Who are the Buccaneers in ‘One Piece?’

Warning: This article contains spoilers for One Piece chapter 1095.

Bartholomew Kuma features predominantly in One Piece‘s Egghead Arc despite not even being on the island himself. As he (or his body — it’s complicated) makes his way toward Egghead, his daughter Jewelry Bonney and the Straw Hats are busy fighting for their lives against some of the best the World Government has to offer. The battle continues to heat up, especially after one of the Five Elders officially joins the fray, but most fans would agree that the hottest revelation from the latest chapter isn’t Jaygarcia Saturn’s powers, but something to do with everyone’s favorite Paw-Paw Fruit user.

Aside from formulating theories, little else excites One Piece fans like Oda revealing the truth about long-speculated storylines. Now that the long-running manga is in its Final Saga, it feels like every new chapter is filled with big reveals, and chapter 1095 is no different. The newest chapter delves further into Kuma’s backstory and how it ties in with the legend of the Sun God, Nika.

Saturn tells a beaten Bonney that her father is descended from an ancient race known as the Buccaneers. Who are they, and how might they relate to Luffy? Here’s everything we know so far about the mysterious race.

Who are the Buccaneers?

After Bonney accuses Saturn of killing her father, Saturn reveals that Kuma is/was a “survivor of the now extinct” race the Buccaneers. He describes those with Buccaneer blood as being descended from people who have committed a serious crime ostensibly against the World Government. Buccaneers are said to carry the blood of Giants in their veins, and in a flashback, a young Kuma and his father are forced into slavery at the hands of Celestial Dragons due to this very blood.

Immediately after Kuma is born, members of the World Government descend upon the happy family. We’re then shown father and son both performing back-breaking labor for the Celestial Dragons; one even comments on Kuma’s impressive strength at a young age. While those with Buccaneer blood are valued for their strength, the Celestial Dragons are especially cruel to them, potentially due to the crime their ancestors are said to have committed against the world.

Despite this, or perhaps because of this cruelty, the Buccaneers have shared hopeful legends of Nika, the Warrior of Liberation, for generations. In a flashback, a young Kuma listens to his father’s hopeful story of Nika and how the smiling Sun God will take those who are suffering out to sea where they can finally be free.

Little else is known about the Buccaneers as of this writing, but we do know that they’ve likely been passing along the myth of Nika from family to family for centuries. Now that Nika/Luffy is on Egghead along with Kuma’s daughter Bonney (who would be a quarter Buccaneer, as long as those theories of her being a clone aren’t true) and Kuma is seemingly rushing to Egghead, it looks like something big is about to happen. Luffy still doesn’t know the truth about his Devil Fruit, but with two Buccaneers in close proximity, it’s likely that he’ll realize in an upcoming chapter.