Warning: This article contains spoilers for One Piece chapter 1085 and 1086.
One Piece is a notoriously long-running manga. Since it was first published in Shonen Jump in 1997, Eiichiro Oda’s masterpiece has amassed over 1000 chapters, a beloved anime adaptation, several movies, and an upcoming Netflix adaptation. Fans around the world are drawn to One Piece for its gripping action scenes, wonderful characters, and intricate storytelling, especially in regards to Oda’s masterful worldbuilding. As the series finally sets sail toward its conclusion, mysteries set up from the very beginning of the series are on their way to being revealed.
In the last two chapters of the manga, Oda dropped some metaphorical bombs on his readership when he revealed that Nefartari Cobra and his daughter, Princess Vivi, both carry the initial “D.” In the beginning of chapter 1085, Cobra is conversing with the mysterious Imu about his ancestor, Nefertari Lili while the (slightly less mysterious) Five Elders look on. When Cobra confirms Nefartari signed her letter using the initial “D.,” Imu grows enraged and attacks the king, eventually resulting in Cobra’s death. This isn’t the only big reveal either — in the following chapter, Oda finally shares the names and identities of every member of the Five Elders, the five Celestial Dragons who lead the world government under the guidance of Imu.
Who are the Five Elders?
The Five Elders are the highest-ranking Celestial Dragons and are the highest authority of government within the world, only answering to Imu who they revere as their king. They have absolute control over every branch of military, the Marines, and Cipher Pol, making them some of the most powerful antagonists in the series. Prioritizing maintaining world order by any means necessary, the Five Elders have destroyed entire islands of people rather than letting information about the Void Century become known and will cover up any event that could destroy their public image.
While the Five Elders are incredibly powerful government leaders, their jurisdiction doesn’t extend to pirates and the Four Emperors (mostly because pirates generally do not abide by laws) and they have an immense hatred for Monkey D. Luffy, fearing his newfound power after awakening Gomu Gomu No Mi Gear 5. Prior to this chapter, only one of the elders had been named and the new information confirms a fan theory that the Five Elders are all named after planets.
The Five Elders’ names are connected to the planets and may give insight into their power levels
The first of the Five Elders to have his name revealed was Saint Jaygarcia Saturn, whose name was revealed during the Egghead Arc. The names and titles of the Five Elders are as follows:
- Saint Jaygarcia Saturn: The Warrior God of Defense Science. He is a man with a full mustache and beard, as well as grey hair styled in dreadlocks. He often wears a hat, carries a walking cane, and has a scar on his face, stretching over his left eye. Like the other Elders, it is implied he is extremely powerful; after getting hit by Sabo’s Hiken, Saturn’s transformation into a horned creature helped him remain unharmed.
- Saint Markus Mars: The Warrior God of the Environment. He is the Elder with long grey hair, a beard and a tall, thin physique.
- Topman Valkyrie (“Mercury”): The Warrior God of Justice and Legal Affairs. He is a bald man with large age spots on his head who also has a massive white mustache. This Elder has commented that Luffy cannot be allowed to run free and, after word Luffy defeated Kaidos began to spread, he attempted to stop production of Luffy’s newest Wanted posters so the “D,” initial could be removed.
- Ethan Baron V. Nusjuro (“Venus”): The Warrior God of Finance. He is the only Elder without facial hair, and is a muscular bald man who wears glasses. He wears a white haori tied with a brown sash and carries a long samurai sword. Aside from his lack of facial hair, he’s also notable for being the only elder to not wear a black suit.
- Shephard Ju Peter (Jupiter): The Warrior God of Agriculture. The youngest-looking Elder, Shephard has blond hair and a beard. He wears his black suit shirt open without a tie, allowing a long scar on his chest to be visible.
It’s unclear what exactly their titles as Warrior Gods entail and if the names are tied to their abilities. The manga will be on hiatus for the next four weeks as Oda recovers from eye surgery, and I’m sure new fan theories will arise in that time; for what it’s worth, I think the titles likely refer to each Elder’s area of control within the government, similar to government department like “Department of Agriculture.”
A fan theory I can get behind is that the Five Elder’s power levels correspond to their representative planet. Some fans believe that the closer their planet is to the sun, the more powerful that Elder is, meaning that Topman Valkyrie would be the strongest Elder. While we don’t know just how strong the Elders are yet, it’s been shown that they’re excellent warriors and formidable foes.