One Piece 1031: Sanji's cliffhanger death pact with Zoro

In One Piece Chapter 1031, fans saw Sanji undergo severe changes in body and personality to the point of asking Zoro to kill him.

Although the condition of that request was Sanji needing to be totally different after the battle, it still merits concern given Sanji’s transformations. While most One Piece deaths are fake-outs, it wouldn’t be surprising if Oda chooses to kill a Straw Hat in Wano. But who would be the one to die, and how?

One Piece 1031: Sanji's cliffhanger death pact with Zoro

Sanji

As of this writing, Sanji has to be the frontrunner for this discussion. Readers literally just saw him make a death pact with Zoro, and the one major condition seems a shoo-in to be fulfilled.

While we did see Queen’s blades break on Sanji’s back, there was no visible use of Busoshoku (or Armament) Haki. Even if there was Busoshoku being used, Zoro has consistently been characterized as having the strongest Busoshoku around.

With this in mind, there’s a very real possibility Sanji could die to Zoro’s Busoshoku Haki-covered sword if the pact condition is met. Therefore, readers currently have to assume Sanji dies at the end of Wano with no One Piece 1032 spoilers/leaks available. However, there’s another person who may die in this scenario.

Zoro

Let’s say Sanji does become a completely different person by the end of Wano, and Zoro discreetly pulls him aside to kill him. Depending on how hard Sanji has changed up to this point, he may have no feelings toward or even memories of his Mosshead frenemy. There’s an entirely real possibility Zoro is unable to kill Sanji, who then forgets about his request and kills Zoro in retaliation.

Sanji has already been shown to have some memory loss/lack of consciousness during this transformation. This is shown via his implied beating of a woman, probably the least Sanji thing Sanji could do. If something as engrained in Sanji as never hitting a woman is being disregarded, surely he’d have no problem killing Zoro in self-defense.

Chopper

Finally, Chopper is the most likely Straw Hat next to Zoro and Sanji to die in Wano. If Sanji has any chance of medically curing his transformation, it’ll surely be Chopper who is asked to perform the procedure. He’s the Straw Hat doctor, and likely the best doctor in all of One Piece with the possible exception of Law and his Op-Op Fruit.

Say Zoro tries to kill Sanji, but sees a flash of him in those final seconds. Even being the serious right hand of the Straw Hats he is, Zoro will likely try to save Sanji first. Undoubtedly, Zoro will go right to Chopper for help.

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Sanji lays down in the aftermath of the Onigashima raid, slowly losing the last shreds of his true personality. Everyone from the Straw Hats to the Minks are totally drained and can no longer fight. Sanji’s transformation finishes before Chopper can cure him, and when the new Sanji realizes what’s happening, he kills Chopper.

Chopper dying creates legitimate problems for the Straw Hats both in the immediate aftermath of Wano and in their future travels. Although Chopper is a fan favorite and, therefore, a hard kill, it’d significantly elevate the story at large and give real consequences to the Wano arc. However, as this is all speculation, we’ll have to wait and see how Oda shakes everything out.

Final thoughts

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While we can only guess without One Piece 1032 spoilers at what will happen, Chopper, Zoro, and Sanji are the most likely Straw Hats to die in Wano.

Given the events of One Piece 1031, it’s fair to say both Zoro and Sanji are in danger of dying at the other’s hands. While Chopper’s death is more speculative than the others and makes some assumptions, it’s definitely not an unrealistic question to pose.

Be sure to keep up with all One Piece news and chapter releases to find out which Straw Hat, if any, will die in Wano.

Edited by R. Elahi