In a dark alley, Sanji and Chopper walked in.
"I sense living presences here with Observation Haki; they must be enemies. Be careful, Chopper!" Sanji warned Chopper, who was looking around curiously.
They arrived in front of a large gate, with a well beside it.
Suddenly, the rope in the well moved, as if something was about to emerge from it.
Soon, a woman with light blue skin, stitches on her face, dull eyes, dressed in a black evening gown with an orange fur scarf, emerged from the well, holding a stack of plates.
"Welcome!" She then threw the plates at Sanji, "One, two...!"
Sanji shifted his feet slightly, and all the plates missed.
"What in the world is going on in this ghost place?!"
Sanji didn't have any particular thoughts about the beautiful zombie, and of course, his rule about not hitting women still applied.
"Enough, Cindry!" A fat man with long purple hair, wearing a mesh top and purple pants, with stitches on his face, opened the gate.
"I apologize for startling you! Allow me to introduce myself. I am the world-renowned Hogback, known as the genius!"
At these words, Chopper's eyes turned into stars.
"Doctor Hogback, it's really him!"
"Come in and sit down for a bit!" Hogback invited the two.
"Can we really?" He said, but he had already gone inside!
Sanji stumbled, his cigarette burning his eyebrow. 'This idiot, is he really that stupid?'
Finally, Sanji also stepped inside.
The gate slowly closed, blocking out the indoor light. Outside... it was pitch black... Inside, it was brightly lit!
"Welcome to my courtyard!" Hogback raised his hands, "I hope you have a pleasant time."
"Click!"
A flame ignited, and Sanji lit his cigarette, taking a deep puff. "Doctor Hogback, I'd like to ask you about the zombies in the graveyard. How much do you... know?"
Sanji's gaze was fixed on Hogback.
"Haha... it's precisely... because I don't... don't understand them, that's why... I... I live... live here." Hogback felt a chill down his spine, speaking somewhat stutteringly.
He had seen the bounty poster; although the drawing was abstract, Hogback could still recognize him.
After all, the Straw Hat Pirates only had this one blondie!
300 million Berries, whether it was inflated or not, killing him would be no different from killing a chicken.
"So, Doctor, are you researching zombies here?" It could only be said that the power of an idol was terrifying. Chopper couldn't even notice the obvious stutter.
"Precisely!" Hogback slapped the table, stood up, and mentally gave Chopper a thumbs-up.
"Speaking of zombies, everyone might feel fear."
"But what if we talk about bringing the dead back to life? Isn't that humanity's eternal dream?"
"Everyone has a couple of deceased relatives or friends they wish they could revive. However, controlling life and death is forbidden medicine, going against the divine path."
Sanji crossed his arms, his brows furrowed.
"I see! But if this research succeeds, surely more people will support you! I fully support you, Doctor Hogback!" Chopper looked up at Hogback.
"Thank you for your support, Doctor Chopper!" Hogback subtly breathed a sigh of relief. 'I've finally managed to calm him down. Now, I just need to wait for Moriah to deal with Straw Hat!'
"Hmph! Even if such a great doctor praises me, I won't be happy!" Chopper twisted his body back and forth, then offered a signature board, "Doctor Hogback, could you sign this for me?"
"Of course!" Hogback was about to take the signature board.
"Wait," Sanji's eyes were fixed on the two, and he spoke unhurriedly, "Chopper, if you let him sign now, you'll regret it for the rest of your life! This guy is clearly a scumbag who plays with other people's corpses."
"Nani?" Chopper looked at Sanji with shock and confusion, while Hogback's expression was as unpleasant as if he had eaten excrement.
Sanji took a puff of his cigarette, his feet resting on the table. His eyes were staring straight at Hogback.
"Those zombies outside, the stitched beasts, and even that woman, all have signs of being patched up. I think... that must be your masterpiece!"
Sanji looked at Cindry beside him, his eyes filled with pity.
Chopper looked at Hogback in disbelief. "This... this isn't true, is it, Doctor Hogback?"
"Chopper!" Hogback was sweating profusely.
"Please let me explain, okay?"
"Once, I fell in love with a woman. Her name was Victoria Cindry."
"Not just me, but men across the country fell to their knees before her beauty!"
"I used to be her attending physician. She was so popular, yet never put on airs, always thinking of her parents. She was a good woman who was very warm to everyone!"
"But," Hogback's expression turned ferocious, "but when I confessed to her, she rejected me, the reason being... she already had a fiancé!"
"Normal!" Sanji scoffed, sizing up Hogback. "No normal girl would like you!"
In an instant, Hogback's expression became deeply sorrowful.
"Then, not long after, I heard incredible rumors."
"...Cindry's accidental death! The immense grief made me even give up my work."
