Chapter 361: Baratie, the Floating Restaurant

Chapter 361: Chapter 361: Baratie, the Floating Restaurant

Chapter 361: Baratie, the Floating Restaurant

A refurbished sailing ship cut across the blue sea.

It had been rebuilt from Axel’s previous vessel, but most traces of its old identity were gone. The wax coating had been stripped away, the markings associated with Mr. 3 had disappeared, and several important sections of the hull had been replaced with high-quality mahogany.

It looked almost new.

The people aboard had changed as well.

Karoo, the noisy duck who had brought life to the deck, was gone.

So was Vivi.

In her place sat Nico Robin, quietly reading with her head lowered.

The only thing that had not changed was Axel.

He lounged lazily near the center of the deck, leaning back as though nothing in the world could trouble him.

Perhaps that was simply how he lived.

Or perhaps it was the expression he used to keep everything else hidden.

Chopper emerged from the cabin carrying a mortar and pestle.

His eyes instinctively drifted toward the raised section above the deck.

It had the best view on the ship.

Vivi had often stayed there during their journey.

For a moment, Chopper almost called out to her.

Then he remembered.

The ship was still here.

She was not.

His expression dimmed slightly.

A gentle gaze met his.

Robin had looked up from her book.

Chopper immediately performed his usual attempt at hiding, pressing himself against the side of the cabin while somehow leaving most of his body exposed.

Robin watched him.

Chopper watched her.

He still had no idea how to talk to this new woman.

She had only joined them recently, and aside from knowing that her name was Robin, Chopper understood very little about her.

After several seconds, Robin smiled and gave him a small nod.

Chopper hurriedly nodded back.

"H-Hello!"

Robin’s smile deepened slightly before she returned to her book.

Chopper finally relaxed.

He sat down and began grinding the medicine in his mortar, slowly mixing it into a thick paste.

Once it was ready, he walked over to Axel.

Without asking, Chopper lifted the edge of his shirt.

Axel’s skin remained unnaturally pale.

His ability automatically reflected the ultraviolet rays of the sun, leaving his exposed skin almost untouched by the harsh light.

But beneath the shirt, the sight was completely different.

Blood-red scars and partially healed wounds covered his torso in tangled lines.

Against his pale skin, they looked even worse.

Chopper’s expression immediately became serious.

He carefully applied the medicine.

His movements were extremely gentle, almost as though Axel might crack if he pressed too hard.

Once he finished, Chopper lowered the shirt again and wiped the sweat from his forehead.

"The injuries are stable for now."

Then his voice hardened.

"But you absolutely cannot keep fighting."

Axel stretched lazily.

He yawned and kept his eyes half-closed, enjoying the warmth of the afternoon sun.

"I know."

Chopper frowned.

"You said that before."

Axel opened one eye.

"Your injuries are worse now than they were when Dr. Kureha treated you."

Chopper’s voice grew louder.

"If this keeps happening, eventually even your ability won’t be able to keep your body functioning properly!"

Axel scratched his head.

There were few things Chopper became truly stubborn about.

Medicine was one of them.

And unfortunately, Chopper was right.

Axel’s ability controlled vectors.

It did not heal wounds.

The damage inside his body had never truly disappeared.

Since leaving Drum Island, he had gone through two serious battles.

The first had been against Kizaru.

That fight had nearly killed him.

The second had been against Crocodile.

Crocodile was not as dangerous as Kizaru. Compared to an Admiral, he relied too heavily on his Devil Fruit and had neglected other aspects of combat, which was one reason Axel had been able to overwhelm him relatively quickly.

But quick did not mean harmless.

The fight had still placed enormous stress on Axel’s already damaged body.

Old injuries had worsened.

The only reason he had not shown it was because he had grown accustomed to enduring pain.

If screaming had somehow helped him recover faster, he probably would have screamed without hesitation.

Axel sighed.

"Fine."

Chopper immediately focused on him.

"Unless it’s absolutely necessary, I’ll avoid fighting."

Chopper’s expression softened.

Getting even that much of a concession from Axel was rare.

"Good."

Then he added firmly,

"And if I see you fighting when it isn’t necessary, I’m stopping you."

Axel nodded.

"Until Dr. Kureha finds a proper solution, I’ll do everything I can to stop your condition from getting worse."

