Zeff, known across the East Blue as "Red-Leg Zeff," stood at the edge of the Baratie's upper deck, his arms crossed, his chef's coat still pristine despite the chaos. The towering white toque on his head made him look even taller, more commanding. His peg leg tapped menacingly against the wooden floorboards as smoke rose behind him from the still-smoking cannonball impact.
To Mario, it was like seeing a legend step off the page.
That's him… Zeff the Red-Leg…
He hadn't just read about Zeff in the manga—he had felt the weight of his story. The pirate-turned-chef who had given up his dreams and even his leg to save a starving child. A man of brutal discipline and hidden compassion.
Mario stiffened instinctively. This man is no joke.
Zeff's eyes scanned the Going Merry, then locked onto Luffy, who was still awkwardly waving.
"BRING. HIM. HERE." the old chef bellowed.
Two of his crew—burly sous-chefs in mismatched aprons—immediately sprang into action, leaping down from the dock to the Merry with long poles and serious faces.
"Oi, Straw Hat," one grunted, "you're coming with us."
Luffy looked at them, then turned to his crewmates with the saddest puppy-dog expression he could muster.
"Guys… Help? Please?"
Nami didn't even look back. She was already halfway up the gangplank, sighing.
"Nope. You're on your own."
Zoro chuckled under his breath. "You broke it, you fix it."
Usopp gave Luffy a thumbs up—from behind a barrel—and shouted, "We believe in you! …From a distance!"
"Cowards!" Luffy cried.
But before he could complain further, the two chefs had grabbed him by the arms.
"Let's go, Meathead."
"Wait! At least let me finish digesting!"
Mario watched it all unfold with wide eyes. Despite the shouting, the chaos, and Luffy being literally dragged away by a pair of chefs, no one was panicking.
This is just normal for them, he realized.
Still, Zeff's glare didn't make it feel normal. That man had cooked for royalty and crushed pirates beneath his peg leg. He wasn't someone you messed with.
Mario stepped onto the dock next to Nami, his voice low. "Is Zeff really as terrifying as he looks?"
Nami snorted. "Worse. I heard he once beat an entire pirate crew with nothing but a frying pan."
Mario gulped. "Great…"
As they entered the main hall of the Baratie, the warm scent of roasting spices and fresh bread filled the air — almost enough to distract from the scorched hole in the outer wall and the angry chefs lining the walls.
At the far end, seated on a high stool like a king on a greasy throne, Zeff waited, arms crossed, foot tapping.
Luffy was shoved into a chair before him.
Mario lingered near the entrance, eyes scanning the restaurant, wondering what kind of chaos would come next.
And then — a new voice rang out from the kitchen.
"Oi, old man, what's with the racket?! I'm trying to make lunch!"
Mario's breath caught in his throat.
That voice.
It's him.
He came out of the kitchen — a slim figure in a sleek black suit, sleeves rolled up, a white apron tied around his waist. A cigarette dangled from his lips, smoke curling lazily into the air.
Sanji.
His signature blond hair covered one eye, the visible one sharp and cool. His swirling eyebrow twitched slightly as he looked over the crowd, and his neatly trimmed goatee gave him that effortless pirate-chef charm.
To Mario, it felt like the world had paused.
He's real too. Every single detail… from his walk to his voice to that cocky little smirk…
Sanji didn't even glance at the commotion as he carried a steaming dish to another table. "Somebody better pay for that hole in the wall," he muttered coolly. "I'm not cooking through a sea breeze."
Meanwhile, Zoro had already plopped into a booth near the window, feet up on the table like it was his own living room.
"Mario," he said with a yawn, "sit down. Let the captain handle his mess."
Mario hesitated, watching as Luffy argued with a clearly very angry Zeff, who loomed over him like a culinary god of punishment.
Then he sighed and joined Zoro at the table. "This is insane…"
Zoro grinned. "You get used to it."
Over by the counter, Luffy was already deep into negotiations… if you could call them that.
"You want me to work here for a whole year to pay off the damage?! No way! One week, tops! I have a crew, and we gotta get back to the sea!"
Zeff didn't flinch. "A week?! Do I look like a man who runs a soup kitchen for pirates?"
"I can wash dishes! Super fast! Like really fast!"
"You can't even hold a tray straight, brat." THWACK!
Zeff's peg leg came down hard on Luffy's head.
"OWWWW!"
"You want to eat like a king, break my wall, waste my time — and then leave after a week?" Zeff barked, striking again.
THWACK!
"You think you can pay your debts in dreams and laughter?!"
THWACK!
Luffy was now half-slumped against the counter, a visible bump rising from his forehead. "You hit harder than a Sea King…"
Zeff snorted. "Damn right I do."
As the loud back-and-forth between Luffy and Zeff continued, a sudden CRASH tore through the restaurant like a cannon shot.
Mario's head snapped toward the sound — and what he saw made him freeze:
Sanji, in full view of a now-silent dining room, had Lieutenant Fullbody gripped by the collar with one hand, hoisting the Marine halfway off the ground.
Shards of broken plates and half-eaten lobster scattered across the floor below them.
Sanji's eyes were sharp with fury. His cigarette burned hot between his lips.
"We don't waste food here," he growled, every syllable heavy with contempt.
