"I know he'll come," Luffy says, staring off across the horizon. Run sighs softly, pacing back and forth slowly in front of the now life-less body of Kingbaum. The syrup storm shows no sign of letting up, the occasional bolt of lightning arching through the dark clouds as they calmly wait. Luffy's stomach growls loudly enough that Run can hear it over the pounding rain. "Aahh, I'm so hungry. When is he gonna get here?"
"Hmm," Run grunts rummaging through the pockets of his coat. "Think I got some gum or some mints or-"
"No! I'm not gonna eat anything unless it's from..." His words trail off at he squints to gaze through the pouring rain and then suddenly grins from ear to ear. "SANJI! You made it! We've been waiting for you this whole time! You're late!"
"Aah, it's about time, casanova!"
"I never asked you to wait," Sanji mutters. "You just made a promise saying whatever you want." Luffy's stomach growls loudly again, and Sanji approaches setting down a beaten up basket in front of him. "You're always like that. Don't be selfish and force things on other people." Luffy opens up the basket and removes a mud smeared lunch box from within. "I dropped it on the way here. It's been crushed and it got wet in the rain. It's just another failure." Regardless, Luffy digs into the lunch box without a second thought. Run crouches down to peer into the box before grinning and reaching in to pull out a bottle of rum.
"Dahahaha~! Look at you! I guess you really DO care after all!" He uncorks the bottle and then raises it to take several long pulls from it. "Aaah~! Ya know, I don't care what anyone says about you, you're all right!"
"It's so good!" gushes Luffy. "It's all my favorites! Plus sandwiches and hamburgers! Robin and Franky really enjoy those! Ohh! Yakisoba! Run! It's yakisoba! It's all of our favorite foods! It's the best food ever!" Luffy continues stuffing his face as quickly as he can while Sanji watches.
"You liar," sighs Sanji. When he's finally finished he tosses all the empty dishes aside and stands up, stretching his arms skyward.
"That was so good! The food you cook really is the best!"
"You're finished, then? Good, then leave. I'm staying."
"Why?! Come with us!"
"Don't make me repeat myself! I'm not going back!"
"Why not?!"
"First...I insulted my captain who came all this way for me, and I did my best to hurt you, and my first mate even though they didn't fight back. That's why I can't go back to your ship now. Second, that damn geezer who I'm deeply indebted to and the sea restaurant Baratie where I grew up have been taken hostage in case anything goes wrong. That's why I can't escape from the wedding. Third, my evil biological family has been trapped by Big Mom. In a few hours, they'll all be killed. To my biological father, older brothers and younger brother...I have no obligation. I have nothing but resentment for those scumbags! But I can't...I can't...turn my back on them! Thats why I can't go back with you guys. If you understand, then get lost."
Sanji turns his back on the two of them but comes to an abrupt halt when Luffy suddenly appears before him. Without any warning at all he cocks back and launches at punch at the cook, striking him hard enough that he flies back and crashes into the defeated body of Kingbaum, nearly demolishing it entirely.
"Damn it...say what you really want!"
"Wow," calls Run, watching the dust settle slowly. "He ate that right on the chin!" When the dust finally settles it reveals Sanji lying on his back among the shattered wood of Kingbaum's body. He slowly begins to push himself up as the red head approaches him. "Did your best to hurt us? C'mon, you threw a kicks at us, casanova! You think that Luffy and I haven't ever fought with each other before? Still...I get it. I couldn't turn my back on my family, either. So even if you don't want help...I'm not going anywhere, Sanji." Sanji tilts his head down slowly, remaining silent for several long moments before his body begins to shake softly.
"I...I just," begins Sanji, tears beginning to fall. It's the first time that Luffy or Run have ever seen Sanji genuinely cry in the entire time they've been with him. "I wanna go back to the Sunny! But I don't have the courage to run away! Once the wedding begins I'll lose all control of the situation! I don't even consider any of those scum to be my family...but I still want to save their lives!" After a few moments Luffy grins from ear to ear and nods firmly in response.
"Alright!" chirps Luffy. "That's just how you are!" To their surprise, the rain slowly begins to let up, and the sun begins to peek over the horizon. Luffy approaches the two of them still grinning. "Now, let's figure out how to crash that wedding!"
"Is it just you two and Nami?"
"Nope! Chopper, Brook, Pedro, Carrot and even Jinbe are here to help!"
"Jinbe?" echos Sanji, surprised.
"Yeah, I was surprised, too! Anyway, we left Nami with Jinbe when we came back here to wait for you."
