Eric

Eric the Whirlwind was an anime-only character and mercenary, who was the main antagonist of the Warship Island Arc.

Appearance
Eric was a slender man with a square-like face, long sharp fingernails and purple hair, curled upwards in the shape like a hook. He wore a grey blazer and pants with red-colored sides, and a purple striped shirt underneath. On his chest, he wore something that looks like a golden brooch shaped like a bird-wing. He also wore a pair of earrings with pearls hanging underneath them. It is later revealed that under his glasses his eyes are very thin and doesn't show any of the eye itself at all.

Personality
Eric was a very selfish man. Though he was hired to capture Apis and the Thousand Year Dragon in order to obtain the dragon bone elixir for Nelson, Eric's true intention was to use Nelson in order to keep the elixir for himself. He is also very cruel and brutal, as he was willing to enter the Calm Belt and put the entire fleet he was with in danger to achieve immortality. Upon Nelson's defeat at Monkey D. Luffy's hand, Eric showed no patience for his former employer's stammering and slew him for being in the way, while trying to kill the Straw Hat Pirates and Apis in order to capture Ryu. Being defeated by Luffy, Eric bore a grudge and tried to avenge himself for his thwarted plan.

Abilities and Powers
Eric was skilled enough to be hired by Nelson, and was shown to be quite acrobatic, jumping to evade Luffy's attacks. He also seemed to be confident of his own abilities, as he is undaunted during his first encounter with the Straw Hat Pirates and did not show any sign of fear upon learning that Luffy is also a Devil Fruit user, which apparently scared the marines with him.

Devil Fruit
Wielding the power of the Kama Kama no Mi, Eric was able to use his lengthened fingernails to cut through the very air to create razor-sharp gusts of varying size, which are capable of slashing through rocks, giving him the moniker "The Whirlwind". The nails are also useful as makeshift close-quarter blades, capable of slashing through a person.

Eric proved himself to be a dangerous opponent when he faced Luffy, inflicting multiple wounds against his opponent, but in the end, he proved to be no match for Luffy.

Warship Island Arc
As a mercenary under Nelson's command, he was ordered to retrieve the runaway girl Apis and capture the legendary Thousand Year Dragon, Ryu. He tracked down and followed the Straw Hat Pirates the entire time they were on Warship Island. He then follows them as they disappear into the mirage. He sets off on his own into the mirage as Hardy refuses to jeopardize his ships' safety by sailing into the unknown.

While on the island within the mirage, he confronts the Straw Hats as they are about to leave. He then engages in a fight with Zoro, to which he has the upperhand. To his frustration, Zoro is saved by Luffy when he pulls him back to the ship.

After the crew escapes the islands, he returns to Hardy's ship and orders him to continue their pursuit. Eventually, they reach Nelson's fleet as the Straw Hats are blockaded in. Seeing as how Nelson would get his hand on the Sennenryu, Eric requests a ship to set sail into the cannon fire. He reaches the pirates' ship and takes Apis hostage while also taking away Ryu with him. He then exclaims to Nelson that he had no intentions of assisting him in obtaining the elixir of immortality. However, he is thrown into the water after Ryu becomes angered at him harming Apis.

Eric survives the fall into the water when the Lost Island rises out of the sea. He encounters Nelson, but quickly loses his patience and swiftly slashes him, leaving him presumably dead. He then engages in a fight against Luffy and his crew in a bid to try to obtain the plethora of dragons which would aid him in making the elixir. He managed to deal a significant amount of damage to Luffy, but was defeated when Luffy sent him flying off Lost Island with his abilities.

Eric would later reappear once again to obtain his revenge just as the crew began to climb Reverse Mountain, leading to the infamous Grand Line, but is tipped over the edge of the Going Merry and into the water by Nami before the battle could even begin.

Major Battles

 * Eric vs. Monkey D. Luffy and Sanji (Warship Island)
 * Eric vs. Roronoa Zoro
 * Eric vs. Monkey D. Luffy
 * Eric vs. Monkey D. Luffy (Reverse Mountain)

Translation and Dub Issues
A running gag throughout that arc was Luffy and the others would mishear the name of his Devil Fruit (Kama Kama) as Okama Okama, making them think Eric was a crossdresser calling him "Eric the Crossdresser" who ate the Okama fruit. In the FUNimation dub, since the name of his Devil Fruit was changed to the "Sickle-Sickle Fruit", the joke was changed to them mishearing the name as the "Sicko-Sicko Fruit".

Enemy Appearances

 * Aim! The King of Berry
 * Set Sail Pirate Crew!

Non-Playable Appearances

 * One Piece - Big Secret Treasure of the Seven Phantom Islands

Trivia

 * In the concept art for Eric, it was shown that he liked to file his nails to keep them sharp.

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