One Piece facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

This page is about the manga series. For the anime, see One Piece (1999 TV series). For the live action series, see One Piece (2023 TV series). For other uses, see One Piece (disambiguation).

Quick facts for kids One Piece
Genre	Adventure Comedy drama Science fantasy
Manga
Written by	Eiichiro Oda
Published by	Shueisha
English publisher	^AUS Madman Entertainment ^NA/UK Viz Media
Imprint	Jump Comics
Magazine	Weekly Shōnen Jump
English magazine	^NA Shonen Jump Weekly Shonen Jump
Original run	July 22, 1997 – ongoing
Volumes	114 (List of volumes)
Anime television series
One Piece (1999–present)
Media franchise
List of One Piece media List of One Piece films One Piece live action series List of One Piece video games Music of One Piece

One Piece is a super popular Japanese manga series. It is written and drawn by Eiichiro Oda. The story follows the exciting adventures of Monkey D. Luffy and his pirate crew, the Straw Hats. Luffy's big dream is to find the legendary treasure called "One Piece." If he finds it, he will become the next King of the Pirates!

The manga has been published in Japan's Weekly Shōnen Jump magazine since July 1997. Its chapters are collected into special books called tankōbon volumes. As of March 2026, there are 114 volumes! Companies like Viz Media and Madman Entertainment publish the manga in English.

One Piece has grown into a huge media franchise. It has inspired an anime series by Toei Animation, which started in October 1999. There are also 14 animated movies and special video animations. Many companies have created toys, games, and other cool merchandise. Netflix even released a live-action TV series in 2023. A new anime series, made by Wit Studio, is scheduled to premiere in 2027.

People love One Piece for its amazing stories, detailed world, unique art, and funny characters. Many critics and readers call it one of the best manga series ever. By March 2026, over 600 million copies were sold worldwide. This makes it the best-selling comic series and the best-selling manga series of all time! It holds several publishing records, including a Guinness World Record.

Discover the World of One Piece

Exploring the One Piece World

The Blue Planet in One Piece

Flag of the World Government

The story of One Piece takes place on the Blue Planet. This world is home to humans and many other interesting races. You'll find dwarves, huge giants, merfolk, fish-men, and even animal-like people called "Minks."

A powerful group called the World Government rules most of the planet. Their military, the Navy, tries to keep the seas safe from pirates. A secret police force, Cipher Pol, also works for the Government. However, the Revolutionary Army wants to overthrow the World Government. The series often shows that "pirates" aren't always bad, and the Government isn't always good.

The world also has mysterious items called Devil Fruits. Eating one gives you a special power, but you lose the ability to swim! Another power is Haki. This is an inner strength that helps users observe and fight better. It's one of the few ways to hurt some Devil Fruit users.

The Blue Planet's surface is mostly ocean. Two huge oceans are separated by a giant mountain range called the Red Line. Another important sea is the Grand Line. It runs across the world, surrounded by calm areas called the Calm Belt. These belts are full of giant sea monsters called Sea Kings. These barriers divide the world into four seas: North Blue, East Blue, West Blue, and South Blue. Traveling between them is very difficult!

The Grand Adventure Begins

*One Piece* story arcs
Arc	Manga		Anime		Live		Key characters
Arc	Chp.	Vol.	S	Ep.	S	Ep.	Allies	Enemies	Back story

East Blue
Romance Dawn	1–7	1	S1	1–3	S1	1	Luffy, Zoro, Koby	Alvida, Morgan, Helmeppo	Shanks, Kuina
Orange Town	8–21	1–3	S1	4–8	S1	2	Nami	Buggy	Chouchou
Syrup Village	22–41	3–5	S1	9–18	S1	3–4	Usopp, Kaya	Kuro	Yasopp
Baratie	42–68	5–8	S1	19–30	S1	5–8	Sanji	Mihawk, Krieg, Nami	Zeff
Arlong Park	69–95	8–11	S1	31–44	S1	5–8	Nami, Nojiko	Arlong	Bellemere
Buggy's Crew: After the Battle!	35–75 (covers)	4–9	S1	46–47					Buggy, Alvida
Loguetown	96–100	11–12	S1	45; 48–53	S2	9	Dragon	Smoker, Tashigi, Buggy	Roger
Warship Island	N/A		S1	54–61			Apis	Marines

