Kong Tai and the other did not stay long with Doctor Kureha.
After meeting Chopper, they took their leave and headed back towards the docks.
During their departure, Kong Tai also bought a few bottles of her plum wine.
He had initially hoped Doctor Kureha would gift him some, but she adamantly refused, insisting on selling it to him.
Her reasoning was that as a great pirate, he must surely have plenty of money and shouldn't be asking for wine from a doctor in a remote region.
Her logic was sound and unassailable, leaving Kong Tai with no choice but to pay and buy the wine.
However, after tasting it, he realized he had been swindled. The plum wine was not pleasant, lacking any strong alcoholic scent and having a very low proof. It also had a sour plum taste, which he personally disliked.
In contrast, Kuina found the plum wine’s flavor quite agreeable and purchased several more bottles from Doctor Kureha.
Indeed, even though the plum wine lacked a potent alcoholic character, it served well as a beverage.
Furthermore, Doctor Kureha had added herbs beneficial to young women into the wine, so it was understandable why Kuina would enjoy it.
Kong Tai also inquired about the tree used for building houses.
His initial thought was whether such a resilient tree could be used to construct ships.
He learned that this cold-resistant tree, unique to Winter Island, was unsuitable for shipbuilding.
When removed from its cold environment, the wood of this tree tended to expand easily. It was not only unfit for ships but also only usable as building material on Winter Island itself.
Regarding Chopper, before meeting him, Kong Tai had genuinely considered bringing the little reindeer aboard his ship. However, upon meeting him, that thought was immediately abandoned.
The reason was that Chopper's medical training was still incomplete.
Regardless of whether Chopper himself was willing, Doctor Kureha would certainly not permit it.
At this point, not even Monkey D. Luffy would be able to persuade Chopper to leave and sail the seas.
...
The Docks.
Ah Hua, the other two, and Indigo had finished unloading all the supplies from the White Iron King.
It had to be said, King Wapol truly lived a life of luxury, with vast quantities of food and fine wine stored on his ship.
The items brought down from the White Iron King filled the Free’s cargo hold, and anything that couldn’t fit was stowed in the forward cabin and on deck.
As Wapol was always accompanied by his "twenty doctors," the White Iron King also carried a substantial amount of medicine and surgical instruments.
Indigo transported all these items back to the Free, significantly bolstering his medical bay.
At the Bow of the Ship.
Mihawk, with his coat open, leaned back in a lounge chair, reading a newspaper.
On the small table beside the chair sat a cup of coffee, from which wisps of steam continuously rose, forming delicate tendrils that slowly ascended.
It was evident the coffee had been freshly brewed. Since everyone else on their ship drank tea, they didn’t typically stock coffee.
Therefore, this cup of coffee could only have been made by Mihawk himself.
One could only wonder how such a coffin-like small boat managed to accommodate these living necessities.
Indeed, someone was bound to be curious about how this man handled his personal needs at sea.
Of course, Kong Tai was also curious.
And so...
"Are you back?"
Mihawk lowered his newspaper, took a sip of his coffee, and looked up towards the rear of the docks.
Two figures were seen approaching the Free at a leisurely pace.
Kong Tai, holding Kuina’s hand, stood on the dock. He glanced at the vigilant Marines on the naval ship, then turned his gaze away.
He lifted his foot and, stepping onto the wooden planks, boarded the Free.
The moment Kong Tai’s foot landed on the deck of the Free, a stout figure wearing a chef’s hat quickly rushed out from the galley.
Ah Hua, brandishing a cleaver, was clearly in the midst of cooking.
He dashed towards Kong Tai and loudly complained, "Kong Tai, that guy named Hawk Eyes actually disdained the tea I brewed."
"Hey! I'm right here, you know!"
Mihawk, holding his coffee cup, stood on the deck above the forward cabin, leaning against the railing and looking down at Ah Hua. "I didn't disdain it; I just couldn't get used to the taste."
