After Krieg left the Baratie, the chefs inside couldn't understand why Zeff had given food to someone who wanted to destroy the restaurant. They even questioned Sanji's motives for wanting to help Krieg, suggesting he was trying to seize the head chef position.
Zeff told them all to shut up.
"Have any of you ever felt the sensation of starving to death? On the open sea, with no water or food… do you know how terrifying, how agonizing that is?"
Zeff's two questions silenced the noisy chefs.
Tom saw Sanji, sitting off to the side, lower his head and pull out a cigarette as Zeff spoke. His serious expression carried a trace of deep pain, as if remembering something unforgettable.
In truth, Sanji was recalling the event from ten years ago. He and Zeff had been shipwrecked and drifted to a deserted island, where they spent eighty-five days. Back then, in order to keep the young Sanji from starving, Zeff had given him all the food and had cut off his own left leg to eat himself, allowing both of them to survive long enough to be rescued. When nine-year-old Sanji, having finished his own rations, tried to steal Zeff's food to survive, he discovered Zeff had already given everything to him. When he approached Zeff, he found the man's left leg gone and his once-strong body reduced to bones from hunger.
Deeply moved upon learning the truth, Sanji, after being rescued, followed Zeff back to the East Blue and helped build the sea restaurant. Although Sanji dreamed of finding the legendary sea that contained ingredients from all four oceans, he refused to sail so he could repay Zeff. Moreover, his childhood experience of starvation made him deeply understand the importance of food and the desperate struggle to survive. That was why, as a cook, he had not hesitated to help the starving Gin.
Zeff told the staff to flee before Krieg returned, but they refused. They said they would stay and fight to the end, even if it meant death. By now, the other customers had long since slipped away. Only Tom's group and the restaurant's chefs remained.
Gin, seeing things develop this way, felt utterly guilty toward Sanji.
If he hadn't brought Krieg here, the Baratie wouldn't be facing such danger.
"There's something I should tell you," Sanji said, taking a drag of his cigarette. His gaze toward the seated Gin sharpened.
"Feeding the hungry—that's my sense of justice as a cook. But if the next target is a full-bellied robber… if I end up killing your comrades, don't blame me! Anyone who tries to take this restaurant—I won't show mercy to anyone!"
"See? I told you he was a good guy," Luffy said nearby, pointing at Sanji.
"True. At least right now he doesn't look like a pervert," Tom nodded.
"That's probably because it's all men here. He can act like a normal person," Zoro said, making Tom sweatdrop.
If Sanji were interested in men too… that'd be a different kind of problem. In that case, I'd have to beat him up before he could even think about accepting Luffy's invitation.
"Let's not worry about him. We should hurry up and run," Usopp said, knowing Krieg would soon return with his fed men. To avoid trouble, he suggested they leave quickly—but no one listened.
"Calm down. Didn't he already lose to Tom once? What's there to fear?" Zoro said to the panicking Usopp.
"Exactly! Besides, anyone who wants to compete with me for the Pirate King title—I have to beat them! Myself!" Luffy said, pumped with fighting spirit.
"Don't get worked up. You won't have to fight anyway. Luffy will handle them. We can just drink tea and watch," Tom said, pouring Usopp a cup of tea and gesturing for him to relax.
"Oh, is that so? Seems there's no chance for me—the invincible-at-sea Captain Usopp—to step in! Speaking of which, there was this time my eight thousand elite men and I crushed a great pirate fleet with hundreds of ships…"
Feeling safer, Usopp immediately began bragging again.
Luffy then asked Gin what had happened in the Grand Line. How could Krieg's five thousand men and fifty ships be wiped out in just seven days?
"I really don't know. Because I still can't believe… what happened on the sea on the seventh day after we entered the Grand Line… Was it real? Or a dream? I still can't figure it out," Gin said, clutching his head and squatting on the ground, expression twisted in pain.
"That day, a man appeared suddenly. Just one man… and he destroyed our entire fifty-ship fleet!"
PFFT—
Hearing Gin's words, Tom—who had been calmly sipping tea—spat it all out in shock. Usopp, who had been happily bragging beside him, got a face full of the tea spray.
