Chapter Text
He looks so peaceful.
In the music world, he was all smiles and stretchy limbs, but here—in the real world where the sky is grey and the only sound is waves lapping against the shore—he looks so, so peaceful. It reminds her of those nights in Makino’s bar, pretending to be asleep while Shanks spoke in hushed tones.
That was a long time ago. They aren’t the same people they once were.
There was a small scrunch around his eyes, and his breathing was too rapid to truly convince anyone he was having a peaceful rest, but she could look past it. She always thought dying in your sleep would be the best way to go.
Even if he was a pirate, even if he brought terror to the lives of every citizen on every sea—Uta couldn’t be so cruel as to forget their bond. Even if Luffy did.
Her arms shook as she squeezed the hilt of the blade. The ragged leather dug into the soft meat of her hand, the sharp bite grounding her against the pounding in her skull.
Some weak, childish part of her wanted to gather Luffy in her arms and smooth his wild hair. She would blink, and instead of a war-hardened pirate, she saw a six-year-old boy who refused to admit defeat. Then she would blink again, and Luffy would be gone, Strawhat lying in his place.
She had to do this. She had to.
Becuase Luffy was just like Shanks now, and that goddamn straw hat was all the proof she needed. He wasn’t six anymore; he had to live with the consequences of his actions, just like everyone who’s suffered because of him.
“Oh, Luffy…” She reached a hand out, wiping some of the wet hair out of his eyes and cupping his face. She watched as his body relaxed just slightly, unconsciously leaning into her.
He looks so peaceful.
“I’m sorry, Luffy.” She pulls her hand back and lets the rough leather drag her back to reality. This is what she needs to do. The world sings for his blood, and how could Uta not deliver? Her fans—her subjects—are waiting.
She takes a deep breath and settles any doubt warring in her head. She needs to do the right thing.
It's scary just how easily a knife can tear through flesh and sinew. All it takes is a single powerful plunge into Luffy’s chest, and already blood is bubbling up to the surface, blotting his shirt a bright crimson. He tenses up, eyes squeezing tight and mouth parted in a soundless cry.
One part of Uta wilts under the guilt of causing another human such pain. The other part soars.
She’s never known such power before. One of the strongest pirates of the new era was at her mercy, trapped in a realm where he couldn't fight back, life hanging on her whims. That kind of control is intoxicating.
She tugged the blade back out, jerky movement twisting the knife and ripping Luffy’s flesh even more. His rubbery body was weird, trying to stretch around the blade before ultimately being sheared apart by the sharpened edge. She wants to try it again.
Again and again and again—it’s never enough. Even as Luffy’s face goes slack and pale, his body goes lax and limp, she doesn’t notice. Even as a new group approaches.
“Luffy!” A new voice roars over the bay, followed closely by a pressure that has Uta faltering.
She looks up, blade inches away from Luffy’s ribcage, and sees him. That damnable red hair stark against the mournful greys.
Shanks was here.
Shanks was here.
He’s standing on shore, uncharacteristic anguish bleeding from his face. In a blink, he’s crouched before her, violently ripping the knife from her hand and flinging it into the bay.
“Hongo! Get over here! Now!” He barks over his shoulder and turns away from Uta, pulling Luffy into his arm. “Oh god, Anchor…”
And it’s that callous disregard that snaps her out of her stupor. She tumbles back, landing on her ass in the mud, scrambling to get away from the man she used to call father.
“Shanks? What–why?” Her back presses against some rocks. She’s spent most of her life trapped on this godforsaken island, but never has she felt so caged. “How the hell are you here?”
She wants to cry. Uta's going to die
He looks away from Luffy, cradling his head so gently on his thighs, hand knotted in the boy's hair. His face twists, anguish shifting into grief and guilt. “We came here to make amends, to finally tell you the truth, but I…”
He looks back down at Luffy – still, dying, dying, dead Luffy – and his voice breaks. “What happened, Uta? Why did you…?”
