 Former Marine Admiral Aokiji. Is he still a part of the Navy operating in secret? Or is he a part of a different faction entirely? Is he a sword member or a revolutionary? Stick around and you'll find out what the recent developments show about the true allegiance of this mysterious figure. Former Marine Admiral Kuzan, better known for his epithet Aokiji, is an enigma for sure. A great example of a morally grey individual whose true intentions and goals can't be ascertained with certainty. He's been the source of many a speculation for this reason, particularly since his defection from the Marines following his gruelling bout with fellow Admiral Sakazuki over the position of Fleet Admiral, choosing instead to join the Blackbeard Pirates in a head-scratching move. And while I don't think anyone really believes his truly turned coat to join the darkness of martial-de-teach, it's hard to know what exactly he's up to. A common thought is that Kuzan is a part of, and perhaps a very high-ranking member of, sword. The secret Marine Force involved in undercover operations to infiltrate Yonko crews. And this theory seems to be based on the following premises. While we don't know much about sword, it's goals or operations. Based on the organization's membership, it seems to be a faction of the Marines who, for a lack of better or more elegant way to put it, are made up of the good Marines. Those who don't blindly follow absolute justice, but Marines who actually care about doing good and improving the lives of citizens. And based on that assumption, what we've seen of Kuzan seems to point to a similar moral compass. Having let Robin go, as well as letting Luffy and the Straw Hats live, opposing Sakazuki's oppressive vision of justice and being an admirer of Garb, another one of the good guys, even as a Navy Admiral, our Kijis seem to fit in in this mob of Marines to lean on the lighter scale of the gray moral spectrum. And just as DS Drake went undercover in Emperor Kaido's crew, it could seem like our Kijis is doing the same with Blackbeard. Another premise for the speculation seems to be that given Kobe's involvement in Sword and knowing the young Marines mentorship under Monkey D. Garb, Kuzan, who similarly has a personal connection to the Marine hero, is believed to also be a part of Sword because of this shared relationship. This, however, suggests reliance on another assumption that Garb himself is a part of Sword and those who join all operate with similar goals and ideologies, which is a popular speculation in its own right, but not the point of the discussion today. And while I can definitely see why a theory about Kuzan being a Sword member would be popular, it's undeniable that there are a lot of assumptions that we have to accept and rely upon to get there. But here's another idea. What if Kuzan is not in fact a member of Sword but is a part of the Revolutionary Army instead? And here's another idea. If you like One Piece discussions, why not subscribe to this channel and show some support? It's worth noting that after leaving the Marines, Kuzan didn't join the Blackbeard Pirates straight away. Before joining the infamous crew, he was suspected of having some dealings in the underworld. A fact he neither affirmed nor denied when alluded to twice, both by Dauflamingo and Smokon. So if this is true, that Kuzan had been somehow involved in the underworld after leaving the Marines, but prior to allying with Blackbeard, this could make a lot of sense in terms of his membership within the Revolutionaries because we do know the Revolutionary Army had been monitoring underworld activity, particularly the movement of the Don Quixote family to gain weapons for their own use and rescuing their comrades who had been turned into toys in Dressrosa. Kuzan, whilst undercover, working in the underworld, may have been instrumental in finding out this information for the Revolutionary Army. But more so than just speculative connections, I want to revisit a conversation from chapter 699, which I find extremely interesting and very illuminating. After saving Smokon from Dauflamingo, Kuzan shares his thoughts with his former comrade that he never believed the world government to be the be-all and end-all, an ideology that is shared by both the Revolutionaries and some Marine members like Garp, mind you. But then, Kuzan also says that you don't have to be affiliated with the Navy to accomplish things, appreciating the fact that some things you are only able to see when you are in fact independent of the Navy. And this to me suggests that he has truly left the Marines. If you have time, I'd strongly recommend you to go back and reread this chapter because it's one of the most unexpectedly impactful moments of the series. It has to be one of the most down-to-earth, honest conversations I've ever witnessed in one piece. And even without featuring any of the main characters, Oda manages to drive home such a key idea of the series. The fact that no faction in the world is wholly good or wholly evil. There are characters, individuals with their own personal relationships and beliefs who make up these groups and organizations. And without involving any high emotions or pizzazz or any embellishments, this conversation just feels so raw and real. A former comrade in arms assuring his friend that no matter his allegiance, he is just him. And from this conversation alone, I'm uncertain of the idea that Kuzan has remained in the Marines and now just operates as an undercover sword member. I really believe his words during this interaction to have been real and honest, which is why I believe that he has truly left the Navy. Even Doughlamingo's words about Kuzan suggests this fact, that Kuzan is a man who has made up his mind about something. To me, Kuzan's a man who's made up his mind about how to accomplish things in the world. I think it's something that he has struggled with for a long time, particularly after what he witnessed in Ohara. We already know that the events of the genocide was enough to transform our Kiji from being an eager Marine, following the brand of burning justice to an apathetic individual adhering to a lazy sense of justice. But with the Marines still being helmed under the guidance of Fleet