One Piece theory:  Dragon's Devil Fruit powers hint Oda will pull influence from several ancient cultures

One Piece's Monkey D. Dragon is a character with a lot of mystery surrounding him, and one of the most interesting ones for the fandom is the nature of his Devil Fruit. It's all but a fact that the character has a Fruit, and fans are eager to see what the leader of the Revolutionary Army can do in combat. However, his abilities and the name of said Fruit are yet to be revealed.

There have been a lot of One Piece theories over the years regarding Dragon because author Eiichiro Oda has not shown much of the character in over one thousand chapters of the manga. Therefore, it makes sense that fans want to understand more about the character through their own research. A recent theory suggests what his Devil Fruit could be and how the inspiration can come from many different cultures.

Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers for the series. Any opinion expressed here belongs to the author and not Sportskeeda.

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Explaining the possible inspirations for Monkey D. Dragon's Devil Fruit in One Piece

Dragon in the anime (Image via Toei Animation)

This theory, created by X user @BlacktyonteXavi, suggests that Dragon's Devil Fruit abilities could be connected to the Toltec society, which was the one in Central America that inspired the Aztecs a few years down the line. That culture had a lot of chiefs and gods, with some of the most prominent being Quetzalcoatl/Feathered serpent, Mixcoatl/Cloud serpent, and Tlaloc/The God Of Rain, thus suggesting that Eiichiro Oda could have based Dragon on these entities.

It goes further by explaining that Quetzalcoatl was an actual person named after the serpent deity and theorizes that the Revolutionary Army's leader could have been named Dragon because of a deity.

This theory also points out that these gods were fated to die and reincarnate time and time again, with one of them, Xipe Totec, ruling over the East. This could be viewed as a parallel to Dragon's connection to the East Blue, his homeland, and that perhaps he has a unique role.

It explains that the marks on Dragon's face are meant to represent his control over his Devil Fruit. It suggests that he is in control of a special Fruit that had previous users dealing with major responsibilities, which is why Dragon is perceived as a borderline deity because of his abilities.

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The role of Dragon throughout the story

Monkey D. Dragon (Image via Shueisha/Colored by JLjarx)

The character of Monkey D. Dragon might be one of the most mysterious in the entirety of One Piece, and Oda hasn't given the fandom much when it comes to this individual's motivations, backstory, and abilities. Therefore, it is safe to say that people expect him to have a pivotal role in the final third of the story, although that is still up for debate.

Dragon is not only Luffy's father but also the leader of the Revolutionary Army, something that has been built up as a major rival for the World Government. However, Dragon's actions in the series have been considerably passive for more than one thousand chapters, which has been frustrating for many readers throughout the years.

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Final thoughts

There is an argument to be made that Dragon's Devil Fruit could be inspired by the Toltec culture, although that is still up for debate. However, it wouldn't be the first time that Oda has been taking inspiration from several different sources throughout the series.

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