"That's good. So Nami is safe...but I don't know if I can face her now."
"Dahaha~! Why not?" Run laughs. "You suddenly ashamed of acting like an idiot, casanova?" Naturally, this immediately riles up Sanji who leaps to his feet to rage at the red head, who casually mocks him with one hand and scratches the stubble on his jaw with the other. "Now that you're feeling back to your old self, PRINCE, I'd say we've got a plan to work on, huh?"
"I'm gonna kick-"
"Oi! Luffy! Run!" calls Chopper, his voice seeming to echo from nowhere. "Oi! Can you hear me?!" All three look around quickly, trying to find the source of their doctor's voice. It seems to be coming from their right, near the top of Kingbaum's head. They walk in that direction, still searching their surroundings.
"Chopper!" shouts Luffy, looking around. Glittering brilliantly under the rising sun, they spot a small shard of glass lying in the grass and Luffy quickly picks it up. "This is it! A piece of glass!"
"Can you hear me?!"
"Why is his voice coming from a mirror?" Sanji questions them.
"It's a long story," Run tells him. "But it seems that they're trapped in a mirror dimension."
"Are you alright, Chopper?" Luffy asks.
"Luffy!" gasps Chopper. "Great! You're really there!"
"Yup! I'm here with Run and Sanji, too!" The whole crew seems to be over-joyed that they've finally made contact with Sanji. "How are you guys?"
"We saved everyone from inside the mirror! Brook even got a copy of the Poneglyph!"
"Good job! I knew I could count on you guys!" Chopper, Carrot and even Brook seem to be embarrassed by his praise but accept it none-the-less.
"Luffy," begins Pedro. "It's good that you've made contact with Sanji but have you come to an agreement?"
"Sanji isn't coming back, yet. But listen...we're gonna crash Big Mom's tea party, the wedding and save Sanji's family! Then, he'll come back with us!" The rest of the crew falls silent on the opposite side of the mirror and Sanji himself wears a very shocked expression.
"Luffy!" shouts Sanji. "Big Mom is a Yonko! I don't want to risk everyone's- I mean, Nami's life over a personal issue!" Silence in their response for several long moments before loud cheering echos through the piece of mirror, surprising the three of them. It seems that they don't care who their opponent is, all that they want is for Sanji to come back with them. "U-Um, Nami...I..."
"Oh, Sanji," Nami says. "For scaring me like that...I'll never forgive you." Sanji looks as if the life has drained from his body as soon as her sentence has finished. "But let's put that aside for now. There isn't much time left before the tea party. I'm gonna get you back no matter what, Sanji."
"What?! Is that a proposal, Nami?!"
"Wow, he rebounds quick," Run mutters.
"Alright, Luffy," Jinbe says. "We know what to do now."
"Yeah," chirps Luffy. "Oh! By the way, Sanji's sister saved Run's life. So, I wanna save them all!"
"It won't be easy. Although we're not aiming to take down Big Mom, she always looks forward to those tea parties. By crashing it, we'll definitely going to draw her ire. On top of that, you guys have already faced several Ministers on the island but they're just the tip of the iceberg that is the Big Mom Pirates. Even tougher one's will be attending the tea party. Underground rulers from around the world are invited, too. On the other side there is only nine of us."
"Dahaha~! Relax, relax!" Run laughs him. "We've certainly had worse odds, Jinbe! We'll make it work!"
"Hmm...this may unrelated but you know Capone 'Gang' Bege, right?"
"'Bege'", echos Run. "Aah, yeah! He's one of the 'Worst Generation' like Luffy and I, right? I've heard that he's one of Big Mom's subordinates now."
"Yes. He's a member of the Worst Generation with a name as infamous as the two of you. He's originally from the West Blue where five powerful mafia families rule their underground. He's one of the bosses of those five families, and was a notorious hit-man when he was younger. That's where his nickname 'Gang' comes from. He used to cut down weak and helpless animals, watching them die slowly from the wounds he inflicted."
"Hoh? Is that right? Sounds like a real charming guy."
"Don't let your guard down around him, red hair. It wasn't just animals he targeted, eventually he started doing the same to crime families. Even after he became a boss he continued to target the heads of other families. He never showed a bit of interest in their posts or territory. He was only after the money and valuables. He is really a disgusting man. It wasn't long before he grew bored, and eventually set out to sea, carrying on with his disgusting ways. It wasn't long after he set sail that he fell in with Big Mom, the perfect blanket of protection for him. He even impressed Big Mom so much that he was promoted to 'Rook' and placed in charge of security for the tea party."
