A full night had passed since the Straw Hats' encounter with Vice-Admiral Dalmatian. It was now high noon and everyone was doing their own thing.
Zoro was on the deck of the ship, monotonously swinging his sword while Orion sat nearby watching.
"Hey, Zoro." Orion spoke up.
Zoro stopped mid-swing and turned his head to Orion. "What is it?"
"Do you know what haki is?" Orion asked. "That marine guy said something about using haki when he hit me."
Zoro raised a brow. "Haki?" He sheathed his Wado Ichimonji. "Never heard of it. Maybe it's some kind of equipment exclusively for marines?" Zoro threw out a random idea.
"Maybe." Orion shrugged. "How about we ask if we see him again?" He wondered.
Zoro let out a mocking laugh. "Heh... Ask? 'Hey big bad marine guy, what's that weird haki thing you mentioned when you tried to kill me earlier?'...I don't expect him to answer a question like that,"
Orion leaned back against the ship's railing and sighed. "Well, when you say it like that...."
"How long until we reach the Baratie! I'm hungry!" Luffy roared as he sat on a stool rubbing his stomach.
Soma stood across from Luffy in the kitchen. "Be patient, brat. We're not too far from the Baratie." He grumbled. "And why is this old man the one filling up your fridge!"
Currently, Soma was the one putting away all the groceries as no one else was in the condition to do so. Orion couldn't make large movements due to his currently broken ribs, and Zoro, while also recovering from light injuries was more importantly training. Luffy on the other hand....Soma just believed that he couldn't be trusted alone with food.
"I see a ship in the distance! I think we made it!" Orion shouted from outside.
Without a second thought, Luffy disappeared from the cabin, leaving Soma wide-eyed and questioning. "Does that brat only move that fast when food is involved?" Though Soma also followed afterward.
Everyone gathered at the deck, and in the distance was indeed a ship. "It looks...unique." Zoro said aloud.
In front of them was a three-story oval-shaped ship. Though, his focus was on the fish-head shaped figure-head.
Luffy jumped excitedly as he gripped onto the ship's rails. "Is that it!? Is that it!?" He shouted repeatedly.
Soma smiled contently as he leaned on the railing. "That's the Baratie. Definitely."
After docking the ship, they entered the Baratie. As they entered, Luffy's eyes sparkled. The pleasing aroma of cooking meat filled his nose. "FOOD!!" He shouted before dashing to an empty table.
The rest of the guys, drastically more calm than Luffy, took their seats beside him. Orion looked around, taking in the sights of the restaurant. People cheerfully ate as waiters and chefs bustled to and from the kitchen.
"Luckily your outburst didn't catch any attention." Orion said as he turned to Luffy.
Luffy simply ignored him, jovially clinking his utensils together as he chanted "MEAT~! MEAT~!"
The sound of approaching footsteps cut through the conversation. They turned to see a blonde man walking up to their table. "I'm assuming you're all guests of that senile old man sitting next you?" The blonde man asked curtly.
Soma let out a hearty laugh. "It's been months since we last met. Treat your old man better, Sanji."
"MEAT!"
The blonde man, now known as Sanji, scoffed. "Treat you better? You were supposed to go on a week supply run! Not disappear! Have you actually gone senile!?" He rubbed his temples before taking a deep breath. "Anyway! Did you actually get any of the supplies we needed?"
Soma immediately tensed, turning away slowly. "I was gone so long that....I sorta forgot."
"MEAT!"
Sanji's eyes rolled dramatically. "Right, so who're your guests?" He motioned toward the Straw Hats.
"These young ones? They're some promising pirates I happened to meet. I hear they're looking for a cook~" Soma smirked as he spoke. Eliciting another eye roll from Sanji.
"You must've actually gone seni–!"
*BAM!*
Sanji clutched his now throbbing head. An old man with a strangely long braided mustache and a comedically long chef toque stood over him. "Is that any way to speak to your elders, Sanji!" The old man growled.
"MEAT!"
Sanji scoffed. "Elder!? The old bastard's a few too many screws loose for respect from me!" The old man knocked Sanji to the ground, pushing his peg leg onto Sanji's head.
Soma stood and placed a hand on the old man's shoulder. "Forgive him Zeff, Sanji's still young." Soma began gently patting Zeff's shoulder. "Speaking of Sanji..." He smirked as he pulled Zeff away.
The two old men began whispering between each other. As Soma whispered, Zeff's expressions rapidly changed. First, questioning. Then, his eyes widened as he slowly nodded. Finally, a giant smirk began to form.
"MEAT!"
The two old men quickly made their way back to the Straw Hats table. Sanji now stood, dusting himself off. "Cook for them, Sanji! It's on the house!" Zeff shouted.
Sanji froze. "On the house!?" He shouted. "I'm not feeding the bastard's friends for free!"
The Straw Hat trio had varying reactions to Sanji's outburst. "FREE FOOD!?" Luffy shouted with sparkling eyes. While Zoro and Orion focused in on the first part of his sentence. 'Bastards???' They thought.
"MEAT!"
Zeff sighed, resisting the urge to plant his peg leg back into Sanji's face. "Yes, on the house. They'll pay us in a....different way." The way Zeff spoke left an eerie feeling.
Sanji simply scoffed, indignantly walking toward the kitchen. Zoro and Orion stared questioningly. "He didn't even ask for our orders?" Orion wondered aloud.
Zoro grumbled. "Tch. That cook's got an attitude...."
The two old men turned to the Straw Hats. "What are you talking about?" Soma asked. Zeff then pointed to Luffy. "That brats been screaming about meat since I got here."
The two boys slowly turned, taking in the sight of Luffy still slamming his utensils together. "MEEEAAAT!!!" He shouted.
Zoro blinked. "Oh....didn't even notice."
Orion nodded in agreement. "I guess...I sorta just toned him out."
They both laughed awkwardly.
To Be Continued.....