The Pirate Who Refused Red-Haired Shanks's Invitation

Lin Mo untied the rope bound to the deck.

He continued sailing toward the Calm Belt.

Evening.

When he returned, the military small boat that had been parked there was gone.

That was to say, Garp had already left.

Being short one annoying guy, Lin Mo was actually quite happy.

He tied up his small boat properly.

Lin Mo tossed the giant octopus he had brought back to the kitchen.

Just as he was about to leave the kitchen.

He was blocked at the kitchen door by a group of chefs led by Patty.

Patty smiled and said, "Lin Mo, I heard from the boss that you're only staying at the Baratie temporarily. I think your skills are pretty good, how about staying and working here long-term?"

"No," Lin Mo refused. "I don't cook."

"It doesn't matter, we can teach you."

"That's right, that's right. Although we didn't get to see your skills, to be praised so much by a guy like Patty, you must be really awesome."

"Just stay, you don't have anywhere else to go anyway."

Uh, what on earth was up with this bunch of inexplicable guys?

Lin Mo speechlessly said, "I'm a traveler, and there are many places I need to go. It's impossible for me to stay in any one place for long. I have no interest in being a cook either. Instead of having time to keep me here, you'd all better spend it honing your culinary arts."

"Huh? You're rejecting us just like that?"

"You're way too direct. At least be a bit tactful."

"Hey! What are you all doing? Have the dishes ordered by the guests all been made?" At that moment, Zeff's voice suddenly came from outside the door.

That bunch of cooks scurried like mice seeing a cat, quickly returning to their respective posts to get to work.

Zeff expressionlessly looked at Lin Mo. "Follow me."

Lin Mo detachedly followed him out to the deck.

After a moment of silence, Zeff spoke up, "About this morning, thanks."

Lin Mo detachedly said, "It's nothing."

Zeff continued, "And about Sanji, you were the one who enlightened him, right?"

"Yeah."

"Although I'm not clear why you helped that stinking brat, still, thanks."

"It's nothing."

"Heh." Zeff smiled faintly. "What they said to you just now, I heard it all. Do you really not have any intention of staying?"

Lin Mo directly stated, "None."

"Garp has already left, so when do you plan to leave?"

Lin Mo thought about it and replied, "Soon."

Just as Lin Mo finished speaking.

By the staircase.

A cook who had just gone down to deliver dishes hurried back up.

Seeing that Zeff was right here, he anxiously said, "Boss, it's bad! That Krieg with fifteen pirate ships has come!"

"What?" Zeff slightly frowned.

"He said he's here to settle scores with Sanji and Lin Mo."

"Hmph! Truly bold!" Zeff's face sank slightly, and he unpleasantly said, "Let's go! I want to see what kind of capability this Krieg has to dare come make trouble at the Baratie!"

In Lin Mo's impression, Krieg and Zeff's direct encounter should have been ten years later when Luffy came to the Baratie.

How did they run into each other already?

When he prepared to head downstairs together to take a look, his peripheral vision suddenly caught sight of a pirate ship not far out at sea heading toward the Baratie.

This is...

Lin Mo looked somewhat surprised at the pirate flag of that pirate ship.

Behind the skull was a cross composed of two bones, and a crescent-moon-shaped mustache pointing upward...

Wasn't this the emblem of the Whitebeard Pirates?

The Whitebeard Pirates were a pirate group founded by 'Whitebeard' Edward Newgate, who possessed the power of the strongest Paramecia Tremor-Tremor Fruit.

Judging from the current timeline.

The Whitebeard Pirates should be the strongest pirate group in the current world.

Lin Mo remembered that the flagship of the Whitebeard Pirates should be a large ship with a whale head as the bow.

Yet the one currently sailing toward the Baratie was a light sailing ship.

By the look of it, it should be one of Whitebeard's subordinate commanders who had arrived.

He just didn't know who had come.

Taking back his gaze.

Lin Mo didn't dwell on it further and immediately headed toward the staircase.

When he arrived at the downstairs dining room.

At this moment, the dining room was in complete silence.

The customers who had previously been dining in the restaurant had already fled out in a panic.

As for Zeff, he led the cook who had just reported to him, confronting Krieg and his party head-on.

Behind Krieg, besides his own underlings, there was also a woman.

It was precisely that woman who had told Sanji to wait and see yesterday.

Just as Lin Mo had anticipated.

Krieg saw Zeff and widened his eyes in shock.

"It's you! You're the peerless pirate who served as a pirate captain under the identity of a chef, Red-Leg Zeff! I heard you met with a shipwreck and died—I never expected you to still be alive!"

Zeff slightly narrowed his eyes and sneered. "So what if I'm alive? It has nothing to do with you. Right now, I'm just a cook making a living through cooking."

