At noon the next day, the sky was clear with soft clouds drifting by, and the sea breeze was gentle.
On the open sea, the Wind Rider sailed steadily, guided by the Log Pose and driven by the wind.
Caelan lounged on a beach chair, enjoying the sunshine in a leisurely manner.
Nami and Vivi were sitting beside Robin, listening intently as she talked about Baroque Works.
Only Tashigi kept glancing toward Caelan, her expression tangled with hesitation.
Finally, she gathered her courage and approached him.
"Caelan, teach me how to become stronger. I don't want to drag you down."
Tashigi bit her lower lip, eyes filled with determination.
During the Alabasta incident, she had been more of a bystander, and it made her feel useless.
What made her feel even more ashamed was that Caelan had given her the captured famed blade, Kashu, after taking down the Baroque Works agents in the port city.
They had agreed to be partners, but she was just enjoying the benefits without contributing.
Caelan had taught her swordsmanship before, and it had helped, but it was too gentle. She wanted a more intense regimen.
"Alright."
Caelan stood up from the beach chair and stretched.
He was feeling a bit bored, so this was a good opportunity to get some exercise in.
Noticing the conversation between Caelan and Tashigi, Vivi and Nami also came running over.
"Caelan, we want to train too!"
They didn't want to be dead weight and wanted to contribute in their own way.
Only Robin, who had just joined the crew, stood off to the side, feeling slightly awkward and not joining in.
"No problem, I'll train you all together."
Looking at the eager expressions of Nami and Vivi, Caelan smiled and nodded.
Whether it was one sheep or a whole flock, he might as well train them all.
He had taken Nami and the others in with the intention of helping them grow—though of course, there were other reasons as well.
But overall, Caelan genuinely wanted them to get stronger.
Tashigi, Nami, and Vivi cheered happily.
Vivi even threw herself into Caelan's arms, nuzzling his chest with her head and smiling sweetly.
Tashigi and Nami were a bit surprised by Vivi's reaction, but they didn't think much of it, assuming she was just overly excited.
Robin stood to the side, watching them with a hint of envy in her eyes.
Such a crew... really was something special.
"Alright, let's get started."
"But just so you know, my training is strict. No quitting halfway!"
Caelan smiled at the girls, though his gaze had a distinct sharpness to it.
Nami, Vivi, and Tashigi trembled slightly, but they nodded with firm resolve. They weren't the type to give up easily.
"Don't worry. We'll stick with it!"
The three of them answered confidently, eyes filled with determination.
They were resolved to work hard to help Caelan.
Seeing the fire in their eyes, Caelan nodded in satisfaction. These were the companions he had chosen.
Wait, it seemed one was missing.
"Robin, you join too. Can't have you just standing around watching."
Caelan turned toward the somewhat isolated Robin and invited her with a smile.
Robin was momentarily stunned. Her expression turned a little stiff, but in the end, she stepped forward and joined them.
Looking at the four women standing neatly in front of him, Caelan nodded in approval.
"In terms of physical combat, swordsmanship, or Devil Fruit abilities, I'll offer guidance based on each of your levels."
"But your main goal now is to learn Observation Haki and Armament Haki. I'll be teaching you both."
"On this sea, there are all kinds of flashy abilities. But the ones who stand at the top of the world all master Haki."
Caelan swept his gaze over the four of them and spoke seriously.
Nami and Vivi looked puzzled, not quite understanding what Haki was.
Tashigi's face flushed with excitement, her eyes glowing.
"Haki... that's a power only a handful of elite Marine officers get a chance to learn!"
She couldn't help but blurt it out. She never expected to learn such a high-level ability here.
Even at Marine Headquarters, fewer than a hundred people were given the opportunity to learn Haki each year.
She had thought it was something she'd never be able to learn in her lifetime.
Learning it from Caelan was a huge surprise.
"Is it really that rare?"
After hearing Tashigi's words, Vivi, Nami, and Robin also realized the value of Haki and grew more serious.
"Armament Haki and Observation Haki are hidden within everyone and can be awakened through training."
"Observation Haki can be trained by constantly dodging attacks."
"Armament Haki is awakened more easily when you're under intense pressure."
Caelan explained freely, summarizing the essence of Haki.
This was based on his own experience with awakening Haki and inheriting Heracles's combat knowledge.
Back on Little Garden, he had awakened all three types of Haki at once using this method.
He had been too strong at the time. His Haki had nearly burst out of him, forcing a complete awakening in one go.
Nami and the others were sharp and quickly caught on to what Caelan meant.
"So, if we go through multiple life-and-death battles, we'll awaken Haki faster?"
Their expressions turned serious as they spoke. They could already imagine how brutal that method would be.
Since it required a life-or-death experience, there was a high chance one wouldn't survive.
Only those who lived on could fight again and again.
In such a cycle, those who could awaken Haki were probably one in a thousand.
Gulp.
Thinking of that, the girls couldn't help but take a deep breath.
At their current level, using that method would be suicide.
"Don't worry, I have a better way."
"I'll personally spar with you and teach you techniques. With days of combat training, you should be able to grasp them."
Caelan said with a smile, though his tone had a strange edge.
Under his perfect control of strength, they wouldn't get injured, but the pain... would be real.
Only through this kind of experience would the training be effective.
"Whew..."
Hearing that, the girls sighed in relief.
Tashigi also began to understand why the Marine Elite Officer Training Camp had such strict limits.
It took someone with tremendous strength and endurance to train others like this.
And there were very few such strong individuals in the Marines, let alone those willing to take the time to train others.
Realizing this, Tashigi looked at Caelan with more gratitude and admiration.
"Then, let's begin!"
Caelan suddenly shouted, releasing a surge of killing intent as he charged at them like a tiger descending from a mountain.
In an instant, Nami and the others felt a terrifying pressure, their scalps tingling.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
Four crisp smacks landed squarely on their foreheads.
Why did it hurt so much?!
The girls clutched their heads, eyes welling up with tears.
Caelan grinned, not giving them a chance to recover as he launched another round of attacks.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The sharp sounds of forehead flicks rang out repeatedly as the girls tried their best to dodge, only to keep getting hit.
Caelan watched them flailing and dodging in panic, a satisfied smile on his face.
At this rate, they'd definitely get results soon.
(To be continued.)
***
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