Thank you all for your responses. It was very nice to hear. I'm glad many of you liked the idea of Zoro going against Kuro and the fight between the Nyaban Brothers vs Luffy, Usopp and Nami. I was a bit worried to hear what you might think of it, but I'm glad you liked it.
Also, don't be afraid to leave me a message or review with some concerns or disagreement about certain things. It helps as a writer to get some criticism to progress as a writer.
One other thing, I am making some slight revision to Luffy's harem, due to much thought about it and making decisions that would be best for the story. Also, it's better to change the list now then making the change at some random point that might ruin the story. It's better to add, then change the harem at a later point in the story. It's not too big of a change and if you dislike the change, don't worry since the girls I'm changing will be involved with a different SH. For the record, Luffy is not the only character whose getting a harem *wink wink. Anyway, the updated harem list as of Chapter 869, for now only Luffy, will reveal the other character harem list later on, is as follow:
Luffy's Harem:
Nami
Robin
Koala
Vivi
Hancock
Shirahoshi
Rebecca
Reiju (Yep, I'm doing it lol)
As for Nojiko, shes still gonna be part of the story, but shell probably be paired up with another character. Not sure who yet.
Now let me answer some reviews:
Flux Casey: Thank you for the review. Yes, Koala thinks Luffy did join the Revolutionary Army. The moment Luffy said that he didn't plan on joining the Revolutionary Army was during a time when the other Revolutionist, who got sent back in time, did not know he didn't join. Thus, he assumed Luffy did and that is what he told the present day Revolutionary Army. I understand why it would seem confusing, by the wording I did in the previous chapters, but she and the others don't know that he fully joined the army.
Lightningblade49: Thank your for the review. The relationship with Koala and Nami will soon start to develop as we head closer and closer to the Arlong Park Arc. I know many are excited for it, as am I in writing it, so stay tuned for the relationship development between them. I never once thought of it as some Pokemon battle, but I can see why you may think so. I'm glad you liked that fight and the bond growth with Zoro. Luffy's mind has always been interesting to me. He is very blunt and always speak his mind. Once you are able to understand this, then, in my opinion, you can build on it and make it more intelligent and use his mind more than just going on instinct. To say he wont go on instinct int his story will be a lie though, since that is one of his best characteristics. Funny you say that, cause when I was thinking of having Zoro use that move, I pictured his legs turning into blades.
The Keeper of the Worlds: Thank you for the review. I wasn't trying to make him out as Sanji, but Koala is the pride and joy of the Revolutionary Army so almost all the men are affectionate about her. She slightly knows this, but also gets confused by it sometimes.
MakubeDaKiddX: Thank you for the review. I'm glad you this story made your crappy day somewhat good. One of the reasons why I like writing in general. I'm glad you liked my change of having Zoro vs Kuro. I had thought about doing that for this arc, mostly because it would be blade vs blades, so who better than Zoro. It also helped me in creating and building on the bond between Zoro and Luffy. It's still not as strong as say Thriller Bark level, but everything needs to start off small somewhere. As for your Film Gold question, I will not say much, but I did like Carina...a lot so...who knows what I might do.
Alain59370: Thank you for the review! Well, we can't forget about the others. Luffy will get his fights, so expect them relatively soon. What can I say, I like LuNa, not because I think they look good together, but because how their potential canon relationship is being written. I'm not Oda, so I cant say he will make them canon, but if he does, he wrote their relationship and their bond so well that it become great writing on his part. However, I'm a sucker for harem stories so sue me.
Hina Hinata-chan: Thank you for the review! The first mate debate is one that goes on all over the One Piece fandom. Most say Zoro because hes the second strongest among the crew. However, there are some who believe Nami is because she takes over the crew when it comes to the sea or certain stuff and thus makes her look kind of like a vice captain in certain situations. Same could be said for Zoro as he has shown vice captain/first mate type instances in certain moments. I think Oda doesn't put a label like first mate because he views the crew as equals, despite Luffy being the Captain. Koala, is his supervisor in terms of the Revolutionary Army objectives, not the crew. She understands her role and doesn't want to take the vice captain role because she was not a part of the original crew and feels she is not for to fill the role, at least that's how I would interpret it.
