- For the chapter of the same name, see Chapter 921.
Shutenmaru is the leader of the Atamayama Thieves[2] who reside somewhere in Wano Country.[3] Prior to this, he went by the name Ashura Doji and served under Kozuki Oden until the latter's death 20 years ago.[5][6] He is also one of the Nine Red Scabbards.[7]
Appearance
Shutenmaru is a very large man with light puffy hair that is gathered into a topknot. He wears an open kimono with flowers on it that leaves his chest exposed. He has floral tattoos on his arms and upper chest.[5]
Personality
Shutenmaru is a thief who is out to support himself and is callous towards everyone he steals from regardless of what position they are in. He has stolen both from Wano's shogun, Kurozumi Orochi, and from the most impoverished citizens through the exact same motive of self-service. He is also very aggressive and prideful, as shown when he attacked Jack and was utterly fearless about facing the Disaster.[5][8] However, he would not recklessly fight someone as powerful as Kaido, though he was prepared to fight if he needs to.
He appears to greatly respect strength, as he believes that Wano will decline if no one strong enough will come to lead it.[5] He put aside his violent ways when Kozuki Oden defeated him in battle, and contributed to Oden's peacemaking efforts as a result of this earned respect.[1]
| — Shutenmaru's disillusioned view on Wano Country |
After Wano Country fell into ruin under the tyrannical Beasts Pirates and Kurozumi Orochi after Oden's death, Shutenmaru became disillusioned and nihilistic with the country, believing that there is no hope nor salvation for Wano due to the lack of strong and noble individuals like Oden. Thus, Shutenmaru disdained Luffy's heroism of feeding the citizens of Okobore Town and also refused to join the Kozuki Family in their campaign to overthrow Kaido and Orochi.
Relationships
Kozuki Family
After he was defeated by Oden, he admired the latter and served under him. Even after Oden's death, Shutenmaru continued to refer to him as "Oden-sama", showing an undying respect and loyalty for the daimyo of Kuri. However, his loyalty does not extend to his family and Shutenmaru was bitter that they left Wano for twenty years. His lack of respect for the family is such that he refuses to address Oden's son with any honorifics, and Kiku expressed disappointment at Shutenmaru's perceived disloyalty. The closest to any camaraderie Shutenmaru expressed is that he spared them from his banditry. However, Kin'emon made clear that he will make Shutenmaru their ally and has no qualms framing him for theft.
Beasts Pirates
Kaido saw some value in Shutenmaru's strength and wanted him to join his crew. Shutenmaru, on the other hand, had no intention of pledging loyalty towards the Beasts Pirates and he did not hesitate to attack Jack when confronted by him. However, Shutenmaru is well aware of Kaido's strength and would avoid fighting him if possible.
Despite his intimidation of Kaido, he is not above picking fights with his subordinates as seen in his confrontation with Jack and showed no fear of the man's reputation.
Abilities and Powers
As the leader of the Atamayama Thieves, he has complete authority over his men. According to Kinemon, during his time as one of the Nine Red Scabbards, he was one of the most powerful members alongside Kawamatsu and Denjiro.
Proving his skills at thievery, Shutenmaru and his followers successfully raided Orochi's personal farm whilst not able to be stopped by anyone serving the shogun (be it samurai or Beasts Pirates), at the same time having remained in successful hiding since.[9]
In combat terms, Shutenmaru is extremely powerful, once feared as the most dangerous out of all villains that frequented Kuri in its era of chaos, until defeated by Oden.[1] In the present, his strength remains such that even Kaido, one of the Yonko, seeks to recruit him,[8] and Kin'emon hails him as being worth the strength of 100 men.[5] Holdem, a Beasts Pirates headliner, surmised that Monkey D. Luffy may be Shutenmaru's subordinate going by his power.[3] Most impressively yet, Shutenmaru was able to fight on par with Jack, Kaido's right hand worth a 
1,000,000,000 bounty, even dealing him a serious wound,[10] and additionally matched up to Inuarashi, one of the two strongest members of the Mink Tribe.[11] Though as strong he may be, Shutenmaru is well aware that he cannot defeat Kaido, preferring to retreat when faced with him a second time.[12]
Physical Abilities
Shutenmaru can apply tremendous physical strength to his swordsmanship, able to clash with Jack, one of the Three Disasters of the Beast Pirates, and even gives the latter a massive wound across his chest. Despite his large size, Shutenmaru is extremely fast, being capable of charging towards Jack in an instant. He also possesses a great amount of endurance, as he was seemingly unaffected when Jack cut him on the shoulder.[13]
Swordsmanship
Shutenmaru is a powerful master swordsman. With one slash, he was able to give Jack a large cut across his chest and break one of his shotel blades. He then proceeded to fight evenly with Kaido's right-hand man in what spectators considered to be a high-level duel.[8]
History
Past
Ashura vs. Oden.
