Sorbet Kingdom

To the southeast of Sorbet, there is a church formerly managed by Clapp and his wife. After their family was forced into slavery, the church fell into disuse. Later, their son Bartholomew Kuma and his friend Ginny took up residence there after escaping from slavery. After becoming a priest, Kuma used the church as a place where the elderly could gather and seek physical relief through the Nikyu Nikyu no Mi. It is also the place where he raised Bonney, especially after the latter started developing Sapphire Scales. 3 and a half years ago, the church would be altered by World Government agents following Bonney’s treatment of her illness. A fence and sort of entryway would be added, almost akin to making it like a prison. CP8 agent Alpha would begin living there to take care of Bonney at this time as well.

Elderly Village

This village was located to the southwest of Sorbet, near Kuma’s church. Most of its residents consisted of poor, aged peasants. During Bekori’s rule, the village was left out of the kingdom’s own protection and sovereignty, causing its already vulnerable population to become more susceptible to death and enslavement. Six years ago, this village was set on fire by King Bekori. Many survivors then became refugees within Kuma’s church.

There, Kuma would grow up into a kind pastor who served and protected the elderly population, who were growingly pressured by their new monarch, Bekori, known for his miserly nature and hatred of those who could not properly contribute to the kingdom’s Heavenly Tribute. 22 years ago, King Bekori introduced a new, highly unpopular policy that split his country in two halves, with only the northern half being officially recognized as the Sorbet Kingdom. Bekori intended to reduce the amount of tribute he had to pay the World Government by diminishing Sorbet’s formal population to only its major contributors, who lived to the north, while excluding the poorer populations of the south. After getting into a fight with Sorbet’s royal army due to those new policies causing direct harm to a village they watched over, Kuma, Ginny and others were arrested for treason. Kuma and Ginny were eventually freed and then recruited by the Freedom Fighters led by Monkey D.

Dragon (who had managed to chase Bekori away), later resulting in the establishment of the modern Revolutionary Army. After Ginny was kidnapped by the World Government and subsequently released from Mary Geoise due to a sickness, she made her way back to Sorbet before succumbing to its symptoms (which worsened under sunlight) and dying. She left behind a infant daughter that Kuma found and promised to raise. The young Bonney would grow up in Kuma’s church, being forced to live under its ceiling due to contracting the same fatal disease her mother had, with Kuma hoping to find a cure someday. 6 years ago, Bekori returned to Sorbet with the intention of resuming his original plan of eliminating the country’s “deadweight”, this time through direct slaughter.

His plans would be thwarted by Kuma, who destroyed the castle in the process. Kuma would take up the official title as King during this time due to popular demand, but all royal actions were in reality made by Bulldog. Once Kuma learned that Bekori would not give up on Sorbet and was even starting to involve the World Government directly in his schemes, Kuma decided to abdicate the throne to focus on finding a treatment for his daughter Bonney, leaving Bulldog officially in charge once more. Not long after, Bekori would make his final attempt to return to the throne, preluding with a smear job depicting Kuma as a tyrant, and himself as a benevolent ruler who was violently overthrown. Bekori confronted Kuma on the ocean, with a fleet of 3 Marine ships, but Kuma simply sank the armada. Bekori’s fate following this event was left unclear, but no more attempts to reclaim Sorbet’s crown were made for the next years as Bulldog continued his rule, raising Bonney alongside his mother Conney while Kuma was away. Bekori’s actions would have lasting effects, however, as according to Jinbe, Kuma, the kingdom’s apparent ruler, was known worldwide for being a tyrannical monarch who was overthrown during a rebellion. Kuma’s reputation would earn him his moniker of “Tyrant”, which was carried over to his subsequent careers as a pirate and Revolutionary Army member.

Whole Cake Island Saga

Levely Arc

Two years after the Summit War of Marineford, Kuma was relegated to working as a slave-to-rent for the World Nobles supposedly for his past actions as the king of Sorbet and officer of the Revolutionary Army, and also to serve as an example for any nation that would dare defy the government. Jewelry Bonney infiltrated the Levely by posing as “Connie”, queen dowager of the Sorbet Kingdom in order to find and rescue her father. Kuma was eventually rescued by his revolutionary comrades during the events of the Levely.