Koby

Petty Officer First Class Coby (コビー曹長 Kobī Sōchō), is a Master Chief Petty Officer that serves in the 153rd Marine Branch under Vice Admiral Garp. He was a former Chore Boy of Alvida until liberated by Luffy.

Appearance
When he first appeared Coby was a small, timid, bespectacled boy with pink hair. He was slightly chubby and somewhat shorter than Luffy.

After training with Garp, Coby became somewhat thinner and taller. He now stands nearly as tall as Luffy. He also gained a cross-shaped scar across his forehead above his right eye. He now wears a jacket with the standard Marine colors and the marine symbol imprinted on the back, and to completete his uniform Coby wears standard marine pants. Also like most marines he wears a hankercheif around his neck.

He also puts his glasses on his forehead, as opposed to wearing them normally, and has added a bandana underneath them. He also has a second scar, on his left foot.

Personality
Coby is first introduced as a cowardly Chore Boy on board Alvida's ship. Due to the fear of being smashed by her Iron Mace, whenever she asked him who was the loveliest on the sea, he would reply, 'You are, Miss Alvida'. His fear even got in the way of living up to his dream as a Marine. His fears were reflected onto other people's dreams, as he said it would be impossible for Luffy to conquer the Grand Line and become the Pirate King, even though he was mainly reflecting off of his own chance of surviving. Eventually with the help of Luffy he found the courage to pursue his dream of leaving Alvida and becoming a Marine.

The first time he appears to have changed is when he and Luffy arrive at the base Captain Morgan is at. Helmeppo holds a gun to his head, but he pulls together his courage and tells Luffy not to worry about him. After their mini-arc series, Helmeppo and he become good friends.

Coby values his friendship with Luffy a lot, as shown when even after their brief fight, he asks if they're still friends.

His well-known personality is his ability to muster up his courage. He was willing to fight Luffy so that he (Coby) would grow. He also has the courage to speak out, such as when he yells out to Alvida that he is going to become a marine and fight pirates. During the Whitebeard War, he yells out to his fellow marines and tries to talk some sense into them, after seeing them waste their lives and leaving fallen soldiers behind, even in front of Admiral Akainu. Even if it meant getting killed, Coby had no regrets saying what he had to say.

Abilities and Powers
In his first appearance he lacked any fighting skills. According to Alvida, the only reason why she kept him on was because he happened to be good at Navigation. He is seen during his mini-arc training alongside Helmeppo and Vice-Admiral Monkey D. Garp. He has since become strong enough to use Rokushiki, or at the very least, Soru technique. However, he was easily defeated by Luffy. He also has some knowledge of swordsmanship, as he was seen practicing with Helmeppo, as well as Garp's attendant. It also seems recently he has gained or had an ability similar to Mantra, stating how all the voices in his head are disappearing one by one, much like Aisa felt during the Skypiea Arc. However, after the war, it is instead diagnosed as the emergence of a Haki-related ability.

Past Story
Coby had intended to board a ship for a fishing trip one day, but by accident, instead found himself amid the dangerous crew of Lady Alvida. To stay alive, he 'volunteered' to become a lowly cabin boy for this band of pirates, but fostered a desire to escape one day, and even join the Marines. His fear of Alvida prevented him from leaving, but Luffy's arrival and triumph over the 'ugly old hag' (as Coby summoned the courage to call her) finally brought him hope.

After helping Luffy and Zoro free a nearby Naval base from the grip of the tyrannical Captain Morgan, Coby is admitted to join the Marines as a Chore Boy (雑用 Zatsuyō), alongside the Captain's disgraced son Helmeppo.

Freedom and Dream Come True
If I succeed, that's fine. If I die, that's fine also. In his and Helmeppo's title page mini-arc, the two become unwillingly involved in an escape attempt by Morgan the prisoner (Morgan takes his son hostage and steals a ship). Though Morgan escapes, the bravery shown by the two earns them the respect of their superiors, and the attention of Vice-Admiral Garp. He and Helmeppo are currently serving under the Vice-Admiral, at the same base that is apparently Captain Hina's home port on the Grand Line.

