Orochimaru sat on the chair with a look of utter despair, his upper clothes casually open, revealing the clear fist mark Luffy had left on him; his abdomen was slightly red, making him look quite disheveled.
Orochimaru looked at Chopper helplessly. Chopper was holding tweezers, carefully dipping cotton in medicine, preparing to apply it to his wound. "Chopper... you don't need to help me, it'll be fine soon..."
Chopper, however, made a shark-like face, glaring angrily at Orochimaru and shouting, "Urusai!!! Are you the doctor or am I the doctor?! If you don't listen, I'll punch you again!!" Chopper's cute face even held a hint of ferocity.
Orochimaru immediately felt incredibly wronged. All of a sudden, he felt his status had plummeted to its lowest point.
He could only let Chopper apply the medicine to him with a wronged expression, mumbling to himself: I clearly have regeneration techniques, this minor injury doesn't even require Chakra, it'll heal in a moment... The more he thought about it, the more wronged he felt, Chopper even yelled at him.
No, I must be strong, I'm not five years old anymore. Orochimaru silently encouraged himself, but his wronged little eyes couldn't be hidden (ᇂ_ᇂ|||)
Everyone tried their best to avoid looking at the snake, after all, they had to let the snake learn a lesson occasionally, and not always let him do as he pleased.
When they saw the conflict between Luffy and Orochimaru just now, they suddenly seemed to realize some unknown attributes of Orochimaru.
Everyone kept pondering in their minds, what was that saying called again? Is it bullying the weak and fearing the strong? No, it doesn't seem to be. Thinking about it carefully, it seems to be just simply fearing the strong?
At this moment, Orochimaru's eyes revealed a hint of discomfort. His mouth twitched slightly, as if he wanted to defend himself, but didn't know where to start. The person who never cared about others' opinions now felt a bit more awkward.
"Hey... Luffy... how about two years?" Orochimaru was Orochimaru after all, and quickly suppressed that strange feeling, looking at Luffy.
"Two years of what??" Luffy was still angry at this moment, but he still turned his head to look at Orochimaru.
Orochimaru sighed, that sigh seemed to contain endless helplessness. "If everyone is forced to separate... then let's reunite after two years... how about it?" His voice was steady, yet carried a hint of imperceptible sadness.
Luffy clenched his fists tightly, suppressing his anger, "Orochimaru... are you sure we will definitely reach that point?"
"I'm sure..." Orochimaru's voice was a bit hoarse, as if that hoarse voice came from the depths of his soul. He even involuntarily flicked his snake tongue.
Luffy's fist clenched and then loosened, unsure how to decide.
Zoro suddenly spoke, his voice breaking the tension and entanglement in the air.
"I think Orochimaru's concerns are very reasonable."
Zoro frowned slightly, his eyes revealing seriousness and deep thought. "If we are truly beaten defenseless at Sabaody Archipelago, flung away by Kuma, scattered everywhere.
Even if we gather again, what's the point? We'd still be a disorganized mob." Zoro's words were like a heavy hammer, striking everyone's hearts.
He continued, "That kind of despair will still come again, and by then, will the enemy still show mercy like Kuma did?
...It's better to do as Orochimaru said, train separately and wait for a later day. One such humiliating experience is enough."
Zoro's expression was firm, and an unyielding flame burned in his eyes. He tightly gripped the sword at his waist, declaring his resolve.
His words made everyone fall into contemplation; they began to seriously consider Orochimaru's proposal.
"Hey... hey... hey..." Usopp suddenly made a sound, his eyes wide, his face full of confusion.
"Why are you all so conflicted? The thing hasn't happened yet, does this even need to be considered? The thing hasn't happened yet, what's there to worry about... Maybe this thing won't happen.
Even if it does happen, and we get sent flying, well, we've already been sent flying, haven't we? Then just train with peace of mind, isn't that good enough?" Usopp said, waving his hands, not caring at all.
"Since that Kuma has already chosen a good place for us, it should be a place beneficial for our training," Usopp's tone carried a hint of anticipation.
Usopp was right, the matter hadn't happened yet, there was no need to be so conflicted. Even if it really happened, they could face it calmly and train with peace of mind, just as he said.
The atmosphere suddenly recovered, and everyone returned to their usual state, eating and drinking as if the previous worries had never appeared.
However, in this seemingly relaxed atmosphere, one spot seemed particularly tense.
Luffy's face was suddenly right in front of Orochimaru's, so close that one could almost feel each other's breath.
Orochimaru's eyes flickered; he leaned his head back slightly, "Luffy... too close... what else do you want?" Orochimaru's voice held a hint of panic.
Luffy looked at Orochimaru suspiciously, his gaze as if trying to penetrate his mind. "Are you really not hiding anything else?" Luffy's tone was full of suspicion.
Orochimaru tried to keep a straight face, feigning composure as he replied, "Hmm... nothing else."
Luffy still didn't believe him and pressed again, "Are you really sure there's nothing else????"
Orochimaru awkwardly turned his head, avoiding Luffy's gaze, "Really nothing."
Luffy released his grip on Orochimaru's shoulder and mumbled as he walked away.
But suddenly, his head stretched back, looking at Orochimaru. "Are you sure???" Luffy's eyes were full of persistence.
Orochimaru's gaze shifted nervously, "Really nothing."
Everyone looked at Orochimaru (ㅍ_ㅍ): "There absolutely is!!! This cunning snake!!"
Luffy frowned, his brows tightly knitted together, as if they could trap a fly.
He pressed a finger to his temple, his eyes tightly closed, thinking hard. His brain was working rapidly, trying to find that forgotten thing.
He thought so intensely that his entire body turned red, his face flushed like a ripe apple. However, no matter how much he racked his brains, he couldn't remember what he had forgotten.
Luffy kept feeling that Orochimaru was still plotting something. But what could it be? Luffy fell into deep confusion.
He continued to rack his brains, and time passed minute by minute, until smoke billowed from Luffy's head, and he still couldn't figure it out.
Finally, Luffy gave up helplessly, he let out a long sigh, a frustrated expression on his face.
Orochimaru saw that Luffy had given up asking and finally let out a relaxed breath. He wiped away non-existent sweat, secretly feeling relieved.
But as soon as he turned his head, he saw Robin, Zoro, and Franky looking at him with meaningful expressions.
-------------------------------
I've already uploaded 40 chapters of this story on Patreon!
If you enjoy it, come check out the latest chapters in advance.
Here's the link:
[patreon.com/Greyhounds]
Thank you so much for your support!!
"And If you're enjoying it, drop a Power Stone for me!"