Alabasta
Reverse Mountain	101–105	12	S2	62–63			Crocus	Mr. 9, Miss Wednesday	Rumbar Pirates
Whiskey Peak	106–114	12–13	S2	64–67			Vivi, Karoo	Baroque Works
Koby and Helmeppo's Chronicle of Toil	83–119 (covers)	10–14	S2	68–69			Garp	Morgan	Koby, Helmeppo
Little Garden	115–129	13–15	S2	70–77			Dorry, Brogy	Mr. 3, Miss Goldenweek
Drum Island	130–154	15–17	S3	78–91			Chopper, Kureha, Dalton	Wapol	Hiriluk
Django's Dance Paradise	126–172 (covers)	14–19	N/A						Django, Fullbody
Alabasta	155–217	17–24	S3/ S4	92–130			Ace, Vivi, Smoker	Crocodile, Robin	Koza
Dreams!	N/A		S5	131–135					Johnny, Yosaku

Sky Island
The Zenny Pirate Crew Sortie!	N/A		S5	136–138			Zenny	Marines
Beyond the Rainbow	N/A		S5	139–143				Marines, Wetton
Hachi's Walk on the Sea Floor	182–228 (covers)	20–25	N/A				Camie		Hatchan
Jaya	218–236	24–25	S6	144–152			Robin, Cricket	Bellamy, Blackbeard	Noland
Skypiea	237–302	26–32	S6	153–195			Ganfor, Conis, Pagaya, Wyper, Aisa	Eneru	Kalgara
Wapol's Omnivorous Rampage	236–262 (covers)	25–28	N/A						Wapol, Dalton
G-8	N/A		S7	196–206			Kobato, Mekao	G-8

Water 7
Ace's Great Search for Blackbeard	272–305 (covers)	29–32	N/A				Moda	Marines	Ace
Long Ring Long Land	303–321	32–34	S7	207–219			Tonjit	Foxy, Aokiji
Gedatsu's Unexpected Life on the Blue Sea	314–348 (covers)	33–37	N/A				Forest Boss	N/A	Gedatsu
Ocean's Dream	N/A		S7	220–224				Drim
Foxy's Return	N/A		S7	225–228				Foxy, Kibagaeru
Water 7	322–374	34–39	S8	229–263			Kokoro, Chimney, Iceburg	Franky, Usopp, Robin, CP9	Tom
Enies Lobby	375–441	39–46	S9	264–290; 293–302; 304–325			Franky, Sogeking/Usopp, Robin, Going Merry, Paulie	CP9, World Government, Garp	Clover, Saul, Revolutionary Army
Miss Goldenweek's Big Plan, A Baroque Reunion	359–413 (covers)	38–43	N/A					Hina	Baroque Works
Boss Luffy Historical Special	N/A		S9	291–292; 303			N/A
Boss Luffy Historical Special	N/A		S11	406–407			N/A

Thriller Bark
Ice Hunter	N/A		S9	326–335				Accino Family
Chopper Man	N/A		S9	336			N/A
Eneru's Great Space Mission	428–474 (covers)	44–49	N/A				Spacey	Seamars	Eneru, Tsukimi
Thriller Bark	442–489	46–50	S10	337–381			Brook, Lola	Moria, Kuma, Oars	Laboon
CP9's Independent Report	491–528 (covers)	50–54	N/A				N/A	Spandam	CP9
Spa Island	N/A		S11	382–384			Lina, Sayo	Foxy

Summit War
Sabaody Archipelago	490–513	50–53	S11	385–405			Hatchan, Camie, Duval, Rayleigh, Shakky	Celestial Dragons, Kizaru, Kuma	Roger, Crocus
Amazon Lily	514–524	53–54	S12	408–417			Marguerite, Hancock		Sun Pirates
The Friends' Whereabouts	543–560 (covers)	56–57	S12	418–421			Perona, Haredas, Heracles	N/A
The Friends' Whereabouts	543–560 (covers)	56–57	S13	453–456			Perona, Haredas, Heracles	N/A
Impel Down	525–549	54–56	S13/ S14	422–425; 430–452; 457-458			Buggy, Mr. 3, Bon Clay, Ivankov, Jimbei	Magellan, Blackbeard	Ace
Little East Blue (Strong World)	N/A		S13	426–429				Amigo Pirates
Marineford	550–597	56–61	S14	459–491; 493–516			Ace, Whitebeard, Marco, Crocodile, Law	Marines, Warlords	Sabo
Toriko × One Piece	N/A		S14	492			N/A

