Author's Note: Warning! This story has some spoilers for Chapter 1023 in the manga (Act III of the Wano Arc.) So if you're not caught up to that point, I'd turn back down. The entire fanfiction is based on one of the theories about that chapter.
"Change. Him. Back!" Roronoa Zoro roared, his sword aimed up at the King of the Germa Kingdom's throat. The guards surrounding the tall blond man began shouting and scrambling, trying to protect their ruler. The king himself merely looked down at Zoro with annoyance.
"Change who back exactly, Roronoa Zoro?" the man asked, contempt dripping from every word.
"Our crappy cook. Like you didn't know," Zoro snarled, sword still pointed at the bastard's throat. The Germa soldiers were spreading out around them. Vinsmoke Judge glanced around at his men.
"Stand down," he ordered. "It appears the failure's crew would like to discuss something with me." Zoro didn't miss the slight stress on the word failure. With that, the Germa king looked over in the distance at the small group standing a few yards behind Zoro. Luffy. Nami, Chopper. And the entire reason they were here in the first place- the cook himself.
Growling under his breath, Zoro lowered his sword and sheathed it. He looked up at Judge with a glare before standing to the side so the Germa king could walk past. As he did, he heard snickers coming from behind tall man. Zoro spared a glance at the small group with various hair colors but matching curly brows.
"Oh, what did Sanji do now?" the one with the green hair chuckled.
"Probably something stupid. You know how it is with that failure," the blue-haired one continued, before bursting into laughter. The red-haired brother didn't say anything, but there was something unsettling about the smirk on his face. The pink-haired woman was trying to keep her expression carefully schooled into a neutral one, but Zoro could see the slight lines of worry on her forehead.
At least someone in that family pretends to give a crap about the cook, Zoro thought before turning away and following after Judge.
The small group of Straw Hats tensed as Judge approached, except for Sanji, who simply looked up at Judge nonchalantly, like he was simply taking a glance at the sky to note a change in the weather. Luffy stood to the cook's right, ready to stand in front of the chef should he need to. Nami was on the cook's left, clutching Sanji's arm like she feared the Vinsmokes were going to take him away again (Zoro couldn't help but think the cook's lack of reaction to Nami's grip just spoke volumes about what was wrong.) And Chopper stood in his Heavy Point form, his massive hands on Sanji's shoulders.
The Germa king stopped about a yard away from the small group and crossed his arms. "Well? Your crewmate seems to think there's something wrong with you, boy. What is it?"
Three weeks earlier…
Zoro was the first to notice it. Maybe it was because the two just understood each other's irritating habits so well. Or perhaps it was because Zoro had been there when Sanji had first mentioned that wearing the Raid Suit was making him feel "weird." But whatever the reason, he noticed it when the cook's behavior began to seem off.
At first, it was little things. The cook, usually hot-tempered and ready for a fight, just kept letting arguments go, often with a muttered, "Whatever, Mosshead. I need to finish preparing this," before turning away. His movements in the kitchen seemed stilted and stiff, not like he was in pain, but rather like he was uncomfortable in his own skin. And he stopped humming while he was cooking.
So Zoro brought it up to Luffy. Best for the captain to know after all.
"Something wrong with Sanji?" Luffy repeated, tilting his head in thought at Zoro's question. "Something's…different, but I don't know if something's wrong."
"Just…help me keep an eye on him, okay, Captain?" Zoro requested.
The next day brought them a battle with some Marine ships. Only the best of the best of the Navy fought in the New World, so these Marines were tough, as were the ships they travelled in. Eventually, the Navy had them surrounded. At some point after that, Zoro noticed, the cook disappeared. A few minutes later, several of the Navy ships started sinking or listing to the side and taking on water, their crews running and scrambling in a panic.
"There!" Nami cried out, pointing to a suddenly convenient opening in the Navy blockade. Jinbei didn't need to be told twice; the helmsman rushed them through as Franky prepared and launched them away with a Coup de Burst just minutes later.
