Chapter 31: Do Demon's Get Sick? 2

"Great! We gotta get up there as quick as possible," Luffy nodded.

With that, the two began their trek back up the mountain. They warily glanced around and verified that they were no longer being chased by those Lapins.

Along the way, they heard the desperate growling of a Lapin cub and the duo saw the sad sight of the bunny trying to dig its mother out of the snow.

Only her paw was free and the little thing clawed away, heedless of the blood matting its fur.

The baby Lapin heard their footsteps and quickly turned to face them, snarling protectively despite its blatant fear.

Robin watched Luffy walk up to the cornered creature and, though it cowered in fear, the rubber boy ignored it and pulled the buried mother out of the snow.

Both Lapins could only watch in shock at the act of kindness and even Robin was a little surprised.

After all, these things had just been trying to kill them. Rosan's vengeful streak was a mile wide and knowing him, he'd probably wait until the Lapin suffocated to death.

He'd probably make a smart comment about how they couldn't handle something they started either... even before his personality shift.

Luffy… Luffy was a good person.

"Isn't he?" Mod smiled softly. Right now, Robin only really trusted Rosan but she wanted her daughter to trust all of the Straw Hats eventually.

Honestly, the amount of trust issues her and Rosan both had, could fill multiple novels.

"We're almost there," Luffy said, gazing at the mountain that was getting closer and closer.

It really was a good thing Rosan had given them his Raid Suit to use… Robin was sure there was a way up this mountain besides climbing it and she was gonna suggest looking for it but this cut down their time by a lot.

"HOLD IT RIGHT THERE!" A voice roared at the two. "YOU THINK YOU COULD CAUSE AN AVALANCHE TO TRY AND KILL KING WAPOL?! HOW DARE YOU ATTEMPT TO DO THIS TO ME?!"

Robin was already crossing her arms, intent on snapping their necks and getting this over with so that Luffy didn't have to get involved but imagine her surprise, when an army of Lapins burst out and began attacking Wapol and his men, shooting nods of respect towards Luffy and Robin in the process.

The Devil Child blinked at the action before nodding back and continuing on their path.

"THE LAPINS ARE HELPING THEM? BUT WHY? THEY HATE HUMANS?!" Wapol gaped in confusion, hastily running away from the ferocious beasts that persisted on attacking them. He fearfully jumped back as one of them smashed into his position and said, "C-CHESS! KUROMARIMO!"

Chess and Kuromarimo both prepared themselves to protect the king and Robin let them to it, too focused on making sure Rosan healed.

Her and Luffy continued their quick pace to the mountain and finally, they arrived.

"It's huge! I can't even see the top!" Luffy awed.

"Well, with this Raid Suit, we can make the trip much easier. We'll use it and a combination of our Devil Fruits to climb up in record time."

Luffy grinned and flashed her a thumbs up. "You're super smart, Robin! Alright, let's do that," he beamed.

Ah, he was honestly adorable.

Robin grabbed the rubber boy around his midsection and stared determinedly up the mountain. She was sure there was another way up but she wanted Rosan safe now and didn't want to waste unknown time looking for it.

The woman tensed, activating the Raid Suit she still had donned on and jumped, clearing an amazing distance with Luffy and Rosan in tow.

"Thank you for saving me from the avalanche… but shouldn't you have saved Usopp too, Sanji?" Nami asked in concern, looking at the comatose sniper with a sweatdrop on her face.

Sanji, who had immediately jumped to the rescue of Nami and Vivi upon seeing the massive amounts of snow, glanced at the long nosed male and shrugged.

"He'll live. I had to save you two at all costs!" He swooned. The cook himself had actually gotten caught by the avalanche but he was none the worse for wear besides being more chilly.

"WAKE UP USOPP!" Vivi sobbed hysterically, shaking the unconscious liar back and forth in her panic.

"Ah, don't wake me up… I was dreaming of beautiful flowers and streams," Usopp muttered in his sleep, grinning dumbly.

"NO USOPP, DON'T GO BACK TO SLEEP!" Vivi cried, slapping him repeatedly so that he could wake up.

"Should we stop her?" Nami asked, watching as Usopp's face got progressively more swollen from the beating.

Sanji watched Usopp shoot up from the slaps and shook his head. "Nah, he's fine… Wait... is that Zoro?"

Zoro in question, burst out of the heaping amounts of snow with very little clothing on and began shivering uncontrollably.

"S-Someone give me their jacket. I was out training and I got lost," Zoro stammered, rubbing his arms against his body.

Seriously, it was so fucking cold.

"What is going on right now?" Nami sweatdropped. Why was everything so chaotic even without the two most chaotic members of their crew?!

Was this the effect of those two... Did they infect them?!

"Oh thank goodness, you saved me Vivi!" Usopp exclaimed, smiling thankfully. "But… doesn't my face feel a little swollen?"

Vivi laughed nervously and averted her gaze, marching in some direction with a purpose. "It's just frostbite! Y-Yeah, it's frostbite!"

Nami sweatdropped further, following after the wandering princess and prompting Sanji to do the same.

"Seriously… I need a jacket right now..." Zoro sneezed, following after the group and grumbling to himself.

Usopp scratched his face in confusion and winced in pain before following his crew in fear.

D-Did Frostbite really do this to a person?

Robin and Luffy had a rather ingenious plan to successfully climb the mountain and it was working wonders for them.

First, after utilizing the Raid Boots to jump a sizable distance, Robin would hover in place and summon two arms at the highest point that she could see. Then, Luffy would use his Devil Fruit to grasp the summoned arm, rocket themselves up with the momentum, Robin would utilize the hover mechanic of the boots again and they'd repeat.

The only downside was how bitingly cold it was and how tall the mountain was. Robin especially, due to her Devil Fruit had to deal with the freezing temperature of grasping the stone and the strain of pulling another (Rosan was incredibly light) person up constantly.

At least the Raid Suit had given her quite a crazy amount of strength...

Believe it or not, Rosan's unreal body heat was doing wonders for both her and Luffy right now and allowed them to brave the weather much better than they normally would.

"Are you alright?" Luffy asked in concern, looking back at the panting Robin. They had been doing this for around an hour now and the top was quickly becoming visible due to their combined efforts.

"I'm fine… it's just… I'm getting a little exhausted from the amount of energy I'm expending," Robin admitted quietly, not wanting to waste more energy talking. They were floating right now and the woman crossed her arms to continue.

"A little is an understatement. You've been doing this for an hour straight, Robin and you're holding someone else…" Mod said in concern.

"Y-Yeah, maybe just hover for a bit and gather your energy, Mother? I don't want you to get hurt too," Ram whispered in worry. She was barely holding it out right now and if both her mother and father got injured...

