Snow Wind thought that if she could learn advanced Haki techniques, the Devil Fruits would be worth it.
But she was soon disappointed.
Kaido, of course, wasn't about to teach newcomers. Gusion's class was just watching his own training sessions with Kaido…
Still, Kaido used advanced techniques in sparring, so just observing had value.
Bang!
Kaido sent Gusion flying into the railings.
Rubbing his sore head, Gusion stood up. "Mr. Kaido, hold on—I think I'm awakening something."
"Oh?" Kaido's eyes shone with joy. "So you really have the potential?"
Kaido already saw Gusion as a confidant, his only complaint being Gusion's own strength. Awakening Conqueror's Haki meant he had higher potential—a great thing for Kaido.
Gusion nodded. He could now confirm he had the aptitude for Conqueror's Haki. As an outsider to this world, only after mastering Observation and Armament Haki had he begun to awaken it. Kaido's repeated use of Conqueror's Haki in training had brought out his potential.
In front of the amazed explorers, Gusion focused his gaze—a wave of invisible force radiated out, with faint dark-red lightning flickering in the air.
In an instant, the explorers felt paralyzed. One even nearly fainted, drenched in sweat.
Snow Wind stared at Gusion like he was a freak. She remembered clearly—his bounty was still under a billion, so he couldn't have awakened Conqueror's Haki the usual way. He must have been born with the potential.
"So this is Conqueror's Haki… Feels strange and hard to control," Gusion mused.
Unlike Luffy, who awakened his under extreme emotion, Gusion unlocked it through research and training with Kaido, gradually drawing it out from within.
Thus he could consciously use it, skipping the initial stage—though controlling it took effort.
"You're slower than Yamato, but awakening is good. Practice coating, you'll get it," Kaido advised. He wasn't a theoretical teacher—his method was hands-on.
"Let's try again, Mr. Kaido," Gusion said.
He wasn't discouraged by being slower than Yamato—after all, Yamato had grown up immersed in Haki, with natural aptitude. Hers awakened naturally as a child; his was unlocked through training.
But once he mastered the basics, he'd progress fast.
"No more, no more—time for the feast!" Kaido called, already bored with training.
Gusion didn't insist, joining the party with the officers, eating and drinking as he assessed his current state.
[Pioneer 008, your stats (including equipment/title bonuses):]
Constitution: 50 (+1)
Strength: 44 (+2)
Agility: 42 (+2)
Spirit: 50 (+2)
Charm: 5
Luck: 2
[]
After consuming large amounts of Sea King meat and Kaido's help with exercise, his stats had soared in half a month.
His biggest gain, though, was awakening Conqueror's Haki.
[Conqueror's Haki]
Skill Level: 1/40
Description: The rarest form of Haki in the One Piece world. Cannot be learned through training—only those with the king's disposition can awaken it. It can intimidate, shock, or even knock out weaker foes without physical contact. Poor control can affect allies as well.
Effect: At current level, user can intimidate all targets. Targets with Spirit 20 less than the user are instantly knocked out; 30 less, may die from fright.
Targets with Spirit 10 less are stunned/confused for 1-3 seconds, taking 30% more damage.
Targets with equal or higher Spirit are only briefly hesitant.
Cannot affect targets with higher Spirit than the user.
Skill Evaluation: Develop your kingly potential.
[]
Like Armament Haki, the max level is 40; Gusion just awakened it, so he's at level 1.
This confirmed his suspicion: As an outsider, it's less "Conqueror's Haki potential" and more "special potential" manifesting as Conqueror's Haki here. In other worlds, it might become something else.
Natives who awaken Conqueror's Haki start with much greater power—not "level 1."
Gusion's was forced out a side door and needs development.
Even so, natives don't instantly master the advanced stage—they still need training, especially for things like coating.
After the party, most pirates passed out drunk, Kaido snoring away.
Only Gusion stayed awake, finding a quiet spot to practice.
His training partner, naturally, was explorer Snow Wind—he called it "teaching Haki," but she was really just a test dummy.
After a night of intense sparring, Snow Wind lay bruised and exhausted on the deck, her sweat dried to salt crystals by the sea breeze.
Gusion leaned on the railing. "Not so tough, are you? Didn't used to be this weak."
Snow Wind nearly coughed blood. Did he think everyone's stats shot up like his? She was at the peak of Tier 2 and couldn't allocate points—her main stat was 50, now raised to 55 after eating a Devil Fruit.
But Gusion, fruitless, had grown even faster. And he could go berserk…
What hurt most: Gusion never used those godlike skills she'd seen before—just his Shikai Zanpakuto. Even then, his Strength and Agility were only 48, maybe 50 with Thunder Breathing.
On paper, she outclassed him, but in actual combat, his defense and offense crushed her.
Ryuo boosted his attacks and defense immensely. With Observation Haki, she couldn't touch him, and even when she did, Armament Haki blocked it.
And Gusion was ruthless, combining Kido and Ryuo without mercy. Only when she called for a break did he switch to bare fists, but even then, she was covered in bruises.
Snow Wind gritted her teeth, enduring the humiliation for the sake of learning Haki. At least she'd improved her control over Armament Haki—Ryuo, though, was still far off.
She struggled over and whispered, "How much did your Ryuo scroll cost?"
Gusion looked at her like she was an idiot. "I spent all my money last time we fought. I learned Ryuo myself."
Snow Wind's mouth fell open. A few months and you learned Ryuo, advanced Observation Haki, and Conqueror's Haki?! How is anyone else supposed to compete?
"How… how long did it take?" she forced herself to ask.
"Ryuo? Not easy. Took me a whole day to learn it," Gusion replied.
Snow Wind turned away, facing the morning breeze, wondering if she should just quit this world and go home.
"Is that... the Ballon Terminal?"
Just then, Snow Wind spotted something on the horizon. Gusion followed her gaze and saw a vast bank of clouds rising like a stairway to heaven.
He marvelled at the sight, but before he could say more, the crew sprang into action.
The flagship sped up. Kaido came to the bow. "When was the last time I was here?"
King reminded him, "Don't jump down again, Kaido-san; we have business to attend to."
The Beasts Pirates braced for possible enemies. In half a day, they reached the base of the Ballon Terminal—a small island of earth and sky-clouds.
As they docked, a figure stood at the pier: short black hair, purple kimono, leaning on a cane, with scars crossing both eyes—a fearsome sight.
As the flagship approached, he drew his blade—a straight sword, one of the twelve Supreme Grade swords, Yakuza Kasen!
He crouched into an iaido stance, and in a deep voice declared, "Gravity Blade: Tiger!"
The sword flashed.
He channeled gravity into the blade, unleashing a massive horizontal force that crushed everything in its path.
Visibly, the sea sank where the blade struck.
Seeing this destructive power, Kaido leapt to the bow—ready to show Gusion his true strength for the first time.