Shanks in One Piece

Shanks is a really easy-going man who prefers to take his time and enjoy himself when traveling the world with his crew rather than racing from one destination to another. This was already the case when he was younger, when he was depicted as lighthearted and innocent in contrast to his fellow apprentice Buggy, who was grumpy and opportunistic. Nonetheless, Shanks would occasionally act immature, starting pointless quarrels with Buggy out of pure stubbornness. Shanks, when he was younger, resembled Luffy (as a youngster) in many aspects.

Shanks has a pretty complicated moral code despite appearing to be quite simple. Because of his disapproval of fighting, he feels that if personal ideas diverge, people should part ways regardless of how close they may be. The fact that Shanks would rather laugh off even severe circumstances than engage in direct conflict is suggestive of his preference for people to perceive him as someone who cares little about his own well-being.

His easygoing attitude changes, however, when individuals in his charge or under his protection are in danger, and this includes people he considers to be his friends. Shanks agrees that as one of the Four Emperors, he too has a reputation to uphold and that he would pursue anyone who dares to stir up trouble on his lands.

The captain's favorite activities include attending and throwing parties and banquets, therefore Shanks and his crew are nearly always having fun and drinking alcoholic beverages. Shanks has an inextinguishable appetite for parties and will throw them for any occasion. Shanks enjoys making people laugh and likes to tease them a little. Shanks, like the other characters in One Piece, has a distinctive laugh that begins with a "Da" (as in Dahahahaha!).

By nature, Shanks is a pacifist who avoids actively trying to create misrule and disturbance. Even when honor is at stake, he opposes unnecessary slaughter and so far only seems to engage in fighting when a friend is in danger. He appears to be in awe of individuals who bravely act above the call of duty for the good of humanity. Although Shanks always seems to support peaceful solutions, he will fight if the enemy forces him to or if he wishes to prevent more damage to places that are important to him.

As one of the Four Emperors and someone with diplomatic prowess, Shanks' remarks frequently carry a lot of weight with those who are aware of his reputation. While discussing certain subjects, Shanks can be shockingly serious and mature, the complete reverse of his often social conduct. It has been reported that he struggles to relax when in an enemy country.

Shanks has tan skin and is a tall, muscular man. Shanks has distinctive red hair that is frequently portrayed in the media as being a rich crimson. It's noteworthy that Shanks' hair is the only one in the black-and-white manga that is filled with grayscale, making it distinctive among all characters so far, even those with similar hair tones (instead of inked black or left white).

Up until he gave it to Luffy, Shanks wore a particular straw hat that he had gotten from Gol D. Roger (his former captain), which was a symbol of his persona. Other than that, Shanks' attire always consists of a long, sleeveless, high-collared cloak in a sweeping black color (with a lighter, gray interior in the anime) worn over a plain white shirt that is half-buttoned to reveal his upper abs and middle of his chest.

Shanks always has his pants collected midway up the shin with a cut below the knee. The first set was a plain, brown pair that was a little loose, with golden buttons along the outside leg sides and a red belt around his waist to keep his shirt tucked in.

Later, Shanks is depicted with his shirt removed from his sash, which is now seen carrying his sword at his right side. He is also wearing a different, slightly baggier pair of pants with an indistinct, green-yellow floral pattern that now displays plenty of leg hair. After the time skip, he eventually appears sporting new pants with a rose pattern that are light in hue.

Between the ages of 9 and 14, Shanks was accustomed to sporting Roger's straw hat and had hair that was somewhat longer and parted in the middle of the head. He wore plain white shirts, either plain or pinstripe, an orange waist sash containing a green-hilted sword resembling Gryphon, and plain (red or blue) shorts. Occasionally, he wore a buckled brown leather shoulder belt.

The first time Shanks appeared, he had straight, middle-parted hair that was kept loosely combed back to nape length in front and shorter (at eye level) curtained bangs. His hair is revealed to be slightly longer, wavier, and more slicked back in subsequent appearances (ten years later), with the exception of a few strands that fall down the sides of his face and are pushed further sideward than stated earlier bangs.

Another distinguishing feature of his face is a trio of parallel, linear scars that cross his left (unharmed) eye at an angle and were apparently given to him by Blackbeard at some unspecified point before the start of the series. Additionally, protecting Luffy from a Sea King when the future Straw Hat captain was a young child, Shanks' left arm was also left amputated below the deltoid.

