 Remember this flashback we all thought was a complete tease? Yeah, this one moment contained a whole lot more clues than we all realized and it's going to be a crucial part of not only Zorro's story but also for the future of the series. So make sure to stay until the end of the video. Warning, this video will contain spoilers up to chapter 1033. You've been warned. Hello my Nakamotachi, this is Joygirl and I want to delve into the mystery of the Shimotsuki family, the connection to Zorro and their importance to not only the country of Wano but to the whole One Piece world. And if you'd like to hear more discussions about One Piece, then make sure to subscribe to the channel and to click that notification bell for future videos. Zorro's connection to the Shimotsuki family is something that has only been more greatly hinted at during the raid with those witnessing him in action, mentioning his resemblance to Shimotsuki Ushimaru and the legendary Dragon Slayer Ryuma. But speaking of legends, raids and dragon slaying, this is a perfect opportunity to tell you that this video is sponsored by Raid Shadow Legends. Raid Shadow Legends is a free to play game that you can download yourself using my links below to your mobile phone and PC, you champion. Like Raid's 600 different champions who all come from unique factions, each with their own history in the fantastical realm of Talyria. With a couple of my favourites right now being Kaiel and Sniper, because both have abilities that can damage multiple enemies at once, with Kaiel being able to inflict poison damage and Sniper does this cool little move, because we all know that jumping on your second attack increases velocity. It's a fact. Raid's also added a new addition to their already huge boss roster, introducing a new super powered clan boss, the Hydra. No, not that Hydra, this Hydra. 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So make sure to click my link in the description box below or scan my QR code and you'll also get an epic champion Aina, 200k silver, one energy refill, one XP boost and one ancient shard so you can summon awesome champions as soon as you get in game. All of this will be waiting for you here but only for the next 30 days and only for new players. But it's as easy as that, follow the link below and I'll see you in game. Now going back to our discussion, as a fanbase, we have long been speculating that there are going to be major reveals about Zoro's heritage that will be finally given to us at Wano. In fact, as soon as I realised that the Whole Cake Island arc will centre around Sanji and his Vinsmok family, I was certain that we'd be getting the same focus for Zoro in Wano. It was only fitting, especially given that we knew if the Straw Hats came from real life countries in the world, then Zoro would be Japanese and of course, Japan is the country that Wano is based on. And true enough, it wasn't long before the fanbase jumped on the connections which could be made between Zoro and a particular family in Wano, the Shimotsuki family. I'm sure you've watched or at least seen plenty of content creators myself included speculate on the possibility of Zoro being a Shimotsuki himself or at least having a deeper connection to this family and to Wano Kuni that meets the eye. The details about the meaning of Shimotsuki being November, the month in which Zoro was born, his resemblance to Shimotsuki Ryuma, the intertwined plots with Shimotsuki Yasui and even Ushimaru and Gukimaru, as well as the hints which Oda himself dropped in in various SBS volumes, have all long been cited as possible hints as to the mystery of Zoro's lineage. And then this intensified recently during the Onigashima raid, with some members of the Alliance casually commenting on the uncanny resemblance between the Santoryu swordsmen and some key members of the Shimotsuki family, the national hero Ryuma and the Damiyo Ushimaru. The connection to Ushimaru was particularly interesting for fans, especially after we received a greater look at the late Damiyo, including his relationship to Yamato and his act of bravery against Kaito. Which interestingly enough, Ushimaru waved off any praise for his courage and willpower, claiming himself to be nobody important, which fans were quick to link to Zoro, whose own act of heroism was waved off as nothing. This alongside their close resemblance in appearance, led to a speculation which gained some traction amongst the fanbase, that Zoro was Ushimaru's son who was sent away from Wano at a very young age. The popular idea is that just after Odin's death and Kaito and Orochi took complete control of Wano, Zoro's father Ushimaru, knowing that he will soon be leading the Damiyo's rebellion against the corrupt leaders, sent his one-year-old son away from the country to save him. Yeah, makes sense. Except that in SBS volume 101, Oda confirmed that Shimotsuki Ushimaru is not Zoro's father. Now, is this fatal to the speculation about Zoro's lineage? No. In fact, in that same SBS volume, Oda practically hinted of Zoro's connection to the Shimotsuki. The mangaka revealed to us that the resemblance of Zoro to Ushimaru was planned to be written into the story much earlier in Act 2 during the match between Yukimaru and Zoro, but then Oda decided not to include this as it was too complicated, and that he is still undecided whether he will write about Ushimaru's bloodline in the story or not. Before amusing, however, that, hmm, they really do look identical, don't they? So this does seem to suggest that even if Ushimaru isn't Zoro's father himself, he may be Zoro's ancestor. Perhaps his grandfather or uncle or great uncle, whatever it is, there's some sort of connection there. And my interest in this topic further peaked very recently, in Chapter 1033, with our greater glimpse into Zoro's backstory, which also gave us a look at Shimotsuki Kosoburo, the