This fan theory perfectly explains it all about who could be the chosen one to carry on Kuma’s legacy.

SUMMARY

A recent fan theory suggests that Carrot might be the rightful heir of Kuma, based on hidden clues in the manga.
The theory delves into Carrot’s disappearance in the story, pointing out significant events and hints that may lead to her inheriting Kuma’s powers, particularly related to the Paw-Paw fruit.
Eiichiro Oda’s cryptic response to questions about Kuma’s successor has added fuel to the theory, leaving fans intrigued about the potential role of Carrot in the future of One Piece.

Mangaka Eiichiro Oda sensei has a way of hiding easter eggs as minor trolls in One Piece, which later turns out to be of much greater significance than what the readers expect. And in this very manner, he just may have hidden signs here and there about who could succeed and carry on Bartholomew Kuma’s legacy in the saga.
Eiichiro Oda sensei’s One Piece Universe
While some might expect Monkey D. Luffy or Jewelry Bonney, the former Warlord of the Sea’s adoptive daughter, to be his perfect heirs, one recent fan theory implores otherwise. In fact, with an ocean of hints mentioned here and there in the previous chapters of the manga further backing up this theory, it just might be proven true over time.

Warning: May Contain Spoilers For One Piece Manga Ahead!

One Piece Theory: Kuma’s Successor Could Very Justifiably Be Carrot!

In the universe created by Eiichiro Oda sensei, there has been a lot of debate about who could inherit the former king of the Sorbet Kingdom’s fortune of 296,000,000 Bellys and be his ultimate successor. One recent fan theory pointing out manga excerpts may have proven that his heir is none other than Carrot.

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First things first: A member of the Mink Tribe, Carrot was one of the pirates who escorted some of the Straw Hat pirates to the Whole Cake Island. This unarguably implies that she could be introduced as the next Straw Hat. Moreover, a theory shared by @drianwn78775 on X further justifies her future.

 

Now, onto the main theory: The first thing to notice is Carrot’s sudden disappearance. Inevitably enough, the last time she and Zunesha were mentioned in the manga was in chapter #1056, when she was declared the new king of Mokomo Dukedom by Inuarashi and Neokomamushi. After that, there was no mention of her whatsoever.

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That being said, the recent Lulusia Island incident as well as Garp’s disappearance in chapter #1089 would have been the perfect place to see her next, considering how the entire world’s reaction to this incident was shown. However, neither she nor Zou was shown in this either, which has led to the speculation that Oda sensei may be up to something.
The Luluisa Island incident in One Piece
Moreover, this brings about another question: Just where is Carrot? Initially, it was speculated that she was still at Zou. However, the lack of update on that has led to further speculation that she might not be in Zou after all. But if not there, then where? This brings the theory to the second part which explores the whereabouts of Caribou.

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In a quick summary of Caribou’s affairs in chapter #1108: Caribou finds the Blackbeard Pirates Van Augur and Catarina Devon and requests them to take him to their captain as he has some valuable information to spare him. However, they obviously don’t seem to believe him, which leads to the speculation that he will probably be attacked and knocked out.
Caribou’s conversation with the Blackbeard pirates in chapter #1108
Assuming that happens, this is where the bottom line kicks in: When Caribou gets knocked out, everything he had captured and absorbed of his Swamp-Swamp fruit comes out, including Carrot, who the theory widely suggests was inside of Caribou this whole time. But that brings another load of questions:

“Why put Caribou in this situation and why now? Why not show Carrot’s answer, or Zou in general? Where she is now?”

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Answering these questions was the X user themselves, as they headed on to the final plot of the theory: “Now more than ever it is clear that the only option will be to buy time, hear the message and/or flee, and is very likely that escaping by ship will be impossible if all of the Gorosei attack, but there is an option: the Paw Paw fruit.”
Carrot
But then again, there is another problem: Bartholomew Kuma only moves to protect Jewelry Bonney. Thus, this inevitably indicates that Kuma will be the one dying soon, and someone else will inherit the Paw-Paw fruit. According to the theory, if this takes place in Egghead, then the inheritor would be Carrot if she appears there as well.

Inheriting the Paw-Paw Fruit Could Make Carrot the Next Straw Hat

All the facts about the Paw-Paw fruit have held considerable significance and intrigue among fans ever since it was first introduced back in the SBS section of Volume 59. That being said, one fan asked Eiichiro Oda Sensei if Kuma was going to be the next Straw Hat since all the Straw Hat Devil Fruit users align in numbers between 1-10, with the only numbers left behind being 2 and 9.

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Since the Paw-Paw fruit is called Nikyu Nikyu no Mi in Japanese, in which ‘ni’ stands for 2 and ‘kyu’ stands for ‘9’, fans wanted to know if that indeed sums up Kuma becoming the next Straw Hat and completing the order as: Luffy – Gomu Gomu (5.6.5.6.), Chopper – Hito Hito (1.10.1.10.), Robin – Hana Hana (8.7.8.7.), Brook – Yomi Yomi (4.3.4.3.), and Kuma – Nikyu Nikyu (2.9.2.9.).
The question a fan asked about Kuma being the next Straw Hat (via @drianwn78775 on X)
However, Oda sensei’s response was more amusing than what fans were expecting. Answering this question, he wrote:

“WHAAAAAT?! (shock) Gosh that surprised me! Why was I surprised?! NO COMMENTTTTTTT!!!!!!!! NEXT!!”

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This response at the end of the Mangaka has further fueled speculation that he could be hiding something major related to the Paw-Paw fruit, and if it is exactly what this fan theory is speculating, then all of these events could indeed wound up with the conclusion that it is indeed Carrot who would be succeeding Kuma.