The Greatest Swordsman to ever live, Dracule Hawkeye Mihawk is one of the most powerful Warlords of the Sea in One Piece. He’s a cold, calculating man capable of slicing massive warships in half with a swing of his sword, but who is Hawkeye behind all the mystery?
This article contains spoilers for One Piece up to the current Egghead Island arc, chapter 1089 in the One Piece manga. One Piece is available to read online through MangaPlus, Shonen Jump. The collected physical manga can also be bought from Amazon or a local bookstore. Spoilers ahead!
Who is Hawkeye Mihawk?
Dracule ‘Hawkeye’ Mihawk is one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea from the very beginning of One Piece. He’s the first Warlord the Straw Hats ever encounter, as his pursuit of the Don Krieg Pirates leads him to the floating restaurant Baratie. Hawkeye is a quiet man, often keeping his motivations close to his chest and unknown to others. He has his own way of doing things, and only joins the Seven Warlords because he’s tired and bored.
Mihawk doesn’t fight unless he has to usually, and even then the fight is usually over in moments. Famous for his extreme swordsmanship skills, Mihawk can slice anything he chooses, even cutting through the massive icebergs Kuzan makes at Marineford. He’s a vicious opponent who shows no mercy, and won’t hesitate to end the life of any combatant that dares to face him.
Mihawk’s Debut
To debut the first Warlord of the Sea, it’s necessary to make them seem like a very, very threatening power. Holy cow! Hawkeye makes that impression too, appearing right after the Don Krieg Pirates reach the Baratie after fleeing the Grand Line. Mihawk intends to end their time at sea right then and there, pursuing them all the way before slicing the only remaining ship of Don Krieg’s fleet right in half. Zoro, knowing that Mihawk is one of the strongest swordsmen to ever live, decides to make one of the dumbest, yet most important, decisions of his lifetime.
The two face off, and Mihawk refuses to even draw his sword. He takes on Zoro with nothing but a small knife, and still manages to nearly fatally wound the Pirate Hunter. Zoro’s drive and determination make an impression on Mihawk though, who spares the green-haired rookie to see how strong he gets later. This leads to Zoro’s promise to never lose again, as long as he’s fighting under the Straw Hat Jolly Roger.
Does Mihawk Hold Territory?
Mihawk takes up residence in the ruins of what’s known as the Muggy Kingdom. It’s a desolate place, and looks more like an eternally dark nuclear wasteland than it does a kingdom, but Mihawk enjoys the solitude. The island even has a ton of giant, sword-wielding apes that really don’t like guests. Mihawk uses these to train Zoro during the two-year time skip, telling him that he won’t start his training until he takes out every ape in the Kingdom. Which Zoro does by the time that Luffy makes his 3D2Y declaration.
Who Works for Mihawk?
Strange as it is, Mihawk does have one lackey, though she’s more like a freeloader in his home that does whatever she wants. Perona, the former henchman of Gecko Moria, lives in the Muggy Kingdom with Mihawk who simply tolerates her. She’s not fond of him either, but once Gecko Moria is defeated she doesn’t have anywhere else to go. Despite her last run-in with the Straw Hat Pirates, she’s surprisingly friendly toward Zoro when he lands in the Muggy Kingdom near Hawkeye.
Training Zoro
Zoro undergoes the most intense training of his life during his two years living in the Muggy Kingdom. He manages to master Color of Armament Haki, and even awakens Color of Conquering during his time training. Though he gains powerful new abilities, Zoro slips up during training one day and loses his eye. That’s what everyone believes anyway, as Zoro’s eye is never really brought up by any of the crew and he never makes any effort to talk about it. The nasty scar that runs along his eye doesn’t look like it was a voluntary thing that happened though.
Dissolution of the Warlords
When the Warlords dissolve, Mihawk is run out of Muggy Kingdom and hunted down by the Navy. Of course, sending anyone short of an Admiral after Mihawk is a fool’s errand. He gets away from the Navy while Perona makes a break to reunite with Gecko Moria. She doesn’t even know if he’s alive, as it seemed likely he was killed by Donquixote Doflamingo by the end of Marineford. He was still alive though, as a brief scene shows Moria washing up on Fullalead, trying to find Absalom. Either way, Mihawk is out on his own again for a short time before he runs across Crocodile. The other former Warlord informs him of his plans to start up a new business.
Does Hawkeye Mihawk Have Powers?
Mihawk holds no Devil Fruit powers of any kind, but has Color of Observation and Armament Haki. As far as his sword skills, those are one hundred percent talent and training on his part. He’s able to slice through ships with nothing but a knife if he so chooses. Hawkeye teaches Zoro to apply Armament Haki to his swords, helping his development of the King of Hell fighting style. Every fight Mihawk has been shown in was either cut short or just a complete mismatch in power, so there’s still a lot to explore about his fighting style.
Why Does Mihawk Join Cross-Guild?
Partially out of boredom and partially out of planning ahead. Mihawk knows the big fish of the Navy could be coming after him any time. He also knows that could be a fight he’s unable to win. Mihawk and Crocodile team up, take on the idiot Buggy the Clown, then claim his ships and men for their own. When posters are made for Cross-Guild though, Buggy’s face is put above Mihawk and Crocodile. All because his lackeys are so blindly devoted.
Mihawk and Croc make it work for themselves though, and decide that Buggy is now the face of Cross-Guild. Now, Buggy takes all the public brunt of the Navy since they believe he’s strong enough to control two other Warlords. Mihawk is just another of the steps that Buggy runs into while falling upwards into success. Mihawk doesn’t care though, because now he has cover to do whatever they want and he knows he can kill Buggy with a flick of his wrist.
Does Mihawk Want the One Piece?
No, Mihawk doesn’t have any interest in the One Piece or any title of Pirate King. He simply wants to find an opponent that doesn’t bore him. This is why he left Zoro alive before training him during the time skip. The last person Mihawk felt that he could fight equally with was Shanks, and the two haven’t dueled since he lost his arm saving Luffy. Now, he’s just sailing on with Cross-Guild, even though Buggy decided for everyone that they would be going for the One Piece. It’ll at least be interesting, and probably lead to a fun battle along the way, which is all Hawkeye really wants.
The last time Mihawk was seen, he was sailing with Cross-Guild after Buggy’s declaration. He’s unsure of what they’ll find, but he does know that powerful warriors are waiting near the end of the Grand Line, like Roronoa Zoro and his rival, Red-Haired Shanks. Zoro and Mihawk are due for a showdown, but it remains to be seen who the Greatest Swordsman on Earth will be at the end.
