One Piece‘s author Eiichiro Oda finally answered one of the biggest questions that fans had about his record-breaking manga, concerning Zoro and his family that spawned countless theories. Through the SBS (Q&A section) of volume #105 of One Piece, Oda confirmed that Zoro is indeed a descendant of the Samurai of Wano.

In the SBS of volume #105 of One Piece, shared and translated by many online sources, including Artur – Library of Ohara, Eiichiro Oda takes the chance to clarify once and for all Zoro’s ancestry, revealing that he is, indeed, a descendant of the Shimotsuki clan from Wano. Shimotsuki Kouzaburo, a legendary swordsmith who forged Oden’s sword, Enma, left the secluded land of Wano 55 years before the current events in the series, with a group of 25 people.

Eiichiro Oda Confirms That Zoro Is a Descendant Of The Shimotsuki Clan From Wano

Zoro’s Ties With Ryuma and Wano Add Depth and Intrigue to His Character

Among them was Shimotsuki Furiko, the younger sister of Shimotsuki Ushimaru, who would later become the Daimyo of Ringo and die fighting Kaido after his takeover of Wano. After arriving in East Blue, ten people from Kouzaburo group settled there and founded Shimotsuki village. Furiko married a swordsmen from the village called Roronoa Pinzoro. They gave birth to a son, Roronoa Arashi, who married a woman from East Blue and became Zoro’s father.

Fans always suspected that Zoro could have a connection to the land of Samurai, and these suspicions grew even more after Yamato’s flashback revealed the aspect of Shimotsuki Ushimaru, who looks identical to Zoro. Another flashback then revealed that Kouzaburo lived in Zoro’s village and gave him his first swords, unleashing all sorts of theories and speculations.

However, Oda said that, while there was definitively a story about Zoro’s past, he was probably not going to address it in the manga. In fact, despite being one of the best arcs in One Piece, Wano left fans disappointed for not addressing the mystery of Zoro’s connection with Ushimaru and his ancestor, the legendary samurai Ryuma, known as “the god of the blade”.

Zoro actually met Ryuma, or rather his corpse, in Thriller Bark, where he had been reanimated by Gecko Moria’s powers to serve as one of his zombie generals. After being defeated by Zoro, Ryuma gave him his sword, Shisui, which the Straw Hat dutifully returned to Ryuma’s grave in Wano.

This revelation of Zoro’s family tree makes the character even more interesting. Zoro is not only the great-nephew of Ushimaru, one of the last Daimyo of Wano, and a direct descendant of the legendary Ryuma, but he is also a distant relative of Kuina, his childhood friend whose tragic death inspired him to become the strongest swordsman in the world.

The Importance Of Zoro’s Family Legacy Throughout One Piece

Zoro Comes From A Long Line of Honorable Samurai

The world of One Piece is vast and filled with many characters who never leave the island they were born on. This was not the case for the Shimotsuki family, who once held positions of respect in the Land of the Samurai known as Wano. Still, with Zoro’s family tree included in the manga’s SBS section, it’s a sign that author Eiichiro Oda has resigned to not further explore the family whose sword skills have saved many lives and even liberated a country or two over the decades.

Although the series has not made Zoro’s ancestors the main focus of any of the series’ dozens of arcs, the little fans have seen of the family paints the Shimotsuki clan as individuals with great pride, skills, and a tough exterior that hides a soft heart. Zoro has slashed his way into the role of being many people’s favorite One Piece character since his debut many years ago. However, episode #1048 took much less time to show how incredible his granduncle, Shimotsuki Ushimaru, was in a time of great strife.

Within one episode of One Piece, Ushimaru’s personality and skills are proven in a flashback that shows him imprisoned with Yamato and two of his retainers in Wano. He demonstrated extreme kindness to the child of his sworn enemy, Kaido, and the strength to break through his confinement, even though he was on the brink of starvation. His deeds helped inspire Yamato to become the warrior they needed to be to help liberate Wano. Ushimaru provided yet another strong example of the nobility of Zoro’s family, but he is only one of the many who’ve made the family legacy proud.

Zoro’s Heritage Extends Far Beyond One Piece

Ryuma’s Story in Monsters has Become Canon to One Piece

Ushimaru’s imprisonment was a peak into the honorable Shimotsuki clan that Roronoa Zoro spawned from, but that moment took place twenty years before Kaido’s defeat. He was not the first member of the Shimotsuki clan that One Piece introduced with that honor going to the living corpse of Shimotsuki Ryuma during the Thriller Bark arc. However, the anime adaptation of one of Eiichiro Oda’s earliest stories called Monsters is a One Piece prequel that, with a slice of brilliance, gave viewers yet another prime example of the incredible legacy of Zoro’s heritage.

Before One Piece was published, Monsters told the story of Shimotsuki Ryuma, a wandering swordsman with features similar to Zoro. Hundreds of years before Luffy and Zoro’s adventures began, Ryuma liberated and defended cities in Wano. One of his most impressive feats saw him cleave a giant dragon in two, which was only one of the reasons he earned the title of God of the Blade, a legendary title that’s lasted the test of time. And Zoro will unlikely ever discover that Ryuma’s blood flows in his veins.

Zoro’s Ancestry Shows That Destiny Is A Powerful Force In One Piece

It is understandable that Eiichiro Oda decided to leave Zoro’s family backstory out of the manga. One Piece is currently in its final saga, and there is already a huge number of plot threads, mysteries to unravel, and characters taking part in the action. Considering Zoro’s personality, and the fact that his parents died when he was young, he must be completely unaware of his heritage.

However, destiny is a powerful force in One Piece, and thus Zoro got the chance to meet his legendary ancestor and also free his country of origin from Kaido’s tyranny, fulfilling his duty as a descendant of the Shimotsuki clan.

Will Zoro’s Origins Ever Be Revealed in the Anime?

One Piece May Not Have the Opportunity to Fit in Zoro’s Backstory

Considering that Zoro’s origins and family history were left out of the manga and only revealed in the SBS section, it is unlikely that fans of the anime will ever see them animated. The Wano Arc has long ended and with it has any chance of organically exploring Zoro’s familial ties to Wano which is disappointing since many expected Zoro to play a central role in the Wano Arc just like Sanji did at Whole Cake Island.

One Piece‘s anime is already deep into the Egghead Arc and it most likely won’t be possible to squeeze Zoro’s backstory into the mix at this point, as it would not make sense to revisit Wano so soon, especially amidst the current chaos on Egghead. The Egghead Arc is jam-packed with many exciting events and revelations in store and the story may not have room to flesh out Zoro’s character even in the upcoming arcs.

One Piece still has many cover stories to adapt like Enel’s Great Space Mission and Ogre Child Yamato’s Golden Harvest Surrogate Pilgrimage, which might take precedence over revealing Zoro’s family tree. More importantly, while the SBS section has previously revealed golden bits of information about many characters, this information has almost never made it into the anime which means Zoro’s connection to Wano may never make it into the anime as well.