...
A trace of gloom crept into the corner of Uta's eye, casting a shadow over her originally bright face.
"I won't let you go back."
Uta's voice grew low: "Luffy, and everyone, you should all live happily here!"
"Uta, don't be like this…" Nami tried to persuade her.
But Uta was no longer listening.
She raised her hand, and musical notes shot out like nimble snakes, instantly binding Nami!
"Miss Nami!"
Sanji immediately rushed forward, but more musical notes surged in, firmly restraining him as well!
Zoro's eyes sharpened. All three swords were drawn at once: "Even if you're Luffy's friend, you can't just do whatever you want!"
He turned into an afterimage and charged toward Uta, but what met him were musical note knights and swordsmen pouring in from all directions!
These warriors formed from musical notes wielded various weapons, and their strength was not to be underestimated!
"What?!"
Zoro swung his blades and shattered several musical note knights, but even more surged forward.
"Looks like I have no choice but to get serious! Tontatta-style Fist!"
Jinbe made his move. A powerful shockwave cleared an entire area, but the musical notes seemed endless, and the newly appearing warriors were even stronger!
Seeing this, the other members of the Straw Hat crew, though reluctant to fight Uta, had no choice but to draw their weapons.
Franky's General Cannon began charging, Robin prepared to activate her ability, Chopper shifted into Heavy Point and readied to charge…
The stage instantly turned into a battlefield.
And all of this, just because Luffy said he would continue being a pirate.
"This little girl's hostility toward pirates… is abnormally intense."
In the Marines' camp, Vice Admiral Tsuru furrowed her brows tightly, her gaze sharp as a blade.
As the Marines' strategist, she keenly caught the logic behind Uta's actions.
"You can see the problem just by comparing."
She continued analyzing, her eyes gleaming with shrewdness: "Big Mom's children take pride in being descendants of an Emperor, viewing pillaging and killing as the norm in the pirate world.
But Uta is the complete opposite. She seems to detest her pirate bloodline, even unwilling to mention it. Yet the earlier light curtain showed that she loved pirates when she was little—she loved Shanks…
But now she's attacking Luffy. At its core, it's still a hatred toward the 'identity of a pirate'…"
While Tsuru watched the battle on the light curtain and calculated possible outcomes, Sengoku pushed up his glasses, the lenses reflecting light: "It is better to explode in silence than to perish in silence.
Uta has suppressed her emotions for too long. Now she's finally found an outlet for release, and the Straw Hat kid Luffy's persistence became the final straw that broke the camel's back."
Garp was picking his nose, but his expression was unusually serious: "What's even more troublesome is her influence over ordinary people. Look at those fans—they see Uta as a savior, as a spiritual leader.
If she really wants to 'create a new era,' how many people will follow her?"
"The will of the people, the hopes of the masses."
Vice Admiral Tsuru slowly stated the root cause: "I'm afraid this is what even the Five Elders fear the most. Military force can suppress, but ideas are hard to eradicate."
Some of the Marine officers at God Valley looked grave. They had forcibly powered on and broken free from the light curtain's music.
From the previous stories, even they could see that—whether it was the Rocks era or the Great Pirate Era that Roger had ushered in!
"Weapons of thought" are always terrifyingly powerful. A leader with immense strength who also holds the hearts of the people is enough to overturn the world.
In the pirates' camp, Roger held little Shanks and was uncharacteristically silent.
He looked at Uta on the light curtain, who was now attacking her childhood playmate, at the calm and indifference flickering in her eyes, and suddenly spoke: "She doesn't hate pirates."
Crocus looked at Roger curiously: "Roger, what do you mean?"
Not just Crocus—everyone else turned to Roger, eyes full of curiosity.
"She… hates the pain that pirates bring to the world."
Roger quietly stated what he believed to be the reason, then began laying out the plot for everyone: "In the future, the Red Hair Pirates attack Elegia, and for some reason that leads to Uta getting off the ship…
The Wake-shroom, Tot Musica… might be a necessary part of it. There has to be a story behind all this that we don't know yet.
A story that makes her willing to eat poison and summon a demon king just to 'create a new era.'"
The information available now was still too little to deduce the full plot, but the general outline was probably not far off from what Roger said!
As soon as Roger finished speaking, Uta's voice rang out again, resounding through every corner of God Valley!