Fish-Man Island
Return to Sabaody	598–602	61	S15	517–522			Rayleigh, Kuma	Fake Straw Hats
Fish-Man Island	603–653	61–66	S15	523–541; 543–574			Shirahoshi, Jimbei	Hody, Decken, Caribou	Fisher Tiger, Koala, Otohime
Decks of the World	613–668 (covers)	62–68	N/A				N/A		Minor characters, worldwide
Toriko × One Piece	N/A		S15	542			N/A

Dressrosa
Z's Ambition (Z)	N/A		S15	575–578			Lily	Neo Marines	Panz Fry
Punk Hazard	654–699	66–70	S16	579–589; 591–625			Law, Tashigi, Kin'emon, Momonosuke, Brownbeard	Caesar, Monet, Vergo
Caribou's New World Kee Hee Hee	674–731 (covers)	68–73	S20	921			Coribou	G-5, Drake	Caribou (Gaburu)
Toriko × One Piece × Dragon Ball Z	N/A		S16	590			N/A
Caesar Retrieval	N/A		S16	626–628			Kung Fu Dugong	Breed
Dressrosa	700–801	70–80	S17	629–746			Law, Kin'emon, Sabo, Rebecca, Viola, Toy Soldier, Gladiators, Tontattas, Kanjuro	Doflamingo	Corazon, Bellamy
The Solitary Journey of Jimbei, First Son of the Sea	751–785 (covers)	75–78	N/A				Wadatsumi, Sea Beasts		Jimbei

Whole Cake Island
Silver Mine (Gold)	N/A		S18	747–750			Bartolomeo, Desire	Bill, Silver Pirates
Zou	802–822	80–82	S18	751–779			Dogstorm, Catviper, Pekoms, Minks, Raizo	Bege, Jack, Sanji	Kozuki Clan
Decks of the World, 500-Million-Man Arc	805–838 (covers)	80–83	N/A				N/A		Minor characters, worldwide
Marine Rookie	N/A		S18	780–782				Prodi, Grount, Marines
Whole Cake Island	823–902	82–90	S19	783–877			Carrot, Pedro, Jimbei, Sanji, Bege, Caesar, Pudding	Big Mom, Katakuri	Germa 66
The Saga of the Self-Proclaimed Straw Hat Fleet	864–919 (covers)	86–91	N/A				N/A		Straw Hat Fleet
Reverie / Levely	903–908	90	S19	878–891			Revolutionary Army	Charlos, Imu	World Government

Land of Wano
Germa 66's Ahh ... An Emotionless Excursion	1035–1078 (covers)	102–107	N/A				Caesar	Big Mom Pirates	Germa 66
Land of Wano, Act One	909–924	90–92	S20	892–894; 897–906; 908–916			Law, Tama, Kin'emon, Kiku, Ashura, Shinobu	Kaido
Cidre Guild (Stampede)	N/A		S20	895–896			Hancock	Cidre
Romance Dawn (one-shot)	Wanted!		S20	907			Ann, Balloon	Spiel	N/A
Land of Wano, Act Two	925–955	92–94	S20	917–956			Kid, Killer, Hyogoro, Yasuie, Toko, Hiyori, Raizo, Kawamatsu	Orochi, Kaido, Queen	Oden
Gang Bege's Oh My Family	948–994 (covers)	94–98	N/A				Lola, Gotti	Marines	Bege
Land of Wano, Act Three	956–1057	95–105	S20	957–1028; 1031–1088			Kid, Law, Tama, Akazaya Nine, Hyogoro, Momonosuke, Marco, Yamato, Drake	Kaido, Big Mom, Orochi, Kanjuro	Oden
Uta's Past (Red)	N/A		S20	1029–1030			Uta

Final
Egghead	1058–1125	105–111	S21	1089–1155			Bonney, Vegapunks, Stussy, Dorry, Brogy, Emet	Marines, Lucci, Five Elders	Kuma, Koby, Sabo
Ogre Child Yamato's Golden Harvest Surrogate Pilgrimage	1109–1162 (covers)	109–TBA	N/A				Tama, Ulti, Akazaya Nine	Who's-who	Yamato
Elbaph	1126–present	111–TBA	TBA	TBA			Hajrudin, Gaban, Saul, Loki	Imu, Gunko, Knights of God	Harald, Rocks, Dragon, Shanks, Blackbeard

The story centers on Monkey D. Luffy. He accidentally ate a Gum-Gum Fruit, which made his body like rubber! Luffy sets off from the East Blue Sea. His goal is to find the "One Piece" treasure. He wants to become the King of the Pirates.

