Sandbox / One Piece: Rob Lucci

"Massacre Weapon" Rob Lucci

Voiced by: Tomokazu Seki (JP), Jason Liebrecht (EN, Funi), Ismael Verástegui (One Piece Gold and Netflix LatAm), Daniel del Roble (One Piece Stampede LatAm)

Age: 28 (Pre-Timeskip), 30 (Post-Timeskip)

Debut: Chapter 323 (Manga), Episode 230 (Anime)

Devil Fruit: Cat-Cat Fruit, Model: Leopard

^{Click here to see his Pre-Time Skip appearance} 

^{Click here to see his hybrid form} 

^{Click here to see his leopard form} 

"They were criminals, so I killed them in name of justice...as soldiers, weakness is a sin. They surrendered to evil, and caused a crisis in the kingdom. That type of soldier doesn't deserve to live. So they're dead."

Originally introduced as one of Galley-La Dock One's foreman, Rob Lucci is actually the strongest Cipher Pol Number Nine has ever seen, noted by the Marines for his dedication to the World Government and Justice. He is calm and ruthless, even refraining from the Evil Laugh, a staple among One Piece villains. He and his group are masters of the Six Powers, a martial arts fighting style based on six different superhuman techniques, and he and the rest of CP9 gave the Straw Hats some of their toughest and most grueling battles yet. He has eaten the Cat-Cat Fruit (Neko Neko no Mi), Model: Leopard. Lucci is always accompanied by his pet pigeon, Hattori.

He's expelled from CP9 along with his co-workers after Spandam blames them for the failure of the Enies Lobby mission, and also finds himself being hunted down by the Marines in order to be silenced. With the help of his fellow ex-CP9 members, Lucci survives this ordeal and joins CP0 during the Time Skip.

