"Brother Sherwin! Why didn't you use the 'Klee Meow Treasure' at the end?! Is Klee ability not good enough, meow?!"
(=`н=)
As soon as Sherwin returned to the VIP seats, the little Ragdoll cat immediately pounced on him, puffing out her cheeks and questioning him while squeezing his face with her little paws.
"Of course not. Didn't you see me take down four people with it? That last guy ability made him hard to hit with a bow, so I switched weapons."
"That true, meow..."
(=ω=)
Klee Meow scratched her head, easily convinced as usual.
After settling the little Ragdoll, Sherwin held her by her backside to lift her onto his shoulder while walking over to Doflamingo and his subordinates.
"Fuffuffuffuffu... You really didn't show any mercy to my family, did you?"
Although Doflamingo put on a facade of being indignant, in reality, he felt no such thing. Instead, he felt a mix of relief and annoyance.
He felt relief because, as ruthless as Sherwin strikes were, he hadn't killed a single person. Doflamingo had been prepared to lose one or two subordinates.
This outcome made Sherwin excuse of "helping out" seem even more credible...
If he had known it would turn out like this, he would have had Sugar turn those bothersome CP0 agents into toys earlier!
"It because they were too weak. Except for that last strike, I wasn't even being serious..." Sherwin glared at the Heavenly Yaksha with a look of dissatisfaction. "You didn't just send some fodder up there, did you?"
"...Diamante is one of the four top officers under my command!" Doflamingo could no longer maintain even his fake smile. "The others are also my capable assistants!"
He wasn't angry because Sherwin was belittling his subordinate strength rather, he felt Sherwin was exactly right, and it was making him lose face.
Because of this, Doflamingo became even more envious of the Felynes around Sherwin.
"Go ahead and pick your people. Let start the second round quickly," the impatient Heavenly Yaksha urged.
"But I feel like the strength of your subordinates is just so-so... I'm starting to regret playing this game with you."
Sherwin scanned the group of subordinates behind Doflamingo with a look of pure disdain. "And it not just their lack of strength hardly any of them even look normal."
As he spoke, he raised a finger and pointed vaguely toward Baby-5, Monet, and Violet. "Only these three are easy on the eyes."
"Eh? You... you want to pick me?!" Baby-5 held her blushing cheeks in her hands.
Monet, however, took two steps back in resistance, hiding behind Gladius.
Violet initially showed a look of pleasant surprise, but she quickly suppressed it, lowering her head and acting like a timid quail.
Although she desperately wanted to step forward and volunteer, she was worried it might cause unnecessary suspicion from Sherwin if that happened, her fate with Doflamingo would not end well.
Aside from those three, Giolla, who had already become a stout middle-aged woman, clamored nearby in disbelief: "Does my beauty really not compare to these three little girls?!"
Sherwin: "..."
While there were many eccentrics in the world of One Piece, the number of oddballs around Doflamingo was simply a bit much.
After being interrupted by Baby-5 and Giolla, Sherwin lost interest in continuing the act. He had originally intended to stall a bit longer during the selection process...
"I'll take her. Out of these three, she seems the most normal."
Sherwin pointed at Violet, then turned back to join the Felynes, picking up Shermie Meow as he did so.
Seeing Sherwin casual demeanor, Doflamingo felt a flicker of suspicion, though it wasn't particularly deep.
"What a pity, Violet. It seems our days of working together have come to an end..." The Heavenly Yaksha knew that after "switching sides," Violet would undoubtedly tell Sherwin about King Riku.
However, there wasn't much he could do besides offering a verbal threat. "Actually, I have already sent people to search for your father. I expect there will be news soon, and I will be sure to pass it along to Sherwin when the time comes."
"Then... thank you very much!" Violet said through gritted teeth. "Thank you for the 'care' you've shown me all these years!"
Her originally joyful mood instantly plummeted. Doflamingo words had struck Violet Achille heel if what he said was true, even if Sherwin were willing to help, it would likely be too late to save her father.
Thus, after giving Doflamingo a reluctant bow, Violet silently joined Sherwin side and stood as still as a statue without saying a word.
Sherwin had no intention of comforting Violet at the moment. Holding Shermie Meow, he walked over to Kuma, patted his arm, and whispered, "Kuma, remember to stall for a bit later..."
"Sherwin~ pet me meow~"
However, before he could finish, he was interrupted by Shermie Meow in his arms.
"Uh... change of plans. End it quickly!"
Upon hearing the signal from Shermie Meow, Sherwin decisively changed his orders and gently began to pet Shermie Meow.
You have to hand it to her—Purah Meow craftsmanship was truly incredible. Aside from the lack of body heat, the feel of this "Shermie Meow" was almost indistinguishable from the original.
"Understood. Leave it to me."
Kuma nodded and then raised his paw to lightly swat himself. In the next instant, his massive frame had already appeared upon the arena stage.
Doflamingo: "???!!!"
This display of teleportation immediately shattered the Heavenly Yaksha composure.
While he didn't yet know the specifics of Kuma ability or the extent of his strength, this teleportation alone meant he was virtually invincible.
Is it possible that I can't even win against a single cat?!
Furious and alarmed, Doflamingo even began to plot whether he should disregard the CP0 instructions once he won the Felynes, he could simply have Sugar turn them into toys.
"Hey! It your turn to send someone up."
Sherwin urging interrupted Doflamingo train of thought.
Don't panic. The outcome isn't decided yet.
The Heavenly Yaksha forced himself to calm down and looked toward the only top officer still by his side, the representative of the "Spades," Pica.
"This round is up to you, Pica."
Doflamingo said in a low voice, "The opponent is just an unknown little pirate. You shouldn't have any problems, right?"
The massive Pica did not speak, merely nodding in silence before leaping onto the arena.
Although he was significantly shorter than Kuma, the two were quite similar in terms of body width. Furthermore, Pica arms were even more thick and muscular, and with the sinister spikes on his shoulders—whether bone or implants beneath the skin—Pica appeared far more terrifying in terms of sheer aura than the mild-mannered Kuma.
Because his voice was so high-pitched, Pica did not like to speak. While the current Kuma was not as taciturn as he was in the manga, he had nothing to say to people like Doflamingo.
Thus, the two behemoths wasted no words, utilizing their Devil Fruit powers almost at the exact same time.
Pica, who was originally much shorter than Kuma, rapidly grew in size. His body transformed into the same masonry as the arena beneath his feet in the blink of an eye, he had become a rock giant occupying more than half of the ring.
As Pica assimilated the arena, Kuma spread his arms. Within his embrace, a massive, translucent, paw-shaped sphere could be seen gradually shrinking as he drew his arms back. By the time Pica had fully become a rock giant, Kuma had compressed the entire "paw" between his palms.
Facing Pica fist, which was nearly the size of his own body, Kuma calmly pushed the small "paw" between his palms forward...
"Ursus Shock."
"BOOM—!!!"
The stone giant transformed by Pica, including the massive ring beneath their feet, all disintegrated into fine rubble in an instant.
Pica, who had been hiding inside the giant stone figure, was directly sent flying by the terrifying impact. He crashed straight into the distant spectator stands and fell unconscious without making a sound.
This power was already comparable to Klee Meow Jumpy Dumpties from several versions ago...
Well, the version without the power-ups, that is.
...