But this time it wasn't just God Valley—the powerhouses had already noticed that the light curtain's range had expanded from God Valley to dozens of meters out into the sea…
"This thing is extending. Does it intend for the whole world to see this scene?!"
Rocks shifted his gaze to the surrounding environment, his eyes filled with his own calculations and mockery toward the Five Elders.
If the light curtain's content could truly let everyone see future scenes, then Rocks could be certain that very interesting things would happen in the future!
The view returned to the top of the screen. Uta was now in final negotiations with Luffy!
"This is all because Luffy said he's still a pirate…"
Uta's voice echoed across the stage, carrying suppressed pain.
She stepped toward Luffy step by step. Complex flames burned in her eyes—anger, disappointment, pain, and a trace of… pleading?
"Luffy, if you still consider me your friend, then stop being a pirate."
Uta stopped in front of Luffy, her voice trembling: "Create a new era with me!"
She extended her hand—a fair, slender hand that trembled slightly.
This was undoubtedly forcing Luffy to make a choice: between her and his dream!
These words carried immense weight—so heavy that even the slowest person understood their gravity.
Luffy looked at the hand before him, at Uta's eyes that were almost brimming with tears, and fell silent.
The Straw Hat crew also stopped moving and looked toward their captain.
Everyone knew what Luffy's answer would be.
But everyone also knew that this answer would completely tear something apart.
The stage fell into an eerie silence.
Only the uneasy whispers of the distant fans could be heard, along with the sounds of Nami and Sanji struggling against their musical note bindings.
Luffy raised his head. The smile on his face vanished. He took off his straw hat, held it gently in his arms like the most precious treasure.
Then, he put the hat back on. His gaze burned like fire as he looked at Uta and said word by word: "Uta."
"I really like you. You're my important friend! But—"
Beneath the brim of his hat, his eyes were as firm as steel. Luffy spoke his catchphrase, formally rejecting Uta's "kindness": "I am the man who will become the Pirate King."
The moment the words fell.
The last light in Uta's eyes went out.
She slowly withdrew her hand, lowered her head. Her red-and-white short hair fell forward, hiding her expression.
A few seconds later, she lifted her head.
On her face was a smile so bright it was almost eerie.
"Is that so…"
She said softly, her voice terrifyingly gentle: "That's really… such a shame."
The moment her words ended…
The entire stage erupted in unprecedented dazzling light!
"Uta, stop messing around!"
More and more musical note soldiers launched attacks. The Straw Hat crew fought back!
But Uta sang while attacking. The Straw Hats had no heart to fight seriously, so they couldn't block so many attacks at all. Soon the entire Straw Hat crew was firmly wrapped in musical notes—even Luffy was no exception!
"Uta, what are you doing? Let me go already! I'll admit defeat, okay!"
Even now Luffy still thought Uta was throwing some kind of tantrum, but from her expression at this moment, it was clear that Uta wasn't joking…
"Absolutely not. Luffy, you can't become the Pirate King… No one can!"
After saying that, Uta ignored Luffy's struggles. She began to rally the crowd, making the surrounding fans voice their views on pirates…
"They burned my city…"
"They killed my family, stole my money!"
"They killed my mom! Give my mom back!"
"We don't want pirates! Can't we even have a single moment of peace?!"
Uta's words were like opening a floodgate. The people around her began venting, complaining, even breaking down in tears.
Just as the earlier scenes had shown—no matter the reason, the ones who always get hurt are ordinary civilians, the honest common people…
Not only do they have to bear the exorbitant Heavenly Tribute demanded by the World Government, but they also suffer the devastation from pirates!
So how could they not hate, how could they not be furious? But hatred and anger are useless—they have no power at all, not even the simple ability to protect their own families…
At this moment, a few bold fans picked up weapons and walked onto the stage, glaring resentfully at Luffy lying on the ground!
"No, Princess Uta! Luffy isn't that kind of person, and we're not either!"
"Luffy would never do those things!"
Usopp and Chopper shouted desperately, but Uta wasn't listening at all. Her eyes were filled with cold indifference, though her body couldn't stop trembling!
Of course she knew Luffy wasn't that kind of pirate. She knew how pure Luffy's dream was. But Uta had already completely given up on this world, on this era!
...