Jinbe


 * The subject of this article is sometimes called Jimbei.

Jinbei (ジンベエ) is a whale shark Fishman who was the second captain of the Sunny Pirates after Fisher Tiger, and who became a Shichibukai eight years ago.

Appearance
Jinbei is a large blue whale shark Fishman with a face that is commonly associated with various Japanese demons such as Oni. His yellow eyebrows and sideburns are distinctly shaped like those found on such demons, in addition to a bulb-like nose and an angular lower lip pointing upwards; a lightning-shaped scar can be seen from his left side burn and reaching over his left eye. He also possesses two tusk-like conical lower fangs associated with Oni as well; the rest of his teeth from the upper and lower rows are pretty much the same, albeit much smaller. He has long, two-toned black hair, with two long white stripes coming from the roots over his forehead and trailing down the back, a topknot, and tuft of hair on his chin with a slight green hue. His hands and feet are also webbed, as typical as can be for a Fishman, and limbs that are somewhat thin in comparison with his enormous girth. Under his pale-red coat, he appears to be wearing an orange colored traditional Japanese clothing called a Jinbei covered all over with black and white square-shaped patterns with the black and white layers alternating each other (beginning with the black outline from the edge) and ending with a dark square at the middle of each and every one of them. He also ties this attire up with a purple scarf like a ribbon around his waist. For footwear, he appears to wear simple sandals on his webbed feet. His Sunny Pirates tattoo is on his chest.

Personality
Jinbei is a Fishman with great pride and honor. He is known to the World Government as a pirate-hating pirate, possibly due to the actions of the pirates in Fishman Island, kidnapping Fishmen and Merfolks to sell them as slaves. However, he has a soft spot for Whitebeard and his crew as he sees them as a completely different story. Because of what Whitebeard had done for his homeland, Fishman Island, he understands the damage a war between the World Government and Whitebeard would cause. He knows that places like his home, which are protected by simply belonging to Whitebeard's territory, would suffer the most from the war should Whitebeard lose.

Despite being proud, Jinbei appears to put his priorities and principles over his honor, and is not above retreating from battle (even being shamed or openly mocked by an opponent) if it meant for the sake of the greater good. He also doesn't seem to hesitate from the idea of encouraging others to the likewise for a similar cause, as seen when he pleaded and managed to convince Luffy to prioritize Ace's safety first over avenging his brother's loss against Blackbeard. Jinbei has also displayed great humility regarding his personal strength and status; a trait most unique among the Shichibukai - a fact made apparent by his willingness to even lose the said status for his refusal to fight against the Whitebeard Pirates.

Relationships
Jinbei has a history with Portgas D. Ace. The two were once enemies and both had nearly killed the other. Despite this, the two respect each other deeply. He also shows a mutual respect for Whitebeard, who by claiming Fishman Island his territory, saved the island from the World Government and other pirate attacks.

He also seems to be quite impressed by Monkey D. Luffy's recklessness of breaking into Impel Down in an attempt to save one life (namely Ace), a feat that not even Whitebeard has done.

Among his fellow Shichibukai, he seems to have some sort of history with his former peer Crocodile and is noticeably upset upon realizing Crocodile is incarcerated in the cell adjacent his own. According to Hannyabal, despite the title of Shichibukai bestowed upon them, Jinbei had never personally met Boa Hancock prior to her visiting him and Ace at Impel Down. He also seems to be familiar with the newest Shichibukai, Blackbeard, probably back in the days when Blackbeard, as Marshall D. Teach (as he was then known), was still a member of Whitebeard's crew under 2nd Division Commander Ace.

Abilities and Powers
Jinbei is a master of Fishman Karate, which he can use to knock away many guards at once. His strikes are so strong that he doesn't even need to make physical contact with a person as the very air will blow them away. Another example is that he defeated Minorhinoceros, one of the four Demon Guards, with a single uppercut, while Luffy used his Gear Third to defeat another Demon Guards. Though strong, it was however stated by him that he is of no use on land battles implying he is much stronger at sea. In Chapter 546, we finally get to see Jinbei stand up to this claim when he lifted one of Impel Down's massive entrance doors and used it as a raft to provide passage over the sea for Crocodile, Mr 1, and Buggy (all Devil Fruit users), with himself acting as the raft's propeller underneath, and not only managed to pursue the fleeing ships but even maneuvered out of the way of the incoming cannonballs fired at them by the marines with relative ease, allowing the trio to board one of the marine ships sailing away from the Gaol. He also displays being able to manipulate water through Fishman Karate, and even use it to attack from a distance. He also appears to be quite swift, even on dry land, in contrast to his large size, having intercepted an enraged Luffy (in Gear 2 mode) and prevented him from further assaulting Blackbeard.

