Summary
Roronoa Zoro, the unofficial right-hand man of the future Pirate King, has attained worldwide notoriety with his bounty and status since the conclusion of the Wano arc of theOne Pieceanime series. Despite Zoro’s newfound worldwide notoriety, the swordsman did not always command such strength and status and had to work his way up there alongside his captain and crew members.
After his great achievement of scarring Kaido, the King of Beasts, and taking out King the Wildfire, Kaido’s right-hand man, Zoro’s new bounty is an astonishing 1,111,000,000 berries. As many fans have supported Zoro’s journey from the very beginning ofOne Piece, seeing the swordsman become a man worth over a billion berries was a moment that left a smile on the faces of many.
How The Death of His Close Friend Drove Zoro to Be the Best
Zoro’s journeystarted in East Blue, as he always had the burning passion to become the greatest swordsman in the world. Afterthe death of his friend and rival, Kuina, Zoro swore to become the best for both of them. This further ignited his desire to become the best, and since then, the swordsman has run towards his goal.
At the time Luffy met Zoro, although obscure, Zoro was more infamous than Luffy, even without a bounty, as he was well known for hunting pirates for their bounties. While Zoro did indeed hunt pirates, he only did it to pay the bills and keep himself alive with the money he made.
After Zoro joined Luffy’s crew, the two set their sights on becoming the best swordsman in the world and the Pirate King, respectively. While Zoro was still an unknown and relatively weak swordsman, he thought he had a chance against the world’s best and faced the current strongest swordsman in the world, Hawk Eyes Mihawk, in a duel. While Zoro did indeed think Mihawk was stronger than him, the actual gap in strength between them left him aware of just how much weaker he was. Using a small knife and stating that he used it because he did not have anything smaller, Mihawk easily defeated Zoro and saw through his techniques. Thankfully, Mihawk appreciated Zoro’s will and drive and spared his life while telling the swordsman to become stronger and come battle him again in the future.
Mihawk’s Interest in Zoro Helped Shape Him Into One of the Best
After Mihawk humbled him, Zoro left East Blue and traveled the Grand Line with his captain and newly discovered crew members. With each foe the Straw Hat pirates battled, Zoro became stronger and stronger, even learning how to cut through steel. Despite the crew’s many successes, they found themselves at a losing end once more when faced with the warlord Bartholomew Kuma and the admiral Kizaru. Realizing their strength was insufficient,the Straw Hat piratessplit up for two years and mastered their craft more until they met again. During the two-year break, Zoro studied under the very man he wanted to overcome—Dracule Mihawk.
Despite desperately wanting to defeat Mihawk and obtain the title of strongest, Zoro begged the swordsman to train him as he realized his strength was unable to take him toward his goal and be of help to his captain. After the end of the two-year break, Zoro came back stronger, but with a scar over his left eye. His strength level could be said to have been amplified 10x, and he finally entered the realm of strong swordsmen but is still far from reaching the top.
Zoro Has Racked Up Plenty of Notable Achievements Since Joining the Straw Hat Crew
After the time skip (two-year break), Zoro made many notable achievements for himself as he got stronger and stronger. When the Straw Hat crew got to Dressrosa, Zoro shocked both characters and fans alike by slicing the island-sized pica. That was truly a moment where Zoro made his name known to the world. After that wonderful achievement, Zoro surpassed himself in Wano by blocking the joint attack of the two Emperors (former) Kaido and Big Mom if only for a moment, preventing the Worst Generation from getting wiped out in their battle against them.
Despite already being on his last legs after blocking the attack of two Emperors (former),Zoro still manages to permanently scar Kaido, a feat that only a few have ever achieved.
Zoro’s High Bounty Shows Just How Far He’s Come
Zoro’s journey to a billion berries has been filled with hardship after hardship, but the swordsman has managed to conquer every obstacle set before him. Starting from an initial bounty of 60,000,000 berries, Zoro’s notoriety has grown alongside his captain, and now the World Government sees him as a threat greater than the Katakuri portrayed at Whole Cake Island. With his expected usage of advanced conquerors haki and the Great Grade Sword Enma, Zoro is expected to get stronger from this point onward. While the swordsman is still not on the level of top swordsmen likeRed Haired Shanks and Hawk Eyes Mihawk, he is slowly edging towards the peak of swordsmanship in theOne Pieceseries, with only a few left who can match him in a duel and fewer who can overcome him.