He doesn’t sound like the monster she knows he is. He doesn’t sound cruel, angry, or even disappointed. He just sounds… Human.
He sounds like a man who lost his son.
Uta stares at him. Just stares and stares – even as Hongo, Benn, and the others arrive. Hongo takes one look at Luffy and shakes his head. As Benn swears, Shanks buries his head into Luffy’s hair.
There’s blood, Luffy’s blood, on her hands. It’s still warm and drying. Flakes uncomfortably sticking to her skin and buried deep under her fingernails. She killed Luffy.
“Uta.” Shanks is looking up at her (a monster who looks so much like a man. A monster who’s slaughtered thousands yet cries over one boy. Why hasn’t he killed her yet? Monster. Monster. Monster. Man. Father.) with tears in his eyes. “What happened?”
“He– he wouldn’t listen! If he just stopped being a pirate, I wouldn’t have had to!” Her explanation is frantic, legs trying to push her back but the damn bolder keeps her trapped with a grieving father. Maybe they’ll understand if she explains it. They’ll probably kill her anyway. “He’s surely ruined thousands of lives! Killed, stolen, and harmed so many people! I was just trying to protect them!”
Never mind that it was Luffy, who used to help rabbits out of snare traps and throw beached fish back into the river. Never mind that Luffy used to rant about freedom and adventure as if that’s all there was to piracy. People change—Uta did, and so did Luffy.
But as she looks at Luffy, who’s dwarfed in Shanks' arm, skin pale, frown permanently etched on his face, she wonders if that's true. He looks so small, always was the runt, but without that sunny smile and inability to sit still, it's so much worse. He doesn’t look like some fearsome pirate, 19 years old and already conquering the New World—instead, Uta sees him and suddenly, six-year-old Luffy doesn't look that far off from nineteen-year-old Luffy.
She stopped moving, and any fight left quickly drained from her body.
Of course, Luffy hadn’t changed. She should’ve known when he smiled at her in the Music World. Guileless and sweet, eyes only for an old friend. Luffy would always be Luffy—it's one of those universal constants.
And she killed him.
She hangs her head low and sobs.
She killed her little brother.
———————————
Luffy knew something was wrong with Uta.
Well, more wrong than what was happening right now. She’s been sporadic since he found her, muttering to herself and swaying from side to side. She kept looking at Luffy and didn't seem to actually see him.
Something had to be happening in the real world. He didn't know what it could be—the Marines? He hoped not. Uta needed help, not violence.
There's a little, hopeful part that says maybe it's Shanks. After all, his daughter was putting on a concert. Surely whatever had gone down between the two during that last voyage wouldn't keep Shanks from showing up.
He’s never known exactly what went down. Just that Shanks returned without Uta, telling Luffy she wouldn't be coming back. He could remember the vivid sorrow on the man's face when he pushed past Luffy and into Makino's bar. He could remember Benn shaking his head at Luffy, warning him from asking. So he bit the questions back and waited until someone told him. In the end, no one did.
This wasn’t something he could fix.
So he really, really hoped that Shanks was here. That he could talk Uta out of committing to whatever ridiculous plan she made up.
He tried to approach her, taking a few cautious steps toward his friend before quickly jerking to a stop. There was… There was something in his chest.
His breath rattled, and his legs began to shake. He stumbled back, pressing a hand against his chest as if it could do anything against the burning pain that raged under his skin. It was like someone was driving a molten stake through his chest, over and over again.
Eventually, he fell to his knees and squeezed his eyes shut in an attempt to ride out the pain. His hand twisted around his shirt in a useless attempt to find relief. He wanted to cry in pain, but the air seemed stuck in his throat.
It's like something was pressing against his throat. Caving in his airways and leaving him soundlessly gagging against the metallic tang coating his tongue.
