#and I mean old old... dressrosa old (and I wasn't even at dressrosa back then)

[onepiece-polls]

One Piece Crack Ship War - Round 1 Side B

Propaganda under the cut.

SaboLaw: it’s so funny. law deals with luffy from punk hazard to wano and turns around and dates his brother. sabo seems like the normal one but he is actually the least sane of the three. they would do fucked up experiments together. they both have reasons to hate the world government as well, and nothing says cute first date like burning down the establishment!

Giraffe Love: When Kaku said “I love giraffes”, he meant it.

[camels-pen]

(i haven't read Whole Cake in a while, and i never really watched it, so bear with me)

I'd love to write a fic with Usopp on Whole Cake. it'd be sooo fucking long and i'd need to refresh myself on the entire arc, but god i'd probably be so satisfied when it's done. specifically for having brought a single moment in my head to life, but we'll get to that.

On Zou, he insists to be taken along on the Sanji rescue team and has worked himself up with a whole bunch of very good reasons as to why he should go there instead of helping in Wano, but of course Luffy just immediately accepts with a "yeah sure"

With Whole Cake, I think he'd be flipping between having fun as part of the idiot trio/quartet (Luffy, Chopper, Carrot), and being terrified with Nami. There wouldn't be that many differences in the arc as a whole, though; some things would be easier/better and some things would be worse- I don't necessarily think Usopp's presence would be overall an advantage or disadvantage, just different. Like, major events would stay mostly the same, but little details would change and maybe those little details would build to a far more drastic change-

for example, maybe one of Big Mom's kids considers themself a great sniper and wants a match with Usopp, or is motivated to work harder because Usopp is around and they want to take him out and boast about it. Maybe it means Sunny takes more damage than canon, or maybe Usopp's help means less damage to Sunny. (idk if i'd really do smth like this, but it's just an example)

skjdhf fuck i'm really not equipped to try and figure this out when i don't remember shit from Whole Cake aaaa

I do know that, despite his penchant for talking and rambling, I'd probably have Usopp be dead silent after his initial shock when Sanji fights Luffy. Everything about that is the same, except Usopp is just watching Sanji the whole time- not panicking, not moving, and not speaking. He doesn't say a word the entire time, doesn't even make a sound, and that, along with Luffy's words and Nami's begging, stick with Sanji.

(Usopp is thinking of his own fight with Luffy in Water 7, he's partially wondering if this was what it was like- if it was this painful to watch from the sidelines- and partially knowing he doesn't have to say a word, because he knew, like he knew back then, that it didn't matter what was said. It wasn't quite the same, but he could tell in the way Sanji moved, in the way he spoke and held himself, that he was putting on a front, trying to be brave in all the wrong ways. Usopp didn't say a word to Sanji because there was nothing he could say that Sanji himself didn't already know. Should've known. And his quiet, direct stare, was more than enough.)

the singular moment i really wanna write, is a scene where Sanji is apologizing for dragging them into his mess- either during the big meeting in Bege's castle or some other time- and Usopp's like "I'll do what you can't, you do what I can't, right?" and Sanji pauses, a little confused, until he remembers Enies Lobby and a stupid mask and cape and-

and tears are gathering in his eyes now, fuck, but he laughs a little. It sounds wet and his face is itchy and they're surrounded by tentative allies, but he- he laughs again and he says, "Fuck, you remembered that?"

Usopp shrugs, a little smile on his face. "They were some wise words from a wise man."

Sanji laughs a third time. "You think I'm wise?"

And they banter a little more before Bege tells them to quit it since they're on a time constraint or something. Quietly, Usopp will ask, "It-it helps. On bad days. And I figured, 'what's a worse day than this?' Ah, not that you getting married would ever be bad per se-"

"Usopp," Sanji says, looking more relaxed and settled. He smiles fondly and grabs his friend in a one armed hug, crushing him to his side. "Thanks."

And yeah, don't remember much beyond that, except the whole "hiding and then busting out of the cake" bit, which would mean Usopp in a cute little tuxedo or smth- maybe with a fedora aaaaaa <- loves fedoras- helping out with the fighting and eventually sailing with everyone to Wano.

He would be so distressed about fixing up Sunny now that the whole thing with Whole Cake is over. Maybe there'd be a gag about him promising Franky to take good care of Sunny while they were gone and being confident, after being Franky's tinkering partner and learning from him over time, that he could handle minor repair work much better than he did the first time around with Merry. And so when he finally takes in all the very-not-minor repairs he has to do, he's certain Franky is gonna strangle him for not keeping his promise. Probably also try to write in some nostalgic 'repairman Usopp' vibes from pre-Water 7.

Also something something, Sanji, wanting to do more for the crew bc he still feels guilty about Whole Cake, decides to take it upon himself to help Usopp not fall into a whole anxiety spiral about the ship. In turn, Usopp ends up helping Sanji not feel so guilty- usually by handing his own words back to him on a silver platter. And, yknow, having the two of them bonding and being buddies again like they so rarely get to be in canon nowadays qwq

[l-in-the-light]

The most embarrassing series of posts about Lawlu you will ever read: edition Dressrosa (part 7)

The soap opera in sunny Dressrosa continues! Let's take a look at Luffy's turn to act overprotective!

