Eiichiro Oda is hailed as the greatest storyteller to ever live, as his magnum opus tells the story of Monkey D. Luffy and his crew, who are in search of the most alluring treasure of all, the One Piece! The Shonen series was first serialized in 1997, and two years later it received an anime adaptation.
Over the years, several theories have surrounded the titles, and while a lot of these theories might sound bizarre to the fans, they are only limited by one’s imagination! However, the most prominent theory that follows the manga is that Luffy is the true successor of Joyboy.
With the manga currently in the Egghead Island Arc, a ton of surprising revelations have been showcased. One of them, The Captain of the Straw Hat Pirates, might not be the true successor of Joyboy.
Eiichiro Oda Hints Luffy Not Being The True Successor of Joyboy
Over the years, Eiichiro Oda has showcased how Monkey D. Luffy is the true successor of Joyboy. However, in the most recent chapter, which is #1122, the mangaka drops a subtle hint on how everything that we know about the series can be wrong.
Chapter #1122 showcased Emet apologizing to Joyboy for being unable to crown him as the king. While it was unspecified what sort of king Joyboy desired to be, the dream of the character resonated with our protagonist, who again mentioned that he desired to be the King of the Pirates.
As fans know, Joyboy is the greatest pirate of the Void Century, and his name is often associated with the Straw Hat Pirate Captain because of a ton of similarities. While both wanted to be kings of some sort, being a Pirate King would not have made much sense back in the day because being a pirate was uncommon back in the day; the character was the first-ever pirate to set sail in the sea.
Since it has not been interpreted clearly, it can mean anything, including the dream of Rocks D. Xebec, which is to become the king of the world. This dream sounds reasonable and good enough to explain why 20 kingdoms allied against him and why Imu-Sama’s identity is kept such a tight secret from the world.
When Luffy unlocked Gear 5 to become Sun God Nika, the Warrior of Liberation, everything hinted at him being the successor of the First Pirate. However, this subtle detail is strong enough to break the heart of every fan of the hero.
Why Awakening the Human-Human Fruit isn’t Enough to Prove Luffy as Joyboy’s Successor?
Throughout Oda-Sensei’s One Piece, The Straw Hat Captain emphasizes that he wants to become a pirate because he enjoys the freedom it offers and how much he enjoys the freedom it offers. Moreover, the protagonist does not showcase any noble traits, and he helps those individuals by aiding them only.
Additionally, unlike a noble king, Luffy would only assist those people who had helped him or were brave enough to ask for his help, like Momonosuke in the Nami during the Wano Country arc and the Arlong Park, respectively.
To further reinforce the theory, the protagonist never wanted to be a marine, as he wanted to be a pirate. Moreover, being a sort of king would prevent Luffy from living the free life that he is so grateful for.
Hence, in all probability, the character is not the true successor of Joyboy as Oda-Sensei, as their belief somewhat vary. Nevertheless, it is too early to predict, mainly because when Luffy fights the World Government and the Navy, he will, after defeating them, become the King of the World.
One Piece can be streamed on Crunchyroll as of August 18, 2024.
