What Is Haki In One Piece? The Anime's Most Mysterious Power Explained

"One Piece" is one of the best and most legendary anime/mangas of all time. Don't let the high episode count dissuade you, because this is one epic adventure worth embarking on. There's a reason it's one of the highest-selling book series of all time, almost surpassing "Harry Potter." It's got a great sense of adventure and an impeccable sense of worldbuilding that only expands with time.

Created by Eiichiro Oda, "One Piece" is a shonen action story in the vein of "Dragon Ball" and "Naruto." Shonen tend to have many similarities (including a focus on themes of friendship or self-improvement through fighting, training, and battling the forces of evil), but perhaps the most important thing they tend to have in common is the power system. These are the rules that govern how individuals can develop their extraordinary abilities, allowing characters to compare their own progress with other, more powerful beings. Shonen narratives can also get more creative with their fights by introducing unforeseen complications to their power systems. Certain manga and anime titles, like "Hunter x Hunter," dedicate a lot of time to carefully explaining how their power systems actually inform their plots and lore, while others, such as "Jujutsu Kaisen," simply wind up feeling convoluted in their efforts to do the same.

"One Piece," as it were, has two power systems. There's the supernatural Devil Fruits, which grant a unique power when eaten at the cost of one's ability to swim. These range from silly ones — like a fruit that turns you into a jacket — to incredibly powerful ones, including one that quite literally turns you into a sun god. And then there's the Haki, a mysterious power system with huge repercussions for the "One Piece" universe.

Haki is a dormant power that exists in all creatures in the "One Piece" universe. Specifically, it's a spiritual energy one can harness to perform feats of superhuman strength. What makes Haki different from other power systems is that it is not a supernatural ability or even technically a super-power. Instead, the word "haki" literally translates as ambition or will. This is why everyone in the "One Piece" universe can, in theory, access it, yet only those with strong willpower and ... well, ambition are able to train themselves to utilize these skills.

Willpower and ambition are both concepts that are integral to shonen anime and manga. Take "One Piece" and the story of Monkey D. Luffy, a seemingly ordinary young boy with an underwhelming Devil Fruit that turns his body into rubber — not exactly the world's strongest superpower. And yet, Luffy's ambitions to become King of the Pirates, combined with his strong will to achieve his dreams no matter what, allow him to topple entire governments and defeat mighty opponents to become one of the strongest anime characters ever.

As explained in the "One Piece" show, someone's Haki can only truly blossom when it's pushed to the limit and beyond when they're facing someone much stronger, allowing the user to better tap into their Haki without noticing. At the same time, Haki isn't limitless and can be depleted, at which point individuals are unable to use it for a period of time.

Funnily enough, because the term "Haki" is just a common word in Japanese and is not given any significance when first mentioned in the "One Piece" manga, early translations (even professional ones) overlooked the term. It wasn't until repeated mentions later on that the word Haki was left untranslated to mean something special.

Haki manifests itself in three different ways, each tied to a specific ability.

First off, there's Observation Haki. This type of Haki allows the user to gain a sort of sixth sense, i.e. keen observational abilities that allow them to sense the spiritual energy, presence, and emotions of other people. This, in turn, allows users to anticipate their opponents' intentions and even predict their actions in advance. At a higher level, like the one the character Charlotte Katakuri reaches in "One Piece," Observation Haki even allows the user to literally see into the near future.

The second type of Haki is known as Armament Haki. This type allows the user to tap into their own spiritual energy and aura to create a protective coating around their body, either to defend themselves or to fortify their own attacks. Armament Haki also allows users to bypass someone's Devil Fruit powers and damage their opponent no matter what abilities they possess. Certain Armament Haki users, such as Roronoa Zoro, can even imbue their weapons with Haki. Likewise, the Dark King Silvers Rayleigh has reached an extremely advanced level and can simply fire Armament Haki from a short distance or destroy a nearby target from within.

Finally, there's the third type of Haki, which is also the strongest. Known as Color of the Supreme King Haki (or Conqueror's Haki, depending on the translation), it grants its user the ability to overpower the will of others through their own willpower, which in turn causes their opponents — particularly weak-willed ones — to lose consciousness. Indeed, when two Supreme King Haki users clash in battle in the "One Piece" universe, their combined Haki can literally "split the heavens" due to their sheer force of will.

Despite Devil Fruits being the most prominent power system in "One Piece," Haki has become more and more important in recent years. That's because Devil Fruits can create a huge power difference between characters — again, there's a guy who just turns into a jacket, while another one might turn into a giant dragon — while Haki closes that gap. Case in point: It was Haki that gave Luffy the upper hand and ultimately allowed him to defeat the ultra-powerful Katakuri in one of the best anime fights ever.

Haki became especially important in the Wano Country arc, with the Emperor of the Sea Kaido describing Haki as the true defining factor in determining who can conquer the sea. More than that, it turns out that it's really Haki that transcends all power, not Devil Fruit. That's also why the character Gol D. Roger was able to ultimately defeat Edward Newgate (whose Devil Fruit power allows him to create quakes that can destroy the world) in battle with his Haki and become the Pirate King, despite his own lack of  Devil Fruit power. Shanks, one of the most powerful beings in the "One Piece" universe, similarly has a pirate crew made up entirely of Haki users who lack Devil Fruit abilities.

During the recent Egghead Island Arc, we even saw a giant robot unleash a burst of Haki that's 800 years old, which was enough to force the Five Elders (aka the highest authority of the World Government) out of their transformations. Moreover, with the "One Piece" manga having portrayed Haki as the only power capable of taking down the World Government's secret leader, Imu, it's clearly going to be important to the rest of this story going forward.