The Five Strongest Admirals in One Piece
Admiral tends to be a very high rank in modern navies. This makes sense because it comes from the Arabic title of amir, which has been translated as “chief,” “lord,” and “ruler.” As such, shonen being shonen, it should come as no surprise to learn that the Admirals are some of the strongest Marines working for the World Government in One Piece. Currently, we know of two active Admirals. For those who are curious, there was a trio of Admirals from before the time-skip, who were Akainu, Aokiji, and Kizaru. Furthermore, there is now another trio of Admirals from after the time-skip, who would be Fujitora, Ryokugyu, and Kizaru. Out of the active Admirals, we have seen both Fujitora and Kizaru in action while Ryokugyu remains an unknown for the time being. As such, it is worth considering other characters who are known to have been an Admiral at some point in their life. Currently, that would include both Akainu and Aokiji. The first was promoted from being an Admiral to being the Fleet Admiral during the time-skip while the second left the Marines during the time-skip. Besides them, there is also Sengoku, who was the Fleet Admiral before Akainu, and Kong, who was the Fleet Admiral before Sengoku. However, we know next-to-nothing about Kong’s abilities, so there isn’t much to be said about them.
5. Fujitora
Fujitora is one of the two Admirals who were promoted during the time-skip. He possesses the Press-Press Fruit that enables him to create gravitational forces of incredible power. Something that provides Fujitora with what is effectively a very powerful form of telekinesis, so much so that he has been shown pulling meteors out of the sky on multiple occasions. Still, he seems to be at least the same age as Akainu, Aokiji, and Kizaru, which suggests that he was considered to be a less desirable choice for the position when compared with those three individuals. Now, it is possible that this was based on the ease with which these individuals could be controlled. For context, Fujitora is known to be a believer in Moral Justice, with the result that he prioritizes the protection of civilians over other considerations. Furthermore, he is very fanatical about it, as shown by how he blinded himself because of his sorrow over the evil that he has seen over the course of his life. Considering how the Admirals are often entrusted with the World Government’s dirty work, it isn’t hard to see why this might be an issue. Still, it is possible that power played a part in this as well.
4. Kizaru
Kizaru has a very powerful Devil Fruit. For context, Logia-type Devil Fruits enable their users to create, control, and transform into the associated element, meaning that they are pretty much guaranteed to be extremely useful. However, Kizaru’s Glint-Glint Fruit is associated with light, which is every bit as terrifying as it sounds. On top of this, he presumably possesses enormous experience, seeing as how he was already an Admiral before the time-skip. Where Kizaru loses points would be his personality, which is so carefree that it verges into carelessness from time to time. He can afford it, but there can be no doubt about the fact that it makes him less effective than his contemporaries.
3. Aokiji
Strictly speaking, Aokiji should be called Kuzan. After all, Aokiji is an excellent example of the Admirals’ code-names, each of which consists of a color and an animal. Since Kuzan no longer holds the position of Admiral, his code-name no longer makes sense for him. In any case, he is like his contemporaries in that he possesses a powerful Logia-type Devil Fruit that enables him to manipulate an element on a strategic scale. In his case, this would be ice. Personality-wise, Kuzan can seem rather reminiscent of Kizaru because of his laziness. However, it is important to note that his laziness is not as much of a weakness as Kizaru’s carelessness. One, his laziness doesn’t actually prevent him from taking things seriously when he believes it to be necessary. Two, his laziness has been known to make other people let down their guard, which tends to be a very bad idea against anyone who either holds or has held the position of Admiral. Three, one can’t help but wonder whether Kuzan’s laziness is even real considering that he is known to have switched from Burning Justice to Lazy Justice when he realized just how bad the World Government could be.
2. Akainu
It seems safe to say that Akainu is stronger than Kuzan. After all, the two fought during the time-skip because the latter didn’t like the idea of the former becoming the new Fleet Admiral, with the result that Akainu came out on top. Of course, this means that Akainu should now be referred to as Sakazuki, which would be his actual name. Regardless, the character is formidable for a number of reasons. One, he possesses a lava-themed Logia-type Devil Fruit. Two, he is even more skilled with it as well as his other combat abilities than his contemporaries. Three, Sakazuki follows a particularly extreme version of Absolute Justice, which is pretty concerning when said ideology already means being willing to sacrifice innocents if that means being able to take out one’s target. There are Admirals who would balk at the idea of hurting civilians while carrying out their missions. Sakazuki wouldn’t even think twice.
1. Sengoku
Sengoku was the Fleet Admiral before the time-skip. As such, he would have been an Admiral at some point before Akainu, Aokiji, and Kizaru. Unsurprisingly, this means that he was one of the strongest members of his generation, so much so that he is capable of competing with the already well-established as being absurdly powerful Garp. On top of that, Sengoku possesses a couple of other major advantages. First, he has an excellent mind, as shown by how he is famous for both his strategic insight and his tactical insight. Second, he possesses a Mythical Zoan-type Devil Fruit, which is the reason he is called Sengoku the Buddha. He is presumably not capable of competing with Whitebeard one-on-one. However, Sengoku is definitely at least capable of mattering in such a fight because, well, he was one of the two Marines who Gol D. Roger considered to be worth his time.
