Ch 6: The desire for the Baku Baku no Mi

Chapter 6: The desire for the Baku Baku no Mi

In this way, Ayaan began working as an apprentice at the clinic. It was only after joining that he learned the doctor—who looked more like a butcher—was named Jack, and the nurse was named Ruth. The two were engaged, which explained why Ruth was the one making decisions. Clearly, although Dr. Jack possessed excellent medical skills, he was completely powerless against his own "tracheitis" (nagging partner).

Dr. Jack had reluctantly accepted Ayaan into the clinic, but soon after witnessing Ayaan's abilities, he realized that he had picked up a treasure.

Although people in the One Piece world have far superior physical stats compared to those in the Naruto world, their average intelligence scores weren't much higher.

This was a world filled with little monsters who could tear apart bears, wolves, tigers, and leopards by the age of ten—but those who could read and write fluently at the same age were far fewer.

Someone like Ayaan, who not only knew how to read but also possessed medical skills on par with professional doctors, was a true rarity. At least in the Drum Kingdom, Dr. Jack had never seen a genius like him.

Moreover, Ayaan's medical foundation wasn't just theoretical—his practical skills were excellent as well. Within a few months, he was capable of treating most common ailments.

And that was with Ayaan actively suppressing his abilities and refraining from using chakra.

Although in the ninja world Ayaan couldn't even be considered a proper medical ninja, that was more a reflection of how high the threshold for medical ninjutsu was. In truth, he was already a fully qualified doctor by any reasonable standard.

Additionally, the medical systems in the Naruto and One Piece worlds were fundamentally different, which gave Dr. Jack a refreshing sense of novelty when observing Ayaan's techniques.

Of course, over the past few months, Ayaan had also absorbed plenty of new medical knowledge, greatly improving his own level. At this point, he had begun to feel confident even in his ability to perform healing techniques.

Generally speaking, the higher one's medical skill, the lower the requirements for Yang chakra and chakra control to execute healing jutsu. In a way, Ayaan was using skill to compensate for raw strength.

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One day, after Ayaan finished treating a patient who had been beaten up by a rabbit, he overheard some chatter in the clinic:

"Ah… I heard the king's condition is getting worse and worse."

"That's right. Sadly, the second prince doesn't seem like a good person either."

"Better than the eldest prince, right? That guy nearly poisoned the whole capital!"

"Shhh—careful! The eldest prince has already been exiled to the Fire Nation!"

Ayaan's lips twitched.

Huh. There's a Fire Country in the One Piece world too? Don't tell me there's a Konoha hidden village in there as well!

Of course, it was probably just a coincidence. After all, both Naruto and One Piece were written by Japanese authors—similar place names were bound to pop up.

Ayaan had no particular impression of the eldest prince, but he did remember the second prince—Wapol—especially the Baku Baku no Mi.

But I've lived on this island for several months now, and based on everything I've learned so far, it seems Wapol hasn't eaten the Devil Fruit yet...

Could it be that he got the Devil Fruit from the national treasury after becoming king?

This thought wasn't without basis. The current king of the Drum Kingdom couldn't be considered a wise ruler—he was simply one of the "less bad" individuals in a world already filled with questionable characters.

Still, he had some basic intelligence and reasoning. He understood that the Drum Kingdom was his foundation, and only by developing the nation could he reap long-term benefits.

Ayaan had learned from the townspeople that the eldest prince—whom he had never met—had once used his Devil Fruit powers to nearly wipe out the capital, just for fun.

Even the current king couldn't tolerate something like that. As a result, he exiled his eldest son. With such a precedent, it was understandable that Wapol hadn't been allowed to eat a Devil Fruit yet.

As for the idea that Wapol "accidentally" obtained the Baku Baku no Mi by chance after becoming king—Ayaan found that laughable. With Wapol's face and luck, there was no way such a convenient coincidence would happen.

Thinking this, Ayaan couldn't help but feel excited.

In the Naruto world, Devil Fruits were equivalent to bloodline limits. A standard Zoan-type Devil Fruit was comparable to an ordinary kekkei genkai. Ancient Zoans, strong Paramecias, and even some weaker Logias could be compared to elite bloodlines like the Mangekyō Sharingan, Sage Body, Wood Release, or Dust Release.

As for the most powerful types—mythical Zoans, top-tier Paramecias, and high-level Logias—they were practically on the level of the Rinnegan or Yin-Yang Release.

With Ayaan's natural talent, even if he had access to both the Naruto and One Piece worlds, his potential was still limited. At best, he could probably reach the strength of a Marine Vice Admiral or a mid-tier Kage. That would already be the upper ceiling—unless he got lucky.

A Devil Fruit, especially one as rare and versatile as the Baku Baku no Mi, might be the only chance to truly change his fate.

Thinking this far, a sense of urgency welled up in his heart. He now had a rough understanding of the timeline: the Pirate King, Roger, had been dead for thirteen years, and Luffy's journey would begin in another seven or eight years. When Luffy arrived at Drum Island, Wapol had already been ruling for a while.

In other words, the old king could die at any moment, and the Baku Baku no Mi could fall into Wapol's hands at any time.

Having spent several months understanding this world, Ayaan no longer wanted to waste time.

Medical skills could be studied anytime—but a Devil Fruit, once missed, might never appear again.

So, the next day, he requested a few days off from Dr. Jack and set off with a map in hand, heading for the capital of the Drum Kingdom.

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Drum Island was just a small island nation. Though Ayaan was only a Genin, his travel speed was fast. In just one morning, he arrived at the capital.

Calling it a "capital" was a bit of an overstatement. In truth, it was just a marketplace surrounded by a castle. The entire island was no larger than a typical large city.

As such, the capital itself wasn't very big either, with a population probably just barely over 10,000.

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