As the manga's graphic style develops, Shanks' face transforms. At first, it appeared more youthful, with a gentle jawline tapering down to a little, sharp chin. Similar to later depictions, its features were softer and larger, especially its plain, black eyes with thin brows. His little nose was also smaller. In later appearances, his face is more prominent, with a square jaw, sharper, narrower set of eyes, and a chiseled, more pronouncedly bridged nose giving him a more masculine characteristic.

Shanks is an important figure, dreaded by most people and pirates. His relationships and connections stretch vastly. Some of those important connections are detailed below.

Roger Pirates and Red Hair Pirates

While Shanks was still a baby, the Roger Pirates discovered him in God Valley. As a result, Shanks has known the crew well since he was a little child. Shanks and Gol D. Roger were close friends; in fact, Shanks got Roger's straw hat when he was just eight years old. He was devastated at the time of Roger's Execution.

All of Shanks' crew members get along well with one another and respect him as their captain, or "Boss," to them. From refusing to let a youngster (Luffy) on board his ship to rejecting permission to take on Whitebeard's soldiers who had insulted Rockstar's dignity, Shanks looks out for the welfare of the entire crew.

Uta

Shanks is an adoptive father to Uta, and she formerly worked as a musician in his crew. She admired him greatly and went along with his adventures, taking care of the ship while they were at sea. Her aspirations to become a singer are proven to be very important to him.

Luffy

Shanks is Luffy's role model, a hero from his youth, and the person he aspires to one day surpass. Shanks initially didn't take Luffy seriously because he was still a boy. Later, when Luffy said he would surpass him, Shanks started to take him seriously. The expression of this was when he gave Luffy his trademark straw hat, which holds special sentimental value for him as it once belonged to Shanks' former captain. The two have an understanding that, once Luffy becomes a great pirate, he will return the hat, which they have both taken extremely seriously. Luffy risks his life to protect the Straw Hat.

Buggy

Shanks and Buggy were members of the Roger Pirates since they were young, and were frequently at odds with one another. Buggy was rendered incapable of swimming as a result of Shanks' rash but unintentional acts after he accidentally ate the Bara Bara no Mi and misplaced a treasure map. Since then, Buggy has harbored a grudge. Shanks offered Buggy a spot in his team following Roger's execution. They split up after Buggy refused to work for his former shipmate, and they didn't cross paths again for a long time. Since then, Shanks has always kept tabs on Buggy’s pirate activities.

World Government

Despite seeing that Shanks is a man who won't try to alter the world on his own, the World Government still sees him as a problem and a nuisance. They are ready to get rid of him if he ever does, but because of the position he occupies, they are concerned that he might get out of control. Until then, the World Government will put up with his behavior. He is able to meet with the Five Elders whenever he wants because of his reputation.

Shanks is one of the most powerful pirates in the world. He was placed in the same elite group by Kaidou, who is known as the world's "Strongest Creature", as other great pirates, who truly had the strength to fight against him in battle, such as Rocks D. Xebec, Whitebeard, Kozuki Oden, and his former captain.

Shanks has enough command to declare a verbal cease-fire at Marineford. Even though the Marines were pumped up by the deaths of Ace and Whitebeard, no one rose to question him when he declared that there would be no more fighting. He is one of the few persons capable of stopping Blackbeard, according to the Five Elders. Additionally, Shanks has enough power to meet with the Five Elders, who—like the members of the World Government, would ordinarily view him as an enemy.

Physical Strength

As a former opponent of Dracule Mihawk, a skilled swordsman with incredible strength who could easily outmuscle Zoro in terms of brute force, Shanks has enormous physical strength. Shanks, who only has one arm, is a great swordsman who can easily equal Whitebeard, a man who could easily defeat giants and a whole army of strong and capable Marine officers. Shanks could withstand the immensely destructive offensive power of Akainu's magma fist thanks to his physical strength and Busoshoku Haki.

