The central character of One Piece’s latest arc may have an unexpected inspiration and a surprising connection to the series creator Eiichiro Oda.

One Piece‘s latest arc has at last revealed the infamous inventor and scientist, Dr. Vegapunk, and he may have a surprising real-life inspiration that fans simply failed to notice. In fact, the inspiration for Vegapunk and his eccentric satellites may be series creator Eiichiro Oda himself, and his exceptional work schedule.

According to a post by X user @sandman_AP, a comment from Oda in 2017 suggests Vegapunk’s satellites in One Piece may have been inspired by Oda’s own desire to be like a robot that doesn’t require sleep. The comment in question originates from an interview with Oda published in the One Piece Magazine Vol. 1 released in July 2017, where Oda describes sleep as simply a waste of time that could be better spent collecting information or working on manga.

Oda’s desire to overcome human limitations like the need to sleep to allow more time for work appears to have found its way into One Piece in the form of Dr. Vegapunk who created his satellites for very similar reasons as seen in chapter #1100.

Vegapunk Was Inspired by Oda Himself

Chapter #1100 of One Piece pictures Vegapunk wishing there were five more of him to eat and sleep for him and lend him a hand as his brain overflows with ideas faster than he can write them down. The chapter reveals that Vegapunk built his satellites specifically so that each could take care of a specific function be it eating, sleeping, or brainstorming, allowing Vegapunk to focus more on his work without being held back by human bodily needs.

Clearly, Vegapunk appears to be the personification of something Oda himself wishes he could be. The manga industry is known to be incredibly brutal and demanding and the image of Vegapunk at his desk, churning out idea after idea as he laments his body not being able to keep up with him is one that easily applies not just to Oda but any prolific mangaka. Hence, taking into account Oda’s infamous work schedule and lack of sleep (apparently he only sleeps 3 hours per night) which have caused widespread concern among fans for years, it comes as no surprise that Oda would wish to have satellites of his own like Vegapunk to increase his work efficiency without sacrificing his health and well-being.

Eiichiro Oda’s productivity and workrate are perhaps as legendary as his manga itself, allowing him to produce an epic that lasted for 25 years (and is still going), taking a lot fewer breaks than anyone could expect. However, nowadays fans are a lot more critical about the ruthless practices of the manga industry, as most authors are not like Oda, and have their health seriously impacted by the demands of the job.

Either way, Dr. Vegapunk is quickly shaping up to be quite a fascinating character and will likely play a significant role in One Piece going forward. While it isn’t uncommon for mangaka to insert themselves in their works, the eccentric Dr. Vegapunk is surely the last character fans might have expected to be inspired by One Piece‘s creator himself.