Settled deep into the New World, Wano country is one of the few islands there unaffiliated with the World Government. It’s incredibly fortified, with the defenses to guarantee that nearly nobody can invade. This nation carries mysteries unknown to the outside and will become a major player when the Final Saga starts getting near the end. So, now that Wano is the territory of an Emperor, what’s included in that?
Warning that this article contains spoilers for One Piece through the Wano arc. Catch up on Viz or MangaPlus for the manga or anime, respectively.
Where is Wano?
Wano is situated in the second half of the Grand Line, the New World. It’s more toward the second half of the New World too, near the other countries of Elbaph, Egghead Island, and Winner Island surrounding it. The island itself is nearly impenetrable, surrounded on all sides by massive cliffs that cause huge waterfalls to tumble over the side. Even if sailors are to make it up the waterfalls, it’s an incredibly dangerous journey still once they’re up there.
The land of Wano has a rich history as well, dealing with the Kozuki Family, and Samurai, and even dating back to the Void Century. They’re not allies of the World Government either, and are completely free of almost any outside interference thanks to the closed borders. The Kozuki Clan are the long-running Shogun family of Wano and have all been noted as great, compassionate leaders. Unfortunately, Wano has a dark spot in history thanks to the rule of Kaido and Kurozumi Orochi.
Onigashima Island
This is where Kaido sets up his home base, building an entire castle that it takes years to complete. While it’s outside of the main island, it’s still inside the borders of the country so inhabitants can easily cross. That said, it’s not somewhere anyone goes for the fun of it, as the Beast Pirates run off anyone that they don’t want near. If anyone even wants to go there, that is, because Kaido is a fearsome dragon with no hesitation to kill.
The island is now situated outside of the Flower Capital of Wano, thanks to Kaido. Well, partially thanks to Kaido, as Luffy was the one to defeat him before he dropped it on the Flower Capital. Thankfully Yamato and Momo are able to set the island down relatively softly, all things considered, and save everyone on it from a certain death.
Flower Capital
The main town of Wano, is full of blooming cherry blossoms all around, making it one of the most beautiful country capitals anywhere. It’s located right in the center of the country, so everyone from all corners can come, whether it be for business, pleasure, or just to visit. Full of pleasure halls, food stands, and the main location every year of the great Fire Festival. It’s here where the Wano citizens light paper lanterns for those they’ve lost in the last year, sending wishes to the departed.
The Flower Capital is about the only place left resembling Wano by the time Orochi is done with things. Most of the food in the area has been consumed, with only Orochi and Kaido having access to gardens of fresh food. Still, despite the encroaching famine and destruction outside, the walls within the Flower Capital are bright and merry. It’s untouched by the overthrow of Kaido’s forces and becomes the seat of the Kozuki Family once more.
Kibi
Lying in the Western region of Wano, Kibi is home to Neko Port, one of the six across the country. There’s not much else that goes on here, as it’s one of the regions most affected by Orochi’s weapons factories. Pollution has taken a massive toll here, and ruined much of the natural environment, poisoning it for locals and wildlife.
Udon
One of the central locations for the Wano arc is Udon, namely the prisoner mines that are located in the region. A vast amount of Udon has been taken over by the industrialization of Kaido and Orochi, with weapons factories adding to more pollution. The prisoner mines are where the majority of the arc takes place though, and these are mines of sea prism located in the southern side of the Udon area. Here, prisoners are kept to mine the Sea Prism Stone, which is in turn used for weapons.
The Prison Mines are destroyed, surprisingly, by Ryukugyu during his raid on Wano. It’s now been returned to nature, with flowers that bloom all over the quarry. Without knowing the history of the region, most would assume it was always a lush, thriving playground for nature.
Hakumai
Yasuie’s former region where he ruled as Daimyo, is one area of Wano that is covered in fog. It’s mostly a port town, containing Habu which is where the initial Raid on Onigashima was to leave from. A large amount of the buildings and cities located in Hakumai are in ruin, and nature has started to overtake the land despite the rampant pollution.
