The morning sun rose over Korvan's cliffs, streaking the sky with gold and ember. Smoke drifted from the volcanic horizon — quiet but alive, a reminder that the world itself was never still.
Hunnt stood before Kael and Alder in the clearing where they had trained their Rokushiki. His expression was calm, but his voice carried weight.
"You've learned to move the body," he said. "Now you'll learn to move the will.
Haki isn't strength. It's spirit. It's the line between living and surviving."
Alder nodded. "So this is the real test, huh?"
Hunnt smirked faintly. "Always has been."
He drew a symbol in the dirt — two circles overlapping, one dark, one faint.
"There are two forms every Drifter may learn," he said. "Armament and Observation. Both have layers — stages. Few ever reach the third. None, the fourth."
He pointed to Alder first. "You'll train Armament Haki — the will made solid."
Then to Kael. "And you — Observation Haki — the will that sees beyond."
---
The Stages of Haki
Armament Haki — The Iron Will
1. Stage I – The Iron Will (Foundation):
The user hardens their spirit into a visible force. It coats the body or weapon, forming a basic layer of protection and offense — the first shaping of will into armor.
2. Stage II – The Tempered Core (Internal Flow):
The will seeps beneath the skin, flowing through strikes and defense alike. The user can channel Haki into their attacks — force that bypasses external armor.
3. Stage III – The Living Armor (Bound Will):
The Haki responds automatically, coating vital points instinctively. Pain no longer disrupts focus — the body and will move as one.
4. Stage IV – The Eternal Forge (Transcendence):
Only the rarest reach this. The Haki burns like fire within the soul, able to deflect, destroy, and even reshape other wills. True mastery — the unbreakable spirit.
---
Observation Haki — The Eye of the Mind
1. Stage I – The Sensing Pulse (Awakening):
Awareness of presence, emotion, and hostility. The user begins to feel intent before seeing it.
2. Stage II – The Silent Thread (Clarity):
Every movement, breath, and heartbeat becomes visible in the mind's eye. The world slows to rhythm.
3. Stage III – The Foresight Veil (Future Sight):
The user glimpses the moment before it happens — seconds ahead of motion. Battle becomes prediction.
4. Stage IV – The Horizon Eye (Eternal Awareness):
The user's perception extends beyond distance and time, sensing all living wills within vast range — the limit of human awareness, where thought and instinct merge.
---
Hunnt looked between them. "You won't reach far in five days. But you'll feel it — and once you do, it never leaves."
He pulled two blindfolds from his pack and tossed them to Alder and Kael.
Alder caught his with a grin. "We doing this again, huh?"
Hunnt nodded. "Like Tekkai and Kami-e — but this time, the body won't save you.
You'll learn to trust the unseen."
Kael tied his blindfold. "I knew I'd regret asking for Observation."
Hunnt smiled faintly. "You're not supposed to see it — you're supposed to feel it."
He vanished with Soru, the air cracking behind him. "Now—survive."
---
Day 1 – The First Pulse
Hunnt struck without warning — light, fast, precise.
Kael ducked too late; the blow grazed his shoulder. Alder braced, using instinct to block — but Hunnt's strike slipped past, tapping his ribs.
"Don't resist," Hunnt's voice echoed. "Listen. The will speaks before the body."
They kept failing. By noon, they were covered in dust and bruises.
By nightfall, they began to react just before Hunnt struck.
A flicker of sensing. A breath before contact.
The first pulse of Haki.
---
Day 2 – The Flow
Hunnt's blows came faster, sharper.
Alder focused his breathing — his will condensing around his fists. He struck back once, and Hunnt's gauntlet met a faint shimmer of dark light across Alder's hand.
"Good," Hunnt said. "That's the iron will. Keep it there."
Kael, meanwhile, stood motionless, listening. Every heartbeat in the forest, every rustle of wind — he began to distinguish Hunnt's step from the sound of the air itself.
