Mythbusters/Misunderstandings and Misinformation

Since One Piece is a Japanese series, with a Japanese creator and publisher, content and announcements always first come out in Japanese. Nowadays, translated chapters and episodes are released simultaneously with the Japanese version, but for other content, like announcements and interviews, English speakers have no official source to quickly translate the content they provide. Thus, unofficial translators come and reveal what the content is saying. While typically more helpful than not, these unofficial translations can have big issues and mislead fans.
 * The translator may not be skilled enough, and so they may mistranslate the information to something completely false, or they may get the general message correct, but mess up on a few crucial details.
 * Someone may pretend to translate the content and claim it says something that it does not. If no one else has access to the content and can read Japanese, people may take the person at their word and believe their false information.

Additionally, people can develop misconceptions about One Piece, which can be based upon mistranslations, strong opinions, and/or not paying close enough attention to the series. This page clears up prominent cases of fan confusion that have come from these three causes.

Oda Said So!
Myth: This statement is true because I heard that Eiichiro Oda said it!

Fact: It can be very easy for rumors and misinformation to go around due to being attributed to Oda, and since he speaks Japanese, it can sometimes be hard to easily prove what was and was not said.

Currently, however, there are many online sources that can provide information revealed by Oda or his team. These include news sites like Anime News Network and the One Piece Podcast, and fan sites and forums. If you are unfamiliar with One Piece-related websites and informers, you can ask veteran members about which ones provide reliable information.

Additionally, Oda's staff frequently tweets One Piece news from their handle @Eiichiro_Staff, and translates these tweets into English. Ultimately, if you hear that Oda said something, you should find the specific source where he said it, otherwise take it with a grain of salt and don't add it on the wiki. If Oda did indeed say it, multiple online sources should report it.

Zoro the First Mate


Myth: Zoro is the First Mate of the Straw Hat Pirates.

Fact: Zoro was the first to join Luffy in what later became the Straw Hat Pirate crew, but neither Luffy, Zoro, nor anyone else has ever said Zoro was the first mate. Officially, Zoro's role in the crew is that of a combatant (戦闘員), being listed as such in the volume character introductions and other official material such as Vivre Card - One Piece Visual Dictionary. Both the manga translation by Viz and the anime version dubbed by 4Kids and recently FUNimation, as well as the English translation of the games have also referred to him as this role. However their translations are not always direct ones, as was the case with Kuina in the 4Kids version, of the Japanese text and may have some changes due to culture differences and/or censorship.

Some translations of Chapter 499, including the official VIZ translation, have Urouge erroneously refer to Zoro as "first mate", but that phrase was not used in the original Japanese text. The actual phrase used was "second best" (２番手), and not first mate (副船長).

In response to a question about the Chapter 1031 color spread, Oda stated in SBS Volume 102 that Zoro does not hold the title of first mate.

Even on this wiki, arguments over Zoro's classified role have occurred in the past, but to date officially Oda has never listed anyone as the Straw Hat Pirates First Mate and it is for now considered incorrect to name him as the First Mate until stated otherwise.

Yamato's Gender Identity
Due to conflicting and unclear information and interpretations, much of the community is divided over whether to consider Yamato a female or a transgender male. Currently, there is no answer explicitly from Oda himself that clarifies Yamato's gender. The discrepancies that cause this controversy are listed below.

Well, Kozuki Oden was a man, wasn't he?! So I chose to be a man too!!
 * Kaidou's daughter: In Chapter 984, Yamato receives an introduction box labeling them as Kaidou's daughter. Because of this, some fans believe that Yamato has been officially identified as female by Oda, and interpret indicators of Yamato being a man as something other than a wholesale transition in gender. Fans who consider Yamato to be a man have stated that the introduction box may simply be indicating that Yamato was merely Kaidou's daughter at birth, although there is no indication that that is the case, while others simply regard other characters' indications of Yamato being a man more highly than what the introduction box states.
 * Becoming like Oden: Yamato's reasoning for presenting as a man is that they seek to emulate Kozuki Oden, to the point of even adopting the same gender as Oden. Interpretation of this among fans has been varied. Some view this as sufficient enough to consider Yamato transgender, regardless of their opinions on whether or not Yamato has or can ever truly become Kozuki Oden in full. Others treat Yamato's gender equivalently with the rest of the manners in which they emulate Oden, and believe that Yamato is not fully a man if they are not fully Oden. Currently, Yamato has yet to fully assume Oden's identity, but intends to do so in the near future. Yamato has called Kozuki Momonosuke their son.
 * Kaidou's son: Kaidou, the Beasts Pirates, and even Yamato themself have referred to Yamato as Kaidou's son, with Yamato clarifying that they introduced themself as such because of their intent to become a man like Oden. However, it remains unclear why Kaidou and his crew refer to Yamato as the former's son. Kaidou was an enemy of Oden, and beat Yamato after they talked about wanting to become Oden. Some fans speculate that while Kaidou does disapprove of Yamato wanting to become Oden, he still accepted Yamato transitioning into a man, though that has not been confirmed. It is not even known if Kaidou referring to Yamato as his son is a result of Yamato trying to become Oden.
 * Pronouns: A common area of interest for the transgender and nonbinary community in the real world, particularly western civilizations, is to identify preferred pronouns that indicate their gender identity. Some fans have claimed that Yamato has chosen "he/him" pronouns that would indicate they are a man, but this is inaccurate. In Japanese, people rarely use such pronouns for other people, with sentences either using names or titles as the subject or lacking subjects at all, only implying them based on context. Japanese people typically only use pronouns to refer to themselves. Yamato refers to themself using the pronoun "Boku", which is a traditionally male article used predominantly by young boys.
 * Yama-o: After meeting Yamato, Luffy started referring to them as "Yama-o" (ヤマ男), with the "o" suffix coming from the kanji for "otoko", meaning man or male. Thus, this nickname appears to denote that Luffy considers Yamato to be a man; he uses the same suffix in his nicknames for Trafalgar Law (Tora-o) and Eustass Kid (Giza-o). Yamato does not appear to like this nickname and corrected Luffy after hearing him use it, though it is unknown if they have any problem with Luffy attaching the "-o" suffix or if they simply thought Luffy had gotten their name wrong.
 * Vivre Card: Following the release of Yamato's entry in the databook Vivre Card in September 2021, Yamato was explicitly labeled as a female character. This contrasted with Kikunojo's entry, which was labeled as "Male (Woman at Heart)". Even though Japanese makes no distinction between sex and gender, this lead many fans to accept that Yamato is a woman and used she/her pronouns. This wiki also used Vivre Card as a source to primarily designate Yamato as a woman.
 * The bathhouse: Arguably the most explicit use of Yamato's gender identity in the story itself was found in Chapter 1052. Many of the characters take a big celebratory bath together in either the men's bath or the women's bath. Yamato tells Nami "They do not allow mixed baths", referencing the separate gender-designated bathhouses. Yamato then bathes in the men's bath. It's also notable that, in the same panel that Yamato says this to Nami, Kikunojo humbly asks if she could join her in the women's bath, which she does. The use of the other character with a notable gender identity is often interpreted by fans as Oda making a similar message about both of them. This interaction lead many fans to accept that Yamato is a man and used he/him pronouns.
 * Chapter 1084: The colorspread of Chapter 1084 includes Yamato among exclusively female characters. This lead to further controversy about Yamato's inclusion in a seemingly gender-exclusive scene, similar to the aforementioned bathhouse.