Ringo
A snowy region filled with blizzards and wildlife, mostly untouched by the industrialization elsewhere. This is where Kawamatsu and Hiyori fled to after the Kozuki family were hunted down. It’s also where Kawamatsu began building the massive weapons stock that the samurai would need to take on Kaido. The North Cemetary, located in the furthest reach of Ringo, is home to every samurai to fall in Wano, dating back hundreds of years.
Kawamatsu digs these bodies up and takes their swords, despite the frozen earth making it difficult. He does all this, despite the disrespect it may show the dead, so that they can retake Wano from the oppressive Beast Pirates.
Culture
The culture of Wano is based a lot on the real-life culture of Japan’s Edo Period. This includes wandering samurai, those loyal to the Emperor, and various districts overseen by the Shogun’s elected representatives, the Daimyo. The Daimyo would usually end up as one of the various Yakuza bosses around the country. They were very well respected throughout despite their ties to crime. They all looked out for the people of Wano together, and passed on the tradition of Samurai down family lines.
The people of Wano place great emphasis on honor, believing that if one doesn’t live an honorable life, they’re better off dead. This often leads to a lot of the people taking care of each other, even in times when almost nobody has food and many are starving, everyone tries to help each other. It’s one of the closer-knit communities, and the samurai have a vast network throughout the land even during Kaido’s reign.
Land of Samurai
The samurai of Wano are the most notable part of the culture, and they are the main defense force of the country. Skilled with blades, they often wield katanas much like Zoro, who is actually a descendant of a former Daimyo. Their practices often lead to groups of samurai sticking together, like the various Yakuza leaders who are all extremely proficient with a katana.
Others, like the Nine Red Scabbards that served Kozuki Oden, are made up of former ronin. These samurai are wanderers, often bandits or blades for hire. Oden whips everyone into shape, making sure they’re ready to take care of people when it matters and taking control of Kuri. He becomes the new Daimyo, leading to one of the greatest turnarounds for the country of Wano in years.
The Kozuki Family
Shoguns of Wano are often taken from one bloodline, in this case, it’s the Kozuki Family. They’re a clan of samurai who were originally a part of the World Government resistance during the Void Century. It’s the Kozuki Clan that passes down the art of Sea Prism crafting, also teaching every generation the ancient writing on the Poneglyphs. The Kozuki are the ones that created the original Poneglyphs, with their crafting methods still living on through Kozuki Sukiyaki.
Kozuki Oden uses this to go off on adventures with Gold Roger as his translator. Oden, deciphering the Poneglyphs like Robin does for the Straw Hats. This is the main reason the Roger Pirates can make it to Laughtale. During their journeys, Oden has two children with his wife Kozuki Toki, herself a survivor of the Void Century thanks to the Time-Time Fruit. Their children, Momonosuke and Hiyori, now take their spots as rulers of Wano, with Momo as the official Shogun.
Ryuma the Dragon Slayer
His first introduction of Ryuma is in Thriller Bark when Zoro takes him down, earning Shusui in the process. Ryuma is a legendary samurai from Wano, one of their most revered heroes of history. He’s legendary for slaying a great dragon in the past that terrorized the land of Wano. He’s even legendary outside of the country, as Gecko Moria made it a point to steal his body for the experiments with shadows. Even in death, Ryuma is a ridiculously powerful enemy that gives Zoro a damn good run for his money.
When he’s finally dead, for real, he gives his sword Shusui to Zoro in return for freeing him. The sword is one of Wano’s most sacred treasures, and when they see Zoro has it they beg to get it back. In return, Zoro gets the sword Enma, formerly used by Kozuki Oden. It proves to be an even stronger sword with Zoro than Shusui was with him or Ryuma, showing the massive strength of the Straw Hat first mate.
How Does Kaido Take Over Wano?
