The sun burned gold on the horizon, casting molten reflections over the calm stretch of East Blue.
Ash's ship — The Revenant — creaked softly as waves lapped at its sides. Seagulls followed lazily above, squawking like gossiping old sailors.
Nami sat cross-legged on the deck, charts sprawled in front of her, muttering to herself.
"West current… twenty knots… if the wind holds, we'll hit Reverse Mountain in one day. Assuming someone doesn't decide to start another bar fight."
She shot a glare toward Ash, who leaned against the rail sipping from a flask, his expression as carefree as the breeze.
Ash chuckled. "Hey, I had to give a Artistic debut as a pirate right ?"
Zoro snorted from where he was napping.
"Your definition of 'art' is arson."
Medusa lounged near the mast, her violet eyes half-lidded, a small shimmer of cursed energy playing between her fingers like fireflies.
"You can't deny it was fun though,"
she said with a teasing smile.
Reina was humming at the stern, her apron fluttering in the wind. She was chopping vegetables with supernatural precision — her knives moved so fast they left streaks of light.
"Fun or not,"
she said, tossing diced peppers into a sizzling pan she'd conjured midair,
"I'm not cooking air anymore. We're almost out of ingredients."
"Already?" Ash asked, scratching his head.
"Because someone,"
Reina jabbed her spatula toward him,
"decided to feed an entire dock's worth of Marines my spicy meatballs!"
Ash raised his hands defensively.
"In my defense, it was a strategic distraction."
Zoro grinned without opening his eyes.
"They were distracted. Mostly by screaming."
Everyone laughed. For a brief moment, the chaos of piracy felt like family.
But then —
BOOM.
A dull thud shook the ship. Everyone froze.
From the port side, something large and wooden emerged from the mist — a sprawling structure of sails and decks, rising like a fortress over the waves.
Nami blinked. "What in the world is that?"
Reina's eyes sparkled. "Oh… you've got to be kidding me."
Before them loomed the Baratie — the floating restaurant, shaped like a massive fish with its mouth open wide to welcome guests. The scent of grilled seafood and roasted garlic wafted across the sea.
A sign gleamed above the entrance in bold letters:
"Baratie — The Ocean's Finest Cuisine!"
Ash whistled low. "Well, looks like we are not going to starve ?"
Reina clasped her hands dramatically. "It's a restaurant... on water. My people!"
Medusa peered up lazily. "Great. Maybe they sell directions to Reverse Mountain too."
"Or booze," zoro added.
---
Inside the Baratie,
If the sea outside was peaceful, the inside was anything but. The place was alive — the air thick with laughter, sizzling pans, and the chaos of service.
Dozens of chefs in crisp uniforms dashed across the floor balancing trays and barking orders. Customers yelled over one another, raising mugs of ale and plates of seafood.
A burly chef with scars on his forearms slammed a plate down. "Order for Table 5! Who the hell burned the sea bass again!?"
"Not me!" shouted a nervous sous-chef, ducking as a frying pan flew past his head.
At the bar, an old man with a wooden leg — Zeff, the legendary "Red-Leg Zeff" — leaned on the counter, watching the commotion with a knowing smirk.
"Every damn day's a war in my kitchen," he muttered, puffing on his pipe.
The doors swung open.
Five figures stepped inside — each looking like trouble in their own unique way.
The room quieted.
Ash took the lead, coat swaying behind him, his bounty poster now a rumor whispered in every tavern.
Zoro followed, blades clinking. Medusa's gaze, even covered by a visor ,made nearby patrons shrink back instinctively.
Nami looked unimpressed but sharp. Reina, though — she grinned like she'd just come home.
A waitress approached cautiously. "Um… table for five?"
Reina beamed. "And a kitchen tour, if possible!"
The waitress blinked. "A… what?"
Reina ignored her completely, scanning the room like a predator in a buffet.
"Look at this craftsmanship,"
she whispered in awe.
"Those knives. That plating. The aroma… oh yes, whoever cooks here is good."
From behind the bar, Zeff's voice growled.
"Oi, you planning to drool all over my floor, missy?"
Reina turned, eyes glinting.
"You must be Zeff, the Red-Leg. Former pirate, current culinary genius."
Zeff raised an eyebrow. "And you must be another loudmouth who can't afford the menu."
Ash coughed to hide a laugh.
Reina didn't even blink.
"You wound me, old man. I'm a chef too — Reina Vale, wielder of the Chef-Chef Fruit. And I came here to taste heaven itself."
The room exploded in chatter.
"A Devil Fruit user?"
"She's challenging Zeff?"
"Another lunatic pirate crew, great."