But then, just as fast as it came, the pain began to fade. It didn't quite disappear, but suddenly he could cough and wheeze, spitting up red-tainted saliva. The molten lava cooled as his brain began to buzz. A hazy edge eclipses the corners of his vision.
He looked up, body shaking from the exertion, and his tunnel vision landed on Uta again. She wasn’t standing anymore—her body hunched over, heaving heavy, painful sobs that seemed to shake her entire body. She kept tugging at her face, grabbing handfuls of hair and violently ripping them away. She sobbed. Freely and openly wailing, uncaring for the snot and saliva that were flying everywhere.
Luffy was confused. He was so very confused.
“Uta?” He tried to croak before breaking off halfway into a coughing fit. The molten pain flared through his entire body again, blinding him in its sudden intensity. All he could do was curl up and try not to scream.
At some point, he realized that there was a hand on his shoulder, frantically shaking him. He pried his eyes open and looked up at a mass of red and white.
Uta’s face was a mess of tears and snot, eyes bloodshot and face blotchy. She was screaming, but he couldn’t hear it over the ringing in his ears. Why was she screaming?
“–uffy! Luffy, pleas– Luffy –er me!”
“Uta?” The pain was finally beginning to ebb away. Replaced instead by a new sense of numbness that should terrify him. He could see Uta's hand on his shoulder, but... but he felt nothing. He blinked at her, he didn't feel scared or even confused. He was just tired. “Uta... What...?”
“Luffy!” She wailed and pulled him in close. He didn't feel it when their heads roughly collided into each other—nothing beyond a distant static jolt. “Luffy, I’m sorry! I'm so sorry, Luffy! Please, you can't die!”
“Die?” he mumbled absentmindedly, trying and failing to flex his hand. “Why would I die?”
“I fucked up Luffy. I really fucked up.”
"Fucked up...?" What– Oh.
Everything clicked into place as Luffy fumbled for his chest.
That burning sensation… that strange numbness... He was dying. And somehow, it was Uta's fault.
Somewhere in the real world his body was inching closer and closer to death– or maybe it was already was. Maybe the only thing keeping him 'alive' was this mental prison Uta trapped him in. That thought should scare him, incite some kind of alarm bells that usually started blaring when an enemy got too much of an upper hand. If it had, it was fading fast.
Instead, he looked at Uta—his big sister, his first friend, his first loss—and could only think, 'huh, what a strange way to die.'
Luffy wasn't scared of death. He'd long made peace with it, whether he wanted to or not. His own death was not something that frightened him—inconvenienced? Sure, annoyed? Definitely—but he never feared it. Either he became the pirate king or died trying.
Other people though... He looked over at Uta—who looks like she hasn't slept in weeks and is two steps away from catatonic—and he knows she isn't ready for it. Luffy knows what that feels like (a burning, searing pain that had nothing to do with the burn on his chest, violent apathy for anyone or anything else), and he wishes Uta wouldn't have to know it too.
He'll just have to do his best to make sure he leaves her with one last good memory. One last chance to reconcile with reality and hopefully forgive herself. After all, Uta didn't have a Jinbe around to knock sense into her.
He pushed himself up, arms feeling more like wet noodles than actual muscle. It didn't hurt anymore, not beyond a buzz in his chest that might have once been associated with pain. (dying, dying, dying, Luffy is dying) It took more effort than he liked to half-walk, half-crawl over to Uta. He haphazardly threw an arm over her shoulders and tugged her into a fierce hug. His arms shook from the strain of pressing her into his chest, but he didn't mind.
“Uta.” He whispered, voice weak and far away.
“Luffy!” She sobbed into his chest, grabbing the edges of his shirt and somehow pulling him closer. She dug her head into his collarbone as if he'd crumble to dust the second she looked at him. "I’m so sorry!”
“Hey. It’s okay.” He hummed, trying to be soothing in the way Makino or Sabo were when he was young and scared. And it was strange, so strange, to feel her body but not the warmth (He was dead, he was dead, he was dead, he–) but he shoved that away. Uta was all that mattered. “Everything will be okay.”
