The laboratory hummed with an eerie silence, broken only by the faint crackle of residual Haki energy. Dr. Dol stood over the operating table, the black sword Shusui glinting in her hand. Ben Beckman's corpse lay still, a monument to the Red-Haired Pirates' defeat.
"Haki Core," Dol announced, her voice steady.
She took a deep breath and thrust Shusui forward. Sizzle. A ferocious bolt of lightning, glowing black and red, slowly emerged from Ben Beckman's chest. It looked like a serpent stirred from hibernation, a physical manifestation of his will.
"Ready," Dol stated.
Using the Ope Ope no Mi's ability, she separated the Conqueror's Haki bloodline factor from the corpse. Turning to the materialized Zanpakutō—Hana and Kyōkotsu—she prepared the transplant.
"Proceed," Hana said, calm and composed.
Clang. Dol redirected the blade. The Conqueror's Haki, a coil of black and red lightning, coalesced into a heart-shaped sphere suspended in the surgical space. With a flash, it shot forward like a cannonball, piercing Hana's chest and entering her body.
Dol lowered the sword, her gaze fixed on the two women. Silence descended. Rosen watched from the sidelines, his expression unreadable. He was analyzing the data, calculating the tactical value of weaponizing Haki.
Thirty minutes passed. Hana, who had stood motionless like a statue, finally opened her eyes. The clarity in her gaze was replaced by something fiercer.
"Red-Haired's right arm?" Hana murmured, a chilling light flashing in her eyes. "Your Haki was impressive... but it is mine now."
Boom.
A shockwave of Conqueror's Haki erupted from her. It wasn't the wild burst of an amateur; it was focused, crushing, like a hurricane slamming into the laboratory walls. Cracks spiderwebbed across the floor.
"Advanced Conqueror's Haki," Dol breathed, shock evident in her usually stoic voice.
She knew Ben Beckman was strong, but she hadn't expected this level of mastery. It was a height Fleet Admiral Sengoku himself had never reached.
"Loss is negligible," Hana reported, her voice carrying a new, commanding authority. She looked like a queen reigning over the battlefield. "Ten percent, at most. But this Haki... it grows with my will."
"Test the control," Dol instructed.
Hana nodded. She focused, recalling the principles Rosen had drilled into her regarding Haki. Unwavering belief equals strength. Fearlessness equals invincibility. While Conqueror's Haki couldn't be "trained" in the traditional sense, it could be sharpened through battle and willpower.
Sizzle.
Black and red lightning coiled around her palm, forming distinct, crackling bolts. Beside her, Kyōkotsu mirrored the action, her fist wreathed in the same energy.
"Conqueror's Haki Entanglement," Dol whispered, her pupils constricting.
To master the technique instantly upon acquisition was unheard of. This experiment was a resounding success. The Zanpakutō were no longer limited by their origins; they could now stand toe-to-toe with the strongest monsters in the New World.
"Powerful," Hana marveled, feeling the energy hum through her. "No wonder he could damage us permanently. With this... Shikai alone would suffice against most opponents."
She looked at Dol, her expression softening slightly. "There is no discomfort. The Haki feels natural, as if I was born with it."
Rosen stepped forward, his boots clicking on the cracked floor. "A five billion Berri Op-Op Fruit is a bargain," he stated coldly.
He looked at the system prompt in his mind's eye. The concept of rejection simply doesn't exist for the Ope Ope no Mi. In a world where even simple organ transplants carried risks, the Op-Op Fruit defied logic. It allowed perfect integration, not just of flesh, but of bloodline factors and will.
"Continue," Hana ordered, her eyes gleaming with a hunger for power. "Next is Armament Haki."
Dol nodded. She reopened the surgical space, enveloping the corpses of Katen, Kyōkotsu, and Ben Beckman. Using Shusui from a distance, she targeted the Vice Captain once more.
Clang.
A sound like metal striking metal echoed through the room. A dark purple light flowed from Ben Beckman's corpse, forming another heart-shaped mass of luminous matter. It flew toward Hana, entering her alongside the first transplant.
A moment later, Hana raised her hand. Purple light flowed around her palm, hardening into a dark, metallic sheen. Armament Haki coated her skin, reinforcing it to steel-like density.
Kyōkotsu did the same, her fist clenching with a sound that resembled sheathing a blade.
"Our Zanpakutō have acquired their own Haki," Hana said, a deep smile gracing her lips. She flexed her armored hand. "If we fought him again... Shikai alone would be enough to hold him. To kill him? We wouldn't need Bankai. We wouldn't need the End Form."
She understood now. Ben Beckman's resilience hadn't come from physical durability alone, but from the sheer force of his Haki allowing him to contest a rule-based ability like Katen Kyōkotsu: Koshō no Shinne. With Haki of her own, that contestation was gone.
Rosen watched the two women, their auras now suffused with the purple and black energy of Armament and Conqueror's Haki. The experiment was a success. The Zanpakutō were evolving.
"Good," Rosen said, his voice cutting through the lingering energy. "The East Blue is quiet. The Warlords are collared. But the New World remains a chaotic sea. With this power, we take the next step."
He turned toward the exit, the image of the Skynet surveillance map flashing in his mind.
"The time for observation is ending," Rosen declared. "The era of Marine dominance begins now."
—-
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