One Piece: Roronoa Zoro's Family Tree Explained

Of all the colorful characters in "One Piece," one of the most stoically formidable is the master swordsman, Roronoa Zoro. A master of the Three Sword Style, Zoro actually comes from a long line of legendary warriors through his family. As the series progresses, it reveals more about Zoro's background and ancestral lineage, including his connection to Wano Country. These revelations inform Zoro's demeanor and motivations throughout the story as he strives to become the greatest swordsman in the world.

Though certainly not the biggest family in all of "One Piece," Zoro's family offers some fascinating surprises in the hit anime/manga franchise. "One Piece" is an epic anime adventure, and that sense of scope extends to multiple generations of memorable characters. And given Zoro's prominence in the ongoing saga of Monkey D. Luffy and the Straw Hat Pirates, it's only fitting that he has a similarly intriguing backstory. Here is Roronoa Zoro's family tree on "One Piece" explained in full.

Roronoa Zoro is a former bounty hunter and among the first characters to join Luffy's crew of Straw Hat Pirates at the beginning of "One Piece." From an early age, growing up in Shimotsuki Village, Zoro shows an early aptitude for swordplay, capable of defeating adults in sparring matches. By the age of 10, he had already participated in thousands of sword fights, already dreaming of becoming the world's best swordsman. After leaving home to continue his training, Zoro takes up a living as a bounty hunter, putting his skills to use.

Though Zoro initially refuses to join Luffy, he reconsiders after the cheerful pirate helps him recover his swords. Zoro is among the strongest in the Straw Hat Pirate crew of "One Piece" and is identifiable by his bright green hair, a trait he presumably inherited from his parents. In contrast to some of his friends, Zoro doesn't currently have any major love interest in the series, as he's focused solely on achieving his dream. With his usual determined nature and flair for expert combat, Zoro is a major reason why "One Piece" is one of the best anime series streaming on Crunchyroll.

Like his son after him, Roronoa Arashi was a swordsman born and raised in Shimotsuki Village as per his family's tradition. To date, Arashi has yet to fully appear in the "One Piece" anime or be depicted by manga creator Eiichiro Oda's series. Oda does provide a silhouette of Arashi in supplemental material provided in volume 105 of the collected manga. This suggests that Zoro inherited his spiky hair from his father, though Arashi has grown his hair longer than his son.

Given his continued absence from the anime and manga, not much is known about Arashi's life. What is known is that Zoro was orphaned by the age of eight, meaning Arashi had long been dead by the time Zoro was introduced at the age of 19. Arashi's death is attributed to a battle against pirates threatening Shimotsuki Village, leading to Zoro primarily targeting pirates during his time as a bounty hunter. In episode 295 of the "One Piece" anime series, Zoro uses a sword technique bearing his father's name, though it is unclear if Arashi is the one who developed it.

As with his father, Zoro also lost his mother Tera from an early age, though it's implied that she died after her husband. Supplemental material reveals that Tera was the daughter of a bandit in the East Blue region of the Blue Sea. Marrying Roronoa Arashi, Tera relocated to Arashi's ancestral hometown of Shimotsuki Village where she had their son Zoro. Tera passed away from an unspecified illness when Zoro was just a young boy, leaving him an orphan.

Like Arashi, volume 105 of the "One Piece" manga series includes a silhouette of Tera in its supplemental material. This silhouette depicts Tera having long hair tied up in a ponytail and having pronounced eyelashes. Similar to her husband, Tera has yet to make a full appearance in either the "One Piece" manga or anime, leaving her physical attributes an ongoing mystery. Zoro was forced to grow up quickly without either of his parents, with Tera's death leaving a prominent void in his life.

Zoro's paternal grandfather, Roronoa Pinzoro, is one of the founders of Shimotsuki Village, approximately 52 years before the start of the main story. A swordsman like his ancestors and eventual descendants, Pinzoro and his fellow swordsmen battle a vicious group of bandits in Wano Country. When the confrontation turns dire for Pinzoro and his allies, they receive vital aid from a group of Wano Country migrant settlers passing through East Blue at the time. After triumphing over the bandits, a faction of the settlers decides to remain in East Blue with the swordsmen, creating Shimotsuki Village.

Among these settlers is a woman from the legendary Shimotsuki clan, whom Pinzoro eventually marries and has a son, Arashi, with. Like his son, Pinzoro has yet to appear in the manga or anime, with his place in Zoro's family history revealed by supplemental material in volume 105 of the manga. The volume's silhouetted depiction of Pinzoro gives him longer spiky hair that appears to be brushed back behind his brow. Pinzoro's fate is currently unknown, though he is presumably dead by the time Zoro loses his parents.

Fifty-five years prior to the start of "One Piece," a group of migrants fled from Wano Country, traveling through East Blue. Among them were members of the Shimotsuki clan, a family renowned for their mastery of swords. This group included Shimotsuki Furiko, the older sister of Shimotsuki Ushimaru, a direct descendant of legendary swordsman Shimotsuki Ryuma. After the migrants helped a group of warriors in East Blue defeat a small army of bandits, Furiko decided to remain in East Blue, where she married Roronoa Pinzoro.

Shimotsuki Furiko is the mother of Roronoa Arashi, which, of course, makes her Zoro's grandmother. Like much of Zoro's immediate family, she has yet to be seen in the "One Piece" anime or manga, relegated to supplemental material in volume 105 of the manga. What is seen from her silhouetted appearance is her long hair, with her final fate currently unknown. However, her marriage to Pinzoro brings together the Roronoa and Shimotsuki families together, something that proves pivotal for Zoro generations later.

