The Baratie and the Chefs of Combat

Disclaimer: Don't own One Piece.

--

After we met up with Buggy the Clown and his own pirate crew, the others and I came across the Baratie. We had heard that the food there was fantastic and that it was run by a former pirate, so we were excited...or at least I was. The thought of running into a pirate who cooked food for a living now really intrigued me, as well as whoever might be working under him. Hell, if I was lucky, maybe one of his people would join us, as well as learn something from him...

--

"I'm starving...,"

"Kairi, can you pray to God and ask for a buffet?"

"He's my God, Axe, not some magic genie you ask for wishes!"

"...is that a no?"

As the two of them tried not to argue and not starve to death, Toby took a deep breath in an effort to relax and tune them out, but as he inhaled, he caught whiff of something...something delicious. Sitting up, he took a second whiff, then a third, and then a fourth. Hearing their nakama take such deep breaths, Kairi and Axe turned to look at him.

"What're you doing?"

"Yeah, what's up?"

"Something smells good...," Toby took a deep sniff and a smile soon crossed his face, "Really good! Can't you guys smell that?"

The other two shook their heads, now envious that they didn't have a heightened sense of smell like their lycanthrope friend.

"THERE! THAT'S WHERE IT'S COMING FROM!" Toby suddenly shouted, pointing at something.

"Why is it always Toby who spots something?"

"Shut up and look,"

Once again, following the finger of their friend, the other two treasure hunters saw where the delightful smell was coming from...or so they hoped.

--

It didn't take them long to approach and dock their temporary ship at the source of the delicious smell, which was soon reaching their nostrils when they were close enough. Once docked and secured, the ship's crew stepped off the boat and stood on what they would assume could be the deck of a ship. The three of them took the sights of the building in carefully, looking it over, making sure they didn't miss anything. It was a very large ship, with maybe three or four decks on top of one another. On one end of the boat, there was a very large fish head and on the other end of the boat, there was an equally large fish-tail sticking out.

"Huh...," Toby tilted his head, "I wonder if this is that Baratie place we heard about?"

Axe looked at something that was painted in big, bold letters on the side of the ship.

BARATIE

"You know, it just might be, Toby, it just might be,"

Axe took the lead and entered the "fishy" ship (pardon the pun, everyone), with Kairi and Toby in tow. As they entered, they were all greeted with a wonderful sight. Outside, while it looked like a strange kind of giant fish, inside looked like a world-class restaurant. Laying in front of them were a mass of round tables, not only decorated with white tableclothes and diningware, but most of them were occupied by various people, who all seemed to be enjoying different dishes. In the very center of the large room was a spiral staircase that was wrapped around a pillar. After Axe placed his large weapon near the door, they walked further inside the Baratie, the young treasure hunters looked at all the different kinds of food that the patrons were eating and enjoying.

From soups and stews to grilled steaks and fried fish, the different kinds of food really did look great and they couldn't wait to not only try some, but to meet the people who made them. Judging from the food, Axe knew that if he could get one chef from the Baratie to join his crew, the much needed to be filled role of chef would be...well, filled.

"So, what do we do?" Kairi asked in a hushed whisper, "We can't just walk around, staring at people, it's rude!"

"Well, we should at least sit down to try and-,"

A loud scream cut Axe off and the two of them spun around, hands flying for their weapons. It was bad enough when Axe suddenly remembered he left his at the door, but they nearly fell over when they saw Toby crouching on the floor, a steak in his mouth as he tried to take it away from a well dressed man who was trying to eat said steak.

"TOBY!"

"Drop the steak! Bad Toby! Very bad boy, Toby!"

Axe rushed behind Toby, grabbed him around the waist and pulled, "Drop the steak...drop the steak!"

Try as he might though, Toby didn't release the steak.

Oh c'mon! I'm way stronger than most people, but I can't pry this guy from a piece of meat?! He must be starving! Either that or it's the animal instinct in him...oh, hell, maybe both!

"What the hell's going on here?!" a loud, gruff voice demanded.

Kairi looked over her shoulder to see a pair of men standing behind her. One was very large with bulky, muscular arms, a head of short, buzzed, green hair, and a somewhat rounded face that was partially covered with a black beard. The second man was noticeably shorter and actually looked much more like a normal human being: he wore a chef's hat, had a darker skin tone, brown hair poking out from under the chef's hat and a pair of small sunglasses. Despite their different appearances, the one thing these two had in common besides obviously being part of the help at the Baratie, was that they looked pretty tough. People one shouldn't make angry.

The larger man looked down at Kairi, "I asked you what was going on!" he barked.

"We didn't mean anything, honestly!" Kairi's hands flew up in a pleading gesture, "We were just looking around and-,"

"Waiter!" the man who was fighting with Toby interrupted her, "These hoodlums have interrupted our meal and this one is trying to steal my food right off the top of my plate! I demand you two do something!"

Ignoring Kairi's pleas, the two workers approached Axe and Toby.

"Drop it, brat," the bigger man ordered, "Now!"

Axe grinned nervously, "L-Look, I'm just trying to help him let go! If you could just give me a hand...!"

