Chapter 25: The Big Bear
After comforting his fellow clansman, Nereus looked at Kuma—the "Tyrant" who saved all his gentleness for others.
Nereus had originally come over because he noticed Kuma using his ability. He had intended to ask Kuma to help send people away.
However, looking at Kuma's current state, his physical stamina seemed to be draining rapidly.
"You must have just eaten that Devil Fruit. You aren't proficient with the ability yet. I have a method that can help you recover your stamina and allow you to use your ability more smoothly.
It will hurt a little. Want to try?"
Kuma's ability was currently the safest way for ordinary people to leave this island. In the original timeline, Kuma also saved many people using this power.
"If I can save more people, I'll do it."
"Hey, Kuma, are you just going to trust him like that? What if he does something to you..."
Ivankov appeared somewhat nervous. Living in this environment for so long meant constant high pressure. He still held a skeptical attitude toward the suddenly appearing Nereus.
"Iva! Lord Nereus would never lie to us! With his strength, if he wanted to do something to us, he wouldn't need to go through all this trouble!"
"It's fine, Little Ivan. He's a good person saving lives too, isn't he?"
Both the Fish-man from Nereus's clan and Kuma gave their answers. Ivankov didn't argue further and instead bowed his massive head toward Nereus.
"I'm sorry, please forgive me. This island is just too dangerous..."
"It's nothing. Vigilance is normal. There are indeed very few trustworthy people on this island. You don't need to worry; I'm just going to take something from him temporarily, and I'll return it to him later.
How old are you this year?"
Nereus looked at Kuma and asked a question that confused those present.
"Nine years old."
"Nine? In that case... ten years should be about right. If you're ready, just relax. It won't take long."
Kuma nodded, then closed his eyes. If I can't see it, I won't be scared—that was a human instinct.
Nereus placed his hand casually on Kuma's body and activated his ability.
A strange sensation instantly spread through Kuma's entire body. A wave of soreness and ache radiated from his bones, but it wasn't unbearable.
Compared to the suffering the Celestial Dragons had inflicted on him over the years, this pain was nothing.
Riiip...
The vest on Kuma's body tore apart, revealing the sturdy body underneath. Nine-year-old Kuma was already a big kid, but he couldn't compare to the Kuma standing there now.
"Did I... get bigger?"
Feeling the change in his perspective height, Kuma looked at his hands and felt the changes in his body.
"Hee-haw... Kuma, you've become... so big..."
Ivankov now had to look up at Kuma. He measured himself against him and found that he didn't even reach Kuma's waist.
"Not just bigger—older. I took away 10 years of his lifespan. But don't worry, I will return it to him later."
The Vampire Fruit's manipulation of lifespan wasn't just about cutting off the end of a life while leaving the body unchanged.
A person whose lifespan was forcibly drained would normally become incredibly old, experiencing the passage of time in an instant.
As long as he slowed down this process, Nereus could allow the person whose life was being drawn to grow according to their natural trajectory, just at a much faster rate—essentially achieving a "force-ripening" effect.
This was the case with Kuma. Nereus had advanced Kuma to the age of 19, helping him skip the developmental phase.
However, this was an unconventional method, far inferior to natural growth, and was only being used as an emergency measure in this situation.
"You feel it, right? The power contained in your body now is far greater than when you were a child. Using your fruit ability will also become much more intuitive."
regardless of race, childhood was a stage of incomplete development. An adult body could utilize Devil Fruit abilities much better than a child's.
After all, activating fruit abilities consumed stamina to some extent, and adults had a significant advantage in this regard.
This was even more concrete for Zoan users. If the eater was a child, the transformed animal would also be in its infancy, unable to use many abilities.
An adult, however, could unleash a more complete power immediately—provided they weren't like Momonosuke, who was a bit of a special (useless) case initially.
A 19-year-old young man was at the peak of vigor. In this state, Kuma could naturally accomplish much more.
"I feel it. Thank you for your help. Now... I can save even more people."
Before, Kuma was sending people away one group at a time. After being transformed into a young adult by Nereus, Kuma began working with both hands, sending people off the island at a much faster speed.
The Buccaneer Tribe possessed the blood of Giants. The racial traits they displayed were exceptional recovery and endurance, and these abilities became even more outstanding in adulthood.
"Little Ivan, Ginny, come here. I'll send you away too."
Originally, Kuma wanted to send the two of them away first, but both chose to stay with Kuma until the end.
"Kuma, be careful. Hurry up and send yourself away too."
"Yeah, Bear-boy, we'll wait for you on the other side!"
Pop! Pop!
Accompanied by two muffled sounds, compressed air bubbles wrapped around Ginny and Ivankov, sending them flying toward a safe island.
"Mr. Nereus, let me send you away too. But I haven't been to Fish-Man Island, so I can only send you to the South Blue."
The teleportation anchor point for the Paw-Paw Fruit had to be a place the user had visited personally. Since Kuma hadn't been there himself, he naturally couldn't send anyone to Fish-Man Island.
"No need. I came to this island because I have things to do. Just send this kid away."
This youthful Kuma fit the image in Nereus's memories much better—except for the clothing difference. Kuma's current appearance looked more like a "Super-Man in Shorts."
"Lord Nereus, I..."
"My ship is a bit far from here, and I don't have time to take you there right now. Go to the safe island first. We will come to pick you up and take you home later."
At a normal Fish-man's swimming speed, it would take a long time to reach the area where Nereus hid the others. Plus, massive numbers of Marines and pirates were currently rushing toward God Valley.
Using Kuma's ability to send the non-combatant away was actually more convenient.
Although it would take some time to pick him up later, that was nothing. Nereus had been sailing the seas for years anyway; picking someone up was just a detour.
This was also Nereus's way of changing the mindset of the residents of Fish-Man Island. The main message was: No matter where you are, as long as you are part of this kin, the clan will not abandon you.