OnePieceFan2: Thank you for the review! Time travel is a very tricky thing. There will be something implemented in the story very soon about time travel that I feel not a lot of time travel stories, if any, don't necessarily seem to take account for. I'm not saying Luffy knows anything about the consequences of time travel, but it's also confusing which is why hes uncertain of what he has to do or not. Thus, making him feel like he has to stay to the status quo is his best chance to go back on his journey. Glad you like the Zoro vs Kuro fight. The technique fits best for Zoro as it allows him to use his body like blades thus making him a more unique swordsman and stronger as well. Luffy can't be the only who gets a significant power up. Koala does not know that. As the manga progresses, I have to keep track on some things to avoid any sudden changes to the story that will change my story, which is hard since new stuff always gets introduced. It is hard, but I hope I can make it work. As for the Zeff thing, stay tuned for what I plan on doing.
Blackstriker94: Thank you for the review! Yes, Vivi is in the harem.
Halfrican18: Thank you for the review! Glad you liked the growth in bond I did for Zoro and Luffy as well as for Nami and Luffy. Everyone is always anxious for the Arlong Park in these type of stories. I hope I don't disappoint anyone.
Well, that's it for the reviews!
I hope you guys don't mind me just summarizing the event between Luffy and Gaimon. Honestly, it doesn't have any changes that will affect this story, so I'll summarize that they did visit the island and similar things that happened in the manga happened. I hope that's fine for all. With that, on to Chapter 7.
Chapter 7: The Floating Restaurant and Familiar Cook
With Usopp on board as the newest crew member of the Straw Hat Pirates, as well as their new ship, the Going Merry, the pirate crew sailed once more. The crew managed to stop by an island, hoping to resupply, and met with the man trapped inside a treasure chest, Gaimon. After revealing the truth about the treasure that Gaimon was protecting and hoping to obtain, after so long, they bid farewell to the man, hoping to one day see him at some point in their journey.
The pirate crew was now sailing toward their next destination, enjoying the beautiful weather that the day blessed them with. Luffy was on the deck with a plain black flag and a couple of buckets in front of him. Usopp, curiously walked up to him and asked what he was doing.
"A pirate ship needs a jolly roger, right? I'm going to draw it right now." He informed him.
"I see, well let's see it." Luffy nodded at began drawing the jolly roger of the Straw Hat Pirates. However, despite everything Luffy has been through, his drawing sucked and was so sloppily drawn, the others looked at it and commented about how badly drawn it was.
"That's kind of terrifying...in it's own way..." Nami commented.
"W-Well, I mean, the goal is to strike fear in others...so I guess that works...in it's own way..." Zoro added.
"I think it looks cute...in it's own way..." Koala added, slightly unsure about her own comment.
"Maybe it's an abstract..." Nami added as Luffy grinned.
"You guys like it?" He asked.
"You can't draw, can you?" Usopp asked.
"I mean I'm not great, but I think I did okay." Luffy replied.
"Do you want me to draw it?" Usopp offered and Luffy grinned.
"Sure!" He nodded and handed him a clean black sail for him to draw on.
After a short while, Usopp grinned proudly and showed them his masterpiece. "Behold! The greatest pirate flag to sail the seas!" The others looked at the drawing and narrowed their eyes at it. Both Zoro and Luffy then slapped Usopp on the back of their head.
"That's your Jolly Roger!" They both said and made him redo it. After another couple of minutes, Usopp finished drawing the new Jolly Roger. Luffy grinned happily at the sight of his Jolly Roger once again.
"It looks great, Usopp!" Luffy complimented him for his work.
"Well, of course! If I'm not the best artist in the world, no one is." He replied confidently.
"It looks really good." Nami smiled at the grinning, straw hat wearing skull and crossbones.
"Ee!" Koala agreed.
"Well, now that it's done, let's raise it!" Zoro told them and they nodded. They proceeded with raising the Jolly Roger at the top of the crow's nest.
"Yosh! Can you now draw it on the mast?" Luffy asked of Usopp.
"Leave it to me!" He nodded.
Once the Jolly Roger was finished getting drawn on the mast and on the extra black flags, the Going Merry was now a full fledged pirate ship. Luffy was extremely happy and excited that his crew was slowly returning to what he remembered. He then looked out to the ocean and let the wind blow softly against his hair. 'Yosh! Next up, Sanji!'
"Phew...I'm tired..." Usopp groaned as he laid flat on the deck.
