This article contains spoilers from One Piece's Elbaf Arc.
The Loki flashback of the Elbaf arc is officially over, and now, the story will move back to the Sun Realm of the Warland, where major battles are going to take place. For months, fans had been eagerly waiting for the flashback to conclude so that the big battles of Imu and the Holy Knights against the Straw Hat Pirates could finally kick off. Oda has established some massive battles in the Elbaf arc already, and it is quite clear to see that the biggest of them all will feature the protagonist of the series, Monkey D. Luffy.
In fact, Luffy's battle in Elbaf will be so massive that it is easily going to dwarf the clash of Luffy against Kaido, which is what many consider to be the best battle in all of One Piece. The stakes are higher than ever before, and the enemies are stronger than ever. Against it all, Luffy will have to test the powers of his Gear 5 along with his newly mastered Conqueror's Haki. Undoubtedly, this is one of the most exciting phases for One Piece as Gear 5 Luffy versus Imu, the Sovereign of the World, edges closer with each passing chapter.
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Imu's Arrival On Elbaf Sets Up The Biggest Luffy Battle
Imu Wants To Take Over The Land Of The Giants
- Luffy vs Imu is bound to happen
- Gear 5 and Conqueror's Haki will be key in the battle
When the Elbaf arc first began, fans weren't entirely sure as to who Luffy would be fighting. There was no imminent threat to Elbaf, because the entire country was already on friendly terms with Luffy and the Straw Hats. However, this changed when the Holy Knights first arrived in the country. The first two Holy Knights to make their presence known in the country were Shamrock and Gunko. At that moment, fans felt as if Shamrock was being set up as the main antagonist of the arc. Oda took a U-turn when Shamrock was taken back to the Holy Land, and instead, two more Holy Knights were called, those being Saint Sommers and Saint Killingham.
Allow Mu to show thee the dominance of a God! — Imu to Elbaf
With three Holy Knights in the country, fans are still perplexed as to how this meager force was going to fight against the alliance of Elbaf Giants and a Yonko crew. After all, three Holy Knights are absolutely nothing for Luffy to take on his own. However, the power balance shifted greatly when Imu made their unexpected entrance into the country. By taking over the body of Gunko, one of the Holy Knights, Imu channeled their immense power and turned the country upside down. Using the power of Domi Reversi, Imu shifted both Dorry and Brogy into undead demon slaves and, at the same time, got the powers of the vast majority of the Giants as well.
The Sun World of Elbaf is crawling with Imu's army and the Holy Knights, along with Imu themself leading the charge against the country as a whole. With Imu's entrance, it is quite clear for the fans to see that the biggest battle in Elbaf is most certainly going to be Gear 5 Luffy versus Imu, and it is also one of the most exciting clashes in the entire story.
How Luffy's Gear 5 Can Rival Imu's Powers
Gear 5 Could Hard Counter Imu's Powers
At this point in time, it seems like it is way too early for Luffy to fight against Imu, and to a certain extent, that is true. Luffy has not mastered his powers fully, and he most certainly doesn't have what it takes to defeat Imu. This clash will happen regardless, and fans will most likely see Luffy rival Imu's powers here.
That's the form I feel my freest in. — Luffy to Bonney
The reason behind that is quite simple. The first thing that fans need to consider is that Luffy will be looking to master his Haki in this particular arc of One Piece. Luffy's Conqueror's Haki is quite strong, and he can certainly do a lot of damage to powerful enemies, including the likes of the Yonko.
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Luffy and Loki are teaming up in One Piece chapter 1172. They will face Imu soon.
That said, when it comes to damaging the Immortals of the One Piece World, Luffy found little success in the Egghead arc. That is precisely why he must improve his Haki and learn to master the mass of the Haki so that he can slow down their regeneration and, with enough big hits, completely incapacitate them. The best person to do this against would naturally be Imu.
Another important thing to consider here is that Imu isn't in their own body. They are channeling their strength into Gunko's body, and in that sense, Imu is greatly limited. This is not Imu at their full power, and Luffy should be able to defeat them in this body. Luffy vs Imu is going to be an exciting clash where Luffy will take his mastery of Haki to the next level, and Imu will throw everything that they have against him.
In a way, this is going to be a battle of Light vs Darkness, since Luffy represents freedom and Imu represents demonic slavery. Undoubtedly, this is going to be one of One Piece's biggest battles, and fans absolutely cannot wait for it to finally begin.
Luffy Vs Imu Will Be Even Bigger Than The Kaido Battle
- The stakes are higher than ever before in One Piece
At this point in time, it wouldn't be a stretch to say that Luffy vs Kaido is one of the biggest battles in One Piece, if not the biggest. For many fans of the series, this is the best fight that Oda has written so far, and it is quite easy to see why. Oda wrote many Haki powers into this battle and even wrote the arrival of Sun God Nika. This fight was incredibly cathartic overall, and it was an absolute delight for the fans to get through.
Devil Fruits are only going to take you so far. It is Haki that conquers all! — Kaido to Luffy
Now, Luffy vs Imu sets up even bigger stakes and raises the intensity to the next level. This fight will have everything that Luffy vs Kaido had, but on an even bigger scale, and fans will finally see what the final antagonist of the series is all about. This battle will see Devil Fruit powers on a scale never seen before, and at the same time, it will see Haki being utilized like never before in the story.
Both Luffy and Imu are utilizing their powers at the highest efficiency, and it will be a clash of two ideals: one of evil and slavery, and the other of light and freedom. Fans absolutely cannot wait to see what Oda does with this fight moving forward, and it is quite easily One Piece's biggest fight yet.
Luffy Could Get Even Stronger In The Fight
The ending to Luffy vs Imu could go in multiple ways, but it is highly likely that the former will succeed in saving Elbaf by fighting Imu and pushing them back out of Gunko's body. The main thing that Luffy should be taking from this fight is an improved mastery of Haki and better efficiency of Gear 5.
Luffy is not at his peak yet, and he is certainly far from the level of top tiers like Shanks. As such, Luffy needs more power-ups, and that is precisely what the Elbaf arc will do for him. Fans should keep in mind that after this arc, Luffy should be close to the level of Shanks, because their reunion is getting closer with each passing chapter.