!"

"Gya!" The pirates screamed.

"The errand-boy ain't half bad!" The cooks cheered on from above.

"So the Grand Line is full of people like him?" Sanji asked.

"I'll smash you!" Luffy threatened the Don as he held onto one of the broken masts in an attempt to stay out of the water.

"Hahaha, are you planning on fighting here where you can't even stand properly?" Krieg asked, "I've heard that Akuma no Mi sink in water, right? Hammer boy?"

"I can't swim, but I can still kick your ass!" Luffy stated.

"Take off!" Voices screamed in unison, they turned to see Patty and Carne in the cockpit of…the restaurant head.

"Baratie's naval weapon! Sabagashira No.1!" Patty announced.

"If you don't wanna die then get the hell outta the way!" Carne demanded. The head of the restaurant started to break apart from the main body.

"Huh?" Krieg raised an eyebrow.

"How cool!" Luffy exclaimed.

"Points for originality." Naruto stated.

"What the hell is that!?" The pirates exclaimed as the pedal boat started moving across the water, very slowly.

"Hey pedal properly!" Patty told him.

"No! You need to pedal faster!" Carne told him.

"You're the one who needs to pedal faster if we wanna turn left!" Patty retorted.

"I know! Shut up you bald-haired freak!" Carne responded.

"Full speed ahead!" Patty exclaimed.

"Faster! Faster! Faster! Faster!" Carne shouted. The boat was still moving slowly in the exact opposite direction to the pirates. Until it switched course completely and appeared right in front of the pirates.

"How can it be that fast!?" They yelled. The fish's mouth opened to reveal three cannons.

"Fire!" Patty ordered.

"Roger!" Carne answered as he fired the cannons, blowing up the platforms that the pirates were on and the pirates themselves.

"Haha! Good job! Keep it up!" The cooks cheered.

"Opening the fins!" One of the cooks yelled from the control panel.

"What is it this time?" Krieg sighed.

"Ack! I'm sinking!" Luffy yelled in peril as the mast slowly starting sinking.

"If you pirates wanna fight then bring it on." Sanji taunted as a proper platform rose from underneath the restaurant.

"Cool!" Luffy exclaimed.

"Providing a foothold for the fight, pretty smart." Naruto commented.

"Interesting…they don't want us fighting inside and destroying the restaurant. Now I want that ship even more!" Krieg declared.

"Just what the hell can a couple of cooks do against us!?" The pirates shouted as they lifted themselves onto the platform.

"Don't look down on us cooks of the sea!" The cooks yelled back.

"Gyahahahaha! C'mon! Show them the power of fighting cooks!" Patty shouted.

"Patty! Don't get distracted! We've gotta aim for him!" Carne yelled.

"Prepare yourself Krieg! For the power of the Baratie!" They shouted in unison as they drove right into him. Only to be met with Don Krieg holding them with one hand.

"I'm Don Krieg. I'll be the king of the seas." He told them.

"Hey! That'll be me!" Luffy yelled at him.

"I don't have time to play around with people like you!" He announced as he threw them over his shoulder, right towards the restaurant.

"All talk and no substance…useless bastards." Sanji muttered.

"Ahh! Crap! The restaurant!" They screamed inside the boat head. But just before they reached the restaurant, Sanji kicked them away as if they were mice.

"Sanji!" The cooks cheered.

"He kicked it!?" Don Krieg exclaimed.

"Heh." Sanji held a smug smirk about him.

"W-what strength! He kicked it away as if it was nothing!" The pirates exclaimed.

"That kicking technique!" Krieg exclaimed.

"Cool!" Luffy approved.

"Nice." Naruto smirked.

"Sanji!" Patty shouted as he and Carne emerged from the paddle boat and rushed over to him, "Are you trying to kill people on your own side!?"

"Yeah." Sanji answered.

"What are you talking about!?" Patty yelled.

"You almost lost two powerful fighters!" Carne pointed at him.

"Powerful? Ha! Even if you hold weapons, a cook's still a cook. You better go back to the kitchen before I kill you!" One of the pirates told them as he killed multiple cooks around him, "Don't compare us to regular pirates, we are the Don Krieg Pirates! The strongest in the East Blue!"

"Shit…these guys are strong!" The cooks muttered, "They're not like the other pirates!"

"Are you gonna let them beat you so easily!?" Patty yelled.

"You call yourselves fighting cooks!" Carne shouted.

"So what if you're fighting cooks!? We fight for a living! We'll kill you!" The pirates shouted as they rushed at them.

"Ten years since I've been a cook! I've worked at three hundred restaurants! But I got fired each time because I got into fights all the time!" Patty explained.

"After searching and searching we found this place where we were accepted!" Carne continued.

"There's nowhere else as good as this!" Patty yelled.

"We'd never hand it over to you scum!" Carne shouted. The duo rushed through the pirates, cutting them with their giant cutlery easily.

"What's up with these guys!?" The pirates yelled.

"This is the power of fighting cooks!" Carne yelled.

"The hell are you guys doing?" A large pirate asked from behind the fighting cook duo.

"Hm?" Patty questioned.

"Who's this guy?" Carne asked, their questions were answered with being smashed to the ground.

"Hahaha! Behold! The invincible wall!" The pirate exclaimed. The man had a towering figure and had an ensemble of two large iron plates covering his front and backside as well as two small plates with pearls embedded in them on his elbows, fist and knees. The iron plates had an orange and white design.

"Pearl!" The pirates shouted, happy that one of their strongest was here, ready to fight.

"Patty! Carne!" The cooks cried in distress.

"Hahahaha! You won't be standing after my lethal punch! The 'Pearl Present!'" Pearl shouted.

"Hey! This guy's got a damn fine knife on him!" One of the pirates searched Patty and found a high quality cooking knife, he tried to take it away but Patty clutched it as hard as he could, even if it meant his hand bleeding, "Hm? H-hey! Get off! Let go of it! Just die!" Before he could do anything, Sanji gave him a devastating kick to the chest, breaking several ribs and sent him flying into Pearl.

"Hmph." Pearl was unfazed by the pirate as his shield protected him. Sanji caught the knife that was thrown in the air by the pirate.

"A kitchen knife is the soul of a cook, amateurs like you shouldn't even think about touching it." Sanji said as he glared at the pirates.

"Sanji…" Patty mumbled.

"Here," Sanji handed him his knife, "now kick the bucket, I'll handle them."

"Sanji," Naruto said from behind Sanji, "is it alright if I take on the big guy?"

"Why?" Sanji raised an eyebrow.

"Cause he seems strong." Naruto smirked.

"Fine." Sanji sighed.

"You won't even make it to him!" The pirates shouted as they struck out their swords at the blonde boy.

"Heh." Naruto smirked smugly as he disappeared from view.

"Hm?" The pirates exclaimed before he appeared underneath them and gave them all uppercuts in the span of one second, "Agh!"

"You guys are weak!" Naruto grinned darkly.

"Hah!" Pearl laughed, "You must not want to live long if you want to fight against me!"

"I'll take you down." Naruto told him.

"You take me down? I'm sorry but that ain't happening! In the last sixty-one fights I've been in I've won them all without so much as a scratch on me! I've never even lost a single drop of blood despite all the fights I've been in! Not one drop!" Pearl proclaimed, "That's proof of my mighty strength, but not only that I have the perfect defence! It's also quite fashionable! Ain't I stylish?"

"What the hell are you one about?" Naruto raised an eyebrow, "It doesn't matter if you've got a strong defence, cause I've got an even stronger offence." Without even giving Pearl the time to retort Naruto jumped up to him and smashed his knee into his face.

"Gyaa!" He screamed in pain as he clutched his face.

"What was that!? I thought you were supposed to be amazingly strong!" Naruto complained. Little did he know what he had caused. Blood slowly seeped out of Pearl's nose.

"Shit." Krieg sighed.

"Blood!" The pirates screamed, "Shit!"

"B-Blood!" Pearl screamed.

"Pearl it's fine!" The pirates exclaimed in an attempt to calm Pearl down, "It's just a nosebleed! Everyone gets those! You haven't really been hurt at all!"

"What's going on?" The injured cooks asked.

"M-my iron defence was broken," Pearl stated, "this guy is dangerous!"

"The hell are you talking about? It's just a nosebleed." Naruto raised an eyebrow.

"Pearl stop! This isn't the jungle!" Krieg ordered.

"Something's happening…" The cooks mumbled.

"Danger!" Pearl screamed as he started banging the iron plates on his hands together, "Danger! Danger! I'm in danger!"