Over 20 years ago, Ashura Doji was the most dangerous criminal in the lawless region of Kuri. However, he was confronted by Kozuki Oden and defeated,[1] causing him to become a follower of Oden and aid him in his efforts to bring peace to Kuri.[5]
20 years ago, Oden and his family were executed by Kaido and the new shogun Kurozumi Orochi. Ashura went back to being a criminal and adopted the name Shutenmaru.[6] At some point, he encountered Kaido.[12]
A few weeks before Monkey D. Luffy's arrival at Wano Country, Shutenmaru and other thieves managed to steal food from the farm that Oden had established, which was now owned by Orochi.[9]
Wano Country Arc
Shutenmaru attacks Jack.
Shutenmaru and his thieves came to Okobore Town, where they stole the fresh food that Luffy had given to the residents there. He was confronted by an old woman who believed that the samurai would return to protect them,[5] but before he could attack her, he was confronted by Jack of the Beasts Pirates. Jack asked about the Straw Hat Pirates, saying Shutenmaru had only been left alive because Kaido wanted him as his subordinate. Shutenmaru refused this offer as he gave Jack a massive cut, and the two began fighting. Jack managed to wound Shutenmaru, but he was unwavering. However, their duel was interrupted when Kaido came flying in to tell Jack to bring the Straw Hats to him.[14]
Shutenmaru and his gang then began retreating to the forest. Kaido spotted him and asked him to become his subordinate. Shutenmaru prepared for a fight, but Hawkins drew Kaido's attention to Oden Castle. The thief was then angry at Kaido for destroying the castle ruins.[12] After Luffy attacked Kaido, Shutenmaru told his men to retreat to the mountain before watching Luffy's futile attempt to defeat Kaido.[15] After Kaido defeated Luffy, Shutenmaru saw the unconscious Luffy knocking out some of the Yonko's subordinates with Haoshoku Haki and realized he had the same power as Oden. He then departed from Okobore Town.[6]
Shutenmaru clashes with Inuarashi as he refuses to help the Kozuki Family again.
At Mt. Atama, Shutenmaru clashed with Inuarashi, but the fight was interrupted by Kin'emon. Shutenmaru stated that while he admired Oden, he never swore loyalty to his family. However, Kin'emon was determined to make Shutenmaru an ally.[16]
Major Battles
- Ashura Doji vs. Kozuki Oden
- Shutenmaru vs. Kaido
- Shutenmaru vs. Jack
- Shutenmaru vs. Inuarashi
Trivia
- The middle kanji of his name, "天" (ten?) is the Japanese kanji for "Heaven". This same kanji is seen on the sake bottle he carries.
- Like O-Tama, he speaks in a dialect that is unique to a specific region of Japan. This area is known as Kagoshima, one of the prefectures created during the Meiji Era as the country transitioned from the isolationism enforced by the Shogunate.
- The names Shutenmaru and Ashura Doji are likely a reference to Shuten-dōji, a mythical oni leader from Japanese legends.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 One Piece Manga — Vol. 91 Chapter 920, A silhouetted Shutenmaru first appears in a flashback as Ashura Doji.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 One Piece Manga — Vol. 91 Chapter 917 (p. 7), Holdem talks about the Atamayama Thieves.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 One Piece Manga — Vol. 91 Chapter 916 (p. 19), Shutenmaru is first mentioned.
- ↑ One Piece Manga — Vol. 91 Chapter 921 (p. 9), Kinemon discusses the combat ability of his former associates who aided him in serving the Kozuki family.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 One Piece Manga — Vol. 91 Chapter 921 (p. 10-12), Shutenmaru debuts in the present day.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 One Piece Manga — Vol. 92 Chapter 924, Kin'emon recognizes Shutenmaru as Ashura Doji.
- ↑ One Piece Manga — Vol. 93 Chapter 939.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 One Piece Manga — Vol. 91 Chapter 921 (p. 13-16), Shutenmaru fights Jack.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 One Piece Manga — Vol. 91 Chapter 914 (p. 12), Batman talks about the latest theft.
- ↑ One Piece Manga — Vol. 91 Chapter 921.
- ↑ One Piece Manga — Vol. 92 Chapter 925.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 One Piece Manga — Vol. 92 Chapter 922.
- ↑ One Piece Manga — Vol. 91 Chapter 921.
- ↑ One Piece Manga — Vol. 91 Chapter 921.
- ↑ One Piece Manga — Vol. 92 Chapter 923.
- ↑ One Piece Manga — Vol. 92 Chapter 925.
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