The Marines in Oda's One Piece are a very peculiar and interesting group. Mostly loyal and perceived as enemies, this group boasts a versatile cast that includes characters of varying degrees of interest and intriguing intriguing characters. One of these characters is undoubtedly Kuzan, formerly known as Aokiji. The owner of the Hie Hie no Mi, Kuzan, was a former Marine who resigned from his position, but he went even further by joining Blackbeard's pirate crew as one of his captains on the Titanic, commanding his tenth ship. In this article, we will tell you what happened to Kuzan and why he joined Blackbeard's crew.

After resigning and traveling alone for some time, Kuzan encountered the Blackbeard Pirates in the New World, and after a fight, they had a drink together. Afterward, Blackbeard asked him to join his crew, and although Kuzan initially refused to accept, he changed his mind after Blackbeard told him that he was not a World Government man and that he had the freedom to do as he pleased.

The rest of this article will focus on Kuzan and his resignation from the Marines and the events that led him to join Blackbeard. Kuzan is undoubtedly a unique character, and his story is one of the most interesting in the series. That's why we'll tell you what happened, how it happened, and why it happened. If you're not fully up-to-date on the entire story of One Piece, we must warn you that the article will contain some spoilers.

Kuzan apparently joined Blackbeard simply because he could, but he ran into trouble with the Marines.

The Straw Hat Pirates first meet Admiral Aokiji, nicknamed "The Blue Pheasant." The admiral tells Nico Robin that she has transformed into a beautiful young woman before going to bed and pretending they didn't come there to welcome them. The crew and the officer then encounter shipwreck survivors. He freezes a sea monster and the ocean to help the survivors get off the island. Later, he and Luffy discuss Garp. He then quickly incapacitates Zoro, Sanji, and Luffy (all three at once), freezes Nico Robin, and knocks Nami to the ground, finally freezing Luffy. Even though he could kill Luffy, he was still honoring the bet he made with Garp.

Although Aokiji is a rather calm guy when it comes to "work," he no longer has any sympathy and can kill a pirate he just had a good drink with. Furthermore, we also learn that Aokiji knew Luffy's grandfather and owes him a favor. In any case, according to Aokiji, these "youngsters" have great potential, and in the future, they risk becoming a real problem for the Marines. Aokiji will warn the leader of CP9, Spandam, that the Straw Hat Pirates were in Water 7.

He spared Robin and decided to let her live after the fall of Justice Island because he believed she had found her place in the world. He is, of course, present at Ace's execution at Marineford with the entire Marine force. He will introduce himself as the admiral guarding the execution platform. Kuzan was the first Marine officer to take action, and for good reason: he was ultimately the one to stop the first attack of this battle. And not just any attack: it was Whitebeard's, since the pirate unleashed two enormous tsunamis ready to crash into Marineford. Aokiji will then freeze Marineford Bay, allowing both sides to begin the battle.

Of course, he froze Buggy and the other prisoners of Impel Down and Den Den Mushi. He then tried to arrest Luffy, but on Whitebeard's orders, Marco protected him. Along with Sakazuki and Borsalino, he stopped Whitebeard's shockwave with his Haki aimed at the scaffold where Monkey D. Garp, Ace, and Sengoku were standing. He locked Whitebeard in an ice coffin, but the Emperor's vibrations, as he soon learned, could not be frozen. He then confronted Joz (who would interfere in his fight against Whitebeard) and quickly defeated him by freezing him completely. Later, Ace was freed by his brother Monkey D. Luffy.

He attempts to stop them but is unable to do so, as his power and Ace's conflict. He is later seen witnessing from afar Akainu's fatal blow to Ace. He then freezes Marineford Bay to prevent the pirates from escaping by boat. Just before the end of hostilities, he makes one last attempt at attacking Luffy and the submarine, attempting to freeze it without success.

He is later seen at Marineford under reconstruction with Smoker; when Smoker says he wants to be assigned to the G-5 base in the New World, Aokiji dismisses him as crazy. After Sengoku's resignation, he recommends him for the position of Chief Admiral under General Kong. This proves that in Sengoku's eyes, Aokiji is neither too irresponsible and immature like Kizaru nor too relentless and cruel like Akainu, but rather calm, thoughtful, and responsible.

Sengoku decided to resign and recommended Aokiji for the position of Admiral-in-Chief, but the higher-ups strongly supported Akainu. Aokiji could not bear to see Akainu as his superior, so he refused this decision. Thus, a bloody duel broke out for the first time between two admirals to decide who would command the Navy. Aokiji and Akainu were nearly equal in strength, but the fight ended in Aokiji's defeat, and Akainu emerged victorious, using his lava as an advantage against Aokiji's ice. Refusing to submit to Aokiji's orders, Aokiji left the Navy.

During the Punk Hazard Arc, Aokiji appeared just as Doflamingo was about to finish off Smoker, declaring the vice-admiral his friend. Later, despite the former admiral's appearance, Doflamingo attempted to kill Smoker; Aokiji immediately froze him without giving his opponent a chance to react. However, as Buffalo points out, Doflamingo escaped unharmed, as Kuzan had not frozen his heart. After this brief exchange, Doflamingo stated that he did not want to fight him; he simply asked what had become of him, stating that the rumors were not good.

After Doflamingo leaves, Smoker and Kuzan have a conversation, during which the former admiral asks his friend to ask Sakazuki to deploy the admirals to find Doflamingo; he considers the latter the biggest obstacle since Sakazuki became the new head admiral. It is revealed that he came to Punk Hazard with a penguin for transport. Kuzan then leaves without having fought. This is also how Kuzan was reintroduced in the series, as a traveler who now works outside the official framework but still with the same goal: Justice. After the end of the C-block battle royale, Burgess contacts his captain, Blackbeard.

During their conversation, Aokiji's name is mentioned, and the 1st Fleet commander states that he is not trusted. Teach states that this opinion was the same regarding Shiryu. This suggests that Kuzan may have recently come into contact with the Blackbeard Pirates. This is later confirmed after Doflamingo's defeat, as one of the Five Elders reminds Sakazuki that Kuzan has joined the Blackbeard Pirates. The exact reason why Kuzan joined the fearsome pirate is unknown. We do know that he met with his crew and froze them all, after which Blackbeard himself appeared and told him to cancel his job; Kuzan eventually agreed, and the two had a drink.

He overheard Blackbeard's men talking about killing Kuzan and taking his Devil Fruit, which angered him, but Blackbeard calmed him down and asked if he would like to join his crew. Kuzan refused as it went against everything he stood for, but Blackbeard told him that he no longer worked for the World Government and was a free man who could do whatever he wanted. It is unknown how this dialogue influenced Kuzan, but he later became a member of his crew and a very important one, becoming captain of his 10th ship.