For over 25 years, Eiichiro Oda’s One Piece has been keeping both manga and anime fans enthralled. Its often zany antics combine with intrigue, emotional and physical trials and, of course, mystery. One of the greatest mysteries of One Piece, apart from the nature of the One Piece treasure itself, has been the ongoing appearance of the D initial in a number of character’s names. From Luffy D Monkey to Gol D Roger, it’s definitely not a coincidence for all these pirates to carry the same mysterious middle initial. Often referred to as the Will of D, it suggests a unique connection between some seemingly unrelated people, and the strangest part is that many of those who carry it don’t actually know what the D means.
Oda assured fans long ago that the D does have significance, noting that it would reveal itself in time. Some information has been made clearer over the years, but there haven’t been a lot of concrete revelations defining the Will of D. With the little information peppered throughout both manga and anime, some conclusions have been drawn, but do they lead fans any closer to answers about the Will of D? First, it’s important to take a look at everything that’s been revealed so far.
What Is the Will of D Meaning and Mystery?
Across the seas of One Piece, there have been a number of characters revealed to have a D in their name. One of the most well-known has been the series’ main protagonist, Luffy D Monkey. Early on, the recurrence of the D in other character names had fans wondering how, if it all, these characters were related
For some, like Luffy, the D has been passed down through the generations, but that doesn’t necessarily seem to be the case for everyone. As the mystery surrounding the Will of D began to unfold across hundreds of episodes, it became obvious that even if these characters didn’t share a family tree, they did have commonality. All were leaders in their own right, with a knack for expressing their deep desire for personal freedom and following one’s dreams.
Gol D Roger and the Roger Pirates knew the deeper meaning of the Will of D, and when asked by Whitebeard what it meant, he agreed to explain. Unfortunately for fans, the flashback scene faded before they could get the answer, too, which seems to be Oda’s way of trying to express the need to discover the answers on their own. This has been a repetitive theme in One Piece, with Luffy especially refusing to simply be given answers to the great mysteries. Where’s the fun and adventure in that?
In Episode 703, Former Celestial Dragon Donquixote Rosinante told Trafalgar Law that he came from the fated D family after discovering he had the initial in his name. In Rosinante’s childhood country, parents were often known to tell misbehaving children that they would be eaten by “D” if they didn’t straighten up. He also noted that the elders were fearful of the “storm” members of the secret D family were known to cause, saying that they were often referred to as the Natural Enemy of God, or rather, Celestial Dragons, which are known to be gods. It was also noted later by Imu that the D were considered enemies of the Great Kingdom during the Void Century, suggesting that they have long been the active opposition against oppression and domination.