As of June 2022, following the release of Chapter 1052, this wiki primarily treats Yamato as a man, the son of Kaidou, and uses he/him pronouns for the character. This wiki does not recognize arguments claiming that transgender people do not exist or are illegitimate.

Koby is a Rear Admiral
Myth: Chapter 956 revealed that Koby had been promoted to the rank of Rear Admiral.

Fact: This was a mistake made by Oda in the magazine release of the chapter. It was corrected with the release of Volume 95, which changed Koby's rank to Captain.

One Piece is 80% Done
Myth: The end of the series is soon, since Oda said that One Piece is 80% done.

Fact: Oda did say that the story was at the 80% point in an interview with Yomiuri in 2018, and he said in an interview on HonmaTekka TV that One Piece would slightly surpass 100 volumes.

However, it is unclear how accurate this will be, and difficult to know how Oda perceives the remaining 20% of the story, or how long it will take to tell. For reference, Oda said that One Piece was 65% done in 2016 and 60% done in 2012. Oda frequently changes the story as he goes along as he gets new ideas or receives suggestions from editors, and things he initially plans may not end up going that way. For example, it was initially declared that the Wano Country Arc would begin in 2017, but it did not begin until 2018. Thus, it is unlikely to be fruitful in predicting when One Piece will exactly end, as you will likely be wrong.

Start of the Final Saga
Myth: The final saga of the series starts at Chapter 1054, meaning the Wano Country Arc ends at Chapter 1053.

Fact: This belief primarily comes from an announcement by Oda's staff which ostensibly claimed the series would be heading into the final saga at this time. However, this announcement does not use the actual Japanese word for saga, hen (編), which is contained in all officially named sagas. Rather, it uses the word shō (章) which means "chapter" or "section" and in this context likely refers to a general portion of the story.

Depending on one's view of what the term "saga" means in relation to One Piece, such a translation may be inconsequential. However, people who follow the officially defined story sagas may be misled into believing it is confirmed that this coming portion of the story has been defined as a saga in the same way that other sagas were confirmed, which is not the case.

In a later edition of Shonen Jump, Oda released another message which elaborated that there was a "little bit of the Wano Country Saga remaining", confirming that the final saga would not immediately start at Chapter 1054; rather, Oda's earlier phrase simply indicated that the series would be moving toward the final part/saga in earnest.

An Old Enemy Will Join the Straw Hat Pirates
Myth: Oda said that an old enemy will join the Straw Hat Pirates.

Fact: This claim seems to originate from a statement Oda supposedly made at Jump Festa 2009, on December 21, 2008. The original quote found on Japanese websites at the time is the following:「過去のボスキャラを仲間にして新世界へ…」(Kako no bosu kyara o nakama ni shite Shin Sekai e…). This roughly translates to "They will make a former boss character into a comrade and head to the New World...".

Despite the timeframe for this event having long since passed, this claim is sometimes still cited as evidence for a former antagonist joining the crew. However, the only new crew member who has joined the Straw Hats in the decade following this claim is Jinbe, who was never an antagonist. It should be noted that when the statement was made, the series was entering the Impel Down Arc with Chapter 525. It is possible that Oda was referring to Luffy teaming up with several past villains, such as Buggy and Crocodile, during the arc.

New Crewmates Will Join the Straw Hats Successively
Myth: Oda said that new crew members will join the Straw Hat Pirates successively.

Fact: This claim originates from an interview Oda had with China Times in 2014. The quote is often cited with the translation "And there'll be new nakama, they will show up successively." or "There’s still the possibility for more members to appear one after the other!".

It is possible that Oda really was talking about future members of the Straw Hat Pirates, but so far only Jinbe has joined crew in the eight years following the statement. Oda could also have been referring to the Straw Hat Grand Fleet, whose members were being introduced during the Dressrosa Arc at the time.

