Zunesha

Zunesha is a Naitamie-Norida elephant that was affiliated with Joy Boy 800 years ago. It now wanders through the New World and carries the island of Zou on its back as punishment for an unspecified crime it committed in the past.

Appearance
Zunesha is a gargantuan elephant, comparable to an island in sheer scale; its two-jointed legs are disproportionately and extremely long, such that it can walk on the sea floor while its upper body, including about a third of each leg, remains above the water. However, Zunesha has comparatively small eyes (shown to have turquoise, ringed irises in the anime) sunken deep into their sockets, being barely visible at most times and giving the impression that it has no eyes at all. Its gray skin is heavily wrinkled, reflecting its old age, and its ears are tattered and frayed at the edges.

Personality
Most of Zunesha's personality is a mystery, but it does not mind carrying a civilization on its back, and in fact cares greatly about the Mink Tribe.

As part of the sentence for a crime it supposedly committed in the past, Zunesha is not allowed to do anything but wander around, requiring permission from someone who can understand it to act against threats to its well-being. Miyagi speculates that Zunesha is not walking aimlessly and may, in fact, be looking for a certain location.

Mink Tribe
Zunesha has a commensal relationship with the Mink Tribe and the island of Zou; twice per day, it showers itself with seawater, which helps the minks acquire food in the form of fish and water via a filtration system, causing them to consider it a blessing. When Jack and his fleet were attacking it, Zunesha worried about the minks dying if it were to fall into the sea and begged Kozuki Momonosuke to allow it to fight before this happened. After Zunesha defeated Jack, the minks were surprised to learn that it possessed a will of its own in all the time that they have lived there. The minks also tended to Zunesha's leg, which had been injured by Jack's attack, as they expressed gratitude to it for protecting them. Miyagi was excited to learn that Zunesha could understand his tribe and wanted to ask where it is going after traveling over a millennia.

Kozuki Momonosuke
While under attack from an enemy fleet, Zunesha used the "Voice of All Things" to telepathically speak to Momonosuke so that he can give him the order to retaliate. Momonosuke obliged and gave the order, allowing the elephant to save itself. Zunesha came to Wano to assist Momonosuke and await his orders.

Joy Boy
According to Momonosuke, Zunesha was a comrade of Joy Boy back during the Void Century. Outside of that, the specifics of their relationship are still a mystery.

Zunesha itself states that it holds nostalgic feelings for Joy Boy and was able to recognize the sound of the Drums of Liberation even after a span of 800 years. When Monkey D. Luffy managed to awaken his Devil Fruit during the Raid on Onigashima, his presence was comparable to the individual Zunesha knew long ago.

Jack
During his second attack on Zou, Jack decided to slaughter the minks by bringing down Zunesha. He planned to force the elephant to its knees in order to reach its head and kill it in sadistic ways; however, Zunesha was determined to protect the minks, and with Momonosuke's permission, it annihilated Jack's fleet with one swing of its trunk.

Physical Abilities
Zunesha has immense longevity, given its so-far more than 1000 years of life. Due to its gigantic size, it can carry the whole island of Zou on its back, and as a result of its seemingly incredible endurance has been able to spend an entire millennium continuously carrying Zou whilst walking.

Zunesha can suck up and expel massive amounts of sea water, and with it lots of fish, using its trunk. With a single swing of its trunk, it can wipe out entire fleets of ships and swiftly defeated Jack, an All-Star of the Beasts Pirates. Zunesha has extraordinary eyesight and can see faraway objects in great detail.

However, due to having lived for so long, it is not very durable, so its weak and aged skin can be heavily damaged by concentrated cannon fire.

Voice of All Things
Zunesha has the "Voice of All Things", allowing it to telepathically communicate with others with the same ability.

Past
Zunesha was born a thousand years ago in the New World. At one point Zunesha became a companion of Joy Boy. 800 years ago, Zunesha committed a crime and was sentenced to walk the seas for eternity and only act upon being ordered to do so. Since then, it had wandered the sea of the New World and lived for centuries carrying the Mink Tribe and the other lifeforms on Zou.

Seventeen days before the Straw Hat Pirates landed on Zou, Jack and the Beasts Pirates invaded Zou. Jack's massive presence was felt by Zunesha, who roared in pain.

Zou Arc


Jack and his men returned to Zou, with Jack intending to kill Zunesha. As Jack and his fleet's attack commenced, Zunesha began shaking and crying out. As Jack's fleet heavily damaged one of its legs, Zunesha begged Kozuki Momonosuke to give it permission to fight back. After Momonosuke explained Zunesha's past and how it could not act without permission, he ordered it to drive Jack away, prompting Zunesha to wipe out Jack's fleet with a powerful swing of its trunk before resuming its walk.

With Jack defeated, Chopper treated Zunesha's injured leg alongside Miyagi and many other minks.

Wano Country Arc


Zunesha came to the waters near Wano Country and encountered a large fleet of World Government ships. It then conversed with Momonosuke through the Voice of All Things and declared its intention to fight under his command and open the borders of Wano.

Soon afterwards, Zunesha heard the "Drums of Liberation" (解放のドラム), which herald Joy Boy's return. The elephant then compared Monkey D. Luffy to the ancient Joy Boy and affirmed that it was the boy's destiny, placing his trust in him.

Following Kaidou's defeat, Momonosuke decided not to have Wano's borders open yet and informed Zunesha of his decision. In respect for Momonosuke's judgment, Zunesha left Wano and vanished within the nearby mist.

Major Battles

 * Zunesha vs. Beasts Pirates

Non-Playable Appearances

 * One Piece Treasure Cruise
 * One Piece: Pirate Warriors 4

Trivia

 * Zunesha is the oldest living creature introduced in the series, with its lifetime predating even the Void Century.
 * Zunesha's design was based on the painting The Elephants by the surrealist painter Salvador Dalí; its species name read backward is "ダリノエミタイナ象", which means "Elephant resembling Dalí's painting". The Elephants are notorious for being quite gigantic elephants with buildings on their back and extremely long legs similar to those of the animals on Long Ring Long Land.
 * Zunesha may be based on the "World Elephant" Hindu concept, which is that a turtle supports elephants which carry the whole world on their backs.
 * The kanji 象主 means "elephant lord".
 * "Zunesha" as a word may stem from "Ganesha", the elephant-headed Hindu deity.
 * Zunesha's serving as inhabited island in punishment for a crime, needing a permission to act, may be derived from Russian animated film The Humpbacked Horse.
 * Zunesha's favorite foods are sky island apples and giant seaweed.
 * At 35 kilometres, Zunesha is the largest character ever introduced in the series so far.

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