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Chapter 54: Little Bullet
🕑 Added 2025-08-30 10:12:08 +0000 UTCSeveral days had passed since that earth-shaking party with the Whitebeard Pirates, and the Oro Jackson had returned to its usual sailing rhythm.
The sun was perfect, the sea breeze gentle. Crew members went about their duties—some scrubbing the deck, others repairing the planks Roger had stomped through—everything seemed so peaceful and harmonious.
Kyle lay in his personal beach chair with a parasol overhead, wearing sunglasses he'd borrowed from Gaban, leisurely swinging his legs as he enjoyed this rare moment of relaxation.
Ah, when you get old, you just don't want to move~
Just then, a discordant voice shattered the tranquility.
"Hey! Where's Gol D. Roger!"
A rough teenage voice called out from beyond the ship's rail.
Kyle frowned and lifted his sunglasses: What the—whose kid is this? No manners at all!
Everyone looked toward the sound to see an abnormally burly young man with a rebellious expression standing on a small raft cobbled together from scrap metal, scanning everyone on deck with provocative eyes.
He had striking golden hair in a mohawk style, muscular arms covered in scars, defiant eyes, and a "I'm number one in the world" expression.
"What do you want with me, kid?" Roger sat on the figurehead, polishing his beloved sword, looking up with interest, and flashing a big smile.
"I'm Douglas Bullet!" the young man announced loudly, pointing at himself with his thumb, his arrogance completely undisguised. "I heard you're one of the strongest men on these seas, so I'm here to challenge you!"
At these words, the deck fell silent for a moment before erupting in laughter.
"Haha, another kid who doesn't know his place!"
"Hey kid, do you know who you're talking to?"
Rayleigh and Gaban exchanged glances and shook their heads helplessly—they'd seen this scene countless times.
But Roger acted like he'd heard something interesting and burst into laughter: "Gu ha ha ha! Interesting! Haven't seen such a spirited kid in ages! Alright, I accept your challenge!"
Bullet's fighting spirit blazed even brighter. He leaped up and landed heavily on the Oro Jackson's deck with a dull thud.
He used no weapons, just crossed his arms over his chest as a strange aura emanated from his body.
"Combine!"
With a low roar, several spare cannons on deck, iron barrels piled to one side, anchor chains, and even some metal plates for repairs, all seemed drawn by an invisible force. They broke free from their positions with harsh "clank clank" sounds and flew toward Bullet.
In the blink of an eye, countless metal components used Bullet as their core, rapidly combining, transforming, and assembling. A massive robot over ten meters tall rose from the ground, casting its shadow across the entire deck.
This giant made of scrap metal was crude in form but full of oppressive presence. The cannons in its chest gaped like black holes, and its metal-jointed arms were thicker than the masts.
Kyle was mentally prepared, but still couldn't help his eyes lighting up: Whoa! Armor combination! Mecha fruit! So freaking cool! I need to sit up for this.
"Ooh ooh ooh! So amazing!" Shanks and Buggy watched with shining eyes.
"A Combine-Combine Fruit user..." Rayleigh adjusted his glasses thoughtfully.
"Come on, Roger! Show me what you're made of!" Bullet's muffled, fanatical roar echoed from the robot's chest cavity as massive metal fists whistled through the air, smashing down toward Roger!
"Gu ha ha ha! What an amazing ability!" Roger praised while his smile never wavered.
Facing that sky-blocking iron fist, he didn't even move his feet, just slowly held "Ace" horizontally in front of him.
The next moment, black-red lightning coiled around the blade like dragons and snakes.
"Divine Departure!"
Roger simply delivered a casual basic attack.
The slash swept past, and the massive robot didn't even have time to react. Its swinging iron fist was still in midair when a smooth crack appeared through the entire massive body from the center.
The crack silently widened, spreading rapidly from the cut to the head and feet.
BOOM—!
The giant robot split in two and crashed thunderously to both sides, countless parts scattering across the ground with clanging sounds on the deck.
When the dust settled, Bullet knelt in the center of the scrap pile, gasping heavily, drenched in sweat, his eyes full of disbelief and shock.
The power he was so proud of was so utterly helpless before this man!
Kyle: Not good enough, Bullet! When I first challenged Roger, I had a real good fight!
Rayleigh: By "good fight," you mean taking one punch from Roger and falling into baby-like sleep?