Luffy protecting both Torao and Moocy never really gets old. Also look at the last image to the right, Luffy is doing his gatling, and I think it's the first time Law sees it. His eyes are hidden and I get the vibe he's actually impressed. I mean, who wouldn't be, gatling is one of Luffy's coolest attacks :D Luffy's is unaware of course, too focused on his task.

The moment Law speaks up, no matter the chaos and screaming around, Luffy's attention is instantly directed fully towards him (the "Hmm?" bubble). That's how much he's interested in whatever Torao is going to say.

"I've braced myself for this" says Law, and Luffy is so confused by that statement. He doesn't realize yet that Law needs time to adjust or get ready mentally, especially since he's so stubborn. And sometimes he just needs a push. I think Luffy will remember this and use it later, never maliciously though, but to help Law open up to new friendships heh.

It took Law a really long time to actually reach his resolve to beat up Doflamingo as well. Luffy is listening closely. If you read my analysis of Luffy and Law's friendship, you know this is the moment when Luffy might be thinking "I already knew you wanted to punch him up as well".

Law is actually opening up here, it's only like two sentences but I bet it took him a lot to say it, that's how much he actually trusts Luffy. He just told him something he never really shared with people (with exception of Bepo, Penguin and Shachi). And Luffy's mesmerized face says it all. He didn't expect it, he's full of feelings, probably thanks to the trust Law shows here. Luffy never wants to hear about people's past, not even of his own crewmates, because he doesn't have to know anything to want to help them (though he occassionaly listens to his friends like Rebecca), but here it's different. He wants to know, he's interested in Law and his life, probably even his previous adventures.

And again, the very moment Law speaks up, Luffy turns to him to listen. Never ignoring him. Why would he, if Law returns the favour every single time as well? Those two never ignore each other.

Also this moment is funny when put into context, because it happens soon after the enemies were shooting at them, and I guess this is the moment Trafalgar Law finally declared "Nopes, I won't tolerate it any longer, uncuff me finally". Took him long enough.

Luffy here is like "You worry too much, this is an adventure, remember?", because Luffy said something similar back on Sunny when Law worried and it worked that time, so he did basically the same here. He doesn't like Law to worry so much. Sadly, that did not work this time around, I wonder why hm. Luffy clearly smiles here for Law, to cheer him up, he wasn't really smiling before, instead he was constantly in his serious mode.

Law meanwhile worries his ass off again, realizing this can't go on forever like this (he is kinda right about it). This might be also the moment Luffy realized that Law likes to overworry, but Luffy doesn't mind. Law might be way too serious, worry all the time and complain, but for Luffy he will still be the coolest person in the world. He accepts him just the way he is and likes him for that. It's the same for all Luffy's crewmates as well, so it's not that outstanding or exceptional here, but still heartwarming.

They're totally on same page here. One mind.

There's something special about Luffy picking up the snail that belongs to Torao and introducing himself as future king of the pirates <3

Luffy: I told you not to worry!

Law: How could I have not?!

Luffy even makes sure to ask Robin how they will reach them and he does it just so Law won't worry too much anymore. Normally Luffy wouldn't even bother asking something like that.

Law is probably relieved here. Still, he scolds Luffy for his carefree attitude.

Luffy caring more for Moocy and Law than himself here. Supports Law with his hand. No wonder, he carried him all the way through Dressrosa, he's probably very aware how weak Law is here so he's trying to help and support him as well.

Law's worry just went overdrive, because he realized Luffy is gonna put himself in a very dangerous spot. I guess he knows by now how much Luffy cares about people and animal companions.

Luffy looks like he's kinda supporting Law there with the hand on his arm, which probably reflects the title of this chapter "palm" (one of the two possible meanings, the other is the heart key in Doflamingo's palm). He's literally holding Law here in his "battle" with Mingo.

Even Doflamingo thinks Law became "softhearted". He mocks him for sticking with Luffy, but Law's not having any of that. He's sticking with his choice to the very end, even when Mingo tries to kill him right here and now, blaming Law for being weak and dying miserably like that. Law has no way of defending himself besides his words, but he already made his choice. If anything, I think the only regret he would have would be if Luffy died here together with him.

Luffy's also alright with this, he wouldn't do anything differently, because Luffy doesn't want to live with regrets anyway. If it means he's dying here with Law, then so be it.

They realized Mingo actually did save them just to mock them. They both feel extremely humiliated about it. Luffy doesn't even have to feel this way just for Law, but I think in large part he does. He didn't feel humiliated when he learned Kuma send Strawhats away to save them. He didn't feel that way either when Robin saved him in Alabasta, in fact he instead tried to thank her. But as long as Law has a grudge against Mingo, Luffy is not gonna say "thanks" to him no matter what. Sorry Mingo, you should have been nicer to Law.

Yeah, poor Law, can't even complain outloud (after all he did tell Luffy to leave Moocy behind so complaining about it now would be unfair) and it feels like he's too close to other people. This can't be comfortable knowing what we know about him.

Before Kyros hopped in, Cavendish was in front and Luffy in the back, and Law in the middle. When they rode Moocy it was the same, with Luffy in front, and Zoro in the back. They keep positioning Law in the middle to protect him.

Remember when Law was taken aback by Luffy's silly competitiveness and stubborness? Law's not even out of the cuffs yet but he's ready to compete in this field. To be fair, it's also because he wants again to keep Luffy out of trouble, but he's also just silly here with "Mingo is mine and mine alone to beat".