Luffy glanced at her with furrowed brows before quickly coming to a decision. She was planning on being stupid so he wouldn't let her.

The rubber boy suddenly clasped an arm around Robin's waist, much to her surprise, and began kicking his feet.

Robin watched with wide eyes, as Luffy began to ascend the mountain with a technique that she very quickly recognized.

"You know how to use Geppo?" She asked in genuine shock.

Luffy nodded. "Yeah! Rosan and I learned it from Gramps a while back!"

Gramps? How did their gramps know a Rokushiki technique?

"Wait... if you had this technique, why are you just now using it?" Robin couldn't help but ask. He could have used it to save them from the avalanche and climb up the mountain in a much less complicated manner...

Luffy simply laughed as they rocketed up the mountain. "You're super smart so I went along with your plan!"

Robin sweatdropped. It seems Luffy knew what areas he lacked in almost to a fault.

It was endearing though so she had no problems with it.

It took them around 20 more minutes to finally reach the top and Robin realized she was more tired then she thought...

At least they had the Raid Suit to help out earlier. It was exceedingly useful.

"I'll tell him how much you like it… I'm sure he'll attempt to get one created for you asap afterwards. Maro has one but Luffy and Ace refused his offer," Mod said, smiling gratefully at the visibly exhausted woman.

Eyes heavy, Robin allowed Luffy to pull them over and let out a sigh of relief at not needing to do that anymore. Her hands were freezing, she was tired and she couldn't go to sleep yet because she made a promise to Rosan.

She understood how traumatized he was due to the hands of another doctor and Robin would be damned if she allowed that to happen again after telling him to trust her.

"Rosan?" Robin prodded, shaking him gently as the trio moved over to the massive castle at the top.

"Mmm?" He groaned, cracking an eye open. "D-Did… we make it? Do you… need my help with any...thing?"

"No, no," She assured. "I'll let you go right back to sleep but I think you should transform back into an adult now before we meet the doctor."

"Kay," he said, closing his eyes and concentrating deeply.

"Modify Age: Default."

It took much longer than he expected but eventually, he had reverted back to his 24 year old form and he instantly fell back asleep, the energy drain from the technique being too much for him.

Luffy didn't even flinch at the added weight of his much taller brother and just shifted him slightly, marching towards the castle with a purpose, Robin lagging slightly behind him.

As they approached, they noticed something out of the corner of their eyes and the duo paused, at the sight of some giant… monster thing staring at them.

There was an odd silence that transpired, as the three stared at each other.

…

…

…

"WOAHHHHHH WHAT IS THAT?!" Luffy screamed at the same time as the monster.

"EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEK!" The giant monster shrieked, hiding in the most peculiar manner. They tried hiding but managed to fail miserably, keeping their entire body exposed for them.

Robin simply raised a tired brow at the altercation. "You're hiding the wrong way," she told them, watching as the creature jumped and adjusted itself accordingly.

"W-What are you doing here, humans?! D-Did you guys climb up the mountain?!" The animal (?) asked in surprise.

Luffy's eyes transformed into stars.

"YOU CAN TALK?!" He gaped in awe.

The thing shrieked once more at that question.

Before the scared creature could bolt from Luffy's nature, Robin decided to take the reigns of the conversation and keep them on track.

"Please, can you lead us to the doctor here? My friend is very sick and we'd like treatment as soon as possible," she pleaded.

As interesting as the creature was, Robin could dwell on them when Rosan was being checked on. The redhead had managed to sleep through the entire trip up the mountain and had probably used up the last well of energy he had, transforming back into his adult form.

Mod and Ram being completely silent helped with that theory.

The creature looked shocked for some reason before finally directing its gaze towards the unconscious Rosan and gasping at the sight of steam rising from his body.

"Chopper! What's all that noise out there?!" A females voice called out.

"Doctor! It's a group of people who climbed up the mountain with a sick patient!" The one dubbed Chopper shouted back.

Dr. Kureha stepped through the door in curiosity, wondering who was stupid enough to climb the mountain. The woman gazed at the three newcomers, before instantly zeroing in on the man who was literally steaming.

She could question them later, this man needed to be attended to.

"Come on, we don't have all day!" Kureha ushered the group into the castle and racked her brain on all the things she'd need to tend to this person.

Chopper had already ran ahead to collect everything and she couldn't keep the proud smile off her face at how quick he was to react. She guided the three strangers to a room and quickly got things ready.

Robin watched Luffy place Rosan on the bed and Kureha summarily kicked him out, somehow sensing his chaotic nature.

The rubber boy didn't complain, deciding to fall asleep while they helped Rosan. He had put just as much effort into climbing the mountain and the biting cold did him no favors.

"You too, girl," Kureha ordered, turning towards Robin. "There's another room right next to this one. Go rest up some."

The woman looked exhausted right now. Many would have missed it, but Kureha had been alive for too long and had been a doctor for practically her whole life to miss something like that.

Robin shook her head in denial. "I can't leave this room until I'm sure he's alright," she informed the doctor bluntly.

When the doctor looked like she was going to protest, Robin simply interrupted her and said, "He… Rosan doesn't have a great experience with doctors. If he wakes up and doesn't see me, it won't bode well for anyone here."

The giant beast, Chopper, squeaked at that ominous warning and transformed into a small… raccoon?

So he was some type of zoan… She figured. He was actually quite adorable like this.

"That's Chopper, a blue-nosed reindeer who ate the Hito Hito No Mi. He can do anything a human can and I've taught him all my medical skills so you can trust him," Kureha explained calmly, getting a nod of understanding out of the neutral faced Robin.

Chopper jumped a bit at that and warily regarded the stoic woman, torn between running and tending to his patient.

Dr. Kureha stared at the woman for a moment, expression unreadable due to her shades and simply pulled a chair for Robin to sit on that would put her in Rosan's line of view if he woke up.

"Sit here and don't get in the way," Kureha instructed. Not a great experience with doctors eh? That didn't sound promising for her when he woke up.

"Thank you," Robin said, sitting up and directing her gaze towards Rosan.

"Chopper, hand me the antibiotics," she said.

"Yes, Doctor!"

Well, whatever. She'd still work on him; Kureha never saw anyone with his conditions so she was interested in how it would go.

With that, the doctor began running a diagnosis on the sickly redhead, Robin watching all the while.

"Do you think they managed to make it to the top?" Vivi asked in worry.

They had just been in an altercation with Wapol's goons in which Zoro and Sanji had defeated the king's soldiers and they were currently rescuing Dalton from the mountain of snow… but that didn't stop the fact that there had been an avalanche in the first place and it came from the direction Robin and Luffy went off at…

Not to mention, apparently Wapol was headed there too and it was likely they had possibly met each other.

