Summary
There are very few characters inOne Piecewho inspire the same amount of loyalty and admiration as the only man to ever hold the mantle of the Pirate King; Gol D. Roger. Not only was he the first and only one to be called this, but it was directly due to his rousing speech at his execution that started the Golden Age of Piracy, so that one person could eventually reach his status, find the legendary treasure, and save the world.
As such, there was no person in theOne Pieceworld who admired the man as much as his cabin boy, Shanks. In every sense of the word, Shanks was like ason to the legendary pirateand the words they exchanged at their very last meeting made the boy break down in tears, so let’s go over what these could be and how fans may soon understand their true gravity.
A Few of the Possibilities of What Was Exchanged
Roger And Shanks' First Appearance
One Piece, Chapter 1, “Romance Dawn - The Dawn of Adventure”
Story Arc
Romance Dawn
Throughout the story, the parallels between both of these characters have been made quite clear, as it is insinuated that Shanks is essentially the modern-day equivalent of Roger. Not only did he spend his youth aboard the Oro Jackson, he is now an exceptionally powerful character who is at the head of all piracy in the world as a Yonko, as well as someone whoderives all of his power solely from Haki, mirroring Roger in this regard.
Their relationship was a special one, since Shanks loved and admired Roger over everyone else and definitely thought of him as a father figure. So, of course, the final meeting between the two was an incredibly emotional one, where the Pirate King whispered something to a bawling young Shanks before getting off at Loguetown and essentially retiring from a life of piracy. Ever since this was revealed during the Wano arc, fans have been speculating about what this conversation entailed.
Redtaro asked Roger, who came back from Laugh Tale, something, and broke into tears…
The most commonly held belief relates to Roger telling Shanks of his lineage and that they are likely to never meet again.At the end of the God Valley Incident, the Roger Pirates walked away with a chest that they stole from the Celestial Dragons, which happened to contain Shanks within it, confirming that he is the son of St. Figarland Garling and, consequently, is a Celestial Dragon. However, he was raised on Roger’s ship, so for the most part, his true lineage was likely kept a secret from him until the very end.
This theory states that in this conversation, Roger told Shanks the truth about who he is, prompting Shanks to cry uncontrollably when faced with this horrifying realization. However, knowing the kind of person he was, Roger likely consoled the young boy and told him that he was nothing like the evil World Nobles. This also seems to track with the other theory of Shanks visiting Marijois, which Shamrock confirmed he did in Chapter 1138.
Right after Roger’s execution, Shanks was rumored to have taken 2 years off from the life of piracy, since he claimed that there was something else he needed to do first, which is also why Buggy abandoned him. This is likely when he went to Marijois for 2 years but eventually left due to how much he loved the world and hated thebigoted regime of the Celestial Dragons. This could also explain the matching swords of the Figarland family.
Another theory that adds to this claim is that it was at Roger’s behest that Shanks went to the Holy Land in the first place, though this is pure speculation and the likelihood is minimal. However, it remains fun to speculate on when considering that Roger may have entrusted Shanks with a secret mission, since the Holy Land is likely where Shanks found out about the true history of the world.
What This Could Mean For His Future
Could This Impact Shanks' Journey?
Whatever Roger’s last words to Shanks were, they undoubtedly have a lot of importance to his overall character arc. There are slight possibilities of there being agrander plan that Roger set into motionby telling Shanks about his true origins, but these remain incredibly vague so fans can only speculate on them until Oda officially sheds some more light on what Roger said to Shanks in the last meeting.
At the end of the series, Shanks is almost definitely going to confront either Shamrock, Garling, or both, and in doing so, will show them and the fans that blood doesn’t necessarily make them family. Roger was effectively Shanks' father and the final battle between the Figarland family will not only reveal these famous last words but will symbolize the pirates fighting the Celestial Dragons.
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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.