When Kozuki Oden leaves Wano to join the Whitebeard Pirates, the recently exiled Kurozumi clan begins their plan. They slowly infiltrate the Flower Capital thanks to Orochi’s lies about his friendship with Oden. After that, it’s only a matter of time for another Kurozumi clan member to impersonate Kozuki Sukiyaki, replacing him as the Shogun to name Orochi as heir. This brings much of the country down as Orochi begins to side with Kaido, using Wano to gain more power throughout the New World.
When Oden comes back he could easily take out Kaido if he wanted to. It’s only through his honor and drive to stop the bloodshed that he doesn’t fight, instead agreeing to act like a fool for years. By the time he wakes up and decides to fight, Kaido has become stronger than him. After executing Oden by bullet and boiling, Wano truly falls for the next twenty years. Kaido rules with an iron fist, letting Orochi believe he’s in charge while pulling the strings.
Destruction of Wano
Kaido and Orochi wreak havoc across Wano’s landscape, destroying everything in the process. Weapons factories are anywhere they can fit. There’s no care for what happens to the waste from them. This pollution flows off into the rivers, killing any fish or mutating others that stay alive. Water turns to poison, quickly making anyone who drinks it deathly ill. This is the only source of water in Wano for most, and they just have to live with the illness of drinking it in order to stay alive at some point.
Then comes the starvation and famine. Orochi and Kaido are some of the most brutal tyrants imaginable. Now since the land of Wano is full of poison, no crops can grow. Unless it’s in Orochi and Kaido’s private gardens. These hold as much food as any of them need but aren’t for the people’s use. Any rice or food that does eventually make it to the people of Wano is usually incredibly expensive as well.
Raid on Onigashima
The moment the tides turn for Wano is the Raid on Onigashima. In the blink of an eye for some, twenty years for others, everything falls into place when the Pirate-Mink-Samurai-Ninja alliance makes its move. The Raid on Onigashima is a do-or-die attempt to take back the country. Pirate captains Straw Hat Luffy, Trafalgar Law, and Eustass Kid lead the combined forces, severely outnumbered, to victory against Kaido and Big Mom. The battle rages on throughout the night, but things finally begin to turn as Kid and Law take down Big Mom. The other wins soon rack up after, with Zoro defeating King, Sanji downing Queen, and Kaido killing Luffy.
Briefly killing him, of course, because he revives with the Drums of Liberation beating. As Luffy Awakens his Gear Fifth form, revealing the Human-Human Fruit, Mythical Model: Nika, Wano is truly free. The battle continues for a bit longer, but as the sun rises on Wano, so too does freedom as Kaido is defeated. Everyone is free, and they begin to work on restoring Wano immediately.
What’s Happening in Wano Now?
The reconstruction of Wano is going to take a long time, without a doubt. A lot of damage has been done over the years. Both to the land and the people, with much of it nearly irreparable. The advisors to Momo begin to bring him plans immediately after the battle. All showing that they can manage to turn around the damage left by the weapons factories. Now, the Kozuki family, along with the Nine Red Scabbards, take stewardship of the country into the new era. Today the Straw Hat Flag flies high with the flag of Wano. This signals that they’re an ally of the Grand Fleet of Emperor Monkey D Luffy.
While Kozuki Momonosuke is helping to keep things in order back at the Flower Capital, Yamato travels the land. The son of Kaido is trying to live as his hero Kozuki Oden once did. Now he’s traveling and befriending the people of Wano. Who knows, by the time he comes back as a member of the Straw Hat Fleet, Yamato may have his own Nine Red Scabbards along for the journey.
The country of Wano is by no means done with the story of One Piece. The Ancient Weapon Pluton is still somewhere on the island. Now the World Government knows Kaido is no longer a threat. That said, Luffy is stirring up trouble on Egghead Island, and the World Government is tussling pretty hard with him. Wano, being one of the strongest forces behind the Straw Hat Grand Fleet, is going to provide major backup really soon in One Piece.
