Some time later…
"Mama, Bella knows she was wrong. Bella will never drink alcohol again," Bella pleaded softly.
Uta was lying on top of her, tugging playfully at her cheeks.
Hearing that, Uta stopped and rubbed her face affectionately against Bella's.
"No, Bella didn't do anything wrong. Your grandpa did."
"If they ever ask you to chill their alcohol again, freeze them solid. Freeze the alcohol too, so they can't drink any of it. Understand?"
Bella nodded solemnly and committed those words to memory before turning toward Cain, who was finishing with the bed.
Cain had already washed and hung up the old bedding, and the clean sheets were now neatly in place.
He straightened and glanced through the window.
Night had long since fallen.
Then he looked at the two figures curled up beside the bed, and a smile unconsciously appeared on his face.
"Uta, it's been dark for a while. Are we staying here tonight?"
Uta rolled onto her back and stretched luxuriously.
"We've already made the bed, so we might as well sleep here."
She yawned, a trace of moisture gathering in the corners of her eyes.
"Shanks and the others probably won't come back. Those drunks have already had more than enough today."
"Besides, I've been exhausted for hours. I really don't feel like moving."
She had Bella carry her onto the bed, pulled the blanket over herself, and made room for Cain.
Cain looked at them with warmth in his eyes.
"All right. I'll close the bar."
He walked to the entrance and flipped the wooden sign hanging beside the door from OPEN to CLOSED.
After leaving the door accessible for Makino and Dadan, he turned off the lights, plunging the room into a soft darkness.
Cain returned to the bed and lay down.
Bella immediately squeezed between him and Uta, her cool cloud body pleasantly refreshing.
"Good night, Papa… Good night, Mama…"
Bella's drowsy voice gradually faded.
"Good night."
"Good night."
Cain gently patted Bella and soothed both of them to sleep.
Between the alcohol Bella had consumed and Uta's exhaustion, the girl and the cloud soon fell into a deep sleep, their breathing becoming slow and steady.
Cain was the only one who remained awake.
He had already slept for a long time that day, and after everything that happened inside Uta World, he felt completely refreshed and not the least bit tired.
He was staring idly at the ceiling when the cry of a Den Den Mushi suddenly came from the bar's main room.
More precisely, it came from the bag containing all of his Den Den Mushi.
Cain owned far too many to carry individually, so he had no choice but to keep them together in a bag.
He quietly lifted the blanket and glanced at the sleeping mother and daughter.
Uta had Bella wrapped in her arms, and both were sleeping peacefully.
Cain pulled on a coat, picked up the entire bag, and vanished into the backyard.
Under the moonlight, he rummaged through it until he found the ringing Den Den Mushi.
The moment he answered, a familiar voice came through.
"Cain?"
Cain's eyes lit up.
"Sabo!"
He could not hide the delight in his voice.
Although they had spoken occasionally during this period, Cain was always the one who called.
Sabo was still adapting to the power of the Rumble-Rumble Fruit while handling Revolutionary Army business, so their conversations were usually brief.
This was the first time Sabo had contacted him voluntarily.
"Sabo, I'm in Windmill Village right now," Cain said quietly, his voice filled with happiness.
"I already told Big Sis Makino, Dadan, and the others about you. Everyone was thrilled."
"Especially Dadan. You know how she acts tough even though she's soft inside? When she heard about your amnesia, she cried her eyes out."
A quiet laugh came from the other end.
"Is that so? Then please apologize to them for me."
"When I have the chance, I'll definitely return and visit everyone."
Sabo paused, and his tone grew serious.
"But that isn't the main reason I called."
"Hm?"
Cain immediately became alert.
"Did something happen? Were you attacked? Are you in danger? Do you need help?"
The questions poured out one after another as his hand unconsciously tightened around the receiver.
"Wait, Cain. That isn't what I meant."
Sabo hurriedly interrupted him, sounding both helpless and amused.
"It's about Sanji, the companion you mentioned before."
"Sanji?"
Cain paused, then slapped his forehead.
"Right, Sanji. I almost forgot about him."
"How is he? Did Ivankov recognize him as one of our companions? His wanted poster looks almost nothing like the real person, after all—"
"Uh…"
Sabo's voice suddenly became strange.
"That's exactly what I need to discuss."
An ominous feeling rose inside Cain.
"All I can say is that Momoiro Island's power shouldn't be underestimated," Sabo said, carefully choosing his words.
"For several reasons, we were unable to contact Mr. Ivankov's people for a long time."
"By the time we finally reached him and found the Sanji you told me about… something rather unfortunate had already happened."
"What happened?"
Cain's heart tightened.
"Did something happen to Sanji?!"
"It's… extremely difficult to explain."
Sabo sounded thoroughly troubled.
"I honestly don't know how to put this. I hope you won't overreact when you hear it, because I absolutely don't dare tell Luffy."
"In any case, Sanji urgently needs you to come here!"
Cain's heart skipped a beat.