Several minutes after they landed, the cook appeared on deck, the invisibility of the suit deactivating, still dressed in that ridiculous black superhero getup.
"Sanji-kun!" Nami cried with relief.
"We were afraid we'd accidentally left you behind," Robin explained morosely.
"You did." The cook replied tonelessly.
Everyone stood in shocked silence for a moment. Then Franky started sobbing, one massive hand wrapping around Sanji's shoulder. Rather than getting annoyed and kicking Franky away, the cook just stood there, ignoring the cyborg.
"We're so sorry, Curly-Cook! We never meant to leave you behind! It must have been so scary!" Franky wailed.
"It's fine. I caught up," Sanji replied, just as emotionlessly as before. Like it didn't matter a lick to him that he'd nearly accidentally been left behind by his own crew. Once again, an uncomfortable silence fell over the Straw Hats. Franky stopped crying and slowly removed his hand from Sanji's shoulder.
"Eh, hehe! W-well, that sure was something, Sanji! Did you take out all those ships by yourself? With the suit? That was incredible!" Usopp said, trying to break the tension and sincerely complimenting his crewmate's efforts at the same time.
"It was nothing. Just my duty," the cook replied, like he had done no more than handle a small errand for all of them. Deactivating the suit, he took out a cigarette and lit it before putting his hands in his pockets and heading for the kitchen. "I'm going to get started on dinner."
After the galley door shut, everyone looked at each other.
"So we're all in agreement that that was weird, right?" Usopp began.
"Is there something wrong with him, Chopper-bro?" Franky asked their young reindeer doctor. Chopper tapped his hooves together.
"He said his skin's been feeling weird lately."
"Weird?" Zoro asked, the conversation in Wano immediately coming to mind with the word. "Weird how?"
"Well, he said it wasn't painful or itchy. Just that his skin felt… off. Somehow," Chopper tried to explain. "He wouldn't let me examine him, so I gave him some cream that I thought might help. But he hasn't said anything about it since."
"Perhaps Sanji-san's merely tired or stressed. Everyone has days where they aren't quite themselves," Brook tried to reassure them all.
"Maybe," Jinbei agreed. "What are your thoughts, Captain?"
All eyes turned to Luffy, whose straw hat currently shaded his eyes from view.
"I think…" Luffy began his voice quiet and serious. Then he raised his face, a sunny expression on it. "We should eat!"
"You idiot!" Nami shouted, whacking Luffy with her clima-tact. "Sanji-kun could have something wrong with him and all you can think about is your stomach!"
"But…that's why we should eat," Luffy explained, rubbing the growing bump on his head.
"Listen, you! We need to-!"
"No, he's right," the swordsman quickly interrupted. "If something's really wrong with the cook, the kitchen's the best place to see it."
There was a little bit of grumbling and murmuring after that, but a few at a time they began to pile into the dining room. Sanji ignored every single one of them and simply kept preparing the meal.
Watching him in the kitchen now, it was even more obvious to Zoro that something was wrong with the blond. The cook's movements, normally graceful and smooth, seemed stiff and unnatural somehow. He continued to focus single-mindedly on the meal, ignoring Luffy and Usopp's antics, Franky and Brook's noise, even the presence of the girls.
"Hey, Nami," Zoro said, turning to the navigator. "Ask the cook for a drink."
Nami, who'd been watching Sanji herself, didn't need to be asked twice. She gave the swordsman a nod and stood up.
"Oh, Sanji-kun!~" she called. The cook paused, his head turning towards Nami slightly. Out the corner of his eye, Zoro noticed Franky, Jinbei, and Brook stop their conversation and watch the exchange. Robin, sitting next to Nami, was already paying attention.
"Yes, Nami-san?" Sanji asked in a normal tone of voice. No twirling, no gushing, no heart eyes. Zoro never thought he'd miss the annoying behavior. At least the cook was still using the honorific.
"I'm thirsty," Nami continued, as if she hadn't noticed the cook's unusual demeanor. "I'd like a drink, please."
"Very well, Nami-san," the cook replied, still facing away, still in his emotionless, normal tone of voice. "After I get this food in the oven, I'll prepare one for you. It'll take about twenty minutes."