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A-K

• Animorphism: He ate a Zoan-type which allows him to turn into a leopard or huge leopard-man at will.
• Armor-Piercing Attack: The final technique of the Six Powers, the Six King Gun, emits a powerful shockwave through the victim's body, increasing the damage tenfold. Lucci is especially proficient in using this technique as he's mastered the other abilities to a higher degree. It's even able to bypass Luffy's rubber body which normally deflects blunt attacks.
• Arrogant Kung-Fu Guy: The realization that a pirate can defeat him is the only time when he loses composure. He's subtly different from typical examples of this trope in that, instead of being a total loner, he actually considers the rest of CP9 (save for Spandam and Nero) his True Companions and his standard ice-cold demeanor warms up somewhat when there are no outsiders around. When he meets Luffy again in Egghead, Lucci expresses his desire to even the score with him, despite his superiors ordering him not to engage an Emperor and Kaku pointing out how much of a bad idea it is.
• Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking: His skills include a complete mastery of the martial art known as the Six Powers, assassination, ship-building...and ventriloquism.
• Asleep for Days: Following his loss to Luffy at Enies Lobby, Lucci is comatose for a while, only waking up several days later after receiving medical treatment at St. Poplar.
• Asskicking Leads to Leadership: After the Time Skip, thanks to his incredible talent, he has been promoted to the even more exclusive Cipher Pol 0 and furthermore, is (perhaps rightfully) in charge of Spandam.
• Atop a Mountain of Corpses: When he was thirteen, Lucci was spotted atop the many people he killed during a mission. This led him to be recognized as the most talented assassin of CP9 history.
• Ax-Crazy: While on the surface Lucci appears stoic and collected, he loves killing people and will purposely worsen a situation to get his fix. When Saint Charlos orders him to kill everyone who opposes him, Lucci looks absolutely giddy with delight; conversely, he's visibly disappointed when the order is rescinded and he's forced to stand down. The Vivre Card databook outright confirms that the reason he works for the World Government is because it gives him an outlet to legally satisfy his bloodlust, rather than because he agrees with their ideals.
• Badass Bookworm: Although it's for an undercover mission, he must be a very skilled shipwright to work in Galley-La's best dock and become one of its best shipwrights in less than five years.
• Bare-Fisted Monk: Excluding his leopard form's claws and teeth, he stands out among other One Piece final villains for fighting bare handed. Lucci is the only villain able to bring Luffy to near-death without the use of tricks, weapons, or outside help - just sheer skill and physical prowess.
• Beard of Evil: He sports a black goatee. After the Time Skip, he's grown it out to where it ends in a ball, resembling the symbol of the World Government.
• Berserk Button: Less noticeable than Kaku, but while he simply ignores most insults, mocking his Devil Fruit, or calling him a brat, will make him more prone to attacking. He writes off Jabra and later Ussopp's taunting up until they insult his Devil Fruit, and violently kicks Iceberg and later Franky when they insult him and call him a brat.
• Bishōnen Line: Lucci can use Life Return to make his large bulky leopard-man form more proportionate to his thin human form, making him faster and more agile.
• Black-and-White Insanity: The basis of his "Dark Justice" philosophy is that any person or thing that goes against the interests of the World Government not only needs to be destroyed, but is also evil for being that way. Lucci didn't just think the soldiers he killed being taken hostage was inexcusable or that killing Robin is necessary; he honestly believes the soldiers' weakness and Robin's very existence are both unforgivable sins.
• Blind Obedience: Fully subscribes to the idea that the Celestial Dragons are gods and thus can do whatever they want, even if that includes trying to enslave the Mermaid Princess of Ryugu right in front of her father, smack dab in the middle of Levely. When Vivi angrily confronts him about it, Lucci just sneers that it's the nobles' inherent right as "gods", and that Vivi wouldn't understand (which is ironic considering the Nefertari family were among the first 20 as well).
• Bloodbath Villain Origin: His first mission as a CP9 agent was given to him when he was only thirteen years old: to save some hostages from pirates. Unfortunately, he killed not only the pirates but all the hostages as well, because they didn't deserve to live for being weak enough to be taken hostage by the pirates, according to him. Some marines noticed that he got a nasty-looking scar on his back in the process, which coincidentally looks like the World Government flag, implying his loyalty to the WG.
• Blood Knight: While serving the World Government comes first, Lucci wishes no other reward for his service than the blood of their enemies. He almost never actually smiles unless he's in the middle of battle and even allows Gonbe and Chimney to trail Spandam's group so that they will lead the Straw Hats right to him. He has no problem picking a fight with Luffy or King Neptune of all people.
