...
Seeing her two children, Brûlée and Oven, on the light curtain, Charlotte Linlin was stunned for a long time. The face that always alternated between "teasing" and "cruel" expressions rarely showed such complex changes.
She looked down at her own still-young body at the moment, then recalled the bloated, aged yet still awe-inspiring "future self" on the light curtain.
A thought slowly emerged: since she… I in the future became like that, then her children must have all grown up…
This realization suddenly dissipated much of the awkward feeling she had from seeing her "aged and faded" self.
Yes, time passes, and her children will grow up.
If she herself has aged, then her adorable children naturally should have grown into capable adults as well!
With this thought, Big Mom suddenly felt "relieved."
"Mam-ma-ma-ma!"
Her laughter was filled with smugness—a complex emotion blending maternal pride and pirate domineering.
Though Brûlée's appearance made her slightly frown, what mattered most was that her child had ability!
The view returned to the concert venue. After Brûlée announced herself, she waved with a strange laugh, and more soldiers surged out from the Mirror World.
They were the elites of the BIG MOM Pirates!
"Heeheehee~ Uta, don't resist." Brûlée's voice carried a hint of teasing: "Come with us back to Totto Land. Mama loves singing the most—you might even become our new 'sister'!"
Her words carried deep implications.
At that moment, the Straw Hat Pirates also began to act.
"Hey hey hey! How dare you target Miss Uta—let me take care of you bastards!"
A golden figure rushed onto the stage like a whirlwind!
Sanji arrived first; his long leg drew a sharp arc through the air, striking straight toward Oven's face!
Oven reacted extremely quickly, meeting it with a scorching fist!
"Bang!"
High heat collided with the kick, sending shockwaves scattering!
"I absolutely cannot allow rude scum to defile such a beautiful stage!"
Brook drew his sword; as a musician, he was furious at this farce: "Yoru no Kyoku: Straight Thrust!"
The skeleton swordsman turned into an afterimage, charging straight at the soldiers pouring from the mirror!
Zoro said nothing; all three swords were already drawn, sweeping with sharp sword energy: "Three Sword Style: Demon Slash!"
The entire Straw Hat Pirates mobilized!
Since Luffy knew Uta, that made her a friend's friend.
And the Straw Hat crew would never stand by and let a companion's friend die!
Those third-rate pirates who had tried to kidnap Uta earlier were utterly no match for the Straw Hat crew.
Luffy punched them one by one, Nami's lightning struck precisely, Chopper swept in enhanced form, Franky's general cannons roared…
In just a few minutes, all the greedy pirates were cleaned up, leaving only the BIG MOM Pirates still in confrontation.
In a corner of the audience seats, two figures lurked quietly.
"Coby, look…"
Helmeppo lowered his voice, pointing at the stage: "The Straw Hat crew has all gone into action."
"Mm."
Coby's expression was grave as his gaze swept over the chaotic stage: "But our mission is to investigate Uta's true purpose.
Intelligence indicates that this concert of hers… may have another agenda."
The two had infiltrated under secret orders from Marine high command. After Uta's identity as "Red-Hair's daughter" was exposed, her danger level had been reassessed.
And her choice to hold the final concert in Elegia—a country mysteriously tied to Red-Haired Shanks—only deepened the Marines' suspicions.
"Observe first."
Coby said in a low voice: "If necessary… we'll have to intervene too."
On stage, after the Straw Hat crew finished clearing the small fry and were about to turn on the BIG MOM Pirates…
"Alright, everyone—that's enough!"
Uta suddenly spoke, her voice clear and crisp. She walked to center stage and gave Luffy and the others a gentle smile: "Luffy, and everyone—thank you for protecting me. But… no more fighting, okay~"
Her words stunned everyone.
Even the Straw Hat crew halted their actions, looking at Uta in confusion.
Oven frowned tightly; even his scorching steam paused for a moment: "Fighting? Little girl, are you saying we're… fighting?"
He found it absurd. This was clearly a kidnapping, a conflict, a life-or-death struggle! How did it become child's play in her mouth?
Yet Uta nodded earnestly: "Yes. Fighting over things you want—isn't that just fighting?"
"If you want something, go take it by force! That's what it means to be a pirate!"
Oven said gravely, his voice carrying the brutal logic of the pirate world: "The law of the jungle—this is the rule of the sea!"
His thinking represented the vast majority of pirates: plunder, conquer, seize everything you desire with strength.
Uta looked at him, her eyes clear and resolute: "Then don't be pirates anymore."
Her words caused the entire venue to fall silent for an instant.
