‘One Piece’ Creator Opens Up About Akainu’s True Strength

There are plenty of powerful people in One Piece. Guys like Monkey D. Luffy are hard to beat, but there are pirates out there with more power than the Straw Hat. Now, the series’ creator is opening up about one of those over-powered men, but he is no pirate.

Try the opposite of pirate, actually. Sakazuki is the furthest thing from a vagrant, and the terrifying Marine can make the strongest man tremble thanks to his alias. After all, the name Akainu is one that should be feared.

Recently, translations of an interview creator Eiichiro Oda did for One Piece made their way online. A fan by the name Sandman shared the work on Twitter, and fans were interested to see what the artist had to say about Akainu. However, there is no way fans could have expected the fleet admiral’s true strength.

“Luffy worries me most since he defeats main villains right away unless I make him stranded before he arrives at the enemy. So, when you create a protagonist in manga, it is not a good idea to make him too strong,” Oda started, talking about the kind of power Luffy wields.

“For example, if Akainu became the protagonist, he is so strong that ONE PIECE would come to an end withing a year.”

There you have it from Oda himself. If One Piece were all about Akainu reaching his dreams, the series would have ended within a year. The guy is strong enough to bat away backstories and villains with ease. So long as Akainu has his Marines hat and the Magu Magu no Mi, the guy is hard to beat if not impossible.

It’s a good thing Luffy likes a challenge then.

Of course, fans have known about Akainu’s impressive power for a long time. The character has been around for awhile, and his part in the ‘Marineford’ arc solidified fans’ hatred for him. Akainu is the man who killed Portgas D. Arc, and he tried to do the same to Luffy. The admiral despises anyone whose blood he considers bad, and those with the Will of D land in that category. So, it’s only a matter of time before Akainu and Luffy butt heads once more, and Oda’s words about the Marine cast doubt on whether he can be beaten.

How do you think Luffy will fare when he battles Akainu again? Let me know in the comments or hit me up on Twitter @MeganPetersCB to talk all things comics, k-pop, and anime!