This article contains spoilers from One Piece's Elbaf Arc.
One Piece's Elbaf arc has finally thrown some focus on the ultimate villain of the story, and that's none other than Imu. Hardly any fan of the series believed that Imu would take the spotlight in Elbaf, but that's exactly what Oda ended up doing. Although the Holy Knights appeared in Elbaf as the main villains at first, Oda quickly switched gears and introduced Imu. With that, Imu's abilities were also revealed to some extent. Fans were shocked to see the extent of Imu's powers as well as their capabilities.
Most of all, however, Imu's arrival on Elbaf confirmed to the fans what the most powerful ability in the whole series is. Of course, based on what happened in Elbaf, most fans would assume that the strongest Devil Fruit is whatever Imu has, or perhaps Luffy's Hito Hito no Mi, Model: Nika. However, that isn't quite the case. In fact, Oda highlighted the most powerful Devil Fruit over a decade ago in the story. According to Oda's own words, Blackbeard's Yami Yami no Mi is the most dangerous and invincible power in One Piece, and Imu's arrival in Elbaf proves that once again.
Why The Yami Yami no Mi Is The Strongest Devil Fruit Power
Devil Fruits play an extremely important role when it comes to a struggle for power among the strongest in the One Piece world. Most top tiers in One Piece have strong Devil Fruits, but not all fruits are equally powerful. Naturally, there exist some very powerful Devil Fruits in the world, but the one at the top is the Yami Yami no Mi. For those who don't remember, Yami Yami no Mi belongs to the Logia class of Devil Fruits and it allows Blackbeard to control darkness. With this darkness, Blackbeard can control infinite gravity and suck in anything in his vicinity.
With this ability, I'm invincible Ace! — Blackbeard to Ace, One Piece chapter 440
The pressure of his gravity is infinite and anyone sucked in would get crushed in an instant. But, that alone doesn't make this fruit the strongest. The fact is that this Devil Fruit can cancel out all Devil Fruit powers. To add to that, a key detail from One Piece's chapter 441 also states that Blackbeard’s Devil Fruit can absorb the power of the Devil itself. In other words, Imu's abilities would be useless against Blackbeard. Luffy's Nika power wouldn't work, and neither would the Gorosei’s Yokai. Any Devil Fruit power, or demonic ability such as Imu's, is useless against Blackbeard.
Its Awakening Would Make It The Strongest
Right now, the only downside is that Blackbeard’s power is that he needs to physically touch someone to cancel their powers. Meaning, Blackbeard is still open to counters and can be injured before contact is made. However, all this changes with Devil Fruit Awakening. If the Yami Yami no Mi is awakened, then no Devil Fruit user, or even Imu, can stand in his presence and maintain their powers. Blackbeard would be the undisputed strongest in One Piece immediately after the awakening of his Devil Fruit.
Out of all the Devil Fruits in history, this one is said to be the most dangerous of them all. — Blackbeard To Ace, One Piece chapter 441
Oda Explicitly Calls It One Piece's Most Dangerous Fruit Ability
Calling the Yami Yami no Mi the most powerful ability isn't just a guess or assumption. Oda himself states in the manga that this is the most dangerous Devil Fruit ability to ever exist, and it has authority over all other Devil Fruits, including the power of the Devil itself. This is precisely what Rocks D. Xebec was looking for, but unfortunately for him, he never found it. Teach has this Devil Fruit already, and no matter what Imu does, he would stand no chance against Blackbeard in an all-out battle.
One Piece's Final stretch will surely give the fans a look at some incredible battles, and a clash between Blackbeard and Imu is almost inevitable at this point. Whenever that happens, fans can rest assured that it is Blackbeard who will hold the upper hand, despite Imu's overpowered abilities. Of course, Blackbeard won't find it easy to go up against Imu. After all, Imu did defeat Davy Jones and Joy Boy. But, this is a battle that those who know Oda's writing style would easily be able to tell that it favors Blackbeard and that he'll most likely come out on top as the final villain of the story.
Eiichiro Oda's One Piece will be on break this week. One Piece Chapter 1166 will be out next week. The official release date of One Piece Chapter 1166 is November 23, 2025. Fans can read the chapter for free on Manga Plus.