Chapter 32: Haki Training
The next morning, on the seas outside Marineford.
The salt-laced sea breeze slapped Garon in the face. He was squatting on the bow of the warship, yawning as he watched the silhouette of a desolate island gradually appear in the distance.
"So..." He turned his head to look at Zephyr, whose cape was snapping in the wind behind him.
"Did HQ really designate all the training grounds as 'High-Risk Facilities' just because of my ability, Teacher Zephyr?"
"What else?" Zephyr snorted, his gaze sweeping over from behind his sunglasses. "Your fruit's demolition efficiency is faster than Garp's snacking speed. The finance department already sent a joint petition demanding you pay for the damages."
Garon shrank back, muttering under his breath, "But you started it..."
"Hm?"
"I said, your guidance is excellent!" Garon immediately straightened his back, then looked curiously at the approaching island. "So, what's the special training this time?"
Zephyr didn't answer directly. Instead, he suddenly tossed over a pair of Seastone handcuffs.
Garon instinctively moved to catch them, but when he saw what they were, his face changed instantly, and he let them clatter to the deck.
"Hold on, isn't this jumping the gun a bit?! I don't even have Haki yet..."
"Oh! Wrong pair. Those were for the last pirate we cuffed." A dangerous smile tugged at Zephyr's lips.
Garon: "..."
"You were the one complaining the HQ training grounds were too small, right? This island should be big enough for you to wreck." As he spoke, he pointed to an abrupt crater in the center of the island. "See that crater? In one month, I want you to turn it into a 'basin'."
Garon followed his finger, and a sudden realization dawned on him. His voice trembled, "You don't mean... you want me to use my fists..."
"Haki is an extension of your will." Zephyr grabbed Garon by the scruff of his neck, and the moment the warship touched the shore, he threw him onto the beach.
"First, learn to feel strength with your body, then you can worry about all that fancy vibration nonsense!"
THUD! Garon face-planted in the sand, getting a mouthful.
A moment later, as he struggled to his feet, he saw Zephyr descending from the sky via Geppo, his pitch-black fists glinting like metal in the morning sun.
"Remember, brat." Zephyr's landing sent out a shockwave of sand. "In the New World, people who can destroy islands are a dime a dozen..."
His fist suddenly tore through the air, rapidly filling Garon's vision.
"But the ones who can protect everything... those are the true powerhouses!
And the first step to becoming one... is Haki!"
"Haki..." When those two words left Zephyr's mouth, Garon felt the blood in his veins begin to boil. He held his breath, his pupils contracting slightly.
The moment he had waited so long for... had finally arrived.
Zephyr saw Garon's reaction and a meaningful smile spread across his lips.
He slowly raised his right arm, which was wreathed in black Armament Haki. "Do you remember what I told you at the training ground two months ago?"
"I remember!" Garon shouted, almost as a reflex. "You said Haki comes from ambition, will, and spiritual power!"
"And, of course... it is the physical manifestation of belief!"
"Very good." Zephyr nodded, satisfied. The black Armament Haki flowed like water over his arm.
"Haki is divided into three types: Conqueror's, Armament, and Observation, corresponding to those three powers."
"The essence of Haki is belief made physical!" As he spoke, Zephyr raised his Haki-coated arm and clenched his fist, the air compressing with a crack.
"Garon, you've never truly come into contact with Haki, which is why what happened at the training ground... happened. You've seen Conqueror's on Whitebeard. And two months ago, you got a taste of Armament and Observation!"
Garon nodded silently.
After all, only by witnessing the peak of the power you desire can you truly form that seed of craving in your heart.
"I understand, Teacher Zephyr!"
"Since you understand..." Zephyr suddenly gave a mysterious smile.
And just then...
BOOM!
A massive explosion. The rock cliff, tens of meters high, that was behind Garon suddenly detonated!
Amidst the flying shrapnel, a burly figure in a Marine coat leaped out, laughing. The ground cracked the moment he landed.
"Then get ready to really begin, Garon-boy!"
"Vice... Vice Admiral Garp?!" Garon's pupils shrank. He instinctively took half a step back.
Staring at Garp, who had just appeared without any warning and was chewing on a popsicle, Garon couldn't process it.
Zephyr brushed the debris off his shoulders and shook his head, exasperated.
"My Haki is strong, but when it comes to your potential, I lean more toward theory!
"But with Garp's CQC training, he abandons all theory. He will use near-death experiences to awaken your true potential! This will forge a pure and powerful Haki from your very core. So..."
(In short: Zephyr's Theory + Garp's "Risk-Your-Life" Style!)
"It means you get Zephyr's theory and my 'Fist' special training!" Garp laughed, finishing the thought. He suddenly punched a nearby boulder that was three-men high.
Before Garon's horrified eyes, the boulder instantly disintegrated into dust.
"Only by experiencing the brink of death can you truly realize how strong you are."
"W-Wait!" Cold sweat broke out on Garon's forehead. "What do you mean, 'brink of death'?"
This was the "Hero of the Marines," Iron Fist Garp, in his absolute prime—not even 40 years old—the man who was currently chasing the Pirate King, Roger, all over the world!
This guy... he might actually train him to death.
"Hehe, Garon-boy, this is the first time Zephyr has ever asked me for a favor in all the years I've known him!
"So..." Garp's smile suddenly turned dangerous. He cracked his knuckles, KRAK. "I don't have any 'theory.' I just know that the only thing at the end of hell is a fist!
"True Armament Haki is only born from the sound of your own bones cracking!"
"Garon." Zephyr stepped forward, a stark contrast to Garp.
"My philosophy is the opposite of Garp's. I know that the ultimate form of Armament Haki is not an 'invincible fist.'
"It is the 'Absolute Defense' of your back when you stand in front of those you must protect!"
Garon looked at the two legendary instructors, with their polar-opposite styles, and suddenly realized that what he was about to endure was, in all likelihood, hell.
But for some reason, he couldn't stop the smile from spreading across his face.
After all, wasn't this exactly what he wanted?
"Interesting... This is too interesting!" Garon suddenly burst out laughing, a wild, manic energy in his voice that hadn't been there before.
Zephyr and Garp both raised an eyebrow. This reaction was clearly not what they were expecting.
"Teacher Zephyr's 'Absolute Defense'..."
"Vice Admiral Garp's 'Iron Fist'..."
Under the gaze of the two legends, Garon spread his arms wide. "I will devour everything you both have to teach me! And then...
"I will create my own path of Haki!"
Garp stared for a second, then exploded in a heaven-shaking laugh. "Hahaha! What a kid!
"That arrogance is exactly my style!" He slapped Garon on the back, nearly planting the young man in the sand.
Zephyr, however, looked thoughtful. "Fusing two opposite ideals, eh..." His gaze deepened. "This is exactly what I was hoping to teach you."
"However..." Garp's smile suddenly vanished. Armament Haki instantly coated his entire right arm. "First, let's see if your bones are as hard as your words!"
Before Garon could even react, the legendary, future "Fist of Love" was already whistling through the air.
In the last instant before he lost consciousness, he vaguely heard Zephyr's yell.
"Garp, why'd you attack so suddenly?! And with Armament Haki?!"
"Haha, it was just instinct! Aiya, I didn't think he'd be this squishy..."