Kaito Sakamoto displayed a small feat before the crew, proving to Beckman the authenticity of his Devil Fruit abilities.
Beckman seemed convinced. Kaito's thumb and index finger were smooth, just like someone handling a gun for the first time.
"Whoa!!!"Luffy and Shanks looked at Kaito with starry eyes.
Luffy was amazed by how cool Kaito was; they were the same age, yet Kaito was so impressive. True to his nature, instead of feeling jealous of someone his age who was better, Luffy admired him for being so cool.
Shanks, on the other hand, saw a young talent, someone with potential worth bringing aboard.
...
"So, Beckman, what do you think? Even though it wasn't a perfect shot, are you satisfied?" Kaito smiled and asked. "Or maybe I should change how I address you?"
Beckman, biting his cigarette and with his legs crossed, looked at the precocious young boy before him. Just as he was about to respond, Makino, the bar owner, suddenly rushed out from the back kitchen.
"Everyone! What happened? Why did I hear gunshots? Are you all okay?"
Makino, with her short green hair and headscarf, often rumored to be close to Shanks, appeared worried.
"Hahaha, it's fine, Makino. Just our friend Bon acting out, and our new friend Kaito here showing us a little demonstration," Shanks explained, although his words explained little.
Kaito quickly chimed in, explaining that Beckman had challenged his shooting skills by asking him to shoot at bottles. He apologized for the broken glass on the floor.
"I see. As long as everyone's safe.""Would any of you like something to eat? Luffy, Kaito?"Relieved, Makino relaxed with a smile, no longer concerned about gunfire in her bar.
"Oh, that would be awesome! Let's put it on my 'treasure account!'" Luffy beamed at her.
"You little trickster, there's no such thing as a 'treasure account.'" Shanks teased.
Luffy retorted, defending himself."Just you wait! Kaito and I will be real pirates one day. We'll find loads of treasure, and I'll come back and pay off the tab then!"
Kaito thought to himself: So, I'm getting roped into this pirate plan now?
"Hehe, I look forward to it!"Makino didn't seem sure if she was humoring them or if she genuinely believed, but her smile was bright.
...
"Thank you, Miss Makino."
"No need to thank me, Kaito. Enjoy." She served Luffy and Kaito each a plate of grilled meat.
As Luffy continued eating and talking to Shanks about wanting to go to sea, Kaito kept his focus on Beckman. Though Beckman looked indifferent, Kaito sensed he had made up his mind to teach him; the only question was whether to bring him along.
Kaito nodded slightly. Fine, let's eat first, then we'll see. He cut a piece of meat and had just raised it to his mouth when—bam!—the bar door was kicked open, making him jump.
Turning to look, he saw exactly who he expected.
The man who guzzled beer like it was water, who thought he was the toughest in the East Blue—the "Bandit King."
...
"Bandit King" Higuma stormed in with his lackeys, kicking open the bar door. Kaito had expected them. Instantly, his gaze darted to Luffy's direction. As he feared, Luffy was already chewing on the strange fruit they'd found, treating it as an after-meal snack.
Though Kaito hadn't tasted a Devil Fruit, he'd inherited its powers directly from the system, so he knew the reputation of their taste. For Luffy to eat it without hesitation, he had to be pretty fearless.
"Well, well! Looks like I'm interrupting something here!" Higuma sneered. "So these are pirates, huh? First time seeing such ridiculous-looking ones..."
As the self-proclaimed "Bandit King," Higuma was full of confidence and launched straight into taunts against Shanks and his crew.
Everyone in the bar stared at them in confusion, which Higuma took as intimidation, strutting over to the bar counter and squeezing next to Shanks, completely disregarding his presence.
"We're bandits, not here to cause trouble or rob the place today. Just sell us ten barrels of sake."
Quite polite, actually.
"Very sorry! We've sold out of sake for today." Makino answered with a hint of anxiety.
"Now that's strange. Then what are these pirates drinking, water?"
"No, I mean, all the sake in the bar is right here with them. That's all we have left." Makino explained.
Kaito kept eating his grilled meat, figuring it wasn't his concern…Until it was.
"Even a little brat like that gets to drink!""Are you pirates really so desperate you'd recruit kids who'd wet themselves at the sight of battle?"
Facing the mockery, Kaito merely set down his knife and fork and responded politely, "Wow, you must be amazing!"
With a calm tone, he added, "Our captain could never compare to someone like you... although, I should mention, he's worth 4,498,000,000 berries—so just a tad more than your bounty."
Higuma's expression changed slightly but regained his composure.
"If you're so amazing, would you mind doing us a favor?" Kaito asked, his voice perfectly cordial.
"Oh, now you're making sense, kid. What is it?" Higuma responded, pleased to be flattered.
"Well, we're kind of short on funds. Could you turn yourself in, collect your bounty, and hand over the money to us?"
Silence. With that, the entire bar burst into laughter.
"Hahahaha!!""Not a bad idea, kid! We could use the cash, after all!"