"Pearl! Stop!" The pirates pleaded.

"Danger!" Pearl announced as all of the plates on his body suddenly caught on fire.

"Fire!?" The cooks exclaimed.

"Crap! Pearl this isn't the jungle! Beasts aren't gonna come get you!" The pirates shouted.

"Beasts!? Is that some sort of defence tactic!?" The cooks exclaimed.

"Don't you dare come close to me!" Pearl shouted towards Naruto, "Fire Pearl Daitokuten!" Out of nowhere, Pearl launched several flaming pearls flying towards Naruto, to which he simply jumped over the oncoming attacks.

"For a defence tactic, it is really flawed." Naruto smirked.

"Hot! Hot! Hot!" The pirates screamed as the fire pearls struck them, causing them to light on fire, "Please! Stop Pearl!"

"Crap! Our ship's gonna catch on fire!" The cooks exclaimed in worry.

"Burn!" Pearl screamed, "With this, my iron defence is even more invincible!"

"That baka," Krieg muttered, "is he trying to destroy the very ship that we're trying to capture?"

"Ahh! It's too hot!" The pirates exclaimed as they dived into the sea, "Jump into the sea!"

"I'll break that wall!" Naruto rushed at Pearl, right into the fire.

"Kid! You'll get burnt to a crisp!" Patty shouted.

"You're gonna get burnt!" Pearl shouted.

"Don't care!" Naruto rushed straight through the flames and launched a deadly kick to the front plate, which only seems to knock Peal back a couple centimetres.

'This'll be harder than I thought.' Naruto thought.

"What a baka!" The pirates commented from sea, "Does he want to get burnt!?"

"H-how could you attack me!?" Pearl screamed, "Even wild beasts don't approach me!"

"Cause fire doesn't scare me," Naruto smirked, "and neither do you."

"D-damn you!" Pearl cocked his fist back, "You dandy son of a bitch! Fire Pearl Present!" Pearl sent a flaming iron plate to Naruto's head, to which he expertly jumped over and, whilst in the air, sent a devastating kick to the side of his head, sending him down to the ground.

"Ah! He got past Pearl's defence!" The pirates cried, "Who is this kid!"

"M-my…my face!" Pearl screamed as he held his face, "Dangerous! Dangerous! More fire! More fire pearls!" Pearl sent some more flaming pearls, except this time the pearls were sent in the direction of the dining hall, where Zeff was standing.

"Argh! The restaurant is gonna be nothing if the fire spreads to the kitchen!" The cooks cried, "Sir! Move!" Zeff simply kicked his wooden leg in the air, causing the wind to blow out the fire and slow down the pearls significantly so they only made a small dent into the walls around the doorway.

"I may have lost one leg, but I can still handle you guys." Zeff stated.

"W-what!?" Pearl screamed in disbelief.

"That's incredible sir! He put out the fire with the wind blast!" The cooks cheered.

"Holy crap! Red-Leg Zeff's still got it!?" The pirates cried in shock.

"That old man is pretty good." Naruto commented.

"That baka Pearl is more trouble than he's worth," Krieg stated as he threw a giant spiked iron ball into the air connected by a chain, "before the fire spreads to the rest of the ship, I'll sink those fins!" The ball started falling at high speeds down to the fins.

"Shitty pirate!" Sanji shouted.

"Kid! Watch out!" The cooks exclaimed.

"Heh," Naruto smirked as he jumped onto Pearls head to use as a platform as he formed the iconic swirling orb of energy in his palm, "Rasengan!" Naruto thrust his attack into the ball just before it reached him, after a few seconds the spiked ball was smashed open, as fragments of it fell into the sea.

"What the hell!?" The Don exclaimed.

"What the hell is up with this kid!?" The pirates exclaimed.

"Holy shit! Good job kid!" The cooks cheered.

"That technique…" Zeff mumbled.

"Don't think I haven't forgotten about you!" Naruto told Pearl as he backflipped off Pearl's headed and landed right in front of him. Naruto infused some of his energy into his fists, "Akuma Hachidori no Gyakushū!(1.)" He started punching Pearl's front iron plate so fast that it seemed like a blur. He was jabbing and striking him faster than a machine gun.

"Pearl!" The pirates cried.

"Ha!" Naruto exclaimed as he concluded his attacks with a destructive roundhouse kick, sending Pearl only inches away from the edge of the platform.

"Useless bakas…in the end the only one I can count on is me!" Krieg muttered.

"Ugh…" Pearl moaned in pain.

"Ahh!" They heard Zeff cry.

"Sanji!" They also heard Gin's voice. Everyone turned to see Gin holding a shotgun to Zeff's head as he held a part of his peg leg, which he had ripped off, "Stop, I don't want to end up killing you."

"Gin!" Sanji exclaimed.

"It doesn't matter that he was a great man in the past, I can still easily kill him at gunpoint." Gin explained.

"That bastard! He broke owner Zeff's peg leg!" Patty shouted.

"Sir!" The cooks cried for their fallen owner.

"You want to save this man, don't you Sanji?" Gin asked, "If you want to save him, then leave the ship!"

"No way." Sanji stated with confidence.

"S-Sanji you baka! Don't provoke him! Owner Zeff'll be…" The cooks tried to prevent Sanji from saying anything.

"You're pathetic old geezer," Sanji stated, "what kind of example are you setting to the cooks when they're trying to fight!?"

"Hmph, I don't need to hear that from an eggplant like you." Zeff retorted.

"Who the hell are you calling an eggplant!? Damn Geezer!" Sanji yelled.

"Sanji! Now's not the time for this!" The fighting cooks pleaded, "Are you trying to get Owner Zeff killed!?"

"Gin! Take your gun," Sanji ordered, "and point it at me."

"You'll die instead, you know that right?" Naruto informed the cook.

"Whatever." Sanji shook that thought off.

"W-what're you saying!? Sanji!" The cooks shouted.

"S-Sanji?" Gin questioned.

"I-if…you wanna die," Pearl stated as he struggled to stand up, "then I'll kill you nice and flashy! I'd never imagined that I would even be hurt in a single fight. I see now how dangerous you guys are, now don't move it you don't want that old man's head blown off!" Before anyone could react Pearl slammed his fist plate into the side of Sanji's skull, "Cho Tennen Pearl Present!" Sanji was sent rolling to the railing near Zeff and Gin.

"Sanji!" Naruto shouted.

"How dare you tarnish my brilliant battle record!?" Pearl screamed in anger.

"I'll destroy you!" Naruto cocked his fist back, but before he struck the man.

"Don't touch him, kid!" Sanji shouted.

"Why not!?" Naruto yelled back, "And why didn't you dodge that attack!?"

"Cause that useless geezer is at gunpoint," Sanji explained, "Gin you cheap son of a bitch…there's no way I can accept your conditions."

"Why not!? It's simple!" Gin shouted, "Just leave the ship and spare everyone's lives! All you have to do is leave!"

"This ship is that old geezer's treasure!" Sanji exclaimed

"Sanji! I thought he hated the owner!" The cooks shouted.

"I took everything away from that damn geezer! His strength! His dreams! Which is why," Sanji stated, "I don't want him to lose anything else!"

"Damn eggplant, now's not the time to ramble about ancient history!" Zeff muttered.

"Shut up old geezer! And stop treating me like a kid!" Sanji shouted angrily.

"Sanji look out!" Patty warned.

"Pearl…" Pearl stood behind Sanji with his two arms outstretched, "Close!" He slammed his fists against the sides of Sanji's neck and head.

"Ah!" Sanji spat out some blood.

"Shit!" Naruto cursed.

"Your story's got nothing to do with me," Pearl informed, "Service Pearl…" Pearl pushed his fist plates on the fin allowing for him to jump in the air.

"He jumped!" The cooks cried.

"Gin, that's dirty!" Naruto yelled at him.

"This is how we fight! All you need to do is hand over the ship and all this'll be over!" Gin shouted back.

"Ishibigin Present!" Pearl fell back to the fin and landed dead on with Sanji.

"Gyaa!" Sanji screamed in pain.

"Sanji!" The cooks cried.

"Haahaahaaa! Behold my iron defence!" Pearl laughed, happy with his results.

"Why the hell are you doing this Sanji!?" The cooks shouted.

"Why…why did you do it?" Sanji asked, trying to hold back the burning sensation he could feel in his eyes, "Why would you eat your own leg and give me all the food…why did you save my life?"

"You can still talk!? Even after all my attacks!" Pearl shouted.

