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Several days had passed since the earth-shattering party with the Whitebeard Pirates, and the Oro Jackson had returned to its usual, peaceful rhythm. The sun was warm, the sea breeze was gentle, and the crew members were all at their posts. Some were swabbing the decks, while others were repairing the planks Roger had cracked during his last fight. Everything seemed serene.
Kyle was stretched out on his exclusive beach chair, a sun umbrella shielding him from the rays. A pair of sunglasses he had 'borrowed' from Jabba were perched on his nose as he leisurely swung his legs, enjoying a rare moment of perfect relaxation.
Just then, a discordant voice shattered the tranquility.
"Hey! Where's Gol D. Roger?!"
A rough, youthful voice shouted from just beyond the ship's rail. Kyle frowned, pushing up his sunglasses. "Now who is this kid? So rude."
Everyone looked toward the sound. They saw an unusually burly young man with a rebellious look on his face, standing on a small raft made of scrap metal. He scanned the deck with a provocative gaze. He had a striking golden mohawk, his muscular arms were covered in scars, and his eyes were full of defiance. He wore an expression that screamed, "I'm the strongest in the world."
"Looking for me, kid?" Roger asked with interest. He was sitting on the figurehead, polishing his beloved cutlass, and he raised his head with a wide smile.
"My name is Douglas Bullet!" the young man shouted, jabbing a thumb at his own chest, his tone thick with arrogance. "I heard you're one of the strongest men on this sea, so I've come to challenge you!"
As soon as the words were spoken, the deck fell silent for a beat, then erupted into laughter.
"Hahahaha, another one who doesn't know his place!"
"Hey, kid, do you have any idea who you're talking to?"
Rayleigh and Jabba exchanged a look, shaking their heads helplessly. They were more than used to scenes like this.
Roger, however, seemed to have heard something genuinely amusing and burst into a hearty laugh. "Kuhahaha! Interesting! It's been a long time since I've seen a kid with this much spirit! Alright, I accept your challenge!"
The fighting spirit in Bullet's eyes intensified. With a powerful leap, he landed heavily on the deck of the Oro Jackson. He didn't draw a weapon. He simply crossed his arms over his chest as a peculiar aura began to emanate from him.
"Combine!"
With a low roar, several spare cannons, nearby iron barrels, the anchor chains, and even some metal plates being used for repairs all seemed to be pulled by an invisible force. They detached from their spots with a harsh clatter and flew toward Bullet. In the blink of an eye, the countless metal parts rapidly assembled and transformed around him. A giant robot, over ten meters tall, rose from the deck, casting a massive shadow over the ship. The golem of scrap metal was crude in form but radiated oppressive power.
'A Paramecia that combines metal?' Kyle thought, a flicker of genuine interest in his eyes. 'Now this is something you don't see every day. I should probably sit up for this.'
"Whoa! So amazing!" Shanks and Buggy stared, their eyes wide with awe.
"A user of the Combine-Combine Fruit..." Rayleigh noted, pushing up his glasses thoughtfully.
"Come on, Roger! Let's see what you've got!" Bullet's muffled, fervent roar came from within the robot's chest cavity. A massive metal fist, powerful enough to tear through the air, smashed down towards Roger.
"Kuhahaha! What an amazing ability!" Roger praised, his smile never faltering. Facing the iron fist that blotted out the sun, he didn't even move his feet. He simply brought his cutlass, "Ace," across his body. In the next moment, black and red lightning coiled around the blade.
"God Avoidance."
Roger swung his sword in a casual, almost lazy arc. As the slash swept past, the giant robot didn't even have time to react. Its iron fist was still descending when a smooth, clean crack appeared down the middle of its massive body. The crack widened silently, spreading from its chest to its head and feet.
BOOMâ!
The giant robot split cleanly in two and collapsed heavily on either side of the deck. Countless parts scattered with a deafening clatter. As the smoke cleared, Bullet was kneeling amidst the pile of scrap metal, panting heavily, covered in sweat, his eyes filled with utter disbelief. His proudest power had been shattered so effortlessly.