"I don't know too much about Robin, but Luffy won't let them die. You can trust our captain to keep all of them safe," Nami assured the worried princess.

Vivi watched in awe at how absolute the Straw Hats faith in Luffy was and thought back to how Rosan had accepted the insane idea to climb the mountain without even a little bit of doubt.

That robotic man… he had just accepted it without fuss and fell asleep instantly on his brother's back, fully trusting in his plan along with Nico Robin herself.

Vivi had to wonder who Monkey D. Luffy was, to not only have someone like Rosan to call his brother… but to make the cold and distant Nico Robin trust him immediately to the point where she'd also go along with such a plan…

Maybe… Maybe he could help save her country?

"Incredible… I don't even know how he's alive right now but all we did was stabilize him and his body immediately handled the rest… Are you even human?"

"No, I'm a demon."

Kureha couldn't stop her brow from raising in surprise, as Rosan's eyes snapped open, glowing brightly with Modification and he effortlessly pushed himself up. His gaze bored into her own, piercing through her body and gauging the Doctor.

He idly activated his Devil Fruit and instantly regulated his own temperature.

"EEEEEK? A DEMON?!" A childish voice screeched.

Movement out of the corner of his eye, alerted Rosan to two other presences and his glowing eyes landed on a tiny blue nosed… raccoon? He was sure it was the source of noise because Robin was sleeping, head on the edge of his bed.

"I can't believe you're already awake," Kureha grunted with an impressed expression despite her complete befuddlement on this person's makeup.

His body temperature had been so high, any normal person would have long died...

But the moment she identified and applied the correct medicine, his body had begun immediately dealing with the disease until practically all traces of it were gone.

It made her wonder how he had even managed to catch the disease in the first place. This Rosan had the most impressive immune system she had ever seen… it was almost like it were alive and active, building itself into a stronger state off the virus that had wracked his body.

If that girl hadn't mentioned how he had a bad experience with doctors, she'd have wanted take a blood sample to inspect it...

The way the woman was looking at her had quickly dissuaded her of that idea though.

Another fascinating thing about the redhead was his actual body. It took her far too long to find a needle that could pierce his skin and right after she finished, the small wound inflicted closed up with dizzying speeds.

His body was one that doctors across the planet would envy and want to study which made her wonder if it was the reason he had such a bad experience with them.

"I'm inclined to actually believe that demon claim," Kureha snorted eventually, watching as the redhead hoisted up the sleeping woman and lay her next to him, stroking her hair in the process.

"She's a good one, you know? Didn't go to sleep until we finished working on you."

Rosan stared at Robin for a moment, eyes soft at that and he idly hugged her sleeping body a little closer. "She's the reason I accepted being worked on by a doctor in the first place… Told me to trust her so I did and I guess it worked out."

Kureha decided to get down business seeing as he was seemingly fine. "You somehow managed to contract an ancient disease that shouldn't actually exist right now. In recorded history, not a single person has ever survived it but there are ways to slow it down which was what I attempted to do for you... I didn't even cure you. Your body did after I injected you with some things."

She looked at the anomaly with an appraising eye.

"The fact that you managed to survive for so long and that it didn't even seem like you were going to die… It wouldn't have healed quickly but by the way your body was attacking it... it would have eventually healed in around… a month I predict? Possibly faster by how advanced your system is."

A deadly virus was nothing but a strong cold for this man… what an odd person.

"A month of that? No thanks," Rosan scoffed much to his amusement. It would have robbed him completely of his energy. He would have actually been bedridden that entire time and he couldn't go long without using Modification or else he'd get antsy.

She gestured towards his left arm. "That's where you got affected. Right on that pretty little rose tattoo of yours. I knew you were healing from it quickly, but you shouldn't have been awake for another day or two."

"So I got sick because I was being a gentleman," Rosan thought, mildly amused. The only reason his arms had been exposed, was when he had given Robin his cardigan so that she wasn't exposed back on Little Garden.

He had done it because he knew how hard it was for him to catch anything but his own Devil Fruit had decided to disprove that, willingly allowing such a dangerous virus to enter his body.

Seems it was the second time that happened.

"I'm so glad that you're healed up!" Mod beamed, not privy to his thoughts currently.

"F-Fatherrrrr I missed youuuu!" Ram sobbed happily, wanting to see him as soon as possible but holding her patience in. She furiously wiped at her eyes so that he didn't call her weak for crying.

"Mod-chan. Ram. I'll visit you two soon," Rosan promised, glancing down at his body. He didn't notice anything too obvious now that he was healed, but he added that up to not being fully recovered yet.

He'd probably be fully healed in a day or so. Better than a month at least.

"Thank you both for healing me. Despite my opinions on doctor's touching me, I still appreciate it," Rosan said softly, inclining his head towards Kureha and Raccoon.

Kureha simply waved him off but Raccoon had a much different reaction.

He blinked, before blushing and the little thing broke out into a dance.

"W-Who said you could thank me, you bastard?!" He gushed, not looking remotely upset despite his words.

"That is so adorable," Mod gushed, wanting to squeeze the little guy with all her might.

"Y-You're such a girl," Ram sniffed, even finding time to make fun of her Auntie through the tears.

"What exactly does that mean, young lady?"

"E-Exactly what I meant!"

Rosan ignored the two and was about to ask who the raccoon was, before Luffy burst into the room. He saw his, healthy, brother and immediately started whooping.

"ROSAN!" His captain screamed, immediately pouncing on his scout and hugging the redhead.

Robin's eyes snapped opened at that and she let out a surprised noise at being collateral from Luffy's excitement. He grabbed the two of them and squeezed, laughing cheerfully all the while.

Despite her tired confusion, she instinctively wrapped her arms around the rubber boy. far too used to this from days spent around Rosan.

"You're not burning anymore!" He beamed.

"D-Don't be so rough with the patient! He's still healing!" The little animal suddenly said, catching Luffy's attention.

"FOOD!"

"EH?!"

Chopper only had a moment to shriek and run, before Luffy began chasing him down the castle. The little guy began screaming in panic at the sight of the running human who had called him food and they vanished.

Robin watched them go with a slightly confused expression, before focusing on the redhead who was no longer boiling hot. She realized that he was holding her close and returned the hug with a relieved smile on her face.

"Rosan! You're better now," she sighed in relief, burying herself in his warm frame.

Yes. Warm. Not unnaturally hot like he had been for the last three days.

"It's thanks to you… I'm sorry for how much of a hassle I was," Rosan whispered, laying down with the woman and linking to her instinctively.

