Sanji’s Ultimate Transformation Into A Cold-Blooded Assassin

This article contains spoilers from One Piece’s Elbaf Arc.

Key Takeaways

• Sanji used the Raid Suit in Wano, awakening Germa powers on Onigashima.
• He gains an exoskeleton, enhanced physical attributes, and regenerative abilities.
• Sanji’s genetic transformation is incomplete; he’s yet to manifest Germa traits.

It goes without saying that Sanji is one of the most important characters in One Piece, and certainly someone that will have an important role to play in the Final Saga. Sanji has already shone in the Egghead Island arc, and he will continue to do so in future arcs as well. Elbaf has a major role laid out for Sanji, and the arcs following this one will as well.

Given that Oda has given Sanji a very special role of being one of the two Wings of the Pirate King, fans know that he has a significant role to play in the story. At the same time, Sanji’s role in One Piece is not going to be limited to making Luffy the Pirate King. After all, fans know that the character has many layers. Sanji will most definitely have to find the All Blue as well, and at the same time, deal with Germa lineage, which is where the idea of him transforming into a cold-blooded assassin comes from.

How Sanji Awakened His Germa Powers

• Sanji Used The Raid Suit Thrice In Wano
• Sanji’s Latent Powers Finally Awakened On Onigashima

In order for Sanji to become a cold-blooded assassin, fans know that he will have to develop his Germa powers greatly. For those who do not remember, Sanji awakened the powers of his lineage factor manipulation in the Wano Country Arc. In the Whole Cake Island arc, Sanji received a Raid Suit from his siblings. He utilized this Raid Suit in Wano Country, and he did so quite efficiently. In total, he utilized the Raid Suit three times, and after the third time, his body acted rather strange. Unbeknownst to him, Sanji had started awakening the genetic mutations of the experimentation done by Judge, which were suppressed over the years. This whole process started in Onigashima and concluded within a few hours. After the conclusion of the process, Sanji realized that he had now developed powers similar to his siblings. Once Sanji activated his powers, his eyebrows swirl in the opposite direction. This indicates that the Germa genes are now active.

Which one would help Luffy become the Pirate King? – Sanji

When His powers activate, Sanji gains a very tough exoskeleton that can even shatter the strongest of swords and sustain blows from the strongest of Hakis. At the same time, Sanji also gains additional muscle mass, and a massive boost to all his physical attributes. Most importantly, Sanji gains a high regeneration factor, which means that he can simply recover from any and all injuries within a matter of a few seconds. This makes Sanji a very powerful individual. It is by utilizing these powers that he was able to defeat Queen in combat with rather ease.

Why Sanji’s Germa Transformation Isn’t Complete Yet

Sanji Is Yet To Manifest Some Germa Traits

While Sanji has manifested most Germa powers, it must be noted that something is quite strange here. As fans know, Judge’s experimentation should naturally have stripped Sanji of his emotions. After all, Sanji’s three brothers have all lost their emotions especially given that they suffered from the same experimentation as him. At the same time, Sanji also does not have colored hair. All of Sanji’s brothers have hair color that corresponds to their ability. For instance, Ichiji is called Sparking Red, and he has red hair. He also utilizes powers of light and explosions which are matching to his color. Niji is Dengeki Blue, and he has blue hair and also utilizes the powers of blue lightning. Similarly, Yonji is Winch Green and he utilizes the power of various intriguing machines in combat, and most importantly, he has green hair. Even Reiju, who was born before Sanji, has pink hair, which corresponds to her name Poison Pink.

All these siblings have hair color corresponding to their abilities. Curiously enough, Sanji’s name is Stealth Black, yet his hair is yellow. Once again, this is an indication of the fact that his Germa transformation is not yet complete.

Two major things are yet to happen to Sanji, and that is the loss of his emotions and, at the same time, the transformation of his hair color. Of course, it could simply be that Oda chose to drop these things from Sanji’s scientific Powers, but it certainly carries immense potential, which wouldn’t be met if Oda simply kept this part away from the story. To make things more interesting, Oda himself said that Sanji’s character needs to be watched further for more growth in volume 105 SBS. Here’s what Oda had to say:

“D: I have a question; in Chapter 1031 of Volume 102, Sanji’s eyebrows were reversed, but in Chapter 1044 of Volume 103, they returned back to normal. Why did they change back to normal? P.N. Rooftop

O: You noticed it well~. His eyebrows have definitely changed. Going back to the Whole Cake Island Arc, all of Sanji’s brothers and sister have had superhuman qualities and strong skin called “Exoskeleton” since they were born due to “Lineage Factor Manipulation”. However, only Sanji was born as a normal human due to his mother’s resistance. Look at his brothers and sister’s eyebrows.

Everyone has “66” like Yonji. Sanji is the exact opposite. That was the battle where “the power of science” was manifested in the wake of the raid suit! Sanji originally had an abnormal resistance to “flame”. It was strange. Let’s keep watching.”

As implied by Oda himself, there is more to come in regard to Sanji’s genetic transformation, and all these secrets will be explored at some point later down the line.

How Sanji Will Transform Into A Cold-Blooded Assassin

The Final Saga Will Be A Big Test For Sanji

As fans know, Sanji values his emotions above everything else. He knows that he can grow even stronger if he gives into his cold-blooded side and dismantle even mighty pirates with ease. But, Sanji chooses to keep his emotions because they are a part of him and, above all, a piece of his mother that ended up saving his life. But, Sanji will go on to lose his emotions, and this will make for an incredibly exciting plot point. His hair could turn black, and he could become a cold-blooded warrior, akin to a Seraphim who simply takes orders. This has been foreshadowed in the story by Sanji constantly comparing himself to the Seraphims and calling himself Sanjiphim. Once Sanji does go through this change, it will be incredibly difficult for him to be stopped in combat, but at the same time, he will stop being himself, which would mean that it would be against everything that he stands for, and at the same time, he wouldn’t be the person that Luffy chose for his crew either.

This sets up a very interesting dilemma, where Sanji will have to conquer his own cold-blooded nature and as plans know, this can be done through sheer willpower. In other words, Sanji will have to utilize his Haki to overcome this cold-blooded nature of the Germa lineage Factor Manipulation. This could be the perfect moment for Sanji to awaken Conqueror’s Haki and gain control of his emotions once again. This would give Sanji access to all his powers, a new black-haired transformation, and on top of that, incredibly powerful abilities that will help him dismantle even strong individuals in One Piece, such as the Admirals of the Marines, and allow him to battle the likes of the Yonko and Elders.

One Piece is available to read via Viz Media. The series can be read by the fans officially and for free on the Shonen Jump and the Manga Plus apps. The release date for the next chapter of One Piece, One Piece 1132, is set to be December 1, 2024.