One Piece set up Shanks vs Bartolomeo long ago, and it's in the cover story

Introduced in One Piece as a rude, menacing guy who mistreats anyone he encounters, Bartolomeo is soon revealed to be a devoted fan of Monkey D. Luffy and the other Straw Hats. Funnily enough, One Piece chapter 1126 shows Bartolomeo, a man who idolizes Luffy to the point of worshipping him, crossing paths with "Red Hair" Shanks, the person who inspired Luffy to become a pirate.

Two years before the present One Piece narration, Bartolomeo witnessed Luffy’s miraculous survival in Logue Town. Impressed by it, he turned into a fan of the Straw Hat Pirates and decided to follow in Luffy's footsteps. During the Dressrosa Arc, he finally managed to meet Luffy and his comrades, to whom he swore an oath of allegiance as a member of the Straw Hat Grand Fleet.

As per the spoilers of One Piece chapter 1126, Bartolomeo and his men were attacked by the Red Hair Pirates, who easily subdued them. While this outcome was anything but surprising, it’s interesting to note that the One Piece manga had already foreshadowed this fight long ago, with a cover story in which Bartolomeo was shown to openly disrespect Shanks' Jolly Roger.

Disclaimer: This article contains major spoilers from the One Piece manga up to chapter 1126.

One Piece chapter 1126 shows the highly anticipated Bartolomeo vs Shanks showdown

Bartolomeo's loyalty to Luffy glorified in spoilers of One Piece chapter 1126

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Set to be released on Monday, September 16, 2024, on Shueisha’s MANGA Plus app and website, One Piece chapter 1126 shifts the narration from Egghead— where the major incident triggered by Dr Vegapunk’s death has just come to an end— to various locations in the fictional world of Eiichiro Oda’s story.

In anticipation of the official release, fans can look at the installment’s first leaks. Based on the spoilers, it’s easy to note how the title of One Piece chapter 1126, Payback, encapsulates its content. The chapter reveals that the Red Hair Pirates have dealt a crushing defeat to the Barto Club, i.e., the pirate crew led by Bartolomeo.

Powerless in the face of Shanks, Benn Beckman, and the others, Bartolomeo and his men were quickly subdued. Shanks then offered them a choice, giving Bartolomeo some poison and telling him that he had one month to use it to kill Luffy.

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The spoilers don’t explicitly mention this detail, but it’s safe to assume that Shanks either knew beforehand that Bartolomeo had pledged his loyalty to Luffy, or simply noticed the evident tribute to Luffy on the bow of the Going Luffy-senpai, the Barto Club’s ship. In any case, Bartolomeo didn’t even consider the proposal.

Instead, without a second thought, he grabbed the poison and drank it himself. This didn’t surprise Shanks at all, as the “Red Hair” had already predicted such a scenario. In fact, the poison was just a fake by Shanks, who only wanted to test if and to what extent Bartolomeo was truly loyal to Luffy.

Following this reveal, Bartolomeo and his men assumed that Shanks would have let them go scot-free. As such, they set sail on the Going Luffy-senpai. However, Shanks was of a different opinion as he had one of his most trusted officers, the sniper Yasopp, shoot at the ship. Yasopp’s projectile hit the Going Luffy-senpai squarely, causing it to explode.

Bartolomeo paid the price for starting a feud with the Red Hair Pirates

Bartolomeo went too far and paid the price for it (Image via Toei Animation)

Bartolomeo respects the Straw Hats so much that he becomes suddenly shy in their presence, hesitating to speak to them and bursting into tears of joy. As part of the Straw Hat Grand Fleet, he pledged to come and help Luffy whenever needed. His loyalty to Luffy is absurd, to the point where he is ready to put his life on the line for him without a second thought.

By doing what he did in One Piece chapter 1126, Bartolomeo displayed a level of loyalty to Luffy that is comparable in all respects to that of the members of Luffy’s crew. Based on this, he could very well be a Straw Hat. However, sometime before the present events, Bartolomeo made a huge mistake, which triggered Shanks' actions in the latest installment of the manga.

