Gear 5 is one of Luffy strongest powers in the One Piece story, but it has some weaknesses. In Luffy’s battle against Kaido at the peak of the battle in the Wano arc yesterday, the awakening appearance of Luffy’s devil fruit took him by surprise. Although Gear 5 is an extraordinary power, it has several weaknesses. What are some of the Gear 5 weaknesses?
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Luffy Gear 5 weaknesses
1. Draining Energy
One of the most obvious drawbacks of Gear 5 is that it requires a great deal of stamina, which makes Luffy run out of energy quickly.
As Trafalgar Law and Eustass Kid once said, when they used the new power of awakening from their devil fruit, awakening really drained their strength and stamina.
In Luffy’s case, this evidence was seen in chapter 1045. After using the power of Gear 5 for a long time, Luffy looked very tired. His face changed and he looked very limp, almost like someone who was struggling with death.
After using Gear 5, Luffy’s energy was visibly depleted and he himself admitted that Gear 5 really squeezed all his energy and stamina.
The same condition occurred after the fight against Rob Lucci and admiral Kizaru, where Luffy looked tired and turned into an old man. In addition to rest, the sound of the freedom drums also served to restore Luffy’s strength.
This was already seen against Kaido earlier. However, when facing Rob Lucci and Kizaru, rest seems to be the way to restore Luffy’s stamina.
2. Gear usage time is reduced
As seen in the fight on Onigashima, Luffy showed great endurance. Previously, Luffy was using Gear 4 which could only last for about 10 minutes. However, when using Gear 5, he was only able to do so for a very short time before running out of power.
In the duel against Rob Lucci, Luffy used Gear 5 for a longer time than against Kaido. Perhaps because Luffy used the Gear right from the start of the fight and his energy was still full.
However, it is possible that overusing Luffy’s gear will reduce its duration. This is due to the enormous energy usage.
In the fight against Kizaru, Luffy used Gear 5 for a while. The goal was to keep the distance between Kizaru and Vegapunk. The duration of using Gear 5 this time is shorter when compared to when fighting Rob Lucci. Interestingly, before the fight started, Luffy had time to eat first.
3. Potential to cause disease
Gol D Roger was a famous pirate king in One Piece before he chose to surrender to the navy. He made this decision because in addition to finding One Piece, he also suffered from an incurable disease. It is likely that something similar will also happen to Luffy at the end of the story or in the future.
Roger and Luffy have their differences, especially in terms of them being devil fruit eaters. Despite this, there are many similarities between the two that could potentially have a negative effect on Luffy.
In Luffy’s case, the illness that he may experience could be caused by the long-term use of Gear 5. Moreover, Luffy has experienced many bad events before, such as being exposed to Magellan’s poison.
It is unknown what disease Luffy will suffer from in the future. However, there is a possibility that Luffy could get a disease similar to cancer due to other factors such as stamina weakness resulting in a domino effect that eventually causes the disease to appear. Perhaps Chopper can cure it or at least reduce the pain that Luffy feels.
4. Decreased physical condition
Still related to Luffy’s physique, the next drawback of Gear 5 is the continuous decline in his physical condition. At this time, it is likely that Luffy’s physical decline still won’t happen.
First, this is Luffy’s golden age. Secondly, this story is still ongoing and is the main storyline. Third, Luffy is at his best.
However, in his old age, Luffy may experience a negative impact on his physical condition which will decline. As revealed in the story, characters like Garp, Rayleigh, or Whitebeard who are old also experience a decline in health. This condition is of course influenced by what happened before.
It is likely that Luffy will face many difficulties if he continues to use Gear 5. We can look at what happened to Whitebeard, where the illness he experienced was probably caused by the excessive use of Gura Gura no Mi.
In fact, with the overwhelming power of the Gear 5, no one can guarantee that this physical deterioration will not occur in the near future.
5. Luffy’s personality is gone
The main drawback of Gear 5 and the awakened demon fruit Zoan is that they lose their identity or spirit. This information was not known before, but was finally revealed in the booklet Road To Laugh Tale Vol. 3. According to the booklet, Gear 5 or Zoan awakened users will lose their personality, consciousness, and spirit.
The effects of the Awakening process can affect the demon fruit user’s soul and personality. It is said that although their bodies become powerful and extraordinary, their personalities become “weak” or even disappear completely.
In other words, users will lose awareness and control over their bodies. In addition, their behavior will also change significantly.
There are several possible answers as to why Luffy underwent a significant change after awakening the power of his Nika devil fruit. After gaining the power, Luffy became a cheerful figure, full of laughter, and seemed to have no burden.
This is also seen more clearly in Kaido, where he has a variety of different personalities when drunk. In addition to the intoxication factor, it could be that the awakening effect of the demon fruit’s power also plays a role in this change.
6. Luffy’s life is slowly getting shorter
This is the biggest negative impact and the biggest weakness of Luffy’s Gear 5. By using the various techniques of the previous Gears, especially Gear 2 and Gear 4, Luffy’s life is slowly getting shorter.
At Enies Lobby, Lucci talked about using the Gear 2. He explained that using the Gear 2 meant forcing his heart to work harder, which in turn increased the risk of death.
In addition, the use of Gear 2 is also very draining on Luffy’s energy. All of this can be seen from the events in chapter 1045.
After relying on the power of Gear 5 for a long time, it was clear that Luffy was very tired. In chapter 1071, Luffy once again showed his fatigue after fighting Rob Lucci.
It is not surprising that the use of Gear 5 as well as the accumulation of previous actions can be fatal for Luffy.
With Luffy using his Gear 5, he has the opportunity to defeat Kaido and other powerful enemies quickly. However, no matter how great he is, Luffy will have to pay a big price. In fact, perhaps his life will be the price to pay.
