The final saga ofOne Piecehas been throwingquite a lot of focus on the Marines, which has been lacking for the past few years. Some of the most intriguing characters in the Marines that the fans know are the likes of the Admirals, however, one character that is particularly close to the hearts of the fans is Monkey D. Garp, the grandfather of Luffy and the father of Dragon the Revolutionary.
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Garp is an incredibly important character inOne Pieceandin the Final Saga, he’s playing a major role already. While Garp is known more for his immense strength, it is his character writing that is getting more attention right now. Currently in the manga, Garp’s relationship with his former student, Kuzan is being explored and that certainly has fans on the edge of their seats.
Kuzan’s Favor To Garp
Kuzan is a former Admiral of the Marines who was actually the very first Admiral to be introduced in the series. On Long Ring Long Land Island, Kuzan made his debut when he fought againstthe Straw Hat Pirates.His aim at the time was to check on Nico Robin and, later on, he decided to fight the crew and eradicate them. His main goal on the island was to eradicate Nico Robin, however, Luffy tricked him into fighting him one-on-one and after he defeated Luffy, going for Nico Robin would have been a cheap shot which is why Kuzan spared her, however, he also ended up sparing Luffy because of a very big debt he owed his grandfather.
At the time, it was not explained to the fans what exactly this debt was, however, Kuzan made sure to say it time and again that he owes Garp quite a lot and respects him greatly. Sadly, fans did not get to see much of this plotpoint being explored until much later in the story, during the Paramount War saga. WhenOne Piece Strong Worldwas about to come out, fans got a spin-off chapter by Oda which was focused primarily on the Golden Lion, Shiki. This side chapter was also turned into an anime special calledOne Piece episode 0.
In this episode, fans were able to see Kuzan with Garp and, through that, they received a bit more context on the relationship that these two shared. At the time, Kuzan was a Vice Admiral of the Navy, just like Garp, and he was completely enamored by the presence of this legend. Kuzan followed Garp everywhere and believe that he was the coolest guy to ever live, such was his dedication to him. Certainly,One Piece episode 0elevated the relationship that these two characters shared a bit more, however, there was quite a lot left unexplored and, thankfully, that is precisely whereOne Piece’sfinal saga comes into play. Finally, fans have a detailed flashback of Kuzan and Garp and now, Oda has answered the question of why the former Navy Admiral looks up to Garp so much.
The Garp And Kuzan Flashback
One Piecechapter 1087 gave fans a glimpse intothe past of Garp as well as Kuzan.When Garp stepped on the Pirate Island, inside him stirred quite a lot of emotions. This is because he was up against his former apprentice, Kuzan. Garp’s life is full of tragedies and losing his beloved students and even family members who he always wanted to put on the right path is certainly the biggest of them all. This started with his own son, Dragon, who ended up becoming a Revolutionary instead of a Marine. Meanwhile, his grandson ended up becoming a famous pirate and has his neck on the line every time he sets sail. His other grandson, Ace, ended up dying in front of him, which he could do absolutely nothing about since he was a Marine man who held his own moral values at heart.
Now, Kuzan had turned against him as well and, given the fact that he was his very first apprentice, this hit Garp deep. As Kuzan put it, he has a habit of raising enemies and that is precisely what Garp has had to endure his entire life. That is also why Garp places such a high value on Koby, because he is his last apprentice and he absolutely does not want to mess this one up.
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When Garp came to the Pirate Island, his first reaction upon seeing Kuzan was to tell him to put on his Marine coat and return to duty. However, he soon realized that Kuzan’s conviction was quite solid and that he was actually a part of the Blackbeard Pirates, which meant there was no turning back for him. Even though Garp fought him, he still referred to him as his bone-headed apprentice, meaning that Garp still had the same love for him at heart. The reason for this love was explained to fans in a flashback that took place long ago.
Garp was very young at the time and was seen engaging in his daily training routine. Garp used to train with battleships, punching them and bending them out of shape in the process. What’s shocking about this training was the fact that Garp used to do this without any Haki or Devil Fruit powers. This was meant to increase his physical strength and the true power at his core, and that is precisely why he has earned every title that he has ever gained in the world of One Piece. Upon seeing him train as rigorously as he did, Kuzan once approached Garp and asked him to take him as his apprentice.
Naturally, Garp did not want his freedom to be stifled and decided to turn him away. However, Kuzan joined in on the training by himself and eventually, he was successfully able to bend the battleship bags as well. The two got very close through this training and eventually Garp accepted him as his apprentice, teaching him everything there is to know about fighting. The relationship was such that even when Kuzan was a Marine Admiral, Garp occasionally paid him a visit and the two talked about different things over rice crackers and whatnot.
Undoubtedly, their relationship was extremely special and Garp certainly believed that Kuzan would one day lead the Navy, given the potential that he carried, however, now, that is simply a dream as Kuzan has joined the Blackbeard Pirates officially.
Student Vs Teacher
On the Pirate Island, Garp and Kuzan have engaged each other in a gruesome battle of student versus teacher. Garp, who once wanted Kuzan to replace him and make him proud in the Navy is now fighting against him as a pirate. Kuzan, who once looked up to Garp immensely and still does to quite an extent, is now putting at risk the life of his very own mentor. This relationship is full of tragedies and just as Kuzan said, Garp has once again raised an enemy. Their clash was explored in the last chapter greatly and Kuzan appeared to have taken a severe beating by Garp. At the end of the chapter, however, Shiryu landed a powerful blow on Garp by tricking him and this leveled the playfield quite a bit.
Following this, both Garp and Aokiji punched each other in the face, sending the other flying back. While Garp is still conscious, fans do not know what Kuzan is currently facing. What fans do now is that this clash of student vs. teacher is not going to end well for either of them.Garp is likely going to end up being capturedby the Blackbeard Pirates and all this would simply be down to one person, his very own student, Kuzan. How Oda deals with this plotline later on in the Final Saga remains to be seen, however, Garp’s story keeps getting better with each passing chapter.
One Piece is available to read for free on MangaPlus byViz Media.