"Impossible! One man wiping out a five-thousand-man pirate fleet?"
The chefs' jaws nearly hit the floor. Even Luffy and the others looked stunned.
According to Gin, before they even understood what was happening, their ships were sinking one after another. If a storm hadn't happened to appear, even their flagship would have been lost, and none of them would have escaped the Grand Line alive.
"We were just focused on escaping. We didn't even know how many ships were left. It was too terrifying. I still can't accept it as reality. That man's eyes were sharp enough to kill!" Gin said, trembling violently, cold sweat running down his face.
"I don't dare recall those hawk-like eyes!"
"What did you say?!"
Zoro's expression changed dramatically upon hearing Gin's last words.
Seeing Zoro's reaction, Tom was about to ask what was wrong when Zeff spoke.
"The one you're describing… must be the man known as Hawk-Eyes."
"Whether or not his gaze felt like an eagle's, the fact that he could do something like that is proof enough," Zeff told Gin.
"Who's Hawk-Eyes?" Usopp asked Luffy while wiping tea off his face.
Luffy shook his head—he didn't know.
"To destroy fifty ships alone… that person's strength must be incredible," Tom said, then turned to Zoro.
"You look like you know who he is."
"That's right. He's the one I'm looking for. The reason I set sail was to defeat him!" Zoro said.
"He took on an entire fleet? What grudge could he possibly have with you?" Sanji asked, baffled why a single person would confront a five-thousand-man fleet.
"I don't know. It happened suddenly," Gin said. He couldn't figure it out either. They had just entered the Grand Line and shouldn't have made any enemies yet.
"Perhaps you disturbed his nap," Zeff said.
Gin was stunned by this absurd statement.
"Don't joke around! Who would destroy our fleet for a reason like that?!"
Usopp, hearing this, grabbed Tom and Luffy by the collars.
"You hear that? From now on, don't snore so loudly when you sleep! What if we disturb someone terrifying like Hawk-Eyes? What would we do then?!"
"What nonsense! When sleeping, you sleep however you want! If someone wants to interfere, I'll beat him up!" Tom declared.
"Can't help it! I'm the guy who'll become Pirate King, so of course I'm full of energy even when sleeping! Ahahahaha!" Luffy said.
Tom and Luffy completely ignored Usopp's fear, making Usopp furious.
"Didn't you two get beaten by Nami a few days ago for snoring too loud?" Zoro said honestly.
"That sounds like you're mocking me," Tom said. He had just declared he'd beat up anyone who bothered him over snoring—and Zoro had to remind him Nami had already beaten him for it and he didn't do anything back. Was this green-haired guy deliberately poking the wound?
Zoro didn't reply. They just stared at each other—sparks seeming to fly.
"Hey, Luffy! Listen to me! This is important!" Usopp pleaded, but Luffy wasn't listening at all. He even said that if there was really a guy who attacked people for disturbing his sleep, that sounded fun—and he wanted to meet him. Usopp nearly fainted from panic.
Soon after, Tom and Zoro started brawling, and Usopp and Luffy wrestled again.
Some time later, the four of them finally stopped fighting. Tom and Zoro were bruised all over. As for Luffy and Usopp—Usopp's lower strength made him look far more miserable than Luffy.
"This settles it. I can lock onto my target in the Grand Line. That guy is definitely there," Zoro said, more determined than ever after hearing Zeff's explanation.
Sanji, who had been watching their ridiculous fighting, spoke up when he heard Zoro wanted to face the terrifying Hawk-Eyes.
"Isn't that just stupid? Going to the Grand Line… you'll be the kind of people who die first."
"Maybe you're right. But I'm not stupid," Zoro said seriously.
"As a swordsman, from the moment I decided to become the greatest in the world, I already put my life on the line! Whether I'm stupid or not—that's for me to decide!"
"Ah, me too!"
"That's right!"
"Of course I'm no exception! Life or death—I've already accepted it!"
Luffy, Tom, and Usopp chimed in.
"You only know how to deceive people," Zoro said, knocking Usopp on the head with his sword hilt.
"Tch. A bunch of idiots," Sanji muttered. Though he said that, he knew they weren't lying—they truly feared nothing.