"You say you couldn't get used to it? Clearly, you found it distasteful. I saw your expression."
Ah Hua glared up at Mihawk, shouting furiously.
"Oh..."
Kong Tai looked at Ah Hua, a smile spreading across his lips.
"He disdained your tea, so why are you telling me? Do you want me to discipline him?"
"Yes!"
Ah Hua nodded without hesitation, then looked at Kong Tai with anticipation.
"Why don't you go yourself! Weren't you training well in Little Garden?"
"Uh!"
Ah Hua was speechless. "Isn't this an opportunity for you? I'm not afraid of this guy! If he weren't your friend, I would have taught him a lesson long ago for looking down on my culinary skills."
"Since when did you become so brave?" Kong Tai looked at Ah Hua, a flicker of strangeness in his eyes.
Thump thump thump!!
Just then, A-lu clapped his hands and emerged from the ship's cabin below.
Upon appearing, he loudly addressed Ah Hua, "This guy can't even beat me usually, so how could he dare to pick a fight with Mihawk!"
"You..."
Ah Hua's veins bulged on his forehead. He picked up his cleaver, slowly turned, and glared at A-lu, "Do you want to fight again!"
"Bring it on!"
A-lu extended his hand, wiped his forehead, and stared sideways at Ah Hua with disdain in his eyes, "Who's afraid of whom! Come on, are you scared?"
"You truly don't know what's good for you. Don't you remember who was crying and begging for mercy after I beat them in Little Garden?"
"You're talking about me crying and begging for mercy? Wasn't that you?"
A-lu lowered his hand, Ah Hua sheathed his cleaver, and the two pairs of eyes glared at each other.
The next moment, they rapidly charged towards each other.
"Ah..."
Mid-run, one raised his left hand, the other his right, and simultaneously swung towards the other's head.
Just as their fists were about to collide with each other's faces.
At that instant, a shadow fell upon them.
Thump thump!!
Bang—!
Kuina retracted her hands. She glanced at Ah Hua and A-lu, who lay on the ground with two large bumps on their heads, her expression calm.
"Stop embarrassing yourselves, okay? We have guests on board!"
She said, clapping her hands and turning to look at Mihawk. "My apologies, for letting you witness this. These two are usually quite..."
She thought for a moment, then shook her head helplessly. "They're always like this. Just think of them as a joke."
Further down the corridor outside the helm, A-tao, with a cigarette dangling from his lips, took a deep puff. He looked down at Ah Hua and A-lu with an air of arrogance. He removed the cigarette from his mouth with two fingers, exhaled, and blew a smoke ring downwards.
"Still so weak, still so foolish."
"Sigh!"
He turned, shaking his head, and walked into the helm.
"Loneliness!"
"What a show-off!"
Kong Tai watched A-tao’s retreating back, his lips twitching.
Ever since A-tao ate the Devil Fruit, he had become increasingly pretentious and arrogant.
He wondered if it was a side effect of the Devil Fruit.
He shook his head and looked at Ah Hua, saying with a smile, "Alright, the jokes are over. Ah Hua, it's almost noon, hurry up and prepare the meal!"
"Understood!"
Ah Hua stood up and glanced at A-lu.
"Hmph!"
He turned and entered the kitchen.
"What's with the 'hmph,' are you taking out your frustration on me because you couldn't beat Kuina?"
A-lu quickly followed Ah Hua into the kitchen. Clearly, he was going to help. Although these two were silly and often bickered, they were like a pair of squabbling lovers and never truly held grudges against each other.
"Interesting!"
Mihawk sipped his coffee, observing everything below. A smile flashed in his eyes.
He had only seen this kind of camaraderie within the Red Hair Pirates.
In such a crew, there were no overt superiors or subordinates; they were all friends, free to laugh and play. However, when it mattered, each individual was a comrade, a friend they could entrust their lives to.