Eiichiro Oda has set up unlikely connections between One Piece characters, just like the vendetta between Akainu and Monkey D. Dragon. Fans have been speculating for a long time about why Akainu held such a strong grudge against Dragon. Is it just because he is a Marine? Or did something happen between the two?
As the manga progressed, Dragon’s history was slowly revealed, and a connection between the two characters was established. A theory states that the two haven’t always been enemies, but circumstances drove them apart.
The History Between Monkey D. Dragon and Akainu (Sakazuki) in One Piece
Chapter 1097 of One Piece revealed that Monkey D. Dragon hasn’t always been a rebel. In fact, he used to serve the World Government and was a part of the Marines. He served for a short time and learned weapon handling there. However, he began to disagree with the Government’s idea of justice, and incidents like the Ohara Buster Call and the execution of Gol D. Roger pushed him to pursue his own fate.
Dragon and Akainu are 55 years old; thus, a fan theory suggests they could be old colleagues. But the intensity of the enmity between them suggests they were more than just colleagues; they could have been good friends. So when Dragon left the Marines, Akainu must have been severely hurt, or they must have had a huge fight before Dragon left. This caused bitterness to fester inside Akainu for decades.
So when Akainu found out that Luffy was the son of Dragon, he could not help but want to exact revenge on the son of his best friend-turned-enemy. He kept calling Luffy ‘Dragon’s son,’ never once addressing him by his name. This proves Akainu’s first order of business is with Dragon. Maybe he thought harming Luffy would finally cause Dragon to make a move and face him.
Eiichiro Oda Has Created Parallels Between Naruto-Sasuke and Akainu-Dragon
Another theory suggests that Akainu and Dragon are like the Naruto and Sasuke of One Piece. In Naruto, Sasuke loses trust in Konoha and ventures out to find power on his own. To him, time was of the essence, and he needed to get stronger as soon as possible. Similarly, Dragon is also a former Marine who lost all faith in the system and left it to join the rebel faction.
By the end, Sasuke realized the fault in his ways and returned to Konoha and made amends with Naruto. But in One Piece, it is unlikely that Dragon will ever return to work for the World Government, because it is a cruel system that does not care for the people or ‘justice.’ So hopefully, Akainu will be the one to see reason by the end of One Piece.
Alternatively, Eiichiro Oda might be setting up a battle of the century by bidding his time and making Akainu more and more furious over Dragon. So when the two finally clash, it will be a fight to remember. Akainu will most probably lose to Dragon, and it will be the perfect outcome. He will eventually lose to Dragon, who is a member of the D. Clan, just like Ace, the son of Gol D. Roger, who he killed in the Marineford Arc.
You can read One Piece on Viz Media and watch the anime on Crunchyroll.
