Long Ring Long Land Arc

The Davy Back Fight arc, sometimes known as the Long Ring Long Land arc, is the fourteenth story arc in the series, and the first in the CP9 Saga of the manga and anime One Piece. It focuses around a contest between the Straw Hat Pirates and the Foxy Pirates, called the "Davy Back Fight". It is also the setting of the fight between Admiral Aokiji and Monkey D. Luffy.

The Davy Back Fight
After the Skypiea Arc, Monkey D. Luffy and his crew arrive at the island of Long Ring Long Land, a bizarre island where everything, including the animals and plants, stretches in either length or height. Despite Nami's warning Chopper, Usopp and Luffy go exploring and find an unoccupied house, a tall horse and two "walking" stalks of bamboo. They break the bamboo and Tonjit plummets down. Tonjit has lived on the bamboo stilts for 10 years. He is delighted that his horse, Shelly, waited for him so long although his folk are nomads and left the place years ago. He also tells the Straw Hats the geography of Long Ring Long Land, which consist of ten islands that are connected and can be walked between on foot during a big ebb every year. Tonjit's tribe changes the island every three years. He takes Shelley for a ride.



In the meantime, the Going Merry and the rest of the crew is surrounded by an unnamed pirate crew, stating that their Captain wants to play Davy Back Fight with Luffy. Back at Tonjit's house, Chopper, Usopp and Luffy watch Tonjit riding Shelley just to see her getting shot by Foxy the Silver Fox, who asks Luffy to play Davy Back Fight. In the Davy Back Fight, members of each pirate crew face off in different events in which the winner of the event can steal crew members of the losing team, even the captain. The Jolly Roger can also be taken and with it the dignity of the crew.

Foxy tricks Luffy who is angry for the unprovoked attack at Shelley and unknowingly accepts.

Basic Rules Of The Davy Back Fight

 * The contestants for each event are chosen by the captains before the game begins and the contestants cannot be changed. Contestants can only participate in one event, though they can participate in two in the anime. Since the line-ups cannot be changed, the winning team can steal a crew member that is competing in the next event to give their team an advantage.
 * If a crew member is lost in one event, they can be won back in the next event, but not in future Davy Back Fights after the current one is over unless the captains of both crews involved agree to another Davy Back competition.
 * All crew members that are won must immediately swear permanent allegiance to their new captain.
 * Any form of cheating is allowed during the contests, and players may use any special abilities or Devil Fruit powers to give them an advantage.

When Luffy's crew play against Foxy's crew, they play a best two-out-of-three game. The events that are played are Donut Race, Groggy Ring, and Combat. In the anime, the events played are Donut Race, Groggy Ring, Roller Race, Pirate Dodgeball, Red Light/Green Light, and Combat.

Donut Race


In this event, three members of each crew must build a make-shift boat out of nothing but three barrels and two oars. Each team then races around the island, trying to avoid obstacles and enemy cheating in order to make it to the finish line first. Each team is given an Eternal Pose so that they can find their way back to the island if they get too far away from the shore.

A team of Nami, Usopp, and Robin face a team of Porche, Kapoty, and Monda in the manga. In the anime, all of the Straw Hats and most of Foxy's crew participates. Though the Straw Hats manage to get in the lead, Foxy uses his Devil Fruit to slow them down enough for his team to pass them. Foxy takes Chopper to be part of his crew.

Groggy Ring


In this event, the teams of three from each pirate crew choose one of their members to be the 'Ball', and the other team has to try and knock the opposing team's ball into the goal once. This event forbids the use of weapons, as it is a sport, though other kinds of cheating are allowed.

Zoro and Sanji take on a team of 3 known as the Groggy Monsters. Chopper was to participate, but Foxy won him in the previous game. After much difficulty, mostly due to fighting between the two crewmates, and partly due to a bias on the referee's part against them, Sanji and Zoro team up and defeat the Groggy Monsters. In the manga, Chopper is taken back, but in the anime they take Tonjit's horse, Shelly, back from the Foxy Pirates.

Combat


This event is a duel between the two captains. A cannon is spun to randomly determine the fighting area, and the goal is to knock the opposing captain out of the fighting area.

