Whitebeard's Recovery

New World, aboard the Moby Dick.

A dazzling ball of light suddenly appeared in front of Marco, giving him a fright.

But soon, as if he had received some kind of summons, he stretched out both hands and reverently cupped the ball of light. The next second, its dazzling radiance vanished, revealing a glowing green bean inside.

Marco immediately held the bean out to Whitebeard and said excitedly, "Pops, hurry and eat this special Senzu Bean! That God from Beyond the Domain just told me through his thoughts that this bean can not only restore your strength instantly, but also cure any illness. It's bound to be useful for your condition."

"Hey! Captain Marco, is that bean really so miraculous?!"

"If Pops eats it, will he be completely cured?!"

"But... but what if it's poisonous?!"

"Surely not! That God from Beyond the Domain wouldn't go so far as to poison Pops with it, would he?"

"That's hard to say. We'd better be careful. After all, Pops' body can't take any more strain!"

"..."

"..."

Hearing the crew's slightly worried conversation around him, Marco's face showed a hint of apology. Only then did he realize he had gotten a little carried away with excitement and hadn't thought things through. He immediately said to Whitebeard, "I'm sorry, Pops! I didn't think this through. I'll take the bean away for testing and try it on some animals first, to see if it's poisonous or has any side effects. Then I'll bring it back for you to eat, Pops."

As he spoke, he started to pull his hand back, but Whitebeard suddenly grabbed him. "Gurararara, I believe my son would never lie to me. Besides, that God from Beyond the Domain is so powerful. If he wanted to kill me, he'd have countless ways to do it. He wouldn't resort to such an underhanded method, so I trust him."

With that, he snatched the special Senzu Bean from Marco's hand and ate it.

Under the anxious gazes of his adopted sons and daughters and the crew, a layer of white light first rose over Whitebeard's body. Then he felt a cool current flowing through him, as if it had opened up every part of his body in an instant and drawn out the toxins inside. A mouthful of black blood immediately spilled from his lips.

"Pfft!"

The black blood landed on the deck and promptly corroded a hole through it.

"Pops!"

Seeing this, Whitebeard's adopted sons and daughters and the crew looked at him in alarm. "Are... are you all right?" they asked worriedly.

"I'm fine!"

Whitebeard gently shook his head. He pulled the tubes from his body as he rose from his chair, then lightly waved a hand. A ripple that ordinary people could barely see spread through the air, and the next second, a tornado-like column of water rose from the sea not far away.

His adopted sons and daughters and the crew all looked surprised at the sight.

"Pops, is your illness cured?!" Marco was the first to react. He looked at Whitebeard with delight.

"Yes! Completely cured!" Whitebeard nodded.

In fact, not only was his illness cured, but even the lingering ailments left by injuries over the years had vanished without a trace. It was as if he had returned to the peak of his youth in an instant.

For a moment, everyone aboard the ship cheered and jumped for joy.

Just then, however, a crewman suddenly ran out of the cabin in a panic. "Bad news! P-Pops, something's happened to Ace!"

"What?!"

Almost at the same time, bullet comments discussing Nami's capture by Golden Lion appeared on the screen. {Hey! The Straw Hat Luffy Pirates' navigator got captured? What does Golden Lion want with her?!}

{Why did Golden Lion target the Straw Hat Luffy Pirates' navigator?!}

{The Straw Hat Luffy Pirates' navigator is called Cat Burglar Nami, I think! Yes, that's her name. She's a woman, and she's pretty too. Golden Lion isn't planning to carry her off and make her his woman, is he?!}

{Now I finally understand why the God from Beyond the Domain gave this Jianying video that alternate title. It was referring to Straw Hat Luffy's crewmate! Looks like Golden Lion is in trouble!}

{...}

{...}

East Blue, Cocoyasi Village.

"Hmph! That bastard pirate Golden Lion actually dared to lay a hand on my daughter. If anything happens to her, I'll never let him off," Bellemere said, glancing at Nojiko and Genzo, who were crouching in the corner. "And if that Luffy fellow can't save Nami, I won't let him off either."

"He will, he will. That kid made me a promise," Genzo said with an awkward smile.

"Hmph! You'd actually trust a pirate's promise?" Bellemere glared at him. "And Nami shouldn't think I'll let her off either. Just wait until she comes back and see how I deal with her. She actually dared to become a pirate without my permission. She really doesn't take me seriously!"

"She... she couldn't exactly get your permission at the time!" Nojiko said quietly.

"Huh? What did you say, Nojiko?" Bellemere glared at her.

"N-Nothing. I didn't say anything," Nojiko said, shaking her head.

"Hmph!"

Grand Line, inside the royal palace of the Alabasta Kingdom.

"Why would Golden Lion target Nami?!" Vivi asked, a trace of worry appearing in her eyes.

Grand Line, aboard the Thousand Sunny, somewhere at sea.

"Huh? Why did Golden Lion capture Nami?!" Chopper and Usopp asked in confusion.

"Eek! Why did it have to be me?!" Nami cried, clutching her head in despair.

"He actually dared lay a hand on Nami-san. This Golden Lion deserves to die! Just watch me kick him to pieces," Sanji said indignantly, his whole body aflame.

"Yohohoho, Sanji-san, you're so cool! Count me in," Brook chimed in from the side.

A rare look of seriousness appeared on Luffy's face. He clenched his fist and muttered, "I don't care who you are. Since you dared lay a hand on my crewmate, I'll never let you off."