"Hey, kid. Wanna learn advanced dical techniques? When it cos to top-tier dicine, who’s the best... cough. I’ve got you covered, guaranteed!"
A voice dripping with temptation slowly rang out.
The figure who had abruptly appeared before Chiba now wore a faint smile.
Hearing that voice and seeing that expression—
Chiba, who had been gripping his sword, instantly erupted with excitent!
Holy shit!
It’s really him!
It was his idol!!
"Bro! Bro! Are you taking disciples?! Please take ! I can serve tea, wash clothes, warm your bed—I’m good at everything! I can even substitute when your ’five-fingered maiden’ isn’t enough! Bro, take as your disciple!!"
Chiba, his face alight with fervor, grabbed Vir’s clothes desperately.
The way he looked, Vir was genuinely afraid the kid might start stripping the next second.
Honestly, the whole scene left Vir a little stunned.
Why was this kid so hyped?
And what’s with that worship in his eyes?
Dude, you’re making it hard for to screw you over like this.
Playing the emotional card? That’s just unfair.
This... complicates things.
As he pondered—
*SMACK!*
Vir slapped Chiba across the face.
The hit sent Chiba flying, his mind blanking out instantly.
His thoughts froze.
His heart skipped several beats.
That one slap nearly sent him straight to the afterlife.
The mont the slap landed, Vir’s face, body, and appearance morphed into an exact replica of Chiba’s.
anwhile, Chiba—who had been sent flying—mysteriously vanished without a trace.
Not a single ripple of disturbance.
Right then, Vir sensed a gaze sweeping toward him.
He didn’t need to look to know it was Kong, observing the battlefield from his high vantage point.
The mont Vir had acted, the aura-concealing effect of his position-swap dissipated.
Though he’d instantly taken Chiba’s form, a sliver of his presence had leaked.
And yet, Kong had still noticed.
But it didn’t matter.
Even if Kong suspected sothing, all he’d do was glance over.
Trying to confirm Vir’s identity based on that alone?
No way.
Not even Imu could pull that off.
Without hesitation, Vir—now disguised as Chiba—got to work doing Chiba’s job.
The kid was a doctor.
But he also wanted to fight on the battlefield?
Talk about the perfect host.
Who else was he gonna leech off if not this kid?
Vir didn’t waste ti. Sword in hand, he charged toward the heart of the battle.
From his earlier check, the kid’s strength was around that of a rank just below Rear Admiral.
What was it called again? Vir couldn’t rember.
Whatever. He’d match the kid’s level and just coast through.
The kid also seed foul-mouthed and... eccentric.
Offering to replace the "five-fingered maiden" right off the bat?
He’d have to play the part convincingly.
Now, so audience mbers might ask—
Does Vir even need to act?
Pfft! Please. He was just a sunny, cheerful guy.
Of course he had to act!
This kinda stuff? He doesn’t get it at all~
---
anwhile...
Chiba, who had mysteriously vanished, hadn’t been cremated or anything.
He had simply been taken in—by rry.
She had plenty of cargo space, but when it ca to storing living beings, her capacity was limited to just one.
No one knew why.
After a brief blackout, Chiba woke up.
Clutching his heavily swollen face, he stared blankly at his surroundings.
When he saw the massive, almost magnified figures of people around him, his baffled expression grew even more baffled.
But the most baffling thing?
Watching another version of himself fighting fiercely on the battlefield!
"What the hell?! The heck is going on?! Am I dead?!"
Chiba scread in panic.
The mont he spoke, Vir—who was "fighting with all his might" (read: fooling around)—glanced his way.
With a thought, Vir’s voice echoed clearly in Chiba’s ears:
"Yo! You’re awake! Let introduce myself—I’m Vir. A doctor."
Chiba’s cerebellum was practically shriveling from overload.
But being the quick-witted genius he was, he soon pieced things together.
This "other him"... was his idol?
Or rather, had his idol disguised himself as him?!
What the hell!
This was too damn bizarre!
He had just stepped outside—
Bam! He ran straight into his idol.
The next thing he knew, he was eating a slap that sent him flying.
And now his idol was pretending to be him!
What was even the plan here?!
Chiba’s mind was as turbulent as the churning seas around him.
No way he could stay calm.
But he wasn’t stupid.
If his idol hadn’t killed him, there had to be a reason.
If he cooperated fully, maybe he could even learn a trick or two!
"Bro! Big bro! Dear bro! What’s the plan?! How can I help?! I still wanna be your disciple—can we make that happen?!"
Chiba swiftly tossed aside his current predicant and circled back to his original question.
Hearing this, Vir couldn’t help but feel weirded out.
Dude... you okay?
Why does it feel like you’re my fanboy or sothing?
My unique techniques have fans?
What could you even learn from ?
House renovation? Welding? Cooking? Sawing wood?
You could learn anything from —except dicine, kid.
"Disciple slots are full!" Vir rejected him without a second thought.
This guy’s definitely not right in the head.
"Full slots? No problem! I can be your mount! You can’t possibly have too many mounts, right?!"
Chiba’s face burned with fanaticism.
His words reeked of insanity.
Vir had never seen a fanboy this extre.
Like, ready to lick his idol’s toes level.
Absolutely nuts.
"Sorry, my disciples double as mounts, so those slots are full too. Keep yapping, and I’ll grab a chainsaw to perform ’surgery’ on that little mouth of yours."
The mont Vir finished, Chiba’s lips sealed shut.
He knew his idol all too well.
With a mouth like his, Vir could probably use a hundred different tools to perform all sorts of "surgeries".
Better to wait for another chance.
Staying alive took priority.
---
Elsewhere...
Momousagi, who had just taken down a fleet captain, received a call from the dical division.
When she heard her idiot cousin had run off alone into this chaotic battlefield, her face darkened instantly!
Good.
’If you die, you die!’
’If you don’t—’
’I’ll show you what true suffering is!’
’How dare you pull this crap!’
’And at such a critical ti!’
’Just you wait.’
’If we et, the first thing I’m doing is stabbing you!’
Despite her thoughts, Momousagi altered her path—
Now heading toward the dical division’s vicinity.
But...
"Woman! You’ve slaughtered too many of our brothers! Today, I, Vista, will be your judge!"
...Yeah, she wasn’t getting there anyti soon.
---
"ACEEE!!!"
Suddenly—
A voice cut through the distance.
From the far horizon, it reached the hearts of everyone present.
That voice instantly drew the attention of both Ace and Garp.
Their eyes widened in unison.
"LUFFY?!" Ace shouted, bewildered.
First Yamato, now Luffy?
His brain was struggling to keep up.
But soon, his shock morphed into concern.
Yamato was fine—strong enough to hold her own.
But what the hell was Luffy doing here?!
This was not the place for him!
*BOOM!!*
Luffy crashed hard into the center of the battlefield.
But like it was nothing, he sprang up, his gaze locked onto the figure atop the execution platform.
"Ace!! I’m here to save you!!"
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