When you realize Luffy saved Shanks first: The One Piece theory breaking the fandom right now

The fandom of One Piece has been coming up with interesting theories nonstop since the final saga began, and this time, one of these theories has gained traction and is standing out. This one started as a joke surrounding Shanks and how he was freed from Imu, but now it seems like there is some weight to it. It has become one of the most creative, chaotic, and strangely convincing fan theories the fandom has seen in months. And it all circles back to the moment that shaped Luffy’s destiny: the day Shanks lost his arm.

This scene was initially taken on its face value, but soon fans started to note that Eiichiro Oda is a master storyteller who can take the smallest detail and bring it back as an important event in his story when no one expected it. As this has happened multiple times, fans have been wondering if Shanks, who is known to be super powerful, just gave up his arm without a fight.

That is when things did not add up; he could have easily fought that monster off. But what if that moment meant far more than we realized? What if the first person Luffy in One Piece ever liberated wasn’t Robin, nor Wano, nor even the East Blue, but Shanks himself? Recent discussions online exploded when fans began tying Shanks’ mysterious “seal” to Imu’s Mark of the Abyss.

It is an ability that is suggested to grant immortality and devastating power in exchange for becoming a vessel Imu can see through or even control. Saturn’s downfall in One Piece is hinted at this, and it didn’t take long before theorists connected the dots. According to this theory, Shanks was marked sometime after Roger’s era.

It could have taken place during his rumored return to Mariejois, or even earlier if his lineage as Garling’s son comes into play. A marked person is powerful, ageless, but not free. That’s where Luffy enters the equation in this complicated narrative.

The fruit that chose Luffy and freed Shanks?

If we look at the myth of Hito Hito no Mi in One Piece, the symbolism behind Nika choosing its user makes sense. Fans have been talking about this, that maybe this devil fruit released the potential of Luffy before even Shanks did. Eiichiro Oda has shown us that Luffy displayed the very spirit of liberation that the fruit seeks. His defiance of the mountain bandits wasn’t childish bravado; it was the very spark of the Warrior of Liberation.

Many popular One Piece theorists even believe Shanks didn’t steal the fruit for himself, but because of Roger’s final wish. Maybe he had other plans for it until Luffy ate it. In that moment, Shanks’ destiny changed. And according to this theory, so did the curse on his arm.

The arm incident: An act of protection and liberation

Here’s where the theory reaches peak chaos and brilliance. Fans argue that Shanks didn’t lose his arm because he was weak or careless. He lost it because that was how the Mark of the Abyss was severed. Imu’s influence, tied to the marked limb, was cut away when Shanks sacrificed his arm to save the boy chosen by Nika. Fans are saying Shanks didn’t just protect Luffy that day, but rather Luffy freed Shanks. Also, they feel that he let Luffy have the Devil Fruit because it is not possible for him to let his guards down so much that Shanks never noticed someone eating a valuable Devil Fruit.

Why does this One Piece theory make sense?

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Luffy in One Piece has always been a liberator. In his journey, he has freed kingdoms, broken psychological chains, and inspired others to reclaim their dreams. Even Ace and Sabo became who they truly were because of Luffy. So the idea that his first act of liberation was freeing Shanks, his idol, his catalyst, the man who gave him the hat, feels poetically perfect.

But in the end, the cycle of fate changed when Luffy entered his life. Whether true or not, the theory is peak One Piece fan brilliance, which is equal parts emotional, unhinged, and rooted in themes Oda always emphasizes: inheritance, freedom, and the unbreakable will of D.

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