"Pirate King? So this is the kid Shanks is talking about? He's weak," Ace said as he looked at Luffy while he ate.
While Raeven, Sugar, and Ace look at him, Luffy hears what Ace says, and he becomes angry.
"I'm not weak! My punches are like pistols. You are the one who looks weak, freckles kid!" He said while pointing at Ace.
Ace stopped eating as he became annoyed at being called "freckles kid," which made Raeven laugh.
"I don't know what Shanks saw in this kid; I'll just be the bigger person and ignore him," Ace said, then he continued eating. Luffy became irritated as he was ignored.
"Now don't get angry; a real man doesn't get angry immediately. Here, have some juice," Raeven said as he gave a glass of juice to Luffy, which Makino had just prepared.
"Umm, thank you," Luffy said as he sat on the stool.
"That's it, good kid," Raeven said as he continued eating, then Ace just laughed, which made Luffy pause, and then he placed the glass on the counter.
"I'm not a kid; I am the man who is going to be the Pirate King," Luffy said as he stood up on the stool and pointed at Raeven. Raeven just took out some fruit juice on his belt and poured it into Luffy's glass.
"Here you go, pirate king, another glass of juice," Raeven said.
"Wow! Thank you; this tastes good," Luffy said as he emptied the glass. He even licked his lips, which made him look like a cute kid, which made Ace laugh as hard as he could, as he couldn't hold it anymore.
"What are you laughing at, kid?" Luffy said. He is very annoyed at Ace, and he didn't know why, but just looking at his face made him irritated.
"Hahahaha, Big Brother, this kid is hilarious," Ace said, then he poured some juice in his glass and in Sugar's glass.
"Thanks, brother," Sugar said as she continued eating her pudding.
Then Makino came out and placed a plate of meat in front of Luffy; as he ate, he looked at Raeven, and then he became shocked.
"You—you are! You are the red-eyed uncle that Shanks is talking about!" He said as he choked, then he hurriedly drank the juice that Raeven refilled.
"Shanks said that you're really strong; want to join my crew?" Luffy said, which made Raeven smile, and Ace just laughed.
"Do you have a ship? How about money for supplies? Do you know how to navigate?" Raeven asked.
"Umm, I don't have a ship yet; as for money, I already used all of my money to buy some meat; as for others, I'll just recruit them," Luffy said as he smiled.
"Then you need to be strong, Ship, Money, Information, and skilled crewmates; the path to become a pirate king is not easy," Raeven said as he drank his cocktail.
"Then I'll just need to find those guys, right? After they join my crew, I'll become the pirate king," Luffy said.
"A man without a dream is a useless man. My dream is to become the strongest farmer in this world. My name is Dracule Raeven, one of the Warlords of the Seas and the current head of the Dracule Family. It's nice to meet you, future Pirate King, Monkey D. Luffy," Raeven said as he extended his arm and Luffy shook it.
"So are you going to join my crew?" he said.
"If you can beat Ace, then my whole family will join your crew," Raeven said.
"That freckled kid? I'll defeat him in one hit," Luffy said.
"Come on, let's head outside so you guys can get crazy," Raeven said as the three of them stood up and walked outside. Sugar just sat there eating her pudding.
Outside Party's bar, Luffy and Ace are currently 10 meters away from each other; both of them are grinning like maniacs while Raeven is standing on the side.
"Don't kill each other, okay? You can start whenever you want," he said.
"Watch me wipe the floor with this kid, Goma Goma No Pistol!" Luffy's arm stretched, then he punched out, which was easily caught by Ace.
Ace yanked Luffy's arm, which made him catapult towards Ace.
"Goma Goma No, Headbutt!!" Luffy transitioned into attack, which made Raeven smile, but Luffy's head was met by Ace's punch, and he bounced and crashed on the ground.
"That was nothing! Gramps' punches hurt more," he said as he bounced and stood up.