But just then, a loud shout came from outside.
"Trouble! The Krieg Pirates are about to attack! Everyone, defend to the death!"
A chef who had been monitoring Krieg's ship rushed in.
Krieg, having waited for his men to eat, was preparing to attack the Baratie. But at that moment, something unexpected happened.
With a thunderous crash, the massive three-decker ship Krieg was on split in half and began sinking into the sea, creating a wave that shook the Baratie violently.
"Boss! Our ship's been cut in half!"
"Help!"
Krieg's men cried out in terror as the ship went down.
"A ship that big… sliced apart? How could something so insane happen?!" Krieg trembled, unable to comprehend what he was seeing.
With the turmoil outside, Tom and the others—worried about Nami and the rest on the Going Merry—rushed out of the restaurant.
But upon rushing out, before they could even process the sinking ship, they discovered the Going Merry was gone. Johnny and Yosaku were floating in the rough waves.
After rescuing Johnny and Yosaku, they learned the truth:
Nami had taken the Going Merry and all the treasure on board—and run away.
She had said something about meeting again someday if fate allowed.
It turned out that Nami, after looking at wanted posters on the ship earlier, had moved the treasure from Johnny and Yosaku's ship to the Going Merry. Then she claimed she needed to change clothes on deck, tricking Johnny and Yosaku into turning around, pushing them into the sea, and sailing away.
After hearing this, Tom felt furious but also helpless.
He thought: These two are really stupid. Expecting Nami not to trick them is the real miracle—and they thought they could get some advantage off her? Too naive.
"Damn it! She'd been so well-behaved recently, that's why I let my guard down!"
"Doing this now, at such a critical time—adding fuel to the fire!"
Zoro and Usopp were furious about Nami taking the ship and treasure.
"That damned woman! Why did she betray us?!" Tom shouted and smashed a nearby railing with a punch. He was truly angry.
Despite occasional arguments, his days with Nami had mostly been enjoyable.
He still clearly remembered the moment the two of them stood at the figurehead, watching the sunrise—the bright smile on her face lingering vividly in his mind.
So why did she do this?
And choose such a crucial moment to leave?
The treasure was one thing, but taking the ship…
How were they supposed to reach the Grand Line now?
The more he thought, the angrier he became.
Tom felt he wanted to catch Nami, beat her up, and demand an explanation.
This was the angriest he had been since setting sail.
"Wait! We can still see the Going Merry!" Luffy said, spotting the distant ship. Johnny and Yosaku's ship was still here—if they chased now, they could catch her.
"Forget her. What good would catching her do?!" Zoro said reluctantly.
"That ship was a gift from Kaya. It's important," Usopp said. He wanted to get the Going Merry back.
"Maybe it's better she ran. That means I don't have to repay her anymore. Let her go!" Tom said, taking a deep breath.
He felt conflicted—he wanted answers, but he was furious at her betrayal.
He worried that the Nami he caught up to would be someone ugly on the inside.
If so, maybe it was better to leave things as they were.
At least the Nami in his memory still had a beautiful smile.
"Tom! I want her as our navigator! Do you understand me?!"
Luffy used an extremely serious tone—a rare occurrence.
"Fine. After we catch that woman, you'll have to help pay back half the money I owe her," Tom said, calming down.
"I know. What a troublemaking captain. Let's go then," Zoro said, slapping his forehead as he headed toward the ship.
"Boss! He's the one who destroyed our fleet!"
"He actually chased us here! He came to kill us!"
Just as Zoro was about to board Johnny and Yosaku's ship, he stopped upon hearing the terrified screams of Krieg's men.
Looking toward the sea, he saw a boat shaped like a coffin, with a pitch-black hull and a cross-shaped mast, lit by eerie green candles like ghost-flames. At first glance, it resembled a ghost ship slowly drifting closer—chilling to behold.
Sitting on that boat, legs crossed, was a man wearing a black wide-brimmed hat adorned with white feathers, a dark red patterned shirt under a black vest, and white trousers. On his back was a massive black sword.
This man was Dracule Mihawk—
the world's strongest swordsman.
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T/N :
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