ONE PIECE GOLDThis time I shall be talking about the abilities of a very underrated character, Brook.
As I said, Brook is a very underrated character and before I can even talk about his devil fruit power, I must first talk about what Brook represents.
I think the main reason Brook is so underrated is because of dream which is to reunite with….a whale. Compared to the other SHs, his dream seems pretty weak and one that can be achieved whenever he feels like it. Well not only is Brook a SH and they do not backtrack, a promise to a WHALE isn’t the main point: it is the promise itself.
Brook is the most lively character in the series despite dying once. A promise carries a lot of weight and one simple yet silly promise is all the reason he needs to live.
To further understand this, I’ll have to go into detail with other points.
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Brook is also underrated as a swordsman. Contrary to how a lot of people think, Brook is a real swordsman. Just look at his knowledge about swordsmanship in Thriller Bark.
Another thing that you should know is that technically, Zoro never fought Ryuma. He fought Brook.
All tactics and techniques zombie Ryuuma used are just like Brook’s and everything Ryuuma said is within Brook’s vocabulary and personality.
Brook has the drive to train his swordsmanship and get stronger.
Brook’s shadow felt ashamed that it caused the demise of the body of a proud samurai.
If Brook can handle it or if it is for the sake of his comrades, Brook shows his true colors that is normally outshined by his eccentric, goofy and cowardly personality.
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Brook’s devil fruit, the Yomi Yomi no mi, is directly related to the Yami Yami no mi or Marshall D. Teach. The Yomi Yomi no mi was one of the first devil fruits to exist with the Yami Yami no mi being the very first. It is one of the 3 devil fruits that deals with the essence of life.
It is also no coincidence that Brook was introduced in the same arc of Gekko Moriah who has the Kage Kage no mi. The Kage Kage no mi gives the user the ability to extract the shadow from a person and transfer it to a body that lacks essence.
The shadow is just an extension of a person’s essence which is why the vessel that lack essence gains the personality of the original host. It is their “darkness.” Without it, they are overwhelmed by the light(sun) and cease to exist.
What is this “essence” I speak of?
The soul is the essence of life and Brook can bend it to his will.
Similar to how the Yami Yami no mi can steal and contain souls, Brook’s devil fruit can manipulate and control them.
Here you can see Brook using his music to manipulate the souls of others.
Brook’s latest epithet “Soul King” isn’t referring to his music. It is referring to his ability to vontrol souls. Brook’s real epither is “The King of Souls.”
Yomi translates to “Land of the Dead/World of Darkness” in Japanese. In Japanese Shintoism(Wano), Yomi is where the souls of the dead goes to. It is the same as Hades in Greek Mythology.
Brook’s sword “Soul Solid” uses the chill of Brook’s own soul energy.
Simply put, Brook can summon the souls of the dead and in a way, bring Yomi/Hades to the surface.
Remember when I said that Moriah’s Kage fruit can transfer a shadow to a corpse that lacks essence? Brook can give the corpse an essence of life and it can roam whenever it pleases without a weakness to salt. Because the corpse lacks a souls, it can be purified. It is just a vessel stuck in a limbo that needs closure but now that it has a soul, it is completely bound to this world with Brooke as its king. Brook and Moriah will create an invincible zombie army to fight against Kaidou’s forces. Also, it is in Wano where Brook’s DF power and swordsmanship will reach a new level.
Now then, there is a very good reason for Brook to be able to summon souls of the Underworld. Remember Brook’s promise to Laboon? I believe it was the entire Rumbar Pirates who promised to return and didn’t Brook himself say death isn’t an apology?
Once Brook discovers his true ability, he wont need a recording dial. He just needs to summons the souls of his comrades(resurrection can only happen once per soul to keep things from being OP or repetitive) to have a true reunion and heartbreaking moment with Laboon.
Brook represents life itself and its the little pleasures in it that gives you reason to live.
*Theory by Vandenreich