Sandersonia stepped onto the training ground.
She took a deep breath, Archaeopteryx Fruit activated within her body.
A pair of enormous wings covered in pale blue feathers unfolded from behind, with a wingspan of nearly ten meters, gleaming with a cold, eerie luster in the sunlight.
Her feet transformed into sharp eagle claws thanks to her Devil Fruit powers. The moment her toes left the ground, her wings flapped violently, propelling her into the sky.
Looking down from hundreds of meters above, everything on the training ground appears tiny.
Yasopp stood still, holding an old-fashioned long-barreled sniper rifle, the glint of the scope flashing in the air.
Sandersonia's Observation Haki instantly locked onto the trajectory of the bullet, and she folded her wings to dodge to the side.
The bullet grazed her wing, leaving a burn mark on a few feathers.
"So fast."
Sandersonia narrowed her eyes, no longer hesitating. She folded her wings and swooped down towards Yasopp like a shooting star.
She moved incredibly fast, leaving a pale blue afterimage in the air.
Armament Haki covered the eagle's claws, and the sharp claw tips tore through the air with the acceleration of the dive, emitting a sharp whistling sound.
The Yasopp did not move.
He fired a shot when Sandersonia was less than 30 meters from the ground.
This shot wasn't aimed at the trajectory of her dive, but rather at Sandersonia's next change of direction, with a precision so accurate it was chilling.
Sandersonia was forced to change course again, her dive momentum interrupted.
One sniped from the ground, the other swooped down from the air; their tug-of-war, lasting over a hundred rounds, involved no direct contact with a single punch or kick, yet it was more suffocating than any close-quarters combat.
Every dive was repelled by precise bullets, every aim was evaded by wings that instantly changed direction.
The distance between the two narrowed from hundreds of meters to tens of meters, then widened back to hundreds of meters, remaining locked in a stalemate.
But ultimately, Yasopp's experience prevailed.
He forced Sandersonia to change direction repeatedly by firing several shots in succession, thus exhausting her strength.
When Sandersonia made her final dive, Yasopp did not fire, but waited until she was within ten meters.
The gun barrel suddenly rose – this shot was not only imbued with Armament Haki, but also carried a special trajectory of high-speed rotation, making it impossible to completely dodge.
Sandersonia twisted her body forcefully, and the bullet grazed the base of her wing, causing her right wing to temporarily lose its balance.
She staggered two steps after landing, Yasopp's gun was once again locked on her forehead.
"I lost."
Sandersonia folded her wings and readily admitted defeat.
Yasopp lowered his gun and nodded.
In the second match, the Red Hair Pirates won. Both sides scored one point.
In the third match, Marigold faced Limejuice.
Marigold's Meganeura Form made her incredibly fast, and Limejuice's longsword swung in a relentless, unstoppable barrage.
After a fierce battle of over a hundred rounds, Marigold, relying on her speed advantage and precise strikes using Armament Haki, ultimately defeated Limejuice by a narrow margin.
The Roy Pirates another point, taking a 2-1 lead.
In the fourth match, the Roy Pirates sent out Trafalgar Law.
Luo walked slowly into the arena, the demon sword Kikoku hanging at his waist, the power of the Op-Op Fruit silently unfolding.
ROOM – A transparent hemispherical space radiates outwards from Luo, enveloping a large portion of the training ground.
Every grain of sand and every movement of air within the space was clearly perceived by him.
The Red Hair Pirates dispatched Benk Punch and Monster.
This human-monkey duo, individually, were not particularly strong in Roy's eyes, but their combined fighting style was extremely tricky.
However, Law's ability completely counters speed-type abilities—within the ROOM's range, movement trajectories are entirely under his control.
Luo was so relaxed during the battle that he didn't even fully draw his sword, the Kikoku, and simply moved freely within the ROOM space, causing every attack from Punch and the monkey to miss.
Ultimately, Luo determined that Punch was exhausted, so he teleported him into the air and then delivered the fatal blow with a scalpel.