"Hey, Usopp!" Luffy called out to him. Usopp sat up and looked over to see Luffy next to the rear cannon.
"Hm? What are you doing, Luffy?" He asked.
"Shishishishi, want to have a contest to see who can hit that small island!" He challenged the long nosed man, who smirked.
"Oh, you're on!" Usopp ran towards him as he passed by a sleeping Zoro.
"What are those two doing?" Koala wondered and walked over to the two as well. Nami just watched the three while leaning on the rail, looking out towards the small island they were trying to shoot.
"Okay! I'll go first!" Luffy aimed the cannon at the island and when he set his aim, he fired. The loud bang woke Zoro up as the cannonball missed the island and hit the water behind it.
"W-What the...? What's going on?" Zoro asked as he then heard Luffy groan.
"Aww, I missed..." Luffy frowned in disappointment.
"Sheesh, you're an awful shot. My turn!" Usopp took a hold of the cannon and aimed for the island. When he finished his preparations, he fired the cannon and unlike Luffy's shot, he got a direct hit on the island.
"Whoa! You got a direct hit!" Luffy exclaimed in amazement.
"I-I did...I mean, of course! I'm the best sharpshooter around!" He proclaimed confidently.
"That is impressive, Usopp-kun." Koala told him looking out to the destroyed island with a hand to her forehead.
"Hehehe." He chuckled.
"What are you guys even doing?" The trio turned around and saw Zoro walking toward them.
"We're just practicing." Luffy told him, pointing to the destroyed island. "See, Usopp managed to hit that."
"Really?" Zoro asked.
"Oi, why do I get the feeling you don't believe me." Usopp narrowed his eyes at the green haired swordsman.
"I didn't even say that, you idiot." Zoro responded back. "Well, whatever, just keep it down, I'm trying to take a nap."
"You always take nap though." Koala said.
"Shut up..." Zoro grumbled and walked away.
"Hmmm...I've been thinking..." Luffy spoke out loud as the crew moved into the cabin after Zoro went to take nap. "...before we enter the Grand Line, we should get one more crucial member to join us."
"Okay, what did you have in mind?" Usopp asked as he sat next to Luffy on the table.
"Well, every pirate crew needs a musician, so we should get one of those." Luffy stated.
"We don't need a musician." Nami told him. "Especially not when we need someone a little more important than that right now."
"Nami-chan is right...we need a cute pet." Nami and Usopp sweat dropped at Koala's suggestion.
"A what?" Usopp asked.
"A pet! You know like a cat or small dog." Koala reiterated.
"No, no...we definitely don't need one of those..." Nami replied to her as the two of them sat next to each across from the boys.
"Tch...stingy..." She pouted.
"Shishishishi." Luffy laughed as he remembered all the cute animals Koala wanted to take with her back to the Revolutionary Army base during their missions, but was rejected by Sabo or his father. "I think I know where your getting at Nami. We need a cook, right?" Nami was slightly surprised by his correct answer.
"Yep! I mean we have this great kitchen, but no one to cook for us. I mean, I would do the cooking, but, it would cost you 20,000 beli each." Nami winked at them.
"No thanks." Luffy and Usopp both told her.
"So, where exactly do we go about looking for this cook?" Koala asked.
"Oh, we're already on a way there." Luffy responded with a smile. Every one was quote surprised by his statement,
"Huh? We are?" Usopp asked.
"Yep!" Luffy nodded as Nami eyed him.
"Shouldn't you inform the navigator on this ship about where we are going?" Nami told him.
"Huh? I thought you knew?"
"Why would I?" She yelled at him.
"Oh well, sorry, my bad." He chuckled.
"Honestly..." Nami groaned at his idiocy.
"SHOW YOURSELF, YOU FILTHY PIRATES! I'LL KILL ALL OF YA!" The roaring yells alerted everyone in the cabin as they looked toward the door.
"Wha- What's going on?" Nami asked as Usopp hid under the table and Luffy hopped off his seat, a small smile on his face as he left the cabin.
When he came outside, he saw the familiar face of Johnny, except he was furious. "You! Are you one of the pirates!?"
"Well, this is a pirate ship...so yeah...I'm Luffy, the Captain." Luffy answered and jumped down to the deck to greet him. Johnny gritted his teeth in anger.
"You bastard! I'm gonna kill you!" He pointed his sword at Luffy.
"Huh? Why?" Luffy asked.