Shimotsuki Furiko's younger brother Shimotsuki Ushimaru was the last clan leader for his family in Ringo, on the northern end of Wano Country. Twenty years prior to the start of the main story, Ushimaru was deposed by Kurozumi Orochi, a development that brought him great change for the remainder of his life. Like many in his family, especially Zoro, Ushimaru was a master swordsman who similarly used two swords simultaneously. After failing to stop the rise of Orochi with his fellow samurai, Ushimaru was imprisoned in a cave on the island of Onigashima.

Among the other prisoners in the cave was Yamato, the son of the villainous Kaidou, with Ushimaru becoming protective of him. During their imprisonment, Yamato was impressed by Ushimaru's honorable demeanor and tales of his past exploits. To ensure Yamato's survival, Ushimaru and his fellow samurai broke free from captivity and fought Kaidou directly, sacrificing themselves in battle. Though Zoro would never meet his great-uncle, their similarities in personality and swordplay are noticeable, with Zoro inheriting this from his Shimotsuki heritage.

One of the most revered swordsmen in all of "One Piece," certainly by Zoro, is his distant ancestor Shimotsuki Ryuma. Ryuma lived centuries before the start of the story, initially as a wandering warrior in the Ringo region of Wano Country. Ryuma steadily gained a reputation as an esteemed samurai, matching his swordplay skills with his unwavering honor, armed with his sword Shusui. After slaying a dragon, Ryuma becomes globally renowned, and in the centuries following his eventual death, he maintains his well-earned reputation as the "Sword God" in Wano Country.

Decades before the story begins, Ryuma's grave is desecrated, with his corpse and legendary sword stolen by the humanoid Gecko Moria, who, like other "One Piece" pirates, does not wear an eyepatch. Using dark magic, Moria reanimated Ryuma as a zombie to become one of his formidable generals as they terrorized the seas. In episode 362, Zoro duels the zombified Ryoma, emerging victorious, with Ryuma giving his descendant Shusui before disintegrating into ashes, finally at peace. Outside of his heroic exploits, little is known about Ryuma's immediate family. It isn't known whether he takes a wife or has any children.

One family tragedy that casts a particularly long shadow over Zoro throughout "One Piece" is the loss of his close friend and distant cousin Shimotsuki Kuina. Kuina grew up with Zoro in Shimotsuki Village, and was several years older than her cousin. Kuina was trained from an early age in swordplay by her father Koushirou, who intended for her to continue the Shimotsuki family legacy of unparalleled swordsmanship despite being a girl. Even as she proved herself to be a prodigious warrior, Kuina was aware of the gender inequality affecting her dream of becoming the world's greatest sword fighter.

Kuina became a young mentor to Zoro, who was already regarded as the second-best swordsman in her father's dojo in spite of his young age. Kuina and Zoro sparred thousands of times as children, though Kuina always emerged triumphant in their duels. After a sparring session using real swords, Kuina and Zoro both vowed to support each other in becoming the best sword fighters in the world. However, Kuina died from a freak accident, falling down a set of stairs shortly thereafter, with Zoro vowing to achieve their mutual dream in her memory.

Kuina's father, Shimotsuki Koushirou, was the master of the Isshin Dojo, Shimotsuki Village's esteemed samurai training facility, when Zoro was a boy. In keeping with his family's tradition, Koushirou is an expert swordsman and has knowledge of combat techniques not widely known outside of Wano Country. His sexist views made him believe his daughter would be an inferior warrior, and he trained her diligently to overcome this perceived disadvantage. After losing both of his parents, Zoro became a student at the Isshin Dojo, with Koushirou noticing Zoro's potential despite the boy losing a duel against Kuina.

Koushirou privately hoped that Zoro would eventually surpass his daughter, something Kuina learned and resented. Following Kuina's tragic death, Koushirou gave Zoro her sword and a treasured family heirloom, the Wado Ichimonji, at Zoro's request. After Zoro left Shimotsuki Village seven years after Kuina's death, Koushirou closely tracked his adventures in the news. Koushirou remains proud of Zoro and his accomplishments, though he was slightly annoyed when his new students began emulating Zoro's unorthodox fighting style in their training.

More than just being renowned for their excellent sword fighting skills, the Shimotsuki's mastery over swords extends to the creation. One of the greatest swordsmiths in the Shimotsuki clan is Shimotsuki Kouzaburou, who traveled from Wano Country with a group of immigrants to East Blue. Among this group was Zoro's grandmother Shimotsuki Furiko, though how exactly Furiko and Kouzaburou are related is currently unspecified. After helping a group of warriors fend off bandits, Kouzaburou and Furiko are among the settlers who decide to settle down and found Shimotsuki Village.

A direct descendant of Shimotsuki Ryuma, Kouzaburou eventually has a son of his own, Shimotsuki Koushirou, making him Shimotsuki Kuina's grandfather. While a skilled swordsman himself, Kouzaburou is more known for his expertise as a swordsmith, crafting the legendary swords Enma and the Wado Ichimonji. As a boy, Zoro meets Kouzaburou in their village, unaware of their familial connection at the time, learning combat philosophies and sword fighting skills from his elderly cousin. Thirteen years prior to the start of the series, Kouzaburou passes away, with Zoro later using Enma and the Wado Ichimonji to defeat Kaidou and avenge his great-uncle Ushimaru.