"I'm not handing over this restaurant, and I won't let you kill the damn geezer either," Sanji smirked as he slowly stood up, "if I can't even put my life at risk to save him then I can never repay my debt to him!"

"Sanji! Stop talking nonsense! I'm not so old and feeble that I have to be rescued by a little eggplant!" Zeff chided.

"Shut up," Sanji replied, "if you hadn't given up your leg these guys would be nothing compared to you."

"Sanji's barely standing!" The cooks were discussing, "He must've stayed here to repay his debt to Owner Zeff!"

"I never would've thought that those two would have such a deep relationship…" Carne stated.

"Why do you still stand up Sanji?" Gin asked.

"Haaahaaaa! Still haven't had enough me!?" Pearl screamed, "You ain't got a chance of winning! The final result is all that matters in this world! It doesn't matter if you take hostages! The last man standing is the victor! Isn't that right Don Krieg!?"

"Exactly." Krieg answered.

"Right, Gin!?" Pearl asked, but he didn't respond, "Guess I don't even have to ask, you are the one holding him hostage after all. You're gonna lose either way, so why do you still stand!? You'll only die if you do!"

"I wanna preserve this restaurant, even if its just one second longer." Sanji smirked.

"Are you trying to die!?" Patty exclaimed.

"Damn brat." Zeff muttered.

"Hah! Ain't that a flashy last stand! But the time to close this restaurant is now! Dameoshi…" Pearl pulled his fist back and smacked Sanji across the face, "Pearl Present!"

"Ahh! Sanji!" The cooks exclaimed, "Arghh! The fire!"

"H-hey! Put out the fire or there's no point in taking this restaurant!" The pirates desperately started splashing water onto the ship. Naruto watched on as Sanji attempted to stand.

"Hahahaha! Feel free to fight back! That is, if you don't mind the old man dying!" Pearl taunted.

"Baka Sanji." Naruto stated as he jumped up into the air, he was a good hundred metres above the Baratie.

"What are you doing!? Don't attack him!" Sanji cried.

"What's he planning to do?" The pirates asked.

"What the hell?" The cooks started wondering.

"Akuma Sūpāpindoroppukirā!" Naruto announced as he fell right back to the fin, destroying it completely.

"Aghhh!" The pirates exclaimed, "The fins have broken!"

"That little bastard," Krieg muttered, "Gin! Just blow the old man's head off!"

"B-but…" Gin hesitated.

"I haven't even touched you guys." Naruto pointed out.

"What the hell are you doing!?" Sanji questioned.

"I'll sink this ship." Naruto answered.

"What!?" The cooks cried, "What the hell is he talking about!? Hell no!"

"Don't you dare destroy our restaurant!" The pirates shouted in protest.

"Gin! Don't just stand there! Kill Zeff!" The ruthless pirate fleet admiral ordered.

"Are you out of your mind!?" Sanji grabbed Naruto by the shoulder, "Why the hell do you think I've been working on this restaurant!?"

"Yeah, but if the restaurant sinks then their plan will be ruined." Naruto reminded him. Zeff had a wise smile on his face at this.

"You have no idea what this restaurant means to me!" Sanji shouted at his face. Naruto slapped his hand away from him.

"And you think you can repay your debt to him by death?" Naruto asked.

"What!?" Sanji yelled.

"You won't be repaying any debt by dying!" Naruto grabbed him by his collar, "Do you think he saved you just for you to go and die! Only a little bitch goes and does something like that!"

"What the hell would you know about it!?" Sanji shouted.

"Now, now. Stop fighting you two," Pearl acted like a teacher, "it's just your bad fortune that you have to fight against the Krieg Pirates, you just picked the wrong enemies. There's nothing you can do to us with our hostage! Now! Burn with my fire pearls!"

"And you!" Naruto glared at him as he infused as much energy as he could into his right hand, causing it to have a sort of blue aura around it, "Akuma Fokkusu Ken!(2.)" Naruto punched Pearl's front plate with all of his strength, causing the plate to smash apart, leaving Naruto's knuckles bleeding.

"Good job! Naruto!" Luffy cheered.

"Yeah! Go kid!" The cooks cheered.

"You got to him before me." Gin stated as he threw the shotgun down and instead held two tonfa with iron balls tipped on the edge.

"Gin!?" The pirates exclaimed.

"What the hell are you doing Gin!?" The Don shouted, rage was filling him up from what he was seeing.

"Sorry Don Krieg," Gin apologized, "but please let me fight them." Krieg scanned the battlefield for a few moments.

"Fine." He gave permission.

"Thank you…Don Krieg." Gin got into a battle stance. Suddenly, Naruto felt a surge of fatigue occur throughout his body.

"Sanji…do you think you could fight him? I'm a bit…tired…" Naruto fell back, only to be caught by Patty.

"Don't worry, I got you." He said as he dragged him over to where the other cooks were.

'What the hell is this?' Naruto thought, 'Why do I feel so exhausted? I didn't use up all my energy…so why do I feel so depleted of it?'

"Here kid, lemme patch you up." One of the cooks with some bandages for his knuckles approached him.

"Don't worry I'm alright. The pain'll go in about an hour." Naruto shook him off.

"A-are you sure?" He asked.

"I'm sure." Naruto confirmed as he started to watch the fight between Gin and Sanji.

"Sanji, I wanted you to leave this ship without hurting you, but it seems it can't be that way." Gin informed.

"Seems that way." Sanji agreed.

"The least I could do is kill you myself." Gin replied.

"Ha, thank you," Sanji thanked, "now can you go eat shit and die please?"

"You too, blonde. It would've been better if you had left with your crewmates." Gin told Naruto.

"Nah…not like you weaklings could beat me anyway…" Naruto replied tiredly.

"H-how dare you!" The pirates exclaimed, offended by his comment, "We're the Krieg Pirates! The strongest crew in all of the East Blue!"

"No, you're just the biggest." Naruto smirked.

"Ahh!" The pirates exclaimed.

"Looks like you're right with that." Sanji smirked.

"Baka! You're exhausted! Don't provoke them!" The cooks shouted, "You're still up against Don Krieg, his power is the real deal!"

"That dimwit…" Patty muttered.

"Haha!" Zeff laughed.

"That's it! We'll kill you!" The pirates started to climb back onto the platform whose fires had been burnt out due to Naruto's technique.

"Step back! The lot of you!" Don Krieg ordered.

"D-Don Krieg!" The pirates yelled.

"Anyone who gets angry over being called weak is indirectly admitting that they're weak," Krieg informed them, "the final result is what decides who's strong and whose not. Don't start whining for nothing."

"Yes Don!" The pirates obeyed his orders obediently and stood down.

"Talk about leadership…" Patty mumbled.

"The title 'Don' isn't just for show." Carne told him.

"Brat," Krieg pointed towards Naruto, "you seem smart enough, who'd you think is more suited for being the Pirate King. Me or your baka of a captain?"

"Luffy." Naruto replied without any hesitation.

"Don't egg him on further!" Patty chided.

"Alright, move it men." Krieg ordered as he pulled off his right shoulder guard.

"It can't be!" The pirates screamed in fear. Luffy, realising that something big was going to happen; leapt across to the broken fins to make sure that Naruto and his potential cook were all right.

"I can take whatever he throws at us!" Luffy assured them.

"I'm gonna teach you the true meaning of strength…" The Don held up his shoulder guard proudly.

"It's MH5!" The pirates screamed in fear.

"Wha…Don please wait!" Gin pleaded.

"If it's just a cannonball I can bounce it back." Luffy stated.

"Please Don! Allow me to kill this man myself!" Gin begged.

"Whether I kill him or you kill him the result will remain the same," Don Krieg stated, "there's nothing I hate more, than people who believe in foolish things like 'honour' and 'compassion'. Listen well, we're in a battle and in a battle you do everything you can to win, even if it means playing dirty!" The shoulder guard split into two halves and out of those halves emerged a cannon of sorts, "Even if it means using a poison gas bomb!"

"P-poison gas!" Sanji cried.

"Don!" Gin cried.

"One whiff of this and your dead!" Krieg announced, "This is strength!" He fired the missile and it flew straight for the restaurant."

"Ahh! Dive into the sea!" The cooks shouted as they went underwater in an attempt to escape the gas.

"It's coming!" Gin cried.

"Heh! I'll just knock it down into the sea!" Luffy stated as he ran for the bomb.

"Oi! Wait!" Sanji exclaimed, but he didn't listen to the warnings.

