"Aaaagh! I knew Ace might show up, but I didn't think both of them would come!"
Cain stared at the enormous screen projected by the Den Den Mushi, grabbed fistfuls of his hair with both hands, and let out a miserable groan.
"Doesn't that mean they heard every single embarrassing thing I said on that platform earlier?!"
Cain was already used to performing in front of huge audiences, but appearing before his two older brothers dressed like this, acting like En-chan, throwing flirtatious looks around, and deliberately playing up the feminine persona was an entirely different matter.
It was a first even for him.
And knowing Ace, there was no way he would let this go. He'd definitely laugh about it and tell everyone he knew.
The sheer embarrassment made Cain's face burn.
In reality, Ace hadn't cared about any of that.
If anything, he had become so completely absorbed in his imaginary role as En-chan's protective older brother that the actual Cain barely seemed to exist in his mind anymore.
Uta casually slipped off her outer layer and spoke in a calm voice.
"Relax, Cain. It's fine."
Cain's eyes immediately lit up.
"Uta, did you think of some way to—"
"After all, this entire tournament is being broadcast worldwide. Even if they didn't see you just now, they'll find out somewhere else afterward anyway."
Cain froze.
"…I forgot about that."
And Uta was absolutely right.
Practically everyone who knew the two of them was watching the broadcast from Totto Land.
Back in Windmill Village, Dadan and Makino were watching. Among the pirates, there were Luffy, Rayleigh, and Shanks. On the Marine side were Cain's grandfather Garp, Sengoku, Borsalino, and Tsuru.
Even Sakazuki was watching—properly, officially, and in his capacity as Fleet Admiral.
Kuzan over on Punk Hazard, Zephyr, and even the World Government had their eyes on the event.
Seeing Cain remain slumped in despair, Uta bent down, pulled him back to his feet, and gently brushed some nonexistent dust from his shoulder.
"Don't be too discouraged. You'll get used to it eventually."
Cain stared at her with hollow eyes.
"Used to what? Public humiliation?"
"Being watched by everyone."
Uta blinked, then suddenly paused.
"Besides…"
Cain narrowed his eyes.
"Besides what?"
"Nothing."
Uta turned her head and swallowed whatever she had almost said. Instead, she caught Cain by the wrist and started pulling him toward the bathroom.
"Come on. I've been fighting for half the day and I'm covered in sweat. Let's go take a bath together."
"—WHAT?!"
Cain recoiled as if he had been burned, backing up three full steps until his back hit the wall with a thump. He crossed both arms protectively over his chest and stared at Uta with open suspicion.
"You'd better behave yourself! Don't even think about getting handsy!"
Uta stopped and turned back, her long hair sweeping through the air behind her. Her expression suddenly became impossibly innocent as she blinked her clear eyes at him.
"Cain, come on. Do I really look like that kind of person?"
As she spoke, Uta loosened the tie holding her hair up. With a soft snap, her long hair spilled down around her shoulders like a waterfall, after which she removed her headphones and placed them neatly on a nearby table.
Inside her head, however, she quietly added:
'Of course I am, idiot.'
Cain continued watching her suspiciously, but before his brain could finish calculating the danger, Uta grabbed his wrist and dragged him into the bathroom.
The door slid shut with a crisp clatter.
There were only a few seconds of silence before Cain's alarmed shout came bursting through it.
"UTA! I KNEW YOU WERE UP TO SOMETHING! STAY BACK!"
"It's fine," Uta answered from inside, her voice carrying a disturbingly delighted lilt. "Just let me… mmm~. It's been so long since I got a proper taste of En-chan…"
Water splashed violently. Something was knocked from a shelf and hit the tiled floor with a sharp clatter before rolling away.
Then—
BOOM!
A violent burst of Haki exploded inside the bathroom without warning.
And in an instant, the balance of power changed completely.
"C-Cain?! That's cheating! How did you turn back already?!"
For the first time, genuine panic entered Uta's voice, accompanied by the sound of water being flung everywhere.
"Huh. Looks like I changed back too."
A brief silence followed.
Then Uta spoke again, and the confidence in her voice had begun retreating rapidly.
"Wait… what are you doing?"
Cain's voice dropped lower, carrying the unmistakable satisfaction of someone about to get even.
"It's been a long time since I got a proper taste of Uta too."
"But yesterday we already—"
Uta abruptly stopped herself, apparently remembering one very important detail.
Cain finished the thought for her.
"Yesterday, you were in charge."
A much louder splash followed, as though somebody had suddenly been pinned in place.
"Now it's my turn."
"Wait… be gentle!"
"Yeah, I know."
The red glow of sunset filtered through the frosted glass and fell across the firmly closed bathroom door. Fine sugar dust along the doorframe trembled faintly while the silhouettes behind the glass continued their struggle.
Only now, the positions of attacker and defender were nothing like they had been when the two first entered.
The tables had thoroughly turned.
…
"Achoo!"
Far away on the shores of Elbaf, Red-Haired Shanks suddenly sneezed hard.
He rubbed his nose and looked toward the setting sun with a puzzled expression while the sea breeze sent his red hair flying in every direction.
"Coming down with something? Want some medicine?"
Scopper Gaban walked over and gave him a curious look.
"No… I don't think it's a cold."
Shanks sniffed and frowned.
Then, almost instinctively, he glanced toward the projected Den Den Mushi nearby, which was still showing the live broadcast from Totto Land.
A strange sense of unease appeared in his eyes.
"It just feels like…"
"Someone's talking about me."
He couldn't explain it properly.
It was almost as though something that absolutely should not be touched…
was currently being touched.
Shanks remained silent for a moment before suddenly waving toward his crew.
"All right, pack it up. I doubt Uta or Cain will show up on the broadcast again today."
"Huh? Already? It's getting interesting—"
"Turn it off."
"…Got it, Boss."
The crew reluctantly shut down the Den Den Mushi. The projected image flickered several times before going dark.
Gaban watched them and couldn't help laughing.
"Still can't believe little Uta chose a brat like that. Once he finally comes to Elbaf, I'll help you teach him a lesson."
Shanks smiled and thought briefly about Cain's current strength.
"You might want to reconsider that, Mr. Gaban. He's gotten troublesome enough that even I have a hard time dealing with him now."
"Hahaha! If that's true, then I want to meet him even more."
Gaban grinned.
"I need to see for myself whether the brat is actually worthy of little Uta."
Whether Cain met Gaban's standards remained to be seen.
But judging from the faint trembling of a certain bathroom door back in Totto Land and the muffled noises leaking through it, there was at least one particular sense in which Cain was proving himself perfectly capable of keeping up with Uta.