The rivalry between Shanks and Mihawk is one of the most hyped aspects of One Piece and fans have been waiting to find out more about this rivalry for a long time. Both Shanks and Mihawk hold great importance to the story of One Piece and fans hope that they get to face each other once more in the future.
While their battle was spectacular, spectators were never able to witness it because it faded after a while. The clashes between Shanks and Mihawk occurred years ago, and Shanks was not even a Yonko at the time, yet their clash would shock the entire grand line. The two are depicted as having comparable strengths to one another.
While many believe that Shanks is much stronger because of the Haki technique, there is a theory on the internet that states that Shanks developed a counter for Future Sight which gained him the title, The Killer of Observation Haki. He developed this technique to deal with Mihawk and try to defeat him, thus making their rivalry even more interesting.
Why is Shanks Called The Observation Haki Killer?
During the screening of One Piece Film: Red, Shanks was identified as “The Killer of Observation Haki” in a booklet provided to Japanese theater spectators titled One Piece volume 4 billion. According to Eiichiro Oda, Shanks possesses the capacity to disrupt his opponents’ breathing, possibly using his Haki, to the point where they are unable to glimpse the future.
Although Shanks’ specific method of action is unknown, it is thought that he can keep his opponents from seeing into the future by employing the Conqueror’s Haki aura within him. He gains a significant tactical edge from this and dispatches all of his adversaries with relative ease, gaining him the title of “The Killer of Observation Haki.”
Since this information originates from Oda himself, it is fully canon and will undoubtedly appear in the manga when Shanks is given more attention. However, Shanks’s process of developing this amazing ability has not been revealed either in the booklet or in the story.
One Piece Theory States Shanks Developed The Counter of Future Sight Because of Mihawk
According to a theory posted by Ohara on YouTube, Mihawk being a rival of one of the Emperor of the Sea, makes him insanely strong. However, his strength is not limited to his swordsmanship. Mihawk must have an insane level of Haki, especially Future Sight if he had to reach the level of Shanks.
Thus, his Observation Haki might have earned him the name Hawkeyes. And him being on par means his Future Sight must be as good if not better than Shanks. So, according to the theory, Shanks must have had to develop the ability to suppress the Future Sight of Mihawk in battle and earn an advantage over him.
As the origin of Shanks’s ability to counter Future Sight has not been revealed, this theory is the best explanation as to why Shanks would train his Haki abilities so hard and develop the technique that earned him the name of The Killer of the Observation Haki in One Piece, thus making his rivalry with Mihawk even more interesting.
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