………….. Don’t know why I started the Dump post like it was the post that was gonna come out first; I need to edit the My Hero section based on the official release. And I would want to post this one first anyway. I guess I was just mad is all that was. I’m just……… tired of relegating sh!t to Dump posts, ya know what I mean? It feels like I’m doing them a disservice; as if they aren’t worth the effort of making a full post. And that just isn’t the case. I don’t talk about series I didn’t at least like in the past; I talked about The Promised Neverland 3 times because I liked everything up to Goldy Pond(something Anime watchers will never get to experience for themselves), and I’m still talking about Dragon Ball Super because I like the old stuff and SOME of what the manga has to offer isn’t as cancerous as it seems. Scouts Honor. So not being able to- kills me in a way I can’t quite put into words. But in the end; this is just a side project, I guess. 

Bummer stuff aside; I vowed that if I only get to talk about 1 series this week, then it would be “One Piece.” Because it reflects my best work. Especially when I get to sit an marinate on the chapter like I…………. sort of had for this. I can make a good “One Piece” post is the point. And this chapter is pretty big. I think this might be the end of the Reverie Flashback- or at least the beginning of the end. Maybe the next chapter will see the end halfway through and then Dragon and Ivankov’s reactions to the information- then maybe a tease of what’s going on at Egghead at the end. Then that’ll have us “Rewind Time A Bit” to when we left in chapter 1,079 and show us what’s been going on since then, then………….. THE EVENTS that happen on the Next Day. I’ve seen 2 depictions of what will happen; one in which Luffy dominates- the other where he gets his @$$ kicked. I’ll wait and see which one it is before posting those images.

Man, I have so much time on my hands with this one that I’m rambling before we even start the chapter. Let’s get to it before my Temporary Manager tries to call me in on some dumb sh!t. One Piece Chapter 1,085: “The Death Of Nefeltari Cobra.” Man, we’re 15 chapters away from 1100. This is LONG story. But I adore it. 

Overview

Picking Up Where The Last Chapter Left Us: Imu Comes Into The Room, Sitting Down On The Empty Throne In Front Of Cobra. Meaning that Cobra now only has minutes left to live- If THAT. Cobra bursts into a fit of coughing, in pure shock that someone is actually sitting atop the Throne Of The World. Imu- referring to themself as “Mu” in the Fan Translations(“Mu” either being read as “Dream” or “Void(which I learned from watching “Death Note”)”)- decides to grace Cobra with 2 answers, and asks that he answer a single question. Cobra reveals that Imu is the name of one of the Original 20 Monarchs that founded the World Government, but Imu refuses to give him anymore Answers than what he’s about to. As for Cobra’s initial questions: 

1. “D” is the name of the one’s who once opposed them; those that bear the intial “D” in the current era are but “empty husks” who don’t know the significance of their own names. 
2. Lili made a “Mistake” 800 years ago- one that has effect the events of the present in profound ways. Because of that mistake; the Poneglyphs have become problems for them- Scholars looking for the true history of the world, and Pirates seeking treasure alike causing them all sorts of head aches. 

It’s enough for even Imu to ask: Was the Liberation of The Poneglyphs Really A Mistake? Or Some Kind Of Plan? So Imu asks Cobra- the Gorosei Ready to put him 6 feet under when this is over– to say the REAL name of the sender of the letter. It is in this moment that Cobra comprehends the situation he’s in: He Is Not Leaving This Room Alive. Lie or not- he’s reached the end. Sabo sits behind a pillar, sensing the something is really wrong right now. But Cobra- prepared for what happens next- speaks the True, Full Name Of the Sender of The Letter: 

Nefeltari D. Lili.