"Why are you telling us this now?" Luffy asks him.
"If the security guards are on our side who can stand in our way? The main event of the tea party is the wedding. Big Mom intends to kill all members of the Vinsmoke Family and acquire all of Germa. Bege is planning to kill Big Mom as such as she launches her attack! Luffy, Pekoms who guided you guys to this island was actually taken by Bege and his Family, and was approached to cooperate with his plan."
"So, that's what happened to him!"
"But Bege never counted on Pekoms being so loyal. He shot him, and dropped him into the sea when he refused his offer. Luckily, my men happened to by near-by and saved him before he could devoured by the sharks in the sea. He's recovering from his wounds now."
"Damn that Bege! I'll make him pay!"
"Calm down, Luffy. I came up with a plan after I learned everything from Pekoms. I asked myself what would you guys do? I knew that you would say you want to save Sanji and his family. I feel bad for Pekoms but under the circumstances, do you really want to make an enemy of Bege? The tea party starts at ten in the morning...that's about five hours from now. There's only nine of us here...but Bege is completely prepared for today. Luffy, Sanji, Run! Let's join forces with Bege!"
"Hmm...fine!"
"Hey, are you crazy?!" Sanji asks him. "You really want to go through with this?" Numerous other complains echo through the mirror from the rest of the crew, all of them asking Luffy to reconsider working with someone was dangerous as Bege.
"If you're alright with it, I've already arranged a meeting," Jinbe tells him. "Don't worry, you can call it off it things don't feel right. Luffy, Sanji, Run. Bege and his Family's base is in the northwest part of the island. We'll head their first from this dimension. See you there...!"
All things considered, they made surprisingly good time to Bege's fortress. It took them around an hour to reach there, even moving through enemy territory. True to Jinbe's words, the man had truly built himself up a fortress on the edge of Big Mom's territory. They slowly come to a stop in front of the man's fortress, staring up at the ramparts.
"What kind of guy is he?" Luffy asks.
"Hmm. Well," Run begins. "He tortures animals, went after Sanji, almost killed Pekoms; I was actually starting to like him, you know. So, I guess we could think of him as someone completely off his rocker. He'll screw us over the first chance he gets, so let's not let our guard down, huh?" Several meters ahead of them, a large set of double doors slowly open, and a man with a long tongue hanging out of his mouth slowly paces out.
"Ohhh! My hero!" calls the man. "Vinsmoke Sanji of Germa! I'm happy to see you again-rero!"
"Oi, where's everyone else?" demands Luffy. "Are you Bege?"
"Don't be in such a rush! They are here!" To their surprise, none other than Chopper suddenly pushes past the man and sprints down the stairs towards them. He seems to be other the moon at seeing Sanji again and immediately launches himself in the cooks arms.
"You had me worried, you bastard!" complains Chopper.
"Sorry about that," Sanji tells him. "That aside...why do you look like this?" They all finally seem to notice that their doctor isn't wearing his hat, and in fact, looks as if he's only just gotten out of the bath. Just what the hell have they been doing?
"I took a bath! Why don't you guys go take one, too?"
"Why are you relaxing?!" shouts Luffy. "We don't have time for that! Beside that, you don't even like baths!"
"No, no," calls the man. "The three of you must take one! After that, we'll talk-rero! Father doesn't see anyone who is dirty..."
"I don't wanna!" whines Luffy, fidgeting in place.
"I know," Run agrees, grinning at him. "But it'll only be for a bit. Once we're done here you can take your tie off." A dress code to meet Bege...great. The rest of the crew that had arrived ahead of them was already aware of this and had bathed and dressed ahead of them. Now, they just needed to get changed themselves...which is proving to be quite the chore considering Luffy's aversion to dressing up just for a meeting with the man. It's an even bigger chore to get Luffy to sit still long enough for Run to tie his tie properly for him.
"I feel like it's choking me! How come you're not wearing one?"
"Aah, because I don't want to."
"That's not fair!" Run finishes tightening Luffy's tie and steps back to retrieve his coat. He's settled on a pair of black pants, black shoes and a white shirt before draping his coat across his shoulders as usual. When they're all dressed and ready, they head out the door to find the rest of the crew waiting for them. They're led from the dressing rooms down the hall to a large meeting room. A number of people are already gathered ahead of them, and a large table covered in snacks of all kinds dominates the middle of the room. Luffy takes a seat at the head of the table with Nami seated to his right, Run to his right and the rest of the crew gathered around. Their wait isn't a long one as a set of doors across the room finally open, and Bege finally steps inside.
