"Why all the babbling, old man? You two go ahead, I'll stay behind and hold them off," Bullet locked his eyes on Rosse and the five other powerhouses in front of him, the corner of his mouth curling into an excited smile.
His figure stood like an unshakable iron tower, letting the Conqueror's Haki from Saint Sommers and the others surge at him like a tsunami, yet he remained unmoved.
No tension, no hesitation, only a hunger for the battle to come.
He was letting Rayleigh and the others go, not out of camaraderie. Just simply because he didn't believe this group could kill him.
If he truly couldn't hold out, then he'd just be thrown back into Impel Down.
Rayleigh furrowed his brows, slightly raising the long blade in his hand, Haki flowing as a faint black sheen appeared along the blade's surface.
His gaze swept over the enemies in front, especially Rosse at the lead, and Saint Sommers and Saintess Vanessa, the two wielders of Conqueror's Haki.
Three powerful Celestial Dragons, one fastest Logia-type user, and two CP0 fighters whose physical prowess rivaled Admirals.
This lineup was luxurious enough to rival the Roger Pirates at their peak, let alone now, when it was just the three of them.
Let alone escaping, all of them might be wiped out here today.
"Don't be stubborn. You're not strong enough. Go. I'll carve out a path for you," Rayleigh spoke in a deep voice, Conqueror's Haki naturally radiating outward, colliding with the Haki surging toward him.
It was as if invisible lightning exploded in the air, and the atmosphere around them seemed to grow heavier.
"Since you didn't want to leave someone behind earlier, then none of you leave now," Before Rayleigh could finish speaking, Rosse had already moved first. He leapt high, Sea God Trident in hand stabbing down like lightning.
The tip of the trident wrapped in Conqueror's Haki looked like it could pierce space itself, letting out a piercing screech as it fell. Faster than even when he fought Golden Lion.
"NOT GOOD!", Rayleigh's expression changed slightly, but he had no time to help.
He never imagined that after such a high-intensity battle, Rosse still hadn't used his full strength.
BOOM!
Just as the Sea God Trident was about to land, Bullet raised his arms, instantly covering them in Armament Haki, crossing them in an attempt to block the blow.
However, Rosse's trident held monstrous power. Bullet's arms covered in Haki barely touched the tip before his figure was blasted from the sky like a meteor.
Yet even so, Bullet showed not a hint of fear. He flipped midair and let out a wild laugh, "HAHAHA! Now this is interesting! COME FIGHT!"
The next second, his body slammed into the Red Line below, cracking it open with a massive fracture.
Amidst the billowing dust, Bullet slowly stood, Conqueror's Haki surging around him as if the earlier strike was just a warm-up.
But before Bullet could make another move, in the blink of an eye, Rosse had already reappeared in front of him.
As Rosse swung his trident, ten-meter waves suddenly rose behind him. The Sea God Trident slashed down, and the waves crashed toward Bullet.
He hadn't fought Golden Lion for so long just to enjoy the battle.
That lengthy fight had given him time to condense moisture in space, enough to raise waves on the Red Line.
Unfortunately, since they were at 10,000 meters altitude, the water in the air was mostly freshwater, with low oceanic element content, making its Devil Fruit suppression effect weak.
Otherwise, just the crashing waves could easily finish Bullet off.
As Bullet was intercepted by Rosse, Borsalino's annoying voice came from beside Rayleigh, "Hey, hey, pay a little attention to us too."
Almost simultaneously, countless points of light lit up around Rayleigh. Golden beams, like a meteor shower, rushed at him from all directions.
"My sword isn't old enough to miss sensing an attack," Rayleigh snorted, swinging dozens of slashes in an instant. Blade arcs like crescent moons cut through the light points one by one.
Explosions lit up the battlefield, fire and smoke spreading around Rayleigh.
And just as the smoke enveloped everything, Saint Sommers made his move.
In a flash, he appeared above Rayleigh, slashing downward with a sword long-prepared.
As the blade fell, it carried terrifying Armament Haki, faintly infused with the pressure of Conqueror's Haki.
Sensing the incoming strike, Rayleigh's pupils contracted. He instinctively raised his sword to block, but Saint Sommers had timed it perfectly, right when Rayleigh was at his slowest, having just shattered the light points.
Clang!
Blades clashed, sparks flew.
Rayleigh's arms went numb from the massive impact. His hasty defense couldn't stop Saint Sommers's full-force blow.
His figure was blasted away like a cannonball, crashing hard into the ground, raising clouds of dust.
"Yo, looks like you really are getting old," Saint Sommers floated in the air, joking with a smile. Before his words even finished, he dove down together with Borsalino.
Now that the incident was over, it was the best time to chase the defeated.
If he didn't earn credit now, he'd be punished later.
So in this moment, Saint Sommers was especially determined.
On the other side, Jabba faced a similar situation. Surrounded by two CP0 agents and Saintess Vanessa, he was quickly knocked from the sky and fell into ground combat.
Under siege by multiple equals, once stalled, it became even harder to escape.
"You're strong! But I'm not weak either!", Bullet fused his arms and legs with the Red Line's rocks, transforming into a several-meter-tall stone giant. His voice rumbled.
He had the Fusion-Fusion Fruit, able to merge with various materials to enhance himself.
Now he was deep within the water Rosse had summoned, but thanks to the Red Line's rocky insulation, he was completely unaffected.
But in Rosse's eyes, this form made him no different from a living target.
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[Douglas Bullet]
[Comprehensive Rating: S-]
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And Bullet, was Rosse's favorite type of opponent.
Slightly weaker than Zephyr, a bottom-rung Admiral-tier foe, but still S-class.
Such a walking experience baby, how could he not accept it?
"All talk? Then how about trying to fight back?", Rosse chuckled, Conqueror's Haki wrapping around his trident as he slashed at Bullet.
After seeing Imu's power, he was highly motivated to grow stronger.
SS-tier, two levels above S+.
If he wanted to level up with S-tiers, he'd need to kill more than ten.
If he had to grind normal pirates for XP, it would take far more time.
But no matter what, if he wanted to bring down Imu, SS-level strength was a must.
He wasn't waiting for Luffy to grow up and knock Imu down so he could move up. No, challenging the strongest with his trident was his true pursuit.
FIGHT!
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