Cover Page: Cover page request: "Brook skipping with balloons with Laboon pictured on them", by Dokuro from Kyoto.

The destruction caused by Trebol was enough to bring the attempted attack on Sugar to a stop as the dwarves were rounded up and interrogated. The dwarves however were betrayed by their naivety and revealed Usoland to them, allowing Trebol to ignite the slime they were caught in. Leo survives and lands near Usopp and Robin who evaded capture. Leo weakly told Usopp that their plan must succeed for the sake of their captain.

At the Palace, Thunder Soldier was brutally kicked out of the lift by Lao G, and has a flashback of his fight with Rebecca over the false news of Doflamingo's resignation. At the Colosseum, Rebecca lies beaten by Diamante who taunts her over the death of her mother. Seeing this, Sabo told Bartolomeo to protect Rebecca. Thunder Soldier was later saved by his dwarf squad from Lao G, and the survivors told him that he must press on.

Usopp was skeptical that they would put all their faith on a simple toy soldier, but Leo reveals that Thunder Soldier was the first to be turned into a toy and not given a contract. It is why he leads the resistance and that his human identity was the legendary gladiator, Kyros.

The dwarves, Usopp, and Sugar are all shocked as a giant ship crashes into the room. Even the toy workers stop to look at the incident in astonishment. Trebol's subordinates cry out that he has lost it, and comment on how the tower is now in ruins.

Robin finds Usopp, who is apparently pretending to be knocked out, and wakes him up. He says that a "duck came flying through the roof," and Robin tells him to keep quiet, and that Leo's group has been captured.

Sure enough, the dwarves are being interrogated by Trebol and Sugar (who angrily kicks him for throwing the ship). They claim that they will never reveal their partners' names, though Trebol lies that Usopp is his dear friend, prompting Leo to give away the name. As he mocks that Usopp isn't his friend, Leo screams in horror that he fell for another trick. A similar situation follows with Sugar asking about Thunder Soldier.

Trebol notes that the dwarves have quite a plan in action, to which they respond that it doesn't matter since the Doflamingo Pirates are already done for. The officer simply drops some of his goo onto them, which is flammable; it explodes.

Usopp finds Leo seriously injured, and advises that he and the dwarves get out of the harbor. Leo laments that he can't beat Trebol, but says that Operation SOP must be completed, because if so then Thunder Soldier can crush Doflamingo. He says that the "captain is waiting for them".

The scene changes to the fight between Lao G and Thunder Soldier, with the former almost finished defeating the latter. Knocked down, Thunder Soldier recalls the events that morning.

The prisoner gladiators and the dwarves cheer as the newspaper claims Doflamingo has quit the Shichibukai, but Thunder Soldier only sadly says that it is not true.

Then he tries to console Rebecca, who is upset about the entire thing and cries about being "cast down from the heavens to hell". She says that everyone's spirits are breaking, even remembering someone saying that the only thing to look forward to is execution, and angrily cries that achieving a thousand wins in the colosseum to be freed is not hope but rather a wall of despair. She even remarks that the statue of Kyros is nothing but a lie made by the prisoners as a preservation of hope, and if she has to dream the impossible, she would rather put all her hopes into the competition (for the Mera Mera no Mi).

Thunder Soldier scolds her that she is only 16, and that she is too young and weak to take on the competition. Rebecca tears up and says that he is not her real father, that he is the one who is going to get beaten up, and that he is nothing but a toy soldier. He simply agrees, and walks away; Rebecca quickly apologizes and pleads him not to start the operation.

Back in the present, Rebecca, who has not yet gone to the offensive side, seemingly angrily attacks Diamante. He notices that the sword is blunt; he mocks that the battle is one of life and death, and simply smashes her with a club he made with a folded sheet of iron.

The crowd cheers the Hero of the Colosseum, while Sabo (Lucy) orders "Muscle Melon" to protect Rebecca, to which he barks that his name is "Bartolomeo".

Meanwhile, Diamante laughs and sarcastically asks if he knew how her mother, Scarlett, died. He says that he even got a little emotional seeing Thunder Soldier cry so hard. Rebecca remembers her mother saying that she will be back with some food, but came back dead and carried by the toy soldier.

Back at the palace, Lao G gets distracted by the tremors Pica is causing, and soon ambushed by Kabu's group. The dwarves tell Thunder Soldier to go ahead, though he worries about their safety and notes that they will all die. Kabu reassures the captain by saying that Leo is almost done with their part, and that all he needs to do is shoot Doflamingo.

Underground, Usopp asks Leo why they are so reliant on the toy. Leo explains that while the other toys were all assigned contracts to obey Doflamingo, Thunder Soldier was the only exception. And because he was left with a free will, he is the only one capable of fighting against Doflamingo. In fact, if it weren't for him the dwarves would have all become slaves as well, due to their naïvety. He ends with a speech saying that, though no one remembers anymore, Thunder Soldier was Kyros; the strongest gladiator in the colosseum.

Chapter Notes: