One of One Piece’s Five Elders just completely humiliated Kaido by brushing off one of Luffy’s newest attacks that even Kaido couldn’t withstand.
One Piece‘s Five Elders are proving to be troublesome opponents for Luffy even with Gear Five, and the latest chapter suggests they may be even tougher than Kaido. Despite their frail elderly appearance, the Five Elders have proven that they are not to be taken lightly, and the latest chapter suggests their strength may be on par with even Kaido, who is hailed as the strongest creature in the world.
In chapter #1112, Luffy punches Saint Warcury with Gum-Gum Red Roc, an attack he infamously first used against Kaido. However, the attack has no effect on Saint Warcury, who seems unfazed after taking the hit directly on the top of his head. On the contrary, Luffy yelps in pain after punching him and his Haki-coated fist appears to be trembling from the pain of the impact.
While Luffy has had trouble inflicting damage on the Five Elders, this is the first instance of the Five Elders being able to hurt Luffy without even trying. The feat speaks volumes about their powerful Haki and their durability in their transformed states, which might even surpass Kaido, who was effectively put in his place by the very same attack that Saint Warcury tanked without flinching in the latest chapter.
The Five Elders May Surpass Kaido in Haki and Resilience
One Piece created by Eiichiro Oda chapter #1112, “Hard Aspects”
Luffy first uses Red Roc in chapter #1000 when he finally reaches the rooftop on Onigashima and enters the battle against Kaido and Big Mom. The attack was powerful enough to bring Kaido to his feet and even injure him quite a bit, which only makes it all the more shocking that Saint Warcury was entirely unaffected by the punch.
Granted, Luffy does not administer the attack in Gear Five; however, the technique still packs quite a punch and is an amalgamation of Luffy’s strongest techniques together with the samurai’s special brand of Armament Haki known as Ryuo. As such, the Five Elders might be even more indestructible than Kaido, whose entire character revolved around his physical strength and Haki.
Gum-Gum Red Roc combines Gear 2 and Gear 3 and is a mix of Luffy’s Elephant Gun and Red Hawk attacks.
Managing to cause Luffy pain is also another impressive feat that only Kaido has accomplished since Luffy awakened the Nika Fruit. Since Wano, Luffy has advanced greatly in his use of Haki, and it is very rare for him to get hurt while using Armament Haki. In fact, the last time Luffy was shown to be in pain was back in chapter #1045, when Kaido bashed Luffy’s head through the skull dome of Onigashima using his Ragnaraku attack.
The Five Elders May Be Luffy’s Toughest Opponents
Custom Image by Merlyn De Souza
That said, there is certainly a way to defeat the Five Elders that Luffy has simply yet to discover. Though Saint Saturn also appeared to be impervious to Luffy’s attacks at first, Kuma was able to inflict heavy damage and Saint Saturn did seem to be affected by Gear Five’s wacky attacks. Of course, defeating them will not be easy by any means, even with Gear Five, and chapter #1112 is all the confirmation.
Overall, the Five Elders are being set up as the ultimate antagonists of the Egghead Arc and possibly even the Final Saga of One Piece. Their unassuming appearance belies their true strength, and they may even end up outshining Kaido who, up until Wano, was assumed to be the strongest the world of One Piece had to offer.