Life at sea was dull and repetitive.
Of course, that did not apply wherever Luffy was.
Aside from training, the guy spent every day bouncing around. Whenever he had free time, he went bird hunting or fishing.
A sleepy Can Yue had just finished his nap and had not yet fully woken up when he, Zoro, and the others heard the sound of a cannonball exploding.
It turned out Luffy and Usopp were competing to fire cannonballs.
Judging by the results, Usopp truly possessed exceptional talent for long-range sniping. Even with a cannon, he could easily hit boulders hundreds of meters away.
Seeing this familiar scene, Can Yue's lips curled up ever so slightly. He could clearly sense two people beneath the boulder—likely Zoro's two underlings, fellow Pirate Hunters Johnny and Joseph.
How miserable.
Even Can Yue felt sympathy for the two bounty hunters who had been blasted.
Ten minutes later, Johnny charged onto the pirate ship to challenge Luffy to a duel, only to be easily knocked flat by Luffy.
Afterward, Johnny reunited with Zoro and told him that he and the critically ill Joseph had been hiding beneath the boulder when the accidental bombardment happened.
Luffy and Usopp's mouths fell wide open when they heard that, and they repeatedly apologized.
The others soon saw Joseph, whose teeth had fallen out, whose body was covered in bruises, whose skin was dry, and who looked utterly lifeless.
After Nami explained, everyone except Can Yue learned that Joseph had contracted scurvy, a common illness at sea caused by vitamin C deficiency.
If they did not pay attention to balanced nutrition while sailing, they would likely all fall victim to the same illness.
Fortunately, Nami had prepared plenty of limes before setting sail, saving Joseph's life.
After this incident, Luffy and the others became even more certain that they needed to find a cook for the sea.
Thus, they continued sailing toward the Sea Restaurant.
One day later, Joseph, who had been critically ill, had already regained his vitality.
The two eagerly introduced themselves to Can Yue and the others.
Some time ago, when they saw that Zoro had become a "great pirate" with a bounty of fifteen million Beli, they had been so shocked their scalps went numb.
Now, they had even met Luffy and Can Yue, whose bounties were higher still.
As bounty hunters, sailing alongside a pirate crew whose combined bounties totaled sixty-five million Beli felt incredibly strange to them.
~
Inside the kitchen, Joseph was still eating oranges as part of his recovery treatment.
Johnny and Zoro were keeping him company.
At that moment, Johnny suddenly asked curiously.
"Big Brother Zoro, why did you become a pirate with them?"
Hearing that question, Zoro fell silent for a while.
Before meeting Can Yue and Luffy, Zoro had believed he was strong enough to set out to sea and challenge Hawk Eyes, fulfilling the promise he had made to his close friend Kuina.
But in Shells Town, he had met Can Yue. It had been his first defeat since going to sea.
Then, in Orange Town, Zoro witnessed the terrifying power of Can Yue's sword technique, Azure Dragon Break.
It showed him just how vast the world was and made him glad that he had met Can Yue, Luffy, and the others.
When the silence ended, Zoro looked resolute as he replied with a smile.
"By joining this pirate crew, I'll become stronger."
"Stronger? Big Brother Zoro, you're still not strong enough?" Joseph looked utterly incredulous.
"Yeah... compared to those two, especially Can Yue, I'm still far behind."
Although he said he could not compare to Can Yue, Zoro's eyes were incomparably firm. It was the confidence of someone who would continue growing stronger.
Johnny and Joseph were deeply shaken.
"That Can Yue actually made such a powerful Big Brother Zoro wholeheartedly accept defeat... just who is he?"
Zoro did not answer further and instead walked toward the door.
In Johnny and Joseph's eyes, Zoro's bearing seemed to be gradually changing.
"Can Yue, let's keep training." Zoro walked over to Can Yue with a smile and spoke confidently.
"Oh?" Can Yue, who was busy pummeling Luffy, turned to look at Zoro.
"It seems your state of mind has broken through." Can Yue saw the reason at once.
The improvement of one's swordsmanship had much to do with one's state of mind.
Zoro must have let go of some inner knot just now, which was why he had changed.