“How can you say that?” She hiccupped between sobs. “Luffy, I stabbed you! You’re de–!”
Luffy was quick to press her head down, muffling the last word. His crew was beginning to close in, each one a bright light in his mind. It would be better if they left here without knowing. He knew his crew was just as reckless as Luffy himself when it came to keeping their Nakama together, but there was a difference between defying impossible odds and straight up doing the impossible.
You can't cheat death. His crew would only further endanger themselves for nothing, sticking around this poisonous world waiting for a miracle that can't happen.
"I know." He soothed. Gently, with all the dexterity he could muster, Luffy clumsily carded his fingers through her hair. Shanks used to do this a lot when they were kids, especially when Uta was really upset. All it did was cause her to sob harder, a hand curling into his own dirty hair.
"I'm sorry!" She whispered like a prayer. As if repeating it enough times could undo whatever she'd done.
“Hey Uta,” he mumbled once her sobs calmed down. He jerked his head towards his crew, just now cresting the hill and giving them a perfect view of Luffy and Uta. “Don’t tell them what’s happening, yeah?”
“What but- you’re dead!” This time, the declaration was much quieter. Shameful.
“Mhm. But if my crew found out… They aren't good at taking no for an answer, y'know? They need someone to look after them.” Luffy let out a weak laugh, only to stop as a harsh cough shook his body. “Mind doing me another favor while you're at it?”
“Luffy no–” She tried to pull herself away, trying to look at her younger brother. "I can't–!"
“Uta, please, listen to me. Dying man's request?”
“...Luffy.”
“Get everyone out of here. You want to make a new era, but this… this isn't right. You already know that, though. Deep down.”
Luffy pulled away from the embrace, calm brown eyes looking into her wet violet ones. He smiled at her, though it was far from the normal face stretching, impossible to do without a devil fruit, smile. It was a rare one, small and gentle, all sincerity and unfiltered love. It was something that could crush you under its weight.
“But you’ll– you–” Uta desperately tried to talk some sense into him, but her mouth wouldn’t work. All the fool did was laugh.
“That’s okay! I don’t mind dying.”
“I do!” She anguished. “I can’t lose you! I made a mistake, and I’m sorry! You can’t leave me, Luffy! Please don’t leave me too…”
He pulled her in tight again, each of them slotting so perfectly against each other. It was like the universe had carved each of them to be held by the other. As if two perfect halves of one whole.
There wasn’t much left he could do, but he needed to make sure his sister knew it wasn’t her fault. That no matter where Luffy went, he would always be with her.
“You won’t lose me.” He said with finality. The sun was bright, the moon would rise, and Luffy would never leave his family. “I won't leave you, Uta, never. But... please, you’ll kill yourself doing this.”
“I don't care!” Uta wailed, “I was planning to do that from the start! I can't– I can't live in this world anymore, not one built off the exploration and pain of others!"
She says she doesn't care but he can feel the way she shakes in his arms. Terrified. "You're scared." He says bluntly, "But that's okay, because you don't have to go through with this. You know, Shanks always said your music can change the world. It can, it already has. You can make this world a better place–"
“That’s the whole point of this, though!" She cuts him off. "To ease their pain and suffering, to make a utopia! I can do it!”
“You’re robbing people of their free will! A person’s most important treasure is their freedom, you know that! By keeping everyone here, you'd be their jailer and warden. You can't live in a prison, Uta.”
“Luffy…” She sagged against him.
“Set them free.” Luffy rested his head on her own. God, he was so tired. “This will only be another cage.”
She stayed quiet, pressed against Luffy as if he would turn to sand right between her very fingers.
“Please.”
She sighed, a deep, heavy thing that spoke of years of suffering and hardship. Luffy wished he could ease her pain, but he knew Shanks, wherever he was, would help her. At least he wouldn't be leaving her alone.
