The members of the Whitebeard Pirates were far from weak, and since Haibara Meow did not use the highest concentration of the Satan Potion, Ace and the others soon began to recover one after another, just as Sherwin had predicted.
However, this time they didn't dare to swarm the "Poisonous-Handed Alchemist Meow" all at once.
Only Marco, being the ship doctor, and Ace, who shared a good relationship with them, cautiously approached.
"Um... Miss Haibara, how is Pop condition? Is there a way to treat him?"
Marco inquired carefully once again, for fear of annoying this little kitten with a prickly temperament.
Having already taught them a lesson, Haibara Meow naturally wouldn't continue to be moody and directly shared the results of her examination.
"Conventional methods are of little use," she said, looking seriously at Marco. "You are a doctor too, so you should understand that your Pops isn't actually suffering from any specific illness he simply old, meow."
(=ˇˇ=)
Marco sighed. He certainly knew what was going on with Whitebeard body. If it were just simple injuries or even certain diseases, he could heal them directly with the Flames of Resurrection provided by his Phoenix Fruit.
However, his Flames of Resurrection were powerless against the aging caused by time.
"Is even Dr. Kureha method useless?"
Shirahoshi, also worried about Whitebeard health, asked urgently, "She over a hundred and thirty years old and still very healthy!"
"That different," Haibara Meow replied, finding time to answer while jostling with Klee Meow for "territory" in Sherwin arms.
"Dr. Kureha condition is the result of years of accumulated maintenance. To put it simply, it a means of delaying aging and maintaining physiological functions, meow.
But Newgate body has already aged severely those maintenance methods can only extend his life, not make him young again, meow."
"To put it in an easier way to understand..." Haibara Meow paused before continuing her explanation.
"Even though Dr. Kureha is over a hundred and thirty years old, her body remains in a state similar to someone in their sixties or even fifties. Garp is in his seventies, and his body is roughly in a seventy-year-old state. But Newgate body has already reached a state of someone in their eighties or even nineties, meow."
"As for why Newgate body has aged so drastically, it might be as Dr. Kureha speculated—due to the accumulation of one or more old injuries, or perhaps because he was once poisoned by something that caused functional damage, or maybe a combination of two or more external factors, meow."
Haibara Meow spread her paws and shrugged helplessly. "I can't turn back time, so I can't determine the exact cause, and even if I knew, it wouldn't matter, meow."
Marco, as the ship doctor and the primary physician who had been treating Whitebeard body for years, naturally knew that what Haibara Meow said was true.
In fact, he hadn't held much hope for Haibara Meow or even Vegapunk from the start he simply didn't want to throw cold water on his comrades.
But Ace didn't have such preconceived notions, so he keenly caught the first thing Haibara Meow had said—
"Little sister Haibara, you just said that conventional methods aren't of much use for Pop body, which means there are unconventional methods?"
"Of course Meow."
The little kitten nodded her head. "The simplest method is to use a Devil Fruit with time-reversal abilities to directly make Newgate young again Meow.
The only drawback to doing this is that if the person ability is deactivated, Newgate will revert to his original state, and his physical condition might even worsen further due to the instantaneous aging Meow."
"Unless the opponent Devil Fruit ability is permanent, but as far as I know, Bonney fruit ability has a time limit... Oh, Bonney is the Age-Age Fruit user, she can make a person younger or older Meow."
"Additionally, there is a more complex method, which is to create a clone of Newgate and then transplant all the clone organs into his body, or directly transplant his brain into the clone Meow."
After giving a solution from the mystical side involving Devil Fruits, Haibara Meow provided a very scientific one. "However, this method also has drawbacks Meow."
She added, "Although the clone uses Newgate Lineage Factor and its basic physical attributes are no different from the original, it wasn't forged through his own training, so his strength would certainly decline.
He might even have to re-train his Haki. Furthermore, the brain can't be replaced no matter what no matter how young the cloned body is, it impossible to let him live another seventy or eighty years Meow."
"Gurarararara! What this about returning to youth or clones! I don't need any of it!"
Just as Ace and the others were still weighing the pros and cons of the two plans, Whitebeard interrupted their thoughts with a loud laugh.
"Haibara already told me the situation during the previous check-up, but I don't need any of it!"
Whitebeard spoke very seriously to Ace and the others: "On this sea, people will always die, and new people will always appear. I am a remnant of the old era, and sooner or later, I will fade away with time.
What difference does it make if I live a few years more or less? Using every possible means to cling to life and refusing to die is far too unsightly. I am Whitebeard!"
Since things had reached this point, Ace and the others knew that further persuasion was useless.
Furthermore, they actually agreed with Whitebeard perspective. Pirates of their alignment, who leaned toward the side of good, were always accustomed to brushing aside concerns for their own lives.
Otherwise, Whitebeard wouldn't have persisted in heavy drinking despite knowing he shouldn't.
Of course, while they understood, it was unrealistic to expect Ace and the others to remain completely indifferent—
"Pops!"
The members of the Whitebeard Pirates stopped their persuasion, but they collectively surged forward to surround Whitebeard, weeping uncontrollably.
However, one of the characteristics of the world of pirates was how quickly people emotions could shift.
One moment they were crying their eyes out, and the next, they were joyfully preparing for another banquet.
The reason was simple: Haibara Meow had taught Kureha health preservation methods to Marco.
She told him that while this method couldn't save Whitebeard, extending his life for a few more years would be no problem.
Most importantly, Kureha method did not require him to quit drinking.
So, not only Ace and the rest, but even Whitebeard himself was incredibly happy. The more he looked at Haibara Meow in Sherwin arms, the more he liked her.
"Gurararara! Haibara, letting me drink is more useful than curing my body! If you ever need anything in the future, just tell your Grandpa! I, Whitebeard, will find a way to get it for you no matter what!"
"Mm... if possible, could I have another Zoan Fruit meow?"
(=ω=)
Haibara Meow reached out a paw without any hint of politeness. She had long since researched the alchemical core of the Demon Drug series, but after using the Giraffe Fruit to test the Felyne-made Devil Fruit, she hadn't obtained any additional Zoan Fruits, which left the little kitten quite frustrated.
"No problem!" Whitebeard agreed without the slightest hesitation.
"After we have visited Wano Country, I will immediately send someone to help you collect them!"
While Whitebeard was teasing Haibara Meow with a kind expression, Sanji Meow roar suddenly came from the direction of Ace and the others—
"Don't think you're so great just because your bounty is higher than mine! I want to duel you, meow!"