Eiichiro Oda’s One Piece is currently deep into the climax of the Elbaf arc, with the release of Chapter 1197 expected on November 1, 2026, in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump Issue 49. As the Elbaf arc continues, Eiichiro Oda continues to give more focus to the most powerful characters in the series, and with each reveal, this ranking is constantly changing. The current One Piece world order sees the likes of the Yonko dominate at the very top. However, with the descent of the King of the World, Nerona Imu, in Elbaf, this order has been shaken forever.
It has now been confirmed that Nerona Imu, the King of the World, who wields the power of the Akuma no Mi, is the current strongest in the world, even above the likes of Sun God Nika Luffy, the Nidhoggr Loki, and even the previous Pirate King, Gol D. Roger.
One Piece Officially Confirms Current Nerona Imu As The Strongest Man Alive
Nerona Imu arrived in Elbaf with the release of One Piece chapter 1179 on April 5, 2026, in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump Issue 19. When Imu first arrived in Elbaf, it was hard to say how strong he was truly going to be. Given that Eiichiro Oda had built him up to be the endgame antagonist of One Piece for Luffy to take down, it made sense for him to be incredibly overpowered. Immediately upon his arrival, Eiichiro Oda showed Nerona Imu dominating in Elbaf as he took down the likes of Stansen, Hajrudin, Zoro, and Sanji successively. This was followed by his battle against Loki, whom he dealt with easily. He also nearly killed Sun God Nika Luffy, and had it not been for Scopper Gaban, the protagonist of the series would have already died.
Creator of the World Government (One of the First 20)
Power: Akuma no Mi (The Devil’s Fruit)
King of the World St. Nerona Imu
— Imu’s introduction box, One Piece Chapter #1179
Furthermore, Eiichiro Oda also showed Nerona Imu dominating against Gaban. Although the latter did succeed in injuring him with his powerful Supreme King Haki, Imu unveiled a further powerful transformation. This goes to show that even after fighting so many characters, he remains the strongest in the world as things stand. The fact that Imu was able to fight and overcome the likes of Luffy, Loki, and Gaban, and absolutely demolish the likes of Zoro, Sanji, and Hajrudin, is proof that he is the strongest in the world right now. What makes this even more damning is the fact that Nerona Imu is operating at only a fraction of what his true ability is.
“Great Imu’s body isn’t meant to sustain the outside. But even pushing past that, the strength we need and the strength we ought to destroy are both right here.” — Saint Sommers confirms Imu’s nerf, One Piece Chapter #1182
This was directly confirmed to us in One Piece chapter 1182 on May 10, 2026, in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump Issue 24. Imu is tremendously nerfed for some reason in the outside world, which means whatever we are seeing from him right now is only a fraction of his true capabilities.
Why Nerona Imu Surpasses Luffy
One Piece’s Final Saga is largely dominated by the many Gods that are currently active. With the release of Chapter 1044 on March 28, 2022, the Sun God Nika officially descended upon the world. Luffy, with the powers of Nika, beat the strongest creature in the entire world, Kaido. From this point onwards, many believed that Luffy was the strongest on the seas, with hardly anyone powerful enough to rival him.
“Possessing a body with the powers of rubber, and fighting in whatever way he fancies, bringing smiles to the faces of people, the Warrior of Liberation…also known as the Sun God, Nika!” — Elders explain Nika, One Piece Chapter #1044
However, the Elbaf arc has completely flipped the script by revealing the fact that the King of the World operates on a completely different level. When Luffy fought Nerona Imu, Eiichiro Oda made it clear that he was going in at the absolute highest level of power.
One Piece Chapter 1186, which was released on June 29, 2026, in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump Issue 31, confirmed to us that Luffy was overflowing with power heading into battle. In contrast, Nerona Imu was confirmed to be nerfed tremendously due to being in the outside world. Yet the result of the battle was decided in a matter of a single chapter, as Imu utterly outclassed Luffy and declared to his face that he was way too weak to be Joy Boy. The fact that Imu dealt with the Sun God in the way he did goes to show that he’s operating on a completely different level.
“Of course I know that thou art not Joy Boy! Joy Boy was not this weak!!” — Imu mocks Luffy, One Piece Chapter #1188
Even Nidhoggr, the former God of War of the One Piece world with the power to destroy the entire planet, was easily beaten by Nerona Imu despite being nerfed. This once again goes to show that Imu is the strongest of all Gods in the One Piece world, and that no power on the entire planet can oppose him.
Perhaps the ultimate compliment that one can give Nerona Imu comes from Shanks, another character who ranks among the strongest. According to Shanks, Imu’s power is simply immeasurable, and this was directly confirmed in One Piece Chapter 1171, which was released on January 19, 2026, in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump Issue 8. With the overpowered ability of the Akuma no Mi, an immortal body, and incredibly powerful Haki, with Maki on the side to counter those with powerful Haki, Nerona Imu is the absolute strongest in the entire world.
“The power of the King is immeasurable! You cannot defeat him right now!” — Shanks to Loki
Imu’s Full Strength Will Be Unlocked After Elbaf
The scariest part about Imu’s strength isn’t what he has shown right now, but what he has yet to show. As has been made clear repeatedly in the Elbaf arc, Imu is only operating at a small percentage of what his true strength is. Why exactly Imu is nerfed remains to be seen, but he clearly doesn’t have the perfect body right now, which is why he immediately started coughing up blood upon descending in Elbaf.
One Piece’s Harley mural, which was revealed to us in Chapter 1138 on February 3, 2025, also confirmed to us that, in the future, Imu will gain the power of the Mother Flame and reach his full potential. As that happens, he will truly establish himself as the strongest not only in the current era but of all time, surpassing even the likes of Joy Boy and the original Sun God Nika in the process. There is absolutely no denying the fact that Imu operates at the very top of the One Piece world and that he surpasses all the other powerful Gods who exist.
All chapters of Eiichiro Oda’s One Piece are available to read via Manga Plus and Viz Media.