A Monster More Terrifying Than a Navy Admiral

Your comprehension is heaven-defying. Using the four Armament Haki techniques as a foundation and combining them with the Haki Supreme Art, you broke new ground and comprehended an Armament Haki Exclusive Skill: Still Blood Armor.

Still Blood Armor: Using the Haki Supreme Art's absolute control over Armament Haki, Haki is injected into the blood vessels to evolve tangible defensive power, vastly enhancing the body's defenses inside and out. It can effectively defend against attacks that damage the body internally or externally.

(Requires the Haki Supreme Art. If others attempt to train it, they will cause permanent damage to the blood vessels throughout their bodies.)

Rosen was delighted.

It was not merely because he had comprehended the unprecedented Fifth Armament Haki Technique, one capable of effectively countering Internal Destruction. More importantly, he realized just how valuable the Exclusive Skill known as the Haki Supreme Art was.

Without the Haki Supreme Art, even if he encountered monsters with unparalleled talent like Monkey D. Luffy, Teacher Kai, or Shanks in the future, they would never be able to learn Still Blood Armor on their own after seeing him use it.

Unless he was willing to teach them the Haki Supreme Art.

This meant that Rosen was far ahead of every powerhouse in the field of Armament Haki.

Against opponents who did not possess Conqueror's Haki, even if their Armament Haki was of comparable strength, he could only win, never lose.

After all, others only had four techniques, while he had five. When others faced his Internal Destruction, they could only tank the damage with their health bars, while he could defend against and offset it with Still Blood Armor.

As one side weakened while the other grew stronger, he had already won half the battle before they had even exchanged blows.

"Rosen."

Seeing that Rosen seemed completely absorbed in his own world, unresponsive despite being called several times, Zefa was nearly unable to stop himself from taking action.

"I heard you!"

"Teacher Zefa."

"What are you trying to do? Put that Black Arm away already."

Rosen snapped back to his senses and saw Zefa clenching a fist coated in Armament Haki, ready to give him a Black Arm. He hurriedly stepped back and raised his hands.

Even though he had created the Grand Line's unprecedented Fifth Armament Haki Technique, he was still a newbie who had only just begun walking the path of Haki. He could not withstand the fist of a former Navy Admiral coated in Haki.

Just as Zefa had said, one should not blindly place faith in Armament Haki techniques.

When there was a difference of dozens of times in Haki strength, it did not matter whether it was coating, hardening, or Still Blood Armor. One punch would still blow you apart.

"I'll say this one last time."

"Stop thinking about defending against Internal Destruction."

"There is currently no such ability. In any case, coating, hardening, and emission cannot accomplish it."

Zefa tried to persuade him earnestly.

"What if it's a Haki technique beyond coating, hardening, emission, and Internal Destruction?"

Rosen countered.

"There have only ever been four ways to use Armament Haki. Where would a fifth come from?"

The moment Zefa finished speaking, he saw the faint curve of Rosen's lips. Thinking of his student's monstrous talent for Haki, a thought so shocking that even he found it unbelievable surged into his mind.

"There wasn't one before, but there is now."

Meeting Zefa's stunned gaze, Rosen gave a slight nod.

"Are you telling the truth?"

Zefa instinctively wanted to say it was impossible, but when the words reached his lips, they became a request for confirmation instead.

Clearly.

After witnessing Rosen's comprehension, he had begun to believe that this student of his possessed the ability to turn decay into the miraculous.

"Teacher Zefa."

"I'd like to ask you for something. Attack me with Armament Haki at the same level of strength as mine."

"It would be best if you used Internal Destruction."

Rather than answer, Rosen asked Zefa to strike him with a punch using Internal Destruction.

Practice was the sole criterion of truth.

Although he had great confidence in Still Blood Armor, he still needed to test it in practice.

He could not possibly wait until he fought pirates to have them test it for him, could he?

Having Zefa do it meant that, at worst, he would suffer a minor injury. There was no chance of anything going wrong.

But if pirates tested it, then either nothing went wrong, or the moment it did, someone died.

"Are you sure?"

Zefa's gaze sharpened.

Rosen understood what Zefa meant: let the facts speak for themselves.

"Come on."

With a thought, Rosen channeled his consciousness into his Armament Haki. Then, with meticulous control, he injected the Haki into his blood vessels, allowing it to flow throughout his body with his blood.

Zefa did not hold back either. Armament Haki coated his fist as he threw a punch that produced a piercing sonic boom, aimed directly at Rosen's forearm.

Though the punch was imposing, he exercised great restraint in its force.

He used only Armament Haki equal in strength to Rosen's, and he struck the arm. Even if Rosen could not defend against it, he could be sent for treatment in time.

There would be no lasting aftereffects.

Fist and arm collided.

Centered on the two of them, a blast of wind howled outward, producing shrieks that made one's scalp tingle.

It was as though invisible tigers were roaring in unison.

"Hm?"

Zefa stared intently at Rosen's arm. After receiving his attack, black lines had appeared across Rosen's skin, as though streams of black light were flowing through his blood vessels.

Most importantly, he could clearly feel that his Internal Destruction, which had always been unstoppable against any opponent, had been blocked.

Yes.

When he tried to send his Armament Haki through Rosen's arm and into his muscles, blood vessels, and soft tissue to wreak destruction, his Armament Haki struck a barrier. It could not pass through Rosen's body surface and enter his body at all.

If it could not even penetrate the surface, then naturally, it could not inflict Internal Destruction.

"He really did it!"

Zefa stared blankly at Rosen.

After one exchange, he understood it firsthand.

This was an Armament Haki technique that perfectly countered Internal Destruction. It could effectively prevent Haki from penetrating the body's surface.

When any Haki master faced Rosen, the technique of Internal Destruction was effectively useless.

The only way was to use an absolutely powerful attack to forcibly break through his defenses from the outside.

But the problem was that the enemy's Internal Destruction was rendered useless, while Rosen's was not.

Coating, hardening, emission, Internal Destruction—Rosen could use them all and unleash every one of them upon his enemies.

"No."

"There's another issue."

"If you keep this state active, doesn't it consume Haki? How is that different from constantly hardening your entire body with Haki?"

Zefa suddenly thought of something.

"Of course it does."

"Hardening the entire body and maintaining that state at all times requires a massive amount of Haki. But with my Still Blood Armor, once I use it, it can remain active until I am attacked, without consuming any additional Haki."

"It's equivalent to putting on a layer of armor with Armament Haki before battle. And maintaining that armor requires almost no additional Haki."

Rosen's words made Zefa's expression change in horror.

He was not wrong at all.

The Armament Haki injected into the blood vessels would merely circulate with the blood and flow throughout the body. It would never disappear, nor would it require any further expenditure.

That portion of Haki injected into the blood vessels would remain there, maintaining the state of Still Blood Armor.

As long as it was not damaged by external force, it would not disappear.

If one insisted on calling it a cost, then there was one. But it was not Armament Haki—it was Rosen's stamina and mental energy.

After all, meticulously controlling Armament Haki and injecting it into the blood vessels naturally consumed focus. Moreover, as the Haki flowed through his blood vessels at all times and evolved into defensive power, prolonged use would burden both his blood vessels and body.

However, with his current physique, he could keep Still Blood Armor active for more than half a day without issue.

As his physique and Haki improved, that duration would continue to increase.

"Monster."

"This is a monster born for Haki, one even more terrifying than a Navy Admiral."

As he looked at Rosen, who had created Still Blood Armor—the Fifth Armament Haki Technique—on his very first day of encountering Haki, a thought arose in Zefa's heart.