One Piece: Don't Worry, I'm a Doctor

Chapter 443: Chapter 443: Devouring Like a Beast

Fork and knive began to swiftly move across Zero’s body.

A constant sting of pain spread along with them.

Zero watched as Vir, who had been eating calmly at first, was now frantically tearing into his chest without restraint.

Zero had already put on his “pain mask”.

Though he couldn’t move his muscles, he could still feel everything.

[Ding! Congratulations, Host! You’ve earned 200,000 negative points!]

[Ding…]

The system’s notifications kept chiming, but Vir paid no attention, burying his head in a frenzy of devouring.

This was, without a doubt, the most intense feast Vir had ever had.

In less than half a minute, he had completely “eaten” all of Zero’s injuries.

Once finished, Vir hurriedly backed away from Zero, as if Zero were some kind of ferocious beast.

He didn’t even acknowledge the system’s prompts.

[Ding! Congratulations, Host, for gaining a 5% Damage Immunity Effect!]

Not long after Vir stepped back, a strange sound echoed.

*Pffrt~*

Someone had… let one rip.

Zero didn’t react at first, but when he realized where the sound came from, his face turned pale.

That awful noise—he knew exactly where it originated. It came from below him.

It hit him hard: something was seriously wrong.

He couldn’t feel his body at all.

If something like an urgent need to… relieve himself happened right now, he might as well be sent straight to the crematorium.

After all, so many people were watching, and Saturn, of all people, would probably record it and show the footage to Imu-sama.

If that happened… he was done for.

He might as well be cremated on the spot.

Vir took a few more steps back, keeping a safe distance from Zero.

Because if it kicked in soon, the effects would be no joke.

Why was Vir so sure?

Because he’d tampered with something…

*Pffrt~*

Another dreadful sound rang out.

[Ding! Congratulations, Host! You’ve earned 450,000 negative points!]

And with that, it was as if a switch had been flipped—suddenly, countless strange noises began echoing throughout the plaza.

The sounds—sometimes long and drawn-out, sometimes short and sharp—formed a bizarre symphony. Everyone instinctively covered their noses, their faces twisting in disgust.

It was as absurd as it could get.

Sengoku’s already grim face turned the color of pig liver.

Things had indeed unfolded as he feared. It had really happened.

Not only was this “celestial symphony” playing, even Zero’s pants had already been “scared to tears”. Sengoku could barely hold it together.

Was it really necessary to make it this bad? Zero was a prominent figure, after all—this was…

Sengoku wasn’t just sympathizing with Zero; he was more worried about what was coming for him next.

Was he done for?

Yesterday hadn’t been like this. How had things escalated so much today?

Sengoku had thought the voice-changing side effect was the worst of it, but now it seemed this “treatment” had no limits at all!

Nearby, Akainu and Zephyr, watching from the sidelines, couldn’t help but exchange glances.

This time, their eyes were filled with relief.

’Good thing we got treated yesterday. Yesterday’s side effect was just a voice change.’

’Today’s different, though. Sengoku, old man, you’d better brace yourself. Hope you can hold it in.’

The two of them turned their gazes to Sengoku, whose face was a picture of misery. Seeing him like that made them feel oddly satisfied.

But the one suffering the most was Saturn, tasked with being the cameraman.

He was the closest, taking in every detail—sound, visuals, and the stench wafting through the air. It was overwhelming.

’What… what is this situation?’

Saturn’s face was beyond grim. He was barely holding it together.

The smell was practically crawling up his throat, making him gag.

’What did this guy eat yesterday? How could it smell this bad?’

But as Imu-sama’s designated cameraman, he couldn’t just walk away. No matter how bad it got, he had to endure.

As for Zero, the victim in all this, he was flushed red from head to toe.

He couldn’t move, and he couldn’t control it.

In front of this massive crowd, who could possibly understand how he felt?

Right now, he was begging for a one-way ticket to the crematorium. He couldn’t wait another second.

[Ding! Congratulations, Host! You’ve earned 800,000 negative points!]

[Ding! Congratulations, Host, for gaining Ability: Toxin!]

[Toxin: You can generate a special toxin that, when added to any poison, doubles its effects.]

