Since its debut in 1997, the One Piece franchise has presented us with characters, each more incredible than the last. Although the majority of protagonists received special powers by consuming the mythical devil fruits , One Piece did not hesitate to feature other types of characters as well.
Literary giants, fishmen, various animals, dinosaurs as well as ordinary people who managed to achieve monstrous strength through hard work and determination. That said, we are here to tell you about the best swordsmen in One Piece . So here is our TOP 15 swordsmen from the Saga!
15. CAVENDISH
Cavendish also known as "The Noble Pirate". Cavendish is the prince of the Bourgeois Kingdom, as well as a powerful Rookie of the Worst Generation. He recently joined The Straw Hat Grand Fleet 🚢 and became the first commander of its first fleet. He has a very high level of skill with the saber, he was also recognized by Vice-Admiral Bastille as the prodigious “Genius of the sword”. ⚔️
When Cavendish is controlled by his alter ego Hakuba , his power as a swordsman increases significantly. For example, he took down Dellinger , a member of the Doflamingo Donquixote Pirates , considered one of the best fighters in the Corrida Colosseum with a single blow.
14. ASHURA DOJI
Ashura Doji , also known as Shutenmaru , is extremely powerful, as he was once considered to be the most dangerous bandit in Kuri before being defeated by the powerful Oden. Today, Ashura says he has become stronger over the past 20 years. Even Kaido, 🐉 one of the Yonko, sought to recruit him, and according to Kinemon, his strength would be worth that of 100 men .
Ashura Doji is a master swordsman and one of the most powerful samurai in Wano. 💪 He was able to face Jack, one of the three calamities of the Hundred Beast Pirates, and even inflicted the latter with a serious chest injury. Despite his large size and weight, Ashura is extremely fast , being able to teleport behind Jack's back in an instant. He also possesses great stamina, as he does not appear to have been perturbed when Jack cut his shoulder. 🩸
13- KINEMON
Kinemon aka the Fire Fox 🦊 is a powerful Samurai of Kuri. As the leader of the Nine Red Scabbards of Kozuki Oden , Kinemon is one of the most powerful samurai in Wano, noted by Orochi himself as an incredibly strong master in the art of swordsmanship. He is very versatile, able to wield both of his sabers with incredible power and precision. 🎯
He also proved that he was capable of easily cutting steel , by cutting the emergency shutters of Caesar's laboratory at Zoro's request.
Kinemon specializes in a style of swordsmanship he calls Kitsunebi-ryu . He is somehow able to generate, attack and cut fire 🔥 with one of his swords. His fire-enhanced sword strikes are powerful enough to seriously injure a dragon, although his scales are tougher than steel.
12. TRAFALGAR D. WATER LAW
Law is the Captain Doctor of his own crew, the Heart Pirates . Pirate extremely skilled at wielding Nodachi Kikoku , a sword about as tall as he is. Unlike traditional saber slashes, Law's saber slashes do not move but simply produce a cutting effect, while his spatial manipulation in his "Room" gives him the necessary range. Thanks to spatial slicing , he can dismember opponents without causing them damage and merge the different parts of the body as he wishes! 🩸
His swordsmanship, combined with his devil fruit powers, allows him to mutilate many people at once, faster than they can react. He apparently defeated Kin'emon , a very powerful sword master, capable of cutting steel and using fire. His greatest feats as a swordsman were defeating Vergo , where the wake of his blade was able to carve up Caesar's laboratory and the surrounding mountains, and cut a meteor in two.
11. CHARLOTTE CRACKER
Charlotte Cracker is Minister Biscuit as well as a Sweet Commanders 🍭 of the Big Mom Pirates . He is the 15th child of the Charlotte Family and his nickname is Cracker with a Thousand Arms . This Pirate with a bounty of 860 Million 💰 wields a huge double-edged sword called Pretzel, a blade larger than him with a cookie-shaped cross guard. He claims that it is a unique sword and has no equal.
The Biscuit Soldiers under his command each wield one or more replicas of his Biscuit Pretzel sword . Cracker is extremely skilled at wielding "Pretzel", as he can attack very quickly despite its size. Combined with Weaponry Haki, ⬛ it can cut through Luffy Gear 4's defenses quite easily.
10. ZORO RORONOA
Zoro is a member of the Straw Hat Pirates as well as an extremely powerful master swordsman, capable of using one, two, or three swords in varied attack styles. He is even capable of using Ichidai Sanzen: Daisen Sekai, a technique requiring the offensive fluid capable of cutting a montage in two.
