The Big One Is Coming

Bright had negotiated terms with Alexander, the greatest deep-sea warrior.

The warrior, who yearned for strength, could not resist the temptation of becoming even stronger. In the end, he agreed to Bright's proposal to become friends.

Bright made an agreement with him.

Bright would teach him Haki and make him an even stronger deep-sea warrior, while Alexander would become Bright's friend and help him whenever Bright needed it.

It could be called a win-win situation.

"Then it's settled, partner!"

The Warrior Shrimp's form of address changed immediately. He happily shouted, "Let's get along well from now on!"

"Sure."

Bright nodded with a smile.

He was such a simple and straightforward guy. Being friends with someone like him made one feel at ease.

"Bright!"

Arlong's voice came from behind him.

Bright turned around. Once the dust had settled, Arlong and the others hurried over.

Glancing uneasily at the colossal beast on the seafloor, which was excitedly waving its claws about, Arlong asked urgently, "Is it over?"

This guy had suffered serious injuries, but wasn't he still lively and kicking?

Bright sensed Arlong's concern.

No.

He heard Arlong's concern.

A sound was coming from him.

It was the sound called concern.

The corners of Bright's eyes widened ever so slightly.

Was this... the ability to read minds?

He swept his Observation Haki over Shark Star and the other fish-man who had been leading the way. He could hear the same worried sound from them, along with sounds of excitement and exhilaration.

No, this wasn't mind-reading. He had not truly heard their thoughts; he could only sense their current emotions.

Strictly speaking, it was probably a weakened version of Otohime's ability.

But it was already remarkable enough, considering this was only one manifestation of his Observation Haki.

"It's over."

Bright smiled. "No fight, no friendship. We're friends now."

"Friends!"

Alexander happily raised his four enormous pincers. "Let us cheer for the friendship of warriors!"

Alexander startled Arlong so badly that he instinctively tried to swim upward, only stopping after realizing Alexander was not going to do anything else.

Then he came to his senses.

"Bright!!"

Arlong's eyes went wide. "You tamed a Sea King?"

"Not tamed," Bright corrected. "I made a friend."

"That's right! Do not sully the friendship of warriors!"

Alexander roared along with him.

This time, Arlong was not frightened.

He looked down at Alexander's enormous body, his eyes beginning to shine. "Bright, Bright, this is something no one has ever done before!!"

No, someone actually had.

And the results were probably far more outrageous than mine.

"We can definitely change Fish-Man Island!"

Arlong's tone was incomparably resolute. "We can definitely create an unprecedented Fishman Empire!"

Shark Star also looked deeply excited.

If even Sea Kings could be tamed, then if this man could not change Fish-Man Island, who could?

"Since there's a first Sea King, there can be a second and a third!!"

Arlong's attitude was becoming almost fanatical. "We could form an army of Sea Kings! When that time comes—"

"What could possibly stop us? What the hell in this world could possibly stop us?"

Even though your words were stirring, that was impossible.

"That's impossible."

Alexander said matter-of-factly, "We only obey the Sea King's commands."

"I understand."

Bright nodded.

Sea Kings like Alexander were exceedingly rare. The vast majority of Sea Kings had no desires or ambitions, merely waiting quietly for the Sea King's summons. Even if one could communicate with them, taming them was impossible.

But that didn't matter.

The Sea King was naturally on his side.

As long as Shirahoshi didn't grow up wrong, once she awakened, every Sea King would fight for Fish-Man Island.

Come to think of it, should he have Neptune take charge of Shirahoshi's education?

That crybaby from the original story really wouldn't do.

"Anyway, Brother Arlong, take that thing back first."

Bright pointed at the sea beast lying on the seabed nearby. This trip had been for the purpose of capturing it.

Bright now knew that Alexander had suddenly attacked because he had personally witnessed Bright casually deal with that sea beast, leading him to regard Bright as a powerful undersea warrior.

"Oh, right. Keep the matter of the Sea Kings secret from everyone except Brother Jinbe for now. Don't let it spread."

It definitely couldn't stay hidden for long, but it was better to conceal it for as long as possible.

If the World Government noticed, they would surely assume the Sea King had awakened. That would be troublesome.

"Alright."

Arlong did not hesitate in the slightest.

Because he was already utterly convinced that Bright was always right.

Arlong and Shark Star took the sea beast back.

Bright stayed behind and taught Alexander, word for word, the methods of Haki training Jinbe had taught him.

