Luffy and Ace

SBS extra page with fan art by Kobayashi Kunimitsu, Kanagawa. One reader asks Oda how to use a Nami body pillow before buying one. Oda jokes that he does not know, guesses you squeeze it against your groin when you sleep, and says people may think he understands every piece of One Piece merchandise, but the ones who check that stuff are staff members, especially a man named Konishi. He adds that as long as the people making and buying it are happy, he is satisfied, and mentions liking the Portrait of Pirates figure series even though they are expensive. Another reader asks seriously what types of tone Oda uses in One Piece, whether Shonen manga usually uses few tones, and whether he shades with tones. Oda says he uses three types: the famous IC screen tone, a heavy one, and one called "sand gura." He explains tones as transparent seals fixed over the manga, says hundreds exist but he mainly uses those three, and demonstrates shading by cutting a 22.5-degree angle against the dots, sharpening it, and layering it. For sunsets he does not use a gradation tone, preferring to pile on shading by hand, though computers can do it nowadays.