Chapter 391: The Urgent Plea for a Doctor

“There’s a sick person on our ship. I’m only here looking for a doctor.”

Luffy kept making one last effort, waving his hands to show he meant no harm.

Vivi, hearing the ship grind to a halt, burst from her room. She spotted the crowd in the distance and ran up to the deck, shouting, “That’s right, one of our crew is seriously ill—we need a doctor!”

But their words clearly weren’t enough to win over the villagers. “This is our island.”

“No matter what fancy words you use, we won’t be fooled.”

“Just leave—otherwise we’ll start shooting!”

A man with curly hair raised his gun, aiming straight at Luffy as he spoke.

“Huff!”

“We can’t wait any longer for Nami’s sake.”

Sanji’s face hardened with resolve, a subtle heat starting to radiate from his feet.

“Ugh, we should’ve done this from the start. Nami’s safety comes before everything else.”

Zoro, who’d been leaning casually against the cabin behind them, somehow slid forward without anyone noticing. His right hand rested on the hilt of the Wado Ichimonji.

Luffy returned to the deck, glanced at Sanji and Zoro—ready for a fight—then looked toward Nami’s room before finally turning back to stare down the burly man.

“We really are just here to find a doctor. Please, let us come ashore.”

This was as close to an ultimatum as it got—if that man refused again, Luffy wasn’t sure he’d be able to hold back.

But Luffy’s words only made the villagers even more anxious. One by one, rifles leveled at Luffy and his friends.

Seeing this, Vivi raced forward to throw herself in front of Luffy.

She meant well—trying to avoid a fight with the locals so it wouldn’t jeopardize their chances of finding a doctor.

But Ye Fan, who knew exactly how these events would play out, couldn’t let things spiral out of control.

There was no way Luffy would ever kneel to villagers—not for anyone.

Watching the determined faces before him, anger smoldered deep in Luffy’s chest. A hidden surge of power erupted from within him.

Vwoom!

Dark red markings leaked from Luffy’s body, instantly spreading out for hundreds of meters.

Thud. Thud!

Dozens of villagers crumpled to the ground, until only the burly man remained standing.

“I-It’s just like last time!”

Dalton blurted out in terror, sweat streaming down his forehead.

This terrifying power—it was exactly the same as the black-bearded man’s when he landed on this island before.

Suddenly, with a heavy thud, Dalton dropped to his knees and pleaded, “I’ll help you find a doctor! Please, don’t hurt the villagers!”

Zoro and Sanji were speechless, stunned by Luffy.

Since when did Luffy secretly train some ultimate technique—enough to unleash this kind of aura in silence?

The two exchanged a glance. Looks like they’ve got more training ahead if they want to catch up.

“Don’t worry. As soon as our friend’s safe, we’ll be on our way.”

Dalton scrambled up, quickly helping guide the Merry to the shore. He began waking the villagers, sending them back to the village, then led Luffy and the others toward the mountain at the island’s center.

Many villagers hesitated, dragging their feet at first. Under Dalton’s stern glare, though, they finally left.

“Here we are. This is Drum Mountain. There’s a castle at the top, and nowadays—well, the woman folks call ‘the Witch’ lives up there.”

Led by Dalton, Luffy and the crew soon reached the foot of the imposing mountain.

“That’s so tall!”

“Is there any path up?”

If Ye Fan remembered right, in the original story Luffy and Sanji ended up climbing it by hand.

That was the first time Luffy ever looked so battered.

“There’s an old cable car, but it hasn’t run in ages. I don’t know if it’s even safe anymore.”

Dalton pointed toward the foot of the mountain, where a long steel cable stretched all the way up to the summit.

Since Blackbeard showed up and scared away Dr. Kureha’s reindeer, no one had dared use that cable since.

“As long as it’s sturdy, that’s good enough for me.”

The moment Ye Fan saw the cable, he already had a plan. He strode up ahead to where it was anchored.

The others hurried after him, Dalton trailing behind with a wary shake of his head.

Normally, a team of guards would pull the cart up for the passengers. Now the machinery was busted—he honestly couldn’t imagine how they’d get up there.

Ye Fan reached the cable and quickly threw together some makeshift gear out of whatever was handy.

“Luffy, Sanji, Vivi—you three take Nami up first.”

He didn’t make the decision lightly. After careful thought, this was clearly the best arrangement.

Sanji’s Moonwalk was better than Zoro’s, and he never got lost. If anything went wrong, Luffy could turn into a human rubber ball and shield them. It really was the perfect combination.

Luffy didn’t really know what Ye Fan had in mind for getting them up the mountain, but he nodded seriously before stepping up. With Vivi supporting Nami, Sanji followed close behind as they all climbed onto the makeshift wooden cart.

The cart looked a lot like an old mining car—high sides, solid wood, a big gear hooking it right onto the cable.

Once everyone was in place, Ye Fan grinned. “Hold on tight!”

Veins bulged in his right arm as he heaved upward in one powerful motion. In a split-second, Luffy and the others vanished from sight, the cart rocketing up the mountain.

“Aaaah!”

Someone screamed—the mountain echoed, rumbling all around.

“That’s bad—it’s an avalanche!”

It sounded like the scream came from Vivi, but Ye Fan wasn’t about to stop and think. He got Zoro, Usopp, Johnny, Yosaku, and Gin onto the cart in record time.

Using the same trick, he blasted the next group right up to the summit.

Then he leapt onto the cable himself, using Moonwalk to chase after them.

Dalton, spotting the distant avalanche, sprinted for the village, urging everyone to take cover. Even if the avalanche might not hit, he wasn’t taking chances.

Minutes later, after the group left, deep snow buried the area—including the cable machinery, which would never see the light of day again.

…..

By the time Ye Fan reached the mountaintop with Moonwalk, Luffy was already dashing around chasing a reindeer.

“Whoa, Ye Fan, you made it!” Luffy skidded to a stop beside the castle, half-buried in a snowbank, and looked up at him.

“I already found a doctor for Nami. They say it’s something called Kascheia Virus—turns out there’s a treatment available right here.”

Ye Fan hadn’t gone all out getting up here, so it’d taken him over ten minutes. Hearing Nami was safe didn’t surprise him much.

“That’s great. Glad you found a doctor.”

Ye Fan had already known there’d be a doctor here to save Nami, but he still pretended to be genuinely relieved.

“So what were you chasing just now?”

“Ahahaha!”

“I found a new friend—a reindeer!”

That reindeer—had to be Chopper, right?

Ye Fan followed Luffy’s pointing finger, spotting Chopper with a blue nose hiding behind the castle’s front doors.

“Right, I remember—this was Wapol’s castle, wasn’t it?”

“Oh, you mean that guy shaped like a cylinder? I already punched him into next week.”

Luffy dug in his nose as if it was nothing—Wapol really hadn’t left much of an impression.

“Never mind him. Where’s Nami?”

Just then, an old woman with white hair came out, eyeing the group. “It’s been ages since this place was so lively.”

“Your friend’s inside, resting now.”

Ye Fan, leading the way with Usopp, strode inside without another word.

That old lady—well over a hundred—Ye Fan had no interest in her.

As soon as Ye Fan vanished into the castle, Luffy bolted after the reindeer, shouting that he was determined to recruit him for his pirate crew.