Eiichiro Oda One piece features an incredibly extensive power system that is primarily powered by Devil Fruit abilities. As such, many characters take advantage of unique transformations by using their abilities. Until recently, the strongest transformation in One piece was Monkey D. Luffy's Gear 5, which is the awakening of his Hito Hito no Mi, Model: Nika, retrieved in Chapter 1044 on March 28, 2022 in Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump #17.
Now, 4 years later, One Piece has officially dethroned Luffy's Gear 5 with the latest reveal of Nero Imu's Devil God transformation, stemming from the use of his Akuma no Mi ability, as officially confirmed in One Piece Chapter 1179 in Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump #19, April 2026.
One Piece Unleashes Akuma Nero Ima's Transformation In Chapter 1179 Overcoming Luffy's Device 5
One piece Chapter 1179 was released on April 6, 2026 and marked a historic moment for us in the entire series. It is this chapter that first officially revealed Nero Ima's full character design as he decided to descend on Elbaf in an attempt to erase both the Sun God Nika and Nidhoggr from existence. With this, Eiichiro Oda gave us all a proper look at Nerona Imu's powers and confirmed that she is indeed a devil fruit bearer.
Creator of World Government (one of the first 20)
Performance: Akuma no Mi
King of that world, Saint Nerona Imu
— Nero Ima Starter Box from Chapter #1179
Interestingly, Nerona Imu's Devil Fruit is completely different from all the others that exist in the One Piece world and is called Akuma no Mi. Using the power of Akuma no Mi, Nerona Imu can transform into the devil himself, or the “devil god” as he likes to call himself. This devil god transformation debuted in chapter 1179 and his powers were shown in subsequent chapters, from 1180 until 1183, in which he officially took over Brooks' flashback.
Loki: So your power is God's rule? I think you mean a deal with the devil!
Imu: God? Devil? what is the difference
— Imu explains her Akuma no Mi ability in One Piece chapter #1181
Akuma no Mi Nerona Imu's transformation is unique. It gives him two giant horns, a pair of massive black wings, tanned skin, and a naginata as a weapon. He can also harness the power of the Omen, which is what he calls his military power, and use it to create various weapons such as bullets, bombs, shields, morning stars, swords, and even spears, among many other things, as officially introduced in chapters 1180 to 1183.
“The mark is my military power. It is the power that resides in all living things.” — Nerona explains her Akuma no Mi Omen to Imu, One Piece Chapter #1181
Imu's physical abilities are at such a level that she can easily overpower Loki despite having the strength of the ice squirrel Ratatoskr at her side. It can one-shot the likes of Zoro, Sanji, and Hajrudin as officially introduced One piece chapter 1180 which was released in Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump Issue #21 on April 20, 2026. It is clear that right now Nerona Imu stands tall as the strongest One Piece character in the current era and his Akuma transformation is the strongest we have seen in the story so far.
Why Akuma no Mi is a unique devil fruit transformation
The powers of the demon god Nerona Imu are strange in many ways. Not only does this Devil Fruit make it powerful by granting the power of Omen as well as various contracts and spells, but it is also special in the sense that it carries unique abilities that make it very different from any fruit that exists in the One Piece world. All Devil Fruits that exist in the One Piece world fall under a specific naming pattern. Each Devil Fruit has a naming pattern that repeats itself twice, and all are usually written by author Eiichiro Oda in kanji. For example, Luffy's Hito Hito no Mi, Buggy's Bara Bara no Mi, Kuzano's Hie Hie no Mi, and Ace's Mera Mera no Mi all follow a similar naming pattern. Imu's Akuma no Mi is very different.
Akuma no Mi only has a singular name and uses katakana instead of kanji. In other words, this is the ultimate Devil Fruit in the One Piece world, with a name that also quite clearly embodies that. With the Devil Fruit's power predating all others that exist in the One Piece world, it's no surprise that Nero uses Ima with transformations that far surpass the likes of Monkey D. Luffy's Gear 5 or Loki's Nidhoggr.
“What's going on? I've never felt Haki like this even in God Valley!” — Scopper Gaban confirms that Imu's transformation is the strongest, One Piece Chapter #1180
Luffy could develop a new transformation that would surpass Nero Ima's Akuma Powers
One Piece's Elbaf arc triggers ultimate battle between Monkey D. Luffy and Nero Imu, followed by Brook flashback ending to continue One piece Chapter 1185 of June 14, 2026 in Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump #29. As things stand, Luffy has no chance against Imu, and even his Gear 5 isn't enough to take him down. It's evident from the fact that Luffy and Loki have reached similar levels of power, but Loki seems to be struggling to land even one solid hit on the world ruler.
“Having a body with the powers of rubber and fighting in any way he likes, bringing smiles to people's faces, Liberation Warrior…also known as the Sun God, Nika!” – Gorosei explaining the power of the Sun God Nik, One Piece Chapter #1044
In order for Luffy to defeat Nero Ima or even push him back, he needs a more powerful transformation, and this is something that Eiichiro Oda could introduce in the climax of the Elbaf arc, after the conclusion of the Brook flashback. This transformation could stem from Luffy upgrading his Haki and combining it with Gear 5, or it could be something as simple as taking the awakening of his Devil Fruit to a whole new level and achieving a higher overall power level. If Luffy can pull this off, he will also have access to a unique transformation that directly rivals the power of the Akuma no Mi possessed by Nerona Imu.
We look forward to seeing how Eiichiro Oda sets up the Luffy vs Imu battle once it starts and what powers he gives him. At this point, it's pretty safe to say that Luffy needs to be much stronger if he's going to fight Nerona Imu, and if he doesn't, both Elbaf and Luffy himself will be crushed.
All new One Piece manga chapters from creator Eiichiro Oda can be read through Manga Plus and Viz Media.