That confirmed it. Now he dies. Shadow Arrow comes from Cobra’s left, and pierces his chest. And Sabo springs into action, blasting the Gorosei with a “Fire Fist” and shooting a Fireball at Imu. And the World King is None To Happy to see an unwanted guest in his chamber. He Eats the flames. No- LITERALLY Chomps it!!! His face elongates, and a set of teeth bites down on it. And all at once: Sabo and Cobra are surrounded by Shadowy Beasts. But all a Hidden Cam Snail manages to snap a picture of is Sabo standing over a dying Cobra. That’s how that happened. Cobra recognizes Sabo as Luffy’s brother, and asks why a Revolutionary is trying to save him. Sabo retorts that the Revolutionary Army is not against Kings in general, but Corrupt Kings and the ones who stand Above Them. But he then ask how Cobra knows Luffy. He responds that Luffy once saved his life. Sabo’s not surprised, though. But they forgot they were surrounded by Monsters. 

Sabo grabs Cobra and dips, but Cobra says it’s already too late for him. So he instead wants to pass on a Message to Luffy and Vivi for him: “We Also Bear The D.” This reminds Sabo of when he and his brother’s were young: They were eating one day when Sabo noted that they both bear the initial “D,” but neither of them really know or care what it means. But since Sabo seems jealous, Ace puts a “D” in Sabo’s name, too: “Sa-D-Bo!” Silliness. Followed by Sabo and Cobra taking another Shadow Arrow to their chests. Sabo drops Cobra, who stands up between Sabo and the Gorosei. His Final Message: 

The Poneglyphs Must Be Protected. Bear The Flag Of The Dawn Against The World- Nefeltari D Lili.

–King Nefeltari D Cobra Of Alabasta

Cobra Is Killed Protecting Sabo. But what none of them realized: Wapol was watching the whole thing through a hole in the wall. And He Knows that What He Just Saw Has Now Marked Him For Death. So he takes off in 1 Direction, eating everything in his path as he tries to reach “The End Of The World.” Over in the Council Room: The Monarchs of the World are informed that Cobra and Wapol will not be joining them. They chalk it up to Cobra’s exhaustion from his speech that ended the Warlord System. On to the matter of the 4 Nation Alliance in the North Blue, we cut away to Shirahoshi and Fukaboshi leaving for the Red Port, hoping to get away from the Celestial Dragons there. But Shirahoshi wants to see Vivi again before she leaves. 

Speaking Of: She’s Been Captured By Aigis 0, and is being held in the Guest Room of Pangea Castle by Kalifa and Jabra. Vivi threatens to tell the world about what’s transpired, but……… they don’t even register her as that much of a problem. So she asks if Shirahoshi is safe. Long story short: She’s A-Okay. Jabra informs us that Sai and Leo said loud and proud that they were Pirates under Straw Hat’s flag, and now the whole communal area is in an uproar. And on a side note; Fujitora let some slaves escape and got into an bit of a tussel with Ryokyugu. Thus why they haven’t mutilated Sai and Leo…………. as far as we know; this is a flashback. They could very well be dead in the present story. But those are stories for another day. Right now; Vivi needs to find a way out of this predicament. Enter Wapol- to scared to stop moving. 

Vivi takes the chance and latches on to Wapol. As they run by his wife Kinderella; Wapol yells that he’s running “to the end of the Earth where no one will find him. Vivi’s kind of place. Though it looks to Kinderella like Wapol is running off with some Young Hussy. One Piece Chapter 1,085 END!!! This was actually the second take of this section; the first draft was really rushed. This one’s MUCH better. 

REVIEW

So……………. A Lot Things Happened. And all of it Relevant. Obviously anything with Imu is the most important, but you can’t downplay what just happened with Sai and Leo- not to mention the effect that this event will have on Sabo, and thus the information that will end up with the Revolutionary Army. And of course Fujitora once again rebelling against orders from Higher Ups. Lot’s of things going on right now. And with the schedule I just got and how many chips I just ate(writing this part Friday, June 2nd, 2023, 4:03pm), I’m not feeling very well. I was feeling upset knowing I had another weekend taken from me, and just got into this bag of Doritos. I’m bummed; give me a break. Now where do I start? 

