One Piece: Dream of Immortality

Chapter 562 - Possession

Music blared from Tot Musica, almost more cacophony than anything one might want to dance to.

A signal wasn't necessary, because the arrival of the demon couldn't be missed by anyone on the island. All of the combatants lying in wait sprang into action, several of whom launched attacks at their enormous enemy.

Cherry felt her faint connection with her body shudder and strengthen. Both worlds were bleeding into each other now, she could tell, and she wasn't quite sure if that was a good thing or not.

Uta rode atop the demon's head, serving as both singer and conductor in this mad performance. Cherry hoped she wasn't completely lost to the madness, as she'd hate to have to tell Luffy such dour news so soon after his hard fought victory.

As the others began to engage futilely against the demon, Cherry started to receive information from her physical senses in the real world. It seemed like her body was having a whale of a time fighting Tot Musica, which confirmed what Cherry suspected; that all her smarts came with her into this world.

'Honestly, we have no idea what this thing is capable of...' Cherry clicked her tongue. 'We should just let all these other goobers test the waters first.'

'What fun is that?!' her body returned with a mad cackle.

'Am I really like this?' Cherry rubbed her chin. 'Maybe Robin's right. I should stop letting the booze get me drunk.'

Cherry watched on for a few moments, only to conclude that Tot Musica was most likely just a big brute. There didn't seem to be any trickiness to it at all, in fact it was doubtful if it was even conscious enough to be tricky.

At least, that's what she thought until it kind of swallowed Uta.

"Uh oh," Cherry muttered.

That couldn't be good.

...

"Uta!" Shanks shouted in alarm.

He had just been about to reach his daughter before she suddenly plunged into the demon's hat like it were the dark surface of a bottomless ocean.

Afterwards, it swiftly grew in size as well as power. The mindlessness of Tot Musica became less pronounced as it did so, becoming smarter with each passing second.

A dark thought entered his mind, that the demon was possessing his daughter or perhaps consuming her to fully awaken itself.

"Ohhhhhhhh!" Other Cherry righted herself from a rather nasty blow she took. "This is really weird. I never imagined that a devil fruit awakening could look like this."

"It is?" Shanks was shocked. "This is Uta's devil fruit awakening?"

"Not hers; his," Other Cherry shook her head. "I honestly think he'd have been better off just dying, though. Preserving yourself in a half life like this... I just can't imagine it."

"Well, is there anything you can do about it?! My daughter is in there!" Shanks shouted.

"Oh, we just gotta hit him in the same place at the same time as the people on the inside," Other Cherry said. "Did I not mention that?"

"No!" Shanks answered.

"Well, I did now! Left hand!" Other Cherry laughed.

...

Turns out that having two Emperor class pirates and a handful of other powerful people on both sides made things very easy.

Tot Musica was going down like a chump once they got coordinated, which Cherry supposed was actually easier said than done for most people even if they were powerful enough to pull it off.

Most of the demon was reduced to... glitter? Yeah, glitter. It was shaped like musical notes, but it was basically glitter. All that remained of him now was the head, but that was also perhaps the most dangerous part.

Energy blasts tore out of his toothy maw with wild abandon. As it turned out, wild abandon wasn't the best strategy if you were actually trying to hit Cherry.

She weaved between the streak of roiling red with ease, squeezing through an impossibly narrow gap right at the end and slamming into Tot Musica's face at a speed too fast for average men to follow with their eyes.

Shanks and Other Cherry did something similar on the other end with impeccable timing. As a result the rest of Tot Musica began to dissolve, as did the wild alterations he had done to his surroundings.

"I did it!" Foxy shouted from down below. "Without me here, you would have all been doomed! My slow beam saved the day and the world!"

Cherry decided to just ignore the fool.

...

"Uta!" Shanks found where she had landed after Tot Musica vanished. His crew's doctor tossed him a bottle. "Drink this! After that, if you go to sleep right away, then you'll come out okay."

"Shanks..." Uta spoke sleepily. "I didn't want to see you again, but..."

"I'll go away again if you want, just drink!" Shanks hurried her.

*pop* *pop pop*

Gun shots went off in the distance. Sleepwalking concert goers continued to struggle against Shanks' crew and the marines.

*Smash!*

"What-?" Shanks looked at the bottle, smashed on the ground.

"I can't... sleep yet..." Uta tried to stand. "It's been using me all this time... Ever since the first time I summoned it, it never left me. My dream was a lie... so I have to fix this. I have to sing to set them free."

Shanks didn't like it. He hated it, in fact.

However, he couldn't let even more innocent lives stain his little girl's conscience. Since this was what she wanted, he would... he would just have to figure something out after, somehow.

He knew that thought was false hope the moment he thought it, but he had to cling to it anyways.

Uta began to sing once more. This time there was no band, and it was not fast paced and peppy like her other songs. It was like a lullaby, only it was meant to wake the sleeping rather than the opposite.

The sleepwalkers started to slump and topple over. While their bodies had been asleep, their spirits had been awake for nearly a full day and it had been exhausting besides.

Shanks watched what he refused to admit to himself was her last performance in silence, just appreciating it while he could.

The song came to a gentle end and Shank refused to let tears fall. He couldn't show her a sight like that.

"I didn't believe in you, but you still came to help me... Thank you," Uta slumped against him, no longer able to stand.

"You don't need to thank us, but you're always welcome," Shanks gave her a smile he hoped didn't look too sad.

"Well, now," Kizaru spoke, his voice carrying over to them easily. A thousand guns rattled as they were aimed at them. "Why don't you hand her over now?"

"This girl is a precious member of our family," Shanks growled. "If you want her, you have to go through all of us first!"

*VOOOOOOOOOOOOM*

A wave expanded out from him and almost physically struck the marines. All of the fodder went out like a light, and even some vice admirals couldn't withstand it.

"Wow, is this the Conqueror's Haki of an Emperor? Impressive," Kizaru praised half heartedly.

*chomp*

"AGH?!" Kizaru threw the offending owner of the teeth over her shoulder. "You bit me?!"

"I'm gonna do more than bite you in a second, hehehe~" Cherry spat his blood onto the ground. "Or maybe I should go get some more celestial piggies and find me a slaughterhouse?"

Kizari narrowed his squinty eyes. "You wouldn't. You'd be putting everyone you care about in danger."

"And I'll be telling everybody who's to blame!" Cherry showed off her bloody teeth in a predatory grin.

Kizaru studied her. "Fine, but I'll have to report this, you know? They won't let you keep making threats without making countermeasures."

With that, Kizaru stepped back, though he didn't abandon his marines to whatever fate these pirates might bestow upon them.