Kaido's men were the first to discuss their options. Despite their reputation and the almost obsessive faith the Beasts Pirates placed in strength, none of them seriously suggested entering alone.
After a few minutes of discussion, three of them formed a group while the remaining two decided to fight together. Big Mom's recruits reached exactly the same conclusion: one trio and one duo.
And yet, I noticed that some of these men already had bounties approaching—or even exceeding—one hundred million Berries. In a weaker sea, they probably would have been considered monsters. But here, after seeing what the first tournament had in store for its participants, none of them were arrogant enough to believe that a nine-figure bounty justified entering alone.
Galdino watched the four groups take shape before pulling out a small notebook.
"Two trios and two duos..." He carefully wrote down the team compositions before looking up. "That's reassuring. No suicidal idiots on my first day."
One of the Beasts Pirates gave a slight grunt.
"We simply have no reason to waste an advantage."
Galdino immediately raised a finger toward him.
"Exactly! Finally, someone who understands my philosophy. If you're given the choice between fighting alone and bringing along two people who can take hits in your place, why the hell would you choose the first option?"
Marianne giggled behind him.
"Maybe don't phrase it quite like that, Galdino."
"I'm responsible for their participation, not their pride."
Even I couldn't hold back a laugh.
I took one last look at the four groups that had now been formed. No solo fighters this time. Two teams for Kaido, two for Big Mom, with Galdino handling the organization, Marianne assisting him, and Gun ensuring their safety.
I finally opened the way to the Coliseum and invited the ten participants to follow me. Galdino, Marianne, and Captain Gun came with us as well to supervise this first monthly session. The two junior officers remained outside with a Heartless so they could watch the tournament from there.
Within seconds, Kyuka's beach disappeared behind the portal and was replaced by the familiar vastness of Hades' arena.
The stands were still desperately empty, but the numerous magical screens suspended around the Coliseum were already active. Just like during the first tournament, the event was being broadcast all over the world.
Millions of people would therefore be able to watch this new competition without a single real spectator physically sitting in the stands.
I fully resumed Sora's appearance before making my way to the center of the arena.
Hades was already waiting for us, accompanied by Zeus, both of them visibly curious to see the new participants.
I greeted them naturally before gesturing toward the groups that had just stepped through the portal behind me.
"Before we begin, there's a small change. Starting today, we'll be holding one private session every month with participants selected by Kaido's and Big Mom's crews."
I deliberately said their names in front of the cameras.
The announcement was probably going to cause quite a stir.
The first tournament had already proven that the Coliseum could offer extraordinary rewards. Now, the entire world was learning that two of the Four Emperors of the New World supported the event enough to regularly send their own men to participate.
That immediately strengthened the Coliseum's credibility while giving the Marines and the other major powers yet another reason to keep a very close eye on Kyuka.
Hades examined the ten pirates with interest.
"So, are these ten strong?"
I shrugged.
"No idea."
Several of the participants looked at me with slightly offended expressions.
"I specifically asked Kaido not to send his strongest men. The first level of the tournament is supposed to be the easiest one, and I had absolutely no desire to watch one of his monsters tear through every single challenge without breaking a sweat."
Hades nodded.
"Makes sense. There's no point putting on a show if someone obliterates everything in thirty seconds."
Still, I turned slightly toward the pirates.
"That said, we shouldn't underestimate them either. They survived the Grand Line, reached the New World, and managed to join the crews of two Emperors. Even their ordinary recruits should be far stronger than the average pirate from the Blues."
That clarification immediately had the desired effect. Several of the fighters straightened up, regaining some of the pride my previous answer had bruised.
Hades snapped his fingers.
"Perfect! In that case, we're going to do this properly."
He turned toward the cameras with his presenter's smile.
"Today, no gigantic free-for-all! Each team gets its own run. The two Duos will go first, one after the other, followed by the two Trios. Before each run, the participants will come forward and introduce themselves so our dear viewers know exactly who they're watching get chased around my arena."