And just as Can Yue had guessed.
Zoro had been far too impatient lately because he had discovered that no matter how he trained, he still seemed just as far from Can Yue.
That impatience had kept him from making much progress for a long time.
Now, Zoro suddenly accepted himself and let go of the urge to compare himself with Can Yue. As long as he compared himself to who he had been one second ago and steadily became stronger step by step, that was enough.
Because of this, Zoro seemed to feel that he had come one step closer to cutting through steel.
Can Yue looked at the confident Zoro and said, "Very good. Then work hard and prove it to yourself."
"Alright!"
Zoro adjusted his breathing, drew his sword before the massive iron hammer, and slashed!
Another day later, the blazing noon sun filled the sea with rising steam.
Even the Straw Hat Pirates stopped training and entered a brief midday rest.
Just as everyone drifted off to sleep, Chouchou, who lived in the forward cannon room, suddenly began barking.
The group walked out of the cabin and looked closely. Several hundred meters ahead stood an enormous round sailing ship with fish-shaped ends.
The words "Sea Restaurant Baratie" were clearly written on its hull.
"Wow, we finally found it—the Sea Restaurant Baratie!" Luffy shouted excitedly as he jumped around.
Nami was so excited she cried. Wiping away her tears, she complained, "Finally, we won't have to eat nothing but fruit and seabirds anymore."
Usopp wiped away his excited tears and looked expectantly at Can Yue.
"Can Yue, now we'll have food. I won't have to hunt birds lately, right?"
The main reason was that Usopp had been catching seabirds every day lately. He had thought that would spare him from being beaten by Can Yue, but Can Yue had shamelessly increased his task to two birds a day.
So Usopp still got beaten until he howled every day.
"Mm. While we're at the restaurant, I'll give you a break."
"Wow, long live Boss Can Yue!"
Poor Usopp truly seemed to be afraid of Can Yue. He did not dare say even a mildly disrespectful word.
Zoro also said expectantly, "I wonder what the wine at this restaurant tastes like."
After nearly a week of dull sailing, Zoro's mouth had practically gone tasteless.
"Meat, meat, meat!"
Drooling, Luffy issued a captain's order.
"Brothers, full speed ahead for the Sea Restaurant Baratie!"
The few hundred meters quickly disappeared.
Just as the Merry was about to reach the restaurant entrance, a dark shadow suddenly appeared beside it.
Looking carefully, it was actually a Marine warship.
On the warship's deck, a Marine officer wearing Knuckle Dusters was supported by a beautiful blonde woman in a fitted long dress as he looked down at the Straw Hat Crew.
"What unknown pirate crew is this? Have your captain come out and speak."
Marineford Captain Iron Fist Hody shouted at the people aboard the Merry.
Luffy replied, "I'm Luffy."
Usopp immediately followed with, "I'm Usopp."
Luffy said, "The pirate flag is brand-new."
Usopp said, "I drew the pirate flag."
The two spoke one line after another, making Hody reveal a contemptuous expression.
Usopp's behavior not only made Luffy look disgusted.
Even Can Yue and Zoro, who were watching from the side, frowned.
In a situation like this, Usopp's behavior would make outsiders feel that the Straw Hat Pirates' captain had no authority whatsoever.
Naturally, outsiders would not think highly of such a pirate crew.
Of course, Can Yue knew Usopp was still immature and had no ill intent. He simply wanted to show off, so he could be gradually taught later.
As for Iron Fist Hody, his attention was entirely on the beauty beside him. Besides, Usopp's childish behavior made him regard the Straw Hat Crew as a worthless pirate crew with no threat at all.
Thus, the Marine Captain did not carefully examine the pirate crew members' faces.
He directly ordered his subordinates to fire, while he himself headed toward Baratie with the beauty.
~
The warship opened fire, and Luffy immediately leaped up and turned into a rubber balloon to block the shot.
Because they were too close to the warship and the cannonball accelerated too quickly, Luffy failed to control the direction in which it bounced back.
It flew straight into the Baratie's upper-level head chef's lounge.
Everyone covered their faces.
Luffy stood there blankly and cried, "We're done for!"
Before you continue