"That guy didn't just give you a massive blood transfusion he even went down on his knees to beg us to treat you," San-Yang said as he leaned over to check Ares's eyes, gently lifting his eyelids. Then, without pause, he slipped a stethoscope into his ears and pressed the cold disc to Ares's chest to listen to his heartbeat.
A warmth welled up in Ares's chest. Even unconscious, he could tell Kaido must have done a lot for him during this time. He immediately asked, "Doctor, how's Kaido now? Where is he? And… where is this place?"
He was certain this wasn't the Rocks Pirates' main base, Hachinosu. Hachinosu had its share of unusual races and odd-looking folk, but he'd never seen an upright, talking animal before. This didn't feel like the power of a Devil Fruit either.
San-Yang listened for a while, then removed the stethoscope and explained, "This is the Furry Kingdom. You're actually lucky. Zunesha had just brought rain to the entire country while drawing up seawater, it pulled you into its trunk, and you came down with the rain, landing right in the middle of the town."
"We are the Mink Tribe."
"As for your companion, I'd guess he's in town working. With his size and strength, he's perfect for labor."
He spoke as he turned toward the medicine cabinet, opening drawer after drawer and pulling out the herbs he needed.
"Furry Kingdom… Mink Tribe… never heard of it," Ares admitted.
"That's because our people rarely leave Zou. And for outsiders, getting here is nearly impossible. So yes you're lucky," San-Yang replied, now busy mixing medicines at the counter.
Ares looked at the doctor's back and said sincerely, "Thank you for saving me. How long will it take for my wounds to heal?"
He also wondered how Shiki and the others were doing. He needed to recover quickly and return to Hachinosu.
San-Yang turned to face him. "Don't thank me yet. First, look at yourself. I don't know what kind of battle you went through, but your body is covered in wounds."
Prompted by the doctor, Ares glanced down. His body was wrapped head-to-toe in bandages, and the patches of exposed skin were dry and yellowed. He looked gaunt, like skin stretched over bone. Now he understood why he felt completely drained.
"Now you see how badly you're hurt. To fully heal, you'll need at least half a year. These days we've only been able to feed you energy through an IV drip, but for a body your size, that's a drop in the ocean," San-Yang said with a click of his tongue. "Your body's been burning through its own reserves to stay alive that's why you're so thin. This kind of depletion damages you, and you can't rush the recovery."
Ares gave a wry smile. "So I'll be stuck in bed for a long while yet."
He pressed his lips together and added apologetically, "Sorry for the trouble."
San-Yang ignored him and went back to his medicines. Ares closed his eyes helplessly. Right now, he could do nothing but retreat into his own mind his personal "cheat system."
Once he healed, he would make himself stronger and defeat every opponent he met.
In his mindscape, it was nothing like the chaos of real battle. Here, he could be a detached observer seeing the fight from the outside. As the saying goes, "The onlooker sees clearly." From this vantage, every movement became clear as day.
In real combat, everything happened in the blink of an eye no time to think.
"I should've fought to my strengths. Against agile, cool-headed foes, I shouldn't rush to use my dragon form. And testing a new move mid-battle… that's too risky."
"My goal is to make my body surpass the Supreme Grade Blades. That means my sword strikes can't be neglected proving my slashes can surpass any famed blade."
Ares began dissecting his mistakes, then focused on Rayleigh's swordsmanship.
"Other than Shiki, his swordsmanship is the strongest I've seen."
When he replayed Rayleigh's "Pluto's Lament," he switched to slow motion and placed himself right beside Rayleigh. In this mental world, nothing could harm him.
From less than a foot away, with each frame slowed, he traced every detail of the strike.
"Rewind ten seconds."
After watching again, Ares frowned. "His strike blends Armament Haki perfectly into the slash, massively boosting its power."
"How can I fuse my Crimson Armament into my slashes and my other attacks?"
He understood that the essence of a slash was speed and strength, and Armament Haki increased strength.
"So, to strengthen my slashes, I first need to understand the true nature of Haki. Once I grasp it, I can not only make my strikes stronger but also improve my Haki faster."
He stayed deep in thought as time slipped by.
By evening, San-Yang removed his coat and stepped outside. Spotting a tall figure, he walked over. "Kaido, your friend's awake. But he can't control his body yet. Don't give him food just let him drink water. The IV will last until tomorrow, when I'll come back to change it."
The moment Kaido heard Ares was awake, he lit up like a child. "Ares-ani's awake?! That's great, I knew it! Thank you, Doctor! Thank you!"
He was so excited he could barely speak clearly.
Kaido rushed into the room and saw Ares lying there with open eyes. He hurried over, his huge frame looming, eyes wet but face smiling. "Ares-ani…"
"Kaido… thank you," Ares said, his eyes stinging with tears. This proud man had knelt for his sake a humiliation no proud pirate would bear lightly. Even under blade and bullet, Kaido would never kneel. But for him, he had.
How could Ares not be moved?
A thousand words stuck in his throat. In the end, he bit his lip and said, voice trembling, "From this day on… you're my brother."
"Together, we'll make the whole world witness our power."
"Yeah!" Kaido nodded hard, his bull-like eyes locking with Ares's.
Ares smiled. "And I swear, one day I'll find you a powerful Devil Fruit and turn your body into a true monster."
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