Nami/Roronoa Zoro
| Pairing | |
|---|---|
| Pairing: | Nami/Roronoa Zoro |
| Alternative name(s): | ZoNa, ZoNami, NamiZo, NaZo, Green Tangerine, ZoroNami, ゾロナミ |
| Gender category: | het |
| Fandom: | One Piece |
| Canonical?: | No |
| Prevalence: | Very rare |
| Archives: | |
| Other: | |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
Nami/Roronoa Zoro, commonly known as pormanteau ZoNami or ZoNa is the het pairing of Nami and Roronoa Zoro from the One Piece fandom.
Canon
Zoro and Nami are close friends and crew mates with the Straw Hat Pirates, together they are respectively the longest serving crew members under Luffy. The two get on, generally, well, however Nami is prone to violence when it comes to Zoro’s laidback and indifferent attitude, whilst Zoro can find Nami annoying and difficult. Before their meeting, Zoro was amazed at Nami's navigation skills, even stating that she would be an excellent navigator and that she had to join them. The two meet when Zoro rescues Nami from buggy pirates in Orange Town, later asking her if she was injured. Their relationship throughout the story is expanded more and more, leading them to trust each other, and recognizing each other's strength and abilities.
History
This pair is one of the oldest pairs in the One Piece fandom, which was initially a very popular pair surpassing many currently popular ships, and although it is no longer as popular today as it was then, it remains a popular pair in the Eastern fandom, particularly in Japan, Korea and China, but very rare in modern Western fandom. On Pixiv, a Japanese site, a lot of fanart and novels is produced about the ship. So much so that in the tag ゾロナミ (Zoro/Nami) there are more than 3500 works, even surpassing popular ships that include Zoro and Nami. And usually, various emojis are used in fandom to refer to the ship; the most common are 💚🧡 and ⚔️🍊.
Fans of the ship love their chemistry and dynamics that has been established over time and in the sagas, pointing out how both care and care for each other, how Nami who stays by Zoro's side wounded in Thriller Bark Saga or how Zoro seems to care a lot about her, as also demonstrated in the Egghead Saga. Their relationship is not without quarrels, and it is a factor that attracts fans of the ship, seeing them as alleged husband and wife fighting. The pair is seen as a parallel to two other canonical pairs of two other series; Vegeta x Bulma and Sasuke x Sakura.
It is worth noting that Eiichiro Oda was heavily influenced by the work of Akira Toriyama, the creator of Dragon Ball, and cites at having a big impact on his development as a manga author. The two had the opportunity to make a crossover between their respective mangas. In this crossover Zoro and Nami were paralleled with Vegeta and Bulma, giving confirmation to fans of their similarities.
Gallery
Zoro and Nami in manga version
Zoro and Nami in anime version
Zoro and Nami color spread chapter 764
Fandom
Common Tropes in Fanworks
- AU - A common scenario is the bar, as they both love to drink.
- College AU - Both students where one of them has a crush on the other.
- Idiots in love
- Soulmate AU Fic
- Friends to Lovers
- Mutual trust
Fanworks
Fan fiction
Fanart
Archives and Communities
Fanon Holidays
ZoNami Day, Week and Month are holidays created by fans of the ship that can be celebrated during the holidays, without having any connection with the canonical material. During these holidays many can create calendars during the month ZoNami, with creative things to do, such as fanart, AMV and much more related to the ship. The day fans celebrate ZoNami is November 7th, a date that is celebrated mostly in Japan.
- The "ZoNami Day" takes place throughout the day of November 7th.
- The "ZoNami Week" takes place throughout the week from June 1 to 7.
- The "ZoNami month" takes place throughout the month.
The meeting between Zoro and Nami
Japanese ZoNami shippers celebrate the meeting between Zoro and Nami, which originally took place in the manga chapter 10 on September 29, 1997 (in the anime their meeting took place two years later, precisely on December 15, 1999, of the 5th episode). They create fanart and write fanfiction or stories for the ship, and on Twitter the most used Japanese hashtag is "#ゾロナミ出会いの日" that it means "ZoroNami the day we met".
Quotes
“Amazing. She used the weather to her own advantage. She must really know the seas... She'd make a great navigator...”
— Zoro's impressions of Nami before meeting her.
Nami – “That idiot... What was he thinking?”
Zoro – “What were YOU thinking? What kind of cold-blooded witch woman... can't stand to see a man drown? Well, help me, stupid. I almost died just now!”
— Zoro asks Nami to save him, after she rescues him from the pool of water: Chapter 71
“When did she get this picture taken?”
— Zoro comments on Nami's poster in Dressrosa Arc.
Zoro – “That's quite the pitiful sight.”
Nami – “Cut him a break, he's still a little kid on the inside.”
— Nami talks to Zoro. CHAPTER 1057
Nami – “KYAAAH!”
Zoro – “That was Nami!! All four of those things must be running wild!”
— Zoro worried about Nami. CHAPTER 1076
Trivia
- Usopp's voice actor (Kappei Yamaguchi) interviewed the various voice actors, including Akemi Okamura (Nami's voice actress), and Kappei in a 2016 interview claimed that both Zoro and Nami bring balance to the crew, and Akemi in turn states that Nakai Kazuya (Zoro's voice actor) always provides the punchline, regardless of the type of suggestion Akemi throws at him.
- The animal that represent Zoro is the tiger and Nami a cat, both of which are felines. Zoro has also been representated by a shark.
- Both Zoro and Nami hated pirates at first. Nami stole from them whilst Zoro hunted them.
- Nami and Zoro both have a great tolerance for alcohol and love to drink.
- Zoro and Nami are polar opposites when it comes to navigation. Whilst Nami is very skilled Zoro is hopeless and easily gets himself lost.
- Both Zoro and Nami are respectively the longest-lived members next to their captain Luffy, and they are the ones in particular who take care of him.
- So far, Zoro is the only crew member not to receive a hug from Nami.
- In a One Piece TV special, in the end, Zoro and Nami smile at each other.