"How about a foot!" a new voice came. A blur flew past both the men and the next thing that Toby and Axe could see was a foot just before it rammed right into Toby's chest. Seconds later, such incredible force exploded from the kick and sent both lycanthrope and Devil Fruit user flying through the air until they broke through the front door, crashing onto the porch just outside. Kairi gawked at what she had seen, then looked for the source of the power that just sent her friends flying.

It was a boy. A boy about fourteen years old, Axe's age, somewhat taller than most boys his age would be, with blonde hair that covered his left eye. He wore a black suit with button up jacket and had a lit cigarette in his fingers.

"If you're hungry, sit down and wait for someone to come for your order, just don't go stealing food from the other customers!" the boy said coolly before turning around. As he did, he caught sight of Kairi and almost immediately the cool attitude went out of the building and it was soon replaced with a love-struck look on his face. He dashed over and grabbed Kairi's hand, a smile and a light blush appearing on his face.

"Such a beautiful girl! I am at your service!" he gently kissed her hand, "I am Sanji, and may I ask for your name, my angel?"

"Um...," Kairi blinked a few times, surprised at the current turn of events, "K-Kairi...my name's Kairi Lumina," she raised her free hand and pointed at her friends through the new hole in the door, "Those two you just kicked? They're my friends...,"

Outside, Toby and Axe lay on the porch, on the brink of unconsciousness after what had just happened to them.

That...that was some...some kick... the two of them thought at the same time ...ow...

--

"He didn't know...,"

"He kicked me in the chest!"

"And I felt it! I felt it! Through Toby!"

Kairi sighed as she toyed with her food a bit with her plate. After Sanji had kicked her friends out of the restaurant and after telling him and the other two workers what had really happened, Kairi was able to get them a table as well as a meal on the house for the misunderstanding. However, both Axe and Toby weren't able to enjoy the free food. Mostly because Toby's pain from the gunshot wounds came back after Sanji kicked him in the chest. They had to redress the older bandages when they started bleeding again and Kairi gave Sanji a scolding for doing that, but both Toby and Axe knew that wouldn't change anything.

Axe was very impressed with Sanji. He was fourteen, just like he was, and just like him, he had inhuman strength, especially behind those kicks of his. When he had kicked Toby, Axe actually felt the kick through Toby and even then, he had a sore spot on his usually hard body. As he tried to eat and enjoy his free meal, Axe watched Sanji go around the Baratie, going back and forth either carrying orders or empty plates that needed to be washed for the next customers.

He's young and he kicks ass...really well! Axe rubbed his chin, watching Sanji work, I like this guy!

"Axe? What're you doing, looking at him like that?" Kairi asked quietly.

"Maybe he's got a crush on the waiter or something," Toby snickered.

Axe snapped his head, his face bright red and a vein throbbing on his forehead, "Oh, ha ha, very funny! For your information, I was thinking that Sanji would be perfect for our crew!"

"I'll admit, he's strong," Toby winced, rubbing his chest, "I'm just glad the Chief got those bullets out of my chest before we left, otherwise I'd probably be dead instead of eating right now,"

Kairi reached over and patted his shoulder, "Well, honestly, Captain, it's up to you. Whatever you decide, we're behind you a hundred percent," she frowned a little, "Though if he does join, we should set some ground rules and tell him that I'm not looking for a boyfriend right now,"

"Aw, but you look so cute together!"

"Shaddup," Kairi stuck out her tongue, "Anyway, what are we going to do now, Axe? After we're done here-,"

"After we get Sanji to join our crew,"

"Whatever. After we're done here, what are we going to do?"

Axe scratched his chin in thought, "Good question. I suppose we should get a ship we picked out ourselves," he glanced out a nearby window to see their borrowed vessel just sitting there, "Plus we need more people before going into the Grand Line, so I suppose we should go to Roguetown,"

"Why Roguetown?" Toby asked, tearing at a piece of his own steak, "What's there?"

"Well, I don't know from personal experience, but I do know from reading the books back home, that Roguetown is a necessary pit stop for people like us and unlike us," Axe began to explain, "It's a huge city with plenty of stores and stuff, so we should at least be able to stock up on supplies and if we're lucky, get our own ship and a few crewmates there!"

"Axe?"

"Yeah, Kairi?"

"When Lorene told us about Roguetown at Kohaku, why didn't you say anything like this then? Why'd you look like a clueless idiot?"

Toby snickered and went back to his steak.

"I was excited about getting out of there and with a possible new crewmate!" Axe planted his hand on Toby's head, making the lycanthrope growl a little, "But back to the matter at hand, I think we should head to Roguetown next,"

Kairi nodded, "Okay. One problem,"

"Wassat?"

"To get all the stuff we need and maybe hire a few more people, we're going to need money, right?"

"Of course,"

"Well, where are we going to get the money?"

Axe opened his mouth to answer, but was at a loss for words. He slowly closed his jaw and drummed the table, "That's a damn fine question, Kairi, a damn fine question indeed,"

Toby swallowed his meat and let out a loud "ah!" before patting his stomach, "Kinda makes you wish One Piece was in the East Blue, huh?"