As no one else has been seen using a style similar to Santoryu , it can be assumed that Zoro invented not only Santoryu but also most, if not all, of its sword techniques. After his two years of training, 🏋 Zoro is now able to easily cut materials even stronger than steel. He also learned to imbue his swords with Haki and defeat powerful opponents such as Pica or the reincarnation of Ryuma .
9. SHIRYU
Before becoming the commander of the Blackbeard Pirates' 2nd Fleet , 🏴☠️ Shiryu was the Head Warden of Impel Down Prison. Pirate extremely skilled in the art of wielding his nodachi, having used it to kill numerous prisoners of Impel Down, all considered powerful and dangerous criminals. When his sword was returned to him after a long prison term, Shiryu killed several of his fellow Impel Down officers in a split second, displaying extraordinary precision and dexterity .
In addition to being a powerful Swordsman, Shiryu also possesses a Devil Fruit that combines perfectly with his various talents. Shiryu possesses the Fruit of Invisibility , 🍈 which allows him to easily assassinate his opponents.
8. VISTA
Vista of the Flowered Blade is a former commander of the 5th division of the Whitebeard Pirates. Considered one of the most powerful swordsmen in the world of One Piece, he is one of the most powerful pirates of the Edward Newgate Pirates. Vista possesses extraordinary mastery in wielding the double-edged sword and even Mihawk recognizes her skills .
He also managed to deflect Mihawk 's attack which is powerful enough to cut an entire fleet in two. ⛴️ In the anime, he was also able to block bullets with his swords to protect his allies from gunfire while they were fleeing. Another indication of his strength is that during the Battle of Marineford , although he fought against individual Shichibukai and admirals as well as numerous naval officers, ⚓ he suffered no significant injuries.
7. SILVERS RAYLEIGH
Silvers Rayleigh , also known as the " Dark Lord ", is an extremely powerful and famous retired pirate who once served as second in command to the legendary Roger , known as the " Right Hand of the Pirate Lord ". ☠️👑 Rayleigh is one of the strongest pirates, along with Edward Newgate, Shiki, Monkey D. Garp, Sengoku and Kong, from the time when Gol D. Roger was alive. Rayleigh is one of the few people in the world who can use all three types of Haki. He has been seen using an advanced application of Weaponry which allows him to propel his Haki a short distance.
He is also capable of using an enhanced version of this technique, which allows him to channel his Haki into his opponents' bodies and destroy them from the inside. 🩸 In addition to this, Rayleigh is an extremely powerful and skilled swordsman , although he claims to have lost some of his skills in his later years. He can create extremely powerful slashes in the air and can combine Armament Haki with his swordsmanship , allowing him to fight on par with Kizaru, who is a very skilled swordsman himself.
6. SHANKS
Shanks le Roux is the captain of the Roux Pirates , but also a Yonko who rules the New World. A former rival of Mihawk , who is known as the world's greatest swordsman, Shanks is an extremely gifted swordsman himself. He could parry a blow from Whitebeard using only one arm, a testament to his prowess with a sword. Shanks is also powerful enough to easily defend against Akainu 's magma fist using only his sword and weaponry haki. ⬛
Shanks is proficient in all three types of Haki. He is the only character to possess the Haki of Kings and to have damaged physical objects. Shanks is certainly the strongest Pirate on the list, but as a swordsman he only ranks sixth.
5. SHIKI
Shiki the Golden Lion , also known as the "Flying Pirate", is the admiral of the Golden Lion Pirates and the first known prisoner to escape from Impel Down . During Roger's time, he was one of the most powerful figures of the time, being on par with Sengoku, Garp, Whitebeard, and Roger. Before this time, Shiki was a member of the Rock Pirates , a powerful crew whose members included three future Yonko. Shiki has great swordsmanship skills as he was able to massacre a Marine army with the help of Oto and Kogarashi before being overpowered by Garp and Sengoku.
After the two swords become his prosthetic legs , ⚔️ not only does he have little difficulty standing or walking while using them, but he is also able to attack from a distance with them by sending out saber strikes from his legs. These aerial blades have a light yellow/golden color scheme, matching its epithet. He also combines his swordsmanship skills with his Fuwa Fuwa no Mi , a Paramecia-type Devil Fruit 🍈 that allows him to levitate surrounding non-living matter once he comes into contact with it.
