Video version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gH9C1_wZaw0

Cloudy Clover

Before we talk about the chapter, I want to mention a couple things from last week that I didn’t get the chance to mention. For starters, we get to see Punk Hazard 26 years ago, right before Roger found the One Piece, and you may notice that the laboratory actually closely matches the exact same way that it would look like later on. The only difference is that this was at a time when the island was still verdant. Clover and Vegapunk meet at the front gate the Straw Hats reach, where we get a cameo by Vegapunk’s artificial dragon, though it isn’t clear if this is a younger Dragon Number 13 or the smaller prototype he developed later.

However we also have another cameo by this horned creature peeking over the gate, being one of the Numbers, the artificially created ancient giants that were attempted to be developed on Punk Hazard, which were later abandoned during the incident on the island and later “rescued” by Caesar and sold to Kaidou. The particular shape of this one seems similar to that of Haccha, but it could also be the same member of the Numbers that we saw died in Punk Hazard and Luffy and his crew found the remains of his skull. The Numbers are actually the reason why there is an oni-like symbol in front of the gate of Punk Hazard just like we see in this chapter. Also, if you look at Clover’s shirt, you can see he has a three leaf clover on it, just like his hair.

Clover however drops a massive bombshell by revealing that he too is a member of the D. clan, being “Clou D. Clover”. Now in Japanese, his name is simply spelled as “kurau”. In the official English translation, this is translated as Clou D. Clover, which may be a pun meant to be read as “Cloudy Clover”, much like Gol D. Roger’s name. However, other translations have also alternatively translated it as “Klau”, “Claw”, or any sound inbetween that could fit “kurau” in Japanese, even “Crow”, an animal among other D. clan members like the Monkey family or Jaguar family. However, some scans went for a more extreme translation, being Claíomh. This is an Irish term referring to a sword of light from Irish mythology, which when spelled in Japanese katakana could be technically read as Claíomh, though the spelling is more unusual. It does feel like a bit more of a stretch, but it is still possible and we can’t say for sure until we get an official romanization.

There is an interesting connection here though, and that is the fact that the capital of Zou is called “Kurau City”. See, this isn’t a very known fact, but Zou is subdivided into a total of 8 regions, depending on each of its body parts. On the sides, respective to each part, there are the regions of Uganda, Ubara, and Ushiri, and on the left, the regions of Saganda, Sahara, and Sajiri. North is the Whale Tree, while at the center is Kurau City, the capital. It’s generally assumed Kurau here translates to “Claw”, since many Minks have claws, but I wonder if there is some connection with the Kurau family of the D. clan. Particularly as there already is a connection between the D. family of the ancient kingdom and the mink tribe, so was perhaps the city named after them?

Still, Clover being a member of the D. clan makes perfect sense, as we’ve seen how members of the D. clan help move the world slowly towards its Dawn. Pretty much the only reason why Jaguar D. Saul was a D. clan member is because he was instrumental in helping save Robin, something even he considered fate. And in this case, it makes sense that Clover’s research also helped instruct Robin, which would lead to her eventually helping Luffy one day find the One Piece. As Rosinante said, the clan of D. are closely tied with fate, so one can only wonder how much of this is a coincidence.

This makes Clover the 15th currently named D. clan member in the series. The whole list includes Monkey D. Garp, Dragon, and Luffy, Gol D. Roger, Portgas D. Rouge and Ace, Nefeterari D. Lily, Cobra, and Vivi, Trafalgar D. Water Law and Lami, Clou D. Clover, Jaguar D. Saul, Marshall D. Teach, and Rocks D. Xebec.

Still, hearing of Clover’s brother being persecuted helps explain a few things, such as why Law was told by his family to keep his initial hidden, and simply go by “Trafalgar Law”. Most of the characters who we know had their names public are pirates who didn’t care, and even then the Government tried censoring their names in cases like that of Roger. The only exceptions to this are Marines like Garp or Saul, but I suppose the Government saw them as too much of an asset to really execute them. It’s even been stated the Celestial Dragons really want Garp gone but find it too difficult due to his influence, and Saul was a giant as well, a powerful asset for the Marines.

