...
On the God Valley side, the Celestial Dragons had been toyed with by Roger's "special cakes" and left in utter disarray.
Though the food was nearly impossible to swallow, many Celestial Dragons ultimately pinched their noses, forced down the revulsion, and choked the biochemical-weapon-like "food" into their stomachs. One by one, their faces turned green, their bodies listless and drained.
Roger, meanwhile, hugged the tens of billions worth of jewelry he had extorted from them, laughing so hard that tears streamed down his face and he couldn't even stand straight.
This absurd farce temporarily dispelled some of the earlier murderous tension, but it also added fuel named "humiliation" to the fire of the impending conflict.
However, the battle situation on the light curtain offered not the slightest bit of levity.
The screen split again, displaying the tension and ferocity across different fronts.
What met the eye first was Crocodile's "cooperation."
In another part of the island, Robin and Law encountered an unexpected "acquaintance"—
The former Warlord of the Sea, Crocodile.
He had a cigar clamped in his mouth, his expression as gloomy as ever, but his eyes held less of the usual calculation and more gravity.
"Long time no see, Miss Sunday!" Crocodile got straight to the point, his voice hoarse.
Surprisingly, though, his target wasn't Robin—it was Law standing behind her!
"I have a plan. Come with me!"
Seeing Crocodile's proposal, Law and Robin exchanged a glance. Then Law actually followed him and left.
On the other side, Sanji was entangled with Smoker. When Smoker heard that a Buster Call had been ordered, he froze completely—he had received no such notification.
Back at the main battlefield, the view returned to the clash between Luffy and Bullet.
The fight had already lasted who-knows-how-long. The ground was shattered into pieces, smoke and dust filling the air.
"Rubber Rubber… Black Mamba Swarm!!"
Luffy roared. In Gear Fourth: Snake Man form, his fists turned into countless twisting black-red trajectories, bombarding Bullet like a violent storm!
Each punch was powerful enough to split mountains and crack stone.
Yet Bullet didn't seem to care at all. He chose to tank the attack head-on. His terrifying defense and Armament Haki rendered Luffy's fierce assault almost ineffective.
Even more frightening was that, as the battle dragged on, Bullet seemed to have completely figured out Snake Man's attack patterns and rhythm, handling them with increasing ease.
"Bang!"
Another head-on clash of fists. Luffy was forced back several steps by the rebounding force, chest heaving violently, gasping for air. Sweat mixed with blood slid down from his forehead.
The stamina drain of Gear Fourth was immense—he was already beginning to feel exhaustion.
Meanwhile, Bullet across from him merely shook out a slightly numb wrist. His expression remained largely unchanged; a faint glint even flashed in his eyes—like he had just finished warming up?
Bullet's voice carried excitement: "As expected of a 1.5 billion Berry bounty. You really do have more backbone and durability than those small fries."
"1.5 billion?!"
In God Valley, Garp's eyes suddenly bulged wide. Then he burst into laughter even louder than when Roger had toyed with the Celestial Dragons.
"Hahahahaha! 1.5 billion?! My grandson's worth 1.5 billion in the future?! Good kid! Just how many 'good deeds' have you pulled off?! As expected of my grandson! Hahahahaha!"
Garp laughed with unrestrained delight, completely ignoring Sengoku and Zephyr's helpless looks and the icy, piercing glares from the Five Elders that seemed ready to bore straight through him.
A subtle yet irreversible shift had occurred in Garp's mindset.
His disappointment and disgust toward the upper echelons of the World Government—especially the Five Elders—had built up to a breaking point due to Zephyr's future, the Celestial Dragons' disgraceful behavior, and all the darkness revealed by the light curtain.
Hearing about his grandson's "massive bounty" now, far from feeling shame, he felt a strange sense of pride.
At the very least, it proved Luffy was living a truly "spectacular" life—one that gave the World Government massive headaches.
Sengoku and Zephyr exchanged a glance, both seeing deep worry in each other's eyes.
They knew Garp well. Their friend usually laughed and joked around, but he was extremely principled, and his loyalty to the Navy had once been beyond question.
But now… if the World Government truly crossed his bottom line—such as trying to kill Dragon—they had no doubt Garp would choose to turn his back without hesitation.
He might even… follow the path of the future Zephyr in his own way, pursuing his personal sense of "justice."
That would be a heavier blow to the Navy than losing an Admiral.
In the light curtain, the battle entered its final phase…
Bullet's "appreciation" for Luffy lasted only a moment before being replaced by stronger disappointment and cold indifference: "Unfortunately… still too weak!"
Before the words even finished, his figure vanished once more!
This time, Luffy's Observation Haki clearly caught the trajectory, but his exhausted body lagged half a beat!
