Meanwhile, with Robin.
"...Hm..." Kairo paused for a bit.
Her Haki was... how should he put it... ass. Straight garbage.
"You don't have to pity me. Say it straight," Robin said calmly.
Kairo exhaled. "Trying to get you to learn Ryuo in a month would be too big of an ask," he said plainly.
"So... let's start with something simple." He handed her a book.
She caught it. The title read:
{Rokushiki}
"...This...?" Robin recognized it immediately — the CP agents' combat style.
"Since we only have a month, you'll focus on Rankyaku for attack options and Kami-e, since training it will translate well into Observation Haki," Kairo explained.
So basically: air slashes and flexibility.
Alright, she could work with that.
"Using your Devil Fruit, you should be able to get quite strong from this." He then looked at her. "I'm ready whenever you are."
She nodded and began flipping through the book, carefully studying the techniques and their forms.
"With your fruit, if you can find a way to launch several air bullets, you can stay far away and attack your opponent at the same time," Kairo continued.
She thought about it. With her Hana Hana no Mi, it was possible. And knowing Kairo, he probably understood her fruit better than she did.
"Before a fight, you can create three eyes from different vantage points," he added. "That way, you'll have no blind spots. You'll never be caught by surprise."
She pondered his advice — it was solid. Strategic, efficient. He clearly knew what he was doing.
"...Okay. I'm ready," she said, standing up straight.
Kairo nodded.
Time skip: 30 minutes later.
Robin was sprawled on the ground, gasping for air, a thin line of blood dripping from her nose.
"Stand up," Kairo said calmly.
She weakly stood, holding her head.
"Getting used to this new 360-degree vision is hard. Too much information," she muttered in pain. Sure, she couldn't be snuck up on anymore, but her brain couldn't keep up with the flood of sensory input. She was reacting slower than what she could actually see.
Still, she noticed something.
"You held back," she said, staring at him.
Kairo raised an eyebrow.
"At the last moment, before you hit me... you held back," she said, suspicious. She'd seen how he trained the others — absolutely ruthless. He didn't go easy on anyone, not even Nami or Usopp. Yet, with her... he was gentler.
"You already share the pain of the limbs you create," he said calmly, completely bullshitting. "There's no need for me to cause more pain than I do by hitting your limbs."
"Hm..." she replied, half-believing it. Something still felt off.
"Let's start back up," he said, sliding into stance.
Finger Revolver.
Twenty or so air bullets flew toward her in a tight pattern.
Robin summoned two massive hands to block the attack. The wind bullets tore slightly through the skin of her manifested hands, and she winced as she felt the pain through the connection.
"Shit, that hurts," she hissed through gritted teeth.
Kairo blurred forward, speed-blitzing around her, striking from every blind spot. But she dodged each one — her additional eyes warned her just in time.
The fight dragged on for a while, and not once did Kairo aim to seriously hurt her.
And whenever she was injured, he would bandage her wounds with careful precision — his movements delicate, deliberate.
"You're quite gentle," Robin said softly.
He didn't answer immediately. "You feel the pain of your limbs. This is fine," he said quietly.
A small smile appeared on her lips.
"Who would've thought a trained killer could have such a soft side?" she teased, watching his reaction.
His cheeks flushed a bit.
"You're seeing things," he muttered, trying to hide his embarrassment. Luckily for him, his dark skin helped mask it.
Robin let out a small chuckle.
She knew it.
He had a crush on her. She remembered how he had held her back then, how he tried (and failed) to hide his feelings. It was clear now.
The little Lunarien had a crush on her. How cute.
"You like me, don't you?" she teased, watching his ears turn red — which, even with his skin tone, was still obvious.
He blushed heavily.
"I will not deny the claim," he admitted calmly.
He wasn't awkward around women — Nami's charms had zero effect on him — his mind was too disciplined for that. But Robin... she was different. She was his weakness.
He might need to kill her to get rid of it....
As soon as that thought click in his mind, he decided to say no, his ingrained killer instinct were flaring back up again.
It seem like his recent fight with the admiral set him off.
"How sweet of you," she said, smirking. "How honored I am to feel your love. So tell me, do ninjas typically beat the women they like? Are you going to beat me now?"
Her dark humor caught him completely off guard.
"No... I wouldn't dare," he stuttered.
She chuckled softly. His expression was adorable.
Internally, she figured maybe his crush came from trauma — that he bonded with her because their pasts were so alike. She was sure this little crush would fade eventually.
Until then, though... she'd have a bit of fun teasing him.
A/N vote with powerstone