And the silly competitiveness continues on. Bargaining who has bigger grudge is very mature indeed. It's honestly funny how Law wants to protect Luffy but also doesn't want to look uncool or allow him to take all the credit. Those two are hopeless. This is even funnier because Law usually *doesn't* take credit. Luffy jumps on the bandwagon ofc just because he can (or he's still overprotective towards Law, isn't he?). He's probably secretly enjoying the fact he can actually compete with Law, no matter what it's about.

Luffy's concerned face here is also quite extraordinary. He worries because he feels responsible for protecting Law. Usually extra trouble doesn't even faze him. Now it does, but not because of himself, but for Law again. Those two really compete in overworrying about each other, don't they? Both afraid as much to lose the other.

Look, Luffy is directly in front of Law, protecting him with his body. Meanwhile Law has enough again, because he knows he could deal with that danger easily if not for the cuffs. He also wants to protect Luffy back after all. It shouldn't be strange he goes straight to business when Robin arrives, this is constantly on his mind: get rid of the cuffs so he can get rid of the enemies here. Law sometimes proves he also has a one-track mind, suspiciously often when it involves Luffy.

Again, they're on same page, matching each other's pace.

Luffy is with Rebecca exactly the same way Law was wtih Robin few moments ago. One-tracked mind again. Law probably reminded Luffy he can easily get rid of the enemies and Luffy is ready to bet on that.

Mirroring each other's tiredness with those huffs here. Luffy still looks pretty worried. Law meanwhile is putting up a confident front, maybe for Luffy to stop worrying over him. He would totally do something like that. Besides, he's just a show-off.

Same mind, again. No more fights over who will save the other! The determination is still there, tho.

Law tells Luffy to get moving and charges ahead first. But when Luffy stalls back to reassure Rebecca, Law isn't walking so fast anymore, he also changed the way he's carrying his sword. Most likely he stopped and waited for Luffy or walked slower, so that Luffy can easily catch up. If that's not a proof of him being actually a considerate person, then I don't know what this is. They agreed to do it together, so Law is just not leaving without Luffy. Luffy meanwhile runs to catch up to not make Law wait any longer.

"You never listen and toss yourself into trouble, Mugiwara-ya". I could swear he says it in his mind. Luffy's a bit confused, having flashback to Ace and I'm not sure if that's sweet or heartbreaking. After all Ace was the only person in Luffy's life who cared about him like that, worrying and covering up for him. Luffy's face is saying "this is oddly familiar", but he probably didn't realize yet that he just gained another person in his life who will treat him the same way from now on (or even has been already for quite a bit).

Luffy is so impressed with Law's powers. After all this is the very first time Law used it on Luffy.

Can I also just say that Law using his powers should be extremely intimidating: everything in his "room" is at his mercy and he can operate on objects and people in every possible way, but instead it's used here to show trust. Law wouldn't use his powers to harm Luffy, but he easily could have. He actually never uses his powers to hurt his allies and anyone asking him to shamble them shows trust in that. Of course Luffy wouldn't be concerned about this, because he knows and deeply believes Law to be a good person.

Law meanwhile completely refuses Luffy's compliment and instead throws it back at him "good thing you carried me so far away, I could save up my strength". Those two are insufferable like that, lol.

Luffy is so concerned when he hears Law making a painful noise <3 he's like "who hurt you?! Let me punch them!!" or "I hope you're not painful because of me!"

Plotting together their strategy against Mingo. Luffy is actually listening and trying to argue back, but not very effectively, judging from his expression. Law's resolve here can't be broken. Even Luffy can be taken aback by that. Besides, he again is in his "I don't want to disappoint Law" phase.

Both lowered their guard when a child approached them, ffs. And people would still doubt that Law never intended to hurt kids. He cares, it's just that sometimes he will discard that if someone else's life on the line Luffy's. But here? He's fully in his goody-goody self.

And here we go, facing Mingo together. What do you mean fighting side by side isn't a love confession??

Now it's time to go all crazy for the end of this post, all brakes are off! Let's talk about Law's coat here.

Yes, I did a picture case study, why do you ask?

Anyway, let's start from the left. We usually think that this symbol on Law's coat stands just for mockery of Doflamingo's jolly roger, right? But there are some things that don't truly fit. Why didn't Law just make it yellow? His own jolly roger is yellow, Doffy's jolly roger is yellow, yet the mocking symbol Law came up with is suddenly white? And why is yellow instead used only for the border of the circle? Doffy's jolly roger doesn't have an extra border like that. If Law wanted to just make it stand out more by using two different colors, then they should be reversed, right? The jolly roger yellow, the border white. And yet it's not. So it makes me think "yellow border" is an important detail.

And then I noticed that Bartolomeo also has a similar symbol on his back to Law's (on the right of the picture). An X with (his own, I presume) head over it. It kinda looks like a person doing a X pose. And Bartolomeo indeed does the X pose when he's excited over something, just look at him there. It could even refer to his setting up the barrier gesture, when he crosses his hands.

And yeah, that made me think... what if Law's symbol could be seen the same way? It's a person doing an X pose... with a strange yellow circle on his back. What could that be?

Yeah, I really wonder.

