Summary
One of the biggest allures of theOne Piecefranchise is the great deal of mystery there is surrounding the world and its history. From the Void Century to the location and identity of the fabled One Piece treasure itself, there is such a great deal of wonder that surrounds this series, which is arguably the biggest reason why the franchise is as successful as it is now.
One of the most prevalent mysteries ofOne Piecehas to do with the enigmatic Imu, a figure so shrouded in mystique that fans barely know anything about them, even after over 1100 chapters. However, what is known is that Imu has a keen interest in one ofthe Straw Hat’s most important allies, and, as such, many fans think that there is a connection to be made between the two. Let’s take a look at this to see if there truly is something there.
Imu’s First Appearance
One Piece, Chapter 906, “The Holy Land Mary Geoise”
Despite presumably being the ruler of the entire world since the end of the Void Century for over 800 years, next to nothing is known about Imu. However, one thing that is very interesting about this character is their mysteriousconnection to not only Joyboy, but also various characters that exist within the modern era, which was seen in their first appearance in the Chamber of Flowers, where posters of Luffy and Blackbeard were cut up at their feet, while Shirahoshi’s had a sword through it and Vivi’s was being held in their hands.
From this point on, fans knew that Imu, for some reason, had a special interest in Vivi, which was later confirmed when Nefeltari Cobra finally laid eyes on the ruler of the world. Here, Imu mentions an ancient ruler of the Alabasta Kingdom and one of the 20 rulers who banded together to defeat the Ancient Kingdom over 800 years ago; Nefeltari Lily.
It is quite clear thatImu and Lily shared some sort of connection, since Imu seems to hold the ancient sovereign of the Alabasta Kingdom with some contempt due to her ‘mistake’ of releasing the Poneglyphs into the world. Moreover, upon finding out that Lily would later include the ‘D.’ initial in her name, Imu let out an attack to kill Cobra.
Through this interaction, it’s easy to infer that there is some relation between Imu and Lily, due to which they also have a connection to Vivi by proxy. Although nothing more has been cleared up about this, there are many fan theories that seek to explain what this could be.
Fan Theories About Imu, Lily, and Vivi:
One of the most prevalent theories that seems to be making the waves is that Imu is somewhat of a mysterious entity that hasbeen possessing the body of Nefeltari Lilyfor 800 years. At this stage, this is just speculative, although there are a few reasons to think this. The strongest reason to believe this is due to Imu’s slender and feminine frame.
Although this currently means nothing and could very well just be their design, some fans believe that since Imu has a very slender frame and their silhouette seems to suggest them having long hair, this might be someone possessing Lily’s body. This theory is strengthened with the latest appearance of Imu in theOne Pieceanime, where the character’s voice is a mixture of both a male and a female’s. Also, it is said that Lily went missing 800 years ago and never made it back to her home, leading to her younger brother taking the throne in her absence.
If it weren’t for Lily’s mistake on that day, the loathsome artifacts called the Poneglyphs would not be scattered all over the world.
As for Imu’s identity, the only connection that the story makes is when Sabo tells Dragon and Ivankov about it, where the latter says that one of the 20 Kings was a St. Imu of the Nerona Dynasty. The rest is still a mystery. However, some fan theories state that Imu was once an ally of Joyboy’s, and, ages ago, hebetrayed Joyboy and his crewand ensured their defeat to become the ruler of the world. This same theory states that Imu was also in love with Lily all centuries ago!
This is strengthened by the fact that Lily is the one person who Imu continuously keeps on mentioning, and even going so far as having a portrait of her in the Chamber of Flowers, hinting at a possible obsession. This ties up quite nicely with Imu’s need to capture Vivi too, since Vivi seems to be the spitting image of Lily from Imu’s portrait. At this point, Imu could be anyone, but one thing is for sure, that when the reveal is made, perhaps no one will see it coming!
One Piececan be streamed onCrunchyroll.
One Piece
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, 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.
