Roronoa Zoro

Roronoa Zoro is a male anime and manga character who features in One Piece.

Biography

Origin

Pirate Hunter Roronoa Zoro.

Roronoa Zoro (Japanese: ロロノア・ゾロ, Hepburn: Roronoa Zolo" or "Roronoa Zollo") was a male human born 21 years ago in the East Blue.

He was only 8 years old when he resolved to become an invincible swordsman and left his old life behind. This saw him journeying to Shimotsuki Village where despite his youth that his strength allowed him to defeat most adults and he went to the dojo of Koushirou. He challenged the man stating that if he won their match that Zoro would gain the dojo but if he lost then he would train under the man. Agreeing to the terms, Kozaburo had Zoro fight against his daughter Kuina where despite his skill he was unable to defeat her. With his defeat, Zoro decided to stay at the dojo and begin his training where he resolved to learn martial arts and swordfighting in order to defeat Kuina. In this time, he worked and trained to an incredible level where he was the best male student at the dojo with him constantly challenging Kuina only to lose each time. This led to his 2000th fight and loss at her hands where he then challenged her to a private fight using real swords. Despite his improved skill, he still lost and in frustration he cried where he told Kuina that his dream was to become the world's greatest swordsman. Kuina then confided that she shared a similar dream but had been informed by her father that as she was born a girl that she could never attain it as he believed women could never become true sword masters with their fighting potential decreasing as they matured over time. Her own frustration brought about a defeatist mindset but this only angered Zoro as he revealed that Kuina as she was the standard he measured himself as he saw her not as a girl but a swordfighter. The two made a promise where one of them would seek to become the world's best swordsman.

The next day, Kuina suffered a fatal fall down the stairs of her dojo, much to Zoro's anger and disappointment. Realizing that she would never have a chance to fulfill her dream, Zoro took it upon himself, asking Koushirou for her sword, Wado Ichimonji, and began working to develop his signature Three Sword Style, holding his own two swords in each hand, and Kuina's clenched between his teeth. Zoro later came to learn of the legendary swordsman named Dracule Mihawk with Roronoa looking to challenge him to a duel. Seeing forth, he went in search of Hawk-Eye Mihawk only to lose his way and unable to find the path back home. To survive, he began to operate as a bounty hunter to pay for his living expenses. Over time, he came to develop a reputation as the famous 'Pirate Hunter' in the East Blue to the point that even Baroque Works that operated in the Grand Line came to hear of him. In time, he was considered the greatest swordsman int he East Blue where during this period he met two fellow bounty hunters named Johnny and Yosaku. Due to his reputation, Zoro was approached by Mr. 7 of Baroque Works who offered him a position as a numbered agent within their organization. Roronoa responded though that he would only accept the offer if he became their leader to which they refused. This led to a fight Mr. 7 where he killed the agent in self-defense.

East Blue

During his journey, he came to arrive in Shells Town where one day he was at a tavern when Helmeppo who was the spoiled son of the corrupt Marine captain Axe-Hand Morgan began to terrorise the town with his pet wolf. This led to the animal attempting to attack a girl named Rika until Zoro stepped in by killing the wolf. This angered Helmeppo though he was unable to match Zoro but instead decided to threaten the citizens of the town. A deal was struck whereby Zoro had to remain restrained on a pole for a month and if he survived then he would be allowed to leave with no consequences for the people of the town. On the ninth day of his restraint, he was visited by Koby and Monkey D. Luffy where the latter arrived with the intention of recruiting Zoro to be part of his pirate crew. They eventually arrived where Zoro was being held, in time to witness Rika trying to feed him some rice balls which Zoro refused, most likely to avoid the girl being caught as there was a sign forbidding anyone to aid Zoro. The food ended up being stomped badly by Helmeppo because it was sweet while rice ball is supposed to be salty. After they left, Luffy asked Zoro to join him but he flatly refused to become a pirate. He then asked Luffy to feed him the dirtied rice balls as well as telling Rika that the food was delicious, revealing his kindness. Later in town, Rika explained to Luffy and Koby the reason for Zoro's capture, which only reinforced Luffy's decision to have him as his crewman. When Helmeppo stated that he would execute Zoro in three days time, Luffy angrily punched him for breaking his promise, which sent Helmeppo scurrying to his father, seeking revenge. With the assumption that Zoro would join his crew if he got Zoro his swords back, Luffy went to the Marine base. Luffy caught Morgan's wrath by crushing his new-built statue and forced Helmeppo to show him where Zoro's swords were. Meanwhile, Koby explained the situation to Zoro while trying to untie him. Luffy came back just in time to save them from a firing squad. Refusing to die, Zoro accepted Luffy's invitation and revealed his unique fighting style. He also revealed his dream of becoming the best swordsman in the world, which Luffy supported, believing that the Pirate King should have the best in his crew. Luffy then proceeded a fight with Morgan. However, when Helmeppo threatened to kill Koby, Luffy knocked him out while Zoro defeated the Marine captain. The Marines, seeing their tyrant leader finally defeated, rejoiced and allowed Luffy and Zoro to go free. However, since they were pirates, the Marines asked them to leave the island but promised not to report them to headquarters. As they were leaving, Commander Ripper asked about Koby's past. To help Koby hide it, Luffy provoked him into starting a brief fight between them. Zoro stopped the fight before it could get too serious, but it was enough for Koby to muster up the courage to ask Ripper if he could join the Marines, for which Ripper granted permission. Upon leaving, Luffy and Zoro were saluted by Koby and the Marines for their efforts. Luffy and Zoro then sailed onto their next destination.