There is an image with Luffy doing an X pose with his strawhat off in previous picture for comparison. You can decide for yourself if this fits or not. It's basically a person doing a X pose with the strawhat dangling on the back. Now let's put it back on:

This is basically it lol. And "corazon" means heart, so yeah. Cheesy af.

Now let me quote you Oda from SBS to fill up any remaining blanks:

D: Question. On Law-san's coat, there is a logo that reads "corazan". Is this talking about the Cora-san that Law loves? Is Law's coat specially custom made?                                              

Oda: Yes. So, to be specific, the coat reads "Corazon (corazón)" rather than "Cora-san". In Spanish, this word means "heart". While this is in fact straight up Cora-san's code name, it can be said that there isn't really a problem with the captain of the "Heart Pirates" wearing this coat either. Even speaking ability-wise, Law is a "death surgeon" known with his unique skill of cutting people's' "hearts" out. While to society, it may seem like a symbol of fear and power, I'm quite positive that Law himself had "Cora-san" in mind. It's definitely custom made.

Few things to note here:

Law's clothes are custom made. I think that means he makes them himself. That's why they can have feathers and his jolly roger plastered all over them.

For Law it's important that his clothes refer to his own crew and that his jolly roger is always present on his clothes. It's his pride as the captain! So the "Corazon" stands also for "heart" as in "heart pirates". Seems he cares a lot about that, just look how Oda phrased it: "there's no problem with a Heart Pirates captain wearing a coat with Corazon word spelled out" because heart=corazon. Meanwhile it would be problematic if the captain wore a logo that doesn't belong with his crew, right? For Law that would be no good, he has a reputation to uphold!

Since he has his captain's pride to uphold, he can't make a direct reference to Luffy on his clothes. He hides it instead and makes stupid references that can be understood in more ways than one, but probably he's the only one who gets it.

That's why his coat actually serves three purposes: 1. His dedication to his own crew as their captain 2. mockery to Doflamingo, hoping it could work to provoke him 3. homage to Luffy, because someone is smitten beyond human comprehension, but will hide it in plain sight.

And let's cover the last track left: Law didn't yet have his coat on when they arrived at Dressrosa. Luffy already made his excited X pose when they stepped out and Law is there to witness it (two pictures above). Law's group is also the last to leave (Luffy is deep in his fight in collosseum before Law's group with Robin and Usopp are ready to go, and the meetup was somewhere around noon or later in Green Bit. Remember, it was 8 hours after their early morning ransom call!). In other words, Law had plenty of time to prepare his clothes. He either used thread and needle (a surgeon is probaly quite good with needle work, right?) or painted it, doesn't matter. Point stands. It is freaking possible.

And now I'm satisfied because I found a reason why the circle had to be yellow. Ahahaha. Hope you enjoyed my craziness, but please tell me it doesn't fit. It does, doesn't it?

[simplysamiblog]

One Piece The will of the D. My personal theory

I was re-watching the episodes where Luffy would use Gear 5 for the first time. As the Drums of liberation thundered through the sea, it kind of struck me how Zunisha reacted to the sound.

Specifically his choice of words.

Words, in the world of One Piece, especially in the mind of Oda-san, are never thrown around casually. NEVER. Remember, just to say one example, how for years (decades dare I say) we believed the last island name was Raftel and how everything changed the moment we saw that name: "Laugh Tale"?. Things were never going to be the same. Roger and his crew saw something so funny, so unbelievably hilarious they just have to name that final island, at the end of their journey, "Laugh Tale". Till that moment we knew that those smiles had something special, yet with just that name, with just that little correction everything we knew was completely twisted.

At that point I remember thinking "Is there anything in this story that I'm actually sure of? Do I really know the meaning of anything I've read so far?". I doubted everything at that point.

And that is just ONE example. Another?

Gold Roger, or as we now know Gol D. Roger.

Can we even imagine what that ONE PIECE could even be? Or mean?

Back to Zunisha, and with that thought...that doubt in mind, I noticed the pronunciation of Zunisha at that sound "The Drums of Liberation" or, to transcribe the Japanese pronunciation : "doramu".

"Interesting" I thought.

Why keeping that word in English? Why is that so important? So much so that Zunisha, a thousand years old elephant, ally of the one and only Joy Boy, uses that specific word as his heart soared at the sound.

"Those with the D. will bring chaos to the world"

Occam's Razor, put simply, states: “the simplest solution is almost always the best.” And I see so much of Oda-san in this. I can almost see him laughing his heart off as we shockingly reacted to such an easy and obvious answer such as "Laugh Tale" after theories and theories spreaded out. And look at that, all those years wondering what that Vegapunk would look like... right, that Vegapunk, the genius scientist "the man with the best brain in the world".... looking awfully and trivially like our renowned scientist Herr Einstein.

Looking back it was so obvious, wasn't it? The answer was right there!

And then it clicked to me:

What if the D. simply stands for Drums?

Those Drums of Liberation. Those Drums who always would accompany Joy Boy. His distinctive sign. Always with him. He was supposed to become a king, he was the first ever known pirate.

As such, he must have had a crew. His allies...his Drums. Those who will inherit his will and his message.

Though hidden and hunted, through the centuries those with the D. survived and they always bring chaos and revolution wherever they go.