"Oh! That sounds like a very powerful technique!"

Alexander's long tail swayed gently, the hammer at its end smashing into the seafloor again and again, leaving huge craters behind.

"It is indeed a very powerful technique,"

Bright said with a smile. "If you learn it, your strength will undergo a qualitative leap. So, do you understand, Alexander?"

"Not at all."

The proud deep-sea warrior answered with perfect confidence.

He had almost forgotten. Sea Kings were basically illiterate too.

Left with no choice, Bright made an agreement with the Warrior Shrimp to set aside some time every day to teach him Haki.

Alexander also thumped his chest and declared that Bright only needed to call if he ever needed help; he would always be near Fish-Man Island.

Before they parted, Bright said, "Then let's grow stronger together, my friend."

Sparring with an opponent on Alexander's level should finally temper his Haki and make it stronger, right?

"Woooah!!"

Bright had never expected Alexander to react so strongly. His voice even choked with emotion. "Helping and supporting each other on the path to becoming stronger—this is the friendship of warriors!! How beautiful!"

"Let's become stronger together, my friend!"

Bright bumped his fist against Alexander's enormous claw.

He had made a pretty good friend.

After bidding Alexander farewell, Bright returned to the Sea Forest. The moment he reached the training grounds, Jinbe hurried over to greet him.

"Arlong said you tamed a Sea King?" Jinbe deliberately lowered his voice, but Bright could still hear the excitement he could not suppress.

"I didn't tame him. I made a friend."

Bright lowered his voice as well. "My Observation Haki awakened."

Jinbe froze. It was certainly a good thing, but he could not understand why Bright had suddenly brought it up out of nowhere.

"It's special," Bright said. "Because of it, I gained the power to communicate with Sea Kings."

Jinbe's pupils constricted.

He immediately realized what that meant.

"This secret cannot be known by any more people!"

Jinbe said solemnly.

"That's what I think too. But before that, I need to see Neptune."

It was time to lay everything out in the open.

Bright soon met Neptune in a tea room within Ryugu Palace.

Bright had quite the standing by now. With advance notice, he strode straight into Ryugu Palace without obstruction.

"Ha ha ha ha! Bright, you came at just the right time!"

The moment they met, Neptune was beaming. "The mineral survey has yielded results! We found an enormous iron ore deposit in an undersea rift not far east of where we first encountered each other!"

"The mining company is already taking shape."

"That's good."

Bright nodded lightly. "But there's something more important to discuss today."

Neptune's expression grew a little more serious.

"Today, I made a Sea King friend."

Bright kept it brief.

But Neptune's eyes widened.

Fish-men and merfolk could communicate with fish and even sea beasts, but no matter how powerful someone's ability to communicate was, they could never communicate with Sea Kings.

That had been an ironclad rule on Fish-Man Island for countless generations.

"Could it be that you are—"

Neptune could not help crying out.

He had thought it was his daughter.

But that could not be right. Wasn't it supposed to be a mermaid?

And the timing did not match either.

"I'm not."

Bright shook his head. "I simply have a special ability that helps with communication. From my Sea King friend, I learned that the king of the Sea Kings—the true ruler of the sea—is currently on Fish-Man Island."

"That king was born five years ago," Bright added.

Neptune fell silent for a moment.

He was now completely certain.

Neptune slowly exhaled, then gave a gentle nod. "It's Shirahoshi."

A smile appeared on Bright's face.

Neptune had not concealed it. He truly was trustworthy.

Now, both sides had been candid.

Bright said, "Then, King Neptune, let's talk about Princess Shirahoshi."

No one knew what Bright and Neptune discussed.

After leaving Ryugu Palace, Bright's days continued as usual—training, capturing sea beasts—except he now had an additional task: helping Alexander train his Haki.

During that time, Bright went to ask Shyarly whether she had known about Alexander all along. Shyarly merely smiled without answering.

Time passed slowly, and more than a week went by.

During that period, Alexander made no progress in his Haki training. Instead, he and Bright captured several sea beasts together, expanding the Immigration Bureau's sea beast reserves to eleven, with one extra left over.

After discussing it with Jinbe, Bright decided to use that sea beast as a reward.

The basic training had ended, and the warriors had begun to look a little like soldiers. The Immigration Bureau was finally about to begin formal operations.

They had to give the warriors, who had waited so long, some encouragement, right? The remaining sea beast was perfect for that.

Now, something truly big was coming.