"Really?"
"Of course. After all, what reason do I have to stop a man from setting sail for his dream?" Summer's lips curved slightly into a smile.
"Luffy, come here for a second." Summer beckoned. Luffy walked over with a curious look on his face; he had just overheard that Summer was going to teach Ace some incredible moves.
*Snap!* Summer flicked Luffy right on the forehead.
"Ow, that hurts! Summer, what are you doing? Why does it still hurt when I'm rubber?"
Luffy clutched his head, glaring at Summer with a mix of bewilderment and anger.
"Hahaha, that is the loving testimony of me acting as your older brother, Luffy!"
Luffy: (*￣rǒ￣)(ー_ー)!! *Like hell I believe you!*
"All joking aside, Ace, just like you saw a moment ago, I flicked Luffy's head. The method I used to cause him pain is what people in the New World call Haki."
"Haki is a power that lies dormant inside every human body—presence, pressure, intimidation. It's something everyone is born with. However, many people go their entire lives without ever realizing it, or even if they know about it, they can't use it, bringing their lives to a hasty end while holding firmly to their beliefs. That in itself is a kind of strength."
As his voice trailed off, Summer pulled a black blindlock from his pocket, put it on, and said, "Ace, come on, attack me with all your might!"
"Are you sure?!"
"Of course! Watch closely and learn."
*Whoosh!*
Ace swung the pipe in his hand with all his might. At that exact moment, Summer lowered his body slightly by ten centimeters and shifted to the right, dodging the attack beforehand. At the same time, he parted his lips and said, "Ace, when you swing that pipe, you're going to attack my head from the upper right and sweep down toward the lower left."
*Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!*
Seeing Summer dodge in advance and call out his attack trajectory, Ace continued to swing his weapon rapidly. Over and over again, he finally stopped after more twenty consecutive swings. He hadn't landed a single hit, and he looked at Summer with eager eyes.
Both Ace and Luffy had the words *want to learn* written all over their eyes. °?????(????)?????°
"Haki is divided into two types: Observation Haki and Armament Haki. The ability to sense someone else's intense presence is Observation Haki. By developing this ability, you can perceive the number and location of enemies outside your field of vision, and even anticipate your opponent's attacks beforehand, just like I did just now. When Observation Haki is pushed to its absolute limit, I've heard you can even catch a glimpse of brief future events."
"The other type is Armament Haki. It's like putting on an invisible layer of hard armor, enhancing your own offensive capabilities. Another function of Armament Haki is dealing with Devil Fruit users like Luffy. Aside from exploiting weaknesses, Armament Haki is the only way to counter Devil Fruit powers. It can strike the physical body of Zoan, Paramecia, and even Logia Devil Fruit users."
"The current Marine Headquarters' three highest combat powers are all Logia Devil Fruit users. Without Armament Haki, you'd just be lambs waiting for slaughter, completely defenseless."
"Aside from these two common types of Haki, there is also a special, one-in-a-million type: Conqueror's Haki. The top powerhouses in the New World today all possess this Haki. The King of the Pirates, Roger, also possessed this ability."
When Summer mentioned this, he paused slightly. Sure enough, Ace's expression turned somewhat angry and resentful. He clenched his small fists so tightly that his fingernails dug into his flesh without him even realizing it.
"As expected, the King of the Pirates, Roger, also had Conqueror's Haki. I wonder if I'll have it someday."
Hearing Summer mention Roger, Luffy's little face grew extremely excited—just like Bartolomeo meeting Luffy later on. This was the idol Luffy had always wanted to become.
"Hahaha, who knows, maybe both of you have Conqueror's Haki."
Hearing Luffy muttering softly to himself, Summer said, "Alright, the Haki lesson begins! First step, calm your mind and feel the power within..."
"Inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale~"
Realizing just how powerful Haki was, both Luffy and Ace began learning with utmost seriousness, especially after learning there were so many monstrously strong powerhouses out there in the New World. The two of them pushed themselves even harder.
