Usopp sidled up next to Ronan and whispered under his breath,
"Hey, Ronan, is that scary-looking guy really Zoro's friend? He doesn't look like a good person at all."
Nami perked up as well, curiosity written all over her face. "What's going on? One of Zoro's old partners?"
Ronan leaned against the railing, watching the scene unfold, and replied calmly,
"He should be one of the lackeys Zoro met back when he worked as a 'pirate hunter.'"
"Y-Yosaku…"
Johnny trembled as he pointed beneath the railing, his voice choking up. "He's down there… he's not going to make it…"
Zoro's expression changed instantly.
Without hesitation, he strode to the railing and looked down.
Below the Going Merry, on a shabby little fishing boat, lay a man in a red-and-white checkered shirt.
His face was paper-white, eyes tightly shut, dried blood crusted at the corner of his mouth. He looked half-dead, as if his last breath could leave him at any moment.
"Damn it."
Zoro cursed under his breath, planted one hand on the railing, and leapt down.
He carefully lifted the unconscious Yosaku into his arms, pushed off with his legs, and jumped back up onto the Merry's deck.
"Yosaku!"
Johnny dropped to his knees beside his partner, tears and snot streaming down his face.
"Boss, please save him! Just a few days ago he was full of energy, eating and drinking like normal—but then suddenly his face went pale, and he kept passing out!"
Johnny clawed at his own hair, wailing in agony.
"I can't figure out why at all! His teeth even started falling out for no reason! I didn't know what to do anymore!"
Ronan stood nearby, listening, his eyes narrowing slightly.
Teeth falling out. Pale complexion.
Classic symptoms of scurvy.
In this world that lacked basic medical knowledge, this disease—caused by vitamin C deficiency—had once been known as the "incurable curse of the sea," claiming countless sailors' lives.
"I was going to take him to rest near that reef…"
Johnny pointed toward the massive rock formation that now had only half left, his voice full of grief and anger. "But then a cannonball suddenly flew over from this ship!"
"It didn't hit us directly, but the shockwave almost flipped our boat! Yosaku got shaken so badly he completely passed out!"
"..."
The air went dead silent.
Luffy and Usopp, who had been watching out of curiosity, instantly turned pale, as if all the blood had drained from their faces.
The two stiffly turned their heads and looked at each other, seeing the same horror reflected in each other's eyes.
(That cannonball… the test shot from earlier…)
Without a second of hesitation—
"S-SORRY!!!"
Luffy and Usopp bowed together at a perfect ninety degrees, their foreheads slamming into the deck with a loud thunk.
"Bastards!!"
Johnny exploded in rage, practically ready to draw his blade on them.
"If apologizing solved anything, the Marines wouldn't exist! If anything happens to Yosaku, I'll make you pay with your lives!"
Just as the situation was about to spiral out of control, a slender figure stepped forward.
"Move."
Nami shoved Johnny aside, staring down at the half-dead Yosaku with a deep frown.
"It's too noisy. If you want him to live, shut up."
"Y-You woman—who do you think you are?!" Johnny snarled, already on edge. "Are you an idiot? Stay away from my partner!"
Nami ignored him completely and crouched down, her movements practiced and precise.
She lifted Yosaku's eyelids, checking the pupils and the whites of his eyes.
Then she grabbed his jaw and forced his mouth open.
What she saw were swollen, purplish gums and bleeding tooth sockets.
"As expected," Nami murmured.
"Hey! What are you doing?!"
Seeing how "rough" she was being, Johnny flew into a rage and drew his sword. "If you dare mess with my partner, I won't forgive you!"
"Shut up!"
Nami snapped her head around, her glare sharper than the blade in Johnny's hand.
"Luffy! Usopp! Go to the storage room! There's a crate of limes—bring some here, now! Hurry!"
"Ah? O-Okay! Got it!"
Overwhelmed by guilt, the two scrambled into action, sprinting into the cabin like their lives depended on it.
"L-Limes…?" Johnny froze, even forgetting to lower his sword. "That kind of fruit… can save someone?"
Moments later, Luffy came running back, arms full of green limes.
Nami picked one up, flicked out her knife, sliced it open cleanly, and without mercy squeezed the sour juice straight into Yosaku's mouth.
"…gulp…"
Even unconscious, Yosaku swallowed on instinct.
"It's scurvy," Nami said, standing up and wiping the juice off her hands.
She looked at the dumbfounded Johnny with a tone tinged with helplessness at ignorance.
"It's a disease that used to terrify all sailors. But the cause is simple—just a lack of plant-based nutrients."
"In the past, ships couldn't preserve fresh fruits and vegetables for long periods. Sailors ate only meat and rations, and their bodies collapsed."
"If it hasn't gone too far, once you replenish the nutrients, he'll recover in a few days."
Johnny stared at her in disbelief, as if she were an angel descended from heaven.
"R-Really? Big sis! Just like you said, Yosaku he—"
Overexcited, Johnny talked while spraying saliva everywhere.
"PFF—"
Nami was instantly blasted full in the face.
Her cool, goddess-like image shattered on the spot.
She wiped her face in disgust and kicked Johnny in the leg, roaring,
"You idiot! Talk properly—don't spray spit everywhere! And another thing—stop calling me 'big sis'!!!"
At that moment, something miraculous happened.
Yosaku, who had been lying there looking one breath away from death, suddenly snapped his eyes open after only a few minutes!
It made no scientific sense—but in the world of One Piece, this was just how things worked.
"WUOOOOOO—!!"
Yosaku sprang to his feet in a perfect kip-up!
His previously ghostly complexion flushed with color at a visible speed, his shriveled muscles filling out again.
"Yosaku!!" Johnny cried out in joy.
"Johnny!!" Yosaku answered, eyes brimming with tears.
The two embraced fiercely, then locked arms, struck an extremely embarrassing pose, and began spinning in place on the deck while shouting at the top of their lungs:
"FULL NUTRITION—REVIVAL!!!"
"..."
Ronan, Luffy, Zoro, Nami, and Usopp lined up side by side, watching this medical miracle unfold.
Each of them let a single sweat drop slide down their face, black lines filling their expressions.
"This recovery speed…"
Ronan twitched at the corner of his mouth. "Even knowing it's plot logic, seeing it in person is still ridiculous."
In any case, the man was saved.
The two stopped spinning, straightened their collars, adjusted their sunglasses, and struck what they believed to be their coolest poses.
"Sorry for the late introduction!"
Johnny pointed at himself. "I'm Johnny!"
Yosaku pointed at himself. "I'm Yosaku!"
Together, they declared in unison:
"We are the bounty hunter duo who specialize in hunting pirates! We used to work with Zoro-boss, and we look forward to your kind regard!"
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