Hogback's eyes were filled with tears, as if trying to prove his deep affection.
"Just at that moment, my master, Moonlight Moriah, appeared. With his wondrous power, Cindry was resurrected. And I joined Thriller Bark!"
"Look! They can speak, they can move. Isn't this humanity's highest ideal—resurrection from the dead?"
Hogback raised his hands, looking at Chopper with fervent eyes. He needed Chopper's approval.
However,
"What a joke!" Chopper glared at Hogback. "As a doctor, I used to revere you for saving countless lives. Including your zombie research!"
"Death always comes suddenly! Whether it's the deceased or the living, they must have had many unspoken words."
"I wouldn't ask for years, even a few minutes would be enough. If there truly was a way to awaken the dead, even if it was scorned as evil and twisted medicine, its comfort to the patient would be immense."
"But... I never thought you were this kind of person, Hogback." Chopper's eyes no longer held admiration, only disappointment and anger towards Hogback.
"Sanji, could you step aside? This is my fight with him!" Chopper pleaded with Sanji.
Sanji nodded, instantly disappearing from the room, leaning against a dark wall, only the glow of his cigarette tip visible in the darkness.
"Sigh!" After Sanji left, Hogback visibly relaxed. "Doctor Chopper, why is it so hard to earn your approval?"
"Zombies are merely controlled dead people; they are not alive at all! You are toying with life!" Chopper glared at Hogback. "You have lost your qualification as a doctor!"
"Toying with life?" Hogback laughed uproariously, pointing at Cindry beside him.
"Look at her!"
He then kicked her to the ground.
"What are you doing?!" Chopper's anger began to escalate.
"Cindry, lick the floor for me!"
"Yes, Master Hogback!"
Cindry was expressionless, her voice unchanged, licking the floor like a pug.
"You...!"
Chopper transformed into his human form, clenched his fists, and charged forward.
"Cindry! Cover me." Hogback's voice was somewhat flustered.
"Yes!"
Cindry, as if by magic, produced a stack of plates in her hands.
She flung them one by one at Chopper.
Chopper did not dodge, and plate after plate shattered on his body.
He grabbed Cindry's hands.
"How pitiful! She's already dead, yet her corpse is being toyed with like this... If her living relatives knew, how would they feel?!"
Chopper was filled with sympathy for Cindry's plight. His hands gripped her hands like iron clamps.
"I'm going to... kill you!"
Cindry's expression didn't change at all, and her muscular leg kicked Chopper hard in the waist.
"Covered in patches, modified into an obedient soldier, your family surely couldn't bear it!"
"Bastard, let go of me!"
Cindry kicked Chopper repeatedly, but for some reason, her movements became... lighter and lighter.
"You died as a human the moment you were born, only your body is obedient!" Chopper endured the pain on his body, "What exactly is this?"
"Ah ha ha ha! Are you doubting your own eyes? Admit it, this is humanity's highest dream—resurrection from the dead!" Hogback roared heavenward.
"Bang bang bang bang!"
Cindry repeatedly struck Chopper.
"Is just being able to move enough?" Chopper gasped, shouting at Hogback, "If it's human... it should be freer! Aren't you the one who treated her least like a human?"
Hogback froze.
Cindry also stopped moving!
"Thump—thump!"
The sound of a heartbeat echoed, and Cindry's once hollow eyes actually shed tears.
Crystal clear tears fell onto the dirty floor, and Cindry remained motionless.
"Hogback!"
A punch filled with Chopper's anger slammed heavily into Hogback's face, instantly leaving him bruised and swollen!
Then, Chopper punched Hogback's face again and again!
"What exactly... do you consider life?"
Finally, Hogback was severely injured and near death, collapsing to the ground.
Chopper had a conflicted expression, then sighed and walked towards Cindry!
At this moment, she had tears in her eyes yet was expressionless. "My body... can't move!"
Chopper sighed, his fists covered in Armament Haki.
"Boom!"
Cindry fell to the ground, but a smile appeared on her face!
Chopper walked out of the room. "Huh? Where's Sanji?"
...Inside,
The unconscious Hogback opened his eyes.
'I... I'm still alive?'
Joy surged in his chest.
However, when he rolled his eyes, he saw a nightmare!
"Tsk! Chopper really can't bring himself to kill!" Sanji leaned against the wall, looking indifferently at the bastard doctor.
"Then, let me... send you... to hell!"
...Outside,
"Sanji? Where are you?" Chopper shouted anxiously.
"I'm here...!" Around a corner, Sanji stood with his hands in his pockets. PS: As a doctor with proper morals, killing seems inappropriate.
But earlier at Enies Lobby, it seemed like he killed Fukurou.
The author can only activate the Retrospection technique: Fukurou didn't die, but he won't be appearing again!
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