"Ahem…"
Amid the dust kicked up by the explosion, the sound of coughing rang out.
Because this was the Calm Belt, there was barely any airflow across the island, and the dust took a long time to finally settle.
But when everyone stepped out of the Doa Doa no Mi's alternate space, the scene before them made all of them freeze in shock.
The forest that had once surrounded them was completely gone. In its place was a massive crater.
Everything nearby looked as though it had been subjected to unimaginable devastation. The ground had been overturned entirely, all vegetation erased, leaving behind nothing but desolate ruins.
Seeing this, cold sweat beaded on everyone's foreheads.
"So… so terrifying…"
At that moment, as the dust finally cleared, Yemu and Rayleigh's figures appeared at the center of the crater, which was nearly the size of a small mountain.
Neither of them showed any sign of injury. Their clothes were only dust-stained, yet the expressions on their faces were filled with unmistakable astonishment.
If Yemu was shocked that his all-out attack had been blocked so easily by Rayleigh, without him even taking a single step back, then Rayleigh's shock was something else entirely.
"This is unbelievable. Yemu is only sixteen, and he's already able to touch that realm."
Rayleigh's words left everyone stunned.
"What realm?"
Rayleigh's gaze sharpened, his expression turning extremely serious.
"Conqueror's Haki is indeed a talent possessed only by kings. But even among those who wield Conqueror's Haki, there is an extremely small number who stand at the very peak among countless conquerors. Rocks was one. Roger was one. Whitebeard, Garp, Sengoku as well. I count myself among them too. And now, Yemu, you already have the qualifications to touch that realm. The clearest sign of reaching it is mastering the power known as Conqueror's Haki coating."
Everyone was shaken by Rayleigh's words.
Standing at the peak among countless conquerors.
No matter how you looked at it, that sounded incredible.
Yemu's expression immediately lit up with excitement.
Then Rayleigh continued,
"But we'll talk about that later. For now, let's get back to the main point."
As he spoke, Rayleigh leapt lightly away from the edge of the crater and landed beside Flare and the others.
Yemu followed right after him.
Rayleigh didn't waste any time. Looking at the group, he immediately began his lesson.
"About Haki, I imagine Yemu has already explained the basics to you, so I won't spend time on that. What I'll focus on now is the highest-level technique of Armament Haki, a power known as internal destruction."
As he spoke, Rayleigh bent down, picked up several stones from the ground, and casually rolled them around in his hand as he asked,
"What do you think these are?"
The answer was obvious.
"Stones!"
Baby-5 replied.
"Wahaha!"
Rayleigh, who clearly liked children, gave Baby-5 an approving look before continuing,
"That's right. They're stones. They're very hard. There are several ways to break them. One way is to use something even harder to smash them, like this."
He picked up one of the stones, coated his palm in Armament Haki, and with a light squeeze, the stone shattered into several pieces.
Only then did Rayleigh continue speaking.
"This is the ability within Armament Haki known as hardening and coating. By covering or wrapping Haki around your body or an object, you clash strength with strength and hardness with hardness. As long as your Armament Haki is strong enough, you can harden your body like steel and crush anything you strike."
"But this isn't an efficient method. If your opponent's Armament Haki is stronger than yours, hardening or coating won't be able to break through their defenses. On top of that, this kind of head-on clash consumes an enormous amount of Haki. It's the kind of approach that hurts the enemy a lot, but nearly cripples yourself in the process."
"So, just as humans invent weapons to defeat powerful enemies, Haki users began thinking about more refined ways to use it. The first technique that emerged was what we call outward release, like this…"
As Rayleigh spoke, he tossed the crushed stone fragments in his hand into the air, then extended one palm and struck outward.
To the naked eye, the stones looked as if they had been hit by an immense force. They shot forward like cannonballs, smashing through countless thick trees in their path.
"By concentrating the Haki inside your body at a single point and then releasing it instantly, you create a powerful shockwave. This is a far more proactive and stronger offensive method than simple hardening. Of course, it can also be used defensively. Yemu has already mastered this kind of power."
"And building on outward release, the technique that Yemu and Enel will be focusing on during this training is internal destruction. Like this…"
Rayleigh picked up another stone. There was no visible Armament Haki coating his hand. He gently squeezed it, then opened his palm.
Everyone looked closely, only to find that the stone seemed unchanged.
Rayleigh smiled and blew lightly.
The once-solid stone suddenly crumbled, as if it had turned to sand, breaking down into fine dust that scattered with the breeze.
Everyone stared, dumbfounded.
"Th-this… that's amazing!"
"Wahaha."
Rayleigh laughed softly and explained,
"By sending Armament Haki directly into the interior of an object and destroying its internal structure, you completely collapse it from the inside. That's the principle behind internal destruction."
Rayleigh made it sound simple, but no one doubted how difficult it truly was.
"But how do you actually send the Haki into the inside of an object?"
Flare asked the most crucial question.
A sharp glint flashed across Rayleigh's glasses.
"That's the key."
As he spoke, Rayleigh glanced around, then slowly walked over to a nearby tree and gave it a light tap. In an instant, countless leaves fluttered down.
Rayleigh raised a hand and casually caught one leaf, holding it up for everyone to see.
"If hardening, coating, and outward release are three different forms of Armament Haki, you can think of them as stone, flowing water, and air. Internal destruction, then, is built on the extreme refinement of those forms, giving Armament Haki itself an inherent property of destruction."
As Rayleigh finished speaking, it looked as though he hadn't done anything at all. Yet the leaf in his hand began to fade away, as if it were being sliced apart by countless tiny blades, slowly dispersing from tip to stem.
"Th-this…"
The others were still struggling to fully grasp it, but Yemu suddenly spoke.
"I think… I understand a little."
That caught Rayleigh off guard, and Yemu continued,
"Actually, Rayleigh-san, I have a signature technique, Flame Dragon Prison Fire Fist. It feels similar to what you're describing. I relied on that move to defeat Bullet."
As Yemu spoke, the power of the Mera Mera no Mi surged forth along with his Armament Haki. On his right fist, the Flame Dragon Prison Fire Fist manifested once more…