"Zoro?"

My attention was drawn from the fading boat towards our swordsman.

"C…can you hear me… L…Luffy?" The Marimo gasped as he raised his sword to the sky. "Sorry for worrying you… I know… that if I don't become…the world's strongest swordsman, it will only embarrass you!"

"Bro!" Jonny shouted as Zoro choked on his own blood. "Please don't talk anymore."

"I swear… that I'll never lose again! I swear, until I fight him and win… I'll never lose again!"

"What a stupid thing to swear!" Don shouted as he primed his gun. "When all of you are going to die right here."

"Your right" I agreed, ignoring Zoro's cursing and Luffy's penetrating look. "Only through failure can one discover and truly overcome their weakness. It is also the reason why you, who rely on such frivolous objects instead of bettering yourself will fail this day."

"Usopp!" Luffy shouted.

"Zoro and I'll definitely bring Nami back, you just get us that cook!" Usopp replied as the small group of four sailed out of sight.

"Nami left?"

"You were knocked out of it when it happened." My captain replied. No, not my captain yet I reminded myself.

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

"Do as you wish" The man sighed as the opposition rallied itself. "The restaurant would become a wreck if I let you work here any longer."

"Where are Patty and Carne?" The Sous Chef, Sanji I believe, asked.

"They are busy with battle preparations." Another chef answered.

"You better go to the control room and open up the fins."

"And give the enemies a foothold? No way!"

"Be it on your head when the geezer gets upset about his restaurant being ruined."

"R-right! I'll get on it right away!"

"Lets get this started!" Luffy grinned as he rocketed across the water to the horror of the Don Krieg Pirates.

"Planning on fighting here where you can't even stand properly," Krieg laughed. "I've heard that devil fruit users are weak against the sea… Isn't that right hammer boy?

A grinding of gears interrupted Krieg's monologue and both captains turned to see the stem of the vessel detach, transforming into a weaponized paddleboat in the shape of a fish. A volley of cannonballs assaulted the shipwreck, further spreading the debris.

"If you pirates want a fight, then bring it." Sanji grinned as the fins of the Baratie surfaced.

Silence engulfed the sea as pirates and chefs faced off. A blast from Tiny Fish No. 1 ignited the battle. Screams tore each other's throats as the battle commenced. Don Kreig with his augmented strength tossed the small ship towards the Baratie. But before the ship crashed Sanji kicked it out of the way.

"Saaaaanjiiiii!" Are you trying to kill us!" A gorilla looking chef cried out from the wreck of Tiny Fish No. 1.

"…Yeah"

"You retard, you almost lost two powerful fighters!" The howler monkey of a chef cried only for he and the gorilla to be knocked out by a strange pirate.

"Behold my invincible iron wall!"

"Its Iron Wall Pearl!" one of the pirates called out.

"This is just getting sad." I muttered as I listened to the pathetic attempt at trash talking. I was just about to flambé the annoying pirate when Sanji corrected their behavior.

"A kitchen knife is the soul of a cook. It's not something an amateur like you should even think about touching." Returning the knife to the Gorilla named Patty, Sanji finally educated the pirates with a full kick course meal.

"Wow" I muttered looking at the chichi chef. "Talk about flexible."

"To beat up all your opponents with your feet, you strike me as the lazy type. Or is that your policy?" The fool in iron and pearls laughed.

"A cook's hands are his life. I can't risk fighting with them. But don't worry, my feet will be enough to take you down."

"You take me down? I'm afraid that won't be happening! In all sixty-one fights I've been in I've won them all without so much as a scratch on me, I've never lost a single drop of blood."

"If you can keep track of how many fights you have been in, then obviously you're not much of a warrior." I replied walking up to Sanji. "I also wonder who your opponents are if they could fail against someone as weak as you."

"I am the Iron Wall, my title proof of my invincible strength!"

Rolling my eyes I watch as Sanji slams the man's own shield into his face. I start to snicker as the man 's nose starts to bleed but the humor fades away as the pirates begin to freak.

"The hell's up with him?" Sanji mutters. Pearl slams his shields together and my confusion slowly fades into alarm as the pink pearls begin to shine red.

"Get out of the way! I shout as I pull Sanji out of the flame's boundary. "Who the heck supplies a pyromaniac with Fire Pearls!" I growled as we dodge the flammable stones. Pirates and cooks abandoned ship as the flames grew.

"Don't you dare burn this restaurant down!" Sanji snarled as he flipped over the flames to continue attacking Pearl.

"Once activated Fire Pearls sap the user's energy until either the user's task is complete, the user is unconscious or..." Sprinting as fast as I could I tackle the man into the water. With the pearls cooled of in the water the surrounding fires dissipated. Silence met my ears while shades of blue met my eyes. Pearl held me firmly around my waist as he dragged me further down. I could feel my ribs being crushed by the combined force of the water and his strength, my lungs screaming for lack of air. Suddenly the force lessened and I felt myself being propelled to the surface. A cacophonous melody of screams and shouts met my ears as I blinked water out of my eyes. Squinting in the bright light I looked up to see my rescuer. Sanji was staring wide-eyed and furiously blushing.

"I-uh…" snapping out of his thoughts he pulled off his jacket and laid it over me.

Looking down I noticed that my cloak was gone; rather it was completely burnt and leaving little to the imagination. Panicking I touched the side of my face feeling the smooth porcelain of the mask still on my face. Sighing in relief I turned to the stunned cook. "So you're the first to figure it out, odd I honestly thought the red head would." Before he could say anything else a deafening crash resounded. "Go on ahead," I whispered as he turned back to me. "I'm just goanna take a little nap." With that the world faded to black.