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On March 28, 2022, in Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump issue #17, One Piece officially released chapter 1044. With it, we got to see Monkey D. Luffy's strongest transformation to date, that is, Gear 5, also known as the Sun God Nika form.
This transformation was a direct result of Luffy awakening the powers of Hito Hito no Mi, Model: Nika, a powerful Mythical Zoans Devil Fruit. Over the last four years, this transformation has stayed on top, as One Piece’s as well as Luffy's strongest transformation of all. However, the Nika transformation is finally failing the protagonist of the series. In One Piece chapter 1188, which was officially released on July 12, 2026, Luffy's limitations were officially showcased to us for the very first time. If there's one thing that's clear from this chapter, it is that Monkey D. Luffy needs another, stronger transformation on top of Gear 5 if he is to win in a battle against Nerona Imu, and with that, Gear 5, as we know it, must come to an end.
One Piece Confirms Luffy's Gear 5 Is Too Weak To Defeat Nerona Imu
One Piece Chapter 1188, which was officially released in Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump Issue #33 for 2026, confirmed Monkey D. Luffy's limitations as far as his Gear 5 is concerned. Gear 5 Luffy has always been incredibly powerful, and with the incredible grit and amazing creativity that he showcases in combat, it often leaves his enemies confused and on the back foot. However, the battle against Nerona Imu, the King of the World and the Devil God of One Piece, was completely different. Luffy, despite showing dominance in battles usually, was not able to put up an impressive performance against Imu.
"Of course I know that thou art not Joy Boy! Joy Boy was not this weak!!" — Nerona Imu calls Luffy weaker than Joy Boy, One Piece Chapter #1188
In fact, Luffy was not even able to land a single clean hit on Imu after he transformed into his Gear 5 and was eventually stabbed right through the gut at the end of the chapter. One Piece Chapter 1188 saw Imu utilize the Blade of Nothingness: Vohu and defeat Luffy using it, leaving him in a pool of blood. At the same time, Imu officially confirmed to us that Monkey D. Luffy was way too weak to be Joy Boy, which only added further insult to injury. With Gear 5 now officially being way too weak to defeat Nerona Imu, despite being at absolute full power, which was confirmed to us in One Piece Chapter 1186 on June 28, 2026, we can say with absolute certainty that Luffy needs a stronger transformation to defeat the King of the World in one way or another.
"That bad news guy is Elbaf's enemy, right? Then, that means he's my enemy as well. I'm overflowing with strength. Right now, I cannot see anyone beating me." — Monkey D. Luffy confirms his full power before entering Imu battle, One Piece Chapter #1186
Why Gear 5's Defeat Means A Replacement Transformation Is Lined Up For Luffy
With Gear 5 being insufficient to take down Nerona Imu, we now have an almost guarantee of the fact that Monkey D. Luffy is going to get a stronger transformation sooner rather than later. Luffy's Gear 5 is strong, but against Imu, it was not able to even land a single blow. Most fans might want Luffy to power up his Conqueror's Haki as his next power up, but the fact is, Conqueror's Haki simply cannot grow stronger without Luffy upgrading in terms of power with a new transformation.
"Though you can control the Color of the Supreme King, you can't train it to be stronger directly. It is the embodiment of the spirit of the user. The only way to make it stronger is for the user to grow stronger." — Silvers Rayleigh confirms Supreme King Haki can't be trained, One Piece Chapter #597
As confirmed by Rayleigh in One Piece Chapter 597, Conqueror's Haki cannot be directly trained and only grows stronger when the user grows stronger. In other words, Luffy's Conqueror's Haki is at its peak when he is in Gear 5. It will grow stronger when he unlocks a new transformation or takes Gear 5 to a heightened state. In other words, a boost to Luffy's Gear 5 with the new form is an absolute must if he is to boost his Haki. To that end, we can say with absolute certainty that the Gear 5 that Luffy unlocked in One Piece chapter 1044 on March 28, 2022, is now obsolete. Luffy will soon unlock his new strongest transformation, with the era of the base Gear 5 wrapping up forever.
Luffy's Final Transformation Vs Imu Will Push Him To Joy Boy's Level
Luffy unlocking a new transformation in Elbaf or any arc beyond doesn't necessarily mean that Gear 5 itself will die. However, the base state of Gear 5 that we saw Luffy utilize first is officially at its end. Luffy's Gear 6 is likely only going to be an upgrade to base Gear 5, and take the Awakening of the Hito Hito no Mi Model: Nika to the absolute maximum limit. By doing this, Luffy will bring out the full potential of the Devil Fruit, which will also lead to a significant upgrade to his overall Haki. In essence, Gear 5 is still going to be Luffy's strongest form; however, it will be significantly upgraded, and the upgraded form is what Luffy could very well call Gear 6.
With this new transformation and push to the next level of strength, Luffy could very well become as strong as Shanks is right now, and eventually, try to get closer to the levels of Joy Boy. With Imu directly putting forth a comparison between Luffy and Joy Boy, it is almost as if Oda is telling us that the Straw Hat Pirate’s next target is to reach the same level as the first pirate in the world of One Piece.
We absolutely cannot wait to see how Luffy ascends to this level in the future, but for now, he needs help from his Wings, who could weaken Imu severely by killing Killingham and Sommers in battle in the climax of the Elbaf arc. Once this is accomplished and Imu is weakened, Luffy will have a chance to strengthen himself even further by unlocking the full potential of his fruit. Luffy will then bid farewell to the base Gear 5 that we have been seeing for all these years, and with that, save Elbaf for good.
All the new manga chapters of One Piece by Eiichiro Oda are available to read via Manga Plus and Viz Media.
