Chapter 17

DRUM KINGDOM 14 YEARS AGO

"Get the hell out of here you quack!" A citizen yelled.

A man in a long dark jacket and top hat ran throughout the city holding on to a large suitcase full of medicines. As he ran from the citizens a young boy with short black hair and big black eyes held on to his mother, watching the man run. The quack ran out the city until he came to a tree with a small room in it.

"It looks like my latest medicine just didn't work out this time! Ha ha ha! It's happened before, I will make a new counter medicine to help that man!" The man said.

Outside a little boy walked up to the tree the man was in. He walked to the door and knocked.

"Hm? Who could this be?" The man walked to the door and opened it to see the boy there, "Oh! Hello young lad! And who might you be?"

The young boy just stared at him.

"Ah ha ha ha ha ha! Not much of a talker huh? My name is Hiriluk! The great doctor of Drum Kingdom!" Hiriluk said.

The young boy still stared on, but spoke after a few moments.

"My… my… my name is Onawagi Rinso…" Onawagi said.

Hiriluk's eyes widened.

"RINSO?! YOU WOULDN'T HAPPEN TO BE RELATED TO KUREHA RINSO?! THE DOCTORINE?!" Hiriluk freaked.

"Um… y… yes?" Onawai answered, a little scared.

The doctor's eyes closed and he smiled big.

"AH HA HA HA HA! HOW GRAND! SUCH A SMALL WORLD THIS IS. You seem to be about eight years old now? How could I have not known she had a little one running around!" Hiriluk said happily, "What brings you into this neck of the woods?"

The young boy looked up to the doctor.

"Why…" Onawagi started.

"Hm?"

"Why do you do what you do? Why do you help people who don't care for you?" Onawagi asked.

Hiriluk froze at the question.

"Now how would such a young boy like you come to ask such a question? Ah ha ha ha ha!" Hiriluk laughed.

Hiriluk continued laughing until he looked down at the boy again and saw that he was serious.

"Come inside young one." Hiriluk said, leading the boy inside.

Onawagi sat down on the doctor's bed and looked around the room. Medicine, books, beakers, and test tubes scattered around the room. One thing stood out in particular, a flag with a skull and cross bones, pink pedals scattered on it.

"What is that?" Onawagi asked, pointing at the flag.

Hiriluk turned around to look at the boy and smiled.

"You asked why I'm doing all this right? Well that flag right there is the reason!" Hiriluk said happily.

"The flag? Is the reason?" Onawagi asked.

"Yes, my boy! Do you know what a pirate is?" Hiriluk asked.

"Pirates are mean guys that attack people… at least that's what mom tells me." Onawagi said.

"Ha ha ha ha ha! That Kureha. Well, yes for the most part pirates can be like that! But you can never deny their spirit and living their dreams! That's what my flag is all about and that's why I continue do try and save these people even though they don't appreciate my efforts!" Hiriluk explained.

Onawagi stared with wide eyes.

"Can you… can you teach me how to be like that?! To care for others even if they don't appreciate me?!" Onawagi asked.

Hiriluk looked at the boy and smiled.

"You want to be my apprentice? Onawagi?" Hiriluk asked.

"Yes! Hiriluk-san!" Onawagi confirmed.

"It will be tough young man! The road in medicine is not an easy one!" Hiriluk warned.

"If being a doctor is what it takes to help people… then…" Onawagi paused, "I'LL BEAR THE DIFFICULTY! I JUST WANT TO BE OF USE TO PEOPLE!"

Hiriluk stared at the boy, smiled, and laughed.

"AH HA HA HA HA! WELCOME ABOARD!" Hiriluk laughed.

SIX MONTHS LATER

Onawagi walked into Hiriluk's tree house and set down some supplies.

"Hiriluk-san! I've got some supplies." Onawagi said.

Hiriluk's chair spun around, but Hiriluk wasn't in it. It was Kureha.

"So this is where you've been running off to? Onawagi?" Kureha asked.

"Yes mother! I should've told you sooner but I just never got around to it!" Onawagi said.

Kureha smiled.

"Yes, you should've told me sooner, because after today, you won't be hanging out with him anymore." Kureha ordered.

Onawagi stared with confusion.

"Huh?" Onawagi asked.

"I said you won't be hanging out with that quack anymore! He's too dangerous to be around! I admit, he's helped you develop your medicinal skills and help you earn quite the reputation around town, but it's only a matter of time before he gets you into trouble!" Kureha yelled.

"HOW WILL HE GET ME INTO TROUBLE? HE ONLY CARES ABOUT OTHER PEOPLES' WELL BEING! THAT MAKES NO SENSE! I'M GOING TO CONTINUE TO HANG OUT WITH HIM AND BECOME A GREAT DOCTOR!" Onawagi yelled back.

Kureha lept across the room and punched him, blood spewed out of his nose. When Onawagi looked up, he had tears in his eyes.

"YOU THINK I'M JUST SAYING THIS TO BE MEAN YOU IDIOT?! THAT MAN WILL DO NOTHING BUT BRING TROUBLE TO YOU." Kureha explained.

"But aren't you both friends? How is he all of a sudden going to bring about trouble?!" Onawagi asked.

Kureha walked over to the door and opened it.

"I'm not going to say it again. Leave this house or you'll be sorry. I'm going back home, I expect you to be there soon." Kureha said as she left.

Onawagi watched as his mother left and looked down towards the ground while on his hands and knees. He punched the ground and his fist bled.

"SHE DOESN'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT THE DOCTOR! WHAT KIND OF FRIEND TO HIM IS SHE? The doctor is a nice guy… he wouldn't do anything to hurt anyone…" Onawagi said.

