Summary
- Luffy has become an incredibly powerful pirate through various power-ups and is now strong enough to fight the strongest of the Yonko in a one-on-one battle.
- Luffy has mastered Observation Haki, which allows him to heighten his senses and perceive incoming attacks, making him nearly untouchable in combat.
- Luffy has developed and refined multiple forms of Gear Second and Gear Third, which greatly enhance his physical capabilities, strength, and speed in battle.
Monkey D. Luffy is the protagonist of Eiichiro Oda's One Piece. Luffy set out on the journey to becoming the Pirate King over two years ago and has, since then, become an incredible pirate. With the power of the Gomu Gomu no Mi, combined with his keen mind when it comes to combat, Luffy is nigh unstoppable in combat.
11 Things The One Piece Anime Does Better Than The Manga
There are quite a few things that the One Piece anime does better than the manga. Here are some great examples.
Over the years, he's faced adversity in many forms and overcome them with his many power-ups. Currently, Luffy is strong enough to fight the strongest of the Yonko in a one-on-one battle, making him extremely capable.
Updated on October 15, 2023, by Rei Penber: Luffy is currently one of the Four Emperors of the Sea and certainly an incredibly powerful pirate. He has continued to grow massively in One Piece, especially starting the Four Emperors Saga. In the Final Saga, Luffy continues to grow stronger and gain more power-ups. While this list already goes over the vast majority of Luffy's power-ups, there are some others that certainly deserve a mention of their own. With that being kept in mind, this list has now been updated.
17 Gear Second
Gear Second is the first big power-up that Monkey D. Luffy received in the story. After losing to Aokiji, Luffy realized that he needed to become stronger. His loss to the CP9 in Enies Lobby only increased his desire to gain further strength. Interestingly, Luffy managed to notice the trick behind the CP9's Soru technique and combined it with his Devil Fruit power to create Gear Second.
By pumping blood faster throughout his body, Luffy is able to take his physical capabilities to the next level. Gear Second makes him stronger, faster and allows him to react to any incoming attack much faster than he normally would.
16 Gear Third
Luffy invented Gear Third alongside Gear Second. This power was first used to break down the giant metal door in Enies Lobby but a true glimpse of this power was given to the fans when he fought against Rob Lucci. Gear Third sees Luffy bite his thumb and blow large amounts of air into his bones, giving him the body of a giant.
As expected, Gear Third is much stronger than Gear Second, however, it was very difficult for him to use before timeskip. Currently, Luffy has a perfect mastery of Gear Third and can easily take on some strong foes with its power.
15 Nightmare Luffy
The Thriller Bark arc of One Piece saw Luffy use a unique power-up made possible by those who had their shadows stolen by Gecko Moria. By stuffing 100 shadows inside Luffy, he was granted tremendous power.
Nightmare Luffy was strong enough to block Oars' punch with his palm effortlessly. He managed to completely overpower Oars in this form and even had great skills as a swordsman. Sadly, Nightmare Luffy has never appeared in the story ever since.
14 Gear Second (Post-Timeskip)
After the timeskip, Luffy massively improved his control over his many gears, starting with Gear Second. Before his training under Rayleigh, it was quite clear that Gear Second exhausted him a lot, and during the Thriller Bark arc, it was also established that it affected his vitality adversely.
However, after the timeskip, Luffy has learned to use Gear Second in a controlled manner, where he only activates it in certain parts of his body. This lets him conserve energy and fight with ferocity at the same time. Against the Pacifista, fans got a display of how strong Luffy has become after his training.
13 Observation Haki
Observation Haki is an incredible power that Luffy currently wields with perfection. The basic form of this power allows the user to heighten their senses greatly. Essentially, this power can be described to be a sort of sixth sense. The user can see incoming attacks in their mind's eye, sense malicious intent, measure power levels, feel the presence of every living being around them, and even sense emotions. This is an incredible ability that, if mastered, can make one a powerhouse fighter who is essentially untouchable.
This power was taught to Luffy by none other than Rayleigh during the timeskip on the island of Ruskaina. Luffy has greatly mastered this ability and it is one of his strongest powers currently. His Observation Haki still needs work, however, it is already very refined. In the final saga, fans can see this power being taken to the next level.
12 Armament Haki
Armament Haki is another facet of Haki that is present within everyone. This is one of the most utilized Haki forms as it basically strengthens the user tremendously. This Haki type allows the user to manifest their spirit and coat their bodies with it, using it as armor. It can be used offensively to increase the power of the attacks, and it can also be used defensively, which bolsters the user's body greatly.
Armament Haki has a great application that allows the user to bypass any protection offered by Devil Fruits and make contact with the real body of the users. This power can also nullify Devil Fruit powers entirely if used excessively. Luffy was taught Armament Haki by Rayleigh, however, in the 18 months that they trained together, he could only grasp the basic form of this power. Luffy then had to fight his way to the top in order to improve this ability to the level where it is today.
11 Conqueror's Haki (Basic)
Conqueror's Haki is a power that only a handful of people in the One Piece world are born with. Essentially, this power allows the user to impose their own willpower on others. Those who have weaker willpower feel the effects. The basic form of this Haki allows the user to knock other people unconscious.
Those with weaker wills absolutely cannot stand up to the power of a Conqueror's Haki user. Its basic form isn't all that special, however, it is the advanced form of this power that is truly dangerous, as has been seen in the story already.
10 Gear Third (Post-Timeskip)
Just like he did with Gear Second, Luffy also worked on an improved Gear Third during the two-year timeskip. Thanks to all the giant beasts on Ruskaina, Luffy was able to take his strength to the next level by increasing the power of Gear Third.
Unlike before, Luffy's Gear Third became much more compact after the time-skip, and is now used in just his forelimbs. Thanks to this, Luffy has also gotten around the side effects of the gear that caused him to shrink. By coating himself in Haki, he's now much stronger than before.
9 Gear Fourth
During the two-year timeskip, Monkey D. Luffy fought against the mighty animals that lived on Ruskaina. To defeat them, he needed an incredible amount of strength and body that was tough enough to take lots of damage. Smart as Luffy is, he came up with Gear Fourth.
One Piece: 15 Characters Who Deserve Higher Bounties
A character's bounty in One Piece is a great way of gauging how strong they are. Despite their track record, these pirates' bounties are way too low.
By pumping air into his muscles and using the maximum output of his Haki to increase elasticity, Luffy managed to achieve both of his goals. Gear Fourth relies on the power of elasticity to grant him incredible offensive output and defensive ability. Luffy overwhelmed the likes of Doflamingo, Cracker, and even Charlotte Katakuri with this power.
8 Gear Fourth: Tankman – Full Version
Luffy debuted Gear Fourth: Bounceman against Donquixote Doflamingo, but a stronger adversary followed shortly after: Cracker. Although Gear Fourth was strong enough to take on the former, Luffy needed a different strategy to defeat his new enemy, and hence he relied on Tankman.
By creating a bigger and bulkier form of Bounceman, Luffy is able to tank an incredible number of blows without much trouble whatsoever. He debuted the Full Version form against Cracker and managed to defeat him in a single hit.