"Don't pretend like you don't know!" Johnny yelled and swung his sword at Luffy, who simply turned to avoid it. "Damn you!" He tried again, but Luffy evaded it easily.
"Whoa, calm down." Luffy tried to calm him down, but it wasn't working.
"Don't tell me to calm down! Because of you, my friend is gonna die!" Johnny now began to stream tears down his face. Luffy stayed expressionless as the others came out from the cabin to see what was going on. Usopp and Nami both hid behind the railing as they looked on between the two.
"I see...I'm sorry." Luffy apologized with a small bow.
"I don't care about your apology. I have killed countless of pirates just like you, so I won't let one of them kill my friend!" He ran toward Luffy with his sword raised high above his head. Luffy raised his hand and stopped the sword with his bare hand. Johnny had a look of utter shock across his face.
"Wow...he stopped the sword with his bare hand." Usopp muttered, surprised as well. "That's incredible..."
"No, it's not. He could have had his hand cut right off." Nami responded.
"Nah, Luffy-kun is not so weak for that to happen." Koala told them as she leaned her elbow on the railing and rested her head on her hand.
"What...but how?" Luffy stared at him with no change to his expression.
"Calm down. I don't know what's going on...but I can help you."
"And why should I believe a pirate?"
"Huh? Johnny?" A new voice spoke as everyone turned their heads toward Zoro. Zoro, who woke up from his nap on the other side of the ship, was surprised to see a familiar face from his past. "I knew a recognized that voice."
"Huh? Z-Zoro...aniki...no way...is that really you, Zoro-aniki...?" Johnny felt his knees go weak as he fell to the deck.
"Yo, long time no see, Johnny." Zoro smirked as he jumped down to the deck.
"Zoro-aniki!" Johnny cried out as he hugged his waist and cried waterfalls.
"Oi! Get off of me. I'm glad to see you too, but what's with the water works!" Zoro asked as he tried to get him off. Once he let go of Zoro, he went to his knees and wiped his tears. Sighing, Zoro scratched his head. "So, what are you making all that noise for?" He asked and then looked around. "Hey, where is Yosaku? He's usually always with you..."
"A-About that..." He sobbed as he clenched his fists on his thighs. "He's sick..."
"What? Sick?" Zoro felt a bit of panic enter his body.
"Y-Yeah...hes been sick for the past three days...I don't know what's wrong..." He started to cry again, but softly.
"Alright, calm down, where is he?" Zoro asked. Johnny told Zoro and the others about Yosaku and eventually had him get on the ship. When they saw him, they saw how unusually pale and sickly he looked. "Oi...he looks really bad..."
"Do you think he's gonna die?" Usopp asked as Johnny felt fear hit his very core.
"Don't say that! He's not gonna die, right Zoro-aniki!?" Zoro wanted to reassure him, but he wasn't entirely sure and didn't want to give him false hope. If only he knew how he could help him. "Just tell us how he got sick..." Maybe if he told them how he got sick they can figure out a way to help him.
"Well, he was perfectly fine about three days ago, but then he collapsed out of nowhere. His teeth started falling out and his old wounds started bleeding." He answered. "We tried to get some rest over by that island over there, but then suddenly, someone shot at it and almost killed us." Usopp gulped as he realized he was the cause of that incident. "Then, I saw this ship and thought you guys were the one who tried to shoot the island and well...now we're here."
"I see..." Zoro narrowed his eyes at his old friend.
"I'm sorry for shooting at the island." Usopp apologized. "I didn't know..."
"It's fine..." Johnny forgave him. "I just want him to get better...I don't care how, just please..." Johnny pleaded with the Straw Hats as Zoro and Usopp looked at each other in concern. "Our names, Yosaku and Johnny, are known by many pirates...he's been helping me as fellow pirate hunters...please tell me he'll be fine..."
Zoro clenched his fists as he felt so helpless.
"Come now...don't tell me you guys never heard of scurvy." The trio all turned to Nami as she frowned at them in disappointment.
"Scur...what?" Zoro asked as Nami sighed.
"Scurvy...a very well know disease that anyone can catch out here in the sea." She explained.
"So then, do you know how to cure him?" Johnny asked hopeful.
"It really is simple." Koala told them. "All he needs to do is get some vitamin C and he'll be fine."
"H-Huh...vitamin...C...?" Johnny repeated as she nodded with a smile.
