Demaro Black

"Three-Tongued" Demalo Black is the captain of the Impostor Straw Hat Pirates and the main antagonist for the Return to Sabaody Arc. He impersonated Monkey D. Luffy to benefit from his reputation.

Appearance
Black is a large and fat middle aged man. Black's face is very broad, his forehead jutting prominently forward, almost concealing his eyebrows entirely. He has facial hair that extends from the ends of his mouth to his chin, and his nose comprises of a narrow bridge, sloping outward, like the forehead, and ending in a large, wide, and rounded set of nostrils. His legs are thin and hairy. He is almost always smiling, even after being wounded. He also has an X-shaped scar on his stomach and another scar on his left shoulder.

In his attempt to impersonate Luffy, Black wears similar apparel. He also has an imitation scar beneath his left eye. However, the similarities end there. His scar has three stitches instead of two, his straw hat is frayed and unkempt with a striped band around its circumference, and he wears boots rather than sandals like the real Luffy. He also wears a typical pirate coat when addressing his recruits. All in all, he looks virtually nothing like the real Luffy.

Personality
Black's personality is quite similar to that of the World Nobles, albeit somewhat less extreme. He is extremely ruthless and egotistical, using the real Luffy's reputation to act with impunity. With Luffy's exceedingly high bounty and known infamy, Black can get away with virtually anything. He treats his reputation as an entitlement, expecting others to accommodate him simply because he's a famous pirate. He seems to have enough common sense to realize that his reputation alone will not protect him from everyone, though he still attempts to use it as leverage in a pinch.

Black angers easily when things don't go as planned, or at any perceived slight by anyone he meets. He treats something as simple as being knocked down as an offense to kill someone over. This seems to extend from his stolen reputation, as he believes the act gives him the right to behave as such. Because of his ego, Black, in attempting to exact revenge, seems to be blinded to the dangers his opponents represent. Despite the real Nami, Usopp, and Luffy all dispatching him and his immediate crew with casual ease, his anger drives him to get revenge at any cost, even gathering his entire collection of recruits just to deal with three people. He also attempted to talk down Sentoumaru using his reputation, even though Sentoumaru clearly didn't believe him.

Unlike the real Luffy, who places little importance to a person's background, Black takes every opportunity to brag about his heritage and accomplishments, which he uses to justify his actions; in fact, he uses it as his primary weapon to intimidate his opponents in order to defend himself. He has no qualm with hurting innocent people, apologizing sarcastically after accidentally shooting bystanders he mistook for his enemies. He places no importance on the well-being of his crew, viewing them as a means to an end. He also appears to be a coward, using the fake Nami as a sacrificial lamb to escape Usopp's man-eating plant.

Black's arrogance seems to cloud his better judgment. Having met the real Nami, Usopp, Luffy, and Chopper, he failed to recognize any of them. By contrast, the fake Robin quickly identified Chopper. Black had to be told of Chopper's identity by the fake Sanji and Zoro. It was also apparent that Black did not took into the account the consequences of impersonating a notorious pirate such as Luffy which led to the fake's capture and Sentoumaru even stated that Black and his fellow impostors were idiots. This mindset, coupled with his ego, ultimately led to Black's downfall when his empty threats against Sentoumaru backfired.

Crew
Unlike the real Luffy, Demalo Black doesn't have a real bond with his crew and isn't concerned about their well-being. He was also willing to abandon his recruits when they were getting annihilated by the Pacifistas. His crew seems loyal, but seemingly only to the extent that he is their captain. They abandoned him as soon as his true identity was exposed, for he no longer held the power to protect them.

Enemies
Black's first enemies were Nami and Usopp, who humiliated him in a bar. Later, the real Luffy earned Black's scorn when he accidentally knocked him over and shamed him in front of a group of people. Black's ruse also proved to be his greatest undoing since pretending to be Luffy made him a target of the real Luffy's enemies such as Sentoumaru, who eventually confronted Black and put an end to his deception. The recruits turned violent towards Black and his fellow impersonators, especially the Caribou Pirates, who proceeded to kill the fakes.

