Three Great Powers

The Three Great Powers are the three greatest military forces on the oceans, consisting of the Marine Headquarters, the Four Emperors and formerly the Seven Warlords of the Sea. The balance between them is what maintained world peace. They were first hinted to by Yosaku when explaining how Jinbe unleashed Arlong in the East Blue to Luffy and Sanji.

As of the latest Levely, the Seven Warlords of the Sea were abolished by the World Government, who believed that the SSG's new Seraphim project would be enough to render the Warlord system obsolete.

Overview
The Three Great Powers originally consisted of the Four Emperors (四皇), the four most powerful pirate captains in the entire world and their respective crews; the Marines (海軍), or more specifically Marine Headquarters (海軍本部), where the most combat capable Marines in the world, such as the Admirals, are stationed; and, up until recently, the Seven Warlords of the Sea (王下七武海), seven incredibly powerful pirate captains that agreed to become allies of the World Government in exchange for a pardon for past and future crimes. With the Seven Warlords working together with the Marines, the government was able to maintain a balance of power with the Four Emperors.

The Five Elders fear that if this balance gets disrupted, the world itself might descend into anarchy. Furthermore, the balance of power was incredibly delicate; if even one party from either of these groups is lost, it may cause the balance to fall apart entirely. After Crocodile had been arrested and gotten his Warlord title revoked following the Arabasta incident, the loss of such a powerful ally in such a public manner tips the balance away from the Seven Warlords of the Sea, and in turn, the Marines as well. This leaves them with diminished force to counter the menace of the Four Emperors and allows the general populace to question their power and authority.

Another concern is that the Marines are the sole organization completely under the supremacy of the World Government. The Seven Warlords often only followed orders on a whim, if at all, whereas the Four Emperors are outside of the World Government's control entirely.

The Four Emperors and Marines seem to be on the opposite ends of the spectrum, with the Marines being more orderly compared to the Four Emperors who are very chaotic, with the Seven Warlords acting as somewhere in between. Considering that these organizations are stated to be a balance and the fact that the loss of Crocodile threatened the balance, it is likely these groups are approximately equal in strength. According to Yosaku, the presence of the Three Great Powers over the Grand Line is what makes it the "Pirates Graveyard".

As the delicate balance of the Three Great Powers is what stabilizes the world, the existence and actions of other powerful groups, such as the Revolutionary Army and the Worst Generation, is a significant threat to that balance. With the current dissolution of the Seven Warlords system, it is currently unknown how much the balance of power has been affected within the world. While several civilians express such concern, the World Government had utilized the Special Science Group (特殊科学班), or SSG for short, as a means to replace the Seven Warlords, expressing confidence it will restore the delicate balance. However, with two of the Emperors, Kaidou and Linlin, allying together for world domination, they express their confidence in toppling the entire World Government and the Three Great Powers' balance.

Past
It is currently unknown how the Three Great Powers were established. Likely, it was conceived by the World Government sometime after the execution of Gol D. Roger, whose final words kick-started the Great Pirate Era, as a means of keeping the ever-growing stampede of piracy in check.

One of the Three Great Powers was Marine Headquarters, whose soldiers worked to hunt down, arrest and punish greedy pirates and other criminals on behalf of the World Government. Another was the Four Emperors, four powerful pirates of exceptional strength and influence who would continue to exist outside of the government's control and fight against each other, but still keep lesser pirates contained, and cannot be harassed by the Marines or the government unless special orders were received from the higher-ups. Among their ranks was Gol D. Roger's biggest rival and former member of the Rocks Pirates, Whitebeard, as well as other contenders, Big Mom, who ruled over Totto Land, and Kaidou, who took control of the Wano Country. It is unknown who held the fourth seat originally (if anyone did), but about six years ago, one of Roger's apprentices, Shanks, traveled to the New World and carved out his own territory, thus earning himself a seat among the Emperors.

The third and final authority was the Seven Warlords of the Sea, a group of seven strong pirates who were granted special privileges by the World Government in exchange for their cooperation; established as a means of balancing power between the orderly Marines and the chaotic Emperors. Members included Shanks' old rival and the strongest known swordsman in the world, Dracule Mihawk; Jinbe, a powerful fish-man and martial artist who joined to better relations between his kind and humans; Crocodile, a sand-wielding pirate with a strong grudge against Whitebeard; Donquixote Doflamingo, a former World Noble-turned-pirate don and powerful underworld broker who could manipulate strings; Bartholomew Kuma, a former king and revolutionary with the ability to "push" anything away; Gecko Moria, a shadow-stealing pirate who sought to build a zombie army and seek revenge on Kaidou; and Boa Hancock, a former slave and current empress of Amazon Lily who can turn anyone with lust in their hearts into stone. At some point, the government attempted to recruit the strong rookie pirate, Portgas D. Ace as a warlord, only to be turned down.