Imu and The Gorosei

Like this wasn’t obvious. SO: Imu refers to themself in the 3rd person as “Mu,” which can either mean “Void” or “Dream.” This isn’t just a character quirk; it MEANS something. People have been speculating that Imu’s name indicates their devil fruit- the Human Human Fruit Mythical Beast Model “Umi,” as in the Mother of the Sea. And that spins off into a lot of Representation of things– things like how Imu is pushing the Geocentric model of the Universe in which the Universe revolves around the Earth(represented by the Sea because “All life Comes From The Sea“) and is trying to make everyone reject the Heliocentric model, with Luffy as the Sun God, showing that the Solar System revolves around the Sun. And also why most of the One Piece World is covered in ocean; Imu using their Umi powers to keep the world like this and thus stagnate progress to prevent another Kingdom from rising up against them. And that Imu is the one making the sea “reject” the unnatural Devil fruit users for whatever reason. These are some of the theories that I’ve heard. First 2 are pretty good, but that last one’s debatable. 

“One Piece” is the type of story that incorporates a lot of Human History, Real World Problems, and different parts of literature- managing to somehow fit in Dinosaurs, Cyborgs, Merpeople, Giants and Norse Elements, some Christian Ideas, and Japanese Culture and myths into a story about Pirates that go up against things like Government Corruption, Racism, Pollution, Classism, and other real world topics like that. It’s an interesting piece of literature; one that I’m sure will be studied long after Oda has completed it. So those ideas are not altogether wrong. However, this chapter indicates to us that Imu- while potentially(more than likely) has a Mythical Zoan- it might not be “Umi” as many have speculated. That name might still mean something, but not what people thought. 

One way to take his name is “Im,” as in “I’m.” “I’m Mu-” “I’m Void/ Dream.” He could be saying “I Am The Dream of Man- To Be Above Everything And Everyone Else; To Want For Nothing,” or he can be saying “Void” and it becomes “I’m Void- Void Century; I Know What Happened And Am The Secret Keeper.” That’s how I’ve always seen it, anyway. Back when the initial Fan Translations referred to him as just “Im- Sama,” I say “I’m Sama- I’m King– I’m God.” Because he DOES seem to believe himself some sort of God, right? “Unseen By All;” “Everything Is A part Of His Plan;” that hole part. Then the official said “Imu” and that idea just kind of went under the radar before I ever got the chance to bring it up. So yeah; I’m just thinking that his name is meant to be “I’m Mu.” 

But then you get to his abilities. That Shadow arrow………. did not come from Imu; the angle makes it clear that it came from Cobra’s side- from one of the Gorosei. Imu had gotten all the information he needed out of Cobra, so it was time to off him. But then Sabo jumped in and attacked Imu- and the World King seemed to have eaten it. And from the way it looked in the panel below his attack on the Gorosei; it looked like Imu’s face elongated. And in the panel in which Sabo is surrounded, you see something Giant coming down from the thrown; something with long arms, a Human hand, and a slightly long nose. Mythical Zoan without a doubt, but………… What? My initial idea: Fenrir/ Garmr Devil Fruit. I say that because of the maw that he looked to have when he ate Sabo’s Fire ball. I also thought it would tie into the Asgard Wall, represented by the Red Line. Gotta be totally honest with you guys: I’m having to look stuff up just to justify why I said a Fenrir Fruit. 

