Early the next morning, the sun rose from the distant horizon, casting a ray of golden sunlight across the sky and onto the deck of the Baratie.
Today, the sea-going restaurant floated in this tranquil stretch of ocean just as it always did, until...
"We're doomed!!"
"Something terrible has happened, Boss!!"
In the kitchen, the burly cook Patty clutched his head with his large hands. His eyes were wide with panic as he stared in disbelief at the sight before him.
The kitchenware, which should have been neatly and orderly arranged in the pristine kitchen, had been half-emptied!
"Boss Zeff! Our restaurant has been robbed!!"
...
Meanwhile.
A dark red sailing ship glided slowly across the calm sea, its black flag fluttering in the wind.
Aboard the ship, Sanji strolled over to the kitchen and pushed the door open.
"Oh? I didn't expect the ship to be equipped with such fine kitchenware. Not bad at all."
Sanji clicked his tongue in admiration.
Stepping into the kitchen, he first inspected the various workstations, taking inventory of the utensils and the stored seasonings.
Looking at the dilapidated decor of the kitchen contrasting with the large amount of exceptionally well-maintained cookware, a growing sense of incongruity washed over him.
Sanji picked up a ladle, staring down at it for a long time before furrowing his brow slightly.
"Strange. The more I look at this, the more it looks like the kitchenware Boss Zeff uses."
"Oh, you mean that? Looks familiar, doesn't it?"
At that moment, a figure suddenly stepped through the kitchen doorway. Sanji glanced over; it was Allen.
Stopping in front of him, Allen swept his gaze over all the kitchenware in the room. He planted his hands on his hips and grinned.
"That's because all of this was stolen from the sea-going restaurant."
"You actually stole it?!"
Sanji rolled his eyes and glared fiercely at him, baring his teeth as he cursed, "Have you no shame, you bastard?! You didn't even spare a chef's cooking utensils!"
"Ah, well, it's because our ship is broke. We just had to borrow a little from them for now."
Allen gave him a deadpan look, picking his ear with his pinky finger as he spoke dismissively.
Sanji closed his eyes, veins bulging on his forehead in sheer exasperation.
*To steal things and feel so justified about it... I really want to kick this shameless bastard right into the sea.*
...
Soon after, having kicked Allen out of the kitchen with a look of utter disgust, Sanji began preparing breakfast.
The banquet last night had lasted late into the night. Most of the crew were still lying drunkenly in their hammocks, likely completely unaware that the ship had even set sail.
Sanji only made about twenty portions of breakfast, delivering them one by one to the pirates who were awake and working at their posts.
As for someone like Allen, who had nothing to do, he had to go to the dining hall to fetch his own breakfast.
When Sanji returned, Allen speared a fried egg with his fork and shoved it into his mouth, speaking as he chewed.
"By the way, Sanji, you'll need a few helpers in the kitchen, right? Once the pirates wake up, go find Karl and pick a few out."
There were no proper chefs on the ship, but there were still a few who could barely be considered capable of cooking.
The pirates responsible for various chores on the ship were all in the Third Division, which Allen had assigned Karl to lead.
"Yeah, got it."
Sanji replied casually, lighting a cigarette before heading back inside to clean up the used cooking stations.
He really did need a few people to help out. Otherwise, handling three meals a day for a crew of eighty all by himself would be far too overwhelming.
As for the kitchen assistants, they didn't need high-level culinary skills. Anyone could handle simple ingredient prep and washing dishes. If they were interested in cooking, they could learn from him, and over time, he could cultivate a proper culinary team for the ship.
Allen didn't say anything more. He didn't need to worry about these matters; he could just leave the kitchen operations entirely to Sanji's discretion.
By noon, when the sun was high in the sky, the pirates on the ship gradually woke up.
Down in the first-floor dining hall, Sanji had already prepared a large pot of hangover-curing drinks. It was only then that most of the pirates surprisingly noticed the new chef on board.
"Let me introduce our new comrade, Sanji. He's a top-tier chef I went to great lengths to recruit from the sea-going restaurant."
Allen grinned, throwing an arm over the shoulder of a visibly disgusted Sanji as he addressed the pirates below.
"I'm sure none of you have forgotten how delicious yesterday's meal was. Sanji has personally inherited the boss's skills; he's the most outstanding chef in all of the Baratie."
