Bab 74: Recovering Trust: The Unlikely Meeting of Luffy and Chopper

It has been two hours since Luffy, Sanji, and Nojiko arrived at the top of Drum Rockies with a sick Nami, in search of a doctor who could heal her. They have been waiting for the doctor for two hours, but she has yet to appear. While standing outside in the snow with his eyes closed, Luffy patiently waits for the doctor to return to her castle.

He used Observation Haki to try and sense if anyone had approached the castle during the past two hours. However, he couldn't sense anyone entering the castle; only some arctic creatures lived in the forest beneath the mountain. "Finally," Luffy exclaimed as he opened his eyes and glanced to his left with narrowed eyes.

Luffy gazed to his left for approximately five minutes before he spotted two figures walking through the snow towards him. One of the figures resembled a human, while the other resembled a creature walking on all fours. As they approached closer, Luffy's vision sharpened, allowing him to discern the two figures more distinctly. One of them was a woman carrying a bottle of wine, and the other was a deer with a blue nose and a red hat.

"Oh my, it seems like we have a guest," said the woman. The deer stared at Luffy with narrow eyes and growled at him, causing Luffy to raise an eyebrow before he disregarded it and shifted his focus to the woman. "Are you Dr. Kureha?" Luffy inquired as he ceased leaning against the pillar and brushed away the snow from his clothing.

"That's me, but you can call me Doctorine," she said with a smile. "Did you come here for my secret of eternal youth?"

"No, I brought my friend, who is suffering from a terrible disease," said Luffy as he stood in front of the two people.

"Is that so?" she said as she walked forward.

"I'm not cheap, you know," she said with a grin.

"Money isn't a problem," Luffy replied in his normal monotone voice. "Just save my friend," he said, causing her to smile slightly.

"Then show the way, young man," she said with her arms outstretched. Luffy nodded before turning around and leading them into the castle.

"Looking at your jolly roger on your coat, you're a pirate?" Kureha asked as she stared at the hideous-looking jolly roger on Luffy's coat.

"The doctor is coming," said Luffy as he stepped aside, letting the doctor walk towards Nami's bed.

"Now, what do we have here?" she asked as she pressed her finger against Nami's forehead for a few seconds before speaking again. "Temperature 107; this is serious," she said, causing the three pirates' eyes to widen in shock at what they had just heard.

"She just..." Sanji whispered in surprise, unable to complete his sentence.

"Touched her forehead..." said Luffy, equally surprised.

"And knowing the temperature..." Nojiko finished, completing Luffy's statement.

"Excellent," the three of them said in unison.

"She also have a rash on her stomach," said Luffy, causing the doctor to pull back the sheets and lift up Nami's shirt to see the rash he was referring to.

"Oh my, now this is something I haven't seen in a while," she said before turning to the crew and speaking.

"Where have you guys been hanging around, on a prehistoric island?" she asked sarcastically, not really expecting an answer. However, she was completely taken aback when she saw the three pirates laughing nervously.

"Well, you know, there's this island called Little Garden, and it's stuck in the age of dinosaurs," said Luffy with a chuckle. "Do you know why?" Luffy then asked in a more serious voice.

"Yes, that's right, she was bitten by an insect named Kestia, a poisonous flea that thrives in forests with high heat and humidity," she said, surprising them all.

"When it bites you, it injects a type of bacteria into your body. This bacteria remains dormant for five days, causing intense pain, high fever, mild carditis, and arthritis," she said, causing Luffy's eyes to widen in surprise. "Given the progress of the infection and the site of infection, I can safely say she has been infected for three days now," she said, shocking the crew once again.

"You know all that just by looking at it?" Sanji and Nojiko exclaimed while Luffy gaped. "The pain she experienced should be gone in about two days," said Dr. Kureha, surprising them once again. "You mean she will be pain-free in two days?" Luffy asked in shock. "That's right, because in two days she will be dead," Kureha said, causing all of their eyes to widen for the umpteenth time

"Can't you treat it?" Sanji asked, hoping the doctor would say yes. "Even though I have heard that Kestia became extinct about 100 years ago, I still keep the antibiotics handy. So, yes, I can treat it," she said, causing the three crew members to sigh in relief. "Now get out there and let's get to work," the doctor said, causing Luffy to raise his eyebrows in confusion.

"We?" he asked with a confused expression on his face. Kureha turned to him before she spoke. "Yes, Chopper and I," she said, pointing to the deer. This caused the three of them to look at the deer, and their eyes widened. What they saw was no longer the deer Luffy had first seen, which walked on four legs. Beside them was now a human/deer hybrid as tall as a child, wearing a tall red hat with a medical symbol on it.

"Interesting; he's either a member of the Mink tribe or he's a Devil Fruit user," Luffy commented as he bent down and looked at the deer, studying it intently. "So, which one are you?" Luffy asked, causing the poor deer to jump in fright and attempt to hide behind the door frame. However, the deer's attempt was unsuccessful as it positioned its entire body in everyone's view, with only half of its face hidden. This caused Luffy to burst into laughter.

"I guess we'll talk about that later," Luffy said as he stood up again. "Is he a doctor?" Nojiko asked Dr. Kureha curiously. "He was my student; I taught him everything," she said, "Now get out so we can work!" shouted as she punched Sanji in the face, sending him flying towards Luffy and causing both of them to crash through the door and out of the room.

Nojiko rushed out the door in hopes of avoiding being kicked out. "Old fart," said Luffy as he got up from the ground and sat down on the steps. He took out a glass and poured himself a drink. "Jesus, what a tiring day!" he exclaimed before taking a sip of whiskey. "At least we got what Nami needs," Sanji said as he walked over and sat down two steps below Luffy, while Nojiko took a seat next to him.