One of Big Mom's pirates grimaced.
"Charming..."
"Thank you!"
Hades continued as though he had just received a compliment.
"The Heartless in the different rounds will remain exactly the same as in the previous tournament. Same progression, same dangers, same opportunities to die horribly if you do something stupid."
Zeus rolled his eyes.
"You could at least try not to discourage them before they've even started."
"I prefer to call it transparency."
Hades then raised a finger.
"There will, however, be one small twist regarding the final opponent."
His smile widened.
"Cerberus will only fight once today."
A murmur spread among the ten participants.
Hades theatrically placed a hand over his chest.
"I refuse to let my adorable hound of the Underworld get beaten up four times in the same day purely for your entertainment. I have principles!"
I glanced sideways at him.
"You?"
"A few. Very carefully selected ones."
Zeus stifled a laugh.
Hades immediately continued.
"The first team to reach the final round will face Cerberus. For the other three, a powerful Heartless will be randomly selected to replace him."
This time, the participants visibly became more attentive.
They wouldn't even be able to prepare a strategy simply by watching the first group. Reaching the final round wouldn't guarantee them any prior knowledge of their opponent.
"All right!" Hades exclaimed, clapping his hands together. "First Duo! Step forward and introduce yourselves!"
Two members of Kaido's crew left their group.
The first was an especially massive man named Kenshiro. His sleeveless clothes revealed arms covered in scars, but what drew the most attention was his chest. Several circular marks dotted his skin, making it look at first glance as though he had survived an actual point-blank shooting.
Kenshiro stopped in front of the cameras and crossed his arms.
"Kenshiro. Beasts Pirates. Bounty: one hundred and twenty million Berries."
Hades examined the marks covering his body.
"And did someone use you for target practice?"
Kenshiro gave a proud smile.
"CP9."
That simple answer immediately drew more interest.
"One of their agents specialized in Shigan."
He gestured toward the scars covering his chest.
"He hit me several times."
I raised an eyebrow slightly.
Surviving several Shigan strikes already did a much better job of explaining his bounty—and especially the confidence with which he carried himself.
Even without knowing his exact current level, his endurance had to be particularly impressive.
Hades smiled.
"And yet you're still here. Not bad."
"He was still alive when the fight ended too."
"Much less impressive, but reasonable enough for today."
Kenshiro gave a slight grunt as his companion stepped forward in turn.
The contrast between the two was almost comical.
Nuts was shorter, less muscular, and gave off far less pressure than Kenshiro. His bounty, however, was still far from insignificant.
"Nuts. Eighty-eight million Berries."
Hades waited a few seconds.
"...And?"
Nuts blinked.
"And what?"
"Your impressive thing. He collects Shigan holes. What do you have?"
Nuts thought about it seriously before a smile appeared on his face.
"I'm a squirrel."
A magnificent silence fell over the arena.
I slowly turned my head toward him.
Hades did the same.
Even Zeus seemed momentarily incapable of responding.
Nuts raised one hand.
Reddish fur began growing along his arm as his fingers transformed slightly. A large, bushy tail appeared behind him as he shifted into his hybrid form.
"Red Squirrel Zoan."
Hades looked at Kenshiro.
Then at Nuts.
Then back at Kenshiro.
"Kaido sent a guy who survived CP9... with a squirrel."
Nuts crossed his arms, clearly offended.
"You'll stop laughing when you see what I can do."
I smiled slightly.
"That's exactly why you're here. A bounty never tells the whole story."
Kenshiro slammed one fist into his palm while Nuts lowered his center of gravity, his long red tail rising behind him.
In the stands, Galdino carefully watched his first two participants while Marianne remained beside him and Captain Gun silently kept watch over the arena.
Hades finally raised his arm.
"All right! Kenshiro, one hundred and twenty million! Nuts, eighty-eight million! Two Beasts Pirates recruits facing exactly the same trials as our first contestants!"