It was mostly the Maw I saw forming. But if we go by the Red Line being made to represent the Asgard Wall, then perhaps Oda is combining both Garmr and Fenrir to make a something different. Fenrir’s destiny is to eat Odin come Ragnorok; Garmr is- like the Greek myth of Cerberus– is the Guard Dog of H#ll. There is a tale in Norse Lore that talks about Fenrir being tricked by the Aesir into being chained to a rock; they were able to gain the wolf’s consent by telling him that these fetters were tests of his strength, and clapping and cheering when, with each new chain they presented him, he broke free. The Dwarves were able to make a chain strong enough to finally bind Fenrir, but Fen had started to sus out their plans, so he made them a deal: Someone’s Hand Would Be In his Jaw when he’s bound, which he will bite off if he can’t break the chains. Tyr offered himself up, and lost his arm as a result. From there, Fenrir was taken to a desolate land, bound to a rock with a sword hold his mouth open. There he would remain until Ragnarok. That’s the ABRIDGED Version of events. How does this tie into “One Piece” and Imu, though? 

Perhaps……….. Imu is the “Fenrir” to Lili’s “Odin……….” I think. Lili’s sword could be the parallel for the sword holding Fenrir’s jaw open- it holds significance to Imu as the reminder of what happened 800 years ago. And yes; this chapter seems to confirm that Imu is from the Void Century. Though he- being Fenrir in this analogy- might not be one of the original 20 Kings……. per say. They’re Royals, after all; they could be “Imu II-” or their father/mother was Imu, and they’re using the name in respect. Or to hide the fact that they’re not Imu; there’s no way the Gorosei know EVERYTHING– Imu probably left out the bad stuff they did to get this position. So even they don’t have the full context. Though as this world has shown: “Knowledge is A Crime.” And Imu’s past is probably more a Taboo than……………… Really Anything This World Has Outlawed. So Imu- or perhaps “Mu,” their child- is Fenrir in this case, and Lili could sense something……… wrong with the child. So she suggested to her fellow Rulers that they prevent Mu running around freely, resulting in a Gleipnir-type binding for a number of years(it’s a 100 Year Blank History- events were happening for YEARS), with Lili’s sword serving as the key to his chains. Then it was time for Ragnorok and she was the FIRST to be slaughtered- and Imu took over from there, creating the world we now know. 

HOLY CR@P I adlibbed the sh!t out of that; I was losing it and getting it back and…………. Gwuh, man. That took longer than I thought; that’s most of the post right there. And I don’t really have any other speculation; nothing more than- going by the Norse thing- Imu’s become the “Odin” that left him to rot all those years, and is about to undergo a “Ragnarok” of his own, ending with the Red Line coming down like the Asgard Wall, and the fall of Asgard/ Marie Geois. The Gorosei, on the other hand; like I said, they probably don’t know everything just yet. But they know enough to be following Imu- be it out of Great Respect And Admiration; Respect for the Position; or just fear of Imu’s power. Though this chapter also confirms that- for how few guards are actually in the Room Of Authority(the room they’re always conducting their conversations in)- They Are NOT Defenseless. There are theories that the Gorosei are retired members of the God’s Knights. More credence to that NOW, huh? And yeah; probably all Mythical Zoans- more than Likely Awakened; Haki out their f*ckin’ @$$e$; Yolked to High Heaven. That’s what I’m thinking. 

Fujitora’s Rebellious Behavior

To take a break from Void Century and Endgame stuff; you have Fujitora letting slaves go. He’s in Bi~g trouble now. He was already banned from coming back to HQ after his little stunt in Dressrosa– and now he’s gone and aided the Enemy in their mission! He can’t keep getting away with this sh!t, you know what I mean? He’s doing good things, but he’s going against the World Government. And that’s a problem for someone in his position. So the question becomes: What Will be His Punishment? He’s too strong to just……… kick him out right now(ESPECIALLY Right Now), but you need to make sure that he learns that he- as a Navy Admiral- can’t keep pulling stunts like this. In that sense; you would think that he would be put on “Leave Without Pay” or whatever and be made to make up the work for all the Slaves he let go free. But that might be a little much. Leave Without Pay, but not Temporary Slavery(which could end up getting extended should the Celestial Dragons Take A Liking to him). 

