Baratie Main Hall. The sound of shattering glass still echoed.
The elegant piano music died mid-note. Dozens of heavily armed royal guards, clad in polished steel, filed into the restaurant, forming two rows of cold, gleaming metal.
Then came the centerpiece.
A bloated young man in an ostentatious, jewel-encrusted suit waddled in. His fingers were weighed down by gold rings, and he held a silk handkerchief to his nose as if the very air of the East Blue were toxic.
"Hurry up! Clear out these peasants!" the Third Prince of the Kingdom of Lubneel shrieked into his handkerchief. "This is the finest restaurant in the East Blue. What right do these 'poverty-pigs' have to breathe the same air as a Prince of the World Government?!"
Beside him stood a gaunt, one-eyed man with a sinister aura. A masterfully crafted cross-guard sword hung at his hip. The bloody killing intent radiating from him made the bounty hunters and pirates in the hall freeze like rabbits in a spotlight.
"That's... 'Gale-Force' Gal!" a pirate whispered, his voice cracking. "He was a Grand Line swordsman with a twenty-two-million Berry bounty before the Lubneel royals bought him! He's a monster!"
Hearing the fear in the room, the Prince smirked. His pig-like eyes scanned the room until they landed on the Eclipse table—specifically, on Carina.
"Oh? In this backwater dump, there's actually a top-tier beauty?" The Prince's fat face wobbled with excitement. He pointed a ringed finger at the table. "Gal! Throw those three men into the sea to feed the sharks. As for the purple-haired girl... bring her to my private box. She's going to serve my meal personally."
"As you command, Your Highness," Gal sneered, his hand resting on his hilt.
"Hey. You pieces of trash."
A cold, nicotine-laced voice cut through the Prince's arrogance. Sanji stood in the path, his bangs casting a deep shadow over his eyes. His leather shoes ground into the wooden floor.
"Causing a scene in the old man's restaurant is one thing," Sanji growled, taking a deep drag of his cigarette. "But speaking rudely to a lady... even if you're kings, I'll kick you into—"
Whoosh.
A blue blur swept past Sanji. Before the chef could blink, Sabo was standing in front of him.
Sabo's top hat was perfectly level, his tailcoat unruffled. But his blue eyes, usually filled with a gentle warmth, were now surging with a cold, predatory killing intent. No one hated the stench of decaying nobility more than Sabo.
"Oh? What's this?" Gal laughed, stopping five feet away. "A commoner in a magician's suit playing hero?"
Ace, sitting at the head of the table, didn't even turn his head. He poured himself a glass of juice, a faint, bored smile on his lips.
"Captain. The air here is foul," Sabo said, his voice calm.
"Then clean it up," Ace replied, draining his glass.
"YOU ARROGANT BRAT! DIE!"
Gal exploded. The power of a 22-million-Berry veteran was unleashed in a single, steel-splitting stroke.
SHING!
The blade whistled toward Sabo's throat, a strike meant to decapitate him in one motion.
"Look out!" Sanji yelled, his leg tensing to intervene.
But Sabo didn't draw the alloy staff at his waist. He didn't even move his feet. He simply reached out with his right hand, clad in a black leather glove.
His index and middle fingers snapped together, his ring and pinky curling inward. A layer of Armament Haki, as black and dense as obsidian, coated his fingers, transforming them into a weapon that defied logic.
"Dragon's Talon."
CLANG—!!
A screeching metallic scream filled the hall. Gal's sword—a blade that could slice through an oak tree—stopped dead five centimeters from Sabo's skin.
Sabo had caught the razor-sharp edge between three fingers. He held it as if it were a toy. No matter how Gal strained, his veins bulging and his face turning purple, the sword wouldn't budge.
"Impossible!" Gal gasped, his one eye wide with terror. "Bare-handed?!"
"A blade stained with the ego of a noble is too dull to cut me," Sabo said coldly.
CRACK—!!
Before the horrified eyes of the diners, Sabo's finger strength shattered the master-crafted sword into jagged fragments.
"WHAT—?!"
Gal tried to retreat, but Sabo was a blur. His right hand shot forward like a hunting dragon, grabbing Gal's face with brutal precision.
BOOM!
A violent, orange-red explosion erupted from Sabo's palm. The high-temperature blast swallowed Gal's screams instantly. Sabo twisted his waist and hurled the flaming swordsman like a ragdoll.
BANG!!
The 22-million-Berry guard captain smashed through the thick wooden wall of the Baratie, flying across the harbor like an ignited cannonball before hitting the water in a cloud of steam. One hit. Total silence.
"Captain Gal... was killed in one move?" The royal guards were paralyzed, their armor clanking as their knees shook.
"W-What is this?!" The Prince fell onto his backside, a foul-smelling puddle forming under him. "You low-class pirates! You dare attack royalty of a World Government affiliate?! FIRE! SHOOT THEM DOWN!"
BANG! BANG! BANG!
The guards opened fire blindly. Lead bullets rained down on Sabo. But as the projectiles hit his body, they passed through as if he were made of mist. Sabo's torso transformed into swirling, orange-red flames, the bullets melting or passing through harmlessly.
"A... Logia?!" Head Chef Zeff muttered from the shadows of the stairs, his eyes narrowing.
"I told you," Sabo said, his tailcoat reforming as the flames settled. He slowly clenched his right fist. "The stench you brought in here is ruining my Captain's appetite."
HUMMM—!
A manic, blinding pillar of fire condensed around Sabo's fist. The heat was so intense the surrounding tables began to char.
"FIRE FIST! (HIKEN!)"
Sabo punched forward. A massive torrent of fire, five meters in diameter, roared through the hall like a living dragon. It incinerated the steel armor of the guards and the screaming Prince in a heartbeat.
The fire didn't stop. It shattered the front doors, roared across the dock, and punched a gaping, charred hole straight through the center of the royal galleon anchored outside.
The sky over the East Blue turned orange. In ten seconds, the "Royal Privilege" of the Lubneel Kingdom had been reduced to ash.
Sabo withdrew his fist, the flames flickering out. He straightened his collar with elegant poise, turned, and bowed to Ace.
"Captain. The trash has been cleared."
Ace picked up a set of exquisite chopsticks and took a bite of a perfectly seared steak that a terrified waiter had just set down.
"Hmm." Ace nodded, the flavor finally meeting his standards. "Keep it coming, Baratie. I'm hungry."