Luffy's Inner Thoughts
Myth: Luffy never has an inner monologue in the entire series. He always just says his thoughts out loud.

Fact: This likely originates from SBS Vol.54, in which Oda stated that Luffy usually says what he's thinking and therefore doesn't need thought bubbles. While it's in-character that Luffy mostly talks rather than thinks, this isn't actually true. When Luffy is thrown into the water by Arlong, he is still thinking, albeit not with Oda's usual thought bubble. More notably, when Luffy defeated Enel and rang the golden bell, he thought about Cricket, as if trying to tell him where the City of Gold is. This is depicted with the spikey thought bubble that Oda usually uses to show characters thinking. The same type of bubble is also used for Luffy at the end of Chapter 360, when Luffy is stuck between the buildings. This instance was spoken out loud in the anime.

Akainu Would Find the One Piece in a Year
Myth: Oda said that Akainu would find the One Piece in a year if he was a pirate.

Fact: This rumor originates from an interview between Oda and Yasutaka Nakata, published in Sound & Recording Magazine 2012 Issue 4. Oda's actual statement was: "So when creating a character, one needs to be careful not to make them too strong. For example, if Akainu was the main character, the series wouldn't last a year (laughs)." (だからキャラ設定で気を付けなきゃいけないのは、あまり強くし過ぎないこと. 例えば、赤犬が主役だったら連載が１年続かない (笑).) Oda was referring to the manga serialization, not Akainu finding the treasure of One Piece within a year in-universe, and simply used Akainu as an example of an overpowered protagonist.

Akainu's Personal Justice is "Absolute Justice"
Myth: Oda said that Akainu's personal justice is "Absolute Justice".

Fact: Absolute Justice (絶対的正義) is not a personal justice of any Marine but rather a broader philosophy supported by the Marine organization. The justice personally held by Akainu is "Thorough Justice" (徹底的な正義), according to Oda in SBS Volume 64 and Vivre Card - One Piece Visual Dictionary. Oda further states that this can be seen in Akainu's actions at Ohara, where Akainu made the following remark: "If we're going to do this, we need to do it thoroughly...!!!" (やるんなら徹底的にだ...!!!).

This misconception is partly caused by the official VIZ translation and other sources mistranslating the SBS answer as "Absolute Justice".

Devil Fruit Names Are Transmitted Upon Consumption
Myth: After a person eats a Devil Fruit, they psychically learn its name without being told.

Fact: This misunderstanding is based on a statement made by Rob Lucci in Chapter 385, translated by VIZ Media as "You learn the name of the fruit when you gain its power". This line is in response to Kaku remarking that his and Kalifa's Devil Fruits are not illustrated in the (Devil Fruit) Encyclopedia. Due to the ambiguous wording in the VIZ translation, some people have erroneously assumed that the name of a Devil Fruit is somehow inherent to it and transmitted to the user upon consumption.

However, this is not the case. What Lucci meant was that although they cannot identify the fruits by their shape, they can determine their names using the Devil Fruit Encyclopedia after they have gained their powers. This is explained by Oda in SBS Volume 45.

The word Nakama has special meaning in One Piece
"Nakama" (仲間) is a common Japanese word, loosely defined as "people who are close to each other and who do something together". In English, the word approximately translates to 'comrade', 'companion' or 'one of us (/them)'. In the context of One Piece in particular, it is often used to denote a 'crewmate' or 'ally'.

In most dictionaries (広辞苑、大辞林、デジタル大辞泉）the definition of 'nakama' indicates a casual relationship. On the other hand, the usage in One Piece corresponds most closely to the definition given in the Iwanami Japanese Language Dictionary (岩波国語辞典), where it has been defined as "心を合わせて何かをいっしょにするという間柄をかなりの期間にわたって保っている人. そういう間柄. ", or "People who share the same feelings (lit. "whose hearts are united") who do something together, and who have maintained this relationship for a relatively long time."

Related words in Japanese include 'shigoto-nakama' (仕事仲間) or "work-nakama", which translates to "colleagues" or "friends one has at one's workplace", and 'nakama-ishiki' (仲間意識) or "treating/seeing someone as one's nakama", which can also be translated as "fellowship" or "solidarity". The word "nakama" can also be used to denote a friend that one shares a hobby with: e.g. 'sakka-nakama' (作家仲間) translates to "fellow writer", 'geemu-nakama' (ゲーム仲間) translates to "fellow gamer" / "gamer friend", etc. On the other hand, the English "friend" would correspond to the Japanese "tomo" (友),  "tomodachi" (友達) or "yuujin" (友人); while the English "comrade", as used to refer to allies who pursue the same ideal or a "greater goal" (e.g. 'comrade' as used in communism-related contexts) would correspond to the Japanese "doushi" (同志; lit. "same ideal"; equivalent to the Chinese 'tongzhi').

The special bond the word has come to represent for the fans, comes from the way Luffy's crew members, in particular, treat each other. However, other pirates generally do not treat their so-called "nakama" with as much respect. There are some exceptions, like the Arlong Pirates and Buggy Pirates, after Buggy's fight with Luffy. Others, like Don Krieg and Crocodile, do not have any respect for their crewmates/associates (but still know that they are essential for maximum success) while some pirates even willingly kill their own "nakama", like Kuro. Also, one of the tightest knit crews in the entire series, the Whitebeard Pirates do not often refer to each other as "Nakama", but act as though they are family, referring to their captain as "Father" (Oyaji). Similarly, members of the Big Mom Pirates referred their captain as "Mother" (Mama).

