"One or two years…"
Hearing Zephyr's explanation, Kai narrowed his eyes in thought.
Did Armament and Observation Haki really need that long to master?
He didn't think so.
Zephyr's words sounded familiar—just like when Garp had first taught him Rokushiki. Back then too, he'd said it would take ages.
And yet—
Look how that turned out.
Kai couldn't help but smile to himself.
Zephyr seemed to pick up on that. His brow furrowed as he spoke, voice firm.
"Don't get cocky, brat. Just because your talent is monstrous doesn't mean you can blitz through Haki."
"I can say this with absolute certainty—whatever you're imagining is basically impossible."
"Your talent is terrifying, yes. I've never seen anyone like you in my life."
"But Haki is different from Rokushiki."
"Haki is the key to true strength. To master it, you pay in time, effort, and blood. There are no shortcuts."
"Even Kuzan, back when he was young, spent a full six months beating himself half to death before he barely got a handle on both forms of Haki."
"And that was when he was already a top-tier fighter for his generation."
He paused deliberately there.
He knew when to stop pressing.
"Anyway," Zephyr went on, "since you're so confident, we'll start with Observation Haki."
"Once you experience it yourself, you'll understand how naïve your thoughts are right now."
His expression hardened.
Then he began to teach.
He broke down Observation Haki from the ground up—its essence, its purpose, its applications. How it felt, what to focus on, what not to do.
Step by step.
From fundamentals to core principles.
He explained it with the kind of clarity and structure only a true instructor could have.
When it came to teaching…
Zephyr made Garp look like a caveman waving a stick.
Kai listened quietly.
He only needed to hear it once.
By the time Zephyr finished, he had already built a clear understanding of Observation Haki in his mind.
"Got it?" Zephyr asked.
"Yes," Kai nodded.
"Good. Then we move on to practical training."
"Observation Haki is a kind of perception—"
"Think of it as a sixth sense."
"Predicting danger. Reading attacks. Sensing intent."
"Now, close your eyes."
"I'll attack you slowly at first. Your job is to rely on your instincts and dodge."
Kai sat down cross-legged on the ground and shut his eyes without hesitation.
Zephyr snapped off a nearby branch—thin, about a meter long.
Nothing special.
But if he swung it hard enough, even Kai would end up striped red.
"Ready?" Zephyr asked.
"I'll start gently so you can feel how the air moves."
"Follow that feeling. That's how you grasp that intangible sense."
"I'm ready," Kai said calmly.
He focused.
He listened to the wind.
The rustle of leaves.
The faint displacement of air.
Zephyr lifted the branch and swung it down toward Kai's back, controlling his strength and deliberately exaggerating the airflow.
"So," he asked casually, "how long do you think you'll need to master Observation Haki?"
"Six months? Five? Or maybe… three?"
That was already the highest estimate he was willing to give this freak of a child.
Two months?
Impossible.
No one had ever done it that fast.
"Did you feel it?"
The branch landed.
Smack.
A crisp sound.
Kai didn't find it painful, but a red welt appeared across his back.
"Observation Haki training is brutal," Zephyr continued, swinging again.
"Some people train for half a year and still can't sense an incoming strike."
"They never touch that instinctive warning."
"But some geniuses…"
"Manage it in four months."
"Still—there's one thing they all have in common."
"They were beaten down. Over and over and over again."
Even Akainu.
Even Kuzan.
No exceptions.
"This suffering is unavoidable," Zephyr said, shaking his head.
Another swing.
Smack.
Kai didn't move.
Again.
And again.
The branch rose and fell, the blows landing in a steady rhythm.
Kai sat there, eyes closed, back quietly reddening.
On the hundredth strike—
It finally came.
The notification he'd been waiting for chimed in his mind.
[Training reward obtained: Observation Haki proficiency +0.1]
[100x Training Amplification applied]
[Observation Haki proficiency +10]
Finally.
Kai's heart leapt.
The moment the system message faded—
Boom.
A thunderous sensation erupted in his mind.
A torrent of unfamiliar memories, sensations, and insights crashed into him, pouring straight into his consciousness.
He didn't resist.
He absorbed everything—every fragment of experience, every nuance of perception, every detail of what Observation Haki was.
It fused smoothly with his instincts.
By the time the rush subsided—
It was done.
Observation Haki—
Mastered.
At this point—
He had grasped two of the three types of Haki.
Only one remained.
Armament Haki.
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