Roger sheathed his sword as if he had just done something completely trivial. He walked over to Bullet and looked down at him, his smile still pleasant. After a brief silence, Bullet suddenly looked up, the shock in his eyes having transformed into an even more fervent flame.
He yelled with all his might, "Let me join your crew! Roger! I will keep challenging you until the day I finally surpass you!"
"Hmm?" Roger paused, then scratched his head with a troubled expression. "How troublesome..." He turned and shot a pleading look at Rayleigh and Jabba.
Rayleigh immediately looked up at the sky and started whistling. "The clouds today have such unique shapes..." he muttered to himself.
Jabba, meanwhile, squatted down and began intently inspecting the deck. "No, the grain of this plank is all wrong. I must replace it immediately!"
"Those two..." Roger pouted helplessly. His gaze swept across the ship, finally settling on the leisurely figure under the sun umbrella. Kyle was about to put his sunglasses back on and pretend he hadn't seen a thing, but he found that everyone was now staring directly at him. An ominous premonition welled up in his heart.
"Kuhahaha!" Roger pointed straight at Kyle. "Kid," he announced loudly to Bullet, "it's not impossible to challenge me. But first, you have to beat him!"
Bullet followed Roger's finger and saw the man in the Hawaiian shirt, lounging with his legs crossed, looking completely relaxed. He sized Kyle up and down, his eyes filled with undisguised contempt. 'Him?' Bullet thought. 'This man doesn't exude an ounce of power. He's full of openings, like some rich kid on vacation. Is Roger trying to humiliate me by making me fight someone like this?'
Kyle sighed inwardly. 'Honestly, without me, this crew would probably fall apart.'
"What? You look down on him?" Roger smiled like a fox. "I'm telling you, he's very, very strong."
Bullet's pride was completely ignited. He leaped up from the pile of scrap, his hands reaching out again. "Combine!" This time, he absorbed every usable piece of metal, even the two halves of the robot that had just been cut down, re-fusing them into a machine even more massive and ferocious than before.
"Hey! You lazy bum! Let's have a showdown!" Bullet roared from the cockpit, controlling the robot to take heavy, thundering steps toward Kyle.
Kyle put down his glass of orange juice, slowly stood up, and stretched his shoulders. "Honestly... playing with little kids is so tiring," he complained. He then slowly raised his right hand, fingers spread, toward the charging giant.
A low, deep hum sounded, striking the robot's chest almost the instant Kyle finished speaking. There was no explosion, no flash of light. The massive robot just paused, freezing in place. Then, starting from its chest, a web of cracks began to spread across its entire body. These weren't the clean cuts from an external force; this was an irreversible collapse starting from within its very structure.
With a series of muffled cracks and groans, the giant robot, like a building with its framework removed, exploded from the inside out, disintegrating into countless flying parts. Bullet tumbled out of the wreckage, falling to the ground in a disheveled heap. He stared blankly at Kyle, who stood in the exact same spot, not a single hair out of place. His mind was a complete blank.
Shanks and Buggy's mouths were wide open, their jaws nearly on the deck.
Kyle casually lay back down on his beach chair, picked up his glass, took a leisurely sip, and let out a satisfied sigh. His peace, however, didn't last long. A tall figure blocked his sun.
Bullet was standing before him. The previous obsession with Roger was gone from his crimson eyes, replaced by a new, even more fervent fighting spirit. "You..." he said, his voice hoarse with excitement as he pointed at Kyle. "What's your name?"
"Kyle."
"Kyle!" Bullet clenched his fists. "Fight me again! No, from this day on, I'm going to challenge you every single day! Until I defeat you!"
Kyle's hand, holding the glass of orange juice, froze in mid-air. He slowly turned his head, looking at Roger, who was winking and grinning broadly at him. He glanced at Rayleigh and Jabba, who were desperately trying to stifle their laughter. Finally, he looked at the battle-crazed fanatic standing before him.
Kyle looked up at the clear blue sky and let out the deepest, most helpless sigh he had uttered since boarding the ship. "There goes my laid-back life..."
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