"It was more annoying then I'd like to admit," Robin teased, suppressing a yawn that the redhead didn't miss.

"You're still tired and you climbed a mountain for me. Get some more rest," he said. To go along with Luffy's utterly reckless plan without hesitation along with caring for him this whole time… She was something else.

He really did miss her.

"Speaking of which… that Raid Suit of yours is incredibly useful," she replied, eyes already closing at the familiar comfort of his warmth.

Rosan glanced at the woman wearing his combat outfit and hummed. "I'll have one created for you after we leave this island then. They all come with different abilities based on the user. Mine can transform its appearance and material instantaneously while keeping its original perks so I wonder what yours will do…"

Leave it to Rosan to just decide to get one created for her. At least she actually was interested in it.

"I look forward to it," she responded, growing more and more tired at his gentle touch. In combination with Rosan stroking her hair soothingly and the fact that she had woken up early due to Luffy, the Devil Child quickly fell asleep again in his grasp.

Rosan let her rest and regarded the doctor with a tilted head. "So Doctor…"

"Kureha," she introduced herself. This one was as polite as the woman and that made them both less annoying then the rubber boy.

"Kureha… you look like you have some questions for me," Rosan hummed. "As thanks, I'll answer some for you. Within reason of course."

"Cheeky brat," Kureha thought to herself. Nevermind, he was not as polite as he seemed.

But he was right. She did have questions for him.

"How are you alive? That disease has been affecting you for about three days and there's no record of anyone surviving it past day 1. It's almost certain death once you contract it."

"I shouldn't have contracted it in the first place," Rosan replied, unknowingly confirming some of her suspicions. "I'm sure you could already tell… but my body seems like it has a mind of its own, right?"

Kureha nodded because that's exactly what she had been thinking.

"Well, it is. I normally shouldn't be capable of catching any sort of sickness but due to how powerful this disease is, my immune system saw it as a potential way to make my body even stronger. It was confident that I would survive the ordeal which is why I got sick."

He talked about his own body like it were a completely different entity… Just who was this strange redhead?

"Barring the disease… you still managed to reach near unprecedented body temperature. 150°… no one should be able to survive that period," the doctor stressed, unable to keep the look of disbelief off her face.

Rosan glanced neutrally at her and tilted his head to the side. "Before I tell you… My captain is probably going to try and recruit that Raccoon. Do you have a problem if we successfully do so?"

"His name is Chopper and he's a Blue Nosed Reindeer who ate the Hito Hito no Mi," Kureha told him with a slight glare. "As for recruiting him… Take him, I don't care but do you think you can save Chopper?"

"?" Rosan tilted his head.

"That boy has a wound deep in his heart that not even a doctor can heal," Kureha said, explaining the reindeer's situation to him.

The redhead hummed. Rejected by your parents for having a blue nose, then eating a Devil Fruit and being exiled from the herd…

Not being discouraged yet, Chopper had transformed into a more human like form to try and mingle with other people but they had rejected him too, attempting to kill the young reindeer in the process after thinking he was a monster.

Someone who only wanted friendship, living two worlds and being rejected by both so harshly. He had been alone his whole life until he had met a quack doctor who would become his Father but met a tragic death.

Poisoned by his son, he drank a medicine that would blow him up so that Chopper wouldn't be the cause of his death all in front of that king, Wapol.

"How awful," Mod frowned sadly. Before meeting her, Rosan hadn't had any friends either and it tore the little boy apart. Despite that, he still had Rouge as companionship and that was enough for him until they met.

To live a life like that… She wanted nothing more than to tell the child it was going to be alright.

"I see. Then, there's nothing to worry about," Rosan replied softly, not deigning to comment on it.

A monster eh? He'd fit in just fine next to monsters like him and Luffy. His captain would successfully recruit him, he was sure of it.

Kureha raised a brow at his confidence but Rosan didn't give her a chance to speak.

"Tell me, what do you know about the Philosopher's Stone?" He asked suddenly.

The Doctor paused at that random question. "It's capable of turning metals into gold and granting rejuvenation or immortality. Heh, if a stone like that existed, a lot more people would be as youthful as I am," she snorted.

She wasn't understanding why he was mentioning that stone. As amazing as it was, it was a fairytale. It didn't exist and was not worth dwelling on —

"I created and ate one," Rosan interrupted her musing.

Her thought process grounded to a halt at that abrupt statement and her disbelief was palpable.

"I won't go into details about it and I won't try to convince you that I'm telling the truth but that is why. It was also the one responsible for doing an admirable job at keeping my sickness at bay…"

"Did you think I was exaggerating when I called myself a demon? I may not actually be one, but I certainly am not human anymore," Rosan finished softly.

Kureha found it hard to believe… but why would he lie about something like that? It was far too random and much too specific. The Philosopher's Stone was not a topic that the average person knew about.

"Are you immortal?" She couldn't help but ask. It would explain why that virus couldn't kill him.

"No. I didn't make mine with the intention of being immortal. I made it for the rejuvenation and transformation aspect. I primarily focus on rejuvenation… and my ring focuses on transformation," he explained, transforming Ram into a golden pistol to show.

That explained why he was in such incredible condition despite being sick just two hours ago.

Kureha had to wonder… who was this man? One does not just create a stone that didn't exist and be successful in it… then keep such information to themselves.

If he went public with that information, that he could create such a powerful stone, this boy could become one of the most important people on the planet. He wouldn't have needed to bother trying to explain to her that he consumed one because she'd be trying to get her hands on one.

But instead, he was a pirate with no bounty…

"Just who are these people, Chopper?" Kureha couldn't help but ask.

Rosan hummed and glanced back down at the resting Robin, pleased with how easily she could rest despite there being another person who she didn't know well. It spoke volumes of her trust in him and he would never let her down again.

"Well, if that's all. I appreciate you for helping me, Doctor," Rosan nodded. Once Robin got enough rest, he'd leave this place. He was only being so chatty because it helped him somewhat ignore all the medical supplies in the room.

Kureha raised a brow.

"What are you talking about? You aren't cleared to go yet," Kureha told him. "Bad experiences with doctors or not, I never let my patients leave until they are perfectly healed and you should be good to go in about a day or two. Until then, you're staying right there."

Rosan's gaze narrowed minutely. "Bad experiences is a nice way of putting it, Doctor. It's a miracle that we're even having a conversation right now. Don't push your luck, you aren't touching me again," he warned.

The two stared each other down and it was only broken by the shrieking of Luffy and Chopper.

"JOIN MY CREW, MONSTER!"

"WAHHHHH!"

