One Piece: Marine Luffy, Garp regrets it

Luffy and Reiju noticed Sanji's doubtful expression and secretly exchanged amused glances. Though the teasing was entertaining, Luffy had serious matters to address.

He suddenly turned to Reiju with an unexpectedly direct question: "You don't have any listening devices on you, do you?"

Reiju's body tensed slightly as her smile gradually faded. She met Luffy's serious gaze and shook her head firmly. "No. Why? Do you distrust me and suspect I have hidden motives?"

"Not at all," Luffy quickly clarified, wanting to avoid any misunderstanding. "It's just that if your father overheard what I'm about to say, it might damage our newly established cooperative relationship. But since you've confirmed there's no surveillance, I'll speak freely." He cast a meaningful glance toward Sanji.

"You probably don't realize the gravity of the situation. When your so-called father was genetically modifying your siblings, he installed control mechanisms in each of them that prevent them from disobeying his orders. In fact, except for you and Reiju, Ichiji and the others have been stripped of even the most basic human emotions. They've essentially become emotionless machines, only capable of killing and executing missions."

As Luffy casually revealed this long-buried secret of the Vinsmoke family, both Reiju and Sanji stared at him in astonishment.

Reiju was particularly shocked. This information was supposed to be known only within her immediate family and had never been disclosed to outsiders. How had Luffy discovered it?

After staring at Luffy in stunned silence, Sanji quickly shifted his gaze to Reiju, desperately seeking confirmation of these disturbing claims.

"How did you come to know this?" Reiju asked Luffy quietly. "To protect this secret, my father executed all the scientists who participated in the experiments."

"So what Luffy said is true?" Sanji interjected, his face contorting with rage. "That bastard implanted control devices in his own daughter?! And Ichiji and the others... they..."

Observing Sanji's mounting anger and disbelief, Reiju gave a helpless smile. She was too preoccupied with the revelation to question how Luffy had obtained this information. Settling back in her chair, she began to share the painful truth in a hushed voice.

"Yes, it's true. Not just me, but all three of the others—Ichiji, Niji, and Yonji—we're all controlled and manipulated by our father. If he desired it, he could order us to die, and we would comply without hesitation."

She continued with a note of bitter irony in her voice. "The only reason I'm somewhat luckier than Ichiji and the others is that I was born earlier, when father's research on bloodline manipulation was still in its developmental stages."

Her gaze softened as she looked at Sanji. "But you and your brothers weren't so fortunate. Before you were born, father forced our mother to consume experimental drugs."

Reiju's voice grew quieter. "If mother hadn't secretly taken counteracting medication at great risk to her own health, in a desperate attempt to thwart father's madness... even you, Sanji, might now be an 'emotionless machine' like Ichiji and the others."

As she spoke, perhaps recalling the mother they had lost so long ago, tears began to stream down Reiju's face.

"Sanji, you know you've been labeled as weak since childhood, but that supposed weakness was purchased with our mother's life. You aren't the failure father claimed you to be—quite the opposite. Your gentleness, kindness, sensitivity, and compassion—the very traits father despised—make you the most successful 'perfect creation' in mother's eyes. She believed this with her dying breath."

"I am... the most perfect creation..." Sanji repeated numbly. The revelation struck him like a physical blow, and he slumped back in his chair, swaying slightly.

In his daze, he seemed transported back to his childhood, reuniting with the gentle, beautiful woman who had given him such profound encouragement. Her radiant golden hair and that smile—fragile yet infinitely warming—remained vivid in his memory.

"Really? So in her heart, I was always perfect?" His voice cracked with emotion. "Reiju, please take me to visit mother's resting place later. I hope I haven't disappointed her with the man I've become."

Looking at her brother as he covered his face, his shoulders trembling slightly, Reiju gently wiped away her own tears and nodded vigorously, agreeing to Sanji's request.

"If possible," Luffy interjected softly, "take me with you. I'd like to pay my respects to this remarkable woman and let her know that I'll protect her daughter for the rest of my life, ensuring she never suffers again."

Sanji's trembling body went still. He slowly raised his head, giving Luffy what could only be described as a death glare.

Meanwhile, Reiju was moved by the sincerity in Luffy's tone and gazed at him with undisguised affection.

"Alright," she said warmly. "I believe our mother would be very happy today."