Does Luffy Become the Pirate King? (& When?)
The legend of One Piece and One Piece as well starts with the famed Pirate King, Gol D. Roger. And while a lot have tried to do so, Monkey D. Luffy seems to be the one destined to repeat Roger’s legacy and become the next Pirate King in the world of Eiichiro Oda’s narrative. In order to help you understand the future of the story, in this article, we are going to analyze the relationship between Luffy and the title of the Pirate King, as we are going to tell you whether Monkey D. Luffy is going to become the next Pirate King in One Piece.
Based on everything we know at this moment, Monkey D. Luffy is going to become the next Pirate King, although that has not been officially confirmed and the One Piece manga is not over yet. The chance that someone else is going to become the next Pirate King is almost impossible, but until Oda or the story actually confirms it, we cannot actually be 100% certain. Still, everything does point to Luffy being the next Pirate King.
The rest of this article will be divided into two separate sections. The first one is going to tell you about the title of the Pirate King, how it came to be, and its history. The second section will tell you whether Monkey D. Luffy, the story’s overall protagonist, will become the next Pirate King based on all the information we have now.
Who is the Pirate King in One Piece?
The Pirate King is the most powerful pirate alive and owner of the legendary treasure that would later be known as”One Piece. The term “Pirate King” was originally a simple nickname for Gol D. Roger in order to distinguish him from the others. After Roger’s execution, people made the nickname a romantic title for the One Piece world, in the same way, that One Piece was only known as “Roger’s treasure” until the Pirate King’s death. More than 22 years after his death, Roger’s fabulous treasure has still not been discovered, piracy is still active and no other Pirate King has emerged.
Gol D. Roger circumnavigated the globe, and he made headlines by raising his popularity for his feat internationally. He also becomes a target of other pirates. Roger was being chased by pirates who wanted his riches. The Navy reinforced its presence on the seas. All the treasures amassed by Roger became known as One Piece. It was then that Rayleigh realized why the World Government hid Roger’s real name.
Before his death, Gol D. Roger, “the King of the Pirates”, found a still unknown treasure and decided to leave everything he got on his journey together with that object, thus “creating” the One Piece. The treasure is located on Laugh Tale, the last island of the Grand Line. The frenzy to seek and find that treasure led to the beginning of the “Great Age of Piracy”.
Until the One Piece is found, there will be no new Pirate King. Until Roger’s death, the closest person to being the Pirate King was Whitebeard. Many people who knew Luffy, such as Vivi, Koby, Helmeppo, and Katakuri, believe that he will be the next Pirate King; Kokoro also believed that Luffy would become the Pirate King, and Shakuyaku, along with Silvers Rayleigh, said that Luffy could achieve his goals.
The reasons why a person wants to become the King of the Pirates are several, Gecko Moria and Blackbeard want to have it for the power and influence that the title could give them, while other pirates such as the Four Emperors are considered the best candidates for possessing him for his extreme power and closeness to him, although Shanks and Whitebeard did not seem to be interested in that title.
Still, others like Luffy or Crocodile (before what happened to him made him give up his dream) want to become the Pirate King because that is their dream. Luffy (and Crocodile when he was young) seems to like the endeavor for the adventures that searching for him entails. The King of the Pirates will be the one who rules the seas. During the conversation with Silvers Rayleigh, Luffy mentioned that the Pirate King is the freest person in the sea. Upon hearing this, Rayleigh smiled to himself, possibly because Roger himself also mentioned this.
Known characters who want(ed) to become the Pirate King include Monkey D. Luffy, Eustace Kid, Trafalgar D. Water Law, Jewelry Bonney, Sir Crocodile, Gecko Moria, Donquixote Doflamingo, Marshall D. Teach (also known as Blackbeard), Buggy the Clown, Gabri (non-canon), Don Krieg, Hody Jones, Zenny (non-canon), Puzzle (non-canon), Patrick Redfield (non-canon), Charlotte Linlin (also known as Big Mom), Douglas Bullet (non-canon), and Kaido. Interestingly enough – as we have said – the Yonko Shanks and the former Yonko Edward Newgate (also known as Whitebeard) seemingly had no interest whatsoever in becoming the Pirate King (especially Shanks).
In the next section, we are going to tell you whether Luffy could become the next Pirate King in One Piece.
Will Luffy become the Pirate King?
According to Luffy, the Pirate King is “the freest guy in all the seas”. This view of things is in line with that of Roger, who had a similar response when Shiki, the Golden Lion, asked him to join him in ruling the world: “What’s the point of ruling the world if you can’t do what you want?”. Each character, therefore, seems to have his definition of the Lord of the Pirates, but Luffy’s seems to be the closest to Roger’s own view. So, does Luffy become the Pirate king?
Well, we don’t actually have a precise answer to this question since Oda’s manga is not finished. Still, based on everything we do know, Luffy is definitely going to be crowned the next Pirate King and the worthy successor of the late Gol D. Roger. Now, this is probably still three or four years away, if there are no significant delays, but everything that has happened so far, from the very beginning, is pointing to Luffy becoming the next Pirate King.
He is the hero of the story and he has stated that becoming the Pirate King is his goal, so it would be quite silly if it never happens. He also has a very noble and idealistic worldview, which gives more arguments in favor of him becoming Pirate King. Now, there is a slight theoretical possibility that this might not happen, but honestly, it’s so unlikely that we can’t even take it into consideration.
