Warning: SPOILERS for chapter #1068 of One Piece
The newest addition to the Straw Hat Pirates, Dr. Vegapunk, has the craziest dream ever heard in One Piece: giving all the world clean, unlimited, free energy. While this sounds ludicrous, Vegapunk's aspiration actually ties together many of the biggest mysteries of the series.
In One Piece, all the Straw Hat Pirates are motivated by one, big dream, awaiting at the end of their journey. The captain famously wants to become the Pirate King, but the manga recently revealed that Luffy's actual dream is entirely different, and it still has to be revealed. Zoro wants to become the greatest swordsman in the world, to fulfill a promise made to his childhood friend, Kuina. Sanji wants to find the legendary All Blue sea, Usopp wants to be recognized as a brave warrior of the seas, Nami wants to make a map of the entire world, and every other member also has a unique goal that motivates them. However, none of these is as huge and impactful as Dr. Vegapunk's dream.
After arriving at Egghead Island, the Straw Hats finally met the legendary Dr. Vegapunk, the greatest scientist in the world. Surprisingly, despite working for the World Government for decades, Vegapunk is now on the blacklist of the tyrannical organization, which has dispatched the assassins of CP0 to get rid of him. In chapter #1068 of One Piece, Vegapunk formally asks Luffy to take him on board the Thousand Sunny and explains that the government is after him because his research into energy sources could unearht the truth about the Great Kingdom and the Void Century. Vegapunk's ultimate goal is to give the world free, unlimited energy so that conflicts over limited resources will finally end and humanity will be free to advance and evolve.
Dr. Vegapunk's Dream Can Change The Entire One Piece World
The big issue, however, is that Vegapunk's dream led him to dig deep into the past of the One Piece world, more specifically into the history of the Great Kingdom, an advanced civilization that possessed an 'ancient energy' used to power its wondrous machines, including a giant robot. Researching the Great Kingdom is forbidden by the World Government, and this may have to do exactly with this mysterious energy source. What's even more interesting is that judging from Vegapunk's description of his unlimited energy source, he is actually talking about solar energy, or something related to the Sun. Fans of One Piece know that the series is full of Sun symbolism, including the mysterious Sun God, Nika, who is connected to two fundamental characters in the series: Joy Boy, who lived during the Great Kingdom's time, and Luffy himself.
It's clear that Dr. Vegapunk's dream has an entirely different meaning compared with those of the other Straw Hats. For Luffy and his nine friends, dreams and goals are what motivated them to embark on a huge, life-changing adventure. In Vegapunk's case, his vision will change the entire world, and it will also serve to connect and explain many of the mysteries that make One Piece so intriguing.
The latest chapter of One Piece is available through Viz Media.