Arabasta Saga
Using his title as one of the Seven Warlords, Crocodile was able to reside in the kingdom of Arabasta while also masterminding a plot to overthrow the country. After being defeated by the young pirate, Monkey D. Luffy and having his crimes exposed, Crocodile was stripped of his status as a warlord and arrested, causing a major fracture within the Three Great Powers.

Sky Island Saga
After Crocodile's expulsion from the Seven Warlords, a meeting is arranged between the Fleet Admiral of the Marines, Sengoku and several Vice Admirals, along with three Warlords, Doflamingo, Kuma and Mihawk, to discuss the situation. During which, member of the Blackbeard Pirates, Laffitte managed to sneak into the meeting to propose his captain as a replacement for Crocodile. Meanwhile, Shanks attempts to contact another of the Four Emperors, Whitebeard, which shocked the Marines.

Water 7 Saga
Despite the efforts made to prevent it by the World Government, Shanks was able to meet with Whitebeard to request that Ace stop his search for Blackbeard, only to be refused. Meanwhile, Ace finally finds Blackbeard on Banaro Island and duels with him, with Blackbeard being victorious. He then turns Ace over to the World Government, thus becoming the newest Warlord and starting a chain reaction to the event that would change the world.

Thriller Bark Saga
The Straw Hat Pirates then end up at Thriller Bark, an island ship controlled by the warlord, Gecko Moria and his army of zombies. Bartholomew Kuma also visits the island by the request of the government to aid Moria, but Moria refuses his help. The Straw Hats manage to defeat Moria, but were then swiftly defeated by Kuma, who leaves them all alive.

Summit War Saga
The Straw Hats then reach Sabaody Archipelago, where Luffy assaults the World Noble, Saint Charlos. In response to this crime, Marine Headquarters send Admiral Kizaru to apprehend him and his crew. However, they were unexpectedly rescued by Kuma, who sends each of them away to a far away location. While Zoro was sent to Mihawk's home of Kuraigana Island, Luffy was sent to Amazon Lily, where he encountered Boa Hancock and unintentionally makes her fall in love with him, and gets word that his brother Ace will be executed soon.

With assistance from Hancock, Luffy manages to break into Impel Down so that he could rescue Ace. Though he fails to do so before Ace is taken away to Marine Headquarters for his execution, he ends up releasing both Crocodile, who was only interested in killing Whitebeard, and Jinbe, who had been imprisoned for opposing Ace's execution. Together, along with others, they escape from the prison complex and straight towards Marine HQ. Meanwhile, using his Warlord status, Blackbeard also infiltrates the prison and recruits prisoners Catarina Devon, Vasco Shot, Avalo Pizarro, and Sanjuan Wolf, as well as former Head Jailer, Shiryu.

The scheduled execution of Ace resulted in the Marines entering into hostilities with the Whitebeard Pirates. This eventually led to a major battle between the Marines and Seven Warlords against the Whitebeard Pirates and their allies. This was the first known instance where any of the powers went into full-out conflict with one another. Prior to the battle, Kaidou attempted to attack Whitebeard and was intercepted by Shanks, causing a dispute between the Emperors. During the war, Jinbe officially resigns from the Seven Warlords. Despite the great effort to rescue him, Ace was killed at the hands of Admiral Akainu. Whitebeard himself would also meet his end at the hands of Blackbeard, who also resigns his position as a Warlord and uses an unknown method to steal Whitebeard's tremor powers from his corpse. After Whitebeard's death, the balance collapsed and the world entered into complete chaos, contrary to the belief that the great pirate's death would ensure peace.

At the conclusion of the Summit War of Marineford, the Five Elders deemed Gecko Moria as "too weak" to retain his status and ordered Donquixote Doflamingo to eliminate him, though Moria escapes. Furthermore, both Monkey D. Garp and Sengoku resign after the war, with Sengoku choosing Admiral Aokiji as his successor.

During the Timeskip
During the timeskip, all three groups underwent significant changes.

With the death of Whitebeard, all the islands under his protection soon fell victim to invading pirates. Blackbeard, using his new Devil Fruit ability and expanded crew, was able to conquer most of his former captain's territory for himself. Then, a year after the Summit War, the remnants of the Whitebeard Pirates, led by Marco, and clashed with Blackbeard and his crew in the Payback War. The Blackbeard Pirates ultimately emerged victorious, and the Whitebeard Pirates were forced to disband. This event, as well as Blackbeard's conquest, lead to the World Government acknowledging him as Whitebeard's replacement in the Four Emperors.

