Eiichiro Oda has long been hailed as a master of foreshadowing, embedding subtle hints across hundreds of chapters. Recently, the One Piece community erupted again after uncovering a massive clue that has been hiding in plain sight for over two decades.
A manga cover from 2002 was unexpectedly rediscovered, featuring a lineup identical to the current Yonko. Is this just a coincidence, or did Oda truly plan the world’s power structure 24 years ago?
1. The secret on Volume 25’s cover: “The 100 Million Berry Man”
The centerpiece of this viral theory is the cover of One Piece Volume 25, first published in Japan in September 2002. This was during the Jaya arc, when the Straw Hats were preparing to journey to the sky island Skypiea.
At the time, the cover seemed ordinary. It showed Monkey D. Luffy front and center celebrating his new 100 million Berry bounty. Flanking him were three key pirates: Shanks, Buggy, and Blackbeard.
For readers in 2002 or even 2012, this lineup was simply a group of characters relevant to the story then. Shanks was Luffy’s target, Blackbeard was a mysterious new villain, and Buggy was busy hunting Captain John’s treasure. No one had reason to link these four as the supreme powers of the New World.
2. An astonishing match seen from 2026
However, looking back from 2026, Oda’s character choices become eerily precise. The four characters on that Volume 25 cover, Luffy, Shanks, Blackbeard, and Buggy, are exactly the four Yonko currently ruling the seas.
Not only do they appear together, but their positions on the cover strangely correspond to their new power rankings after Kaido and Big Mom’s downfall. The World Government has chosen Luffy and Buggy to fill the power vacuum, ushering in a new era where Shanks remains the only veteran Yonko, while Blackbeard continues to wield his unique strength with two Devil Fruits.
3. Was Oda planning ahead or is this just coincidence?
Some argue that Oda might have simply revisited old covers and turned them into reality. However, given his history of planting long-term details like the Sun God Nika mystery, most fans believe this was a carefully crafted plan dating back to the Jaya arc.
The fact that Buggy, a character once seen as comic relief, stands alongside Shanks and Luffy on a 24-year-old cover, only to become a Yonko today, is a classic Eiichiro Oda twist.