"He really is made of rubber," Ace said while looking at Luffy, who is currently stretching both hands while holding on to the ground.
"Goma Goma No Rocket!" He said as he flew, heading straight to Ace, and then Ace just sighed.
"I'm done playing," he said as his hands began to turn black.
"Don't hit him too hard," Raeven said on the side as Ace punched out, which connected to Luffy's head, and then he bounced again on the ground, and he started shouting.
"It hurts!!!! It hurts!!! What is that punch? It feels like Gramps punches," he said as he rolled on the ground; on his head is a bump still steaming.
"That is called Armament Haki, one of the basic techniques if you want to become the Pirate King," Raeven said as he crouched on the ground; he picked up Luffy and straightened him up.
"Armament Haki?" Luffy asked.
"Yes, when your grandpa comes back, you should ask him about it; without Haki, you won't become a Pirate King," Raeven said.
"Hmmp, he only won because he knows it," Luffy said as he sat down and began to sniff, which made Raeven laugh.
"Come on, man, don't cry that easily. Let's head back inside, and I'll cook something for you guys," Raeven said as he walked back to Party's Bar.
"You're going to cook something, Big Brother? Let's goooo!" Ace said as he ran back.
"I want meat, lots of meat," Luffy said as he stood up, still sad because he got one hit.
Mt. Columbo
Dawn Island
East Blue
"He's still too young and reckless; this kid really makes my headache," Dragon said as he watched Luffy walk towards the bar.
"But learning about those things like Haki this early and knowing that there's a lot out there who can hurt him is good."
"Fortunately it's the Dracule Family he met this time, not those other pirates," Dragon said as he vanished like the wind.
Back at Party's Bar, at a large table, Ace, Luffy, and Sugar are currently sitting, waiting patiently for the dishes.
"Hey Ace and Sugar, want to join my crew? With you two I've got a navigator and a combatant already," Luffy said.
"No," Sugar said; she flatly refused.
"I don't plan on being a pirate, and I'm the number 4 of the Dracule Family, so I won't join you, kid," Ace said.
"Number 4? Then that red-eye uncle is the number 1, right? Who is stronger, him or Shanks?" Luffy asked.
"I didn't see those two fight, but Big Brother Mihawk is Shanks' rival, and Big Brother is a lot stronger than Big Brother Mihawk. As for the number 3, that's Big Brother Enel," Ace said.
"Among the combatants in our family, if you are counting on male combatants, then I am number 4," Ace said proudly.
"Our family members only consist of 4 males, 5 females, a cat, a bird, a flying cloud, and a lot of ninjas," Sugar said on the side, which made Ace's lips twitch.
"Shishihahaha, so you're the weakest in your family, and you even said it out loud. Also, you guys have ninjas? I've never seen one before," Luffy said.
"Hmmmp, it's only normal that I'm the weakest; those guys are monsters. I already awakened my Conqueror's Haki, but compared to them, I'm still far," Ace said.
"Not only ninjas, but also Big Sis Stussy has a giant robot called Zoid; it really looks cool," Ace said, bragging.
"A giant robot? Can it fire lasers?" Luffy said this is the first time for him hearing these things, and he really wants to see them.
"Once you have a good ship, go to our island; it's called Sixis Island. It's here at East Blue too. There, if you get lucky, you'll see that giant robot. As for the ninjas, Big Brother can summon them; I'll tell it to him later," Ace said as he finished speaking. The aroma of food could be smelled coming from the kitchen, and the three of them immediately got hungry.
"Wash your hands and prepare to eat; don't worry, I cooked a lot. You guys won't need to fight for the food," Raeven said as he placed the plates of food on the table.
The three immediately ran to wash their hands; when they returned, the table was already full of meat dishes, a meat soup, and some fruits. Raeven took out 4 bottles of juice and placed them on the table while he opened up a wine and poured it into his glass.
"Thanks for the Food" x5