More easter eggs:

As Caesar informs of Robin’s survival, he looks at her bounty poster. This bounty poster has a distinct feature, and it’s the fact it’s one of the few in the series to not have “DEAD OR ALIVE” on it. This is something present on her original poster and it’s believed to be a limitation on Shonen Jump due to the use of those words regarding child characters.

In a couple other reactions, we see Zeff alongside Patty in the Baratie, as well as the bridge of Tequila Wolf, which appears to have been sadly retaken by the slavers. The slaver whipping the slaves in this panel is also the exact same that had captured Robin back when she first arrived at Tequila Wolf, which may be fitting as she appears in the next panel right next to his whip.

Atlas reaches the Sunny and punches Lilith to the ground, knocking her out. This is to disable her connection to Punk Records, to convince York and the Elders that Lilith is out of action. It’s fitting that Atlas’s last action would be one of pure violence, given her role as the violent Punk. And with that, she is gone, leaving Lilith as the only one of the Punks left. It’s fitting that the arc started with her as the first and only Punk to be introduced, and right now she really is the only Vegapunk left.

Luffy gets to briefly speak with Emet, but the giants are surprised as they didn’t hear him speak. This confirms what we had assumed, that Emet is speaking to Luffy through the Voice of All Things, and as such he is the only one who can hear him. This further drives the parallel between Emet with Zunesha and the Sea Kings.

In the final panel of the chapter, we get a brief cameo from prisoners in Impel Down, and among them we see two named characters, Jean Goen and An Zengaiina. The first asked Luffy to break him out, while the latter was offered to break out but was too scared by the Sphinx. As such, their names translate into puns, being “It must be fate” and “I’d rather be safe”.

Moving on to the current chapter, we get a shot of Loguetown, where several citizens, as well as pirates wishing to enter the Grand Line, are all gathered. The screen itself is actually being held against Roger’s execution platform. Among the onlookers, there are some with marks on their outfits, such as one with a sunflower and another with an eye similar to Who’s-Who’s, as well as someone with “kanarazu” written on their outfit, which translates into “will definitely come”, in this case meant to be a reference to Vegapunk’s own speech, as he states “kanarazu kuru”, or “will definitely come” in this very panel.

Then following Shirahoshi and Vivi, we get to see Skypiea, particularly at Gan Fall’s residence where he rules over as God of the Skypiea Godland. Here we see Conis and Aisa, accompanied by the giant snake Nola, coming to see the God’s guards, which as we saw from a cover story are Wyper, Kamakiri, Braham, and Genbo. Conis can be seen carrying a container in the shape of a pumpkin, likely to be from the pumpkin café that she recently opened alongside Raki.

Then we see Iceburg at Water 7, accompanied by his secretary Alice, as well as Tilestone and Peepley Lulu. Peepley Lulu fittingly has his mustache sticking out as usual. And as Vegapunk comments on believing in science, we get to see Caesar and Judge arguing again, and Haredas and his colleagues from Weatheria.

Bonney and Saturn:

Bonney then joins Luffy into transforming into Nika once again to deliver a finishing punch to Saturn and knock him off the ship. In her speech, she fittingly mentions that “real gods do exist, as do real superheroes”, which of course refers to Nika, but in this case is also referring to her parents, which once again reinforces the idea that anyone can become a superhero, you don’t need to be the chosen Nika to really be free and liberate others. This is culminated by a distorted future memory Bonney gets where Kuma and Ginny exclaim “Thank you for being born, Bonney”, which is the exact same words that Kuma’s parents told him when he was born, and also the same words that Bonney twisted when she felt at her lowest, exclaiming regret for being born. Now that she finally has found emotional closure to her character arc, she finally once again feels gratitude from her parents for being born.

Also fittingly, the punches that Saturn receives seem to form a shape similar to that of a sun, or particularly the symbol of the ancient kingdom, a giant circle in the middle surrounded by smaller circles. However, as Saturn is punched off the ship, he appears to fall into the sea. This once again brings up the question on if the Gorosei can survive underwater, which may finally lead us to us getting the answer to this mystery really soon.

