Summary:
After a hard fight, Luffy finally manages to defeat Counter. He then rests next to Kingbaum’s body.
Sanji later arrives to find Luffy, who wakes up to the smell of Sanji’s bento. Sanji gives a bento to Luffy, relieving his hunger. Sanji again tries to convince Luffy to leave without him, but in response, Luffy punches him and forces him to tell his true feelings. Sanji then tearfully admits that he wants to return to the Straw Hats, but he couldn’t leave his family. Happy to hear Sanji’s answer, Luffy decides to help him crash the wedding.
Before Sanji found Luffy, it is recounted how Bobbin tried to steal food from his bento box, causing him to kick Bobbin and run away. As Sanji headed to the outskirts of Sweet City, Luffy battled Charlotte Counter. Counter was able to easily overpower Luffy at first, but Luffy eventually managed to find the strength and determination to stand up and face Counter’s blows. They exchanged two blows and Luffy eventually collapsed, but managed to land enough blows on Counter’s head to render him unconscious before he could deliver the finishing blow. Barely conscious, Luffy then made his way to where he had promised to wait for Sanji and dragged himself to Kingbaum’s corpse with every last ounce of his strength. After reaching the outskirts of Sweet City, Sanji initially had trouble finding Luffy among the many fallen Big Mom Pirates, but eventually found him by his growling stomach and approached him.
In the present, Luffy is unconscious as Sanji approaches him, but Luffy smells the bento Sanji brought and opens his eyes. Luffy is happy to see Sanji, but Sanji treats him coldly as he hands him a bento basket. Although the bento is ruined as it was dropped and soaked by the rain, Luffy eats it and declares it to be delicious. He notes that the bento contains the crew’s favorite foods and says that Sanji should go back and make it for all of them, but Sanji claims that he won’t be back. He lists three reasons why he didn’t: attacking Luffy, Zeff, and Baratie, who were being held hostage to discourage him from escaping, and his desire to save his family from being murdered at the wedding, even though they were always cruel to him. However, Luffy becomes angry at the insincerity of the statement and punches Sanji into Kingbaum’s corpse. As Sanji recovers, Luffy tells him to say how he really feels. Sanji then has flashbacks of preparing food for the crew. He once got mad at Luffy, Usopp, and Chopper for sneaking food into their mouths, but the crew was just amused as they demanded more of his cooking. Back in the present, Sanji begins to cry and after much effort manages to admit to Luffy that he wants to return to Sunny and the crew, even though he can’t bring himself to leave his family. In response, Luffy smiles and promises to help Sanji crash the wedding tomorrow. When the two reconcile, the storm calms as dawn breaks.
In Sweet City, Charlotte Katakuri, the second son of the Charlotte family and one of the three sweet commanders of the Big Mom Pirates, approaches Whole Cake’s castle with a henchman. Henchman offers to contact someone to open the gates, but Katakuri replies that there is no need as they will open soon. Katakuri’s words quickly prove to be accurate as the gates soon open and the duo enter the castle. It’s five hours and 30 minutes until Big Mom’s tea party and Sanji and Pudding’s wedding start.