"Of course I know. I just thought I should tell you what was going on."
Rod's hand slipped from hers. Setting their previous topic aside, Nia's eyes lit up as she stared straight at him.
"That move you learned from the pink-haired Marine—can you teach it to me?"
Nia naturally leaned toward speed and agility, so she had noticed the Marine's rapid movement technique during the earlier fight. She had also noticed that Rod had mastered the same technique.
She had planned to figure it out herself, but after two days of trying, she had nothing to show for it. Worse, she'd plunged headfirst into the sea while practicing. If Shakky hadn't happened to be swimming below, who knew what might have happened?
"You mean Soru. Even if you hadn't asked, I was about to teach you all about it. Not just Soru, either—Haki is something I want to teach you, too."
"Haki?"
Nia blinked. The word sounded familiar.
"Let's go up on deck. I don't want to explain it over and over, so let's get everyone together."
Rod led the way out of the room. He called to Pekoms in the crow's nest, then called for Shakky, who was swimming behind the ship. Bepo and Luo heard the commotion and came out of their room, while Nerl called Grey up as well.
"During our fight with the Marines a few days ago, I learned some techniques from them."
Rod couldn't exactly tell his companions about the power of Knights Do Not Die Empty-Handed, so he had no choice but to play up his own super-genius persona.
He'd just say he was naturally gifted—he saw something once and knew how to do it.
Luffy could learn things at a glance. Why couldn't he?
"First, Soru."
Rod shifted his feet, and in an instant he moved from the deck to the bow. The next second, he was back where he'd started.
"This technique involves stomping the ground dozens of times at high speed in a single instant—in other words, within 0.36 seconds. The explosive reaction force lets you move at high speed, just like you saw me do."
"To use it, you need superhuman physical abilities."
Of the companions gathered before him, only Grey was seriously lacking in physical ability. The rest should be fine.
"Luo, you need to master this technique, too. Don't neglect it just because your Devil Fruit powers are convenient. There are powers in the Grand Line that can nullify Devil Fruit abilities."
"Got it."
Luo furrowed his brow. He was running out of time again!
His schedule was already packed. He had to keep studying medicine, develop his Devil Fruit powers further, and train his body. Now he had to train in martial arts, too.
He was almost out of time to read manga.
"But when I try it myself, I can't control which way I move," Nia said.
The principle was much like what she'd worked out on her own. She'd tried to improve her explosive power in a similar way, hoping to get the same result, but in practice she always shot off in the wrong direction. She couldn't control where she went at all.
"Give it a try. I'll take a look."
Under Rod's watchful gaze, Nia shifted her feet and shot off in an instant—but straight toward the galley behind her.
Nerl appeared behind her in an instant and caught her, stopping her from making Grey repair the door again.
When Nia looked over at him, he gave her a gentle smile.
"You can use Soru, too?"
"Yeah. I just learned it."
"???"
"Your feet aren't landing in the right place. The hardest part of using Soru is controlling where you plant each step. If you can't stamp the same spot precisely, the force gets scattered, and you'll lose control of your direction, just like you did."
"How did you learn it so fast?!"
Nia just couldn't accept it.
She'd said her younger brother was a genius, but she herself had been a genius, too. Her family had originally raised her to be its heir!
Compared to Rod and Nerl, why did she seem so stupid?
"Because I can see and hear a lot more than you can."
Nerl smiled faintly.
His answer made Nia's eyes brighten. She recalled some of the things Nerl had done before.
He'd known the Marines were coming before anyone else. His aim was uncannily accurate, and he could hit his targets in battle without even looking. And then there were those unbelievable shots that seemed to predict what his opponents would do.
"It's Haki!"
As if he knew what Nia was wondering, Rod explained the principles of Soru to everyone, then began talking about Haki.
"Haki is a potential power that all humans possess. It's an inborn ability, something that exists like an instinct. But most people never become aware of it, or spend their entire lives unable to draw it out."
"And on this sea—especially in the Grand Line—anyone who wants to become truly strong has to master this power!"
"Before I explain Haki properly, I want to tell you one thing: unwavering resolve is strength!"
"Unwavering resolve is strength..."
The group murmured Rod's words, each with a different expression.
"There are two main types of Haki. The power to sense the presence of others is called Observation Haki. Once you've developed this power, you can learn the location and number of enemies beyond your field of vision, as well as what your opponent will do in the next moment. At the highest levels, you can even see the future."
See the future!
Nia was stunned by Rod's words, then a glimmer of understanding dawned on her.
That must be how Nerl had sensed the Marines approaching from such a distance. And those shots of his that seemed to anticipate his targets' moves—were those examples of Future Sight?
"Armament Haki can increase your defenses, acting like invisible armor. It can also be turned into an offensive power, allowing you to fight against Devil Fruit users and even touch the physical bodies of Logia users."
"There's no shortcut to mastering Haki. You have to feel it with your body and awaken the power sleeping within you through battle."
Rod held out his hand as an invisible force coiled around his arm.
"Compared with Observation Haki, Armament Haki is relatively easy to train.
"My theory is that once your body is strong enough, enough clashes with Armament Haki will naturally guide your body to draw out its hidden power. That means you've successfully awakened it."
Rod turned to Luo with a smile full of ill intent.
"You go first, Luo! With your aptitude, you should master it quickly."
Pekoms and Shakky instinctively stepped back half a pace, putting Bepo in front of them.
They knew that smile of Rod's all too well. Their initial hellish training regimen had begun the moment Rod had made that very expression.
They were completely used to that training now, and even enjoyed it.
But the fear they'd felt at the beginning was still carved into their minds.
After nearly ten years, it was back. It all felt so familiar—the feeling of being ruled by hellish training had returned.
Before you continue