I have too much to say to put it in tags but yes precisely
Itās one thing to have it as banter between Sanji and Zoro who are constantly ripping on each other over stuff that isnāt necessarily true (shit cook, idiot etc) and quite another to believe the banter = actual character traits when that is NOT apparent throughout the series beginning with when we meet Zoro and continuing to present.
It is literally part of Zoroās backstory that he had to be self sufficient from a very young age and learn many aspects of that sufficiency to not only survive but thrive. If he was actually dumb as rocks, we would have met him like we met whitebeardās alleged son. If he was actually dirty we would see him look like koala when she was rescued from Marijoa and sailing with Fisher Tiger. E T C
As others have mentioned in tags et al, Zoro often shows and tells Luffy and the others how to be a leader and how to act right. Heās extremely good with strategy and heās often the one voicing concerns and slow to warm up without good cause and reason. (Think Robin in Alabasta, hell even Vivi until she proved herself, and when they had to part ways, Usopp via Water 7, Luffy trusting Lucci and Kaku in Egghead, so on)
It is answered in the SBS that Zoro showers regularly but only bathes weekly (also lmao thatās such an autistic answer to take the question of how often you bathe literally), aside from throwing himself head first into danger and a willingness to die for the cause, Zoro mans only weakness is truly his challenged directionality (maybe booze but thatās another conversation).
To assume heās unwashed and genuinely stupid misses the point of his character and his rivalry with Sanji where of course theyāre going to say those things back and forth. And I donāt know how many people have worked as a cook but you smell ALL the time of sweat and oil and whatever you were cooking (fishā¦ why is it always fish!) but no one says as much and hardly considers the chain smoker nasty (never see mention stains on his fingers from the cigarettes for ex). Why is that? Sanji cares about his looks but that doesnāt erase his fine suit free of dust and flour still probably smells like kitchen and smoke.
As for Zoro, heās not afraid to get dirty fighting for his crew and captain. Heās not afraid to get hurt acting in alignment with his and his crews goals. He doesnāt just speak with the intention of changing minds unless heās sure that what heās saying is valuable and insightful. To measure oneās words for value is not an indication of low intellect. He doesnāt walk around in dirty or unmended clothes either. If we were going to see him do that, he would look like the characters in Wano wearing rags, Kuma, Ginny and Iva when they were kids escaping slavery etc.
No one accuses Sanji of being stupid when he makes the same disgruntled noises when Zoro razzes him. It is fair to say Sanji is often running his mouth and speaks to women with a poetic flamboyance, but that should be the contrast to Zoroās poetic stoicism not an indication of intelligence.
At some point investigating oneās biases and even critically re-examining the media one is a fan of will yield such deeper insight into the people and characters you cherish.
