Sorry I couldn't upload yesterday's chapter, so here are 3 chapters as compensation, here and on Patron
The three people in the room also heard Luffy's words. Tomioka stood up and looked at Nami, who was leaning against the headboard: "I'll go out with them to take a look."
Nami nodded, a trusting smile on her face: "Okay, be careful."
Sanji immediately stepped forward, his face full of concern and indignation: "I'll go too! Which reckless bastards dare to disturb Miss Nami's rest when she needs to recuperate?! How detestable!!!"
As he spoke, his body unconsciously twisted, "Ahhh~ But, even in her weakened state today, Miss Nami is so gentle~~~"
"Alright, alright, go on now." Nami smiled helplessly.
Tomioka and Sanji didn't linger either. They turned and walked out of the room, through the corridor, and to the outside of the castle.
As soon as they stepped out, the wind and snow hit them.
Their Captain Luffy, Zoro, and Chopper, who was likely to become their ship's doctor, were already standing in front, their figures looking exceptionally resolute in the wind and snow.
Dr. Kureha leaned against a pillar on the porch, still holding her bottle of liquor, watching her apprentice and the pirates standing together, feeling an indescribable sense of appropriateness.
Chopper... will you find a new place this time?
In the open space in front of the castle, a dense crowd of soldiers stood, and in front of all the soldiers was Wapol, whom they had encountered at sea.
He rode on the white hippopotamus, looking at the castle where he had once lived as a king, and began to laugh triumphantly, tilting his head back:
"Hahahahahahaha! My castle! I'm finally back! You rats and pirates who occupied my castle, get out now!"
Wapol looked at the snow-covered ground in front of him, recalling the humiliation he had suffered on the pirate ship earlier, "Now it's my home turf! I'll show you how terrifying I am in the snow!"
"And you, Dr. Kureha... the one who slipped through the cracks in the Doctor 20 plan. Others can leave, but you must die here."
Upon hearing this, Dr. Kureha also laughed, holding the liquor bottle in one hand and pointing at Wapol with the other:
"Hahahahahaha! What nonsense are you spouting? When I was a doctor, you were still drinking milk somewhere."
As soon as she finished speaking, Luffy burst out laughing, sitting directly in the snow, clutching his stomach, and pointing at Wapol as he laughed:
"Hahahahahahahahaha."
Zoro, on the other side, looked at Dr. Kureha, then at Chopper, "Chopper, your Dr. Kureha certainly has a sharp tongue."
Chopper: "..."
Behind Wapol, soldiers also began to struggle to suppress their smiles. Wapol turned his head, staring intently at their mouths, and said:
"Let's see who dares to laugh... If I hear any laughter, you'll be thrown off the cliff."
Immediately, the soldiers behind him fell into a silence that couldn't be any more silent. Although some still had twitching mouths, they dared not laugh in front of Wapol.
Wapol stared intently at the Straw Hat in front of him, then shifted his gaze to the top of the castle. A flag was fluttering at the castle's peak—a black pirate flag with a cherry blossom-colored hoof print.
"What flag is that?! Where's my national flag?!" he roared furiously, then said to Chess beside him: "Shoot it down immediately! That pirate flag doesn't deserve to be on my castle!!"
With that, Chess, who was waiting for orders, began to nock his bow and aim.
Dr. Kureha took a swig of liquor, her voice tinged with coldness, her gaze drifting into the distance as if recalling something: "That kind of thing was burned long ago. Now this place is just Hiluluk's grave."
"These pirates in front of me are more than enough to handle you, Wapol. You'd better scram."
Luffy pressed down on his Mugiwara, his eyes beneath the brim sharp. He looked at the pirate flag atop the castle, then stared at Wapol:
"Although I don't know whose pirate flag this is, I absolutely won't allow you to destroy it like this!!"
"Let me send you flying again!"
As he spoke, his arm was already stretching back, preparing for a fierce attack.
"Wait, Luffy."
Sanji stepped forward, reaching out to hold Luffy's tensed arm. He took a puff from his cigarette, exhaled smoke, and began to speak:
"At Small Garden, you fought so hard, and I couldn't help. This time, let me stretch my muscles. Besides, you just climbed that cliff, you should rest properly."
Almost simultaneously, Zoro also took a step forward.
He twisted his neck, his bones cracking crisply, his eyes burning with long-suppressed fighting spirit, a wild grin spreading across his face as his gaze locked onto Wapol:
"My body's gone numb from lying in bed; you're just what I need to loosen up. This guy is mine."
Sanji's gaze, however, swept over the crowd and landed on Chess, the archer dressed like a clown, his eyes filled with disgust:
"Then, this stinking bastard who intends to destroy someone else's pirate flag, I'll deal with him."
"What?! You're all fighting!! What about me?!"
Luffy, watching Sanji and Zoro pick their opponents, puffed out his cheeks and bounced in front of them.
Dr. Kureha watched their tacit division of labor, her gaze behind her sunglasses turning with interest to Tomioka, who had been standing silently to the side, his hand on his sword hilt but showing no sign of acting. She spoke with a hint of teasing:
"Kid, you're surprisingly obedient, not moving around. Don't you plan to join the fun?"
Tomioka's gaze calmly swept over the confident Zoro and Sanji, finally resting on Luffy's back, who, though displeased at being held back, still trusted his comrades.
He simply responded faintly, his voice clear in the wind and snow:
"Just trust them."
At this moment, the Mugiwara's opponents were clear, with only Kuromarimo, the boxer with the afro, remaining.
Chopper looked at the tall Kuromarimo in front of him. Although he didn't want to fight—he only wanted to be a doctor, to continue researching medicine, and if he had the chance... perhaps even become a pirate... but this castle held Dr. Hiluluk's grave, Dr. Hiluluk's pirate flag, and Dr. Hiluluk's beliefs.
I must protect this place!
His gaze swept over Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji beside him, as well as Dr. Kureha and Tomioka standing at the door, then he shouted at the afro-headed man:
"This is Dr. Hiluluk's castle! I absolutely will not allow you to take another step forward."
He took a deep breath of the cold air and stepped forward. Although his body was still a bit nervous, his eyes gradually turned resolute as he bravely faced Kuromarimo.
Kuromarimo looked at the small reindeer in front of him, seeming to recall something: "Isn't this... that monster from back then? It's so small now."
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