10 Anime Deaths You Didn't See Coming

Ace, being the sworn brother of the protagonist Luffy already makes his death a shocker. The fact that we only see him a couple of times, to forget about him for several hundred episodes, makes his capture and impending death even more surprising.

Upping the ante even further is the build-up to Ace's death. Luffy does everything within his power to save his brother from his execution, breaking into the most secure prison in the world for starters; then he breaks right back out of it, with a great deal of its prisoners!

Then, upon finally catching up with Ace, he finds himself amidst an entire war fought for Ace's sake. The Emperor of the sea Whitebeard makes an appearance; the strongest man in the world has gathered all of his forces in a desperate bid to save his son. Finally, Luffy manages to free his brother. Ace's death has been prevented!

Well, it turns out that all of these efforts, all of this bloodshed only manages to delay Ace's death, as Luffy's mistake forces his brother to protect him with his life. Despite everything that has happened, it is Ace that ends up saving Luffy's life; despite everything, Ace dies.