Reunion With a Friend
He appears to be at Water 7 alongside Helmeppo after Garp pays Luffy a visit. As Helmeppo attack Zoro, Luffy is attacked by the then-yet-unknown Coby. A brief fight happens, but Coby and Helmeppo are easily defeated. When Garp tells Luffy of his parentage, the whole city is in shock, including Coby. He and Helmeppo take Luffy and Zoro outside. He tells both Luffy and Zoro about "The New World", and also tells them that the next time they met, it will be in the New World, and then he will be an Admiral and he will have to fight and capture Luffy. Luffy just says he'll look forward to their fight.

Coby sees Luffy one more time as he leaves Water 7, when Garp attacks. He is afraid the Vice-Admiral would take down the Thousand Sunny and is relieved and amazed that Luffy and the Thousand Sunny got away.

The Courage to Say 'Enough'
Coby, along with Helmeppo, reported to Marine Headquarters as part of the fight against the Whitebeard Pirates. Three hours before Ace's execution saw him with Helmeppo listening to Sengoku's speech about Ace's past. After hearing that Ace is Gol D. Roger's son, they came to a conclusion that Ace and Luffy aren't real brothers connected by blood.

Scared by the display of power from both sides, they run away. They hid when they spotted Akainu and witness the Admiral punishing a Marine for running away. They overhear Sengoku's strategy, from Akainu's Den Den Mushi, to ignore the schedule and execute Ace right away. They then notice a ship falling from the sky.



Luffy's unconventional arrival at Marineford has him and Helmeppo thunderstruck. When Sengoku announced that Luffy is Dragon's son, Coby, along with Helmeppo, is shocked to see that the Fleet Admiral decided to reveal such information.



When Luffy attempts to charge towards the execution stand to rescue Ace, Coby finds his courage, and states that if he cowers away, he would not be able to grow up. To this end, Coby decides to fight against Luffy until his last breath. However, as Coby uses Soru to approach Luffy, the Straw Hat captain easily defeats the Chief Petty Officer with a Gomu Gomu no Bullet before speeding off.

Eventually, Coby wakes up, disgusted that the war was continuing despite the Marines having achieved their goal, he hears voices of the combatants, in his head, disappearing one by one. He manages to muster up the courage to scream out at everyone to stop fighting, or else more lives would be wasted. Akainu, unimpressed, attempts to kill Coby for his viewpoint. Coby screamed while thinking to himself that he said what he had to say and doesn't regret doing it.

He is then saved by Shanks, who had suddenly arrived. Coby immediately fell unconscious after his timely rescue from certain demise.

Post-War Arc
Coby is seen at marine headquarters healing center, surrounded by other injured soldiers, and a healthy Helmeppo at his bedside. He is still clearly traumatized by the events. The doctor tells him that what he is feeling is Haki. The doctor informs him that all Vice Admirals have Haki control, and that Garp should be able to help Coby. Helmeppo feels jealous that Coby seems to have advanced in skill, though Coby claims not knowing the ability in the first place.

Major Battles

 * Coby vs. Monkey D. Luffy (Shell Town, to let the Marines see he isn't a pirate))
 * Coby vs. Morgan
 * Coby vs. Bogart
 * Coby and Helmeppo vs. Monkey D. Garp (training)


 * Coby vs. Monkey D. Luffy (Water 7)
 * Coby vs. Monkey D. Luffy (Marineford)

Anime and Manga Differences
In the anime, a report was published in a newspaper stating that Garp, Coby, and Helmeppo had traversed Reverse Mountain in order to enter the Grand Line. This report was later brought up before Coby by Luffy in a later episode. Upon hearing this report, Coby explained to Luffy that the report was just a cover story in order to hide the secret of how the Marines are able to pass directly through the Calm Belt.

Despite this rewrite of the anime's initial mistake, two errors remain;
 * Coby and Helmeppo had passed a few sentences about the Reverse Mountain during the adaptation of their mini-series and commented how frightening it had been for them.
 * Zoro was also surprised of Coby's presence in the Grand Line though he saw the article with Luffy on the newspaper.

Also, in the manga, Coby got shot on his left shoulder, however, in the anime, it was left out.

Trivia

 * Coby was the first person that Luffy met and befriended on his journey.
 * A fan once asked why Coby looked so different from his first appearance. According to Oda, Coby just went through a growth spurt and tightened his muscles with discipline (due to Garp's training).

Related Articles

 * Helmeppo
 * Monkey D. Garp
 * Morgan
 * Marines
 * Monkey D. Luffy

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