Gin stood beside Krieg, supporting him.
"Could you give us some food and water? I have money, as much as you need, please," Krieg asked weakly. Despite his politeness, it was clear that this was only a front.
The restaurant fell into a tense silence. This wasn't how anyone expected the infamous Krieg to behave.
"What's wrong with him?" one of the chefs finally broke the silence.
"He's got no presence, no authority... Is this really the admiral of the great pirate fleet, Don Krieg?" Paddy remarked.
"Is he hungry?" Luffy asked, looking at Krieg curiously.
Just then, Krieg collapsed to the floor.
"Captain! Chief Krieg! Please, someone save him!" Gin cried out. "He's really starving to death! He hasn't eaten in days! If this keeps up, he's going to die!"
Despite Gin's pleas, the people in the restaurant watched them with cold, disdainful eyes.
"Fallen so low, huh?" Clover said, looking down at Krieg.
"What did you just say?" Gin snapped, glaring at Clover.
"I heard you guys went to the Grand Line. Looking at you now, though, I bet you didn't even get close to it, did you? Or maybe you ran into something out there that put you in this sorry state." Clover smirked.
His words hit a nerve. Gin's face fell, and even Krieg, lying weak on the ground, couldn't hide his grim expression.
However, Clover had no intention of finishing them off. After all, these guys played a crucial role in helping Luffy win over Sanji. If Clover took them out too easily, it would throw off Luffy's plans.
And who knows, maybe it'd even trigger some kind of butterfly effect that would cause Sanji to join Clover instead. That would just be inconvenient.
"Hahahaha! This is priceless. So this is the great and feared Don Krieg!" Paddy laughed mockingly.
"We've got money this time! We're paying customers!" Gin shouted at Paddy.
"Shut the hell up! Call the Marines immediately. Krieg's weak now; this is our chance. Don't give him any food! Just capture him already," Paddy ordered.
"Yeah! If he recovers, who knows what he'll do. After all the terrible things he's done, he deserves to starve!" one of the passersby chimed in.
"If you feed him, he'll destroy the restaurant for sure. Don't even give him a drop of water!" another added.
"I... I won't cause any trouble," Krieg stammered as he struggled to his feet, trembling. "I promise I'll leave as soon as I eat. Please... help me..."
With that, Krieg fell to his knees and bowed low, pleading.
"Captain! Chief Krieg! Don't do this! Don't bow to them! How can you lower yourself like this?" Gin shouted in desperation.
"Please... even leftovers will do..." Krieg continued, ignoring Gin, bowing again.
The restaurant fell silent, but then Sanji's voice cut through the tension: "Move, Paddy." Sanji came down the stairs, kicked Paddy aside, and placed a large bowl of fried rice in front of Krieg.
"Feed him this," Sanji said to Gin.
"Sanji-san..." Gin looked at him in disbelief. He couldn't fathom how someone could be so kind, even knowing the person they were helping was Don Krieg.
"What a great cook. I have to get him to join my crew," Luffy grinned, watching Sanji's actions.
"Thank you!" Krieg said before grabbing the rice with his hands and devouring it.
"Sanji! What are you doing? Take that rice away immediately! Do you know who that is? That's Don Krieg—the tyrant of the East Blue! The most treacherous, cunning pirate around!" another chef ran over, yelling about Krieg's history.
Even Luffy frowned, realizing, "So he's a despicable guy, huh?"
"You can't believe anything that comes out of his mouth! Refusing to help scum like him would make the world a better place!" the chef shouted angrily.
Krieg, having finished the meal, suddenly stood up. Without warning, he swung his right arm at Sanji's head. Just before the blow could land, Clover appeared in front of Sanji, effortlessly blocking the punch with one hand.
"Is this how you repay the person who just saved you?" Clover glared coldly at Krieg.
Krieg froze in shock, and in that moment of hesitation, Clover grabbed his arm, flipped him over his shoulder, and threw him out of the restaurant, straight into the sea.
"Leader Krieg!" Gin screamed in fear, rushing after him.
"You..." Sanji stared at Clover with wide eyes. He had felt Krieg's murderous intent. If Clover hadn't intervened, that punch would have seriously injured him.
"It's fine to be a kind person, but don't be a fool," Clover said, shaking his head.
"Ahh!" The restaurant guests, who had watched the fight, panicked and fled the restaurant, hurrying back to their boats.
"What happened in there?" Usopp asked from the Merry, watching the commotion. "Who was that guy who just got tossed out?"
"You'll see if you go inside," Zoro replied.
"Eh?" Usopp was shocked, and immediately lost any desire to enter.
"What's wrong? Are you scared?" Zoro teased, grinning.
"No way!" Usopp shouted back defensively.
"Look at what you've done, Sanji! If it weren't for this guest, you'd be in serious trouble right now!" Paddy scolded.
"Shut up, Paddy," Sanji said, glaring at him.
"Hey! Clover, leave the rest of that guy to me! You took the last one, it's my turn now!" Luffy shouted to Clover. "I'll send this scumbag flying!"
"Alright," Clover nodded. While Luffy dealt with Krieg, Clover had his sights set on someone far more interesting—the man who came with Krieg, the world's greatest swordsman, Dracule Mihawk. Clover was eager to see just how strong the legendary swordsman really was.
And as for whether he'd survive their encounter, Clover had no worries. He was a master of armament Haki, after all. If he wanted to, Mihawk's sword wouldn't even leave a scratch on him.