The system’s voice chimed again, and Vir received his reward.

But the reward made Vir frown slightly.

It wasn’t that it was weak—it was actually a very strong ability. Doubling a poison’s effect.

Combined with Magellan’s ability from before, his poison was now on a monstrous level.

If he bought some high-grade materials from the shop and crafted the world’s ultimate poison, surely no one could withstand it.

The ability was strong, but it wasn’t what Vir wanted.

He wanted personal strength—physical power, Conqueror’s Haki, or Zero’s Devil Fruit.

Those were all solid abilities.

But instead, he got this weird thing.

It was a bit beyond Vir’s expectations.

Still, the consolation prize was pretty decent.

Without dwelling on it too much, Vir glanced back at Zero.

If things went as expected, Zero should regain muscle control in a few minutes.

After all, he was a Marine Admiral-level powerhouse.

The muscle-weakening powder wasn’t exactly a poison, so while it was effective, it wasn’t that potent.

It couldn’t keep Zero down for long.

Sure enough, the “celestial symphony” in the plaza was starting to die down and gradually stopped.

Zero, who felt like he had no reason to keep on living, began to regain sensation in his body.

Everything was recovering quickly.

In just a moment, he was fully healed.

But he was in no hurry to get up—because he really, really wanted to die…

“Zero, how do you feel?”

Saturn, ever dedicated, was still filming.

’How do I feel? Can’t you tell I want to die?’

Perhaps realizing his question was a bit tactless, Saturn tried again.

“Has your strength improved?”

That finally reminded Zero to check his injuries.

He’d almost forgotten why he was here—the ordeal he’d just gone through had been that traumatic.

He looked down at his chest.

The pitch-black, almost black-hole-like wound on his chest was completely gone.

The wound from that slashing attack had completely healed.

The faint sensation of spreading toxins had now entirely vanished.

The poison was truly gone!

Zero stared at his pristine chest. At this moment, he didn’t just feel like he’d recovered quickly—he felt it was only natural.

“Do you have any idea what I just went through? So what if my injury healed? If it hadn’t, I would’ve wrung that kid’s neck!”

Sensing his body again, he confirmed a solid 10% boost in strength.

Whether it was his Haki or his physical condition, everything had been uniformly enhanced by a tenth.

Zero’s eyes held a trace of disbelief as he looked at Chiba, his gaze shifting.

’Is this guy really that absurd?’

Was there really such a medical technique in this world?

Saturn, upon receiving the news, found it equally unbelievable.

Zero wouldn’t lie to him, so the news was true—truer than pearls.

In that case, Imu-sama might summon this kid for treatment.

But then Saturn froze.

Wait—would Imu-sama really choose to enhance their strength like this?

Looking at Zero’s current state, Saturn was filled with uncertainty.

This strength boost didn’t seem necessary, especially considering the steep cost.

Would Imu-sama even accept such a treatment?

Forget Imu-sama—even Saturn himself wouldn’t want it, no matter the power boost.

Hearing Zero’s words, Sengoku’s mood didn’t improve one bit.

His thoughts aligned with Saturn’s: ’We’d rather not have this strength boost.’

You could train for strength, but if you lost face, you’d never get it back.

As Vir approached him, Sengoku’s expression was grim beyond words.

“Uh, Chiba, I actually think one hand’s just fine. It means less training in the future.”

“How about I pass on this?”

Sengoku gave a dry laugh, still trying to weasel out.

But Vir just shrugged—it wasn’t like he’d begged to treat him.

“Sengoku! Listen to yourself!” Saturn snapped.

“Kid, ignore him! Fire up the pot!”

“No, wait—”

“Do you want next month’s military budget or not?!”

“Huh? Well…”

Saturn’s two sentences shut down the conversation entirely. Sengoku crumbled under the weight of money.

An organization as massive as the Marines relied on his funding.

Without it, they couldn’t even pay out pirate bounties.

The giant wok was already heating up, and Vir stood by it, watching Sengoku with mild amusement.

He looked like he didn’t care whether Sengoku went in or not.

Sengoku was beyond helpless. Every step toward the wok felt like it was draining his life.

