Chapter 316: Ulquiorra Cifer
With a creak, Trafalgar Law pushed open the door to the operating room, bringing with him the strong scent of disinfectant. As he walked, he removed the plastic gloves wrapped around his hands. The beads of sweat on his forehead were clearly visible, and his indifferent face couldn't hide the fatigue he felt.
Eric , who had been waiting outside the operating room, handed him a white towel. "Good work."
Taking the towel to wipe his hands and sweat, Law shook his head.
Inside the operating room, Marco was urging, "Dad, you just had surgery, don't get up and start moving right away!"
"Now that the attending doctor is leaving, I don't want to owe such a big favor without even saying thank you!" Whitebeard's voice came from inside the operating room, followed by the sound of clattering objects and the door being pushed open again.
Whitebeard's bare chest was wrapped in medical bandages, and numerous IV tubes were attached to his body. Due to Whitebeard's height of over six meters, the doctors following him had to hold up the IV stands high above their heads.
Law spoke in an emotionless tone, "As a doctor, I advise you to rest for the next few days. Please do not exercise freely, and do not drink alcohol."
"Gu la la la..." Whitebeard laughed loudly. "After this surgery, my body feels more relaxed than it has in the past few years. I really have to thank you, Trafalgar Law, right?"
"No, you should thank our captain." Law replied coldly. "I don't understand why Captain Eric would treat an enemy like Whitebeard."
"The world's strongest man was defeated by the passing of time... How tragic," Eric clenched his fist. "I would rather rely on my own strength and defeat him myself!"
"Gu la la la... You really dare to say that, lightning brat." Whitebeard smiled widely, showing his large white teeth. "You still have a hundred years before you can beat me!"
The rubber tubes on Whitebeard's body swayed with his laughter, and bubbles occasionally rose from the IV bag.
"If there's nothing else, we'll leave now."
"Wait." Marco called to the two, and called for the Whitebeard Pirates to bring out some treasure chests. "No amount of treasure can compare to the favor of curing Dad's illness, but please accept these."
"...Understood." Eric took the treasure and showed no intention of staying.
Surprised, Marco, who loved banquets, asked, "Won't you stay for a banquet?!"
Eric snapped, "A banquet? Do you want Whitebeard to drink less and die even faster?"
"Even if we don't have a banquet, I'll still drink!" Whitebeard snorted. "Leave me a few bottles of that good wine we had last time!"
"Dream on!"
◇
Kakuzu's bond level has reached 4, and he can now undergo the next summon. However, Eric was suffering from a dilemma, unsure of which Devil Fruit to choose as a medium for the summon.
'Kakuzu needs another partner to work with him. This character has to be male and not weaker than Kakuzu, otherwise he could end up dead at Kakuzu's hands...' (It seems that everyone who teamed up with Kakuzu, aside from Hidan, has died at his hands.)
After considering this standard, Eric finally made his decision.
Kakuzu stood outside the summoning array, his muffled voice coming from beneath his mask: "The next one, is he my partner for this mission?"
"Yes."
"Eh?" Deidara, not too pleased, spoke up. "Boss Eric , I've known Kakuzu for a long time. I should team up with him, right?"
Kakuzu objected. "You're too noisy."
Deidara retorted angrily, "Hidan's even louder than me!"
"If Hidan wasn't immortal, he would've already died by my hand."
"Everyone knows you're my subordinate, so it's impossible for you to team up with Kakuzu," Eric said, before placing the Devil Fruit into the blood-splattered summoning array. He began reciting:
"Born from the void, dispersing upon fulfillment, you who respond to my summon, heed the blood contract—"
"Appear, Guardian of the Scales!"
As the words were completed, the lines drawn in the blood array emitted a faint green glow, and a black whirlwind filled the air, shrouding the surrounding scene in a strange blue-black hue.
Kakuzu whispered, "Blood contract?"
"It's just the boss's delusion," Deidara shrugged. "I've never heard such a summoning chant before, he just says whatever comes to mind."
Kakuzu: "..."
The quiet conversation between the two men made the nearby women roll their eyes.