Onawagi left the medicine and supplies he collected in Hiriluk's home and made his way into the forest.

"Why did mom hit me?... I know I got loud but she's never hit me… it's almost like she's hiding something." Onawagi said out loud.

Stomach growl

"Ughh I'm hungry.. but it's going to take forever to get home in this rough snow…"

Onawagi held an arm up and journeyed through the snow until he hit his face on a branch.

"Ow! What was…" Onawagi stopped talking when he saw a weird fruit. The pieces looked like little balls of smoke and it was a dark grey color.

"This fruit isn't native to these lands… or is it? I've never seen it before." Onawagi said.

"Mom would kill me if I were to eat this… is it poisonous? There's really only one way to find out… I mean it's like the doctor said…" sometimes in the medical field you take risks!" So… maybe I should eat it… I am hungry…" Onawagi thought to himself.

Onawagi grabbed the fruit and took a bite out of it.

"This is really good! I hope there's more!" Onawagi said as he finished the fruit.

About 20 minutes later, Onawagi walked into the front door of his mother's home.

"Onawagi! Good to see you came home. Dinner will be ready in a moment." Kureha said.

Onawagi, still not really forgiving his mother for what she did, walked by and didn't speak until he got to his room.

"I'm fine… I already ate…mother." Onawagi said.

Kureha noticed the way he said mother and went to confront him.

"Hey, boy. You got a problem with me?" Kureha asked.

Onawagi looked up.

"No. Just leave me alone." Onawagi demanded.

Kureha ran to smack him down for disrespecting her, but he flinched and disappeared. Kureha stopped in her tracks. Onawagi could see she stopped but didn't know why she looked the way she did.

"Onawagi… where did you go?" Kureha asked.

"I'm… right here." Onawagi said.

Kureha looked in front of her and noticed the bed he sat in was showing signs that someone was sitting right there. Her anger went through the roof. She reached out and grabbed the invisible boy.

"YOU FOOL! WHAT DID YOU EAT IN THAT FOREST?!" Kureha yelled.

"I… ate a weird fruit!" Onawagi cried.

Kureha dropped him in disbelief.

"You ate… a devil fruit." Kureha said, backing against a wall.

"A… devil fruit…?" Onawagi asked.

"YOU DAMN FOOL! YOU'LL NEVER BE NORMAL OR ABLE TO SWIM EVER AGAIN!" Kureha yelled.

"I didn't know what it was!" Onawagi argued.

"JUST MORE THE REASON YOU SHOULDN'T HAVE EATEN IT!" Kureha yelled back.

A knock on the door stopped the conversation. Kureha closed the door to Onawagi's room and went to answer it, a citizen was behind the door.

"Doctorine! Doctorine! Hiriluk just went to Walpol's castle willingly! He said he wanted to care for the king!" The man said.

"WHAT?! The king has been dead for months now! How could he not know that! It's obviously a set up." Kureha screamed.

Onawagi, who was balled up on his bed, looked up and tears started falling.

"Doctor…" Onawagi said.

"What are we going to do Doctorine?" The man asked.

"What do you mean what are we going to do? It's none of our business! If we jump in he might kill us and that quack too! Just wait and see what happens…" Kureha said.

The man left and Kureha went back to check on Onawagi.

"Son… I'm sorry for earlier… devil fruits are just no joke. And about that quack… this is exactly what I was talking about.. I hope you understand." Kureha said, entering the boy's room.

Kureha looked around and didn't see him anywhere.

"Onawagi! Did you go invisible again?! SAY SOMETHING!" Kureha demanded.

Kureha looked around the room and nothing seemed out of the ordinary. The window was shut, he couldn't have gotten past her at the front door, he had to be in the room invisible and just staying quiet. He had to be. Kureha walked over to the window to check it just in case and her heart dropped, the window was closed, but it was unlocked meaning he had left and closed it when he got out the house. But she didn't want to believe it.

"No no no no no… there's no way you left to go do what I think you're going to do boy… there's no way! ONAWAGI! ONAWAGI! COME OUT! PLEASE COME OUT!" Kureha yelled while tears fell. Another knock on the door made her stop searching, she went to answer it and there was Hiriluk, healthy as ever. Kureha didn't even say anything to him, she wore a face of pure fear and she ran out and past the man who came to her door earlier.

"Oof sorry Doctorine!" The man said while Kureha ran, as she got out of sight, the man smiled to himself.

Onawagi ran through the Drum forest with two 12" blades.

"Doctor! Just hold on I'm going to save you!" Onawagi said to himself as he boarded the lift finally.

When he got to the top he ran with his head down until he finally looked up to see a few men waiting.

"Onawagi-san! You've arrived." One of the men said.

"WHERE'S THE DOCTOR?" Onawagi yelled.

"He's inside! Tending to the king as we speak…" The man said with a smile.

Onawagi glared at the man.

"The doctor's in there right now?" Onawagi asked.

"Oh yes… please come." The man said leading the boy into the castle.

Kureha and Hiriluk boarded the lift to the castle, both sweating profusely and scared. When they got to the top, the two men stopped them.

"What the hell are you doing?! My son wondered in there! LET ME GET HIM BACK!" Kureha yelled.

"We know… HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA!" The men laughed.

Kureha stared in fear. She clenched her teeth and yelled as loud as she could.

"ONNNAAAWWWAAAGGGGIIIIIII!" Kureha screamed.

All she got in response was a child's yell.

"AHHHHHHH MY EYEEEEESSSSSS!"