Everyone in the dining room, except Luffy who was in his own little world, went silent.
"Heh. Uh, Sanji? I think you mean I'll make it for you right this second, my sweet mellorine! Right?" Usopp asked, doing an incredibly good imitation of the cook in his love-struck mode. Luffy and Chopper both started laughing at it. The cook turned around.
"No, Usopp," Sanji answered, completely calm and not at all angry that Usopp had just made fun of him and two of the crew were still laughing at him, what the hell?! "It is my duty to prepare meals for the entire crew. That must come first. I'll make Nami a drink when there is time to make one."
With the exception of Luffy again, Zoro was fairly certain the entire crew was holding their breath now.
"The universe is caving in on itself. That is the only explanation," Usopp muttered, lowering his head as sweat poured down his brow. Nami slowly sank into her seat, an incredulous look on her face. Chopper jumped up from his chair.
"Sanji! What's wrong?! Are you sick?! Please, tell me what's wrong!" the reindeer cried in a panic, rushing into the kitchen.
"Hey, Chopper, don't—" Zoro started, getting up himself and following the doctor. The swordsman wasn't sure what was going on with the blond bastard, but panicking and crowding him wasn't likely to help. Plus, sometimes Chopper needed to be reminded that he was their doctor and that usually calmed him down.
So it was that Zoro was standing in the kitchen when Chopper reached Sanji and started hitting his little hooves on the cook's leg.
Clang. Clang. Clang.
Chopper stopped in surprise. Zoro's eye widened. Out in the dining room he could hear Franky ask what that weird banging sound was. Sanji turned to the little reindeer and placed a gentle hand on Chopper's pink hat.
"Enough, Chopper. Stop that." The cook stated before turning back to the food.
"Sanji, what…?"
"What the hell was that?!" Zoro shouted. He could hear chairs scraping and the murmur of voices as the others started to move, probably getting ready to stop a fight before one broke out. Zoro didn't care. He unsheathed Kitetsu. The scrambling sounds in the dining room went up a notch. Zoro ignored them and pointed the cursed sword at blond man before him. "Are you even the damn cook?"
Sanji turned and looked Zoro squarely in the eye, completely ignoring the sword pointed at his face. "Yes, I am."
"Chopper, tap his leg again." Zoro ordered, not lowering the sword an inch or taking his eye off the blond. At the bottom edge of his vision, he could see Chopper raising his arms, tapping the cook's leg again.
Clang. Clang. Clang. Clang.
"Now, Cook, what the hell is that?" Zoro pressed again. The cook finally took his eyes off Zoro's and looked down at his own hands.
"I'm…not sure," the blond admitted.
"Is there something wrong with your leg, Sanji?" Chopper asked, bending down to roll the cook's pant leg up.
"Not just my leg exactly." The cook replied. He looked back up at Zoro's face then raised one of his hands, holding up a single finger and pressing it to the tip of Kitetsu. Panicked shouts erupted from the dining room as the cook continued to press his finger into the blade.
"The hell are you doing-?!" Zoro exclaimed, worried at first that the bastard was going to hurt himself. Then realized, to his shock, that the sword was actually being pushed back. Not only that, but as Sanji continued to push his finger into the blade, Zoro realized the man wasn't bleeding. Not even a drop. Finally done with his demonstration, the cook lowered his hand.
"It's my skin," Sanji explained. "It's hard. Like…like…"
"Like armor. Or a shield," Chopper finished. For the first time that day, Zoro saw a flash of worry on the cook's face before he nodded in agreement. The doctor continued, "How long has this been going on?"
"The skin thing started a few days ago. Got a bit worse today." Sanji answered.
"A few days ago?" Zoro repeated. "It's the damn suit, isn't it? A few days ago was when we fought off those bounty hunters. Every time you put it on, you get weirder and weirder, Curly Brows."
"Told you, it's my body, not my eyebrows."