"Bang!"
A heavy punch slammed solidly into Luffy's crossed defensive arms.
Luffy grunted, but he wasn't sent flying. Gritting his teeth, he stubbornly withstood the force and countered with a punch straight to Bullet's cheek!
"Bang!"
Bullet's head tilted slightly. A flash of surprise passed through his eyes, quickly turning into even fiercer battle intent!
"Interesting!"
The two abandoned complex techniques. Right in the center of the shattered battlefield, they engaged in the most primal, brutal, and visually shocking slugfest!
One punch, then another!
No flourishes—just pure clashes of power and Haki!
The dull thuds of fists meeting flesh rang out as blood sprayed continuously from both of them!
Luffy roared, pouring all his rage and his determination to protect his crew into every punch!
Bullet, like a cold fighting machine, countered with even more ferocious force!
This raw, flesh-to-flesh exchange lasted dozens of seconds. Under the breathless gaze of everyone in God Valley, it ultimately ended with Luffy's exhaustion.
"Thud…"
Luffy could hold on no longer. Gear Fourth: Snake Man form automatically deactivated; the steam around him dissipated as he returned to normal.
He gasped for air, barely able to stand, yet his eyes remained locked dead on Bullet.
Bullet stood in place, now bearing quite a few wounds and even a trace of blood at the corner of his mouth, but his aura remained powerful!
As though the intense battle had merely been a warm-up.
He slowly wiped away the blood, looking down at the kneeling Luffy. A trace of what could be called "acknowledgment" finally flickered in his eyes—only to be immediately covered by deeper coldness.
"It's over."
Bullet declared: "I don't hate guys with strength and backbone. You're far better than those trash, but…"
With those words, Bullet's killing intent surged sharply!
"You and your crew… are all going to die here today!"
Bullet held nothing back. He raised his right fist high and slammed it brutally into the ground!
"Rumble rumble!!!"
Centered on him, the earth cracked like a spiderweb and collapsed!
Then, an enormous shadow—like a steel whale—burst up from underground!
It was none other than a gigantic, ferocious-looking super-submersible warship bristling with cannons and mechanical structures: the "Catapult"!
Bullet had kept this island's underground as the hiding place for this war fortress all along!
Standing atop the highest point of the warship, Bullet looked down at the Supernovas below like ants. His voice boomed across the battlefield: "Little brats! Watch closely! This… is true power!"
He spread both arms wide. The Combine-Combine Fruit's ability activated at full power!
This wasn't simple object manipulation—it was a far more advanced, fundamental power!
"Combined Armament: Maximum!!!"
The shocking scene unfolded! With Bullet himself at the core, the Catapult's hull, deck, cannons, armor…
All metallic and non-metallic structures began writhing madly as though alive—decomposing, reassembling!
At the same time, countless scattered weapons, cannonballs, warship wreckage, and even the island's rocks and soil across the battlefield were pulled by an invisible force!
They turned into torrents of steel and material, surging toward Bullet!
Under countless horrified gazes, Bullet's body fused perfectly with this massive flood of matter—expanding, transforming!
In the end, a super-gigantic combined monster several times larger than the Catapult itself rose—its body entirely of steel and rock, shaped like a legendary Titan giant!
It stood towering between heaven and earth, radiating an aura of destruction!
Bullet's true body resided at the core atop the giant's head!
Devil Fruit awakening!
This was Douglas Bullet's true form!
The ability to fuse and control inorganic matter in the surrounding environment on a massive scale, transforming himself into a true god of war!
"The weak… have no right to survive on this sea."
Bullet's voice echoed from within the giant, carrying a metallic reverberation—cold and merciless: "Just like that useless long-nosed coward who can only hide behind you. Trash crewmates should be discarded early, Straw Hat kid."
His words dripped with extreme contempt for "crewmates" and "bonds."
"Your so-called 'crewmates' are nothing but powerless burdens! Even that man called 'the world's strongest'—the old Whitebeard…"
Mentioning Whitebeard, Bullet's voice carried an extremely faint tremor.
It wasn't pure respect—more a complex mix of acknowledgment and profound disdain.
"In the end, didn't he throw away his life just to protect those useless subordinates? Foolish! Ridiculous! Giving up victory, giving up becoming stronger, all for so-called 'family' and 'bonds'…
You people are all hopeless lunatics!"
Bullet's final words rang out like a final judgment!
Yet they also revealed the root of his twisted belief: an absolute worship of personal martial power, and a total rejection and denial of any "emotional ties" that might "drag him down" or "weaken" him.
He acknowledged Whitebeard's strength, but in his eyes, Whitebeard's ultimate fate was the most tragic proof of being ruined by "weak emotions"!
...