The two massive beasts seemed to understand teamwork. Step by step, they closed in on Luffy, blocking any possible escape routes.
"Utterly shameless!" Luffy sneered.
But…
There was nothing he could do.
He could see the murderous intent in their eyes. They had clearly decided to eliminate him. One of the beasts even extended its tongue, dripping with foul-smelling saliva, which made Luffy gag.
"Ugh!" Luffy dry-heaved, catching a whiff of the stench.
"Damn it, you need to brush your teeth!" he shouted in disgust.
Then…
Luffy tried using his Conqueror's Haki to influence the beasts' minds.
After several seconds, he shook his head.
"Failed!"
"These two are downright terrifying," he muttered. "They're almost as tough as Sea Kings. Their minds are incredibly strong. I can't just overpower them with Haki alone."
With that, he turned and attempted to run.
Bang!
One of the beasts immediately blocked his path.
"Argh!" Luffy sighed in frustration. Escape was clearly impossible.
"So, I'm really gonna die here?"
Luffy couldn't believe that right after his arrival, he was already facing a deadly threat.
"Hey!" he yelled. "Can you two not eat me?"
"At least make it quick. I hate pain!"
But the beasts' fierce gaze made it clear they intended to devour him in the most brutal way possible.
Roar!
The two beasts moved in, preparing to attack.
"Damn it!" Luffy muttered, feeling helpless. He couldn't understand why Rayleigh hadn't come to his aid. With Rayleigh's keen sense, he should've noticed what was happening by now. After all…
Just a while ago, when Luffy nearly drowned, Rayleigh had arrived just in time.
But now, there was no sign of him.
Far off…
Rayleigh watched, puzzled.
"Why isn't Luffy just taking them down?" he wondered aloud.
Rayleigh would probably never realize that Luffy had long since lost his powers.
In that moment…
Luffy had a sudden revelation.
"Oh, right!"
He mumbled to himself, "How could I forget?"
"Conqueror's Haki's basic ability is intimidation!"
"The power to control everything was given to me by the system…"
"I almost forgot Haki's fundamental function!"
He had finally remembered…
The core power of Conqueror's Haki: Intimidation.
It was an ability any Haki user could employ. In fact, for the longest time, people believed that was the only way to use Conqueror's Haki. It wasn't until later that people realized it could also be used to imbue attacks.
But…
Regardless, he could use Conqueror's Haki to command respect and intimidate.
"Ha ha ha ha ha!" Luffy laughed, holding his head in his hands.
"I really am an idiot."
"To forget something so simple…"
"Ah!" he sighed.
Now he knew that these two beasts were nothing to worry about. After all…
Two years ago, with a Haki level of only twenty, he'd been able to knock out a hundred thousand underlings in one go.
Now, with his Haki at level fifty, there was no doubt he could make these two beasts submit.
Then…
Swoosh!
Luffy unleashed his Conqueror's Haki.
A terrifying aura immediately enveloped the beasts.
~----------------------------------------------------------
T/N:
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