His smile became enormous.
"Now let's see whether surviving the New World is enough to survive my Coliseum."
The arena floor began to tremble.
The battles followed one another at a relentless pace, and as the rounds progressed, I finally began to understand why Kenshiro had managed to survive long enough in the New World to earn a bounty of one hundred and twenty million Berries.
It wasn't merely a matter of endurance.
His previous fight against a Shigan specialist clearly hadn't been something he had survived through sheer luck.
Kenshiro possessed excellent mastery of Armament Haki, which he combined with particularly straightforward martial arts. His forearms and fists regularly took on that characteristic black coating before smashing through the Heartless attempting to surround him.
He wasted almost no movement: block, deflect, counterattack, then immediately switch targets.
He knew perfectly well how to use his weight and muscular build without relying solely on brute strength.
"Not bad at all," I commented from the edge of the arena.
Hades turned toward me.
"That almost sounded like a compliment."
"His Armament is good, and so are his martial arts. His problem lies somewhere else."
I continued watching him for a few more seconds.
Several times, Kenshiro was caught off guard by attacks coming from his blind spot and only managed to avoid serious injury thanks to his reflexes or the protection provided by his Haki.
"He barely knows how to use Observation. Either he's only just started learning it, or he relies entirely on instinct."
That did nothing to diminish his performance, however.
The further the rounds progressed, the more Kenshiro seemed perfectly at home in the arena.
Nuts followed a radically different philosophy.
At first, I had genuinely believed that his Red Squirrel Fruit was mainly useful for mobility.
I had been wrong.
His hybrid form gave him exceptional agility, impressive reflexes, and, above all, an almost absurd ability to change direction.
Nuts could leap toward a wall, cling to it for a fraction of a second, then launch himself in another direction before his opponent had even finished attacking. His tail constantly served as a counterbalance, allowing him to maintain his balance in positions that would have sent anyone else crashing to the ground.
The problem gradually became apparent.
Endurance.
Nuts was burning through far too much energy.
By the ninth round, when the Hammer Gauntlets, Hammer Feet, and forty Brawny Primates appeared, his breathing was already far too rapid.
"Nuts! Stop wasting energy!" Kenshiro shouted after smashing a Primate apart with a Haki-enhanced elbow strike.
"Easy for you to say!"
Nuts narrowly avoided a gigantic fist before springing onto the head of a second opponent. He knocked back two Primates, slipped beneath a Hammer Gauntlet, and sent another crashing into several of its companions.
For a few minutes, I genuinely thought they were going to clear the round together.
Then Nuts began to slow down.
Half a second too slow.
That was all it took.
A Hammer Foot struck him violently in the side and sent him rolling several meters across the arena.
Nuts still managed to get back up.
He dodged another attack, took a second hit, then managed to grab a Primate and hurl it into two others.
"KENSHIRO!"
His partner understood immediately.
Nuts completely stopped trying to conserve his energy.
He threw himself into the middle of the enemy group and turned the last of his strength into a suicidal offensive.
He leapt from one target to another, drawing as many Heartless after him as possible. Ten, then fifteen, then almost twenty enemies abandoned Kenshiro to focus entirely on him.
"Nuts! Fall back!"
"Finish the round, idiot!"
Nuts managed to take down one more Primate.
Then his legs gave out.
He tried to stand again.
A Hammer Gauntlet came crashing down.
Then a second.
And several Primates followed.
The end was almost pathetic compared to the amount of energy he had displayed only seconds earlier.
Nuts literally disappeared beneath the mass of enemies, who trampled him until his body finally stopped moving.
Kenshiro froze for a fraction of a second.
Then his expression hardened.
"You idiot..."
But the sacrifice had worked.
Nuts had drawn away and taken almost half of the round's enemies with him.
All Kenshiro had to do was eliminate the survivors, which he accomplished with methodical brutality.
When the final Brawny Primate collapsed, the pirate remained standing in the middle of the arena, covered in injuries and breathing heavily, but still alive.
