One Piece expands the power system with Imu's new demonic abilities

One Piece has one of the most diverse power systems in all of anime and manga, and it mainly relies on two powers, which are Haki and Devil Fruits. While Devil Fruits have been present in One Piece since its inception, Haki has constantly evolved. In the ongoing Elbaph arc of One Piece, specifically in chapter 1180 of the manga, One Piece has done brilliantly to further expand its power systems by introducing new demonic abilities of Saint Nerona Imuthe final antagonist in the series and the strongest character in the entire world at the moment.

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Breaks down Eiichiro Oda's two main power systems of Haki and Devil Fruits

Image by Toei Animation

Eiichiro Oda's One Piece relying mainly on Devil Fruits. This power system was introduced at the beginning of the series, with Monkey D. Luffy eating Gomu Gomu no Mi in the very first chapter. As the story continued, more Devil Fruits were introduced and unique classifications of Pramecia, Zoan and Logia were also revealed. In Grand Line and New World, the vast majority of characters were revealed to have Devil Fruit powers, and this system has become incredibly versatile since then.

Around the time jump, Haki's power was properly explained in the story and has since become an integral part of One Piece. Haki is a spiritual form of power that can be used by those who awaken it, and it greatly increases strength among the highest levels. Both Haki and Devil Fruit are incredible in their own ways, but Imu's demonic abilities really continue to rank in a completely separate zone, making it unique in its own way.

Why Nerona Imus Maki significantly expands the current power system

In chapter 1180 of One Piece, Imu unleashed a unique power known as Maki. In the English translation of One Piece, Maki was simply translated as 'Omen', and looking at it, it simply looks like another form of power that Imu gets from her Devil Fruit, Akuma no Mi. However, the kanji for this technique literally translates to “demonic power”, similar to how Haki translates to spiritual power. The word 'Ki' is present in both terms, and while 'Ma Ki' is demonic power, 'Ha Ki' is spiritual willpower.

In that sense, Eiichiro Oda has expanded his power system even more significantly in the final saga of One Piece with Maki's power. Even strong individuals like Zoro and Sanji were easily overwhelmed by Imu's demonic power, and black flames of an unprecedented level manifested. Other powers, such as boosting subordinates, also became possible with this new ability.

How Akuma no Mi Unlocks Powers Beyond Standard Devil Fruits

Besides Maki, Eiichiro Oda has already taken the power system to a whole new level with the introduction of Akuma no Mi. On the surface it looks like just another Devil Fruit, but it doesn't really fit into any classification based on what it can and can't do. Imus Akuma no Mi can basically turn him into a mage of sorts. It gives him a standard Zoan transformation, but allows him to affect his surroundings as a Paramecia and even access abilities similar to Logias, such as intangibility in his shadow form.

More than that, Akuma no Mi allows him to grant powers such as immortality, regeneration, agelessness, and superhuman strength, among many others, to his followers. All of these powers make it unique from a regular devil fruit ability and as such it is an extension of the already versatile power system in the One Piece world.

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Scale the new demonic power into Willpower

In chapters 1179 and 1180 of One PieceEiichiro Oda has made it clear that Imu's new demonic power is incredibly deadly. It can easily overwhelm Haki users, and on top of that, it allows Imu to do seemingly impossible things and, by and large, maintain a firm grip on the entire world. Comparing it directly to Haki, which is something that Joy Boy and others who fought against Imu long ago harnessed, the power of this demonic energy is much greater.

Imu is more versatile and can buff up her allies and, on top of that, even grant devil transformations to others, such as the Yokai powers of the Five Elders and Domi Reversi. Imu is absolutely unstoppable with such demonic powers, and this system he has created for himself and his minions is practically unbeatable.

One Piece can be read on Manga Plus.

One Piece

Release date

October 20, 1999

Network

Fuji TV

Directors

Hiroaki Miyamoto, Konosuke Uda, Junji Shimizu, Satoshi Itō, Munehisa Sakai, Katsumi Tokoro, Yutaka Nakajima, Yoshihiro Ueda, Kenichi Takeshita, Yoko Ikeda, Ryota Nakamura, Hiroyuki Kakudou, Takahiro Imamura, Toshihiro Ma Shihi Endo, Toshihiro Ma Shihi Endo, Kadota, Sumio Watanabe, Harume Kosaka, Yasuhiro Tanabe, Yukihiko Nakao, Keisuke Onishi, Junichi Fujise, Hiroyuki Satou

Author

Jin Tanaka, Akiko Inoue, Junki Takegami, Shinzo Fujita, Shouji Yonemura, Yoshiyuki Suga, Atsuhiro Tomioka, Hirohiko Uesaka, Michiru Shimada, Isao Murayama, Takuya Masumoto, Yoichi Takahashi, Momoka Toyoda

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  Mayumi Tanaka

  Monkey D. Luffy (voice)

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  Kazuya Nakai

  Roronoa Zoro (voice)