One Piece is known for its many memorable fights with characters that show off many different fighting styles and abilities and sometimes these fights come with a little controversy. One of the biggest controversies among One Piece fans is the fight between Luffy and Katakuri.

Luffy has had many hard fights in the past and has faced challenging opponents. However, his fight with Katakuri raised many questions among fans of the series as many wondered if Luffy’s victory was due to plot armor, a plot device used to protect a character to move the plot forward in a story.

Many fans speculated this was the case since Luffy felt mismatched in his fight against Katakuri. Katakuri, one of Big Mom’s children, had the highest bounty among the Yonko’s crew, with it being over 1 Billion berries. He was a formidable opponent as his Observation Haki allowed him to see a short period of the future and his devil fruit, the Mochi Mochi no Mi, was a powerful counter to Luffy’s devil fruit abilities.

Luffy’s Defeat of Katakuri Was Well Earned

Luffy’s Determination Helped Him Win an Unwinnable Fight

Luffy and Katakuri’s battle began when the Straw Hats attempted to escape Whole Cake Island but Katakuri intercepted them. To give his friends more time, Luffy dragged himself into the Mirror World with Katakuri and shattered the mirror leading to the Straw Hats’ ship. Katakuri was able to match Luffy’s abilities and even land more significant strikes against him due to how similar their devil fruits were at the time. Katakuri used his Mochi Mochi no Mi powers to copy attacks like the Gatling Gun but in a more advanced form.

Luffy would not stay down, however, as he learned Katakuri’s attack patterns and gained the ability to use his Observation Haki in the same way that Katakuri did. His determination was the key factor in keeping up in the battle and being able to stand on equal footing. This would change when Charlotte Flampe interfered in the battle, slowing Luffy down which led him to receive a direct hit from Katakuri’s attack. Katakuri despised winning in this manner, so he stabbed himself to even the playing field. This was a turning point in the battle since Katakuri’s pride can be directly related to his downfall.

Luffy’s Strongest Power Is His Ability To Never Go Down

Many fans believe that Katakuri losing this battle despite taking less damage is the definition of plot armor. However, this isn’t exactly the case. Luffy has been in numerous fights and has taken many powerful attacks over and over again, which strengthened his body more than any training he did. His durability is constantly being increased even throughout the Whole Cake Island arc, where Luffy takes some real punishment from his fight with Charlotte Cracker and against a large majority of Big Mom’s army. It’s possible that Katakuri’s durability isn’t on the same level since he isn’t used to taking the same punishment.

Also, Katakuri jeopardized his victory by injuring himself which allowed Luffy to overcome him in the end. The fight between them was about winning a battle of determination. Luffy was determined to go back to his crew and ensure their safety which is why he couldn’t stay down even after taking all that damage. Conversely, Katakuri was fighting due to his loyalty to his family, which ultimately proved to be weaker than Luffy’s commitment to his friends.

Overall, this was surely one of Luffy’s most important battles in One Piece and the turning point of the Whole Cake Island arc. It allowed Luffy to overcome another hurdle in his growth, unlocking new powers such as Snakeman and Observation Haki that he needed to advance further in his journey.