The battle gradually entered a white-hot stage.
On the outskirts of Elegia Island, a black figure continuously fended off the siege from the Yonko crews.
"No..."
"This is too much!!!"
As the team's strategist, Beckman—rumored to have the highest IQ in the pirate world—had cold sweat constantly streaming down his face.
Even someone of his Yonko-tier strength couldn't help but feel helpless when facing this seemingly bottomless monster.
"As our numbers increase, the strength of the [Black Gun] also rises accordingly. We simply can't probe the limit of his power!!!"
For Orin's body, steeped in Observation Haki, the more enemies there were around him—and the stronger they were—the greater the power he could unleash to ensure his own survival.
Even with all the Red-Haired Pirates' years of adventure, they had never collectively faced such a terrifying enemy before.
"Gah—!"
Among the Red-Haired Pirates, Gab—who looked like a wild man—opened his mouth wide as a laser-like ability began to gather within it.
But before he could fire, a large hand wrapped in Haki pressed down on his head and slammed him brutally into the ground.
That tall figure clad in a black trench coat appeared completely at ease amid the Red-Haired Pirates' siege.
Only Shanks and Beckman could barely confront him head-on.
On the other side, Kizaru and Fujitora—who had managed to get a brief moment of rest—were also observing the battlefield.
A yellow glow flickered in Kizaru's hand.
"Based on the characteristics of the Song-Song Fruit, if we kill Uta here, then that so-called Black Emperor would basically be as good as dead~"
"He would be trapped in the song world forever~"
It was a bold idea, but it was quickly stopped by his colleague beside him.
Fujitora held his sheathed blade horizontally in front of Kizaru. His eyes were tightly shut, and his expression was extremely serious.
"Stop. If you do that, more than seventy percent of the world's population will never wake up again."
As the Admiral who cared most deeply about civilians, Fujitora could never agree with such a ruthless method.
And someone else held an even firmer stance.
"Whoosh—!!!"
Almost immediately after Kizaru proposed the idea, a massive emerald slash, carrying black-red lightning, cleaved straight in from afar.
Kizaru's pupils shrank as he hastily condensed the Ama no Murakumo Sword to block it, but he was still sent flying. He turned into a beam of light before reappearing elsewhere.
"If you want to kill Orin that way, you'll have to survive my blade first."
A slightly magnetic voice came from the distance, accompanied by the sound of approaching footsteps.
Borsalino curled his lips, already recognizing the newcomer.
"So it's Hawk Eyes Mihawk?"
"What a terrifying slash~"
Facing the world's greatest swordsman, Fujitora frowned after sensing him carefully.
"So even the Cross Guild has arrived?"
"That means the three great legendary pirates of the new era have all gathered here!!!"
Crocodile also appeared behind Mihawk, puffing on a cigar as she began observing the situation.
"This is really chaotic. That guy Orin is fighting the Red-Haired Pirates—should we help?"
"Of course we should!!!"
Buggy flew over with a furious expression, pointing in Shanks' direction as he roared.
"What the hell are you doing, Shanks, you bastard!!!"
As he spoke, he rushed forward, intending to stop Shanks from fighting Orin.
Shanks, already struggling in battle, was startled at the sight.
"Hey!!! Buggy!!!"
"Don't come over!!!"
Buggy landed right in the middle of the battlefield, completely unaware of the danger, standing directly between Shanks and Orin.
"You idiot, why are you fighting Orin..."
As Buggy spoke and turned his head, he suddenly saw Orin's fist stopped right in front of him, completely motionless.
The sight scared Buggy so much that his body instantly split apart.
"W-What the hell!?"
"Orin has already lost consciousness. Right now, he's being controlled by Uta—his body is acting purely on instinct!!!"
Buggy was shocked upon hearing that.
"Instinct? How is that possible?!"
Orin's fist had instinctively stopped in front of Buggy. Terrified, Buggy collapsed onto the ground and scrambled backward.
Crocodile transformed into yellow sand and flew over, having overheard their conversation. A look of disbelief appeared on her face.
"What do you mean?!"
"Putting aside why Orin was affected, are you saying that his instincts won't harm this clown?"
To her, that was far too absurd. No matter how deep the bond, it couldn't be etched into someone's very instincts, could it?
Mihawk walked over at this moment. After exchanging a glance with Shanks, he explained to Crocodile.
"Rather than friendship, it's more likely that he simply poses no threat to Orin at all, and has no hostility. That's why he isn't being attacked."
Within the scope of instinctive attack, defense, and evasion, Orin's body only targeted those who held hostility toward him or were strong enough to pose a threat.
Clearly, Buggy didn't fall into that category.
To meet that standard, one would need at least Vice Admiral-level strength.
"What the hell do you mean by that?!"
After Mihawk finished his cold explanation, Buggy's face turned red with anger behind him—but in the next instant, his body split apart again, dodging the aftershock of a slash from Orin.
"Yaaah—!!!"
Mihawk blocked the slash, a trace of seriousness appearing on his face.
"So now we're considered enemies as well?"
The black blade Yoru was gripped in his hand. At this moment, a pair of icy eyes seemed to emerge along the blade as Mihawk chose to engage Orin, who no longer distinguished between friend and foe.
Shanks did the same.
The Red-Haired Pirates and the Cross Guild joined forces to deal with Orin (instinct).
After them, the God's Knights led by Garling also arrived at the battlefield—but they were immediately intercepted by Red the Aloof, who halted their advance.
"This situation is truly chaotic..."
Inside the song world, Orin also noticed the massive melee unfolding in reality.
But there was nothing he could do. This was purely the combination of Uta's control and his body's instincts, so he could only watch leisurely.
On the other side, however, Uta could no longer sit still.
After entangling with Luffy and the others within the song world, she suddenly realized that the real world had already descended into utter devastation.
Under the clashes of monsters, countless unconscious audience members were crushed like ants, leaving not even ashes behind.
She began to break down.
"Stop it!!! The new era is about to arrive!!!"
In her collapse, a forbidden sheet of music flew out from her body.