Nakama was first left untranslated by a fansub group known as Kaizoku Fansubs, during the Arlong Park Arc. Due to the prevalence of fansubs at the time, people began regarding the word as having a special meaning in the series. Lately, exposure to fansubs has diminished due to increased access to commercially subtitled episodes from FUNimation.

In the version provided by FUNimation, 'nakama' is often (somewhat erroneously) translated as "friend". Unfortunately, this fails to take into account the distinction between 'companion' / 'comrade' / 'ally' (nakama) and 'friend' (tomodachi). E.g. Luffy always refers to his crewmates as 'nakama', but to Coby as 'tomodachi'. This distinction is lost in the official translation.

Levely or Reverie
Myth: Levely is spelled as Reverie, that's how I always see it spelled.

Fact: Oda spelled it as Levely in Chapter 908, and we spell names the way Oda does. The Levely was first introduced in the year 2000, and most translators spelled it as Reverie, as Japanese does not distinguish between L and R sounds. Oda did not provide his spelling until 18 years later, meaning that most of the community spent almost two decades using "Reverie". Official translators such as Viz and FUNimation must keep their name spellings consistent, and a lot of fans are not inclined to forego a spelling that they have used for a long time. This wiki does not have these issues, and so was able to change the spelling to Levely, but much of the English-speaking fandom will continue using the Reverie spelling.

Kaidou Wants to Die
Myth: Kaidou's main goal is to commit suicide.

Fact: Even without speculating as to why he has not been shown trying seemingly foolproof methods of suicide, everything that has been presented about Kaidou up to this point suggests that his real motives are more complex, and the simple assertion that he wants to die is based on oversimplified reading comprehension and taking various phrases out of context, particularly during his introduction scene in Chapter 795.

An unofficial translation begins the narration of this scene by saying Kaidou "was looking for a place to die"; however, the actual translation reads "The man claimed that he was searching for a place to die", referring to Kaidou's interaction with Urouge. As the narration goes on, it is steadily made clear that rather than being a simple death seeker, Kaidou has been so resistant to conventional murder and execution methods inflicted on him by others that it has led to him making suicide a "hobby" (趣味), which is defined as a leisure activity.

Later chapters provide more information regarding Kaidou's actions during his introduction scene as well as his views. In Chapter 954, it is revealed that Kaidou actually intended to go to the Kid Pirates' hideout where he landed during his suicide attempt, as Scratchmen Apoo was his subordinate and had sold out the Kid and Hawkins Pirates. Thus, he did not simply randomly end up on the island after failing to kill himself. Kaidou has also demonstrated other goals, such as becoming the Pirate King and conquering the world, indicating that death is not his sole goal.

A more clear indication of how Kaidou views death is given in Chapter 994. In it, Kaidou claims that death is what "completes" a person. He put forward Whitebeard as an example of a good death, saying his fellow Emperor "did it right" both in that chapter as well as in his introduction scene. Kaidou wishes to die in the same way as Whitebeard, and this is the main reason for his objective of starting the greatest war ever seen in the world. Thus, it is not simply death he craves, but rather the glory that comes with it, and if his leisurely suicide attempts actually carry a desire to try and die, then it is clear why the attempt shown was so extraordinary.

Dragon is the "Most Wanted Man in the World"
This is a popular mistranslation that likely popped up due to fan translations. In fact, Dragon's title 世界最悪の犯罪者 translates to "World's Worst Criminal", or alternatively "Most Horrible". It does not translate to him being the most wanted criminal.

Nature of the Mochi Mochi no Mi and "Special Paramecia" Fruits
Myth: Katakuri's ability to transform with the Mochi Mochi no Mi is a byproduct of his Kenbunshoku Haki, which is why the fruit is classified as special Paramecia rather than Logia.

Fact: This is an incorrect conflation of his two abilities based on bad translations and flawed interpretations of his conversation with Luffy regarding his ability in Chapter 884. Katakuri does not use his Kenbunshoku Haki to transform, but rather to foresee his opponents' attacks and morph his transformed body parts out of harm's way accordingly; this is explicitly shown in the anime adaptation. This technique has previously been demonstrated in the exact same fashion by two Logia users: Aokiji on Marineford, and Monet on Punk Hazard.

Fans have utilized this perception to try to explain why the Mochi Mochi no Mi is classified as a special Paramecia rather than a Logia, to the point of believing that Katakuri can only transform to dodge attacks. This is untrue, as Katakuri has transformed to absorb non-Haki attacks, unleash attacks of his own, and most notably has transformed his entire body into mochi for the sole purpose of moving around. As of now, there are no confirmed differences between the powers of this fruit and Logia fruits, with the only known difference being that the Mochi Mochi user turns into a manmade substance whereas all Logia users shown so far have transformed into naturally-occurring elements. It should ultimately be noted that it has yet to be explained why the Mochi Mochi no Mi is classified as a special Paramecia, as well as what the term "special" Paramecia even means.

Buggy Got the "Can't Go to this Island" Disease
Myth: Buggy did not want to go to Laugh Tale while sailing with the Roger Pirates and so made up a "Can't Go to this Island" disease much like Usopp sometimes does.

Fact: This is a blatantly false translation that was made by an unofficial scan group. In reality, he got a fever and was actually desperate to go to the final island with the rest of the crew.

Only Three Road Poneglyphs Need to be Found to Reach Laugh Tale
Myth: So long as a group finds three of the four Road Poneglyphs, they should be able to connect their coordinates well enough to find Laugh Tale's location.