"Yeah, I did think that I would lose my little sister," said Nojiko sadly, causing Luffy to place a hand on her shoulder. Luffy gave her a reassuring smile. "By the way, Captain," said Sanji, getting Luffy's attention. "While we were there, you mentioned something called the Mink tribe. What was that?" Sanji asked, causing Nojiko to look at Luffy curiously as well.

"The Mink tribe is a different race or species that exists in the world, similar to fishmen," said Luffy before taking a sip of his drink. "They are like humans but with animal features. Each individual possesses a certain animal characteristic," he explained, causing two of his crew members to look at him in astonishment.

"Wow, I've never heard of them," said Sanji, surprised. "They are mostly an isolated tribe, with only a few ever leaving their homes," Luffy said, causing both of them to nod their heads in understanding. "That explains a lot," Nojiko added.

Luffy then got up from his seat and started walking downstairs. "I'm going to get some air. Why don't you guys find somewhere warm?" he suggested as he continued down the stairs. He walked out the front door, stepped into the snow, looked up at the sky, and took a deep breath.

He began to look around the exterior of the castle, admiring its scale and beauty, when something caught his attention. Flying over one of the towers was a pirate flag with a skull and crossbones with pink cherry blossom petals encircling it. Luffy gazed at it, a smile forming on his face.

He decided to head back inside to see if the doctor had finished treating Nami. As he ascended the stairs, he noticed a small deer standing at the top, staring at him with an expression of pure terror.

As Luffy approached, the deer began to inch backward in fear, leaving Luffy puzzled. Upon reaching the top of the stairs, Luffy settled down with his back to the deer. 'If he's too frightened to communicate, maybe it's better to give him space,' Luffy pondered, content to remain there on the snow-covered steps, keeping the scared reindeer company. After about five minutes of silence, Chopper finally found his voice.

"Are you really a pirate?" Chopper asked cautiously, his voice filled with trepidation. Luffy turned to him, his smile lighting up his face as he replied, "That's right!" His warm smile melted Chopper's fears away. "There's nothing better than the life of a pirate. No rules, just the open seas and never-ending adventures," Luffy proclaimed joyously. Chopper couldn't help but be captivated by Luffy's words, and he took a step forward, his face beaming with pure admiration.

"Wow, pirates really go on adventures?" Chopper exclaimed, his voice full of surprise. Luffy smiled and replied, "Yeah, you get to see the most amazing things and meet the most amazing people. It truly is the best life to live." Luffy looked up at the ceiling, lost in his thoughts.

Chopper pointed at the Jolly Roger on Luffy's coat and asked, "Is that your flag?" Luffy answered with a smile, saying, "That's right." Chopper examined it closely and remarked, "That looks different from the others," his gaze fixed on Luffy's unique Jolly Roger design.

"I know; I designed it myself," Luffy replied proudly as he stretched his hand forward towards the little deer. "Hi, I'm Luffy," he said, waiting for the deer to respond. Chopper stared at Luffy's hand for a few moments before cautiously inching closer to touch it. He gently touched Luffy's hand before quickly drawing it back in fear.

"I'm Chopper," he said shyly, causing Luffy to chuckle. "So you're a doctor?" Luffy asked, examining Chopper with curiosity. Chopper nodded his head in response. "Can you tell me if my friend will be okay?" Luffy inquired, his concern evident in his voice. Chopper spoke from his position on the wall, "The treatment she needs has been given; what she needs now is rest so the medicine can work properly."

"It will take at least three days for the bacteria to leave her body," he added, causing Luffy to nod his head slowly, fully aware that staying there for three days wasn't an option. "So judging by your fear of humans, I don't think you're a Mink, but rather a devil fruit user," said Luffy, studying the little deer intently. "That's right, I ate a Human-Human Fruit," he said sadly, confirming Luffy's hypothesis and simultaneously confusing him.

"Why do you sound so sad about that?" Luffy asked, his voice filled with curiosity. The little deer stared at him for a few moments but remained silent, leading Luffy to believe that it was a touchy subject. Luffy got up and rested his elbows on the second-floor railing before speaking again. "I also ate a devil fruit," he said, surprising Chopper. "Is that right?" Chopper asked in disbelief.

"Yeah, I ate the Rumble-Rumble fruit," Luffy said, turning around and extending his right hand with his fingers pointing downward. "I'm a lightning man," he added before electricity shot out from his fingers, forming small ropes that eventually took the shape of Chopper made entirely of lightning. "Wow," Chopper exclaimed, his eyes wide in awe as he stared at the electric ropes creating his lightning clone. "I wish I could do something like that," he said, captivated by his own lighting clone.

"Sure, it looks cool and all, but this power isn't all that it seems," Luffy said as Chopper's lightning clone vanished in a blue spark. "What do you mean?" Chopper asked, tilting his head to the side and studying Luffy. "I mean, there are both good and bad aspects to it," Luffy explained with a sigh. "I'm certain you also have weaknesses in your strength," he added, observing a pained expression cross Chopper's face before the little reindeer looked down and nodded in agreement.

"Don't let it get you down," said Luffy as he stood next to Chopper. "People tend to be afraid of what they don't understand," he said, causing Chopper's head to lift and stare at him with dinner plate-sized eyes. "H-how did you know?" Chopper asked, shakingly. Luffy sighed and took off his straw hat, running a finger through his hair before answering. "Let's just say we have a lot more in common than you think," said Luffy as he closed his eyes. (A/N:What do you think Luffy is mentioned above?).