One Piece: Each Straw Hat timeskip training, explained

The first episode of One Piece Log: Fish-Man Island Saga – the anime remake of the Straw Hat crew’s first post-time-skip adventure – aired on November 3, 2024. The episode focused on the reunion of the Straw Hat Pirates after two years of absence. The crew had been scattered around the world by Bartholomew Kuma, with Luffy and his comrades being forcibly separated.

Forever marked by his sworn brother Ace’s tragic death during the Paramount War, Luffy decided not to face any future challenge without adequate preparation. He sent a coded message to his crewmates, urging them to postpone their reunion. After two years of intense training, the Straw Hats returned in grand style, now ready to take on the New World.

The training that Luffy and Zoro underwent was particularly fruitful, as they increased their power tenfold through the teachings of Silvers Rayleigh and, respectively, Dracule Mihawk. While not all of the Straw Hats had the luxury of learning from such powerhouses, every crewmember honed their skills, improving them remarkably.

The Straw Hat Pirates return stronger than ever in the first episode of One Piece’s Fish-Man Island Saga remake

1) Luffy’s training with Rayleigh

Luffy as seen in One Piece Log - Fish-Man Island Saga (Image via Toei Animation)

The protagonist of One Piece Monkey D. Luffy spent the two-year time skip training with Silvers Rayleigh, the former right-hand man of Gol D. Roger and second-in-command of the Roger Pirates. Considering Luffy a man worthy of inheriting Roger’s will, "Dark King" Rayleigh decided to personally instruct the young pirate in the principles of Haki.

Rayleigh took Luffy to Rusukaina, a harsh island filled with dangerous animals, where he helped him increase his overall strength, become a reasonably proficient user of Armament and Observation Haki, and learn how to control his Conqueror’s Haki. Rayleigh also helped Luffy develop Gear 4, a new transformation that gave Luffy the strength and speed needed to subdue all the beasts of Rusukaina.

That said, Luffy also fully mastered his previous Gear forms. He learned to use Gear 2 without any drawbacks, especially as he gained the ability to activate it only on selected parts of his body for short, controlled bursts of power. He also learned to use Gear 3 without having to shrink his body later.

One Piece honors Luffy and Rayleigh with mirroring scenes (Image via Shueisha)

The addition of Armament Haki made all of Luffy’s techniques much stronger. Combining it with Gear 2 to perform a move called Red Hawk, he learned to strike with such force and speed that his fist would ignite. Rayleigh’s teachings continued to be instrumental in Luffy’s improvement throughout the rest of the story, as the “Dark King” laid the groundwork for the young pirate’s subsequent leaps.

This explains why Rayleigh is one of the very few people to earn Luffy’s deep respect and admiration. The One Piece manga honored their connection by reintroducing the time-skip-improved Luffy with a double spread that was strikingly similar to Rayleigh’s introduction in the series. In both cases, Luffy and Rayleigh are shown using Conqueror’s Haki to effortlessly defeat the weaklings around them.

2) Zoro’s training with Mihawk

Zoro as seen in One Piece Log - Fish-Man Island Saga (Image via Toei Animation)

Zoro was sent to Kuraigana Island, where he met Perona. As the two wandered around the island, they encountered Humandrills, intelligent monkeys capable of imitating the fighting skills of humans. They then met Dracule Mihawk, who had made Kuraigana’s castle his home. Mihawk was surprised – but delighted – to learn that Zoro had defeated all the Humandrills.

Sometime before, Zoro had foolishly challenged Mihawk, suffering a crushing defeat. On that occasion, however, Mihawk had recognized Zoro’s potential. Seeking to increase his power to better support Luffy, Zoro swallowed his pride and knelt before Mihawk, begging the World’s Strongest Swordsman to train him.

Appreciating Zoro’s selflessness, Mihawk agreed to the request. Granted, he couldn’t help but laugh at Zoro’s audacity in asking for help from the very person he was trying to defeat. Over the next two years, Mihawk trained Zoro, teaching him how to use Haki. Funnily enough, Mihawk forbade Zoro to drink until he had mastered Armament Haki Hardening.