Robin grumbled a bit in her sleep but was quickly assuaged by Rosan's warm hands rubbing the perfect spot in her hair.

Kureha snorted, realization making its way on her face. "Fine, if you don't want me to work on you, let Chopper do it. He's not human but I've taught him everything I know and he's the sweetest boy around. I'm sure he doesn't qualify as one of those Doctor's not allowed to touch you, right?"

"She may have a point… After all, he's not human and is palpably innocent," Mod jumped in, supporting the old woman's claims.

If he were to join the crew, Rosan would have to throw away his disdain for all Doctors barring his brother and work with Chopper. The little reindeer being not human and young would net him many favors with the redhead.

"Then he can check up on me after he joins the crew," Rosan decided. "I'll give you your money for helping me but if you think I can stand to stay here for longer than I have to…"

He didn't say anything else, letting the statement hang in the air.

He had to respect Kureha for not backing down for even a second.

"Just try it, brat!" She grunted, turning on her heel and marching out of the room.

Rosan watched her leave with a tilted head.

What an odd old woman.

"I like her… y-you should listen to her, Father! Haven't you moved around enough while sick?! W-What if you get sick again?" Ram tried to hide her worry but it was palpable.

If he got sick again, her heart wouldn't be able to handle it…

"You're worrying about nothing, Ram but I should get a bit more rest," Rosan hummed, lying down next to the still sleeping Robin.

He grasped her idly and brought the both of them to the mindscape with a simple thought.

Robin yawned a bit before realizing the tiredness was artificial and that she was currently located in the mindscape.

"Feels good to be back. Not entering my mindscape when I sleep feels wrong," Rosan muttered next to her, looking like he had never been sick in the first place.

The only difference, was that his hair was currently out of its bun. Robin wouldn't tell him to keep it free, knowing that it showed off his earrings when in a bun but she hoped one day, he'd be able to do it without regrets.

"I do miss the mindscape… it allowed me to hone my techniques and that was incredibly useful. After I get a raid suit, I'd like to really start up my training with you again," Robin said idly.

Rosan nodded at that. "If I had trained as hard as I did as a child, over the 10 years I was with Luffy, I'd have been much stronger but alas… there's no time for regrets and we can get up to par together. I train with Zoro as well and Luffy sometimes joins, if you ever want to join us," he informed her.

She was about to answer that, yes, she did want to join but a blur crashed into the man and woman, flooring the two.

"F-Father!" Ram sobbed happily, crying in his chest with a river of tears. She squeezed him and Robin tightly in relief and began blabbering.

"You got sick and I got scared a-and I thought it was getting really bad because I n-never saw you like that and I didn't want to think it but I couldn't help it and I just thought that i-if you died I would b-be so sad b-but Mother is so amazing and she managed to s-save you and — W-WAHHH!" she sobbed, clutching him with all her might.

"How are you feeling? I wanted to thank you for going out of your way to be Rosan's caretaker," Mod whispered to Robin, watching Rosan soothe his weapon with a calming tone. She exchanged a tender hug with the Devil Child and smiled softly at her.

"Just a little tired and please don't mention it. I know Rosan would do the exact same for me," Robin replied in amusement. There was a glimmer of mirth in her eyes at how hysterically Ram was acting and how awkwardly the redhead tried to sooth her.

She truly was Rosan's daughter, overreacting like only he could.

Robin and Mod let out surprised noises as Ram rushed over to them and bodily hoisted them both up.

"Thank you so much for taking care of stupid Father!" The ring cried. "Even after anyone would have thrown him overboard, you were still so patient and awesome! You're the best, Mother!"

Robin couldn't help but blink, at the earnest look in the silver haired woman's strange eyes before smiling gently and returning the hug.

"Of course, Ram. I'll always help Rosan if I can," she assured.

Ram may not have looked it, but she was quite young in nature. It was actually rather adorable to witness.

"Did you just call me stupid, Ram?"

"...!"

For the first time ever, Robin and Mod watched the ring go completely white. Her eyes were wide in terror and the expression on the woman's face was nothing the Devil Fruit had ever seen.

She slowly turned, fear present on her features and stared down the stone faced Rosan.

"I-It was in the heat of the moment, F-Father! I was just… I was worried for you!" Ram whimpered, inching slowly behind Robin and Mod for protection.

Mod's eyes were wide in shock at the complete 180 in Ram's personality.

Was Ram… was she afraid of Rosan?!

That was right… the little female menace had never gotten in trouble with her Father but Ram held him to the highest degree. It was only natural that she would be fearful if he ever directed some ire towards her.

If she knew this… she'd have just asked Rosan to discipline her instead.

Darn it...

Ram began shaking at the sight of her father tilting his head.

Ah, she had really gone and done it now… What if he stopped using her?! W-What if he threw her away?!

What if he destroyed her?!

Rosan blinked at the tears forming in his weapons eyes and sought to quickly assuage that. "I was just kidding, Ram. I was just surprised considering I've never heard you say a single negative thing about me. Of course I wouldn't have a problem with that, I was just teasing," he assured.

He should work on his jokes… Angel and Demon had reacted much the same way all those years ago…

Ram blinked at that before glaring at her father in disbelief. "I… Y-You…" She stammered in anger, not believing that he had managed to scare her so much.

"I didn't realize I scared you," Rosan shrugged. Everyone seemed to fear him to a degree and it seems even his faithful weapon was one of them.

The youngest one there began spluttering in disbelief. "I'm not…! You! M-MOTHER! Please tell Father off for me!" She pleaded, turning puppy dog eyes onto an amused Robin.

The Devil Child blinked and sighed at how this one knew to abuse their puppy dog eyes as well.

"Rosan, you shouldn't bully Ram like that. You know how much she looks up to you," Robin admonished calmly.

"…" Rosan tilted his head and snorted softly to himself. "And here I thought I was the only one whipped by Ram. It's no wonder she's become so independent, she now has two people to spoil her rotten," he taunted.

Ram stuck her tongue out rebelliously.

"I can't help it. She reminds me too much of you and how wild you were back then," Robin retorted teasingly.

"I'd appreciate it if you both didn't spoil her," Mod groaned in annoyance. "You can't just do that and then leave me to deal with it. I'm only one person!"

"Sorry, Mom," they replied in unison, making a tick form on her head.

"S-Stop that! Why must you both try to embarrass me by calling me mom?!" she demanded.

"You're just really good at raising people… Ram is like your fourth problem," Rosan smiled slightly.

Robin nodded in agreement. "Honestly, I would even go as far as to say you enjoy being so motherly to all of us!"

"Right?!" Ram nodded fervently. "I think so too! Auntie is such a mom!"

