Dr. Kureha

Now that they were on Drum Island, how could they not go meet Dr. Kureha, the hidden big shot?

After Antonio repeatedly stopped to ask for directions, they finally reached a castle clinic on Drum Snowy Peak. It seemed she was doing pretty well for herself. The place was called the Witch Clinic, and the price list at the entrance was enough to drive countless people away.

Even treating a common cold cost at least a hundred thousand Beli, to say nothing of more serious illnesses. But the last line promised that the clinic could cure every disease.

Brook went straight inside. There were no patients, only a tall, thin old woman with white hair, drinking. Just like Shakky's Rip-off Bar, she seemed to open only once every three years, then make enough to live on for the next three.

Dr. Kureha looked at Brook as he walked in, seemingly hazy with drink. She frowned. He didn't seem like a living person at all—he had no heartbeat, no body heat.

"Dr. Kureha, I hope you can cure every disease."

Brook smiled faintly and sat down in front of Dr. Kureha. Antonio nervously found a seat of his own, while Memory Seahorse and Wuzhu stayed on Qilin Lion's back.

"What do you need treated?"

Brook's cold Underworld Ghost Qi had jolted Dr. Kureha fully awake. She studied his pale face with a solemn expression.

"I want to know whether I can still have children in the future."

Brook spoke in a flat tone, as if he weren't talking about himself at all. He didn't seem to care.

"Are you impotent, infertile, or did an enemy cripple your little man?"

Dr. Kureha's wicked words made Brook stiffen. No wonder she was such an old witch—she could say whatever she wanted to people without fear of the consequences.

"None of those. I'm a Yomi Yomi no Mi user. In fact, I've already died once. My soul escaped from hell, and my body became like this!"

Brook didn't hide anything. It wasn't information he needed to keep secret.

"There's a Devil Fruit like that? How incredible!"

Dr. Kureha marveled at the Devil Fruit's miraculous ability, then took out a tube and handed it to Brook.

"What is this for?"

Brook took the tube and looked at her in confusion. It wasn't medicine or a drink; it was empty. Was she going to draw blood and test it?

"Didn't you want to find out whether you could still have children? Go to the bathroom and fill this with your essence. I'll examine it for you! Your little man hasn't stopped working, has he?"

Dr. Kureha got straight to the point, checking the source to see whether his bodily fluids were still the same as before.

Antonio immediately turned away, pretending he wasn't there, but the corners of his mouth were twitching as he tried to hold back his laughter. Brook looked just as awkward.

"Of course he still works! My Heaven-Propping White Jade Pillar, Sea-Supporting Purple Gold Beam, Compliant Iron Rod—I'm famous for how powerful I am. You might have to wait a while, though. I might not come out for a few hours. Antonio, go get something to eat and come back later!"

Brook promptly sent Antonio away so he wouldn't learn how powerful his captain was and end up feeling inferior.

"A few hours? You've got ten minutes, tops. I've got to get off work!"

Dr. Kureha's words sent Antonio rushing out, still holding back his laughter. Brook's face darkened as he gave the wicked witch-doctor a dangerous look.

In the end, Brook walked into the bathroom, Toilet Avier, with a gloomy expression.

"Cheer up! With a mood like that, how can you produce high-quality essence? Though maybe you'll produce nothing at all, since you're dead!"

What was that? A truly cruel blow to the heart!

Brook charged into the bathroom in despair. He recalled the 150 terabytes of study material in his mind and fondly remembered the teachers' brilliant lessons. Gradually, he started to feel something.

Left hand, right hand, one slow movement, then again. Like a train entering a tunnel, like a rocket launching into space. At last, just before time ran out, Brook emerged with the sample and handed it to Dr. Kureha.

He decided to drown his sorrows by raiding Dr. Kureha's liquor shelves. Maybe getting drunk would ease his worries.

"Private reserve. Two hundred thousand Beli a bottle. Thank you for your business!"

After saying that, Dr. Kureha took the sample into her medical lab to study it and find out whether a dead man's bodily fluids were still viable.

After drinking several bottles of hard liquor, Brook realized he couldn't seem to get drunk. The Underworld Ghost Qi consumed and assimilated all the alcohol. It turned out that, on top of being immune to poison, he'd lost even the ability to get drunk.

If I can't enjoy wine or women, what's the point of being immortal?

Brook wanted to throw his head back and howl. Immortality might bring all kinds of colorful experiences, but I don't want a life full of color. I just want to enjoy women!

A cold tear slipped from Brook's eye. Wuzhu, Memory Seahorse, and Qilin Lion stared at him in confusion. Had their cold-hearted captain just shed a tear?

Never mind. Even if he couldn't have children, he could always follow King Wen's example and adopt dozens or even hundreds of sons and daughters. Otherwise, what would he have to live for through all those long years?

As time passed, Antonio returned at some point with several portions of food for Brook and the pets.

Inside the medical lab.

Dr. Kureha examined Brook's sample under a microscope. There were still plenty of sperm cells swimming around!

But once the temperature rose, they quickly lost their viability. At low temperatures, they became extremely destructive, freezing and damaging the other cells. That meant he was basically sterile.

No other egg cells could withstand the Underworld cold. And without the cold environment, Brook's sperm cells lost their viability on their own.

She tested them against many different kinds of cells, but none could withstand the low temperature the sperm needed to survive.

Dr. Kureha had no solution to this. She recorded the data, then went out to tell Brook.

"They can't withstand the cold? So there's basically no chance I'll have any descendants?"

Brook had been prepared for this, but it still hit him hard. He was going to die without an heir. What was the point of having this iron rod?

"And you shouldn't bring harm to other women, either. The low temperature of your essence could injure them!"

Dr. Kureha's words stabbed Brook once more, leaving him chilled to the bone. Was he going to lose even the right to be a man?

"So I'll have to be a eunuch for the rest of my life?"

Brook's voice trembled. This was a man's greatest humiliation!

"If you kill a woman every time, you can still go on. But if your woman is strong enough, she might be able to endure it. The question is, how many women in the world are stronger than a Vice Admiral or Admiral?"

In the New World, nearly all the current overlords were men. There were hardly any powerful women!

"So if my woman is strong enough to endure it, then there's still a chance I can enjoy the benefits of being a man and have children, right?"

Brook asked anxiously. His future depended on it.

"In theory, yes. But there are no such monsters in this world, so you might as well give up and go to sleep!"

What kind of woman could produce egg cells capable of withstanding Brook's cold essence? She'd have to be incredibly powerful! Such a woman wasn't just rare—if one did exist, someone as weak as Brook wouldn't stand a chance of having her!

Delivered to you by Great God Great Karma Fire: One Piece: Hell Brook.