Sham rambled on, speaking incoherently as he recounted everything that had happened since meeting Gawain.
Sanji listened in silence, a cigarette dangling from his lips. He only snapped back to reality when a sudden burn seared his mouth. With a flick, he crushed the cigarette against the holder and exhaled slowly.
He had never actually met Gawain in person.
But from Sham's words alone, he could tell—the man was different.
At the very least, Gawain was a captain who genuinely cared for his crew. That already put him far above the countless pirates who roamed the seas in this era of chaos.
But if Gawain truly was that kind of man... why had he abandoned the princess at such a critical moment?
Sanji narrowed his eyes. There was only one explanation.
After a brief silence, he spoke calmly:
"...What if he lied? What if he's never coming to save you?"
Sham blinked, momentarily caught off guard, then let out a soft smile.
"If he can... I hope he doesn't come. Guys like us, we'll die sooner or later. But he's different."
"He can go farther than any of us—the Grand Line, the New World... Maybe even find the legendary One Piece."
He chuckled bitterly. "Really... what a hopeless bastard."
Sanji muttered the insult, but despite himself, the corners of his mouth lifted into a faint smile.
It was idiots like these—people who dared to hope—that made this cruel world feel a little more bearable.
He was suddenly reminded of that time he'd survived with Zeff.
That man had given all the food to Sanji, eating his own leg just to survive.
That kind of sacrifice... maybe he'd never witness anything like it again.
Ten minutes later.
The pirates in the storage room had devoured every grain of fried rice. As Sanji began collecting the plates, the voices of gratitude filled the air.
"Blondie, you're a good guy—just like the captain!"
Buchi grinned widely, cheeks trembling with leftover grains of rice stuck to his face.
"It's a shame we probably won't make it out of here. Otherwise, I'd definitely take you aboard!"
"The captain would've liked you too. He kept mumbling about some interesting young cook from that sea restaurant, Baratie."
"This is the best fried rice I've ever had!"
Laughter and praise echoed through the room as Sanji turned to leave, saying nothing.
Creak—
Just as the door to the storage room was closing, Sanji's voice floated back inside:
"Oh yeah—one more thing."
"That man called Hawkeye said you lot were interesting. Sounds like he doesn't plan to kill you."
Sham and Buchi stared, dumbfounded. But then—like sunlight breaking through storm clouds—a flicker of hope flashed in their eyes.
If they had the choice... they would live. Stand beneath Gawain's flag once more. Follow him as their captain.
Meanwhile...
Para Island
It wasn't until the following morning that Kuro realized something was wrong—Gawain and Zoro had vanished.
An uneasy feeling settled in his gut.
The awakening of his Observation Haki had sharpened his instincts, and instinct rarely lied.
"Where the hell did Gawain and that green-haired idiot go...?"
Kuro frowned deeply, gathering the remaining pirates on Para Island. As everyone exchanged what they knew, the full picture slowly emerged.
"Wait, both the captain and Zoro are gone?"
"Come to think of it, the cat brothers have been missing too. They were supposed to be scouting the sea for Baratie under the captain's orders."
"Could all this be connected?"
"One of the port ships is missing. Looks like the captain and Zoro took a small boat."
As the whispers of speculation grew louder, Kuro pressed his fingers to his temple in silence.
If this was only about the floating restaurant Baratie, Gawain would've never gone off alone without saying a word to his crew.
Unless...
Unless it had something to do with Gawain's past—something he didn't want to involve them in.
But then why take Zoro?
Why Zoro... and not the rest of us?
That swordsman brat... the one always yapping about becoming the world's greatest swordsman...
Wait.
The world's greatest swordsman...!
Kuro's eyes widened. His pupils shrank.
"Hawkeye Mihawk?!"
"He's the one who captured the cat brothers?! If that's true, then it all makes sense...!"
Bang!
Kuro slammed his palm down on the table, silencing the room in an instant.
Gin turned toward him, confused, just as Kuro cursed under his breath:
"Damn it!"
"That bastard Gawain!"
The realization struck hard, and Kuro no longer cared about keeping his usual calm demeanor. He shot up from his seat, furious.
"Trying to shoulder everything alone? Be the hero all by yourself? Did you even ask us first?!"
Panic flickered in Nami's eyes.
"Mr. Kuro, what's going on?!"
Kuro's jaw tightened.
"Gawain... that idiot's planning to die alone!"
Everyone froze.
But then they remembered who Gawain was—how powerful he was. Surely there was no need to panic.
"Come on, no way, right?"
"He's our captain! Even on the Grand Line, he's nearly unstoppable."
"You're just overthinking this."
But Kuro's voice cut through the reassurance like a knife.
"What if the opponent isn't just anyone?"
"What if it's someone from the New World? The man known as the world's strongest swordsman?"
The room fell completely silent.
Every eye turned to Kuro, stunned. His words were too shocking to process.
To them, Gawain was already at the top. But if even he didn't believe he could win...
Kuro continued solemnly:
"That's the only explanation. Gawain brought Zoro because to him, fighting the world's number one swordsman matters more than his own life."
"And us... we're his burden. He'd rather we didn't die alongside him."
He paused—then roared:
"He's planning to bear it all alone!"
Silence followed.
Gin clenched his fists so tightly his knuckles turned white. Frustration and helplessness swirled in his chest.
If I were stronger... could I have stood beside that man?
He gripped his crutches and stood without a word.
Nami bit her lip.
"Mr. Kuro, what do we do? We can't just let him die!"
"Of course not!"
Kuro's voice rang with steel. He turned to the gathered pirates, gaze hard.
"There's a good chance we'll all die in this mission. I won't force anyone to throw their life away."
"That man—he'd never forgive us if we did."
"So if you want to live... leave. Now."
The room remained still. No one moved. Not a single person stood.
Kuro looked around at their resolute faces and smirked.
"He's still so damn popular."
"In that case... then we'll die together!"
"But first—we find the sea restaurant, Baratie. That's where this starts..."