Chapter 27: Find a Chef

"Brother Leo! Sister Nami!"

When Johnny heard from Leo and Nami that his partner could still be saved, his eyes filled with hope and eagerness.

Zoro, too, let out a quiet sigh of relief.

"Nami, you're amazing! You're like a doctor!" Luffy exclaimed in awe, his mouth wide open.

"Can you please have some basic knowledge about navigation?!" Nami shouted, her eyes bulging in disbelief. "If you keep going like this, you'll die at sea sooner or later!"

"Uh… aren't you guys still here to help…" Luffy muttered, scratching his head.

Bang!

Nami's fist smashed down on Luffy's head, leaving behind a giant bump. Usopp trembled on the side, shocked at how violent Nami could be.

He hadn't expected this seemingly fragile girl to have such a terrifying punch. Even Luffy, the captain, wasn't spared.

"Remember this!" Nami scolded, pointing angrily at Luffy. "This is the most basic navigation knowledge. You must remember it!"

"Yes! Yes!" Johnny and Joseph quickly nodded in fear before Zoro or the others could say a word. It was clear they didn't want to get punched next.

Seeing that Nami's anger had slightly subsided, Johnny scratched his head and said awkwardly, "Big sister… after all, we don't have a chef, so we're clueless about this kind of thing..."

Nami glared at him but soon turned thoughtful.

"Chef... now that I think about it, Leo's been acting as our part-time cook. But we really should find a dedicated chef."

As soon as the topic of food came up, Luffy's eyes lit up. He had been quite happy with their recent meals, especially since there was always meat—his favorite.

"But Leo always sneaks in broccoli," Luffy grumbled. "I hate broccoli!"

With Leo around, there was never a shortage of food on the ship. But Leo wasn't a trained chef. His cooking skills came from years of living alone in his previous life, not from any formal training.

His meals were enough to keep them full, but when it came to taste and nutrition, there was still a gap compared to a real professional.

And Leo himself had no interest in being the crew's full-time chef forever. He had dreams beyond the kitchen. Why be a cook when he could perform magic?

Thinking about this, Leo sighed and spoke to Luffy.

"You know how I cook. I can make sure you're full, but it's nothing like the food from a real chef. I don't even know how to prepare special nutrition-rich meals for fighters."

"So," he added, "the next thing we need to do is find a real chef."

Hearing Leo's words, Luffy nodded seriously. He recalled all the weird ways Leo had hidden broccoli in his food and suddenly became very supportive of the idea.

"That settles it! Let's go find a chef!!"

"The most important thing is that we can eat delicious food on the ship!" Luffy smiled wide, excited at the thought of no longer having to eat Leo's strange cooking.

After hearing Luffy's decision, Johnny hesitated for a moment, then raised his hand.

"Brother! Brother!"

"If it's about finding a great chef, I know a place. But I can't guarantee they'll want to come on board your ship."

"Oh?" Luffy and the others looked at Johnny in surprise. They hadn't expected him to know anything useful.

"It's near the entrance to the Grand Line. That place attracts a lot of dangerous folks," Johnny explained. "A while ago, Joseph and I heard that the man you've been looking for—Hawk-Eyes—also appeared nearby."

"If you trust me, I can lead the way!"

The Sea Restaurant: Baratie.

This legendary floating restaurant, shaped like a giant fish with decorative figureheads on both ends, was the most famous eatery in all of East Blue. Built for both flavor and battle, it followed a strict code of never wasting food and was manned by chefs who could also fight.

The ship could shift into combat mode if needed, and its reputation for gourmet cuisine was unmatched. The head chef Zeff and his sous-chef Sanji were particularly famous. Their food was so exquisite that even high-ranking Marines made trips just to eat there.

Three days later, Leo, Luffy, and the rest of the crew adjusted their heading slightly northward and finally spotted the giant fish-shaped ship in the distance.

"Brother Zoro! Brother Leo! Brother Luffy! Brother Usopp! Sister Nami! We've arrived at Baratie, the restaurant on the sea!" Johnny announced with pride.

The group stared in awe at the massive structure floating on the waves.

Even Leo, who had seen modern steel ships in his past life through videos and photos, was impressed. Those ships always looked like toys through a screen. But this—this wooden giant built entirely by hand—was something else entirely.

"Not bad," Leo muttered, genuinely impressed. "Building something this huge out of wood… not easy."

Nami, however, gave Johnny a puzzled look.

"Brother? Since when did you start calling me brother?" she said, raising an eyebrow.

Before Johnny could reply, Usopp's voice rang out in alarm.

"Marine ship incoming!!"

Usopp had the sharpest eyesight on board and was the first to notice the approaching vessel. The others quickly turned and saw it as well.

This was the first time they'd actually seen a Marine warship up close at sea. While they had already clashed with Marines on land, this was different. The full scale and power of the Marine force was intimidating.

The ship looked strong and refined, even more durable than the Going Merry, despite Leo's extra work on reinforcing it during its build.

"I don't recognize that pirate flag. Must be a new crew," came a sneering voice from the Marine ship as it drew closer.

Out stepped a man wearing a white suit with flashy patterns, flirty pink hair parted down the middle, and a pair of iron-ringed boxing gloves.

"I'm Captain Finbudi of the Navy Headquarters! Who's the captain here?"

He glanced lazily at the Merry, clearly unimpressed. It looked like just another rookie crew to him, not even worth the effort.

"I'm Luffy! Captain of the Straw Hat Pirates!" Luffy shouted, stepping forward with his trademark grin. "I'm going to become the King of the Pirates!!"

Finbudi scoffed at him.

Tch. Another delusional rookie.

Without saying another word, he turned and started walking back inside his ship.

"Sink them," he ordered casually.

Immediately, the Marines began adjusting their cannons, aiming straight for the Going Merry.

"Hey hey hey!!"

"Wait, what?! That guy's actually going to shoot us?!" Usopp's voice trembled with fear.

He wasn't ready to die yet—not when he had promised Kaya that he'd return alive to tell her all about his adventures.

"Don't be scared."

Leo walked to Usopp and gently patted him on the shoulder, speaking in a calm tone that somehow made the air feel lighter.

Then he turned toward Nami, a faint smile playing at the corners of his mouth.

"Nami," he said, his eyes glinting, "how about testing out that new staff I gave you?"

His words made Nami's eyes widen with excitement.

Even Zoro and Luffy stopped what they were doing to look at Leo. They'd seen glimpses of his strength before, but this time—this time they were going to witness something new.

What would Leo do?

Was he going to fight?

Or was he going to let Nami show off what he had taught her?

Whatever happened next, one thing was certain—this rookie pirate crew was about to make waves on the sea.

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