4. FUJITORA
In terms of combat strength, Fujitora is considered one of the strongest fighters in the entire World Government structure. ⚓ Fujitora is a Navy Admiral . He ate the Zushi Zushi no Mi , a Paramecia-type devil fruit that allows him to manipulate the gravity around a chosen location at will by increasing its gravitational force. While other powerful protagonists have been shown to primarily rely on their Devil Fruit abilities in combat, Fujitora wields a shikomizue (a cane-shaped sword) 🦯 in tandem with his Devil Fruit ability. The connection between these two factors has not yet been explained, although it appears that he channels his power through his sword.
Fujitora possesses an extremely high skill level in Armament Haki . He could concentrate a high concentration of offensive fluid into his sword, turning it obsidian black and making it strong enough to counter the sharp wires of the Birdcage of the Pirate Captain, Don Quixote Doflamingo . He is also a master in the art of Observation Haki, which he uses to compensate for his blindness in combat.
3. RYUMA
Ryuma was a legendary samurai from the country of Wano . He was renowned for his incredible mastery of swordsmanship. His skills were like a mix of Kenjutsu and Battojutsu. 📜 He could slice copper, kill Cyrano, a top-notch swordsman as well as a huge dragon with little effort. He was recognized as the strongest swordsman of his time . It is for this reason, and also because he strongly believed in protecting others, that Ryuma was also called "King", the swordsman who carries the greatest "warrior soul" in the world.
After his death, ⚰️ he was recognized as the Sword God in the country of Wano and his strength continues to be considered legendary. Ryuma possessed a sword called Shusui , one of the 21 great swords in the world of One Piece. It is distinguished by its black blade and its flower-shaped guard. It seems that Shusui was not always a "black blade", and she became one after many battles alongside her master. Due to its association with Ryuma, Shusui is considered the national treasure of Wano Country .
2. KOZUKI ODEN
Kozuki Oden possessed superhuman physical strength since childhood. At two years old, he could catch rabbits with his bare hands, and at four years old, he killed a bear by throwing a rock at it. His combination of combat and charisma proved particularly effective during the restoration of peace to Kuri , where he defeated the powerful Ashura Doji (Samurai with the strength of 100 fighting men), then rounded up the rest of the dangerous criminals and made them work under him, including Ashura. Oden was an extremely powerful master samurai, wielding both the legendary blades Ame no Habakiri (the sword said to be able to cut the "sky" itself) 🌅 and Enma (the sword said to she can cut through the "bottom of hell") in a style of sword art known as Daito Nitoryu .
At nine years old, Oden could take on an entire Yakuza gang in the Flower Capital. At age 18, he slayed a massive beast known as the Mountain God. Oden possessed an extremely high level of skill in Armament Haki , as shown when he hardened his swords to cleanly cut the gigantic beast known as the Mountain God in two. He has mastered this form of Haki to such an extent that he is the only samurai capable of fully controlling Enma's ability to drain massive amounts of Haki from weaponry, and even permanently scar Kaido 🐲 almost invulnerable, something no one else has been able to do before and since.
1. DRACULE MIHAWK BEST SWORDSMAN
Mihawk is the current holder of the title " World's Greatest Swordsman ". Mihawk's reputation spans the entire world of One Piece, he is the strongest swordsman in the world, and this is partially due to his superhuman physical power 💪 and his fortitude which complements his mastery of swordsmanship. saber art. Mihawk displays extraordinary dexterity and supreme swordsmanship skill, particularly when using his primary sword, the Kokuto Yoru . His swordsmanship is extremely versatile, ranging from destroying multiple fleets of ships and giant icebergs with immense power using the Kokuto Yoru sword which has the ability to deflect the trajectory of bullets with precision.
It is also capable of cutting steel with immense ease and speed. The fact that Mihawk was a rival of one of Yonko implies that Mihawk could be one of the most powerful pirates in the saga . In fact, he is known to have often fought with the Shanks when they were younger. It is said that their fights shook the entire Grand Line and Mihawk often sought out Shanks for duels. However, Dracule Mihawk lost interest in his rival, when Shanks lost his left arm. 🦾 Mihawk has remained unscathed throughout the series thus far.
There are a lot of powerful swordsmen in the world of One Piece, some of whom may be missing from our list (like Admiral Borsalino , Jack or Inuarashi ), while others will certainly make their appearances in the future arcs.
Regardless, based on what we've seen so far, we firmly believe that these fifteen swordsmen represent the best that One Piece has to offer. However, please feel free to comment, and if you think we've missed a Pirate or Navy member , please let us know!
If you are interested in devil fruit users, come take a look at our article: Paramecia Top10 devil fruits .
