"Haaaaa!!!" The Straw Hats exclaimed in shock as Luffy and Zoro suddenly transformed into fishmen.
"It was really hard," Lucas explained, tapping at his holographic interface. "I wanted to incorporate Devil Fruit powers into these transformations, but they're tricky to stabilize." His voice carried pride, but the crew's eyes were glued to the bizarre sight before them.
"What the heck…?" Zoro muttered, flexing his new fins. "This feels weird."
"Guys, check it out!" Luffy shouted, darting around the deck. "I'm a fishman! Look!" brimming with excitement.
"Woah—how'd this even happen?" Usopp and Chopper cried in unison.
"That's kinda freaky," Franky remarked, arms crossed.
"Interesting… to think you could turn others into creatures," Robin said.
"Yeah, I'm awesome alright," Lucas smirked, before pressing a button. In a flash, Luffy and Zoro reverted to normal.
"Huh? I'm back!" Luffy said, blinking.
"Good. That was… uncomfortable," Zoro muttered.
Lucas explained, "Other people can't stay transformed for long, or they risk losing their minds. I reworked this feature myself, but it's unstable." The crew stared blankly, not quite following his technical jargon.
Suddenly, a massive crash rocked the Sunny as another ship, pulled by a roaring sea cow, slammed into their bubble coating.
"Mooohhh!" the beast bellowed.
"Ahhh!? What the hell was that?!" the Usopp shouted, as the crew turned toward the noise.
Chuckles echoed from the enemy ship. "Looks like a pirate ship," Sanji muttered, cigarette glowing.
"Are they trying to pick a fight?" Franky wondered.
"Alright men!" cried Caribou, captain of the Caribou Pirates. "Let's get down to business!"
Nami's eyes narrowed at the sea cow. "Wait… you're Mohmoo, from the Arlong Pirates, aren't you?"
"Hm?" Sanji's brow furrowed as he glanced at the sea cow. "Did we meet this guy before?" he muttered under his breath.
Luffy scratched his head, a puzzled expression crossing his face. "I don't know..." he replied simply.
Meanwhile, Mohmoo's eyes flickered between Luffy and Sanji. A faint recognition stirred within him as memories of past encounters with the Straw Hats surfaced, lingering just beneath the surface of his mind.
Mohmoo's eyes widened in terror as memories of past defeats flooded back. "M…m…mooooooh!" With a panicked cry, the sea cow turned tail, dragging Caribou's ship far away.
Caribou, oblivious, leapt onto the Sunny, cackling. "Kehihihihi! While they're dumbfounded, we'll slaughter every last one of them!" He landed with a thud, only to realize his crew had vanished with Mohmoo. His grin faltered. "Eh…? Where's my ship?!" Sweat poured down his face.
Lucas broke the silence dryly. "Well… that's devastating."
Franky grabbed Caribou by the collar. "Quit acting up!" He tossed him toward the edge of the deck.
"Wait! Please forgive me! I beg you!" Caribou wailed, tied down with rope and left to squirm.
As the Sunny sailed deeper, Usopp pointed nervously at the log pose. "Hey Nami, aren't we going in the wrong direction?"
"No," Nami replied firmly. "This route is the safest. Heading straight would smash us against underwater mountains and volcanoes."
"Ehhhh!!! Volcanoes?!" Chopper cried, fur bristling.
"Wait, aren't currents in the Grand Line unpredictable? How can we be sure?" Usopp asked, voice trembling.
"You'll need coats—it gets cold from here on out," Nami explained.
"Cold? At the bottom of the sea?" Zoro asked, skeptical.
"Of course," Franky said. "It's like bathwater—colder at the bottom."
"Ohhh," Usopp nodded. "So the ocean's colder at the bottom."
"Not quite," Lucas interjected, launching into a detailed explanation of currents. Franky and Brook joined in, layering on technical terms.
By the end, Luffy, Zoro, Usopp, and Chopper leaned on the cap rail, sipping tea in unison. "I see… so they're mystery currents."
"You couldn't be more wrong!" Nami yelled, exasperated.
Lucas chuckled. "Guess we overloaded them."
Robin's voice rang from the upper deck. "Nami, while you were explaining… we've almost reached the current."