It was true that Shanks could still hold his place among the Yonko after losing an arm.
But everyone knew Shanks was no longer the Monster he had once been after losing an arm. His strength had fallen by at least thirty percent.
Losing an arm had dealt an especially devastating blow to his swordsmanship.
Dracule Mihawk's refusal to fight him again made that clear enough.
A swordsman's two-handed slash carried far more force than one delivered with a single hand.
Unless, of course, he had a Kirin Arm.
But Shanks clearly didn't have that absurd cheat.
He didn't even have a kirin tattoo on his arm.
At first, neither Shanks nor his crew had regretted staking an arm on Luffy and the new era.
But life at sea left little room for choice.
When news of Shanks's lost arm reached the New World, pirates descended like vultures on the "gravely wounded" Yonko.
Just like Luffy's Worst Generation in the original story, countless people in every era wanted to challenge a Yonko for his place.
Life suddenly grew hectic for the Red Hair Pirates. Their senior officers fought across their territory, dealing with every troublemaker who came calling.
But they couldn't keep that up forever!
Even though Shanks continued to display overwhelming strength, pirates still saw him as the weakest of the Yonko.
So when Shanks and the others learned about Titan, he took his crew's advice and decided to try.
He would use Titan's power to regrow his arm!
"But the way you looked earlier..." Momonga frowned at Shanks's withered left hand. "Did it fail in the end?"
"Yes." Benn Beckman sighed, a lingering sorrow in his eyes. "The captain did regrow his left hand. But it drew all the nutrients and energy from the rest of his body.