One Piece: 10 most unexpected twists in the Wano arc so far
With one of the main themes of One Piece’s Wano arc being the dispersion of the supernatural, it’s been home to some of the best plot twists in the series thus far. From Kaido’s Devil Fruit to Kyoshiro’s true identity being revealed, the Wano arc has had some of the biggest unexpected reveals and twists yet.
With the arc far from fully over as of this writing, there will no doubt be more surprises and reveals around the corner from author Eiichiro Oda. This arc has been the biggest, most action and plot-packed yet in One Piece, and that trend will no doubt continue through its final pages.
Here are the ten most unexpected plot twists in One Piece’s Wano arc so far.
Kaido’s actions, origins some of the biggest reveals in One Piece’s Wano arc so far
1) Kyoshiro is Denjiro
Easily one of the most shocking reveals of One Piece’s Wano arc thus far has been Kyoshiro’s true identity as Denjiro, former retainer to Kozuki Oden. The loyal soldier of the Kozuki clan became so enraged upon Oden’s death, his face changed appearances to the point of being unrecognizable.
As a result, he adopted the identity of Kyoshiro, becoming one of Wano’s underworld names and getting close to Shogun Kurozumi Orochi in the process. He also manages to save the life of Oden’s daughter by adopting a new identity for her, discussed in further detail later on in this list.
2) Kaido’s Devil Fruit
Having been revealed in the latest One Piece episode, Kaido’s Devil Fruit is officially a Mythical Zoan Fish-Fish Fruit, Model: Azure Dragon. This came as a wild shock to fans, who had suspected Kaido’s Devil Fruit would be a Dragon-Dragon Fruit like many others in his crew.
The name of his fruit being a Mythical Zoan Fish-Fish Fruit is a reference to a Chinese legend, in which a koi fish climbs a waterfall and is turned into a dragon for a reward. This reference is two-fold, referencing both Kaido’s dragon form thanks to his Fruit, as well as the koi fish-filled waterfalls which are at Wano’s entrance.
3) The Rocks Pirates
The reveal of the Rocks Pirates crew members being three of One Piece’s four original Yonko was an incredibly shocking twist. Led by Rocks D. Xebec, the crew was so powerful that it required Monkey D. Garp, Sengoku, and Gol D. Roger teaming up at God Valley to take them down.
Even more shocking was that the Rocks Pirates had Kaido, Big Mom, and Whitebeard on the crew at the same time. This was a powerhouse crew, and many fans are dreaming of the day a flashback comes to their adventures, whether in a one-shot, movie, or manga chapter.
4) Kanjuro is the traitor
One of the most shocking and infuriating reveals of One Piece’s Wano arc thus far has been Kanjuro’s status as a traitor to the Scabbards. Being a Kurozumi, his role in the story so far has been to play the part of the loyal Kozuki clan retainer until the time was ready.
Were it not for Kin'emon making a reading error in the Samurai Alliance’s plans, the entire raid would’ve been ruined thanks to Kanjuro’s true loyalties. However, the raid plan survived thanks to this happy accident.
5) Komurasaki is Hiyori Kozuki
As mentioned earlier, one of Denjiro’s first acts as the now-called Kyoshiro was to protect a certain girl which was brought to him. That girl was Hiyori Kozuki, who Denjiro revealed himself to upon taking her in.
The two then created a new identity for her in the form of Komurasaki, allowing her to continue living in Wano without fear of being attacked. The plan eventually allowed Komurasaki to die, thus giving Hiyori her old identity and life back in anticipation of the hopefully eventual liberation of Wano.
6) Kin’emon and others time traveled
One of the earliest reveals of One Piece’s Wano arc remains one of its most shocking yet. Upon arriving at Wano and rendezvousing with the other Straw Hat pirates and Scabbards, Luffy learns that Kin’emon, Raizo, Kanjuro, and Momonosuke were all sent forward in time by Toki Kozuki.
The reveal explains much of their past actions, particularly as it relates to their lack of knowledge of the current world of One Piece. The group's anger and sadness regarding dragons and Oden’s death also makes sense in hindsight, as it was only six months ago for them rather than 20 years.
7) Kaido betraying Orochi
Kaido’s betrayal of Orochi was undoubtedly one of the most shocking and unexpected twists in Wano so far, and certainly the most sudden. While it was always clear that Kaido was simply using Orochi for his own benefit, the betrayal was nevertheless unexpected.
As he rants about their previous arrangements on Onigashima, Kaido unexpectedly slice’s Orochi’s head off and seemingly kills him. While this is sadly revealed to not be the case later on in the manga, it nevertheless remains one of the most unexpected twists in One Piece’s Wano arc yet.
WARNING: ONE PIECE MANGA SPOILERS IN THE ENTRIES BELOW
8) Advanced Conqueror’s Haki
The introduction of Advanced Conqueror’s Haki in and of itself was one of the biggest twists in the Wano arc thus far. While One Piece had well established the existence of advanced forms of Haki, the actual usage and mechanics of Advanced Conqueror’s Haki have been especially shocking and unexpected.
The Advanced form allows its users to coat their limbs and weapons in Conqueror’s Haki, resulting in extremely powerful attacks which can be effective without direct contact. It’s an incredibly shocking reveal, and extremely well implemented as a concept since its introduction.
9) Luffy’s Awakening and true Devil Fruit
As recently revealed in the One Piece manga, Luffy’s Awakening has finally occurred versus Kaido. Alongside this amazing Awakening, Luffy’s true Devil Fruit has been revealed to be the Mythical Zoan Human-Human Fruit, Model: Nika.
While there was evidence of this leading up to the reveal, the fact of the matter is nonetheless shocking. Even more shocking was looking at previous arcs in hindsight, specifically the Skypiea arc, which has many key scenes change in the context of the reveal.
10) Kid and Law’s Awakenings
Finally, one of the most unexpected and shocking plot twists of One Piece’s Wano arc thus far has been Kid and Law displaying their incredibly powerful Awakenings. Kid’s uselessness was something of a joke in the series up to this point, which has been proved incredibly wrong in the wake of their fight versus Big Mom.
Law, meanwhile, was always regarded as a powerhouse, which was taken to another level with his Awakening. His massive and debilitating attacks were incredibly impressive in the fight, even able to completely shut down one of Big Mom’s most powerful offensive tools.
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