Vegapunk’s message yet continues, as he states:

The voices of the past will be heard.
There was someone who once told me those words.
History is passed down by the winners…
And the voices of the losers that have sunk under the sea are incredibly faint.
However, the truth that was gleaned at the cost of so much sacrifice
Has now been finally told to the world.
It may be foolish to only listen to tales of a 900 year old conflict from only one side.
As history needs to be observed from multiple angles.
I wish I would’ve had more time…!!
However!! At this point… there are those that cannot be stopped.
25 years ago, the pirate Gol D. Roger finally completed the unprecedented circumnavigation of the world.
And when they did, he and his crew must have heard the voices of the past in a far more undiluted form.
…In other words, I’m sure you are all starting to realize what I mean.
My conclusion of what will happen in the future is as follows…!!!

In this case, Vegapunk speaks of Roger again, using the term “There are those that cannot be stopped” which is incredibly similar in wording to Roger’s own words during his execution, as seen during Chapter 100. However, he specifies here that Roger and the others must have heard the truth of the world in his final expedition, revealing to the world not only that Roger was a member of the D. clan, but also that the One Piece may hold the truth to the secrets of the world.

Concluding the seemingly final portion of Vegapunk’s message, he says:

The day when the truth of the Void Century is awakened… will definitely come!!!
The truth is that the “weapons” that caused the manmade disaster which resulted in the sinking of the continents across the world, are still in use to this very day!!!
There are descendants of rare races whose extinction has been relentlessly pursued for historical reasons.

In this case, we get to see three unique races, being the Buccaneers through Kuma, the Lunaria through King, and the three-eyed race through Pudding, even though she’s just half. Though other races allied with Joyboy exist, such as the Fishmen or Mink, these three are the races that have been almost completely exterminated. We already knew the Buccaneers and Lunaria had connections to Joyboy, though this confirms so did the three-eyed race, which isn’t really a surprise given how they can hear the voices of the poneglyphs and awaken to the voice of all things.

In the case of King, who is still alive, though we don’t know if he’s been arrested by Ryokugyu, we get extra context from Marco, who is listening in from Sphinx Island alongside the little girl from Chapter 909, Oide. The den den mushi also has a mustache just like Whitebeard’s. Marco recalls what Whitebeard told him that atop the Red Line there once was in ancient times a “God Country” before Mary Geoise. Specifically, the term is “Kami no Kuni”, which is the exact same description used for the Skypiea Godland, “kami no kuni” in Japanese as well, making this God Country more accurately a “Godland”, or in other words a God-lead country similar in political organization to Skypiea, being a settlement of angels, what we know in this case to be the Lunaria. This further deepens the mystery as to what this country was doing there and why Emet wanted to return to it.

Should it come to it, I wish you can all come together to protect yourselves…!!
No matter what happens…!! I believe in human wisdom!! I believe in science!!!
It’s been 25 years since Roger died!!
It’s been 2 years since Whitebeard died!!
The downfall of living legends has always marked the dawn of a new era!!

In this case, Vegapunk is referring to how the end of a legend has always marked a new era, which reinforces the title of the chapter. Its title is “Jidai no Uneri”. This is a Japanese expression which translates to “the swell of eras”, in this case swell referring to the movement of a large wave. The meaning of this expression is that the movement of time is the same as the movement of the waves, or in other words that change is unavoidable with the passing of time. Either you adapt to the change and you ride the wave, or you refuse to move and you sink beneath it.

This line is particularly relevant in One Piece as it’s been used several time across the series, but mainly, it is citing Gol D. Roger’s iconic speech in Chapter 100. Roger mentioned that the things that cannot be stopped are “uketsugareru ishi, jidai no uneri, hito no yume”, or “inherited will”, “the swell of eras”, and “people’s dreams”. Inherited will itself is a very important concept in One Piece and even people’s dreams are the same words that Blackbeard said, that dreams never end, just like Roger said that they cannot be stopped. And the same goes for jidai no uneri, the swell of eras, showing how eras come and go and you must adapt to the change that comes with them. It’s particularly ironic considering how a wave of the distant past caused the world to sink beneath it, but who will be the one riding this current wave?

Roger’s death marked the end of Roger’s Era and marked the start of the Great Pirate Era, which some also called the Era of Whitebeard, whereas Whitebeard’s death closed his own Era to start the current era, what is known as the “Worst Era”, referring to the Worst Generation. However, Vegapunk is making a mistake here, as Roger did not die 25 years ago. He found the One Piece and became Pirate King 25 years ago, but his execution and beginning of a new era was 24 years ago. And no, a year hasn’t passed yet, according to the calendar we are still in April of 1524, so Vegapunk here just made a quick lapsus. Happens even to the biggest geniuses.

