Joy Boy Unmasked: The Hidden Link to Luffy’s Destiny in One Piece

Joy Boy has been lurking in the background of One Piece since the Fish-Man Island arc, and every time Oda brings him up, the lore gets bigger and stranger. If you only half-remember the poneglyph apology or you heard something about a peg leg and a hook hand, here’s the clean version. Heads up: manga spoilers.

What we actually know so far

• Timeline: Joy Boy lived during the Void Century, about 900 years before the current story.
• First mention: His name first shows up on a poneglyph Nico Robin reads in the Sea Forest under Fish-Man Island.
• The original pirate: Dr. Vegapunk says Joy Boy was the first pirate in history.
• Enemies: He was ultimately taken down by the Twenty Kingdoms working together (the group that became the World Government).
• Laugh Tale and the treasure: He reached the island later named Laugh Tale by Gol D. Roger and left behind an unknown treasure that would become the One Piece.
• Series debut: Joy Boy gets name-dropped in manga Chapter 628 and anime Episode 548.

So... what does Joy Boy look like?

Oda still hasn’t shown his full face. We’ve only seen a silhouette that lines up a lot with Luffy’s vibe: a wide-brimmed hat that screams Straw Hat. The ancient robot Emeth also notes Joy Boy’s striking resemblance to Luffy. Recent chapters add a pulpy pirate detail: Joy Boy’s right leg wasn’t a leg, and his right hand wasn’t a hand. Think peg leg and a hook. Classic pirate imagery, and not subtle about it.

Luffy and Joy Boy: where the lines blur

This is the big one. Joy Boy ate the same Devil Fruit as Luffy: the Hito Hito no Mi, Model: Nika, a Mythical Zoan. When it awakens, the user becomes the embodiment of the sun god Nika and can fight in whatever ridiculous, reality-bending way they want. When Luffy’s fruit finally awakened on Onigashima, the world’s oldest elephant chimed in with a one-liner that basically set the internet on fire:

'Joy Boy has returned.'

That’s Zunesha recognizing the Nika awakening and implying Luffy is Joy Boy’s successor. On top of that, both Joy Boy and Luffy share the same core mission: breaking chains and spreading freedom. Not subtle there either.

Why the highest power in the world cares

During the God Valley Incident flashbacks, Rocks D. Xebec puts a question to Imu: who scares you more, Davy D. Jones or Joy Boy? The implication is simple: Imu fears what Joy Boy represents. Given the Void Century history, that might be personal. If Imu crossed swords with Joy Boy back then and survived, they’d have a very real reason to never want that power walking the earth again.

What Joy Boy could actually do

We still don’t have the full stat sheet, but there are some heavy data points:

He could hear the Voice of All Things. He wielded Supreme King Haki. According to Dorry and Broggy, Joy Boy’s Conqueror’s Haki outgunned Shanks’—but without any malice behind it, which is a wild comparison if you know what Shanks can do.

Then there’s a very wonky manga-only detail: Joy Boy could literally tie Haki into a knot and store it for centuries. When one of those knots finally unraveled near Egghead, the blast of Haki knocked out basically every Marine in range, Vice Admirals included. It’s one of those details that sounds made up until Oda draws it, and then you just nod and accept it.

The broken promise and the prophecy

Over 800 years ago, Joy Boy made a promise to the people of Fish-Man Island. He tried to raise the Noah with help from Poseidon, then had to break that promise for reasons we still don’t fully know. He left his apology carved into poneglyphs, including one Robin reads on the sea floor: he is sorry to Fish-Man Island and to Poseidon, and someone in the future will finish what he started. That future someone sure looks a lot like our rubber-brained pirate with the drumbeat heart.

The bottom line

Joy Boy isn’t just a lore breadcrumb anymore; he’s the skeleton key for the series’ endgame. First pirate. Enemy of the Twenty Kingdoms. The guy who touched Laugh Tale and left the prize. The silhouette with a Straw Hat, maybe a peg and a hook. The power of Nika, returned through Luffy. And a promise still waiting to be kept.

One Piece anime is streaming on Crunchyroll in the US. If you’re anime-only, consider this your warning: the Joy Boy rabbit hole gets deeper the closer we get to the finish line.