Chapter 178 - Conqueror's Luck Shows Its Might, Bullet Joins as a Challenger!
"You?"
Renji looked at the Bullet before him, a trace of surprise flashing in his eyes.
Thinking about it, it made sense. At this time, Bullet had more or less already left the Roger Pirates.
He had joined the Roger Pirates as a challenger. On Roger's ship, only Roger could defeat him. Others, including Vice-Captain Rayleigh, could only fight him to a draw.
After learning that Roger was terminally ill, Bullet seemed to realize he could no longer defeat him.
Following his final failed challenge against Roger, he withdrew from the Roger Pirates.
At this moment, was he considered a super rookie?
"You know me?"
Bullet's eyes glimmered with excitement.
He never expected to be remembered by Renji. When he first set sail, it was also under Renji's influence.
Back then, he was still fighting in his own kingdom. Betrayed, he destroyed that kingdom.
At that time, he happened to witness Renji's battle at God Valley. This made Bullet realize how many powerful figures roamed the seas.
His original first challenge target was Renji. But since he could not find him for a long time, while drifting across the seas, he encountered Roger instead and challenged him first.
Before this, he had never been defeated. The result caught him off guard. Not only did he lose once, but he lost many times. He then joined as a challenger, vowing in his heart to one day defeat Roger.
When he later learned of Roger's illness, Bullet felt lost about his life. Upon hearing news of Renji again, he immediately began searching for him everywhere.
"The Devil's Heir of the Roger Pirates, Douglas Bullet."
Renji certainly knew who he was, though it was indeed unexpected for this man to come looking for him.
"I want to challenge you!"
Bullet made no attempt to conceal his purpose in approaching Renji.
"Challenge me?"
At this period, Bullet should be on par with Crocodile in battle, right? No… perhaps his information was outdated. It might actually have been around Bullet's nineteenth year.
Speaking of which, did Crocodile's strength really regress? But regressing that much seemed absurd.
By equation, Bullet fought Rayleigh to a draw, Crocodile fought Bullet to a draw—didn't that mean Crocodile had Rayleigh's level of strength?
No.
After learning Roger was dying, Bullet's conviction collapsed. In the world of pirates, when one's conviction collapses, their strength is affected.
Afterward, Bullet completely lost control on the seas. His breaking point came after Roger's execution, when he was eventually captured by the Navy. Most likely, his conviction shifted from challenging the strong to destroying the world itself.
"That's right. I want to see just how strong the so-called enemy of the gods really is!"
Bullet looked intently at Renji. With Roger terminally ill, he might never defeat him. His target was gone, but before him stood Renji—the better, original choice.
"Lord Renji."
Toki looked at Renji with some worry. The powerful aura on this man made her concerned.
"Don't worry."
Renji raised a hand and gently patted Toki's head, signaling her to rest assured. He then turned his head, rubbing his chin as he studied Bullet.
Should he accept or reject the challenge?
Rejecting would likely be useless. Since this man had come looking, if he didn't get a fight, he would not give up.
"A battle is fine, but if you lose, you will join my pirate crew as a challenger."
Since Bullet had joined the Roger Pirates as a challenger, naturally he could also join his crew in the same way.
Besides, his crew already had Kaido.
Perfect.
Put Kaido and Bullet together, let them fight it out first. The winner could then challenge him. In the end, they would all need to.
Renji was also quite curious—if Kaido and Bullet fought, who would be stronger?
Still, he leaned toward Kaido. After all, Kaido was known as the strongest creature of land, sea, and air.
"Agreed!"
Bullet laughed.
His life seemed to have found a new goal.
He had always believed that only by possessing overwhelming strength could one possess everything.
Thus he continued challenging, growing stronger.
If Renji could truly defeat him, Bullet would join his crew without hesitation.
"You go into the Kamui space first."
Renji turned to Toki. He would never do something foolish like leaving her outside.
After all, he was a wanted criminal of the World Government. His intelligence was surely in their hands, and Toki would inevitably become their target.
Knowing they would stop at nothing to capture her, if he still left her exposed while he fought Bullet, he would be an idiot.
"Alright."
Toki nodded. Renji placed his hand on her and drew her into Kamui.
On the other side, curiosity flickered in Bullet's eyes. Wasn't he a Lightning Fruit user?
Thinking back, that broadcast seemed to show him using many strange abilities as well.
"Let's change places to fight. People will come here soon. If you trust me, let me take you."
"Alright!"
Bullet clenched his fist. Though reluctant, having suffered too many betrayals, he could hardly trust others.
Yet he did not want to tarnish his image of Renji.
In his view, a strong man like Renji would never stoop to a cheap sneak attack.
"Then let's go."
Renji placed his hand on Bullet, drawing him into another section of the vast Kamui space, away from Toki.
While marveling at such strange power, Bullet grew even more eager for the battle to come.
"Bullet, bring out all your strength. Otherwise, this fight will be over quickly."
Now he no longer felt any fear when facing Bullet.
During the time he had disappeared, he had constantly been training his body.
In the pirate world, Haki and physique were the most important. Devil Fruit powers were, in the end, only supplementary.
His Haki was already strong, and after gaining the Conqueror's Luck, it was further amplified by ten percent. For someone like him, such a ten percent increase was by no means a small boost.
When their Conqueror's Haki clashed, even far away, Toki had only one thought in her mind—why was she getting knocked unconscious even while hiding?