"I'm not afraid of some poison gas!" Luffy declared, as he got ready to punch the bomb.

"Heh…" Krieg held a smug grin.

"No…" Gin figured it out, "that's not it! Straw-hat! That's not it!" But before Luffy could hear the bomb exploded into shrapnel, cutting him severely.

"Arghh!" Luffy cried out.

"What is that!? Shrapnel!?" The cooks exclaimed.

"Aghh!" Luffy cried as he crashed back into the broken fin, "Ugh! Owwww!"

"A shrapnel shell!? Phew! Just a trick!" The pirates sighed a sigh of relief.

"Huh? What happened to the poison gas?" Luffy asked as he looked around.

"A little slow don't you think!?" Sanji yelled.

"Please! A single one of those bombs could wipe out an entire village, as if I'd use it on you!" Krieg laughed.

"I see, he got me good." Luffy agreed.

"Why the hell's he agreeing with him?" Zeff questioned.

"That is what a battle is! I've got more ways to kill you than I can count!" Krieg announced, "Now I'll ask you once more! Brat! Who's more fit to be Pirate King!? Me or him!"

"Me." Luffy answered for his nakama. This enraged Don Krieg more than anything else.

"Gin! You're responsible for killing the cook!" Krieg ordered, "But I'm killing this straw-hat wearing baka!"

"D-Don Krieg's really pissed off!" The pirates commented.

"Understood, Don," Gin answered, "sorry Sanji…but you can't win."

"Took the words right out of my mouth." Sanji retorted.

"Brat…I'll demonstrate to you the might of the king of the East Blue." Krieg told Luffy.

"Keep talking and I'll send you flying!" Luffy shouted, "Just sit still and I'll come over to you!"

"You're stupid enough to try and come over here again!? Hahaha!" Krieg laughed.

"Here I come!" Gin announced as he rushed at Sanji, twirling his tonfa.

"Kill him Gin!" The pirates cheered. Gin slammed his tonfa into the wood.

"Hm?" Sanji questioned his tactics, Gin sent loads of wood pieces at Sanji, who jumped just in time to dodge, "Woah! Damn you!" Sanji sent Gin a kick, which he smoothly dodged.

"Allow me to tell you my nickname," Gin stated, "Gin the Man-Demon," Gin got his tonfa around Sanji's neck and held him down against the platform while he sat down, "I don't hold any sympathy for you anymore," he then started spinning his other tonfa, "at the very least, I'll kill you without leaving a disfigured corpse behind!"

"Yeah! Go Battle Commander!" The pirates cheered.

"Sanji!" All the cooks cried out. Sanji took a deep inhale of his cigarette and blew the smoke at Gin's face.

"Ack!" Gin coughed, slightly raising the tonfa that was keeping Sanji from moving, that slight raise was all Sanji needed as he slipped underneath and perform a handstand enabling himself to stand yet again, but before he was up in a fully vertical position. Sanji kicked Gin punishingly in the face, "Agh!" Gin returned by slamming his deadly tonfa into the side of Sanji's chest. They were both sent to the ground.

"T-that cook! He hit Gin!" The pirates exclaimed in shock, "You don't think he could beat him! Do you!?"

"Hmph, why are you doubting Gin's fighting ability?" Krieg asked, "You've all seen what he's capable of. He's a calm, collected 'Demon'. It's exactly because of that devious nature that he's battle commander. He'll show his true abilities in just a little while."

"T-the Don's right," The pirates agreed, "Gin's a heartless killer. He kills his enemies without a shred of compassion, that's why he's called the 'Man-Demon'."

"I-is Sanji alright?" Patty asked.

"How could he be!? He already sustained a hell of a lot of damage from that shield-wearing bastard earlier…" Carne answered.

"You're pretty weak, Mr. Battle Commander," Sanji taunted, "Guess the 'mighty' Krieg Pirates are nothing but talk."

"Oh!" Luffy exclaimed as he figured out a plan, "He's not looking! Perfect chance to send him flying!" He started rushing across the mast to get to Krieg, "Doahhh!"

"No need to be impatient." The Don held up his shoulder guard that revealed several barrels around the edge, he then flicked something into the water.

"Hm?" Luffy questioned, before he knew it an explosion occurred in underwater and water burst out of the sea like a volcano, "Ahh!"

"Don't worry! I'll kill you in due time!" Krieg declared as he shot multiple spears through the shield of water. Luffy, unable to see the oncoming attacks, had very little reaction time.

"Agh! Spears!" Luffy ran away and dodged as much as he could, but unfortunately one managed to hit him in the thigh, "Arghh!" Luffy fell off the mast and started falling into the ocean, "Ahh! Crap the ocean!" Luffy managed to kick the side of the mast giving him momentum to just land on the platform.

"Ahh you got away, hammer boy." Krieg smirked.

"Hey bastard! Do you wanna fight or not!?" Luffy shouted.

"Do I want to fight you? Ha! I hardly need to," Krieg replied, "The only thing I need in a battle are methods to kill you, that is the true might of a human! You on the other hand, can only charge without using your head. You are the equivalent to a monkey!"

"Oo-oo-ahh-ahh!" Luffy started to imitate a monkey, "Underestimate monkeys and you'll get clawed!"

"Finish him! Gin!" The pirates cheered.

"About time…" Krieg smirked. In the time it took for Luffy and Krieg to have a slight scuffle, Gin had managed to beat Sanji to a bloody pulp.

"Gyahahaha! His bones are all cracked now!" The pirates cheered.

"Damn it! If it wasn't for that shield man, Sanji would've been able to take him one!" The cooks shouted.

"Hah…those skewered dango of yours…are pretty weak…small fry." Sanji taunted.

'Damn…he's strong as hell!' Sanji thought to himself.

"Time to put an end to this! Stop struggling and die!" Gin shouted as he launched another swipe at Sanji, to which he simply dodged via a handstand.

"Hah! Are you going easy!?" Sanji shouted, "To hell with you!" He slammed his leg down onto Gin's head.

"Ahh! Gin!" The pirates cried.

"Gyaa!" Sanji cried out as he fell to the ground.

"Shit! He can't even withstand the force of his own kicks!" Carne exclaimed.

"Bwahahaha! He's hopeless!" The pirates laughed.

"Heh." Krieg smirked at his Battle Commander's victory. Gin sat on Sanji with one hand around his neck and the other around his tonfa.

"You son of a…" Sanji stopped when he noticed the tears flowing from Gin's eyes.

"Don Krieg!" Gin cried, "I can't! I just can't kill this man!"

"What?" Krieg stated, not believing what he had just heard.

"Gin…" Luffy looked on.

"I simply can't kill him!" Gin yelled.

"What did you just say!?" Krieg shouted.

"Because…" Gin started to explain.

"Say that to me one more time!" Krieg ordered.

"No one has treated me so nicely…in my entire life!" Gin explained, "That's why…I just can't kill him!"

"Coward!" Don Krieg lifted up his shoulder guard.

"N-no! I-it can't be…Don!?" The pirates exclaimed.

"You can't kill him? How disappointing," Krieg sighed, "I always thought that you were my most loyal subordinate. I thought you could adhere to my philosophy of war and battles more than anyone else. The reason I placed you as Battle Commander was because your fighting abilities were ruthless and your willingness to win no matter the means!"

"I know Don," Gin replied, "I don't want to betray you…but I don't want to kill Sanji either. I deeply admire your strength, Don. You could even say I'm grateful…but…I just can't bring myself to kill this man! Don Krieg! If it's possible…if there's the slightest chance possible…could we please…give up on this ship?"

"Gin! How could you!?" The pirates exclaimed.

"I misjudged you!"

"What happened to you Gin!?"

"You! My most loyal subordinate dares defy my order!?" Krieg shouted in uncontrollable rage, "Have you gone insane!?" Krieg revealed the cannon-like barrel inside his shoulder guard yet again.

"Aghh! It's MH5! For real this time!" The pirates exclaimed.

"The poison gas?" The cooks mumbled.

"That bastard!" Luffy cursed.

"But Don! We were saved because of this restaurant!" Gin pleaded.

"Throw away your gas mask Gin! You're no longer part of my crew." Krieg ordered ruthlessly.

"Wha…Don…Krieg…." Gin couldn't comprehend what was going on right now.

"The Don's really planning on killing him!" The pirates discussed, "How could he!? There's no one more loyal to him than Gin!"

"I'll never let you fire that!" Luffy declared as he started racing across the mast again.

"Nuisance!" Krieg yelled as he fired more spears at Luffy.

