www.cbr.com One Piece: 9 Times The Inability To Swim Mattered

Eiichiro Oda's One Piece is a story where pirates set out to sea in the search of freedom and the grand treasure that the Pirate King, Gol D. Roger, left behind. Among the many mystical powers that exist in the One Piece world, Devil Fruits play the most important part.

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These fruits grant tremendous power to those who eat them, but in exchange for that power, it is believed that the sea starts to hate them and they become unable to swim. With numerous Devil Fruit users in the story, there are countless instances where their inability to swim leads to big problems.

Shanks Lost His Arm Because Luffy Couldn't Swim

Ten years before Luffy's adventure began, he spent quite a lot of time with Shanks, a pirate he had taken a liking to. The group had stolen the Gomu Gomu no Mi from an enemy ship, which ended up being eaten by Luffy. Shortly after, Luffy was kidnapped by Higuma, and the two were attacked by the Coastal King on the sea. While Higuma was eaten, Luffy was drowning when Shanks showed up to save him. Unfortunately, Shanks ended up losing his arm in the process.

Luffy Was Saved By Sanji In The Baratie Arc

In the Baratie arc, Luffy confronted Don Krieg in an intense clash where he won against all odds. While the Don had an arsenal of weapons to aid him in battle, Luffy managed to persevere and ultimately win over him. Although Luffy won, the final move he performed on Don Krieg landed him straight into the ocean, and it was up to Sanji to save his life. Had the cook not been there, Luffy would have died right there, and the story would have ended early.

Luffy's Fight Against Arlong Took Quite A Long Time To Wrap Up

Luffy's clash against the Fishman Arlong in the Arlong Park arc of the story didn't get off to the best start. While dealing with Moomoo, Luffy got himself stuck and then thrown into the water. Thanks to the help of the townspeople, he managed to stay alive until Sanji finally rescued him once again. Had Luffy avoided this entire ordeal, Arlong would've been defeated easily, and the fight would've ended quickly. Instead, Luffy's carelessness almost got him killed, and he needed Sanji to rescue him again.

Luffy Would've Been Killed By Crocodile During The Alabasta Arc

Luffy and the Straw Hat Pirates fell right into Crocodile's trap during their invasion of Rain Dinners casino in Rainbase. Again, it was up to Sanji to trick Crocodile and free his crew from their prison.

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Even though Sanji managed to do that just in time, Crocodile had begun to fill the palace with water, meaning Luffy would certainly have died. Thanks to the non-Devil Fruit users of the crew, Luffy was saved yet again. Meanwhile, at Luffy's command, Zoro also saved Smoker, a Captain of the Marines.

Luffy Almost Died In Enies Lobby While Trying To Reach The Gates Of Justice

After declaring war on the World Government in the Enies Lobby arc of the story, Luffy almost drowned to his death when he attempted to take a shortcut and reach the Gates of Justice before anyone. Thankfully, Chimney was nearby and managed to rescue him twice. Eventually, Luffy was shown the way to where Rob Lucci took Nico Robin, and the two clashed in an intense fight that was widely considered to be the best in the story. Had it not been for Chimney, Luffy would've died before even reaching Nico Robin.

Luffy's Adventure Could've Ended On Amazon Lily

After being separated from his crew by Bartholomew Kuma, Luffy was sent to Amazon Lily by the Shichibukai. Luffy wanted to leave the island immediately and meet up with his crew, but because the only ship on the island belonged to the Kuja, he didn't have any other choice but to make his own raft. Given that he had no skills as a shipwright, the raft ended up collapsing in mere minutes, and Luffy almost drowned. Luckily, Margaret was nearby to help him out of this situation.

www.cbr.com One Piece: 9 Times The Inability To Swim Mattered

Luffy Couldn't Fight Hody Properly Due To Being Weak Underwater

The Fishman Island arc proved to be a challenge for Luffy because the island was 10,000 meters underwater. His fight against Hody had him leave the island and fight in the ocean within a soap bubble.

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Had Luffy not been a Devil Fruit user, the fight would've been much easier for him since he wouldn't have been held back by his inability to swim. While the pressure underwater would've still been intense, Luffy would've powered through and dealt with it without any issues.

Luffy & Robin Needed Usopp & Zoro's Help During The Punk Hazard Arc

While exploring Punk Hazard, Luffy's group had to cross a giant lake to reach the other half of the island. Thanks to Usopp's pop green, a boat was readily available, but Brownbeard's attack on the ship knocked them over quite quickly. Usopp and Zoro had to use all their might to rescue Luffy and Robin from the freezing cold lake. Without those two, the Straw Hat Pirates would've lost two of the most important members on Punk Hazard.

Luffy Was Thrown Into The Sea By Kaido During The Wano Country Arc

Luffy's second clash against Kaido ended in his defeat as his usage of Conqueror's Haki coating was lacking, according to the Yonko. Running out of Haki, Luffy was eventually knocked out by Kaido and thrown from the roof of Onigashima. He sank into the water, but thanks to the Voice of All Things, Luffy somehow radiated his voice across the ocean and led the Heart Pirates to him. As expected, the group rescued him and took him to the shore safely, where he started his preparations for his final clash against Kaido.

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