One Piece honors Zoro and Mihawk with mirroring scenes (Image via Shueisha)

Mihawk’s incredibly harsh training caused Zoro to lose his left eye. However, the effort paid off, as Zoro’s overall strength skyrocketed. A testament to this, Zoro bulldozed through every challenge in the New World without needing another power boost until he arrived in Wano, where he ascended to new heights by unleashing his Conqueror’s Haki and mastering Enma.

Fresh out of the training, Zoro easily defeated Hody Jones, beating him with a single blow, even though the fight took place underwater – the most favorable environment for a Fish-Man – and Hody had already taken many Energy Steroids to increase his strength many times over. He did the same with Hyozo, despite the latter having been doping himself with Energy Steroids just like Hody.

Despite his Armament Haki and mountain-sized stone golem, Pica didn't stand a chance against Zoro. Later, Zoro was able to block an attack from Fujitora and even push back the Admiral. As with Luffy and Rayleigh, One Piece honored Zoro’s training with Mihawk by reintroducing Zoro in a double spread that showed him destroying a large ship, like Mihawk did when he was introduced in the series.

3) Nami’s training on Weatheria

Nami as seen in One Piece Log - Fish-Man Island Saga (Image via Toei Animation)

Nami arrived on an artificial sky island called Weatheria, where she honed her weather-based techniques under the guidance of the meteorological scientist Haredas. Together with his colleagues, Haredas taught Nami how to use the Weather Balls, special items that can contain clouds.

Combining Weatheria’s technology with her previous abilities, Nami achieved the pinnacle of the meteorological science applied to combat. She incorporated the Weather Balls into her Clima-Tact, developing a new version of her signature weapon. This greatly increased Nami’s ability to simulate meteorological phenomena and manipulate the weather around her.

The range, power, and versatility of Nami’s techniques were all augmented. She learned to become fully invisible when performing Mirage Tempo and upgraded the Thunder Lance Tempo technique. She also learned to control lightning to strike moving targets with a move called Thunder Breed Tempo and to generate heat, water, and wind at will.

4) Usopp’s training with Heracles

Usopp as seen in One Piece Log - Fish-Man Island Saga (Image via Toei Animation)

Usopp arrived on Greenstone, an island in the Boin Archipelago. When a man named Heracles saved him from a gigantic stag beetle, Usopp asked the former to teach him everything he knew about fighting. Heracles agreed to Usopp’s request and trained him.

Under Heracles’ tutelage, Usopp learned to use Pop Greens, seeds that can grow into full-sized plants almost instantly. These plants provided Usopp with a large variety of attacks such as vines, explosions, sleeping gasses, and more. Usopp also developed a new slingshot, the Black Kabuto, which he could use to fire Pop Greens as bullets.

5) Sanji’s training on the Kamabakka Kingdom

Sanji as seen in One Piece Log - Fish-Man Island Saga (Image via Toei Animation)

Kuma sent Sanji to Momoiro Island, the home of the Kamabakka Kingdom. Sanji tried to fight the local Okama, but they soon captured him. The Okama turned Sanji into one of them and brought him before Emporio Ivankov, the leader of the island. A prominent member of the Revolutionary Army, Ivankov had recently befriended Luffy.

Ivankov challenged Sanji to defeat the 99 masters of Newkama Kenpo – the okama’s signature martial art – to get the recipes for Attack Cuisine. These dishes had strengthening and restorative properties that Sanji, as the Straw Hat crew’s cook, could use to help his comrades. Sanji eventually defeated all the Newkama Kenpo masters, succeeding in the challenge.

Constantly pursued and attacked by the Okama, Sanji learned to use Sky Walk to move freely in mid-air by kicking the air itself, and Blue Walk to move underwater like a Fish-Man. He was also taught – probably by Ivankov – how to use the basic forms of Observation and Armament Haki.

