The most successful manga in the world, One Piecehas been going on for almost three decades now. Created by Eiichiro Oda, this story has since grown to include a cast of thousands of characters, many of whom have their own unique stories to tell and powers to display. With that said, One Piecefor the most part, focuses on Luffy and his Straw Hat Crew. Among the Straw Hat Pirates, swordsman Roronoa Zoro is a fan favorite.
Despite his popularity, Zoro's backstory in the manga was short and until now was considered by many to be underwhelming, but a new novel is coming out that is about to explore his days before becoming a pirate, as well as Wado Ichimonji's story. On July 3, 2026, the story of Zoro's beloved sword, Wado Ichimonji, and his tough life before Luffy will finally be revealed.
New One Piece novel will officially expand Zoro's past on July 3, 2026
One Piece debuted in Weekly Shonen Jump Issue #34 on July 22, 1997. Years later, this story by Eiichiro Oda is still ongoing and released almost weekly with only a few breaks every now and then. The main character in One PieceLuffy, appeared in the very first chapter of the story. His first companion, Zoro, made his appearance soon after, i One Piece Chapter 3, which was released in Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump Issue #36 on August 4, 1997. While Zoro joined the crew in Chapter 6, we only got our first look at his character through a brief backstory in Chapter 5 of Weekly Shonen Jump Issue #39 on August 25, 1997.
Zoro's background tells of his past in Shimotsuki Village, where he was intent on challenging a girl named Kuina, who instilled in him the goal of becoming the world's strongest swordsman through a promise he cannot break. Kuina's death was tragic, and for the most part, this is what shaped him into the man he is today. This is the gist of what we know about Zoro's past, although Oda also reveals his family tree in One Piece SBS Volume 105, and expanded a bit more on his past in One Piece Chapter 1033, which was officially released on November 21, 2021, in Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump Issue #52.
“I must keep the promise to both of us. I will become such a great master swordsman that my name will be known even in heaven!!” — Zoro after Kuina's death, One Piece Chapter #5
Now, 29 years later, a new Zoro novel is being released on July 3, 2026, and with it, we're about to learn more about his past. Although this story will not focus on Zoro's life from when he was a child, it will still focus on his days before joining the Straw Hat Pirates in the East Blue. We already have 3 chapters of this novel released in One Piece Newspapers in 2024 and 2025, but a new chapter is now on its way.
Through a brief synopsis revealed to us, we know that this new chapter is about to tell the story of how Zoro met Johnny and Yosaku, two interesting characters we met in the East Blue Saga. Zoro is also about to fight a new criminal worth 300,000 berries as well. This reward may seem low today, but back in the days of the East Blues it wasn't too bad.
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The story of Wado Ichimonji, One Piece's most iconic sword, will be explored in the new Zoro Backstory Release
Zoro will be the highlight of the novel written by Jun Esaka, but through the short synopsis of the new chapter, it seems that new information about his most valuable sword, Wado Ichimonji, will also be revealed. Wado Ichimonji is not Zoro's strongest sword, but it is the most important to his character. It was given to him by Shimotsuki Koushirou after the death of Kuina, its former wielder. It was revealed in Wano to have been created by Shimotsuki Kozaburo. This sword has followed Zoro all his life, and its power is about to be shown in this new battle. We can't wait to see more lore surrounding the Wado Ichimonji to be revealed, as it's a sword that Zoro would never give up, even if he was given a stronger replacement.
“The most likely reason why it feels familiar to you must be a twist of fate. You see, the white blade, Wado Ichimonji and Enma were both made by the same man!! The blacksmith Shimotsuki Kozaburo. He broke the laws and left this land 50 years ago.” — Tenguyama Hitetsu, One Piece Chapter #955
The Zoro novel is non-canon, but provides interesting content amidst the lack of manga backstory
The new Zoro novel will be an exciting read for fans of the character, but as previously stated, this novel is written by Jun Esaka, and not Eiichiro Oda, the creator of One Piece. In that sense, the novel is non-canon, especially since it's not even overseen by Oda. The One Piece website had previously claimed that it was overseen by Eiichiro Oda, but that statement was retracted on April 30, 2024, confirming Oda's lack of involvement in the production of the story. The most involvement Oda has shown with this novel has come through a very recent piece of artwork he did for it on June 23, 2026. In this illustration, Oda showed him briefly joking with Zoro and promoting the new novel.
Oda: “Take a sneak peek!!”
Zoro: “Who told you to talk?”
Aside from the brief ad from the author, there's no input from him, so while this is a fun story, it's still non-canon in the grand scheme of things. Still, with Zoro's entire backstory in the manga being half a chapter long, and with extra information only added through an SBS, this novel is still a great addition to his character. But it should not be treated as canon material or as a reflection of actual One Piece events and details. Often, fans confuse supplemental content with the manga, conflating these details with real-life events from Oda's story. Unless otherwise noted, most One Piece novels are non-canon. The Ace novel, which was officially overseen by Eiichiro Oda, is one of the very few novels that is canon to the overarching story of the One Piece world.
All chapters of Eiichiro Oda's One Piece manga are available to read via Manga Plus and Viz Media. Meanwhile, the new Zoro novel will be available to read in Japan on July 3, 2026. Localization via Viz Media will likely take over a year, unfortunately.