"I hate you all," Mod said flatly. She wasn't going to entertain this level of teasing when she didn't deserve it. All these years of raising these problem children and this was the thanks she got…

The three snorted at her deadpan expression before pausing.

"That makes me wonder... who was your favorite child to raise?" Rosan asked with a raised brow.

Mod didn't think even two seconds about it.

"Meiko, Robin and Demon. Those three are very mature and give me the least headaches," she replied without hesitation. "Ram and Rosan were my least... followed by Maro," she added shamelessly.

Robin smiled victoriously as Ram spluttered.

"H-Hey!" She protested.

"I didn't ask for who the least favorite was..." Rosan muttered quietly.

Mod rolled her eyes. "If you had emotions you'd be at the top of that list by yourself," she informed him.

The Devil Fruit squealed in surprise as she was hoisted up and she struggled heavily in the grasp of Rosan.

Robin and Ram watched as the redhead began messing her perfect hair up.

"P-Put me down!" Mod demanded, slamming her fists against the towering redhead's chest to no avail.

"What if I do this instead?" He asked.

"Do what?! Wait, Rosan! I swear to all that is—"

Robin and Ram backed away as Rosan clasped both of Mod's smaller arms in a single palm so that he could mercilessly tickle her.

The woman laughed helplessly as she thrashed in midair and tried to plant a kick right on his sternum so he could drop her.

Rosan snorted, and placed her on the ground instead so she'd fail to do even that.

"Kahaha! Stop Rosan I'm serious! I'll kill you!" She tried to threaten in the midst of her laughter.

"Are you going to help her?" Ram asked, a little fear on her features at the thought of being collateral if she attempted to help.

Robin thought about it for a moment before slowly shaking her head. "I'm not very ticklish so Rosan heightens my sensitivity and when that happens its even worse then being ticklish."

The silver haired girl nodded sagely. "I'm the same."

As they sympathetically watched the woman get tortured by her son, he suddenly paused what he was doing.

Mod let out a breathless laugh of relief as she was spared from his onslaught. Her face was flushed and she tried hard to glare at the redhead, failing miserably as it looked more like a pout.

"Hm? What's all that noise?" Rosan asked as he sat on Mod's belly. There was something going on in the real world currently and it was causing quite the stir.

"Let's see?" Robin questioned.

He nodded and waved a short goodbye to Mod and Ram. "We'll see you tonight, we still have to continue the memories," he said.

"I-I hate you," Mod gasped breathlessly. "I really really hate you..."

"My creation is coming up!" Ram beamed, pleased with herself. "Bye Mother, bye Father!"

"She said bye to you first… What did you do to get Ram to like you so much?" Rosan questioned, already vanishing from their sight.

"Maybe I'm just more likable than you," Robin shrugged smugly.

"Ah yes, my antisocial best friend is more likable than me. Do you honestly believe that?"

"With your personality being no better than the books I read? Absolutely."

"...Touche."

"Kami, they can't get together any faster? I'm losing my mind with all the tension!" Ram moaned miserably. Why did they have to be so dumb and unaware and stupid?!

"I'd say patience but you watched that demon tickle me," Mod growled, clutching her stomach as she glared at the ring.

"...Sorry?" Ram said sheepishly.

The first thing Robin did when waking, was summon an eye outside of the castle to see what exactly was happening.

Luffy and Chopper were having a face off against Wapol and his two soldiers. It seemed to be going well for them, considering Chopper had just taken out both the soldiers by himself using a variety of transformations.

"He can transform into more than just human, hybrid, animal?" Rosan asked curiously, tilting his head and humming. "That's… I've never seen Maro use more than those forms. I should bring it up with her and see if she can do something similar."

"Always thinking about ways to help Maro. I hope she appreciates all the effort you put into assisting her," Robin smiled. He really did always try and think of new ways to help out the queen.

Rosan hummed and stood up, prompting Robin to follow after. "Well, now that you're awake we can begin the process of leaving. That doctor really thinks she can restrain me… I respect her but there's no chance I'm staying here for any longer."

Robin knew it was hopeless to try and restrain a healthy Rosan and he really did seem fine enough. There was no way he was at 100% but it wouldn't take long for him to be.

They made their way out of the room and blinked at seeing Wapol on the first floor.

There was a silence as the three stared off, before Rosan broke it.

"Greetings, it's nice to meet you." The redhead waved politely.

"Nice to meet you too! Beautiful weather isn't it" Wapol waved.

"Beautiful?" Rosan repeated.

"Bit cold but other than that, yes! The weather in Drum is always beautiful," the king responded.

"I'm not a fan of the cold so I can't say I agree but I can see why you'd say that."

"During your stay you'll see!"

…

"WHO THE HELL ARE YOU?!" Wapol roared in realization. "ANOTHER STRAW HAT MEMBER?!"

"Ah, yes," Rosan nodded. "I'm the scout. Forgot to mention that."

He was just the scout?! This was perfect for him then! He was nothing like that monster of a rubber boy…

Wapol glared at the two and began marching towards the intruders with a menacing grin.

That grin turned into a splutter, at the leg lodged directly into his gut.

"Creep," Rosan muttered, lifting the large man up with one leg and keeping him there. He noticed movement out of the corner of his eye and saw his little brother show up.

"Oh, Luffy," he greeted.

"Rosan!" The rubber boy beamed.

"Let's play catch before we leave this place," he said, punting the screaming Wapol directly over to an eager Luffy.

The rubber boy laughed cheerfully and launched him upwards with a rubbery kick of his own.

Rosan quickly jumped over and kicked him back downwards with a vicious spike, only for the large man to get caught by yet another kick.

Robin watched in amusement as the two bullies played kickball with the poor king until Luffy decided to hit him with an upward kick.

The extended leg shoved the panicking king through the very top of the castle and Luffy pursued him with a cheery wave.

"Not gonna help him?" Robin asked curiously.

"Me and Luffy rarely need to team up for good reason," Rosan assured, making his way to the outside of the castle with the Devil Child.

"What are you doing out of bed?" Kureha asked in annoyance.

"You should soundproof your rooms, Doctor. I woke up due to all the noise and no one was there to tell me what it was so I came to check it myself," Rosan retorted calmly.

"Quite the sassy brat aren't you?" She snorted.

The redhead shrugged and glanced towards the extra presence there.

"Hm. You're Chopper, right?" Rosan asked, shifting his attention towards the bruised reindeer. "I'm Rosan and this is Robin," he introduced kindly, kneeling so that he was eye level with the tiny animal.

"It's nice to meet you, Chopper," Robin greeted gently, trying not to scare the anxious creature.

