The road to One Piece is one covered in thorns and prickles. Whoever steps foot on it is bound to get stung at least once. Unlike a thorn-covered road, however, one might easily lose their lives while treading it. No amount of caution or plot armor can fully protect a character from the not-so-mild inconveniences of the road. The Straw Hats, of course, enjoy the same— if not a harsher— treatment as their counterpart pirates.
As the lead character of One Piece, Luffy is undoubtedly the least likely character to lose his life— at least before acquiring One Piece. That said, just because he enjoys the protection of thick plot armor does not mean he is impervious to swords and spears. In fact, there is likely no character who came close to losing their lives as much as Luffy. It’s just that whenever he acquires a reservation with his maker, someone intervenes and saves his life.
9 Raiju Sucked A Deadly Poison Out Of Luffy
Calling Luffy lucky for his multiple life-and-death encounters is most certainly a stretch. In the first place, if his luck was so good he wouldn’t have gotten involved in all these sticky situations.
For example, just what are the odds of him catching and eating an insanely rare poisonous fish with no known antidote? Yes, very slim. Then again, it’s the very same luck that threw one of his feet in the coffin that pulled him back. Coincidently, Raiju, a master of poison, was passing by at the moment of his distress.
8 Jinbe Saved Luffy A Few Times In Marineford
Frankly, the number of times Jinbe saved Luffy’s life is uncountable by now. He more than accomplished his promise to Ace. Without Jinbe, even a dozen lives will not be enough to cover for Luffy.
The duo’s misadventures in the Summit War Saga was when most of these live-savings occurred. From the grand prison escape in Impel Down to the war in Marineford, Luffy’s life has been on the constant edge.
7 Shanks Saved Luffy From The Lord Of The Coast
Luffy is undoubtedly a genius when it comes to risking his life. Even at the tender age of 7, he was able to have a one-on-one confrontation with death. This was also the first time fans witnessed his lethal tendencies.
For one reason or another, Shanks sacrificed his dominant hand to snatch Luffy from the jaws of death. According to him, he did so to "bet on the new era."
6 Ivankov Miraculously Revived Luffy In Impel Down
Luffy’s encounter with Ivankov is most definitely the closest he has been to meeting his maker. He was fatally poisoned by Magallan on top of being both physically and psychologically exhausted. Had he jumped back to his feet without any repercussions, it would’ve been jaw-dropping.
It was miraculous in all sense of the word. His chances of survival were more or less 2%; and he— the mad lad— somehow managed to grasp them.
5 Trafalgar Law & The Ope Ope No Mi
After the curtains to Marineford were lowered, Luffy was literally on his final breaths. The exhaustion, damage on his body, and side-effects of Ivankov’s hormone boost kicked in at the same time.
Fortunately, Law and the Heart Pirates arrived in a timely manner. Only after a surgery spanning a dozen hours did his condition stabilize. Any other doctor without the Ope Ope no Mi wouldn’t have been able to pull it off.
4 Bon Clay Saved Luffy & His Allies On A Few Occasions
More often than not, those who save Luffy lose nothing of significance during the process. On the flip side, Bon Clay sacrificed himself every time he goes to Luffy’s aide. The Alabasta incident aside, Bon Clay was the one who carried the half-dead Luffy to Ivankov’s hideout.
Furthermore, had it not been for Bon Clay, Luffy and the gang would’ve never been able to escape from the hellhole that is Impel Down.
3 Bartholomew Kuma Rescued The Straw Hats From Kizaru’s Claws
In Thriller Bark, Tyrant Kuma utterly demolished the already beaten down Straw Hats. His powerful punches lay the entirety of the crew on the floor. For him to wipe the floor with them during this arc only to rescue them in the next arc is nothing less than surprising.
Even with Rayleigh’s assistance, the chances of the Straw Hats escaping Sabaody would’ve been close to nil. Kuma’s timely intervention is one of the reasons the Straw Hats are currently alive and kicking.
2 Dragon Rescued Luffy In Logue Town
Logue Town Arc concluded with a very unexpected sequence of events. Luffy and the team fought against death several times. The Straw Hat captain, in particular, was the one with the most life-and-death experiences in the arc.
He was saved by Dragon— his father— not once but on two separate occasions. The first occasion was during Buggy’s mock execution and the second was during the encounter with Smoker.
1 Ace Laid His Life For Luffy’s
It’s kind of ironic how Luffy traversed seas and lands to rescue his brother, only to be saved by him in the end. The entire ordeal spanning a handful of arcs was more than shocking, to say the least.
Ace’s unexpected death is arguably the biggest plot twist in the series. What’s even more unexpected is him losing his life right after getting rescued.