The restaurant did not return to normal after the gunshot.
It tried.
Plates resumed moving. Conversations restarted in half-whispers. Cooks returned to their stations. But something had shifted, like the air itself had learned a new rule and refused to forget it.
Luffy sat back at the table, one leg crossed over the other, whiskey glass resting loosely in his hand. His crew remained alert, not panicked — a quiet contrast that didn't go unnoticed.
Zoro's gaze drifted toward the sea-facing windows.
Nami counted exits.
Usopp tried to look brave and failed quietly.
Johnny and Yosaku hovered near the door, unsure whether to sit or flee.
Then heavy footsteps echoed.
A man approached from deeper within Baratie.
Wood struck metal with every step.
Patty straightened instinctively.
Carne swallowed.
Sanji turned his head slightly — not with fear, but respect.
Red-striped pants. Broad frame. A chef's coat worn like a captain's mantle. One leg wooden, the other firm and grounded.
Zeff.
The owner of Baratie.
Former pirate.
The man did not raise his voice.
He didn't need to.
"What's the problem?" Zeff asked.
Fullbody groaned from the floor.
Sanji answered without looking away from Luffy. "A Marine forgot where he was."
Zeff's eyes slid to Luffy.
Measured him.
Not with curiosity.
With calculation.
"You," Zeff said. "Straw hat."
Luffy met his gaze calmly. "Chef."
Zeff snorted. "You don't look hungry."
"I am," Luffy replied. "Just not desperate."
That earned a low chuckle.
Before Zeff could respond—
A tremor ran through the restaurant.
Not from Baratie.
From the sea.
A massive shadow loomed beyond the windows. A ship drifted into view — iron-plated, scarred, bristling with weapon ports. Its sails hung like tattered banners of conquest.
Silence fell.
Even Zeff stiffened.
Johnny whispered, voice cracking. "D-Don Krieg…"
The name rippled through the restaurant like a sickness.
Luffy tilted his head. "That's him?"
Zoro's hand tightened around his swords.
"Don Krieg," Zeff confirmed grimly. "Fleet Admiral of the East Blue pirates. Or what's left of him."
The doors burst open.
A man staggered in.
Tall. Broad. Wrapped in armor too heavy for a starving body. His lips were cracked, his eyes sunken, his movements sluggish.
Don Krieg.
The man who ruled through numbers.
The man who believed strength came from overwhelming force.
He collapsed to his knees.
"I'll pay," Krieg rasped. "Anything… just food."
Murmurs erupted.
Patty raised his fist.
Zeff lifted a hand.
"Sanji," Zeff said quietly.
Sanji was already moving.
A plate.
Soup.
Bread.
Simple.
Krieg stared at it like it was a mirage.
Then devoured it.
Not proudly.
Not greedily.
Desperately.
Luffy watched closely.
This wasn't about mercy.
It was about law.
Zoro leaned toward Luffy. "You're not going to stop him?"
"No," Luffy said softly. "He's already lost."
Krieg finished eating.
His breathing steadied.
His eyes sharpened.
And the hunger changed shape.
"Prepare the restaurant," Krieg said calmly. "My men will be arriving."
The air went cold.
Zeff's voice hardened. "You'll leave."
Krieg smiled.
A thin, ugly thing.
"You fed me," he said. "That means I survive. And if I survive, I take."
Sanji moved.
In a blink, his foot connected with Krieg's jaw, launching the armored pirate across the floor.
"You don't get to decide that," Sanji said coldly.
Krieg laughed as he rose, blood on his lip.
"Good," he said. "A cook who fights."
Luffy stood.
The room felt smaller instantly.
"You're not fighting here," Luffy said calmly.
Krieg turned. "And who are you?"
"Someone who hates noisy meals."
Krieg sneered. "Then leave."
Luffy smiled faintly.
"After I eat."
Before Krieg could respond—
A pressure swept across Baratie.
Sharp.
Focused.
Like a blade passing just above the skin.
Zoro froze.
Slowly, deliberately, he turned toward the open sea.
A single ship approached.
Small.
Black.
Silent.
A coffin-shaped vessel cut through the water without oars, without sail.
Zoro's breath caught.
"…No way," he whispered.
Luffy followed his gaze.
And for the first time since entering Baratie—
Luffy's expression changed.
Not fear.
Recognition.
"That's him," Luffy said quietly.
Zeff exhaled slowly. "Dracule Mihawk."
The world's greatest swordsman.
Krieg turned pale.
Zoro stepped forward.
His hands trembled.
Not from fear.
From anticipation.
Mihawk's eyes met Zoro's across the water.
And the world held its breath.
Luffy stepped back.
Folded his arms.
Smiled.
"This," he said softly, "is going to be interesting."