The conflict between Bartolomeo’s group and the Red Hair Pirates is no accident, as it has its roots in an earlier event that served as a prelude to the battle seen in One Piece chapter 1126. Just like the title teased, Shanks and his men merely paid back Bartolomeo for what he had done in the past.

Bartolomeo disregarded the authority of the Red Hair Pirates (Image via Shueisha)

As seen in the cover story The Stories of the Self-Proclaimed Straw Hat Grand Fleet, at one point in the story Bartolomeo and his men arrive on a certain island. After defeating a local gang, they began selling souvenirs of the Straw Hat Pirates to the inhabitants of the island.

The place was revealed to be under the protection of the Red Hair Pirates, but Bartolomeo, heedless of the consequences of his act, burned Shanks’ flag. This was shown on the cover of One Piece chapter 875. Sometime later, Shanks was informed of the incident, and, judging from what happened in One Piece chapter 1126, it made him rather upset.

When Shanks and his crew arrived on Wano shortly after the conclusion of the Onigashima Raid, the former explicitly told his comrades that they could not meet Luffy because they first had to solve the issue with Bartolomeo.

Bartolomeo burns the Jolly Roger of the Red Hair Pirates (Image via Shueisha)

Shanks mentioned that if they let that slip as if nothing happened, it would hurt their reputation as a Yonko crew. Granted, Shanks is an extremely playful and laid-back man, who loves to party, and prefers to solve conflicts through diplomacy, avoiding unnecessary violence.

Considering this, as well as the well-known friendship between Luffy and Shanks, many fans assumed that the “Red Hair” wouldn’t have retaliated against Bartolomeo, but just scolded him. At most, the idea was that Shanks would beat up Bartolomeo, but just as a reproach before revealing himself as Luffy’s mentor and ending up partying and drinking cheerfully.

Nevertheless, Shanks couldn’t just forget what Bartolomeo did. The latter entered a territory under the Red Hair Pirates’ safeguard and claimed it for the Straw Hat Pirates. As if that wasn’t enough, he burned Shanks’s flag in front of everyone.

Bartolomeo's ship, the Going Luffy-senpai (Image via Toei Animation)

Although a nice person, Shanks is still a pirate. As one of the Four Emperors as well as the captain of a powerful crew, he has a reputation to uphold. He couldn't let a newbie enter his territory and wreak havoc.

Burning a Jolly Roger is a major insult, as the flag represents a crew’s own identity. If Shanks didn’t pursue and punish Bartolomeo for what he did, other pirates could mistake his magnanimity for weakness, and attack his territories, possibly hurting some of the people under his protection.

As seen in the circumstances that led Shanks to annihilate Eustass Kid, the “Red Hair” will act without hesitation against any threat to his dear ones. Thus, despite being a pacifist by nature, Shanks had no choice but to prosecute Bartolomeo and teach him a lesson.

Bartolomeo may be the narrative device for Shanks and Luffy's reunion

Sooner or later, Shanks and Luffy will meet again, this time as rivals (Image via Toei Animation)

It’s also interesting to note that Shanks was fully aware of Bartolomeo being a subordinate of Luffy, and still went after him. After all, by burning down Shanks’ flag and replacing it with Luffy’s, Bartolomeo essentially declared war against the Red Hair Pirates on behalf of the Straw Hat Pirates.

Of course, Luffy wasn’t aware of Bartolomeo’s actions, and would probably disapprove of them, but this subplot may set up a confrontation between the Red Hair Pirates and the Straw Hats. Shanks has recently declared his intention to claim for the One Piece, so, unless he and Luffy intend to share the legendary treasure, a confrontation between them is inevitable.

There’s however, no hatred between Luffy and Shanks. On the contrary, they respect each other deeply, They may have a friendly confrontation in which Shanks finally acknowledges Luffy as the great pirate he had promised to become, and a worthy rival in the rush for the One Piece.

One Piece set up Shanks vs Bartolomeo long ago, and it's in the cover story

One Piece chapter 1126 shows the highly anticipated Bartolomeo vs Shanks showdown

Bartolomeo's loyalty to Luffy glorified in spoilers of One Piece chapter 1126

Bartolomeo paid the price for starting a feud with the Red Hair Pirates

Bartolomeo may be the narrative device for Shanks and Luffy's reunion

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