In the initial chapter of One Piece, in East Blue a kid named Luffy, the protagonist of the series, accidentally eats a Devil Fruit that Shanks and his crew of pirates had recently stolen.
By consuming it Luffy gained the abilities of rubber body, all due to the Gomu Gomu no Mi, a Paramecia-type Devil Fruit.
But Shanks never wanted Luffy to eat the Gomu Gomu no Mi fruit. Then for what reason Shanks, who is already among the most formidable pirates in the One Piece world, has recently departed from the Grand Line and has been stationed on Dawn Island for more than a year?
The reason is that Shanks wanted another person to eat the Devil Fruit. Shockingly, the other character who was meant to fulfill the role of Joyboy was a member of the ‘D’ lineage.
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Portgas D. Ace Always Meant to be Joyboy
There are multiple pieces of evidence indicating that Shanks traveled to Dawn Island after recovering the Gomu Gomu no Mi to give it to the son of his former captain, Portgas D Ace.
When Gol D. Roger discovered that he had an incurable disease, he embarked on making three significant preparations. In the initial step, Roger got in touch with his greatest adversary in the navy, Garp, and requested him to raise his son and ensure his safety. The second task was to communicate with Whitebeard and disclose to his longtime friend what he had learned about the true history of the world. This presumably encompassed matters such as the significance of the ‘Will of D’ and the actual nature of the One Piece treasure.
Lastly, Roger entrusted his young comrade, Shanks, with a message which still not disclosed, causing Shanks to brim with tears. Individually, each of these fragments of information is only a portion of the narrative, but when examined collectively, it becomes evident that it’s Ace in One Piece‘s world who was intended to be Joyboy, not Luffy.
Shanks stole the Devil Fruit for Portgas D. Ace
Ace was intended to uphold Gol D Roger’s will after his death and bring about the dawn of the world. One Piece is filled with allusions to “the dawn of the world” and imagery depicting the sun finally emerging after a period of darkness.
Ace was always portrayed as the sun, the character who was supposed to be fated to bring about this new dawn. He stood in opposition to Blackbeard, who possessed the Yami Yami no Mi, a character embodying the idea that the world might descend even deeper into darkness.
Gol D. Roger knew the true history of the world and decided that it should be his son who would initiate the emergence of a new era.
Considering all of the details and backstory around Shanks, Gol D. Roger, and Ace unveiled during the Wano Arc, it’s evident that Ace was the one destined to assume the role of Joyboy by inheriting Roger’s will, and Shanks was there to initiate this voyage.
Source: Screen Rant