“Right now!! Those who cannot be stopped no matter what…!!!”
“They are those who are, strangely enough, the closest to the truth!!!”
“Or perhaps it may be, that Roger planned this all along.”
“It is possible that whoever finds “it” may not be who Joyboy desired!!!”
“…There is no more stopping it…”
“…The fate of the world rests in the hands of whoever gets their hands on it…!!”
“The treasure that connects all… the One Piece!!!”

In this case Vegapunk refers to the One Piece by its full title with kanji reading, being, “hitotsunagi no daihiho”, or the “great hidden treasure that connects all as one”. I’ve already talked about this in depth before, but essentially the kanji reading implies the One Piece is something that connects others together. In the final pages leading into the final spread though, we get the faces of all the major players who are participating in this race for the One Piece. Of course, as we predicted, at its core are the four Emperors, Shanks, Luffy, Blackbeard, and Buggy, being divided on both sides of the page between the more morally just side and the more morally selfish side. Beneath them though, we get the other major players, including Sakazuki, Dragon, King Imu, Koby, Kuzan, Sabo, and Figarland Garling, which is an odd pick all things considered, hinting at a greater relevance in the story when leading the God Knights. But perhaps his pick here may be intentional to differentiate him from the other shadowed figure, someone who we can’t quite tell who they are, but carries a vital hint that may help us understand their identity.

The Mysterious Man:

That is particularly their blade. Because having catalogued all 56+ named blades in One Piece, this one bears a striking resemblance to Gryphon, the blade of Shanks. Gryphon is known for its distinctive crossguard, which is particularly relevant as Figarland Garling possesses a blade of similar design, with a crossguard that is quite similar to that of Gryphon. This makes sense, as we know Garling is part of the same clan Shanks pertains to, the Figarland family of Celestial Dragons, only case being that Shanks was accidentally taken and adopted by Gol D. Roger at God Valley. Point being, this mysterious figure has a blade that bears the same crossguard as Shanks’s. Which means there’s a high likelyhood that they may have some connection or are part of the Figarland Clan. But thing is, Oda made sure with this spread to indicate that this isn’t Shanks, but it isn’t Garling either, meaning if this is a Figarland member, it must be a third character we do not yet know of, hence the shading, indicating it’s likely someone whose face we haven’t seen yet.

But if we’re thinking of another relative of Shanks, then there’s a lot of options that could open up, but there is one particular popular theory that comes up. You see, in Chapter 1083, Dragon illustrates an image of the God Knights, and central among them is a silhouette that vaguely resembles Shanks, but more importantly the silhouette of the blade matches that of Gryphon quite well too. This led to a popular theory that perhaps Shanks does have a relative within the God Knights, perhaps even a twin. The belief that Garling had more than one child, but while Shanks was taken by Roger, there is another Shanks-like twin who was instead raised to be an elite member of the God Knights.

In fact, some people even went as far as to speculate that the man who showed up in Chapter 907, interacting with the Gorosei at the Reverie, is actually not Shanks, but this supposed other Figarland. You may argue that is absurd, but at no point in that scene is this character ever referred to as “Shanks”, nor are they referred to as a pirate. They just say that someone of his standing should not be involved in politics, and if he was a knight, it would make sense that a knight wouldn’t need to be involved in politics. Furthermore, at no point in this scene do we get to see Shanks’s iconic scar, or any of his clothing or defining traits aside from the face and hair, so there is a possibility this could be that twin brother. Personally I still think this is probably Shanks, but even if this connection is all just a coincidence, the possible existence of other Figarlands aside from Shanks and Garling is totally possible, and Shanks having a relative in the God Knights is still very much a possible reality, and even a likely outcome given the similarity of the sword of this silhouette to that of the other Figarlands. Particularly as when asked in a 2019 interview about the possibility of there being two Shanks, which was a theory that already had some steam in the Japanese community. Oda… refused to answer, proving there are yet more mysteries to One Piece that are yet to be unearthed.

Roger’s speech marked the start of the series, Whitebeard’s speech marked the start of the second half, and Vegapunk’s speech marks the beginning… of the end.