When Luffy and Foxy fight in this competition, the battle takes place on Foxy's ship, which is full of traps and weapons to give him the advantage. Before the match, Usopp persuades Luffy that wearing a large afro wig will increase his strength. Its actual effect, if any, unknown, but eventually, and despite his foe using several of the ship's weapons and even robotic battlesuits, he manages to defeat Foxy by reflecting his beams back at him using a mirror and punching him into the ocean. In the manga, Foxy's flag is taken.

In the anime, Nami made a deal with Foxy that the winner would take 2 crewmembers, but Foxy changes this to 500 crewmembers, with the losers "paying" for this through their children if they don't have that many. Thus, when Luffy wins, he takes Chopper, Robin, 497 members of Foxy's crew and their flag, leaving only 3 people. He later dismisses the crewmembers he won and they all run back to Foxy.

The Encounter with Aokiji


After Luffy has beaten up Foxy and taken their flag (replacing it with one of his "drawings"), it is revealed that he only fought for Tonjit and Shelley. Back at the house they run into a very tall and thin guy who is sleeping while standing in front of the house. After removing his sleeping mask, Robin is shocked as the guy turns out to be Aokiji, one of the three Admirals of the Marines.

In the Anime, Aokiji is encountered by the Straw Hats on the visit to the next island. The crew encounters shipwrecked people whose boat was destroyed by Yokozuna (doing the backstroke). Aokiji is against a large rock, sleeping when encountered instead of Tonjit's house. This was done so that a filler arc could be added between this and the Davy Back Fight.

Aokiji states that he is privately on the island, doesn't seek a confrontation and only wanted to see where Robin ended up after leaving Arabasta. After that he helps out Tonjit to get to his tribe by freezing the path to the next island with the power of the hie-hie devil fruit he possesses (in the anime, he helps out the shipwrecked passengers to leave to a populated island). After Tonjit leaves, Aokiji confronts the crew as he sees them a threat for the world. The biggest threat he sees in Robin for her ability to read the Poneglyph and tells the crew that every organization Robin belonged to doesn't exist anymore and she is the only survivor each time.



Robin attacks Aokiji, but fails and Aokiji tries to retaliate with a strike from a sword he instantly made by freezing grass. Zoro blocks the strike and Sanji kicks the sword away, but both get caught by Aokiji, freezing Sanji's leg and Zoro's arm. Luffy tries a punch, but only gets his fist frozen on Aokiji's body. Aokiji freezes down Robin and tries to shatter her with a punch, but Luffy saves her. When Aokiji tries to stomp her, Usopp grabs her from Luffy's arms and runs to the ship along with Nami and Chopper to unfreeze her. Luffy sends Zoro and Sanji after them.

Luffy battles Aokiji but only ends up being entirely frozen. Aokiji spares Luffy but wonders if Luffy only wanted to buy time for the others or really thought he could beat him. However he doesn't pursue the Going Merry stating that the crew will be destroyed like Robin sooner or later anyway. Luffy is later found by the rest of the crew and is, like Robin, defrosted. The Crew continues their journey three days later.

Anime Filler


The anime did the arc differently than what was prescribed in the manga by Oda. Three more games, A Roller Race, Pirate Dodgeball and Red Light/Green Light, were added after the Groggy Ring event to lengthen the storyline (presumably so Oda could get further ahead in the Water 7 arc). The Roller Race replaced the Combat as the finale of the original game. Foxy then offers the opportunity to have another three coin game, which Luffy accepts because he thought the previous games were fun.

Roller Race
On a circular track, the crew races each other in roller skates. There are five rounds, making the team to win three times the victor of this game. Each team has a lead runner that starts 30 seconds before everyone else who determines the winner of the round, and two other racers that both protect their lead runner and try to stop the other team's. In each round, the winner is the lead runner who is farthest ahead after a certain amount of time.

Luffy, Nami, Usopp, and Robin face several members of Foxy's crew in this game. Despite losing in the beginning, the Straw Hats manage to turn the game around and to win Chopper back.

