Six Powers and Haki

Marineford Military Academy, a spacious classroom.

The thirty cadets of Class One gradually found seats in the classroom and sat down.

Since everyone had basically run over a hundred kilometers that morning, the brief lunch break had not been enough to dispel all their fatigue.

Thus, many of them yawned listlessly and dozed off with their heads on their desks.

According to the academy curriculum, every morning from now on would consist purely of physical training, while the afternoons would be filled with miscellaneous classes such as military theory, navigation, swordsmanship, and more.

Ring-ring-ring...!

As the bell rang, Zephyr, with his purple hair, and Shuzo, whose hair was tied into a long braid, entered the classroom.

Without another word, Zephyr slapped the lectern, making the blackboard eraser and chalk box on its surface jump high into the air.

"Stop sleeping! Otherwise, you'll go run two hundred laps around the track for me."

The effect was immediate. Tokikake, Smoker, Maynard...

Those who had been slumped over their desks, half-asleep, all sat upright and widened their eyes, suddenly looking spirited and alert.

"This afternoon's class will explain the Marines' Physical Prowess technique, the Six Powers, as well as the two forms of Haki that you will only be qualified to master after training the Six Powers to proficiency."

As he spoke, Zephyr actually took a Den Den Mushi from his pocket and placed it on the lectern. With a press on its shell, two beams of light projected onto the blackboard, forming a simple slideshow.

Damn! The Den Den Mushi in this world have really been used for everything... Sephiroth silently grumbled as he watched the projection on the blackboard.

There were especially many kinds of Den Den Mushi in this world: broadcast Den Den Mushi, camera Den Den Mushi, wiretap Den Den Mushi, anti-wiretap Den Den Mushi, recording Den Den Mushi... There were simply too many varieties to count!

There was even a specialized field of study dedicated to researching and developing Den Den Mushi!

"The Six Powers of the Marines: Shigan, Rankyaku, Soru, Paper Arts, Geppo, and Iron Body.

These are techniques developed to surpass the limits of human physical ability.

Once you master the Six Powers, you will have the strength to fight even Devil Fruit users.

Every physical training program at the academy has been designed to help you master the Six Powers. Take this morning's long-distance run, for example. While running, you can try using the techniques of Soru to accelerate...

The Six Powers of the Marines have enormous potential. Once you completely master them, you can use them to develop all kinds of combat techniques..."

As he spoke, Zephyr pointed at Shuzo standing beside him.

"Show them your Life Return."

At that, the long-armed man nodded and gave a light shout.

"Life Return!"

Immediately, Shuzo's long braid seemed to come alive. It twisted through the air, forming a hand made of hair.

The black hair-hand swiftly picked up a piece of chalk from the lectern and scribbled the words "Life Return" across the blackboard.

Seeing this, Domino, who had long wavy blonde hair and a sweet, adorable face, opened her little mouth in surprise and exclaimed.

"Wow! That should be a Devil Fruit ability, right?"

Perhaps realizing that her sudden outburst had been a little abrupt, the blonde girl immediately lowered her head shyly, her face flushed red.

Hearing the students' questions, Zephyr laughed and shook his head.

"No! He merely infused his consciousness into his hair, allowing him to control it freely.

Likewise, as long as you train the Six Powers to a sufficiently advanced level, you will be able to freely control your muscles, internal organs, skin, and other parts of your bodies.

Once you can reach that stage, it will become very easy for you to grasp Armament Haki or Observation Haki through analogy.

It can be said that the Six Powers of the Marines are meant to lay the foundation for your use of Haki. Through systematic training, they allow you to awaken and master the power of Haki more easily.

Of course, this does not mean that the Six Powers are inferior techniques to Haki.

The Six Powers and Haki complement one another. Combining them can unleash tremendous power."

"Whether it is me, Marine Hero Vice Admiral Garp, or the current Marine Admiral Sengoku, Steel Bone Kong, we can all use the power of the Six Powers and Haki to crush the vast majority of the world's strong fighters and Devil Fruit users.

In fact, if one's Haki is powerful enough, it can even render certain Devil Fruit abilities ineffective."

Seeing that the students below the lectern still looked unconvinced, with some already getting sleepy and clearly letting his words go in one ear and out the other, Zephyr could only sigh helplessly.

He found teaching theory irritating too!

The cadets he had selected for the Star General Class over the years all possessed excellent strength and potential.

However...

Their levels of education varied greatly. Some had received good educations, possessed clear logic, and had broad knowledge. Others had never attended school at all and only recognized a few words, limited to their own names.

This was the difference brought about by one's background. The children of the wealthy received elite educations, while the children of the poor did not even have the right to receive an education.

That was simply the nature of the era, and Zephyr was powerless to change it.

Therefore, the cultural courses that had been added to the academy curriculum at Admiral Sengoku's suggestion often produced extremely polarized results.

As a result, cultural course grades could only serve as supplementary references for evaluating talent and potential. They could not be used as the standard for determining whether someone qualified to graduate.

"Shuzo, go to the equipment room and bring back a ten-centimeter-thick steel plate."

"Yes!"

The long-armed burly man nodded and quickly ran out of the classroom.

Before long, Shuzo returned to the classroom carrying a steel plate one and a half meters wide and three meters long.

Shuzo released the steel plate, which weighed over three thousand kilograms, and it crashed heavily onto the floor, making the entire classroom tremble slightly.

"Old man here has the nickname Black Arm. The reason I have that title is because I have used these arms, Iron Body, and Haki to defeat many famous great pirates."

As he spoke, Zephyr's entire right arm was immediately covered in black Armament Haki. He let out a roar, swung his right fist, and smashed it fiercely toward the massive steel plate Shuzo was holding upright.

Amid the stunned expressions of the cadets below the lectern, Zephyr's entire right arm actually punched through the steel plate. His fist stopped a hair's breadth away from Shuzo's chest.

Gulp! ×n

Was this guy really human?

That thought arose in the minds of every cadet.

Looking at the massive steel plate that Zephyr had pierced through with almost no bending or deformation, Sephiroth could not help thinking of even more.

What kind of piercing force would it take to instantly punch through it without deforming the steel plate? And... his fist had clearly stopped its forward momentum before reaching Shuzo's chest!

Could he exercise such precise control while possessing such terrifying destructive power?

Only after seeing the shocked expressions on his students' faces did Zephyr calmly pull his entire right arm free and speak in an even tone.

"This is the power of combining the Six Powers with Haki. Once you can reach my level, you can be considered a strong fighter on these seas."

After hearing Zephyr's words, the cadets below the lectern became energized and began listening attentively.

However...

Fifteen minutes later.

"Smoker, Tokikake... You brats actually dare sleep during old man's class? Get out and run two hundred laps!!!" Zephyr slammed his fist heavily onto the lectern and roared.

The cadets below the lectern were already utterly exhausted. As Zephyr explained dry and difficult theoretical concepts, even those who had not fallen asleep were mostly letting the words go in one ear and out the other. Very few were listening seriously.

But...

One person was an exception!

While listening to Old Man Zephyr's theories, Sephiroth recalled the Armament Haki training methods of Nine Serpent Island. Combining them with the medical knowledge he possessed, a bold idea suddenly emerged in his mind!

This Armament Haki was so similar to the true qi and inner strength described in the martial arts novels of his previous life. He felt he could research it along those lines...

He should stay grounded for now and forget about creating some divine art, but he felt there was great potential in improving Nine Serpent Island's Haki training methods!

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