‘One Piece’ Just Went Full Shenron On ‘Dragon Ball’ Fans

One Piece isn’t afraid to shout out some of shonen’s greatest titles. Previously, heroes like Naruto Uzumaki got a shoutout from the Straw Hats, and One Piece seems to be eyeing a very special dragon nowadays.

After all, a certain Yonko seems to have a scaly alter ego, and his new form has got fans double-taking Shenron.

Recently, One Piece set out its latest chapter, and the update revealed some major information about Kaido. The captain of the Beasts Pirates has a horrifying reputation on the best of days, but it was made even worse when the baddie revealed he can turn into a dragon. However, the form’s resemblance to Shenron has got Dragon Ball fanatics freaking out.

As you can see above, Kaido and Shenron have some clear resemblance. Both dragons are serpent types as their bodies are long and winding. Their expressions and postures have drawn more comparisons… and that isn’t even mentioning their brusque manners.

After all, Shenron isn’t known for being respectful to anyone other than Beerus, and Kaido re-entry proves the same goes for him.

“Bring those brats to me right now,” Kaido is seen telling his underling, leaving Jack more than a little terrified.

Of course, One Piece hasn’t dropped any official word on whether this form’s debut has anything to do with Dragon Ball. If anything, fans are inclined to tie the form to the rich lore Japanese dragons have enjoyed over the centuries. Some of Japan’s earliest folktales include all-powerful dragons like the ones Shenron and now Kaido represent in their anime universes. So, who wants to take bets on whether Naruto will introduce its own dragon summons before long…?

So, did you make this connection after reading One Piece…? Let me know in the comments or hit me up on Twitter @MeganPetersCB to talk all things comics and anime!

Eiichiro Oda‘s One Piece first began serialization in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump in 1997. It has since been collected into over 80 volumes, and has been a critical and commercial success worldwide with many of the volumes breaking printing records in Japan. The manga has even set a Guinness World Record for the most copies published for the same comic book by a single author, and is the best selling manga series worldwide with over 430 million copies sold.