At The Peak of One Piece

After morning drills, many recruits were hauled to the infirmary—some needing physical rescue, others psychological, all thanks to the camp's new monster. A few lay utterly spent, useless for further lessons. First-day casualties were routine. 

Andrew declared the afternoon free. "Tomorrow, drills resume. Cook in the dorms again? More laps." 

For Victor, the run was mere endurance training. He recovered swiftly, devouring mess hall rations at noon. 'Fills the stomach, but no strength gained.' He resolved to hunt his own meals—a Sea King a day would suffice. 

────── 

That afternoon, weighted gear clinking, Victor ambled toward the Elite Camp. He hoped to observe Zephyr's teaching methods. 

Zephyr was absent. Trainees sparred or drilled solo, focused entirely on mastering Rokushiki (Six Powers). 

Their morning conditioning complete, this was technique time. 

Victor already mastered Soru (Shave) and Geppo (Moon Walk)—skills hidden during his voyage. Now, he'd "steal" the rest. His physique guaranteed rapid learning. 

Watching them, Victor mused: 'This generation… forged in the Great Pirate Era. Will any withstand the storm twenty years from now?' 

Guards tried blocking him. One "nap" later, he strolled in unimpeded. 

────── 

The training ground sprawled. Isolated figures practiced: 

' Tekkai (Iron Body): Statuesque trainees stood rigid as human punching bags. 

' Shigan (Finger Pistol): Practitioners jabbed mercilessly at the 'Tekkai' users. 

' Rankyaku (Storm Leg): Kickers launched slicing gusts at the same immobile targets. 

Victor winced. 'Living sandbags. Brutal.' 

He ignored them. His target was Smoker—his excuse to openly use Rokushiki later. 

Victor's eyes flashed red. Observation Haki expanded, dissecting the techniques while scanning for Smoker. 

He noted: 

' Tekkai' users boasted enhanced physiques, but true steel-like hardness? No. His Haki detected a faint, flickering black aura around their skin—invisible to the naked eye. 

' Shigan' users' finger bones surpassed leg-bone density, yet couldn't rival steel plates. So how did fingers mimic bullets? That same wispy aura clung to their fingertips. 

'Iron Body… Finger Pistol… Armament Haki. The dots connected.' A smile touched Victor's lips. 'These techniques aren't just hardening the body. They're channeling that energy—proto-Haki! Could this unlock Armament?' 

────── 

He dismissed trainees practicing 'Soru' and 'Geppo'—he surpassed even masters like Momousagi. 

His focus shifted to Kami-e (Paper Art) practitioners. 

Canon described it as "dodging via air current perception." Victor's Haki confirmed it: 'Kami-e' was the most rudimentary application of Observation Haki—sensing the minute air disturbances, sound waves, and vibrations from an attack, then evading with minimal, precise movement. 

'Kami-e' users could barely project their awareness beyond their skin. Sensing attacks required reacting with speed—too slow, and you still got hit. 

Victor lost interest instantly. Only Rokushiki's ultimate secret—Seimei Kikan (Life Return)—still held his desire. 'Absolute mastery over one's body…' 

After getting a general understanding of the Six Powers, Victor headed over to where Smoker was training. The area around Smoker was filled with swirling smoke as he experimented with his Devil Fruit abilities. Victor stood there watching for a while, but after some time, there was no significant development—just more smoke. 

'This guy's way too rigid in his thinking,' Victor mused. 'He might never fully develop the Smoke-Smoke Fruit at this rate. He'd be better off focusing purely on physical combat.' 

"Hey, Smoker! Starting a bonfire over here?" Victor called out with a grin. 

Hearing his name, Smoker dispersed the smoke and reverted to his human form. He was surprised to see Victor—why wasn't he in class? 

"Victor? What are you doing here? Recruits aren't allowed in this area. How'd you even get in?" Smoker asked, confused. It didn't occur to him that Victor might have knocked out the guards. 

"Oh, I just had a nice, long chat with the guards, and they finally let me in. Everyone in the recruit camp is wiped out today—no classes, so we've got the afternoon off." 

"Anyway, I came to ask your instructor, Zephyr, to teach me the Six Powers. I think my physical conditioning's more than ready for it." 

Smoker blinked. 'Who does this guy think he is? Just waltzes in and demands Zephyr's personal training?' 

"Uh… Zephyr's not here right now. He's out on business. But hey, I could teach you instead!" Smoker grinned, a mischievous glint in his eye. 

"You?" Victor raised an eyebrow. "How many of the Six Powers do you even know?" 

"All except Iron Body and Paper Drawing. But the rest? Yeah, I've got those down. Good enough for you?" Smoker said proudly. 

Victor nearly facepalmed. 'Of course, the two techniques most closely tied to Haki are the ones you skipped. No wonder you still hadn't mastered Haki even years after graduating. You absolute clown.' 

"And why exactly did you skip Iron Body and Paper Drawing?" Victor asked, unimpressed. 

"Well, as a Logia user, I don't 'need' defense—I can just turn into smoke. So Iron Body's pointless." 

"Same logic for Paper Drawing. Why dodge attacks when they pass right through me? I'd rather spend that time developing my Devil Fruit powers. Makes sense, right?" 

Victor could only give him a slow, sarcastic thumbs-up. 'Absolute genius.' 

"Smoker, I'm guessing Zephyr doesn't like you very much?" Victor smirked. 

"Not really. He's just… stricter with me. More intense training, harsher punishments when I mess up. But I think it's because he sees potential in me—he expects more!" Smoker declared confidently. 

Victor rolled his eyes. 'You're basically a younger Kizaru. No wonder Zephyr can't stand you.' 

"Look, just take my advice—don't sleep on Iron Body and Paper Drawing. You'll thank me later. But for now, just tell me the techniques. I'll figure them out myself." 

Smoker shrugged. 'Why bother with those when I've got Logia intangibility? Once I unlock Haki, they'll be even more useless.' 

Seeing Smoker's dismissive expression, Victor sighed. 'Fine. Let him learn the hard way.' 

"Victor, you're strong—you'll make it to the Elite Camp soon enough. I don't mind sharing the basics, but self-teaching won't be easy. You sure?" 

"Just give me Zephyr's exact instructions. I'll handle the rest. There are others training here—I'll observe and adapt." 

Smoker hesitated but finally relented. "Alright, fine. But don't blame me if you break something." 

And with that, Victor got exactly what he came for—while Smoker remained blissfully unaware of the mistakes in his own training.

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