Among the twenty Brigade Captains who emerged victorious, Bunier and the other four Devil Fruit users all successfully defended their positions.
The remaining fifteen positions included Bones, while the other fourteen were split between captains who had successfully retained their ranks and challengers who had replaced them.
One noteworthy detail was that, among the twenty Brigade Captains—including the Devil Fruit users—ten had originally been members of the Sword Gang.
This alone was enough to demonstrate how solid Kaito's training had been during the early days of the Sword Gang. Even after the War Pirates expanded rapidly, those original members had never fallen behind.
Following the Brigade-Level Tournament, everyone was once again given three days to recover.
When the new day arrived...
It was finally time for the Officers' Tournament.
Kaito divided the officers' competition into two separate stages.
The first would determine the Four Heavenly Kings, the highest-ranking officers.
The second would determine the Eight Commanders.
The officers remained seated upon the high platform.
This time, however...
Only Kaito remained seated.
Robin and the other officers had all become contestants.
Like the previous stage, the Officers' Tournament would also follow the king-of-the-hill format.
Although every participant would have two opportunities overall because of the two stages...
Each individual stage still allowed only one challenge.
"Now..."
"Let the competition for the Four Heavenly Kings begin."
"Both current officers and Brigade Captains are eligible to become defenders."
Although Lafayette was also one of the competitors...
He continued serving as the tournament host.
The instant his announcement ended...
A figure shot off the platform.
Whoosh!
She landed gracefully in the center of the arena.
It was Neferpitou.
She became the very first defender.
"She's fast."
"I thought I'd be the first one."
"It's Neferpitou..."
"This is going to be troublesome."
"Her strength alone is difficult enough..."
"Her Devil Fruit ability makes her even harder to deal with."
"That kitten couldn't wait to fight."
The moment Neferpitou entered the arena...
Even Robin and the other officers changed expression.
Every one of them became noticeably more serious.
After all...
No one understood Neferpitou's strength better than they did.
She already possessed extraordinary natural talent.
On top of that...
She trained with almost obsessive determination.
Since joining the War Pirates...
Her strength had grown at an astonishing pace.
Among the entire crew...
Only Kaito's rate of improvement surpassed hers.
Even if someone failed to claim one of the Four Heavenly Kings positions...
There was still another opportunity to compete for one of the Eight Commanders afterward.
Even so...
Everyone who understood Neferpitou's strength hesitated.
Most simply chose to give up challenging her altogether.
"If nobody else is going..."
"I'll give it a try."
After becoming a Swordmaster...
Zoro had been granted an officer's seat by Kaito and now sat upon the platform as well.
Seeing that no one moved...
He stood up himself.
Taking several large strides...
He jumped down from the platform and walked toward Neferpitou.
"Zoro's challenging Neferpitou?"
"That's pretty bold."
"He may have become a Swordmaster..."
"But he's still a long way from matching Neferpitou."
"He probably knows becoming one of the Four Heavenly Kings is unrealistic."
"So he's treating this as a chance to test himself."
Robin and the others exchanged surprised looks.
Some thoughtfully rubbed their chins while watching.
Neferpitou looked calmly at Zoro with her lifeless eyes.
Her expression didn't change in the slightest.
Her body, however...
Immediately transformed.
Activating the power of the Nine-Lives Cat Demon Fruit...
She entered her hybrid form.
Her already tall figure became even more striking.
Cat ears appeared atop her head.
A long feline tail swayed behind her.
Her elegant yet wild appearance perfectly combined grace and deadly beauty.
"Lady Neferpitou is so beautiful!"
"I heard she's a Mythical Zoan user."
"That's even rarer than a Logia."
Among the spectators...
Nami and Nojiko stood together with the logistics division.
Watching Neferpitou transform from an adorable young girl into a mature catwoman...
Both couldn't help but sigh in admiration.
In truth...
They weren't the only ones.
Almost everyone present felt the same.
Before Robin had revealed her true appearance...
Neferpitou had already been recognized throughout the War Pirates as the crew's unrivaled beauty.
The only reason nobody dared pursue her...
Was because everyone knew she belonged to Captain Kaito.
Otherwise...
She would undoubtedly have had countless admirers.
The pressure...
It's overwhelming...
Facing Neferpitou...
Zoro immediately drew all three swords.
He settled into his familiar Three-Sword Style stance.
Yet despite Neferpitou making no move to attack...
The invisible pressure radiating from her alone caused his body to tense instinctively.
A bead of cold sweat slowly slid down his forehead.
Only now did he realize...
He might have underestimated her.
Lafayette looked toward the arena.
Although he personally believed Zoro had almost no chance of winning...
He didn't reveal that opinion.
Instead...
He calmly announced,
"The match..."
"Begin!"
"Meow."
A soft feline cry echoed across the arena.
The instant Lafayette's voice fell...
Neferpitou moved.
She offered Zoro absolutely no opportunity to prepare.
The earth exploded beneath her feet.
She vanished into an afterimage...
Closing the distance between them almost instantly.
Her claws tore forward toward Zoro with terrifying speed.
So fast!
Zoro's pupils shrank violently.
Besides his extraordinary swordsmanship talent...
He also possessed exceptional Haki potential.
After weeks of relentless training...
He had successfully awakened both Armament Haki and Observation Haki.
Although neither was fully mastered...
Observation Haki still allowed him to perceive Neferpitou's attack.
Unfortunately...
Seeing the attack...
And being able to react to it...
Were two entirely different things.
The gap in speed between them was simply too great.
Unable to dodge...
Zoro could only raise Yukizashi and the Third Generation Kitetsu into a desperate cross-shaped guard.
Boom!
Neferpitou's razor-sharp claws slammed directly into the crossed blades.
A shower of sparks burst into the air.
Powerful shockwaves rippled outward.
Her speed was incredible...
But her physical strength was equally terrifying.
The force behind her claws overwhelmed Zoro's defense instantly.
His crossed swords were driven backward...
And he himself was blasted dozens of meters away.
Landing awkwardly after being sent flying...
Zoro barely managed to stabilize himself.
He didn't waste even a moment recovering.
Instead...
He swung all three swords simultaneously.
"Three-Sword Style... One Hundred Eight Pound Phoenix!"
A massive tornado-shaped flying slash burst from his blades and roared straight toward Neferpitou.
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