The atmosphere in the room suddenly became heavy.
Nami's lips trembled slightly.
Of course, she knew what that meant—her physical condition simply couldn't support her going out to sea right now.
If she forced herself to go, she might collapse before even reaching Alabasta, and by then... A wave of unwillingness surged in her heart, but she had to admit that Dr. Kureha was right.
Nami bit her lip, silent for a few seconds, and finally slowly lay back down.
Sanji finally breathed a sigh of relief, and Kai also nodded from the side: "That's right, you need to get well first before you can help Vivi."
"Hmph." Dr. Kureha snorted coldly and turned to leave.
But just as she reached the door, Luffy suddenly spoke—
"Old hag!"
Dr. Kureha paused, raised an eyebrow, and slowly turned around, her gaze sharp: "...Boy, what did you just call me?"
Luffy didn't notice her expression at all, excitedly standing up, "You can be our ship's doctor! We really need a doctor!"
Kai was stunned, and Sanji was so shocked he almost dropped his cigarette, with a look on his face that clearly said, "Are you crazy, kid?"
Dr. Kureha was momentarily stunned, then her mouth twitched, revealing a sinister smile.
She suddenly raised a foot and kicked Luffy flying—
"Bang!"
Luffy crashed against the wall and slid down.
"You brat!" Dr. Kureha stood with her hands on her hips, her eyes dangerous,
"You better watch your mouth! I'm a beautiful 130-year-old maiden, how could I go out to sea with you stinking pirates? Dream on!"
Sanji's mouth twitched, and he quietly took a step back, afraid of being caught in the crossfire.
Luffy got up from the ground, scratching his head, "Eh? You don't want to?"
"Nonsense!" Dr. Kureha rolled her eyes impatiently, "I don't want to waste my prime years on you lot!"
Luffy still wanted to say something, but Dr. Kureha was already too lazy to bother with him, turning and walking out with a flourish.
Kai shrugged and patted Luffy's shoulder: "Alright, don't waste your breath."
At this moment, Chopper, who had been standing at the door, secretly poked out half his body.
—He had been eavesdropping since earlier.
Unfortunately, he was hiding in the wrong direction.
His butt and tail were exposed, making him quite obvious from any angle.
"Eh? What's that?"
Luffy's interest was immediately piqued, his eyes lit up, and he lunged towards Chopper—
"It's a Reindeer!"
Chopper's face changed, "Oh no!"
He suddenly turned and ran.
"Don't run!"
Luffy chased after him, and Sanji, seeing that the situation was not good, immediately followed: "Hey, Luffy, don't mess around!"
—Chopper ran desperately in front, Luffy chased excitedly behind, and Sanji followed, cursing as he ran.
Kai stood still, his mouth twitching.
He sighed and looked up at the ceiling.
"These guys... they're really something else."
Snow was still falling.
But it was warm inside, the fire in the fireplace burned brightly, crackling and popping.
Nami lay in bed, her complexion much better than before, and her breathing much steadier.
Kai sat beside her, watching her, but his mind was on another matter—the ship's doctor.
Dr. Kureha pushed the door open, holding ointment for changing dressings, walking with a brisk pace, her eyes sharp as if she could see through everything.
Kai seized the opportunity and spoke directly: "Hey, old hag."
Dr. Kureha's eyes turned cold: "...Say that again?"
Kai immediately corrected himself: "Ahem, Kureha, that Chopper, he's your apprentice, right? How's his medical skill?"
Dr. Kureha's movements paused, she looked up at Kai, narrowing her eyes: "What are you plotting?"
Kai smiled: "You don't want to go out to sea, do you? But we really need a ship's doctor, and Chopper's medical skill must be good, right?"
Dr. Kureha let out a "laugh" of laughter, with a hint of sarcasm in her tone: "Heh, so that's it."
She lowered her head and continued to change Nami's dressing, her movements skilled and precise.
After a moment, she slowly said: "Chopper's medical skill? Hmm... Of course, he inherited my mantle."
Kai's eyes lit up.
Dr. Kureha continued: "Over the years, I've taught him everything I know.
Whether it's internal medicine, surgery, or various difficult and complex diseases, he can handle them."
Nami opened her eyes upon hearing this and asked weakly: "Then can he... be our ship's doctor?"
Dr. Kureha sneered: "Whether he can or not depends on whether you have the ability to make him willing to go with you."
Kai frowned: "What do you mean?"
Dr. Kureha put the ointment back into the medicine box, stood up, looked out at the wind and snow, was silent for a moment, then slowly began: "That child, Chopper, has a knot in his heart."
She turned her head, looking at Kai and Nami, her eyes less sarcastic, more serious:
"If you can untie his heart's knot, I won't stop him from following you as pirates."
Kai's heart stirred, knowing there was a chance, and immediately asked: "What is his heart's knot?"
Dr. Kureha was silent for a moment, her tone suddenly becoming low: "His past."
She walked to the fireplace, picked up a wine bottle, took a big gulp, her gaze seemingly drifting back to a long time ago.
"Chopper... he's not an ordinary Reindeer." She slowly said,
"He ate the 'Human-Human Fruit' and became half-human, half-beast. The ironic thing is, humans don't accept him, and Reindeer don't accept him either."
Nami's heart tightened, and Kai's expression also became serious.
"When he was little, right after he ate the Human-Human Fruit, he naively ran back to the Reindeer herd, wanting them to accept him."
There was a chill in Dr. Kureha's voice, "And what happened? They treated him like a monster, frantically goring him with their antlers, driving him out of the herd."
Nami clenched her fists.
Dr. Kureha continued: "He had nowhere to go, so he could only go to human villages, but when the villagers saw him like that, their first reaction was to shoot.
He was hunted, driven away, and called a 'monster'."
Nami's eyes were a little red.
"Finally, he wandered alone in the snow, starving to death." Dr. Kureha pursed her lips, her eyes complex, "Then, he met that man."
Kai suddenly looked up: "Who?"
"Hiriluk! Chopper's adoptive father!" Dr. Kureha sighed softly,
"That crazy doctor picked Chopper up, gave him food, gave him a home, and even gave him a name."
Nami asked softly: "'Chopper' is the name he gave him?"
Dr. Kureha nodded: "Yes, Hiriluk said his antlers were 'amazing' and could 'chop down a tree,' so he named him 'Tony Tony Chopper'."
Kai murmured: "...Chopper who chops trees."
Dr. Kureha whispered: "Chopper felt 'accepted' for the first time."
She took a gulp of wine and continued: "But, good times don't last.
Hiriluk contracted a terminal illness and didn't have long to live. Chopper, to save him, desperately searched for the legendary 'all-purpose medicine'."
Kai frowned deeply.
Nami asked softly: "...Did he find it?"
Dr. Kureha sneered: "He found a 'mushroom,' thought it was the all-purpose medicine, and happily brought it back for Hiriluk to eat."
Kai's heart suddenly sank.
Dr. Kureha slowly said: "But that was actually a poisonous mushroom."
Nami gasped.
"Hiriluk ate it." Dr. Kureha's voice was very calm, "Then, he died."