One Piece: It's always been you

Chapter 9 Joyful Town (3)

"Ouch~ It hurts so much."

Youwei slowly woke up, feeling weak all over and with a throbbing head. She vowed that she would never use this healing ability again; it was too much of a torment.

"You're awake?" Katakuri had just entered Yu's room when he discovered that Yu was awake.

"Kachin 2? Where am I?"

"Huh? Katakuri?" The sudden address startled Katakuri slightly. Was he really that silly? "Back on the ship."

"How long have I slept?"

Yu has no memory of falling into a coma. Katakuri must have gone into the cave. How did he get out? Did Buck catch up with him?

"One day." Katakuri knew what Yu would ask next, so he told her what happened after they entered the cave.

There weren't any other traps or mechanisms inside the cave, just the thorns at the beginning. The path was clear after that, but further in was a temple. The temple itself wasn't particularly remarkable, except for the treasure inside. Katakuri didn't tell Yu this, believing it wouldn't matter whether she knew or not, and that she wouldn't care too much.

Later, Katakuri found an exit, but it was only accessible from the outside; there was no way out of the temple. Just as Katakuri was trying to figure out a solution, the door opened from the outside. It was Buck's father, Wolf, who had come to repay Yu for saving him. He guessed that Yu and Katakuri might find this cave if they entered the mountains, and had been waiting there.

"He's returning the favor to you," Katakuri said, pointing to the food beside him. "Eat something if you're hungry."

After sleeping all day, Yu was indeed a bit hungry. However, Katakuri had brought mostly sweets...didn't he realize that what she needed right now was nutrition?

"Are you always this weak every time you use your ability?" Katakuri looked at Yu's pale face, though it was much better than a day ago. "Why aren't you eating?"

"..." Yu didn't answer Katakuri's question. Did he even need to think about it? Who would eat sweets after recovering from a serious illness, especially when he was still very weak?

"My ability is rather unique; it can heal any damage caused by Devil Fruits or the three colors of Devil Fruits. However, each time I use it, I fall into a coma, lasting anywhere from three days to half a month. This time, the fact that it only lasted one day was unexpected."

"So you're saying that ability users are no different from ordinary people in your presence?" Katakuri remembered that Gladius's missiles had an effect on her last time.

"Of course not, I can only cure, not prevent."

"What about the three colors?"

“Three colors…three colors seem to…provide immunity…” Yu looked at Katakuri’s inquisitive yet slightly envious expression and found it inexplicably amusing. “Katakuri, you seem quite interested?”

"Hmm, your ability is not common." Katakuri did not shy away from the question; he would never hold a grudge against someone with a strong ability.

This is something Yuu doesn't understand, admitting it so readily? It wasn't like this last time with the donuts. Speaking of donuts, it's almost Katakuri's afternoon tea time, but she doesn't have time to make donuts now.

"It's almost time for your afternoon tea, isn't it? How about we just have some of these desserts today?" Yu pointed to the desserts on the table and invited Katakuri to eat with her.

“...I don’t like eating with other people.” Katakuri’s expression stiffened slightly, but only for a moment before returning to normal. “You should get some rest.”

Yu was a little confused; she had invited him to eat with her, but it seemed like she was being rejected.

"Fine, don't eat it then, I'll eat it myself!"

After Katakuri left, he pondered Yu's abilities: the ability to heal the additional effects of Devil Fruit users and immunity to all three types of Conqueror's Haki. Katakuri, unaware of Yu's true abilities, readily believed her words. Even later, when Big Mom used Conqueror's Haki on Yu, he still believed Yu was immune.

Katakuri never used Observation Haki to predict Yu's actions until later, when he discovered that Observation Haki could see Yu's future, but it was too late.

Actually, Yu wasn't telling the truth; she wasn't immune to the three types of abilities. Conqueror's Haki was useless against her simply because of her strong will; Observation Haki was useless against her simply because she was faster; Armament Haki was useless against her simply because she formed a protective layer of water around her body, and those who could touch her were all Devil Fruit users with some strength, naturally unable to withstand seawater.

"However, why did she only sleep for one day this time? That shouldn't be the case."

So far, Yu has only used her ability three times. The first time was to help her brother Rosinante, during which she only slept for three days; the second time was to heal her grandfather Sengoku, during which she slept for nearly twenty days. Since then, Sengoku and Rosinante have strictly forbidden Yu from using her ability, as the backlash was too great, and they fear that if she uses it again, she will remain in a deep sleep.

Originally, Yu intended to cure Law the third time, but Law was ill, not due to a Devil Fruit. This benefited Katakuri, as the third target of his ability was him.

"Could it be that I've become stronger because I haven't used it for so long?" Thinking of this, You couldn't help but feel a little proud.