• Bullying a Dragon: Lucci's always had faith in his abilities but over time this faith evolves into full-blown delusion. He challenges Luffy to a rematch on Egghead, the same Luffy who just defeated the "world's strongest creature" Kaido and took his throne as Emperor for himself and ignores all warnings to stand down under the belief that his own growth in strength will carry him to victory. It doesn't, and Lucci gets wasted in a mere two chapters without ever forcing Luffy to take him seriously or even landing a single blow.
• The Bus Came Back: Lucci makes some sporadic appearances in the second part of the story, but makes a proper return to the story as an antagonist turned reluctant ally in the Egghead arc.
• The Cameo: Appears very briefly in the non-canon One Piece Film: Red, alongside Kaku and Stussy.
• Coat Cape:
  • Lucci is given a coat over his shoulder Corgi for the train ride to Enies Lobby, signifying to the audience that Lucci is the leader of the mission. His pigeon gets one too.
  • Lucci continues to wear coats or jackets in this manner after the Enies Lobby arc, although this time, several CP0 colleagues of his also wear coat capes, so it's just a preferred style for Lucci.
• Consolation Prize: After getting curb-stomped by Gear 5 Luffy he eventually acknowledges that he can't possibly defeat Luffy and once Kizaru enters the fray, declares that "an Emperor's second-in-command" is the next best thing, before attempting to kill Zoro.
• Curb-Stomp Battle: Since their last fight, Luffy has gotten powerful enough to fight on par with the Four Emperors and the Admirals, so even with Lucci awakening his Devil Fruit, he stands little chance against Luffy, especially in his Gear 5 form. Lucci is unable to land a single hit, Luffy spends more playing around than taking him seriously (though that is a consequence of his own awakening) and Lucci gets wasted in a mere three hits from Luffy in the span of two chapters.
• Cute, but Cacophonic: Lucci's ventriloquism voice for Hattori is very high-pitched. This heavily contrast with his natural deep voice.
• Dangerous Forbidden Technique: Due to having mastered all of the Six Powers, he's able to use a seventh one: the Six King Gun. It releases a powerful shock-wave, similar to an Impact or Reject Dial and leaves Lucci tired after its use. After the awakening of his Devil Fruit, however, this technique no longer has any side-effects on him.
• Dragon-in-Chief: Despite Spandam being their boss and the one responsible for setting off the events of the Enies Lobby arc into motion, he is laughably inferior to his subordinates in terms of competence and skill. Lucci, on the other hand, is the strongest member of the CP9, a very powerful second-in-command and the biggest threat to the Straw Hats during their assault on Enies Lobby. The two of them swap positions after the timeskip.
• The Dreaded: He's feared as the most powerful and dangerous member of the strongest CP9 generation in history by far and Marines believe he could actually survive a Buster Call, which, keep in mind, is meant to wipe an area off the map and is headed by a battleship fleet of Vice Admirals. Considering he's been committing hundreds of murders since he was a preteen, this is to be expected. He does survive a Buster Call, albeit with help from Blueno... then again he probably only needed it because of Luffy.
• Enemy Mine: After seeing that the Seraphim are being ordered to attack Cipher Pol agents alongside the Straw Hats and Vegapunks, Lucci and Kaku propose an alliance to Luffy and Zoro, despite having clashed with them just a little while before. Once the Seraphim are dealt with and Admiral Kizaru arrives, Lucci continues his efforts to kill Vegapunk, knocking Stussy out when Lucci tries to kill Vegapunk, forcing Zoro to engage him in combat.
• Et Tu, Brute?: He is able to remain calm in even the most difficult situations but even he is visibly shocked and shaken when Stussy takes out Kaku by biting him in the neck, revealing herself to be a Double Reverse Quadruple Agent.
• Even Evil Has Standards: Lucci is perfectly willing to massacre everyone branded an enemy by the World Government and directly states that he's going to chase Nico Robin to the ends of the world and eliminate her after he beats Luffy, but brutalizing her when she's a defenseless prisoner is too much even for him, orders or not. Probably why Lucci gets a redemption cover story and Spandam gets a double serving of Fate Worse than Death. While Lucci is brutal, he isn't a coward.
• Evil Laugh: He gives out an evil laughter when Robin throws Sogeking back at Sanji and refuses to get rescued, with Hattori mimicking Lucci.
• Evil Sounds Deep: His real voice is very deep and intimidating, a huge contrast to his Cute, but Cacophonic ventriloquism voice.
• Exact Words: Lucci promises Robin that if she come with them to Enies Lobby, he will let the Straw Hats leave Water 7 alive. Even when they come after them, Lucci keeps his word and doesn't kill them at first. However, upon reaching Enies Lobby, he goes to kill them, stating to Robin that they have left Water 7 alive as promised and now they are fair game.