"Let's all live together in a world full of happiness!"
Uta spread her arms wide, her voice brimming with longing: "As long as my singing exists, everyone can live together in peace and happiness!"
Her words were like a stone dropped into still water.
"Pfft… hahahaha!"
"What is she even saying?"
"Peace? Happiness? On the Grand Line?"
First came scattered laughter, then it exploded into roaring guffaws.
Not just the BIG MOM Pirates' crew—some pirates in the audience were laughing too.
The laughter was full of malice, but even more… it was sheer incredulity.
In this era overrun by pirates, endless wars, with the World Government clashing against pirates and the Revolutionary Army, on this sea where the strong ruled and the weak were devoured—talking about "peace and happiness"?
Too naive.
Naive to the point of being laughable, naive to the point of… evoking pity.
"Little girl, you simply don't understand the sea."
Oven shook his head; his high-temperature steam rose again: "There has never been peace in this world."
Brûlée also let out a strange laugh: "Heeheehee~ Mama was right—innocent kids are the cutest~ But cuteness doesn't put food on the table~"
Uta looked at them, at the laughing pirates, at this world full of strife.
She let out a soft sigh.
"What a pity."
Her voice was light, yet it clearly reached everyone's ears.
"Then… become part of my song."
The moment the words fell…
Uta sang once more!
But this time, the singing was completely different!
If her previous song had been a joyful stream that lifted the heart,
then this song was a surging river—passionate, surging, filled with unbelievable power!
"♪——!!!"
The instant the first note burst forth, dazzling light exploded around Uta!
Countless musical notes surged from her body, spinning and intertwining in the air, condensing—
forming a set of shining armor made purely of musical notes!
The armor was extremely gorgeous, enveloping her stunning figure without hindering her movements in the slightest.
She stood at the center of the light, like a goddess of song descended!
"What?!" Oven's pupils contracted.
"Wh-what kind of ability is this?!" Brûlée staggered back in shock.
What came next was even more astonishing!
As Uta's song continued, the flying musical notes in the air suddenly turned solid!
Countless white ropes formed from notes shot out like spirit snakes, too fast for the eye to follow!
"Capture them!"
Uta's voice rang out amid the song—clear, cold, and authoritative.
The next second…
"Ah!"
"What's happening?!"
"Let me go!"
The BIG MOM Pirates' soldiers—including Oven and Brûlée—had no time to react before they were tightly bound by the musical-note ropes!
The ropes looked fragile but were incredibly tough! Oven erupted with full-body high-temperature steam, trying to burn them apart, only to find the notes grew even brighter in the heat!
"Th-this is impossible…" Oven struggled desperately but could not move.
Brûlée tried to activate her Mira Mira no Mi ability to escape into the Mirror World, but the note ropes severed her connection to the mirrors!
In mere seconds, every enemy on stage was completely restrained!
Uta stood at center stage, her note armor shining, her song still surging passionately.
She looked down at the bound crowd, her gaze calm.
"In my song…"
she said softly, her voice carried throughout the venue by the microphone: "I am invincible."
Dead silence fell over God Valley; everyone stared blankly at the light curtain, at the girl wrapped in note armor, binding powerful foes with her song.
Even Roger forgot to tease the Shanks in his arms and gaped at the light curtain.
"Wh-what kind of ability is this…"
Golden Lion Shiki rarely showed such shock: "The song… turning into solid form?"
Shakky crossed her arms, gravity flashing in her eyes: "That girl… is no simple person."
Garp crossed his arms, brows tightly knit: "Song turning into physical form… I've never heard of anything like it.
What kind of daughter did that Red-Hair kid raise?"
Sengoku pushed up his glasses, lenses glinting: "If this kind of ability can be used on a large scale… the battlefield dynamics would be completely transformed."
At the concert venue, Uta had suppressed the entire scene with the power of her song. The audience first reacted with shock, then erupted in deafening cheers!
"Uta! Uta! Uta!"
The diva's popularity did not decline due to her pirate lineage being exposed—instead, it skyrocketed from the display of her miraculous power.
But in the shadows deep within the ancient castle behind the stage,
the sunglassed man—Gordon—quietly watched it all.
The eyes hidden behind his sunglasses stared fixedly at Uta on stage, at the note armor covering her, at the note ropes binding her enemies.
At that moment, the light curtain's image gradually dimmed.
But everyone knew: the storm surrounding the "Red-Haired Diva" had only just begun.
And the people of God Valley would continue to witness… the yet-unfolding, magnificent future.
...