One Piece: 10 saddest character backstories

One Piece has its fair share of heartwrenching moments as Oda shares several characters’ tragic backstories. Here are the ten saddest of them.

At first glance, One Piece appears to be a light-hearted anime show following the adventures of a young pirate and his crew. Monkey D. Luffy aspires to claim the legendary treasure and become the Pirate King. However, thanks to the years of world-building, One Piece takes a dark turn pretty soon.

Luffy is an outlaw since the World Government restricts people from freely exploring the seas. Additionally, the series features dark underlying themes such as slavery, racism, corruption, tyranny, genocide, and so much more.

Whether it’s most of the Straw Hats, other pirates, or even One Piece villains, there are more than a few characters who suffer for years. While they cannot forget their pasts, they strive to live better lives in their own way. Here’s a list of the ten One Piece characters with the saddest backstories. Warning: Ranks 1 and 2 contain spoilers from the manga!

10. Boa Hancock

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The Snake Princess, the Pirate Empress, and the most beautiful woman in the world, Boa Hancock, go by many titles today. However, the current Captain of the Kuja Pirates wasn’t always so confident and assertive. In her younger days, she and her two sisters were kept as slaves by a World Noble.

The three sisters not only possess the slave mark called “The Hoof of the Soaring Dragon” to remind them of the dark past every day, but they are also forced to eat the devil fruits. Thankfully, Fisher Tiger saved them while freeing all the enslaved people in Mary Geoise a few years ago.

Nonetheless, the hatred Boa and her sisters share for the World Government. To protect the Kuja Pirates, Boa became a Warlord of the Sea until she was stripped of the title with the abolishment of the system as a result of this year’s Reverie.

9. Señor Pink

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Not all villains are necessarily evil, and Señor Pink is the perfect example of that. Initially, he was introduced as an eccentric character until One Piece showed one of its saddest backstories in the Dressrosa Arc. Despite having a minor role, his backstory touched the hearts of many fans. He had already been working for Doflamingo before he met his wife.

Keeping his shady work hidden to live a peaceful life with his wife and son, all seemed to be going well for him until his son died from a fever while he was away from work. When he returned, his wife told him she was looking for him everywhere, but everything she knew about his work turned out to be a life.

With her child’s sudden death and her husband’s betrayal, she broke down completely. He started dressing like a baby to cheer her up, but sadly, that didn’t last long. She went into a vegetative state after an accident. Perhaps Señor Pink continued dressing as a baby to honor his family’s memory. He ignored the people’s stares and continued working for Doflamingo. After his loss in Dressroa, he was arrested and is currently serving his sentence in Impel Down.

8. Tony Tony Chopper

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The cutest Straw Hat member hasn’t had an easy life since the day he was born. Born as a reindeer with a blue nose, he was forced to walk behind his herd. After eating a Human Human Fruit without knowing, his family abandoned him altogether. Whether it was his own kind or the humans, no one accepted Chopper, who could transform himself into a strange creature.

After Dr. Hiriluk adopted Chopper, the little reindeer knew happiness for the first time in his life. Sadly, after a year of living with him, Hiriluk pushed him away, knowing his days were numbered due to an illness. While Chopper risked his life to get a mushroom, thinking it would save his life, the doctor ate it, knowing that it was actually poisonous.

However, Hiriluk didn’t want the mushroom to be the cause of his death. Hence, he drank an explosive substance while rebelling against Wapol, the King of Drum Island, who was suppressing the kingdom. Hiriluk’s death was a major blow to Chopper, who was then taken in by Kureha. Chopper could finally let go of his past shackles after Luffy helped him

7. Nami

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Nami may not be the strongest Straw Hat, but she is brave without a doubt. Nami’s foster mother, Bellemere, found her as an infant when Nojiko carried her around after a war. Bellemere, a promising Marine, left her job, took the girls in, and raised them as her own.

Despite not having much money, the family lived a peaceful and happy in a small village. However, their lives were turned upside down when Arlong Pirates terrorized the villagers and forced them to pay a hefty sum of money before taking over the village entirely. Arlong killed Bellemere after finding out she only had enough money to compensate for the girls but not herself.

However, Arlong didn’t stop after killing their mother in front of them. He discovered Nami’s talent as a Navigator and forced her to work for him, all the while giving her false hope that he’d free her village if she paid him 100 million berries.

It took Nami eight years of constant hard work and life-threatening situations to collect that money. However, the pirate never intended to keep his promise. Finally, Luffy came and saved her before she became the official Navigator of the Straw Hat Pirates.

6. Sanji Vinsmoke

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Sanji is one of the best-written characters in One Piece, with not one but two tragic backstories. In the East Blue Saga, the series revealed his childhood with Zeff, who cut off his leg in order to save him. The two were stranded on an island without any food for weeks. Zeff tricked Sanji into taking the only remaining food they had.

After they were saved, Sanji worked with Zeff in Baratie. Years after the time skip, the series revealed Sanji’s true identity as a Prince of the Germa 66. Not having the same genetic mutations as his siblings, Sanji was beaten and treated worse than anyone. His father even made him wear an iron mask to keep anyone from recognizing him as a prince.

Unlike his brothers and father, his mother loved him a lot, but she died young due to an illness. His sister, Reiju, had to hide the fact that she cared about her younger brother. When Sanji was imprisoned by his father, she took him out and let him escape to East Blue, setting him free from the hell he had been living in. However, another hell was waiting for him, and it was Zeff who saved him and raised him since then.

5. Brook

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Brook’s introduction is one of the most hilarious moments in One Piece, a massive contrast to his tear-jerking backstory. Around 52 years ago, he was a pirate who entered the Grand Line with his crew. However, the sea was much more treacherous back then. The entire crew died, along with Brook. Thanks to his devil’s fruit, his soul found its way back to his body.