Fact: The idea of not using all the Road Poneglyphs has not yet been brought up in the series, but based on what has been presented regarding this information, there is likely significant room for error in doing so, and finding the coordinates of all four Road Poneglyph locations is the only sure way to find Laugh Tale. Since the seas of the Grand Line make it impossible to chart by simply looking at them, it is vital for navigators to be able to have coordinates sufficiently charted when looking for something in an unknown place.

Given that Laugh Tale is found by connecting the four coordinates in an X shape, it should logically be possible to reach Laugh Tale following only two coordinates, but only so long as those coordinates were meant to be connected in the X shape. There is only a 33% chance that two coordinates are meant to be linked together, and a 66% chance that they are supposed to be linked with the other two coordinates.

Using three coordinates, if they do in fact intersect in an X shape, a line segment connecting one of the three points to the fourth would have to intersect one of the line segments connecting the other points. And so, the possible locations of Laugh Tale are drastically narrowed down from the New World to the edges of a triangle within the New World. Although this is a large improvement from scouring the entire New World, there would be no guarantee that the search on those line segments would go smoothly. For example, if one line segment is the same length as the New World itself, then a crew checking it would still have to sail across the entire New World, experiencing chaotic weather, while not deviating from the geodesic. It would be feasible for a large organization such as one of the Four Emperors or the Marines to send out multiple ships along the triangle for a brute force type search, but that would lead to a different set of problems. Thus, logically it is a much better idea to find all four Road Poneglyphs than to only find two or three and hope to be lucky.

Bon Clay
Myth: The latter part of Mr. 2's alias is Bon Clay.

Fact: It is actually "Bon Kurei". "Bon Clay" is a mistranslation made in almost every translation. It even appears on a lot of Japanese merchandise; nevertheless, in the manga his name has only been written in English once: as Bon Kurei. This name is a reference to him being his own female partner since female agents have holiday names and Bon Kurei are a series of festivals held in Japan. This is made even more likely by the fact that his coat in the anime says 盆暮れ (Bon Kurei) instead of the manga's おかま道 (The Okama Way) Or something like ボン・クレ (Bon Kurei in Katakana) which would imply the word really were English (i.e., "Bon Clay").

Years in the One Piece Timeline
Myth: There is an established calendar timeline to One Piece and it takes place in the 1500s.

Fact: In a sense, this is correct - if you follow the Sea Circle Calendar that Mont Blanc Noland used 400 years ago. While this is a legitimate calendar, we do not use it as a frame of reference on the wiki for multiple reasons. Firstly, there is no specific timeframe given between Noland's journey and the present day, with the timeframe only being given as "400 years ago". So it would be impossible to accurately determine the specific years when the storyline is taking place.

Secondly, there is no indication that the Sea Circle Calendar is used across the globe, or is still used currently at all. Noland is the only person known to have used it, and he lived on a relatively unimportant North Blue country 400 years ago. Given how culturally diverse the One Piece world is, it is very possible that this calendar was solely used by the Lvneel Kingdom or a small concentration of North Blue nations, and even if it was widespread, it could have easily been altered over the course of four centuries.

Regarding the former possibility, it is also a fact that different calendar systems have existed in the One Piece world. The Poneglyph in the Arabasta Kingdom uses a measurement system called the Age of Heaven. Unlike the Sea Circle Calendar, it is not possible to establish a timeframe between this and the present day.

Pell's Survival
Myth #1: Oda regrets having Pell survive the bomb at the end of the Arabasta Arc.

Myth #2: Pell was meant to die at the end of the Arabasta Arc but Oda changed his mind due to the September 11 attacks.

Fact: While the climax of the Arabasta Arc was being published at the end of the year 2001, Chapter 208 was published two months after the September 11 attacks on November 19. Oda did write an author comment condemning the attacks for Shonen Jump Issue 44 (October 1, 2001), but there is no evidence that this influenced his decisions for the character of Pell. In an interview with the Yomiuri Shimbun (July 24, 2018), Oda stated that he generally does not kill characters because he feels he would be unable to write parties after the battles if characters had died.

Low Ratings for Animated Cover Stories
Myth: No more manga cover stories were animated because the Buggy and Koby mini-arcs received low ratings. Low ratings are also given as a possible reason why 4Kids did not include these episodes in its dub version.

Fact: The ratings for the Buggy and Koby mini-arcs were not low, and in fact were roughly the same as the episodes preceding and following them. Another cover story would later be animated, the Straw Hat Separation Serial which comes between the Impel Down and Marineford arcs, further making this rumor false.

This rumor has been propagating on One Piece fan forums for years but can be easily disproven by looking at a list of the ratings for each episode.

The higher the bounty, the stronger they are
Myth: This character is stronger than that character because this character has a higher bounty.

Fact: This is a notable misunderstanding in that it has happened in-universe as well as among the fandom, as shown with Bellamy, who boasted about his 55,000,000 bounty. However, bounties are not measures of strength, but of the threat someone poses to the World Government. While strength is frequently a factor in a person's threat level, it is not the only factor, and so it is very possible for a weaker character to have a higher bounty than a stronger one.

One example is Nico Robin, who received a 79,000,000 bounty at the age of eight. Robin had no fighting skills at the time, and was wanted solely due to her ability to read the Poneglyphs, which the World Government considers a great threat, as well as her connection to the Poneglyph-studying Ohara Archaeologists.

