One Piece's original Sun God Nika may have been a Mink, and Luffy is the key connecting thread

Modified Aug 28, 2024 08:30 GMT

One Piece: Sun God Nika might be a Mink (Image via Toei Animation)

One Piece's The Sun God Nika has been one of the most mysterious characters, while also being one of the most recurring throughout the numerous story arcs. Whether Nika and Joy Boy are two different entities or the same being addressed in a different manner hasn't been confirmed in the story yet.

Although the actual origins and specifics of Nika haven't been revealed, Luffy's Gear 5 transformation is very closely associated with the Sun God Nika due to it being a literal awakening of his fruit named Hito Hito no Mi Model: Nika.

That has led many fans to theorize about the possible appearance of Nika. The overlapping of Nika, Joy Boy, Zunesha and the Minks, along with the Gear 5 transformation resembling the Mink tribe's Sulong transformation, implies the possibility of Nika being a very ancient Mink.

Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers for the One Piece series.

One Piece: Nika might be an ancient Mink inspired from Sun Wukong

Gear 5 Luffy as shown in the One Piece anime (Image via Toei Animation)

Luffy's Gear 5 transformation made its first appearance in the final parts of the Wano arc during list last fight against Kaido. Although any relation between Luffy’s Gear 5 and the Minks hasn't been established in the story, they share numerous noticeable similarities.

The Sulong form of the Minks is typically accompanied by all Minks gaining white fur, irrespective of their original fur color, along with red eyes. These changes are further accompanied by a loss of ego and personality, replaced by rage.

These changes are strikingly similar to Luffy’s Gear 5 transformation, which changes his entire color palette to white, gives him red eyes and is accompanied by overwhelming joy and laughter.

It’s possible that the original entity Nika was an ancient individual from the Mink tribe who was transferred into a Devil Fruit.

Luffy's devil fruit as shown in the anime (Image via Toei Animation)

The Gear 5 transformation displays traits like overwhelming confidence, a sense of freedom and an aloof personality, all of which resemble modern interpretations of Sun Wukong.

Sun Wukong, the Monkey King, is a figure from the story "Journey to the West," where he's depicted with overwhelming powers similar to Gear 5 Luffy. Wukong also inspired the character of Son Goku from Dragon Ball.

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It’s well known that Oda is a huge fan of the Dragon Ball series, so it’s possible that he used similar inspirations to create Luffy and Nika through Sun Wukong. Even Luffy’s normal persona resembles that of Sun Wukong, as depicted in other media, and Luffy’s name, "Monkey D. Luffy," might be a clue to Nika’s actual identity.

The smoke ribbons around Gear 5 Luffy have often been used to signify divinity within the anime. That, along with Luffy’s stretchy abilities loosely referencing Sun Wukong’s staff, alludes to the possibility that Nika was originally a Monkey Mink tribe member who gained some form of divinity and now resides within Luffy’s Devil Fruit.

Final Thoughts

The One Piece manga recently ended its Egghead Island arc with the Straw Hats boarding Dorry and Brogy's ship.

Their next destination is Elbaf, marking the beginning of the highly anticipated Elbaf arc. Chapter 1124 ended with a mysterious figure already waiting for Luffy and his crew on the Island of Elbaf.

That has led many fans to believe that it might be Shanks, who was last seen in action against Captain Kid near Elbaf. One Piece chapter 1125 will release on September 8, 2024, and will start the Elbaf arc.