Because of the fog, it took his soul two years to find him. By then, Brook was nothing but a skeleton with an afro. He roamed around those waters alone for decades. The last song he played with his crew was etched into his memory, as he couldn’t forget their tragic demise.

Brook only persevered all those years in hopes of reuniting with his friend Laboon, an island whale who has been waiting for the Rumbar Pirates all this time. When the Straw Hats first met him, his shadow was stolen by Gecko Moria. Luffy even told him about his encounter with Laboon before Brook set out to sea with them, knowing Laboon was waiting for him at the end of his journey.

4. Kyros

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Despite being a minor character, Kyros has one of the saddest backstories in One Piece. He grew up in the slums of Dressrosa. At the age of 15, he killed two people to avenge his friends. Shortly after meeting King Riku, Kyros became a gladiator in the Corrida Colosseum and was promised freedom after winning 100 battles, which he did.

He became a legendary warrior in the kingdom. At the age of 25, he was assigned as the personal bodyguard of the eldest Princess, Scarlett. The two shortly fell in love, but the difference in their status forced the royal family to fake Scarlett’s death. The couple went to live up a hill, and they had a daughter named Rebecca.

King Riku and Princess Viola would often visit the family and their lives were peaceful. However, Doflamingo invaded the kingdom ten years ago and started hunting the royals. Kyros became a toy due to Sugar’s devil fruit powers while Scarlett was killed by Diamante. Sugar’s devil fruit made everyone forget about Kyros’ existence.

Even his wife and daughter couldn’t remember him. Kyros felt powerless, being unable to save Scarlett. For ten years, Kyros raised Rebecca while still being trapped in his weak, tin body. He was finally free when the Straw Hats defeated the Donquixote Pirates.

3. Trafalgar D. Water Law

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It didn’t take long for Trafalgar Law to become a fan-favorite character after his eccentric introduction in Sabaody. After the time skip, he allied himself with the Straw Hats to defeat Kaido. However, he also had a personal score to settle with Doflamingo. Law was born and raised in Flevance, a flourishing country where his parents were doctors. With loving parents and a little sister, his life couldn’t be better.

However, when the truth about the World Government monopolizing the toxic white lead came to light, his peaceful country soon became a living hell. The Marines massacred the ill people to keep the truth from coming to light. Law was also suffering the effects of lead poisoning and was destined to die shortly.

He swore to destroy everything in his path and joined the Donquixote family, where he met Rosinante, Doflamingo’s younger brother. Out of pity for the young boy, Rosinante kidnapped Law and took him to seek medical attention, but it was in vain. The only hope to save Law was to eat the Op-Op Fruit, which Doflamingo was after.

Rosinante had long betrayed his brother by working as a Marine, so he didn’t hesitate to let Law eat the fruit. Before Doflamingo could kill him, Rosinante hid Law away before telling him that he loved him with a goofy smile on his face. That was Law’s last memory of Rosinante since the man wanted Law to remember him that way. Even as an adult, Law was shackled by his past and wanted nothing more than to avenge him. Rosinante’s final moments still remain one of the most heart-wrenching deaths in One Piece.

2. Nico Robin

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The World Government is responsible for most of the tragic backstories in One Piece, including everything Nico Robin went through. Being ostracized by other islanders due to her devil fruit powers, Robin spent most of her time reading books. She became a scholar when she was merely eight years old. The people from Ohara were researching the Poneglyphs to share the secret of the Void Century with the world.

However, researching anything about that time period is strictly forbidden by the World Government. They launched a Buster Call and destroyed the island and everyone in it. Jaguar D. Saul, who was a friend of Robin’s mother, protected her with his life. He begged Kuzan to help her escape, to which the latter agreed.

Saul was believed to be dead all this time until Vegapunk revealed that he is currently in Elbaf trying to find out more about Professor Clover’s research. As for Robin, she may have escaped Ohara with Aokiji’s help, but the World Government put a bounty of 79 million berries on her head.

At the age of eight, she not only lost her family and home, but she also had people coming after her life for the money. She struggled for 20 years, doing whatever she could do to survive. In the end, she became Crocodile’s right hand. After the Arabasta Arc, she joined the Straw Hats and finally escaped her hell.

1. Bartholomew Kuma

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Before the Egghead arc, Robin would have ranked first in our list of saddest backstories in One Piece. However, Kuma’s past shocked the entire fandom. His father was from a Buccaneer race, and his mother was human. The race was annihilated by the World Government, so when they found out about Kuma, they enslaved the entire family. His parents died during captivity while Kuma was sent to God Valley. He was one of the targets for the Native Hunting Competition.

Thanks to Ivankov and Ginny, most of the slaves and natives survived. Kuma and Ginny stayed together and joined the Revolutionary Army. Ginny always expressed her desire to marry him, but knowing what happened to his mother, Kuma couldn’t accept her. 14 years ago, Ginny was kidnapped by a Celestial Dragon and gave birth to Bonney after two years.

Ginny died because of a strange illness, which also affected Bonney. Kuma, who was raising Bonney as his own daughter after Ginny’s death, accepted the World Government’s deal to turn him into a mindless robot. Despite Vegapunk’s reluctance, Kuma gave up everything so Bonney could live.

Even now, when he as no consciousness, he’s doing everything he can to protect her. It’s unclear whether he’s still alive or not, but there’s no denying it’s one of the darkest and most tragic backstories in One Piece.

For more from the high seas, make sure to have our One Piece filler guide handy, and we break down the differences between live-action One Piece and the anime, if you’ve seen the new Netflix series.