Chapter 9: Uta Is the Kind of Girl Who Could Be My Mom

The Luffy in the original story loudly clamored to board Shanks' pirate ship and become a pirate himself.

But the current Luffy had never said anything like that. His desire to board the ship now was simply to express his wish to see the outside world.

It was more of a sightseeing reason to board.

Even so, after a few seconds of consideration, Shanks still rejected Luffy's request.

"We're pirates, Luffy. Getting on a pirate ship isn't a game," Shanks said.

"Yeah, yeah! We're pirates, you know!" Uta chimed in cheerfully.

"Could it be Luffy just doesn't want to say goodbye and wants to follow us around?" Uta covered her mouth and giggled.

If this weren't the 'Red-Hair Is the Diva's Dad' timeline, I'd actually be content staying here in Windmill Village, Luffy thought.

Right now, Uta didn't have any Devil Fruit powers—she hadn't eaten one yet.

After all, she had just recently saved him from drowning, and if memory served, in the original story she even once complained to Shanks that Luffy had made her jump off a cliff with him in a contest.

If Uta did have a Devil Fruit power now, she'd be a deadweight in water.

Most likely, she ate her Devil Fruit later on in Elegia, the Music Kingdom—where she awakened the Demon King's Aria and brought destruction upon the land.

Instead of stopping Uta after it's too late, why not prevent the disaster before it begins?

Besides… Windmill Village was honestly pretty boring. Luffy was getting tired of it.

Might as well sneak aboard Shanks' ship and go exploring.

Shanks wasn't a Yonko yet, but his strength was still rock-solid. This guy had returned to Windmill Village several times already.

So sticking close to Shanks was actually a very safe travel plan.

Unfortunately, Shanks still rejected Luffy's official request to join the crew.

That means I'll have to sneak aboard.

Luffy began planning in his mind when to make the move. Meanwhile, Uta seemed a bit unwilling to part.

She never expected such a remote and barren island—where there was nothing to do or see—to have someone as fun and interesting as Luffy.

He was also the first peer she had spent any real time with. As she drank juice and glanced over at the boy beside Shanks, her thoughts were full of emotion.

"Uta, come sing for us! We haven't heard you sing in so long!"

One of the pirates, seeing Uta's gloomy mood, egged her on.

Luffy turned to look at Uta. He'd never actually heard her sing before.

The only time they'd had a singing match, he'd deliberately screeched off-key and overwhelmed her with sheer noise, causing her to forfeit on the spot in total defeat.

"Since you all want to hear it…"

Uta noticed Luffy looking her way. Her cheeks flushed red and she grew a little shy.

Is Uta's singing really that good?

Luffy had his doubts. When he watched Red-Hair Is the Diva's Dad in the original movie, he felt completely immune to the music. Honestly, he thought Binks' Sake sounded better.

"I'll grant your wish then," Uta said bashfully, standing up. She quickly pushed aside her awkwardness and returned to her usual confidence.

She really did love music.

And she was no stranger to the spotlight. There was no way a bit of shyness would stop her from performing.

After all, she was a princess and the darling of the Red-Haired Pirates.

Seeing that Uta was about to sing, the pirates quickly sprang into action.

They moved chairs out of the way, picked Luffy up, and placed him on the table. Two tables were pushed together in the center of the bar.

Despite the chaos, the pirates moved with rhythm and order. The sound of their footsteps seemed to match an imagined beat.

Uta closed her eyes and naturally stretched her arms outward. Two pirates, one fat and one skinny, gently held her hands and lifted her into the air.

She floated gracefully as they carried her to the tabletop. Beckman placed a blank sheet of paper in the center, and Uta stepped right onto it.

These pirates are world-class when it comes to pampering Uta…

Luffy was stunned by the scene.

"At this moment, flowers bloom, and the applause swells…"

Uta stood on the table, imagining herself not in a cramped countryside bar but on a grand stage in a big city.

Spotlights shone down on her. A roaring crowd cheered from below…

The pirates, following Uta's lead, began to clap in rhythm, eagerly awaiting her performance.

Luffy couldn't believe what he was seeing. No wonder she's a singing machine—this level of production is no joke.

Uta finished building the scene in her mind and finally opened her eyes. She scanned the "audience" and locked eyes with her peer.

"Although we've only known each other for a week… I'm really glad we met.

This song represents our friendship. Next time we meet, you better be stronger, okay…"

～

With those words, Uta began to sing.

How was the song? Luffy couldn't really say. But her voice was undeniably nice—young girl voices generally weren't unpleasant.

As he listened, Luffy began feeling sleepy.

After all, it was an a cappella performance. Even a sweet voice without accompaniment wasn't particularly exciting.

Music, to Luffy, needed strong instrumentals.

If the beat was good, even lyrics full of curses could sound catchy.

Hmm… If Uta ever did a performance full of swearing,

Luffy thought, I might actually stay awake for that.

Uta, completely absorbed in her musical world, didn't notice that Luffy was using her song as a lullaby.