Luffy starts his journey as the captain of the Straw Hat Pirates. His first crewmates are Roronoa Zoro, a skilled swordsman, and Nami, a clever navigator. Then comes Usopp, a great sniper, and Sanji, a chivalrous cook. They get a ship called the Going Merry, later replaced by the Thousand Sunny.

As their adventure continues, more friends join the crew. These include Tony Tony Chopper, a reindeer doctor, and Nico Robin, an archaeologist. Franky, a cyborg shipwright, and Brook, a skeleton musician, also join. Finally, Jimbei, a fish-man helmsman, becomes part of the team. Together, they face many challenges. They meet other pirates, bounty hunters, and even soldiers from the World Government. They sail the seas, chasing their dreams!

How One Piece Was Created

The Idea for One Piece

Eiichiro Oda loved pirates since he was a kid. He watched an animated show called Vicky the Viking. This made him want to draw his own pirate manga. He also read about real pirates. He used their traits for many of his characters. For example, the character Marshall D. Teach is based on the real pirate Edward "Blackbeard" Teach. Oda's biggest inspiration was also Akira Toriyama's famous series, Dragon Ball.

Oda started writing One Piece in 1996. He first created two short stories called Romance Dawn. These stories featured Luffy and ideas that would appear in the main series. The first Romance Dawn was published in 1996. The original editor, Takanori Asada, shared that Weekly Shōnen Jump rejected the manga three times. But they finally agreed to publish it because Asada was so determined!

Fun Facts About Its Development

Oda got the idea for Devil Fruits from Doraemon. The fruits' powers often reflect everyday desires. When designing a Devil Fruit, Oda thinks about how it would look tempting to eat. Many special attacks in the manga use clever wordplay. Some of Zoro's sword techniques sound like food when spoken aloud! For example, his move Onigiri means "demon cut" but sounds like "rice ball."

Oda draws almost everything that moves in the manga himself. This helps keep the art style consistent. He works very long hours, often from early morning until the next day. He spends the first few days of the week planning the story. The rest of the time is for drawing and coloring.

A fan once asked Oda who Nami was in love with. Oda explained that he avoids romantic relationships within Luffy's crew. He said that One Piece is a shōnen manga. This means it's for boys, and they are usually more interested in adventure than love stories.

The Story's Future

Eiichiro Oda, the creator, once thought One Piece would last only five years. But he loved the story too much to finish it so quickly! In 2016, he shared that the manga was about 65% complete. By 2018, it was 80% done. In 2019, Oda mentioned the series was nearing its end. He even said he might change the ending if fans guessed it! He confirmed that the "One Piece" treasure is a real, physical item. He wanted to avoid an ending where "the journey was the real treasure." In August 2019, Oda predicted the manga would end in five years. However, the story continued, and he confirmed the ending he planned from the start remained. In August 2020, it was announced that One Piece was heading into its final big story arc. The manga reached its 1,000th chapter in January 2021. In June 2022, Oda took a break to prepare for the manga's 25th anniversary and the start of its final saga.

In March 2026, a special video was shared on the official One Piece YouTube channel. In it, Oda made some final statements about the treasure and Luffy's future. He then placed this information into a treasure box. He sent the box to the bottom of the ocean. It was meant to stay there until the story finished. However, some fans have already started planning ways to find the box!

One Piece Media

The Original Manga Series

Eiichiro Oda writes and illustrates the One Piece manga. It has been published in Japan's Weekly Shōnen Jump magazine since July 22, 1997. The chapters are collected into tankōbon volumes. The first volume was released on December 24, 1997. By March 4, 2026, 114 volumes had been released.

Viz Media began publishing the manga in English in North America in 2002. They released the collected volumes starting in 2003. In 2009, Viz sped up releases to catch up with Japan. Now, new chapters are published digitally at the same time as in Japan. In the UK, Gollancz Manga first published the volumes, then Viz Media took over. Madman Entertainment distributes the English volumes in Australia and New Zealand.

Special Stories and Crossovers

Oda has teamed up with other famous manga artists for special stories. He worked with Akira Toriyama, creator of Dragon Ball, on a crossover called Cross Epoch. This one-shot story was published in 2006. Oda also collaborated with Mitsutoshi Shimabukuro, creator of Toriko. They made a crossover called Taste of the Devil Fruit in 2011. There's also a cute spin-off series called One Piece Party. It features the characters in a "chibi" (small and cute) art style.

