WARNING: The following contains spoilers for One Piece Chapter #1022, "The Stars Take The Stage," by Eiichiro Oda, Stephen Paul, and Vanessa Satone, available in English via Manga Plus and Viz Media.
With the last of the Tobiroppo finally defeated, it seems that One Piece's climatic Wano arc finale is fast approaching. However, there's still a ways to go before Luffy can face Kaido once more. Onigashima is now only 15 minutes away from reaching The Flower Capital and King and Queen have not stopped wreaking havoc. Luckily, Chapter #1022 sees two of Luffy's most reliable Nakama, Zoro and Sanji, deliver a devastating blow to Kaido's All-Stars, all while reasserting their commitment to seeing their Captain's dream realized in the process.
With the Gifters now under O-Tama's control, the chapter finds King and Queen exacting vengeance on the traitorous animal hybrids. Things don't look good: Marco has reached his limit, Zoro hasn't fully recovered and Sanji can't fight the two All-Stars on his own.
As Sanji continues to hold back the two titans, the sweetly vile Charlotte Perospero has his eyes locked on the ex-fiancé of his younger sister. Perospero aims his arrow but just before he can release the shot, Cat Viper appears, sending the candy man flying with a claw swipe.
Meanwhile, in the parlor, the samurai are trying to keep the bandage-burrito that is Zoro out of the Beast Pirates' hands. Unfortunately, they run straight into King instead, leading to a hilarious panel featuring two samurai propping up the cross-shaped 'burrito' in front of the giant, flaming BDSM angel. Thankfully, Marco manages to block the fiery fist of King just in time.
Marco surrenders with a confident smile as both King and Queen prepare to strike. However, as they do, the real stars finally take the stage. Zoro emerges from his bandage prison and he and his long-time rival, Sanji deliver a tag-team attack on the two fearsome All-Stars in a dynamic, action panel. They cap it off with a riveting line, saying that once this battle is over, they'll catch a glimpse of Luffy as Pirate King.
It was only a matter of time before Zoro reentered One Piece's ongoing Onigashima battle, and what better way to do so than alongside the man he constantly butts heads with? The two have not fought alongside each other since protecting Toko during Yasuie's execution, but here in Chapter #1022, the cook and chef hold their own together against two very formidable enemies. Hopefully, their competitive spirit will be the edge they need to tip Kaido's hand.
