One Piece: Zoro's Best Friends, Ranked

Roronoa Zoro, the King of Hell and unofficial right hand of the future Pirate King is a man of great determination and virtue in the One Piece series. To become the greatest swordsman in the world, Zoro trains daily, as he is wholeheartedly devoted to accomplishing his goals.

Despite his stern disposition, Zoro has made a plethora of friends on his adventures with Luffy and the rest of the Straw Hat pirates. While his allies are numerous, only a few may call themselves his best friends, and these friends have a place like no other in Zoro’s heart. While in the One Piece series, Zoro may frequently exchange words with some of his friends, but that does not undermine the importance they hold in his heart.

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6 Perona

Zoro's Surprising Friend

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While some may find Perona an unusual addition to Zoro’s best friends, it is important to note that the Ghost Princess and user of the Hollow-Hollow Fruit spent two years with Zoro on an uninhabited island. As many can assume from Mihawk’s disposition, Zoro and Mihawk rarely spoke, and most of his conversations must have been with Perona.

Moreover, during his two years of training, every time Zoro was left on the verge of death, Perona was the one who took care of him and tended to his injuries. This shows that despite their crass attitude toward one another, they share quite a special bond, and this bond is by no means superficial. After two years of training, Perona follows Zoro to Sabaody to meet with the rest of the Straw Hat pirates, showing she cares about the green-haired swordsman.

5 Usopp

Zoro's Annoying But Lovable Friend

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Alongside Zoro, Usopp is one of the earliest members of the Straw Hat Pirates. While Usopp is unlike the green-haired swordsman and often worms his way out of dangerous situations, when left with no choice, he mans up and puts his life on the line.

Fighting together since the days of the Arlong Pirates, Zoro and Usopp have bonded quite deeply over the course of the series. Many times, they have kept their lives on the line for each other, as seen when Usopp carried Zoro during the Sabaody Archipelago arc when the Straw Hat Pirates faced the threat of extermination. Despite their different dispositions, they are indeed brothers in arms.

4 Chopper

Zoro's Doctor

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After Chopper’s inauguration into the Straw Hat crew, he and Zoro quickly became close. This happened especially quickly because Chopper was afraid of most humans. Moreover, even Luffy, his captain, always wanted to use him as meat. As Chopper often hid behind Zoro, he began to see Zoro as a big brother. Anytime he was scared, he would often forcefully hold on to any part of Zoro’s body, including his face.

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As the series progresses, Chopper and Zoro’s bond has only grown stronger, although the reindeer is capable of holding his own, and his fear of humans has waned. Despite this, Zoro is still protective of Chopper and rushes to his aid whenever needed. Moreover, as someone who continually pushes himself to the extreme, Zoro often relies on Chopper’s medical expertise.

3 Sanji

Zoro's Straw Hat Rival

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The biggest rivalry in the Straw Hat crew is undoubtedly the one between the two wings of the pirate crew. When it comes to the moss-head swordsman and the stupid cook, every moment is filled with banter, and even life-threatening moments can and will be turned into jokes. Despite the duo’s very distinct personalities, Sanji and Zoro share moments of camaraderie that show the brotherhood love they have for one another. While they may argue and ‘fight,’ Zoro and Sanji support Luffy with all they have and agree on things when it really matters.

Despite swords and kicks clashing against one another, Zoro and Sanji are willing to put their lives in the hands of each other, showing how much trust and respect they have for each other regardless of their constant ‘fighting.’

2 Kuina

Zoro's Childhood Friend

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Zoro and Kuina’s mutual ambition and friendly rivalry made them bond not over laughter and fun but over swords. Unfortunately, their bonding moments were cut short as Kuina died an early death. However, despite Kuina's limited presence in the One Piece series due to her early death, she will always have a special place in Zoro’s heart. Zoro’s grand ambition to become the greatest swordsman in the world is largely due to her influence.

Although he only interacted with Kuina in the early years of his life, Zoro is determined to make his childhood dreams with Kuina a reality to honor her memory. As he proclaimed after her death, Zoro plans to become the greatest swordsman in the world for him and her. Seeing this promise to the ends of the Earth, Zoro took Kuina’s sword and has gone on to achieve worldwide notoriety with it.

1 Luffy

Zoro's Captain

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While the One Piece series has often hinted at Zoro and Luffy being best friends, the final battle between Zoro and King had Zoro outright state that he made a promise to his captain and best friend, showing that he and Luffy indeed have a special bond. As Luffy saved Zoro’s life in the past, Zoro greatly respects his captain and is even willing to die for him despite the stark differences in their personalities and Luffy’s more humorous and carefree nature.

Zoro and Luffy deeply care for each other, so much so that Zoro was willing to offer his head to Bartholomew Kuma in exchange for Luffy’s. This sort of love, respect, and brotherhood can be nothing but genuine, and even after taking all of Luffy’s pain and tethering on the brink of death, Zoro never says a word to his captain.