One Piece is a series that naturally involves many mysteries, which makes sense, considering it's a series that has been running for over two decades. Today, some of these mysteries have been solved, while others are still active, giving rise to numerous fan theories visible online. In this article, we will discuss one of these theories: the theory that Kuina and Tashigi are the same person. In this article, you will find out whether this is true or not.

No, as far as canon is concerned, Tashigi and Kuina are not the same characters, even though they do have some physical similarities. Both are related to Zoro, and both are actually skilled with swords, but Kuina and Tashigi have completely different backstories, and with Oda providing us with a drawing of Kuina as a child, we definitely had confirmation that they both are. They are not the same thing and that Kuina is indeed dead when she is, while Tashigi simply had her own backstory. The physical resemblance between them is likely just a coincidence.

The remainder of this article will discuss fan theories surrounding Kuina's death and her physical resemblance to Tashigi. Kuina's death and Tashigi's character have been the subject of numerous theories over the years, as many fans believe they are actually one and the same. In this article, we'll explain why the theories are false and how Oda confirmed that the two characters are not the same in the series. Some spoilers may be present in the article, so please be careful how you approach it.

Kuina and Tashigi have been compared to each other due to their physical resemblance, but they are not one character.

Kuina was born in Shimoshiki twenty-one years before the beginning of the story and trained from a young age in the art of swordsmanship in her father's dojo. One day, her father told her that girls could not become the strongest in the world. She defeated Zoro in two thousand fights, even though, in the last one, the young Zoro used two shinai. They were friends and promised each other to train hard to become the best in the world.

Kuina's death devastated young Zoro, who cared for his cousin, and so he vowed to himself that he would keep their promise and indeed, to honor his legacy, become the greatest swordsman in the world.

But later, a character named Tashigi appeared, also related to Zoro. She was a Marine and was also skilled with swords. And she resented Zoro because he had a legendary sword with him, the same one that belonged to Kuina when she was a child—the Wado Ichimonji. Tashigi wanted to get it back, but she didn't; later, she would respect Zoro more.

Now, a physical resemblance between Tashigi and what Kuina might have looked like at her age cannot be denied, but this fact has given rise to a popular fan theory that can be summed up as follows (credit to Reddit user viktorayy for the theory):

Yes, friends, the proof is in the pudding. So let's begin!

Everyone knows Kuina died because she was pushed back by some stairs from the Judges' Top 5 level, BUT she actually didn't die. I know, surprising! But stay with me. She was actually saved by Monkey D. Dragon himself. He used his weather/wind powers to fight Top 4 Stairs-san, but ended up bringing lightning down on Kuina by mistake. Oh Dragon, you clumsy bastard! Now this is where it gets a little crazy... Secret revolutionary Koshiro, yes secret, overcome with grief, asks his good friend Ivankov to inject her with hormones to save her even if it means turning her into a guy-bro-man but alas to no avail, she was declared dead. The next morning, Koshiro tells everyone she's dead, including our favorite one-eyed lost boy, Zolo. Zorbo, saddened but still highly motivated, sets out to become the three-sworded pirate hunter and the rest is history, right? FALSE.

KUINA WASN'T DEAD.

You see, Kuina woke up that day right before her burial ceremony. SURPRISING! It turns out Ivankov accidentally injected her with sleep hormones along with the hormones that saved her life, so she ended up waking up later than expected. Oh Ivankov, you clumsy bastard! BUT a sudden and dramatic turn of events would occur as Kuina couldn't deal with the shock of losing to the Top 2 Stairs-King and she ended up locking away her memories. YES, she self-imaged Sabo with amnesia. Thinking it would be for the best, Koshiro insisted that Kuina board Dragon's ship and start her life over.

Half a decade later, on the ship, Dragon begins to notice that Kuina is still somehow infatuated with swords and too attached to her revolutionary missions. Every soul they leave behind in a ruined country weighs heavy on her heart and she, OF COURSE, is Sabo-amnesia cliché again. Oh Kuina, you suck, I mean, you're clumsy!! Realizing that the complexity of the Revolutionary Army was no match for his friend's daughter, Dragon calls upon one of its equally secret senior leaders. Charlotte Bonney, now known as Jewelry Bonney, Big Mom's secret 0th daughter, who defected from the Big Mom Pirates after eating Big Mom's birthday cake one year, shows up to offer her help. As per Dragon's request, Bonney DF-hax Kuina returns at a coincidentally similar age to Zoro and they drop her off with Aokiji, Dragon's ex-best friend before he left the Marines. But they're still kind of best friends. <3 Aokiji was then like "No, what the... Are you serious, kid?" and then I dropped her off at Smoker's. "Yo, it's Drago-Dra-Ta-Ta-shiiiiit-GEH... TA-SHI-GI, yeah, that sounds plausible... that's your problem now!" And the rest is history!

BUT with the arrival of Wano, there is still a thread to resolve!

Zero CAN'T open his left eye!

With Zord's left eye closed, so is HALF of Sorrow's power and, MORE IMPORTANTLY, half of his personality! Have you ever noticed that Zoop looks like a post-time skip stuck in the mud? I mean, sure, Zelda is a total badass, but Zosho was so much more relevant before the timeskip! WELL, that's all because his left eye doesn't open! Zigzag forgot how to open it! Also, by pure coincidence, it just so happens that Kuina used to open her left eye all the time when they were kids. Damn it, Oda! Taking plot shortcuts again. I'm looking at you Brulee & Sugar.

But how will she help Zoinks if she doesn't even remember herself!?

Well, what ends up happening is that Sanji, a former member of the monster trio, will help Zonday. YES, Zola will be saved by the shitty cook, BUT indirectly. Pudding will end up going yandere and following Sanji to Wano, where, through some very convenient and situational events, he will have to restore Tashigi's memories of everything to finally free Zubat from his half-personality disorder. Thus, once and for all, proving that Tashigi is Kuina.

Yes friends, the proof is in the pudding.

*Edit: Cool Z names I hadn't thought of: Zuko, Zeus, Zexion, Zoobitybap, Zoseph

( Source )

This is just one of those theories, and we can't really say it's completely absurd. Kuina and Tashigi have a lot in common—they're skilled with swords, they know Wado Ichimonji, their stories are tied to Zoro's, and they look incredibly similar.

Of course, Tashigi and Kuina had very different histories, which is the major problem with this theory. And while Kuina's death could have been a ruse by Oda that triggered a future reveal, we don't really think it's directly related to Tashigi, and here's why:

This is a drawing of Tashigi as a child, and as you can see, she doesn't really look like Kuina; Kuina has never worn glasses either, as far as we know. This drawing was done by Oda and was published in SBS Volume 68, and we don't really think Oda would make a second drawing so different from Kuina's original look, just to confuse us.

That's why we think this drawing is the ultimate proof that Kuina and Tashigi are not the same characters.

Why do Kuina and Tasihgi look alike?

Now that we've clarified everything, we can give you a simple answer to the question that's been bothering you. Now, we can't deny that Kuina and Tashigi do look alike in the series, but they aren't identical and they look different as children, which implies that an adult Kuina wouldn't look that much like Tashigi. This means that the resemblance is, by all means, simply a coincidence, as nothing in the story suggests otherwise.