Practicing Haoshoku Haki

Three days later.

Aside from sparring with Rayleigh, Eiji had plenty of free time.

His Busoshoku Haki was stagnant at an intermediate level; to make progress, he needed to find a strong opponent and fight.

As for Kenbunshoku Haki, no matter how many times he tried, he couldn't learn it. With no other choice, Eiji had to postpone it until he obtained the Kanjo Kanjo no Mi.

But Haoshoku Haki... It wasn't too difficult to learn, thanks to the Six Eyes that controlled Spiritual Energy down to the atomic level.

Even Rayleigh was astonished to see Eiji mastering the basic level of Haoshoku Haki in such a short time.

For others, learning Haoshoku Haki was several times harder than Kenbunshoku Haki. Moreover, Haoshoku Haki couldn't be learned but was inherent. On the contrary, Eiji's talent for Kenbunshoku Haki was terrible.

"Very impressive, Eiji. It seems that among the three Haki, your talent for Haoshoku Haki is the highest. You learned the basic techniques in just three days." Rayleigh praised.

Standing on the beach was a monster in the form of a giant serpent floating on the sea's surface.

The monster was none other than a Sea King, unfortunate enough to become the target of Eiji's Haoshoku Haki training.

"It's because of your guidance, Rayleigh. If I relied only on myself, it would have taken a lot of time to reach this stage." Eiji said sincerely.

The basic techniques of Haoshoku Haki are threefold: Domination, Incapacitation, and Pressure.

First, Domination: Haoshoku Haki can be used to temporarily dominate others' souls and intimidate them. This is particularly effective against animals, causing them to flee or become tame for a short time, both effects happening instantly. This domination might end with the victim losing consciousness a moment later. However, a sufficiently strong user of Haoshoku Haki can exert uncomfortable pressure on their targets and explicitly force them to obey.

Second, Incapacitation: By overpowering the will of those around them to a higher degree, a Haoshoku Haki user can make people and animals faint. Whether someone faints or not depends on their strength compared to the user. Generally, ordinary civilians and regular soldiers or pirates are likely to faint from Haoshoku Haki, while those considered capable, strong, and strong-willed are much less likely to succumb. According to Rayleigh, anyone who faints from Haoshoku Haki is essentially "not worth fighting" directly. A skilled Haoshoku Haki user can also limit the effects of their Haki in a crowded place, able to choose not to incapacitate certain people. Eiji had already mastered this.

Third, Pressure: When used with sufficient strength, Haoshoku Haki can damage inanimate objects and structures around the user. When two Haoshoku Haki users clash, they produce a thin stream of black energy with crackling red hues.

"Ha Ha Ha... No need to praise me, I know how good my teaching skills are. Your rapid progress is mostly due to your talent; even without me, it would have just been a matter of time."

Rayleigh laughed at the praise. He was self-aware and knew his contribution wasn't that significant.

"The only advanced Haoshoku Haki technique I can teach you is Infusion. As for Observation Killing, you should ask Shanks; his mastery of Haoshoku Haki surpasses mine."

"Understood, I'll seek out Shanks after the training is finished."

"Just tell him you were trained by me; I'm sure he won't mind helping you learn Observation Killing."

Given Shanks' personality, Rayleigh didn't think the other party would refuse to do him a favor.

Drawing his sword, Rayleigh infused Haoshoku Haki into the blade, creating a turbulent black lightning effect.

"Similar to infusing Busoshoku Haki into a weapon, which greatly enhances attack power, Infusion provides an even greater power boost, much more significant than advanced Busoshoku Haki."

SWOOSH

Rayleigh slashed forward, and a visible wave of sword energy shot into the distance. At the same time, an astonishing sight occurred as the sword energy cleaved through the sea wherever it passed.

"The destructive power of Haoshoku Haki Infusion is immense, but it also consumes a large amount of Haki. HUFF... HUFF... I'm too old to be doing this; my power has greatly diminished compared to my prime."

Breathing heavily, Rayleigh looked exhausted, with beads of sweat on his forehead.

"Take a rest, Rayleigh."

"Yes, I will."

Sitting on the white sand of the beach, Rayleigh opened a bottle of alcohol and took a swig.

"Failed, huh..."

Using an ordinary sword he had taken from Dressrosa, Eiji tried to apply the flow of Haoshoku Haki he had seen Rayleigh perform earlier through the Six Eyes.

Theory and practice are two different things. Even if one understands the theory, applying it in practice is another matter.

*CRUSCH-BANG*

Infusing Haoshoku Haki into the sword, the blade's durability was too low to withstand the large amount of Haoshoku Haki, causing it to crack and shatter.

"Again."

This wasn't the first time Eiji had failed; he took another sword from his storage ring and began practicing again.

❀❀❀

Dusk.

The orange sunlight beautifully illuminated the world.

"Hah... Hah... Hah..."

Even with the blessing of the Six Eyes, after a day of using Haoshoku Haki, Eiji felt exhausted due to his depleted Spiritual Energy.

"That's enough, Eiji. Don't push yourself. You've been training since morning; you're out of Haoshoku Haki, right? Honestly, this is the first time I've seen someone use Haoshoku Haki for that long. Even Roger and Edward couldn't do that. Your Haoshoku Haki capacity might be the greatest in history." Rayleigh said in amazement.

"..."

Eiji was too exhausted to correct the misunderstanding.

Of course, he knew that it wasn't his Haoshoku Haki capacity that was the greatest in history, as Rayleigh claimed, but rather the Six Eyes that allowed him to use Haoshoku Haki with little to almost no output, making it seem like he had unlimited energy from others' perspectives.

"Hey, Rayleigh, want to relax at Gran Tesoro?"

"Are you serious? As far as I know, the location of Gran Tesoro isn't fixed. To get there, you need a special invitation."

"Doflamingo gave me the Gran Tesoro Vivre Card. Aren't you tired of staying on this remote island? Let's have some fun."

"You've got a point. Should I ask Hancock to take us there?"

"No need. First, I'll fly there, then I'll pick you up with teleportation and take you directly to Gran Tesoro."

"Great idea! I'll be counting on you, Eiji."

"Mm."

Seeing that Rayleigh agreed to go to Gran Tesoro with him, Eiji wasted no time and immediately flew in the direction indicated by the Vivre Card.