Chapter Twenty-Five
Several days later, Ace received a reply from his crewmates. Marco had written back, asking to discuss the party's events with him. Enclosed was an Eternal Pose labeled "Pirates' Port". Ace was mildly annoyed, but he understood the importance of the meeting and he wanted to see his friends again.
Thinking about it, he realized that he would have to convince Yuki to go along with him to the meeting with Marco. She couldn't stay with Sabo, or it'd take too long to find her again. That was the disadvantage to him being in the Revolutionary Army. He and his nakama tended to travel undercover.
She also wouldn't be able to stay in Alabasta. Since that was where Mihawk had encountered her and the others, he was sure they'd have marines posted in the cities, with or without the royal family's permission. Her weakness made it unsafe to stay with Vivi in her country. Neither option was good enough.
The others had already met up with Mizuki on the sandy shores of Alabasta. The six of them wandered along to the best restaurant in town to celebrate their accomplishments and have a good meal. Mizuki attempted to heal Yuki again, but nothing changed. Sabo even deemed Yuki fit enough to visit a doctor as an extra precaution.
When they found one, Sabo and Ace were promptly kicked out.
"You guys can go get supplies or something," Mizuki called.
Koala nodded and crossed her arms. "Yeah, this is a girl thing. We'll find you when we're done, so go wander around the city!" She shooed the boys out, closing the door behind them.
The doctor was a tall, slim woman, probably in her forties or fifties. She had medium brown hair, dark brown eyes, and tanned, leathery skin. Her face and demeanor were stern and disapproving. The others had the distinct feeling that she didn't expect much from them and believed that she knew they were pirates.
The woman handed Yuki a cup of water. "Sit down, take your shirt off. You want me to examine your abdomen and whether an old injury caused lasting damage, correct?"
Yuki nodded, glancing at the group. She caught a smile from Robin and knew that her friend had already explained the problem.
"Yes, I've had some problems recently. Coughing fits, mainly. It seems to be better now, but I wanted to make sure that I was healthy," Yuki explained.
After the doctor nodded and turned to pick up her stethoscope, the blue-haired pirate stripped off her sweatshirt and awaited the cold metal instrument. Her scar was very visible, the edges creating a seared pattern on her pale skin.
The doctor paused to look at the scar before checking her heartbeat, gently running her fingers over the burned skin. Without a word, she continued her examination and placed the cold stethoscope on her chest.
"Hmph." She sounded confused. "I would have thought that with such a scar, your heart would be weaker. At least a little. It's not, though. You have a very steady pulse, loud and clear. A healthy heart suits a healthy body, after all."
Turning to the others, she said, "I'm going to take her to get an x-ray. If there's any shrapnel in her body, it will be evident with that. With a wound that serious, I'm surprised she could be brought back."
The group froze for a second. Yuki stiffened up, ready to grab her sweatshirt and bolt away. The others silently shifted their stances, ready to attack. Mizuki was even on fire already, glowing with silver light.
"Oh, relax! I couldn't do anything to you even if I wanted to," the woman snapped. "I'm the physician for the royal family, even though I live in this city. I recognized 'Silver Flame' and 'Devil's Child', it wasn't a huge jump to 'Red Snow'."
Yuki let out a sigh of relief. "So, you think there might be something in there?"
The doctor shook her head. "It's unlikely. You've probably just placed a huge strain on your body because of the insane amount of healing a wound like that would take. There is the possibility, though. When lava cools, it turns to stone."
Mizuki understood what the doctor meant. "I get it, because of how she was killed, if Akainu had left any of his lava behind, she would have stone remnants inside of her abdomen. You would have to remove those, correct?"
The doctor nodded. "Can I x-ray my patient, now?"
The others finally agreed, allowing Yuki to go into the other room with the doctor. If something happened, they knew she could hold her own.
Eventually, the x-rays were done and the doctor held them up on the window so the trio could see. Inside her ribcage, it seemed, were little black specks surrounding the old wound. Curious, Yuki pointed at them.
"What are these?" she asked.
The doctor crossed her arms and frowned. "I'm not sure. They might be bits of stone, leftover lava that cooled before you were healed. I'm not sure what they are, but I am sure that they're the thing causing your problem."
Mizuki grabbed her friend's shoulder and whispered, "I think she's right. It would be fine if you did what she told you, probably. We'll be here every step of the way. Robin and I will protect you."
Yuki nodded. "What do you need to do? Remove it, right?" she said calmly.
"Yes," the doctor said, "I think that would be the wisest course of action. It will require surgery, though. I think you'll be alright, considering what you've endured so far as a pirate. You've had your fair share of stitches and scars, right?"
Yuki laughed. They all felt more at ease, knowing what they could do to fix it. The doctor was strict but humorous. The only thing left was to get the source removed, and heal the rest. The end of Yuki's illness came quickly, it seemed.
The blue-haired pirate grinned. "Which way to the operating room?