One Piece’s Straw Hats: The Reason for Their Lack of Haki and Oda’s Foresight

The Straw Hat crew from One Piece is renowned for its memorable characters in the anime community. Each member possesses a distinct role in the narrative, such as Nami as the navigator, Chopper as the crew’s medical specialist, Franky as the shipbuilder, and Robin as the historian and archeologist.

The topic of their overall power levels in comparison to the opposing crews of the Straw Hats has sparked intense discussion among fans. While it is widely accepted that Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji are among the strongest pirates in the story, the same cannot be said for the other members of the crew.

Disclosure: This article contains information that may reveal plot details from the One Piece series.

One Piece: All the Straw Hats having Haki will make their struggles pointless

Luffy as shown in the anime (Image via Toei Animation)

Despite the significant difference in combat ability between them and the rest of the crew, Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji have been meticulously developed in terms of both fighting skills and character growth throughout the story. They form the majority of the Straw Hat Crew’s fighting force, with the other members falling behind in comparison.

Despite this, Oda may potentially utilize the unique specializations of the other members in the future of the story. A common issue among fans is that Nami, Franky, Brook, Chopper, and Robin lack the ability to use Haki, resulting in criticism of their power levels.

Robin as shown in the anime (Image via Toei Animation)

It should be noted that the Blackbeard Pirates and the Gorosei pose as major obstacles for the crew. Despite lacking Haki, members such as Nami, Franky, Brook, Chopper, and Robin possess abilities that, if honed by Oda, could potentially match those of a Yonko.

Nami possesses Big Mom’s Zeus and can also control weather. Franky utilizes advanced technology developed by Vegapunk, including laser weaponry similar to that of Kizaru. Additionally, Robin’s ability to create and manipulate appendages, as well as alter their size, has greatly bolstered the crew’s strength in comparison to other pirate groups like the Blackbeard Pirates.

Franky as shown in the anime (Image via Toei Animation)

Brook’s ice swordsmanship shares many similarities with Nusjuro’s own swordsmanship. It is likely that Oda intentionally chose not to give them Haki in order to allow them to further refine their current abilities, possibly in preparation for the anticipated final battle towards the end of the story.

The essence of One Piece has always been to triumph over adversities, and granting the entire Straw Hat crew the ability to use Haki would eliminate their “underdog”quality. This would result in them being too dominant to confront any obstacles leading up to their ultimate battles.

It is possible that Oda is planning to include a training arc in the Elbaf arc, with a focus on enhancing their current abilities instead of introducing Haki.

Final Thoughts

The highly anticipated Elbaf arc will finally begin in One Piece chapter 1125, scheduled for release on September 8, 2024.

The Elbaf arc is set to be a pivotal arc in the story thus far, indicating that the rest of the crew may receive significant training and power upgrades on the Island of the Giants.

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