I have theorized many times how Zoro would be considered the new Sword God of Wano and the latest development seems to further contribute towards that goal. As hilarious as the Cross Zori is, I don’t think it is just a comical choice of Oda but also an important portrayal shared by Jesus.
To get a better understanding of this we have to go back in time. All the way, back to chapter 3, back to the fateful meeting. We have been introduced to the man tied up onto a cross. Crucified for saving a little girl from a wolf.
Zoro and cross theme doesn’t end there. Less than 50 chapters later, Zoro meets the man he was looking for, a lot sooner than he expected.That man shows up in a tiny, coffin-shaped boat that has its sail mounted on the cross-shaped mast. That same man has a weapon with a guard shaped like a cross. He also carries the smallest knife he has got around his neck, which, too, is shaped like a cross.
There is another Warlord who is tied up to Zoro, Bartholomew “the Tyrant” Kuma, who carries the bible which is a book about Jesus.
It goes on. During the timeskip, Zoro’s nurse was Perona the ghost girl who also has a cross theme, on top of her crown. You could say that cross is often near Zoro. Upon hearing what happened in Marineford, Zoro tries to get back to Sabaody and while trying to leave the Kuraigana Island he finds a giant cross in the woods. Moving on we have the color spread with Zoro sitting next to a cross-shaped grave which was theorized to imply Zoro’s death. There is also the scar on Zoro’s eye, if you ignore the eyebrow, it is cross-shaped when together with the eyelashes. That one might be a stretch but you never know with Oda… Sounds familiar?
With that, we are back to the present where Oda chose a cross-shaped immobilization to prevent Zoro’s wounds from getting worse. He could have chosen a stick, basically a regular mummy, it would be just as hilarious but he decided on a cross, most likely intended to have the parallels with Jesus. I wont bother you much with historical stuff but Wano represents Japan of the 16th and 17th century when Jesuits were persecuted under the Shogunate which led to the closing of Japan for almost 250 years. Jesuits were tortured through the hole-hanging method or they were crucified. Let’s say that Zoro represents Jesus and Wano is the Japan that rejects the new fate. Remember how Inuarashi, Nekomamushi and Kappa were treated? They got crucified. The plot might develop towards Zoro’s “death” and his “resurrection” which should happen before dawn, imo.
There might be another purpose to why he got bandaged so much over the top – to prevent Zoro from fighting back. The plot perhaps wants to put Zoro in a helpless state which would get us to another plot point. The raid is in full swing but the numbers are still against the good guys despite them doing fairly well. There is also the never fulfilled promise of Zoro rounding up the samurai… How does it all tie in together?
