"My nakama is sick. I heard from Dalton you're the only doctor in this country. I need medicine for Kashikia Fever," Luffy's voice was hoarse.
"Who are you people?" Dr. Kureha asked, eyeing him with some caution instead of directly agreeing.
"Pirates," Luffy said.
Chopper's eyes seemed to visibly light up.
Dr. Kureha walked closer, first taking a look at Luffy's frostbite, then at the perfectly protected Nami on his back. She suddenly asked, "Do you have a doctor on your ship? Who treated this woman's condition?"
"Me," Luffy said, growing impatient. Why is this witch asking unrelated questions?
"I have the medicine for Kashikia Fever. I'll give it to you for free. But I won't be the one to administer it."
What does that mean...? Whatever, as long as there's medicine.
When Nami slowly woke up, she felt a long-lost sense of relief. The high fever had broken. She found herself lying in an unfamiliar room, an old woman sitting by her bed drinking.
"You're awake, little girl?"
"Where am I? Who are you?"
Dr. Kureha put down the bottle, looking at her with a smile. "This is my castle. I'm the one who provided your medicine. Dr. Kureha."
"Thank you... ma'am..."
"Ma'am? This girl knows how to speak. I'm 139 years old. After turning 100, everyone started calling me the Witch."
139 years old?
She's 139?
This vibrant old lady looks like she's barely past forty!
Nami wondered if she was still dreaming.
"Wahaha! Want to know my secret to eternal youth?"
"I'd really like to know... but more than that, do you know where my captain is right now?" Nami sat up. She still felt a bit weak, but her mind was much clearer.
That means I'm saved, right?
"Your captain? Heh..."
Kureha pointed to another bed in the corner of the room. Luffy was lying there, fast asleep.
"That kid. He risked his life carrying you up from the foot of the mountain, nearly got buried in an avalanche. After making it up here, he still stubbornly insisted on personally treating you with my herbs, using some half-baked method he learned who-knows-where. After finishing everything and confirming your fever had broken, he just collapsed from exhaustion and fell into a dead sleep."
Kureha rarely admired someone so much.
Other than Hiriluk, this Straw Hat kid now counted as one.
Braving a blizzard, climbing Drum Rock's five-thousand-meter peak barehanded, nearly covered in frostbite, and still having energy left to perform treatment...
Nami quickly threw off the blanket and went over.
Luffy was sleeping soundly on a simple bed, but his entire body was covered in frostbite.
Her heart clenched, a mix of gratitude and pain.
"I've already treated his frostbite," Kureha said. Frankly, in her eyes, even leaving it untreated would have been fine. It was the first time she'd seen a patient with such a terrifying physique. Even if left alone, his body could heal itself, and at no slow pace either.
"Your captain was quite frightening when he arrived. It seemed like he'd start a fight if I didn't give him the medicine... But he is a good captain."
Kureha's tone then shifted, carrying a hint of teasing. "Though the young man certainly is... full of vitality."
Nami froze for a moment, then her face instantly flushed bright red.
What kind of situation is this?
Her thoughts had become a bit clearer after the fever broke, but now they seemed muddled again.
"Wh-what should I do about that?" Nami stammered.
Kureha stood up, patted her behind, and chuckled as she walked toward the door. "I wouldn't know. Young people? If they didn't have strong 'fire,' would they be young?"
Aren't you a doctor?!
Nami felt Kureha was talking nonsense.
As she reached the door, Kureha suddenly turned back, leaving a meaningful sentence:
"Blocking is worse than channeling, channeling is worse than letting it flow freely... I'm going to see how Chopper's herb gathering is coming along."
The door closed gently with a soft click.
Chopper?
Who's Chopper?!
Nami puffed out her cheeks. Can't this 139-year-old lady speak more clearly?
Maybe she had spoken clearly enough.
The room was now just Nami and the sleeping Luffy.
Nami bit her lip, the blush on her face not yet faded. Her eyes struggled for a moment. Then, she quietly walked to the door and gently slid the bolt shut.
She returned to the bedside, her heartbeat involuntarily speeding up.
She took a deep breath, as if steeling her resolve, and reached up to tie her orange hair back into a neat, short ponytail.
[Event resolved. Reward time concluded.]
[Congratulations! Through acquired development, your spirit has improved. Conqueror's Haki level raised to Lv.1.]
[Conqueror's Haki Proficiency: 0/10000 (Lv.1)]
[You have acquired the Conqueror's Haki usage technique: 'King's Suppression']
[Nika Affinity: 30%]
Tick tock, tick tock...
Luffy was sleeping deeply. After pushing his body to the limit, he had begun his usual 'recovery sleep,' but just before losing consciousness, he had vaguely heard the notification about the reward time ending.
No way...
Have to wake up quickly.
Luffy didn't want anything unfortunate to happen.
But...
Within his consciousness space, Luffy opened his eyes to see Nika's giant, white, tanuki-like head staring right at him.
"What did you do out there this time? Coming to absorb my power after wrecking your body like this!"
"Oh, so that's actually a method?" Luffy nodded thoughtfully, looking at Nika. "No wonder..."
The Nika Affinity gauge ticked steadily upward.
"You pervert, don't tell me you're thinking of using that method?" Nika looked at him with an expression reserved for degenerates. "You'll ruin yourself this way sooner or later."
Luffy, of course, knew this kind of 'recovery sleep' wasn't something to be done lightly.
He wasn't in a hurry to use such a method to gain power either.
Thinking about it, there was a reason for his abnormally strong vitality. No wonder Gramps always had that indifferent expression, saying it wouldn't kill him anyway.
So, when near death, just suck Nika's power dry. It was practically a perpetual motion machine.
"So, why did you call me in here?" Luffy turned to leave. "I don't have time to mess around with you right now."
"Ni wants to talk to you."
"Talk about what?"
"Do your words from before still count?"
Luffy suddenly smiled, turning back to stare at Nika. "You want to get out?"
I knew it. Who'd want to stay in this sunless place?
"Hmph. Ni just wants to see what the outside world is like now."
"Even if you say that, there'd still be a probationary period if I let you out."
Plus, even if he let Nika, this giant tanuki, out, the Going Merry couldn't hold it. It was too big. By his estimate, its body was over ten meters tall.
"That's not a concern. Ni can control my size," Nika said.
For some reason, ever since Luffy asked if it wanted to get out that one time, Nika had been thinking about it constantly.
Because no one had ever asked it before.
But once that Pandora's box was opened, its heart felt like it was being scratched by a cat, itching to go see the outside world.
***
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