Shanks is a well-known and popular One Piece character. He is one of the Four Emperors, served as Luffy's mentor and role model, and gave the young pirate his signature straw hat. On top of that, Shanks also sacrificed his left hand to save Luffy from a Sea King and has been without it ever since. And while it's unlikely Shanks will ever get his hand back, we'll explain why some fans think he will.

Shanks won't get his arm back in One Piece because there's no way for a character who lost a limb to get it back naturally; One Piece simply isn't that story. His arm was bitten off and eaten by a Sea King, so it's lost forever, and Shanks doesn't seem like someone who would use a prosthetic arm. Some fans speculate that Shanks could take Kidd's arm, but that doesn't seem likely, knowing Shanks.

The rest of this article will explain how Shanks lost his left arm—what happened and how it happened. We'll then explain the implications of this scene, including why the chances of Shanks getting his arm back are essentially impossible. We'll also explain why some fans believe he might actually get it back. This article will contain a small number of spoilers, so please be careful how you approach it, although we won't reveal too much about the plot.

Shanks won't get his arm back, but some fans disagree

Well, of course, first we'll tell you how Shanks lost his arm in the first place. After another of his trips, Shanks' crew returned and headed to Partys Bar, outside of which he saw Woop Slap and Makino, whom he asked why no one was waiting for them at the port but stopped as soon as he saw someone holding Luffy's head to the ground, wondering what was going on.

He then recognized them as the criminals he had already met once and mocked the child, remembering that he had told him that his fist was more deadly than a pistol. Luffy then told him to shut up. Higuma told them that he didn't know what they wanted and advised them to run away before they got hurt. Shanks stepped forward, so the thief declared that if he came any closer, he would be dead, also calling him a coward.

One of the enemy's subordinates pointed a gun at his head, asking if he hadn't heard and telling him not to take another step or he would shoot his head off. Shanks replied that after drawing his weapon, he was willing to risk his life. The man didn't understand, so he explained that it wasn't a threat since Lucky Roux had killed the robber with a shot to the head.

Shanks told his enemies that they were dealing with pirates and that they would not forgive them for hurting his friends. Higuma then burst out laughing at what Shanks said and ordered his subordinates to kill them all. Benn Beckman then told him to leave them to him, claiming that he alone would be enough; in fact, he quickly defeated them all.

He then pointed his gun at Higuma. The thief tried to justify himself by saying that the child had provoked them, but Shanks replied that, even if things had happened that way, he was still a wanted man with a bounty on his head. Higuma then resorted to setting off a smoke bomb and disappeared, taking Luffy with him. Shanks admitted that he was distracted and pointed out that Luffy had been kidnapped, asking his subordinates what they could do.

Makino revealed that Luffy had defended his crew when Higuma spoke ill of them. Shanks then noticed Luffy in the sea and that he was about to be eaten by a Sea King that had just done the same thing to Higuma and intervened to help him, losing his left arm in the process. The pirate used Conqueror's Haki to scare the beast, which, terrified, did just that.

He then thanked Luffy for defending them, telling him that Makino had revealed what had happened to him. He then told him not to cry because he was a man after all, but the child became even more desperate since Shanks had lost his arm. Shanks replied that it was nothing, being happy that he was safe.

As you can see, the story of Shanks losing his arm is quite emotional, as he did it to save Luffy. And even though characters who lost their limbs can't get them back in One Piece, some fans disagree (credits to Reddit user diggels):

Hearing Kid is having a hard time in the new world, he was chased by BM for hurting one of his commanders, had his arm cut off by Shanks' crew, and recently this thing with Kaido.

Shank's crew taking kid's arm makes sense!

When was the last time we saw Shanks – with a cape covering his arm in the Reverie Arc.

Be aware that this seems a bit far-fetched as he needed the cape at that point, but it could happen later in the story.

Wouldn't this be the best way to fix one of Oda's main problems that he never wanted?

One Piece Figure

Come see

Give Shanks two hands to make him a better end-game boss. Plus, it makes Kid a cool central character.

This could also be an interesting plot device for Kid in future arcs.

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This may seem like a funny theory in light of the recent fight between Shanks and Kidd, but knowing Shanks, he wouldn't do that. His team might end up stealing Kidd's arm, but they'd do it for fun, not because Shanks would use it. Shanks isn't the type of character to resort to such things, as he's proven capable enough to maintain the same level of power even without the arm.