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Hello and welcome once again to another one of my batshitcraycray theories! This theory outlines and discusses the possibility of a Marine SMILE Army, as well as a “surprise package” and how they will obtain such power. Some plot twists will be needed but it seems like quite a likely event to occur. There are a few factors to consider before we get into this theory though, and I will guide you through each one during the thread:

1. Vegapunks technology, especially surrounding Zoan fruits and weaponry
2. The post-Dressrosa Arc situation for the Marines, including Isshou and Sakazuki
3. Marine knowledge of the underground trade, Kaidou and Joker
4. The Alliances fiasco

Plus there’s the logic that pieces together the different pieces of the puzzle, and considering the final war is likely the World vs the World Government, the Marines are going to need an immense power boost. So the purpose of this theory is to primarily give the Marines a chance, and the way Oda has formulated the plot it is (at least in my opinion) highly probable for what I’m about to say to actually occur:

My reasoning behind Pacifistas obtaining Zoan fruits lies in the fact that Vegapunk is capable of “feeding” objects Zoan fruits. I thought it was way too convenient given that the Marines are mass producing human-weapons and pirates are mass producing Zoan devil fruits. We’ve seen a few results of Vegapunks research as you can see below:

Therefore it’s easily feasible for Vegapunk to place or feed a SMILE fruit to a Pacifista, and given both products can be mass produced, this makes perfect sense – the amalgamation of the two is just too… perfect.

The Marines:

What will surprise a few is the way in which the Marines obtain the SMILE fruits. You would think that given the ties between Caesar Clown and Vegapunk that the latter would either have information on SMILEs or have created his own, but this is not the case. Remember how Punk Hazard was deserted and it was believed nobody inhabited the Island? It means nobody paid any attention to Caesars activities from within the World Government infrastructure. They did not know it was an active laboratory.

So in true Oda style, he has mislead and lulled everyone into thinking incorrectly. Giving Oda the opportunity for an amazing plot twist which will allow the theory to become true. What is this plot twist? you ask. Well, remember how Sakazuki banished Isshou until he captures our protagonists? (which obviously won’t happen)

Due to Isshou failing, he will have another ticket back into Sakazuki’s good books. The SMILE project. It makes perfect sense, and here’s why:

If you piece the evidence together, we know Isshou knows what’s been going on, and being an informant to Sakazuki of something like this means that the Marines aren’t f*cked by divisions between Admirals, and they will take more of an interest and be more active in the underworld brokers system.

So, with the Marines fully aware of Caesars work, Doffy’s trade and the SMILE Devil Fruits themselves, it would be a stupid thing to allow the Fruits to escape their grasp. It’s a power boost, especially if they learn how to mass produce them (and, we know of at least one man in their ranks who can… *cough* Vegapunk *cough*). There is also seemingly still an abundance of SAD and SMILE fruits in the actual factory. Even if they don’t know how to mass produce, they still have a bountiful supply of SMILE devil fruits. Given the Marine affiliations with Punk Hazard, having Kuzan and Sakazuki fight there as well as the G-5 incident, it is likely that the Marines will investigate the base to find Caesars work and reports on several experiments for Vegapunk to use to their own advantage

The result? New Model Pacifistas being fed SMILE fruits, Smiley (or similar weapons) being added to a buster calls arsenal, gigantification: we know Vegapunk was previously working on that too. In turn, clearly making the Marines far stronger as a unit and a force

Blackbeard:

But what about Blackbeard? Remember when Burgess was seen with a sack full of what are likely to be SMILE fruits?

Given Burgess has probably escaped by now, and the fact Bleackbeard is on the hunt for Devil Fruits it is only logical that Blackbeard wanted in on the SMILE fruits, afterall, he now has lots of subordinates (as implied by the fact Burgess is a fleet captain), again, for the same reasons the Marines would take the fruits: it is to strengthen and inhibit those around them from getting stronger. Teach will also develop his own SMILE army, afterall, Doc Q seems to have an endless supply of apples. He has the means of production, he has the goal, it’s only logical that he will create an articulate and meticulous plan to obtain an army, and it will succeed.

That’s’ right, there’s two SMILE armies to fight after Kaidous: Blackbeards inferior fodder army and the superior Marine Pacifista SMILE army.

It has been argued that Burgess “lost the sack of fruits” while fighting Sabo, which I disagree to. Firstly, there is a high chance he can use Kenbunshoku Haki, so even if he did lose his bag he could easily locate it remotely. Secondly, nobody has laid claim to a suspicious bag of Devil Fruits. Of course this is all speculative and there is neither evidence for or against this point.

Mythology/inspiration:

There is mythological grounding for this theory too. In my Kaidou’s crewmates theory I have compared the SMILE fruits to the Apples of Hesperides. The story goes that Hera gave the apples to Zeus as a wedding present. Hercules, having failed to please king Eurystheus was sent to retrieve the apples. This is one of the 12 Labours of Hercules, these were punishments for Hercules’s crimes. The parallels in this story are as follows:
King Eurystheus is Fleet Admiral Sakazuki
Hercules is Admiral Fujitora
Zeus is Kaidou
Hera is Caesar Clown

It is important to note that the Hesperides were nymphs that protected and nurtured these Apples,they were sons and daughters of Atlas, the Titan that held up the world and the sky. Although the parallels are very weak, they still exist:
The Hesperides who nurtured the apples are the Donquixote Pirates, of whom are descendants of the World Government (i.e. Doflamingo being a Tenryuubito) who claim to hold the world together in balance.

In the same way Hera married Zeus for protection from other Gods and Titans; Caesar allied with Kaidou for protection from Big Mom, hence the trade initially started.

The short saga that might occur in which the Marines obtain the SMILE project is invoked by the crimes of Isshou in the same way the labour is invoked by Hercules’s crimes. Isshou committed a sin of letting somebody of Tenryuubito blood to get hurt, let alone completely f*cked over, he also allowed Law and Luffy to live, this incurred Sakazuki’s punishment – which, due to being impossible to achieve due to plot armour, Isshou will have to look elsewhere to please Sakazuki, hence the Apples saga.

Therefore, what I am saying does not go without reason. We know Oda loves to use Greek mythology to at least inspire events in the manga, and this will be just one more example of this amongst a plethora of others

Lastly:

A Marine Zoan Pacifista Army makes sense for plot reasons too. Firstly it strengthens the Marines in preparation for the final arc. It also makes them more of a threat once again, it adds greater tension because it means that most of the Strawhats (excluding the monster trio) would be inferior to Marine enemies once more, something that One Piece had recently been lacking. A new dynamic to the story is also added as the balance of power starts to tip.

So, the final war will consist of many SMILE armies. The Revolutionaries will have their hands full with the Marines, and the entire New World will probably gang up against a Kid-Blackbeard alliance at some point. When Oda said the final war arc would make Marineford look small, he wasn’t lying!

*Theory by L o g i a

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