@AvocadoInTheRain:
Zoro is in front, but he's still in a fighting stance like everyone else. Tama and Rayleigh are sort of just standing in front while all the strawhats are doing the actual posing.
Whatever the case, it's still something that she definitely intends on doing. I doubt she'll just drop it after Wano is over.
Feels like such a thing silly thing arguing about, but Rayleigh is clearly in front the group and with the strawhats hugging each others makes them even more separated, while Tama is simply standing in front because she is too small standing behind someone. The only ones that are not really posing with the group are Nami and Robin.
And in the next chapter you can read the flashback with her and Ace that explains why she would say that.
Essentially we can brake down her dream in parts, staying with Ace, which requires her to be in his crew and become pirate, which further requires her to be a kunoichi to get accepted. So yeah, there more to her goal than you assumed.
And I think theres more we can interpret of her being a kunoichi. Ace made the requirement sort of jokingly in front of his crew, an "enchanting" kunoichi, a hot ninja girl basically meaning she would have to grow up and be able to fight.
But for Tama I think it could have a different meaning.
If we draw parallels to real life feudal japan, anyone could be a ninja/kunoichi, but not anyone could be a samurai, that is something you are born into. Being a kunoichi is one of the few ways a girl with no social status could be complete independent.
So this means, Tama becoming a kunoichi doesn't necessarily mean that she has to go study fictional ninja techniques like shadow clones and other fantasy stuff, it could simply mean that she needs to be able to depend on herself, and using her power more proficiently than what we have seen so far would definitely add to that.
Simply put, she should be able to take of herself before becoming a pirate.
And she will have plenty of chances to prove herself before the arc is over.
@SeaOfHope:
Tama's powers are very circumstantial and would not be of benefit in every situation the crew comes across. This really takes me back to when people honestly wanted Shirahoshi to join the crew. Despite the obvious factor that she was just too plain big, she was physically weak, had no combat-ability to speak of, and her only selling point was taming and controlling large creatures to fight in her stead and use to her will.
Huh, doesn't that sound familiar…
Another reason why she would be a good fit, she won't compete with other strawhats in their respective fields.
I've already drawn the similarities to Shirahoshi, and theres a whole other bunch of reasons of why Shirahoshi never was crewmate material that Tama fulfills.
@BobLoblaw:
Can we start getting some ban bets around here for Tama? I want to see how strong peoples convictions are. If you aren't willing to do that, then it's probably a good idea to discontinue peddling that "theory."
My conviction isn't that strong if you are referring to me, it's just that I think she is the only potential crewmate in the possibly last arc for recruiting new crewmembers.
She could be Hiyori, it is a possibilty, but theres really no other connection except both being of the female gender and from Wano.
She could be one of the new pirates in the next generation that would take place after the end of One Piece, basically Luffy making another promise to her, similair situation as Shanks and Luffy, but is she really fit to be that kind of character?
Being from the new world, the highpoint of pirates already and having minks and the kozuki family backing her when she goes out on her own? It just seems weird, since pirates are usually outcasts of the society, and if she stays in Wano after the arc would she still be an outcast? She would have plenty of strong friends already, this is not really making her worthy of being the Luffy/Ace of the next generation.
She would have a good cover story though.
@Monquito:
Easy Satan, no need to get to such limits, specially when we all know they eventually fade out by themselves.
I member Hancock supporters being all super sure she was joining and nowadays they just pretend it never happened, lmao.
Hancock, the ruler of a nation, with like a two panel flashback, who got kings haki and df so overpowered she would have to be nerfed every arc, and her only goal is getting laid by Luffy the assexual.
C'mon dude, really?
@Chams:
Agree that Tama would fit every criteria we made up for NN. She has a dream, is a girl, interesting ability.
But I really think that her being a child is a condition for it not happening.
For all the narrative issues everyone raised, but also for reasons within the story:
For me, Luffy respecting and understanding Shanks wishes for not having a kid on the crew will show us how he matured and how closer he is now of Shanks than of himself as a kid.
Other crews that have kids on board are very different. Remember that Doflamingo's crew was more like a family. He adopted orphans because it was easier to brainwash them and use them in the future! Nothing more unlike Luffy there.
I believe that the end of Wano will have Luffy taking up on Ace's promise to take Tama to the sea when she is older.
In short: Tama will be the Laboon of this arc.
Yeah, her being a child is the biggest obstacle Oda would have to overcome to make us believe in her.
But pirates being kids is not a new thing.
Going into speculation theory now but…
If Tama proves to be one of the keys to defeating Kaidou, accomplishing more impressive, courageous and bigger things than the other guys then what excuse would Luffy have to not accept her?
I think we are looking to deep into what Shanks said.
I do see the strawhats as one big family, and Oda does too, except for the brainwashing and evil deeds everything is alike.
@Ahlskie:
O - O-tama, O-kiku
Their names are Tama and Kiku respectively, the O is something they put in front of the females names from what I understood, maybe someone else could elaborate further.
@AvocadoInTheRain:
She can't fight though. Luffy said that everyone on his crew could handle themselves, but Tama got kidnapped by random mooks several times. Also, Oda said that Usopp would always be the weakest strawhat.
We have seen her fight, albeit not very impressively so far.
Two times, first time was was successful because of the baboon and second time because of a fast af gazelle-man that could outrun almost anyone, i don't considering either the baboon or the gazelle-man as random mooks.
Usopp would still sort of be the weakest crewmember.
Usopp is of course physically stronger than Nami, Robin and Tama, but all three of them got special powers that could overpower him, nothing new here.
And to be picky, there are ways to interpret Odas statement there, did he mean the weakest fighter? The weakest man?
@ImmaIvanoM:
Biggest problem is she’s also a devil fruit user and I think most Species of animals in the world are in the sea. Unless she gets a submarine or something
Oda went crazy with land-based monsters in strong world, we have seen a few in Alabasta, Skypea, Thrillerbark (if zombie animals counts), Punk Hazards dragons, animal gladiators in dressrosa, Wano and Zou itself whatever it would be it considered to be. And her overcoming the obstacle of taming a sea animal is another way of her dramatically overcoming a challenge.
Oda said in an interview that he had planned Aces death since his creation, then would he have planned how other characters other than Luffy would be affected with his death? Together with the foreshadowing in of Ace being in Wano in marineford, it is a possibility he had Tama in his mind since long time ago. Which other characters did he has in mind looong before the introduction? Well, the other strawhats for starters.
And Tama is not only the front figure with strawhats on volume 91, she is also on the spine. Not even Momo or Kinemon has appeared on the spine yet. And unlike some other sidecharacters, she got the whole spina for herself.
I do admit i'm getting a bit tired of nagging about Tama, but she is like the first characters with a dream/goal for a long time.