(T/N: Some of the author's notes.)
In the meantime, let's have a little discussion about power scaling.
Long-running manga fans know—there are bound to be inconsistencies. But since I'm writing a novel, I want things to be as reasonable as possible.
So, here are some key concepts I'm incorporating:
Haki Strength is Not Fixed—It's Determined by Willpower.Take Crocodile and Moria as examples. At the start of the story, they're definitely weaker than they were twenty years ago. The One Piece world places heavy emphasis on the strength of one's will.
A Fighter's Condition and Prime Years Matter.For instance, compare Whitebeard during Marineford to his younger self from 1,500 battles ago. The younger Whitebeard could probably outlast his older self just by sheer stamina alone. Sure, his raw attack power may not have declined, but after decades of drinking and illness, his endurance isn't what it used to be. The same goes for his "son," Marco—the Marco we saw at Marineford and the Marco in Wano were on completely different levels of strength.
Fighting Styles and Power Interactions Matter.Strength types, speed types, technique specialists, tank builds, special attackers—there are different categories, and some matchups are naturally more difficult than others.
Take Douglas Bullet from the movie, for example.
Initially, he fought using just raw strength, speed, and physical techniques. Even so, he easily took down Luffy, Kid, Killer, and the rest of the Worst Generation.Then he used Haki—one punch knocked Snake Man Luffy back to base form. Even Kaido would've had to acknowledge that power.In his medium-sized fusion form, he shattered an island with a single punch. That's stronger than Moria after absorbing 1,000 shadows.In his large fusion form, he steamrolled Crocodile, Boa Hancock, Law, Sabo, Smoker, and Lucci all at once.
A true six-sided powerhouse—exceptional physical technique, overwhelming strength, incredible speed, deep mastery of Haki, monstrous endurance, and awakened Devil Fruit abilities. Bullet as the protagonist of One Piece? No need for some fate-driven power-ups—he'd bulldoze through everything.
Then there are the special attackers—
Magellan, whose entire body is covered in poison. If he and another fighter of equal strength trade punches, the opponent doesn't just feel pain—they also get poisoned.Akainu, Sabo, and Ace have built-in burn damage with their attacks.Aokiji can freeze and immobilize enemies.Crocodile's attacks cause dehydration.Enel delivers electric shock, paralysis, and burns all at once.
If your Haki isn't strong enough, you'll be in trouble before the fight even starts. One punch, and you're done. (Except for Joy Boy, of course.)
Now, let's get back to combat matchups.
Example: Fat Moria vs. Crocodile (20 years later).
Both of them have essentially useless Armament Haki.If Moria can't steal Crocodile's shadow, he'll just be a punching bag.
But what if Katakuri fought an escaped-from-Impel-Down Crocodile?
Katakuri can see the future. He has Armament Haki and insane physical endurance. He's tough enough to damage even Joy Boy's hands.Crocodile? He'd probably get beaten to a pulp.
And no—just because Crocodile teamed up with Mihawk doesn't mean he suddenly has the same level of power as Shanks. That wouldn't make sense. But hey, if Oda decides to write it that way, we go with Oda's version.
So, while power levels aren't always perfectly balanced, there are absolute differences in strength. That's the approach I'm going for.
Strategic Abilities ≠ Pure Combat Power.Example: Golden Lion Shiki.
If you had his abilities, would you bother fighting directly?Just lift a small island—100m x 100m x 5m—and drop it from the sky.
Let's do some rough calculations:
Not counting the rock, just soil alone weighs around 2.3 tons per cubic meter.That's 115,000 tons of earth.Now drop it from 10,000 meters up.
Just how many times could the World Government withstand this kind of attack on its allied nations?
Sure, a powerful opponent could slice the island in half, but that's the point—strategic abilities don't translate directly to one-on-one battle power.
...
Now, let's talk about the combat weight of the Three Sweet Commanders vs. the Three Disasters.
Personally, I believe these titles mean that these individuals can at least fight back and survive against Admirals or Emperor-level opponents.
Disagree? Feel free to discuss! The more we debate, the closer we get to the truth.
A lot of fanfics joke about Jack the Drought.
"1 billion bounty, but 900 million of that is just for his teeth."
But let's actually look at his feats:
He attacked the fleet escorting Doflamingo.The fleet included four warships—plus Fujitora, Sengoku, and Tsuru.Let's assume that Sengoku and Tsuru are old and only around Seven Warlords-level now.
And yet?
Jack sank two warships and survived the battle.Do you really think Fujitora was holding back?
So yeah, the Disasters and Sweet Commanders are no joke. As high-ranking figures in Emperor crews, they're definitely strong.
...
Lastly, let's talk about the rarity of flight abilities.
Sure, the One Piece world has Geppo, but true flight is still rare. Just look at:
Big Mom's crew struggling twice at Wano's waterfall.Sky Island thriving peacefully for centuries.
If you were a Celestial Dragon, wouldn't you want a slave with wings?
...
Anyway, I hope everyone shares their thoughts in the comments!
If you have interesting ideas I can "borrow"—drop them below.
(T/N: I'm not the author, so your ideas won't change the course of the fanfic.)
Thank you, very much!
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+220 chapters on p@treon/tambeerg