How Did Luffy Get the Scar on His Chest in One Piece? Explained

One Piece is one of the longest-running anime so if you’ve been watching weekly since 1999, you can’t blame yourself for forgetting some things. One Piece can be a daunting show to rewatch since it is currently on episode 1088 at the time of writing. If you’ve hopped on the bandwagon later on through the Netflix show, especially after the 2-year time skip, then you’re probably missing a lot of core facts about the formative years of the Straw Hat Pirates. And if you’ve ever seen Luffy in action, you might be wondering how did Luffy get the scar on his chest? Well, read on below to find out the most defining part of Luffy’s life.

***Warning: Massive Spoiler Alert For The Marineford Arc***

How Did Luffy Get The Scar On His Chest?

It all started when Luffy’s brother Ace, who is part of the White Beard Pirates, was tasked by his Captain, Edward Newgate, to defeat and capture Marshall D. Teach, aka Black Beard. Teach used to be Ace’s crewmate, but he then deserted them and was hunted down for that reason. Now wielding the Darkness Darkness fruit, Teach was far more formidable than when he left the crew. In the battle that ensued, Ace was defeated and taken hostage by Black Beard, only to be handed over to the World Government to meet his untimely demise.

That started a chain of events that resulted in the era-defining Paramount War, also known as the Battle of Marineford. Ace was scheduled to be executed, but neither the White Beard Pirates nor Luffy were going to stand by and let it happen. Waging war on the World Government and the Navy was no small task and had not been attempted at this scale in history, inflicting unprecedented entropy and chaos to the seas and bringing the Navy to its knees. 

Luffy was backed up by White Beard himself and his crew of over 1,600 men, to get to Ace and free him before the execution. Although Luffy succeeded in freeing Ace, it was short-lived. When it finally seemed that they’d be home free, the Magma-powered Admiral Akainu thought otherwise. He attacked Luffy and Ace, and neither was a match for him. Finally, Akainu attacked Luffy with a death blow when his attention was elsewhere and was saved by Ace. In one of the most tragic episodes of One Piece (Episode 482), Ace died protecting his brother Luffy by taking Akainu’s blow instead.

Upon seeing his brother’s lifeless body, Luffy was struck with immeasurable grief and fell into a stupor. His friend Jinbe, who later joined the Straw Hat Pirates, came to the rescue and fled carrying Luffy. But again, Akainu’s relentless onslaught couldn’t be stopped. Akainu’s Magma-powered punch hit Jinbe in the back as he carried Luffy, passing right through his body and searing a permanent X-shaped scar on Luffy’s chest. Although Luffy and Jinbe made it out alive owing to the help of their friends, it was with a heavy heart.

How Luffy’s Scar Changed Him

At this point, Luffy had lost both of his brothers and coming back from that wasn’t easy. Jinbe played a pivotal role in getting Luffy back on his feet. Luffy vowed to remember how he got that scar, and what it signified. In the words of Red Haired Shanks, one of the four emperors of the sea, that he imparted to Luffy in the very first episode of the show:

Scars don’t make the man. It’s the lesson behind the scar.

Red Haired Shanks

So, there you go. We hope this helped to answer your query about how Luffy got his scar on his chest in One Piece. For more anime-related tips and explainers, stick with us right here at The Nerd Stash.