"Heh! That won't work on me twice!" Luffy jumped over to the side and swung underneath the mast and starting crawling that way.

"Damn it hammer boy! I'll kill you in due time!" Krieg smashed his fist into the mast, causing it to start falling into the water.

"Ahh! It's sinking!" Luffy was able to get up onto the only stable part left and rolled backwards onto the fin, "Gin! You don't have to follow a coward like him! I'll beat him in an instant!"

"Errand-boy…" Sanji mumbled as he looked on at his unwavering determination.

"Straw-hat! Don't you dare insult the Don!" Gin yelled, "He's the strongest man I know! You don't have a chance of beating him."

"Open your eyes!" Sanji shouted, "He's trying to kill you!"

"Of course, I'm just a useless failure who broke the crew's code of law because my compassion got in the way," Gin stated as he threw his gas mask into the water, "this is what I deserve!"

"What!? Why!?" Sanji exclaimed.

"Modoku Gas Dan MH5!" Don Krieg yelled as he unleashed the powerful poison gas bomb.

"It's coming!" The pirates exclaimed as they put their gas masks on.

"Dive underwater as far as you can!" The cooks exclaimed.

"I'm borrowing these for a second!" Luffy grabbed two masks off of some pirates, "Hey! Use these!" Luffy threw them to Sanji and Gin, he turned back to get one for himself but all the pirates had dived underwater, "Aghh! There all gone!"

"Sir! We have to head back as far as we can in the restaurant!" Patty shouted as he carried Zeff and Carne carried the lighter Naruto into the restaurant.

"What do I do!?" Luffy screamed in peril, his questions were answered with a gas mask landing beside him, "Hm?"

"This is might." Krieg stated with his own gas mask on. The gas bomb exploded, causing poisonous gas to spread everywhere.

"Whew…I'm saved…" Luffy stated from within the poison with a mask on, "thank god I found this lying around just in time."

"Pirates using posion gas! This is unheard of!" The cooks resurfaced when they were far enough away that the gas wouldn't affect them, "He's a demon I tell you!" Five minutes later they were still watching and waiting for any sort of movement to occur, "Do you think Sanji and errand boy are alright? It's been five minutes? Hey…look! The poison's clearing up!" The poison gas revealed Gin holding a gas mask at Sanji, refusing to let go.

"Gin! Move your hand!" Sanji yelled, but Gin ignored it.

"Gin!" Luffy yelled, "Where's your mask!?"

"Ugh…" Gin moaned as he tried to stay strong.

"Didn't I give you a mask?" Luffy asked, but then he realised. The mask that he had used was the one he gave Gin.

"Gin!" Sanji and Luffy cried as he threw up large amounts of blood nonstop.

"Hahahahaha! What a fool! But that's what he gets for thinking that he's eternally indebted to you for some food," Krieg laughed, "well…bakas never understand now do they? Ahahahahaha!"

"D-don…" Gin cried weakly.

"You chose the wrong man to follow." Sanji informed the dying Gin.

"KRIEG!" Luffy shouted as he glared at the man with anger.

"Ahahaha! Feeling sorry for that useless failure!?" Krieg taunted.

"Ugh…Kyaa…" Gin moaned.

"Useless…failure?" Sanji glared at the man.

"Of course, what else would you call a baka like him?" Krieg asked, "He may continue to repeat to make mistakes in the future, It's best to kill him now."

"I can't believe it! Don's actually gonna kill Gin!" The pirates exclaimed.

"Sanji!?" Patty exclaimed as he ran out of the restaurant.

"Ahh! That's Krieg's Battle Commander! He must've gotten the full blast of that poison gas!" Carne shouted.

"Patty don't you have some sort of antidote!?" Sanji asked.

"Y-yeah…but it's usually for food poisoning," Patty answered, "and besides that guy's the enemy."

"Whatever! Bring it here now!" Sanji demanded.

"Baka," Zeff stated, "put the mask on him, it must contain an antidote of some sorts. Take him to the second floor and have him breathe with that mask on. If there's even the slightest chance of him surviving, that's the first step."

"Patty! Carne! Get your asses over here!" Sanji ordered.

"A-alright! Don't yell!" Patty ran over.

"Me too!?" Carne followed.

"Don't you dare die Gin!" Luffy demanded.

"Hmph, it's futile. He'll die in an hour or so." Krieg smirked.

"Don't you dare be killed by a guy like him!" Luffy shouted as Patty and Carne carried him away, "Hang in there! I'm gonna beat him!"

"N…no, stop…you…can't…hope to…beat him…" Gin wheezed out through the mask. Luffy started marching towards Krieg, only to be stopped by Sanji holding his arm.

"Stop! Calm down! You're doing exactly what he wants you to do! You'll get yourself killed that way!" Sanji shouted.

"I'm not gonna die," Luffy shook off his hand and rushed at Krieg once again, "if you wanna shoot at me then shoot!"

"Hey!" Sanji cried.

"Fool…" Krieg smirked, "there's nothing easier to kill than a worked up baka."

"Fine! Do whatever the hell you want!" Sanji muttered.

"I've heard that even monkeys learn from their mistakes. Looks like you're dumber than a monkey ain't that right, hammer boy?" Krieg taunted.

"I'm just bad at giving up!" Luffy shot right back.

"The ocean is your grave! If you try to jump my spears will pierce straight through you! Die!" Krieg threw several tiny bombs into the water.

"He's shooting his bombs again!" The cooks exclaimed, "He's gonna make a screen!" It indeed made a screen of water and Krieg sent multiple spears through it.

"He's hit!" Sanji exclaimed after he heard the sound of blood squirting.

"Hahaha…is he already dead?" Krieg asked arrogantly, only for Luffy to burst from the water seemingly unfazed by the spear, "Annoying little.." Luffy fell forward onto his hands and sent his left leg into the sky, then straight back down into the water, causing his own screen of water, "using my own tricks against me…sneaky!" Luffy threw his fist back far, "Looks as if you're gonna stop at nothing to hit me," Krieg turned his fur-lined cape inside out to reveal a spike-lined interior, "try and hit me with my Kenzan Cape!"

"That dirty son of a bitch!" Sanji cursed.

"Ahh! He can't hit him now! Not with that thing protecting him!" The cooks exclaimed.

"Hahaha! You can't lay a finger on me!" Krieg laughed.

"Gomu Gomu no…" Luffy ignored everything that Krieg had to say and smashed his fist into Krieg's face, through the spiked cape, "Bullet!"

"What!?" The pirates were shocked to say the least as Krieg was sent flying.

"What a reckless guy!" Sanji commented.

"With his bare hands! Oww!" The cooks held their hands just thinking about the pain it must've caused him.

"Aghh! Don Krieg was knocked out!" The pirates exclaimed, "I've never seen the Don even on his knees, much less flat on his face! That kid just punched the Don right in the face through the spiked-cape!"

"Now is this place really my grave?" Luffy asked as he pulled out the spear that had pierced him, "Or yours? Yours or mine? Which is it!? But don't you dare answer that with stupid spears and spiky capes! This ain't the place for me to die!"

"Talk about idiotic." Sanji stated.

"Take a close look Sanji." Zeff told him.

"Breathe! Breathe! C'mon! Do you need any water!?" Patty yelled from the second level of the Baratie.

"Hang in there!" Carne yelled.

"Oh! Do you want some of our special pudding!?" Patty asked out of nowhere.

"You baka! What good would feeding him more poison do!?" Carne shouted.

"What do you mean poison!?" Patty yelled.

"Meat dishes are by far better than your desserts!" Carne told him. Their arguments were ceased by Gin throwing up more blood.

"Aghh! Don't die!" They cried. Back on the fin Zeff was still talking to Sanji.

"Once in a while, guys like him appear. Idiots that fight to the death once they decide on a goal." Zeff stated.

"Fight to the death…" Sanji repeated.

"A guy like him is the worst enemy you could possibly face…" Zeff smiled, "whether he wins or loses this fight, I like guys like him."

"W-who's gonna win this fight now?" The pirates discussed.

"You dumbass! That was just a fluke! A fluke! There's nothing to worry about!"

"Y-yeah…I hope."

"E-Errand-boy! You can do it!" The cooks cheered.

"If this…" Krieg slowly started to get up, "isn't your grave…then exactly…" Krieg smashed his shoulder guard into Luffy's body, "Whose is it!?" Luffy was sent into the air, "It has to be yours!" Krieg aimed his spears at him again, to which Luffy grinned madly. He used the many pieces of wood to performed a backflip behind Krieg and whilst still in airborne, he launched a devastating kick to Krieg's head.

