Nami didn't seem to have much of an appetite, eating only a little. Alex, on the other hand, was in top form — laughing and drinking with Zoro one moment, exchanging tall tales with Usopp the next. The three of them were enjoying themselves immensely.

Some time later, Luffy — who had been dragged off by Sanji to work in the kitchen as a busboy — came stomping over. Seeing Alex and the others feasting at the table, he immediately complained,

"You guys left me all alone to work while you sit here enjoying a feast? Don't you think that's going too far?"

"Can't be helped," Zoro said. "You're on kitchen duty now."

"I heard the owner refused to let you just work seven days to pay off your debt," Usopp added. "He's making you stay here for a whole year before letting you go."

"In that case," Alex said with mock seriousness, "I guess we can repaint the Jolly Roger."

"Yeah, and maybe change the captain too."

The sight of Luffy wearing a white cloth tied around his waist, looking like a restaurant cook, made Nami, Usopp, Zoro, and Alex all want to laugh. They took turns teasing him.

"How about we change the flag to a skull with a money symbol on it?" Nami suggested.

"No, no," Usopp said. "We should give the skull a really long nose."

"Three swords behind the skull would look much cooler," Zoro added.

"A flag with a fishing net or a fish rod through the middle would be good for setting sail too," Alex offered.

Right in front of Luffy, the four of them seriously debated how to redesign the crew's pirate flag.

"Eat dirt, all of you!" Luffy grumbled under his breath. He then not-so-elegantly picked his nose… and flicked the treasure he found straight into Alex's rice bowl and Zoro's sake cup.

Nami and Usopp noticed what he did, but since Alex and Zoro were deep in conversation and hadn't seen it, they tried not to burst out laughing.

When Alex picked up his bowl to eat and Zoro lifted his cup to drink, Nami and Usopp couldn't hold back anymore, grinning widely.

But just as the food and drink were about to reach their mouths, Alex and Zoro suddenly grabbed Luffy by the neck, forcing the contents of the bowl and cup straight into his mouth.

"You eat it yourself!"

"You drink it yourself!"

They shouted in unison as they shoved the tainted meal down his throat.

"Ahhh! What are you doing?! My stomach hurts!"

Luffy rolled on the floor, clutching his gut.

"I should be the one asking what you just did!"

"Who told you to do something so disgusting!"

Both Zoro and Alex scolded him.

Then Sanji appeared, eyes turning into hearts, and walked straight over to Nami, who was laughing so hard she was pounding the table.

"Beautiful lady, your smile is simply irresistible. Please allow me to offer you a fruit parfait and a glass of after-dinner brandy orange."

Alex's skin crawled at Sanji's over-the-top flattery. "Seriously? Is he like this to every woman he sees?"

"He's interesting, right?" Luffy grinned. "I've already invited him to join us."

Alex's face went blank. "All I see is a woman-crazed lunatic. Are you sure eating food he made won't kill us?"

"Relax, I think he's great," Luffy said cheerfully, plopping down beside him and digging in.

When Alex asked Zoro for his opinion, the swordsman was about to speak when Sanji cut in:

"You guys have eaten a lot — don't forget to pay up later."

"Wait, isn't it free?" Zoro asked.

"For this lovely lady, of course it's free," Sanji said with heart eyes at Nami. "But her bill is for you gentlemen to cover."

The speed with which his face shifted from lovestruck to dead serious was almost dizzying.

"This curly-browed, shameless chef? I vote against him joining us," Zoro said immediately.

"He's a womanizing cook who discriminates against men. I'm against it too!" Usopp added, fuming at the unfairness of Nami's free treatment.

"Hmph, foolish guys. Who wants to join you anyway?" Sanji scoffed — but then glanced at Nami and added, "Although… if she's there, I might consider it."

"No need to consider. Just go die somewhere," Alex, Zoro, and Usopp all said in perfect unison, waving him away.

"Haha, you guys are hilarious," Luffy said, shoveling more food into his mouth.

"That's perfect," Zeff's voice came from behind Sanji. "If you want to be a pirate, go with them. This restaurant doesn't need you anymore."

He looked down at Sanji and said flatly,

"You keep picking fights with customers, you throw yourself at any pretty woman you see, you can't even make good dishes, and you don't get along with the other chefs. To this restaurant, you're just a burden."

"Do whatever you want — become a pirate, something else, I don't care. Just get out of here quickly!"

The words were harsh.

"Great, he's agreed! You can be a pirate now," Luffy said happily.

"Like hell I will!" Sanji yelled back at him, then said firmly to Zeff, "Even if you throw me out, I'll keep working here as a chef until the day you die!"

"I'm not dying anytime soon. I'll live at least another hundred years," Zeff said, then turned and walked away without another glance.

Sanji took a deep drag from his cigarette, then delivered a heavy kick to Luffy's head.

"Hey, you busboy! What makes you think you can sit here eating?"

"Guests just arrived. Go hand them towels — and be polite about it."

Dragging Luffy away, Sanji still found time to bark instructions.

Alex and the others watched Luffy get hauled off to do chores, then happily ordered another round of dishes.

Two days passed in a flash. Luffy was still stuck doing odd jobs on the restaurant ship, so Alex and the rest stayed as well — eating well, sleeping well, and enjoying themselves.

But Alex noticed Nami's face growing darker by the day.

That afternoon, they were once again feasting when the door opened — and Gin, the pirate who had been given a meal by Sanji days ago, walked in.

This time, he wasn't alone. Behind him stood a man once said to command fifty pirate ships, a man feared as the Overlord of the East Blue — Krieg, Admiral of the Krieg Pirates…

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