One of the sous-chefs, a wiry man named Marco the Butcher, snorted.
"You talk big for someone who just walked in, lady."
Reina smiled sweetly. "You talk too much for someone whose fish is overcooked."
Marco bristled. "What did you just—?"
Zeff slammed his cane on the floor.
"Enough! You want to prove yourself, girl? Fine. You've got one shot."
He pointed toward the kitchen. "We're in the middle of lunch rush. You burn a dish, you're out. Impress me, and maybe I'll let you wash the dishes afterward."
Reina's grin widened dangerously. "Challenge accepted."
---
In the Kitchen
The kitchen of Baratie was chaos incarnate. Chefs shouted, pans flared, oil hissed like serpents.
Reina stepped in, rolling her sleeves with the poise of a warrior entering battle.
A young chef whispered to his partner, "She's going to get eaten alive."
"Or feed us all to death," the other muttered.
Reina cracked her knuckles. Her eyes glowed faintly as she activated her fruit's power.
"Let's cook."
She conjured floating ingredients — meats, vegetables, spices — all orbiting her like planets. Her knives danced in midair, chopping in rhythmic harmony. Steam rose, filling the air with intoxicating aroma.
Even Zeff, watching from the doorway, raised an eyebrow.
In mere minutes, she presented her dish — a Sea King Fillet in Citrus Butter Reduction, its aroma slicing through the kitchen noise like a song.
Zeff tasted it.
Silence.
Then…
"…Not bad."
Reina's grin turned triumphant. "That means great, in old man language."
Zeff smirked. "Don't push your luck, lass."
---
Out in the dining hall, the crew watched from their table as Reina strutted out with a towel over her shoulder like she owned the place.
Nami whistled. "She actually did it."
Zoro grinned. "I'm impressed."
Ash chuckled, watching Zeff eye them warily.
"Well, looks like we made friends in high places for once."
"Don't jinx it," Medusa murmured.
Because just then—
CRASH!
The restaurant shuddered as the doors burst open.
Dozens of battered pirates stumbled in, their tattered Jolly Roger bearing the mark of a cracked shield — Don Krieg's emblem.
Gasps filled the room.
"Krieg Pirates!"
"They're supposed to be wiped out!"
At the front, half-conscious but still standing, Gin the Demon Man collapsed onto the floor.
Zeff's eyes narrowed. "So the vultures finally show up."
Ash grinned 'Is this some kind of main character effect ? I mean seriously! Does that mean Mihawk is here too ?? So zoro getting crushed by the final boss is still going to happen ? Sigh~ Whoever- the author of my story is --- I wish you stumble upon a table and break your toe-nail.'
[Fuck you too Ash (^~^) ] A/N.
_______________
System notification:
Mission: Defeat krieg pirates
Penalty: None
Reward: Life bond pet-(random)
________________
Ash grinned wide,
"Looks like lunch's about to get interesting."
---
The air in Baratie thickened with tension. The joyous chatter died down, replaced by whispers and the creak of wood as every eye turned toward the doorway.
The Krieg Pirates stood there, broken, burned, and starving. Their once-proud armor hung in tatters, faces gaunt from hunger.
The stench of salt, blood, and desperation rolled off them like a stormfront.
At their center, a man knelt—Gin,
"The Man-Demon," Krieg's right hand. He collapsed forward, wheezing.
"F…food…"
Zeff's peg leg thudded against the floor as he approached, silent as a tide.
"You're bold, showing your faces here,"
he said gruffly.
"You lot caused enough chaos last time you came through East Blue."
Gin raised his head weakly.
"Please… I'll do anything. Just… something to eat."
There was a long pause. Even the waves outside seemed to hush.
Then, a calm voice broke the silence.
"Give him food."
Heads turned.
It was a young man in a black suit, blond hair covering one eye, a cigarette between his lips. His presence was sharp but effortless—like a knife hidden in a velvet sheath.
Sanji, the sous-chef of Baratie.
He stepped forward, his blue eyes steady.
"He's starving. Doesn't matter if he's a pirate, a Marine, or the damn Sea King himself. A cook feeds the hungry. That's our creed."
One of the other chefs—Marco the Butcher—grabbed his arm.
"You idiot! That's a Krieg Pirate! They'll gut us soon as they can stand!"
Sanji blew out a lazy puff of smoke.
"Then I'll make sure he eats enough to have the strength to regret it."
Zeff sighed, rubbing his temple.
"Do what you want, brat. But don't cry to me when the place burns down."
Sanji just smiled. "Wouldn't dream of it, old man."
.
.
.
.
_______To be continued _______