If you are caught up to the story of One Piece, you might be wondering about the fate of the two Emperors. Are Kaido and Big Mom dead, or have they miraculously survived their fall? This might be the question you want answered, so in this article, we’ll discuss what happened in the story!
The two biggest baddies of the entire series, Kaido and Big Mom, were recently defeated in the climax of the Wano Kingdom arc. Their time in the series has been crazy, to say the least, as both characters were among the strongest characters in the world of One Piece.
Since Luffy and the Straw Hats entered the New World, Big Mom and Kaido have been their targets, two Emperors they needed to defeat. After creating an alliance with Trafalgar Law on Punk Hazard, the Straw Hats agreed to team up to take down the Yonkos.
Numerous intense battles unfolded throughout the series, from the monumental clash in Dressrosa to the chaotic events on Whole Cake Island. Everything culminated in the Wano Kuni arc, where the Scabbards, Heart Pirates, Kidd Pirates, and Straw Hats covertly infiltrated Wano to plan and ultimately defeat Kaido.
Following intense battles between Luffy and Kaido, the two Yonko confronted each other on the roof of Onigashima after the entire alliance, along with additional reinforcements, stormed the party on the island.
After they faced off against Big Mom and Kaido together, Zoro engaged in combat with King, Law and Kidd confronted Big Mom, and Luffy remained on the roof to face the Emperor of the Sea, Kaido. Each battle was intense, showcasing power-ups for our beloved characters and ultimately resulting in victory for the heroes.
After the dust settled, Kaido and Big Mom plummeted into a volcano beneath Wano Kuni. The series’ narrator, the characters, and the fans presumed them dead. However, their demise was never confirmed explicitly.
Are Kaido and Big Mom Dead?
As we all know, the two Yonko were initially fighting the supernovas on the roof but ended up being split throughout the arc. Big Mom ended up fighting Law and Kidd at the same time. Of course, she thought she could win, but Law and Kidd had a few tricks up their sleeves.
It’s safe to say that this battle was hard for Law and Kidd, but their intense drive and devil-fruit capabilities allowed them to come out on top. Big Mom was winning for most of the fight, but Law and Kidd slowly got the upper hand.
With the help of their newly awakened devil fruits, both Kidd and Law attacked Big Mom with their most powerful moves. In response to these attacks, Big Mom not only unleashes her Conqueror’s Haki but also her more powerful life-or-death ability. This sees her suck the life force out of everyone around her, but only because they fear her.
To show how much they’ve developed, both Kidd and Law stand there unphased by this power display, indicating that they don’t fear Big Mom one bit, and trap her in a silent bubble. She plummets to the ground underneath the floating Onigashima island and into the lava inside an underwater volcano and is presumed dead.
Kaido had a similar fate after battling a series of opponents – from the entire Akazaya Nine to Zoro, Law, and Kidd, to Yamato to Luffy in his Gear 5 form. After being knocked unconscious by a powerful attack at the hands of Kaido, Luffy finally achieves his devil fruit awakening, unlocking the powers of Gear 5. From this point onwards, Luffy seems to be toying with Kaido, but the two opponents are now finally fighting an all-out battle to defeat each other.
Kaido, recognizing Luffy as Joy Boy, the man he had been waiting for, embraced his challenge. Utilizing the full extent of Gear 5, Luffy decisively defeated Kaido, sending him hurtling toward the ground, where Kaido, too, fell into the lava pit alongside Big Mom.
The narrator then conveyed that Kaido and Big Mom had fallen into the volcano beneath Wano Kuni, presumably meeting their demise in the engulfing flames. A panel depicts the two submerged in lava. Yet, their actual fate remains unconfirmed.
Can Kaido and Big Mom Be Alive?
Now, Oda isn’t one to kill off characters. He has, of course, done it in the past with Ace, but he is also known for fake outs.
Just look at characters like Pell in Alabasta. We assumed he had perished when the bomb went off, but he’s alive and well. The same thing happened recently with one of the biggest reveals in the series so far, that being that Jaguar D. Saul is alive and on Elbaf. After his battle with Aokiji on Ohara, we assumed Saul had been killed. However, it was revealed during the Egg Head Island arc that Saul is still alive.
This just shows that Oda doesn’t kill off characters all that much, and if he supposedly does, they can come back in the future to play another role in the story. Sabo is another example of this, and you remember how important he has been, right?
Because of Oda’s track record, it’s hard to assume that Kaido and Big Mom are dead. Yes, they were defeated in very impactful and definite ways, but would lava kill these two Yonkos? We have seen them both take massive damage in the past, through their battles, and of their own doing.
Big Mom may be massive, but she isn’t a giant. However, that doesn’t mean she isn’t durable. She was stabbed through her entire body by Law and even smashed to bits by Kidd, but that didn’t take her down. Her body was basically fine throughout her battle with Law and Kidd; it was just that final blow that defeated her. This means that she might have survived that fall and could maybe survive in lava!
Kaido, on the other hand, has proved quite a few times that he could survive something like this. For one, he has dragon scales all over his body in his awakened form. It has been shown to take a lot of damage without breaking, as only Kozuki Oden and Zoro managed to penetrate his skin/scales.
Another thing we have seen is Kaido falling from tremendous heights. This man was known for being suicidal and dropping off of sky islands for fun. We saw this first-hand when he landed on the island Kidd, Apoo, and Hawkins were staying on. This guy can survive a lot, so a huge fall and lava shouldn’t end him.
The final thing to talk about here is Oda’s use of these characters in the first place. We already know he doesn’t exactly like to kill off his characters, no matter if they have served their purpose already. We know that Luffy and the crew have surpassed Kaido now. His purpose in the story has been served, as has Big Mom’s.
They were the hurdle the crew needed to hop over to compete with the likes of Shanks and Blackbeard for the One Piece treasure. Now that it’s done, Kaido and Big Mom don’t have a reason to stick around.
The thing is, we could still see them come back. Fans assume Oda has not clarified their death because they could still play a role in the final battle.
Many fans assume one massive war will happen before One Piece is found. Luffy will need all the help he can get, and who’s better than Kaido himself? It might sound a little far-fetched, but at the end of their battle, Kaido had respect for Luffy.
Luffy was the man he had been waiting years for, the man who could finally defeat him. Luffy being Joyboy was why Kaido lost in the first place, so why wouldn’t he want to help out later?
Until Oda clarifies anything on the status of these two, we can assume they are, at the very least, out of action. It would be weird to just kill these characters out of nowhere, especially when they have both displayed great defense under extraordinary circumstances.
Even if Kaido and Big Mom have no other purpose in the story and stay alive, their status as Emperors is no more. Luffy and Buggy took their spots, so they are way out of the game!
Conclusion
As the final saga of One Piece unfolds, the fates of Kaido and Big Mom and their potential role in the ultimate battle remain intriguing mysteries that fans eagerly await to be resolved.
We don’t know what the future will hold, but we are sure that Oda knows exactly why he hasn’t revealed the fates of these two Yonko. Could they appear in the final battle to help Luffy? Could someone come to Kaido to ask about Gear 5?
Everything will be revealed in due time; we only need to wait and see how the story of One Piece unfolds. So, if you have otaku friends asking you this question – are Kaido and Big Mom dead – send them this article to help them understand the entire situation!