This article contains spoilers from One Piece's Elbaf arc.

Summary

Rocks D. Xebec was once perceived as the strongest pirate in the world.
Xebec's strength led Roger and Garp to team up to defeat him in the God Valley Incident.
Xebec's ambition to be king of the world made him a fierce rival even to Roger and Whitebeard.

The Elbaf arc keeps on fascinating fans with incredible reveals and strong characters every week, and the author might just have revealed the most powerful one of them all in the story's recent chapter.

Roger Gomu Gomu no Mi Previous User Before Luffy One Piece

One Piece: The Previous User Of The Gomu Gomu no Mi, Explained

The previous user of the Gomu Gomu no mi was set to be introduced in One Piece: Film Red.

Posts 2

By Rei Penber

Through Loki's flashback, Oda officially introduced Rocks D. Xebec in the story, and it is safe to say that fans were absolutely stunned upon seeing his personality. Rocks was one of the most powerful pirates to have ever lived. In fact, it wouldn't be a stretch to say that Rocks was the strongest pirate in the world at one point, and One Piece chapter 1145 gave fans yet another look at why Rocks was perceived to be as dangerous as he was.

How Rocks Met Loki in One Piece

Rocks Visited Elbaf Long Ago
Loki Fought Rocks To Earn A Spot In The Crew

Rocks D. Xebec was the last character that fans expected to see in One Piece's Elbaf arc, but Oda shocked everyone when he revealed a small glimpse of Loki's past to the fans. This stemmed directly from Loki sensing a strong admiration for Shanks from Luffy, and it reminded him of his own childhood. According to Loki, just as Luffy respects Shanks, so does he respect Rocks D. Xebec. This individual was known to be incredibly powerful long ago, as fans have already been told on multiple occasions.

I didn't come all this way to meet snot-nosed brats like you. Go away! — Rocks D. Xebec to Loki

Loki was fascinated by Rocks's strength and wanted to go out to the sea with him. This was confirmed by Loki himself in One Piece chapter 1145. Loki was very persistent in wanting to join the Rocks Pirates, but he was outright rejected by the captain of the crew long ago, he got very defensive.

Loki immediately challenged Rocks to a major battle, and although one would expect Rocks to show restraint, he didn't do that. Rocks absolutely demolished a kid Loki in battle and even stabbed his body with a blade, which was quite gruesome to look at. Even Edward Newgate, who later came to the known as Whitebeard, was shocked to see how far Rocks went in dealing with Loki and reprimanded his captain for his behavior. Loki and Xebec’s meeting might not have gone the way he had planned it, but it was special nonetheless.

Rocks Was The Strongest In The World Long Ago

Rocks Dominated The Seas Of The World Long Ago

Fans got a small glimpse of Rocks D. Xebec's strength in One Piece chapter 1145. Of course, stabbing a child is no representation of strength, but it does show what kind of a person Xebec was. He showed absolutely no mercy to Loki, leaving him in quite a messed-up state. This goes to show that Xebec was a ruthless individual who couldn't be stopped, no matter what. At the same time, the mighty Whitebeard was only his underling, which once again enforces the idea that Xebec was the strongest of all.

One Piece Creator Eiichiro Oda Hints At Luffy and Nami's Romantic Relationship

Luffy and Nami have a strong bond. Oda hints at their romantic relationship in One Piece.

Posts 20

By Rei Penber

Rocks D. Xebec was Roger's most fierce rival. — Sengoku

This shouldn't come as a surprise to any fan of the series. After all, Sengoku himself confirmed that Rocks's ambition was far too great compared to the likes of Roger and Whitebeard. While Roger was the Pirate King, Xebec wanted to be the King of the whole world, which is an absolutely gargantuan dream. Furthermore, Sengoku openly claimed Rocks to be Roger's most fierce rival, which goes to show that he was even above Whitebeard, who Roger fought multiple battles with.

A Pirate Stronger Than Garp, Roger, and Whitebeard

Garp and Roger Teamed Up To Beat Xebec

The biggest indicator of the fact that Xebec was the strongest of all is the fact that Garp and Roger had to team up to defeat him during the God Valley Incident. On their own, neither of them would have beaten him, which is a fact. Neither of them wanted to ally with the other, but the power that Xebec had was so great that they were left with no other choice.

Furthermore, a year before the God Valley Incident, Roger and Xebec clashed somewhere in the world, and it is implied that Roger lost this battle, as is clear from the fact that Roger said he felt awful for the one year leading up to the God Valley Incident, where he had a chance to fight Xebec again. Truly, Rocks D. Xebec was at the top of the era, and hopefully, Elbaf will reveal more bits and pieces about this legendary pirate to the fans.

One Piece chapter 1145 will be out very soon, later this week. As usual, One Piece is going to drop on the upcoming Sunday. In Japan, One Piece drops at 12AM JST on Monday. However, the vast majority of international readers will see the chapter available on April 6. The official release date of One Piece Chapter 1145 is April 6, 2025. Fans can read the chapter for free on Manga Plus.

Rating block community and brand ratings Image

Display card tags widget

TV-14

Anime

Display card community and brand rating widget Display card main info widget

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