The Puppet Master [One Piece]

Kenbunshoku Haki pt 1

~Shanks’ POV~

                Something had snapped within the emotionally delicate girl. Was it possible that she’d been keeping some of her haunting memories at bay and upon seeing the magnitude of her injury had stirred some of the hidden memories within her? What gruesome things had she witnessed to make her snap? I didn’t like using such a tactic on the fragile girl, but she’d left me no other choice. Somehow, whatever caused her to snap awoke a surprisingly strong form of Kenbunshoku Haki (Observation Haki/Mantra) within her.

                I carried the unconscious girl over my shoulder back to camp; I’d need some help tending to her wounds. Before I even reached the camp, I could hear the loud raucous laughter from the crew. Echo had heard them all in her mind at an even louder volume; no wonder the girl had been so frantic.

                “Hey Boss!” A few called as I stepped into camp.

                “How did swimming go?” Someone chuckled before the laughter died down.

                “What’s wrong with the brat?” Yassop commented as everyone else fell silent to stare at the unconscious girl slung over my shoulder and the blood dripping from her hands.

                Benn took her from me quietly. Her fan-club quickly threw down their shirts in the sand for him to lay her down. He set to work diligently bandaging her bloody hands before inspecting her for further injury.

                “What happened?” Yassop asked as I knelt beside the unconscious girl.

                “She scraped her hands on some rocks.”

                “That doesn’t explain why she’s unconscious.” One of the rookies piped in.

                “It seems that was the captain’s doing.” Benn chuckled.

                “Ah, so the creepy sickeningly sweet attitude was grating on your nerves too?” Yassop pondered receiving quite a few glares from Echo’s fan-club.

                I shook my head at this, “Echo’s a haki user.”

                “Huh?” Everyone gaped down at the unconscious girl in awe.

                Benn thought for a moment, “Kenbunshoku?”

                I nodded.

                “I’d imagine she thought she was losing her mind.” He sighed as he looked down at the unconscious girl fondly. “We should take her somewhere less crowded for when she wakes up.” He suggested.

                “I’m not sure how much good it will do, she could hear all of you from the opposite side of the island.” I noted.

                “How’s that possible if it just became active?” Yassop stared down at the girl in awe.

                It was rare for a new Haki user’s ability to be that powerful upon awakening, but at the same time she must have gone through a terrible ordeal for her willpower to be so strong without undergoing any formal training.

[Sorry it's short but I wanted to clear some things up lol]