A Spark

[Inside one of the training rooms.]

"You know, Cain-san, keeping up with you is really a pain in the ass~," a tired Borsalino said while lying on the floor alongside Sakazuki, Kasla, Issho, and Cain. Because they had been able to learn Rokushiki faster than the other recruits, Zed had grouped them together and allowed them to spar and get used to their new skills.

Along the way, Zed had also supervised their fighting patterns. Often, when two people with opposite fighting styles clashed, at least one would eventually be overwhelmed. Using this to his advantage, Zed paired them accordingly, and whenever they adapted, he would separate them and make them fight a different opponent who had improved against their own rivals.

Of course, Zed knew that after some time, this method wouldn't be as effective, but it showed promising improvements.

But even among them, Cain was adapting a bit too fast.

"I've been meaning to ask you, Borsalino, why do you talk like that?" Cain asked, looking at Borsalino curiously.

"Like what, hum~?" Borsalino replied.

"Like this~," Cain mimicked Borsalino's drawn-out speech pattern.

"Humm~, I don't know, to be honest. I think it changed gradually after I ate my fruit about a year ago," the Glint-Glint man said, giving his condition some thought.

"But you're not a Zoan like me. How could your fruit have any effect on you?" Kasla said matter-of-factly.

"How~ am I supposed to know?" Borsalino protested.

"Huff, I don't have time for idle chat. Oi, Cain, come and fight me. I'll definitely win this time," Sakazuki suddenly declared, getting up. It hurt his pride that he rarely ever won against Cain. And when he did win, it was only because he had teamed up with Borsalino or involved Issho (they wore Seastone to nullify their abilities to make the spar fair).

"Haah. I just won against you and Borsalino combined. Seriously, Saku-chan, are you perhaps a masochist?" Cain teased, using a nickname that one of the female recruits had called him with some while ago.

"Wha-what? I told you to stop ca-calling me that!" Sakazuki exploded angrily. He huffed and puffed before leaving the area toward the gym.

When the female recruit had first called him "Saku-chan" (she had a habit of giving nicknames to everyone she found cute or attractive), it was the only time anyone had seen Sakazuki turn red outside of his magma-Logia state. To top it off, he couldn't even deny blushing because of his fruit, as they just happened to be sparring with Seastone at the time.

Ever since that fateful day, the trio of Kasla, Borsalino, and Cain had teased him relentlessly.

"Well, ignoring the obviously blushing Sakazuki," Cain said in a louder voice, making sure the target heard him.

"Fuck you," came a distant yet loud curse making the group chuckle.

"Borsalino, your major flaw that I can think of is your movement ability. The reason you can't really hit me is because, despite being a man who can travel at the speed of light, you're awfully predictable. When Admiral Sengoku told me about your fruit, I had a theory that you can only move in a straight line."

"Plus, your dexterity while using your fruit abilities is also lacking. I mean, you've improved on shaping and your overall output, but against someone like me or Instructor Zed, who can predict your movement from the moment you turn into yellow light and head toward your destination—where you look beforehand—it's very easy to predict. I just have to avoid you at that point, leaving you vulnerable."

"Umm. I can't really think at the speed of light or change direction like you do, so I don't really have much of a choice~," Borsalino replied, stating the obvious.

"Well, its true that light only travels in a straight line unless the space it's traveling through is curved or bent in some way. But one time it changes direction is when it reflects. Maybe you can use that to your advantage?" Cain advised. At this point, he had taken a major lead against his sparring partners, and even some of the instructors were having a hard time keeping up with him, with or without his fruit abilities. So maybe helping Borsalino, who could counter his agility, would prepare him for the next stage.

Thought it wasn't just out of good will. He recalled some advice from Zed not long after he perfected Tekkai.

'You are almost ready to learn Haki, Cain, but I want you to unlock it naturally. Your talent is unlike anything I've ever seen, so it would be better if you learned it instinctively rather than through theories,' Zed had said after Cain showed him his major improvements.

-

And Cain only had to wait for a few months.

After a few months of sparring, Borsalino was getting used to using surfaces to reflect off of, making him less and less predictable. In one of these spars, a defensive Cain, trying to fend off his opponent's rapid attacks, felt a change within himself, or rather, he developed a new sense.

The increasing pressure from his talented friends and rivals, relentless training, and a strange obsession with staying at the top of the class had pushed Cain to his limit. He knew he needed something more to fight these two "freaks" who could rival him in speed and area-of-effect attacks. He wanted to anticipate their strikes before they even happened.

He studied their patterns, but they would change after a few spars. He tried developing moves that would force them into predictable patterns, but with a literal "light human" and a "magma human," his options were limited. He even pushed his lightning powers to a new limit, but that only bought him a few more days before the other two, in their own obsessions (especially Sakazuki), would start to catch up.

In a moment of desperation and complete focus to surpass them, Cain managed to unlock a new power that would change his view.

Observation Haki.

-

Cain was currently being chased by Borsalino. To an observer, Borsalino might have appeared to be taking it easy, but only he knew how serious this was to him. Time and again, Cain's improvisation and monstrous talent had put him at the top. Borsalino wasn't particularly prideful, but being called "slow and predictable" stung in a different way when he was literally a light human.

Being around Cain had given both him and Sakazuki the drive to prove they were not just background characters in Cain's story; they were powerful men who could challenge this "monster" named Cain. Right now, Borsalino was truly enjoying chasing Cain into their trap. He was able to use trees and the surface of the ground to change direction as he pleased. The only problem was that Cain could still somewhat predict where he would reflect from, which annoyed Borsalino.

