One Piece: 5 Characters Who Refused To Join The Straw Hat Pirates

In terms of numbers, the Straw Hat Pirates are one of the smallest known crews currently active in One Piece. Despite only having a mere ten pirates to its name, the crew is widely known, to the point where impostors cropped up in their absence.

The crew’s selective nature can be attributed to its captain, Monkey D. Luffy, who early on gave an estimate of ten for the number of pirates he wanted in his crew. He is usually fairly aggressive when it comes to recruiting pirates he wants for the crew, some of whom tend to join eventually. That said, there are many reasons as to why one would refuse the offer.

1 Gaimon

The Island Guardian

The elusive Gaimon is a retired pirate who got stuck inside a treasure chest and marooned on an island full of rare animals. He grew affectionate toward the animals and decided to act as their guardian. Gaimon had long sought to capture several treasure chests atop a cliff, but upon Luffy’s retrieval of them, he discovers their emptiness. This upset him greatly.

Luffy asked the former pirate to become a member of his crew, but Gaimon refused, instead deciding to continue acting as the island’s guardian. Although Gaimon had some skill with a pistol, Luffy seemingly asked him to join the crew because of his strange body, which was mostly stuck inside the treasure chest.

While the Straw Hats all have designated jobs upon joining the crew, it is sometimes unclear what those who rejected it would’ve done. Gaimon could’ve potentially been a marksman of some sort. His body may be an asset in some regards, as his small size and natural hiding space allow him to better conceal himself, yet he would likely be hampered by the extent to which his body has apparently atrophied within the chest.

2 Kureha

Doctor On Drum Island

Kureha is a long-lived doctor (in her 140s) who acted as a mentor to Luffy’s eventual crewmate, Tony Tony Chopper, teaching the reindeer everything she knew about medicine. This was the request of her late friend Hiriluk, a quack doctor who acted as a surrogate father to Chopper. Despite her advanced age, she shows great physical acumen and resents any insinuation that she is “old.”

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These former antagonists will likely return to the story in some form or another.

Her skills as a doctor would likely be identical, or perhaps even superior to those of her protégé. She would’ve also been the eldest pirate in the crew, being over 50 years Brook’s senior. She is also shown to possess a great amount of strength, attacking both Luffy and Sanji when she feels insulted by them. That said, it is unclear how well these abilities would’ve stacked up to those of their later opponents. This is not the only time Luffy has attempted to ask a mentor of a future crewmate to join him, as “Red Leg” Zeff was also asked by Luffy to join the crew before Sanji was all but forced to.

3 Portgas D. Ace

Luffy’s Sworn Brother

The late son of Gol D. Roger was raised alongside Monkey D. Luffy, with the pair, as well as their other sworn brother, Sabo, all dreaming of becoming pirates. Although Sabo was thought dead, his brothers continued their respective quests to become pirates. Ace himself built up a crew, known as the Spade Pirates, but they proved to be no match for the Whitebeard Pirates. Ace was opposed to the idea of being a subordinate for some time but eventually grew to respect Whitebeard as a father figure, much like most of his other crewmates.

He eventually became a Division Commander, controlling a portion of the crew himself. Yet after the betrayal of his subordinate, Marshall D. Teach, Ace broke off to search for the traitorous pirate. Along the way, he met and aided Luffy, who he asked to join the Whitebeard Pirates, which his brother refused. Later on, the crew celebrated his own supposed joining of them, but he stated this was not the case, reiterating his mission.

Luffy asking his older brother to serve under him as a pirate is just one showcase of his absolute audacity. While Ace’s fire powers would’ve been a welcome addition to the crew, it’s not quite clear what particular role he would’ve served. Luffy and his crew are notably not the only people Ace has turned down after joining Whitebeard.

He caught the eye of the World Government, who asked him to become a Warlord. This same position was later given to Teach after he successfully captured Ace, which led to his imprisonment. Whitebeard’s hold on Ace is a testament to his ability to gain the respect of many powerful pirates, due to his mixture of strength and kindness. Upon discovering Sabo was not dead, Luffy also asked him to join the crew, although once again his older brother’s obligations, in this case to the Revolutionary Army, made it an impossibility.

4 Kin’emon

Specifically, His Legs

Kin’emon acted on behalf of his master, Kozuki Oden, several years after his death. As an extension of this effort, he traveled twenty years forward in time, alongside his master’s son, Momonosuke. He is both an accomplished swordsman and a strategist, although neither of these facts was what drew Luffy to the samurai. He was instead attracted by his legs, in a non-perverse way. Specifically, he was fascinated by the absence of anything else, once again, showcasing his desire to recruit the oddest crewmates possible.

This phenomenon was caused by the actions of Trafalgar D. Water Law, who used his devil fruit powers to split the samurai’s body in half while keeping both parts intact. Kin’emon was later able to reattach himself. The most interesting part about this attempted recruitment was that Kin’emon did travel with the crew for a while, despite never being considered an official member.

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It is possible that these characters could aid Luffy and his friends once again.

He was involved with the crew as an extension of their campaign against the Beasts Pirates, helping them take on both Caesar Clown and Doflamingo (their noted business partners) and subsequently being stationed in Wano, alongside the Straw Hats who were with him in Dressrosa, sans Luffy. After Kaido’s defeat, he remained in Wano to aid in rebuilding the country, although Luffy made it clear that Kin’emon was welcome if he ever did decide to join.

Kin’emon would be the crew’s third swordsman if he joined, and the second one to be notably perverted. Aside from these redundancies, he could also be their strategist, granted most Straw Hats show an aptitude for planning things out themselves.

5 Yamato

Son Of Kaido

Yamato is another devotee of Kozuki Oden, albeit in a different way from Kin’emon. Yamato grew up idolizing Oden, despite him being a notable enemy of his father, Kaido. This admiration led Yamato to want to be Oden, leading him to act as such, which resulted in punishment from Kaido. Much like Oden, Yamato expressed a desire to travel the world, which the former daimyo did alongside both the legendary Whitebeard Pirates and Roger Pirates.

Luffy was willing to let him join the Straw Hats, but eventually, Yamato changed his mind, at least for the time being. The main motivator behind this was Aramaki, a marine admiral who attacked Wano after Kaido’s defeat, proving too strong for most of the country’s powerful combatants. Sometime later, Yamato was given a surrogate journey in place of Oden, which he has since been documented attempting to accomplish via cover stories.

If he succeeds, his next steps are unclear, although joining the Straw Hats is not out of the realm of possibility, seeing as he mentioned wanting to travel like Oden, even during one of said cover stories. If Yamato does join, he would be both the third Zoan user and the second confirmed to specifically have eaten a Mythical Zoan, alongside his prospective future captain, Luffy.

Release Date

October 20, 1999

Studio

Toei Animation

Number of Episodes

1116+