"He's just a Major from a West Blue branch. How does he have Observation and Armament Haki at that level?"
"Don't forget, that brat is a CP dog. His master throws him a few bones so he can bite harder, right?"
"Who's going next?"
"Unless it's those aiming for the 'monster' title, no one here can beat him… as much as I hate to admit it."
Whispers spread through small groups.
Rowan had just defeated Dibalu, a Paramecia user, with a single exchange. That alone made the newcomers hesitate.
Even the top trainees, the ones widely acknowledged as the strongest of this batch, couldn't fully gauge him.
They had seen it clearly.
Observation Haki to read the attack.
Armament Haki to catch it.
A single knee strike to end it.
But how strong were those two types of Haki exactly?
They couldn't tell.
Everything Rowan showed looked too effortless.
"Oh? Just now everyone was shouting about fighting, and now you've all gone quiet?"
The smile on Rowan's face slowly faded, his gaze sharpening.
"If that's the case, I should take back what I said earlier. Trash is still trash because of its limits… but you? You're not even as good as trash."
"Whoosh!"
A flying slash cut through the air.
Rowan tilted his body slightly and avoided it, then threw a punch.
"Boom!"
Armament collided with Armament, sending a shockwave through the air.
A long blade blocked his fist.
The blade was coated in Haki strong enough to cut steel.
"Power gained by betraying someone who trusted you is nothing but shame. Rowan, is your will truly firm?"
The swordsman's voice rang out as his blade swept horizontally.
Rowan slapped it aside.
The attacks came continuously, each strike heavy and relentless.
The crowd gradually spread out, leaving the center as a battlefield for the two.
"Bang!"
"The Marines serve the World Government, that's true. We follow orders, that's also true. But we were all once powerless, before we even had the ability to resist!"
"Bang!"
The blade flashed again, black Haki flowing along its edge.
"I've heard that even pirates repay kindness. But someone like you… you're worse than them. This is not the justice I believe in!"
"Bang!"
"Shhh…"
Black blade met black arm.
A surge of air exploded outward.
This time, Rowan's arm was cut.
A shallow wound.
Rowan's eyes lit up.
He didn't care about the injury.
What mattered was something else.
Was the Marine Headquarters really filled with people dissatisfied with the World Government?
Haki came from willpower.
When belief broke, it weakened.
When belief was restored, it strengthened again.
Like Crocodile.
Like Gecko Moria after losing to Kaido.
And the young swordsman in front of him…
This was the kind of justice Rowan wanted to see.
The blade pulled back.
After that fierce exchange, the swordsman's stamina was already faltering.
That attack that broke Rowan's defense wasn't something he had fully mastered. It was a glimpse of new power.
Around them, the watching trainees noticed as well.
If Rowan could be injured, then he wasn't unbeatable.
But Zephyr, who had been observing everything, understood something more.
"He broke through his defense. That means his Haki isn't at the absolute top yet. If they take turns, they can win."
The Major beside him had just spoken when Zephyr glanced at him.
"You think that counts as a win?"
Zephyr frowned. "If this entire class has to take turns to defeat one person, whose head do you think the title of 'monster' will end up on?"
The Major froze.
Then he understood.
But if that was the case, why had Zephyr allowed this?
Zephyr didn't answer.
His gaze remained on the battlefield.
Rowan had turned himself into a target, drawing out everyone's sense of justice.
He wasn't even using full power, just enough Armament to hold on, while provoking them.
So… was this kid really helping them grow?
Shinichi had already grasped Haki, but just now he had even touched upon projection.
That kind of skill was the key to damaging powerful pirates.
Maybe calling him a "dog" was too simplistic.
The situation in the center changed.
Rowan, who had been trading blows before, now began to evade.
Every slash missed.
Every technique failed to land.
In the next instant, Rowan appeared behind his opponent.
"Strength on this sea isn't just Armament Haki. Observation Haki matters just as much. Even if you can cut my skin, what does it matter if you can't hit me?"
His voice arrived together with a heavy slap.
"Bang!"
Like a rolling gourd, the swordsman was sent flying, still clutching his blade, completely incapacitated.
Rowan shook his hand and turned to the crowd.
"This one wasn't bad. At least he knew to use Armament at the last moment to reduce the damage. But if this is your level, I don't mind all of you coming at once."
That was the final spark.
The hesitation disappeared.
"Too arrogant!"
"Take him down, or we'll become a joke to the entire headquarters!"
"If we don't fight after that, we're already a joke!"
"Then all of us together!"
"No matter what, we teach him a lesson!"
"Front line with Iron Body and Haki, ability users surround him, swordsmen cut him down!"
"Clang."
Rowan caught a blade with one hand and kicked someone behind him away.
"This level isn't even close to that last guy."
With a twist of his hand, the standard blade shattered.
He followed with a slap that sent its owner flying.
Amid the chaos, someone managed to touch him.
"Get ready to lose, you government dog!"
But nothing happened.
Instead, a massive slap landed on his face.
"Boom!"
His body smashed into the wooden table beside Zephyr, shattering it to pieces.
----------
Patreon Advance 30 Chapters: patreon .com/OneFic