General Zombie Connection: Jigoro of the Wind
Yamato’s cover story, Vol. 39:
“He fought Kaido to protect the village, but died without leaving even a body behind.”
Once again, the grave’s owner was not revealed this week—though by now, it’s pretty clear.
Last time, the cover story showed characters arriving at a grave. That scene was most likely an homage to the aftermath of the Marineford War, when Shanks built the graves of Whitebeard and Ace.
So this time, if we’re talking about another post-war, emotional graveyard scene… Could it be the Sea Forest of Fish-Man Island?
Now then, who lies beneath this grave marker?
From what we know so far, the features of this person are:
- Born in the West Blue
- Raised in Ringo
- The weapon stuck in the grave marker is not a katana
- Fought Kaido to protect his village
- Died without leaving a body
Yes, this points directly to Jigoro of the Wind.
That would also explain why this cover story pays homage to Shirahoshi’s grave visit.
Yamato was guided to the grave of the hero of Ringo → Jigoro of the Wind
→ Fallen warrior hairstyle
→ Vander Decken cut his hair after heartbreak, also a fallen warrior look
→ Rocks, rejected by Shakky, suffering heartbreak as well
That ties this week’s cover story with the main plot.
So yes—this week’s cover story is an homage to Shirahoshi’s grave visit.
Jigoro of the Wind and Moria
There are other reasons why the grave likely belongs to Jigoro.
Currently, most of the Rocks Pirates have been turned into General Zombies.
Jigoro of the Wind was also a General Zombie, but Moria treated him as a rank above the Rocks Pirates.
Moria equates bounty with strength. He said that the body of the strongest, Oars, deserved Luffy’s 300 million bounty shadow.
He also knew about Zoro by looking at his wanted poster. At that time, Zoro’s bounty was 120 million.
For reference, Crocodile’s bounty when he became a Warlord was only 81 million. So a shadow worth over 100 million was certainly fitting for Oars.
Yet, Moria chose to put Zoro’s 120 million shadow into Jigoro’s body.
That means Jigoro’s body was a special one, preserved for a powerful shadow like Oars’s level.
Why did Moria rate Jigoro so highly?
The answer is probably in Jigoro’s profile:
“He cut down 7,000 pirates to protect his family.”
Moria must have witnessed that feat.
The Hero Who Protected His Village (Hypothesis)
So, the reason Moria placed Zoro’s 120 million shadow into Jigoro’s body goes like this:
During the five years when Oden was forced to dance naked, a war broke out between the “Gecko Pirates” and the “Beast Pirates.”
→ Jigoro’s village became a battlefield, and the villagers were caught up in it.
→ To protect his family and the village, Jigoro stood up.
→ To him, both sides were enemies.
→ He cut down 7,000 pirates in total.
→ But he couldn’t defeat Kaido, and died in battle.
→ Moria, witnessing Jigoro’s strength, took his corpse to turn him into a zombie soldier.
→ After the war, villagers searched for Jigoro’s body, but could not find it.
This explains why it can be said Jigoro fought Kaido, and why he is said to have died without leaving behind a body.
But why is Jigoro’s honor being restored now?
Possible developments:
- The family Jigoro protected appears, joining Yamato.
- His descendant, inheriting his swordsmanship, becomes Yamato’s right-hand.
Imagine a “Yamato Pirates” with:
Kaido’s child, Hanafuda’s child, and Jigoro’s child.
Maybe his descendant would be named “Matasaburo of the Wind.”
A Real-World Model?
The international charity temple “Foot Colony” that the Rocks Pirates attacked…
It was stockpiling enormous donations meant for underprivileged children.
Its leader was called the “Great High Priest,” dressed like a temple monk. Religious corporations, after all, don’t pay taxes—you often see temples with fleets of luxury cars.
When we think of international charity, UNICEF comes to mind. A group that gathers donations to help children worldwide.
Could its true model be the “Foot Colony”…?