• Fatal Flaw: Arrogance. Lucci lets his reputation as the strongest in CP9 go to his head and looks down on everyone around him, especially pirates. He looks down on Luffy throughout their fight on Enies Lobby and thinks of him as just another pirate. This leads to his first ever loss because he underestimates how determined Luffy is to take him down and how much punishment the Rubber Man could endure. Even during the Egghead Arc, Lucci, who's become a member of CP0, clearly didn't learn much from his first defeat at Luffy's hands. He meets Luffy again and is determined to get revenge for his loss two years prior, ignoring Kaku when he tries to tell Lucci that they don't have authorization to fight an Emperor and disobeying a direct order from Fleet Admiral Sakazuki. Even with Lucci's increase in strength, he's now no match at all for Luffy, who defeats him with ease in 3 hits in the span of two chapters.
• Genius Bruiser: He's quite intelligent and perceptive, on those occasions when he bothered to use his brain. When he starts struggling against Luffy, he even sets up a trap for his friends.
• Good Scars, Evil Scars: Has an enormous scar in the rough shape of the World Government symbol across his back, which obviously symbolizes his dedication to their brutal practices.
• Groin Attack: In a Funny Background Event during the Egghead arc, an angry Nami attempts to kick Lucci in the balls when he's incapacitated with seastone while Robin tries to get her to calm down.
• He Who Fights Monsters: His belief in "Dark Justice" makes him just as brutal and violent as the pirates he's supposed to be protecting the world from; Sanji and Franky even lampshade it after seeing Lucci brutally execute Nero for failure, outright declaring the so-called "agent of justice" to be more evil than them.
• The Heavy: While not the main antagonist of the Water 7-Enies Lobby arc, as Spandam is the leader, Rob Lucci is the one who does most of the action and faces directly the Straw Hats, as well as personally opposing Luffy with their opposing views.
• History Repeats: He might be one of the aces of Cipher Pol, both in CP9 and CP0, but he always has to tolerate taking orders from weak cowards so he can murder legally. First Spandam, then Charloss.
• Humiliation Conga: The Egghead arc is not kind to him. Firstly, his visible eagerness to have a rematch with Luffy, even in defiance of direct orders, only serves as a humiliating Curb-Stomp Battle against Gear 5 Luffy, even with all his improvements over the years. Then his attempt to monopolize the Seraphim against the Straw Hats ultimately backfire, as he's left too focused on taking out the Straw Hats with them to react properly to Stussy's surprise betrayal, resulting in him getting subdued and bound in seastone whilst she mocks him for his impulsive reaction.
• Hypocrite: Lucci shows no hesitation in betraying Paulie and Iceberg on Water 7, who basically considers Lucci family after five years, yet on Egghead, Lucci is furious over Stussy betraying him in favor of Dr. Vegapunk and swears revenge against her.
• I Gave My Word: Despite being a bloodthirsty government agent with the license to kill, Lucci is very adamant about keeping his agreement with Nico Robin and he keeps reminding his colleagues to leave the Straw Hats alive. It's only after he has delivered Robin to Enies Lobby and the Straw Hats' declaration to fight the World Government that Lucci is ready to kill them.
• It's Personal: In the Water 7-Enies Lobby Arc, Lucci only really sets out to capture Nico Robin because it's an order from his superiors and he enjoys bloodshed; however, his motivations remain on a professional level. This changes after CP9's loss against the Straw Hats. During the Onigashima War, as a member of CP0, Lucci specifically orders the Marine troops stationed in Wano to capture Robin alive when he hears the Straw Hats are fighting Kaido there. The fact that their real goal is to take over Wano if Kaido falls and that Robin isn't even the primary threat in the battle makes it rather obvious he just wants payback. When he actually gets a chance to engage Luffy again when they meet at Egghead, he's all too happy to do so in defiance of direct orders not to engage an Emperor of the Sea, on the flimsy excuse that Luffy attacked them first because Vegapunk's Satellites gave him food.
• Kick the Dog:
  • Invoked. He tells Paulie that if The Reveal that his coworkers are WG assassins is too hard to believe, he'll step on Iceburg's face to convince him.
  • In the anime, he kicks the defeated and unconscious Wanze aside while walking over to Sanji.
• Knight of Cerebus: His arrival at Egghead and him effortlessly one-shotting Atlas, truly conveys to the audience that playtime is officially over.
• Knight Templar: Lucci believes in "Dark Justice", which holds that ANYONE who fails to fulfill their duty deserves to die. When he was only 13, he killed 500 soldiers captured by pirates for being too weak. However, he seems to mellow down somewhat in the CP9 side story, after the government allows Spandam to frame them for failure. He still remains ruthless and brutal enough to terrify the citizens that the CP9 save from marauding pirates.

