One Piece: General Blue

"Mmm~ What a delicious smell! Vendor, what kind of meat is this?"

Rorschach, accompanied by Hibari, was using his mastered Observation Haki to sense the emotional fluctuations of the customers around him, choosing the best stalls that offered the tastiest food.

If Zephyr and Sengoku knew that Rorschach was using the Haki, which he had trained so hard to master, for such purposes, they would severely punish him. With a Black Fist and a Shockwave, they would make sure Rorschach couldn't get out of bed for three days.

What? You mention Bone Fist? Sorry, if Garp found out, he'd be happy to add a new skill to his repertoire.

"This is water meat, a delicacy from my hometown, Water 7. What do you say, young man? Do you want to try it?"

The vendor at the stall was smart. He had noticed from the start that Rorschach had a huge appetite, and had been paying attention to their movements. So, he added extra spices to the grilled meat, making the aroma spread throughout the long street.

When Rorschach hesitated, the plump vendor used a killer move. He grabbed a piece of grilled meat and brought it close to Rorschach's mouth, almost feeding him.

Gulp.

Rorschach swallowed his saliva involuntarily. He couldn't resist food.

Especially when it was a unique dish from the world of One Piece. This grilled meat was very similar to what he'd eaten in Marineford, but it was much softer. Soft like a thin layer wrapping around jelly, while being grilled until crispy, yet still jiggling gracefully on the metal skewer.

With the first bite, the meat melted in his mouth instantly, turning into a delicious juice that flowed down his throat and into his stomach. It wasn't greasy; rather, it tasted like a well-cooked soup, combining the flavor of the grilled meat with the sweetness of the broth.

After eating, Rorschach felt warmth spread throughout his stomach, as if a wave of happiness was washing over him. Even his eyes teared up for no reason.

"Too delicious~!"

"Is it really that good?" Hibari asked, her hunger piqued by Rorschach's exaggerated expression, as if her full stomach could still take more.

When Rorschach handed her the rest of the grilled meat, she took a bite and also cried.

"Ooh, it's so good! Water meat! I'll definitely learn how to cook this kind of meat in the future."

Rorschach pulled out a handful of money from his pocket and placed it on the stall, shouting, "Vendor, grill all the water meat you have! I'll eat until I'm full!"

"Alright, customer, wait a moment! I'll start preparing it right away!"

The vendor saw the large pile of money on his stall and smiled enthusiastically, eagerly starting to grill more meat.

Rorschach and Hibari sat on their seats in front of the stall, eagerly waiting for the vendor to serve them the food.

In the far corner of the street, some burly men were stealthily eyeing Rorschach and Hibari, their gazes fixed on the pile of money placed on the stall, greedy smiles spreading across their faces.

"Go quickly and tell Captain Pitman. I've found two valuable targets, and they've got a lot of money."

"I'll keep an eye on them here. Hurry up and bring the captain with the men, come quickly! If you're too slow, someone else might get ahead of you."

Some of the men hurried away while two stayed behind to watch.

Rorschach didn't seem to notice, smiling as he received more grilled meat from the vendor, sharing some with Hibari and then starting to eat greedily.

"Mmm, delicious. Did you say you're from Water 7?"

As Rorschach ate the grilled water meat, he looked over at the middle-aged man busy at work.

"Yes, I'm indeed from Water 7, and I've been in Sabaody for nearly three years now. Hehe, I heard there's good money to be made here, so I took a risk and came with a ship crew."

When the man heard Rorschach's question, he replied with a smile.

"It seems your grilled meat is so delicious; you must have made a lot of money. Why haven't you gone home to visit? Or is it that you're still not married, Uncle?" Rorschach teased.

"Of course I'm married." A smile of happiness appeared on the vendor's face. "I have a beautiful and kind wife, and a mischievous and cute daughter. It's because I have a family that I took the risk to come here and earn money."

"I've heard that when men get rich, they become corrupt. Uncle, you haven't been home for three years; you don't have a new home here in Sabaody, do you?"

Rorschach grabbed more grilled meat and ate it with relish.

The vendor glared at him, saying, "Customer, you shouldn't say such things. Everyone knows that I, Old Tommy, am a righteous man. I'm really a good guy! As for money, if I had generous customers like you every day, I'd have already earned enough to go home."

Rorschach chuckled lightly. "You're joking. Your food is so delicious, how could you lack business?"

The vendor sighed and replied, "Customer, making money on this island is easy, but not all the money you make is yours. In fact, if you earn a million Beli, only 200,000 Beli actually ends up in your pocket. And even then, you have to constantly watch out for gangs trying to steal it."

It seemed that Rorschach's words had opened the vendor's heart, and he started to vent his frustrations.

"Earn a million and only keep 200,000? That's outrageous! Where did the other 800,000 go?" Rorschach asked, frowning.

The vendor looked around to make sure no one was listening, then lowered his voice and said, "This island doesn't belong to any country, and in theory, it's under the control of the World Government."

"So, there's a government tax office here that comes every month to collect taxes, taking 30%."

"Then there's the Navy, responsible for security, and they take 20%."

"And finally, the local boss takes another 20%. They promise not to let the local gangs harass us while we're doing business."

The vendor shrugged and added, "Although it does reduce the harassment significantly, there are still plenty of gangs on the island who don't fear the local boss. Sometimes they come and forcefully collect protection fees. Business here is tough, customer."

As Rorschach ate, he noticed a group of burly men filling the street corner. Whether they were thugs or pirates, it didn't matter.

The leader looked a bit like Sengoku, holding a long golden staff.

"Don't the World Government officials or the Navy deal with these issues?" Rorschach asked as he set aside his grilled meat.

Old Tommy shook his head and replied, "The officials only care about collecting taxes, and as for the Navy… it's better not to talk about it."

But Rorschach was curious about how the Navy stationed in Sabaody operated.

However, now was clearly not the right time to ask, as the arrogant 'Sengoku' was approaching with his large gang.

"P...Pitman!" Old Tommy stammered in fear as he saw the approaching figure.

But before he could say anything, Rorschach's hand moved swiftly, grabbing one of the pirates beside Pitman and slamming him to the ground.

He placed his foot on the pirate's head, resting his elbow on his knee while supporting his chin with his hand.

"So, you're here to pay my bill, right?"

(End of Chapter)

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