Manga: Chapter 656 (SPOILERS)

SPOILERS! SPOILERS! SPOILERS!

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Summary

A second sea-train was built at Water 7 by Galley La Company.

Luffy, Usopp, Robin and Zoro battle the dragon. The battle ends with Zoro slicing the dragon's head off.

A pair of legs is recovered from the dragon. It then proceeds to run away from Luffy's group.

The Sunny is infiltrated by a group of mysterious men. Chopper, Franky, Nami and Sanji are put to sleep by knock-out gas.

Thoughts

 Luffy and Usopp's faces are priceless in this panel

The most important information in this chapter is the inference that the Seven Warlords positions have been replaced.  It is most important to note that the samurai looks as if he was attacked with by somebody who wasn't a Warlord prior to the Time-skip.

Why am I bringing this up? It is because I believe that the Warlord that attacked the samurai is actually somebody you may already know. The character in question who accepted the invitation for Warlord-ship could be Trafalgar Law. His unique ability, “Room,” which allows him to 'slice' his opponents and then rearrange them to his liking is similar to what has happen to the samurai. Also, when we saw Law display his power back at Sabaody, one of the Marines that were affected by the Shambles technique stated that they can feel his other body parts even though it wasn't attached to his half of the body. The samurai did mention that he felt cool all of a sudden while Luffy was on the dragon’s hot scales.

As to why the legs were talking? You may remember that Law is known for his cruelty which is reflected in his bounty and epithet: 'Surgeon of Death'. It would be rather cruel to 'cut' off a person's mouth and then place it on their legs. He can then reattach those legs to a dragon while the upper body is fixed to something roaming on the arctic side of the island.

The question that lies before us is why would Law join the Warlords? Certainly this benefits his laid back style of pirating. He doesn't seem like one to get involved unless it benefits himself. The last time we saw Law was when he was laying against a sleeping Bepo saying that they will enter the New World while everybody else exhausted themselves. Being a Warlord could allow him the chance to just sit back and watch from the sidelines without interference. He would also gain access to whatever the World Government has to offer.

Another part of me thinks Buggy is involved just because the samurai called the Warlord in question a 'buffoon'. There is no proof that Buggy has become a Warlord but it has been foreshadowed as likelihood. One thing is for certain though Buggy could be described as a buffoon.

Samurai seem to make it a hobby to hunt dragons which could be in honor of the famous swordsman, Ryuuma. You can assume that this is because the pair of legs is garbed in samurai clothing and the World Government is fearful of entering Punk Hazard’s waters due to samurai who may roam there.

The fact that Zoro is wielding a blade that a dragon slayer once wielded left me with an eerie feeling as Zoro challenged the dragon. Both Younger Ryuma and Zoro look similar in appearance so watching a fight like this left me awestruck. What leaves me more impressed was how similar Zoro's final blow to the dragon was to Ryuma's: A slice to the neck to behead the dragon. The very same way Ryuma defeated his fire breathing opponent. The only difference was that Zoro received assistance from Usopp to perform the high attitude fatal slice.

Too similar don't you think?

While one group celebrates victory, the other group on the Sunny is in trouble as they have been knocked out by an unknown foe. This will cause trouble for the hazmat suit wearing men once Luffy finds out because these men don't seem to know they are on the Straw Hats’ ship. Fortunate for them, Luffy and his group are busy chasing after a pair of legs.

It will be interesting to see what will happen next week. We may find out who the Warlord. Then again, we could find out who else may be the master of the gas masked soldiers. Maybe more questions will arise.

This chapter made me excited for what is to come. My mind can’t help speculating because of all the information we have received and I can’t wait to see how all of this will piece together in the end. Funny how this chapter didn’t end in a cliffhanger situatiton but I am just as excited for next week's chapter.

Until next time true believers!