Summary
Yorki is a pirate with yellow hair who typically dons a cowboy hat and a green captain’s coat. He bears two tattoos resembling the Japanese Kanji character Yo (ヨ) located under his right eye and below his lower lip. In the anime, before his full reveal, he was depicted differently as a young pirate with brown hair and no tattoos, wearing a tricorn hat and a red coat. This early anime version was adjusted to match the manga’s depiction once his true appearance was established. Fifty years prior to the main timeline, Yorki and his Rumbar Pirates encountered a crying baby whale in the West Blue. Brook, a crew member, played music to cheer it up, leading the whale, Laboon, to follow them on their journey. As they approached the Grand Line, Yorki and other crew members feared Laboon was too young for the dangers ahead. Yorki tasked Brook with convincing the whale to stay behind, but when that failed, Yorki ordered the crew to ignore Laboon and cease playing music to drive the animal away. Upon entering the Grand Line through Reverse Mountain, Yorki and his crew met Crocus to repair their ship. They were surprised to find Laboon had followed them. Over three months, they stayed to fix their vessel while singing with the whale. Deeming the Grand Line too perilous for Laboon, Yorki asked Crocus to care for the whale while they continued their voyage. They promised to return in two to three years to take Laboon with them. During their time in the Grand Line, the crew faced numerous hardships, including a battle with a Marine base that increased Yorki’s bounty, yet they pressed onward. After landing in a forest, Yorki and several other crew members contracted an incurable disease. To protect the healthy members, Yorki decided to retreat through the Calm Belt with the infected. With regret, he asked the remaining crew to send regards to Laboon. Dying, he requested Brook play his favorite song as a farewell. Although Yorki’s escape was documented, the report mistakenly portrayed it as an act of cowardice rather than a sacrifice to save the crew. In the anime, Yorki’s initial depiction as a tattooless pirate in a tricorn and red coat stemmed from the unclear visuals in Crocus’s flashback within the manga. That scene showed Yorki shaking hands with Crocus, but his appearance and the crew were obscured, and Brook had not yet been introduced despite being conceptualized for Laboon’s backstory. The anime corrected this once Yorki’s design was fully revealed. Yorki’s nickname is reminiscent of the real-life pirate Calico Jack.