L-Z

• Laser-Guided Karma: After betraying and nearly killing Iceburg and Paulie, who practically considered Lucci and his crew family, he ends up getting a serious taste of his own medicine when Stussy reveals herself as The Mole, swiftly incapacitates him and Kaku, binds them with seastone, and leaves them for dead.
• Lean and Mean: He's slim, tall and is an assassin. Averted in his hybrid form, which makes him quite bulky and even then, he can invoke this trope with Life Return. His Awakened Zoan form is thinner and taller than any of his prior Zoan transformations, with elongated teeth and claws, emphasising his increased danger level in this state.
• Lightning Bruiser: Lucci himself is incredibly strong, fast and durable, being that he's the most capable member of CP9, but his Devil Fruit ends up subverting his capabilities for the most part. While his hybrid form is still quite fast he considers it to be slow for all of its bulk, as he has to sacrifice his strength and durability for more speed and agility using Life Return. However, after awakening his Devil Fruit, it increases all of his abilities alike, giving him the power to briefly clash with a Gear 5 Luffy. Though it's still not enough to actually make Luffy take him seriously and Lucci gets wasted in a mere two chapters without even landing a single blow.
• Master of All: Lucci is master of all of the Six Powers techniques, while his colleagues tend to specialize in one, albeit not to the exclusion of others. This allows him to also tap into the Six King Gun technique, the ultimate ability of the Six Powers, and makes him the strongest assassin CP9 ever had.
• Master of Your Domain: Just like Kumadori, Rob Lucci can use Life Return. He uses it to change his hybrid-form into a smaller, more frail but faster form.
• Meaningful Name: Zigzagged: As pointed out by a fan in an SBS, Lucci sounds like the Italian word "Luci" (Lights), making his name sounds like "Rob/steal the Lights", fitting with his philosophy of Dark Justice. Oda acknowledged the connection, but admitted he didn't know about it, making this a coincidence.
• Mighty Glacier: Lucci's hybrid form is huge, tough and incredibly strong and, while still very fast, Lucci considers it too slow. For this reason, during the fight with Luffy, he uses Life Return to alter his form, becoming more frail but much faster.
• The Mind Is a Plaything of the Body: Lucci explains that Zoan fruits changes the user's personality in their animal and hybrid forms, depending on the animal type. Carnivorous animals like Lucci's leopard fruit makes him much more aggressive and brutal when he transforms. During the two years timeskip, Lucci learns how to control his transformations and remains calm and calculative in his Awakened Leopard form.
• Morality Pet: While Lucci is a bloodthirsty assassin, he's genuinely fond of his pigeon Hattori, even giving him his own little outfits. After Lucci is defeated by Luffy, Hattori flies on his unconscious body, showing that he genuinely cares for his owner as well.
• Murder Is the Best Solution: Justified. Lucci has been trained since he was a child to become high-level government wetworks agent, dispatched whenever they needs an inconvenient problem 'disappeared', but even then, Lucci himself admits he basically chose this line of work to have a legal means of satisfying his bloodlust. If he can twist the situation enough to enable him to viciously attack others whilst on a mission, he will and he's happiest when fighting or preparing to enforce 'dark justice'. Stussy calls him out on this as she betrays CP0, noting that his first reaction to this was to lethally attack her before asking any questions and mocking him for trying to kill whatever he doesn't understand.
• My Country, Right or Wrong: Lucci knows what a disgusting slime Spandam is and there are some hints that he doesn't like the things he is commanded to do, but obedience to the World Government, as embodied by its highest-ranking representative, trumps all for him. He draws the line when he correctly feels that his True Companions were betrayed by the World Government. However, he slips back into this mentality as a CP0 member, this time serving Charloss, even saying Charloss doesn't have to make sense because he is a Celestial Dragon.
• Necessarily Evil: According to the Vivre Card databook, Lucci believes that killing enemies of the World Government and people that he deems too weak is a bad but necessary thing to protect the status quo of the world.
• No-Nonsense Nemesis: During his first appearance, Lucci has a pretty small quirk in his ventriloquism, making him look like he'd only talk through his pigeon. However, he drops the funny act when he reveals his true colors and becomes the most serious and somber foe Luffy has battled with yet. When their rematch at Egghead starts going poorly for him, as he was warned about by both his fellow CP0 member Kaku and superiors, he instantly switches tactics to taking out Sentomaru to mobilise the Seraphim in battle on their side.
• Not a Game:
  • He says, "This isn't a game. Look sharp! Everyone board the train!" in the localization of the manga when seeing the reception greeting him at the Puffing Tom. He also scolds Kalifa for acting as though the mission is already over.
