The following contains spoilers for One Piece Chapter 1079, “The Emperor’s Crew, The Red-Haired Pirates,” by Eiichiro Oda, Stephen Paul and Vanessa Satone, available in English from Viz Media.
One Piece has been dealing one heavy blow after another since its Final Saga began, and Chapter 1079 revealed the crushing defeat of the Kid Pirates — a crew with a captain worth 3 billion berries. It also marks the first time that creator Eiichiro Oda showed a glimpse of Yonko Shanks’ true power, and it is terrifying. The story has always hinted that Shanks is among the most powerful characters in all of One Piece, but no one knows the true extent of this.
However, Chapter 1079 gives a major clue when all Shanks requires to defeat Kid and Killer is Roger’s technique, known as Divine Departure. The captain and vice-captain of the Kid Pirates are defeated in just one swoop, making the other members surrender their Road Poneglyphs. Nonetheless, all of this has a surprising connection to Zoro and his goal of becoming the world’s greatest swordsman. Here’s a look at why Mihawk is no longer the only significant obstacle to Zoro’s dream.
How Mihawk Is Connected to Zoro’s Dream of Becoming the Greatest Swordsman
Oda is well known for incorporating unique elements to build One Piece’s structure. The expansive worldbuilding is supported by several patterns, one of which is how he portrays the Straw Hat pirates. Each crew member has a tragic backstory that leaves them emotionally struggling for years or even decades, as well as their own dreams they want to follow. Most importantly, every Straw Hat has dedicated their life to helping Luffy become King of the Pirates while still seeking their own goals. Zoro’s dream has always been to become the world’s best swordsman, which is why he set out to sea with Luffy.
With Mihawk’s grand reputation, Zoro knows he can only achieve his goal by defeating the former Warlord. However, their first battle left the Straw Hat completely battered and bruised. Humiliated by his crushing defeat, he makes a promise to Luffy to never lose against anyone again. Zoro’s tenacity piques Mihawk’s interest, and the latter asks for a rematch as long as he becomes stronger. Considering he taught Zoro swordsmanship during One Piece’s two-year time skip, Mihawk isn’t necessarily evil but remains quite mysterious. Despite all of Zoro’s efforts, however, he remains leagues behind his rival and must further excel before achieving his ultimate dream.
One Piece 1079 Suggests Shanks Is Zoro’s Greatest Obstacle
One Piece has introduced several powerful swordsmen over the years along with Mihawk and Zoro. But while the likes of Oden and Roger were only shown in flashbacks, fans now know about Red-Haired Shanks’ destructive powers. Not only is his Observation Haki superior to anyone in the series, but using Roger’s Divine Departure technique sets him completely apart from other swordsmen. He effortlessly dealt with the Kid Pirates and acquired copies of their three Road Poneglyphs. Meanwhile, Mihawk is celebrated as the world’s greatest swordsman despite not having all his powers revealed.
Back in the Marineford War, Mihawk surrendered the fight as soon as the Red-Hair Pirates challenged everyone on the battleground. His reasoning was that he’d only agreed to fight the Whitebeard Pirates and not Shanks’ crew. Perhaps Mihawk doesn’t want to clash with his supposed friend — as One Piece has hinted — but it’s also possible that Mihawk knows he cannot win against Shanks.
There has never once been a case where a Warlord is more powerful than a Yonko. Even looking at their bounties, it is easy to speculate the stronger of the two. Mihawk’s bounty stands at 3.59 billion while Shanks is worth over 4 billion berries. Therefore, the primary obstacle to Zoro becoming the world’s greatest swordsman is most likely Shanks.
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