One Piece: Oda's Secret Drafts Reveal A Former Marine Admiral On The Level Of Gol D. Roger

This article contains spoilers from One Piece’s Elbaf Arc.

When it comes to the world of One Piece, fans know very well that Oda has crafted it absolutely brilliantly. Beyond what exists in the world today, there are legends of the old era, and even whole forgotten worlds that have sunk to the bottom of the ocean. Naturally, fans have always been invested heavily in old characters, be it from 900 years ago, or 3000 years ago, or even more recently, in the Era of Roger.

Among the Navy, Oda has already revealed some legends of the old, such as Sengoku, and also, the biggest of them all, Marine Vice Admiral Garp, also known as the Hero of Legends. But at the same time, fans also know very well that other Admirals existed during the past. Now, Oda has revealed one that was on the same level as Roger, albeit slightly weaker.

Oda Initially Wanted Shiki To Be A Marine Admiral

Shiki Was Drawn Alongside Sengoku In Oda’s Drafts
Shiki Would Believe In Chivalrous Justice

Fans know the Golden Lion Shiki to be one of the main villains in the One Piece movies. He served as the main antagonist of Strong World and was eventually defeated by Luffy in the Grand Line. However, not many fans know that this was actually just a non-canon version of Shiki.

Roger, I heard you found an Ancient Weapon. Join forces with me! — Golden Lion Shiki

In reality, the Golden Lion was so powerful that he could rival even Roger. In fact, he grew to become one of Roger’s biggest rivals in One Piece. Shiki was monstrously powerful. When he attacked Marineford following Roger’s capture, it required Sengoku and Garp’s team to finally stop him, and even then, he destroyed half of Marineford. Such a feat is unprecedented, and it puts him on the same level as the legends of the world.

What’s even more shocking is that Shiki was originally supposed to be a Marine Admiral. When Oda came up with Shiki, he drew him as a Marine Admiral next to Sengoku. Shiki was recently introduced in One Piece 1155 as Gokudo, which refers to someone who follows the code of chivalry. In other words, that is likely what Oda initially conceptualized his sense of justice to be — Chivalrous Justice.

Shiki, my answer is no! I will never join you! — Gol D. Roger

Shiki Would Be The Golden Lion Of The Marines

Shiki Could’ve Been Roger’s Rival

Fans know very well that the Golden Lion, Shiki, was once a part of the Rocks Pirates. His strength was absolutely incredible and Oda has already revealed that in the story. But, his character was always that of a pirate. Shiki was always cunning and shrewd, and if anything, he believed in the way of pirates more than most pirates on the seas.

Yet, if Oda actually stuck to his original plans, then, it basically just confirms that he would’ve been Roger’s Rival as well. From the Marines, the only one who rivals Roger is Garp, for the most part. But, in Oda’s initial ideas, Shiki was a rival to Roger as well.

Oda Might Have Scraped This Idea Entirely Or It Could Be Shiki’s Past

It is highly likely that Oda scraped the idea of Shiki being a Marine Admiral. But, that can’t be said with certainty yet. Fans know nothing of Shiki’s past at the moment. His first appearance in the story was 56 years ago, when he showed up on Elbaf with Rocks’s crew. Before that, he could still have a been a Marine Admiral who went on to become a pirate. Only Oda can give the answer.

One Piece Chapter 1163 will be out in two weeks. As usual, One Piece is going to drop on Sunday. In Japan, One Piece drops at 12AM JST on Monday. However, the vast majority of international readers will see the chapter available on October 26. The official release date of One Piece Chapter 1163 is October 26, 2025. Fans can read the chapter for free on Manga Plus.

Release Date: October 20, 1999
Network: Fuji TV
Directors: Hiroaki Miyamoto, Konosuke Uda, Junji Shimizu, Satoshi Itō, Munehisa Sakai, Katsumi Tokoro, Yutaka Nakajima, Yoshihiro Ueda, Kenichi Takeshita, Yoko Ikeda, Ryota Nakamura, Hiroyuki Kakudou, Takahiro Imamura, Toshihiro Maeya, Yûji Endô, Nozomu Shishido, Hidehiko Kadota, Sumio Watanabe, Harume Kosaka, Yasuhiro Tanabe, Yukihiko Nakao, Keisuke Onishi, Junichi Fujise, Hiroyuki Satou
Writers: Jin Tanaka, Akiko Inoue, Junki Takegami, Shinzo Fujita, Shouji Yonemura, Yoshiyuki Suga, Atsuhiro Tomioka, Hirohiko Uesaka, Michiru Shimada, Isao Murayama, Takuya Masumoto, Yoichi Takahashi, Momoka Toyoda