Bartholomew Kuma is one of the founding members of the Revolutionary Army. He used to be the king of the Sorbet Kingdom, but he was overthrown by his people. According to Bonney, Kuma was not a tyrant. He earned a bad reputation forstanding up to the World Government. The organization admonished him and very likely caused him to be replaced by someone else. After losing his status as king, Kuma met Dragon and Ivankov, and together the three of them founded the Revolutionary Army, which is one of the strongest organizations inOne Piece. The trio was deeply affected by the tragedy that took place in Ohara, and they vowed to never let that happen again. Kuma remained a part of the Revolutionary Army until he was captured by the Marines.
Considering the number of transgressions that Kuma committed, he would have definitely been imprisoned in Impel Down or maybe even executed. However, he was savedin a way by Vegapunk. If the scientist hadn’t turned Kuma into a cyborg, the World Government would have never let him roam freely. But this freedom came at a great cost. Slowly, Kuma began to lose his mind, and ultimately he ended up as a mindless cyborg. Before he lost his senses completely, Kuma was integral to manyOne Piecearcs. In his limited appearances, he showed how powerful he was. Kuma was responsible for saving the Straw Hats from Kizaru and the Pacifista. He also protected the Thousand Sunny while the crew was away training. Kuma’s involvement was cut short when he was turned into a slave by the Celestial Dragons. The top brass of the Revolutionary Army could not afford to stand by and see one of their best members being used as a means of transport by the Celestial Dragons.
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The Invasion
The Revolutionary Army decidedto infiltrate Marijoa to rescue Kuma from his plight. The team to save Kuma consisted of Sabo, Morley, Karasu, and Lindbergh. The Revolutionaries had three objectives: to destroy the symbol of the Celestial Dragons, to free Kuma and other slaves, and finally to destroy the food storage in Marijoa. They successfully destroyed the hoof of the Celestial Dragons and their food supplies without much effort. However, they did have to struggle for a while to get ahold of the keys to the collars of the slaves and Bartholomew Kuma, as without the keys, it would not be possible to save him.
The three commanders had to fight many security guards, but their real test came against the two Admirals. Considering the damage that the Revolutionary Army caused, the Marines sent their best fighters to handle the situation. Many fans expected the Admirals to triumph, but they couldn’t have been more wrong. Morley was holding off Ryokugyu without any problems, while Karasu kept Fujitora busy. Even though the Admirals had to hold back because of the Celestial Dragons, it was still an incredible accomplishmentfor the Revolutionary Army commanders, as not many characters can stand their ground in front of an Admiral.
While they kept the Admirals occupied, Sabo managed to steal the keys from the guard room. He informed Karasu about the mission’s success and told him to go back to headquarters once Kuma and the rest of the slaves were freed. Toward the end of the chapter, Morley turned up at Kuma’s location and stopped him from attacking Leo and Sai. After successfully retrieving Kuma, the Revolutionary Army commanders took him back to their hideout.
Bringing Back His Sanity
Bartholomew Kuma was eventually taken to Kamabakka Kingdom, which is the new base of the Revolutionary Army. Although he was no longer bound by any physical chains, Kuma still remained a mindless cyborg. The Revolutionary Army tried to undo what Vegapunk had done to him, but it was never going to be an easy job. While they somewhat repaired him, Kuma still behaved oddly. Eventually, he ran away from the Kamabakka Kingdom and used his Devil Fruit powers to go to the Red Line.
Upon his arrival, Kuma began to climb it. The people near the port where Kuma landed were in panic mode, and it won’t be long before the Marines get involved and try totake the former Shichibukaiinto their custody. Or they might simply decide to kill him because he no longer has a working mind. The reason behind Kuma’s decision has still not been explained, but it may be related to the time that he spent working with Vegapunk. It would be highly unusual for Kuma to become a test subject for Vegapunk just to save himself from the Marines, so there is definitely more to it than meets the eye.
There are still several things about Kuma that remain a mystery, including his special lineage, how he was captured, and why he volunteered to become a cyborg. Given his present condition, Kuma might not make it till the end of the series, but one thing is for certain: Oda will provide the readers with the answers to all the questions about the former king of the Sorbet Kingdom.
