Chapter 8: Monsters with Different Talents

"Observation Haki is the ability to strongly sense the opponent's 'presence'. Once this power is enhanced, you can read the position and number of enemies outside your line of sight, as well as predict the actions the opponent will take in the next moment. Observation Haki is closely related to psychology, and you need to remain calm to use it. Observation Haki cannot be used when you are emotional and lose your mind."

Immediately afterwards, Zephyr extended his hand and said, "Next, I will show you what Armament Haki is."

As he spoke, Zephyr's arm turned pitch black, and then he casually took out a knife, crushing it easily with his fingers.

"This is Armament Haki. It can not only improve defence but also be used offensively. I believe you have seen this clearly."

Seeing this demonstration, Varen didn't feel much. In fact, from the very beginning, he didn't intend to study Armament Haki seriously, let alone cultivate it to the ultimate level like Garp or Zephyr did.

The reason is quite simple. It is undeniable that Armament Haki is indeed very powerful, but in comparison, Reiatsu is the way to truly make him stronger, and using Kidō to attack directly can also deal with Logia abilities like Armament Haki.

So majoring in Armament Haki doesn't make sense for Varen.

While speaking, Zephyr had finished showing Armament Haki and then said, "Sakazuki, now you come up and attack me, don't hold back. Keep attacking until I call for a stop."

"Yes!"

Hearing the order, Sakazuki immediately replied and walked out, his arm turning into magma as he punched at Zephyr.

But the result was predictable. Even with his eyes closed, Zephyr easily perceived Sakazuki's movements in advance and dodged them effortlessly.

Sakazuki didn't stop there. He swung his fist even faster, aiming directly at Zephyr and trying to land a solid hit.

However, without exception, every punch of Sakazuki was sensed by Zephyr, who easily dodged them all, rendering Sakazuki's attacks completely ineffective.

"Observation Haki!"

Seeing this, Varen squinted his eyes. For him, Observation Haki is naturally one of his main focuses. It can predict the enemy's attack route in advance, and it can even eliminate the need for vision entirely. This ability is crucial in battle, providing a significant auxiliary effect.

Although it is not directly offensive, its usefulness is no less than that of Armament Haki, and it is even more important in some contexts.

To a certain extent, as long as your Observation Haki is strong enough, even if the opponent has countless fighting methods, they are of no use to you.

No matter how strong the attack is, if it can't hit the target, it is meaningless.

"Alright, now form random pairs. One person will close their eyes and the other will attack. The person with closed eyes will dodge. You need to rely on your body's instinctive perception to determine the location of the attack. As long as you can do this, then you understand what I just explained and have started to grasp Observation Haki. Varen, come and practise with me."

After saying this, Zephyr called Varen over without hesitation.

The Marines themselves worship strength, and Varen has shown enough potential that he may even be qualified to become a Fleet Admiral, so it's normal for him to receive a bit of special treatment.

The others didn't say much about it.

Varen walked directly to Zephyr and then sat down with his eyes closed.

"Varen, although you are stronger than Sakazuki and the others now, it is only for the time being. Mastering Haki and its strength is an important criterion for measuring your actual combat effectiveness in the future. Don't be complacent now."

Seeing Varen approach, Zephyr reminded him.

He didn't want to see Varen become complacent and let his talents go to waste. Especially for the two forms of Haki, it is difficult to achieve significant accomplishments without long periods of dedicated training.

Immediately afterwards, Zephyr raised the stick in his hand and aimed it at Varen, who had already closed his eyes.

However, in the next second, something unexpected happened.

Varen dodged!

"How is that possible? By chance?"

Seeing this, Zephyr made a bold prediction in his mind, but because it was too bold, he attributed this to luck for the time being.

Immediately afterwards, he swung the stick again at a faster speed.

This time, Varen still turned slightly sideways, dodging Zephyr's attack again.

So the stick swung again, the third, fourth, fifth time...

And every time Zephyr struck, no matter how much he sped up, Varen dodged him with ease.

If it had been just once, he could still explain it as luck.

However, with so many consecutive attacks being dodged, the probability of it being luck was almost zero.

"Varen. Try using Armament Haki!" Zephyr stared at Varen seriously, trying to see if it was as he thought.

"Armament Haki?" Varen frowned, then looked at his arm, but tried Armament Haki anyway.

Immediately afterwards, a light layer of Armament Haki covered his fist.

"Is that really the case? But it makes sense. If Aizen wasn't that kind of monster with extraordinary talents, it would have been impossible to reach that level. After all, Aizen Sōsuke was just an ordinary person in the Wandering Soul Street back then," Varen thought silently.

Even if he didn't deliberately plan to learn Armament Haki, just by listening to Zephyr's explanation and demonstration, he could directly start using Armament Haki.