"No! It's yours!" Luffy shouted as the mighty ruler of the East Blue was sent to the ground yet again.

"H-he knocked the Don down again! He should've died without even having to lay a finger on him!" The pirates exclaimed, "Who the hell is he!?"

"That kid can fight, that's for sure." Patty commented from above.

"He's definitely strong enough to match Don…at this rate…he might even…" The pirates started discussing.

"Shut your mouths!" Krieg shouted as he clamped his two shoulder guards together and swung it at Luffy who managed to dodge just in time. Good thing to, as the platform they were standing on split in two due to the power of the weapon.

"I-it's the Daisenso!" The pirates exclaimed, "He took it out! The most powerful weapon in his entire arsenal!"

"I'll look forward to seeing you deal with this…hammer brat…" Krieg stated, "Unlike my spears where you could afford to take two or three hits with them…if you take even one hit with this…you'll be blown to smithereens!"

"What?" Luffy asked.

"Arghh!" Krieg raised his spear and struck where Luffy was, he barely escaped the explosion.

"What's with that spear!?" The cooks exclaimed.

"Ah! I'm falling!" Luffy was able to stretch to a nearby piece of the galleon, "Phew. What's up with that spear? It explodes every time it touches something."

"This fight isn't looking too good, the longer it takes, the worse off he'll be, plus he's losing too much blood!" Sanji muttered.

"It's the end of the line for you." Krieg informed.

"Damn it, I can't fight at all by jumping across these little 'islands'." Luffy stated, referring to the pieces of the galleon.

"Heh…he can't escape now," The pirates stated, "the harder the swing the bigger the explosion," Krieg attempted to stab him, but the straw-hat wearing captain ducked, narrowly avoiding it, "woah! Look at captain go! The spear weighs well over a ton yet he's swinging it around like nothing! It's undeniable proof that Don Krieg's the strongest!"

"Woah!" Luffy narrowly dodged yet another blow by leaping back, however, he had nowhere to land and he was stuck in the air.

"Got you now!" Krieg swung at Luffy again.

"Agh!" Luffy threw his hands at the spear in an attempt to stop the blow, but it didn't work. The spear swung at full force, creating an explosion where he was positioned. When the smoke cleared Luffy was nowhere to be seen.

"Guess he's nothing anymore." The Don smirked.

"Whew. Close call." Luffy said as he held onto the shaft of the spear, enraging Krieg even more.

"You litte maggot!" Krieg swung the spear into the platform they were standing on again, creating another explosion.

"Ah!" Luffy managed to let go of the spear just before it crashed into the 'island', but the Don took advantage of the momentary flight of air Luffy had. He attempted to stab at the boy, only for him to smash his fists together and while that did indeed stop the spear from piercing his chest. It didn't stop the explosion from occurring afterwards.

"Errand-boy!" Sanji yelled.

"I ain't done with you yet!" Krieg smirked as Luffy was sent to another piece of the former Krieg pirate ship, "After angering me to this extent! There'll be nothing left of you once I'm finished!"

"One more…" Luffy said weakly as he made no attempt to dodge the oncoming explosion as it blew up in his face sending him flying yet again.

"Have you finally realised that the strongest man in the world is none other than me!?" Krieg shouted.

"Errand-boy!" Sanji cried.

"No! He's done for!" The cooks yelled. Luffy smirked as he brought his left leg down onto the wide platform they were on. The shockwave caused by that was all that was needed to shatter the tip of the spear.

"W-wha!? My Daisenso! What did you do!?" Krieg exclaimed.

"I punched it five times!" Luffy grinned madly, "Now get ready! Cause on this wide, open platform, I'll send you flying!"

"What!?" Krieg shouted.

"With that spear-tip broken, it's nothing but a bomb on a stick," Luffy continued grinning, "I must've reduced its power by at least half."

"Is that you think?" Krieg smirked.

"U…unbelieveable! To think that Don Krieg's most powerful weapon, could be broken!" The pirates exclaimed.

"He did it! He really did it!" The cooks cheered.

"Considering that even a mere bomb on a stick could still easily blow you away, I'd say that I've got more than enough power to win," Krieg explained, "not only that, but you're bleeding all over and took two blasts from my Daisenso."

"That's right! With all of the injuries that errand-boy sustained and all the blood he's lost he should be on the verge of collapsing," Sanji agreed, "only one more blast from that spear and he'll be killed! With all those armour and weapons it's almost impossible to beat him!"

"Sanji…no matter how many hundreds of weapons or armour one is equipped with, they're no match for spirit and guts," Zeff explained, "on the battlefield where life and death are decided, the one who fears death and hesitates for even a second shall die instantly."

"What do you mean?" Sanji asked.

"Within that boy, if nothing else," Zeff smiled warmly, "lays no hesitation. Perhaps it stems from his complete readiness to survive no matter what the cost, or his conviction that fears nothing, not even death."

"Conviction?" Sanji questioned.

"Say goodbye!" Krieg yelled as he raised his spear, well bomb on a stick, once again, "Ever since the fight began, your death was set in stone!"

"Ha! As if!" Luffy stuck his tongue out and jumped back just in time before he was caught in another explosion. He jumped up and caught a hold of the broken yard of the mast, "Hit me if you can!"

"Damn monkey!" Krieg muttered as he swung again, only to have Luffy swing around on the yard.

"Oo-oo-ahh-ahh!" He started to imitate a monkey in an attempt to anger Krieg.

"Just die!" Krieg demanded as he burst the mast that Luffy was swinging on, as it was falling, Luffy ripped off a piece of the yard and used it as his own spear and threw it at Krieg, "Hmph…simple." Krieg smirked as he revealed a wrist-mounted flamethrower that burned through the wood.

"A flamethrower!? How many weapons does this guy have!?" Sanji exclaimed.

"Gomu Gomu no…" Luffy started to the punch the air multiple times, giving the illusion that he had hundreds of arms, "Gatling!" He hit Krieg dead in the chest hundreds of times, but it seemed as if he was unfazed.

"Kuhahahaha!" Krieg laughed, "Futile! Nothing can hurt me through this wootz steel armour!"

"And…" Luffy stretched out his arm and ran forward, "Bullet!" Luffy gave a powerful punch directly to Krieg's abdomen.

"D-Don!" The pirates exclaimed.

"Insolent monkey!" Krieg shouted as he swung his spear, Luffy narrowly avoiding it, "Nothing can break my armour! Nothing!"

"I'd say I'm just about there…" Luffy mumbled as blood flowed from all over his body. Krieg walked up the mast to a high advantage point.

"Can't you see? Having the greatest armour and weapons, equates to the greatest might!?" Krieg yelled, "And those who defy the strong are doomed to die. Hammer brat." Krieg smirked as he threw down more bombs.

"Ahh! He's gonna destroy the platform! Run errand-boy!" The cooks cried.

"Fuhahahaha! It's over!" The pirates cheered.

"Only the strong survive!" Krieg shouted.

"Which would be me!" Luffy grinned as he ran up the mast, dodging the bombs.

"Baka! You're doing exactly what he wants!" Sanji yelled.

"Gomu Gomu no…" Luffy outstretched both his hands backwards as he continued to rush forward.

"How useless…that's exactly what I wanted you to do!" Krieg brought his spear up and swung it at Luffy, a large explosion occurring because of it, "There are some things that you can't overcome with willpower alone." However, Luffy charged through the explosion as if it were nothing, "Wha!?"

"Bazooka!" Luffy smashed his two hands into the Don, sending him flying in the air.

"Kuhahahaha! I told you! It's all-futile! Now die in this explosion!" Krieg laughed maniacally as the bombs exploded on the platform, with Luffy being caught in it.

"Errand-boy!" Sanji exclaimed.

"Gomu Gomu no…" Luffy stated from above Krieg in the air.

"Wha!? How'd you escape!?" Krieg shouted.

"Bazooka!" Luffy slammed his hands into Krieg's torso guard, this time, completely destroying it.

"Kyaa!" Krieg threw up loads of blood. Luffy grinned at his success.

"Don!" The pirates cried.

"Yeah! Errand-boy! He did it!" The cooks cheered.

"It's too early for celebrations hammer boy!" Krieg screamed as he threw an iron net around Luffy.

"Ahh! He's still alive!?" Luffy shouted.

"Kuhahahahaha! You can't escape!" Krieg screamed, "Below us is the sea! You're gonna drown! I'll win! I always win!"

