Chapter 67: A Conversation with Dragon
Bang!
Sanji and Zoro’s figures froze after their final fierce clash, standing back-to-back on the grass.
After a brief silence.
Both of them collapsed simultaneously, as if all their strength had been drained.
“Sanji!”
Reiju exclaimed, rushing anxiously towards her younger brother.
“Yamato, please help take them for treatment first. I’ll be there shortly.”
Kain sent Yamato and the others away.
Then, he ventured alone into the depths of the forest.
Several kilometers away, in a secluded clearing surrounded by tall trees.
Kain’s steps halted.
He didn’t look around but slightly raised his head, his gaze Lock-On a spot in the sky.
“Come out, Revolutionary, Monkey D. Dragon.”
Kain called out loudly.
The only response he received was the rustling of leaves in the wind.
But Kain still stood confidently in place, as if engaged in a war of attrition.
Finally.
The wind suddenly picked up in the sky.
Within the wind, a man slowly revealed his form.
“How did you discover me?” Dragon’s deep voice carried unconcealable surprise.
Ever since Kain and the others landed on the island, he had maintained his wind form, overlooking them from high in the sky, not even using Observation Haki.
Even if a top-tier Observation Haki master swept through, they would only ‘see’ a wisp of wind.
No one should have been able to discover him.
He had used this trick to monitor many people, never failing.
Unexpectedly, today he was seen through by Kain at a glance.
“Because of the wind!”
Kain smiled calmly: “My ability is to control the weather, and wind is a type of air. My control over it is not necessarily inferior to yours.”
Dragon’s disguise was indeed perfect.
But perhaps the long-standing 100% success rate had made him drop his guard; he hadn’t completely merged into the natural wind.
From Kain’s perspective, Dragon’s presence was very abrupt.
It was as conspicuous as a sudden whirlpool in a calm river.
Most importantly, Kain, he had a foresight cheat!
He already knew that Shuangyue Village had dealings with the Revolutionary Army, so he naturally wouldn't forget to be on guard.
With a prepared mind against an unprepared one, it was normal for Dragon to be caught red-handed.
After hearing Kain’s explanation, Dragon nodded, realizing he had indeed been careless and underestimated the heroes of the world.
“Why did you specifically lure me out?” Dragon asked directly.
Since Kain directly exposed his whereabouts, he probably wasn’t looking for a conflict.
Kain didn’t beat around the bush either: “Give me Bartholomew Kuma’s contact information.”
“Reason?” Dragon frowned.
Kain knowing Kuma’s connection to the Revolutionary Army didn’t surprise him.
Over the years, he and Kuma had participated in revolutionary activities worldwide, and quite a few people had seen Kuma.
“How about I owe you a small favor?”
Kain smiled, stroking his chin, and threw out an enticing bargaining chip: “Your Revolutionary Army is very short on weapons, right? As everyone knows, weapons produced by Beasts are of high quality and low price. How about it, consider it?”
Dragon rejected without hesitation: “The Revolutionary Army will never betray its comrades for profit!”
“Oh?”
Kain chuckled: “What if I said I could cure Bonney’s Sapphire Scale Disease?”
Hmm?
Dragon’s heart skipped a beat. Is there a Beasts spy in the Revolutionary Army?
Bonney having Sapphire Scale Disease wasn’t a secret, but not many people knew about it.
After all, it only happened this year.
“Are you serious?” Dragon couldn’t help but ask.
Ever since Bonney was found to have inherited Sapphire Scale Disease, doctors within the Revolutionary Army had also treated her, but they were completely helpless, unable to even diagnose what disease she had.
Finally, it was a famous doctor Dragon met by chance during his travels who diagnosed Bonney.
The doctor even asserted that Bonney would not live past ten years old.
Ivankov’s Devil Berry ability might work; his Healing Hormone could offer a one or two percent chance of recovery by sacrificing ten years of Bonney’s life.
But unless absolutely necessary, no one wanted to use this method on the five-year-old Bonney.
“Of course. When it comes to curing diseases, if it can be done, it can be done. I have no need to lie.” Kain spoke confidently: “Afterward, you can take Bonney for the most detailed examination.”
Bonney’s Sapphire Scale Disease was troublesome; ordinary doctors certainly couldn’t do anything.
But Devil Berry are synonymous with miracles.
Whether it’s the Healing Berry or the Surgery Berry, both have a high probability of curing Bonney.
Even if the Paw-Paw Berry is developed to a certain extent, it might be possible to try to bounce the Sapphire Scale Disease out of Bonney’s body.
If they also don’t work, Kain can always go find Pure Gold.
Back then, the critically ill Olga could extend her life by 206 years with Pure Gold; used on Bonney, she could at least live for thousands of years longer.
Seeing Kain’s confidence, Dragon fell into a dilemma.
Should he trust someone from the Beasts Pirates?
Or miss this hope, whether true or false?
Kain silently added a weight to the scale: “You wouldn’t want Ginny’s tragedy to repeat on Bonney, would you?”
A bit of moral blackmail, you see.
This sentence was like the last straw that broke the camel’s back.
After a long while, Dragon took a deep breath and said in a deep voice: “I have no right to decide for Kuma; I need to seek his consent before I can give you his contact information.”
“Please do.” Kain naturally had no objections.
Dragon gave him a deep look, then turned into a gust of wind and disappeared from the spot.
The shock Kain brought him today was considerable.
When Zoro opened his eyes again, what greeted him was the all-too-familiar wood grain of the ceiling.
“Isn’t this the dojo? Why am I here?”
“You’re awake.”
A handsome face with a playful smile leaned closer: “The surgery was very successful. Congratulations, you’re now a girl.”
“What?! Don’t do that!”
Zoro was instantly terrified.
He quickly did a sit-up, trying to sit up and confirm, but the sharp pain in his chest made him grimace instantly.
His body, which had only lifted halfway, fell back heavily onto the bed.
He frantically looked down, but his vision was blocked by layers of bandages, only able to see his chest wrapped like a mummy.
“Hahaha—you fell for it!”
Kain laughed uncontrollably, clutching his stomach.
Zoro then realized he had been tricked, and his face instantly turned as black as a pot, veins throbbing on his forehead.
“Bastard!”
Kain wiped away tears from laughing, stood up straight, and sobered his playful expression: “No more jokes, do you want to join my crew?”
“Huh?”
Zoro was stunned.
How could he, an unknown youth from a small island in the East Blue, be invited by the Emperor Pirates?
Although Zoro had always focused on practicing swordsmanship in Shuangyue Village, oblivious to outside affairs, he wasn’t completely ignorant of the outside world; otherwise, he wouldn’t have known Hawkeye.
Precisely because of this, he found it strange.
At the same time, he felt a little excited.
After all, the name of the Beasts Pirates was well-known.
This feeling was like a high school student who had been diligently studying suddenly receiving an offer from the CEO of a world-leading conglomerate.
No matter how strong-willed he was, he couldn’t escape the common reaction.