Uta soon dragged Cain backstage.
Come to think of it, the people of the Kamabakka Kingdom could dance and spar anywhere they pleased, so they had never needed to build a proper stage.
They did, however, possess all the equipment required for singing.
As a result, the entire stage had been sculpted from Bella's ice, while the laser lights and other equipment had been installed around it.
The finished venue was surprisingly beautiful.
Unfortunately, they had encountered a problem.
"How could this happen?!"
Uta stared down at herself in bitter disappointment.
She had already turned back into a woman.
Ivankov observed her for a moment before offering an explanation.
"Uta-chan probably lost so much blood that the sex-change hormones wore off ahead of schedule."
"The hormones I gave both of you were temporary. Once their duration ends, your bodies naturally return to normal, so it makes sense that excessive blood loss might use them up early."
"Then why haven't I changed back?" Cain demanded. "I donated blood too!"
She looked down at her current outfit and felt her soul leaving her body.
She had been dressed to match Uta—a white dress so short that it barely covered the tops of her thighs, along with a headset and microphone.
Her long, bare legs gleamed beneath the lights. Cain held the hem down with both hands, acutely aware of the cold air beneath it.
There was no way she could perform dressed like this!
Ivankov moved closer and carefully examined her condition.
"You were exposed through the shower. The hormones didn't just enter your bloodstream—they entered your lungs when you breathed and soaked into your pores."
"Even though you used up some of their effect by giving Uta-chan blood, the transformation should still last until tomorrow morning."
Cain's face turned green.
"No, no, no! I'm changing back right now!"
She immediately tried to release her Haki and negate the effect, but Uta grabbed her before she could.
"Stop worrying about it."
Uta stepped in front of her, rose onto her toes, and gently cradled Cain's face in both hands.
"Can't you let me enjoy looking at you like this for a little longer?"
Cain's face instantly turned scarlet.
A mischievous gleam flashed through Uta's eyes. While Cain was distracted, she lifted the hem of the dress and pinched one of the suspender straps running down from her stomach.
"W-wait—"
Snap!
The strap slapped sharply against Cain's lower abdomen.
"Besides, you wouldn't want to turn back into a man while wearing this, would you?"
Uta tilted her head and smiled sweetly.
"…Fine. Fine!"
Cain sighed in surrender and hurriedly pulled her skirt back down.
She then began frantically rummaging through their belongings, searching for the only thing that could save her dignity—a pair of safety shorts.
Once she had them on, Uta continued arranging her equipment for the upcoming performance, laughing quietly to herself.
At that moment, a chaotic stampede approached the backstage entrance.
"Stay away from me, you freaks!"
Sanji's voice grew louder as a noisy crowd pursued him.
A moment later, he burst backstage with a huge mass of excited okama close behind him, every one of them staring with shining eyes.
"Oh my!"
Ivankov clapped his hands in delight.
"I never expected Sanji Boy to remain so popular! He's gathered an audience already."
"Combined with everyone who was waiting here, practically the entire island must have come! I'd better go manage the crowd."
Ivankov hurried toward Sanji.
Sanji ignored him completely.
His gaze swept across the backstage area, locked onto Cain, and he charged straight toward her.
With that expression and momentum, he resembled a starving wolf that had not eaten in three days.
Cain's Observation Haki immediately sounded an alarm.
Then again, she hardly needed Haki to sense the almost deranged desperation pouring from Sanji.
She did not move, because someone else acted first.
"What are you trying to do to my papa?"
A cold young voice echoed from every direction.
The previously flat ice stage suddenly surged upward. A thick wall of ice formed out of nowhere, blocking Sanji's path to Cain.
Unable to stop in time, Sanji slammed face-first into it with a tremendous bang.
Blood burst from his nose, and he collapsed to the floor with stars spinning around his head.
Bella had not shown herself, but her presence permeated the entire stage.
She had merged with the frozen structure. Every inch of ice was now one of her eyes and one of her arms.
Cain stared at Sanji, who lay bleeding on the floor, unable to understand what had driven him into such a frenzy.
Then Sanji sprang back up as though someone had injected him with adrenaline.
He rushed over, pressed his hands together, and stared at Cain with religious devotion.
"I only went outside for a moment and nearly fell into their clutches again!"
"So please! Tell me about that girl you promised to introduce!"
"As long as she's a normal woman, I don't care if she looks like Granny Kokoro! Oh, right, you haven't met her—"
One of the photographs Sanji later carried around Fish-Man Island was of Granny Kokoro, proving just how desperately low his standards had fallen.
"In any case!"
Sanji grabbed Cain's hand, tears streaming down his face.
"You're my foster father! My beloved foster father!"
Cain's mouth twitched.
This man was older than she was, yet he was kneeling before her and calling her his father.
She looked down at him with disdain.
"Call me your brother-in-law."
"What?"
Sanji's head snapped up, his entire body going still.
"The girl I'm introducing is my little sister."
Cain pulled her hand free and crossed her arms, looking down at him with a mixture of resignation and warning.
"You've always treated women with respect, and despite all your faults, you're generally dependable."
"Among everyone I know, you may actually be the best candidate."
"But—"
Cain leaned closer until their eyes met.
Flames flickered faintly between her lips, and her gaze became as cold as a blade.
"If you ever mistreat my little sister—if she loses even one hair or sheds a single tear because of you—then not even the world-famous Dr. Vegapunk will be able to bring you back to life."
The temperature backstage seemed to fall below freezing.
Although, technically, the entire stage was already made of ice.
Sanji swallowed hard and nodded frantically.
Uta approached with a smile and handed him a photograph.
