Summary
Throughout theOne Piecefranchise, no other pirate has had the same level of influence on Luffy’s entire career and life as Shanks. Although Luffy always sought freedom and adventure, Shanks was undoubtedly why he chose a life of piracy to do so, which was even stated by Garp during the Marineford War. The two Yonko are inextricably linked, though they still haven’t met since the beginning of the franchise.
This goes to show that their eventual reunion is going to be one ofOne Piece’smost pivotal moments. However, a sizable portion of fans believe that, for one reason or another, this meetingwon’t be as wholesome as others believe. In this article, let’s go over why so many fans think that Luffy and Shanks will fight at the end of the series and what the eventual outcome of this clash could potentially look like.
The Fated Battle Between Luffy And His Idol
First Appearance Of Both
One Piece, Chapter 1, “Romance Dawn - The Dawn of Adventure”
Story Arc
Romance Dawn
Throughout theOne Pieceseries, there is perhaps no other relationship that means as much to Luffy as the one between him and his idol, Shanks. This can be seen many times in the story, considering Luffy’s outrage at anyone who insults his mentor, which was most recently shown in the Elbaf arc, where Luffy didn’t hesitate to attack a subdued Loki afterthe Accursed Prince insulted Shanksto his face.
This goes to show how much Shanks means to the protagonist of the story, who sees him as an older brother. Their eventual reunion has been teased by Oda for decades and is set to be incredibly emotional, as each time the two have come close to one another, something has happened that prevents the two from meeting. Examples of this can be seen in the Wano arc, where they were separated by the borders of the country, and at the end of the Marineford War, where Luffy passed out due to shock, preventing a reunion.
Red Hair… The one who put Luffy on the path to become a pirate!
However, as linked as these two are, there is a growing sentiment within the community which states thatShanks and Luffy will fight towards the end of the series. There are two main reasons for this. The first one is rather direct, claiming that the two are now officially on a collision course due to both wanting to find the One Piece treasure and claiming the title of Pirate King. Most fans always believed that Shanks just wanted to set the stage for Luffy to do this, but upon collecting the Road Poneglyph readings for himself, there may be something more here.
At one point at the end of Wano, Shanks spoke to Benn Beckman and told him that it was time they set out to find the One Piece. If Shanks just wanted to bring Luffy up to be the Pirate King, then he wouldn’t have the ambition to find the mythical treasure at all and would have just ignored the whole thing as Whitebeard did. There is also a growing sentiment that states Shanks may be evil, so it’s natural to assume that he will fight Luffy in the end.
On the other hand, the more likely theory of why Luffy and Shanks will eventually fight at the end ofOne Pieceis that the latter would be the final test for Luffy. Luffy is the inheritor of Joyboy’s and Roger’s will, and it has already been confirmed that he shares thesame dream as the former Pirate King. Seeing how Shanks has always championed the boy from the start of his journey, he will likely be the final test for Luffy at the end of the story to see if he is truly strong enough to defeat Imu and bring about a new dawn to the world.
Thematically, Shanks is the perfect person to do this, since his power is legendary and he is the strongest user of Advanced Conqueror’s Haki in the current setting. This is likely why he is still stronger than Luffy overall, so he would be the young Yonko’s final test in honing his skills and strength to be worthy of finding the One Piece treasure and completing Joyboy’s 800-year-old plan.
How Would This Battle Between Them Play Out?
Who Would Be The Victor?
At the current moment, it is a toss-up of who is stronger between the two. Of course, Shanks' feats withAdvanced Conqueror’s and Observation Hakiare unparalleled, since the things he was able to do with them were so great that no one else has been shown to do anything even close to them. This is why many believe that he is currently stronger than Luffy, and if the two were to fight right now, Shanks would win pretty convincingly.
However, thematically, this would make very little sense. While it would definitely be Luffy’s toughest fight at that point in the story, he would eventually win since he is also a user of the Advanced Haki forms, and the real difference would be made with his Nika fruit, as this is arguably the most powerful Devil Fruit in the entire series. It essentially allows Luffy to do whatever he wants, and due to inheriting the ancient power of Joyboy himself, Luffy would end up being the winner of a clash between him and his mentor.
One Piececan be streamed onCrunchyroll.
One Piece
One Piece is a Japanese manga written and illustrated by Eiichiro Oda. The series follows protagonist Monkey D. Luffy and his Straw Hat Pirate crew as they explore the Grand Line to find the King of the Pirates' ultimate treasure, the One Piece, in order to become the next king. The manga’s popularity helped it spin off into a larger media franchise, including an anime with more than 1,000 episodes.