legendary swordsmith who created both Enma and Wado Ichimonji, both of which are now in Zoro's possession. Coincidence? I think not! And then so all of these details put together, for me at least, essentially confirms that Zoro is a Shimotsuki by birth. And I know some of you aren't fans of this idea, you would prefer if our badass, stoic swordsman was just as cool as he was because of the results of his own achievements and hard work. Rather than being another case of a fated individual who's always had an important family all along, you'd prefer if Zoro was the product of his own determination and his own will. But just because fans feel that way, doesn't mean that's necessarily what we're going to get. In fact, given the trajectory of the series, with the other two monster trio members having significant family relations, as well as the heavy focus on the Shimotsuki in relation to Zoro's character arc during Wano, there is no way that Oda is just going to blow past this. I think it's only a matter of time before Zoro's family lineage is revealed, although I still do believe Oda's words that this isn't going to be a big part of the plot and is only going to be a part of the side plot because I can't imagine Zoro being hugely bothered or personally invested in this revelation, except for potentially the fact that his childhood rival and friend, Kuina, was actually also a relative. But speaking of Kuina, this is where things get juicy. Because even if Zoro doesn't care about his lineage, what is the whole point of this side plot? Is it solely for the purpose of fleshing out Zoro's character? I highly highly doubt it. As much as the fanbase has wanted more than the extremely short backstory that we got for one of the main protagonists of the series, the level of detail and attention that Oda has worked into his portrayal of the Shimotsuki family has me thinking that there is a lot more brewing underneath the surface and this may have even been shown to us as early as chapter 5. The first thing we have to establish is that the Shimotsuki family is a very significant family. We may have already been able to gauge that since we found out that both Shimotsuki Ushimaru and Shimotsuki Yasui were Damios of regions in Wano, being the only family we know to control more than one region in this arc. And maybe their importance can simply be explained to be the result of the legacy of Yuma who raised the status of his family, but regardless of the reason why, it does seem like the Shimotsuki were a very influential family. Then the next element is that perhaps by reason of their special status or for something else, it seems that the Shimotsuki family were privy to some special information. The reason I say this is because very recently in chapter 1033, we found out that Shimotsuki Kazaburo, whom we've known since SBS vol 96 to have left Wano 55 years ago and settled in the East Blue setting up the Shimotsuki village, is also wanted by the world government. It's even suggested that he or the village are considered pirates, and this raises a huge question of why. When Tengu Yama mentions Kazaburo having left Wano all those years ago, he notes that Kazaburo did so illegally, breaking Wano's closed borders policy. But it's interesting that this isn't the same way that Oda talks about it. In SBS vol 96, Oda simply says that Kazaburo set out to see where he and some fellow Samurais had a grand adventure before settling down in the East Blue. In my opinion, Kazaburo left Wano with the Shogun's assent. The Shogun perhaps this was Sukiyaki, maybe it was Sukiyaki's unknown father. Either way, the then Shogun shared some privy information with Kazaburo which required him to leave Wano not illegally but as part of a mission. But this was unknown to the rest of the citizens, which is why Kazaburo is thought to have left the country illegally. As for what this information is, I would have no idea. But I would bet that it has to do with the world government and Wano's connection to the rest of the world, which is why the marines are after Kazaburo and his village has been branded as pirates. Now it's possible that the reason why Kazaburo isn't hiding is as simple as the fact that after leaving Wano, he and his Samurais caused quite the ruckus on the seas and gained notoriety as pirates, but I just find this a little perplexing and too easy of an answer. Kazaburo was obviously a trusted man important to the Wano Kingdom. He was a legendary swordsmith who crafted not one but two great swords for the Kazuki family, suggesting his loyalty and their close relationship. For him to have just upped and left, all for the spirit of adventure, on one hand sure fits with the free spirit of one piece, but admittedly strikes me a little odd. Kazaburo just doesn't seem like a free-spirited individual in the same sense that Odin was, wanting desperately to just adventure and explore the wider world. Kazaburo's departure seems much more measured, premeditated. Especially when we consider that he didn't leave alone. He took a whole bunch of Wano inhabitants with him, almost as if it was with the goal of setting up a satellite village for Wano someplace else. Not to mention that one of the first things they do when they settle in the East Blue is to set up a dojo. The village practiced swordplay, and Kazaburo even imparted the important motto of Tsunachi into the next generation. In other words, it was important that they kept the way of the samurai alive. For what purpose? My guess is that they were training for some reason. Whatever information that Kazaburo held, he knew that they would be needed again one day. But most of all, I think there was a goal of training one specific individual. Because an interesting detail about Kazaburo is his name. Kazaburo in Japanese can mean that third man, or the third man. Ko meaning that, or the, Sabu meaning third, and