Chopper fidgeted, not expecting the two crew members of Luffy to be so calm and gentle. He really liked the rubber boy but this was an unexpected and nice change.

"I'm Tony Tony Chopper!" He introduced himself tentatively.

Rosan tested the name on his lips and nodded. "I look forward to traveling with you. I don't normally trust doctors… but I'll make an exception for you," he said.

"W-What?! I-I'm not joining you guys!" Chopper exclaimed in disbelief, already set to bolt in case these guys were overbearing too.

"Why?" Rosan asked, tilting his head to the side. "You're clearly interested and you also want to come but something's stopping you."

"This dudes overbearing too!"

"Something?!" The reindeer asked in disbelief. "Isn't it obvious? I'm a monster! Look at me!"

Rosan thought he was pretty adorable but the little guy probably didn't want to hear that right now.

"So what? I'm a monster too," Rosan said softly, much to the reindeer's surprise. "I'm a monster, Robin's a monster, Luffy's a monster… Everyone's a monster in their own way and that's not a problem. Do you want to know why?"

"Rude," Robin added with a roll of her eyes.

"Shut up. Your ability can be creepy."

"Want a demonstration?"

"If you're that eager to lose then yes."

Chopper nodded hesitantly at Rosan's question, distracting the two from their impending brawl.

"It's because we have people who need that monster. Who love us despite being monsters. Even I, the biggest monster of them all, have people who love me despite that. Why do you think you don't deserve that same feeling?" Rosan asked the child softly.

The reindeer was stunned by his words.

"You… you think I do? Even though I'm a monster?" Chopper whispered, tears brimming his eyes.

Rosan pat him on the head. "Even monsters need companions and we want you to be our companion. You can become our monster and we won't think any less of you, Tony Tony Chopper. Even if everyone fears you, as long as we don't, it'll be okay."

Chopper sniffed and once the tears began falling, he broke.

"WAHHHHHHH!" The reindeer sobbed, crashing into Rosan's chest and letting his tears run free. The redhead simply wrapped one arm around him and hummed, letting him do whatever he needed to do.

"There's those speeches I missed so much," Robin sighed in admiration, watching as Rosan broke down all of Chopper's barriers with far too much ease (just like with her!).

It felt great to witness from another person's perspective, considering he used to solely use it on her.

"I just say whatever I think needs to be heard," Rosan replied.

Kureha said nothing, watching the exchange with an unreadable look. Then, she caught Rosan's eyes and a ghost of a smile formed its way on her face and she nodded imperceptibly.

He'd be just fine with them.

"WAIT, PLEASE! I DIDN'T EVEN GET TO ENTER THE WEAPON'S ROOM! YOU DIDN'T GIVE ME A CHANCE! THE FIGHT WOULD BE MUCH DIFFERENT!" They heard Wapol screech. His head had crashed through the roof and a familiar rubber boy followed soon after.

"No it wouldn't!" Luffy beamed, looking completely unscathed barring a burn mark on his coat.

He hadn't struggled whatsoever in his fight with Wapol, practically bullying him across the entire castle until finally deciding to finish it and planting his body through the roof of the building.

The only attack he had sustained, was when he had defended Chopper's pirate flag from the cannon fire.

"If you're not willing to put your life on the line, you shouldn't ever be touching the skull and crossbones," Luffy grinned menacingly, launching both arms back to deliver his final attack.

Wapol's eyes bugged in horror and he began struggling even more. "WAIT! I'LL GIVE YOU WHATEVER YOU WANT! TITLES! MEDALS! WOMEN! ANYTHING!"

"Gomu Gomu no…"

The arms stretched so far back, Wapol could no longer see where it ended and he wheezed as he realized that attack was going to plant itself into him.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! WAIT! WAIT! HOW ABOUT VICE KING?!" He tried.

"BAZOOKAAAA!"

The king's eyes rolled to the back of his head at the devastating blow and he was knocked unconscious. His body was freed from its entrapment and it flew away from the power behind the attack until none could see Wapol no more.

"And just like that, it's over," Rosan muttered, allowing Chopper to see the finale as well. "That's our captain, you know? Don't you think he's someone worth following?"

Chopper mulled it over. Luffy… he… he had called Chopper his friend without hesitation and had steadfastly tried to recruit him, heedless of the fact that he was a monster.

To see and hear that they were all monsters too… It made him…

"Yeah!" Chopper nodded furiously.

It made him feel like he belonged.

"Rosan you're okay!"

The redhead in question, effortlessly caught and returned the hug from their navigator.

"Look at you, all worried for your humble scout. I just knew you pretended to hate me," Rosan retorted.

To his slight surprise, Nami didn't get immediately angry and instead grinned coyly at him.

"Nothing you say can affect me after everything I saw and heard about when you were sick!" She beamed.

Rosan only let out a small noise to signify his annoyance.

Whatever, he'd see how long that would last. He'd consistently annoyed Aiko for 15 years now, silly little Nami had no clue what she had just brought upon herself.

After a slight altercation (Luffy had begun chasing Chopper again, unaware that Rosan had managed to successfully recruit him), Rosan had allowed Kureha to escort him back into the castle and his crewmates were now visiting him while he lay in bed.

"Fascinating, so you really are 24," Dalton muttered in awe, looking at the very not childish form of Rosan. He looked much better (and older) now compared to when he had been comatose and steaming.

He must have had some sort of Devil Fruit, but he wouldn't have been able to tell you at a glance.

"I only took that form so it would be easier to care for me," Rosan replied, glancing at the injured man with a dispassionate gaze.

"I'm glad you're alright, Rosan," Vivi sighed in relief, looking the redhead up and down.

Now that she had a face to relate him too, the princess could see just how much resemblances he shared with Raisa.

Rosan was absolutely related to her. They even had the same features fit for their royal lineage.

"Vivi…" the redhead began humming, as he stared at the girl. "I'd like to thank you for the things you did on my behalf despite how at odds we've been. You are a kind child and I apologize for the way I acted."

"Yes, I'd… I'd like to thank you for caring for Rosan's health more than he did. If not for you, I doubt we'd have been accepted," Robin joined.

Vivi regarded the two with a shocked expression on her face, not expecting to hear that from the duo who had been terrorizing her with their presence.

"I-It's nothing," she stammered, flushing at their sincerity. "I only did what was right! You were sick and desperately needed help and I wouldn't be able to live with myself if something happened to you while we rushed to Alabasta!"

The two shot her tiny smiles and she tentatively returned one back.

Had she been totally wrong about them? She hadn't expected the duo to actually thank her… weren't they antagonistic towards each other?