But as time passed and he grew more accustomed to his powers, Cain began to lag behind Borsalino's speed. As they approached the designated spot, Borsalino's final task was to push Cain toward Sakazuki, who would land a hit and earn them points. After that, Borsalino planned to reclaim the points from the irritating "Magma-yaro."

'This ends your winning streak for the week, Cain-kun,' Borsalino thought as he reflected off a tree and successfully closed the distance to Cain, preparing to strike him. But suddenly, his feet didn't touch the expected lightning-man.

'No. He stopped just before.'

'Even I'm getting dizzy from the speed at which I am traveling, so there was no way Cain could have predicted his movements', he thought. He saw Cain standing there, looking at his hands as if he were grasping something.

'No matter, I can still do it.'

Borsalino didn't go for Cain directly. He reflected off 100 different surfaces in less than a second before attacking from a blind spot. But Cain, without even looking his way, dodged by moving slightly to the left. Borsalino was confused, but before he could react, a fist landed on his face. Though it didn't do much damage, it meant that Cain scored a point on him.

"[Magma Rain]"

Seeing Borsalino taken out of the game so quickly, Sakazuki seized the opportunity to launch an area-of-effect attack on both of them. This wasn't part of the original plan, and using it would mean betraying his partner for the round, but he didn't care.

To his surprise, Cain dodged the attack as if he knew where it would hit before it even landed.

'HOW? He should be too exhausted to react this quickly.'

Before Sakazuki could gather himself, he was hit in the chest by Cain's blunt lightning attack.

-

As their fights continued, Cain became increasingly familiar with his new ability.

'Kick from the left and a punch from the front,' Cain thought, ducking to avoid the incoming blows. He was predicting their moves before they even adjusted their postures to strike.

Sakazuki and Borsalino were so surprised that they ended up hitting each other. Without losing focus, they prepared for the next attack, creating some distance by moving to opposite ends.

"[Great Explosion]"

Sakazuki launched a wide-area attack while Borsalino aimed a beam of light at Cain. They were confident in their techniques, but once again, Cain dodged their attacks by a hair's breadth. With his Observation Haki, he could sense where Borsalino and Sakazuki were and faintly perceive their intentions, allowing him to evade effortlessly.

At one point, Borsalino, wielding his "light-saber", as Cain named it for him, got behind Cain and attempted to slash his back while Sakazuki attacked from the front. They coordinated to force Cain into a position where he would be compelled to confront. However, to their horror, Cain simply caught Sakazuki's wrist and pulled him toward Borsalino's sword, which sliced through Sakazuki's arm.

"Oh, how shocking~. How are you able to do that?" Borsalino asked, genuinely surprised, his usual careless demeanor replaced with curiosity. This wasn't the first time a sure hit was dodged, but now Cain was even using their own attacks against them.

With one of them having "lost" an arm, the match was over.

"Clap, clap, clap."

"To unlock Haki during a losing battle isn't unheard of and I knew that amongst the new recruits only you have that level of talent to unlock it, but your ability to understand and use it effectively so fast is exceptional, Cain," Zed said as he approached the group, a smile on his face.

"Observation Haki?~ What's that?" Borsalino asked in his usual lazy tone.

"Well, it might be a bit early to explain, but since you three have surpassed my expectations, I'll tell you about it. But before that—"

He turned toward Borsalino. "Borsalino, how many times have I told you not to rely solely on your Glint-Glint Fruit? While you are improving in its use, there might be times when an opponent can predict your moves, as Cain did."

"Hai hai, sensei," Borsalino replied, not taking the advice seriously.

"And you, Sakazuki. You're too desperate to score a point. If not for Borsalino's ability to time his attacks with yours, your lack of coordination could have cost you your victory and your life."

"Yes, Instructor," Sakazuki replied, also with a dismissive attitude.

"And Cain. While I don't have too many complaints, you shouldn't use lightning on your tangible body like that. I can tell that you were trying to overstimulate your blood to move faster, but that will do you more harm than good in the long term. Don't use that technique in a fight unless you know your limits, or you could hurt yourself despite being a lightning human. Understood?"

"Yes, sir." Cain was aware of the risks his unique use of lightning posed to his body, but he didn't plan on stopping—at least not until he found a solution.

Seeing that none of the three were taking his advice seriously, Zed could only rub his head. All three were growing at a rapid pace, unheard of in their generation. They were like diamonds polishing each other. In his time, Sengoku, Garp, and a few others were like them, but even then, these three were setting new records.

This was especially true for Cain. He hated losing, and that drive had pushed him to unlock Haki on his own. From the looks of it, Cain was not only adapting but also using his Haki effectively almost immediately. That level of talent was rare—even Garp's talent in Armament Haki wasn't as high in comparison to Cain's proficiency in Observation Haki.

'If it's the same for Armament Haki, then the Marines are about to gain another monster among their ranks.' Zed thought smirking to himself. Terrors like Rocks had once shaken the world at it's core which was brought down by strong marines like Garp, and he was looking forward to the future of lasting peace.

With Cain taking a significant leap forward, Zed knew he had to step in. Otherwise, Cain and the other two might hit a plateau.

"It's too early for the two of you, but you both have potential. Now, follow me to the office, and I'll introduce you to the second power type in this world, known as Haki."