Krieg was startled for a moment, then burst into loud laughter. His face already resembled a monkey's, and this laughter made him look even more so.

"Hahahaha!" Krieg laughed. "Putting it so nicely, calling it making a living through cooking—it's more like you can only be a cook now."

Krieg looked at Zeff's prosthetic limb, the smile at the corners of his mouth growing deeper. "If you were whole, I would still have some misgivings, but losing a leg means losing your combat power. You pose no threat to me anymore."

"So what?" Zeff said with a dark face. "I'm no longer a pirate. Furthermore, I still have these hands—if you have anything to say, just spit it out!"

"Heheh," Krieg smiled maliciously. "Red-Leg Zeff, you're a man who once entered the Grand Line and returned safely. You should have a logbook recording that entire year of navigation. As long as you hand that logbook over to me, I'll spare you all today."

"Hmph!" Zeff let out a cold snort. "That's right, I do indeed have a logbook, but I cannot give it to you. The logbook is the pride of all the companions who once sailed with me. Handing it over to you would carry a bit too much weight."

Krieg's expression sank, and he clenched his fist. "Since that's how it is, then I'll just take it by force!"

Just as his voice fell.

A relaxed male voice suddenly came from the restaurant entrance.

"Aiyo, it's not easy to finally see a floating restaurant, and I wanted to come have some dinner. Looks like we came at the wrong time."

A tall, thin man with a golden punk haircut, a dagger hung at his waist, and a Whitebeard Pirate tattoo on his chest appeared outside the main entrance with a few underlings.

Lin Mo recognized the newcomer at a single glance.

It was Pineapple Head Marco.

In the Whitebeard Pirates, he was the solid, unquestionable number two figure.

Krieg impatiently turned his head to look toward the entrance.

When he saw the tattoo on Marco's chest, he couldn't help but be slightly startled.

This tattoo looked a bit familiar...

"Hey! Didn't you see our boss is here?" One of Krieg's subordinates shouted toward Marco and the others. "What dinner, get lost!"

"How do you talk? Do you know who our commander is?" One of Marco's subordinates unhappily retorted. He originally wanted to continue arguing with that guy, but Marco stopped him.

"Xiaopeng, you don't need to argue with these ignorant people." Marco stroked his chin and said with a half-smile, "I remember, it seems like nobody has told me to get lost in over a dozen years."

"You're arrogant enough. Boss, you don't need to make a move, let us teach them a lesson!"

As Krieg's subordinate spoke, he called out to his comrades and swarmed toward Marco and the others.

At this moment.

Zeff suddenly chuckled lightly.

Krieg tightly frowned. "What are you laughing at?"

Zeff sarcastically said, "As expected of the most active pirate group in the East Blue recently, you even dare to bully Whitebeard's people."

"What? Whitebeard?" Krieg only then remembered that the tattoo pattern was the emblem of the Whitebeard Pirates.

This was bad.

Right now, he couldn't afford to provoke Whitebeard yet!

Krieg immediately shouted to his underlings, "Stop all of you!"

However.

He was still a step too late.

His subordinates were already holding weapons and slashing toward Marco and the others.

"You guys are really harsh, bullying even people who are starving." Marco wasn't flustered at all. The subordinates behind him all had smiles hooking the corners of their mouths, rubbing their fists and wiping their palms, eager to try.

Marco casually said to Zeff, "The brothers are all hungry, sorry for the trouble—help us prepare dinner for fifteen, thanks."

Zeff smiled and nodded. "Alright, no problem. However, fight all you want, just don't wreck my restaurant."

"Alright, then we'll drag them outside to fight."

Marco grinned.

Zeff nodded.

Just as he was about to head to the kitchen.

The cook behind him worriedly asked, "Boss, is this really okay? Krieg is a pirate with fifteen pirate ships, after all."

"It's fine. Whitebeard's people are all very strong. Besides, the one who came this time is the number two figure of the Whitebeard Pirates, Marco the Phoenix. Handling a single Krieg will be a breeze."

With that said, Zeff walked toward the spiral staircase.

When he saw Lin Mo, who was currently standing by the stairs.

He couldn't help smiling again. "Kid, you haven't had dinner yet either, right?"

Lin Mo glanced at him and nodded.

"Then stay here and keep an eye on things for me. I'll treat you to dinner."

"I have money."

"I'll treat you to a bottle of good wine on top of that."

"Deal."

"Haha." Zeff laughed heartily as he walked upstairs.

Facing the attack from Krieg's subordinates, Marco and the others didn't counterattack at the start. Instead, they continuously retreated until Krieg's subordinates were outside the restaurant, at which point they made their move and knocked them into the sea one by one.