One Piece Villains Who Helped Luffy

Key Takeaways

• Luffy forms alliances with former villains like Buggy and Galdino, benefiting from their skills and powers.
• Crocodile, a former villain, becomes a powerful ally to Luffy after their encounter, joining a mercenary guild.
• Caesar Clown, previously a villain, becomes a hostage, collaborating with other former antagonists in illegal research.

Despite his heroic disposition, Monkey D. Luffy is still a pirate, an occupation that can lend itself to evil. While Luffy does not actively seek to work alongside evil characters, there are times when he forms alliances with less-than-savory individuals due to circumstances calling for it. Oftentimes, this involves a greater threat, whose defeat would ultimately benefit both Luffy and said villain.

While Luffy has also been involved in aiding previously established foes who have made a turn to the side of good, these characters have remained unheroic and unrepentant after crossing paths with the Straw Hat Pirate.

1 Buggy

Figurehead Of Cross Guild

• Aids Luffy in Impel Down Arc and Marineford Arc
• Begins helping in Chapter 256 (Manga) and Episode 423 (Anime)

Buggy has been a longtime enemy of Monkey D. Luffy, antagonizing him as far back as when the Straw Hat Pirates were a crew numbering three. However, since failing to execute Luffy at Loguetown, Buggy has fallen behind his rival in terms of power. After mistakenly entering a marine base, Buggy was imprisoned at Impel Down. After Monkey D. Luffy traveled there for the sake of rescuing his sworn brother Ace, he was accompanied by Buggy, who was hoping to escape the prison.

Buggy benefited greatly from this escape, gaining several hardened criminals as admirers due to his presumed power, as a friend of Shanks and crewmate of the legendary Gol D. Roger. Many escaped convicts took to joining the Buggy Pirates after the events of the Summit War. Buggy himself was offered the position of Warlord, which he used to organize a mercenary group. He was eventually absorbed into Cross Guild, who took to using him as a figurehead to prevent its true leaders from being implicated. Despite not holding any meaningful power, he has recently directed the group to discover the One Piece and make him King of the Pirates.

2 Galdino

Also Known As Mr. 3

• Aids Luffy in Impel Down Arc and Marineford Arc
• Begins helping in Chapter 528 (Manga) and Episode 425 (Anime)

Galdino was once a member of Baroque Works, the crime syndicate poised to rule Alabasta. During this time, he was known by the alias, Mr. 3. Galdino is far more of a strategist than a fighter. He prefers to make use of his intellect and the diverse applications of his Devil Fruit powers rather than taking on foes directly. Although he managed to successfully capture and nearly kill three members of the Straw Hat Pirates, he was overpowered physically by Luffy, and outfoxed by Usopp.

After being punished by Crocodile for failing to kill the Straw Hats, Galdino was drained of his moisture. He was then dropped into a Bananawani tank, where he was confronted by the Straw Hat Pirates. After Sanji strongarmed him into making a key and knocked him out, for a time, Galdino managed to evade authorities.

However, he was unwillingly made to participate in rescuing the remaining members of Baroque Works by Bentham (aka Mr. 2 Bon Clay), which resulted in the two being thrown into Impel Down. He subsequently joins Buggy and Luffy’s escape.

His wax was instrumental, for a time, in blocking Magellan’s poison and creating keys to unlock gated areas of the prison. After the Summit War, he joined Buggy, but later reaffirmed his loyalty to Crocodile, presumably out of fear, once Cross Guild was formed.

3 Crocodile

The True Founder of Cross Guild

• Aids Luffy in Impel Down Arc and Marineford Arc
• Begins helping in Chapter 540 (Anime) and Episode 443 (Anime)

Identified by the alias of Mr. 0, Crocodile was the founder and leader of Baroque Works and sought to rule Alabasta. He controlled several agents to hunt down Nefertari Vivi and the Straw Hats, although none of them were ultimately successful in this goal. He was also a Warlord, a government-endorsed pirate who was to follow their orders. Crocodile was one of Luffy’s most challenging foes, being one of a few to successfully defeat him multiple times. However, after Luffy eventually defeated him, he was stripped of his status and thrown into Impel Down.