Last but not least, Sanji learned to unleash the Diable Jambe’s full power by igniting his entire body with a technique called Hell Memories. That said, Sanji’s time skip training proved to be insufficient, considering his disappointing defeats against Vergo and Doflamingo, as well as his poor performance on Whole Cake Island. Fortunately, Sanji received a huge power boost during the Wano Arc.

6) Chopper’s training in the Torino Kingdom

Chopper as seen in One Piece Log - Fish-Man Island Saga (Image via Toei Animation)

Chopper was sent to Torino Kingdom, where he improved his medical knowledge by studying the books in the local library. This allowed him to perfect his Devil Fruit-based transformations. Before the two-year time skip, Chopper could only access the Human-Human Fruit’s special forms through special drugs called Rumble Balls.

After the time skip, he learned to access most of these forms – Jumping Point, Guard Point, Arm Point, and Horn Point – without using a Rumble Ball, and developed a new form called Kung Fu Point. Chopper also learned to use his strongest form – the Monster Point, which skyrockets his physical might by turning him into a monstrous creature – without losing control of himself.

7) Nico Robin’s training with the Revolutionary Army

Robin as seen in One Piece Log - Fish-Man Island Saga (Image via Toei Animation)

Nico Robin arrived at Tequila Wolf, a mysterious place where she met some members of the Revolutionary Army who gave her a ride to Baltigo. There, Robin made friends with Koala, Hack, and even Luffy’s sworn brother, Sabo, the organization’s second-in-command.

Koala trained Robin in the principles of Fish-Man Karate, teaching her how to perform palm strikes. This increased Robin’s effectiveness with the Flower-Flower Fruit, a Paramecia-type Devil Fruit that allows the user to sprout duplicates of their body parts from any surface within range.

Robin learned to use her Devil Fruit power to sprout giant-size body parts and combined this ability with Fish-Man Karate to perform devastating Fish-Man Karate-style palm strikes with her enlarged limbs. She also learned to deceive her enemies by creating sentient clones of her body.

8) Franky’s training on Karakuri Island

Franky as seen in One Piece Log - Fish-Man Island Saga (Image via Toei Animation)

Franky was sent to Karakuri, a winter island that he discovered to be the birthplace of Dr Vegapunk. After accidentally destroying a part of Vegapunk’s laboratory, Franky used the genius scientist’s blueprints to reconfigure and upgrade his cyborg body. As a result, his aesthetic appearance changed noticeably.

That said, Vegapunk’s advanced technological knowledge allowed Franky to rebuild himself into a cyborg much stronger than before. As well as upgrading his previous weapons, he added missiles and even a laser beam to his arsenal.

A modified version of his previous Coup de Vent, this devastating laser – called Radical Beam – can potentially hurt even characters stronger than Franky himself. Franky also created the General, an enormous mecha made of Wapometal.

This tough and super-resilient material maximizes his defensive and offensive capabilities as a cyborg. When operating inside his mecha suit, Franky stops his enemies before blasting them away.

9) Brook’s training with the Longarms

Brook as seen in One Piece Log - Fish-Man Island Saga (Image via Toei Animation)

Kuma sent Brook to Lazy Bones Island. Mistaken for a demon by some cultists, Brook then used his musical talent to become a world-famous rock star known as the “Soul King”. In addition to advancing his musical career with the help of three members of the Longarm Tribe, Brook tapped deeper into his Devil Fruit powers.

Many years before the present One Piece narration, Brook died but came back to life thanks to the supernatural power of the Revive-Revive Fruit, which revived his skeleton. During the time skip, Brook gained the ability to detach his soul from his body, transforming it into a ghostly spirit that can move independently.

He also learned to imbue his sword Soul Solid with the underworld’s cold aura, turning the blade into a weapon that freezes anything and anyone it touches. As the Longarms sharpened his sword, Brook also improved his swordsmanship, increasing his power output and learning to perform flying slashes.