The whirlwind dissipated, and the leaves and dust it had stirred up fell back to the ground. In the center of the summoning array stood a slender man.
He had black, short, messy hair, pale skin, and green slit pupils. Two deep green markings that looked like tear stains ran down his face, and a white, horned helmet-like mask covered the left half of his head.
The black hole at his collarbone attracted everyone's attention.
Deidara muttered quietly, "This guy... could he be dead?"
Eric remarked, "Aren't you the same?"
[Name: Ulquiorra Cifer]
[Physique: 9 Stars]
[Physical Strength: 8 Stars]
[Swordsmanship: 8.5 Stars]
[Armament Haki: 0]
[Observation Haki: 6 Stars]
[Devil Fruit: 7 Stars]
[Bond Level: 1 (Regular Friend)]
[Skills: Black Cero, Thunder Spear, Moonlight Sword, Hyper Regeneration, Shared Vision, Resonance, Nerve Scan, Hollow Blast, Steel Skin]
[Overall Strength: 8.5 Stars]
[Note: Born in the void, he has been surrounded by endless darkness since birth. His companions were all black, but only he had white skin, and only his eyes, without a mouth or nose. Exiled by his companions, he left the cave and walked to the ends of the world, swallowed by nothingness...]
The man faced Eric . Before Eric could speak, Ulquiorra placed his right hand in front of his stomach and his left hand behind his back, bowing deeply. "Master Eric ."
[Ulquiorra Cifer's Affection Increased, Bond Level Remains Unchanged.]
Eric scratched his cheek. "Introduce yourself?"
"Yes." Ulquiorra maintained his cold expression, extending his right hand—
"Plop." He dug his own left eye out.
"Hey!" While they had seen Kakuzu take others' hearts, no one had ever seen someone self-mutilate so casually. It startled everyone.
Ulquiorra gripped his eyeball in his right hand, squeezing it tightly. The broken pieces of the eyeball scattered into many tiny, glowing fragments, floating around everyone.
"What... what is this..." Miku immediately hid in Eric 's arms.
Eric covered Miku 's eyes, gently comforting her, "Close your eyes and breathe softly."
The tiny, glowing particles were inhaled by the crowd, and in the blink of an eye, everyone experienced a part of Ulquiorra's past.
This skill, though useful, was certainly not friendly to the senses of ordinary people.
"Next time, please try not to do this," Eric thought.
"Um..." Wendy ran up to Ulquiorra's side, asking quietly, "Does it hurt? I can heal the wound..."
Ulquiorra, closing his left eye, lowered his head. His emotionless right eye met Wendy's gaze. After a moment of silence, he said, "No need. This small injury will heal quickly."
Ulquiorra opened his tightly closed left eye, and the eyeball inside was restored to its original state.
"R-really?" Wendy, embarrassed, said, "I was being too nosy..."
"No, thank you." The words came from Ulquiorra without a hint of color.
This was Ulquiorra's first thank you. Having been rejected by his companions and leaving the cave alone, he had always been isolated. The hollow part of his body seemed to represent the emptiness deep within him.
Wendy froze for a moment, then happily replied, "You're welcome."
The joys and sorrows of humans do not connect, but communication through language can bridge the emotions between people, and the expression on their faces reflected this.
Ulquiorra thought, 'What is this feeling?'
In the world of forgotten hollows, Ulquiorra fought meaningless battles, stepping on the corpses of countless fellow creatures, wandering through an endless desert. Everywhere his eyes reached, there was only emptiness.
Humans, fallen by intense resentment and turned into hollows, evolved through subsequent devourings. Only those with a strong sense of self-awareness could remain themselves in endless assimilation.
Without the meaning of existence, life would end.
Born from nothingness, Ulquiorra had no past or future. Only the instinct to survive drove him forward until he found the meaning of his existence.
In the wandering life, Ulquiorra found his final resting place. Amidst a strange grove of white trees, he decided to bury himself in nothingness.
Looking at Wendy, who smiled so brightly, Ulquiorra, who deeply longed for the meaning of survival and desired to know what the "heart" truly was, found this smile too blinding.