  • He says that playtime is over when Atlas gets ready to punch him during the Egghead Arc, right before he nearly destroys her with a single combo of moves.
• Not So Above It All: While Lucci is a completely cold-blooded, emotionless assassin, he can be genuinely very petty. Even after two years he still hasn't gotten over the fact that Luffy beat him and completely disregards Kaku's advice that attacking an Emperor is a very bad idea and after losing yet again, Lucci still refuses to ever acknowledge Luffy as an Emperor. Later on, Luffy of all people manages to bait Lucci into revealing his true intentions by saying that Lucci's angry because he can't beat him. Lucci falls for it hook, line and sinker as he angrily yells that he'll take out Luffy's friends as soon as he manages to beat him in a fight.
• Not-So-Well-Intentioned Extremist: He's one of these as he admits to Spandam. All the talks he gives about justice and serving the World Government is nothing more than lip service. In reality, all he cares about is killing people and he knows serving a corrupt and brutal regime allows him to kill with impunity.
  Lucci: I don't feel like a toast. Because I'm not interested in status or power.
  Spandam: What is it you want then?
  Lucci: Blood. When we're here, murder is justified.
• Oh, Crap!:
  • Not as over the top as most villains, but his reaction at seeing Luffy stay up after taking his strongest attack for the third time during their fight pretty much tells you he's screwed.
  • He has a very expressive look of shock on his face when his teammate Stussy reveals herself as a traitor by attacking Kaku during the Egghead Arc.
• One-Winged Angel: His leopard-man hybrid form makes him more feral and grants him a boost to his already phenomenal strength but makes him slower due to its large size. Thanks to Life Return, Lucci's hybrid form becomes more frail but much faster. During the time-skip, Lucci Awakened his devil fruit, giving him an even more powerful and mythical-looking hybrid form.
• O.O.C. Is Serious Business:
  • Lucci very rarely shows any kind of emotion, but even he is completely shocked when Stussy betrays CP0 by biting into Kaku and sucking his blood.
  • Lucci is usually cold and dedicated to his job, but while captured in Egghead, Lucci is so incensed after being beaten by Luffy yet again and being betrayed by Stussy that, when Luffy offers to free Lucci so that they can fight the Seraphim together (on the condition that Lucci doesn't target his weaker crewmates first), Lucci agrees and reveals his intentions to kill Luffy first and then slaughter the rest of his crew. Even Zoro is shocked that Lucci would fall for such an obvious bait.
• Panthera Awesome: Can turn into a leopard man with his Devil Fruit power and he knows how to use his powers.
• Parrot Pet Position: Lucci always carries Hattori with him on his shoulder, though Hattori knows to fly off before he starts fighting and keeps his distance until it's over.
• Perpetual Frowner: Before The Reveal, he never changed his scowl, much less even spoke. After coming out as a CP9 operative, he does have a slightly wider range of expressions, such as smirking, especially during a fight.
• Pet the Dog: In the CP9 Independent Report cover story, after being discharged from the hospital, Lucci sincerely thanks the doctor for saving his life by shaking his hand.
• Power Level: Fukuro measures that, in his human form, Rob Lucci has a Doriki of 4000, the highest in the history of CP9. The second and third strongest, Kaku and Jabra, are a little more than half of it.
• Pragmatic Villainy: He isn't thrilled about killing Vegapunk as he is the single most useful person in the world and questions what the World Government is doing.
• Primal Stance: In his hybrid form, Lucci has a visible hunch to better indicate his more animalistic form and behaviour. When he modifies his form with Life Return, it becomes slimmer, more human-like and stands correctly.
• Properly Paranoid: He doesn't let his guard down after securing Robin and Franky and preparing to leave via the Puffing Tom, despite the fact that his enemies should be dead or at least unable to follow him. His caution is prudent, since the Straw Hats are already preparing a rescue attempt for Robin.
• Psycho for Hire: He doesn't actually care about the World Government's ideals or justice. Lucci is just a deranged lunatic who loves killing people and only serves the government because he can satisfy his bloodlust with impunity.
• Punched Across the Room: Sends Luffy a few times against a distant wall, the first time sending him flying across Water 7 into a narrow crevice of two buildings, in a section of the city that's about to be hit by a mega-tsunami. And too many times to count in their rematch at Enies Lobby. Luffy returns the favor twice though: the first time hitting Lucci with his newly unveiled Gear Third attack which would've initially ended the battle if Lucci hadn't gotten lucky enough to land on a Marine warship. And the second time via Luffy's Jet Gatling attack, which, combined with Lucci's already exhausted state, hits so hard and fast that his Iron Body ability fails him on impact and results in Lucci knocked into and through a wall of the building Luffy and he were fighting in. Knocking him out completely in the process.