The Roy Pirates another point, making it 3-1.
In the fifth match, Kazami faces Snake Two-Sword Style.
On the Red Hair Pirates' side, Snake's twin swords flashed and disappeared in an instant. As they approached the arena, the spectators could only see a blurry white shadow leaving a thin trail in the air.
On Roy Pirates' side, Kazami the swordsman on the other side, who was also a speed-type swordsman.
Kazami's figure flashed, leaving a vortex of air in his wake.
"Ding ding ding ding..."
Aside from a few exceptionally powerful individuals, the audience could only see two figures darting about in the arena, followed by a cacophony of clashing swords.
A few minutes later, the two figures stopped. Kazami, relying on his superior speed and swordsmanship, won the battle.
When the two stopped, Kazami's sword tip was already pressed against Snake's throat.
A single blow sealed the victory, sending the entire stadium into a frenzy. Four to one.
In the sixth match, it was Rockstar of the Red Hair Pirates' turn to face Boa Hancock of Hachinosu.
This arrangement is destined to be one of the most disparate showdowns in the entire cadre battle.
Rockstar charged forward, displaying unparalleled courage and imposing presence.
Hancock barely used her Haki; her Love-Love Fruit power petrified Rockstar's sword in an instant, and even affected Rockstar himself.
The Conqueror's Haki erupted instantly, and dark red arcs of electricity sent the brave pirate flying off the edge of the arena.
He couldn't catch any of the three moves.
After winning, Hancock immediately turned to look at Roy, her deep purple eyes filled with a smile seeking praise.
Roy nodded at her, and she couldn't suppress the smile on her face.
Five to one.
The final battle of the officers was a heavyweight showdown between the two first mates.
Ben Beckman of the Red Hair Pirates versus Bullet of the Roy Pirates.
Beckman walked into the arena with a calm expression, his rifle hanging slightly at his sides, but the Armament Haki surrounding him was so intense that it slightly distorted the air.
Bullet stood opposite him, his aura after Devil Fruit Awakening as deep and boundless as the ocean. Just by standing there, a fine crack appeared on the stone slab beneath his feet.
Neither of them exchanged any unnecessary words.
The battle began with a thunderous clash.
Beckman's marksmanship was unparalleled; every bullet was imbued with Armament Haki enough to pierce through a warship's armor, and its trajectory was unpredictable and ever-changing.
Bullet's approach is more direct and ferocious. In his Awakening White Tiger Model, he assimilates all the surrounding rubble and metal into his own armor. Every punch carries the impact of shattering everything, coupled with the omnipresent wind blades.
After hundreds of rounds of fierce fighting, Bullet seized the opportunity when Beckman was reloading and suddenly launched a full-scale attack, his fists, Conqueror's Haki Coating, raining down like a storm.
Beckman's arm was already numb when he took the first few punches, and he knew that continuing to fight was pointless.
He decisively conceded defeat and holstered his gun—but in that instant, he gave Bullet a thumbs-up, his eyes full of admiration.
Bullet's ferocity and power made him fully understand why this man could be called ' the Heir of the Demon '.
Even the Red Hair Pirates' executives watching from the sidelines were deeply shaken.
Beckman was considered their undisputed second strongest player, but he was still overwhelmed by Bullet's relentless attacks and found it difficult to retaliate.
On the Roy Pirates' side, besides Bullet, there were also Red Count, Hawk Eyes, and Tesoro —the combat power and aura of these individuals were clearly far above that of ordinary Yonko commanders.
The campaign against the cadres has ended.
The Roy Pirates won by a decisive score of 6 to 1.
Although the Red Hair Pirates ' officers lost, they were all convinced of their defeat, Shanks even smiled and applauded Roy's officers.
But everyone knew that the battle between the cadres was just an appetizer. The real test of this confrontation would be the battle that followed.
The ultimate showdown between Roy and Shanks.