Vander Decken IX in One Piece

Past

When Vander Decken IX became the captain of the Flying Dutchman, he formed a crew that had Wadatsumi and Ankoro. Together they hunted down coated ships that tried to enter Fishman Island and used them to steal their treasure. Arlong even offered Vander Decken IX a place in his crew but he declined as he did not like working under anyone.

When there was an uproar with the World Noble, Vander Decken IX saw Princess Shirahoshi's ability to call upon the Sea Kings. He was fascinated to see a mermaid with this power as it was his ancestor’s dream and said that he had succeeded in accomplishing their dream. As Shirahoshi was just a child at that time, Vander Decken IX thought of using the Tamatebako to turn Shirahoshi into a woman.

However, the problem was that the Tamatebako was in the royal palace and the only way he could obtain it was to marry Shirahoshi. As Vander Decken IX did not have a problem with big women and he decided to give her time. So much so, that after a while, he started writing wedding invitations to her even though he had not proposed to her.

During Queen Otohims’s assassination, he managed to ‘mark’ Shirahoshi with his Devil Fruit ability and started to send her letters to which Shirahoshi never replied. Vander Decken IX kept on writing the letter, then switched to sending packages, and then eventually started to give threatening marriage proposals. The threats that he sent scared Shirahoshi and made King Neptune very angry. To respond to his threats he sent an army towards him and Vander Decken IX became a wanted man on Fishman Island. With the help of his Devil Fruit ability, he was able to still be a stalker and Neptune’s army couldn't find him.

Fishman Island Arc

During the Fishman Island Arc, Decken was getting frustrated that he hadn’t received a reply from Shirahoshi for almost ten years. He then said that either Shirahoshi marries him or she dies. Vander Decken IX met Hody Jones and they formed an alliance with the New Fishman Pirates to destroy the Ryugu Kingdom together. Hody, Vander Decken IX, and their entire crew then set out to Fishman Island to raid the Royal Palace.

Decken threw a fit when he got to know that Shirahosi wasn't in the palace. Neptune tried to create an escape route and everyone swam out of the palace but their escape was stopped by the New Fishman Pirates and they were captured. Later when Decken saw Shirahoshi he proposed to her but she rejected him.

This angered Decken and he prepared to murder Shirahoshi but Luffy intervened and pummeled him to the ground. Vander Decken IX managed to launch the Noah but Shirahoshi went behind it and said that she would give up her life to save the island. This impressed Vander Decken IX and she threw a knife at her which hit her shoulder, he said that he’ll let her live if she agrees to marry him and threw more knives at her but her brother blocked her attacks.

Vander Decken IX was then betrayed by Hody and when questioned about it, Hody said that Vander Decken IX had betrayed him first but in reality he wanted to use Vander Decken IX’s idea to destroy Fishman Island with Noah. Vander Decken IX survived but he hit his head and passed out. After Noah was stopped and everyone was saved, Hody and Decken were arrested.

Vander Decken IX has a superiority complex and does not like to work under anyone but is willing to form partnerships or alliances with anyone who has a similar goal as him. He can be poetic at times and is seen reciting poems or haikus to Shirahoshi.

He is obsessed with Shirahoshi and this obsession makes him act without thinking, so much so that he is willing to go to extreme lengths to get her. Decken IX is never seen showing sympathy for anyone and believes that violence is the answer for everything.

Just like any pirate he really loves treasures and is always seen looting ships entering Fishman Island. He is seen overreacting to situations and can be really persistent as we can see the number of times he has tried to pursue Shirahoshi but got rejected.

Vander Decken IX is a tall person with beige-colored skin and he has a slim built with lanky limbs and four legs which is his most distinguished feature. He also has a goatee and a long, wavy mustache with spiky edges. He had long, spiky, wavy hair, sharp teeth and webs between his fingers, a tiny, pointy nose, and a hunch that makes his head on equal level with his shoulders.

He wears three golden bands on each of his ankles and sandals. He wears a green overall which reaches just below his knees with ruffed edges and buttons on both the straps a light green shirt with ruffed edges a yellow cape which also has ruffed edges and a beaded necklace.

He is seen wearing a red fedora with a purple band and in order to maintain the lock’s power on Shirahoshi he wears a red glove on his right hand. When he was young, Vander Decken IX wore a horizontal-striped shirt under light overalls with a gun strapped to his hip. He also had cat-like whiskers and his hair was short and straight and rounded like dreadlocks.

