Chapter 1183 Summary
Short Summary:
Imu and Loki continue their battle as Killingham takes seven children from the giants. Meanwhile, the Straw Hats ask Brook about his connection to Gunko and what to do with her, which leads him to recall his past as an elite soldier of the Esperia Kingdom.
Detailed Summary
Imu says to Ragnir that it has been waiting all this time for someone who could fight back against him, something it seems to confirm, but Loki has no idea what is talking about, being more concerned by an opponent as tough as Imu. Imu then declares that since both Luffy and Loki cannot be corrupted to his side, he will destroy them both, just like he did with someone named "Douzan" in the past. Loki then attacks with a move called Ragna Jinheim while Imu counters with Gram, resulting in another massive explosion.
In Western Village, the Zaza MMA grabs seven children, which Killingham considers a suitable number, as the giants try to take them back despite Chopper warning them that his blood transfusions for all of them are not finished yet, but they all choose to accept death rather than hand their kids over. Sanji arrives at the village and sees the chaos from afar, as he is about to join the battle.
Meanwhile, Usopp and Brook have awoken and the former asks the latter why he ran off to fight Gunko (who is shown to still be stuck in Ragnir's ice) by himself, having had to go back him up because he felt something was wrong. Nami asks Brook if he knows Gunko and if she is an enemy from his past. Brook states that Gunko is not an enemy to him, but he did not want to ever see her again. However, now he is filled with confusion rather than anger, because if Gunko really is Shuri, then she should look like she is seventy-seven years old. Nami reasons that it means she is completely different from the person he is thinking of, but he explains that she was the princess of his homeland, but he lost contact with her when she traveled to Mary Geoise.
Franky runs up to everyone and reveals that Gunko is still stuck in the ice and asks if they can just leave her like that since she is one of the enemies who attacked Elbaph, but Brook then reveals to everyone that she was the one who unwrapped him from her arrows, and while doing so she told him to run, as if she knew him, which is why he is so confused about her true identity. Only adding on to the confusion is right after Gunko told him to run, Imu then took back control of her and she acted like a demon again. Based on Gunko's earlier elitist behavior, followed by her trying to save Brook, and then with Imu's possession, Brook says it is almost like three different personalities exist in one body, which Nami suggests is a sign she is being controlled, something Brook is inclined to believe as well after seeing their giant allies be turned into enemies. Of course, Jinbe states that Brook needs to make a decision on whether Gunko lives or dies very soon.
To better explain his predicament, Brook decides to tell his crew about his life before becoming a pirate; long ago he lived in a kingdom called Esperia, which according to him, no longer exists. He described the place as a place filled with music, with many different shops dedicated to making all sorts of instruments. Back then, Brook was the leader of the Raider Squad of Esperia's battle convoy, and he was very close to Shuri, the kingdom's princess. He also had deep feelings for Shuri's mother, the queen Candelle, even though she was already married to the king, Reuven. Humorously, Reuven noticed Brook's declaration of love towards his wife, which led him to half-jokingly threaten Brook with a death sentence for conspiracy. To diffuse the situation, Shuri asked Brook if she could marry him once she grows up, though he turned her down because her nose was still runny, to the annoyance of Reuven.
During their usual banter, a soldier came in to inform Reuven that a gang on horseback was riding through town, and the battle convoy did not have enough men to fight them off right now. Reuven asked what the invaders want, and was told they seemed to be after Candelle, which made Reuven realize that the invaders were members of the Moulon Family, and were once again trying to capture her for their leader, Don Moulon. At that moment, Candelle was at an opera house with her Den Den Mushi on silent, meaning they had no way to contact her about the danger, so Reuven and Shuri beg Brook to do something to save her. However, Brook expresseed no worries for two reasons, the first being that Candelle could fend for herself, and the second being that Brook actually encountered the gangsters earlier and had already cut them with his "Quick-Draw" style technique, though he was surprised they had not noticed they had been cut until they finally reached the opera house, though after saying all of this, all of the gangsters collapsed.
Afterwards, Candelle left the opera house as everyone cheered both for her and Brook's actions in taking the gangsters down, as it is revealed that both of them were Esperia's biggest stars, with Candelle even being the battle convoy's former captain before becoming queen.