Article 18 of “World Law”
Among the crimes of the Rocks Pirates, the most notable was violating “World Law” Article 18.
Looking into real-world parallels, Article 18 often reads like this:
- Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) Article 18: Freedom of thought, conscience, and religion.
- ICCPR Article 18: Freedom of thought, conscience, and religion.
- Japanese Constitution Article 18: Prohibition of slavery and forced labor.
- EU Charter of Fundamental Rights Article 18: Right to asylum.
All of these resonate with One Piece’s themes.
But most likely, the model is Japan’s Constitution Article 18.
In the World Law, however, its meaning is reversed:
Freeing Celestial Dragon slaves is considered a crime.
Rocks did this three times. He freed slaves—like Fisher Tiger.
This links the Fish-Man Island story, and explains why this week’s cover story referenced Shirahoshi’s grave visit.
The “Treasure” of the God Valley Incident Was Shakky
“She would eventually become an irreplaceable ‘treasure’ for the pirates on this island. Without treasure, there is nothing to steal.”
So, the “treasure” Garp referred to during the God Valley Incident was Shakky.
That means both the Roger Pirates and the Rocks Pirates stormed God Valley… for the same woman.
But because of that, Rocks died and his crew was destroyed.
Too cool, even in the end.
Were Rocks and Roger Friends?
42 years ago: Shakky quits as captain of the Kuja Pirates, arrives at Hachinosu.
38 years ago: God Valley Incident.
So, within those four years, Shakky was kidnapped by the Celestial Dragons, leading to God Valley.
Roger couldn’t see Shakky for a year.
But in the three years after she opened her bar at Hachinosu, he could see her.
So did Roger drink at her bar?
Maybe Rocks even allowed Roger onto the island?
After all, Rocks was friendly with Harald from the start.
He recruited strangers in the middle of a Davy Back Fight without hesitation.
Think about it—“Hey, let’s play a game!” to a total stranger—that’s great communication skill.
He even got along with Garp, who hated the higher-ups.
He instantly won over Loki, too.
In the end, the Rocks Pirates—despite being full of eccentric characters—all followed him.
And in the final panel of the God Valley Incident, Roger was trying to stop Rocks.
So Rocks was: Looks like Teach, but inside like Luffy.
A good guy, strong, charismatic—the greatest pirate ever?
Maybe he and Roger were friends, drinking together at Shakky’s bar—like Teach and Kuzan.
Perhaps their bond started from falling for the same woman.
Like Django and Fullbody’s cover story.
The Roger Pirates’ Unified Goal
Therefore, the Roger Pirates’ goal in the God Valley Incident was the same: “Rescue Shakky.”
When they arrived, the lines spoken by Roger, Gaban, and Rayleigh all matched their feelings toward Shakky.
The Rocks Pirates’ Mixed Goals
Meanwhile, the goals of the Rocks Pirates were scattered.
The main goal was also “Rescue Shakky,” shared by Newgate, Shiki, and Captain John.
But others had different agendas: Rocks, Linlin, Kaido, Miss Bakkin, Gloriosa.
Rocks despised the Celestial Dragons and may have wanted to massacre them all, especially after learning they kidnapped his woman.
Linlin and Kaido wanted Devil Fruits—Linlin for her children, Kaido to strengthen himself.
Miss Bakkin wanted to win over Newgate by competing with Shakky. Gloriosa wanted to claim Roger’s heart.
So the “decisive battle between beauties” was actually… about love.
Sabaody Archipelago Homage
A woman kidnapped by Celestial Dragons, pirates striking back to save her…
This mirrors the Sabaody Archipelago arc.
In Kuma’s flashback, Ginny was kidnapped. No one could rescue her. She was forced to bear a child, experimented on, discarded, and died.
But this time, we might finally get the cathartic revenge to honor Ginny’s memory.
Let Rocks slaughter the Celestial Dragons of God Valley.
And that’s it for this week.
See you next time.
Check out last week’s analysis here ↓
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