#redhaired shanks

When the crew is back together Sanji acts as if nothing has changed, though Rayleigh seems to be letting a breath he was holding out at the sight of him. Then Luffy comes back and all hell breaks loose. But Sanji waves goodbye to his grandpa, and Rayleigh watches with Shakky as they depart, satisfied smiles on their faces. Shakky can notice the relief in her husband, knows the man wishes for more answers he won't get. She kisses his cheek and leaves him to watch the horizon.

Canon continues, no one notices anything until Zou when Cat Viper looks at him and laughs after they save the minks.

"Anyone ever tell you you look like Roger's daughter?" The mink grins at him.

"Roger had a daughter?" Nami asks with confusion making the mink laugh.

"A real gem of a pirate. She and Marco were besotted with each other, she was Shanks and Buggy's older sister, hell of a sharp shooter too!" Cat Viper smiles widely before frowning. "She disappeared shortly before Roger's execution. I don't think any of us ever recovered from her loss."

"I'm sorry for your loss." Sanji says before leaving the hut to feed the others. Then he goes with the Bege and Caeser. Thinking he could save his crew. WCI has the Charlotte family is fairly positive that the kids Judge presents are the children of Sora. Especially after they see Sanji. Judge disagrees, they are not Gol children. No one would have been foolish enough to kidnap her, those who knew of her at least.

During the escape Judge promises Sanji it's not over and Sanji's gut sinks like a stone. Nami and Luffy only hear about when he's snubbing Sanji's good traits as failures. His brothers and Reiju are mutated enough that even if it came out who their mother was nothing would happen to them. Sanji's pretty sure after this they won't come for him again.

In Wano, after the raid and the pact Nami and Brook ask Marco about Sora while Cat Viper points Sanji out to Dogstorm about the similarities. Marco looks genuinely taken aback they know about Sora and how much Sanji fucking looks like her.

"I never moved on if that's what you're asking." Marco frowns. "And after Ace, I think the government got what it wanted."

"Cat Viper said she just vanished, but there's hardly any record of her at all." Nami pushes and Marco stares.

"Buggy also convinced the world he died when he didn't so take what you see with a grain of salt, kid." Marco says before he leaves to catch a ride on the Red Force, asking Shanks if he knows of anything the cook of the Strawhats. He doesn't know but he remembers the first time he saw the kid's photo, how much it looked like his big sister. Marco nods before he goes back home to settle into retirement. Sanji settles into the lies easily, he's used to it after all.

Then after everything on Egghead, rescuing Bonney and kicking the elder and fighting Borsalino, it happens almost the same way it did to his mom. Sanji wakes to sea stone cuffs and chains, a sea stone cell and top Navy personnel looking at him like he's a rabid dog. Maybe he is with the way he thrashes. Then he hears discussion of his pending execution and he stills.

Judge really had sold him out as Sora's only human child this was punishment. Sanji swallows at his pending mortality. With no way to get a message out he was fucked. The Strawhats are looking desperately for their cook, the fleet they had amassed coming together to search when a video like Vegapunk's plays across the world. A news broadcast, a photo of a beaten Sanji, chained to the wall by his wrists and ankles and an announcement of the capture of Gol D. Sora's only living child and his pending execution. He wonders if this is how Ace felt.

Sanji tries to keep an eye on the battle but it quickly becomes a blur of spectacular powers clashing. It's spectacular and horrifying and Sanji yells for them to leave. There's shouts back, but he can't understand them over the sounds of the war. Then he's almost all alone on the platform as the higher ranks join into the battle in front of him. Then Buggy is there with Galdino just like at the Summit War and they're pulling Sanji along for escape.

It feels like a dream, his grandfather's crew and his captain and his crewmates coming to save him, his uncles and theirs. He's running and fighting as theirs shouts about getting him to a ship. Any ship. Just get him away. Just like at Marineford, Akainu is looking at Luffy in anger. Sanji remembers the scar and sees the punch and he can't stop himself just like Ace.

Maybe it's a Gol thing.

He shoves Luffy out of the way and there's pain. Burning, searing pain shooting up into his right shoulder that steals his breath in his shoulder as Luffy stares at him. Eyes wide then narrowing in pure wrath as he looks at the fleet admiral. Marco's in front of him suddenly with Robin as Shanks and Rayleigh rush past and Sanji looks.

Oh, Usopp is holding his arm.

Wait.

Usopp has his arm? He's like ten feet away. Sanji looks back at Marco as Hongo yells to get him to the Red Force and then they're hauling ass again. Sanji is getting kind of dizzy and Crocus is waiting for him. Sanji looks at him, having not seen him since they made it into the Grand Line and he looks properly horrified at the state of them. Sanji is rushed into the infirmary and maybe the shock finally hits, maybe there's a wave of Conquerors haki to lay him out, maybe it's blood loss, all he knows is that he blacks out.

He wakes up seas know how long later. Luffy is asleep on his legs, Sanji moves to pet his hair when he realizes his dominant hand is gone. Right. Usopp had it. Clearly he's going to need to relearn somethings as he pets Luffy with his left. It makes his captain blink and sit up and start yelling at him but honestly Sanji isn't listening. They both lived. Sanji just gives Luffy a tired smile because he's pretty doped up, understandably as others come in. Buggy looking the most upset while Rayleigh looks annoyed, Shanks follows with the some others while just having relief on his face.

"You all are the same." Buggy says with a glare. "I already called Zeff for you."

"Mm, thanks." Sanji mumbles while Rayleigh sighs and rubs his face and Shanks looks at his younger brother.

"So we owe Zeff but also need to take Germa out?" Shanks grins.

"Oh yeah, a lot. Since he didn't out me or Sanji." Buggy nods. "You got a place for the other kids though?" He asks and Beck's call of 'No!' from deck makes Shanks glare back through the door.

"I told you not to do that again." Luffy says to Sanji who blinks at him, still tired. So the cook just pats his head again.

"Get some rest, kid. You got a lot of people eager to meet ya." Rayleigh says. Sanji nods and even Luffy is pulled out of the room too to let the blond sleep and heal.

When Sanji finally comes on deck a few days later, there's loads of smiles and cheers and soft touches welcoming him back. There's a photo of Shanks and Sanji with stumps on display while Luffy yells at them. Buggy and Chopper harping on the cook while Rayleigh keeps planting kisses on Sanji's hair like he used to do to Sora. Sanji tells Marco his mom never moved on from him either and gets his hair ruffled and a sad smile from the Zoan. Franky shows him some plans for prosthetics and Sanji just asks for something with moving fingers and super plain. Franky calls him lame.