Mayando awoke from his nap with a start as he was catapulted off of his cot into the nearest wall. The crack of the fishman's skull against the wooden body of the ship nearly put him right back to sleep, but the dazed teenager eventually managed to stand to his feet.
The coffee that Rocks had given him caused the biggest energy crash of his life, but the chaos of what had just happened woke him up just enough to get him to shamble up the stairs and onto the ship's deck. Attempting to rub the sleep out of his eyes while simultaneously assessing if he had a concussion, it took Mayando standing on the deck for roughly 10 seconds before he actually saw what appeared to be a massive tornado on the island that Rocks and the Cook Pirates were fighting on.
"…I'm going back to sleep," Mayando said, his blank stare never leaving his face as he turned around and began descending down the stairs once more.
***
The whirlwind of sand that the two of them had kicked up was impossible to see through, and Rocks could feel his body straining even more as he relied on his Observation Haki to find his opponent. The force of the Haki coming off of Zeff's body was easy enough to spot, but even so, swinging a massive sword at an opponent with one's eyes closed was usually not ideal.
Despite the circumstances though, Rocks couldn't help but smile as he reestablished his grip on Eclipse with both hands. The adrenaline rushing through his body as he fought someone on his level was unmatched, and was a sensation that he hadn't truly felt since fighting with Harald. While Zeff wasn't near his or his ancient giant friend's level of strength, Rocks had to admit that in his current weakened state, he would not stand a chance in a much longer fight against the surprisingly strong and fast captain.
"All the more reason to end it here," Rocks whispered to himself as he sensed aggressive intent rocketing toward him from his right side.
"Michelin Meteor!" Zeff shouted, his leg crackling with a mixture of flames and pure Armament Haki as it swung violently toward Xebec's rib cage.
The jarring speed of Zeff's attack made Rocks barely able to bring up his sword in time to block, and he gritted his teeth as he felt his feet begin to slide. His blade shook as he attempted to keep his opponent pushed back, and Rocks could feel his strength fading as his body began to reach the limits of the Haki that it could produce.
"What do I have to lose?" Rocks muttered to himself as he locked eyes with Zeff for the first time since the attack that had caused the small tornado of sound to surround them. The expression of arrogance in his own abilities was clear through the shit eating grin on his face, but throughout their entire fight, Xebec could also tell that Zeff was still holding back to some degree. The stamina differences between them were clear, and Rocks knew he could barely hold out for another attack let alone a drawn out fight.
So in an attempt to end the fight cleanly, Rocks D. Xebec attempted to unleash a burst of Conqueror's Haki.
What he unleashed was nowhere near to the potency of the Color of the Supreme King that was used to. The minuscule burst of spiritual might that he unleashed on Zeff reminded him of what he was able to do as a teenager when he first discovered the existence of Haki, and he was glad that none of his old crew mates could see him in his current condition.
That small burst, however, was enough to change the momentum of the Cook Captain's strike just a bit. Xebec could feel the firmly planted foot of his opponent slip from where it was striking his blade, and with the last burst of energy he had, he sidestepped out of the clash and rocketed his Haki coated fist down on the chef's back before his momentum could carry him by. The impact of Rocks' fist could be heard across the entire island, to the point that the noise caused even Mayando to stir in his sleep.
The shout of pain from his opponent was the last sound that he heard as his legs began to wobble, and he could feel Eclipse involuntarily fall from his hand as he began to fall forward himself.
"I definitely won that," Rocks said weakly as he hit the ground with a smile.
***
The sound of rocking waves and crying gulls eventually stirred Rocks awake, though the aching pain running throughout his entire body made the idea of waking back up seem like a nightmare. Eventually though, he was able to come to his senses and painfully force himself into a seated position. He was back on the ship that he had arrived on with Mayando, though the caffeine addicted teenager was nowhere to be found.
Instead, Rocks found himself surrounded by the entirety of the Cook Pirates, their chef coats that hung off their shoulders being the obvious giveaway. Rocks sighed before laboriously standing to his feet, his tired smile forcefully painted on his face. The level of weakness that he felt in his recently revived body was not one that he could show to any opponent, especially the crew of a Haki user as strong as Zeff. Though once the name popped into his head, Xebec realized that the captain himself seemed to be nowhere near.
"What, is your captain too busy to finish the job himself?" Rocks asked boisterously as his legs continued to shake. A small chorus of chuckles ran through the circle of pirates that surrounded him, and Rocks' expression of false confidence switched to one of genuine confusion as the only giant member of the crew stepped forward. Each step made the floorboards beneath them shake, and Rocks was not certain about the durability of the groaning planks that were currently holding them up. Despite this though, he firmly focused on the approaching giant, his belt of chef's knives each the size of the captain's entire body.
"I don't think I would have too hard of a time with it, personally," the giant chuckled in a deep bellowing voice.
Rocks raised his eyebrows in confusion at the giant's statement, until the sound of a cabin door opening behind him caused him to turn around. Casually walking out with a cloth sack slung over his shoulder was Zeff, the coat that matched with the rest of his crew over his right shoulder and a captain's/chef's hat in his left hand. Without sparing Rocks a look, Zeff walked over to the giant decisively, handing over the hat in his right hand to his towering crew mate. With a bittersweet expression, the giant took the hat handed to him between his fingers, the comically small size of it causing the giant to scoff and shake his head.
"I don't think I'll be able to wear this exact one, but I'll look after them for you," the giant said sadly as the surrounding crew members attempted to paint smiles on their clearly pained faces. "Are you sure this is what you want, though? Does he even care about finding the All Blue?"
"That's the best part," Zeff said with a cocky smile as he looked back toward Rocks. "I don't think he does, but we're going to find it anyway. I had a feeling when I first met you, and I only have one question that I need answered," Zeff said as he walked back over to Rocks and held out his hand.
"And what would that be?" Xebec asked as he looked down at Zeff's extended hand.
"Whatever you're trying to do…it's going to change this world, isn't it? I've heard a lot of stories about you over the years, Rocks. I don't care how high your bounty is or how many big shots you take from these Davy Back fights, but the rumors about what you did in the Holy Land? Now that is something that piques my interest. The All Blue has been lost to history for decades, and I've always had a feeling that someone specific was behind it. So like I asked Rocks…are you trying to change the world?" He asked as his hand remained firmly extended.
Rocks continued to stare at the chef wordlessly, his expression unreadable as the surrounding crew pirates exchanged nervous glances. After a few moments however, an enormous laugh was followed by the firm sound of a handshake, and both Rocks and Zeff smiled widely as they looked at each other.
"You come with me Zeff, and the All Blue will just be a warmup for what we see," he said excitedly.
"Well then," Zeff said as he disconnected the handshake and took a few steps back. "My name is Red Leg Zeff, former captain of the Cook Pirates and the chef of the Rocks Pirates. A pleasure to be at your service captain," he said with a performative bow.