“Fleet Admiral, what’s wrong? Legs not working? I can fix that too—got a treatment lined up for you.”

Vir’s words, paired with that mischievous glint in his eye, made Sengoku’s heart lurch.

He knew there was no escape, so he decided to face it boldly.

Striding to the wok, brows furrowed, he stared straight ahead.

His face was filled with the resolve of a man marching to his death.

The sight gave everyone watching goosebumps.

’Our Fleet Admiral… he’s going to his doom.’

Or rather, this was a torture worse than death itself.

Vir didn’t say much. He just glanced at Sengoku, gave the wok a shake, and signaled for him to get in—the temperature was perfect.

“Here I go!”

With a solemn shout, Sengoku leaped into the wok with grim determination.

Only Garp’s recent departure from the base prevented absolute chaos.

The moment he hit the wok, Sengoku felt the searing heat that others before him had endured.

He was the first to jump into boiling oil.

The sensation was… different, to say the least.

The temperature, sky-high, felt like it was melting him.

Barely a moment in, Vir started receiving negative points.

[Ding! Congratulations, Host! You’ve earned 500,000 negative points!]

[Ding…]

It was the same familiar formula, the same familiar taste.

The fire roared, and the stir-frying intensified.

The temperature kept climbing, soon approaching the level Akainu had endured the previous day.

And it continued to rise, and rise.

Relying on the wok’s property of not cooking people to death, Vir cranked it up to the max—again and again.

Sengoku’s wrinkled old face contorted even further, and inwardly he cursed Vir at lightning speed.

’I’m not even someone related to fire!’

’Why am I getting a hotter wok than Akainu?’

’Am I really that much of an eyesore? Do you really want to roast me that badly?’

The crowd backed away, then backed away some more.

But even then, they couldn’t escape the skin-scorching heat.

Soon, only Akainu and a few others remained near the center.

Their expressions were heavy with concern.

They were genuinely afraid Sengoku would melt in there. He wasn’t as heat-resistant as Akainu, and the temperature now far exceeded what Akainu had faced.

Their fear wasn’t baseless. Without the wok’s special properties, a few minutes at this heat with no defenses would’ve turned Sengoku into a literal dish.

Thankfully, the wok’s unique trait ensured no one would be cooked to death.

After stir-frying Sengoku for over ten minutes, Vir finally let him out.

As Sengoku emerged, rolling his eyes back, the crowd rushed forward to check on him.

The first thing they did was confirm he was still alive.

Zephyr even checked his breathing.

When they confirmed he was still kicking, everyone let out a sigh of relief.

At the same time, they couldn’t help but marvel at Vir’s miraculous medical skills.

Even after all that, Sengoku hadn’t died—that was almost harder than believing in miracles.

Vir looked at Sengoku, still rolling his eyes on the ground, and pulled out his knife and fork again.

He’d eaten too quickly earlier, missing some parts.

Which was why Zero only provided a five percent damage immunity.

The injuries caused by his own poison should’ve yielded more than that.

But no rush this time—he could take it slow.

This old geezer, had plenty of abilities to offer.

What Vir needed most was physical prowess.

But if he could snag Sengoku’s Great Buddha form or his Conqueror’s Haki, that’d be perfectly acceptable too.

Both were top-tier abilities.

Strolling over to the seemingly half-dead Sengoku, Vir crouched down.

Sure, he’d eat slowly, but Sengoku didn’t have many injuries. Even careful eating might not yield much.

Eat first, think later!

With a small knife, Vir sliced Sengoku from top to bottom, then began the leisurely dining process.

The onlookers’ faces twisted involuntarily.

Sure, this “eating” was part of the treatment.

But every time they watched, it felt… peculiar.

Akainu and Zephyr, who’d experienced being eaten and watching others being eaten, agreed: the experience was entirely different.

Being eaten yourself brings physiological terror.

Watching someone else get eaten?

How the hell could he stomach doing this?!

Soon, the plaza was filled with the sounds of slicing, skewering, and chewing.

Sengoku woke up shortly after. He’d genuinely passed out from the heat.

When he opened his eyes, staring at the piece of his own flesh being held before him—

He fell into silence…

Source: .com, updated by novlove.com