In the arc of Elbaf a pieceOda introduced Holy Knights properly for the first time. Among the first to make their entrance were the Holy Knights Shamrock and Gunko. While Shamrock is not relevant in this arc, Gunko is central to it and serves as the primary antagonist controlled by Imu. Gunko also has deep ties to Brooke, as they were once part of the same kingdom. Most fans consider Gunko to be a new creation by Eiichiro Oda, but a new look at the author's draft indicates that Gunko was actually introduced by the creator 19 years ago. a piece. Gunko was always planned to have a deeper relationship with Brooke, once again showcasing the author's genius.
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Analyzing a draft of the Ode to Holy Night from the thriller Bark
Often, different a piece The magazines provide a look at Oda's early drafts for the various arcs and the characters that come with them. One such magazine that was released a long time ago revealed drafts for the story's thriller Bark Arc. In 2007, Oda had already drafted preliminary sketches for Brooke and all the other zombie characters appearing in the thriller Bark. Among them was a woman with long hair and a bandage over one eye. This bandaged woman also wore a cape, and her overall appearance was suspiciously similar to Gunko's. He was also filmed next to Dead Bones Brook. Putting two and two together, it's clear that this woman became the prototype for what fans know today as Gunko of the Holy Nights.
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The real significance of Gunko's character before the timeskip
It's possible that Oda intended for this woman to be included in the Thriller Bark arc in some major way, but chose not to due to plot reasons. Before the timeskip, Gunko had no significance in the story, but Oda clearly established Brooke's relationship to the magazine through his early drafts.
At the same time, Brook reveals that he was the leader of the battle convoy a long time ago, suggesting that Oda had already planned a story around him and Princess Shuri. While most of the information was kept under wraps, at the time, it made Forest Pieces as exciting as ever, as the pair reunited after nineteen years.
How does Princess Shuri connect with Brooke's story arc?
As revealed in the Elbaf arc of One Piece, Princess Shuri has a very important relationship with Brooke, as the latter practically raised her by herself. Brook was the leader of a certain kingdom's battle convoy in West Blue and served under Princess Shuri's father, going so far as to call him his benefactor. When the king had a child, Princess Shuri, Brooke was the one who sang and raised her. However, at one point the princess lost all control and even went so far as to kill her own father.
Apparently, Brooke never forgave her for this, but she is unaware of Emu's influence on her. Apparently, she was being controlled by Emu, either through mind control or Domi Reversi. The Holy Knights presumably went on to destroy the kingdom, forcing Brooke to become a pirate.
One Piece Chapter 1178 sets up a major defeat for the Stra Hats in Elbaf
Elbaf would mark a major defeat for the Straw Hat Pirates who had never been in One Piece before.
Gauging the future importance of emu vessels
Princess Shuri is going to be incredibly important in this overarching story of The Last Saga. Considering Shuri has always been around Emu, their importance is only going to increase from here, especially since Elbaf will take this character out from under Emu. Princess Shuri stands out as the main villain of the Elbaf arc due to Emu's mind control, but by the end of it, it is very likely that Luffy and Loki will succeed in cleaning Emu out of her body. This would free Princess Shuri from Emu's control and also make her a potential Straw Hat candidate.
From there, Emu will lose an important ally and turn his eyes to Vivi. More than that, Gunko could then become a part of the Straw Hat Pirates or, at the very least, become an ally of the group and lead an attack against the World Government, especially knowing all the secret details about Emu's empire, making him a valuable asset.
One Piece Chapter 1178 will be available to read on Manga Plus on March 29, 2026.
a piece
- Release date
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October 20, 1999
- network
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Fuji TV
- directors
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Hiroaki Miyamoto, Konosuke Uda, Junji Shimizu, Satoshi Ito, Munehisa Sakai, Katsumi Tokoro, Yutaka Nakajima, Yoshihiro Ueda, Kenichi Takeshita, Yoko Ikeda, Ryota Nakamura, Hiroyuki Kakudou, Takahiro Noimauji, Tokahiro, Enoji Maudo Shishido, Hidehiko Kadota, Sumio Watanabe, Harume Kosaka, Yasuhiro Tanabe, Yukihiko Nakao, Keisuke Onishi, Junichi Fujise, Hiroyuki Satou
- The authors
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Jin Tanaka, Akiko Inoue, Junki Takegami, Shinzo Fujita, Shouji Yonemura, Yoshiyuki Suga, Atsuhiro Tomioka, Hirohiko Usaka, Michiru Shimada, Isao Murayama, Takuya Masumoto, Yoichi Takahashi, Momoka Toyoda
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Mayumi Tanaka
Monkey d. Luffy (voice)
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Kazuya Nakai
Roronoa Zoro (voice)