"Usopp, there should be some lemon in the kitchen. Go get some and make some lemon-" She stopped when she saw Luffy already begin to give Yosaku some lemonade.
"Here you go." Luffy grinned. Nami was quite surprised that Luffy knew what was needed to help the pirate hunter. She did find his sudden disappearance to be a mystery, but now she knew what he was doing. She was quite impressed.
"Wah, Luffy...how did you know what he had?" Usopp asked, surprised as well.
"Hmm? Oh, my brother had something similar when we were kids and this nice lady named Makino helped him by giving him some orange juice and he got better. We didn't have any oranges, but I thought lemon might work too." He lied, but they didn't know so there was no harm in telling them a made up story.
"I see..." Nami whispered, now understanding where he got his knowledge. Once Yosaku drank all the lemonade, he sprung up, fully energized and grinned.
"I'm alive!"
"Bro!" Johnny cried as he and Yosaku danced in celebration at his recovery.
"Shishishishi. Wow, he's already better." Luffy chuckled.
"Like hell he is. People with scurvy don't recover in just a few seconds! He needs at least 2-3 days to recover fully." Nami told him.
"Nami-chan is right. If he doesn't rest, he'll just get sick again." Koala added. At the same time, Yosaku and Johnny stopped dancing when Yosaku collapsed to the floor again.
"Bro!" Johnny cried.
"I told you!" Nami yelled as Luffy got him another mug of lemonade and forced him to drink it.
Once everything calmed down, Johnny and Yosaku stood in front of the others in their cool guy pose as they thanked Luffy and the others for helping them.
"Thank you for saving me, allow us to introduce ourselves. My name is Yosaku."
"And I am Johnny. We are both bounty hunters who hunt pirates for their bounties. We were after a pirate with a bounty when my partner here got sick."
"We were once partners with Zoro before we went our separate ways." Yosaku added and looked over at said man.
"Oh...right..." Zoro muttered.
"Zoro got lost, didn't he?" Luffy chuckled.
"No, I didn't!" Zoro yelled at him.
"Anyway, thank you again and it's a pleasure to meet you all." Yosaku and Johnny nodded their heads.
"Shishishi, nice to meet you guys too."
"But still...I never thought I would see Zoro-aniki become a pirate himself." Johnny said as Zoro shrugged.
"Stuff happened." Zoro replied.
"I see..."
"In any case, this should be a great lesson for us." Nami told them, putting her hands on her hips.
"Lesson?" Zoro and Usopp asked.
"Of course. You saw how easy someone can get sick out here in the sea. We need to make sure none of us get sick. That's why we need a doctor...or at least a cook to make sure we have all our necessary nutrients." Nami told them.
"I see. That makes sense." Zoro muttered and nodded.
"Which is why we're already heading to find one right now." Luffy said, placing his hands behind his head.
"Where exactly are we going?" Usopp asked.
"I heard of this floating ship restaurant with some amazing chefs. That's where we are going. To the floating restaurant, the Baratie." Luffy answered.
"A floating restaurant?" Usopp asked.
"Oh, I heard of it. Supposedly it has some of the best food you would ever eat in the sea." Koala grinned at the thought of food.
"That's right, we went there once and it was so good. However, I think we should warn you." Johnny got serious. "It is very close to the Grand Line and that means there are bound to be stronger pirates sailing near there."
"S-Stronger pirates...?" Usopp felt his legs shake in fear.
"Yeah, but we also heard one other rumor." Yosaku turned to Zoro. "Apparently, the guy you're looking for has been seen nearby as well." Zoro's eyes widened and felt a small, lopsided smirk appear on his face.
"I see..." Luffy eyed Zoro and frowned slightly.
"Do you still plan to go?" Johnny asked
"Of course. I'm not scared." Luffy grinned.
"But...I am..." Usopp whispered sadly as he knew there was no point in arguing.
After 2 days sailing the seas, where a bunch of that time were made for either hanging out, playing games, or helping train Zoro and the others about the six powers, the Straw Hats arrived at the floating restaurant. The Baratie was a boat that had a fish shaped front and a fin shaped rudder on the other end.
"We're here!" Luffy called out to the others as they walked to the front of the ship and saw the Baratie.
"Whoa, that's a really unusual ship." Nami commented.
"Yeah, it's like a giant fish!" Usopp grinned with excitement.
