The head chef and owner of the Baratie, Red-Leg Zeff, had once been a formidable powerhouse on the Grand Line.
Two years ago, however, a sudden and devastating shipwreck changed his life forever.
In that calamity, he encountered the most important person he would ever meet
The third son of the Vinsmoke family from the North Blue…
Sanji.
At the time, Sanji was only seven years old.
Stranded together on a deserted island for a full eighty-five days, they exhausted every last scrap of food and drop of fresh water, yet somehow—miraculously—survived.
After they were finally rescued, having both experienced the agony of true hunger, they made a vow upon returning to the East Blue.
They sold all their remaining treasures and, together, founded this floating restaurant upon the sea.
The Baratie had two absolute rules:
First: Food must never be wasted—by anyone.
Second: Anyone who is hungry shall be fed—for free.
No matter who you were, you were not allowed to break these rules.
Otherwise…
You would have to fight.
Because of this, the Baratie earned another name—
The Battle Restaurant.
By the time Tsuneo arrived at the Baratie with his group of Akatsuki heavyweights, night had already fallen, and the restaurant was nearly closed.
Zeff, the owner and head chef, had long since gone to sleep.
Left behind to watch the restaurant alone was little Sanji, now nine years old.
Sanji stared blankly at the entrance, yawning again and again.
"Tch… damn old man Zeff," he muttered. "Every time it's me on night duty while he sleeps like a king. At this hour, no one's coming, right?"
With that thought, Sanji stood up decisively, ready to close shop.
"Forget it. Let's shut it down. Who'd be wandering around the sea this late anyway?"
"Hey, kid—wait a moment."
Suddenly
Bang!
Tsuneo and his entourage pushed open the doors of the Baratie and strode straight in.
"Ah!"
Sanji froze.
He hadn't expected anyone to actually show up at this hour. But as a professional chef, when customers walked through the door—especially at this time
They had to be starving.
Sanji immediately straightened up and put on his best service smile.
"Welcome to the Baratie Sea Restaurant. How may I serve you?"
"Hahaha! Kid, what do you think we're here for? Of course we're here to eat! Tonight, our pirate crew is booking the whole place!"
The moment those words fell
Kakuzu, the Akatsuki's treasurer, instantly frowned and clutched his money pouch like his life depended on it.
His heart bled.
"Ah! You're pirates too?" Sanji blinked, then brightened. "You're booking the entire restaurant? No problem at all! There aren't any other customers anyway!"
He grew even more excited.
"What would you like to eat? I'll start preparing right away!"
"Wait," Tsuneo said calmly. "You said you would prepare it?"
Instantly, the Akatsuki members behind him all frowned in unison, their gazes locking onto the nine-year-old Sanji.
"That's right," Sanji declared proudly. "I am the deputy head chef of the Baratie—Sanji!"
"What? You? A kid like you is a head chef?"
"Hey! Don't look down on me!" Sanji snapped, raising a cleaver in one hand and a frying pan in the other. "I'm a real chef! There isn't a single dish in this restaurant I can't make!"
"Kid," someone asked coldly, "are you absolutely sure about that?"
"Of course I am! If you can name a dish I can't make, I—I—I'll—"
"Can you make three-colored dango?"
Uchiha Itachi asked blandly.
"Three-colored… what?"
Sanji froze on the spot.
Then, snapping back to his senses, he roared:
"We don't sell three-colored dango here!"
"Oh? Then what do you serve at the Baratie?"
Finally, hearing a normal question, Sanji let out a heavy sigh.
These people had finally come back to their senses.
Without hesitation, he rattled off the menu:
"The Baratie is the finest sea restaurant in the entire East Blue! Pirates dine here, and even Marines are regulars!
We specialize in premium seafood:
Braised abalone, blanched conch slices, phoenix-and-dragon platter, crispy fried oysters, clear crab dumpling soup, snow-white shrimp, oolong pearl cuttlefish, and shredded fish maw stew!"
"Oh! Not bad at all," someone remarked. "Quite the selection. In that case—bring us one hundred skewers of three-colored dango."
"…What?"
One hundred?
Sanji nearly exploded.
"There is NO three-colored dango! NO three-colored dango!" he shouted.
"You're not here to eat, are you? You're looking for trouble!"
"Do you know what else the Baratie is called?"
"The Battle Restaurant!"
"Are you trying to fight me?"
"Except for that beautiful lady"
"I will never lay a hand on a woman!"
For a moment of silence
Then laughter erupted.
"Hahaha! Is this kid challenging us?"
"And he says he won't hit women?!"
The Akatsuki elites were laughing so hard they nearly toppled over.
"All right, all right," Tsuneo said, raising a hand. "Enough teasing."
He smiled warmly at Sanji.
"As captain, I trust your cooking. Just bring us everything on the menu."
"…What?"
Someone—finally—acknowledged his skills?
Sanji's eyes trembled, tears threatening to spill.
"As expected of Captain! You've got real taste!"
"No," Tsuneo added suddenly, frowning.
Sanji's heart leapt into his throat.
Then
"Haha. Once isn't enough. Make it three times."
"W—Waaaah!"
Sanji finally broke.
Tears poured freely down his face.
"Captain, you're amazing! Please wait—I'll start right now! I promise you'll taste the finest food in the world!"
Without another word, Sanji dashed into the kitchen, giving it his all.
Before long, table after table of exquisite dishes filled the restaurant.
...
END OF CHAPTER
5 IN 1 - BE A MEMBER, GET 5 ONGOING STORIES!!
👉 patreon.com/MrBehringer