Soon, the training in the Navy's Six Powers began on the warship—taught personally by Zephyr. Victor, currently a free agent on the ship with no assigned duties, spent his time either training or sparring with Zephyr.
"Teacher, the flow of Haki is one application of Haki. Are there other ways to use it?" Victor asked Zephyr after the lesson, his curiosity about this power burning strong.
"You should already know the other applications—Infusion, Hardening, Flow, Internal Destruction, and Emission. You could say they fall into three stages, but that's essentially it," Zephyr explained.
Hardening and Infusion could be considered part of the same stage—first hardening one's own body, then extending it to external objects.
Flow and Internal Destruction were similarly linked—first learning to move Haki freely, then using it to destroy from within. The next step beyond that was Emission.
"Is that all?" Victor pressed.
"That's already plenty. Mastering all of them could take an ordinary person a lifetime," Zephyr mused.
"Has no one tried developing new applications for Haki?"
"Of course they have, but progress is slow. Take the concept of Haki flow—it took generations to refine."
"Oh? Could you tell me more about that?" Victor was fascinated by how these techniques came to be.
"I don't know how true this story is, but it happened centuries ago. Back then, Haki usage was much simpler—only Infusion and Hardening existed. The concept of flowing Haki supposedly originated in Wano."
"Wano?" Victor noted silently.
"Legend says there was a swordsman from Wano whose Haki talent was mediocre. He always struggled in battles, which frustrated him endlessly. He tried many methods but failed—until he noticed something about full-body Haki coverage."
"Haki is a power present throughout the body, but in combat, full coverage isn't necessary—you only use it where needed. So he wondered: 'If so much Haki goes unused in battle, could that idle Haki be redirected to where it's needed?' He tested the idea."
"Did he succeed?" Victor asked, intrigued by human ingenuity.
"Not so easily. Like I said, it took generations. He spent his life trying to move that unused Haki, but on his deathbed, he'd only managed a trickle. Still, it proved Haki could be moved. He passed his theories and methods to his descendants, and after generations of refinement, a particularly gifted successor finally achieved flowing Haki."
"That successor also discovered that flowing Haki could destroy objects from within—dramatically increasing its power and bypassing strong Haki defenses. Later, skilled users found that with enough mastery, flowing Haki could even be emitted for offense and defense. That's why Wano replaced the term 'Haki' with 'Ryuo.'"
'I added consciousness to the Haki when I was studying its flow.
At the beginning, there was very little, so only a little Haki could flow. Later, it became more and more, and the Haki flowed more freely.
Moreover, during the battle, I found that the flowing Haki was more active, and it could directly bypass the enemy's domineering defense and rush directly and quickly into the interior, causing internal damage. Human wisdom really can't be underestimated!' Victor said secretly.
"Teacher, does that mean Haki's uses aren't set in stone? There could be more?" Victor asked.
"Of course. Nothing in this world is absolute. Maybe one day, ships will sail through the Calm Belt without fear of Sea Kings. Maybe artificial Devil Fruits will exist, or people will eat multiple Devil Fruits without drowning." Zephyr's tone was almost prophetic.
'Wow, you're basically predicting the future. Are you sure you're not a time traveler, Zephyr?' Victor eyed him strangely.
"Teacher, I want to try developing a new Haki application. Maybe I can push its limits further," Victor declared.
"Ambition is good, but don't neglect your core training. Don't lose sight of what's essential. The current Haki system can already make you a top-tier fighter. If you hit a wall, don't force it—Haki hasn't seen groundbreaking innovations in centuries."
Zephyr approved of Victor's drive but worried he'd obsess over it, wasting his potential. He might even regret telling him all this.
Victor's interest wasn't just a whim—he had a goal. By "researching Haki," he could justify keeping full-body Haki coverage active at all times. 'What am I doing? Oh, just exploring new Haki techniques.'
But he wasn't entirely joking. During his fight with Akainu, he'd noticed that flowing Haki combined with his Shinki worked even better than Ryuo. He wanted to explore that further.
'Is Shinki unique to me, or can anyone awaken it like Haki? If it's just me, that's a huge advantage—there must be more applications I haven't discovered yet. If others can awaken it too, the power balance of the seas might shift. But even if it's possible, few would manage it. I haven't met anyone else who has… Maybe I should test it on Rebecca.'
His gaze drifted toward Rebecca, who was practicing Soru. Suddenly, she shivered, feeling as if something ominous had locked onto her.
She glanced around—only to see Victor smiling at her. Instantly reassured, she smiled back. 'With Victor here, nothing can hurt me.'
Nearby, Wendy watched their exchange with amusement, sensing something brewing between them.
Two days passed without incident aboard the warship—nothing out of the ordinary occurred.
The only peculiar sight was Victor, seated cross-legged on the deck at night, his entire body shrouded in Armament Haki as if expecting a surprise attack.
By the next morning, the entire training squad had caught wind of it. Given their recent brushes with danger, they began speculating—had Victor sensed some impending threat? Was there a cursed magnet for chaos among them?
When Zephyr noticed the unease among the recruits, he inquired—only to discover Victor was the source. He couldn't help but laugh. After explaining that Victor was merely experimenting with Haki applications, the tension dissolved.
Yet, their admiration for Victor only grew. 'Here we are, barely grasping the Six Powers, and he's already pioneering new Haki techniques. Monster.'
---
"Is that… Enies Lobby?"
"Yeah, the Tower of Justice stands right on top of it."
"Heard it's crawling with elite special forces."
"They say the sun never sets on Enies Lobby. Weird, huh?"
---
After detouring through the Calm Belt post-Impel Down, the warship sailed past the surreal, ever-daylit island. Now, their destination was Water 7.
"Victor! I've learned Soru! It won't be long before I learn Geppo!" Rebecca bounded over, beaming.
"What? Already? Don't tell me you're the first in your batch?" Victor raised an eyebrow.
"I am the first!" She puffed up proudly before shooting him a half-hearted glare. "Zephyr said my speed was more than enough—I just didn't know the technique." Her eyes accused him of wasted potential.
"Ahem. Of course I knew you had the speed," Victor coughed. "But the Six Powers strain the body. Now that you've got Soru and Kami-e, Geppo's next. After that, skip straight to integrating Rankyaku with your sword style—no need to train it separately."
"Got it!" Rebecca nodded, her earlier pout replaced with determination.