It is stated that he was able to battle Portgas D. Ace as his equal, but it is unknown how the two fought.

He and Arlong were once said to be equals, though whether it regards to their strength or status is yet unknown.

Also, he is one of the few people to be able to take a "baptizing" in boiling water in Impel Down without flinching, which is considered an impressive feat. On top of this, he shares the same cell as Fire Fist Ace who is considered one of the most important prisoners in the world at the moment.

He does not have the powers of a Devil Fruit.

Past
After the original captain of the Sunny Pirates, Fisher Tiger died, Jinbei took over his legacy and became the new captain of the crew. However, when Jinbei joined the Shichibukai eight years ago, the crew was disbanded. At some point, he fought equally with Portgas D. Ace, nearly killing each other, but then rekindled their relationship.

Held in Impel Down
Jinbei was previously imprisoned in Impel Down headed by Sengoku, the only member of the Shichibukai who has chosen not to follow with the World Government on their summons to face against the Whitebeard Pirates. He has decided to fight the Marines and is prepared to lose his status as a Shichibukai in the process.

He was held in the same cell as Portgas D. Ace where he was being tortured. There he complained about the fact that he could not scratch himself where he wanted to and that he would gladly give his life to end the fighting.

He is later seen talking with Ace about how Whitebeard saved Fishman Island and the reasons he's prepared to die to stop the fighting. Apparently, being in the same cell with the imprisoned Whitebeard Division commander allowed Jinbei to provide Ace with company down in Level 6, and Ace would then pass the time prior to his death sentence by sharing the fishman tales of his younger brother, Monkey D. Luffy, who (ironically enough) will later infiltrate Impel Down and, in the process of attempting to reach Ace, will ultimately release Jinbei from his incarceration. Knowing that Ace's captivity, as well as his impending execution are being used to incur Whitebeard's wrath, Jinbei further states that he wants to break his cellmate out of the Great Gaol, despite being chained himself, as he's yet to give up on hope. This however brings out a reaction from Crocodile, who explains to Jinbei and Ace that there are many pirates who have a grudge against Whitebeard. Jinbei and Ace are visited by another Shichibukai, Boa Hancock who wanted to see Ace. Hancock claimed that she simply wanted to see the prisoner triggering the war against Whitebeard which she will be joining. Jinbei, apparently under the impression that the female Shichibukai was only there to gloat at his and Ace' imprisonment, remarks that even the "idle empress" would go to war to save her Shichibukai status, seeing this as a low point for Hancock. Hancock tells Jinbei she means no harm to them and cryptically reveals to Ace that his brother is trying to rescue him before leaving. When Ace tells Jinbei this, he describes Luffy's behavior as "reckless". Jinbei also points out that although he doesn't personally know Hancock, there's a possibility that she was lying. However, Ace countered that Hancock would not go out her way to lie to him, and knowing Luffy, his breaking into Impel Down after hearing Ace' incarceration down there is exactly the sort of crazy thing Luffy would do.

8 hours before Ace's execution, when Magellan came to Level 6 to escort Ace to his transfer to Marineford, Jinbei could do nothing but sit in his cell and watch.

Hope Finally Arrives
When Luffy, Emporio Ivankov and Inazuma reach Level 6, Jinbei immediately recognizes Luffy as Ace's brother due to the straw hat Luffy wears, and wasted no time yelling to the Straw Hat that the prison staff extracted Ace from his cell only moments ago and that there's still a chance to catch up to him. After Ivankov convinced Luffy into releasing Crocodile from his cell after the former Shichibukai offered assistance in providing a means to save the trio from their current predicament, Jinbei pleads that they release him as well, as he wants to save Ace too. Luffy, realizing Jinbei's honesty, agrees to do so, earning him the Fishman Shichibukai's gratitude. Upon his release, Jinbei immediately glowered menacingly at Crocodile (who was also simultaneously released by Inazuma) whom he makes it clear that he's not going to let him kill Whitebeard. Crocodile, unfazed, asked Jinbei if he wanted to fight to the death right then and there.