"So, it would seem Vinsmoke Judge found a way to correct his failure, as it were," Jinbei commented. The cook's head snapped towards the fishman, an unreadable expression on his face. Nami gasped.
"He said that…back when we were escaping Big Mom's territory." Nami explained, her voice tight with emotion. "Your fath…Judge complained that you couldn't use your skin as a shield. And that you had emotions. And you told us later it was because you weren't modified. Unlike your siblings."
"Wait, wait! I read about that kind of stuff in Vegapunk's lab. It would take manipulating Cook-Bro's Lineage Factor to do those things. It's some super advanced medical science. And you're saying his Raid Suit can do that?!" Franky asked, incredulously. "Germa technology must be insane."
"Sanji, why didn't you tell me?!" Chopper cried, tears filling his eyes.
"What could you have done, Chopper?" Sanji asked, blunt and cold. "You're a doctor, not a scientist." Zoro felt his blood start to boil.
"Hold on! This didn't happen all at once. Even back in Wano, you knew something was off. And you knew the stupid suit had something to do with it. So why did you keep using it?!" Zoro demanded. To his credit, Sanji had the grace to look away, ashamed, before he answered.
"Luffy, he's… he's going to be King of the Pirates. There's really no turning from that course now," the cook answered, hesitation in his voice. "And that means fighting stronger and stronger enemies. And that means…"
"That you have to get stronger and stronger too, Shit Cook? No matter what it takes?" Zoro growled.
"If I hadn't put it on today, would we have escaped the Navy?" Sanji asked plainly.
"We would have found some way! We always do!" Zoro shouted.
"So, you not only put your life, but your very humanity on the line to save us all?" Robin asked, taking a sip of tea. She set the cup down. "Instead of putting your trust in us? Sanji, I'm disappointed."
Zoro watched the cook's face flush a little at Robin's admonishment.
"So we need to find the cook's family and make them change him back," Zoro stated, sheathing Kitetsu and crossing his arms. "Sounds easy enough."
"Not quite, Zoro-san. Remember, these are the Vinsmokes and Germa 66 we are talking about. They're masters of assassination and espionage." Brook spoke up. "And remember, most of the world thinks they're a myth. Staying hidden is something they're skilled at."
"Yes, but we can't just leave Sanji-kun like this…" Nami protested.
"Who cares?"
All eyes darted to their captain, sitting at the head of the table.
"Luffy, do you understand what's at stake here?" Jinbei asked carefully. Luffy waved his hand.
"So Sanji's skin's hard and he won't make drinks for Nami as fast as he used to. He still cooks, he's still here, and he's still Sanji," Luffy replied, a big smile on his face. Zoro gave a quick glance around the room. Some of the crew looked a little more at ease at their captain's words. He was surprised to see the cook was one of them. Just glad that our captain accepts you no matter what, eh, Cook? But he could still see the worry in some of the faces. Jinbei's. Nami's. Robin's. Chopper's. Of Brook's feelings, he wasn't sure. But it was always hard to tell with a man who had a skull for a face.
Sanji continued cooking after that and the conversations around the table continued, even if they were a little more uneasy than before.
Finally, the cook bought the meal to the table and everyone dug in. Zoro ate a few bites. It was…the most bland food he had ever had prepared by Sanji's hands. A quick look around the room told him everyone else thought the same. It was cooked correctly—meat, vegetables, and rice were all cooked like they should be. But the art was missing. The blend of spices and flavorings that Sanji used to change every meal from plain nourishment to a delight of the senses. It was gone completely. Zoro was fairly certain the rice balls he'd eaten from the dirt the day he'd met Luffy had tasted better.
At the head of the table, their captain whined.
"Saaaanjiiiiii! There's barely any meat on my plate! It's almost all veggies!"
"You get more nutrition from the vegetables than from the meat." The cook replied without pause. Luffy whined again, but kept to Sanji's one rule: he finished all the food on his plate. Then he set his fork down.
"We need to find the Vinsmokes!" Luffy declared in panic.
Present Day…
And now here they were.