"One Piece?" a gruff voice asked from behind Axe, "Even kids at your age are after that, huh?"

Axe leaned his head back and looked up to see an older man, probably older than his own father, standing over him. This guy was the weirdest looking one at the restaurant so far: he wore a huge chef hat, one so big it almost touched the ceiling, and he had a very, very long moustache that to stick out on both sides of him.

"Who the hell are you, ossan?" Axe asked him.

Moments later, he regretted that.

Within a blink of an eye, Axe plowed through not only his chair, but the floor underneath as well.

"AXE!" Kairi and Toby shot to their feet after seeing their leader get slammed into the floor by an old man and his...peg leg?

The old man lifted his peg leg and leaned forward, looking down at the young hunter, "Didn't your mother teach you to respect your elders, kid?"

"Ow...," Axe slowly sat up, holding his face, "I dunno, didn't you're mama tell you not to kick people for no good reason?"

And again, Axe found himself being kicked, but this time, he flew across the restaurant again.

"STOP MAKING HIM MAD ENOUGH TO KICK YOU!" his nakama shouted over the startled cries of the customers.

--

"Ow...,"

"Hold still,"

"Ow!"

"I said hold still, baka!"

Axe winced as he was looked over by the kid from before, Sanji, after getting kicked a few times around the restaurant by the old man. Surprisingly enough, the old man was able to give him one hell of a beating, plus a decent collection of bruises that had already appeared on various parts of his body.

"Piece of advice: don't piss off Zeff," Sanji warned him as he placed ice over the bruising, "Same with me, Patty, Carne, and just about every other chef on this boat,"

"Thanks for the tip, but I gotta ask...why?"

"Because when you piss off the cooks, some of us tend to get violent," Sanji explained, taking a seat against the wall next to Axe, "We may not look it, but we can fight! Hell, we can defend this place with just ourselves,"

"Defend it? From what?"

Sanji shrugged, "Anything or anyone, really. Most of the cooks here were either too rough that they got fired from their old jobs, or they're former pirates like Zeff,"

Former pirate? Axe turned his head, "That old guy was a pirate?"

"Yeah. Used to be known by 'Red Leg Zeff' because he only used his legs and feet in combat,"

"Why? And how does that explain the nickname?"

"He was a chef then, just like he is now, and we have this code that as cooks, we cannot allow to get our hands damaged in combat, so we use our feet. Zeff and I are the only ones who use our feet to hurt people,"

"Yeah, no shit," Axe rubbed the sore spot, "But that doesn't explain the nickname, still?"

"He was called 'Red Leg Zeff' because of the fact that his boots, after the fighting was done, they were covered with the blood of the people he fought,"

Axe stared at him, "Whoa...,"

"Mhm,"

At that moment, an idea popped into Axe's head.

"Say, Sanji, mind if I ask you a favor?"

"Hell no, I'm not gonna do you a favor, we just met!"

"Aw c'mon, please?"

--

"YOU'RE GONNA DO WHAT, AXE?!"

Axe winced and covered his ears after Kairi and Toby finished screaming in them. He had spent a short while talking to Sanji and after some rough patches with him and Zeff, his idea looked like it was going to work, but he just had to tell his nakama about it first so they could understand.

"I'm not gonna do anything, we're-," he pointed to himself, then the two others, "...are gonna be staying here awhile,"

"Why?" Kairi asked, looking confused, "I don't understand, I thought we were going to go to Roguetown?"

"Oh, we are, but there are some things here I have to do,"

"Like what?"

"Well, for one thing," he pulled up his shirt to show off the bruises, "Heal. Same with you two. With the three of us in the conditions we're in, we might not make it long out there. Besides, the owner said I need to work off the damages I made earlier,"

"He and Sanji kicked you! You didn't do anything!"

"True, but you try explaining that to Zeff," Axe shrugged, "Listen, it's no big deal. We'll stay for awhile, I'll talk to Sanji about joining us, we'll all heal up, maybe earn some cash along the way for our journey, and as a bonus, I think I can convince them to teach me how to kick like that!"

As Axe retreated back to the insides of the floating eatery, Kairi and Toby were left to contemplate the fate that their captain had just set for them.

"He says he's doing it for us...,"

"Mhm,"

"But I get the feeling he's doing it to learn how to kick like that,"

"Yep...,"

"..."

"..."

"Toby?"

"Yeah, Kairi?"

"...Axe is an idiot, isn't he?"

"A big one,"

--

Kilnorc: Alright, this chapter's done! I hope ya'll liked, I tried to get them all into character and everything.

On the next chapter of Origin...

Kairi: Well, at least our time here is well spent. We're both on the mend.

Sanji: Where she come from?

Axe: First the little girl and now a chick who can't pay? I like Zeff's way of thinking, but how does it make money if no one can pay?

Toby: How can she lift that thing? Does she have a Devil Fruit or something?!

Sunny Trouble

??: Damn, I probably shouldn't have stolen those maps...oh well, can't be helped now.