"Hahaha! That's our Don!" The pirates cheered, "Kill the rubber kid!"

"As long as I can still stretch my arms and legs, I've still won!" Luffy declared as he stretched his arms and legs outside the net.

"That bastard! He's still trying to fight!? But the ocean should be his weak point!" The pirates exclaimed.

'He doesn't hesitate…not even for an instant…how can he…?' Sanji thought. Luffy twisted his legs around until his feet held the sides of Krieg's head.

'Who the hell is this guy!? Despite my countless weapons! Despite my strength!' Don Krieg thought angrily.

"How can he keep fighting?" Zeff asked.

"Hm?" Sanji questioned.

"Is that what you were wondering?" Zeff asked.

'How can he keep charging at me!? I'm the great pirate fleet admiral Don Krieg!' The Don thought.

"Give me some support! Bastards!" Krieg ordered his subordinates.

"Right!" The pirates all pulled crossbows out of the water and aimed at Luffy, "Shoot him at once!"

"Don't you dare," Sanji threatened as he stood on two of the pirate's heads, "or I'll kill all of you." Luffy started spinning Krieg in his feet.

"Gomu Gomu no…" Luffy slammed his head against the fin, "Ozuchi!"

"Gyaaa!" Krieg cried in pain.

"Ahhh! Don Krieg!" The pirates cried.

"Way to go! Errand-boy!" The cooks cheered.

"H…he really did it! He defeated the pirate fleet admiral Don Krieg!" Patty exclaimed.

"Was there ever any doubt?" Naruto asked as he slowly stood up and started walking downstairs to the fin.

"Hey! You're still injured!" Carne stated.

"I'm fine, don't worry." Naruto ignored his warnings. Due to the momentum that Luffy created, still in his iron net, he fell into the sea and started sinking.

"If that fleet that Krieg amassed, along with the hundreds of weapons, armours, and even his poison gas can be seen as his 'might'," Zeff stated, "then the 'spear' of that boy is his own league of might all the same."

"Spear…" Sanji mumbled, "conviction…"

"Don! Hang in there!" The pirates exclaimed as they tried to recover their fallen captain, "Dam it! How could our Don have been defeated!?"

"I happen to know of a certain baka who'd stifle that very spear for no good reason," Zeff stated referring to Sanji, "what're you sitting there for? Hurry up and rescue him cause he ain't coming back up on his own. Those with Akuma no Mi abilities are hated by the sea and therefore cannot swim."

"What!? You could've told me that before! Damn geezer!" Sanji threw off his shoes and shirt and dived after him immediately.

"Hmf…" Zeff smiled.

"Krieg lost…?" Gin asked from the second level, "as if that could ever happen…he's the supreme ruler of the seas."

"You can deny it all you want but he was beaten, just look!" Patty pointed to the body of Krieg.

"His armour's in pieces!" Carne stated.

"He's…the only man…I ever admired! I believed he was the strongest." Gin stated as he started to stand up.

"H-hey! Don't move! The poison might spread!" Patty shouted.

"Y-y-yeah! Don't move!" Carne agreed. Sanji emerged from the sea with a loud gasp while holding Luffy.

"Hey, don't die on me." Sanji smirked as he tapped Luffy on the head.

"Aren't I the strongest!?" The heard the infamous voice of Don Krieg scream, "No one dares go against me! I've won all of my battles! There's no way someone can match my strength!"

"Don! Please stop!" The pirates pleaded, "If you keep yelling those injuries will expand!"

"Krieg!" Sanji exclaimed.

"I win…and w…ill…con…tinue…" Krieg sputtered out more blood, "to win! I am the strongest!" Krieg was silenced by a strong punch to the gut courtesy of Gin.

"Don Krieg, we've lost." Gin stated as he heaved the heavy man onto his shoulder.

"Battle Commander!" The pirates exclaimed.

"Let's retreat, and start anew," Gin told the crew, "thanks for everything, Sanji."

"Yeah, please don't come again." Sanji lit a cigarette.

"Hey! Did you forget!? You inhaled poison! Deadly! Deadly! Poison!" Patty exclaimed.

"What're you planning to do with the very man that tried to kill you!?" Carne questioned.

"Sanji, when the kid wakes up, could you pass the message onto him?" Gin asked, "Let's meet again out on the Grand Line."

"You're gonna keep being a pirate?" Sanji questioned.

"Psh…you never learn." Patty sighed.

"When I think about it, there's nothing else I wanna do, I guess before I realised it Don Krieg's ambition became mine." Gin stated before his mouth practically exploded with blood.

"Gin!" Sanji and the pirates exclaimed.

"I might…only…have a few…more hours to live," Gin started, "so it may be a bit cowardly for me to make this decision at the end of my life, but it's still good for me nonetheless. I've decided that this time, I'm doing things my way. If I do that I won't have to runaway anymore. Ha. Loyalty to the Don, my ass! All I've been doing is using the Don's name as a shield to escape and hide behind. As long as you're prepared, things like being scared of your enemies or getting hurt are nothing but useless worrying. That guy over there taught me it's better not to worry about any of that stuff."

"Patty! Carne! Give them the ship we use to go out and buy ingredients!" Sanji ordered.

"Are you retarded!?" Patty cried.

"Why would we give our own boat to the very same people that attacked us!?" Carne exclaimed.

"Shut up and give them the boat already!" Sanji demanded.

"Alright…" Carne turned around.

"No need to yell…" Patty turned around as well, "why that son of a bitch! I swear I'm gonna kill that bastard one day!"

"Always ordering us around!" Carne shouted, "But he's inherited the owner's amazing kicks!"

"Maybe if fifteen of us attack him in his sleep we might win!" Patty stated.

"Might!?" Carne exclaimed. Three hours after the event occurred, Luffy woke up in what looked like a medic bay with bandages all over his body.

"My hat!" Luffy cried.

"It's right there." Sanji sighed from outside the doorway.

"Oh, yeah." Luffy grinned as he placed his signature hat back on his head.

"Sorry, we ran out of bandages." Sanji apologized.

"Don't need them," Luffy pulled off the painful bandages, "what happened to those guys?"

"They've left, thanks to you," Sanji took a deep inhale of his cigarette, "Let's meet on the Grand Line, that's what Gin said before he left."

"Cool, he said that to you?" Luffy asked.

"No! To you shitty dumbass!" Sanji shouted.

"Oh, you're awake Luffy." Naruto pointed out as he walked by.

"Yep! Ah! My days as an errand-boy are finally over! Cause of that promise I made to the owner!" Luffy cheered, "So then! Sanji, you wanna-"

"I ain't gonna be a pirate," Sanji answered, "I'm gonna stay here until that damn geezer acknowledges my cooking. After something like this, I must stay. The cooks here are completely undependable. But I would like to go out to the Grand Line one of these days."

"Then let's go right now!" Luffy offered.

"Not just now though," Sanji answered, "Hey…do you know about the All Blue?"

"No." Luffy and Naruto answered.

"What? You've never heard of the ocean of miracles?" Sanji asked with a smirk on his face.

"Miracles!?" Luffy exclaimed.

"Yep, you see in the All Blue…" Sanji started to explain the wonders of the sea with as much child-like enthusiasm as a he did when he was younger, little did the know Zeff was above them.

"Talking with such a stupid wide grin on your face," Zeff smiled at his protégé, "baka."

Employee Dining Hall

"Time for some grub! Bastards!" Patty exclaimed.

"Who's in charge of cooking today?" One of the cooks asked.

"That'd be me!" Patty answered.

"And me!" Carne stated.

"Oh…the hellish duo, nothing to look forward to." The cook stated.

"Just shut up and eat!" Patty ordered. The door opened to reveal Luffy, Naruto

and Sanji.

"Hey, where our seats?" Sanji asked.

"There aren't any chairs for you," The cooks answered, "just eat on the floor."

"What'd you mean there aren't any chairs!? This is a restaurant!" Sanji sighed as he grabbed a plate of food, "Fine, whatever."

"Something's strange about them." Luffy stated as he sat on the floor.

"Something's always strange about them." Sanji replied.

"Hey! Who was the one who made the soup!?" Patty yelled.

"That'd be me!" Sanji answered, "Pretty good huh? I made it especially-" Sanji was silenced as Patty threw it on the floor, shattering the plate and spilling the soup over the floor.

"How the hell am I supposed to eat that shit!" Patty shouted. Filling Sanji up with uncontrollable anger.

"Is human food not suited to you, you shitty racoon?" Sanji asked.