A character can also earn a high bounty based on having achievements credited to them, even if said achievements do not necessarily reflect their power. For example, Usopp is considered one of the weakest Straw Hats while Franky is not, but Usopp's bounty is over twice as large as Franky's due to his larger role in sparking the uprising in Dressrosa. How a character uses their strength also plays a role in the size of their bounty. Even though Luffy had defeated two Warlords and helped take down CP9, his bounty while at Sabaody Archipelago was less than Eustass Kid's bounty due to Kid frequently attacking civilians, which Luffy had never done.

Finally, the World Government is not all-knowing and so is capable of ignoring a person's actions due to not knowing about it, or misattributing the action to someone else. For example, Chopper's bounty is a very small 100 despite his imposing strength and actions performed as a Straw Hat, because the World Government assumes him to be a pet.

Power of Destruction
Myth: Certain swordsmen in One Piece possess the "power of destruction", which is what allows them to perform feats like cutting steel or sending flying slash attacks.

Fact: This misunderstanding is based on Brook's statement during the battle between Zoro and Ryuma in Chapter 467. The statement was mistranslated by early scanlators, who had Brook refer to Zoro and Ryuma as "users of the "power of destruction"". The fact that Brook also made remarks about their flying attacks and physical strength caused fans to erroneously believe that these were the result of the "power of destruction".

In truth, there is no "power of destruction". Brook was only saying that the two share similar physical strength, thus they possess similar destructive powers. There is also no evidence for the special abilities of swordsmen in One Piece being attributed to any such power.

What makes the Straw Hats pirates?
Several fans claim that the Straw Hats are not pirates at all due to the fact that they do not really do any stereotypical pirate actions. Some even claim they are more revolutionaries than pirates. The pirates in One Piece are varied, but in real life not all pirates pillaged and raped though arguably most did.

In fact the reasons for becoming a pirate were varied and not all of them did the typical pirate actions:
 * Some were merely innocent merchant traders reported as pirates for one reason or another. Breaking the law in any way was enough, however from time to time for one reason or another merchants were misreported as pirates. Modern historians have often taken William Kidd as an example of such a case.
 * Others were seeking freedom or protesting against their government who established hard taxes on merchants or who were unfairly treating the population living within their jurisdiction.
 * In some cases they were freed slaves who joined pirate crews because life as a pirate was a better life than a life of slavery.
 * A few were acting as vigilantes (which today is illegal in many countries), in some cases hired privateers (who are often considered legal pirates), while others continued plundering even after privateering was outlawed or got greedy and attacked even their own country's ships.
 * For many pirates, they were born poor and lived on little income prior to becoming shipmates on board their crews. As poor as most pirates were, pirates were often slightly wealthier than those on dry land and during times of hardship the number of pirates would increase greatly as sailors sought more profitable income.

With that in mind here is a list of "crimes" the Straw Hats have committed:
 * Declaring themselves "pirates": The storyline clearly establishes the grounds for identification as a pirate in One Piece and at the very least simply declaring oneself a pirate is enough to have the Marines arrest you. Though they declared themselves pirates, originally their actual reporting as being "pirates" was merely revenge from Nezumi because Nami beat him up. They had however acted more as vigilantes at the time because the East Blue pirates were allowed to hurt their friends and potential crewmates. Up until this point, by official means they were not classified as pirates.
 * Burning the flag of the world government: a declaration of war.
 * They have hit/attacked members of the law enforcement: a crime even in the real world. Zoro commented when he raised his swords against the Marines for the very first time after Luffy freed him, once you are declared a criminal there is no going back.
 * Holding a hostage: Holding the Ryugu Palace guards and, Ministers of the Left and Right, and King Neptune. Although, it wasn't true, they were still "involved" with the hostage situation with the World Nobles at the Human Auction House.
 * Pillaging: At the very least the Straw Hats did pillage gold from Skypiea (though were naive to the inhabitants' own regard to gold). Luffy beat Bellamy to get Cricket's stolen gold back. Nami also had previously stolen valuables from other pirates with the aid of the Arlong Pirates when needed, as well as being part of Arlong's crew who was actively pillaging villages around the East Blue. Franky had stolen from others (Usopp was a victim) to get what he wanted prior to being a 'pirate', and even though a pirate could not report him, it's still a crime. They also robbed the whole treasure hoard of Thriller Bark, although its inhabitants left it on their ship and died before the crew were back.
 * Privateering: They have also committed at least one act that would fall into the classification of "Privateering" (Igaram hired the crew to protect Princess Vivi on a price agreed by Nami together with their actions in Arabasta against Crocodile). Initially, outside of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, this is frowned upon and could have gotten the Arabasta royal family in trouble.
 * Vigilantism: Throughout the East Blue, they resolved one problem after another by acting as vigilantes even where the Marines could not succeed.
 * Freeing prisoners: Zoro, Robin, Usopp, Franky, and various members of Impel Down were all freed by a member of the Straw Hats.
 * Destroying Marine ships: Although a lie, Robin was said to have destroyed a number of ships at 8 years old. Since the start of the series, an untold number of lesser Marine ships have been taken down.
 * Murder and attempted murder: Zoro was known to have killed prior to joining the crew. Officially, Iceburg was apparently a target for murder by them, however Water 7, the place where it occurred, soon learned the truth.
 * Black market: Franky had at least one dealing with black market materials, the Adam Wood.
 * Forbidden research: Robin reads Poneglyphs, something that is banned in the One Piece world.
 * Overthrowing a king: Wapol being kicked out by the Straw Hats, Doflamingo being kicked out of his position in Dressrosa.
 * Destroying government property: Enies Lobby, Impel Down and Marineford all have had serious damage dealt to them.
 * Stealing a ship; On several occasions, such as when Luffy delivered his 3D 2Y message, occasionally ships were stolen by the crew albeit it for brief periods of time.