"Even looking at the entire world, Sanji is a top-class, first-rate chef! You idiots better count your blessings, because you're in for a treat from now on, hahaha!"
"Woohoo—!"
"Long live the Captain! Long live Head Chef Sanji!"
"This is awesome, hahaha!"
The entire pirate crew cheered and jumped for joy in a frenzy.
Yesterday's banquet was simply the most luxurious and delicious meal they had ever eaten.
The thought of being able to eat Baratie-level food for three meals a day from now on made everyone uncontrollably excited.
Next, Sanji picked a few pirates from the Third Division. Some had previously been responsible for cooking, while others volunteered, wanting to learn how to cook from Sanji.
This group also included Karl.
As a result, the Third Division, which originally only had over twenty people, was immediately cut in half, leaving only a few responsible for steering the ship and doing odd jobs.
Allen hesitated for a moment over whether he should just disband them and reassign them under Sham and Buchi, but after some thought, he decided against it.
The pirate crew would only grow larger in the future, and he would eventually divide his subordinates into different divisions based on their functions. He would keep this division for now and let Karl continue to lead it while juggling his other duties.
Once that was settled, Sanji took his new subordinates to the kitchen to start preparing lunch. Allen returned to the captain's quarters, lit a cigar, and lay down on the sofa to ponder the formal establishment of his pirate crew.
Although it hadn't been long, the pirates under his command had already begun to develop a sense of belonging.
With Sanji's addition, along with the Nyaban Brothers, the ship could barely be considered to have a few core fighters. Now that their scale was beginning to take shape, still operating under the name of the Black Cat Pirates was starting to leave a bad taste in his mouth.
First was the name of the pirate crew.
After haphazardly brainstorming a bunch of overly flashy, edgy, and chuunibyou-esque names, Allen ultimately decided to return to basics and use the unique naming style of this sea.
Combining a color and an animal.
As for the color, Allen had black hair and black eyes, so he decided to use black. It fit perfectly with the naming conventions of this world.
As for the animal...
Black Dragon? Too edgy. He couldn't even bring himself to say it out loud.
The tiger, king of beasts, was pretty good, but...
"Black Tiger Pirates, Black Lion Pirates, Black Tiger, Black Lion..."
After muttering them to himself a few times, Allen felt that Black Lion sounded a bit better.
*Wait a minute, Black Lion... Hei Shi...*
*Hei Si... Black Stockings...*
*The Black Stockings Pirates...*
Allen's mouth twitched a few times, and his face instantly darkened.
*Great, now I can't unhear it.*
...
Right around lunchtime, Allen stepped out of the captain's quarters, crossed the deck, and made his way all the way to the bow of the ship.
Bang!!
Under the watchful eyes of the pirate crew, Allen raised his leg and brought it down in a straight axe kick right onto the black cat figurehead at the bow.
Crack—! Crunch—!
Accompanied by the sound of splintering wood, a crack spread outward, extending all the way around the black cat's neck before snapping completely.
The black cat figurehead fell into the sea with a heavy splash!
"Brothers!"
Allen turned back to look down at the deck, facing the pirates as he shouted loudly,
"The name of the Black Cat is a thing of the past! No matter what happened before, from this day forward, you only have one identity! And that is as my subordinates!"
Looking up at Allen, the pirates felt a mix of emotion and excitement in their hearts.
Allen raised his arm and announced loudly,
"Starting today! Our brand-new name is...
The [Demon Lion] Pirates! We are officially established!!"
"Uwooooh!!"
As his words fell, a massive roar erupted from the deck below.
The pirates' eyes shone with excitement. They raised their swords and guns, erupting into a unified, fanatical cheer:
"Demon Lion!!"
"Demon Lion!!"
"Demon Lion!!"
...
"Now! Take our brand-new flag and hoist it to the highest point on the sea!"
Allen shouted, unfurling a black flag and holding it high by one corner.
The sea breeze caught the fluttering pirate flag, revealing a fierce-looking male lion skull. Its eye sockets were a ruthless, blood-red, and it sported two pairs of interlocking, jagged fangs, making it look exactly like an evil demon.
The skull was draped in a mane, with two crossed swords behind it.
This was the pirate flag he had drawn, and the artwork was incredibly rough.
But it didn't matter. From this day forward, this demon-like lion skull flag would be the symbol of their pirate crew!
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