After nearly 30 years of publication, Eiichiro Oda's One Piece manga has established a rich world with many characters worth exploring. The upcoming prequel will examine the past of former Pirate Hunter Roronoa Zoro.
News spread on social media platform X (formerly Twitter) that the One Piece series will release a light novel prequel dedicated to Monkey D. Luffy's second-in-command. According to a report by Shonen Jump News, the new One Piece light novel will be called ZORO – Josho Sasakaze and will focus on Zoro's first adventures before becoming a member of the Straw Hat pirates. User X @/MoonGod_Zika said the Zoro light novel will be written by Jun Esaka and illustrated by Nakamaru.
Related
One Piece animator officially revealed the epic scene of Garp & Koby – Months before the episode was released
A fan-favorite animator of the One Piece anime teases a highly anticipated moment from the Egghead story featuring Captain Koby and Monkey D. Garp.
Esaka is a famous light writer who has created Naruto with versions such as Naruto Shinden and the Naruto Retsuden series. Previously, Esaka wrote the female-run One Piece HEROES novel, which featured Nami, Nico Robin, Boa Hancock, Uta, and many other artists. Esaka also worked on the novel One Piece Odyssey, a literary adaptation of the upcoming One Piece Odyssey video game for Nintendo Switch. Nakamaru also worked with Esaka on the light novel adaptation as an illustrator.
The upcoming release of One Piece will include Posters and Stickers for Zoro and Sanji fans
In addition, ONE PIECE Magazine Vol. 18 “will be a special 'Wings' feature for Zoro and Sanji,” including a special poster, character details and stickers. Sanji, the playboy chef of the Straw Hat Pirates, recently received his own spin-off manga from the creative team behind Food Wars!: Shokugeki no Soma. One Piece: Shokugeki no Sanji, now available in English by Viz Media, explores various points in Sanji's life before and after he became a pirate. One chapter explores Sanji's history at the Baratie restaurant with his father character “Red-Leg Zeff”, while another chapter presents his perspective in the “Arabasta Arc”.
Related
One Piece Releases Exclusive, Limited Edition Creator Art Print – But Good Luck Getting One
Highly detailed prints featuring creator Eichiro Oda's new artwork will be available to the ultimate One Piece collector — for a price.
Before announcing ZORO – Josho Sasakaze, the One Piece series explored Zoro's past through the anime adaptation of Monsters. Monsters is a one-volume manga by Oda set in the One Piece world but many years before Luffy set out to become Pirate King. The story of legendary samurai Shimotsuki Ryuma slaying the dragon made him famous around the world.
Ryuma was introduced in the modern One Piece timeline as a zombie manipulated by Gecko Moria in the “Thriller Bark Arc”. Zoro defeated Ryuma and was rewarded by the immortal samurai with a “Black Blade” sword named Shusui. Oda revealed in One Piece Episode 105 that Zoro is a descendant of Ryuma and the Shimotsuki clan from Wano Country. The connection between the two is shown more clearly in the Netflix anime, where the special is narrated by Kazuya Nakai, the Japanese voice actor for Zoro.
A piece
Created by Eiichiro Oda, the One Piece series explores the adventures of pirate Luffy D. Monkey and the Straw Hat Pirates. Since the manga first debuted in 1997, One Piece has been adapted into an anime and seen many movies. Most recently it was adapted into a live-action series by Netflix.
Created by Eiichiro Oda
First TV show chapter One Piece (1999)
Latest TV show chapters Netflix's One Piece
Airing date of the first episode October 20, 1999
Cast Mayumi Tanaka, Kazuya Nakai, Colleen Clinkenbeard, Christopher Sabat, Kerry Williams, Kappei Yamaguchi, Sonny Strait, Hiroaki Hirata, Eric Valette, Ikue Ootani
Source: X (formerly Twitter)