Garp's fist smashed into Sengoku's chest, hurling him away and blasting a man-shaped hole through the derelict hull behind him.
"That punch… should've done it, right?"
Garp grinned. "What level is this? Using the same Tekkai as me!?"
"If I can't block it, you think you can?"
Even Klein watched the hole in the hull, tense. "Is Tekkai really that good?"
Beside him, Zephyr wore a whole row of question marks. "Bro, you really don't think much of Tekkai… do you?"
Even 'indestructible' Kaido got upended, and the 'Iron Balloon' Charlotte Linlin got punctured…
Tekkai—whoever uses it, eats the pain!
"Offense is always the best defense," Klein answered Zephyr with a very classic line.
Zephyr nodded thoughtfully, half understanding, half not.
Sounded… pretty convincing!!
Klein clapped his shoulder, solemn. "Take my advice: Tekkai's a deep pit. Even I can't fully control it."
"Mm." Zephyr nodded again, remembering how even Klein got knocked back by Garp while using Tekkai.
Klein was a monster of talent and strength.
If even he says Tekkai's not it, there has to be a reason.
Main thing is: listen and live.
Splinters of wood had cut and lodged into Sengoku's skin; blood seeped from a dozen wounds.
He looked utterly miserable.
"Huff—huff—" His chest heaved; his breath came ragged.
He was on the edge of blacking out.
Was he really going to lose to Garp?
And then… call Klein 'big bro'?
Sengoku's pupils tightened, focus snapping back. A scarlet gleam flashed across his eyes as he muttered, "No…"
"I can't lose. I… won't lose!"
The last word erupted in a roar as a nameless power surged out of him.
It condensed in the air into a tangible shockwave that blasted out through the hole in the hull.
Where Conqueror's Haki swept, even the dust in the moonlight seemed to freeze.
That overwhelming pressure howled like dragons and tigers—
Crushing everything in its path!
In an instant, Sengoku stood like a king who ruled the world.
Garp, the first to be hit by the wave of will, stiffened—then his eyes widened, shock flooding his face. "So strong… so strong. What a domineering aura!"
A chill ran over his whole body; the hot blood that had been surging within went still.
His pores tightened on their own, as if confronted with a terrifying beast.
Even his veteran's mind seemed to slow.
"This is…" Klein's heart lurched. "Sengoku—Sengoku really freaking exploded—he awakened Conqueror's Haki!?"
Right beside him, Zephyr's eyes rolled white and he just dropped with a thud.
As expected of the young—sleep quality top-tier. Out like a light!
Klein stared for a good two and a half seconds, then snapped back, ripples spreading through his thoughts. 'Didn't think pushing Sengoku and Garp to spar would actually make him awaken Conqueror's Haki…' Orıginal content can be found at 𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹✶𝗳𝗶𝗿𝗲✶𝗻𝗲𝘁
'Why is it every time I pressure Garp or Sengoku, they "go super"!?'
'Where's the fairness in that!?'
'When… when is it my turn?'
But the moment he pictured Sengoku getting beaten that badly, a shiver ran up his spine. The thought died on the spot.
Better not. Play it safe. The wise man reads the room. No gambling on those mystical 'flashback power-ups' for me.
While Garp was still stunned, Sengoku shot out of the hole like an arrow loosed from the string.
His fist crashed into Garp's face, warping the man's cheek with the impact.
Garp tumbled backward, rolling across the ground, blood spraying from his mouth.
At Marine HQ, several powerhouses who had been fast asleep snapped their eyes open.
Rampaging Bear, still pumping iron, suddenly dropped his barbell. The massive weight slammed down—
The plates punched shallow craters into the floor, cracks spidering out.
"Conqueror's Haki???"
Rampaging Bear blanched. "Don't tell me some suicidal pirate is attacking HQ!?"
He bolted from his room and leapt—his massive frame moving with a black cat's agility—as he bounded onto the rooftops.
Up and down he went, racing toward the source of that Conqueror's Haki.
In the Fleet Admiral's little villa, Oharden's eyes shook. "A Conqueror's Haki shockwave at HQ—what's going on!?"
He flung off his blanket, revealing flamboyant cartoon boxers, then got dressed in a flash.
He grabbed the Den Den Mushi and dialed. "Lincoln, it's me. You felt that Conqueror's Haki, right?"
"Felt it. I'm heading over—almost there."
"Good. The second you arrive, report to me."
Hanging up, Fleet Admiral Oharden threw open the window, vaulted off the balcony, and kicked into Geppo, cutting across the sky at speed.
Rampaging Bear hadn't even arrived yet, but his Observation Haki had already swept the area ahead.
"It's… a few trainees!?"
He calmed down at once, piecing things together. Looked like a spar between trainees.
Someone had awakened Conqueror's Haki?
"In this year's class… there's actually someone with the qualities of a king!"
"Wah-hahaha—" Rampaging Bear grinned, elated. Anyone with a king's disposition had monstrous potential.
The Marines had struck gold.
Suddenly, his ear twitched. He glanced back. "Oi—Carter, you old ghost. Knew you'd sense it."
"Conqueror's Haki—if a king shows up at Marine HQ and you don't notice, that'd be the real problem," Carter walked up, eyeing him. "Didn't expect you to beat me here."
"What's the situation?"
Rampaging Bear bared his teeth and let out that signature laugh. "Wah-hahaha—good news. A trainee in this year's class just awakened Conqueror's Haki!"
"Na—ni???" Carter's jaw went slack. He never would've guessed that surge just now came from a trainee.
Then Rampaging Bear jabbed, "Some instructor you are—didn't even know you had a trainee with a king's disposition. Dereliction of duty!"
"Asshole!!" Instructor Carter snapped back. "If it isn't awakened, how the hell would I know?"
"Enough talk. I'm going to see which trainee it is."
"Should be that kid Klein!"
He cooled down fast, wanting to confirm it with his own eyes.
In this year's class, if anyone was going to awaken Conqueror's Haki, Carter was sure it would be Klein.
That kid's current strength—
A full tier above everyone else. A talent straight out of a nightmare. A genius like that having Conqueror's Haki would only be normal.
But when he swept the scene with his Observation Haki, his eyes almost fell out.
"That afro-headed trainee!?"