Although they are the least stereotypical of the pirate crews within One Piece, they are still "pirates" under the classifications released by the series itself. Traditionally, a revolutionary seeks to change things for the good of a country, the Straw Hats have often made it clear that they have no intentions of getting involved with good causes. They themselves only get involved when a friend of theirs is hurt, and only then because a situation causes them to get involved further than they intended. They themselves do not openly seek to overthrow the World Government or any individual kingdom. Pirates are criminals and while Luffy's criminal actions have aided others, they are still crimes. A Revolutionary may also commit crimes but has a set goal wherein they are purposely bent on overthrowing the government.

Lost Histories - Not Possible
Some fans have a hard time understanding how an effect like the Void Century was allowed to occur inside of the One Piece world. However, due to the freedom of information around by today's standards, we know so about our world. In the past, many only had the information passed on to them from travelers. Take for instance old paintings of biblical moments, more often than not they resemble typical landscapes of the European countryside rather than areas such as the Egyptian sites found in Sahara areas of North East Africa. Even the first pictures of a rhino left misgivings for Europeans. And also think of how unaware Europeans were that there was an entire continent to the west of them, before explorers found the Americas.

In the past, whole sections of history were left to disappear until modern day archaeology, science, and geography found the keystones of this lost history again. Even now, whole cultures lay underground, waiting to be rediscovered.

Also, heavy censorship is not unheard of in modern day world. Many books, paintings, and documents made by the Nazi party were deemed too sensitive after World War Two ended. To hide these ideas, many were either burned or locked away, for fear of the effect of some of the ideals within these books getting into the minds of another generation.

Also remember, that the One Piece storyline took place 800 years after the war and that the World Government has had heavy manipulations on the countries of the world over the centuries. On top of this, the only documentation of the Void Century is held on the poneglyphs. Over the centuries, the ability to read the poneglyphs would have disappeared since anyone caught trying to read them would have been killed, perhaps taking the knowledge to their grave. In the real world, the Rosetta Stone had been the keystone that at last explained how to read the Egyptian hieroglyphs.

Fire and Lava
Fans claim that lava would not beat fire, as lava causes fires naturally and fire is a gas whereas lava is molten rock, with additional reasons that make fans dismiss Akainu's superiority over Ace's Mera Mera no Mi ability.

It is true lava does cause fires that may spread quickly, consuming hundreds of trees within seconds and doing far more damage than the lava itself. However, while it is true fires can often be associated with lava, lava being a more dense mass can actually put fires out by smothering the fires source of ignition. Lava has many types and varieties in itself, often the lava that causes the most fire related damages comes from a slow flowing stream, in which cases the fire will spread quicker than the lava can consume it.

Also, it is not actually the lava that often causes the fire, but rather specifically the heat from the lava that causes the fire. In general, the most common hazards of volcanoes are not actually lava flows and most of the deaths and destruction are caused by other means such as lahar, intoxicating gases and pyroclastic flow. In some instances, the event of any of these occurring previously, or even a previous eruption, may actually remove any flammable sources such as trees and buildings limiting any further damage lava can do through fire. Thus, Akainu's Devil Fruit superiority to Ace's, as bizarre as it may seem is actually plausible to accept. The best example of fire losing to lava is that any liquid or molten substance moving fast enough puts out fires, even ones caused by alcohol or gasoline.

And what else is important to remember is One Piece physics. At its highest, lava has nearly the same temperature as fire. And if a liquid (the lava fist) is pushed into a gas (fire), either the liquid will be vaporized or the gas will be pushed away. But fire is not hot enough for that so it will be pushed away.

Male and Female Fish/mermen
Myth: The male mermen look like Arlong, the females are the ones that look like mermaids.

Fact: There are several variations of this once popular myth, all of them incorrect. In the past, due to the fact the name for Mermaids (人魚) was just reversed for the Fish-Men (魚人) the name of Fish-Men had been mistranslated into "Mermen". The misconception was even carried across to the 4Kids dub, which referred to Arlong's crew incorrectly as "Mermen".

Many fans had been left with the impression that mermaids were the female of the species and Arlong's crew were what the male looked like. Even when Hatchan's mini-series was written showing both the fish-woman Octopako and mermaid Camie, fans continued to make this mistake. In an SBS, Oda himself verified that the two people were not the same race, yet despite this many fans continued to make the same mistakes. It wasn't until the start of the Summit War Saga that these set of fans began to accept the two were different.

Pappag further explained in the Fish-Man Island arc that if a fish-man and a mermaid have kids, their child could be a fish-man, a fish-woman, a merman or a mermaid.

Fisher Tiger and the Red Line
Myth: The story of Fisher Tiger climbing the Red Line was fabricated. Tiger was a slave and freed the other slaves when he escaped.

Fact: This confusion arises from Tiger's dying confession that he was a slave in Mary Geoise for several years. Tiger states that he eventually managed to escape, but could not stand abandoning the other slaves. This confused some people into thinking that Tiger freed the slaves right then and there as he was escaping, meaning the story of him climbing the Red Line was merely a cover.

However, more careful reading shows that Tiger's escape from Mary Geoise and his attack to free the other slaves were two separate events. In Chapter 621, Tiger is seen returning from a "long voyage" (later revealed in Chapter 623 to be his time in slavery) and stating that he had business at Ryugu Palace. The following Chapter 622 reveals that his business at Ryugu Palace was to declare his intention to free the slaves to Neptune and Otohime. This shows that Tiger did not free the slaves before first returning to Fish-Man Island and informing the royal family, meaning he had to travel up the Red Line to return to Mary Geoise later. Thus, there is nothing to indicate that the story of Fisher Tiger climbing the Red Line was false.