Chopper clenched one small hoof.

"And I’m going to keep studying too."

"I’ll find a way to treat you myself."

"Mm."

Axel closed his eyes again.

A brief silence passed.

Then Chopper asked,

"Why didn’t Vivi come with us?"

Axel opened his eyes.

Chopper had clearly been holding that question in for days.

"She didn’t want to."

Chopper stared at him.

He did not believe that for a second.

Vivi’s expression when they parted had not looked like someone eager to stay behind.

"But you could have brought her."

Axel glanced at him.

"You did that to me."

Chopper folded his arms.

"I didn’t want to leave Drum Island either, and you basically kidnapped me."

"That was different."

"How?"

"I was already wanted."

Axel spoke as though the logic were obvious.

"When the World Government already wants to arrest you, one more crime doesn’t matter much."

He lazily waved a hand.

"Now I’m not wanted."

"And I’m not a pirate."

"So why would I kidnap the princess of an entire kingdom for no reason?"

"That sounds like unnecessary trouble."

Chopper’s expression tightened.

"But Vivi is our comrade!"

A mocking voice came from nearby.

"A little raccoon dog talking about comrades."

Wapol snorted.

"How ridiculous."

Chopper spun toward him.

"Vivi is our comrade!"

He pointed furiously at himself.

"And I’m a reindeer!"

"Not a raccoon dog!"

Wapol looked completely unconvinced.

"Sure."

"A raccoon dog pretending to be a reindeer."

He stroked his chin as though he had solved some great mystery.

"Don’t think sticking two antlers on your head can fool the brilliant King Wapol."

Chopper’s face reddened.

"They’re real!"

Wapol ignored him.

Instead, he reached into his clothes and pulled out a small iron bar.

He stared at it reluctantly.

Then bit half of it off.

Crunch.

Wapol painfully tucked the remaining piece away and began chewing the metal with obvious satisfaction.

Chopper stared at him, too annoyed to even know where to begin.

A quiet laugh came from nearby.

"Hehehe..."

Chopper turned.

Robin had lowered her book.

She smiled at him.

"What a cute Mr. Reindeer."

Chopper froze.

Then immediately started wriggling with delight.

"Y-You idiot!"

His face lit up.

"Calling me cute isn’t going to make me happy!"

His entire body said otherwise.

Axel rolled his eyes.

Then his gaze drifted toward the place where Vivi used to sit.

His voice dropped until it was barely audible.

"Didn’t want to come?"

"More like she couldn’t."

Vivi was the only child of the Nefertari royal family.

The sole heir to Alabasta.

A kingdom that had only just survived rebellion, drought, and Crocodile’s conspiracy could not afford another crisis over succession.

Vivi had been forced to choose.

Her comrades.

Or her country.

And in the end, she chose her people.

Axel closed his eyes again.

Then, as though unwilling to dwell on it any longer, he said,

"Good thing I prepared another servant in advance."

Robin slowly looked up from her book.

Her smile remained pleasant.

Axel looked back at her.

For some reason, the silence suddenly felt dangerous.

...

The Floating Restaurant Baratie.

It was the most famous restaurant in the East Blue.

A ship.

And a restaurant.

More accurately, it was an enormous restaurant built atop a vessel, designed to serve travelers across the open sea.

Two large fin-like structures extended from the sides of the hull, improving stability while also creating additional space.

Its unusual appearance alone was enough to attract curious visitors.

But Baratie’s real reputation came from its food.

Its dishes were famous throughout the East Blue.

Of course, fame also attracted trouble.

Even in the relatively peaceful East Blue, pirates occasionally arrived expecting to eat without paying, threaten the staff, or simply cause chaos.

They usually learned quickly that the cooks of Baratie were not ordinary cooks.

Every pirate who had tried to take over the restaurant had been thrown out.

Eventually, Baratie became nearly as famous for its fighting chefs as for its cuisine.

That reputation only made people more curious.

Among those visitors was a noble named Aubrey.

He came from a kingdom on a nearby island and had personally sailed to Baratie after hearing countless stories about its food.

Two servants followed close behind him as he entered.

His first impression was disappointing.

For somewhere constantly praised as the finest restaurant in the East Blue, Aubrey had expected marble, gold, and decorations worthy of a royal banquet hall.