Vander Decken IX has a physical strength that is ten times more than an average human which allows him to carry and throw a battle axe that is bigger than him and he can break things with just a single kick. He has a great deal of endurance and recovers in a moment of time and can be seen recovering from Hody’s stab wound.

He does have his limits too and this can be seen after he passed out by just hitting his head on a step after slipping.

Devil Fruit

Vander Decken IX ate the Mato Mato no Mi which is a Paramecia-type devil fruit. This devil allows him to mark someone as his target by touching them with his bare hand, when he throws a weapon from that same hand it will ‘lock on’ to the target and chase it until the target is hit or it is stopped by an obstacle.

The object that is thrown need not be a weapon but it can be any type of object which include human beings. He does not need to necessarily throw the object to hit its target but he just needs to touch it with the hand he marked the target.

If Vander Decken IX dies or falls unconscious his abilities are nullified. He uses his ability to locate his enemies. As a Devil Fruit user, he is powerless in the sea and requires a flutter kick coating. He is able to survive underwater even if he can move.

Weapons

Vander Decken IX has a lot of weapons. He has a large battle ax with a rose design on the sides, knives, double-bladed knives, and single-edged knives. He also has swords and maces, as well as knives in the front of his sandals.

Crew

Vander Decken IX has a loyal crew. Wadatsumi is extremely obedient and complies with all of Decken's instructions. They are also aware of the Decken family's goals to acquire the legendary mermaid, who is said to have the ability to talk with Sea Kings. Decken has a casual with his crew, in contrast to most pirate captains who rule over their crews. However, Decken can abandon his crew when needed as Wadatsumi falls from the ship as Noah hits the bubble and Decken dismisses his cries for help by referring to him as a sacrifice.

Shirahoshi

Vander Decken IX gets drawn to the Mermaid Princess and has even sent letters, and gifts and threatened to propose marriage to her. Shirahoshi's skill in communicating with Sea Kings, a quality possessed by the legendary Mermaid Princess that the Decken family has been searching for centuries, convinced him that he must marry her. He believes the Princess is in love with him and is somewhat obsessed with convincing her to marry him.

He has even gone so far as to declare that she must marry him in order to live. When Decken eventually proposes to Shirahoshi in person, the Mermaid Princess respectfully rejects him by explaining that he is not her type. After the rejection, Vander Decken IX decides to forget about his marriage and decides to kill Shirahoshi instead.

Ryugu Kingdom

Vander Decken IX had a hate for the king since he felt Neptune was withholding Shirahoshi from him to utilize her marriage for political reasons. King Neptune thought that Vander Decken IX was a threat to Shirahoshi, whom he sees as his treasure. The king had his sons form an army to find Decken. To travel to Shirahoshi, Decken formed an alliance with Hody in his mission to defeat Neptune.

Monkey D. Luffy

As Luffy got in the way of Vander Decken IX and Shirashoshi, Decken sees him as his enemy. By putting himself in Decken's way of Shirahoshi, Luffy has earned his enmity. Decken attempted to kill Shirahoshi after she rejected him, but Luffy stopped him by slamming him to the ground. After that, Luffy continued to divert Decken's weapons away from the Mermaid Princess.

Hody Jones

Vander Decken IX and Hody Jones joined forces under the idea that they are equals and not a leader and a follower. However, Decken only used this alliance to get closer to Shirahoshi and has no interest in the objectives of the New Fish-Man Pirates. He wants to destroy Fish-Man Island as retaliation for Shirahoshi's rejection, which contradicts Hody's ambition to become king.

Hody used Decken in the hopes of eliminating Shirahoshi. Hody considers Decken to be useless. The alliance is terminated and Hody turned against Decken once he realizes that Decken is trying to destroy Fish-Man Island and everyone on it. Therefore, when Hody reaches Noah, he stabs Decken in revenge, while expecting to utilize the crisis Decken began to his advantage of killing every human-accepting inhabitant of Fish-Man Island. In response, Decken vowed to get rid of Hody no matter what in revenge for that attack.

Jinbe

Despite their lack of direct interaction, Jinbe is aware of Vander Decken IX’s obsession with Shirahoshi and his eating the Mato Mato no Mi. He helps Luffy by beating his subordinate Wadatsumi to take on Decken on Noah.

Vander Decken IX vs. Monkey D. Luffy

Vander Decken IX vs. Hody Jones

Vander Decken IX is not only an anime character but is also a video game character

Video Games

• One Piece: Gigant Battle! 2 New World

• One Py Berry Match

• One Piece: Great Pirate Colosseum