"Uta-chan! Th-this is—?!"
The moment Sanji accepted it, he went rigid as though struck by lightning.
His eyes widened.
This time, the hearts did not burst from his eye sockets.
They erupted from deep inside his heart.
It was no longer simple lust.
He had genuinely fallen for her.
"Her name is Pudding," Uta explained brightly.
"When she heard about you, she became interested in getting to know you."
"Unfortunately, you had already collapsed in your room when we tried to introduce you…"
"Wh-wh-wh-what?! P-P-P-Pudding-chan already saw me like that?!"
Sanji lost all color and transformed into a weathered stone statue.
"Here's Pudding's frequency. Ask Ivankov for a Visual Den Den Mushi."
Cain handed him a slip of paper.
She and Uta exchanged a knowing look, then turned and walked away together.
Sanji heard the words, but he was no longer capable of rational thought.
He crouched in a corner, clutching the photograph and muttering as though possessed.
"It's over. My life is over…"
"She saw me like that. She must hate me already…"
…
The stage lights came on one after another.
Brilliant colors reflected across the ice, bathing the entire venue in dreamlike light.
A massive crowd packed the area below. The okama enthusiastically waved glow sticks and handmade fan merchandise, turning the concert into a roaring celebration.
"Good morning, everyone! I'm Uta!"
Uta skipped toward the center of the stage in time with the music, waving to the crowd with undisguised excitement.
Thunderous cheers immediately shook the venue.
"…G-good morning. I'm… En-chan…"
Cain shuffled out behind her, two streams of tears running down her face as she painfully completed her introduction.
The lights shone across her long, bare legs.
When the night breeze lifted the hem of her dress, she instinctively pressed it down, her movements stiff and painfully embarrassed.
The okama fell silent for a moment.
Then an even louder storm of screams and whistles erupted.
Standing at the center of the stage beneath thousands of burning gazes, Cain closed her eyes in despair.
'I want to die.'
The performance officially began.
Uta's singing blended with the lights while the frozen stage reflected countless dazzling colors. Before long, the entire island had fallen beneath her melody.
The okama swayed to the rhythm, their enthusiasm threatening to tear open the night sky.
Meanwhile, Sanji finally recovered from the earlier shock and moved to a quiet corner near the audience.
He adjusted his tie, drew a deep breath, and called Pudding.
To his surprise, she answered almost immediately.
The two of them got along remarkably well.
"It's perfectly fine, Mr. Sanji," Pudding assured him, her voice as gentle as a spring breeze. "Everyone has a few embarrassing secrets in their past."
The weight hanging over Sanji's heart finally disappeared.
He scratched the back of his head and grinned foolishly.
As they continued talking, Sanji remembered the concert and eagerly invited Pudding to watch it with him.
Naturally, she agreed.
Sanji aimed the Den Den Mushi's camera toward the stage, leaving only a small portion of his head in the corner of the frame so he would not obstruct the view.
Pudding watched quietly, occasionally expressing admiration while discussing whatever subjects interested them both.
But after a while, Sanji began to notice something strange.
"Miss Pudding, is something troubling you? It feels like your eyes aren't actually focused on the screen."
"Huh? N-no, of course not! There's just… so much happening that I don't know where to look."
"Is that all? I understand."
Sanji scratched his head and thought nothing more of it, continuing to enjoy the performance with her.
What he did not know was that in Totto Land…
An enormous screen displayed Cain dancing onstage before countless watching eyes.
"As expected of our little sister. She can fight and dance."
"It's a shame the transformation is temporary. She'll return to normal before long."
"Our little brother is fine too, but our little sister is definitely more charming."
"She really does look exactly like Mama."
"She reminds me of Mama during her days with the Rocks Pirates decades ago."
"Though Cain seems to be the one leading this generation's Rocks. That's Mama's child for you."
"Mamamama! She certainly has some of my old style!"
Big Mom watched the screen with a satisfied smile and nodded proudly.
Pudding was indeed speaking with Sanji, and the camera of the Den Den Mushi she held was pointed toward herself.
But opposite her, the projected image was being watched by nearly every core member of the Big Mom Pirates.
"My, Linlin. I certainly didn't expect to witness something this interesting during my visit. What an honor."
The woman sitting beside Big Mom was Stussy, who had once delivered an item to Cain.
She sat elegantly with her legs crossed, holding a glass of champagne as she watched the performance with clear amusement.
"You missed the ceremony where Cain joined all those pirate crews—the one held during Chiffon's engagement," Big Mom said. "This is a fine opportunity for you to get to know him."
Then she turned toward Stussy.
"While you're here, contact that man for me."
"He truly is charming, much like you were in your younger days, Linlin."
Stussy smiled faintly.
"I believe I understand what you're suggesting."
She activated her Den Den Mushi.
"Hello? Is that Morgans?"
"Yes, I have a major story for you."
"It concerns Miss Uta's dance partner…"
"En-chan!"
…
Cain remained completely unaware of all this.
She continued forcing herself to dance across the stage, every passing second a new form of torture.
Sanji also continued chatting happily with Pudding, occasionally laughing like an idiot.
He had no idea how many people were watching the stage through her screen—or how many had noticed the partial view of his head occupying one corner of the image.
The concert finally ended amid wave after wave of applause.
Still unwilling to let the night end, the okama immediately began a banquet. They drank, ate, sang, and danced, filling the island with noise and celebration.
In Totto Land, the audience eventually dispersed and returned to their respective islands.
Pudding kept her Den Den Mushi with her and continued chatting happily with Sanji as she walked.
Amid all the commotion, however…
Cain and Uta quietly disappeared.