"It's so cute." Koala smiled.
Zoro didn't respond and just stared at the ship. He then noticed something to his right and saw a Marine Ship sail next to theirs. "Um...Luffy, we may have some company."
Luffy and the others turned their heads and saw the Marine Ship, causing Usopp and Nami to panic.
"Oh no! It's the marines! We haven't even begun our journey and we're about to get caught!" Usopp screamed as he ran and hid behind the mast.
"Calm down. We haven't even done anything to warrant an arrest yet." Koala told him, although she knew if they ever found out she and Luffy were in the Revolutionary Army, that would be a whole different story.
"She's right. Let's just stay calm." Nami added and the others nodded.
"Huh?" A voice suddenly spoke out from the marine ship as the lieutenant of the ship came out and eyed the Merry Go. "I never seen that flag before." He muttered. The man was Lieutenant Fullbody. "Hey, you!" He called out to the ship as Luffy answered.
"Yeah?"
"I am Lieutenant Fullbody, the Iron Fist, of the Marines. Who is your captain?" He asked.
"That would be me." Luffy answered, but Usopp answered as well. "I finished my flag about 2 days ago."
"What? 2 days ago?" Johnny let out a chuckle.
"Hahaha, that's funny." Yosaku added.
Fullbody looked over at the two bounty hunters. "Hm? I think I've seen you two before...in some Government Office." He tried to remember where he saw them. "Oh right, you two are those shabby bounty hunters, Johnny and Yosaku, right? What is this? Have you two been caught by these pirates?"
"Huh? Did you hear what hear what he called us?" Johnny asked his partner in their cool guy poses.
"Yeah, he called us shabby bounty hunters. We should teach him a lesson, Johnny." They nodded their heads and jumped over to their ship to attack Fullbody, only to be knocked out instantly.
"Wow...you guys are kind of weak..." Luffy commented as he poked Johnny in the head to make sure hes alive.
"Geez, what are you guys doing?" Zoro sighed.
"He's strong...we almost got him though..." Johnny muttered and groaned.
"Fullbody~" A seductive voice called out from within the cabin of the marine ship. "How long are you planning on teasing them? Let's go already."
"Alright, alright..." He responded. "You're very lucky, pirates." He turned to Luffy and the others. "If I wasn't on vacation, I would have you guys arrested. However, I just want to eat, relax and have a good time. I will warn you though...you better be careful we don't cross each other in the future. If we do, I will have to go all out on you and arrest you."
Luffy ignored the man as Nami walked up to Johnny and Yosaku. She knelt down and picked up some bounty posters. One of them caught her eyes and Luffy felt a sudden change in Nami. He peeked over and saw that the bounty poster was that of Arlong, the fishman. He lowered his head to shield his eyes behind his hat as he felt a bit of anger grow, remembering what that fishman did to her. He was going to enjoy kicking his ass again.
"Oh no! Those marines are pointing their cannons at us!" Usopp shouted and the marine ship's cannons were moving and stopped once they had their aim set.
"What!?" Yosaku and Johnny shouted.
"Sink them." Fullbody told his officers as they saluted. The officer fired the cannon.
"Oh no!" Usopp screamed as he watched the cannonball fly towards them.
"I got this." Luffy stood on the railing and just simply raised his hand, stopping the cannonball dead in its tracks.
"What!?" Fullbody screamed in complete shock.
"He stopped it so easily..." Nami commented.
"No way!" Yosaku and Johnny had their jaws dropped.
"Show off..." Zoro frowned slightly, putting his sword back in his sheath.
"Shishishi! You can have this back!" Luffy threw the cannonball back at the Marines, hitting the cannon that fired the cannonball and destroying it.
"He threw it back!" One of the officers shouted after falling flat on his ass.
"W-Who is that guy?" Another officer asked as Fullbody gritted his teeth.
"Damn, I don't have time for this. I just want to relax." He muttered. "Alright, men, we're ignoring them for now. With out cannon destroyed, we should take this time to fix it." He ordered them and they nodded.
"Can we go now? I'm hungry~" The woman who he was with asked and Fullbody groaned slightly.
"Fine, let's go." He turned to Luffy. "That was a nice cheap trick you did. However, I will get you back for destroying our cannon, but first I have to entertain my lovely guest so until then." He waved them off and then ordered the ship to move closer to the Baratie.
