CHAPTER 103: GOL D. ROGER

Gol D. Roger, more commonly known as Gold Roger, was a legendary pirate who, as captain of the Roger Pirates, held the title of Pirate King and owned the legendary treasure known as One Piece.

Roger was famed as the man who did what no one thought possible; he conquered the Grand Line and amassed a vast fortune. Afterward, knowing that he would soon die from an incurable disease, Roger disbanded his crew before turning himself in to be executed.

The World Government intended to have Roger be publicly executed to discourage piracy, but his last words had the opposite impact. He stated that anyone who can find his treasure could claim it. As such, this made Roger single-handedly responsible for starting the Great Pirate Era.

"Oye shitty student of mine....come on, it’s time to get your ass kicked by me. Now, look alive, we are continuing your training."

Six could already feel the dread creeping in as Roger’s cheerfulness sent a chill down his spine. There was no escaping this—Roger was going to make him pay for every second of training. The sound of that Armament Haki-enhanced iron rod smashing against the ground, combined with the crazy strength behind it, was enough to make anyone’s nerves rattle.

As Six crushed the Nuka Cola in his hand in his regular base state, the pressure was on. It wasn’t just about surviving Roger’s onslaught. This was about pushing himself to unlock new levels of power, to control his own abilities and instincts in ways he hadn’t before. Roger wasn’t the type to go easy on anyone, especially not on someone like Six.

Rebecca, watching from the sidelines, probably couldn’t help but feel a little relieved that she wasn’t the one getting battered this time. But Six? He was about to face the full brunt of the Pirate King’s brutal training methods.

"Say old geezer....is that really training?"

Rebecca asked from beside Six, who had a blindfold and a pair of earmuffs on.

"You are not starting to become one of those, are you? I mean, the ones who get off on being hit, right?"

Six shot Rebecca a glare, his eye twitching.

"The hell kind of question is that?"

He snapped, flicking the crushed Nuka Cola can at her, which she easily dodged with a smirk.

"I don’t enjoy getting my ass handed to me, thank you very much. Unlike someone who enjoys watching."

Rebecca grinned mischievously, leaning in.

"I dunno, babe. You keep coming back for more. Starting to think you might be a little too

into this?"

Before Six could fire back, Roger’s laughter boomed across the training ground.

"Quit your flirting, brats! You, shitty student, stop stalling and get ready!"

Roger spun the iron rod in his hand, its surface gleaming ominously with Haki.

"If you’ve got enough energy to argue, you’ve got enough to dodge. Now, MOVE!"

Six barely had time to curse before Roger lunged at him, swinging with the force of a cannon blast. With every bone in his body screaming at him to run, he dodged—barely—only to find Roger already winding up for the next strike.

Rebecca, watching from a safe distance, just crossed her arms and chuckled.

"Yep. Definitely a masochist."

"Remember, first brat about Observation Haki. To hit something, you have to know where it is first. Observation Haki is the most important one in my opinion."

"After all, you can hurt Devil Fruit users with Sea Prism Stone too, but not knowing where and when an enemy is planning to hit you, not being able to keep track of them, is a sure-shot way to get killed."

Roger continued, his iron rod resting on his shoulder.

Six wiped the sweat from his brow, already feeling the bruises forming from their earlier exchanges.

"So, you’re saying even if I get strong enough to break mountains, it won’t mean shit if I can’t see an attack coming?"

Roger grinned.

"Exactly, brat. Observation Haki can be naturally awakened in people with a high talent for it. It’s generally seen that good navigators and snipers have a great knack for it."

Rebecca crossed her arms, smirking.

"So, you’re saying Six is at a disadvantage because he’s built like a brickhouse, and not like one of those sensory weirdos?"

Six shot her a glare.

"Gee, thanks for the vote of confidence."

Roger ignored them and continued.

"This can also be trained, and he has a good foundation since he’s a trained marksman. The more you push yourself, the sharper your senses will become. At the peak of Observation Haki, you can sense emotions, read intent, and even look into the future for a few seconds."

Six frowned, rolling his shoulders.

"Looking into the future? That sounds busted."

Roger grinned.

"It is. But you’re nowhere near that yet, brat. First, you need to learn how to dodge without using your eyes."

Six stiffened.

"Wait. What do you mean—?"

CRACK!

The iron rod slammed into Six’s gut, sending him skidding backward.

Rebecca winced.

"Oof. Should’ve seen that one coming."

Roger laughed.

"That’s the point! Now get up, brat—we’re just getting started!"

Six gritted his teeth as he barely managed to dodge another brutal swing from Roger. The air pressure alone from the iron rod’s movement sent dust flying, and Six knew if he took a direct hit, he’d be eating dirt for the next hour.

"Then how the hell do I train it?!"

He barked, diving to the side as another attack whizzed past him.

Roger grinned, eyes gleaming with amusement.

"Simple."

He said, vanishing from sight for a brief moment—only for Six to feel a sudden impact in his gut, sending him flying backward.

Rebecca winced.

"Oof. That looked like it hurt."

Six coughed, pushing himself up while glaring at his grinning mentor.

"You could just tell me instead of using me as a damn punching bag!"

Roger twirled the iron rod in his hand.

"But then how would you learn? Now, stop whining and start feeling where the attack is coming from instead of just thinking about where I’m going to hit. Observation Haki isn’t about looking—it’s about sensing."

Six wiped the blood off his lip and growled.

"Fine."

He steadied himself, closing his eyes for a moment as Roger took another step forward. He had to feel it, huh?

He exhaled slowly, focusing on the slight shifts in the air, the weight of Roger’s presence, the pressure of an incoming strike—

His instincts screamed, and he moved—just in time to dodge another crushing blow, the iron rod slamming into the ground where he had stood a second ago.

Roger let out an approving chuckle.

"Not bad, brat. Let’s see if you can keep that up!"

Six cursed under his breath. This is gonna suck.