Of course, that was because the Straw Hat Pirates didn't know that Aokiji was currently a captive of the Pink Hat Pirates. Otherwise, they would have been incredibly shocked, and even Robin would have jumped three feet high in fright.
But undoubtedly, if Luffy said he wasn't disheartened, that would be impossible. Luna knew this very well, especially with her existence. She started sailing even later than Luffy, and both came from the East Blue, at least in many people's eyes. Coupled with multiple encounters, it's no wonder Luffy would compare himself to her.
As she said, her own strength, wisdom, leadership ability, and the quantity and quality of her companions, among other factors, all surpassed Luffy's. This really did give him a bit of a blow, but Luffy's inner resolve was strong, and his never-give-up spirit quickly made him stand up again, even proposing to fight her.
Luna, understanding, immediately smiled. That's right, this is Luffy. Otherwise, how could he become the Child of Destiny, the chosen one of the nika fruit after more than 800 years, and eventually even surpass Joy Boy from 800 years ago?
This must also be related to Luffy's own talent and will.
Since that's the case, she'll grant his wish. Of course, she wouldn't say that she wanted to experience the pleasure of tormenting the protagonist, hehehe.
"Okay, I agree." Luna immediately agreed, a confident and gratified smile on her face.
"Thank you." Luffy said gratefully, a smile also appearing on his face.
Seeing that both agreed, neither the Straw Hat Pirates nor the Pink Hat Pirates had any objections, because they all knew that Luna would definitely handle it well.
Soon, Luffy and Luna stepped out and stood on opposite sides.
"You go first." Luna smiled and beckoned with her finger.
Although conventionally, Luffy should let her, a girl, go first, especially since she was a bit younger than Luffy.
But from the perspective of strength, she should indeed go easy on Luffy.
And for a bit of fun, she planned not to use any Void Ability this time.
For this friendly spar with Luffy, she only intended to use pure Haki and physical combat.
"Then I won't hold back, Gum-Gum Pistol." Luffy was also very aware of Luna's strength. He stretched his rubber arm back, then threw a punch, which looked very strong in both speed and power, like a cannonball fired from a barrel.
But unfortunately, with a "snap," Luna smiled faintly. Luffy's punch, which could completely send a bull flying, was easily caught by Luna.
She extended her palm and caught Luffy's fist.
"So fast." Luffy was shocked that Luna could catch his fist so quickly. He hadn't even seen when Luna made her move.
The other Straw Hat Pirates were also the same, their faces showing shock. But even within the Pink Hat Pirates, not many people saw the captain's speed and movements.
"Heh." Luna lightly flicked, sending Luffy's fist flying.
"It's not over yet, Gum-Gum Gatling!" Luffy shouted, again throwing out a flurry of stretching rubber fists. But he used his other hand to shake his arm, and the fists instantly produced countless afterimages, giving a somewhat illusory feeling.
However, in front of Luna, who possessed top-tier Observation Haki, this move was useless. Luna had already pinpointed the position of the fists.
Black substance immediately appeared on her fist. Luna this time simply used Armament Haki coating and hardening. She really held back a lot.
But when her punch hit Luffy's fist, sending it flying back.
"Ow, ow, ow, ow..." Luffy frantically shook his arm and fingers, yelling.
"What's going on? Why does it hurt as much as when my grandpa hits me?" Luffy asked, puzzled.
But as soon as he said that, the Pink Hat Pirates immediately looked at the Straw Hat Pirates with doubt, as if asking, don't they know about Haki?
Except for Kuina, since she had already told Zoro about the knowledge and training methods for the Three Types of Haki back in Skypiea.
But at this moment, Luna had an idea. Since that was the case, she would take advantage of this friendly spar with Luffy to teach Haki. Now that she had mastered three top-tier Haki, she was more than capable of being a teacher.
"It's simple, because I have this, Armament Haki."
Luna said with a smile, extending her hand. The black substance unique to Armament Haki immediately appeared on her hand.
"Armament Haki?" The entire Straw Hat Pirates exclaimed in surprise.
Luna quickly explained all the uses and abilities of Armament Haki, especially against Logia Type users, as this was the most effective way to counter Elementalization.
And through her explanation, the Straw Hat Pirates also understood the importance of Armament Haki.
Especially during the explanation, Luna directly used her fist, coated with Armament Haki, to hit Luffy a few times.
Luffy, being a rubber man, was immediately bruised and swollen, with several large bumps on his face. Luffy continuously used his Gear First and Gear Third techniques, but they inflicted no damage against Luna's Armament Haki coating and hardening.
The special properties, attack power, and defense displayed, as well as what the Pink Hat Pirates members said nearby, immediately made the Straw Hat Pirates realize that if they wanted to enter the New World, Haki was extremely important.
Especially Sanji, Usopp, and Nami. After seeing that Carmen, Kaya, and Nojiko all knew Armament Haki, these three, even two years later, had not learned Armament Haki, or at least had not shown it.
But now these three were disheartened and vowed to learn Armament Haki.
Especially through Luna's precise explanation, they also understood that learning Armament Haki would be of great use to them and bring many benefits.
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