Chapter 166: Chopper

For a moment.

The two fell into a long silence, both bewildered by this sudden order.

"We paid such a heavy price, even risking ourselves to infiltrate Xiang Gaowen's pirate crew, and now we must expose ourselves merely for Ghost Jin?"

"Has that fellow Spandam gone mad?"

Kalifa was puzzled.

Simply because the price paid this time and the expected return were completely disproportionate.

She had undertaken similar missions before, but those were always for a nation's monarch or a top-tier pirate ruling the seas.

Roubo Luqi was equally puzzled; his brows were knitted tightly into the shape of the character 'Chuan', and his expression was as cold as ice:

"He has his orders; I have my methods."

"We will try to deal with Ghost Jin without exposing ourselves."

"Mm."

Kalifa nodded, then turned to look at Roubo Luqi; seeing the complex look in his eyes, she could not help but remind him:

"Developing feelings for a mission target is the greatest taboo for an agent."

"I know."

With that, Roubo Luqi stood up directly and walked toward the cultivation room in the ship's cabin.

Kalifa turned her head to watch Roubo Luqi's departing back; her gold-rimmed glasses reflected the lamplight, making her expression unreadable for a moment.

……

……

……

Several hours later.

Winter Island.

A crimson dragon roared, sweeping across the horizon.

Even a slight flap of its wings could stir up a fierce wind among the mountains.

Countless people traveling through the snowfield were drawn to this scene, gazing at the giant dragon passing high above.

For a moment.

They felt nothing but awe rising from the depths of their hearts.

Yet some, upon seeing the figure of the crimson dragon, opened their mouths in shock, their eyes trembling uncontrollably:

"That is... the crimson dragon that destroyed Silver Moon Harbor!"

"Such a thing, such a thing, actually exists?!"

"Is he coming to destroy this country?!"

Some fell to their knees in fear, only to see the crimson dragon in the sky vanish from their sight in an instant, flying far toward the horizon.

Within the snowy forest.

Chopper, wearing a pink hat, looked up at the giant dragon speeding past overhead, startled so badly that he instinctively buried his head in the snow.

Only after the giant dragon in the sky disappeared did he poke his head out again.

"M-M-Monster!"

Real, tangible fear showed in Chopper's eyes, but upon seeing the direction where the crimson dragon vanished, his breath hitched slightly:

"That's the direction of Kester?"

"Oh no!"

"Doctor Kureha!"

In the next instant.

All fear vanished from Chopper's eyes; transforming into his reindeer form, he chased after the direction where the giant dragon had disappeared.

……

Whoosh—!

The wind howled, stinging skin and flesh painfully.

Sanji crouched on Xiang Gaowen's back; looking at Nami beside him, whose brows were tightly knitted and face filled with pain, he frowned deeply and could not help but speak:

"Captain, slow down a bit!"

"Young Lady Nami's body cannot withstand this speed!"

"Understood."

Immediately, a layer of fine dragon scales rose on Xiang Gaowen's back, wrapping Nami and the other within, blocking the wind and snow from them both.

Xiang Gaowen's speed slowed down accordingly.

A few minutes later.

His eyes widened slightly, for within the perception of his Observation Haki, a reindeer wearing a pink hat was following closely behind Xiang Gaowen.

"A reindeer wearing a pink hat?!"

"Found it!"

"Sanji, hold on tight!"

"Hm?"

Sanji instinctively gripped the dragon scales in front of him, and in the next instant felt a violent sensation of weightlessness.

Boom!

The giant dragon plummeted, smashing a huge crater into the snowfield and sending snow and wind flying everywhere.

Seeing this, Chopper once again buried his body in the accumulated snow, while constantly muttering:

"The dragon's going to eat the reindeer!"

"Can't see me, can't see me…"

Muttering to himself, Chopper covered his eyes with his two small hooves.

After setting Nami and the others down, Xiang Gaowen turned and saw the constantly swaying pink hat and a pair of antlers in the snow.

A faint smile curled at his lips, and he stepped forward, grabbing Chopper out of the snow.

He had long been looking forward to this reindeer, famed in the original story as the best value for money.

Those stronger in combat than Chopper likely lacked his medical skill.

Those better in medicine than him likely lacked his combat strength.

Those who excelled in both, and matched or surpassed Chopper in both—

In Xiang Gaowen's memory, only Law, with a bounty of three billion at the later stage.

In value for money, Chopper utterly crushed him.

At this moment.

Chopper kept his eyes tightly shut, waving his hands frantically, muttering:

"Reindeer aren't tasty~"

"Doctor Chopper, I need your help."

The words landed.

Chopper's ears twitched slightly, his eyes instantly narrowed into two crescent moons, his whole body wriggling:

"Asshole, just because you call me doctor doesn't mean I'll be happy~"

He said that, but his expression betrayed his inner joy.

"You're ecstatic, aren't you?"

Sanji, who had just set Nami and the others down beside him, turned and looked at Chopper, a faint smile on his lips:

"This is… what did the captain say about Keluo last time? Oh right—the blue-nosed raccoon cat who says no but means yes."

Chopper froze, then flew into a rage:

"It's a reindeer, asshole!"

Sanji ignored Chopper's protest, turning to Xiang Gaowen with a frown:

"Captain, isn't now a terrible time to hunt such a rare species?!"

"Nami Young Lady's body temperature keeps rising—if this continues, I'm afraid…"

Sanji didn't finish, but Xiang Gaowen understood his meaning.

Xiang Gaowen explained:

"This guy is one of our targets this time—Tony Tony Chopper, the top physician of Drum Kingdom."