Abilities and powers
Black appears to survive solely on his ability to manipulate others, having no apparent combat skills to speak of. His skill in deception is quite impressive as every person who did not know Luffy previously actually believed that Black was the Straw Hat captain. He has been shown using a flintlock pistol in combat, but his proficiency with it does not seem to extend beyond shooting people who anger him at point blank range. Unable to defend himself against more powerful opponents, Black instead relies on his stolen reputation as Straw Hat Luffy to intimidate foes into not fighting back, though he is smart enough to realize that not all of his opponents would be deceived by this. The one thing that can be said in Black's favor is that he is fairly durable, managing to walk away from attacks by Usopp's Pop Greens and Nami's thunderbolt, albeit while somewhat injured. However, Sentoumaru knocked him out in a single strike from the broad side of his axe. He has also been shown to have a weak will, as Luffy was easily able to knock him out using Haki.

History
Black is first seen in a bar in the Sabaody Archipelago, looking for new recruits for his crew along with Fake Nami, Fake Sogeking, and Fake Franky. After shooting and dismissing a potential recruit for having a low bounty of 55 million beli (as opposed to the pre-requisite of over 70 million that he and his crew imposed), he invited the real Nami to join, failing to recognize her as a member of the real Straw Hats. When she refused, he and his crew tried to force her into joining, which was again met with disinterest. Before they could do anything else, they were attacked by carnivorous plants spawned from one of Usopp's Pop Greens. Black and his crew managed to get free of the plant, only to be struck by a massive thunderbolt left behind by Nami as she and Usopp departed. Although wounded, Black was able to get up and ordered his men to find their attackers.

Black would later come upon a woman and a man who look vaguely similar to his quarry. After shooting the woman, he sarcastically apologized for the misunderstanding, then shot the man in cold blood for objecting. At that moment, the real Luffy came by and inadvertently knocked Black over. Luffy tried to apologize and move on, but Black decided to press the issue, treating the accident as an insult against him. Boasting about his 400 million bounty, he demanded the real Luffy to beg for forgiveness, completely unaware of who he was picking a fight with. Not wanting to draw too much attention, Luffy simply excused himself. Black attempted to shoot him, but Luffy casually dodged the shot and knocked the entire group unconscious with Haki.

Sometime later, Black and the rest of his crew awakened after being found by Fake Zoro and Fake Sanji, confused as to what the real Luffy did to them. Fake Sanji and Fake Zoro report Fake Robin's loss, which Black casually dismissed as bad luck. His concern at the time was exacting revenge on Nami, Usopp, and Luffy. Black then informed his crew that they would gather all of their recruits and teach the people who disrespected him a lesson. His attitude towards Robin's abduction drove Chopper away, who was still under the impression that the fakes were his friends.

After being told that the talking "racoon-dog" is the real Chopper, Black ordered Fake Sanji and Fake Zoro to capture him. Meanwhile, Black gathered his recruits at Grove #46, announcing his plan to go to the New World, where they will fight and die for his sake. His first act of business, however, was for them to capture the ones who humiliated him (Luffy, Nami, and Usopp). At that moment, Fake Zoro and Fake Sanji brought the real Luffy to him.

Black decided to make an example out of the real Luffy, only for the Marines, joined by Sentoumaru and two Pacifista, to interrupt. Black ordered Caribou and Coribou to use a captured Marine as a human shield so they can get to safety, but Caribou just killed the Marine and incited a battle. Since his recruits were totally helpless against the Pacifistas, Black and the other fake Straw Hats tried to make a run for it. Unfortunately for them, Sentoumaru cut off their escape. Clearly recognizing Black as a fraud, Sentoumaru questioned why he was being called Straw Hat Luffy. All Black could do was attempt to intimidate Sentoumaru with Luffy's reputation. Unfazed by Black's empty threats, Sentoumaru flattened Black with the broad side of his axe in a single attack. PX-5 then told the assembled pirates of his true identity: "Three-Tongued" Demalo Black, bounty 26,000,000. The assembled pirates were furious at the deception. Black's crew scattered as their leader was no longer in a position of power.

After the battle, Black is seen tied up, unconscious on the ground in front of Sentoumaru and in the custody of the Marines. It can be assumed that his crewmates (except for Cocoa and fake Chopper) were buried alive and died as a result.

Translation and Dub Issues
Black's epithet, "Three-Tongued", refers to an untrustworthy person who often lies to people to be on their side but never truly sides with them. However, in Black's case, he lies to get people to side with him.