One Piece is a series famous for the allure of its fascinating world. Most fans of the series agree that when it comes to world-building, no one comes close to the talents of Eiichiro Oda, as he is a master at filling this world with tons of interesting and mysterious aspects that leave the fans guessing and theorizing about them indefinitely, only for them to be shown later on in a reveal that shakes the foundations of what everyone knew.

One such mystery that has seen much theory-crafting for decades is about the titular D. clan, which contains some of the most important characters in the entire series. Even though the main character of One Piece, Monkey D. Luffy, belongs to this fascinating family, very little is known about their origins and why they're so important. So, let's take a look at a couple of fan theories that attempt to answer the secret to their mystery!

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The Great, Forgotten Kingdom

Back in the Alabasta arc, fans received a massive reveal about the mysterious super-weapon named 'Pluton'. While very little was known of it, it was said that this was a weapon capable of leveling entire islands because of its destructive power, and the details concerning its whereabouts were inscribed onto the mysterious Poneglyphs.

Later on, this concept was expanded upon in Enies Lobby. During the Ohara flashback, Dr. Clover reveals that there once used to be an extremely powerful kingdom that existed in the world, which Dr. Vegapunk believed was so technologically advanced that they were essentially living in the future compared to the other nations at the time. Due to the fear that the rest of the nations had of this kingdom, they all banded together to defeat it.

This was the event that led to the creation of the World Government, as 20 nations conjoined into a singular, powerful entity that was able to destroy the Great Kingdom and erase its memory from the world. This is why studying the Poneglyphs is banned, as they not only reveal details about the Ancient Weapons, which were active some time during the Void Century, but also because they tell of the forgotten history of the world which the Navy and World Government want to keep hidden.

It is known that the Void Century ended 800 years ago, which coincides with the creation of the World Government and the destruction of the Great Kingdom. This little bit of history is crucial to know when it comes to the theory of the D. clan.

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What this has to do with the D. Clan

Recent chapters of One Piece have revealed some important details about the D. clan and how important they truly are. The nobles were the elite class of the 20 nations that formed the World Government, and their descendants are known far and wide as the 'Celestial Dragons'. These evil people are essentially the ruling class of the world, and they have special privileges and immunities, being able to do whatever they like simply due to the fact that they're distantly related to the nobles of the 20 nations.

They have been active, unsurprisingly, for 800 years as well, and in this time, the D. clan has come to be known as the natural enemy of the Celestial Dragons. The popular theory posits that, due to this natural rivalry, the D. Clan are the original inhabitants of the Great Kingdom or, at the very least, are the descendants of it! This makes perfect logical sense due to how they'd be enemies of the Celestial Dragons who destroyed their home.

This would make for an incredible setup, as the final war between the factions would be centuries in the making. The fall of the Great Kingdom could have led to many of the inhabitants being subjugated to slavery, which only adds another reason as to why this theory is quite plausible. However, the most damning evidence of this theory may come from the only confirmed inhabitant of the Great Kingdom: Joy Boy.

Of the very few details that fans know of the Great Kingdom and Void Century, it is known that Joy Boy is the only person to have been confirmed to be an inhabitant of this mythical land. Now, Joy Boy is the only other known wielder of the Hito Hito no Mi, Model: Nika other than Luffy himself, which ties a neat little bow around this theory. Being the first wielder of this Devil Fruit, Joy Boy was immensely powerful.

Since the fruit was eventually passed down to Luffy, it is theorized that Sun God Nika can only be inherited by those of a similar lineage, possibly making a connection between Joy Boy and Luffy himself. All of this together gives a plausible amount of reasoning as to how Joy Boy and Luffy are connected through time, which gives credence to the theory that the D. clan may find its origins in the Great Kingdom!

Source: u/Boy_Sabaw on Reddit.

One Piece can be streamed on Crunchyroll.

One Piece (1999)

Action

Adventure

Comedy

Fantasy

One Piece is a Japanese manga written and illustrated by Eiichiro Oda. The series follows protagonist Monkey D. Luffy and his Straw Hat Pirate crew as they explore the Grand Line to find the King of the Pirates' ultimate treasure, the One Piece, in order to become the next king. The manga's popularity helped it spin off into a larger media franchise, including an anime with more than 1,000 episodes.

Release Date

October 20, 1999

Seasons

20

Story By

Eiichiro Oda

Number of Episodes

1082+

See at Hulu