“Alright.” It was a small word, nearly incomprehensible even in their huddle. “Only because you asked.”
It was a poor attempt at a joke, but Luffy laughed all the same.
There was still so much he wanted to say to her – 13 years of lost time to catch up on. Earlier, he’d hoped to introduce her to Sabo and even visit Ace’s grave. He wanted to sail the ocean and show her everything he’d seen, to properly introduce her to his crew. He wanted to play stupid games and run around the Sunny like they were kids again.
But it’s okay. Luffy lived a good life, he lived with no regrets. He was disappointed that he couldn’t reach Raftale or watch Sabo overthrow the government, but he would get to see Ace again. He could tell his brother about all the adventures he’s had.
“Luffy, I love you.”
“I love you, too, Uta.” He gave her one last squeeze, holding her tightly. He could feel tears welling in his eyes. He wouldn’t be achieving his dream, but that’s okay. He was a man content with his life surrounded by the best crew a man could ask for.
Monkey D. Luffy lived a life few could.
———————————
Shanks watched, arm still wrapped protectively around Luffy, as Uta pushed herself to her feet. She had slumped to the ground a few minutes ago and hadn’t moved since, sobbing into the mud.
She wiped her eyes, smearing dirt, blood, and grass across her face.
He watched warily. He couldn’t read her, face so perfectly void of emotions it was unsettling. Behind him, he could feel his crew reach for their weapons.
She opened her mouth and Shanks’ body tensed. Anything could happen, but god be damned if he would let another scratch land on his son (Luffy had been his son as much as Uta was his daughter, no matter the flimsy excuse he tried to make).
She began to sing – a scratchy, messy lullaby left her lips. Her voice was wrecked and she frequently had to stop as a painful sob shook her, but she sang nonetheless. This wasn’t the Tot Musica. It was dirge, low, and mournful.
He watched, amazed, as the unconscious bodies around him began to stir. Around him his crew tightened ranks, ready to protect their Captain and Anchor. Shanks knew there would be no need.
They weren’t being controlled like puppets or being used in some sort of weird attack, Uta was freeing them. Something happened in the alternate world, someone was able to knock some sense into Uta’s big head. He had a feeling he knew who.
“Saving our ass from beyond the grave huh?” Shanks croaked out, and a wet laugh left his lips. “You really are something else.”
“Captain?” Hongo asked, looking down at his captain with red eyes.
“Seems Anchor helped us out,” Benn answered in his stead, and Shanks nodded in agreement.
This kid really was something else. Shanks ran his hand through Luffy’s limp hair and prayed that the kid knew just how proud of him he was. All of the Red-Hair Pirates were.
Around them the other Strawhats began to stir, groggily opening their eyes and reacquainting themselves with the real world. It was only a matter of time, Shanks knew they were going to wake up too. He just wished he had a few more seconds to say goodbye in private.
Off to the side, Uta finally collapsed, landing in the mud and ruining the remnants of her dress. He could still see the tears, carving a path through her grimy face. She curled into herself.
Shanks had kept up with every bit of news he could scrounge together about Luffy and all of the Strawhats. They were quite formidable – Luffy hadn’t lied when he said he would gather a crew to rival his – and so fiercely loyal. Just like Luffy, they were more than willing to declare war on the whole world just to save one of their own.
He’s seen it a thousand times before, how a crew falls apart without their captain, how they lose the will to live. The Strawhats wouldn’t be like most crews. They would crumble all right, but without Luffy, nothing would be able to reign in their anger. Without Luffy to balance them out, the Strawhats would destroy whoever caused their captain harm. Likely themselves in the process too.
Shanks knew he didn't have the right to stop them.
“Ugh… what happened?” the blond cook – Vinsmoke Sanji if he remembered right – grumbled. He slowly sat up, rubbing his forehead
“How the hell am I supposed to know, Shitty Cook?” Roronoa Zoro – first mate, or technically captain now, of the Strawhats – grouched back. Shanks had heard tales of his skill, of the ability to split mountains and rend flesh in the same strike. Even Mihawk had a begrudging respect for the kid.