It had taken them a nearly a week of searching, asking for any information on the infamous evil army, when the shitty cook himself suggested a practical solution to their problem.
"Why don't I just call Reiju? She left me her number, just in case."
"Why didn't you tell us that in the first place?!" half the crew screamed at him.
The cook shrugged, unaffected. "I didn't think Luffy was serious. Then I overheard Nami-san asking for information on the Vinsmokes on that last island, so I thought…"
"Just give me the number!" Nami shrieked.
And so they were here, on a small and uninhabited yet stable New World island, the Thousand Sunny on one side, the giant snail ships of Germa 66 on the other, and the two parties meeting in the middle. The only reason Zoro put any trust in this meeting was that Sanji's sister had suggested it and Luffy claimed that she could be trusted. It eased the swordsman's worries a bit more to discover that the Straw Hats had arrived to the meeting site first, but not much.
Judge stood with his arms crossed, waiting for Sanji's answer. Despite the utter lack of concern showing on his face, the cook took a deep breath before he answered.
"Like the swordsman said. I've changed. My skin is hardening like armor. I'm less emotional." He glanced down at his hand, which started turning fainter and transparent. "And I discovered yesterday, I can turn partially invisible, but not as well as when I wear the suit." Sanji returned his hand to normal and looked back up at Judge, who, Zoro was displeased to note, had an excited gleam in his eye. "In short, I seem to be turning into what you always wanted me to be. And we strongly suspect the Raid Suit has something to do with it."
Judge took a step forward and all the Straw Hats reacted: Zoro removed his sword from its sheath, Luffy stepped in front of Sanji, Nami clutched the cook's arm tighter, and Chopper lowered into a fighting crouch, his arms still clutching Sanji's shoulders. The Germa soldiers were shouting and in the distance, Zoro could hear the color-coded siblings laughing manically. In short, this entire meeting was seconds from becoming an all-out brawl.
Surprisingly, it was Judge-the man who was the head of an evil army of assassins- that stopped the scene from descending into utter chaos. "STOP IT ALL OF YOU!"
The Germa soldiers paused, then stepped back several paces. The laughter from the siblings stopped at once. Judge glanced around at the Straw Hats.
"I need to examine him," he explained curtly. Luffy stared up at the Germa king for a long moment, not flinching, as though he could read something in Judge's eyes that none of the rest of them could see. Finally, the captain of the Straw Hat Pirates nodded and stepped aside. At his signal, Zoro sheathed his sword and he watched Chopper release the cook's shoulders and take a step back. The only one who didn't let go was Nami, who glared up at Judge with a look that was equal parts frightened and angry. The Germa king took another step forward then looked over at Nami.
"Relax, girl. I'm not going to hurt him," he assured her. Zoro felt his hackles rise at the man's condescending tone, but Nami finally released her hold and stepped away.
Judge grabbed Sanji's chin in a firm grip and turned his head slowly this way and that. Then he lifted one gloved hand and flicked a finger against the cook's cheek—as it did in the kitchen, the cook's skin echoed with a faint clang. Nodding in satisfaction, the Germa king lifted a lock of Sanji's hair, looking closely at the roots—which, Zoro just noticed, were turning a definite shade of black.
Throughout the entire examination, Sanji didn't protest or even look bothered by it. Somehow, that disturbed Zoro more than anything else. No matter how often he tried to hide it with a cool and suave exterior, the cook was ruled by his emotions—whether it was his fiery temper in the heat of battle or his passionate feelings towards women. And he hated being touched by men. To see the cook in this state was more than a little unnerving.
Finally, Judge seemed to have finished his examination. He lifted Sanji's chin so that he was looking his disowned son in the eye. "How many times have you used the Raid Suit, Sanji?"
"Six times."
"Ah," Judge said, a smile coming to his face. "So more than halfway there."
Zoro saw Sanji's eyes actually widen in fear at that statement before the blank expression returned, as though it was a chore to maintain an emotional response for more than a moment.
"What do you mean more than halfway?!" Chopper asked, fear, anger, and disgust lacing his voice.