After leaving Shells Town, Zoro and Luffy realized that they had no knowledge on navigation, and began searching for a navigator. Luffy then managed to get his head stuck in the beak of a giant bird, leaving Zoro to paddle after him. Zoro came across three pirates adrift at sea, and told them to get on quickly because he was not stopping. The three were revealed to be pirates working for Buggy the Clown and planned to rob or kill Zoro. Once they discovered Zoro's identity, they began rowing for him, though the commotion caused Zoro to lose track of Luffy's location. In Orange Town, Luffy managed to get tricked by Nami, tied up, and put into a cage with a cannon aimed at him. Zoro showed up just in time to save Luffy and Nami from Buggy's crew. Zoro appeared to slice Buggy into several pieces. However, Buggy is revealed to be immune to blades due to his Devil Fruit powers. Buggy then stabbed Zoro from behind, heavily injuring him. Despite this, Zoro managed to flip the cannon aimed at Luffy to point it at Buggy and his crew instead. Once the cannon was fired at them, Zoro picked up the iron cage Luffy was stuck in and dragged him for a few blocks. After being taken in by Boodle, the mayor of the town, Zoro was taken care of and slept at his house. However, the house was soon demolished by Buggy and the Buggy Balls that were unleashed upon the town. Zoro rose from the debris with no injuries. The crew soon decided to make a stand against Buggy. Zoro was pitted against Cabaji, Buggy's Chief of Staff. Zoro fought Cabaji, who fought dirty by striking Zoro's wounds whenever he had the chance. He also created flames through his breath and breathed it directly into Zoro's face. However, once Cabaji was knocked off his unicycle, he became angered and attacked with a slew of spinning tops and more deadly acrobatic maneuvers. Buggy tried to help him by sending his arm to help hold Zoro in place for Cabaji's strike, but Luffy did not allow Buggy to interfere in Zoro's duel. Zoro then took his own sword and slit his own side to ensure that he could battle Cabaji evenly when he was greatly injured. Cabaji recognized Zoro's honor and thought of this as the perfect opportunity to take him down. Zoro declared that if he could not topple all men who called themselves swordsmen, such as Cabaji, then he should give up his own dream to become the greatest swordsman. Cabaji was then defeated by Zoro's 'Oni Giri', which cut open his chest. After Cabaji fell to the ground, Zoro also collapsed, claiming that he needed a rest after the gruelling struggle. As he fell to the ground, Cabaji was stunned that he, along with Buggy's deadly crew, were all defeated by 'common thieves'. Zoro responded by saying they were not common thieves, and they were pirates. Zoro fell back asleep while Luffy battled against Buggy. As the trio started to relax, the townspeople came back into the town, and seeing their mayor knocked out, demanded answers. Luffy replied that the three were pirates, and the townspeople chased them out of town, though the three managed to lose them thanks to Shushu's intervention. Nami agreed to temporarily team up with Zoro and Luffy, and the three sailed off in the two small boats they obtained.