Afterward, he and the others headed up through Level 5 to Level 4, where Jimbei re-evaluates the designated time for Ace' execution, which will occur in 3 o'clock sharp. He also concludes that if Whitebeard and his crew made preparations beforehand, with Ace being escorted out in the open sea, the battle between the World Government and the Whitebeard Pirates could break out any time. After Crocodile reduced the gateway between Levels 5 and 4 to dust, Jinbei demonstrated his Fishman Karate by punching the jailers and launching a shock wave that wiped out the line of Gaolers descending upon him and his comrades. When the three remaining Demon Guards, led by Sadi-chan, suddenly appeared, Jinbei urges Luffy to move further ahead and let him and the others worry about the three beasts; further adding that the fishman is apparently not as powerful on dry land as he is if he's out in the open sea. Despite this claim, Jinbei further showed his strength by taking out one of the Demon Guards (the Minorhino) with one powerful blow along side Crocodile and Luffy, both of whom took out the other two.

Jinbei continues in aiding the rebelling inmates as they rioted further up to Level 4, where they were momentarily halted at the entrance to Level 3 by Hannyabal (backed by a large platoon of bazooka-wielding gaolers stationed at the other side of the entrance), whom Luffy made short work out of. But it was the unexpected arrival of Marshall D. Teach that truly finished the Vice-Warden off. Jinbei recognizes the interloper as the one responsible for Ace's capture and is immediately angered, and asks what Teach is doing in Impel Down, immediately followed by asking if Teach ought to be called Blackbeard now. To which Blackbeard only replied that the fishman should not get worked up too soon, apparently aware that he and Ace were friends, and that he (Blackbeard) was only partly responsible for Ace's current predicament. As Luffy then starts to attack Blackbeard giving him significant injury, Jinbei was the one to stop Luffy from wasting his time fighting Blackbeard, telling him to consider the rescue of Ace as priority.

The breakout army eventually reached Level 1, and they united their forces with Buggy and Mr. 3's rioting squad. Jinbei then noticed that Magellan has ordered the guards to do something with the ships outside of the fortress, and Jinbei informed that they need to hurry out of the prison. Jinbei then leads the assault on the rest of Impel Down as Luffy stays to fight Magellan. Jinbei, along with Crocodile, Buggy, and Mr.1 went to steal one of the battleships that was sailing off, with Jinbei carrying the rest of them on a makeshift raft. Jinbei then fiercely attacks the battleships, destroying half of one with a Spear Wave without much effort before being scolded by Crocodile.

Major Battles

 * Jinbei vs. Portgas D. Ace (past)
 * Jinbei, Monkey D. Luffy, and Crocodile vs. Impel Down Guards (Staircase between Level 5 and 4)
 * Jinbei, Monkey D. Luffy, Crocodile, Emporio Ivankov, Inazuma, Mr. 2, Mr 1, residents of New Kama Land and prisoners of Impel Down vs Impel Down Guards
 * Jinbei, Monkey D. Luffy, and Crocodile vs Minokoala, Minozebra, and Minorhinoceros (level 4)
 * Jinbei and Monkey D. Luffy vs the Demon Guards (level 1)

Translation and Dub Issues
His name comes from jinbei-zame (甚平鮫), which means "whale shark" in Japanese.

Jinbei's name is sometimes spelled as Jimbei because when pronouncing it, the n of the name often sounds like a m to some. While these two forms of can be used interchangeable for the moment, there is currently no way to tell which way is correct as Oda has yet to write the name in plain Romaji.

His epithet, Kaikyou, would normally translate into "Strait" or "Channel". However since the kanji for it is written as (海侠) and not (海峡), the kyou part (侠) of it comes from (任侠), a honorific used when addressing a high ranking yakuza member, thus making his epithet a Japanese pun. and the honorific used for addressing high ranking yakuza members, it doesn't have a literal English translation. The closest translations used of the epithet that can be interpretted into English are made up based on the pun's meaning. These include "Yakuza of the Sea" and "Knight of the Sea" among others. These however are not literal translations, but titles made to convey the idea behind the original Japanese term used.

Trivia

 * Although Jinbei is the second Shichibukai to be mentioned, he is the last one to be fully unveiled.
 * He is the only non-human Shichibukai (not counting Kuma's cyborg status).
 * He is also the only Shichibukai whose animal theme is a fish (whale shark).
 * He is one of only two Shichibukai without a surname, the other is Crocodile. They are also somewhat gangster-themed: Crocodile dresses like a mafia boss, while Jinbei's epithet can be interpreted as "Yakuza of the Sea".
 * After his initial silhouette in Chapter 523, at the JUMP Festa 2009 Oda decided to a show a preview of Jinbei and drew a rough sketch of what he looked like.