Edward Newgate

Edward Newgate, more commonly known as "Whitebeard", was the captain of the Whitebeard Pirates and was known as "The Strongest Man in the World" and "The Man closest to One Piece" after Gol D. Roger's death. He was a member of the Four Emperors that ruled over the New World until his death during the Battle of Marineford.

Profile and Stats

• Alias: Whitebeard, Strongest Man in the World, Man closest to One Piece
• Origin: One Piece
• Age: 72
• Birthday: April 6
• Classification: Human, Whitebeard Pirates Captain, Former Four Emperors, Paramecia Devil Fruit User
• Gender: Male
• Height: 680 cm (22'3")
• Weight: 298.2 kg (657.4 lbs)
• Skin Color: Light
• Eye Color: Yellow
• Attire: Black bandanna, white captain's coat with the Whitebeard Pirates' jolly roger, light, loose pants, large black boots, and dark-colored pirate sash
• Alignment: Good
• Status: Active
• Powers and Abilities: Tremor-Tremor Fruit, Haki (Armament, Observation, and Conqueror's), Supernatural Strength, Supernatural Endurance and Durability, Immense Speed, Master Spearman Specialist, Master Hand-to-Hand Combatant, Master Strategist and Tactician
• Weapons: Bisento (A very heavy, bladed polearm (or a more massive version of the japanese naginata). The weapon's size is massive, fitting that of its owner, with a brown-colored striped pole ending in a spherical edge, and a large, curved blade attached to the pole with a golden part, decorated by what looks like a sea snake, with a thin part of it protruding onto the blade itself)
• Notable Attacks/Techniques: Kaishin, Gekishin, Kabutowari, Naginata Rasetsu, Shima Yurashi
• Weaknesses: Cannot swim and becomes immobilized if more than half his body is covered in water. Is a static fighter and doesn't usually dodge incoming attacks from opponents. His heart grows weaker due to drinking and old age.

Power Ranking

• Class: Demigod level
• Attack Potency: Island level
• Speed: At least High Hypersonic
• Lifting Strength: Class T
• Striking Strength: Class EJ
• Durability: Island level
• Stamina: At least Supernatural
• Range: Melee with bisento, at least Several Hundred Meters with air quakes
• Intelligence: Extraordinary Genius (Whitebeard is the pirate closest to obtaining the "One Piece" treasure in the entire world, and along with a couple of decades worth of experience, is the single most-dangerous pirate in his world. He has sufficient leadership qualities to oversee a last-minute invasion of Marineford, an incredibly skilled military strategist, and a match for Sengoku the Buddha. His tactical prowess was demonstrated when he scattered the pirates so that they wouldn't be routed by Pacifista, or when he bypassed the siege wall and has mastered his Tremor-Tremor Fruit)
• Fighting Ability: Champion

Appearance

Whitebeard was an abnormally large human, roughly three times the size of a normal human. Unlike other large-sized humans, however, he was well-proportioned. He had a long face, ploughed because of the advanced age with many wrinkles around his eyes, and many scars running along his chest, and was very muscular. The muscles on his biceps seemed to grow bigger whenever he used his quake-based powers. Like all of his men, he had his own Jolly Roger tattooed on his back. He also has yellow eyes.

He wore a black bandanna around his head and adorned himself with a white captain's coat, which hung loosely from his broad shoulders and bore his Jolly Roger symbol. He was always seen bare-chested, and wore light, loose pants tucked inside his large black boots, and a dark pirate sash around his waist. While not in battle, Whitebeard was typically on oxygen and attached to several medical sensor machines, due to health issues concerning his age.

Personality

Edward Newgate seemed to be a cheerful and carefree person during his younger years, prior to commanding his own ship and becoming known as Whitebeard. Unlike his comrades who loved treasure and riches, he only desired a family, and saw that as the greatest treasure.

His reign on the sea, reputation and foreboding power made him seemingly overconfident and fearless. In initial appearances, he seemed unable to see any cause for alarm on any decision he made and refused all advice given to him, such as his nurse telling him not to drink heavily or Shanks warning him of Blackbeard. However, he was much more thoughtful than he initially appeared to be. Actions that initially seem to be the result of thoughtless, headstrong bravado actually had strong reasons behind them; his loud declaration that Fishman Island belonged to him freed the island from all pirates and slavery, and his insistence that Blackbeard be punished was merely a cover for Ace, who had set out after him against Whitebeard's wishes. Though he may have seemed to have an overgrown ego, deep down he knew that he was nothing but a single man and was fully aware of his own mortality. He knew that the youth are the keys to the future, and that their lives are far more important than his own is.

He also seemed to enjoy talking about the past; the first things he talked about when Shanks visited were old memories from the past twenty-two years, and when he saw Buggy during the Paramount War, he recalled some memories from the past. People that were children at that time were still children in his eyes, even men as powerful as his fellow Emperor Shanks and Admiral Aokiji.

One way to appease him involved bringing and sharing with him a drink (preferably of high quality and very expensive) while striking up a conversation, as seen with his encounters with Shanks, Roger, and Shiki; however, this did not guarantee complete cooperation from him, judging from the nature of these conversations.

