Teach

Biodata

Feature	Information
Name	Marshall D. Teach 169
Alias(es)	Blackbeard; Dragon-Slaying Hero; “benevolent and unparalleled Blackbeard” 171 505
Species/Race	Human; later an artificial Azure Dragon Fruit user 375 447
Gender	Male
Affiliation	Whitebeard Pirates; later the Hero Association of the Whitebeard Pirate Special Zone 181 505
Occupation/Role	Pirate; later second-in-command of the Hero Association 505
Status	Active 505
First Appearance	Chapter 169

Background

Teach spent more than twenty years embedded in the Whitebeard Pirates while maintaining the persona of a “mediocre but good-natured nice guy.” His long-term ambition was to obtain the Dark-Dark Fruit, and he deliberately used kindness, humility, and loyalty to build trust around himself 170 216 453.

He was an unusual human with three hearts, allowing him to potentially contain multiple Devil Fruit powers. Akainu later destroyed two of those hearts, leaving Teach with only one and ending his intended path to acquiring multiple abilities 250 375.

Appearance

Teach is a black-faced, heavily built man approximately three meters tall, with a broad frame and dense body hair 169 171.

• Wears a white canvas bandana, an open-front long shirt, and carries a musket and wine jug 169.
• Has iron-wire whiskers around his cheeks and a notably imposing, broad-shouldered build 169.
• After eating Garen’s fake Devil Fruit, transforms into a pink, immature Azure Dragon; his dragon form is over ten meters long 375 447.
• Can partially transform selected limbs, such as turning an arm into a scaled Dragon Claw 478.

Personality

Teach is calculating, adaptable, and highly conscious of appearances. He can convincingly present himself as a righteous, humble comrade, switching stories and behavior to fit the expectations of those around him 169 216 223. His initial friendship with Ace was partly a means of preserving his low-profile cover, but he repeatedly protects Ace when danger arises 170 450.

His strongest personal desire was the Dark-Dark Fruit and the power it represented. Even after that ambition was effectively destroyed, Teach continued to assess situations through self-preservation and long-term benefit rather than acting on impulse 250 375 453.

Teach openly resents Garen and recognizes the danger of Garen’s schemes. However, when Garen tests him by pretending to be helpless under Kryptonite, Teach chooses to save him rather than embrace revenge, preserving the identity and alliances that keep him safe 453.

Abilities & Skills

Physical Strength and Durability

Teach possesses extraordinary physical power even without relying on a confirmed Devil Fruit ability during his first battle with Garen.

• A single enraged punch collapses a large portion of Water 7’s coastline 171.
• Can unleash rapid barrages of punches despite his massive build 171.
• His body and Armament Haki are durable enough to directly clash with Garen’s greatsword 180.
• Survived sustained attacks from Bell’s Sulong form, though he was left severely injured and bloodied 456.

Artificial Azure Dragon Fruit

Teach unknowingly ate a fake Dark-Dark Fruit prepared by Garen. The fruit was actually a failed artificial Mythical Zoan modeled on an Azure Dragon 375 376.

• Transforms into a pink Azure Dragon with enhanced physical resilience 375 447.
• His emotional state triggers the transformation; calming down allows him to return to human form 447.
• Can develop semi-dragon and partial-dragon forms through deliberate emotional stimulation 478.
• Uses Scorching Dragon Breath, though its scale is far below Kaido’s Dragon Breath 455.
• Uses Dragon Claw, a hardened partial transformation capable of producing destructive shockwaves 478.
• The fruit initially could not be freely controlled and forced Teach to remain transformed for days at a time 447.

Deception and Performance

Teach’s ability to perform a role is central to his survival.

• Concealed his true strength beneath an unremarkable Whitebeard Pirate persona for over two decades 170 453.
• Feigned severe injury after battling Garen to avoid exposing the full extent of his power 171.
• Publicly embraced the Dragon-Slayer image after recognizing that the heroic reputation could benefit him 223.
• Freed Waldo in Impel Down to create chaos while concealing his involvement 223.

Relationships

• Portgas D. Ace — Captain and “brother.” Ace trusts Teach deeply, while Teach repeatedly protects him despite privately resenting the obligations of being seen as a good person 169 170 450.
• Garen — Initially a bitter rival whose abilities and interference obstructed Teach’s ambitions. Their relationship develops into a reluctant alliance after Teach saves Garen from Kryptonite suppression 170 375 453 456.
• Whitebeard — Teach’s longtime captain and the leader whose crew sheltered Teach for more than two decades. After Water 7, Whitebeard offers Teach the position of Zero Division captain 170 181.
• Golden Lion Shiki — Shiki initially lures Teach into an assassination attempt under Garen’s orders; later, the two fight alongside Garen against Bell 216 455.
• Tama — A six-year-old girl whom Teach looks after in Wano. He transforms into his pink dragon form so she can ride him 447.
• Bell — CP0 agent who pursues Teach relentlessly after Teach’s Dragon Breath accidentally leads to Raiga’s death 455 456.

Story Role / Major Arcs

Water 7 and the rise of Blackbeard

Teach accompanies Ace to help the Franky Family and is drawn into a confrontation with Garen over Franky’s recruitment 169 170. Believing Garen possesses the Dark-Dark Fruit, Teach loses control of his façade and reveals overwhelming physical strength 170 171.

After their clash, Teach pretends to be badly injured. Garen later stages a dramatic “defeat” against him, ensuring onlookers interpret Teach as a superior powerhouse 171 180. The resulting reports spread Teach’s name across the seas, earn him a 600 million Beli bounty, and lead Whitebeard to offer him command of the Zero Division 181.

Dragon-Slayer incident and imprisonment

At the Sabaody Archipelago, Teach kills the Celestial Dragon Saint Idiote with a single punch after Garen’s Taunting Shout leaves the target unable to avoid him 209. He orders his crew to retreat rather than sacrifice themselves and faces the pursuing Admirals himself 211.

Teach is subsequently imprisoned in Impel Down, where the Whitebeard Pirates and Revolutionary Army members break in to rescue him. Although emotionally moved by their loyalty, he quickly turns the situation to his advantage by secretly freeing Waldo to trigger further chaos 218 223.

The false Dark-Dark Fruit

Following the destruction of two of his hearts, Teach loses the foundation of his dream to possess multiple Devil Fruits 250 375. Garen then exploits that ambition by giving Teach a fake Dark-Dark Fruit, which transforms him into a pink artificial Azure Dragon instead 375 376.

Teach gradually learns to exploit the fruit’s emotion-based transformations, developing partial dragonization and Dragon Claw techniques 447 478.

Wano and the “good person” test

While in Wano, Teach acts as Tama’s dragon “babysitter” and protects Ace from CP0 attacks despite wanting to avoid the conflict 447 450. When Garen appears to be defeated and restrained by Kryptonite, Teach briefly considers abandoning him but ultimately destroys the Kryptonite and saves him 453.

Garen reveals that the situation was a test of Teach’s character, then accepts that Teach’s continued choice to act as a good person gives that identity real meaning 453. Teach subsequently fights beside Garen and Golden Lion against Bell, enduring Bell’s attacks while serving as a distraction 455 456.

Later conflict

Teach later fights alongside Vista against the Five Elders, using Dragon Claw against the Elder known as “Lincoln” 478. In the later League era, he is remembered as the man who threw the first punch against the Celestial Dragons and serves as second-in-command of the Hero Association in the Whitebeard Pirate Special Zone 505.

Notable Quotes

“How could I ever hurt my own brother!” 453

“I’m a good person!” 453