"Dragon, how do you train Conqueror's Haki?!"
Yoriichi Tsugikuni looked up at Dragon with eager eyes, waiting intently for his answer.
But upon hearing the question, Dragon only smiled and shook his head, sighing as he replied, "Conqueror's Haki, huh…"
"That kind of thing… isn't something you can just train and acquire."
"It's completely different from Armament Haki or Observation Haki. To this day, there's no known method for awakening Conqueror's Haki, much less a way to train it."
"Everyone who possesses Conqueror's Haki awakened it by sheer chance. And… no one really knows how to make it stronger."
As he spoke, Dragon cast a long, meaningful glance at Yoriichi, his eyes deep and unreadable, like the ocean.
"No one knows how to train it?"
Yoriichi frowned slightly at the response, combing through his memory in search of any knowledge about Conqueror's Haki.
In the world of One Piece, only a rare few are born with the potential to awaken Haki at all.
And those capable of awakening Conqueror's Haki are one in a million.
If the awakening of Armament and Observation Haki can be guided and cultivated through dedicated training, then the awakening and growth of Conqueror's Haki are entirely subjective governed by sheer will and spirit alone.
Dragon had awakened his Conqueror's Haki in his early twenties. Yet he didn't master Conqueror's Infusion, the advanced form of that power until he was nearly thirty. In fact, it was only in the last couple of years that he had finally grasped it.
As for how he managed to awaken it?
Even Dragon himself couldn't say.
"It just… happened," he said. "Like water flowing naturally."
"So, if I don't have the innate potential for Conqueror's Haki… then I'll never be able to awaken it?"
Yoriichi's expression dimmed at Dragon's words. He muttered to himself in frustration, then simply pushed the matter aside in his heart.
So what if he couldn't master Conqueror's Infusion?
If he could perfect Armament Haki and combine it with his Breathing Techniques and the state of Total Selflessness, Yoriichi was confident he could still stand at the pinnacle of this vast ocean.
"…Huh? Yoriichi, the old man and Zephyr never told you?"
Dragon blinked in surprise as he watched Yoriichi mutter in disappointment.
He clearly remembered that his father had mentioned it once, Yoriichi Tsugikuni was a young man born with the qualifications of a king.
"Tell me what?"
"Were they supposed to tell me something?"
Yoriichi lifted his head, eyes puzzled as he stared at Dragon.
Seeing the look of confusion on Yoriichi's face, Dragon sighed helplessly and replied offhandedly, "Conqueror's Haki, of course! Haven't you already awakened it?"
"I thought you were asking about Conqueror's Infusion, not Conqueror's Haki itself."
"…So all this time, you didn't even know you've already awakened it?"
"The old man and Zephyr both knew, though. I could've sworn they would've told you."
Yoriichi stared at him blankly.
"…I've already awakened Conqueror's Haki?"
"No one ever told me. I didn't even feel anything…"
His brow furrowed as he looked inward again, trying to sense the energy within himself. But no matter how hard he focused, he couldn't "see" or detect any unfamiliar aura inside his body.
Unbeknownst to him, Conqueror's Haki was already slumbering within—its power sealed deep, awaiting the right moment to be drawn forth.
"Yeah… Conqueror's Haki isn't something that's easy to feel," Dragon admitted.
"Maybe it's just because you're unfamiliar with it."
"Yoriichi, I actually have a method that might help draw it out. I don't know if it'll work, but… want to give it a try?"
With a sudden spark of excitement, Dragon jumped to his feet, dusting off his pants and flashing a grin in Yoriichi's direction.
"A method? I thought you just said there wasn't a method." Yoriichi looked up at him, puzzled.
"That's different, totally different," Dragon chuckled.
"You don't know how to awaken it, and you don't know how to train it, but you have already awakened it. As for drawing out your Conqueror's Haki, that's still something worth trying."
"Wanna give it a shot?"
Seeing the eager gleam in Dragon's eyes, Yoriichi didn't refuse. He gave a slight nod and rose to his feet. Deep down, he longed to master Conqueror's Haki. After all, in this world, it was considered the hallmark of a true powerhouse. Without Conqueror's Coating, one was innately a tier below the top.
Since he had already awakened Conqueror's Haki, Yoriichi was determined to find a way to master it fully.
Once he could wield Conqueror's Coating at will, the power of his sword strikes would likely take another massive leap forward.
Before, even at full strength, Yoriichi could at most slice through a hundred-meter-long warship. But now? With his full power unleashed, shattering a colossal vessel over a thousand meters in length wouldn't be out of the question.
Such strength would make him nearly unmatched across the Four Seas, but in the New World, it still wouldn't be enough.
Yoriichi had categorized the top fighters of this world into two main tiers. At the very top were what he called "world-ending forces"—powerhouses like Whitebeard at his peak, Garp, and Roger.
What defined this level? Either supreme Devil Fruit abilities, or overwhelming Conqueror's Coating. These were people strong enough to shake the world with their strength alone.
Just beneath them was the "nation-destroying" tier. These individuals had the destructive power to level a country with ease, those with awakened Devil Fruit powers or top-tier Armament Haki users typically fell into this category.
Anyone below these two levels, Yoriichi didn't bother to classify. The wide variety of Devil Fruit abilities and differing levels of Haki made it nearly impossible to define strict rankings.
In battles among these fighters, victory couldn't be decided by simple comparisons of Haki strength or Devil Fruit power. Adaptability and instinct in the heat of combat often proved far more decisive.
At his current level, Yoriichi barely qualified as nation-destroying class. Within the Navy, at best, he'd be considered an admiral candidate.
But between an admiral candidate and an actual admiral? The gap was enormous.
"Let's give it a try," Dragon said. "I think I've got a good guess how you're going to go about this. When I was out at sea with Vice Admiral Garp, we crossed paths with the Roger Pirates once."
"I felt the presence of Roger's Conqueror's Haki but only for a moment. Garp neutralized it with his own before it could affect me."
"After that, the battle between Garp and Roger went beyond the range of sight, so I never got to experience the full force of that Haki firsthand."
"And when I fought you before, you were using Conqueror's Coating the whole time, but I couldn't quite grasp the sensation."
"If your plan is to try and pressure me by unleashing your Conqueror's Haki… I don't think that'll work. Just releasing it into the air won't do anything to me."
As Yoriichi spoke, he stepped closer to Dragon. He figured that standing nearer might help him better feel the release of that formidable Haki.
"Just release it?"
"What good would that do?"
"Of course you didn't get a sense of it when we fought, you never even landed a hit on me!"
"But don't worry, I've got a method!"
As he said that, a bright grin spread across Dragon's face. At the same time, his fist crackled with a terrifying black lightning, his Conqueror's Haki surging violently and condensing around it. Before Yoriichi could even react, Dragon's fist shot forward, aiming straight for his abdomen with brutal force.
"Don't die on me now, Yoriichi!"
************************
Hey everyone! I'll be dropping an extra 1 chapter once we hit 200, 400 power stones! If you're enjoying the story, don't forget to spend some power stones. I'd really appreciate the support. Thanks a bunch!
For advance chapters, please do visit and consider joining me on Patreon, it really helps me out and I'd love to have you along for the journey!
p(a)treon.com/Lnee
*remove () to open it