Trafalgar D. Law (Dressrosa)

Hagwor D. Sauro (Ohara)

Monkey D. Luffy (basically every place he's been to until now)

Marshall D. Teach

What if those with the D. are the heirs of those who once were together with Joy Boy? Maybe the members of his crew, or people from that Great Kingdom in which Joy Boy ruled and guided a war against the 20 kingdoms?

Those with the D. Also known as the "Natural Enemy of God". Those Gods living over the Red Line, those who delete history in their favor to maintain their power.

Those Drums who would be in the war during the battle, never stopping, never wavering. Guided by Joy Boy. Keeping his will alive.

I know what you're thinking.

"The D. standing for Drums? That's it?"

Impossibile. Absurd. So stupid it's almost... laughable, isn't it?

[ascorpiosramblings]

For @thecraftywriter 's request

Prompt: "So, hear me out: an extension of the flashback scene in Wano where Coby gushes to Drake about Luffy. It's so sweet to me. I like to think Coby came to talk for an unrelated reason but couldn't resist the opportunity to hype up his friend."

Yellow Lily

"I'm headed to capture the pirate empress, Boa Hancock. We are headed to the isle of women."

"I see, so that's where the ship is going huh Coby."

"Yes- Oh and one last thing... You mentioned Strawhat Luffy earlier right?" Coby said as he relaxed from the earlier conversation. Some stress melting away as he was reminded of a past Ally.

"Yes. There's been no news of a breakout-" "Wait a few hours". The confident declaration form the young marine may seem baseless to the unaware. But to Drake, he knew where this was headed.

"Luffy is not one to sit still. I think we both know that Captain!"

Coby went on. And on. And on.

He remembered the Yellow Lily he had found the day he had started out as a Marine rookie. To him, the little flower looked more like a strawhat. Twirling the flower around in his hand he felt the soft stem against his fingers.

Back in Alvidas ship the strawhat captain knocked some sense into him, quite literally. The idiot made of pure sunshine pushed him to fight back against the darkness that used to surround him. And for that he'd be forever grateful as he admired the petals of the yellow lily.

"honestly, Luffy has the best chance of becoming King of the Pirates"

Meeting him back on Water 7 felt as if he caught up with an old friend. As if he sat in a field of yellow lilies catching up on life basking in the sun. He promised to be a successful Marine back then and beat Luffy in a fight. He was on the road to that now. 'Look at me now Luffy. I'm braver'

"He is like a pheonix. He'll rise from the ashes when Kaido and big mom least expect it."

As he had. Coby still remembered Marineford. He remembered how Luffy lost Ace. He remembered the defeated cry from the strawhat. Yet it wasn't the end of his journey. He bloomed among adversity. Rose from the ashes and showed the world his burning determination when he took down Doflamingo in Dressrosa. Luffy was a force to be reckoned with. Shining brighter than the overwhelming darkness that surrounds him.

"Luffy will surely breakout. If he's in Wano then I think SWORD should take in account how he might move because he will probably end up revolutionizing wano by the time he leaves."

Luffys bright spirit was not one that wilted easily. A strong flower growing among the grime of the world, only to turn the area around him into a patch of green grass. That's what Luffy was. A ray of hope for the downtrodden.

"Whatever it may be I hope Luffy stays safe."

"Aren't you done Coby-"

"Captain, I would never be done with praising Strawhat Luffy , as I stated before a character like his isn't usually found among most men that walk this earth"

"Coby-"

"And I haven't even gotten to his fighting prowess! I mean he bested Doflamingo and even members of Big Mom's crew!"

"Coby-"

"Strawhat Luffy will turn the world upside down, I'm sure of it!"

"Coby you're still at work"

And with that Coby finally kept the den den mushi as it was time for him to finally got back to his job.

A/N: fun fact: Yellow lilies symbolize joy, happiness, friendship, thankfulness, and new beginnings. Even strength in some cases

Also, Happy Diwali to all those Celebrating it and Happy Halloween to all who are celebrating it <3

[danwhobrowses]

One Piece Chapter 1099 - Initial Thoughts

And we're back

After a week break it's time to see if One Piece will take the lead in emotionally devastating me for this week, given how other things are leaving me on 3 week breaks of ship-based anxiety, not that you could tell of course I've kept it sooooo well-hidden

Anyways, it's time for more One Piece and so, more Kuma backstory, let's see where we go from here

Spoilers for the Chapter, Support the Official Release also

Oden cover this time, Tanukis are giving him a makeover

We pick up where we left off two weeks ago, King Becori has returned and has been burning down the south

Kuma though is fighting through the fire to save people

Becori got the idea from the Goa Kingdom fire, figures

The people though are a lot more resistant to the act than the Goa Nobles were, so Becori orders a few to be killed to silence the mob

Kuma is here and he is fucking pissed

The church is being used as a shelter, as Bonney worries for her dad

Despite Becori's threats, Kuma lays out the entire castle, the One Man Revolution of Sorbet

News travels to Marejois about a new king in Sorbet, as Saturn learns that the people voted Kuma to rule

Kuma though says he's just a figurehead, since a previous king, Bulldog, is actually running the country

A much more adult looking Bonney is running laps in the church though, surprising everyone in how much she looks like Ginny

Seems she somehow ate a Devil Fruit, but also wasn't aware of it, since her aging up was unintentional and she was just trying to up her stamina

As the others try to see how much control Bonney has over the fruit, King Bulldog arrives at the church

Hey it's that old version of Bonney she used in the Reverie, but also Bonney here...