I think he’ll end up in a similar case to Jinbe in the lead up to Marineford: Locked In Level 6 of Impel Down. Though transporting such a High Profile Character is BOUND to take some of the Impel Down staff’s attention, right? I’m just sayin’: This could be their chance to silence Doflamingo once and for all. Slip him in with Issho, or while Issho is being transported; either way, you can use the attention that an Admiral would draw to slip in an Assassin to kill the Heavenly Demon. Or perhaps even use him as the assassin. Even in Sea Prism handcuffs; he’s still a powerful Swordsman with Incredible Haki- he can definitely kill the heavily chained Doffy right now. He does THIS, and he won’t have to sit and rot in Impel Down. Would you take that same deal in his position? 

Nefertari D Lili’s Blunder And Vivi

Okay, back to this sooner than I thought. The Nefertari’s Are Part Of The D Clan. I bet you Cobra was thinking of asking Luffy if he knew what it meant. Then he saw how Luffy was, and……… yeah; No. But it DOES mean something. ‘Cause it doesn’t seem like Imu was expecting that; more like he was just……… confirming a suspicion he had. So that means that either Lili was a D from the start and it finally explains her “blunder-” or it means that she became one, joining the Enemies side and standing against the World Government. Egghead has proven that you can tell a really good story without the Straw hat’s in the spotlight at any given moment; I would be surprised if the Void Century Flashback is anything less than 2 or 3 volumes unto itself. Not as long as Dressrosa and CERTAINLY not Wano, but…………. kind of long.

But back to Lili; I said she became A D. How and Why? Well, I don’t think that the D Clan is……. altogether connected by blood- or at least they weren’t when this started. There are a number of theories about the D Clan; I’m personally of the belief that the D refers to the name of the Ancient Kingdom- a kingdom who’s name began with “D,” and the D clan is the descendant of the Royal Family that opposed the original 20 Founding Nations. On the other end of the spectrum, you have the idea that the D clan are the descendants of a Pirate Crew that opposed the World Government during the Void Century. But in both cases, it could be that Lili defected to the side of the D’s because she knew what the World Government would eventually become. Which is why she never put her sword in front of the Throne: She saw through the BS and wanted no part of the lie. 

Then of course there’s what she did to get herself and her entire blood line on Imu’s sh!tlist. And it has something to do with the Poneglyphs. Perhaps connected the Poneglyph’s creates a message of sorts that tells you how to defeat Imu and topple the World Government- something only the original 20 Monarch’s would know. And she would have the Kozuki clan engrave the message on these giant, nigh-indestructible rocks. How they moved them around and hid them is another story, though people are speculating that she was originally the holder of the Time Time Fruit, and she used those powers to scatter the Ponglyph’s not just through space, but time. Which is how you end up getting rando-poneglyphs that tell bits and pieces of stuff. And of course, there’s Joyboy’s unfulfilled promise to Poseidon and all that. Multiple things happened in those missing hundred years. 

Miscellaneous

Sabo’s now indebted to Cobra- and so is Luffy. And that promise will be fulfilled by protecting Vivi and doing as he said: Protecting The Poneglyph’s And Freeing The World. Still not fully aware of how they’re gonna do that; it’s not like punching Imu out will fix the Celestial Dragons, the 800 years of classism, Racism, Slavery, Corruption, the sheer number of islands they’ve nuked out of existence with a Buster Call or that weapon that blew up that one island no one knows the name of, Information Blocking, Forced Stagnation of Scientific Progress, Suppression of a Advanced Technology and Knowledge, Pollution and Poverty caused under the reign of the World Government, and Good Lord KNOWS what else we can’t even imagine at the moment. That’s a complaint I heard from Totally Not Mark: The Introduction of Imu means that all the world’s problems can be solved if you just punch 1 guy. No. On top of the number of people we’re going to have to punch just to get that far, there are still problems more or less independent of Imu that have lasted for 800 Years. It’s not that simple……………..