The crew then came upon the Island of Rare Animals. Zoro slept in the boat, while Luffy and Nami explored the island and met Gaimon. The crew later arrived at the Gecko Islands. Upon landing, they met Usopp, the local troublemaker of Syrup Village and leader of the Usopp Pirates. After some misunderstanding about coming to the island, they discovered that Usopp's wealthy friend Kaya was bedridden, but was well-provided for by her two butlers, Merry and Klahadore. Luffy believed Kaya would be able to give them a boat, so they moved forward to visit her. The group was sent flying into the backyard by Luffy only to intrude on an argument between Usopp and Klahadore, who insulted Usopp's father and forced the group away from the house. While Usopp and Luffy bonded, Nami, Zoro, and the Usopp Pirates came across the backwards-walking hypnotist, Jango. After Usopp ran past them hysterically screaming that Klahadore was a pirate, they went in search for Luffy. Luffy confirmed that Klahadore was actually Captain Kuro, who planned on killing Kaya and getting all her money. Usopp returned but told the boys that it was just a lie, making them disappointed at Usopp for lying to hurt people and not to entertain. The Straw Hats gained a great deal of respect towards Usopp for tricking the boys to protect their well being and planning to take on an entire pirate crew. Thus, he agreed to help him where Usopp planned to have an oil slip to stop the pirates, to which he could snipe them with ease. However, the four were shown to be on the wrong side of the island. Nami fell into the oil slick but managed to switch spots with Zoro and ran off to fight. Luffy became lost on his dash causing Usopp and Nami to initially fight the pirates alone. Just before the two could be killed, Zoro and Luffy arrived to fight the Black Cat Pirates. Jango hypnotized the crew to increase their strength but accidentally hypnotized Luffy, and Jango was forced to hypnotize Luffy to sleep again, but accidentally caused the crew to be knocked out by the ship's stempost, which Luffy was holding onto when he fell asleep. Meanwhile, Jango summoned the Nyaban brothers, Buchi and Sham, who started a fight against Zoro. Disarmed of all but one sword, Zoro must fight an uphill battle against the team-work of Buchi and Sham. Zoro exclaimed it was difficult to defeat them without all three of his swords. Zoro prevented Usopp from helping him by taking a hit from his Lead Star to keep him from getting dragged into the fight. Kuro then appeared disgusted by how the Black Cat Pirates were getting beaten by children and gave the Nyaban brothers five minutes before he kills everyone.

Zoro was helped by Nami, who was able to recover Zoro's swords and kicked them back to him, allowing Zoro to defeat the Nyaban brothers, but Buchi got back up and was in turn hypnotized by Jango, which injured Zoro faster. Nami then ran to wake Luffy up, and Jango tried to stop her with his chakram, but at the last second, Nami stepped on Luffy's face. Luffy got up in time to stop the chakram with his rubbery body. Usopp ordered his crew to take Kaya and flee. The three then took Kaya into the forest, while Kuro sent Jango after them. Zoro finished off Buchi. He then headed out with Usopp as his guide on his back to rescue Kaya and the boys, while Luffy dealt with Kuro and his lightning-fast movements and ten deadly finger-blades. Eventually, Jango caught up with his target and easily overpowered the boys. Kaya then threatened to kill herself with Jango's chakram to stop Jango from hurting Usopp's crew. Jango promised to leave the boys unharmed in exchange for her to sign the will that would allow Kuro to 'legally' acquire her wealth. Zoro and Usopp caught up, and Usopp aided Zoro in defeating Jango and rescuing Kaya and the boys with his sniper skills. Usopp decided during the aftermath that news of a real pirate attack might be too upsetting for the villagers and would affect their peace of mind since pirates do not normally come to an out of the way village. Therefore, he ordered everyone to keep it a secret, which Kaya and his crew agreed with. Kaya was grateful to the Straw Hat Pirates and gave them her ship, the Going Merry. Usopp was grateful to them as well, and now had the confidence to disband his pirate crew and strike out on his own to be a real pirate. Usopp bid the Straw Hat crew farewell, who became confused and told him to stop and get on their boat with them instead as he became a part of their crew.

