One Piece: Luffy’s Gear 5 Powers And Abilities Explained!
The capabilities of Gear 5 are utterly astounding, and its potential seems almost boundless.
The One Piece manga has had massive reveals during its rich 25-year history. One such reveal was Luffy’s Gear 5!
Since the reveal of Gear 4 in the Dressrosa arc, fans have been waiting eagerly for Luffy’s next gear. And, almost everybody expected Luffy to unlock Gear 5 in the Wano arc.
However, people could’ve never expected just how surprising, rich in lore, and interesting Gear 5 would be.
How Did Luffy Unlock Gear 5?
During their battle on the rooftop of Onigashima, Luffy and Kaido loaded their final attacks.
The two were about to collide with each other, with Luffy using “Overkong Gun” and Kaido using “Thunder Bellow Bagua”.
Then, the head of CP0 interrupted their fight on the instructions of the World Government.
He was able to restrict Luffy’s movements using Tekkai (Iron Body), forcing Luffy to take Kaido’s full power attack head-on.
After the attack, Kaido was sure that Luffy was dead. This was further supported by Momonosuke, saying that Luffy’s “voice” had disappeared.
At that moment, Zunesha made appears near Onigashima and signaled the arrival of “Joyboy”, and we see Luffy transforming.
This was followed by flabbergasting details about the real nature of Luffy’s Devil Fruit and Luffy’s “awakened” form, i.e. Gear 5!
After being defeated by Kaido for the third time, it seems like Luffy’s fruit managed to break through its limits and awaken its true form.
What Is Luffy’s Gear 5?
Luffy’s Gear 5 is the awakened form of the mythical zoan devil fruit Hito Hito no Mi: Model Nika.
This fruit was originally known as Gomu Gomu no Mi in the series.
In his “awakened” form, Luffy’s clothes and hair turn white, his eyes have white ring-like pupils that glow. He also has white clouds floating around his head and back.
It seems that Luffy possesses a divine demeanor due to the attributes of his devil fruit. This is because his fruit is linked to the Sun God ‘Nika’, and even bears its name.
After the awakening, Luffy’s heartbeat has a specific musical rhythm to it, referred to as the “Drums of Liberation” by Zunesha.
The hints of Luffy’s ties to ‘Nika’ have been hinted at since as far back as the Skypeia arc!
A distinctive characteristic of this transformation is its impact on the user’s personality.
Supposedly, Luffy received this devil fruit from Joyboy, which could explain his cheerful and extroverted demeanor.
The awakening only enhances the user’s carefree personality and bestows its user with unbound “freedom”.
Luffy’s Gear 5 Powers And Abilities:
When the Hito Hito no Mi: Model Nika is awakened, the user’s body, which is already rubbery, becomes even more physically robust and flexible!
With this fruit, users can fight in any manner they choose, spreading joy to those around them (pun intended).
This ability has been dubbed “the most absurd power in the world” due to its gimmick and characteristics.
When Luffy enters Gear 5 mode, he gains the ability to transform any object he touches into rubber and control it in any way he desires.
This transformation causes both living beings and objects in his vicinity to take on a comical appearance resembling exaggerated spoofs.
This form enables the user to release massive quantities of Haki, as demonstrated by Luffy’s use of Conqueror’s Haki that caused individuals on the lower level of the Skull Dome to lose consciousness.
With Gear 5, Luffy can efficiently use the abilities of his previous gears without the need to inflate his limbs or increase his blood flow.
He can expand his limbs to an enormous size, allowing him to grab hold of Kaido while he is in his Dragon form. Luffy can also magnify his body to that of a giant in an instant.
Luffy also demonstrated exceptional creativity by using the ground beneath him to bounce back Kaido’s lethal “Blast Breath” by transforming it into rubber.
Additionally, he inflated both his and Kaido’s bodies when the latter tried to swallow him, allowing him to escape.
Luffy’s abilities also granted him the capability to catch a literal lightning bolt, redirect it towards Kaido, and create a colossal punch that was as big as the island of Onigashima!
As the name implies, there is no power more absurd than this.
The capabilities of Gear 5 are utterly astounding, and its potential seems almost boundless.
We have only witnessed a fraction of its powers, and it is highly likely that Oda has even more surprises in store for fans of One Piece.
The future of One Piece appears to be incredibly promising!