"Alright, everyone is here now," Bege says in way of greeting. "Can I assume that you're all clean, now." He crosses the room slowly, and takes a seat directly opposite Luffy at the table. "It's been said that clothes make the man. Truthfully, I won't do business with someone who doesn't care about their appearance. A slovenly appearance reeks of laziness. Now...we have three and a half hours. Let's decide now...whether or not we join forces." Luffy leans forward, reaching for the sweets in front of him...and ignoring the cocking of weapons as he does so.
"Luffy!" Nami says, watching him shove a handful of cookies into his mouth. "Show some restraint!"
"Why?" Luffy asks her. "They're here for us to eat, right?"
"You guys are nothing but nuisances to us," Bege tells them. "Killing all of you right here is the easiest solution-"
"You think so?" Sanji asks him. "If I die, you lose your chance to kill Big Mom. Because there'll be no wedding. In fact, if I'm not back there at least two hours before the wedding, they'll be suspicious."
"You're right. So we can kill everyone else except for you."
"I won't let you kill my friends, either."
"Don't take us so lightly," Nami warns him.
"We won't make a misstep like we did in Zou," Brook adds.
"Dahahaha~! Relax, relax!" Run laughs, reaching out onto the table and picking up a tea cup. "They'll be plenty of time for us to be at each other's throats later. Personally..." Run pauses for a moment as he considers the tea before pouring it onto the floor between his feet much to Bege's irritation if the look on his face is anything to go by. "...I think it would be a mistake to toss our hat in with yours, Bege. I think you'll screw us over the first chance you get. But, fortunately, the choice isn't mine to make! So, Luffy, what's your gut telling you? Can we work with him?" Rather than respond right away Luffy continues to stare squarely at one of the men close to Bege. Run follows his line of sight, eyes narrowing as he stares at the man. Is that...Caesar? He's changed his outfit and spiked his hair but it's him without a doubt! What the hell is he doing working with Bege?
"Aren't you Caesar?" Luffy asks.
"Wh-What? No!" insists Caesar. "I'm Bege's sworn-brother...'Gangster' Gastino!"
"Oh. Sorry."
"What? No! Don't apologize!" Run says quickly. "That's definitely Caesar! I'd recognize that voice and, ugh...that scent anywhere. Rubbing alcohol- ugh, that cigar reeks, Bege." Run waves a hand in front of his face before sighing softly. "Anyway, that's him."
"I knew it! Why are you here?!" Apparently, after being handed over to Big Mom, Bege came in possession of his heart and has been using it to order him around. He still holds a grudge against Law for it, and in fact, he still very much hates Luffy for his current predicament, too.
"Enough of this," Bege says. "Straw Hat, do you want to join hands or not?"
"First, let me punch you for shooting Pekoms." Without waiting for his response, Luffy quickly stands and launches a punch at Bege. Before it can strike him, however, Jinbe quickly intercepts his fist, stopping him cold in his tracks.
"We can't come to an agreement like this!" Jinbe shouts. "Do any of you like Big Mom?" A responding 'No!' is his answer from both Luffy and Bege. "Then, that means you're on the same side. Even if you don't share the same goal, you all have the same enemy to beat! You can kill each other later but if you join hands now then it'll be in everyone's favor." After a few tense moments Luffy finally sits back down, crossing his arms and scowling at Bege from across the table.
"Bege, I have no interest in the assassination of Big Mom," Sanji tells him. "But is she really the kind of person who can be killed with guns and cannons to begin with? My impression of her is like an iron ballon. It feels like it's impossible to kill her."
"If you call it an assassination, then you have to kill her in a single blow," Pedro adds. "Otherwise you'll be swarmed and killed yourself."
"Is a Yonko really as strong as they say?" Luffy asks.
"Aah, depends on the Yonko," Run tells him.
"No, it doesn't!" Nami shouts at him. "She wasn't even awake when we tried to take back Brook, and I thought for sure we were gonna die!"
"Valid concerns," Bege assures them. "However, under the right conditions, you would only need five seconds to kill her."
"'Five seconds'?" echos Run. "If it's that easy, why haven't you done it yourself, then? I mean, why are we having this conversation if you could kill her in just five seconds?"
"It's not that easy to steal five seconds," Vito tells him. "The Big Mom Pirates is made up of a bunch of skilled fighters, and they'll all be there. Within a split second, the Sweet Commanders will block off our attempts if we're unlucky."
"Then, it'll turn into a head on fight we have no chance of winning," Bege adds. "Our plan began with the capture of Caesar...of course, taking down one of the Sweet Commanders wasn't an unwelcome boon. You have some uses after all, red hair."