Rō meaning man. Intriguingly, his son, Koshiro, has the same naming scheme with the only difference being the middle character, Shi instead of Sabu, with Shi meaning fourth, giving Koshiro the meaning of the fourth man. Now this may be just reflective of their lineage with Kazaburo being Koshiro's father, but it could also be taken to hint at their importance. Kazaburo is the third man, the third man from a line of men who are destined for something, which is carried on to Koshiro, the fourth man who is destined to carry something out. When does this naming scheme stop? With Kawina. Why is this important? Because of this. Remember this panel which I pointed out at the beginning of this video? When we first read this flashback, and the tragic story of Kawina, who despite her prowess in swordsmanship, was told by her father that women could not be master swordsmen, I'm sure most of us just took this as a relatively unimportant detail. Just something which showed the traditional values held in the small town village and a plotline to develop Zoro's character arc. But what if this panel is much more significant? What if Koshiro wasn't simply adhering to traditional gender roles and values? What if whatever mission, whatever goal the Shimozuki family left Wano for required a male heir? And Kawina's birth, there was spanner in the works. Enter Zoro. Maybe Zoro was indeed sent from Wano once it was revealed that Koshiro would not have another male heir to carry on the Shimozuki lineage in the Shimozuki village. It seems like the Shimozuki family is very large. Perhaps it's similar to the Hyuga clan in Naruto, minus the darker sacrificial servitude element. This could explain why certain members of the Shimozuki family all look really alike. And then others like Yasui, and maybe even Kazaburo, look completely different. Because they all bear the Shimozuki name, but only some members are part of a specific branch. And maybe Zoro, who does look a lot like both Yuma and Ushimaru, was also a Shimozuki, the heir of one branch of the Shimozuki family. And when it was revealed that Kawina could not be the individual who would carry out whatever task they set out to accomplish, Zoro was sent over to prime him up for the task instead. Now all of this coming from one simple line that Kawina said about her father's words may seem like a far reach and a wild speculation. But this isn't the only potential clue. Before Zoro develops this Santoryu style, we find out during the flashback, he was already adept in the Nitori style. Before he was known as the Santoryu swordsman, his friends in the village called him the Two Sword Zoro. And it's hard to say that this was simply the practice of the dojo because in the flashback, Kawina only fights with one sword. And then in chapter 1033, when we get another Zoro flashback, the kids training in the dojo all seem to be practicing with one sword except for one student who based off his darker tire which matches his appearance later in the flashback, appears to be Zoro. Now why is the Nitori style important? The obvious answer is because this is suggested to be the style of the Shimozuki family based on their family emblem of the double cross swords. But more specifically, because this is suggested to be the distinct style of Ushimaru. And it seems like in comparison to the rest of the village students, just Zoro was specifically trained to fight in the fighting style of his ancestor, perhaps for a special reason to fulfill the Shimozuki mission. Something else which I personally found odd in chapter 1033 during the extension of Zoro's flashback was the attention that Kozaburo paid to Zoro. Kozaburo takes an active interest in Zoro's training to the extent that he gifts him with two proper swords. Sure, he says they're crap when compared to the legendary swords he once created, but he gives Zoro two real blades, Zoro. Supposedly, just the random village boy is given real swords that can harm people so that he could train to become better than Kuina, which could potentially cause serious harm to Kozaburo's own granddaughter. Which Zoro actually did try to do by challenging Kuina to a real sword fight by the way. Was Kozaburo just an extremely neutral sensei that he showed absolutely no favouritism even when it came to his blood? Or is it that he showed immense favouritism but it's just that Zoro was at the receiving end? I will admit that a large hole which could be poked in this speculation is why Zoro is then completely unaware of this mission. Even if Zoro has somehow found his way to Wano and even if he is actually currently fulfilling a plan or will fulfill a future plan that his family had trained him for, there really was no way for the Shimotsuki to know that this would be the case. Unless we go truly wild and say that the Wato Ichimonji was actually leading him all along and could explain why Zoro always ends up lost because he actually ends up exactly where he needs to be. But that really is too wild even for me. But in saying that I'm sure if everything else is true or at least headed in the right direction, then Oda won't have much trouble addressing this minor potential inconsistency. Because ultimately, I just think there is too much still left unexplained with the Shimotsuki family. And I do believe that they are much more important than we realize and this will impact Zoro's future character development but also potentially related to the bigger mysteries in the series. But now that you've heard my thoughts, let me know yours by leaving a comment below, don't forget to like and share the video and please do subscribe for more One Piece discussions. You can also join our Joyfleet Discord server and even become a Patreon member if you'd like greater roles and powers within that server. Thank you to our patrons who help support the channel. This is Joygirl and I'll see you again soon.