Whitebeard believed that it is fine when a man decides what to make of his life if he does not live to regret it. After being stabbed by Squard, Whitebeard remained forgiving and understanding toward his subordinate.

A distinguishing feature of Whitebeard's nature was his high moral standards: he never forgave the death of a crewmate, and believed that a man cannot live without some form of moral code. The ultimate proof of his unwavering sense of right and wrong came when he declared war with the World Government solely to save Ace's life. Another example is taking on Blackbeard in order to avenge Thatch, despite being close to death at the time. However, he was willing to go against his moral code under certain circumstances, such as when he instructed Ace to let Blackbeard go because he had an uneasy feeling about him.

Like Gol D. Roger, Whitebeard believed that a child should not be responsible for their parents' sins, and he told Squard that Ace should not be held responsible for Roger killing his (Squard's) original crew.

Like other characters in One Piece, he has a unique laugh, which is "Gu ra ra ra ra".

Abilities

Tremor-Tremor Fruit: A Paramecia type Devil Fruit that turns the user into a Quake Human, allowing the user to create vibrations (or "quakes"). This fruit's major strength is that it allows the user to generate massive vibrations, or shockwaves, which can travel though virtually any medium, including the ground, the seafloor, or even in the air. Because of this fruit's immense power, Whitebeard holds the raw power, to destroy the world based on former Fleet Admiral Sengoku's statement.

• Kaishin (Seaquake): Whitebeard swings one of his arms (or both) and literally cracks the air itself, sending devastating shock waves through the air in the direction it is facing. These shock waves are able to pass through and damage almost any substance, literally tearing it apart. The shock waves can also be sent into the sea, generating huge tsunamis, and can be used in conjunction with physical attacks in close-quarters combat - as Akainu can bear witness to.
• Gekishin (Severe Earthquake): A close range version of Kaishin, causing severe damage to even giants and an admiral.
• Kabutowari (Helmet Break): Whitebeard converges quakes into a sphere of focused power around his fist, effectively harnessing his terrible destructive power into a pinpoint attack he can use in close-quarters combat and completely avoid collateral damage (evident when Moby Dick's deck didn't suffer a single dent when he crushes Ronse's head with a quake bubble against it).
• Naginata Rasetsu (Halberd Rakshasa): Whitebeard surrounds his bisento with the same bubble to greatly increase its striking power and range.
• Shima Yurashi (Island Shaking): Whitebeard grabs the air around him as if it were tangible and pulls it, causing the area around him to shift. Using this, he was capable of tilting the entire island of Marineford and the sea around it.

Haki: There are normally two types of Haki regular people can tap into: the Observation Haki which allows individuals to sense the presence of others, and Armament Haki which allows individuals to create an invisible armor around them. There is however a third type of Haki, Conqueror's Haki, that only a few individuals can use. Whitebeard is one of these people.

• Conqueror's Haki: The ability to knock out someone else or a large group. While inexperienced users are restricted to intimidating one being or blindly knocking out any with weak wills around them, those with more expertise can pick out weak willed individuals in a large group to knock out.
• Armament Haki: A form of Haki that allows the user to create an "invisible armor" around themselves. With that, they can protect himself from attacks, and if trained well, use it to deliver stronger attacks. Besides the increase of strength, it is the only form of attack that doesn't involve Seastone that can hit any Devil Fruit user, being able to hit the user's original body even if it's a Logia user. It can also be used in weapons.
• Observation Haki: A form of Haki that allows the user to sense the presence of his opponents. A user of this type of Haki can predict an opponent's moves before he gets hit. This works by showing the user an image or brief "premonition" of what the opponent will do, manifested as a mental image in the user's mind's eye, and the damage the user will take if the attack "hit" for real. It appears that the more killer intent the enemy has the easier they are to predict, though more efficient users can predict future moves regardless whether there are ambient murderous intents or not. Including the distance, location, and where the opponent may strike next.

Trivia

• Universal Studios of Japan built a replica of Ace's and Whitebeard's tombs. Whitebeard's epitaph says: "Edward Newgate, captain of the Whitebeard pirates, here lies a great captain and father, liberated from the exhausting role and labor, who captained the Moby Dick in the spectacular Era of Pirates".
• He is one of three characters whose name comes from the real life Blackbeard, otherwise known as Edward Teach; the others being Marshall D. Teach and Thatch.
• Throughout the Battle of Marineford, Whitebeard received 267 sword wounds, 152 gunshot wounds and 46 wounds from cannonballs — adding up to a total of 465 injuries at the time of death. Despite this, there was not a single scar on Whitebeard's back showing cowardice.
• Whitebeard is widely regarded as the "strongest man" in the world. In comparison, Kaido is said to be the "strongest creature" in the world, though the extent of his powers remains unknown. At one time, Krieg falsely proclaimed himself to be the "strongest man" while Whitebeard was still alive.
• The Newgate Prison was a notorious prison in London, active during the Golden Age of Piracy, and where many infamous pirates (and other criminals) were incarcerated; including William Kidd and members of the "King of the Pirates" Henry Every's crew.