Although he had the opportunity to escape before, it was only after laying eyes on Luffy that he decided to do so. From there, he was one of Luffy’s most powerful allies in the breakout, and remained at his side during the Summit War, out of a hatred for the World Government. After spending some time without much attention being drawn to himself, he enlisted fellow former Warlord, Dracule Mihawk, to form Cross Guild, a mercenary guild that would target marines for bounties.

4 Daz Bonez

Also Known As Mr. 1

• Aids Luffy in Impel Down Arc and Marineford Arc
• Begins helping in Chapter 541 (Anime) and Episode 443 (Anime)

Daz Bonez was a martial artist who was one of the top officers of Baroque Works. His rank implied he would be the second most powerful man in Alabasta if they succeeded in taking it over, only eclipsed by Crocodile himself. His Devil Fruit powers led to bladelike appendages coming out of his body, which led to him dueling Zoro, although Bonez rejected the title of swordsman.

Alongside Crocodile, he was one of a few agents of Baroque Works to refuse the chance to escape Impel Down, at first.

Out of loyalty to his subordinate, Crocodile insisted on breaking him out, upon his own escape. Since the Summit War, Bonez has been a constant companion of Crocodile, eventually becoming a member of Cross Guild once it was properly formed. It is unclear exactly why he sticks with Crocodile, but it is likely out of respect for the pirate’s strength and ambition.

5 Caesar Clown

An Unwilling Hostage

• Aids Luffy in Whole Cake Island Arc
• Apprehended in Chapter 858 (Manga) and Episode 828 (Anime)

Caesar Clown was a former colleague of Vegapunk, known for his lax views on ethics in contrast to his counterpart. Due to the sordid nature of his research, he often depended upon criminal sponsors. He was previously a member of an illegal research institute, alongside Vegapunk, known as MADS. He later worked under Donquixote Doflamingo, who relied on him to create SAD, a key ingredient in SMILEs, artificial Zoan Devil Fruits he would send to Kaido, his business partner. Doflamingo’s status as a Warlord allowed Caesar to be protected from the law.

Nonetheless, he became a hostage to the Straw Hat-Heart Pirate Alliance, and then eventually Big Mom, another former sponsor, whose funds he squandered. He was eventually freed by the Fire Tank Pirates, who were forming an alliance with the Straw Hat Pirates to assassinate Big Mom. He later participated in the failed assassination attempt of Big Mom, being freed from either captor after the fact. He has since co-created another illegal research institute known as NEO MADS, alongside Vinsmoke Judge, Sanji’s estranged father, and another former member of the original organization.

6 Caribou

A Fellow Prisoner

• Aids Luffy in Wano Country Arc
• Begins helping in Chapter 940 (Anime) and 937 (Manga)

Caribou was part of the Fake Straw Hat Crew which surfaced during the hiatus of the original one. This crew attempted to bolster their numbers like the Straw Hat Grand Fleet, by adding established crews to their ranks and attempting to gain power from these additions. One of these was the Caribou Pirates, who Caribou co-captained with his brother, Coribou. However, once the real Straw Hat crew resurfaced, Caribou was angered by how he was lied to and attempted to bury them alive. He later snuck onto Fish-Man Island after hitching a ride with the Straw Hats in a bolted barrel and attempted to capture mermaids there once they inadvertently freed him.

This led to a chain of events that resulted in him being apprehended by marines, escaping, staging a revolution, and eventually being imprisoned once more by the Beasts Pirates. He eventually feigned a change of heart, asking to become Luffy’s subordinate, and became instrumental in the prison break in Wano. He later stowed away in another bolted barrel to Egghead. Here, he joined the Blackbeard Pirates, a crew he apparently idolized, and attempted to give them knowledge on each of the Ancient Weapons he had heard about while traveling with the Straw Hats. It is unknown what will happen to him next, although if nothing else, the information itself will likely be valued.