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"No more fighting. With your current strength, it's impossible to determine a clear victor."
Drake's face flushed red with frustration.
Though clearly unhappy, he had no choice but to admit the truth.
This guy's body had evolved somehow. Whether it was strength, speed, explosive power, recovery ability, or even endurance, which Drake prided himself on as a Zoan-type fruit user, Kyoma surpassed him in every category.
The physical difference was completely overwhelming. If it weren't for Kyoma's lack of practical combat experience and refined technique, Drake would have been defeated long ago.
"This isn't a fatal confrontation, but…" Drake declared suddenly as he retrieved the weapon that had been knocked to the ground.
Perhaps wanting to salvage some dignity, he turned to face Kyoma directly. "If I used my Devil Fruit power to compensate for our physical differences, you would definitely lose!"
'He's really that anxious about it.'
Hearing those defensive words, Kyoma nearly laughed out loud.
Fortunately, his past working life had taught him never to question someone in such a state.
That would only provoke genuine anger and escalate into a real fight.
Although he wasn't afraid of Drake's form, now that he'd mastered the [Dragonization] technique, they would still be working together in the future.
Making Drake too dejected wouldn't benefit anyone.
"You're absolutely right," Kyoma replied, giving him an affirming thumbs up.
His tone carried complete sincerity.
****
Drake left while still irritated, though not entirely consumed by anger.
He announced his intention to visit a tavern in the lawless zone of the Sabaody Archipelago for drinks.
While there, he'd gather information about current world events.
Relatively speaking, Island No. 53 remained too isolated.
There wasn't even a proper tavern. Shipwrights like Uncle Neil had to travel to other islands when they wanted to drink.
This didn't particularly bother Kyoma. Although he'd enjoyed drinking before transmigrating, he'd rarely frequented bars. He typically drank at home or during dinner parties with friends.
More importantly, he now had dependents to consider. The thought of bringing Kagura, Klee, and Kanna to a tavern made him uncomfortable. He decided he'd wait until summoning male companions before visiting such establishments.
For the remainder of the day, Kyoma resolved to continue his Haki training.
He normally wasn't such a diligent person, but having a character panel that displayed his practice progress in real-time made the experience feel like playing a game and leveling up. He was gradually developing into something of a training enthusiast.
'I could probably relate to Zoro now,' he mused.
He moved an enormous boulder from the seaside into the yard and began his daily [Armament Haki] training routine.
"Kyoma, what are you doing?"
After a while, Kanna emerged from the house.
She'd finished exploring her new room and the house, so now she had grown curious about his activities.
She'd arrived in this world only recently and remained in the stage of finding everything fascinating.
Earlier, she'd been in Klee's room watching her craft new bombs.
However, after Kanna couldn't resist eating one of them, an angry Klee had promptly driven her out.
Following that, she wanted to play with Kagura, but found her still sleeping on the sofa as usual.
Kanna understood the pain of being woken during sleep all too well, so she quietly departed the house, careful not to disturb Kagura's rest.
Upon stepping outside, she'd happened to spot Kyoma practicing.
"Hey there, Kanna. I'm practicing [Armament Haki]. You don't know about Haki yet, it's a power system unique to this world..."
Seeing it was Kanna, Kyoma enthusiastically began explaining Haki to her.
He'd tasted success with Kagura before.
If Kanna also learned [Armament Haki], some of those results would feed back to him through their connection.
'Why not advance while relaxing?' The prospect seemed ideal.
"It sounds interesting."
Kanna's eyes lit up with curiosity.
She extended one small, pale hand and clenched it into a fist. Then she concentrated on mobilizing her physical power exactly as Kyoma had described.
Kyoma watched with tremendous anticipation.
If Kagura could succeed on her first attempt, then Kanna, a dragon with an even more powerful body, should master [Armament Haki] with ease.
However, the situation developed strangely.
Kanna did mobilize the power within her body, but it wasn't [Armament Haki]. Instead, a cluster of jumping, flashing electrical arcs appeared, crackling loudly as they gradually enveloped her small hand completely.
"What is this...?"
Kyoma felt confused at first, but his expression gradually transformed into terror.
The electrical arc didn't stop after wrapping around Kanna's fist. It continued expanding steadily, then rapidly compressed back onto her hand, transforming into a sphere of lightning measuring tens of centimeters in diameter.
Around the lightning sphere, the air itself seemed impacted. Water vapor constantly evaporated with sharp crackling sounds.
The restless electricity flashed and sparked, displaying a rich purple hue. It appeared to contain unimaginable energy that might detonate at any moment.
Kyoma stood closest to her and felt the lightning's intensity most acutely.
He could barely keep his eyes open.
His skin stung painfully, and his sweat seemed ready to evaporate while his hair threatened to stand on end from the electrical charge.
A terrible premonition gripped him as he stared at the small lightning sphere with difficulty.
If Kanna threw that ball of lightning to the ground, not only would their rented house be obliterated, but the surroundings might be destroyed as well.
"Kanna, stop. Don't let it explode!" he shouted urgently.
"Huh?"
Kanna looked somewhat confused.
She examined the lightning ball in her hand and realized it didn't resemble the so-called [Armament Haki] at all. It appeared to be merely her own electrical power condensed into a sphere.
"Tsk, I failed."
Kanna puffed out her cheeks in disappointment. Then, under Kyoma's shocked gaze, she grasped the lightning ball in both hands and swallowed it in one bite.
"Burp, "
As Kanna's satisfied burp echoed through the yard, the lightning vanished completely.
The air returned to its previous tranquility, and all traces of the electrical disturbance disappeared.
"You... you just ate that?" Kyoma looked as if he'd witnessed a ghost, still reeling from shock.
Just moments ago, he'd even prepared for the worst-case scenario.
He'd been ready to transform into a dragon and rush to the second floor to protect Klee. As for Kagura on the first floor, he didn't need to worry about her.
He'd never expected the crisis would resolve so easily.
"Kyoma, I'm sorry. I failed." Seeing his expression, Kanna blamed herself.
She thought her failure to use that Haki power had disappointed him.
"Teach me again, Kyoma. Next time... I'll definitely succeed." Kanna clenched her fist and raised it high.
This was the encouraging gesture she'd learned from Klee.
"No, let's stop practicing this. It's far too dangerous."
Kyoma waved his hands to halt her. If she attempted it again and couldn't control the power properly, the island would genuinely be destroyed.
"Okay." Kanna nodded without fully understanding, disappointment clearly written across her face.
Kyoma observed all the changes in Kanna's expression.
Like Klee, she was innocent and transparent. Her mood, good or bad, showed plainly on her face. Right now, she was obviously unhappy.
This wouldn't do.
He summoned them to this world, which meant he bore the responsibility of ensuring his companions' happiness.
Thinking carefully, after Kanna arrived in this world today, aside from briefly passing through the market around dawn, she hadn't really experienced anything this world had to offer.
Therefore, Kyoma knew what needed to be done.
"How about we go fishing in the sea together?"