Smack!

Suddenly, Luffy was jolted awake by the smack of a rolled-up newspaper.

He opened his eyes to see an angry Uta standing before him, hands on her hips and still holding the paper.

"Luffy, you JERK!"

She hurled it at his face and stormed out.

Crap, I fell asleep during her singing!

Luffy scratched his head, while the surrounding pirates gave him a sympathetic look.

I should apologize...

Luffy thought to himself.

After all, if he wanted to stay aboard the Red-Haired Pirates' ship, he still needed Uta's help to cover for him.

"Uta!"

With that thought, Luffy immediately ran out after her.

Hearing Luffy chasing behind her, Uta picked up her pace and ran even faster.

Under the moonlight, she rushed toward the coast, climbed the stairs up to the ship, ran to her room, and locked the door behind her.

Luffy was faster than Uta and had quick reflexes. He followed right behind her and managed to board Shanks' ship as well.

"Uta, open the door!"

Luffy, intentionally a beat slower, was now stuck outside, blocked by Uta.

"Luffy, you dummy! How could you fall asleep listening to my singing? Don't you know I wrote that song especially for you!?"

Uta shouted angrily through the door.

"That was my highest praise for your singing!"

Luffy's brain was firing on all cylinders, trying to justify himself.

"Ha? That's just plain disrespect!"

"What kind of fan falls asleep at a concert!?"

Uta shouted in frustration.

"Just open the door first, Uta! Let me explain slowly!"

The waves crashed rhythmically against the hull. Luffy yawned—this was usually the time he went to bed.

He had a healthy routine: after spending the day burning off all his energy, he'd go to bed as soon as the moon rose—part of his effort to grow taller.

So yes, Luffy was really sleepy. And on top of that, he had just listened to a lullaby.

Click.

With the sound of the door unlocking, Uta opened it just a crack, blocking the gap with her body. Pouting, her violet eyes stared at Luffy.

"You can talk. I'm listening."

"The highest praise for music… is when you can fall asleep to it. Listen, can't you hear the waves right now? Isn't that the most perfect sleep music ever?"

"Your concert didn't have any heavy instrumentals—it was pure a cappella. That's why I fell asleep listening to your voice.

If possible, I'd like to fall asleep to your singing every night…"

Luffy was spouting shameless nonsense, but the more he said, the more into it he got:

"Please believe me! I absolutely didn't think your singing was bad. Uta… from your voice, I realized something—

you're the kind of girl who could be my mom!"

Luffy said seriously,

"Only a mom's voice can make someone let down their guard and fall soundly asleep!"

"Eh?!"

Uta was stunned. Luffy's words were getting more and more outrageous. When she heard him say she could be his mom, she totally lost it.

That kind of compliment was just too weird!

She couldn't even tell whether he was praising or mocking her anymore.

Blushing furiously, Uta opened the door wider, stormed over, and began raining down little punches like raindrops.

"Luffy, stop saying weird stuff every day! Being a mom? That's just way too crazy…"

"I'm serious!"

Luffy declared solemnly:

"I grew up with just my grandpa. I only read in newspapers that mothers can sing songs that help their kids fall asleep quickly.

I think… Uta, that's what your voice is like."

There was some truth to that.

Luffy had indeed never seen his parents. He was raised entirely by Garp, who didn't even tell him his father's name.

If it weren't for the fact that he had transmigrated and knew the story, he wouldn't know his father was part of the Revolutionary Army.

Now, he figured his dad had defected from the Marines and become someone the world no longer dared mention.

"I see… That's called a lullaby, you dummy!"

This was the first time Uta heard Luffy talk about his past. She felt they had something in common.

She too had grown up without parents—Shanks had raised her after finding her in a treasure chest.

(Treasure chests are oddly good at producing orphans in the pirate world.)

Their similar backgrounds stirred sympathy in Uta's heart.

"Well, since you put it that way… I'll forgive you!"

Luffy's eyes lit up. He glanced at the moonlight outside and, seeing Uta letting her guard down, walked into her room and looked at her seriously.

"Please, Uta… I want to hear a lullaby before bed. Just once!"

Luffy put his hands together, bowing slightly in a formal plea.

"This is my once-in-a-lifetime request!"

"…"

"A lullaby…? I've never sung one before…"

Uta looked around, flustered. Her face was burning as she clutched the hem of her white dress. She never imagined Luffy would ask for that.

Meanwhile, Luffy was already lying on her bed.

Sleepiness, mixed with the rhythm of the waves, came crashing over him like tides.

"…I'll give it a try, just once…"

Uta's voice became softer and more unclear.

Luffy could only vaguely hear her begin to hum something.

Author Note: I didn't notice that Uta hadn't eaten the Devil Fruit yet due to that conversation with the World Government's deserter, so for now, she doesn't have any powers. It's a small oversight. She'll just get her powers later instead—treat it like an alternate timeline or side story from the movie. Nothing too major, can't change it now anyway.

(End of Chapter)