After Sengoku resigned as Fleet Admiral, Aokiji ended up dueling with fellow Admiral Akainu for the position. After fighting for ten days straight on Punk Hazard, Akainu bested his comrade and became the next Fleet Admiral. Aokiji, who despised Akainu, resigned from the Marines entirely to avoid working under him, and ended up joining the Blackbeard Pirates as Captain of the Tenth Ship. Both the former Admiral's positions were then filled by Fujitora and Ryokugyu, and under Akainu's command, the Marines became more fearsome than ever before, and their Headquarters was relocated to the New World as a challenge to the Four Emperors.

The three vacant spots of the Seven Warlords of the Sea were also filled by new members; Trafalgar Law, a member of the Worst Generation with the ability to operate on anything and anyone (after he gave the hearts of 100 pirates to the Marines), Buggy, a former apprentice of the Roger Pirates who managed to sway several former Impel Down prisoners under his command, and Edward Weevil, the self-proclaimed son of Whitebeard. Using his status, Law made rest on Punk Hazard, which was secretly controlled by the mad scientist, Caesar Clown, who was working with the warlord, Donquixote Doflamingo to produce artificial Devil Fruits called SMILE s for the emperor, Kaidou to empower his army.

Dressrosa Saga
At Punk Hazard, the Straw Hat Pirates meet with Trafalgar Law, who decides to form an alliance between their crews to take down Kaidou. Working together, they capture Caesar Clown and use him as a hostage against Doflamingo, promising to return him only on the condition that Doflamingo resigns from the Seven Warlords.

After getting news of Doflamingo's resignation, the Straw Hats and Law head to the kingdom of Dressrosa to destroy the SMILE Factory, thus pitting Doflamingo not just against Marine HQ, but Kaidou as well. However, they soon learn that Doflamingo, using his ties as a former World Noble, was able to fake the news of his abdication, thus leading them into a trap. Even worse, after hearing of Luffy and Law's alliance, Akainu sent Admiral Fujitora to the same island to investigate the situation, and upon confirming it, Law's status as a Warlord was officially revoked. With all these setbacks, Luffy and Law had no choice to fight and defeat Doflamingo personally, which coupled with his crimes being exposed, ended up costing him his Warlord status as well.

Whole Cake Island Saga
After learning that Sanji was being forced into a marriage to one of Big Mom's daughters, Luffy and some of his crew head to Totto Land to retrieve him. After initially being overwhelmed by her forces, they managed to escape her territory, with Luffy's actions indirectly destroying her base. Due to these actions, as well as the massive fleet that he unintentionally created at Dressrosa, Luffy has since been known as the "Fifth Emperor".

Wano Country Saga
During the Levely, Kings Nefertari Cobra and Riku Doldo III brought up the facts that their respective countries suffered because of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, which led to the heated debate and ultimate passing of the notion of dissolving the Seven Warlords organization. As part of the action, large fleets of Marines were sent to arrest Buggy, Dracule Mihawk, Edward Weevil, and Boa Hancock. While most of the world cheered for the abolition of the Warlord system, a few became worried at the resulting imbalance of the Three Great Powers. The Marines hope the SSG will successfully replace the Seven Warlords as part of the Three Great Powers.

Big Mom entered Wano Country, which was Kaidou's territory, in pursuit of Luffy, who came to bring down Kaidou. When the two Emperors came face-to-face, they started fighting each other, with the World Government hoping they would inhibit themselves. However, much to their shock, the two ended up allying with each other. It was then revealed during the Fire Festival, that they were launching New Onigashima Project, where they would enslave the remaining populace of Wano, turning the island into a pirate paradise, before aiming for the Ancient Weapons and the One Piece and ultimately initiating the "Final War". However, just after had Kaidou killed his longtime ally, Kurozumi Orochi, and after he had obtained the former shogun's forces, the Beasts Pirates headquarters of Onigashima came under attack by the Ninja-Pirate-Mink-Samurai Alliance. After a grueling conflict, Luffy was able to finally defeat Kaidou while Law and Kid managed to defeat Big Mom. Afterwards, Kaidou and Big Mom were stripped of their Emperor statuses, which were then given to Luffy and Buggy.

A week after the eventful battle, Ryokugyu entered the Wano Country in order to take Luffy's life, however his efforts has been impeded by Momonosuke, Yamato, and the Scabbards, with Shanks conclude the sudden fight using his Haki. Ryokugyu, after being scared by Shanks, did not have any intention to fight, thus prompting him to take his leave.

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