Chapter 20

Ra pov

I realized that travelling alone was a very boring experience. There were two of us and yet the boredome still came. The only thing that was constantly ever changing was the weather.

I was at the deck seated with Deri while the sun was above and the weather calm. We were in hot discussion on our fruits while we tried to come up with names for our fruits.

" How about sun jerk fruit?" Said the girl while she tilted her head sideways

"So you think I am a jerk?" Replied Ra

"Nope, I suggested the fruit's name that's your imagination."

"Then how about we call yours the Stellar stellar fruit;combo star model."

"Fuck no! That's too long and I get the feeling you are comparing me to something I am not."

"Okay okay, you might be right then let's call it fight fight fruit and be done with it."

"That's nice, I like it and yours will be the sun sun fruit." Declared Deri proudly with a thumbs up

After that, I went to sleep while Deri trained her fighting skills on the deck. I taught her the art of shadow boxing, letting her imagine a strong opponent she's faced before and fighting them, though I don't know how well it worked for her. I myself had tried the skill but failed, leaving it for martial art geniuses like Baki and Deri.

Days went by, while we sailed through weird weather and finally we arrived at Long Ring Long Land. We docked and after ensuring everything was in place, I picked my axe and we went exploring.

It was a weird place indeed, with plants and animals elongated in a wierd way either in height or length. We had not met any residents present at all giving the island a very creepy vibe. I employed my observation over a wide range but there were no signs of life other than the animals.

I asked Deri," What do you think of this island?"

"It's very dangerous." Came her reply. I didn't know what had happened here but I sure as hell will find out. After searing for a while, my haki picked up a strong life signature and I was already in sunshine form so I jumped in the direction of the person I had sensed.

In front of me was seated a young man. He had a large frame with short blond hair, no shirt on him and scars across his chest. He was strong, immensely strong like another Rayleigh was what I sensed from him. I looked at him abd he stared back with no interest. Back then, this would have wounded my pride but I was growing and developing so it had no effect on me.

The man spoke first," I thought all the people here had evacuated from the island. Are you some sort of hero who's come to retrieve their home for them?" I had no idea what he was talking about sonI just continued looking back and asked," Who are you?"

He either didn't hear me or ignored the question completely and continued," You are a big kid with big muscles, but that's all there is to it. You are no warrior as you don't know war. You are too weak to know my name." All I learnt from that short conversation if it even was one, was that he had a huge ego and believed in his own strength a bit too much.

The temperature increased rapidly as I flexed and raised my axe and struck down where he was. He took the attack head on and blocked it," You aren't as weak as you appear." I told him. He was beginning to lose his calm and struck at my chest with a punch which I blocked with one arm. I pushed him back, clearly surprising him. "Stop being weak!" I proudly declared.

I thought he'd get more upset but instead smiled and said," I am widely known as the Demon heir, Douglas Bullet. And who might you be?"

I got really close to his face and declared proudly as I looked down on him," I am the Lion's sin of pride, Ra and the man who will teach you to respect the strong."

General pov...

Thunder struck as the two men who would later on become bitter rivals had their first ever confrontation as they locked gazes promising a very long battle.

The moment was ruined by the appearance of Deri to whom Bullet turned his gaze to and said to Ra," You have comrades, that makes you weak all they'll do is bring you down."

He disappeared from Deri's vision and a large fist appeared in front of her face, ready to decimate her. She couldn't react to the attack but she was calm as ever.

Bullet paid no attention to her state, ready to get rid of the nuisance in front of him before he began his fight with the first strong opponent he'd come across after a very long time.

He was ready to fulfil his goal, when a burning red fist covered entirely in black hit him straight at the side of his face and sent him flying to the other end of the island, crashing through trees and rocky structures as he burnt and went through them.

Ra turned to Deri and said, "Go back to the ship and wait for me. Observe this fight and maybe you'll learn something new." Deri modded her head and left while Ra looked in the direction he'd thrown Bullet and waited for his reappearance.

Bullet came back flying like a missile, his target being Ra and both contestants struck foward. Their punches collided creating shockwaves and tremors which cracked the earth and sent everything around them flying and pushed Ra further into the ground creating a crater.

They stared at each other, Bullet from above and Ra from below. Bullet descended as both men contested in strength trying to push the fist of the other and the body in turn back.

The bout resulted in both fighters being pushed back in what looked like a draw but bullet knew better as he had moved further back.

Bullet was a warrior who had survived wars and fought to become the strongest before suffering defeat in the form of Gol D Roger. And though he was a very strong figter, he couldn't contest in terms of strength with a user of the sun sun fruit that was never supposed to exist in this world.

The man he was fighting had always grown stronger from his early years growing up due to staying under the sun and was still growing stronger as time went on even in their fight.

Bullet was getting excited, finally someone worthy of his entire strength had shown himself and better yet he was younger than him, promising that he would grow stronger. He finally found someone who would push him to his limits and beyond in his quest to surpass Roger and become the strongest in the world.

Bullet licked the blood in his right fist and smiled widely for the the first time in years. He brought his devil fruit forth enlarging his arms in a metal substance, then covered them in armament preparing himself for a feast as per his name Demon heir, ready to devour his opponent.