Jinbe, Hody

Bright woke up from hunger.

His stomach growled.

He yawned and sat up, only to find that the room had already grown quite dim.

"First, I should get something to eat—"

Bright paused.

Better borrow some money from Brother Jinbe first.

He got to his feet and slowly walked out of the room. When he casually tried to close the door, he remembered that it was leaning against the hallway wall.

"I'll get a new door tomorrow."

Bright gave up on reinstalling the door and turned to head downstairs.

The moment he stepped out of the apartment and onto the rundown street, a shout came from behind him.

"Bright!!"

The familiar voice stirred Bright deeply.

He turned around.

A blue blur was already rushing toward him.

Bright was immediately pulled into a tight embrace.

"Thank goodness, Bright! You're safe! Thank goodness!!"

The whale shark fish-man, shorter than Bright but much broader, was overwhelmed with excitement.

Bright was excited too. He raised his arms and gave the man a warm hug. "Long time no see, Brother Jinbe!"

The newcomer was none other than Jinbe, the current captain of the Sun Pirates, the newest Shichibukai, and the Knight of the Sea.

Jinbe released Bright and examined him carefully. "You've grown taller and sturdier. It seems this past year hasn't been as difficult as I imagined."

"A lot happened by mistake."

Bright smiled. "In any case, it turned out to be a blessing in disguise. I still have to thank you, Brother Jinbe. Otherwise, regaining my freedom wouldn't have been easy."

"Hahaha, as long as you're all right."

Jinbe raised a hand and patted Bright's shoulder.

Since he was very young, Bright had always followed behind them. To Jinbe, Bright was like a younger brother.

"By the way, Brother Jinbe,"

Bright said seriously, "could I trouble you with something?"

"Oh? Just tell me."

Jinbe said heartily, "Your troubles are my troubles."

Bright rubbed his stomach. "Could you treat me to a meal? I'm starving."

Jinbe froze for a moment, then burst into laughter. "Then what are we waiting for? Let's go. We'll call it a welcome feast for you."

So Bright followed Jinbe to the best restaurant in the Fish-Man District.

Though calling it the best restaurant came with the Fish-Man District qualifier, which told anyone all they needed to know about its standards.

Like most of the buildings in the Fish-Man District, the restaurant looked old and dilapidated. But business was good, and at this mealtime it was nearly full.

"Oh! Boss Jinbe!"

"Brother Jinbe's here?"

Jinbe held great prestige in the Fish-Man District. The moment he entered the restaurant, many fish-men greeted him.

Some of Bright's acquaintances greeted him as well.

Responding to the familiar faces along the way, Bright and Jinbe found a table in the corner and sat down.

"Oh! The little brat Bright is back!"

The restaurant owner walked over with a grin. "Same as usual?"

"Of course! I've missed your cooking for a long time," Bright said with a smile.

The owner curled his lip. "Who are you trying to fool? Didn't you always say my food tasted awful?"

"That's why I only said I missed it." Bright blinked.

"You little bastard! You're just as annoying as when you were a kid!"

The owner stormed off angrily.

"Boss, make it two portions."

Bright called after him.

The portions he ate as a child were no longer enough.

"Honestly, Bright, you brat,"

Jinbe said with a smile in his voice, "you think the food here tastes bad, yet you always come here to eat?"

"When I was little, I always came here to ask the owner for leftovers."

Bright spoke nostalgically. "The taste wasn't much, but it's hard not to love that flavor."

Jinbe agreed. "In that case, there truly isn't any food more delicious than that."

The food arrived soon enough.

Merfolk and most fish-men did not eat fish. The meat eaten on Fish-Man Island came from all kinds of shellfish.

In the deep sea, beyond humanity's reach, there were many giant shellfish that could provide enough food for fish-men and merfolk.

Of course, quite a few merfolk could not even accept shellfish as meat. Their staple food was all kinds of edible seaweed.

Bright, of course, liked meat.

He immediately began wolfing it down impatiently.

It was still the familiar taste.

It was truly nostalgic.

Bright devoured his meal.

Jinbe watched him with a smile. "The Marines said you were sent to a secret base?"

"Mm."

Bright nodded and answered indistinctly, "It was a secret research base. I met Vegapunk there."

"Vegapunk?"

Jinbe exclaimed, "The world's greatest scientist?"

Bright nodded. "I got a Devil Fruit there, and with Vegapunk's help, I gained some strange abilities."

Jinbe was greatly shocked. "You're saying you ate a Devil Fruit? Then how did you get back?"