"This is pure crap of the highest quality, makes me wanna puke!" Patty shouted, "Did you actually shit in this!?"

"I'm completely confident about my soup, maybe your taste buds are screwed up." Sanji stated threateningly.

"Yuck!" Carne cried as he spat out the soup.

"Now way we can eat this filth! Throw it out! Spit, spit! Terrible! Just terrible!" The cooks cried as they spat out the soup.

"The hell do you think you're doing!" Sanji yelled.

"You being the assistant head chef is a massive sham! It's only because you've been here the longest!" Patty stated.

"I'm sick of your violent ways." Carne stated. There was another plate smashed; they turned to see Zeff above the broken plate.

"Owner!" The cooks exclaimed.

"Geezer!" Sanji muttered.

"What's with this soup? Is it supposed to taste like shit!?" Zeff questioned, "We'd go broke if we fed this type of shit to the customers!"

"Don't joke with me damn geezer!" Sanji held Zeff by the collar, "How is my soup different to yours! Tell me now!"

"The soup I make!? Don't get cocky!" Zeff yelled as he punched Sanji to the floor.

"The owner…punched him!?" Patty exclaimed.

"You're a hundred years too early to be comparing my soup to yours!" Zeff declared, "I've cooked all around the world!"

"He didn't kick him…" The cooks mumbled.

"Arghh! Damn it!" Sanji exclaimed as he stormed out of the dining hall and slammed the door on his way out.

"I think the soup's pretty good." Luffy told them.

"Yeah, what's with you guys?" Naruto asked.

"Acting is pretty hard…" The cooks mumbled, "He was really mad. Pretty scary eh?"

"Yeah, but if we didn't do that, that baka would never listen to us," Zeff told him, "Hey kid, would you mind taking the eggplant with you? Take him to the Grand Line…it's his dream." Unbeknownst to them, Sanji was just outside and could hear everything that was going on.

"I can…still hear you…bastards…" Sanji attempted to contain the tears while he heard the comments of the cooks inside.

"Phew! That was more trouble than it was worth!"

"It was hard to play along!"

"Hey, give me another helping of this soup!"

"Me too!"

"And me!"

"Don't forget me!"

"Take Sanji along?" Luffy repeated, "Don't wanna."

"Wha!?" The cooks exclaimed.

"What do you mean? Didn't you want a cook for your ship!? Are you not satisfied with him?" Zeff asked.

"Nope, I really like his cooking, and I really want him to come along with me," Luffy explained, "but he said that he didn't want to come, so even if you tell me to take him, I'm not gonna."

"So you won't accept him until he says he wants to come?" Zeff asked.

"Yup," Luffy nodded, "more soup."

"Luffy, you make everything so much more difficult." Naruto sighed.

"Well…you do have a point kid…the problem is that the baka won't be honest with himself, he's too hard-headed." Zeff explained.

"More soup." Luffy requested rudely.

"Huh…" Sanji sighed from outside.

"Dabadabadababababababa!" He heard something coming from the ocean, "Abababababababa!"

"Hm?" Sanji looked up.

"Dababababababababadadada!" The sound continued.

"What!?" Sanji exclaimed as a figure leapt out of the water.

"Aghhhh!" It exclaimed as it crashed into the Baratie, taking Sanji with it. They landed inside the employee dining hall.

"Sanji!" The cooks exclaimed, "Is it a mermaid? Did it come all the way from Fishman Island to try our cooking?"

"No baka, it's just some guy in a pandashark." Sanji answered.

"Huh…Yosaku!?" Luffy exclaimed once he realised that he was the man inside the shark's mouth.

"Ah…Luffy-aniki…" Yosaku greeted him.

"What're you doing here alone? Where are the others? What about Nami?" Luffy started asking questions.

"Better yet, why're you in a shark?" Naruto asked.

"We couldn't catch up to Nami-aniki, but from the direction she was sailing in, we're pretty sure we know where she's headed." Yosaku answered while he was given a blanket from one of the cooks.

"Good. Let's go and bring her back." Luffy stated.

"Well umm…if she's headed to where we think she's headed to…then it's an incredibly dangerous place!" Yosaku informed, "Well, I'll fill you in on the details later, in any case we need your strength! Naruto-aniki! Luffy-aniki! Please come right away!"

"I'm ready! Let's go!" Luffy stated.

"Wait," Sanji told him, "take me with you."

"What!?" The cooks exclaimed.

"Sanji…" Zeff mumbled.

"I'll accompany you on your way to becoming the Pirate King," Sanji told him, "after all we both have crazy dreams. So I'll tag along to fulfil mine as well. I'll be the cook for your ship, sound good?"

"Sounds great!" Luffy cheered, "Woohoo!"

"Finally, a cook." Naruto smirked. Luffy and Yosaku had a celebratory dance.

"So that's how it's gonna be," Sanji said as he turned to face the rest of the cooks, "sorry for all the trouble I've caused you."

"Hmph. I don't like it one bit, I wanted to be the one to throw you outta here." Patty stated.

"Sorry for making you put on that shitty performance." Sanji told them.

"Wha!? You knew!?" The cooks cried.

"I could hear you crystal clear from outside, bakas." Sanji explained.

"What!?" The cooks exclaimed.

"So…you wanted to kick me out that badly, huh? You shitty geezer?" Sanji asked.

"That's exactly right eggplant," Zeff answered, "I've always hated brats like you. There hasn't been a single day when I didn't regret saving you."

"Whatever…enjoy the few years you have left." Sanji retorted. The crew dispersed, Yosaku going with two others down to where Sanji's boat was docked.

"Wow! We can really take this!?" Yosaku exclaimed.

"Yeah, it is Sanji's after all." One of the cooks replied. Luffy was in the meat storage room.

"You wanna take more!?" The cook that was with him exclaimed.

"Yup, gimme more meat." Luffy answered.

"How many days are you gonna be sailing for?" The cook asked.

"Dunno." Luffy replied. Zeff was lying in his bed in his cabin that still had the hole from the cannonball earlier, thinking about the earlier origins of the Baratie. Sanji was sitting in the dining hall, also thinking about this.

'Hey! Old geezer! This is amazing! This'll be the restaurant on the seas!' Sanji remembered himself saying to the younger Zeff.

"Cook-aniki sure is late," Yosaku commented as he and the rest of the Straw-Hat Pirates sat in Sanji's boat. The rest of the cooks all formed outside, "ah, there he is." Sanji walked out of the dining hall, the cooks formed a passageway to the boat.

"Ahh! This is payback for all those years!" Patty suddenly exclaimed as he and Carne jumped behind Sanji holding giant spoons.

"Die! Sanji!" Carne shouted. Without even looking, Sanji swiftly kicked once, causing both to fall to the ground with bleeding heads.

"I said you couldn't win." A cook said as he sat in front of them. Sanji continued to walk to the ship, refusing to look at any of the other cooks.

"Let's go." Sanji said as he held his own bag in his hand.

"Just like that? Without saying any goodbyes?" Luffy asked.

"It's fine." Sanji replied.

"Hey Sanji," Zeff farewelled, "don't catch a cold." This simple act of compassion caused tears to flow out of Sanji's eyes like a waterfall.

"Owner Zeff!" Sanji shouted as he bowed his head to the great man, "I'm eternally grateful for taking care of me for so long! I promise! I'll never forget the debt I owe you!" Zeff struggled to hold back the tears.

"You bastard!" Patty and Carne exclaimed, tears also flowing down their eyes, "Goddam it! We're going to be lonely without you! So lonely!" Soon the entire crew of fighting cooks ere saluting Sanji and crying loudly.

"Damn bakas…men should say their goodbyes silently." Zeff covered his eyes in an attempt to hide his tears.

"Let's meet again!" Sanji farewelled, "You good for nothing bastards!"

"Set sail!" Luffy yelled. And with the threat of Don Krieg out of the way, the crew sailed off to follow Nami, with a new nakama with them.

That was a massive trek! 82 pages and 25,637 words! I hope I did this arc justice, I slightly switched up my writing style, I hope you liked it.

1. Akuma Hachidori no Gyakushū = Demon Hummingbird Strikes

2. Akuma Fokkusu Ken = Demon Fox Fist

So Mihawk knows about chakra and only one other person besides Naruto can use it. I'll let you have a guess at who it is! It shouldn't be that hard to figure out. I've also been thinking about keeping Johnny and Yosaku on the crew. Do you think that'd be a good idea? Anyway, thanks for all the support and I hope that you continue reading!