This article contains spoilers from One Piece.
Summary
- Oda had to change Sanji’s name from Naruto due to the popularity of another manga.
- Sanji was supposed to be named Naruto, but fans can see why the change was necessary.
- Fans can catch up with One Piece through Manga Plus and Crunchyroll, with the anime returning soon.
One Piece is the best-selling manga of all time, and for a good reason. The story has been able to keep fans hooked for almost 3 decades now, and much of that is down to the impeccable characters that are featured in the story.
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Sanji, one of the most beloved characters in the series, who was introduced all the way back in East Blue, could have been very different from what fans know him to be right now. Oda had to make a huge change to him due to another very popular manga.
Oda Reveals That He Had To Change Sanji’s Name
Sanji Was Supposed to Be Named Naruto
Sanji has always been one of the most popular One Piece characters overall, always making it into the top 5 of any popularity poll. It’s not surprising to see how popular he is, after all, he is one of the Straw Hat Pirates’ best fighters, and has had a few arcs that focused on expanding his character, most recently with Wano, in his fight against Queen the Plague. It wouldn’t be a stretch to say that Sanji is one of the best-written One Piece characters.
Something One Piece fans might not know, however, is that Sanji was not supposed to be named that, at least at the beginning of One Piece. Indeed, Oda had different plans for him. Oda wanted to name Sanji, Naruto. However, fans can quickly understand why he decided not to. After all, one of the biggest and most popular manga ever started around the same time, and its main character was named Naruto. Having these two characters have the same name would have definitely not been ideal.
The name Naruto does fit Sanji a lot, however. Some people might not know but the word Naruto refers to a Japanese topping, fish cake. It has a pink swirl that looks exactly like Sanji’s eyebrows, so the name would have been perfect for him.
Cooking is a gift from the Gods. Spices are a gift from the devil. Looks like it was a little too spicy for you. — Sanji
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It could also be possible that Oda planned for the name Naruto to be used as an alias for Sanji. As fans know, Sanji escaped from his family as a child, and the name Sanji could’ve been a direct tie back to them. His real name as Sanji could’ve been revealed during the events of Whole Cake Island. Here’s what Oda had to say about this name change:
Sanji’s name was originally Naruto. But when Naruto manga started, I knew it was going to be a long-running series, so I quickly changed his name. Do you see Sanji’s eyebrows swirling? — Eiichiro Oda
Where To Read and Watch One Piece
Available on Manga Plus and Crunchyroll
The One Piece manga is currently in the Elbaf arc, and the story is getting quite intense at the moment, with Oda introducing a lot of exciting characters that are about to go into action. Fans can read and catch up to the manga on Manga Plus or Viz Media.
When it comes to the anime, on the other hand, it has been on hiatus. However, the One Piece anime is returning in just a few days. Fans can find the series to stream on Crunchyroll.
- Release Date
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October 20, 1999
- Network
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Fuji TV
- Directors
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Hiroaki Miyamoto, Konosuke Uda, Junji Shimizu, Satoshi Itō, Munehisa Sakai, Katsumi Tokoro, Yutaka Nakajima, Yoshihiro Ueda, Kenichi Takeshita, Yoko Ikeda, Ryota Nakamura, Hiroyuki Kakudou, Takahiro Imamura, Toshihiro Maeya, Yûji Endô, Nozomu Shishido, Hidehiko Kadota, Sumio Watanabe, Harume Kosaka, Yasuhiro Tanabe, Yukihiko Nakao, Keisuke Onishi, Junichi Fujise, Hiroyuki Satou
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Mayumi Tanaka
Monkey D. Luffy (voice)
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Kazuya Nakai
Roronoa Zoro (voice)