• "The Reason You Suck" Speech: After Nero loses to Franky, Lucci comments that he's too weak for the team and tosses Nero overboard.
  Lucci: Everything about you is a work in progress. CP9 doesn't need you. You're only superhuman if you have the entire Six Powers repertoire down, boy. Kalifa.
  Kalifa: Yes, sir.
  Lucci: Send a report to the director later. "The new guy was too weak. We couldn't use him."
• Revenge Before Reason: Played with. Despite being aware of the political and social consequences of fighting an Emperor and their crew (and being reminded of such by his teammates), Lucci still jumps at the chance to have a rematch with Luffy when they meet again in Egghead. After losing to Luffy a second time in Egghead, when Shaka and Luffy consider freeing Lucci to help fight the rampaging Seraphim and ask him what he and Kaku intend to do after they are subdued, Lucci openly reveals that he plans to complete his mission and kill the Seven Vegapunks along with taking revenge on Stussy for her betrayal and Luffy and the rest of his crew for defeating him again, much to Kaku's dismay. It turns out he was only pretending and secretly transmitting the World Government information about the Straw Hats and their current situation. Once Kizaru engages in combat with Luffy he fully acknowledges that he can't defeat Luffy in his current state and attempts to kill Zoro as a Consolation Prize.
• Sadistic Choice: When he breaches the Tower of Justice and allows it to flood, knowing that the waters would reach the Straw Hats, he gives Luffy the choice of going to save them (and drowning in the attempt) or fighting him, which would give them a slim chance of survival. Luffy rebuffs him saying they'll survive anyway and if he goes for them, Lucci would kill them anyway.
• Shaping Your Attacks: One of his Tempest Kick attacks is bird-shaped and named "Victory Bird".
• Shut Up, Kirk!: He asks whether Iceburg's refusal to hand over Pluton's blueprints to the World Government is because he doesn't trust the government and Iceburg fires back that he doesn't trust human nature. Lucci then kicks Iceburg in the face and warns him to watch his tone, since he's no longer Lucci's boss.
• Slasher Smile: Despite having a serious frown for most of the time, being a subtle Blood Knight, Lucci gives off a wide and wicked smile in anticipation for his final fight with Luffy.
• The Social Darwinist: Lucci believes weakness is an unforgivable sin punishable exclusively by death. When he was a young boy, Lucci was sent to kill some pirates and free the hostages, but he killed the hostages as well because he considered them too weak.
• Sore Loser: Played with. In Wano, Lucci wants to capture Robin despite not even being part of the mission, showing that he is bitter over his loss towards Luffy and just wants some payback. When they cross paths again at Egghead, whereas Kaku and Stussy show concern at the presence of an Emperor and are willing to retreat instantly, noting they cannot fight such an influential figure without orders from above, and having direct orders from Akainu not to engage until Kizaru arrives, Lucci's only reaction is a Death Glare at Luffy when they cross paths and a visible eagerness to engage him under the flimsy excuse of Luffy attacking them first because Vegapunk's satellites gave him food. This also extends to after their rematch. After losing handily to Luffy despite getting stronger, Lucci flat out admits he refuses to acknowledge Luffy as an emperor. Once Kizaru enters the picture, however, he acknowledges that he can't possibly win against Luffy and that killing "an Emperor's right hand" is a perfectly acceptable Consolation Prize, thereby recognising Luffy as an Emperor.
• Sorting Algorithm of Evil: Subverted. Though being the first to bring Luffy to the brink of death through sheer brute force, he's actually lower on the algorithm than the previous saga's Big Bad Enel.
• The Stoic: Lucci is a professional assassin, so he does not let his emotions get the best of him and is generally calm, unless he's fighting.
• Super-Toughness: Awakening his Zoan fruit gives Lucci the ability to recover quickly from injuries. After being easily defeated by Luffy again when the latter is in his Gear 5 form, Lucci quickly returns clothed in the white CP0 suit, with nothing but a few grazes and a bandage.
• Took a Level in Badass: Not that he isn't badass already, but he becomes even stronger after the Time Skip, since he joins CP0, the strongest Cipher Pol unit. He reveals during his clash with Luffy that he also awakened his Zoan devil fruit, even gaining a similar cloud-like shroud that appears in Luffy's Gear 5 form as a visual indicator of how much power he possesses, albeit his is made of flaming jet-black clouds. The awakening of his Devil Fruit also gives him Super-Toughness that allows him to quickly recover from getting pummeled by Gear 5 Luffy; compare that to the first time they fought, where Lucci ended up in a coma after a Jet Gatling attack.