Luffy watched the ship move as he hopped off the railing and turned to the others. "Well, I guess we should head toward the restaurant too."
"Are you sure? I mean, that's where the marine guy is heading too." Usopp asked him.
"Don't worry, he won't do anything at a place like this. I hear it can get quite rough." Luffy replied with a grin. "I'll just go on ahead. See you guys in a bit." He told them, jumped on Merry's head and stretched his arms out. He grabbed a hold of the fish head of the ship and launched himself towards the ship.
"Ah, wait Luffy-kun!" Koala called out to him. She groaned and pouted at his sudden exit.
"Just leave him. Let's just get to the restaurant." Zoro told her.
"Fine..."
Luffy landed on top of the Baratie as he jumped down to the balcony and stood in front of a door. The door that led to the room of the owner of the restaurant. Luffy stared at the door a couple of seconds before walking in without knocking. When he entered the room, he saw the man he wanted to see sitting on a couch reading a newspaper. The older man looked up from the paper and turned when he heard his door open. He stared at the straw hat wearing boy as he walked into his room and shut the door.
"Huh? Who the hell are you, brat?" He asked.
"I'm Luffy. A pirate."
"Luffy?" The older man repeated, placing his paper down. He stood up and walked over to the rubber boy.
"What are you doing here, pirate? Are you planning on stealing something from me? Killing me?" The man asked, glaring down at the boy.
"No...I came to ask you for a favor...Zeff..." Luffy responded as the two of them looked at each other. The older man glared at the younger boy who was not affected by the gaze.
"Really now..." There was a small pause. Zeff then smirked. "You know, you really are like your father. Always to the point and always with that rest face that I can never tell what you are thinking."
"Shishishishi. Really?" Luffy chuckled as the older man patted Luffy's shoulder. He then turned and started walking back to the couch, the sound of his wooden foot hitting the floor echoing through the room.
"Yeah, that bastard always came to me asking for favors. Always this and always that and would always have that same serious look on his face." He complained as Luffy just simply stood there smiling. "Well, not like it matters anymore since I retired. However, I was surprised when he showed up one day and told me about you. You look nothing like him though so I couldn't tell who you were until you said your name."
"Shishishi. Yeah I've been told that a lot." Luffy chuckled.
"Well, since your here, I might as well ask, what is this favor you want from me?" He asked.
"Sanji. I want him to be a member of my crew." Luffy answered.
"That all? Take him. Like I care if he leaves here." Zeff answered as he sat down on the couch.
"It won't be that easy..." Luffy told him.
"I know..." Zeff said and sighed. "Hes a stubborn one. However, if the story about you is true, then I'm sure you can get him to go with you."
"Yeah, but I'm gonna need your help." Luffy nodded.
"Sure, whatever you need." Zeff agreed.
"Cool. Then let me work here for a bit."
"Waiter!" Fullbody yelled as a man with blond hair approached the table the Lieutenant and his date were sitting in front of.
"I told you I'm not the waiter." The man told him, but then got distracted by Fullbody's date. "Ah, but the young lady here is beautiful." He leaned towards her. "Miss, would you mind having a drink with me? I have some very good wine." He flirted with her.
"Well..." She hummed as Fullbody felt his eyebrows twitch in anger.
"Hey!" He yelled, causing the blond man to turn to him. "Would you mind telling me, why there is an insect in my soup?" He asked, pointing down to the bug.
"Insect?" The man repeated, looking down at the soup.
'Hehehe, fool. This is what you get for embarrassing me. Now I'll make sure this place gets shut down for real.' Fullbody smirked. "So? You gonna answer me?"
"I'm sorry, sir. I am not an insect expert, so I don't quite understand myself. Maybe, the bug is attracted to scum." Fullbody gritted his teeth at the insult the man just threw at him.
"You..." He growled as everyone in the restaurant laughed at the Lieutenant. Frustrated at the way he was treated, Fullbody slammed a fist down at the table, breaking it as his date screamed from the sudden attack. He stood up and glared at the man, clenching his fist intimidatingly at him. "Do you not know who I am?"
The man, who was Sanji, looked down at the dish he shattered and messed up. His eyes darkened behind his bangs. "I'll just take this insect off from your dish then. I mean, you're finished eating, right?"
"Huh?" Fullbody growled. "Do you know who I am? I am your guest. I am paying to eat here. You are nothing but a chef. How dare you make fun of me!?"
