Among the many mysteries that haunt One Piece fans, the one that still sits at the top of the list is Shanks losing his arm while saving Luffy. As fans know, when Luffy was a kid, he was attacked by the Sea King, and Shanks had to get in between to save him, but in the process, he lost his left arm, which, according to many, majorly reduced his strength and abilities in the series.
The situation is mysterious because Shanks is one of the strongest characters in One Piece, and having his arm bitten off does not make sense in any way. Thus, One Piece fans had no choice but to come up with different theories about why Shanks offered his hand as a sacrifice, and most of them speculate that he did it to gain Luffy’s confidence.
However, according to a new theory, Shanks losing his arm is connected to a new aspect that was introduced in the Elbaph arc. This new aspect is the abyss marking on the hands of the God’s Knights that allows them to travel or teleport to any place they want.
The power of the abyss markings in One Piece
During the Egghead Island arc, when Saint Jaygarcia Saturn, one of the former Five Elders, appeared out of thin air on a pentagram circle, it confused the One Piece fans. Later on, he even summoned the other Five Elders on the same pentagram, and thus, it was speculated that the World Government officials had an ability to magically teleport to any place.
This ability returned in the Elbaph arc with the introduction of Gunko and Shamrock, the members of the God’s Knights. Later on, when Gunko summoned the other two God’s Knights members, the details about the pentagram circle were made clear. It was revealed that the magical circle was called the Abyss, and just as the story portrayed, the Abyss had the power to transport members of the World Government to any place they desired.
However, there was one other aspect that was required for the abyss circle to work. It was the abyss markings, or tattoos, on the hands of the Five Elders and the God’s Knights in One Piece. Only those who had these markings were allowed to be teleported through the abyss magical circle, thus making it exclusive for the Celestial Dragons and the higher officials of the World Government.
One Piece theory reveals why Shanks sacrificed his hands
According to a One Piece theory posted by @thatonepiecetalk on Instagram, Shanks not only lost his left arm to gain Luffy’s confidence but also to lose the abyss markings on his hand. The theory states that when Shanks went back to Mary Geoise, the Figarland family forcibly placed the abyss markings on his hands to summon him whenever they required.
This was incredibly frustrating for the One Piece Emperor, but when he got to know about Luffy’s destiny as Nika’s incarnation, he decided to bet on him and permanently lose his connection with his Celestial Dragon family. Thus, he chose the right moment, and when he got the chance, he let the Sea King bite his arm off to remove the abyss marking from his hand.
Although there are still some plot holes in the theory, it certainly explains Shanks’ inability to protect himself and Luffy during the Sea King attack. Hopefully, as the One Piece story moves forward, fans will get to know the real reason why Shanks lost his arm.
One Piece is available to watch on Crunchyroll.
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