Shanks is a skilled swimmer who once dove into the depths of the ocean to save Buggy from drowning. He can swim fairly quickly as well, saving Luffy from a Sea King attack while they are both in the open sea. Shanks has a tremendous amount of stamina and pain tolerance. Shanks was absolutely unconcerned by the severe bleeding after a Sea King tried to eat Luffy and chewed off his arm. Instead, he used Haoshoku Haki to scare the Sea King away. Shanks is also incredibly quick.

Swordsmanship

Shanks is a highly accomplished master swordsman and a previous opponent of Dracule Mihawk, dubbed the "Strongest Swordsman in the World." He used to engage Mihawk in merciless fights every day before he lost his left arm. Shanks' ability to equal a blow from Whitebeard even after losing one arm is evidence of his skill with a sword. Moreover, he possesses adequate strength to easily dodge Akainu's magma fist with just his sword and Busoshoku Haki.

In battle, Shanks uses the Gryphon sword. It is a huge single-edged sword with a big hand guard. He can wield his sword to attack his enemies while it is covered in a "fiery" aura.

Besides Gryphon, Shanks has used four more swords at different times in the past. He used two different swords while serving as Gol D. Roger's apprentice pirate (one around the time Buggy consumed the Bara Bara no Mi and another during a battle with the Whitebeard Pirates), and another one while visiting Luffy's village. He was seen holding a different blade when he encountered Ace, indicating that he acquired Gryphon after that meeting.

Leadership Skills

His ability to recruit the most bright and capable people from the four seas and Grand Line, both of which were known for having unusually large rewards, into his crew, is one of Shanks' greatest leadership and charismatic qualities. Because of this, Shanks' crew is incredibly well-balanced and impenetrable, able to compete on an equal footing with the powerful military force.

Haki

One of the few people in the entire globe who is proficient in all three forms of Haki is Shanks.

He is incredibly skilled at using Haoshoku Haki, a unique form of Haki that only one in a few million people worldwide can use. He is presumed to be one of the strongest wielders of Haoshoku Haki.

Several of Edward Newgate's troops, many of whom were seasoned soldiers able to withstand the New World, were rendered unconscious when Shanks boarded the Moby Dick, the main ship of Edward Newgate. The heavens split in two as a result of the collision between Shanks and Whitebeard.

Shanks can control his own presence via the advanced Haoshoku Haki method known as "Observation Killing," which also prohibits others from looking into the future.

Besides Haoshoku Haki, Shanks is also a master in using the other two forms of Haki: Busoshoku Haki, and Kenbunshoku Haki.

Infiltration

Shanks is an expert at infiltration and stealth, as seen by his ability to enter Mary Geoise while only wearing a cloak. This is an impressive achievement given that for most pirates, going through Mary Geoise without being invited or enslaved is almost impossible and unimaginable. He also avoided being seen by the several marines and guards that were present.

• Shanks is a well-liked character in both One Piece and other media. A limited edition Woodblock that costs 17,500 Yen is one of these products, along with the Imperial Enterprise Digital Watch and Official Wristwatch, Pepsi Nex Zero figurines, Medicom Toys Be@rbrick Figures, Bandai Figuarts Zero, and others.

• Shanks is the main character of the short story "Red Hair of Class 3-Sea Time," which was written and illustrated by Eiichiro Oda.

Video Games

Shanks is a playable character in many One Piece video games, few of those are:

One Piece Film: Red

Shanks is one of the main characters in the One Piece Film: Red. It is the 15th One Piece film, which debuted on August 6, 2022. The movie was originally teased on November 21, 2021, in honor of the Episode 1000's release.

Q. Did Shanks eat a Devil Fruit?

A. No, Shanks didn’t eat a Devil Fruit.

Q. Whose father is Shanks?

A. Shanks is an adoptive father of Uta.

Q. Who is Shanks’ real brother?

A. Shanks’ lineage is unknown, however, Shanks’ and Buggy’s bond somewhat appear to be like that of brothers.

Q. Who is stronger between Kaido and Shanks?

A. Shanks is easily one of the most powerful people who can battle against Kaido on equal footing.

Q. Why is Shanks so strong?

A. Shanks Haki is known to be one of the most deadly among most Haki users. It is his Haki that makes him one of the strongest individuals on the seas.

Q. Can Luffy ever beat Shanks?

A. As of now, Luffy is extremely powerful to stand against any opponent. However, the same cannot be said if he confronts Shanks even with his current strength.