Teaching the Two Kids Haki

[Ding. Choice triggered:

A: Use Haki to teach Luffy and Ace another harsh lesson. Rewards: intermediate Armament Haki ×1, basic Conqueror's Haki ×1, intermediate Physical Arts ×1, Senzu Beans ×2,000, Logia Devil Fruit ×1.

B: Teach Luffy and Ace Haki and become their master. Rewards: basic Conqueror's Haki card ×1, intermediate Six Powers card ×1, 10 million Beli, intermediate Physical Arts card ×1, system storage upgraded to 9×9, basic Skybreaker pirate ship, Extra-Spicy Ghost Pepper Noodles ×1 case.

C: Pretend not to have heard Ace. Rewards: Heavenly King Zhou Album ×1, Spicy Prince ×1 case.]

Hearing the system's notification in his mind, Lott's lips curled up almost imperceptibly. Although option A offered richer rewards, he still chose B. He also wanted to see how far the two kids could go with a better starting point.

I choose B!

"Of course. Anyone can learn Observation Haki and Armament Haki."

At Lott's affirmative answer, Ace's eyes lit up. "Then could you... could you teach us?"

"Of course, but I can't promise I'll be a good teacher." Lott rubbed his chin, looking somewhat troubled, because he really didn't know how to teach them.

But after recalling how Rayleigh had taught Luffy and combining that with his own experience of using Haki, he believed that, with Luffy's and Ace's talent, learning it shouldn't be too difficult.

Without a second thought, Ace nodded vigorously.

Luffy's eyes were also filled with determination.

"Then you'd better prepare yourselves for what comes next. One careless mistake could kill you."

With that, Lott cracked the knuckles of both hands.

Ace and Luffy exchanged a glance. They understood what Lott meant. Both nodded, their eyes filled with determination.

They said, "If I can't even endure this much difficulty, I have no right to compete to become the Pirate King." "I'm the man who's going to become the Pirate King!"

"All right. Since you've both shown you're prepared to risk death, I suppose I'll go to the trouble of teaching you."

Lott then walked over to what remained of the Giant Rhino after their meal and gently pressed a hand against its body.

"Electromagnetic Ejection!"

The Giant Rhino turned into a streak of light, shooting deep into the jungle at a speed the naked eye could barely follow.

Once again, Lott's move left the two kids gaping.

Luffy whispered into Ace's ear, "Could this Lott be some old monster in disguise? He doesn't look that old, so how's he so strong?"

"I heard that." Lott appeared before Luffy in an instant and cocked a finger at his forehead.

"Armament Haki forehead flick."

Bam!

Lott's jet-black finger flicked Luffy's forehead with seemingly immense force, sending him flying.

"Aaah! Ow, ow, ow..." Luffy rolled around on the ground clutching his forehead, clearly in terrible pain.

Ignoring Luffy's screams, Lott withdrew his finger and clasped his hands behind his back.

"Luffy, you're rubber, right? Ordinary physical attacks shouldn't hurt you, right?"

"R-right. Why does it hurt so much when you hit me? It hurts just like Gramps's Fist of Love."

Sitting on the ground, Luffy held the bump that had just risen on his forehead, nearly tearing up from the pain.

"That's Armament Haki."

Ace nodded as though he had grasped something.

Lott began pacing with his hands behind his back. "What I just demonstrated was one use of Armament Haki. It gives us the ability to deal with special Devil Fruits, even Logia ones."

"No wonder it hurts so much when Gramps and Lott hit me." Even an idiot like Luffy understood the reason now.

Rather than explaining further, Lott conjured a handkerchief out of thin air and blindfolded himself.

The two looked puzzled, unsure what Lott was doing.

After tying the handkerchief in place, Lott beckoned to them. "You two, attack me."

Ace and Luffy were somewhat confused.

"Hey, Lott, are you sure?" Luffy sounded disbelieving.

"Don't worry. Just come at me." Lott activated Observation Haki, taking in every movement and expression of the two before him with his mind's "eye."

Of course, using Super Mantra really was a little unfair.

But this was only to demonstrate the uses of Observation Haki to them.

Luffy shouted, "I'm going for your head! Gum-Gum Pistol!"

Lott dodged the attack with a slight tilt of his head. Hearing Luffy's words somehow reminded him that Luffy had done the same thing to a certain blind Admiral in Dressrosa.

"I'm going for your chest..."

Lott easily dodged Luffy's attack and said rather helplessly, "Luffy, you don't need to do that. Both of you, just attack me with everything you've got. If you can so much as touch me, I'll roast meat for you for a month."

"Really?"

Slurp!

Luffy's eyes turned into roasted meat, and drool trickled to the corner of his mouth. He began attacking Lott, though his blows were noticeably light.

Within Lott's field of vision, Ace hadn't moved.

In Ace's mind, dealing with Lott without a blindfold might require both of them working together.

But with Lott blindfolded, he believed Luffy could manage alone.

Huff, huff, huff...

"That's so weird. Lott, are you peeking? Why does it seem like you know where I'm going to attack?"

Panting, Luffy voiced his confusion.

Ace also looked as though he had seen a ghost.

Lott slowly untied the handkerchief covering his eyes and said, "This is Observation Haki. Even blindfolded, you can clearly perceive an enemy's attacks. Some people are even blind and still rank among the world's strongest."

"A-awesome!" Luffy's trademark exclamation rang out, proving that he, too, had been stunned.

"So this really is Observation Haki?" A gleam flashed in both Ace's and Luffy's eyes.

"We've seen Armament Haki and Observation Haki now, but what about Conqueror's Haki?" Ace asked in confusion.

"I still can't control Conqueror's Haki well. It would hurt you."

Lott certainly wasn't going to admit that he hadn't awakened Conqueror's Haki yet. Otherwise, how could he establish his authority in front of them?

But he believed he would definitely awaken it.

"All right, let's start training."

Bam!

"Ow!"

"That hurts!"

Bam!

"Damn it!"

"Can this method really awaken Observation Haki?"

"Damn you, Lott! Are you messing with us on purpose?"

"Shut up! If you want to awaken Observation Haki, getting beaten is a must!"

"Ow, wait a minute!"

"Can't take any more already?"

"C-can't take it? No way!"

After four hours of one-sided beatings, Ace and Luffy were both utterly exhausted.

"Hiss! That hurts! Damn it, Lott, couldn't you go a little easier?" Luffy grimaced as he touched his head, which was covered in bruised bumps.

Ace's face was also bruised and swollen.

"All right, that's it for today. We'll continue tomorrow!"

"What? We're doing this again tomorrow?" Luffy looked close to tears. He and Ace had spent the whole time getting beaten.

Lott stood to one side with his hands behind his back, not even out of breath. He raised his eyes to stare at Luffy. "Kid, this is the fastest way to learn Haki."

"Um, Lott, is there any roast..." Before Luffy could finish, Lott kicked him into the jungle.

"If you want roast meat, catch something yourself and bring it here."

"Aaah, that hurts! Stupid Lott, did you use Haki in that kick too?" Luffy's screams rang out from deep in the jungle.