Can current Luffy finally beat Shanks?

Summary

• Luffy and Shanks are powerful One Piece Emperors.
• Shanks can be a bit stronger than Luffy in a fight.
• Emotional factors can help Luffy win against Shanks.

Although Luffy started out as a mentor and idol, Luffy enters One Pieceafter the events of Wano, for the first time, these two are now equal. When Luffy becomes one of the emperors of the sea, Luffy finally begins to become a great pirate, and for the first time is able to get the opportunity to return the Straw Hat that he promised so many years ago. During the current arc of One PieceElbaf arc, this could be a possibility, as many fans predict that Luffy will finally reunite with Shanks on this island.

But now that Luffy is on the same level as One Piece's Red Hair Pirate Captain, many fans wonder if Luffy has reached Shank's level in terms of strength. While Luffy has defeated an Emperor before, in a straight 1v1 without help, Luffy can fight a lot more. This leaves many fans with the question: could current Luffy finally be able to beat Shanks in a fight?

Luffy and Shanks are both powerful One Piece Emperors

After his travels through the land of Wano, Luffy has finally reached what many fans consider to be Emperor level. With mastery over Haki, as well as a ridiculously overpowered Devil Fruit, Human-Human Fruit Model: Sun God Nika, Luffy was able to clash with and defeat Kaido, one of One Piece's strongest characters. While it's hard to say who is stronger between the two characters still, Luffy is definitely, at least, fighting on equal terms with an Emperor.

Do me a favor, keep this hat for me. – Shanks to a young Luffy

Shanks, on the other hand, has been an emperor of the sea for many years and has shown on a few occasions just how strong he is. Besides having a very strong crew, Shanks himself is an excellent swordsman with incredible One Piece Haki skills. Although he does not appear too often, when Shanks does appear, he can quickly destroy his enemies with remarkable feats of Haki, including decimating Captain Kid's ship with one attack.

Shanks might be a bit stronger than Luffy

It takes more than strength to win a fight

• As for Power Shanks is stronger than Luffy
• Emotional factors can help Luffy win

Now, since Captain Kid was on a pretty similar level to Luffy on Wano, Shanks might still have a bit of an edge against Luffy in a fight. Although Luffy could hold his own against Shanks at this point in the story, Luffy needs a bit more training to face Shanks incredible Haki based attacks. But with that said, power isn't the only thing that decides a battle.

Luffy may have some advantages over Shanks, considering the relationship between the two strong One Piece sign. First, if Shanks and Luffy were to fight, they would probably have a friendly fight. If neither character is going for an instant win, and if they are just sparring, the Straw Hat Captain may have a few more opportunities to pull off a surprise victory. Also, due to their past, a fight between Luffy and Shanks could be more of a test than an actual fight, with Shanks potentially holding back to see how far Luffy has come.

Shanks will still win a fight against One Piece's current Luffy

In a fight without external factors, Shanks will win

However, in a normal 1v1 fight, with no external factors, emotional or otherwise, Shanks would most likely still win against Luffy. However, if Luffy gets the opportunity to grow a little stronger during his adventures on Elbaf, the outcome of the fight could be completely different. Additionally, by the end of the series, Luffy will most likely surpass Shanks as well, growing to become one of the strongest pirates in One Piece.

By experiencing both victory and defeat, running away and shedding tears, a man will become a man. – Shanks

Ultimately, while it's fun to speculate who would win in a fight between these characters, seeing Luffy and Shanks in a serious battle would be one of them. One Piece's most heartbreaking moment. These characters have a deep respect for each other and want to see the other succeed. An all out fight would completely undermine the purpose of their relationship if it wasn't a simple bout of friendly sparring. Because of this, it's more than okay that the audience never gets to see a serious fight between Luffy and Shanks in the story of One Piece.