Highlights
- Zoro’s novel chronicles his journey from Shimotsuki Village, showcasing his early battles and quest for strength.
- Fans eagerly anticipate more parts of the Zoro novel, expecting to see his rise to becoming a bounty hunter and meeting Luffy.
- While not canon, the Zoro novel offers an exciting look into Zoro’s past, with potential for character novels for other Straw Hat Pirates.
Supplementary content for One Piece has always excited the fans, and when it was announced earlier this year that Zoro was getting a novel of his own, fans were over the moon because this is one of the most beloved characters in the entire series.
Fans have seen many interesting novels come out over the years, and while not all of them are canon, they are still fun stories to read in most cases. With Roronoa Zoro, fans know that his novel is going to be full of bloodshed, and of course, an incredible drive to become the best. Finally, some details about the Zoro novel are out, and it appears that it is very exciting.
Zoro Novel’s Release
Zoro Novel Is Officially Out Now
The Zoro novel was officially released in June 2024. This was announced earlier in May, and it was essentially confirmed that this novel will chronicle Zoro’s adventures from Shimotsuki Village after he left. This also means that this novel is set in an era before Zoro met Luffy or the Straw Hat Pirates were even a thing. Fans do not know much about Zoro’s life from this time. The only thing they know is that Zoro came face to face with Mr. 6 at one point and he ended up fighting and defeating him, rejecting the offer to join the Baroque Works in the process. Fans also know that he worked together with Johnny and Yosaku at some point, but other than that, Zoro’s past has been largely obscure. That is precisely the most exciting thing about this novel. It was announced that it is going to be focusing on Zoro’s life and details that fans have not known up until this point in the story.
I will get so strong that my name reaches the heavens!! – Roronoa Zoro
Along with this novel, there was also going to be an issue in the One Piece Magazine about the wings of the Pirate King. This means that both Zoro and Sanji are going to be focused on quite a lot, and that is also something that fans are incredibly excited about.
The Plot Of Zoro Novel
Zoro Novel’s Sees The Swordsman Engage In A Special Duel
The plot of the Zoro novel seems to be very interesting, and it is essentially a log of Zoro’s journey after Kuina’s death. Many years after Kuina died, Zoro decided to leave Shimotsuki Village and he went from village to village in order to best all the swordsmen at their dojos who stood in his path. Zoro did incredibly well in his many battles, and earned tremendous strength, as well as fame in the process. Zoro then heard a girl named Himari talk about a particular individual known as the Dojo Destroyer. This dojo destroyer was said to be very powerful, and it was believed that he had won 2,000 battles of his own.
At the same time, the name of the Dojo destroyer was said to be Mihawk. Upon hearing this name Zoro was incredibly excited. He believed that Mihawk was the strongest in the world and that he would eventually go on to face him. This is precisely why Zoro waited at the Shimotsuki Dojo for Mihawk and eventually, the famed Swordsman made his way to the dojo. As things turn out, the swordsman wasn’t Mihawk, but someone pretending to be him. When this person arrived in Shimotsuki Dojo, Zoro immediately realized that he was not the person he was looking for.
This dojo destroyer tried to intimidate Zoro by saying that he had defeated 2,000 individuals and that he was going to utterly crush his own. At this point, Zoro explained to him that the person known as the dojo destroyer was actually him, given that he was traveling from village to village and beating everyone. Zoro said to him that he was going to defeat him, and claim his 2001st victory. After Zoro sliced him down, he claimed the same number of victories that Kuina had over him. Following this event, Zoro officially left Shimotsuki Village on the quest to attain more infamy, and at the same time, get the head of the strongest swordsman in the world, Dracule Mihawk, and fulfill his dream.
Zoro’s Rise As A Powerful Swordsman In The East Blue
Zoro Became One Of The Strongest In The East Blue
Of course, this isn’t all. While this was a gist of what the first issue of the Zoro novel is going to be about, there is more to come. Zoro novel will have multiple parts, and fans know that the next part of the story isn’t that far away. The first part focused on the dojo destroyer and Zoro’s move from Shimotsuki Village, and the next part will likely showcase how he ended up becoming a Bounty Hunter, and his life up until the point where he met Luffy. Things are going to be incredibly exciting in the Zoro novel moving forward and fans absolutely cannot wait to see what is next. There is also a short preview of the upcoming part of the Zoro novel.
Here’s a preview for the upcoming issue of the Zoro novel:
“Zoro has finally departed from Shimotsuki Village to become the strongest swordsman. What awaits him on his journey to find Mihawk, the world’s greatest swordsman?”
Is The Zoro Novel Canon?
The Zoro Novel Is Unfortunately Non-Canon
Naturally, fans are going to wonder if the Zoro novel is canon or not. Unfortunately, this novel has not been supervised by Oda, which makes it non-can. While Jun has certainly written a brilliant story, it cannot be considered canon and is just like fillers in anime. Fans are obviously still going to enjoy this, because it is an exciting story about Zoro, who is a beloved character. At the same time, it also fills in the parts of Zoro’s life about which fans do not have much information.
However, at the end of the day, this is just the author’s vision of what Zoro’s past looks like. Oda could have a completely different vision altogether, and until he confirms this to be canon, this novel sadly cannot be considered to be a part of the One Piece universe.
Hopefully, in the upcoming issues, fans will still get to witness some incredible Zoro action, regardless of whether it is canon or not. It is also possible that this will be the start of character novels for all the members of the Straw Hat Pirates.
A release date for the next issue of the Zoro novel has not been provided yet, however, fans should expect it to drop at some point later this year. It is also unknown how many issues of the Zoro novel there are going to be, but, if the Ace novel is anything to go by, then fans should expect at least two parts of this exciting novel.
One Piece: Zoro Novel is out now in Japan.
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