"That's why I said I gained some strange abilities."

Bright said casually, his mouth stuffed full of food.

"..."

Jinbe was deeply shaken. Allowing an ability user to overcome seawater was no mere strange ability.

Vegapunk truly was an incredible man!

"No wonder you called it a blessing in disguise." Jinbe sighed.

"By the way, Brother Jinbe,"

Bright wiped his mouth and lowered his voice. "On the way back, I killed the Marines escorting me."

"Huh?"

Jinbe's eyes widened. He directly crushed a corner of the table, and even snot flew from his nostrils.

But he quickly forced his voice down. "What happened?"

Bright roughly explained what had happened between him and Hag.

Jinbe frowned throughout.

"There are always people like that among humans." He said with disgust, "You did nothing wrong, Bright. We don't need to hate innocent humans, but when we encounter people like that, we shouldn't show mercy!"

"What worries me now is that if this gets exposed, it'll bring trouble to you and Fish-Man Island," Bright said.

If he had been alone, it would have been nothing.

But he had friends, a home, and a homeland.

Damn Hag.

He had disrupted Bright's plans for his life.

"Since there were no survivors, it won't be easy for the Marines to learn the truth."

Jinbe thought for a moment. "How about this? Tomorrow, I'll contact the Marines and ask them why you haven't returned yet."

Bright's eyes lit up. "Brother Jinbe, are you saying that as long as I disappear too, then it won't be my problem?"

Brother Jinbe looked simple and honest, but he was actually quite clever.

"But Bright, if we do that, you may need to keep a low profile for a while." Jinbe said worriedly, "Stay quietly on Fish-Man Island and don't draw attention."

"That's exactly what I want."

Bright smiled. "Right now, all I want is to stay quietly on Fish-Man Island."

"Really? It's hard to imagine those words coming from your mouth." Jinbe said in surprise. "Back then, you cried and fussed about going out to sea with us."

"After going through hardship, it's only natural to grow," Bright said as he ate.

"Then there's no problem."

Jinbe nodded. "At least stay quiet for a while and lie low. Don't worry, Bright. I definitely won't let anything happen to you."

"While we have this time, Bright, how about learning Haki?"

Bright looked up in surprise.

He had been about to make that request himself.

"You easily took down a Marine Rear Admiral. You really have gained some incredible abilities."

Jinbe smiled. "If it's you, surpassing me should be easy."

"Sure."

Bright readily nodded.

He had long understood that only by becoming strong could he live safely in this world.

"Good!"

Jinbe nodded in satisfaction.

If Bright was as he was now, perhaps he really could possess power comparable to an Emperor of the Sea.

In that case—

"Boss, two more portions!"

Bright shouted loudly.

"Huh? You've already finished?"

Jinbe was greatly surprised. "You can eat this much now?"

Bright smiled. "I'm still growing."

The many abilities had formed many organs that were still growing. Bright truly needed a great deal of nutrition and energy.

Moreover, the Didom Giant Lanternfish had granted Bright the ability to increase his strength and endurance.

But this enhancement was not a direct increase. Even throughout history, there was probably no creature with greater talent for strength than Bright, who now possessed both Megalodon and Kaido's Bloodline.

This ancient lanternfish could store energy, much like a camel.

But unlike a camel, the Didom Giant Lanternfish could unleash its stored energy, turning it into strength or stamina.

By eating more, Bright was, in a sense, charging himself.

Though it was barely useful for now, abilities grew stronger through training.

"By the way, Bright, there's something I hope you can help me with."

Jinbe remembered something, and his expression grew somewhat serious.

"Oh?"

After eating dinner with Jinbe and borrowing one hundred thousand beli from him for temporary expenses, Bright said goodbye to Jinbe.

But he did not return home.

He went to another part of the Fish-Man District, to a three-story building. Light shone through its windows, and the clamor inside could be heard clearly.

Bright sighed.

Brother Jinbe had really given him a troublesome errand.

But he had no choice but to come.

He would treat it as preventing a tragedy.

Bright reached out to push the door open.

But the door was pulled open before he could.

A man walked out.

He wore the uniform of a Ryugu Kingdom guard, with a bulging belly, sharp teeth, a pointed nose, and curly black hair.

Bright called out the man's name with disgust. "Hody."

The fish-man named Hody saw Bright as well. He froze for a moment, then spoke with equal disgust. "You're not dead yet? Half-blood!"

Thanks to the generous reader 'Early Morning Youth' for the hundred-point tip. Thank you!