Turns out Queen Dowager Conney was an actual person, explains some things at least in how she made it to the Reverie in that disguise

Kuma yelling at Conney at the back thinking it's Bonney XD

Conney is Bulldog's mother, and Bulldog as Kuma's advisor has come with news

Becori's still about, running a smear campaign on Kuma, thus the moniker of 'The Tyrant'

The propaganda means he's still backed by the World Government, and thus it's only a matter of time until they come back to finish the job

Wanting to protect Sorbet, Kuma leaves it in Bulldog's hands, and goes out to confront Becori again at sea, this also means Bulldog and Conney will take care of Bonney in the meantime

'But I'll be so lonely' welp that's another knife in my riddled heart right now

Alas, Kuma does confront Becori, sitting pretty on a Navy ship and accusing Kuma of usurping him and being a corrupt dictator

Kuma sunk the armada, which got him a bounty (Carrot meanwhile sinks a bunch of Yonko ships and doesn't even get one bounty...yes I'm still sore about it the anime did not help validate her conclusion in Wano)

'He was a hero' 'I don't care, he was my dad first' - Oda please my heart doesn't have room for all these knives

Bonney also wants to be a pirate when she's 10 and cured

Kuma journeys out for info on Sapphire Scales, traveling to all the places he sent the Straw Hats to

He first goes to Chopper's island, since they had vast medical information

Then to Mihawk's island, doesn't look too occupied back then

Oh hey it's those Grand Fleet guys, Jeet and Abdullah

The bounty hunters of course fail in trying to claim Kuma, this was very pre-Dressrosa

Vegapunk's old home is next but they don't have answers

Tequila Wolf is sailed past again (Kuma and Oden have now sailed past it), I don't know what the next one is but it looked like Kuma helped it out, maybe it was Brook's island?

Then Weatheria (Nami's island) and the Boin Archipelago (Usopp's island) with Heracles'n

The stress is creeping up on Kuma though, dead ends and Bonney's 10th birthday is getting closer

Now that's a draconic ship there

The Revolutionaries have found Kuma, Morley has joined and Betty is still looking way different to how she does now

Dragon has a drink with his old Comrade, Ivankov and Inazuma are in Impel Down at this point, but despite all the news around Kuma he doesn't listen to media

Betty also gets Kuma's blessing to lead the Eastern Forces, since Dragon wouldn't allow anyone to take Ginny's position without it

Sabo and Koala also wanted to see Kuma, if only Dragon showed this much pride in his biological child

But he does give Kuma some intel, Vegapunk is moving labs and security is lax, good time for an audience

I think the move is implied to be the Punk Hazard incident too

Kuma is more than willing to rejoin the Revolutionaries once Bonney is cured, and Dragon is more than willing to welcome him back

Back at Sorbet, Bonney is learning how to fight, the scales are still spreading slowly though

Kuma takes Bonney to Navy Science Division Lab 08, which will later be where Egghead Island is, telling her it's a check-up

Got a little box for her like Nezuko

Everyone's surprised about how weird looking the other is

Vegapunk CAN cure Bonney, so clone theory might be done now

Bonney is playing with Sentomaru at this moment so she's not privy to the conversation

Stem Cell Treatment will be the method, real life solutions being thrown in there

The price is exorbitant though, equivalent to building a cyborg

Vegapunk also learns that Kuma's a buccaneer, even though his association with the WG would make that dangerous information

Vegapunk can't explain why Buccaneer blood is special, but he'd like more of it to clone him

Kuma is of course concerned about the idea of clone soldiers, but with Vegapunk using it as a form of payment he's more than willing to do it

Vegapunk hoped at least that the clone army's ability to deflect bullets and shoot lasers would scare evil pirates into submission, having watched Oppenheimer I think the sentiment is meant to be similar

But Kuma does like the idea of robots bearing his likeness protecting the innocent

Saturn meanwhile though has other intentions for them 'a weapon's worth is defined by how many it kills'

The bots are named Pacifista after Kuma's proclaiming himself a pacifist, two men looking to do some good without the hindsight of what damage they will wrought

This was a steady chapter really, could've been a lot more devastating for sure.

We've slowly built up again to all the stuff leading to Kuma's affiliation with Vegapunk, as well as his brief run as a pirate. Much like Corazon it seems most of his travels were fuelled by trying to find a cure for Bonney. A lot of blasts from the pasts this chapter too, though I suppose it makes sense that Kuma visited the places he sent the Straw Hats to, given how them being sent there was tailored for their skills or what they needed to improve on.

The Bonney Clone theory is likely dead, but I still can't put it past Oda to pull the rug, especially for Chapter 1100 - Oda and round numbers after all.

But yeah, it seems a brief alleviation for the moment, before it likely goes to hell again...

[doctortonytchopper]

My current theory is that gear 5 luffy is powered relative to the number of people in proximity who believe in him, and the strength of that belief: a loosely assembled collection of thoughts

When Nika awakened, it was while the land of wano was praying specifically for a savior to liberate them but ESPECIALLY while Nami was saying that she believed so strongly in luffy, and that he wasn't dead, and convincing Tama to believe in him as well

He hasn't been gaining followers to command; he's been gaining disciples. Like Jesus didn't command his disciples but they followed him and learned how to live by his principles which for luffy is like...be friends. Help each other out

Kuma recognized himself (a religious man who believed in Nika) in zoro (a man who was following his captain with an arguably religious dedication and self-sacrifice) (turns out that was also nika. Who knew!)

