Having reached 1370 achievement points, Yuno wanted to check which skills had been unlocked. He wondered if the abilities he'd been eyeing for so long had finally appeared.
A quick glance told him the first sixty skills in the [Kido] branch's Hado and Bakudō were all available. But Yuno only glanced at them—he had no intention of unlocking any for now.
The [Hakuda] branch had gained a few new punches, but he ignored those as well.
His attention was fixed on the [Zanpakutō] branch.
This time, many Zanpakutō names appeared—blades from Bleach wielded by Soul Reapers, each with unique powers:
[Kazeshiro], [Frozen Cloud], [Snake Tail Maru], [Yangetsu], [Sode no Shirayuki]...
A few were useful, but the same problem remained: the ones Yuno had been hoping for—especially high-tier elemental or illusion-based weapons—still hadn't shown up.
"1370 achievement points and still no Senbonzakura or Hyorinmaru? Seriously?" Yuno sighed.
After a moment's thought, he decided to use the lucky draw reward he'd earned from defeating Donquixote Doflamingo.
The lottery—just like a gacha game—was a gamble. Yuno had never tried it before, but now seemed like the right time.
He clicked it. No golden light, no flashy animation—just a plain system update.
Then, the interface for Zanpakutō lit up.
[Zanpakutō]: Hyorinmaru (Proficiency 50)
"…Huh. I'm lucky."
Hyorinmaru—the strongest ice-type Zanpakutō in Bleach, capable of manipulating weather when fully released in Bankai—was now his.
"I wonder… would my ice powers match Aokiji's?" he murmured, thinking of One Piece's Marine Admiral and wielder of the Hie Hie no Mi (Ice-Ice Fruit), a Logia that freezes anything it touches.
"But Bankai… that probably needs 80 proficiency, right?"
Still smiling, Yuno decided: "For now, I should learn Armament Haki first. If I run into a Logia user and can't touch them, it'll be a pain." (Armament Haki, or Busoshoku, is one of One Piece's "two-color" Hakis, allowing the user to harden their body and strike intangible foes.)
It just so happened that today, Zephyr—the Marines' legendary Admiral—was scheduled to explain both Armament and Observation Haki.
Yuno packed his things and headed out.
When he arrived at the training square, it was already full of elite recruits. Many greeted him—he'd made a point to build rapport with his peers over the last few weeks.
Hina, dressed in the Marines' standard training suit that accentuated her curves, smirked at him. "Yuno, you always cut it close. If you weren't so good at training, Teacher Zephyr would've chewed you out by now."
Yuno grinned. "Better on time than early. It's not like I'm missing anything."
Nearby, Lafer chimed in, "I heard you've already mastered Shave (Soru) and Moon Step (Geppo)? It's barely been two months!"
Lafer, who had once tested Yuno's strength on Zephyr's orders and lost, now held nothing but respect for him.
Yuno shrugged. "They're similar to my own movement style, so I picked them up quickly. Just luck."
A slender blue-haired figure stepped forward—Ian, the Marine swordsman known from One Piece. "Luck? No, you're just strong."
The others nodded.
Not only was Yuno a formidable swordsman, but he'd mastered two Rokushiki techniques in under two months—while his physical conditioning was catching up to recruits who'd been training in the elite camp for over half a year.
And, though most of them were several years older, they still felt him gaining on them—fast. Almost unnaturally fast.
Even though they all did the same drills… somehow, Yuno's results were double.
He wasn't secretly training at night. No one could figure it out.
Even Zephyr thought that Yuno's body was different from that of an ordinary person, which explained his terrifying growth rate.
Yuno waved his hand and said modestly, "Ain, stop joking with me. I'm still far behind Teacher Zephyr."
The two girls rolled their eyes. Who asked you to compete with Teacher Zephyr?
Your performance now is already very impressive. If you could catch up with Teacher Zephyr in a short time, you wouldn't be a demon, but a monster among monsters!
As they spoke, Zephyr walked out through the door.
Standing there, Zephyr coughed lightly, attracting everyone's attention.
He looked around and said calmly, "You should all know about today's training, right?"
"Yes, it's about the use of Dual-color Haki!"
"Haki — you should all be familiar with it, right? Even if you don't know it clearly, you've probably heard some of it from others."
The students below listened attentively.
Zephyr took two steps and said steadily,
"There are three types of Haki: Observation Haki (Kenbunshoku), Armament Haki (Busoshoku), and Conqueror's Haki (Haoshoku)!"
"Conqueror's Haki is innate; it can't be forced!"
"But…"
He paused, then looked around at everyone. "The ability known as Dual Haki is something everyone can master through practice!"
Zephyr didn't need to elaborate much; everyone here already had some understanding of Haki.
It's just that while they knew about it, they didn't have a proper training method!
Yuno was also listening, but with the knowledge from his previous life's original work (meta-awareness of the One Piece canon), he certainly understood Dual Haki better than the others.
He even knew about advanced Armament Haki that can penetrate, as well as Conqueror's Haki entanglement.
In his previous life, someone on a forum had once discussed that the Navy Six Styles (Rokushiki) were the first stage of Dual Haki.
But Yuno saw it differently.
They were clearly two different systems.
The Navy Six Styles were likely the product of centuries of refinement and analysis by Marine masters, with a mature training program already in place.
As for Dual Haki, it was about constantly tapping into the body's potential.
One represented the use of techniques and skill; the other represented the degree of development of the body's potential!
The two may have some overlap, but they were definitely not the same combat system.
Therefore, Yuno did not look down on the Navy Six Styles; he simply felt they weren't as versatile as Dual Haki.
If possible, he wanted to develop both at the same pace!
This was also a precaution — if the system ever stopped working, he wouldn't become weak.
Zephyr continued, "Let's talk about Observation Haki first!"
After thinking for a moment, he pointed at Yuno and said, "Soldier Yuno, step forward!"
Yuno was stunned. Why call him?
But he still stepped forward. "Yes, sir!"
Zephyr nodded with satisfaction. "Next, you will demonstrate the use of Observation Haki. Take this and tie it over your eyes."
As he said that, Zephyr tossed him an eye patch similar to Aokiji's (One Piece – Aokiji's post-timeskip appearance with an eyepatch-like sleep mask).
Yuno caught it, speechless.
So… the fact that he could use Observation Haki had already been exposed?
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