One Piece Episode 1151 showed Luffy manipulating the sea with his awakened Devil Fruit abilities which ruins a significant aspect of the power.
The latest One Piece episode has been loved by fans immensely, and it won’t be a stretch to say that it was one of the greatest ones since the Egghead Island arc started. From Bonney awakening her own version of Nika’s powers to Iron Giant Emet stepping into the battlefield, it covered every major aspect. However, there is one detail that shocked fans the most.
It was Luffy somehow controlling the sea with his Sun God Nika form. While this was enticing to watch, it didn’t make sense for a lot of fans because the seawater is considered the biggest weakness for Devil Fruit users, and their powers do not work in the sea. This more or less feels like a foreshadowing by Eiichiro Oda that hints that Luffy could defy the core weakness of all Devil Fruits.
Nika’s New Power: How Can Luffy Control the Sea?
After watching the most recent One Piece episode, the biggest question that fans had in their mind was how Luffy could control the sea using his powers. It looks like a plot hole that could potentially ruin the story and also affect the development of Devil Fruit within One Piece. However, considering the principles of a Devil Fruit awakening, it somehow makes sense.
As fans know, a Zoan Devil Fruit awakening majorly grants incredible power, speed, and durability. But in Luffy’s case, things are a little different as he has a mythical Zoan Devil Fruit, which not only provides him with additional power and a somewhat different personality, but also allows him to manipulate his environment according to his own will. He can use his rubber abilities and extend them to his surroundings, making it easy for him to use them for his own benefit.
This was first witnessed when Luffy unlocked the Nika form for the very first time during the Wano arc. The same power was used by Luffy when he transformed into Nika in the recent episode, and it somehow allowed him to manipulate the sea and turn it into rubber. It not only gave him a battlefield advantage but also raised a lot of questions that Eiichiro Oda will have to answer soon.
The Devil Fruits’ Biggest Weakness Feels Irrelevant Now
Devil Fruits have been a part of the One Piece power structure since the very beginning of the series. They were introduced before Haki, and even though Haki took the center stage, Devil Fruits still hold a lot of significance within the narrative, and the many mysteries that revolve around this power keep them interesting. One such mystery was their weakness against sea and seawater, which was a great narrative tool.
However, now that Oda has showcased Luffy manipulating the very weakness of Devil Fruits, it feels a little irrelevant. From here on, it will not have a lot of impact on the story, and its significance as a weakness might slowly fade away, turning into more of a symbolic limitation than a real problem for characters. Initially, it helped balance the unprecedented powers of Devil Fruits (especially before the time skip), but now it has been overshadowed.
From their origin to their place within the One Piece world, the Devil Fruits still have a lot of mysteries that the story needs to uncover, but there is a big possibility that they are all connected to their core weakness. Hopefully, the One Piece mangaka could make sense out of all this soon and give us a better explanation of Luffy’s uncanny new power-up. Do you think the Devil Fruits’ weakness will be explored further? Let us know below!
