Chapter 843

Chapter 843 is titled "Vinsmoke Sanji".

Cover Page
Color Spread - The Straw Hat Pirates with bear themed clothes in front of a pagoda.

Luffy's shirt saya "Reconstruction Kumamoto", probably as a reference to the recent disaster in the real life city Kumamoto where Eiichiro Oda was born and grew up at. The pagoda is also similar to the city's Kumamoto Castle. "Kuma" means "Bear" in Japanese.

Short Summary
Cracker is sent flying into Sweet City, causing a state of emergency to be activated. Luffy and Nami continue on despite Pound's accounts of the wrath Big Mom has in store for them, riding on top of King Baum out of the Seducing Woods. Nami communicates with Chopper and Carrot through a mirror shard, but Chopper and Carrot are in trouble and the connection suddenly breaks. Luffy and Nami then run into the Germa Kingdom carriage where Sanji is, but after much thought Sanji kicks Luffy away, saying his name is Vinsmoke Sanji and that he has accepted his royal status, insulting the Straw Hats as commoners. However, Luffy does not believe Sanji and prepares to fight him.

Long Summary
Luffy's new Gear 4th technique sends Cracker crashing through his hardened biscuit soldiers, as Nami  and Pound  watch on in shock. Cracker flies straight into Sweet City, crashing through several homies in the woods and buildings alike.

Inside Whole Cake Chateau and Big Mom's chambers, it is revealed that the other two of the three "Sweet Commanders", Katakuri and Smoothie, have reported in. As one of the homies comments on how it has been a long time since all three were under one roof, he also ponders aloud what is taking Cracker so long.

After finally crashing into Whole Cake Chateau itself, Cracker's unconscious body is observed in shock by the nearby townspeople. Chief among these are Charlotte Opera, Charlotte Galette, and Charlotte Mont-D'Or. Mont D'or immediately wants to know who is responsible, while Galette remembers that Cracker was in charge of dealing with Straw Hat Luffy. Opera concurs, and realizes that Luffy must be close by. A red alert is thus issued for the town, where all residents are warned to stay indoors.

Back in the Seducing Woods, Luffy has returned to his normal form and wheezes from fatigue as he lays on the ground. Pound apologizes for not having faith in the pirates, convinced that they stood no chance against the Sweet Commander, as Nami berates him for not keeping this to himself. They notice that Luffy appears to be shrinking, and he concurs, explaining that because Gear 4th costs so much stamina, he burns calories much quicker in that form. Nami rejoices over their victory, but her enthusiasm is not reciprocated, as Luffy isn't able to move, and both Pound and King Baum are in shock over the weight of what they have just done. Regardless, he explains that the homies' ineffectiveness against Big Mom's vivre card is common knowledge, so even her children aren't allowed to carry one. He thus wonders how Nami ended up with one, but she dodges the question, excited to have confirmation of just how much power the vivre card gives her. Pound speaks up however, and reminds them that they are now in an extremely dire situation. It is revealed that the former Sweet Commander defeated by Urouge the Mad Monk was named "Snack", and that Big Mom went into a vengeful fury upon his defeat. In addition to sending Cracker and his troops to sea, Big Mom created an extremely powerful storm that was the manifestation of her rage, wiping out the enemy. He explains further the Big Mom possesses the ability to control the weather as such: her left hand can summon "Zeus" The Thundercloud, while her right hand can summon "Prometheus" The Sun. He warns that nothing can stop Big Mom's rage, and urges them to escape the island while they can. While Nami is stunned by the information, Luffy casually passes it off as not a big deal, saying that his own tantrums are a force of their own. Luffy once again ponders Sanji's letter, wishing that he'd at least told them in person. He is grateful that they have made it this far thanks to Pudding's help, but laments that they don't know what happened to Pekoms and were sidetracked by the various antics of the Seducing Woods. Nami adds that they don't even know when the wedding is scheduled, but she heard that the Vinsmokes are supposed to be visiting the castle today. Pound tells them that they can't let the Vinsmokes reach the castle under any circumstance, and wonders what time it is now. Luffy asks King Baum to carry him to the castle due to his fatigue, and since he knows where it is.

The Vinsmoke carriage is on its way to the castle as well, with the Germa soldiers in the security escort noticing that the townspeople seem to be freaking out about something. As another soldier muses that they must be excited about the family's arrival, Sanji sits in a solemn silence.