Nuts, however, did not get back up.
His body began to disappear.
A dark mass escaped from it almost immediately.
I straightened.
"Ah."
The shadow contracted before taking on a shape that made me blink several times.
"Seriously?"
The Heartless born from Nuts had retained something from his Devil Fruit.
Standing before us was a humanoid creature roughly two meters tall, its appearance unmistakably resembling a gigantic squirrel. Its dark body was far bulkier than Nuts had been, its powerful legs looked capable of launching it several dozen meters in a single bound, and an enormous tail curved behind it. Its fingers ended in claws long enough to serve as genuine weapons.
"Well," Hades commented. "Now he's a big squirrel."
I extended my shadow toward it before the creature could react.
The Heartless was swallowed within seconds.
I immediately felt its presence join the other creatures hidden within my shadow.
The cameras had obviously captured everything.
I slowly looked up at one of them.
"...I have a feeling I'm going to have to explain that someday."
"Not today!" Hades replied cheerfully. "Today, we still have a survivor!"
Kenshiro had indeed reached the final round.
Alone.
Exhausted.
And now without the companion who had helped him make it this far.
Hades raised both arms.
"Ladies and gentlemen! Since our friend from the Beasts Pirates is the first to reach today's final trial... he would normally have faced Cerberus!"
Kenshiro painfully raised his head.
"Normally?"
Hades grinned.
"I changed my mind."
I immediately turned toward him.
"Hades."
"What? We have to introduce the new additions somehow!"
The enormous gates at the far end of the arena began to open.
This time, there was no animalistic roar.
Instead, the metallic sound of heavy footsteps echoed throughout the Coliseum.
An enormous silhouette slowly emerged from the darkness.
Even Kenshiro immediately straightened to his full height.
The Heartless stood several meters tall and resembled a monstrous evolution of the classic Soldier.
It retained a vaguely humanoid shape, but its entire body was imprisoned within an extremely elaborate suit of black and purple armor. Every plate ended in aggressive spikes, as though the armor itself had been designed to injure anyone foolish enough to approach it. Its massive pauldrons rose around its helmet, while several long protrusions resembling metallic wings or blades extended from its back.
Its face was completely concealed.
Only two long, glowing yellow-orange slits pierced the darkness of its helmet.
The characteristic Heartless emblem was clearly visible on its chest, embedded directly into the center of its armor.
Its left hand was perhaps even more disturbing.
The fingers of its gauntlet ended in enormous glowing claws, each one long enough to disembowel a man with ease.
But it was the weapon held in its other hand that immediately drew everyone's attention.
A gigantic black-and-purple greatsword, almost as tall as the creature itself. Purple reflections ran along the thick blade, while its tip faded into a deep crimson that almost made the metal look as though it were still burning hot.
Kenshiro silently stared at the creature.
Hades, meanwhile, looked extremely proud of himself.
"Allow me to introduce... the General!"
The Heartless violently drove its greatsword into the ground.
BOOM!
A crack immediately tore through several meters of stone.
I stopped smiling.
This clearly wasn't just a slightly improved Soldier.
Hades rested a hand against his cheek.
"A superior evolution of the Soldier Heartless. Bigger, tougher, much more intelligent, equipped like an entire army all by himself, and one rather important detail..."
The General's yellow eyes locked onto Kenshiro.
It ripped its greatsword from the ground and assumed the stance of a genuine fighter.
"...this one knows how to fight."
Kenshiro took a deep breath.
His body was covered in wounds, Nuts had just died, and his Haki had already been severely depleted by nine consecutive rounds.
And yet, he raised both fists.
The black coating of Armament Haki slowly spread across his forearms.
Then a smile appeared on his face.
"Good."
The General slightly lowered its center of gravity.
Kenshiro did the same.
(Author's Note: I'll leave you with that, but I'm giving you the images as a bonus—except for Kenshiro.)