Maybe… Maybe it was one sided on her part and they weren't all that bad. Besides their first meeting, they hadn't gone out of their way to antagonize her and she started everything to be fair…

They really were content to just be in each other's presence and refused to jeopardize anyone getting in the way.

Nami smiled knowingly at the princess, content to let her come to her own realizations.

"Where's the key to the weapon's storeroom?" Kureha asked Dalton.

"The key? Wapol keeps it on his person so it went flying with him," he shrugged helplessly. If Wapol was gone then so was the key.

Kureha frowned at that. Dammit, there goes her plans.

The doctor went still as a smug aura washed over her and she glanced back at the redhead with that damned neutral expression.

"I could open it for you but alas I'm supposed to be confined to my bed," Rosan faux sighed, resting his head against the pillow as emphasis.

This cheeky brat… Kureha knew his game plan and he was dangling the bait over her with all the subtlety of his captain.

"If you really can open it, then we'll consider this your fee for getting healed by me but you'll be going right back into bed afterwards," Kureha decided finally.

"No," Rosan replied, much to her surprise.

The Doctor raised a brow at his confident refusal.

The Straw Hats watched the exchange with blatant interest, wondering how their scout would handle this.

"I have the fees to pay for my treatment. This offer only extends to freeing me or else that door stays closed for the foreseeable future," he finished, staring fearlessly at the crazy doctor.

The balls on this one… Kureha hated to admit it, but she liked this redhead. Despite how he acted, the boy was quite cunning in nature and she could respect it.

"You useless folk just standing around, come on. I need you for heavy lifting," Kureha said, pointing towards the citizens of Drum before turning towards the redhead again.

"Follow me. But if you're lying about being able to open that door… You're staying here for a year," she warned, marching off in the direction of the room.

"I don't lie," Rosan replied calmly, standing up and moving after her. "Robin?" He asked questioningly and the Devil Child rolled her eyes.

"Coming, coming," she chimed, following after the demanding redhead.

Honestly, age had done nothing to Rosan's clingy nature. It just masked it.

"Get ready to leave you all," Robin suggested. "I doubt Rosan wants to say here any longer."

"Oh, I'm coming too then!" Chopper stammered a bit, following after two of the three people he was comfortable with. He had been nervously hiding from his new crew due to Usopp freaking out at seeing him (to which Rosan floored him with a punch to the skull) but he needed to say his final farewell to Dr. Kureha.

"We finally have a doctor now," Nami sighed in relief. To get one so late in their journey… it was a good thing she was sailing with a bunch of monsters. Imagine if Rosan didn't get sick because Modification didn't deem it worthy enough.

They might have never gotten one otherwise!

"There. It's open. Now if that's all, it's time for me to get out of this place."

They key Rosan was holding, transformed back into a silver ring (it really was made from the philosopher's stone) and slotted itself perfectly on his finger.

Without even glancing into the room, Rosan turned on a dime and immediately left, tired of being anywhere remotely similar to a hospital.

Robin sighed at his brisk pace and smiled politely at her. "I'd like to thank you again for treating Rosan. Please forgive him for his haste… he just really doesn't like being around medical appliances."

Kureha waved her off. "He must have had a terrible experience so I won't prod. Now get outta here before I change my mind and chase him down."

With a small wave, Robin departed after the redhead.

Kureha began mulling over the large arsenal of weapons, pleased with the redhead for allowing her access until her attention was caught by the lone person there.

"Doctor I need to talk to you…" Chopper said.

"Oh, you're still here. I thought you replaced me with that redhead already," Kureha muttered, side eyeing her adoptive son before focusing on the weapon's being hoisted out of the room.

She'd have the citizens deal with this, a young lady like her shouldn't do such physical labor.

"R-Replace?! N-No way!" Chopper gaped in disbelief at her words. "I could never replace you! You taught me everything I knew and raised me into who I am today! I'll never forget anything you've done for me, Doctor!"

"So then stay here," Kureha replied bluntly, fully turning to face the Reindeer. "All these things I've done for you and you just plan on leaving me to become a dirty pirate?!"

A look of shock appeared on the reindeer's face at her words. "But I want to become a pirate and sail the world!"

"Pirates are worthless scum! You'll end up dead if you leave!"

"I DON'T CARE!"

"THAT'S ENOUGH! A REINDEER SAILING THE SEAS? DON'T BE RIDICULOUS!"

"I… I MIGHT BE A REINDEER! BUT I'M ALSO A MAN!"

Kureha's eyes widened at that declaration. Chopper had never stood up against her like that and it told her all she needed to know.

"Good for you… BUT I WON'T ALLOW IT!" She roared, launching one of her knives at the wall next to him.

Chopper's eyes went white in fear and he slowly turned his head towards the weapon that had been dangerously close to connecting.

"A CRYBABY LIKE YOU, A MAN? DON'T BE RIDICULOUS! IF YOU'RE GOING, IT'LL BE OVER MY DEAD BODY!" Kureha declared grabbing another knife and launching it.

Chopper tried to talk reason into her, but this knife somehow ended up even closer to hitting him and he screeched in fear.

"GWAAAAAAAAH!" The reindeer screamed, bolting with the doctor hot on his heels.

"GWAAAAAAAAH!"

The Straw Hats glanced up in unison at the terrified screaming going on inside the castle.

Their curiosity was soon answered, as a transformed Chopper burst into their vision carrying a sleigh.

The reason he was screaming made itself apparent as well, as Kureha appeared right behind with an assortment of weapons that she was launching with dangerous precision.

"EVERYONE GET ON THE SLEIGH! WE'LL GO DOWN THE MOUNTAIN!" The reindeer informed them, not stopping for even a second.

Rosan, Robin and Luffy were the quickest to react and immediately jumped on the sled without any hesitation.

The other Straw Hats needed a bit more motivation in the form of a spear nearly lodging itself into Usopp's body and with shrieks, they all clambered onto the small sled.

Chopper never stopped and soon, the pirate crew had vanished down the mountain and quickly retreated to the ship.

"Is that really how you wanted to say goodbye?" Dalton asked Kureha.

"...He's just a stray that got adopted, that's all. And besides… I don't like tearful farewells," a tear streaked Kureha smiled.

Dalton just smiled at that before hearing footsteps behind him and glancing at the panting citizen.

"Dalton! I'm sorry but I forgot to tell you something important!" He panted, before pulling out a bounty poster of Straw Hat Luffy.

Dalton raised a brow at seeing the price on his head. It was impressive but…

"Where did you get this?" He couldn't help but ask.

The citizen nodded at the question. "About a week ago, there was a traveler who visited and said he was pursuing the pirate named Blackbeard, the man who ravaged our country…"