Bonney is one of the most important members in the ongoing Egghead Island arc and quite likely in the entirety of the Final Saga of One Piece as well. She is an exceptionally well-written character who fans have come to adore over the course of the last few months, even though they didn't know much about her before that.
Bonney had many secrets surrounding her character, however, in the latest arc, Oda has slowly been revealing quite a bit of information about her, one by one. In the recent chapter of One Piece, One Piece 1098, Oda finally revealed the hidden meaning behind Bonney's full name.
The Birth Of Bonney
When the character of Bonney was introduced, fans expected her to be somewhat related to Kuma. This turned out to be absolutely correct as there is a connection between these two characters, however, the connection isn't that of blood. The details surrounding Bonney's birth are finally uncovered in One Piece chapter 1098 and, needless to say, they certainly did shock every single sign of the story. Essentially, Bonney is the child of Ginny. Fans know Ginny to be a former member of the Revolutionary Army. She grew up with Kuma as a slave in Marijoa and, 38 years ago, on the day of the God Valley Incident, Ginny managed to escape successfully, along with 500 other slaves.
Kuma and Ginny started a very good life in the Sorbet Kingdom and soon after, they started to grow in terms of financial stability as well as power. Both Kuma and Ginny became influential figures in the Sorbet Kingdom. However, the evil king eventually imprisoned them, which then led to the Revolutionary Army coming to their rescue. Kuma and Ginny joined Dragon in his endeavors and gave birth to a very powerful group that only expanded its power and influence ever since.
Ginny was made the Commander of the East Army of the Revolutionary Army and she spent many years trying to improve the standing of the group and, at the same time, improve herself as well. Unfortunately for her, she was targeted by the Celestial Dragons, who not only captured her but forced her to marry one of them. Ginny met a very tragic fate as she returned to chains once again. For 2 years, she was put through a lot of torture and abuse and all this time, the Revolutionary Army did absolutely nothing to save her. Ginny had a very bleak future ahead of herself.
Eventually, things went even worse for her when she contracted a very deadly illness. This illness then led to her being discarded by her Celestial Dragon husband and she was freed from her slavery, only to die. The Celestial Dragons had no more use for Ginny and they let her go, however, they didn't do so before making sure that she bears a child against her will. This child turned out to be none other than Bonney. Ginny was successfully able to save Bonney, however, she perished to her disease, which is known as the Sapphire Scale disease.
Bonney's Disease
When Ginny perished to the Sapphire Scale, it was made clear that this happened because she was exposed to natural light. Essentially, going out in the sun would mean that the disease spreads and eventually covers the entire body of the person. Eventually, this leads the person to die if the disease remains untreated. In fact, it doesn't even have to be just sunlight that does it. Even moonlight or any other form of natural light that exists is enough to make sure that the Sapphire Scale disease spreads and kills the person. This is a very deadly disease and it ended up consuming Ginny, who, at this point in the story, knew that she would die but wanted to save her child and speak with the revolutionary Army for one last time.
One Piece: Oda Draws The Darkest Chapter In The Story
Ginny's fate is darker than fans expected in One Piece 1098.
Just when fans thought that they had seen the last of the Sapphire Scale when Ginny died, they were proved wrong when, at a very young age, Bonney started showing signs of the Sapphire Scale as well. It is unknown if this disease manifested itself in Bonney on its own or if it has something to do with genetics.
Fans do not know what the cause of the disease is and the only thing that they know is that it is deadly and there is no cure for it, at least not now. Bonney, as a result, had to be shut in at a very young age and not be allowed outside at all costs. This was incredibly difficult for her as she then had to live a life of misery from a very young age. However, Bonney never let that get to her and was cheerful as ever.
The Hidden Meaning Behind Jewelry Bonney
It is rather strange that One Piece fans have never thought about why Bonney has "Jewelry" as her surname. In fact, neither of her parents has this name. Kuma simply has Bartholomew in front of his name while Ginny didn't even have a name and for all fans know, she never even knew it herself, given that she was taken as a slave at a very young age. For Bonney to have "Jewelry" was rather strange. In One Piece chapter 1098, the reason for this is finally revealed by Oda. Simply put, the reason why Bonney has Jewelry as a part of her name is because of her disease.
When Bonney had Sapphire Scale and it started spreading, it became clear that she would get bullied for it, and she evidently did. Kids around her started bullying her and calling her ugly, which led Bonney to question whether her face really looked hideous. However, Kuma mentioned to her that they were simply jealous of her precious jewels, referring to the scales of the Sapphire Scale disease. He then portrayed these scales as Bonney's very own jewelry and that is where the name Jewelry Bonney stems from. This is a very small detail in the character of Bonney, however, it is absolutely phenomenal and one that fans of the series will obviously adore.
This clearly meant a great deal to Bonney and she latched on to her father's beliefs, taking this name and wearing it around her neck. Bonney took the name because she loves Kuma a lot and, at the same time, because this likely gives her strength as well. Thankfully, It appears that Bonney was somehow cured later down the line, and fans will have to wait to see how the Sapphire Scale was finally treated. Regardless of that, her name stuck with her forever, and will most likely do so for the rest of her life. This name likely reminds her of the hardships that she faced as a child and, at the same time, serves as a reminder of how much Ginny, her mother, loved her and how much he struggled to keep her safe.
One Piece is available to read via Viz Media. The series can be read by the fans officially and for free on the Shonen Jump and the Manga Plus app. The release date for the next chapter of One Piece, One Piece 1098, is set to be November 12, 2023.