“Clearly I wasn’t asking you, Marimo!” Sanji yelled, snapping his head around to glare at Zoro.
“Both of you, knock it off!” Cat burglar Nami, their fiery navigator, yelled. She kicked viciously at the two. “We’ll just have to ask Luffy, he was the one talking to Uta.”
At the mention of the younger boy’s name, Uta hitched out a sob, curling further into herself.
All the conscious Strawhats finally realized they had an audience. Zoro was already on his feet – sword in hand. His eyes darted around the small island until they landed on Shanks. Or more specifically, the young boy huddled against his chest.
He’d seen it a thousand times before, but never had it hurt like this.
“Luffy!” Zoro drew everyone’s attention as he sprinted over to Shanks. With gentleness unbefitting of such a strong man, he pulled Luffy out of Shanks' arm and cradled his former captain.
“No. No, no, no. Luffy!” Nami was quick to join the swordsman, hands hovering just over Luffy’s skin. Afraid to touch him and confirm what she was seeing. “Hey Luffy. C’mon, this isn’t funny.”
“Luffy!” Sanji and Usopp – who must’ve just woken up – scrambled to get to their captain. Usopp stopped just short, mirroring Nami’s reservations and covering his mouth instead.
Sanji surged forward in his stead, grasping his hand as if it were his only lifeline. “Luffy no, you can’t do this to us!”
Another person approached, one Shanks hadn’t even noticed until she was looming over him. Nico Robin, the Devil Child of O’hara– her face was as impervious as stone, but the pure fury radiating off her was enough to make even the strongest man blanch.
“What happened?” Her voice was deceptively calm, but the promise to kill raged underneath. Shanks knew she was an assassin before she was a pirate, and he knew that she would make good on that promise in the most painful way possible.
Surprisingly someone beat Shanks to his answer.
Uta, uncurling around herself and looking upon the Strawhats with guilt and anguish, spoke first. “I– I killed him.”
“What?” Robin turned and Uta trembled under the woman's gaze. She didn't even try to escape when dozens of hands sprouted and held her against the muddy ground.
“I’m so sorry!” she wailed, lowering her head so she wasn't forced to look them in the eye. “I stabbed him because he was a pirate! I thought – I thought it would make the world a better place! I’m sorry!”
“Sorry? Sorry won’t bring our fucking captain back!” Usopp tore his gaze away from Luffy to glare at Uta. His hands clenched around his slingshot, just itching for a reason to shoot. “What kind of shitty excuse is that? Making the world a better place – do you even know what Luffy’s done? How many lives he's saved?”
Uta just kept repeating ‘sorry’ over and over again. She was waiting for the Strawhat’s judgment. They all were.
“Is sorry all you can say?” Nami viciously snarled at the diva. “Stop crying and answer us!”
She just cried harder.
“In that world, Luffy was talking to you.” Zoro strode forward – having safely deposited Luffy in Sanji’s arms and now drawing both swords. He crouched down in front of her. “What did he say?”
Uta hiccuped around a sob before she could answer. “He told me to look after you guys for him.”
“Shitty Captain,” Zoro swore but stood back up. “He forgave you, didn’t he?”
Uta nodded.
“Fuck.” Zoro sheathed his sword and the rest of the Strawhats stood down. Robin released her clutch and rushed to Luffy. They didn’t bother to acknowledge anyone else as they huddled around their captain, not anymore.
Defeat hung heavy in the air. This wasn’t how his story was supposed to end, not even close. Shanks had seen the makings of a great pirate in this kid, one who would shake the very foundation of the world, and bring about an era that others could only dream about.
He was cut down too soon. The world may call it a victory for mankind, a monster finally defeated, but Shanks knew this could only be a tragedy.