Moria's nickname is King of the Depths
Myth: When introduced, his box name writes "King of the Depths, Warlord Gecko Moria".

Fact: The full title for the term Shichibukai is Ouka Shichibukai, which literally translates into Below King Seven Armed Seas. Fan mistranslation has caused people to assume that the Below King part is his nickname and people went with the term King of the Depths as his nickname when in reality, it is simply part of the Warlord title. All other Warlords have the same title written in their name boxes.

Raki and Aisa
Myth: Raki and Aisa are sisters.

Fact: They aren't, although they may actually be cousins: Raki calls Aisa's mother "aunt" (おばさん), but the terms is often used out of respect for elderly.

Uncle Kizaru
Myth: Kizaru is Sentomaru's uncle.

Fact: There is currently no evidence to support that Kizaru and Sentomaru are related in the family sense. While Sentomaru refers to Kizaru as "Kizaru no ojiki", which can be translated as "Uncle", this can also mean that he is simply referring to him as boss (much like the Yakuza). However, this rumor, due to some direct translations at the time, had spread across message boards. It should be noted that several characters referred to friends using family terms e.g. Chimney would refer to Luffy and Nami as "kaizoku-niichan" (pirate-brother) and "kaizoku-neechan" (pirate-sister) respectively. Johnny and Yosaku both referred to Zoro as 'aniki' as well. The best example is the Franky Family who all refer to Franky as "aniki" (big brother), since the closeness between was such that they considered themselves like a real family, hence the name. Another thing that could have given off that Kizaru and Sentomaru are kin is the fact that the kanji spelling for the latter's name spells "peach" keeping up with Momotaro's naming scheme of the three admirals and those linked to them. To this day there is no confirmation that Sentomaru and Kizaru are related, and "Uncle" Kizaru seems to be nothing more than a title that Sentomaru gave him to show a great level of respect.

Tom a Sun Pirate
Myth: Tom was a Sun Pirate, he has their tattoo!

Fact: Tom does have a similar tattoo, but it is not the same as theirs. From flashbacks you can see Tom with his tattoo many years before the Sun Pirates were formed.

The Marineford War is broadcasted all over the world
Myth: Everyone in the world is able to see the war on the video.

Fact : The video broadcast is only performed in Sabaody Archipelago. From there, reporters diffuse the information to their own headquarters. The confusion comes from the fact that in Chapter 550, it was shown that everyone is aware of the immensity of the war, but the same chapter explains later how the information is provided.

Luffy's last adventure as a 17-year-old
Myth: Oda stated in the interview in the Strong World movie artbook that the 10th movie is Luffy's last adventure as a 17-year old. Therefore, he turns 18 after the events of Strong World.

Fact: The full statement from Oda was "And as far as something that will hold true for both the manga and the anime, this will be Luffy's last adventure as a 17 year-old". However, this is not referring to Luffy getting older in the chapters and episodes immediately following Strong World. Strong World's place on the timeline is uncertain due to it being non-canon, but if Oda does intend for it to fit on the timeline, it must be between the Thriller Bark Arc and the Sabaody Archipelago Arc due to Brook being on the Straw Hats during the movie and the crew being all together. Since Luffy is 19 after the two-year timeskip, this means he was 17 from the Sabaody Arc to the timeskip.

Zombie Plot Hole
Myth Oda created a plot hole with Moria's zombies at Marineford when Moria used them in the sunlight.

Fact This myth stems from a common misunderstanding how Moria's powers work. When a person whose shadow was stolen by Moria gets hit by sunlight they will burst into flame and eventually fade away completely. It was never stated anywhere that this also happens to the zombies who have the shadows put into them.

Higuma the Bear
Myth: Higuma's epithet is "the Bear"

Fact: This is actually a mistranslation by Viz. Higuma does not have an epithet in the original manga, only being referred to as "Mountain Bandit Leader Higuma." (山賊棟梁ヒグマ) "Higuma" is the name of a Japanese bear living in the mountains, so Viz likely added "the Bear" because American readers would not get the reference.

Pirate Summit
Myth: Ace said something about the pirate summit so it must be a place or event.

Fact: There is no pirate summit, what Ace meant was "See you at the top" but he did not mean that there will be a pirate summit. Since "top" can also mean "summit" (as in the summit of a mountain) the line was easy to confuse. The "See you at the top" line was a figure of speech by Ace, challenging Luffy to become strong like him and join the top tier of strength. Pirate summit was a mistranslation found in many fan translations and sub translations. K-F, one of the Fansubbers, mistranslated it, and Stephen the script translator also mistranslated it as well. The error even makes an appearance in the official translation of Pirate Warriors 2. In the English manga, Viz translated it as "See you on the high seas". Also the piece of paper Ace gave Luffy was not an invitation, as it was blank. This paper is later revealed to be a Vivre Card, a special paper that is made from part of a person (usually fingernail trimmings) that allows the holder to know what direction the paper's owner is in. Ironically, they did meet again at the Summit War of Marineford, named for its importance.

Big Mom's Pronoun
Myth: Big Mom uses a masculine first-person pronoun in Japanese.

Fact: While Big Mom does use Ore (俺), a first person pronoun (common in Japanese), which is typically seen as a masculine pronoun, it isn't exclusively masculine. Oda stated in the SBS that Ore used to be used by men and women, and some regions today still have women using it. While nowadays it's more often to see men use Ore, especially for male characters in One Piece, its use with Big Mom is not in a masculine way, but a more traditional one. Another female character who uses the pronoun is Atlas.