On July 12, 2026, in Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump Issue #33, One Piece creator Eiichiro Oda published the 1188th chapter of the series titled “Void”. In this chapter, a lot of focus was on the battle between Monkey D. Luffy, the Emperor of the Sea and Nerona Imu, the King of the World. In the midst of it, Eiichiro Oda also made sure to throw in a lot of the knowledge that belongs to the world One Piece.
One of the most exciting things that the creator of the series expanded on was the Harley texts that were first revealed in One Piece Chapter 1138 on February 3, 2025. The latest One Piece issue has now officially teased the identity of the Forest God, who was first mentioned in The Second World of the Harley and is a powerful deity that we are all eagerly waiting for. The true identity of this deity can only be none other than Nerona Imu, based on the ability to wither away forests that was first showcased in One Piece Chapter 1188.
One Piece Chapter 1188 teases Nerona Imu as the world's forest god
One Piece Chapter 1188 was officially released on July 12, 2026, and it pretty much focused on the various abilities of Nerona Imu. Previously, Imu showed us Sword of Judgment: Stigma, and this ability was used extensively in Chapter 1188 as well. Thanks to Monkey D. Luffy's latest Devil Fruit transformation called Gomu Gomu no Majin, which allowed him to transform into a Genie, he managed to avoid the powerful hit from this Stigma. However, the ability that Imu used shortly after, that is Blade of Nothingness: Vohu, proved to be far too strong for Luffy. Using this new ability, Nerona Imu was able to leap into the air at such a furious rate that Gear 5 Luffy couldn't see him coming. Immediately after, Luffy was pierced right through the torso and completely defeated.
“Of course I know you're not Joy Boy! Joy Boy wasn't that weak!!” — Nerona Imu declares Luffy too weak, One Piece Chapter #1188
What made this even more shocking was that Nerona Imu declared that despite being the Sun God Nika, having awakened his Devil Fruit and mastering all three types of Haki, Luffy was far too weak. At this point it is clear that Luffy is far too weak to fight Nerona Imu. This was quite a shocking scene for all of us fans to absorb, but what made it even more special was the ability that Imu used to beat Luffy. When he harnessed his power of Omen, derived from his Akuma no Mi, to create the Sword of Nothingness: Vohu, the vegetation that emanated from the Adam Tree immediately withered and at one point was completely destroyed. With this ability, Imu could clear up an entire forest in an instant, as even Luffy himself stated.
Imu: Blade of Nothingness: Whoo!
Luffy: What? The forest withered away!
Imu: The view is much clearer now.
Luffy: Same from here!
— Exchange showing Imu's Blade of Nothingness: Vohu, One Piece Chapter #1188
When Imu used Vohu, his surroundings were immediately affected, and it was as if he had some degree of control over the forests. Likewise when Nerona Imu arrived at Elbaf in One Piece Chapter 1179, which was officially released on April 5, 2026, in Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump Issue #19, the surrounding forest immediately took on a demonic life of its own and developed devil faces. When Imu left the area, these faces disappeared with him, again suggesting that he may have some level of demonic manipulation that affects forests specifically. Tying it in with a new release of One Piece Chapter 1188, where Nerona Imu was able to drain the life from the forest itself, it makes sense to see him as the forest god of the world.
Why Nerona Imu is the God of the Forest in line with Harley Lore
Nerona Imu is the forest god One Piece world, also perfectly matches the lore mentioned in Harley, which was officially released in One Piece Chapter 1138 in Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump Issue #10 on February 3, 2025. In this release, The Harley officially stated that the Forest God appeared in the other world after the start of the God of Breath, and sent them out immediately after the God of Breath. This piece of lore aligns perfectly with Nerona Imu.
“Within the void was breath. The forest god tamed the demons, and the sun spread the fires of war. Those of the crescent dreamed. Those of the moon dreamed. Man killed the sun and became God, and the sea god stormed. And they will never meet again.” — Harley introduces the Forest God, One Piece Chapter #1138
First, Nerona Imus' Sword of Nothingness directly correlates with the first opening line of Harley, who said that in nothingness there was Breath. The same terminology is used for the sword of Nerona Imus, implying that this nothingness came from the sword of Nerona Imus, and from this nothingness life was born again. When that happened, the Forest God sent out demons once again. Imu's ability to manipulate the forest, which was shown again in One Piece Chapter 1188 on July 12, 2026, comes into play here.
What makes it even more accurate is the fact that the Demon Forest God sends are related to the Five Elders, those who are Domi Reversed, as well as the Saint Knights. All of these have demonic powers, derived directly from Imus Akuma no Mi. In other words, Imu has the Forest God Devil Fruit, which allows him to send out demons, just like Harley said, making it the perfect parallel between the two.
How Imu's Forest God Powers Established the World Government
If the story of The Harley is to be believed, it makes sense how the Forest God ended up creating the World Government. First, the Forest God's main role is to send out demons and unleash powers over the other world of a piece. This makes sense when you consider all the powerful allies of Nerona Imu. Imu's allies are currently all in Marijoa, and they were once the 20 kingdoms that united to fight the threat of the Ancient Kingdom. All of these families currently reside in the Holy Land, except for the Nefertari family, and all have uniquely powerful demons within the ranks of the Holy Knights who defend the Holy Land.
Similarly, the five elders are descended from these 20 kings and have demonic abilities. As such, all have been sent out by the God of the Forest in one way or another, and it makes sense that the God of the Forest, in that case, is none other than Nerona Imu. Simply put, Nerona Imu harnessed the power of the Akuma no Mi, which is clearly the most powerful Devil Fruit in the world of One Piece, and then assumed the role of the Forest God.
Taking on the role of Forest God, Nerona Imu unleashed the demons of the Holy Knights, the Five Elders, and the Domi Reversed Slaves, using which he then proceeded to crush the Ancient Kingdom and eventually kill Joy Boy. After this battle, Nerona Imu was crowned as the King of the World, which was officially confirmed to us in One Piece Chapter 906, June 4, 2018. Now, Nerona Imu wants to once again harness the power of the Forest God's fruit in Elbaf, and it will be interesting to see how this battle unfolds in the weeks and months to come.
All chapters of Eiichiro Oda's One Piece are available to read via Manga Plus and Viz Media.