Animated Adventures

Early Animated Specials

Before the main TV show, there were a few animated specials. One Piece: Defeat Him! The Pirate Ganzack! was made in 1998. It showed Luffy, Nami, and Zoro fighting a pirate named Ganzack. Another film, One Piece: Romance Dawn Story, came out in 2008. It was based on Oda's early ideas for the series. There was also an original video animation (OVA) called One Piece Film Strong World: Episode 0. This special showed events before the death of the Pirate King, Roger.

The Long-Running TV Show (1999)

An anime TV series, produced by Toei Animation, started airing on October 20, 1999. It has been running for a very long time! The series reached its 1,000th episode in November 2021.

Exciting Movies

Fourteen animated One Piece movies have been released. These movies usually come out in March, during Japan's spring school break. They tell new, original stories or retell parts of the anime with even better animation. The first few films were shorter and shown with other anime movies. Companies like Funimation have licensed these films for release in North America.

A New Anime Series (2027)

In December 2023, it was announced that Wit Studio is making a new anime series for Netflix. This new show, called The One Piece, will remake the story starting from the East Blue arc. It celebrates the 25th anniversary of the original anime. The first seven-episode season is scheduled to premiere in February 2027.

Live-Action TV Show

On July 21, 2017, it was announced that a live-action TV show based on One Piece was being made. This American series was part of the manga's 20th-anniversary celebration. Oda himself served as an executive producer. The show was planned to start with the East Blue arc.

In January 2020, Oda revealed that Netflix ordered a first season with ten episodes. Filming was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In November 2021, the main cast was announced. Iñaki Godoy plays Monkey D. Luffy, Mackenyu is Roronoa Zoro, and Emily Rudd plays Nami. Jacob Romero Gibson is Usopp, and Taz Skylar is Sanji. More cast members were announced in March 2022.

The series premiered on August 31, 2023. Fans and critics loved it! In September 2023, Netflix announced a second season. This season, titled One Piece: Into the Grand Line, was released on Netflix on March 10, 2026. The first two episodes were even shown in theaters! A third season was announced in August 2025.

Play the One Piece Games

The One Piece world has been turned into many video games. These games are published by Bandai Namco Entertainment. They are available on various consoles, handheld devices, and phones. You can find role-playing games and fighting games. The first game, From TV Animation – One Piece: Become the Pirate King!, came out on July 19, 2000. Over forty games have been made! One Piece characters also appear in other Shonen Jump crossover games like Jump Force.

One Piece Music

There's a lot of music from One Piece! Kohei Tanaka and Shiro Hamaguchi created the music for the anime. Many theme songs and character songs have been released as singles. There are also compilation albums and soundtrack CDs. In 2019, the musical group Sakuramen collaborated with Kohei Tanaka for the music in the "Wano Country" story arc.

One Piece Books

A series of light novels has been published. These books are based on the anime films and some TV series episodes. They feature Oda's artwork and are written by Tatsuya Hamasaki. These novels let fans enjoy the stories in a different format.

Art and Guide Books

Five art books and five guidebooks have been released for One Piece. The art books, like One Piece: Color Walk 1, show off Oda's amazing illustrations. The guidebooks, such as One Piece: Red – Grand Characters, provide lots of information about the series.

More One Piece Fun

There are many other cool One Piece items and events! Bandai released a trading card game called One Piece Card Game in 2022. There was even a special collaboration with Hello Kitty! A traditional Japanese play, a kabuki show, inspired by One Piece ran in Tokyo in 2015.

"One Piece Premier Show" events have been held at Universal Studios Japan since 2007. These shows have attracted over a million visitors! A restaurant called Baratie, just like the one in the manga, opened at the Fuji Television headquarters. The Tokyo One Piece Tower was an indoor theme park in Tokyo Tower. It had attractions, shops, and restaurants. In 2025, Universal Studios Hollywood also opened a One Piece attraction.

One Piece was the first manga series to have a "Dome Tour." Events were held in Osaka and Tokyo in 2011. Exhibitions have also taken place in South Korea and Hong Kong. In August 2023, an ice skating show called One Piece on Ice: Episode of Alabaster premiered. It starred famous figure skaters like Shoma Uno as Luffy!