Admiral Sengoku, a man who seems to be at least more reasonable, and the remaining influence of Garb as a celebrated Vice Admiral still within the Marines. I think our Kiji stayed on board as part of the Navy, perhaps still holding onto some hope that he could effect change from the inside, or that maybe he could act as a balancing force to the ruthlessness and intensity of Marine members like Aka Inu. During this period, maybe he was a part of sword, working as an idealistic Marine still believing in the potential for the Navy to do some good. But this all changed following the Summit War. Not only did both Sengoku and Garb resign, meaning the need for a new Fleet Admiral resulting in that infamous 10-day battle between Kuzan and Sakazuki. And despite following an idea of lazy justice, Kuzan put his all into that battle, determined to not let the Marines fall under the influence of Aka Inu. But when Sakazuki won, despite his best efforts, I think this is when Kuzan made up his mind that the Marines were simply no longer an organization where he believed he could work to change the world, leaving him with only one choice, the Revolutionary Army. Okay, that's not true. He could have joined a pirate crew or he could have even decided to work alone. But I don't think that he did. I think he joined the revolutionaries. For one, like I said, there seems to be a connection between Kuzan being involved in the underworld and the Revolutionary Army also moving in the shadows. But also, you can draw inferences from the fact that during his time with Blackbeard's crew, when the Blackbeard pirates decided to attack the Revolutionary Army base bolt ago, the revolutionaries were able to escape. Perhaps because Kuzan tipped his new comrades about the incoming attack. And as of more recent developments, I think the new reveals of what went down at Ohara and what happened afterwards further supports my speculations. The recent events in One Piece can only be explained to be a lore fest involving info dump after info dump, the futuristic ancient kingdom, the relationship between Vega Punk and Dragon, and most recently, unexpected twists about the outcomes of the Ohara incident. And from all of this, it's hard to miss the fact that the Revolutionary Army seems to be at the center of all these reveals and what can be expected in the story to come. But not only the revolutionaries, because as we have just discussed before, it was the Ohara incident that first led to Kuzan questioning his beliefs and the actions of the Marines. And as we have now just recently found out, Kuzan's attack on Jaguar, the friendly giant Saul, didn't kill the Marine Kump pirate. Now you may have your own reservations about how Ohara has just revived another thought-to-be-dead character, or whether Kuzan even knew or intended to not kill Saul. But these aren't matters that I personally want to get into in this video, because regardless of how you feel about these things, one thing that is for sure is that Kuzan is inextricably tied up in these recent reveals. And it can't be a coincidence that the recent cover story volumes have just also featured him as well. Though still working with Blackbeard, it's almost as if Ohara is now using the recent developments in the main storyline to assure us of Kuzan's good nature. And bear with me for a while as I make some assumptions of my own. But I wouldn't even be surprised if Garp pointed Kuzan in Dragon's direction, because while they operate on opposing sides, the feeling that I get is that Garp and Dragon have the same goals, but are just pursuing them through different ways. In fact, the entire Monkey-D family is a testament to that fact. Each man of the three generations are pursuing the same goals in their own separate ways. And if Garp really is involved in Sword, then I wouldn't be surprised to find out that as the respective heads of these two organizations, Garp and Dragon aren't opposed to sharing information or at least working towards the same goal. On a personal level, Garp doesn't even seem to be on bad terms with Dragon. And it's even suggested that the two may still keep in contact, seeing as how Garp knew that Dragon paid Luffy a visit at Locktown. Although, actually, it may have been Smokar who told Garp about that Dragon incident. So regardless, I actually do have two whole videos dedicated to this relationship between Garp and Dragon and how Dragon founded the Revolutionary Army. I must admit that I made those videos eons and eons ago, but I do recommend you watching them for a fuller context. I also wouldn't be surprised if Kuzan had at least some sort of relationship with Dragon himself dating decades as well. The two aren't too far off in age, and if Kuzan was mentored by Garp or at least had some sort of personal relationship with him, then the young Navy officer may have met Dragon as well. Kuzan certainly seemed to hold a keen interest in Luffy, and I don't think that that's simply explained by his admiration of Garp, but rather as an interest in the entire Monkey D family. Either way, whether Kuzan personally knew Dragon or not, I think he knew enough to know that the Revolutionary Army are not the bad guys, the fact that he was only able to truly appreciate after leaving the Navy. And now with the independence to act on this knowledge, Kuzan became a member of the Revolutionary Army himself, accomplishing things and changing the world under the banner of freedom. But as per his words to Smokar, he is still the man that he was. Now that's a character arc that I really love for Kuzan, and I can't wait to see that further developed or fleshed out, or I suppose I'll have to be proven right first. But anyways, those were just my thoughts on Kuzan and his allegiance, which is an idea that has shot up to the forefront of my mind, especially because of the recent developments. I would, however, love to hear what you guys have to say, so please let me know by leaving a comment below. Please do subscribe to this channel for more One Piece discussions. You can also join our joy fleet Discord server or even become a Patreon or channel member. And I do want to thank all our executive officers for help supporting the channel. This is Joygirl, and I'll see you again soon.