Fullbody sputtered, red-faced, his feet barely touching the floor. "Wh-what the hell—! "
" You smashed it on the floor?" Sanji barked, slamming him back against the wall. "That was lobster flambé, you uncultured Navy mutt!"
From across the room, a large, square-jawed chef in a stained apron charged forward.
"Oi, Sanji! What are you doing to our customer!?" shouted Patty, emerging from the bathroom with soap suds still clinging to his arms.
He stomped across the floor, pointing furiously. "Are you crazy?! Service is our motto! The customer is GOD!"
Sanji didn't even glance at him. "Shut up, you shitty cook. He wasted food."
Patty's eyes bulged. "WHAT DID YOU CALL ME!?"
"Shitty cook."
"SHITTY?! I trained in FIVE kitchens across the South Blue!"
Zeff finally stormed out of the back kitchen, his mustache trembling with rage, peg leg stomping hard against the floor with every step.
"Sanji, you shitty brat, how many times do I have to tell you?! STOP FIGHTING THE CUSTOMERS!"
Sanji whipped around. "And how many times do I have to tell you, shitty old man—when are you gonna drop dead already?!"
Mario blinked. This wasn't a restaurant. This was a war zone with appetizers.
Fullbody, still recovering from whiplash, wiped his face and tried to stand upright.
"This—this is an outrage! What kind of barbaric restaurant is this?! I'll report you to the Navy—!"
CRACK!
Zeff's peg leg slammed into Fullbody's gut with brutal force, launching the Marine officer into a nearby table, which crumpled beneath him.
"You shut up," Zeff snarled. "Anyone who insults a meal served in my kitchen doesn't deserve to eat."
A stunned silence fell over the Baratie — guests frozen, mouths open, forks midair.
Luffy, from the floor, pumped his fist in admiration. "That was awesome!"
Usopp whispered from behind the plant, "I can't tell if this is a restaurant… or a battlefield…"
Suddenly the door of the restaurant flung open and a marine emerged.
"Liutennant Fullbody..."
BANG.
The sound echoed through the Baratie like a thunderclap. The Marine who had just stormed in dropped to the floor, eyes rolling back, blood blooming across his chest like a flower.
Mario froze.
His blood ran cold.
The entire restaurant went still — forks halfway to mouths, mugs of ale trembling in clenched fists.
Through the open door, a silhouette appeared, walking calmly, as if nothing had happened.
He stepped into the light: a tall, wiry man in tattered Krieg Pirate gear — navy-blue jacket scorched and torn at the shoulders, a black bandana wrapped around his head. His skin was sunburnt, his face gaunt, but his eyes were alive with cruelty.
He didn't even look at the body behind him. He looked hurt and most of all…Hungry.
"Give me food," he said, tossing a battered flintlock pistol onto the table. It clattered on the wood.
"This is a restaurant, right?"
No one moved.
Mario couldn't breathe. His heart pounded against his ribs like it wanted out.
Someone just got shot. That Marine… he's dead. Just like that.
He'd watched a thousand fights in the manga. He'd seen Luffy take on warlords, Zoro battle swordsmen, and Marines fall left and right — but this?
This was different.
This was real.
The smell of blood in the air. The silence. The fear.
A chef dropped a plate in the back — the shatter made Mario jump.
"Oi…" Patty whispered "What the hell's going on—?"
His eyes landed on the Marine's body. Then the pirate.
Then the gun.
But Patty being Patty he put his most sincere smile. For him a customer is GOD and Service is the motto.
„Good day customer what can I do for you?" Patty put the most amazing smile.
„Get me some food"
„Certainly but if I may ask how will you pay?"
„With a bullet if you don't hurry."
Patty's face changed and suddenly he hit him an started pummeling him
Not without cursing then he just threw him out. It was short and fierce.
„Hmph! And dont come back."
Patty wiped his fists on his apron, still breathing heavily from the brief but brutal scuffle. "That punk had some nerve—trying to pay with a bullet in a place like this."
Zeff gave him a sharp glance. "You used your fists. Twice."
Patty shrugged sheepishly. "Well, sometimes you gotta remind people this ain't just any restaurant."
The kitchen burst back into motion. Plates clattered, knives chopped, and the clamor of the staff returned as if the fight was nothing more than a brief interruption in the day's work.
Mario watched the whirlwind with wide eyes, still processing what he had just witnessed. The way Patty had handled the pirate—short, fierce, and without hesitation—was something Mario hadn't expected in a kitchen.
Fullbody made a sneaky escape in the meantime. No one noticing. But Mario did.
He looked around at the crew bustling through the Baratie. Life here was messy, unpredictable… and dangerous. But underneath it all was an unbreakable spirit, a family forged in fire and saltwater.
Zeff stomped his peg leg and called out, "Get back to work! No more distractions!"
Mario let out a slow breath, gripping the edge of the table.
"Well, that was chaotic," Nami said, crossing her arms with a sharp glance toward the kitchen.
Mario nodded, his mind already racing. He knew what was coming next—the pirate would be fed by Sanji, maybe calmed down for a moment, but soon enough the Baratie would erupt into another round of chaos. With the Krieg pirates attacking.
He wasn't strong yet. Not like Luffy, Zoro, or even Sanji. But maybe… just maybe… he could salvage something from all this madness. A way to protect this crew. To protect them.
Mario clenched his fists, determination flooding through him.
"If I'm going to survive in this world… and protect these people… I need to find my own strength. And fast."