"It's rather simple, really," Judge answered with a malicious chuckle. "I finally found a way to give this failure the Lineage Factor modifications he should have had from birth. Exoskeleton skin. Stealth abilities. Increased speed and strength. Even suppressed emotional responses. And complete obedience to my every order. In short, the perfect soldier! And I found the best way to do it too. Why, what better way than utilizing a device that uses his Lineage Factor to unlock anyway—the Raid Suit!"
"His Lineage Factor…that's why the suit only ever worked for Sanji!" Chopper realized. "But…how did you make it so the suit could change his Lineage Factor as well?"
"I assure you, the science and technology is far beyond what any of you…pirates…could possibly comprehend," Judge answered arrogantly.
"That…doesn't make sense," Sanji said, speaking slowly, as though thinking something through. "Before the wedding, you never said anything about that. Why did you call me a failure if you had a way to ensure I wasn't one anymore?"
The smile disappeared from Judge's face and a sneer appeared in its stead.
"Because after I spoke to you once and realized how disrespectful, stubborn, and headstrong you were, I knew that you would never wear the Raid Suit willingly if you knew what it could do. So I planned to have Niji present it to you at the wedding as a gift. That plan obviously went awry, but Niji remembered his order." Judge said. His face darkened. "A good commander must always follow his general's orders, Sanji."
"So you tricked him by putting a weapon in his hands and didn't even bother telling him that it was loaded?!" Zoro growled, his hand tightening on his sword hilt. Only the look from Luffy with a slight shake of his captain's head kept Zoro's hand. "He's your son!"
"Hardly. He disowned me himself, isn't that right, Sanji? I have absolutely no familial responsibility for him," Judge answered. "As for your other point, swordsman, I merely gave him the Stealth Black Raid Suit-a tool to defend himself with. It's hardly my fault if he chose to use it." His sneer deepened. "Or excuse me, is it Osoba Mask now?"
The cook didn't rise to the bait. Zoro's hand shook on the hilt of his sword. Chopper's huge hands balled into fists as he cried angrily, "You! You-!"
"In any case," Judge continued, ignoring Chopper altogether. He pointed at Sanji, while looking at Luffy, "How much is his bounty right now, Straw Hat? Eh, never mind, it doesn't matter. I'll pay you three times the amount to have him."
"What?!" Nami cried out, latching onto the cook's arm again.
"I'll pay you three times whatever his current bounty is to have him back. He's useful to me now. He can take his rightful place as Stealth Black, one of the commanders of the Germa 66 Army," Judge clarified. Then, misunderstanding Nami's reaction, he offered, "Unless that's not enough? How about four times the amount?"
"Sanji-kun is not for sale!" Nami practically shrieked at the man.
"How could you even think that?!" Chopper cried out. "Sanji's our friend!"
Judge smirked. "Friends? You're pirates! What does friendship matter to you? Think of all you could buy for the quadruple the bounty on his head!"
"Luffy, tell him that Sanji-kun's not-!" Nami started to shout at their captain, but stopped. Luffy wasn't looking at Judge, but rather, at the cook.
"Sanji," Luffy began, ignoring the Germa king entirely. The nearly emotionless cook glanced over at his captain. "What do you want to do?"
"Hey, Luffy," Zoro interrupted. "The cook's not exactly thinking straight right now. Are you sure this is a good idea?"
"Sanji is Sanji. This is for him to decide." Luffy replied with a grin. He looked back at his cook. "So what do you want to do, Sanji? Do you want to go with them?"
The cook looked away from their captain, giving each Straw Hat there a glance before looking towards the shore where the Sunny was docked (Zoro assumed that was the direction anyway.) Then he looked over at his siblings, gathered in a group well behind Judge. Finally, he looked up at the man he used to call father. Zoro was ready to yell at him to hurry and decide when the cook finally answered.
"No. I won't go with you," Sanji answered, shaking his head. Luffy's smile could have lit the whole island, as if he'd had no doubt what his cook's answer would be. Judge's hands tightened into fists.
"May I ask why?" The Germa king asked through tightly clenched teeth.