He turned just in time, dodging a strike.
"I felt that," he murmured.
Hunnt nodded. "The thread is forming."
---
Day 3 – The Strain
They trained until exhaustion blurred thought.
Hunnt moved like lightning, his Soru echoing around them.
Alder's arms began to glow faintly black — the first sign of true Armament hardening. His skin cracked faintly under the strain, steam rising from his fists.
Kael's focus deepened — his breathing slowed, his senses sharper than sight. He could feel Hunnt moving even when no sound reached him.
By dusk, they were shaking from overuse.
Hunnt finally said, "Enough. If you push harder now, your will burns out."
---
Day 4 – Awakening
They began before sunrise.
Blindfolded, motionless — listening to the world breathe.
Alder clenched his fists. The familiar heaviness flooded through him. His gauntlets shimmered dark red for a brief moment before fading.
Kael's eyes moved beneath the cloth. His head turned before Hunnt's next step even touched the earth.
He raised a hand to block, and Hunnt's strike halted just short of his wrist.
Hunnt smiled faintly. "You've found it. The spark."
---
Day 5 – The Price of Will
Hunnt removed his own blindfold and said quietly, "Now, activate it. Both of you."
They focused.
Alder's entire arm turned black and red, the surface reflecting faint firelight — Armament Haki, Stage I.
Kael's eyes glowed faintly beneath his blindfold — Observation Haki, Stage I.
They could feel each other's presence, their wills resonating.
Then, suddenly — the drain hit them.
Their bodies trembled, lungs burning, muscles stiffening. The world spun.
Alder gasped. "It's—draining me—!"
Kael dropped to one knee, sweat streaming down his neck. "Feels like my body's… burning out."
Hunnt stepped forward and steadied them both. "That's the cost of will. Spirit burns energy. The stronger your intent, the faster your body empties."
He helped them to the ground. "Rest."
They lay there for nearly an hour, silent except for the sound of their breathing. When Alder finally spoke, his voice was hoarse.
"How do you… build it up?"
Hunnt smiled faintly. "Stamina. Endurance. When I trained, I carried iron weights on every step until my body refused to collapse. The spirit needs a vessel strong enough to contain it."
Kael let out a weak chuckle. "So that's why only one Haki."
Alder groaned. "No wonder you're built like a fortress."
Kael looked at Hunnt. "You've mastered both… haven't you?"
Hunnt's gaze softened, but his voice stayed calm. "Yes. Armament and Observation."
Alder looked at him, awe mixed with exhaustion. "You're a monster among hunters."
Hunnt's faint smile deepened. "There's a third type too. Stronger. Unforgiving."
Kael blinked. "A third?"
Hunnt nodded slowly. "Conqueror's Haki — the King's Will. The spirit that dominates."
Before they could ask, he let it loose.
---
The King's Will
The air cracked.
A ripple of invisible pressure burst outward — crushing, heavy, suffocating. The wind died, trees bent under the weight. Alder and Kael froze in place, their knees trembling.
For five seconds, they felt it — like standing before an Elder Dragon.
Alder's vision blurred. Kael's heartbeat pounded like a drum. Their instincts screamed to kneel.
Then it was gone.
Hunnt exhaled softly. "That is Conqueror's Haki — will made to command."
Alder slumped to one knee, sweat dripping from his chin. "What the hell was that?! It felt like the air was alive."
Kael swallowed hard. "It's… beyond strength. I felt like I was staring down a god."
Hunnt said nothing. His gaze drifted toward the distant volcano, eyes calm but distant.
Alder finally asked, "Hunnt… how powerful are you, really?"
Hunnt smiled faintly and looked up at the clouds.
"…Even I don't know."
The forest was silent, only the whisper of wind and faint tremors from the volcanic ridge breaking the stillness.
And somewhere far behind them — the sound of metal and hoofbeats echoed through Korvan's gate.
A woman with a lance and shield was returning from her hunt.