In A play, few bands are as iconic as the Monster Trio of the Straw Hats. Comprised of Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji, the three represent the true strength and power of this burgeoning pirate crew. However, in Sanji’s case, his role as a member of this unofficial team has been somewhat compromised lately. Recently however, during the Onigashima raid, Sanji received a huge boost that could change that.
The Onigashima raid created multiple reasons for fans to believe that Sanji will not stay (or more accurately, be unable to) be a part of the Monster Trio as he is no longer the third strongest crew member. With the arrival of Jimbe and the possibility of Yamato joining the Straw Hats, it’s easy to see why fans were starting to doubt his abilities. With far fewer wins to his name since the time jump, Sanji just hasn’t had many moments to shine. Even Whole Cake Island, an arc dedicated to him, has done more to develop and explain his character rather than reinforce him in any way.
However, now that his Germa 66 buffs have seemingly awakened, Sanji might have the power to dispel any such doubts. With increased strength and a super durable exoskeleton responsible for the famous “iron bodies” of his siblings, Sanji’s physical abilities are now on a whole new level. To top it off, he even has a Healing Factor, which apparently allows him to instantly mend broken bones and other injuries exponentially faster than a normal human.
There is also the issue of its unique ability. While it is not confirmed that he has access to one, his other four siblings each have their own unique powers. Reiju has his “Poison Pink” powers, Ichiji has his “Sparking Red”, Niji has his “Electric Shock Blue” and Yonji has his “Winch Green”, so it’s entirely possible that Sanji has his too. Most likely, this will have something to do with the name “Stealth Black†– the name of his character in the fictional comic book starring Germa 66 – as his Raid Suit is the same as in the comics. It’s also possible that it was his Devil Jambe technique, as even Queen was confused by how he was able to use it.
Speaking of the raid suit, this has already proven to be an amazing tool for Sanji to use, as it further increases his physical abilities and gives him the ability to fly. Sanji becomes a much greater threat to his enemies than he would be without him, and he even has his own unique ability – being able to turn himself invisible whenever the user wants (sadly helping to fulfill the dream of Sanji for being able to peek at women without their knowledge).
While not directly stated, it’s safe to assume that the Raid Suit’s physical upgrades aren’t necessarily set in stone. That is, his increase in strength will not be the same now as before the suit woke up his Germa 66 buffs. On the contrary, he will likely increase regardless of his base strength by the same amount as ‘previously. This would effectively mean that if Sanji’s strength increased on his own without any equipment, then with the suit, Sanji’s power would increase even more, probably in proportion to his body’s growth.
That being said, it’s still unclear how Sanji’s awakened body will react to the raid suit now, as well as if / how that will affect the suit’s abilities in the future. All that can be clearly established is that even without using it or any weapon Haki, Sanji’s body is strong enough that his skull could shatter Queen’s sword with little to no damage. Sanji himself barely seemed to notice the attack, pointing out how much stronger he had become.
With all of these new upgrades, it’s easy to forget that Sanji also practices Haki. As the first power to be used in the New World, with its effectiveness arguably greater than that of a Devil Fruit, it would make sense for Sanji to be able to use it. Currently able to use both weaponry and Haki observation, with more affinity for the latter (enough for him to access the Advanced Future Sight ability), Sanji’s combat potential has received a huge boost thanks to its improvements.
Already before his body woke up, Sanji and Haki’s physical capacities were great enough that he could overpower his brother Yonji and prove himself stronger than even his father (who only won their match by “cheating “). Now, however, he can approach combat in a similar way to Luffy, in that he can combine his Haki with his body’s unique abilities. By merging the two, he can attain a power greater than neither he nor his family members have ever had before.
While all of these new abilities help cement Sanji as one of the Pirate King’s wings, they also help bridge the growing gap between him and Zoro. Since the Alabasta Saga, Zoro and Sanji’s rivalry has remained a constant within the dynamic of the crew, with many of their moments together highlighting it. Unfortunately, as the series progressed, it became more and more visible that Zoro was on a higher level.
At some point, the strength rating became such that Sanji was either at Zoro’s level or slightly lower, Zoro was either at Luffy’s level or slightly weaker, and Luffy was the pinnacle of crew strength. While Zoro’s exact strength is unclear, it was evident that Sanji was written as the weakest of the three. This was further illustrated when only Zoro joined Luffy against Kaido and their subsequent unlocking of Advanced Conqueror’s Haki. While this was supposed to be a fight between the Yonko and the Worst Generation, it also shows how Sanji couldn’t qualify for this unofficial group even after Enies Lobby like Zoro did.
Now, however, all of that has suddenly changed. Sanji’s body is arguably the strongest of the crew right now, even stronger than Luffy’s and certainly more than Zoro’s. On top of that, his new power apparently costs nothing to himself and is still active, as opposed to Haki-based powers and fencing techniques. This way, Sanji is able to comfortably stand among the rest of the Monster Trio in a way he couldn’t before.
At the moment, the only thing that sets him apart from his captain and rival is his lack of Conqueror’s Haki. As perhaps the greatest power in A play, with only the strongest beings able to use it, Sanji is in a curious position.
Being the son of a king as well as someone who hopes to become the best at what he does (much like Luffy who wants to be the Pirate King and Zoro who wants to be the greatest swordsman in the world), Sanji fulfills many conditions to have conqueror Haki. Sadly, so much is unknown about it that it’s impossible to accurately guess who has it and who doesn’t – however, it is possible that Sanji may have it without realizing it, just like Zoro did it.
In short, Sanji is currently one of the strongest members of the Straw Hats as well as one of the strongest beings in the New World. From now on, Sanji should be able to match someone like Zoro, especially if he were to use his Raid Suit. With all of his new abilities combined with his old ones, he can now fulfill his duty to support Luffy until the latter becomes the Pirate King.
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