Luffy was prayed to both on skypeia and dressrosa as well as wano. Connecting this to point 2 as well as mihawk's "he has this quality to him that make people want to help him" which would be - help him achieve his goals, which for a god of liberation would be what he wants; people to join his quest to free everyone

Also "a god is powered by the amount of belief people have in them" is like an incredibly frequent idea in god-based fiction. Isn't that what American Gods is about?

Luffy fighting kizaru went OK but he did very much not have the level of strength he does now during this fight against Saturn. Notably, while he was all fucked up (hungry) on the floor, Bonnie was losing or had lost faith in him. Also that seemed like a much shorter fight than like the one w kaido, i was surprised and worried abt how fast he got tired out, though I guess it was his 2nd g5 in as many...minutes? Hours? Anyways.

Now Bonnie believes in him and he is devastatingly powerful in a way I would argue he just wasn't before against only kizaru. I mean maybe he was holding back but I also think the other notable change was Bonnie's belief reigniting...which also. HER ABILITY is literally BASED ON BELIEF. Her nika transformation didn't work when SHE DIDNT BELIEVE IN HIM

Oough there are a lot of other thoughts I'm forgetting

Also side note but I'm still on the shit from last night and I am Thinking about how Saturn's eyes look like that painting "Saturn devouring his son" like people are pointing out

And hey I'm just saying that maybe it's a bit more literal than just a metaphor for the old eating the young

I mean if they feel SOOOOO betrayed by joyboy - nika -

I mean is it at all possible he was literally blood related to the elders? Esp if they're not DF users, like if they're literally creatures...and/or if they're satellites of Imu. Like if Imu was the parent and the five elders are de facto inheriting that grudge based on just being extensions of Imu's will and stuff

But that ones a lot of ifs

Im just saying that luffy powering up through the series isn't NOT correlated to the number of people who believe in him and the strength of that belief. But also that might mean nothing.

Also I'm really really really soft on this cause it seems like the mystery of Toki's speech, to quote Dave Strider, can be chalked the fuck up to the solved column, but like was it? is there any chance Toki's speech about how "the dawn will cast nine shadows" has any relevance to Luffy being the sun, and from like day fucking one saying he wanted 9 crew members? He did say "9 or 10" but like it is interesting that Oden had 9 followers and so does luffy, as soon as Jinbe showed up literally right before the raid. Nine people fighting for freedom standing with a literal sun backing them is indeed a thing that would cast nine shadows on the land. And the akazaya nine didn't even all make it to the raid did they? Was Oden one of the nine? Fuck a duck I have to go back and read all of that I can't remember a damn thing all of the sudden

[abysscronica]

Damn fujitora honestly, I would have loved to see the damage birdie could have done to Pica. If only she wasn't stopped by fujitora.

"Born weak in a strong world"...Birdie IS strong she hasn't just sharpened it. Birdie better kick that thought out, and damn well know she's one of the best snipers out in the seas.

Best regards to you abyss, enjoy your works a lot. 🙌

On Fujitora's idleness and birdie's struggle with weakness

Right?? Sooo... in "Mission Dressrosa" I let my opinion of Fujitora transpire through birdie's thoughts. I don't always see eye to eye with her character, but we do agree on this. Fujitora could and should have done a lot more in Dressrosa, instead he chose to sit and observe, forcing most of his men to do the same. And just how many marines were put in harm's way, helplessly, because of his actions? Fujitora didn't care for them at all. I don't care that he's supposed to be a wise, cool old man with an ethical foundation... he was just idle in front of his status, power and responsibilities, he put civilians and soldiers in danger, he didn't have the guts to make a single choice (remember the dice at the end of the arc?), and his answer to everything is to order a meteor strike (although I have to admit that I do find this last detail funny).

Oh my... looks like I went into a lil rant there. 😂 I apologize. Going back to birdie and your actual ask: yes, birdie had a good hunch on how to stop Pica by herself before being cockblocked by Fujitora. One of the interesting thing of having a character like her in the One Piece world is to explore what a... relatively regular person could do in such a crazy, strong world. Birdie has a good skillset, but most OP characters could easily overpower her, so it's up to her to dig a niche for herself, find a way with her limited means no matter how hopeless the situation may get. Don't get me wrong, she is aware of being one of the best snipers around, and she has faith in her aim. The problem is... that's the only thing about herself she trusts. Birdie was a bullied orphan in her childhood, and her first taste of the outside world was, what? Aokiji, an Admiral, so one of the strongest fighters in existence. Then she started off as a recruit in Marineford. Marine HQ, with the best officers' finest choices, not a random base in one of the Blues (even Koby had his first experiences in the East Blue). As a result, she was always surrounded by giants, and it cemented her belief of simply being born weak, which is true, in a way. The problem with birdie is that she doesn't ever consider how far she has come. She doesn't see her accomplishments. She only focuses on her mistakes, the frustration, and the people that left, or looked down on her. Aokiji was right: for a sniper, she can be incredibly blind.

I don't wanna spoil anything, but I can tell you that the little epiphany she had against Pica, the one she couldn't test, will have a follow-up. You'll see her firing that shot.

