The Pirate Prince Cavendish

Cavendish tries to engage Lucy, who stays fixated on the weight limit. Asked why the fighters strip down, the prince says spectators crave blood and that the arena lays bare a person's true nature. When Cavendish demands his name, Luffy openly states it and boasts of becoming Pirate King, but the crowd reads his tag as Lucy and assumes he misspoke. Cavendish recounts how, after making a splash in the New World three years prior, his fame was buried by the Marineford battle, the Eleven Supernovas, and the Blackbeard Pirates, leaving him bitter toward the entire Worst Generation.

Luffy's attention drifts to a bronze statue resembling his own armored look. Rebecca explains it honors Kyros, the colosseum's greatest gladiator, who won three thousand straight bouts and took only a single hit before vanishing twenty years ago, his true identity unknown. She vows to claim the Mera Mera no Mi and kill Doflamingo. The announcer then crowns Jesus Burgess, captain of Blackbeard's first ship, as the Block A champion.

Watching this, Franky reconsiders how hard Luffy's road will be. Thunder Soldier leads him somewhere private to discuss the job. Elsewhere, a panicked Marine calls for reinforcements as the entrants' strength surpasses expectations, and the Barto Club's Gambia is taken down by the undercover Vice Admiral Maynard while Bartolomeo lurks in the shadows. As Block B nears, the blind gambler dons his admiral's coat, revealing himself as Fujitora, and Luffy finds himself face to face with Bellamy.

Cavendish explains the colosseum's appeal and his hatred of the Worst Generation for stealing his spotlight. Rebecca relates the legend of Kyros the undefeated gladiator. Jesus Burgess of the Blackbeard Pirates wins the Block A battle royale. Thunder Soldier takes Franky aside to discuss their mission. The blind man is unmasked as Admiral Fujitora, and Bellamy confronts Luffy before Block B begins.

This episode debuts Farul, Maynard, and Gambia. The anime expands Cavendish's backstory and depicts Burgess winning Block A, an event that occurred off-panel in the manga, with him tearing off his paper bag mask rather than simply removing it. Maynard appears earlier than in the source and is shown as a weapons user, and his fight with Gambia is animated. An added scene shows Fujitora helping a child while talking with a Marine officer. Luffy is also placed on a scale when checking his gear's weight, unlike the manga.