As One Piece kicks off the final battle for Wano Country with the latest chapter of the series, Luffy and Zoro found themselves getting wrecked by a mysterious new Devil Fruit power. The Wano Country arc has been pitting Luffy against some unexpected forces throughout, and three of those unexpected foes were fellow members of the Worst Generation, Basil Hawkins, X. Drake, and Scratchmen Apoo. While we’ve seen Hawkins and X Drake in action already, the latest chapter of the series finally brought Apoo and his strange Devil Power into the mix against Luffy and Zoro.
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While we’ve seen his Devil Fruit ability used sporadically through the anime and manga in the past. Chapter 980 is our first definitive time seeing it in action. When Luffy and Zoro try to make their getaway after causing a ruckus during the big party, Apoo uses his music to strike and slash them with little time to react.
Apoo is the first one to recognize that Luffy and Zoro are the ones causing the trouble, and thus springs into action first. Playing his teeth like piano keys, and turning his face into a set of cymbals, he begins to beat his chest and playing some music through his body. Dubbing it his “fighting music,” Apoo manages to strike Luffy with ease.
With his “Scratch Bop” technique, Luffy is hit in the face with these sound waves. Then after, he yells out “Slash” and is able to cut into Zoro’s chest without an actual attack striking either of them. Even when Luffy and Zoro prepare themselves for another attack, Apoo is still able to hit Luffy with a sound wave induced explosion.
Even when the two of them get away, Apoo reveals they’re still well within the range of his musical attacks. The two of them are only saved when Eustass Kid begins to jump into action himself and takes Apoo by surprise. So while we’ve seen that Apoo’s ability can deal some heavy hits, there are bound to be even more secrets to it that we’re still not privy to yet! But what do you think?
Will Luffy and Zoro figure out a way to counter this ability? Is he a better fit for someone like Brook, who uses music in his own abilities? How do you think Scratchmen Apoo’s ability actually works? Let us know your thoughts in the comments or talk to me directly about all things anime and other cool stuff @Valdezology on Twitter!