"Your companion Sanji…"
Sabo drew a deep breath.
"No. At this point, we should probably call her Sanjiko-chan."
"What the hell?!"
…
Meanwhile, thousands of miles away in the Kamabakka Kingdom on Momoiro Island…
Candlelight flickered inside Ivankov's room, casting an enormous shadow against the walls.
Ivankov clutched his oversized head and rolled back and forth across the bed, radiating anxiety.
"This is bad! This is so, so bad!"
He held his head and wailed.
"I turned Straw Hat Boy's companion into this! I'm going to die, aren't I? I'm definitely going to die!"
Through the window, he could see a cheerful scene unfolding in the garden.
A group of brightly dressed okama danced together in a lively circle.
One figure in the center drew particular attention.
She was a woman with shoulder-length golden hair, one eye hidden behind her bangs.
She had curled eyebrows, a tall and slender figure, a full chest, shapely hips, and long, straight legs that appeared beneath the hem of her dress whenever she moved.
She wore a pale yellow, frilly dress and gracefully swayed her hips to the rhythm of the music, every motion carrying an unmistakable feminine elegance.
Whenever she smiled, the curve of her lips was charming and refined.
She strongly resembled Reiju, only with golden hair.
"Come on, everyone! Let's all dance together!"
She beckoned to the surrounding okama, her voice sweet and melodious.
"Sanjiko-chan dances so beautifully!"
"Sanjiko-chan is the best!"
Praise erupted all around her.
Now, she was called Sanjiko.
Once, he had been called Sanji.
Watching through the window, Ivankov covered his face in despair.
He knew he had caused a catastrophe.
Under the original course of events, Sanji would have snapped out of the okama's temptations after learning that Luffy had lost his brother.
But because Cain saved Ace, and through a series of unfortunate coincidences, Sanji never experienced that shock.
Rather than coming to his senses, he sank deeper and deeper.
Every day, he happily spent his time with the okama.
Dancing led to makeup, makeup led to sewing, and sewing led to gardening.
He was enjoying life more than anyone else on the island.
The most disastrous moment came on the day Ivankov returned to his kingdom.
After hearing that a newcomer had joined them, he went over to have a look out of curiosity.
The blond boy had grabbed him with an utterly serious expression.
"Lord Ivankov, I have a request."
"What is it? Ask me anything!"
Ivankov proudly thumped his chest.
"I have finally heard the calling buried deep inside my heart."
Sanji's eyes had shone with absolute devotion.
"Please allow me to join you!"
"Put me through the trials of the okama!"
Ivankov had been completely stunned.
However, as the user of the Horm-Horm Fruit and the queen of the Kamabakka Kingdom, he possessed the professional ethics to respect another person's true desires.
When someone made such a sincere request, how could he possibly refuse?
And so Sanji faced the first test on the path to becoming an okama.
Changing into the opposite sex.
One injection from Ivankov—And Sanji became Sanjiko!
From that day onward, Sanji—no, Sanjiko—seemed to become an entirely different person.
It was not until Ivankov received information from the Revolutionary Army that he finally discovered Sanji was one of Luffy's companions.
He immediately tried everything he could to drag Sanjiko back from the depths of the okama lifestyle, since this was clearly not suitable for her current circumstances.
Ivankov tried slapping her, shouting at her, and throwing seawater over her.
Nothing worked.
Even when he offered to turn Sanjiko back into a man, she refused.
Every time, Sanjiko would hold her reddened cheek and stare at him with innocent confusion.
"Lord Ivankov, why did you hit me?"
"I'm Sanjiko. I'm not anyone called Sanji."
Her gaze was so sincere that it was heartbreaking.
Even now, Ivankov could not understand how this had happened.
What was going on inside this person's mind?
They had not even reached the next stage of the trial!
How had merely spending several months among the okama transformed him this completely?
How had he managed to brainwash himself into becoming an entirely different person?
Could he genuinely possess an extraordinary natural talent for being an okama?
"It's over, it's over, it's over!"
Ivankov continued rolling around the bed.
"When Straw Hat Boy comes here, how am I supposed to explain this?"
"'Sorry, I turned your cook into a beautiful woman'?"
"He'll punch me immediately!"
Ivankov abruptly sat up and looked through the window.
Under the moonlight, Sanjiko danced with the okama in the garden, her bright laughter filling the air.
"…Wait."
Ivankov suddenly thought of something.
"Maybe this isn't so bad? She certainly looks happy."
Then he violently shook his head and drove the thought away.
"No, no, no! That's Straw Hat Boy's companion! How can I think like that?!"
He resumed rolling anxiously across the bed.
Sanjiko's laughter drifted in through the window, followed by her faint voice.
"Why don't we learn to make a new dessert tomorrow? I want to try baking a cake that will bring a smile to everyone's face…"
Ivankov stopped rolling and stared hopelessly at the ceiling.
Then he released one final anguished cry.
"Cain Boy, when are you finally getting here?!"