12 strongest bounty hunters known in One Piece, ranked

The bounty system in One Piece is often criticized for its inconsistencies, as characters often receive bounties that don’t reflect their strength. To be fair, this is because bounties don’t measure how strong is an individual, but assess the threat that said person poses to the World Government. The assessment is based on multiple factors, and combat power is just one of them.

The parameters used vary from case to case, making it difficult to compare one bounty to another. Granted, this is not a problem for bounty hunters, who are simply interested in capturing pirates and other outlaws to collect their bounties. Now that the Cross Guild has reversed the system by placing bounties on the Marines, bounty hunters may target Navy officers as well.

It would be great to see powerful bounty hunters get the spotlight for their deeds, especially since this category has been rather neglected in One Piece so far. It doesn’t make much sense to issue exceptionally high bounties if no one is really going to collect them, or at least try to. That said, here are the strongest bounty hunters to ever appear in One Piece.

Disclaimer: This article reflects the author's opinion and not Sportskeeda as a whole.

Every confirmed bounty hunter in One Piece as of chapter 1132, ranked weakest to strongest

12) Johnny

Johnny as seen in One Piece (Image via Toei Animation)

Together with Yosaku, Johnny befriended Roronoa Zoro before the beginning of the One Piece story. The three of them became as close as brothers and worked together as a team of bounty hunters. Unlike Zoro, however, Johnny and Yosaku weren’t very powerful.

Johnny is tenacious and brave, but his fighting skills aren't that great. Just like his friend Yosaku, Johnny wields a sword but lacks the strength required to challenge and capture any above-average criminal.

11) Yosaku

Yosaku as seen in One Piece (Image via Toei Animation)

Yosaku and his partner Johnny began following Zoro after he saved them from the bandit boss Dick. Since then, they have worked together several times. Granted, the most useful thing that they have ever done was to lend their swords to Zoro so that he could use his Three Sword Style.

Despite their mediocre combat prowess, Johnny and Yosaku are capable of standing up courageously for what they believe in, as seen in the Arlong Park Arc. During the timeskip, the two friends gave up their careers as bounty hunters to become fishermen.

10) Mr 9

Mr 9 as seen in One Piece (Image via Toei Animation)

In order to raise funds for the organization, some agents of Crocodile’s Baroque Works worked as bounty hunters. Mr 9 was one of the agents who, together with about a hundred professional bounty hunters, attempted to capture the Straw Hat Pirates on Whisky Peak.

Mr 9 wields a pair of metal bats which he uses in combination with his acrobatic skills. His strength earned him the rank of Frontier Agent. Even then, Mr 9 was no match for Zoro, who single-handedly defeated him and all of the bounty hunters and Baroque Works agents present in Whisky Peak with little effort.

9) Miss Monday

Miss Monday as seen in One Piece (Image via Toei Animation)

A tall and muscular woman, Miss Monday was one of the Baroque Works agents working as bounty hunters in Whisky Peak. She and her colleagues intoxicated the Straw Hat Pirates to kill them in their sleep but were stopped by Roronoa Zoro, who had feigned unconsciousness.

Alone against four Frontier Agents and about a hundred bounty hunters, Zoro annihilated them all by himself. Miss Monday tried to use her superhuman physical strength to crush Zoro, punching him with a metallic brass knuckle but failed miserably.

No matter how strong Miss Monday’s muscles were, they paled in comparison to Zoro’s. The green-haired swordsman used only one arm to easily overpower and knock out her.

8) Igaram

Igaram as seen in One Piece (Image via Toei Animation)

The captain of the Arabasta Royal Guard, Igaram infiltrated Baroque Works alongside Vivi to protect and help her during the undercover operation. Within Baroque Works, Igaram became a Frontier Agent under the codename of Mr 8. He worked as a bounty hunter, capturing pirates and collecting the bounties on their heads.

Igaram carries powerful firearms, concealed on his person to perform surprise attacks. By using a saxophone that shoots bullets when played, he can unleash a firepower comparable to that of a Tommy gun. As part of his tasks as Mr 8, Igaram targeted the Straw Hats when they arrived in Whisky Peak.

When Zoro engaged all the bounty hunters and Frontier Agents by himself to protect his sleeping comrades, Igaram tried to attack the swordsman with his guns. However, his attempt failed as he couldn’t even follow Zoro’s fast movements. Zoro then quickly defeated him.

7) Nefertari Vivi (before the end of the Arabasta Saga)

Vivi posing as Miss Wednesday as seen in One Piece (Image via Toei Animation)

Nefertari Vivi is the Princess of Arabasta. She infiltrated Baroque Works to discover the true identity of the organization’s leader, whose actions threatened the safety of Arabasta. Despite her young age, Vivi managed to rise through the ranks of the group, becoming a Frontier Agent under the codename of Miss Wednesday.

She spied on the organization for two years, before her cover was blown up. During her time as a Baroque Works agent, Vivi worked as a bounty hunter. She and her colleagues attempted to capture the Straw Hat Pirates, but they were all defeated by Zoro. After revealing her true identity, Vivi befriended the Straw Hats and began traveling with them.

Vivi has no special abilities or combat skills but excels in stealth and cunning. For a normal human, she is remarkably resilient and agile. She endured gunshot wounds and was able to defeat Mr 7 and Miss Father’s Day, two fellow Frontier Agents, despite facing them all alone. Using her Peacock Slashers, sharp disks that she manipulates with wires, Vivi quickly cut them down.

