Shanks is one of the main characters in One Piece who fans have been desperately waiting to see more of. He was present in the story right from the very beginning, however, was not as involved as fans would have wanted him to be. Shanks was a fan favorite from the get-go, however, his role in the story was such that he was only going to be relevant in the final saga of the series.
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As a result, Shanks was sidelined for the vast majority of the story. Now, however, One Piece is in the final saga and it is time for him to shine. Fans have lately been finding out quite a lot of information about the character that is Shanks and the recent One Piece chapter took things a step further by hinting at Shanks’s possible siblings.
Shanks’s Birth In One Piece
The origins of Shanks were a mystery in One Piece until recently, however, as the story of Wano started to get close to its conclusion, Oda started to drop bits about the past of the character that is Shanks. For instance, in One Piece Film Red, Oda revealed quite a lot of detail about Shanks’s past, along with his family name and the circumstances surrounding his birth. Back in the early parts of One Piece, Shanks confirmed to Whitebeard that his hometown was located in the West Blue. No more information was given pertaining to where he was born or what family he was from. However, thanks to One Piece Film Red, things became a lot clearer.
When Uta was revealed to be Shanks’s daughter, it was made clear that she could have blood of the Figarland Family. The Five Elders suspected that she was Shanks’s true-born daughter, which would make her a member of the Figarland Family as well. This was a clear indication that Shanks himself was a member of the Figarland Family as well, making him a Celestial Dragon. As for his parents, fans do not know much just yet, however, it is quite clear that his father is none other than Saint Garling Figarland. This particular individual was recently introduced in One Piece as the leader of the Holy Knights. Even now, he is so strong that he can pass judgment on regular Celestial Dragons and even kill them if he wants to. In his old days, Garling Figarland was strong enough to take part in the Garden Valley Incident and survive this event. At this time, his appearance looked very similar to that of Shanks, which further highlights the fact that these two share a blood connection. It is beyond any doubt that Saint Garling is Shanks’s dad and fans absolutely cannot wait to see more of these two characters interact.
Furthermore, to take things one step further, Shanks was also revealed to have been born in the West Blue. How exactly this happened isn’t known just yet, given that Saint Garling was a member of the Founding 20 families, meaning Shanks would likely have been born in the Holy Land of Marijoa. However, 38 years ago, Shanks was present on the island of God Valley. As fans know already, on the island of God Valley, catastrophe unfolded and several powerful pirates found their way in an attempt to take the treasure of the island. The Marines, led by Garp, found their way to the island as well and there was a massive battle there, which resulted in the death of Captain Rocks and the splitting of the Rocks Pirates crew.
As for Shanks, the Roger Pirates found him in a treasure chest on the island. When they carried the loot to their ship, in one of the chests was a baby instead of riches. As such, Shanks was then adopted by the Roger Pirates and, in time, he ended up becoming Roger’s very own apprentice. This is likely the reason why Shanks believes West Blue to be his place of origin, however, whether he was actually born there or not remains to be seen.
Garling’s Other Children
It appears that Shanks is not the only individual that Saint Garling fathered. In One Piece after 1096, fans got to see a lot of powerhouses collide on the island of God Valley.
Powerful pirates from all over the world gathered on this island to get their hands on the treasures of the Native Hunting Games. Of course, at the forefront were the Rocks Pirates and, of course, the Roger Pirates as well. Before the pirates came, however, the Native Hunting Games were going on very well. St Garling was at the forefront of things and was leading the games. Curiously, in one of the panels, Saint Garling is seen referring to his children, teaching them how to take part in a competition such as the Native Hunting Games.
Initially, fans thought that Saint Garling was calling the other Celestial Dragons children in a demeaning way, suggesting that their abilities were no more than that of kids, when compared to him. However, this is something that can get lost in translation. In the Japanese version of the text, the word and tone that Garling uses for this sentence is one that a person actually uses gently with kids. Garling was talking to children around him and certainly giving them a lesson. This implies that Saint Garling had his kids present in God Valley, which would also make sense, given that fans already know the Shanks was present on the island as well.
Where Are Shanks’s Siblings?
Taking all things into consideration, it can be assumed that all of Saint Garling’s children were present on the island of God Valley, 38 years ago. This also means that Shanks ended up being left behind and Roger found him to raise him into a powerful pirate. Meanwhile, Saint Garling’s other children, who fans do not know anything about just yet were likely kept safe and taken back to Marijoa. It isn’t known how many siblings Shanks has. There could simply be just one sibling, however, it is possible that there could be more as well. Fans do not know anything about them or even if they are still alive or not.
Of course, Oda wouldn’t simply introduce them to never mention them again and one should expect them to pop up in the story sooner rather than later. Since Shanks is going to be heavily involved in the Final Saga of One Piece, it should be interesting to see what his relationship with his siblings is and what kind of personalities these characters are. If one had to guess, these powerful characters would now be members of the Holy Knights, which means that once they are mobilized properly in a war against the Revolutionary Army, fans will get a proper look at Shanks’s siblings as well. Thankfully, it appears that fans do not have to wait long to see all that happen.
One Piece is available to read via Viz Media. The series can be read by the fans officially and for free on the Shonen Jump and the Manga Plus app. The release date for the next chapter of One Piece, One Piece 1097, is set to be November 5, 2023.
One Piece
One Piece is a Japanese manga written and illustrated by Eiichiro Oda. The series follows protagonist Monkey D. Luffy and his Straw Hat Pirate crew as they explore the Grand Line to find the King of the Pirates’ ultimate treasure, the One Piece, in order to become the next king. The manga’s popularity helped it spin off into a larger media franchise, including an anime with more than 1,000 episodes.
