One Piece’s Oldest Rivalry Is One-Sided for This Key Reason

The One Piece manga has now properly introduced fans to Roger Pirates crewmate Scopper Gaban, who has been living in Elbaf all along. Gaban sailed the seas with Gol D. Roger and is still considered a legendary pirate thanks to his achievements and the fact that he is one of the few people in the world who saw the One Piece. Up until now, the series has only introduced him in flashbacks, but the Elbaf Arc highlights his life as a retired pirate. While Gaban is called the Pirate King’s left hand, Roger’s first mate and his right hand was Silvers Rayleigh. Both pirates competed for the spot of the second strongest in the crew.

Since Rayleigh and Gaban were always close in strength, there wasn’t any way to determine which of them was better. Before the Elbaf Arc, Rayleigh was believed to have the second spot in the crew, but Gaban couldn’t let the man have the title. In Chapter 1151, despite his severe injuries, Gaban gathers all his strength to announce that he was the second strongest, although he did so jokingly since he couldn’t stand the Giants putting him below Rayleigh in power scaling. However, while that debate remains unsettled, One Piece proved that Gaban outshines Rayleigh in one aspect, and it’s much better than any power scaling discourse.

Gaban Turned Out to Be a Much Better Husband Than Rayleigh

Rayleigh and Shakky (Shakuyaku) were introduced in the Sabaody Archipelago Arc. Although the series doesn’t explicitly mention their relationship, it has been heavily implied that they are both in an open marriage, or a possibly one-sided commitment with Rayleigh being a less-than-faithful partner, either way, Shakky seems to accept it in One Piece. Rayleigh has even been with several other women over the years, and Shakky is aware of that. However, she brushed it off, seemingly unbothered by it. The two still seem to have a cordial relationship, but that’s about it. However, during her prime, when she was the first mate of Gloriosa, the Pirate Empress during Rocks’ era, Shakky was like a celebrity, making her friends and foes swoon over her.

Shakky was sought out after encountering the Roger Pirates, and even the Marines couldn’t keep their eyes off of her. Rayleigh was immune to her charms initially, but he also couldn’t help but blush when she winked at him. She later became the Pirate Empress herself before handing the torch to Tritoma, Boa Hancock’s predecessor. At some point in the story, she ended up with Rayleigh, despite all the world’s top-tier and better men swooning over her who may not take her for granted. We may even get to learn more about their story since the backstory is far from over.

On the other hand, we have Gaban, who married Ripley, a gorgeous Giant warrior, and had a son with her over 20 years ago. Colon is still a child since the Giants have a slow aging process, but Gaban has a more fulfilling life than Rayleigh. He shed tears of joy when Colon was born, calling his son the greatest treasure in his life. Despite sailing across the entire world and even seeing the One Piece, he truly believes that nothing is more precious to him than his family. In the Elbaf Arc, he could’ve easily defeated all the Holy Knights, but surrendered after seeing his son’s life in danger.

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