This article contains spoilers from One Piece's Elbaf Arc.
One Piece fans know very well that Imu is one of the most mysterious, and at the same time, most important characters in the Final Saga of One Piece. Having been built up as a relic from the Void Century for ages now, fans have been wondering when they'll see Imu properly, especially since they always seem to be shrouded in black.
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Imu's full character design is yet to be revealed in One Piece, and Oda always uses a silhouette for them. Yet, a recent mistake from Oda might just have revealed Imu's full character design, and it reveals the biggest secret of all about them.
Imu Has Always Been In A Silhouette
- Imu Appeared In One Piece Chapter 907
- They Rule The World Of One Piece
Imu's existence was hinted at in One Piece in chapter 907, and it has, since then, been the biggest mystery in the whole story. Fans know that One Piece keeps getting bigger and more exciting, and naturally, since Chapter 907, the plot surrounding Imu has gotten richer as well. While fans now know that Imu comes from the Nerona Family, and that they are immortal, likely due to the Ope Ope no Mi, some things remain unclear still.
Allow Mu to show thee the dominance of a God! — Imu Nerona, One Piece, Elbaf Arc
The biggest of them all is Imu's very character design. Fans have seen Imu on multiplayer occasions in One Piece so far, but every single time, they have been presented in a shroud of black. Imu's whole body is covered in black and other than the eyes, fans cannot see anything at all. This is a choice from Oda, because they clearly don't want to reveal Imu to the fans just yet. Of course, eventually, Imu’s character design will be revealed to the fans, but at the moment, Oda thinks it's too early.
That said, Oda might just have accidentally revealed it all to the fans, and if the guess is correct, it changes everything about Imu.
Oda's Latest Drawing Board Reveals Imu's Character Design
Oda Accidentally Gave Fans A Look At His Drafts
Recently, the official One Piece Manga Staff Twitter account, which often reveals manga-related news, such as volume release dates, chapter sneak peeks, and more, gave the fans a look at Oda's work desk. This desk has been revealed in the past as well, but usually, fans can't take much from it. This time around, however, some of Oda's biggest drawings have been revealed, and one of them looks surprisingly like Imu.
New official picture of Oda's studio seems to show a previously unseen sketch of an Imu-like figure 🤔 pic.twitter.com/Gopwpjuk3z
— Artur - Library of Ohara (@newworldartur) July 21, 2025
This person is seen wearing a giant crown on their head, and has a design that matches Imu fully. They have long hair, and a sash running across their body. They bear the very presence of a sovereign, and fans know very well that long ago, Imu was one of the sovereigns.
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Imu Is Most Likely A Woman, Or In A Woman's Body
Interestingly enough, this design also resembles Lily quite a lot. As has been made clear in the story already, Lily was one of the 20 Rulers who banded together to take down the Ancient Kingdom, yet she also helped spread the Poneglyphs to different parts of the world. Most importantly, after laying down her weapon in the Throne Room in Marijoa, Lily never made it home, and her brother took control of Arabatsa instead.
If Oda's drawings are anything to go by, it then confirms that the one ruling the world of One Piece right now is Imu in Lily's body, which shouldn't be surprising at all, given that they can also take over Gunko's body. Oda might just have given the fans their first look at Imu and Lily, and it is only a matter of time before they're fully revealed in the manga.
- Release Date
- October 20, 1999
- Network
- Fuji TV
- Directors
- Hiroaki Miyamoto, Konosuke Uda, Junji Shimizu, Satoshi Itō, Munehisa Sakai, Katsumi Tokoro, Yutaka Nakajima, Yoshihiro Ueda, Kenichi Takeshita, Yoko Ikeda, Ryota Nakamura, Hiroyuki Kakudou, Takahiro Imamura, Toshihiro Maeya, Yûji Endô, Nozomu Shishido, Hidehiko Kadota, Sumio Watanabe, Harume Kosaka, Yasuhiro Tanabe, Yukihiko Nakao, Keisuke Onishi, Junichi Fujise, Hiroyuki Satou
Cast
-
Mayumi TanakaMonkey D. Luffy (voice) -
Kazuya NakaiRoronoa Zoro (voice)
WHERE TO WATCH
One Piece is a Japanese manga written and illustrated by Eiichiro Oda. The series follows protagonist Monkey D. Luffy and his Straw Hat Pirate crew as they explore the Grand Line to find the King of the Pirates' ultimate treasure, the One Piece, in order to become the next king. The manga's popularity helped it spin off into a larger media franchise, including an anime with more than 1,000 episodes.
- Studio
- Toei Animation
- Creator
- Eiichiro Oda
- Streaming Service(s)
- Crunchyroll, Netflix, Hulu, Pluto TV
