Raleigh, feeling as if he had been standing for too long, simply sat cross-legged on the ground.
"Don't worry. With someone of your caliber, I definitely will not assign you any boring tasks," Raleigh said calmly.
"I will arrange for you to deal with some truly strong opponents. You do not need to care about their identities or backgrounds, but I guarantee you they will all be pirates with bounties of at least five hundred million Berries."
Bullet silently calculated in his mind.
In this world, the people he knew with bounties over five hundred million were truly few in number.
Aside from the Marine Admirals, he basically knew all the remaining top-tier pirates.
"These terms are acceptable, but I will not take action against the Roger Pirates. If you insist on that, you might as well kill me right now."
Even though Bullet had left the Roger Pirates, he still held complicated feelings for them.
Asking him to hunt down Roger and his former crewmates was something Bullet simply could not bring himself to do.
Raleigh gave Bullet a strange look before replying, "Dont worry, the Roger Pirates are not our primary target. You will understand in due time."
Raleigh pulled a Den Den Mushi from his pocket and called the Marines waiting back at the port.
"Gion, bring a few ship doctors over here. There is a seriously injured person who needs treatment."
After ending the call, Raleigh watched Bullet with mild curiosity.
The massive pirate had regained a tiny bit of strength and was stubbornly struggling to pull himself out of the deep rubble.
The intense movement aggravated his severe wounds, causing him to cough up blood once again.
Raleigh made no move to help or stop him.
The people in this world were strange indeed. Some monsters were so tough they could keep fighting for minutes even after their hearts were pierced or half their skulls were blown off, still leaving them enough time to deliver epic final words.
Yet, some powerful figures would die to ordinary blades, standard flintlock pistols, or even falling down a flight of stairs.
Bullet definitely did not seem like the type to die early, and Raleigh had no reason to baby a newly recruited pirate.
If Bullet died from pushing himself too hard, so be it—Raleigh could just spend some time finding another powerful pirate on the high seas to act as his blade.
Seeing Raleigh's cold indifference, Bullet suddenly burst into a hoarse, bloody laugh.
"You are good. You have ruthless methods and an even more ruthless heart," Bullet sneered. "You clearly fought me just to subdue me, yet you do not care about my life at all... just like the commanders I had back in Galzburg when I was young."
Recalling the endless wars of his homeland seemed to make Bullet grit his teeth, his voice dripping with bitterness.
Raleigh lifted his head, looking at Bullet with dead, emotionless eyes.
"You are merely a very useful pawn in my plans, but that does not mean you are irreplaceable. If someday your strength cannot keep up with my pace, I will not hesitate to replace you."
Hearing this, Bullet first felt a surge of intense rage, but then he seemed to remember who he was talking to.
He coldly replied, "Then you had better improve quickly, Marine. Because if your strength cannot keep up with my pace, I will not hesitate to kill you, either."
Both men exchanged harsh words, but neither took any further action.
Ultimately, they were both smart people who would not do things without a clear benefit.
Bullet knew his current condition would not allow him to escape, so there was no point in starting another fight. Besides, Raleigh had not ordered him to do anything unacceptable.
Challenging strong opponents was exactly what Bullet had been doing ever since he left the Roger Pirates.
Now, it just meant Raleigh would be the one pointing him toward his next target. In reality, this arrangement did not change much for Bullet at all.
Similarly, for Raleigh, Bullet was already under his control and had agreed to his demands, so there was no need to actually kill him.
With some time still left before Gion's arrival, Raleigh turned to the recovering pirate.
"Bullet, I think your Devil Fruit development is still lacking."
"What?"
"Sometimes, creating a bigger size after combining objects is not necessarily better. Plus, the quality of the steel you use for your mechs is far too poor."
Upon hearing this, Bullet frowned, genuinely considering whether Raleigh's assessment was accurate.
But his warrior pride quickly made him retort, "After combining, a bigger size means greater attack range and heavier defense. Is that not right? Besides, I have tried many materials across the Grand Line. Steel is the hardest thing I can easily find—I have not discovered anything better yet."
Raleigh looked at him with a peculiar expression. "Is bigger always better? Then how did you just lose to me? The scrap steel you are currently merging with is poor quality. I know of a special metal that could perfectly meet your requirements."
"What metal?"
"I don't know where the Devil Fruit user who makes it is hiding right now. But I can get some for you when I find him later."
It was true.
After seeing Bullet's Clank-Clank Fruit in action, Raleigh had immediately thought of King Wapol, the user of the Munch-Munch Fruit.
The special shape-memory alloy he produced—Wapometal—was absolutely perfect for Bullet's powers.
Furthermore, Bullet's Clank-Clank Fruit essentially made him a Gundam pilot with infinite combination forms.
Just imagine if Bullet used Wapometal to form an agile, winged mech—wouldn't that allow him to fly?
Even if he could not fly, Bullet could still mount massive naval cannons onto his armored body to launch devastating, long-range bombardments.
If Raleigh stopped viewing the Clank-Clank Fruit as just a simple physical enhancement ability, its true development potential was staggering.
The ultimate goal would be a nimble, indestructible steel Gundam fully loaded with naval artillery.
Coincidentally, Raleigh still had a Grow-Grow Fruit in his possession.
He could find a loyal subordinate to eat it and team them up with Bullet.
Who wouldn't fear a mobile Gundam with explosive firepower that could be artificially grown to the size of a mountain?
Without exaggeration, once such a combination appeared, almost no one below the rank of Marine Admiral would be able to resist it.
Even top-tiers like Raleigh and Borsalino would likely have to flee from a walking Buster Call.
Thinking about it this way, Bullet's value in Raleigh's grand plans skyrocketed.
If Bullet died now, who knew how many years it would take to find someone else capable of developing the Clank-Clank Fruit to such a terrifying level?
"Raleigh! Are you alright?!"
Gion anxiously ran over with the ship's medical team.
She carefully examined Raleigh's bruised torso, tenderly stroking his wounds with deep concern.
Raleigh did not think much of his injuries.
Getting hurt in a high-level battle was a common occurrence.
Bullet, lying on the other side of the rubble, had just been beaten half to death and still had not complained about the pain once.
In this world, Marshall D. Teach seemed to be the only true oddity—because of the Darkness-Darkness Fruit, he took double the damage and absolutely could not stand the pain when hit.
Yet, even while screaming and rolling on the ground in pure agony, Teach's attacks never faltered.
It was quite a peculiar trait.
Raleigh stroked his chin in thought.
He suddenly remembered that the Whitebeard Pirates had already been crippled and scattered in this timeline.
So, where would Blackbeard go now?
That man was capable of enduring and hiding his true strength for twenty years before making his move.
No matter what, he was a terrifying calculating opponent.
People usually do not fear the enemies they can see, because visible dangers can be fought.
But opponents like Blackbeard? Who knows when he might suddenly strike from the shadows?
Whitebeard had been an invincible powerhouse on the seas for his entire life, yet in the original timeline, he was completely outmaneuvered by his own "son."
In the canon Marineford War, almost everyone was a loser—except for Blackbeard and Koby.
Teach had raided Impel Down, gathered a crew of legendary monsters, stolen Whitebeard's Tremor-Tremor Fruit, and instantly became one of the new Four Emperors.
No one profited more than Blackbeard.
Raleigh knew he had to keep an eye out for him.
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