"Isn't that right?"

Xiang Gaowen set Chopper down.

The words "top" and "physician" seemed to flip another switch inside Chopper, making him revert to his previous flustered posture:

"Even if you praise me like that, I… do I have patients?!"

Chopper's expression changed; he looked up at Nami, carried behind Sanji by several pirates.

His gaze instantly turned solemn:

"Respiratory infection?!"

Sanji blinked. "Does this raccoon cat really know medicine?!"

"I already said—I'm a reindeer!"

Chopper roared. He could tolerate doubts about his medical skill, but he would never allow his species to be questioned.

Yet now he saw that Xiang Gaowen's group meant no harm, and his heart calmed.

Healing was a physician's sacred duty—no matter the patient, once laid before him, he must cure them.

This was the will Chopper inherited from Hiriluk.

"The dragon came with companions to find a doctor?"

Xiang Gaowen ignored Chopper's odd phrasing and nodded:

Xiang Gaowen directly ignored Chopper's strange opinion, nodded, and explained:

"It's a fungal respiratory infection. My ship's medic can't handle it—we came to Drum Kingdom for help."

"It is a respiratory tract infection caused by fungi; the ship's doctor on my vessel cannot handle it, so I had no choice but to seek aid from the Drum Kingdom."

"They are very important companions to me."

"I understand."

Chopper knew the current state of Drum Kingdom.

The man who had once been like a father to him had died because of it.

Chopper nodded and stepped forward to examine Nami and the pirate carrying her; as he did, his expression grew ever more solemn:

"The condition is severe. Too much time has passed—the infection runs deep, and fungal interference is the hardest to treat. Conditions here are limited—come with me!"

Chopper transformed into his animal form, preparing to lead Xiang Gaowen and the others to Kureha's hospital.

Chopper transformed into his animal form, preparing to carry Xiang Gaowen and the others to Doctor Kureha's hospital.

A mighty wind surged from behind Chopper.

He turned and saw a colossal crimson dragon, over a hundred meters long—merely standing there, it towered like a mountain.

When he turned his head back, he saw a massive crimson dragon; with a body length exceeding one hundred meters, even merely standing there, it towered like a mountain peak.

Chaba's lips moved as if speaking, muttering:

"Are you... a monster too?"

Xiang Gaowen spoke:

"Speaking of which, the guys on my ship are all monsters."

"Get on."

After a brief hesitation, Chopper leaped onto Xiang Gaowen's back, gripping tightly onto several inverted spikes.

Very quickly.

Nami and the others climbed back onto Xiang Gaowen's back, wrapped in a layer of dragon scales; Xiang Gaowen then flapped his wings, roaring as he shot toward the horizon.

Several hours later.

On the outskirts of Kestia Town, inside a treehouse.

Kureha boredly flipped through the medical book in her hands, yet her gaze kept drifting toward the window.

"That idiot son of Hiriluk, he hasn't gotten lost in the snowfields, has he?"

"Tch!"

"Just as stupid as that bastard Hiriluk!"

Having said this.

She turned her head again, fixing her eyes back on the book in her hands.

The content that had once made him utterly engrossed now only filled him with a surge of irritation.

"Damn brat!"

"I shouldn't have let him go out alone!"

Bang!

Kureha threw the medical book onto the table, then immediately stood up, put on thick clothing and a hat, and prepared to go out to search for Chopper's whereabouts.

"Hm?!"

Kureha's eyes froze.

For from the distant sky came a whistling wind, followed by a giant dragon as if stepped out of mythology, roaring forth through the wind and snow.

And the idiot son she had been muttering about was at this very moment riding on the giant dragon's back!

"What the hell is this thing?!"

Within Kureha's Solemn gaze.

The Red Dragon landed.

Chopper also leaped down from Xiang Gaowen's back.

He hurried forward to knock on the door, shouting:

"Doctor Kureha, there's a patient; the situation is very urgent!"

"You damn brat, this isn't a place for just anyone..."

Knowing Kureha's personality, Xiang Gaowen stated decisively:

"Money is no issue!"

"Saving lives and healing the wounded is a doctor's duty."

The corners of Kureha's mouth curled up, yet her eyes behind the sunglasses fell upon Xiang Gaowen, who had already transformed back into human form, as a trace of wariness quietly rose in her heart.

A Mythical Zoan type?

And this level of Haki... quite an extraordinary fellow has arrived this time!

Still, someone like this certainly wouldn't lack money!

Thinking this.

The look in Kureha's eyes toward Chopper became much warmer.

She turned and pushed open the clinic door, allowing Sanji and several pirates to work together to place the patient onto the hospital bed.

Kureha fetched various instruments and conducted detailed physical examinations on Nami and the other, yet her brows knitted tighter and tighter, her expression becoming rarely Solemn.

A few minutes later.

Kureha set down the instrument in her hand, turned to look at Xiang Gaowen, and said:

"Where was she infected?"

"Silver Moon Port."

"So you're the ones who destroyed that place too?"

Xiang Gaowen nodded and said:

"By the time we arrived, there were no living people left in Silver Moon Port."

"To prevent the spores from spreading, I burned that port to the ground."

Kureha breathed a sigh of relief, then turned to look at Nami and said:

"The situation is more troublesome than expected; preparing the special medicine will take some time, but the infection has dragged on too long, easily leading to permanent disability."

Xiang Gaowen's heart tightened.

He had personally taken Nami away from Gen and Nojiko; if he could not bring her back intact, he would never be able to forgive himself, no matter what.

"No matter what price must be paid, please save them."

(End of Chapter)