Pirate Dodgeball


In a game of dodgeball, who ever is hit by a ball thrown by the opposing team is out, unless they manage to catch it. However, in this version, spiked balls are used and the audience can participate if they catch the ball. There are many rules, all contained within a humongous rulebook (that Robin had to use two sets of arms to hold). Among other things, the rules allow for no weapons except for a giant robot battlesuit Foxy happens to have.

The entire Straw Hat crew participates in this game. Though they are winning in the beginning, a mistake made by Luffy costs them the win. As a result, Robin is taken from the crew.

Red Light/Green Light
As members from each crew race up a path, they have to stop when a person finishes saying the Japanese equivalent of "Red Light", which can be drawn out as long as they want. Anyone caught moving is out. The first participant to tag this person, who is at the end of the path, wins.

In this game, Tonjit acts as that person. From the Straw Hat crew, everyone except Luffy and Robin participates. Though they were about to win, Zoro (who had gotten lost) kicks Hamburg right in front of Tonjit, who he then tags. Thus, Chopper is taken once again.

Foxy's Return (Filler)

 * Main Article: Foxy's Return Arc

After the Ocean's Dream arc, the Straw Hat Pirates are caught in a storm. By chance, they come across Foxy, Porche, and Hamburg, who are by themselves on a small boat. Despite Foxy using his ability to stop any waves from hitting them, the ship is in danger of being turned over, so Luffy pulls them onto the Going Merry. They are allowed to stay on the ship for now, and the next day they come across Foxy's ship, the Sexy Foxy. Foxy has a tearful reunion with his crew, until it's revealed that they are now under the command of the Fang-Frog pirates, who had taken over in Foxy's absence. Foxy is about to leave, but the new captain points out that his crew refuses to swear loyalty to him, and that he will have to beat Foxy up to get it. In response, Foxy challenges the captain to a Davy Back Fight and calls for the first match to be Captain vs. Captain.

He uses his Noro Noro Beam, but it is reflected back at him by the swords of the crewmembers loyal to the Fang-Frog captain, who proceed to gang up on him. Hamburg tries to help Foxy using his club, but the captain takes Porche hostage, forcing him to drop it. Luffy yells at the Fang-Frog captain since it was Captain vs. Captain, but he points out that he never accepted the match, and after more attempts by Foxy, Luffy rushes in to help him. Foxy gives Luffy his afro once again, and with this the Straw Hat crew beats up the Fang-Frogs. For his effort, Foxy uses his ability on the crew and activates a trap door that drops them into his ship. Inside, they come across several traps but eventually manage to escape. Foxy's crew strikes again on an island, but this once again ends in failure. This leads into the next section.

Story Impact

 * The Davy Back Fight Arc is more of a recreational arc in the middle of the two huge arcs that are Skypiea and the couple Water 7/Enies Lobby. However, it introduces one of the Marine's greatest forces with Admiral Aokiji and a foreshadow of Robin's mysterious past.


 * "Luffy, doing everything to get his crew back" can be seen as an introduction to the "Rescue Robin" operation in Enies Lobby.


 * Two important decisions are made for the Straw Hats Pirates on their next objectives which would foreshadow the events for the Water 7 arc: Nami suggesting to use the money they earned from the treasures found in Skypiea to repair the Going Merry, along with Luffy making an intelligent choice to find and recruit a shipwright for the crew.


 * Luffy fought the power of the Noro Noro no Mi beam. Later in the Amazon Lily Arc, Luffy would mistake the Mero Mero no Mi beam for the Noro Noro no Mi.


 * At the beginning of this arc, Luffy decides that the next two crewmembers he wants is a shipwright and a musician. This foreshadows further the arrival of Brook as well as Franky.


 * The defeat obtained while fighting Aokiji suggests Luffy to create new fighting tecniques, that will be Gear Second and Gear Third used for the first time during the Enies Lobby Arc.
 * Oda's artwork noticicably evolves during this arc, serving as a bridge between his early, less angular art style, and his current style. Noticible changes can be seen in the design of all strawhat crew members, particularly: Chopper, Sanji, Robin, and Luffy.