Sabaody Archipelago — Grove No. 30, Live Square.
The crowd erupted in chaos. Reporters shouted over one another, while onlookers gawked at the image on the screen. The sudden appearance of the second Yonko, Sugisawa Yuuto, had thrown the entire square into pandemonium.
The public's attention shifted instantly. No one was talking about why people from Sabaody had been sent to the sky anymore—every gaze was fixed on one thing: the purpose behind Sugisawa Yuuto's shocking arrival at Marineford.
Moments later, under Admiral Akainu's command, countless cannons roared to life. Shells screamed through the air, hurtling toward Yuuto.
Watching the barrage, the onlookers tensed instinctively.
They knew what this meant. Another cataclysm was about to unfold.
Reporters frantically uncapped their pens, ready to record history again.
And sure enough—Akainu, the hero of the day's battle, stepped forward once more, launching a ferocious assault against the newly arrived Yonko. The air crackled with heat as magma surged toward Yuuto like a tidal wave.
But just when everyone thought the clash between a Marine Admiral and a Yonko was about to begin… something completely unexpected happened.
Sugisawa Yuuto didn't move.
Instead, the red-haired girl standing beside him softly began to sing.
Her voice—clear, ethereal, almost sacred—floated through the smoke.
The instant her melody touched the air, Akainu's blazing fist of magma froze mid-swing. The sea of fire dissipated in an instant, turning into harmless motes of light before vanishing completely.
The square fell silent.
"Wh-what just happened!?"
"Fairy Tail… what is going on with them?"
"The red-haired girl beside the Yonko Sugisawa Yuuto—is she one of them too?"
"She stopped Akainu's Magma Fist… with a song?"
"That was the same blow that killed Whitebeard!"
"Don't tell me that girl… she's as strong as an Admiral?!"
The spectators gawked, stunned beyond reason.
"Erza the Fairy Queen, Mirajane the Demon, Ulu the Ice Magician, Wendy the Sky Priestess, Urdia the Time Enchantress—Fairy Tail already has so many terrifyingly strong women!"
"And now there's another? A singer who can match an Admiral?"
"Where in the world is Sugisawa Yuuto finding all these ridiculously powerful women!?"
Jealous laughter and mutters rippled through the crowd.
"Out there he's got goddesses who fight for him, and back home—beautiful women serving him loyally… what kind of blessed life is this?!"
Men everywhere clutched their heads, faces red with envy.
"Before Fairy Tail came along," one commentator muttered, "the only truly powerful women on the seas were the Pirate Queen and Big Mom. But in just over a year, Fairy Tail's female fighters have changed the balance of the world!"
Haiming Skulachmanappu shook his head, speechless.
"To neutralize Akainu's Magma Fist so effortlessly—that frail-looking redhead isn't ordinary at all."
Mafia godfather Capone Bege's expression was grim.
"The question is… how did she stop him?"
Nearby, Rear Admiral Drake, one of the Marines secretly aligned with the underworld, muttered under his breath.
"Could it be a Devil Fruit? Her singing—did it transform the magma into sound?"
Sky Island's eccentric monk, Urouge, rested his chin on his hand.
"Maybe. But that voice… doesn't it sound familiar to any of you?"
Trafalgar Law narrowed his eyes.
"It does. I've heard it before. That melody—it's Fairy Tail."
Captain Kid clenched his fists.
"Exactly. That song was the first sign something was off. Every strange event we've seen started right after that singing began."
World Center — Holy Land, Mariejois
"Damn that Fairy Tail!"
"Damn them all!"
"It's all because of them! Those filthy pests are destroying our divine order!"
In the grand social square of Pangaea Castle, the Celestial Dragons—arrogant nobles of the world—had lost their usual smug calm. Their faces were twisted in rage.
"In front of Fairy Tail, our privileges mean nothing!"
"We are Celestial Dragons—descendants of the gods! Yet those… those animals dare challenge our authority again and again!"
Their shrieks echoed through the marble halls.
For the past six months, countless incidents involving Fairy Tail had shaken the world.
Celestial Dragons beaten in the streets of Sabaody.
Holy Nobles humiliated and publicly stripped of their power.
And every time, the culprits were the same—Fairy Tail.
Sometimes the guild acted on formal requests for help.
Other times, their women drew their blades simply out of righteous fury.
If a Fairy Tail mage saw a Celestial Dragon bullying civilians and didn't step in, she'd be too ashamed to return to the guild.
And of course, every time a Celestial Dragon was struck, an Admiral's pursuit followed.
But the Fairy Tail mages no longer cared.
Every squad had a powerful captain.
Their teamwork was flawless.
Even the Admirals couldn't bring them down.
Ulu, Ultear, Runti, Yamato—each had made headlines across the seas.
Gradually, after suffering defeat after defeat, even the Celestial Dragons began to understand:
Admirals were powerless against Fairy Tail.
The only way to stay safe… was to stay hidden.
They stopped going out.
They locked themselves away in Mariejois, stewing in resentment.
But that isolation was its own humiliation.
If they couldn't flaunt their status before the "untouchables," what was the point of being gods?
They were trapped in a cruel paradox—
Go out, and risk being beaten.
Stay in, and live like prisoners.
Never, in eight hundred years, had the Celestial Dragons suffered such indignity.
Their hatred toward Fairy Tail burned hotter than ever.
And now, with Sugisawa Yuuto's sudden appearance at Marineford, their fury boiled over.
"Where the hell is the Navy? Why haven't they taken that bastard down yet!?"
"They crushed Whitebeard's crew—what's there to fear now?"
"With the full power of Marineford assembled, this is the perfect time to kill him!"
"When he's captured, I'll make that lowborn swine my slave!"
"And those arrogant Fairy Tail women—they'll all serve me!"
"Go! Demand the Five Elders give the order!"
"This time, we cannot—must not—let that bastard escape again!"
Their roars filled the air, echoing through the holy city.
Inside Pangaea Castle, the Five Elders' Council Hall.
The five most powerful men in the world sat frozen in disbelief. Their aged faces had gone pale with shock.
"Just now… that song…"
"Could it be… where we are right now—"
"Yes. There's no mistake."
Their voices trembled.
"This place… this entire world…"
"…is the realm created by the Song-Song Fruit."
The room fell silent.
Even gods could feel fear.