"This is my ability!"
"Aren't you a Devil Fruit user too?"
"Wait…"
"You can talk?!"
Ain was completely shocked.
She hadn't paid attention earlier—
but this fluffy little creature could actually speak.
Did the Human-Human Fruit have this kind of function too?
What kind of form even was this?
Don't ask.
Ask and the answer would be:
Human-Human Fruit — Normal Type — Normal Human Form.
"But why are you all…"
Ain crouched down and gently held Chopper's little hoof while smiling warmly.
"There are many kinds of Devil Fruit abilities."
"Karl and I are both Paramecia users."
"As for you, you probably ate a Zoan-type Human-Human Fruit, right?"
"And originally…"
"you were just an ordinary reindeer?"
Ordinary?
No.
From the day he was born—
he had never been ordinary.
Because he was a reindeer with a blue nose.
"Y-Yes…"
"But…"
"Aren't you afraid of me?"
"I'm a blue-nosed reindeer…"
"And I can talk…"
Ain froze briefly before bursting into cheerful laughter.
"Afraid of you?"
"Why would I be afraid?"
"Do you even realize how cute you are?"
"C-Cute?"
It was as if some hidden switch inside Chopper had suddenly been activated.
He bashfully scratched the back of his head and twisted his body shyly.
"Damn it!"
"Even if you call me cute, I won't be happy about it!"
"Idiot!"
Ain: He's obviously happy though!
This child is so adorably tsundere!
Watching Ain continuously pet Chopper—
Karl also became a little tempted and unconsciously walked over.
Then he reached out and rubbed Chopper's stomach.
Mm.
As expected—
the fur was incredibly soft.
After fooling around for a while—
Chopper gradually accepted these friendly "humans."
That made him extremely happy.
Because it also meant—
he himself had been accepted.
"Chopper."
"I heard Miss Kureha say earlier that you're a doctor too?"
Chopper immediately shook his head.
"No."
"There's still a lot I need to learn."
"I wouldn't dare call myself a real doctor yet."
"But my dream…"
"…is to become the greatest doctor in the world!"
"To become a universal medicine capable of curing every disease!"
Ain smiled teasingly while scratching under Chopper's chin.
"Becoming the world's greatest doctor is one thing…"
"But as for a universal medicine…"
"There's already one in this world."
Chopper's eyes widened in shock.
"What?!"
"There already is one?!"
"Since when?!"
Ain pointed toward Karl.
"Him."
"His ability can cure certain illnesses."
"Mr. Karl…"
"Is… is what she said true?"
Karl calmly nodded.
"More or less."
"As long as someone still has even a single breath left…"
"I can save them."
"Is that so…"
Chopper's expression suddenly darkened—
like a salted fish that had lost all purpose in life.
Seeing that—
Karl quickly explained:
"This is only because of my ability."
"And perhaps I'm the only person in the world who possesses it."
"It doesn't affect your dream of becoming the world's greatest doctor at all."
"But if you possess the ability to cure everything…"
"Then doesn't that already make you the world's greatest doctor?"
Karl crouched down and looked seriously into Chopper's eyes.
"Chopper."
"A doctor is someone who studies medicine tirelessly and dedicates themselves to saving lives."
"I've never been a doctor."
"And I can never replace one."
"I'm a Marine."
"I'm a soldier."
"My duty is to capture pirates and uphold justice."
"The world needs doctors."
"It needs people like you."
"Do you understand, Chopper?"
Hearing Karl's words—
the fire in Chopper's heart reignited.
"I understand!"
"I'll continue pursuing my dream!"
"I'll study medicine hard and become a real doctor as soon as possible!"
"There you go!"
"Um…"
"Can I see your ability?"
"It's not that I don't believe you, Mr. Karl."
"I just want to witness that power that can cure diseases."
"Hahaha, of course."
"But there isn't anyone here who needs healing right now…"
"Hey Ain, why don't you—"
Ain rolled her eyes.
Even though she knew exactly how Karl's powers worked—
who would willingly injure themselves for no reason?
That hurt!
"I'll do it!"
Chopper immediately volunteered.
"I have disease samples here!"
Then he hurriedly ran toward another room, complete with noisy running sound effects.
A short while later—
Chopper returned holding a syringe.
"This is a sample of the Uni Virus."
"Once infected, the victim quickly enters a fever state."
"Their body temperature gradually rises to fifty degrees Celsius…"
"And then…"
Chopper looked seriously at Karl.
Then—
without hesitation—
he injected the syringe into his own arm.
About three minutes later—
Chopper's body temperature rapidly skyrocketed.
Even through his fur—
the terrifying heat radiating from him could clearly be felt.
A worried expression appeared on Ain's face.
"Are you okay?"
"Karl, hurry and save him!"
"No."
"Wait a little longer."
"The Uni Virus hasn't fully activated yet."
"Two more minutes should do."
Karl nodded helplessly.
Since Chopper insisted—
he couldn't exactly refuse.
Besides—
as long as Chopper still had even a breath left—
Karl could save him at any moment.
There was absolutely no danger of Chopper dying from the virus.
Gradually—
Chopper's consciousness began to blur.
His body swayed weakly.
Seeing the timing was about right—
Karl raised his index finger and pointed it at Chopper's forehead.
A dazzling white Holy Light gathered at his fingertip.
"Purification Ray!"
Biu—
A beam of white Holy Light shot directly into Chopper's forehead.
Yet instead of harming him—
the Holy Light began purifying the Uni Virus inside his body.
The effect was immediate.
Chopper's complexion visibly improved at an astonishing speed.
Not long afterward—
he had completely returned to normal.
"How do you feel?"
Chopper scratched his head.
"Mm…"
"When my body was burning up earlier…"
"something cool suddenly entered me…"
"Then my temperature started going down."
"It's amazing…"
Effortlessly curing the Uni Virus like this—
the power of Holy Light was truly terrifying.
Calling it a universal medicine wasn't an exaggeration at all.
"Hahahaha!"
"To you it may seem miraculous…"
"But to pirates…"
"it's an absolutely deadly power."
"It's because this power exists that I can remain undefeated."
"No one can bring me down."
"And similarly…"
"If you become the world's greatest doctor…"
"your companions will never need to fear injuries during battle."
"Because you'll always heal them."
"That's the role of a doctor, Chopper."
"So keep working hard."
"I believe you can do it."
Chopper nodded vigorously.
"Yes!"
"I'll definitely work hard, Mr. Karl!"
Karl rubbed Chopper's head gently.
"Good luck."
"Ain, let's go."
"It's time to investigate Wapol's treasure vault."
"I know where Wapol's treasure vault is!"
"I'll take you there!"
Chopper volunteered enthusiastically.
Karl patted Chopper on the shoulder.
"Alright."
"Then come with us too."
…
"This is Wapol's armory."
"But when we arrived here, it was already locked."
"And we never found the key."
"It's fine."
"That's not really a problem for me."
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