As the Sanji Retrieval team closes in on the city atop King Baum, Nami converses with Chopper and Carrot  through a mirror shard. They attempt to give Nami an update that they are taking care of things on their end, but they seem to keep getting interupted by something chasing them, worrying Nami that they may not actually be ok. They manage to convey that there doesn't appear to be anything Nami or Luffy can do on their end to help them escape, and Nami is able to tell them that they are en route to the castle. The mirror shard suddenly shatters however, and Nami is no longer able to communicate with them. In the meantime, Luffy has managed to completely shrink down to his normal size, uttering that he wants meat in his temporary slumber. Just then, King Baum notifies Nami as he spots the Vinsmoke carriage in the horizon. Luffy immediately snaps out of his sleep at this, asking if they can see Sanji. The Germa soldier driving the carriage notifies Vinsmoke Judge of King Baum's approach, and soon after Luffy loudly calls out for his chef. Yonji is shocked at how quickly Luffy closed the distance to their carriage, and Sanji is in absolute disbelief that Luffy has come all this way.

Luffy jumps into the air, and Nami calls out for Sanji as well, grabbing Yonji, Niji, and Ichiji's attention simultaneously as they instantly fall for Nami's beauty. Judge confirms the man approaching them is indeed Luffy, while Reiju looks on with a smile. Luffy lands on the side of the carriage, telling his cook that he's here to pick him up. The Germa soldiers draw their weapons on Luffy, warning him to leave. Luffy explains that he understood the letter, but that he couldn't wait around, and Sanij's face twists in anguish as he remembers his good times with the crew. The Germa soldiers again warn Luffy, but Luffy nonchalantly continues to explain the plan the crew came up with in Zou, all while Sanji remembers every single extenuating circumstance that prevents him from leaving with his beloved captain: the exploding wristlets, Zeff's life, what happens to people who turn down Big Mom's invitation, and the secret that Vito  whispered in his ear. With no other choice, Sanji swiftly kicks Luffy off the carriage, sending him flying backward as Nami wonders what's going on. With sullen eyes, Sanji tells the "lowly pirates" to leave (repeating the exact sentiment that Cracker said he would). Luffy's face quickly changes to a frown, as Sanji announces himself as "Vinsmoke Sanji", and a prince of the Germa Kingdom. This amuses his brothers, but draws a solemn silence from Reiju.

As Luffy sits up, Sanji continues to explain that he had his reasons for keeping his past a secret, but mainly that he didn't want the crew to develop an inferiority complex by being in his presence. Being that he has the choice to gallivant and roam the sea with the crew, or stay with his beautiful wife and soldiers at his beck and call, the choice should be obvious, even to an idiot like Luffy. He says they should learn to "read between the lines", and that he only wrote the letter to soften the blow of them having to eventually realize he won't be coming back. He concludes by saying they came all this way for nothing, and acts like he doesn't even remember their names. This deeply saddens Nami, but Luffy doesn't buy any of it, growing extremely upset. Yonji attempts to step in, but Sanji quickly shuts him down, saying he'll be the one to put the "trash back where they belong".

Chapter Notes

 * Luffy defeats Cracker.
 * Luffy is back to his regular size within minutes, explaining that Gear 4th severely accelerates his metabolism.
 * More members of the Charlotte Family are introduced: Charlotte Opera, the fifth son, and Charlotte Galette, the eighteenth daughter.
 * Mont-d'Or is revealed to be the nineteenth son of the family.
 * The two other "Sweet Commanders" have gathered in Big Mom's castle.
 * The names of the other "Sweet Commanders" are Katakuri and Smoothie.
 * The Sweet Commander who was defeated by Urouge is named Snack.
 * Whole Cake Island goes into lockdown upon learning that Luffy defeated Cracker.
 * According to Pound, Linlin has the power to control the weather.
 * Her right hand controls "Prometheus the Sun" and her left controls "Zeus the Thunder Cloud".
 * Prometheus is a titan in greek mythology who stole fire from the gods and gave it to mankind.
 * Zeus is the thunder god in greek mythology.
 * It's revealed that due to their influence over Homies, Big Mom's children are not allowed to have her Vivre Card.
 * Luffy and Nami reunite with Sanji.
 * Niji and Ichiji react to Nami with their eyes turning into hearts, much like Sanji and Yonji.
 * To protect Zeff and keep his hands, Sanji is forced to identify himself as a "Vinsmoke" and orders the Straw Hats to leave. Luffy refuses, and the two prepare to fight.
 * On one panel, Sanji's eyebrow curl the wrong way.