Welp, the Straw Hat Grand Fleet now have the spotlight. Is that a Good thing or a Bad thing? On the one hand- Bounty Increases and the world taking Luffy serious as an Emperor with a 5600 Man Fleet of his own, matching the likes of Whitebeard, Big Mom, and Kaido in terms of Numbers. But………. Luffy doesn’t want all that responsibility. He told the Grand Fleet from the start that he didn’t want to be their “Big Boss” or anything- he’ll call for help if they need it, and they can call him when they need help. But they’re forcing that on him by proclaiming this after Supposedly(F*ckin’ HOPEFULLY) Killed A Celstial Dragon- the exact same one that Luffy clocked 2 years ago. It now looks as if Luffy sent them here to kill Charlos. Which isn’t a bad thing in the grand scheme of things, but a VERY BIG DEAL!! 

And that’s not to mention Bartolomeo’s section of their Cover Serial showing us that he……… Burned Shanks’ Flag in his territory. So now Shanks knows who he has to kick the @$$ of. The PROBLEM is that Luffy is not ready for those problems- at least not in my mind. The man stopped a war by coming and saying “StopFighting Or Fight Me.” There is no Bigger Flex Than That, Guys. Nothing except Horikoshi’s fanart being featured in Volume 23 and that guy now having a series ending before “One Piece.” It says something. And Bartolomeo- in an attempt to make sure Luffy looks cool- has now put a Giant Red Target on the boys back. And Sai and Leo did the same thing, didn’t they? It just hit me what the Grand Fleet did to Charlos means for Luffy. Man, no wonder they’re preparing to nuke Egghead over him………

The last thing I want to talk about is something JoyBoy Theories on Youtube brought up that I started thinking about writing the Imu section: The idea that Imu is part of a promise; that he’s preserving the World Government for the sake of Joyboy, and will only get involved when the World Government is threatened. That does not seem to be the case anymore. But to revise it a little bit: He also brought up in a separate video the notion of the D Kingdom being a “Free Kingdom-” one in which the King does not wear a crown like typical royals, but rather a Straw Hat- something that anyone can wear, and the “King” is just……. a regular type of guy. Equality among the people. And the World Government rose up against that Kingdom and crushified them, taking the Straw hat as a “Trophy” of sorts. In this case; “Joyboy” refers to the King of that Kingdom. So it might be more like Joyboy is the person that Imu fears the Most: Someone Coming For His Throne. 

For Luffy; becoming King of The Pirates means “The Freest Man in The World.” Who would be freer than the King of a Free World? So perhaps becoming Pirate King means becoming the King of a Free World; Luffy- as “Joyboy-” has to sit on the Empty Throne, Freeing The World And Becoming King of that Free World. That’s one way to take it. Another idea my brother Ajay threw out once is the notion that- as the Secret World King- Imu is…………. The Exact Antithesis of The Pirate King– the person with the Least Freedom. And the idea is not for Luffy to sit upon the Empty Throne- but destroy it, symbolically destroying the idea of any one man becoming the King of The World, and allowing everyone to be free to choose the people they follow, just as the Grand Fleet did. See, it all came back together. Though Again: Just A Thought. 

Conclusion 

Oh My Eneru What The H#ll Did I Make? I still think my review for chapter 1,069 was my best “One Piece” post, but this– This is pretty good. S*ck myself 0ff why don’t I? I’m just proud of myself for managing to make such a post with NO WEEKEND to speak of. Seriously, they took my Monday, too- the Rat B@stards. Oh man; I forgot a lot of what I wanted to use in the Conclusion! I know part of it was referencing Joyboy Theories and how he’s influenced my writing. I like his voice, and his videos are nice to play in the background when I’m working on posts. Plus; his “One Piece” theories are some of most intricate, thought out, and- for lack of a better term– “Dramatic” theories I’ve seen on Youtube. Ah crud, that’s all I could scrounge up. Why didn’t I make my notes this time? 

Ah, well; it probably wasn’t all that important. And it made this post easier to finish. So………. Silver Linings. Until the next post, all; Keep it real. Later.