For most of his life, Zoro‘s singular desire has been to become the greatest swordsman in the One Piece world. While he’s searched the world for the most talented swordsmen to challenge, one of the biggest obstacles to achieving his dream might be his own Straw Hat Pirates crewmate, Brook.
The Skeleton King of Soul, Brook was one of the last members to join the Straw Hat Pirates. However, unlike the rest of the crew, Brook was an accomplished pirate in his own right before ever meeting Luffy and the others. Indeed, he was first a key member, then captain of the Rumbar Pirates who plied the waters along the Grand Line during the Gol D. Rogers era. As such he is an extremely experienced buccaneer whose weapon of choice is the sword. Even though Brook died, because he was the last of the Rumbars and he had eaten the Devil Fruit known as Yomi-Yomi No Mi, his soul returned to his body. Unfortunately, since it took a year for the soul to find the body after leaving the underworld, Brook’s body had already decomposed, leaving the soul only able to resurrect his skeleton.
Brook’s years of being a pirate on a fairly aggressive crew gave him tremendous experience using a sword in combat. When his skills are combined with his Devil Fruit abilities and his body structure, he is a formidable opponent with the capability of defeating Zoro. Whereas Zoro practices a power-based sword style, Brook’s style focuses on speed, accuracy, and using the power and strength of his opponents against them. Moreover, the effectiveness of Brook’s style, which does not rely on muscle strength nor physical strength, is increased by the fact that Brook is a skeleton with no muscle mass. Brook’s sword speed is so quick, that it can cut through steel. While Zoro would most likely win if the fight went “10 rounds,” if Zoro is not careful, Brook could end the fight before it began. The key would be for him to be fully focused on the moment that Zoro attacks.
Brook’s Devil Fruit abilities would certainly play a role in deciding whether he wins or loses. Originally, once his body was resurrected, Brook did not think there were any other benefits to his abilities. However, after years of practice, he realized that his soul is his power. In a fight, this benefit is illustrated by the fact that he is nearly unstoppable in a physical sense. For instance, if his head is cut off, as it was in One Piece chapter 643, as long as his skull and skeleton are not destroyed his soul can exist outside of his body, then return to his body and reanimate it as necessary. In that chapter, when his opponent thinks he’s won, Brook’s soul simply reattaches his skull to his shoulder and continues the fight. In addition, Brook can extend his soul into the blade of the sword, allowing it to freeze whatever it touches. Accordingly, Zoro would not only have to obliterate Brook’s skeleton to keep him from coming back but simultaneously avoid getting cut by his blade.
Despite these considerable abilities, Brook does have a weakness that if Zoro exploits, would likely end with his triumph. While Brook is one of the top swordsmen in the One Piece world, he lacks the mental seriousness of others such as Zoro himself. A musician and entertainer at heart, Brook arguably does not have the killer instinct that would allow him to finish Zoro off at the crucial moment. Zoro, in contrast, does. While these friends would not normally fight, as long as Zoro desires to be the best swordsman in the One Piece world, at some point he will need to face Brooks, or forever be plagued with the possibility that he is better.
