Sanji Kitetsu Chapter 6

Sanji is angry. It's not the burning rightous fury he's used to feeling when he sees a lady being mistreated or when a master of his steps out of line. It makes him confused and almost... embarrassed, as if he knows he shouldn't be angry but can't help it.

The apparent source of this anger is his mossy master, who's currently engaging in what can only be described as binge drinking. Sure, it's a welcome party where everyone is having fun, and sure, they're in the midding of a drinking competition, but instead of trying to out-drink his opponents, the swordsman seems to be using that as an excuse to drown himself in that toxic liquid as quickly as possible. No cheers or even pauses when the others admit defeat and leave the table. Just one jug after another.

Sanji has a rough idea why the man is binge drinking, and if his guess is correct, this probably happens on a regular basis. He nudges the white sword to encourage the lady to say something, but the white blade continues her act as an inanimate object.

Sanji is not angry at the lady. He is definitely not blaming her for refusing to resolve that irritating misunderstanding with their idiotic master. But the scene before him is making him crave a cigarette... or at least some second hand smoke that'd help calm his nerves in the days when he had a master who smoked.

Hey shithead, take it easy will you? You're not supposed to die of alcohol poisoning before I get the chance to kill you myself.

Why don't you tell Nami to take it easy? Zoro tilts his head to point to the next table and pours another jug down his throat.

Nami-san's clearly enjoying herself. See, she's laughing! You on the other hand look like you're planning your own murder.

Get used to it, Curly. This is how I have fun. Zoro wipes his mouth with the back of his hand after yet another jug. Sanji frowns at the man.

Remember the freeloaders on our way here? I heard they're part of Baroque Works. Sanji caves. He was trying to hold out passing the message as long as possible so that Kuina can do it herself, but it looks like she has no intentions of speaking to the man. At least the message seems to distract Zoro from the drinks.

Hn, bounty hunters? That's a shame. Their booze is good. Zoro smirks and slams his empty jug onto the table with an exaggerated thud and mutters "I can't drink... anymore..." in a horribly fake drunk voice before lying face down on the table.

Wake me up when they make their move. The swordsman instructs his blade. It only takes a few seconds before he begins snoring.

Phew. I thought he was drunk beyond reason. Sanji turns to white sword.

You don't ever have to worry about that. He's never drunk no matter how much he drinks. Kuina giggles for the first time since they set foot on the island.

Is that why you can sit back and watch him try to drown his misery with alcohol like this every time? Sanji hates how accusatory the question sounds. He also hates how good it feels to ask it. The white blade falls silent once again, and Sanji's mind races to pull together a decent appology.

Sorry, it's-

No, you're right. It was my fault he's not moving on, and I should've done something about it. But you see, I'm not the real Kuina. The previous Wado explained this to me before giving up her existance to make room for me. I'm just a projection, a copy of Kuina's thoughts and emotions at the time of the transfer. That's all we are as swords. We can grow and change through experiences, but we can't claim to be the human beings we once were. For me to talk to Zoro as Kuina would be out right deceit, and we'd both hate it.

At least you could let him know that Kuina didn't blame him for her death.

I can't say that. I'm not Kuina. I don't know for sure what she thought.

But you don't blame him. Why would you think she might've blamed him?

All I know is that she didn't blame him at the time of her death.

Then tell him that!

What good is it? I can't even channel the real Kuina if he wants to talk to her. Not the past one when she was alive, and not the spirit after her death either. What good is it for him to hear from a fake?

Let him decide if you're a fake or not. Sanji takes a deep breath, making sure his voice is calm and gentle this time. Tell him everything you told me and let him draw his own conclusions. He maybe an insensitive prick, but he's not unreasonable. He won't be offended if you're being honest, right?

You know him well for someone who just met him a couple weeks ago. Kuina giggles once more.

Ah sorry, I didn't mean to sound like a know-it-all. Of course you'd know him way better than me, having put up with that brute for so long...

Thank you, Sanji. I'll find the chance to talk to him.

"W-WHAT? TH-THIRTY MILLION BELI?!" A few voices shout in unison just outside the window before Sanji can reply. He looks up and finds the party room empty except the crew, all content and sound asleep. The swordsman stirs from the shouting.

Hey moss head, time to make up for the work you missed on the ship.

Zoro sits up and yawns before drawing Wado from her sheath.

Yeah, let's go.