Instead, the interior looked almost plain.

His brows furrowed.

A large man in a blue shirt and trousers approached.

Hair covered his exposed legs, and his scruffy beard hardly improved Aubrey’s opinion of the establishment.

It was Patty.

One of Baratie’s chefs and waiters.

The moment Patty noticed the quality of Aubrey’s clothes and the attendants accompanying him, his expression transformed into a welcoming grin.

"Honored customer!"

He rubbed his hands together.

"What can we prepare for you today?"

Aubrey’s irritation deepened.

Just looking at Patty was ruining his appetite.

Who exactly had started spreading all those rumors about this place?

Still, he maintained his noble composure.

"Bring me one of every specialty dish you serve."

Patty blinked.

"All of them?"

Aubrey’s gaze sharpened.

"Do you think I can’t afford them?"

"No! Of course not!"

Patty’s face brightened instantly.

"One of every specialty dish. Understood!"

He hurried toward the kitchen.

Aubrey sat down.

Several moments later, shouting erupted behind the kitchen doors.

He frowned.

"What an uncivilized place."

He spoke loudly enough for his attendants to hear.

"They can’t even prepare a meal without arguing."

He looked toward the kitchen with contempt.

"If my servants behaved like that, I’d have them punished severely."

The two attendants beside him stiffened.

They knew Aubrey well enough to understand that he was not joking.

Time passed.

Aubrey tapped his fingers impatiently against the table.

Even some nearby diners began glancing toward him.

"Is the food still not ready?"

He sighed.

"Unbelievably slow."

Then two dishes were placed in front of him.

A bowl of soup.

And seafood risotto.

"Your order."

The voice was flat.

Aubrey stared.

"That’s it?"

Soup.

Risotto.

Any small restaurant could make such things.

These were supposed to represent the famous Baratie?

He looked up angrily.

The waiter was not Patty.

A blond man stood in front of him.

His eyebrows curled strangely at the ends.

A cigarette rested between his lips.

Despite his relaxed posture and somewhat unfriendly expression, there was an unmistakable elegance to his appearance.

Had Aubrey encountered him in a royal court rather than a floating restaurant, he might have assumed the man was some eccentric young noble.

That impression alone made Aubrey suppress his anger.

He picked up a spoon.

Then tasted the soup.

His expression changed.

He took another bite.

Then immediately tried the risotto.

For several seconds, he forgot to speak.

The flavor was extraordinary.

Aubrey had eaten expensive meals throughout his life.

Rare seafood.

Imported spices.

Food prepared by private chefs employed by wealthy nobles.

Nothing had tasted like this.

He looked up.

"Who cooked this?"

The blond man’s curled eyebrow twitched slightly.

"I did."

Aubrey studied him.

"What’s your name?"

The blond man took a drag from his cigarette.

"You’re not a beautiful woman."

His expression remained bored.

"Why should I tell you?"

Aubrey blinked.

Before he could react...

Bang!

Patty appeared behind the blond cook and struck him hard enough to send him crashing to the floor.

"You bastard, Sanji!"

Patty roared.

"How can you talk to a customer like that?!"

He immediately turned toward Aubrey and bowed deeply.

"My deepest apologies, sir!"

"This idiot took it upon himself to serve only two dishes."

"We’ll prepare everything else you ordered right away!"

Sanji pushed himself up from the floor.

"Why the hell would you do that?!"

He glared at Patty.

"Two dishes are enough."

"Our rule is that food doesn’t get wasted."

He pointed toward Aubrey.

"Can that guy even finish everything he ordered?"

Patty rounded on him.

"The customer is king!"

Sanji scoffed.

Aubrey, however, did not appear offended anymore.

His attention remained entirely on Sanji.

"Come work for me."

Sanji looked over.

Aubrey continued,

"Become my personal chef."

Nearby conversations quieted.

"What are your conditions?"

Aubrey thought for a moment.

"Five hundred thousand Berries a month."

Several diners gasped.

Five hundred thousand Berries each month.

Six million a year.

For a private cook, that was an extraordinary salary.

Even Patty froze.

Sanji merely stared at Aubrey.

Then took another drag from his cigarette.

Without saying anything, he turned toward the kitchen.

Clearly uninterested.

Before he could take more than a step, a voice came from nearby.

"He’s mine."

....

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