How strong would Kai be six months from now?
Even Kai himself could not say for certain.
He only knew one thing.
By then, he would be very strong.
Perhaps he would already stand among the highest combat powers on the sea—at the level of a Marine admiral, or even a New World Emperor.
And that was only a conservative guess.
It was not impossible that, by then, he would have surpassed even that level and truly reached the ceiling of the sea.
At that point, would defeating and capturing Douglas Bullet still be difficult?
Most likely, it would be effortless.
He might even be able to crush Bullet head-on.
As for Bullet's suggestion of three years?
Kai almost laughed.
Three years from now, how strong would he be?
By then, perhaps there would not be anyone on the entire sea who could stand on the same level as him.
Would he still need an agreed duel with someone like Bullet?
What a joke.
Three years from now, he might already be capable of overturning Whitebeard, the man called the strongest in the world.
"Six months…"
"That's enough."
Kai's eyes flickered.
He was confident.
In six months, he would be able to defeat Bullet completely.
Perhaps he would not even need that long.
Maybe a few months would be more than enough.
Right now, there was still a gap between Kai and Bullet, but it was not an overwhelming one. That was why Kai had not chosen to fight him here and now.
He still needed to test Crocodile.
If he clashed with Bullet first, he might not have enough strength left to deal with Crocodile afterward.
For the moment, the mission came first.
Otherwise, even if he was slightly weaker than Bullet right now, Kai would not have avoided the fight. He would have stepped forward gladly and fought Bullet head-on.
"Six months is better."
"At least by then…"
"I'll be able to crush him easily."
Kai thought calmly.
There was no denying that a monster like Bullet was also growing stronger. Half a year from now, he might very well reach another level.
But Kai's growth speed was unmatched.
Across the entire sea, no one could compare to him in that regard.
Not even Bullet.
"Six months…"
"I'll remember it."
Bullet stared at Kai, his expression serious.
In truth, he did not believe Kai could become a crushing threat to him in only half a year.
No matter how monstrous a genius was, how far could he really grow in six months?
Bullet did not think much of it.
Still, since Kai had said it, he had no reason to refuse.
In his mind, he could already picture himself overwhelming Fist Demon Kai half a year later.
"I'm looking forward to it."
"To our battle six months from now."
"Don't disappoint me."
"Ever since the Captain died, no one has lit my fighting spirit like this."
"You're the only one."
"The only target since Roger's death who has made me feel this kind of anticipation."
Bullet's voice was low and fierce.
"Is that so? Then I'm honored."
Kai smiled.
Bullet then turned toward Crocodile, his face twisting with open disdain.
"Forget it, Sand Crocodile. I'll postpone today's fight with you."
"You're lucky."
"If Fist Demon Kai hadn't appeared, you might already have been torn apart by my bare hands."
With Kai now in front of him, Bullet had lost interest in Crocodile.
The duel he originally came for was discarded just like that.
"You really are an unpleasant bastard."
Crocodile's brow twitched, anger flashing in his eyes.
But he did not act rashly.
Both Bullet and Kai made him deeply wary.
He knew very well that both of them were terrifying top-level monsters of the sea.
Against enemies like that, Crocodile did not have absolute confidence in victory. With his cautious nature, he would never start a fight he was not sure he could win unless there was no other choice.
And between him, Bullet, and Kai, there was no deep blood feud.
So there was no need to fight to the death here.
"What? You don't actually think you're qualified to be my opponent, do you?"
Bullet sneered.
"Crocodile, don't overestimate yourself."
"You think your Logia Devil Fruit makes you invincible?"
"To put it simply, even Fist Demon here could beat you with one hand."
"As for me? If I fought seriously, you wouldn't last fifteen minutes."
His tone was full of contempt.
Crocodile was strong. That was undeniable.
But in Bullet's eyes, he was still a level below.
If not for the unfinished fight from years ago, Bullet might not have bothered with him at all.
Now, however, Bullet felt fortunate he had come.
If not for Crocodile, he would not have met Fist Demon Kai.
He would not have made this half-year promise.
Today had not been wasted.
"Fifteen minutes? Want to try?"
Even Crocodile was starting to lose his temper.
He was no harmless weakling.
Did everyone think he was easy to bully?
Again and again, they dismissed him.
Every sentence stepped on his pride.
Did they really think he was weak?
"Forget it."
"You're still not enough."
Bullet scoffed.
Then he looked deeply at Kai.
Without another word, he turned and left.
Only his voice remained behind.
"Fist Demon brat, remember our duel six months from now."
"That arrogance of yours is exactly my style."
"Don't worry. In six months, I'll go easy on you."
His wild laughter gradually faded.
Before long, Bullet disappeared completely.
No one knew where he was going.
No one knew what he intended to do next.
He simply vanished from Kai and Crocodile's sight.
Most likely, he was already preparing to leave Alabasta.
His original target had been Crocodile. But after an unexpected turn, someone far more interesting had appeared.
Fist Demon Kai.
And so Bullet's attention had shifted.
Crocodile no longer mattered as much.
Kai watched Bullet's departing figure, his eyes narrowing slightly. A faint smile appeared on his face.
"Arrogant?"
"No."
"I'm simply stating a fact."
He laughed softly.
He was also looking forward to that fight six months from now.
More than anything, he wanted to know how strong he himself would become by then.
Even Kai could not imagine it.
After a moment, Crocodile finally suppressed the anger in his chest.
He took a deep breath and looked at Kai warily.
"Bullet is gone. Now it should be your turn to leave, right?"
He was worried.
Fist Demon Kai's arrival in Alabasta could seriously interfere with his future plans.
He forced himself to keep his expression calm, careful not to reveal anything.
"Leave?"
Kai looked at him and smiled.
"Who said I was leaving?"
"And besides…"
"I didn't come all the way to Alabasta for Bullet."
"To put it simply…"
"The reason I came here today…"
"Was for you."
Seeing Crocodile's guarded expression, Kai's smile became meaningful.
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