One Piece: What is the Duel on Banaro Island?

One Piece has no shortage of monumental events impacting the power structure of the world, but very few compare to the Duel on Banaro Island. The buildup, the fight itself, and its aftermath remain relevant even in the current storyline.

The Duel on Banaro Island refers to the battle between Ace and Blackbeard, the results of which triggered the Marineford War and changed the One Piece world forever.

In the past, Ace had been the second division commander of the Whitebeard Pirates, while Blackbeard was one of his subordinates. However, the antagonist had joined with nefarious motives, wishing to track down the Dark-Dark Fruit and believing Whitebeard’s ship was his best chance.

During their travels, the fourth division commander, Thatch, had happened upon this fruit and rightfully owned it according to the crew's rules. Refusing to let the opportunity slip from his grasp, Blackbeard killed Thatch and took the Dark-Dark Fruit for himself. He went on the run from the Whitebeard Pirates and created his own crew, called the Blackbeard Pirates.

Ace, on the other hand, took heavy responsibility for Blackbeard's actions. In addition to being his commander, Ace cared deeply about Whitebeard's crew. To ensure the traitor wasn't spared, he began chasing after him and finally caught up at Banaro Island, which lies close to Water 7.

One Piece's tragic Duel on Banaro Island

One Piece's Duel on Banaro Island was an immensely significant and exciting but ultimately tragic event. Soon after Ace met Blackbeard, the antagonist invited Fire Fist to join his crew, explaining how he would kill Luffy and gift him to the World Government.

Ace revealed that Luffy was his brother and that Blackbeard had given him another reason to stop him. Right then, Van Augur and Jesus Burgess tried attacking Ace but failed to harm him. Just as Blackbeard began scolding his crewmates for intruding, Ace responded with devastating flames that blew everyone away.

While Blackbeard initially seemed to suffer severe burns, he stood up soon, explaining how he killed Thatch for the sake of gaining power over darkness. Wishing to display how the Logia fruit had strengthened him, Blackbeard instantly destroyed a nearby town by manipulating gravity.

Nevertheless, Ace stayed focused, burning up Blackbeard through a move named Fiery Doll. He expressed how his opponent was still taking damage despite being a Logia user but unfortunately soon found the reason for this. The Dark-Dark Fruit allowed Blackbeard to suck in everything, which also included pain.

At the same time, he could also pull in Devil Fruit users and render their abilities useless. Blackbeard immediately showed this by capturing Ace and delivering a brutal punch. Though realizing he was no longer invulnerable, Ace continued putting up a valiant battle. However, after numerous blows dealt by both parties, Blackbeard had the upper hand.

Sensing the approaching end of the duel, Ace voiced his wish to make Whitebeard the Pirate King and prepared to use Flame Emperor. Blackbeard responded with darkness yet again, creating a surge of energy that nearly tore apart the entire island.

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While the results of this battle weren't revealed for a long time, fans were shocked to find that Ace had lost and been turned into the Marines by Blackbeard. He was then scheduled to be executed, while Blackbeard became one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea in exchange.

This sequence led to the tragic Marineford War, where the most formidable forces in the series went into battle, and both Ace and Whitebeard lost their lives. Luffy felt true despair for the first time in One Piece, though it became the foundation for his development and eventual growth into an Emperor.

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