Thank you for your beautiful words. ❣️

[camels-pen]

"Hey, Sanji."

"Hmm?"

"Have you ever fallen in love?"

Sanji paused to take a drag of his cigarette.

"Well, we sail with two gorgeous-"

"Sanji."

He sighed. "Yes, I have."

Usopp turned away from the night sky to rest his head on Sanji's shoulder, squinting at him.

"I have!"

Usopp squinted a little more before turning back to lay flat on the grass. "Tell me about them."

Sanji blew out a puff of smoke. "Why the hell should I?"

"C'mon just do it." At Sanji's stubborn silence, Usopp turned to him with a pout. "Pleeeeease?"

After a few more moments, Sanji scowled and blew smoke in Usopp's face. Usopp turned away to cough and rub his eyes.

The moment Usopp turned back to face him with complaints, Sanji said, "I haven't known him long, in the grand scheme of things." Usopp's brows rose high and he settled back against the grass. "He didn't seem like much at first. Just another passing face. It didn't take him long to impress me with his skills. I mean, that brain of his is incredible.

"And don't get me started on all his different types of weaponry. I'm still not totally sure how he manages all of that with random shit you can buy from any old merchant." Sanji sighed. "And he's absolutely gorgeous. Just the prettiest man I've ever seen-"

"Even more than Zoro?" Usopp asked quietly.

Sanji's nose wrinkled. "Disregarding the low bar you just set, yes. Prettier than the mossball by a landslide." A fond smile grew on his lips. "And he's brave. So so brave. He's afraid of so many things, but he never lets that stop him from helping his friends when they need him. He's amazing at what he does and he's-"

The words caught in his throat. Just as they always did.

"He's a king," Sanji finished lamely. "Of a really stupid island."

Usopp's mouth quirked up. "When did you have time to meet a king?" he asked, eyes glued to the sky.

Sanji shrugged, unwilling to name the place they just left. To avoid bad memories. To avoid being found out. "I know people in high places," he said, proceeding to bite his tongue the next moment. Different words, too close to more bad memories.

"Huh. Cool." Usopp's words were clipped. Neutral. It was odd hearing it from such an expressive person. " Did you-" his voice wobbled a moment before he cleared his throat. "Did you meet any other royalty?"

And though Sanji wasn't the resident storyteller, nor did he know why Usopp suddenly seemed so upset, he did his best to weave a tale of having to defeat a stupid grass covered dragon to save a beautiful princess locked in a tower.

When Usopp eventually headed back to the men's quarters though, he still couldn't help the nagging in the back of his head that he had forgotten something. Something very important.

"Oh, Usopp!" He paused midstep, but didn't turn back to Sanji. "I never asked, but what about you?"

"What about me?"

"Have you ever fallen in love?"

Usopp stayed silent a long moment. Sanji had nearly chewed through his cigarette when he spoke.

"I did with Kaya- she's a girl from Syrup- and I get crushes here and there, y'know?" Usopp waved a bandaged hand and continued forward. "Ask me again some other time though, maybe I'll have a better answer for you."

Sanji watched him go, a heavy set to his heart. He muttered to the empty deck, "You're lying."

-

Two years later, the two of them found themselves spread out on Sunny's deck once more, admiring the night sky on their way to Dressrosa.

"You knew I was talking about Sogeking?!"

"Yeah, but I didn't think you knew he was me! I thought you just really liked superheroes! Like, a man's romance, y'know. Like how me and Luffy and Chopper get excited whenever Franky pulls out something new."

"You- I-" Sanji made a frustrated noise and took a deep drag. He inhaled long enough that Usopp was starting to get concerned, before finally, he blew out a big puff of smoke. "Okay, go on."

"There's not much else- I just thought Sogeking was a lot cooler than little old me and I never stood a chance against him."

"Usopp. You. Are. Sogeking."

"Yeah, but y'know. Y'know."

Sanji shook his head. "I really don't."

Usopp started to hum his old theme song. It was just as ridiculous as Sanji remembered it.

Just as it came to the end, Sanji whisper-shouted, "Lock-on!"

The two of them fell into hysterics, clutching their stomachs and trying desperately not to release the laughter bottled up in their throats. The kind that would echo across the ship and wake up most, if not all of their crewmates, and certainly their guest.

"You remember that?" Usopp said, wheezing.

"It's the only part I remember perfectly." Sanji said, hand on his mouth. "You used to scream it at the top of your lungs, of course I remember!"

"It was to build confidence!"

"It was because you got too into your performance!"

They giggled quietly, the built up laughter slowly fading away, until they were relaxed once more.

Sanji turned his head to stare at Usopp. Take the time to admire the way he'd changed and grown in their time apart. There were the physical changes of course- Sanji was a big fan of those- but also his boost in confidence. His surety of his place on the crew. With the crew.

And more than the changes, Sanji saw Usopp's carefree laughter, his passionate storytelling, his terrified shrieks, his quiet tinkering, his annoying pranks-

God, Sanji missed him- loved him- so much.

And then a thought came to him.

"Hey Usopp."

"Hmm?"

"Have you ever fallen in love?"

Usopp smiled, squeezing their interlocked fingers.

"Yes," he said, bringing up their hands to kiss the ring on Sanji's finger. "I have."