Adaptability, The Missing Mermaid Incident

"Why do you look so disheveled these past few days?"

Sharly asked Bright, who was devouring his food, with confusion.

Bright indeed looked battered. Aside from the marks from being beaten, there were many scorched areas on his body, a significant difference from his usual bruised and swollen appearance after training.

"I'm practicing a very interesting technique,"

Bright said with a smile.

Using electricity instead of water to perform Fish-Man Karate was definitely an unprecedented attempt.

Compared to water, which made up most of the body's weight, electricity was far more explosive.

Even with Jinbe's guidance and advice, the experimental process remained arduous.

Bright's body could generate and store electricity, but if he were to use Fish-Man Karate techniques to directly convert electricity into propulsive force within his body, the electrical discharge would also cause him damage.

This was the reason for his current state; he kept electrocuting himself during experiments.

Hearing Bright's words, Nana, the little mermaid who was freeloading food and drinks nearby, curiously asked, "How interesting is it?"

Bright choked slightly. "Well, it's just... very interesting."

"How interesting is it then?"

The little girl tilted her head curiously, her innocent, large eyes blinking rapidly, filled with confusion.

Bright pursed his lips.

This brat.

"Alright, you dummy, don't bother big brother,"

Miss Mirian said with a chuckle as she walked over and wiped her silly daughter's mouth. "Big brother is getting stronger every day to protect Sharly."

"That's right, it's truly enviable!"

The other mermaids immediately chimed in upon hearing this.

"Is this what childhood friends are like? Why don't I have one!"

"Hey, young man, while you're protecting Sharly, could you protect us too?"

"Yeah, we feel really insecure too."

Bright's mouth twitched.

"Really..."

Sharly rubbed her forehead, feeling a headache coming on.

Should I just fire all these employees?

"Oh! So cool!!"

Nana looked at Bright with admiration. "I want to become stronger too!"

She excitedly waved her little arms. "Then, when danger comes, I can protect Mommy and all the older sisters!"

"Ah!! Nana!!"

Then, the little girl was instantly swarmed by the mermaids.

"How can there be such a cute child!!"

"While it's heartwarming, little Nana,"

Sharly also couldn't help but chuckle. "If danger comes, remember to run away and quickly find an adult for help."

"Ehh--"

The little girl looked greatly disappointed. "But I want to protect everyone with my own hands."

"You can say things like that when you've become stronger yourself,"

Bright reached out and ruffled her hair. "Someone who can't even protect themselves can't protect anyone."

Nana seemed to understand, yet not quite.

Afterward, training continued.

After the daily routine of Haki training came physical conditioning.

With Jinbe's help, Bright continuously experimented with the specialized electrical propulsion techniques he had envisioned.

It wasn't simply about stimulating the body with electricity to enhance physical abilities, but about truly using electricity as energy to propel his movements.

It could be called electrical propulsion without issue.

The problem was that electricity was far more volatile than water, and precise control was not an easy task.

This was something that tested patience and endurance.

Fortunately, Bright lacked neither.

"Crackle!"

Faint sparks of electricity jumped across Bright's right arm.

"Oh! Excellent, excellent!"

Jinbe's face broke into a smile of immense surprise. "You controlled it! You did it, Bright!"

This was the first time!

"Bright, throw a punch. Try to unleash this one and see!"

Bright simply nodded gently, afraid that speaking would cause him to lose focus and fail again.

He tentatively threw out a punch.

Crack!

Halfway through his punch, a dazzling lightning flashed on his arm, and Bright let out a muffled groan in sync.

Jinbe frowned.

It had failed.

Fish-Man Karate was internal; the water exploded within the body, not sprayed out.

The current that should have acted within his body had splashed outward. Without a doubt, this attempt had failed again.

"Fortunately, the current I can generate isn't that strong."

Bright shook his arm.

It felt a little tingly.

In his human form, the strength of the current he could generate on his own was naturally much weaker than the lightning he created when transformed into a Red Dragon.

However, this was for the best. If the current was too powerful and forced to erupt within his body, Bright feared he would blow himself up.

"At least, this was a very useful attempt," Jinbe said seriously. "It proves your hypothesis was successful; current can indeed be used to perform Fish-Man Karate."

Bright smiled and nodded. This proved he would truly create a very powerful fighting style.

However, not many people would be qualified to practice it.

"But, Bright, is it my imagination?" Jinbe looked at Bright's right arm, which showed hardly any damage. "Is the current doing less and less damage to you?"

He remembered that the first time he failed slightly, his body had been scorched black by the electricity.

That was an unavoidable current eruption from within the body.

"My body has gotten used to it," Bright said with a laugh.

"Huh?" Jinbe couldn't understand.

But then he nodded slightly.

Perhaps this was one of those strange abilities Vegapunk had granted Bright?

Jinbe guessed correctly.

One of the bloodlines Bright possessed came from a Giant Water Bear.

This was Bright's most valued ability.

The most terrifying aspect of these creatures, which had existed for hundreds of millions of years, was their adaptability. They could rapidly change their bodies according to environmental changes, and no terrifying environment could harm them—lava, ice, lightning, even a vacuum.

Even if it was just adaptation and not evolution, it was still astonishing.

Although the ability was still weak, Bright's body was indeed gradually adapting to the current eruption.

Because of this ability, Bright had even considered using flames, perhaps a "Lightning Flame Dragon Mode" or something similar.

But unfortunately, he only had the ability to breathe fire; he couldn't freely generate flames. This idea had to be shelved.

However, while flames couldn't be used internally, they could be used externally.

Wasn't Kaido's ultimate move like that?

Creating a technique similar to Susanoo.

"If this continues, it should be completed in a few more days—an unprecedented Fish-Man fighting style!" Jinbe looked at Bright with great relief.

He knew very well that once this technique was completed, Bright's strength would leap forward again.

The power provided by a current eruption was far greater than that of a water eruption.

As long as Bright could skillfully master both forms of Haki, even without profound mastery, he would likely possess the strength to rival or even surpass him, wouldn't he?

This guy was truly getting stronger every single day!

The new fighting style was gradually taking shape, and Fish-Man Island was also calm. Arlong and Hody, who were under surveillance, had made no moves.

However, just as Bright thought this training routine could continue, the unexpected happened.

One day, as Bright returned to the Mermaid Cafe after a day of training, he unexpectedly found the shop closed.

He knew that this shop always had good business, and in all the time he had been here, this was the first time he had encountered it closing so early.

He pushed the door open and found the mermaids gathered together, discussing something with worried expressions. They were even startled by the sound of him opening the door.

"Oh, it's you, young man. You startled me," one of the mermaids said.

"But it's a relief that you're back. I feel reassured now."

The mermaids, some still shaken, others turning their worry into joy.

"So, what exactly happened?"

Bright looked at Sharly.

Sharly slowly said, "Today, several mermaids went missing from Mermaid Bay."

"What?"

Bright's pupils suddenly constricted.

Had such a thing finally come to face him?