Savior -Luffy-

-20-

My hands trembled as I began to lose strength in my limbs. I was fighting hard and fast compared to my regular movements. I should have expected this. I was sent to be next to Shanks and train under him. I should have expected to learn Haki from him. However, I doubted it enough to ignore the thought.

"Not enough," Shanks calls coldly, swinging his weapon again. "You aren't protecting that blade as I told you to.

"I'm trying!" I yell with a strained voice. "I need a break!"

"The battlefield doesn't take breaks!" He swings again. "Fight back or die trying!"

"Shanks, stop!" I tried to reason with him, but he was set on getting me to use my Haki. I finally groaned, feeling a burst of rage surge through my veins. "I said stop!" He fumbles the blade slightly after my outburst. My eyes narrowed and it was as if I only saw him before me. "You want me to fight, fine!" I rear my blade up, slicing the air quicker than I even had expected myself to be capable of. He blinked in shock and could barely block the attack when he finally focused again.

I didn't hesitate to swing at him again and again, not wanting to give him a chance to hit back. Every hit I made was seen in high velocity and color in my eyes while the rest of the world was a deep black and purple hue. Out of all the colors I saw, there was one specific color that was outlined on Shanks' sword. The handle of his weapon was curved like a scimitar's hilt, making his knuckles harder to hit. For a one-armed man, this was a smart weapon. However, a small part of it seemed to glow bright purple in my vision.

I hit the tip of the blade against the golden spot I saw and watched as Shanks' hand crumpled sideways, exposing his wrist. I spun the sword in my grip and smacked the flesh with the back of my blade. His arm tensed and let go of the weapon as quickly as I had hit it. When I heard the sound of the blade falling, I could see my vision slowly returning to me. Everyone from before on the sidelines appeared and all were stunned in expression, including Shanks.

"What?" I asked when I finally gained the focus of what was happening. "Why is everyone looking at me?"

"Do you not realize what you've just done?" Shanks questions to catch my attention. I tilt my head in confusion while putting away my sword in its scabbard. "You used Haki!"

"I did?" I blinked. "When?" The crew gaped at me as Shanks let out a large belly laugh.

"You used observation Haki!" He announced. "You also used a very low level of Conqueror's, but I think we can level that up, too, with practice." I was dumbfounded by the information he gave me.

"Me? Use Conqueror's and Observation?" I laughed loudly and couldn't help the tremble in my voice. "Oh man, your old age really has made you go crazy, huh?" I stopped laughing to look him over and pull at his red hair. "The grays must be getting dyed." He pouts while the rest of the crew snickers at my comments.

"Maylene, I'm serious!" He scolds. "You have it in you. We just need to make it come out more. For now, we can just relax."

-

That seemed so long ago now. I will admit that I learned how to use Observation Haki and Armament Haki more, but we never did get to where I could use Conquerors. I wasn't too fond of being able to use it anyways. I crouched beside Law on the roof of the building next to the palace that he, Rebecca, and Violet all sat on to observe the fight. 

"Tell me something, Kaneko," Law suddenly speaks. "Does he win?"

"I think you know the answer to that, Trafalgar," I reply. He smiles small, even though he tries to hide it, and I can't help but return the look. His eyes wander over to my wound and he sighs, taking off his jacket and tossing it to me without a second glance in my direction.