She had already lost count of how many times she had fainted.
She wanted to create a world without Conqueror's Haki! That was her last thought before fainting.
"Impressive Haki!"
Renji's eyes lit up. This Haki indeed carried the overwhelming force that could shake an island.
Although it had not yet reached the level shown in the movie version of him, it was still enough to surprise Renji.
"Again!"
It had been a long time since he had met such a powerful opponent. Renji could feel his blood boiling.
Others might hold back when fighting him, but Bullet would not.
Facing an enemy like this, Bullet would only use his full strength, and this was exactly what Renji desired.
It had been far too long since he had enjoyed such a fierce battle.
The two exchanged blow after blow, relying purely on physical prowess. Renji disdained to use any other abilities.
It was a contest between Haki and raw physique.
At first, their exchange was evenly matched. But as time passed, Renji gradually gained the upper hand over Bullet.
In the use of Haki, Renji was superior.
"Bullet!!"
"Renji!!"
Renji descended from the air, his fist colliding directly with Bullet's.
The force…
The ground beneath Bullet's feet began to collapse. That pressure was so great it forced Bullet to the brink of his knees buckling.
At this moment, he felt a pressure unlike any he had ever known.
Even Roger had not given him this feeling!
He's stronger than Roger!
As expected, how could the man who shone so brilliantly at God Valley be anything less?
Bullet's blood was boiling. He felt as though his strength had risen another step, as though he had once more found a reason to exist.
"Can you be stronger still, Bullet?"
Looking at Bullet struggling to stand, Renji's eyes shone with excitement. Stronger—just a little stronger!
It had been so long since he faced such an enemy.
In Wano, he had spent his days training, eating, and fighting Kaido.
But after Kaido ran off, no one knew where he went.
Renji had not found him since, and so he had not encountered such an interesting opponent in a long time.
Old John in Wano was no match for him, and he did not dare to fight. The others, like Kuma, were the same. Renji had been suppressing his fighting instincts all this time.
Now, his Haki erupted in full force. The energy Bullet had painstakingly gathered was instantly shattered.
Boom!
Bullet dropped to one knee, the ground beneath him sinking into a deep crater. As Renji pressed down harder, the crater expanded outward.
"What about your Fusion Fruit?"
"Tch, since you haven't used your Devil Fruit, I won't either!"
Bullet gritted his teeth, eyes locked on Renji. As long as Renji refrained from using his powers, he refused to use his own.
Besides, there wasn't much here for him to absorb anyway.
"Then forget it. Grow stronger and challenge me again in the future!"
Renji increased his strength a little more, then drove him into the ground with one crushing punch.
Bullet wanted to rise and continue fighting, but he could clearly feel that his bones were nearly shattered.
"You lost."
Standing above, Renji looked down at him. Bullet gazed up, then turned his eyes toward the Kamui sky, his heart heavy with emotion.
He had lost again.
It seemed the path ahead of him was still long.
"Bullet, this world is not only about success and failure, nor is it entirely betrayal. I've heard your story."
Renji sat on the edge of the crater and spoke calmly.
In truth, most people in the pirate world had twisted personalities for their own reasons.
After so many betrayals, trusting others again was indeed difficult.
"I only believe in my own strength. If one day I defeat you, I'll leave your crew!"
Bullet curled his lip, scoffing at Renji's words. Still, he would keep his promise—he would join Renji's crew as a challenger.
But he made it clear. If he ever defeated Renji, not only would he leave the crew, he might even kill him.
"There's nothing wrong with believing in your own strength. But have you thought about what your strength is for? Is it power for power's sake? If so, you'll only become a slave to it."
Renji had always been curious about Bullet's true motive.
Was it simply to pursue strength?
"In this world, only strength will never betray me!"
Bullet's voice was calm as he met Renji's eyes.
"Then the Dawn Pirates welcome you. Until you defeat me, you'll remain here. And along the way, I'll teach you what it means to fight for someone else."
Renji thought to himself. Bullet was still young and malleable.
Besides, Bullet was easy enough to control. As long as Renji stayed stronger, he could suppress him. It was no different from handling Kaido.
His crew already had one problem child. Another would not matter.
"I understand, Captain."
Defeat was defeat.
Having promised, Bullet straightforwardly agreed. Joining Renji's crew would make it easier to defeat him in the future.
[Ding! You have changed Bullet's fate, reward: one lottery chance!]
Use!
Renji thought silently.
[Ding! One lottery chance used. Congratulations, you obtained: Pure Gold Locator.]
Huh!?
A Pure Gold Locator?!
This thing actually exists?
Renji had been wondering how he would find Pure Gold.
That treasure had been swallowed by an anglerfish, which had consumed half an island before sinking into the depths. Finding it on his own was impossible.
But if he didn't search, did he have to wait for the plot to start?
Now, with this locator, there was no need to worry at all!
It was exactly what he needed!
Conqueror's Luck?
Even the lottery was influenced by it?
Buggy, when I meet you in the future, I'll let you go once.
Consider it a small fee for the blessings of Conqueror's Luck!
(End of Chapter)
Hey readers! If you're eager to dive into advanced chapters, consider joining our Patreon. By joining, you'll get access to 20 chapters ahead and enjoy 8 new chapters per week. Plus, we have 8 more exciting fics with the same chapter release rate, giving you a total of 64 chapters per week! Join now and keep the adventure going!
Patreon: https://patreon.com/anish_44