'Can I also obtain a heart?' With this question, Ulquiorra spoke: "Master Eric , please forgive me for asking an immature question."
Ulquiorra bowed and asked earnestly, "Heart—what exactly is it?"
"..." Those who knew part of Ulquiorra's past fell silent.
"Money, of course. Money can fill the emptiness in one's heart," Kakuzu, who would be Ulquiorra's future partner, scoffed in response. "To worry about something so trivial?"
He turned to Eric , "Boss, you're really letting such a guy be my partner? He won't last long."
"No, you're probably not his match," Eric replied.
"What?!" Kakuzu growled, squinting at Ulquiorra. "How could I lose to someone who doesn't even understand the meaning of their own existence?"
Ulquiorra ignored Kakuzu's provocation, his green slit pupils fixed on Eric , who was deep in thought.
Eric closed his eyes, thinking for a long while before finally answering, "I'm not sure either."
"..." Ulquiorra widened his eyes. Even his master, who could revive him, didn't know what "heart" was?
"Any answer I give you will become an obstacle on your path to understanding the heart. There are a thousand people, and there will be a thousand different answers."
Eric pointed to Kakuzu, "His heart is money."
Kakuzu crossed his arms and snorted, "Hmph."
Then Eric pointed to Deidara, "Explosive art."
Deidara proudly nodded, "Mm-hmm."
Then to Wendy, "The bond of family in the Dawn Pirates."
Wendy smiled shyly.
"Philosophical answers must ultimately be found by yourself. Don't hesitate to look for the answer as you continue on your journey, and gradually understand what the heart truly is."
[Ulquiorra's affection increased, Bond Level 1 (Regular Friend) rose to 2, gaining 1 bond point.]
"Is that so?" Ulquiorra, not discouraged by the lack of an answer, thought.
In the past, he had always walked alone, with no companions to teach him what the heart was. He had relied on his instincts to move forward, eventually reaching the end of his life.
Now, with companions by his side, he should be able to find the answer he was looking for in the future, right?
"Hey." Kakuzu's words interrupted Ulquiorra's thoughts. "The boss says that we'll team up in the future. Before we do, we should understand each other's strength and abilities. Is that too much to ask?"
"Stop. You're not my match," Ulquiorra's voice remained emotionless.
"Really..." Kakuzu flexed his right arm. "I wonder if you'll develop another black hole in your chest."
With his hands in his pockets, Ulquiorra turned and faced Kakuzu. He didn't draw his weapon from his waist.
"If you insist on fighting, I'll reluctantly be your opponent."
"Earth Release: Earth Spear!" Kakuzu made a quick hand sign, and his wrist seams rapidly opened, transforming into a dark right hand. Connected by dense black lines, it shot toward Ulquiorra's chest.
Scáthach frowned, "This guy goes straight for the opponent's fatal point as soon as he makes a move?"
Esdeath had a different view, "He naturally wants to entrust his back to his trustworthy companion."
"Clang!"
Ulquiorra pulled his left hand from his pocket and blocked Kakuzu's punch with just one hand.
"Whoa?" Deidara exclaimed, "This guy's strength is no joke, he actually blocked Kakuzu's tentacle punch in Earth Spear state with his bare hands."
"..." Kakuzu, who had been easily knocked away, quickly retracted his right arm using the connected black lines.
"Your body is pretty tough..." Kakuzu began to take this future partner seriously. "I wonder if you can withstand the heat of flames."
"Fire Release: Head Hard!" Kakuzu's mask at his right shoulder was pulled out and opened its large mouth. Red flames surged like an ocean toward Ulquiorra.
"..." Ulquiorra, silent, drew his sword from his waist. The green glowing blade of his sword split the raging flames in two, and the intense fire waves surged to both sides, burning down the trees in their path.
"Looks like, if I don't defeat you, you won't agree to team up with me," Ulquiorra slowly raised his sword. "Sealing them, Black Winged Demon!"
A green spiritual pressure condensed into liquid and fell like a torrential rain.
Miku screamed, "What... what is this?"
When the storm subsided and everything became calm, Ulquiorra appeared before them, his black wings spread wide.
(END CHAPTER)
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