Oda Confirms How Sanji Will Officially Surpass Zoro

One Piece is a beloved manga series with some of the best-written and lovable characters, in general. Over the years, Oda has written some of the most incredible characters in the story, and at the same time forged some of the most exciting relationships as well. One thing that has always caused discourse in the fandom is the relationship between Zoro and Sanji. Fans often compare them, and while Zoro and Sanji are, as hinted at by Oda multiple times, equals as the wings of the future Pirate King, some fans want one to beat the other.

Sanji is Zoro’s equal in many ways, but they both can surpass each other in certain areas. As far as Sanji goes, he might surpass Zoro at the end of One Piece when it comes to being a Marine threat. Oda has hinted at this in Thriller Bark, and this might come into play in the final saga of One Piece.

Sanji Has Said He Will Be The Navy’s Biggest Threat

Sanji’s Bounty Might be Higher Than Zoro’s by The End

Sanji is one of the most beloved characters in One Piece, and for many reasons. His character is compelling to many, and he is one of the Straw Hat Pirates’ best fighters, being part of the iconic Monster Trio. Oda has a lot in store for Sanji, even after he already has two backstories and continues to take the limelight in other arcs as well.

Oda has hinted at Sanji becoming one of the Straw Hat Pirates’ most wanted individuals all the way back in Thriller Bark, even though fans often overlook this. In a conversation with Kuma, Sanji stated that he will become the biggest problem that the Navy will have to deal with. This is definitely going to be important in the future, especially as Oda loves to foreshadow events in very subtle ways.

Sanji becoming such a huge threat to the Navy can only mean one thing, and that’s a very high bounty, possibly higher than Zoro’s. Right now, Sanji has the fourth-highest bounty in the crew, but this could change very soon, especially as he’s held a bounty higher than Zoro until the events of Wano concluded.

Sanji’s Connections To Sora Will Be Revealed in the Final Saga

Sora Is Connected To the Navy

One Piece fans who love deep lore about the series must have heard of the Warrior of the Sea, Sora. This character is left as a myth for now, but Oda definitely has big plans for this individual. Sora will have some interesting connections to Sanji, as a possible Vinsmoke ancestor, or someone entirely different from the Void Century. Sora is already connected to the Navy and used to spread Marine propaganda. The truth about Sora might be what turns Sanji into the biggest Navy threat.

Will Sanji Surpass Zoro in Power?

Sanji and Zoro Are Equal As The Wings of the Pirate King

While Sanji might surpass Zoro in terms of Marine threat, he won’t surpass him in power. As Oda has already hinted at multiple times throughout the story of One Piece, Zoro and Sanji are relative in power, and pretty much equal. The two of them are said to be Luffy’s wings, and one being stronger than the other doesn’t make sense.

Fans can also see their dynamic in the Roger Pirates, where their equivalents, Rayleigh and Gaban, are also equal in power, with Gaban even claiming to be the second strongest after Roger.

One Piece Chapter 1162 will be out next week. 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 12. The official release date of One Piece Chapter 1162 is October 12, 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

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  Mayumi Tanaka

  Monkey D. Luffy (voice)

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  Kazuya Nakai

  Roronoa Zoro (voice)