• Underestimating Badassery:
  • Lucci encounters Luffy on Egghead and is eager to get revenge for his loss two years ago. His fellow CP0 colleagues point out they need orders to engage in combat against Luffy, who is an Emperor, lest they suffer the consequences of disobeying direct orders from Fleet Admiral Sakazuki. Lucci just ignores them and makes a flimsy excuse that Luffy attacked them first because Vegapunk's satellites gave him food, just to get revenge against him. Naturally, Lucci doesn't take into account that Luffy would be a lot stronger since his win over Kaido. In spite of Lucci's own increase strength during the last two years, Lucci gets his ass kicked hard by Luffy, who doesn't even need to go all out. Afterwards, Lucci still refuses to accept Luffy as an Emperor.
  • Lucci underestimates Sentomaru's Undying Loyalty towards Vegapunk and his determination to see his mission through. During the Egghead arc while Lucci does take Sentomaru out rather easily, he doesn't expect that Sentomaru would remain conscious for long enough to order the Seraphim to provide aid to Chopper in order to carry Atlas to safety and to prevent them from aiding CP0 before Luffy knocks out Lucci.
• Villain Forgot to Level Grind: Played with. The first time they fight, Lucci gives Luffy one of the most brutal fights of the entire series, forcing him to use two different power-ups. During the time-skip, Lucci becomes much stronger and awakens his Devil Fruit. This allows him to easily defeat Atlas using his "Six King Gun", which no longer weakens him. However, he's not as much of a threat to Luffy as in their first fight, the latter having awakened his fruit as well. Luffy plays with Lucci, who can't land a single attack and Luffy's punches knock the wind out of him, it soon becomes clear to Lucci that brute strength alone isn't going to cut it and after being unable to timely gain control of the Seraphim, Lucci loses badly to Luffy, although he recovers quickly thanks to his new Awakened abilities. So basically, Lucci did level grind, he just didn't level grind as hard as Luffy did.
• Villain Respect: While he does look down on Luffy and considers him incapable of beating him, Lucci does concede that he is a way better leader than Spandam. Their rematch at Egghead has him visibly happy at a another chance to fight Luffy, even if it's also clearly just as much about evening the score between them from his prior loss, even telling Luffy that he's not the only one who Took a Level in Badass since the last time they fought each other.
• The Voiceless: Subverted. He initially appears as a ventriloquist, "talking" through his pet bird Hattori without talking himself. After The Reveal, he talks normally.
• Why Don't You Just Shoot Him?:
  • For a ruthless killer, he has a surprisingly poor grasp of the fact that just leaving your targets disabled, trapped, and awaiting excruciating death never works. Justified in the case of the Straw Hats since sparing the crew is part of the deal he struck with Robin.
  • He decides to leave Iceburg and Paulie alive, albeit tied up in a burning building. Both of them know that Lucci, Kaku, Kalifa, and Blueno are Cipher Pol Nine agents and Robin's deal only concerns the Straw Hats.
  • Invoked when the secret passage to the Gates of Justice is breached. Lucci immediately notices it and does nothing because he wants a good fight with Luffy and the other Straw Hats. Lampshaded when Spandam calls him out for this.
• Why Won't You Die?: Lucci's fight with Luffy in Enies Lobby is one of the most intense in the entire series and after Lucci hits Luffy with his strongest attack for the third time during their fight he thinks he has ended it and leaves Luffy to fall... only Luffy doesn't. And when he turns to see Luffy still standing and raring to continue, his expression is clearly wondering how he can still go on.
• The Worf Effect: Despite taking a massive level in badass, he still loses to Luffy in the Egghead arc and quite easily too. This is to show that while Lucci is still a powerful combatant and a threat, Luffy is on a completely different level from even the best fighters the New World has to offer and certainly worthy of his status as an Emperor.
• Xanatos Speed Chess: During his rematch fight with Luffy on Egghead, he and CP0 are actually in a very disadvantegeous position. Luffy is an Emperor and outclasses him as far as fighting prowess goes. To make matters worse for CP0, Sentomaru decides to help Vegapunk and Luffy and uses the overpowered Seraphim to help the Straw-Hats fight CP0, in order to protect Dr. Vegapunk. After Stussy explains to Lucci how the control-chip system works, with Sentomaru having higher authority over CP0, he very quickly takes out Sentomaru to eliminate his control chip and gain back control of the Seraphim.
• You Have Failed Me: Literally kicks Nero off the Sea Train for losing against and trying to kill Franky (whom they need alive for the Pluton blueprints).
• You Shall Not Pass!: When bringing Robin towards the Gates of Justice, where she'd be executed, Lucci stays behind as the last obstacle to prevent Luffy from saving her, although Luffy manages to help Franky get past Lucci. Luffy is so insistent, Lucci even complains about the pirate not giving him the chance to say this in regards to passing through a door behind him to save Robin.

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