"My emotions. They're nearly gone and all I feel is…emptiness. But I know what it's like to feel them. I just… can't anymore. It's lonely, awful, and I hate it. Even with the girls…I recognize that they're beautiful, but without any kind of love or passion behind the feeling it just reminds me of the emptiness," Sanji responded. Nami tightened her hold as Chopper returned his hands to the cook's shoulders in a comforting grip. Sanji glanced over at his siblings. "For the first time in my life, I pity them. Ichiji. Niji. Yonji. Because I finally understand what it's like to be them. And I hope they never find out what they're missing." He looked back at Judge. "For your sake, you better hope they never find out either."
The tall king looked ready to backhand Sanji across the island. Zoro adjusted his stance, ready to act at a moment's notice. But he didn't have to bother. After a moment, Judge closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Then he opened them.
"Even with the modifications, you still prove to be a disappointment, Sanji."
"Why would they make a difference? Joining you after everything you've done is foolishness, even thinking things through with cold logic," the cook retorted. "After all, your grand plan nearly got the entire family killed-"
This time, Judge did punch Sanji across the face, so quickly Zoro didn't have time to step in and stop him. To the swordsman's surprise, Luffy didn't move, the expression on his face Zoro recognized as one Luffy got when he understood something no one else did. Zoro trusted his captain and made no move to interfere in the family squabble.
"Don't get impudent with me, you pathetic failure!" Judge snarled, as Sanji lifted a hand to his sore cheek.
"Sanji!" Chopper cried out, as both he and Nami moved to help the cook.
"I'm fine, Chopper. Don't worry," Sanji replied. Nami lowered the hand she'd been lifting towards Sanji's face and turned and glared at the Vinsmoke patriarch.
"Sanji-kun's given you his answer! Now can you change him back or not?" the navigator shouted.
Judge looked like he was about to chide Nami, probably for being rude and impudent to royalty or whatever, but thought better of it. Visibly controlling himself, he took a deep breath and replied with, "Of course we can. Just get him…"
"Hey! Sanji's sister!" Luffy shouted, walking past Judge to the group behind him, ignoring the Germa king entirely.
"Straw Hat! What the hell do you think you're-!?" Judge shouted over his shoulder at their captain.
Zoro looked at the group Luffy was walking towards and noticed the pink-haired woman stepping forward. She had a neutral expression on her face, but Zoro couldn't miss the small hints of a smile that played at the corners of her mouth.
"Yes, Straw Hat Luffy?" the woman answered.
"Reiju?"
Zoro turned to see the cook staring at the pink-haired woman and Luffy, his head tilted slightly in confusion. Whether he was confused by how the two knew each other or why Luffy was talking to her instead of the Vinsmoke patriarch Zoro wasn't sure. But the swordsman turned his attention back to the pair in question.
"Sanji's sister, do you know how to change Sanji back to how he was?" Luffy asked Reiju.
"Straw Hat! What is the meaning of this?! I just told you-!" Judge yelled.
The pink-haired woman shook her head. "I'm sorry, Straw Hat Luffy, but my father has done no research whatsoever to reverse the process."
To Zoro's pleasure, the multi-color-haired boys around Reiju gasped in astonishment. He could practically hear Judge's teeth grinding.
"Reiju! What are you doing?!"
"That wasn't the plan!"
"You're supposed to follow father's orders!"
"Reiju! What the hell do you think you're doing?! That wasn't the order I gave you!" Judge shouted at the young woman. Reiju glanced past Luffy to her father.
"Oh! My apologies. You're quite right, Father," she said, a small smile on her face as she looked towards her third brother. "Sanji, as Father said we have the ability and technology to change you back and completely undo all the modifications." Then she looked squarely at Luffy and said in a voice loud enough to carry to all of them, "Straw Hat, we do not have the ability to undo the modifications. If you allow Sanji to come to our castle, the modification process will be completed, not undone."
"Reiju! What are you doing?!" All three brothers shouted in unison. Reiju looked at them then put a cold smile on her face.
