10 Most Tragic Backstories in One Piece
TRAFALGAR LAW
Law was born in the country of Flevance in the North Blue, which was known as the “White City” for the color of the Amber Lead that was mined there.
Law’s childhood coincided with the time when the symptoms of Amber Lead poisoning were at their peak within the country, and he was doomed to die before reaching adulthood.
Law’s sister, who was in an advanced stage of the disease, was slowly dying. A local nun was collecting children to be taken off the island during the war and offered Law to come with her. He declined as he didn’t want to leave his sister behind. However, an extermination crew shot his parents before his very eyes. The nun and his friends were likewise killed in the raid and his parents’ hospital was burned down with his sister inside during the destruction of the country.
An emotionally wrecked Law managed to escape the quarantine by hiding under dead bodies being shipped outside the city. Having lost everything and a wrong levied against everyone dear to him, Law became nihilistic and omnicidal, wishing to destroy as much of the world as he could without believing in anything anymore.
Law’s life takes a drastic turn with the arrival of a mysterious figure known as Corazon, the younger brother of Donquixote Doflamingo. Corazon did eventually succeed in giving Law the eventual power to heal his Amber Lead Syndrome after feeding him the Ope Ope no Mi. Corazon’s selfless act to protect Law reaches its zenith when he sacrifices himself to save the young boy from Doflamingo’s wrath. This heart-wrenching moment not only shapes Law’s perception of family and sacrifice but also leaves an indelible mark on his character.
NICO ROBIN
Nico Robin, the enigmatic archaeologist of the Straw Hat Pirates, carries a haunting backstory that adds a layer of mystery to her character. Hailing from Ohara, an island of scholars seeking the truth of the Void Century, Robin witnessed the brutal annihilation of her homeland by the World Government. Robin’s mother was never able to return to her daughter, as the World Government destroyed Ohara and killed all of its inhabitants in order to prevent the knowledge of the Void Century from being revealed.
As the sole survivor, Nico Robin carried the weight of her people’s history, making her a target of persecution. Forced into a life of constant evasion, Robin’s journey is a tapestry of loneliness, survival, and an unquenchable thirst for knowledge. Her resilience and enigmatic aura make Nico Robin a compelling and tragic figure in the world of One Piece.
NAMI
Nami was born to unknown parents as an orphan of war from the Oykot Kingdom. She was found as a baby by Nojiko, then shortly after by a heavily-injured Bell-mère, a female Marine, in the aftermath of a hostile battlefield. Bell-mère took Nami and Nojiko back with her to Cocoyasi Village, where she would then adopt the two children. The three became as close as any real family. However, when Nami was still a child, the fish-man pirate Arlong invaded her village and murdered her adoptive mother right before her eyes. Nami was then kidnapped and forced to become a cartographer for Arlong after he noticed the quality of her maps at such a young age.
This pivotal event fueled her determination to free her village from Arlong’s control and marked the beginning of Nami’s journey toward becoming not just a skilled navigator but also a symbol of resilience and unwavering strength.
SANJI
Sanji was born as the third son and fourth child of the Vinsmoke Family, the reigning royal family of the Germa Kingdom. Sanji’s father, Vinsmoke Judge, planned to genetically enhance all of them before birth to make them have superhuman abilities and no emotions, and thus turn them into perfect soldiers in the future. His mother, Vinsmoke Sora, was against this practice and while being still pregnant, she took a drug that would ensure they would grow as normal humans with emotions. This intent resulted successful only on Sanji, at the cost of severely weakening her own health beyond recuperation.
Sanji suffered relentless abuse from his family, particularly his emotionless father and cruel brothers.
Eventually, Judge became convinced that Sanji would never develop superhuman abilities and decided to erase his son’s existence from his future plans by putting an iron mask on him and locking him in a Vinsmoke castle dungeon.
The Vinsmoke family’s disregard for his aspirations and their harsh treatment fueled Sanji’s determination to escape. His journey from the restrictive confines of the Germa 66 to the freedom of the open sea with the Straw Hat crew showcases not only his culinary prowess but also the strength it took to defy his traumatic past and forge his own destiny.
BOA HANCOCK
Hancock’s backstory is one of the most tragic in the series. When Hancock was twelve years old, she and her sisters were included into the Kuja Pirates crew and were sailing on their ship, when suddenly, they were captured by slavers and sold to the World Nobles. The three suffered the greatest horrors imaginable. Four years later, Fisher Tiger appeared in Mary Geoise and freed as many slaves as he could without discrimination.
Unfortunately, despite being freed, the experiences that Hancock went through corrupted her innocence, and she would later grow up to distrust everyone (with the exception of her sisters), men especially. Over the years, despite Elder Nyon’s love and mercy, Hancock became cold, burying any warm feelings, kindness, and sensitivity deep within her, and although she would later become the Empress of the Kuja, she was selfish and uncaring towards her people.
