About Roronoa Zoro

As a child, Zoro trained in a dojo in Shimoshiki village. He defeated all of the adults of the dojo, but consistently lost to Kuina, the sensei's daughter. After two thousand and one victories against Zoro, Kuina confided in him. Her father told her that as a woman, she would naturally become weaker than Zoro and could never be a great sword fighter. Zoro became furious, telling Kuina that if he beat her as a result of her gender, he would be dishonored. The two children vow that one of them will become the world's strongest sword fighter. The next morning, Kuina dies falling down a set of stairs. Zoro asks her father for her katana, Wadō Ichimonji, and swears to become a swordsman so renowned that his name will be heard even in heaven. To fulfill his dream he must defeat Dracule "Hawk-Eye" Mihawk, the man currently regarded as the strongest sword fighter in the One Piece world. Zoro also displays several personality quirks, a trait common in One Piece characters. Zoro is extremely poor at understanding geographical directions and gets lost very easily. Zoro also sleeps a great deal, and has been known to sleep through important events. Zoro also likes to drink, and although he has an abnormally high alcohol tolerance, he claims that a true swordsman should never let himself get drunk.

Powers and Abilities

Over the course of the story Zoro has used many different swords, carrying three at a time with one, the Wadō Ichimonji, remaining with him through the entire series thus far. His other notable swords are Sandai Kitetsu, Yubashiri (Yu-bashiri in the Viz translation) and the recently obtained Shuusui which replaced the broken Yubashiri.

Zoro has several sword techniques at his disposal, using one sword, two swords, or all three. He is also capable of fighting effectively with no swords^[13], and his physical strength is enough to lift a building^[14]. Zoro also has the ability to cut through solid steel^[15], or materials as hard as steel, which he learned when fighting Das Bones (Baroque Works Mr. 1) in Alabasta. He is also capable of using the 'Asura' technique^[16], which gives the impression of Zoro wielding nine swords simultaneously. In addition, Zoro can expand the muscle mass of his arms, an ability he often employs to break through opponent's physical defenses. ^[17] He also possesses incredible vitality, as he regularly loses immense amounts of blood during battle.