[that distracts him enough to make him pout]

No. I'm saying I know they're strong but you're still stronger. And you know how this shit works so I'm fine with you being second.

[if he wasn't teetering on the edge of freaking out about Luffy being gone - possibly for a long time, possibly never coming back - he would use that to his advantage and tease the cook about being inferior to him. Not today, though.]