The crew met Johnny and Yosaku, Zoro's former bounty hunter companions, and they set sail for the Baratie restaurant in search for a cook. Luffy began his job as a chore boy to pay for the damage he did to the Baratie for Zeff, and tried to convince Sanji to join his crew. Gin returned to the Baratie with his also-starving captain, Don Krieg, to whom Sanji once more gave food, but Don Krieg betrayed the cook once he regained energy and attacked the Baratie, despite the cooks' best efforts to stop him. It was then revealed that the Head Chef, Zeff, was a great pirate known as Red-Leg Zeff, who traveled the Grand Line for a whole year before heading back into the East Blue. Gin explained the catastrophe Krieg's fleet met in the Grand Line when they encountered Dracule Mihawk, and Don Krieg attempted to take control of the Baratie. Mihawk had returned to finish the job with Don Krieg's Pirate Armada, but Zoro challenged him to a duel in order to achieve his dream. Mihawk easily fended off all three of Zoro's swords with the tiny cross dagger he kept around his neck. Zoro, wanting to finish the fight, unleashed his Oni Giri, but Mihawk easily stopped it as well, stabbing directly towards his heart. Zoro, not wanting to back down because of his pride, piqued Mihawk's curiosity. Mihawk stated that he would remember his name and as a testament to Zoro's willpower, Mihawk unsheathed his black sword. Zoro unleashed a secret technique, Sanzen Sekai, against Mihawk, but Zoro was utterly defeated, and both his unnamed swords were destroyed in the process. Sheathing Wado Ichimonji and turning to face Mihawk, Zoro claimed that a scar on the back of a swordsman is shameful. With that, Mihawk grinned and slashed Zoro down, causing a large scar going from his left shoulder all the way down to his right hip, ending the duel. Mihawk left after defeating Zoro as Don Krieg continued his invasion on the Baratie. Johnny and Yosaku left with Usopp and the wounded Zoro to go after Nami, who had stolen their ship and left.

Overview

Personality and attributes

Typically, he wore a plain white shirt, black pants, and a light-green, haramaki sash that held his three swords. Zoro normally wore a black bandanna tied around his left bicep that he only put on his head when in a serious battle. Such was his reputation that he came to be known by the epithet of Pirate Hunter Zoro (海賊狩りのゾロ Kaizoku Gari no Zoro?).

He was shown to be a very shrewd and perceptive man both in and out of combat.

Zoro usually maintains a very stern, serious, and distanced personality, but often loses his temper in a goofy and exaggerated comical style. It would seem however, that this anger is the only emotion that Zoro often feels comfortable showing. Outside of situations where he feels confident in battle, he tends to smile or laugh the least out of the Straw Hats and rarely fools around with the rest of the crew and likes to distance himself more to sleep or train. In fact, his defeat at the hands of Dracule Mihawk and subsequent vow to Monkey D. Luffy was the only time since his friend Shimotsuki Kuina passed that Zoro has been seen crying. Even in moments that are particularly tough on the crew and would warrant sadness, Zoro chooses to maintain a quiet solemnity rather than outwardly express his emotions. He has been shown to believe to a degree that these emotions can hinder his judgement as a swordsman: when Ohm asked him if he was out for revenge upon discovering Tony Tony Chopper wounded and unconscious, he replied that he does not like to fight for reasons like that. Despite this assertion, though, he cares deeply for his crewmates and wishes to protect them at all costs, telling Ohm that in spite of his preference for fighting without a motivation he can feel one coming on.

He is also very loyal as he will stand by Luffy's decisions regardless of whether he personally agrees or not, stepping in only to point out the seriousness of a situation where it has been overlooked by his crewmates, most notably when they wanted to bring Usopp back into the crew after Usopp challenged Luffy to a duel over the Going Merry and lost, even willing to quit the crew himself if Luffy just brushed the incident off and treated it as another joke because it betrayed his strong values in loyalty. Zoro values loyalty highly and will not easily forgive fellow crewmates if they break ties with the crew, first seen when Nami took the Going Merry. Zoro was furious and stated that he never trusted Nami in the first place. When this happened again with Nico Robin and Usopp, Zoro was wary of Robin, questioning whether they should treat Robin as a friend or a foe, and after Enies Lobby, Zoro did not accept Usopp wanting to rejoin the crew saying he stepped on Luffy's pride. Furthermore, he would not allow the sniper back unless he got down on his knees and apologized for his disrespect to Luffy. This dislike for leaving crewmembers was shown once again in Zou; this time over Zoro's long-standing rival Sanji. Zoro was angry that Sanji had gone without an apology or a "thank you for everything", calling Sanji an "idiot" for messing around with Big Mom when they were already facing Kaidou. This cold attitude towards crewmates received negative attention from the crew and will provoke certain crewmembers mainly Nami to yell at him.

Zoro's ultimate goal was to be the greatest swordsmen in the world.

While the crew sails from one island to another, he normally spends time lifting weights, practicing meditation or napping.

Even before joining Luffy he had been established as a fearsome bounty hunter in the East Blue so much so that Koby had heard he was a demon in the form of a man. It was his accomplishments that were significant enough to earn him the epithet of 'Pirate Hunter'.