"What? After the Straw Hats contacted us, Father instructed me to tell Sanji and his crewmates that we could completely undo his modifications," she replied before turning back to Luffy. "He said absolutely nothing about Sanji's captain."
"Reiju! You fool!" Judge shouted. He turned back to Sanji. "Think of it, Sanji. You could be a prince again. Take your proper place. Return to our family. You'd be loved. You'd be my son agai-"
"No! No!" Even with his emotions hindered, the cook looked like he was going to be sick and took an involuntary step back from Judge. "I don't want your conditional love. And I'm not your son!"
The Vinsmoke patriarch looked at Sanji with disgust. "Fine. Very well. Then stay like this. Half in one world, half in the next. Some monstrous blend of an emotionless modified being and not. And no one will be able to help you."
Zoro watched as looks of sadness and horror fell over Nami and Chopper's faces. He felt a little queasy himself. In all the talk with Judge, Zoro had nearly forgotten the reason that they'd come here in the first place. If that bastard can't fix the cook…
"Hey! Sanji's sister!" Luffy called from right next to the pink-haired woman in question. "Is there someone who can help Sanji?"
"Vegapunk," Reiju answered immediately.
"You weren't supposed to tell them that either!" the three brothers shouted in unison again.
Zoro glanced over at his crewmates, smiles of relief on Nami and Chopper's faces. Even the cook looked a little less uneasy and the queasiness in the swordsman's own stomach eased. No mind that they had no idea where Vegapunk was, their captain would find a way to make things right. That was how it was with Luffy—he had a way of finding hope in hopeless situations.
"It doesn't matter, Straw Hat! Vegapunk's been hidden away by the government for years! You'll never find him!" Judge was shouting.
"Come on, everyone!" Luffy said happily, walking past and ignoring the Germa king. "We're off to find Veggie Dunk!"
The others nodded at their captain's order and began to turn to walk back to the Sunny.
"Sanji, wait!" Judge shouted, a bit of desperation lacing his voice. The cook paused for a moment before Nami pulled him insistently along.
"Come on, Sanji-kun," she stated firmly.
"Yes, Nami-san," he replied and kept walking. "After all, as he said, we have no familial responsibility to each other."
Zoro looked back at the Vinsmokes, the brothers still shouting at their sister, who stood there with a hand covering her mouth, giggling softly. Judge had dropped to his knees, his huge hands gripping the grass and dirt below them, as though through shear strength and will, he could force things to go his way. Zoro was certain that things had worked out that way for most of the Germa king's life. But they wouldn't this time.
With a wolfish grin, the swordsman turned and began following his crewmates back towards the Sunny. They had an elusive genius scientist to find.
Author's Note: Just a little idea that had been bouncing in my brain after Sanji mentions in Chapter 1023 during the battle with King and Queen that the Raid Suit is making him feel "weird," but not "bad." What if Judge figured out a way to give him the modifications through the Raid Suit? It made a few small things from Whole Cake Island make sense too (like why did Niji give Sanji the Raid Suit? He can't feel grateful. Heck, he doesn't care if he dies. So why the sudden gift?)
-This is just a one shot and I don't intend to take this story any further. Just take it as a "What if…?" until we find out what the Raid Suit's actually doing to Sanji.
-I tried to explain it a little in the story, but Sanji's brothers get the heart eyes and act all goofy around women. But I didn't have Sanji do that in this story. While Sanji's definitely fueled by the same…ahem…"responses" as his brothers (coughhe's hornycough) Sanji actually loves women. And I figured without that love and passion that normally backs up those feelings, they would feel dull and lifeless to the love cook. And so he stops responding to the girls. And it's a great way to show the crew that Something Is Wrong.
-"For the first time in my life, I pity them. Ichiji. Niji. Yonji. Because I finally understand what it's like to be them. And I hope they never find out what they're missing." He looked back at Judge. "For your sake, you better hope they never find out either." So wanna know what it's like when Ichiji, Niji, and Yonji get their emotions back? Read "Undone" by pkmntrainer_alex located on AO3.