Kyle: ...
Roger sheathed his sword as if he'd just done something trivial.
He walked up to Bullet and looked down at him, his smile unchanged.
After a brief, deadly silence, Bullet suddenly raised his head, the shock in his eyes transforming into an even more burning flame.
He roared with all his strength: "Let me on your ship! Roger! I'll keep challenging you until I surpass you!"
"Hm?" Roger was stunned for a moment, then scratched his head with a troubled expression. "What a pain..."
He turned around, looking to Rayleigh and Gaban for help.
Rayleigh immediately looked up at the sky and started whistling, muttering: "Today's clouds have such unique shapes..."
Gaban crouched down to examine the deck intently with a serious expression: "No good, this plank's grain is ugly. I need to replace it right away!"
These two guys...
Roger helplessly pursed his lips, scanning around the ship before his gaze settled under that leisurely parasol.
Kyle was about to put his sunglasses back on and pretend he hadn't seen anything, but found everyone's eyes focused on him.
An ominous premonition washed over him.
"Gu ha ha ha!" Roger pointed at Kyle and loudly declared to Bullet, "Kid, challenging me isn't impossible. But first you need to beat him!"
Bullet followed Roger's pointing finger and saw the man in the floral shirt with his legs crossed, looking completely lazy.
He looked Kyle up and down, his eyes showing undisguised contempt and disdain.
"Him?"
This man didn't give off even a trace of a strong person's aura. He was full of openings, like some rich boy vacationing on the ship. I already have 1,396 ways to beat him!
Roger actually wanted him to defeat this kind of guy first? Was this an insult?
Kyle sighed deeply in his heart: Without me, this crew would fall apart!
"What? You look down on him?" Roger smiled like a fox. "I'm telling you, he's pretty strong."
Bullet's pride was completely ignited.
He leaped up from the ground and reached out to the surrounding metal scraps again.
"Combine!"
This time, he absorbed all available parts, even reassembling the two halves of his previous body that had been cut apart, creating an even more menacing and massive robot than before.
"Hey! You lazy guy! Let's settle this!" Bullet roared from the cockpit, controlling the robot as it took heavy steps that shook the entire ship.
Kyle set down his orange juice cup and stood up leisurely, stretching his shoulders.
"Geez... playing with kids is exhausting~" he complained, then slowly raised his right hand toward the charging giant robot, spreading his five fingers.
Whooom—!
A low hum sounded, and almost the instant Kyle finished speaking, it struck the robot's chest.
No explosion, no flames.
The massive robot suddenly froze in place.
Then, starting from its chest, spider web-like cracks began spreading throughout its body.
These weren't marks of being smashed by external force, but irreversible collapse beginning from the internal structure.
Crack... crack crack... BANG!
With a dull boom, the giant robot collapsed like blocks with their framework removed, exploding outward from the inside and scattering parts everywhere.
Bullet tumbled out from the scattered components, rolling awkwardly on the ground.
He stared blankly at Kyle, who stood in the same spot without even a hair out of place, his mind completely blank.
Heroes in this world are as common as carps crossing the river!
The deck erupted in amazement.
"I knew Kyle-san got stronger again!"
"Whew Kyle's showing off again"
Shanks and Buggy gaped with their jaws nearly dislocating.
Kyle lay back in his beach chair, picked up his orange juice for a satisfying sip, and let out a contented sigh.
"Ah... saved."
Bro, your tin can doesn't explode when it meets me? (holding back laughter)
However, his leisure didn't last long as a tall figure blocked the sunlight in front of him.
Bullet had somehow stood before him, those deep red eyes no longer holding their former obsession with Roger. Instead, they burned with a new, more fanatical fighting spirit.
"You..." he pointed at Kyle, his voice hoarse with excitement. "What's your name?"
"Kyle."
"Kyle!" Bullet clenched his fists. "One more time! No, from today on, I'll challenge you every day until I defeat you!"
Kyle's hand holding the orange juice cup froze in midair.
He slowly turned his head to look at Roger in the distance, who was winking at him with a grin from ear to ear. Then he looked at Rayleigh and Gaban, desperately trying not to laugh, and finally at this battle-crazed maniac with burning eyes before him.
Kyle looked up at the blue sky and let out the deepest, most helpless sigh since boarding the ship.
"My peaceful, lazy life..."