Powers and abilities

Though born an ordinary human, he devoted his life to becoming a powerful swordsman and fighter. Zoro went through years of extremely rigorous training that he went through since childhood with these consisting of gruelling building exercise along with hard training in swordmanship. This had led to him achieving immense levels of physical prowess with a focus on strength, agility and endurance. Though incredibly skilled in the East Blue, the region was regarded as the weakest of the world's seas.

Typically, Zoro did not plan out actions and strategies ahead of time. Despite that, Zoro was shown to be shrewd and observant fighter, which greatly aided him in his battles against fearsome enemies on multiple occasions. He came to learn all the strengths and weaknesses of an enemy in a short time, and use it to his advantage with him able to formulate plans that give his friends and allies a fighting chance.

He possessed immense physical strength and frequently spends his time at sea lifting incredibly large and heavy weights to keep growing stronger. Zoro's strength plays a large role in his abilities as a swordsman, as his strikes possess a great amount of power and range in their cutting ability. Thanks to his strength, Zoro was capable of clashing equally with superhumanly large and powerful opponents and can send normal-sized opponents flying away with ease.

By the time he met Luffy, Zoro had established himself as a fearsome bounty hunter in the East Blue, so much so that Koby had heard he was a "demon in the form of a man". His accomplishments in hunting pirates were significant enough to earn him the epithet of "Pirate Hunter", which he remains known for even after becoming a pirate.

During the Davy Back Fight, he came to develop an unorthodox fighting style known as No Sword Style (無刀流, Mutōryū).

He was a wielder of an extremely powerful Strong Blade (豪剣 Gōken?) type master swordsman with him being notable in using one, two, and three swords in varying attack styles. These ranged from melee-type attacks and went all the way to long-range sword strikes.

Among the techniques known to him included:

• Taka Nami (鷹波 Taka Nami?, literally meaning "Hawk Wave") : a Two Sword Style where whilst airborne it created a powerful gust of wind to knock opponents over.
• Tora Gari (虎狩り, Tora Gari?, literally meaning "Tiger Hunting") :
• Santoryu Ogi: Sanzen Sekai (三刀流奥義 三・千・世・界, Santōryū Ōgi: Sanzen Sekai?, literally meaning "Three Sword/Blade Style Secret Skill: Three Thousand Worlds") :
• Toro Nagashi (刀狼流し, Tōrō Nagashi?, literally meaning "Blade Wolf Stream/Flowing") :
• Tatsu Maki (龍巻き Tatsu Maki?, literally meaning "Dragon Twister") : a No Sword Style move whereby the motions of this technique are the same as Three Sword Style's Tatsu Maki, only this version is performed without swords, only with the arms. Zoro's lack of swords means the technique has no cutting power, and is more used only to send the opponent flying. As with the sword version, the rotating motion of Zoro spinning himself creates a spinning vortex, which sends the opponent several feet skyward. However, getting hit by one of Zoro's arms as he performs this move could also send the shockwaves into the unlucky victim's body, causing great blunt trauma and harm, as a sort of substitute in place of the cutting power of the original version.
• Ushi Bari (牛針, Ushi Bari?, literally meaning "Bull Needles") :
• Oni Giri (鬼斬り Oni Giri?, literally meaning "Ogre Cutter") : Zoro's signature technique with these being part of his Three Sword Style which made use of three-way simultaneous slashing attack. Zoro crosses his two swords across his chest and places the blade in his mouth horizontally behind them. Zoro then approaches the target (usually at high speed) and cuts through by swinging the swords across his chest, resulting in a descending diagonal-crossing slash from both swords while the mouth blade performs a horizontal cut from either the left or right, depending on which side of his mouth he positioned the sword's main blade at
• Gazami Dori (蟹ガザミ獲り, Gazami Dori?, literally meaning "Crab Seize") :
• Hyakuhachi Pound Ho (百八煩悩ポンド鳳, Hyakuhachi Pondo Hō?, kanji meaning "Hundred and Eight Klesha Phoenix"; furigana meaning "108 Pound Phoenix/Cannon") :
• Karasuma Gari (鴉魔狩り, Karasuma Gari?, literally meaning "Crow Demon Hunting") :

Zoro came to be one of the founding members of the Straw Hat Prates (麦わらの一味, Mugiwara no Ichimi). Alongside Luffy and Sanji, Zoro is considered one of the Monster Trio (怪物三人組, Kaibutsu San-ningumi?) of the Straw Hats due to his strength.

Notes

• Roronoa Zoro was created by Eiichiro Oda where he featured in the setting of the One Piece universe.

Appearances

• One Piece:

External Links

• One Piece Wiki Entry
• Wikipedia Entry

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