As for whether teaching Haki early would affect the subsequent plot development and cause a butterfly effect, Summer didn't care. Compared to these two, Summer himself was the biggest variable.
After all, if a time-traveler doesn't change the world, what's the point of being a time-traveler? ˉ\\_(ツ)_/ˉ
Time flew by like a white steed flashing past a gap. In the blink of an eye, Summer had been here for half a month. True to being geniuses, Luffy and Ace had already mastered Haki in this short span and could use it simply.
Next, Ace—now having mastered Haki—beat Luffy again. His "Fist of Love" knocked against Luffy's head, causing Luffy to bare his teeth and roar in pain.
"Damn you, Ace! Next time, I'll definitely beat you!"
"Heh heh, Luffy, you couldn't beat me before, and now that I've mastered Haki, I'm definitely not going to lose. Hahaha!"
The two brothers lay on the grass, bantering back and forth. Then, happy laughter rang out, echoing through the entire forest.
"Sigh~"
"What is it, Luffy?"
Hearing Luffy sigh, Summer asked with a puzzled expression.
"It's a pity Sabo isn't here anymore, otherwise..."
"Don't be sad, Luffy. Maybe Sabo is still alive. After all, you guys never saw a body, did you? Once you set sail to travel around the world and become the King of the Pirates, maybe you'll run into him." Summer comforted him, though he didn't mention that Sabo was with the Revolutionary Army. The reunion of the three brothers needed a better time and opportunity.
"Hehe, I'm definitely going to sail around the world and find the One Piece. I'm the man who's going to be the King of the Pirates! ?(●′?`●)?"
The moment the King of the Pirates was mentioned, Luffy grew intensely excited. With a carp leap, he sprang up from the ground, looked at the boundless ocean with a smiling face, and made his grand declaration. As if responding to Luffy's bold words, the sea before them surged violently, and the waves rolled fiercely, each wave higher than the last.
"Tch! What a boring dream." Beside him, Ace wore a complicated expression and curled his lip. He didn't understand what was so great about being the King of the Pirates.
"Hmph, ╭(╯^╰)╮ The King of the Pirates is the freest man in the world! It's super cool, you know," Luffy retorted, pouting in utter defiance.
"Hahahahaha!"
As the familiar scene unfolded before his eyes, Summer burst into hearty laughter.
Three minutes later, Luffy was lying on the ground fast asleep, snot bubbles expanding and contracting freely.
"Ace, don't mind what other people say about him. The King of the Pirates! Maybe he wasn't as evil as people make him out to be. After you set sail, experience it for yourself with your own heart. Perhaps, once you've been through more things, a lot of your inner knots will untie themselves."
On the hillside, a gentle breeze brushed their faces. Summer and Ace stood side by side. During their time together, Luffy had accidentally let slip Ace's identity. Although Summer had known all along, he still feigned surprise.
Right now, the two of them were having a brief conversation about the King of the Pirates, Roger.
Opinions on the King of the Pirates, Roger, were evenly split. With a single word, he kicked off the Great Age of Pirates, sending countless young men swarming into the New World in pursuit of the One Piece to become pirates. Along the way, they burned, killed, and pillaged, committing every evil imaginable, driving the Marines to distraction and leaving ordinary people displaced and homeless. That was the bad side.
On the other hand, Roger achieved an unprecedented feat by reaching the final island, Laugh Tale, obtaining the One Piece, and learning about the Void Century that the World Government desperately tried to hide. The arrival of the Great Age of Pirates propelled the pace of a new era. A batch of young people daring to rebel stood up, exposing the darkness of the Celestial Dragons, laying a massive foundation and beginning for a final peaceful and equal New World. It was of milestone significance. That was the good side.
Therefore, Summer did not make a single judgment. Instead, from a god's perspective, he explained his own view to Acad, leaving the rest for Ace to decide on his own—something no one else could interfere with.