"Stop Mr. Fullbody!" His date pleaded.
"Oh...then let me ask you..." Sanji spoke and lifted his head to glare at the Lieutenant. "...can you eat money?"
"Wait, Sanji!" Another chef appeared fro behind the kitchen.
"Someone has to stop him!" Another yelled, but it was no use as Sanji pummeled Fullbody to the point he bled from his wounds on his face. Fullbody's date screamed as Sanji held the man by his collar.
"Make sure you never forget this, asshole. If you mess with a chef on the sea, prepare to take a beating because none of us will take shit from anyone. Food is not something you play with so I suggest you don't try that again." Sanji warned him. He then let go as Fullbody fell to the ground. He then turned to his date and knelt down. "I'm sorry Miss, I didn't want to frighten you. Here's a napkin."
"What the hell is going on here!?" A loud voice screamed. Sanji turned his head and saw his fellow chef, Patty. "Sanji! What did you do!? Did you hurt one of our customers again!?"
"This isn't any of your business, shit head." Sanji replied standing up.
"You're the shit head here!" Patty yelled back. "And what did you do this time!?" He asked and looked down to see who he attacked. "What!? Isn't he a Marine Lieutenant!? Are you outta your mind!?"
"Shut up." Sanji replied back nonchalantly.
"You idiot. We have to welcome customers, not hurt them!" Patty reminded him.
"Even when he desecrates our food by planting a fake bug?" Sanji asked him and that made Patty angry.
"He did what!? Let me kick his ass!" Patty tried stomping over to him, but Sanji stopped him as Fullbody regained consciousness and sat up.
"You...what kind of restaurant is this? What kind of eating establishment treats their customers this way?" He wiped the blood dripping from his mouth. "I will destroy this place! I will make sure the Government takes this place down!"
"Huh? You want to shut this place down?" Sanji asked as he lit a cigarette and put it in his mouth. "Well then...I guess I can't let you live now..."
"W-What!?" Fullbody stuttered as he backed away slightly from his threat.
"Wait a minute Sanji! That's going too far!" The two chefs from before tried to reason with him.
"I'm really pissed off now!" Sanji yelled as the chefs pulled him back and away from Fullbody. "I really can't stand idiots like you."
"Stop it, Sanji!" One of the chefs holding him back pleaded.
"Just who the hell you think you are?" Sanji glared at him.
'This guy...what the hell is his problem...' Fullbody thought, trying to compose himself again.
"What the hell is going on here!?" Zeff suddenly appeared as everyone stopped to look at him.
"Head chef!" A chef yelled.
"Please, can you do something about Sanji!?" Another pleaded as Zeff looked over at the blond.
"Huh? You causing trouble again, shit head!" Zeff glared at his apprentice.
"Shut up old man!" Sanji retorted back as Luffy watched from the stairs.
"Hey, it's Luffy." Usopp said. Luffy turned to see his crew sitting at a table.
"Oh, hey guys, sup!" Luffy waved at them.
"What were you doing?" Nami asked.
"Oh nothing...just making a deal." The crew looked at him with confused expressions as they turned back in time to see Zeff smack Fullbody across the face with his peg leg.
"You get out of my restaurant too!" The older chef yelled.
'The head chef too? What is wrong with this place?' Fullbody was just baffled at how the restaurant carried themselves. 'Just who do they think they are? They act just like pirates!'
"Listen, Sanji! Our customers should be treated like Gods, you understand!" Patty informed him.
"Then why are you serving crap food to the Gods, you wanna get smitten?" Sanji retorted.
"Sanji! Patty! If you are planning on fighting, then do it outside!" Zeff told them. "Anyway, Sanji, I want you to meet someone." Sanji turned his head to him.
"Huh? Who?" He asked as Zeff walked over and placed a hand on Luffy's shoulder.
"Him. I want you to take him on as an apprentice chef for a couple of days." Sanji lifted an eyebrow in surprise. Luffy's crew was the most shocked out of anyone.
"A what!?"
"Shishishishi. Yo."
To Be Continued...
Author Notes 2: Well, were you expecting that? No, I'm glad I surprised you. Yes...why you lying lol. In any case, I hope you like the chapter and extremely sorry how long it took to update this story. I have a lot going on so please bare with me and these chapter updates. Thank you.