6) Jeet

Jeet as seen in One Piece (Image via Toei Animation)

Jeet and his partner Abdullah were bounty hunters known for their teamwork and dirty fighting style. They overwhelmed their opponents with synchronized moves. At one point, they even tried to capture Bartholomew Kuma, although their attempt failed miserably as Kuma overpowered them with ease.

In combat, Jeet wields two swords. He used them to slash several foes in the Corrida Colosseum and attack Donquixote Doflamingo’s clone. However, he and Abdullah couldn’t do a thing against “Hyena” Bellamy. After the end of the Dressrosa Arc, they joined the Straw Hat Grand Fleet as part of Ideo’s group.

5) Abdullah

Abdullah as seen in One Piece (Image via Toei Animation)

After bombing a government facility together with Jeet, Abdullah became a bounty hunter. His weapon of choice is a pair of tridents, which he uses to attack in coordination with Jeet. While one distracts the opponent by attacking him from the front, the other strikes him from the rear.

Abdullah and Jeet used his treacherous strategy to defeat Tank Lepanto. Despite their trickery, however, they were powerless against Bellamy, who easily beat them using his Spring-Spring Fruit. Now, Abdullah and his partner have stopped working as bounty hunters to join the Straw Hat Grand Fleet.

4) Jean Ango

Jean Ango as seen in One Piece (Image via Toei Animation)

Jean Ango is a notorious bounty hunter who entered Dressrosa’s Corrida Colosseum as a contestant. During his career, he has captured outlaws of all sorts, including some of the former prisoners of Impel Down.

A weapon expert, Ango attacks his opponents by throwing axes, swords, spears, and other arms with great precision and power. His ability to work and survive in the New World for so long is a testament to his prowess.

To be fair, luck also helped him, as he probably never fought any decent Haki user. He was utterly bewildered when Luffy predicted and dodged all of his attacks during their brief confrontation in Dressrosa.

3) Roronoa Zoro (before meeting Luffy)

Zoro as a bounty hunter before the start of the One Piece story (Image via Toei Animation)

Roronoa Zoro is now worldwide recognized as a master swordsman and the number two to the Emperor Monkey D. Luffy. However, before becoming Luffy’s second-in-command, Zoro was a formidable bounty hunter. He began this work after getting lost while searching for Dracule Mihawk, whom he intended to challenge.

With his physical prowess and lethal swordsmanship, Zoro defeated many dangerous outlaws, becoming known throughout the entire East Blue as the “Pirate Hunter”. His fame even reached the Grand Line, so much so that the Baroque Works asked him to join their ranks. However, Zoro rejected the offer. When Mr 7 tried to force him to join the organization, he brutally killed him.

Upon hearing of Zoro’s fearsome reputation for strength, Luffy immediately decided to recruit him as the first member of his crew. During his time as a bounty hunter, Zoro was already quite powerful, at least by the standards of the early stage of the One Piece story.

In fact, the bounty hunter Zoro was, more or less, the same Zoro who was seen in the East Blue Saga, during which he easily defeated Morgan, Cabaji, Buchi, Sham, and – despite being weakened and feverish from the wound Mihawk had inflicted on him – Hatchan. Arlong himself implied that Zoro would have killed him if he hadn’t been weakened by that terrible injury.

2) Franky (before meeting the Straw Hats)

Franky before joining the Straw Hat Pirates (Image via Toei Animation)

During the Enies Lobby Arc, Franky allied with the Straw Hat Pirates. Shortly thereafter, he officially joined them. Until then, he had been the leader of his own organization, a group of outcasts known as the Franky Family. Together with them, Franky operated as a bounty hunter and ship dismantler in Water Seven.

Franky’s combat prowess has always been remarkable, due to his winning blend of superhuman physical strength and advanced bionic enhancements. Thanks to his cybernetic body, he could perform devastating moves such as the Coup de Vent, a powerful blast of concentrated air.

A testament to Franky’s strength, he was able to defeat two CP9 agents, Nero and Fukuro. He also proved himself powerful enough to overpower Blueno, nearly breaking through his Tekkai with a single blow. Furthermore, he was able to fight on par with Water Seven Arc Luffy, a stronger incarnation of the same Luffy who fought with Roronoa Zoro to a draw just a few arcs before.

1) Daz Bonez (before the timeskip)

Daz Bones as seen in One Piece's Arabasta Arc (Image via Toei Animation)

Daz Bonez was the second strongest member of Baroque Works after Crocodile. In the organization, male agents were given codenames depending on their fighting skills, with a lower number directly corresponding to a stronger agent. Daz was given the codename of Mr 1, further establishing his status as Crocodile’s strongest subordinate.

An experienced martial artist, assassin, and bounty hunter, Daz gave a hard time to Roronoa Zoro during the Arabasta Arc. Zoro was only able to defeat Daz after evolving his strength by learning how to cut steel, an ability that is now known to be a form of Armament Haki.

Before that, Zoro couldn’t damage Daz’s steel-hard body. As the user of the Dice-Dice Fruit, Daz Bonez could turn any part of his body into blades made of tough steel. This allowed Daz to come uninjured from attacks and perform a variety of deadly techniques, factually becoming an unpredictable living weapon.

Daz can increase his raw power by rotating his already razor-sharp blades, turning them into saws or drills that shred everything they touch. Thanks to the Dice-Dice Fruit’s highly effective blend of offensive and defensive abilities, Daz stands out as the strongest bounty hunter ever seen in One Piece to this day.

After the Arabasta Arc, Daz was imprisoned in Impel Down. He and Crocodile escaped the prison to participate in the Paramount War and then spent some time traveling across the New World. Recently, Daz followed Crocodile during the formation of the Cross Guild.