"It's Gastino!" screams Caesar. "Don't ever call me that in front of Big Mom! Listen up, once we've accomplished our mission, you're going to give me heart back! I'm not letting you back out of our deal, Bege. That's our agreement."
"He has an important job for this." Caesar quickly produces a number of strange weapons.
"These are what we'll use to kill Big Mom! Deadly poison gas - KX launchers! One is enough but I made two spares! Each one injects five grams of a deadly organophosphate directly into the body. It's the most audaciously sinful murder weapon in history!"
"Unfortunately, just hitting her with it won't be enough to kill her while at full strength. It won't pierce through her hard skin. There are two conditions we need to fulfill before the KX Launcher will work. Firstly, we need a five second period where no one will attack us. Secondly, we need her to be weakened."
"Hah, alright," drawls Run. "Now, how do you propose that we accomplish either of those tasks?"
"Hmph. There is only one place where these conditions can be fulfilled...and that's the tea party. In all the time I've worked for her, there's only one time I saw her get a single scratch. At tea parties they always put a picture frame at a seat directly across from her and no one will sit there. It seems like it's the most important treasure for her, a picture of Mother Caramel. You could say that it's Mama's only weakness."
"Who is she?" Nami asks him.
"No one knows. Details about her are rather scarce but she seems to be Mama's savior."
"Even we children don't know about it," Chiffon tells them. "Once at a tea party a servant accidentally knocked it over. I was stunned by how she reacted. She turned pale and let out a shriek I'd never heard before. It was different from her Hunger Pangs...all we could do was cover our ears to protect our ear-drums. People were passing out one after another."
"On top of the shriek she exercised her Haoshoku. But that's not the important part...what happened afterward was she fell to her knees, and actually scraped her knee and started bleeding. I never thought she would actually bleed like a normal human. When she breaks down like that her body becomes weak...so what do you think will happen at today's tea party if we break that picture in half? Mama would be devastated and no one would be able to move for five seconds! Then the KX Launcher will show it's strength, and the Yonko Big Mom, will be dead!"
"Won't we be paralyzed by that shriek, too?" Chopper asks him.
"I have a solution for that!" Bege holds up a pair of earplugs. "Invisible Symphonia System!"
"Earplugs!"
"If breaking that picture will cause such a huge mess, then we can save Sanji's family at that moment, too," adds Luffy.
"Not exactly," Bege tells him. "It'll take about three seconds before Mama has her attack after breaking the picture. If you're surrounded by the Big Mom Pirates before that happens, then you'll be killed. So...I need you to take that role, Straw Hat."
"Wait, wait, wait!" Run says quickly. "Let me get this straight...you want Luffy to be the bait in this situation?" The red head scratches the stubble on his jaw before sighing. "So, what exactly is going to be your role in all of this?"
"Obviously, my men and I will be manning the launchers. We'll have a dangerous job though not nearly as dangerous as Straw Hat's."
"Alright! I'll do it!" Luffy tells them. "I just thought of an awesome way to show up at the scene!"
"Good. Then, I'll leave it to you, Straw Hat. Timing for this is everything. You know when the right time to break the picture is, right?"
"When Sanji kisses Pudding, of course!"
"I'm not gonna kiss her," Sanji corrects him. "The moment I do she's going to shoot me in the head. So, I'm going to dodge it, and the gunshot will be your cue, Luffy."
"Now that we're all on the same page," begins Bege. "The gunshot is going to be the cue, and immediately following it Straw Hat is going to break the photo. Big Mom will shriek and we'll use the earplugs. While the people are in a panic, you guys will rescue Germa, and we'll handle the assassination of Big Mom. Remember that we've got ten seconds tops. The longer we stay on site, the higher the chance of getting killed is. As soon as we kill Big Mom, this dumbass is going to come in." Bege motions to Caesar who scowls at him in response.
"I'll be there right away- don't call me a dumbass!" screams Caesar. "Since I can fly, I'll plunge into the site with a mirror in hand, along with Brulee."
"You guys did a great job bringing Brulee here. We couldn't have hoped for a more useful power to escape with. Once we've finished, dive into Caesar's mirror. We can run away in comfort from Big Mom in the mirror dimension. Make sure you set up a mirror big enough to escape through on your ship."
"The women's room has a big enough mirror," Nami says quickly.
"Let's be clear about this right now. Once we reach our ships...that will be the end of our alliance. It's every crew for themselves. Now, good luck...!"