Hawkeye had already sailed off in his little boat.
The crowd was finally coming down from the crazy trip they'd just been on.
Luffy and Usopp walked over to Zoro, who was still sprawled on the deck, and squatted down, forming a circle. The Trio of Morons, reunited!
The three stooges huddled up for a pow-wow.
"Luffy, when you recruited Ignis, did you have any clue he was this freaking strong?"
"Nope! I just saw he was a blacksmith, so I asked him to join! I asked him, and he said yes!"
"There's no way Hawkeye couldn't cut through his shield, right?" Zoro was totally baffled.
"That shield..."
"Yeah, the one he hammered out on the ship a little while ago!"
"He's really a blacksmith?"
"I thought that was just a persona the Vice-Captain cooked up for himself! Like how he sits on the ship sometimes, trying to look all wise and stuff!"
"How long did it take him to make that shield?"
"Three minutes?"
The three of 'em dropped their jaws again!
Zoro looked like he'd seen a ghost! And Nami had called that thing a piece of junk!
It blocked Hawkeye's attack! How could it be a piece of junk?!
"So cool..."
Usopp and Zoro stared at Luffy, who just kept repeating himself.
"So freaking cool! That shield was so awesome! And it blocked such a powerful attack! I want gear that cool!!!"
"Yeah, if I got Ignis to make me some armor, nobody could hurt me! I wouldn't have to be scared of any fight!"
Luffy and Zoro stared at Usopp. He'd let his true colors slip again!
"Ahem! I didn't say that!"
While the Trio of Morons were debriefing, Ignis walked over.
"Whatcha guys yakking about?"
The two guys squatting on the deck and the one sitting looked up at him, wearing the most pathetic, suck-up expressions Ignis had ever seen!
"Why the freaking faces? I'm outta here!"
He turned and walked away.
"Wait up, Boss! Take me with you!!!" Usopp's wailing voice echoed behind him.
"GUNA!!!"
Hawkeye was gone, but this wasn't the time for goofing off! Krieg's fleet and his goons were still a threat to the restaurant! The chefs had some fight in 'em, sure.
But they'd been cooking for too long! They didn't have a clue how to handle this kinda situation!
When the chips were down, it was up to Ignis and the others.
"Usopp, you take care of Zoro."
"You got it!" Hearing those words, Usopp snapped to attention! He started showering Zoro with sickly-sweet concern, making the swordsman wanna hurl!
Sanji had sensed the coming storm too. He stepped outta the huddle of chefs and joined the Krieg-takedown squad!
"C'mon, Luffy! The fight's not over yet!"
Luffy cracked his knuckles and did a little jig, getting his blood pumping!
"Hehehe! My hands have been itching for this!"
Sanji lit another cigarette. What had just happened had been freaking insane, but he had to focus on the here and now! He had to protect the restaurant!
Almost a hundred pirates were staring at 'em, too freaked out to move!
"Boss... He's coming!"
"Like I freaking needed you to tell me that!"
"Should we run?"
"Run?! From what?!"
"He just blocked Hawkeye's full-power attack!!!"
"Yeah, Captain!"
"We don't stand a chance against a guy like that!!!"
Krieg's face twisted into a scowl!
"You're all a bunch of freaking cowards!"
"He just got lucky with that shield, that's all!"
"So what if he's got a strong defense? What's he gonna do to us? He got no attack power!"
Seeing his men still shaking in their boots, Krieg grit his teeth.
"Oh? What was that you were saying?"
Krieg, you B.Y.D.! You think my shield's the only thing I got? My armor's through the roof now! I'll wipe the floor with you without it! Just try me!
Ignis stashed his shield back in the System stash and crooked a finger at Krieg.
"C'mon, tough guy! Let's see what you got!"
Krieg burst out laughing!
"Hahahahahahaha! You blocked a few hits with your shield, and now you think you're something special?"
"I'm the strongest man alive! I'm Captain Krieg!"
Luffy didn't move, but Sanji was looking at Ignis like he'd lost his mind.
"Hey! If the shield works, use the freaking shield!"
"Krieg's no small fry! He's a 17 million Berry pirate!"
"His gear looks pretty nasty! Can you really win without your shield?"
"What kinda chef cooks without a knife?"
Ignis didn't answer Sanji's questions. He just strolled towards Krieg, cool as a cucumber. He was about to show Sanji where his confidence came from!
Without that shield, the pirates on the ship weren't so scared anymore! They charged at Ignis, blades flashing!
Seeing a horde of small-fry pirates rushing Ignis, Luffy leaped into action!
"Gomu Gomu no Gatling!!! I'm your opponent!"
With Luffy and Ignis in the thick of it, Sanji had to swallow his questions for now.
He stared down Krieg, who was coiled like a viper, ready to strike. Ignis activated Searing Charge, smashing Krieg through the deck and into the cargo hold!
Krieg went flying, splatting against the wall in a perfect "X" shape! But he didn't seem hurt! He peeled himself off the wall and glared at Ignis, who was walking towards him.
"I gotta say... You are one freaking idiot!"
"Not only do you ditch that awesome shield, but you come looking for a one-on-one fight?"
Ignis just chuckled. Krieg always had a talent for misjudging his opponents.
"Hearing that from a freaking moron like you? That's funnier than a graveyard joke!"
Krieg jabbed a finger at his arm.
"I got the strongest steel arm, the toughest Uginu body, and a diamond fist that can crush anything!!!"
"What do you got? Those two hammers? What good are they?"
"Without your shield, what can you even do?!"
Ignis flipped his hammers in the air. He didn't really care about Krieg. He was here for Hawkeye!
But hey, letting off some steam on this scumbag was a nice bonus.
"Just so you know, the big one's called an anvil."
"I don't give a freaking rat's ass what you call it!!!"
Before the words were even outta his mouth, Krieg struck! His giant diamond fist smashed towards Ignis's face!
A 17 million Berry bounty pirate didn't get that kind of price tag for nothing! He was a beast in a fight, and a sneak attack was his bread and butter!
The fist slammed into Ignis' face, kicking up a cloud of dust that blocked everyone's view!
The fighting stopped! Everyone froze!
"That's our Captain!!!"
"The Captain's a freaking legend!!!"
"Did that kid's head just explode?!"
"You've seen the Captain's steel arm and diamond fist! That's a hit that can shatter rocks!"
"He was only confident 'cause of that shield! Now he's facing Captain Krieg's fist with his freaking face!"
"Looks like this fight's over, folks!"
Krieg's goons went wild! In their minds, Ignis was probably half-dead right now!
Sanji's cigarette fell outta his mouth, landing on the deck. His eyes were wide, glued to the cloud of dust!
He'd liked this guy, Ignis, after hearing his pep talk to the chefs. But now? Ignis had just taken a direct hit from a 17 million Berry pirate! Right to the face!
Was this it? Was Ignis down for the count?
"Don't lose focus, Sanji!" The only one who seemed calm was Luffy.
"Don't worry about Ignis."
"He's a lot stronger than you think."
Luffy had trusted this guy from the start.
Nobody was paying attention to Krieg's reaction.
He'd landed the hit, but his face was a freaking mask of dread!
A figure emerged from the dust cloud, standing tall and proud! It was Ignis! He hadn't even staggered!
"Seriously, can we skip the mid-battle champagne toast, please?!"