Shanks is one of the strongest characters in Eiichiro Oda's One Piece. As one of the Four Emperors of the Sea, Shanks has already established himself as quite a powerful pirate who is feared all over the world. While it's been known for quite a while that Shanks is powerful, his exact abilities have remained unknown for quite a long time. In fact, Shanks has barely ever fought since the beginning of the series.

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Shanks was seen using Conqueror's Haki on a few occasions, however, other than that, nothing about his fighting capabilities was revealed until recently. With One Piece heading into its Final Saga, along with the release of One Piece Film Red, a lot of focus has been thrown on the red-haired pirate and fans now know a lot about his fighting abilities. As expected, all of his powers are quite fearsome and Shanks is a true master of Haki. One such ability of his has earned him the title of the "Killer of Observation Haki."

How Observation Haki Works

One Piece Monkey D. Luffy Kenbunshoku Haki

Observation Haki is one of the two main types of Haki in the One Piece world. It grants a sixth sense to the user which allows them to see incoming attacks in their mind's eye, sense emotions, intent, danger, and gauge other people's strength, among many other things. Using this ability, a fighter can truly reach the next level. Observation Haki is, thus, one of the most important abilities in the series, and all the elite fighters rely on it. Some have even developed a specialization in this ability such as Sanji of the Straw Hat Pirates, Charlotte Katakuri of the Big Mom Pirates, or Yasopp of the Red Hair Pirates. These fighters are known to be exceptionally calm in battle and thus their Observation Haki is on the next level. After all, Observation Haki is an ability that works best when the user is in a calm state of mind.

Some characters have such good control over Observation Haki that they can even look into the future itself. Luffy, the Captain of the Straw Hat Pirates, learned this ability during the Whole Cake Island arc. At the same time, Katakuri is known to be a master of being able to see the future. Yasopp of the Red Hair Pirates is another master of Future Sight, as confirmed in One Piece Film Red. As stated by Katakuri, even a short lapse in concentration disrupts one's Observation Haki, and when that happens, it opens an opportunity for them to be defeated in battle. Shanks, apparently, specializes in making this happen.

How Shanks Stops Enemies From Using Future Sight

Shanks One Piece Film Red

Future Sight is quite a dangerous ability and allows the user to evade most damage by foreseeing the attack that is coming their way. Katakuri's mastery over this was such that he had not taken a single hit in many years. In order for Luffy to defeat him, it was essential to learn Future Sight himself and then make up for the difference in skill with Snakeman's excessive speed. Yasopp can see the future for even longer and can thus avoid most attacks thrown his way. Evidently, fighting a user of Future Sight is incredibly difficult, however, Shanks has the perfect counter for this. According to what Oda mentioned in the 4 Billion volume, Shanks has the ability to unsettle his opponents' breathing, quite possibly with his Haki, in a way that they cannot see the future at all.

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This gives him a great advantage in battle and allows him to crush all his enemies with rather ease, and has earned him the title of "The Killer of Observation Haki." Whether this ability also stops his enemies from using regular Observation Haki remains to be seen, however, the fact that the Color of Observation can only be used when calm suggests that it can possibly do so. Shanks was already considered to be a master of Conqueror's Haki by the fans, however, it appears that he has many other techniques up his sleeve as well.

Shanks' Enemies

Shanks Drinking With Mihawk

Over the years, Shanks has fought several fights and taken on even the strongest people, such as Kaido, in battle. However, his fight against Mihawk is what most fans remember him by. Interestingly, Mihawk is known to be an excellent user of Observation Haki. During the Marineford War, fans could see him being able to attack Luffy precisely from quite a great distance. His range as a swordsman is immense. Furthermore, in the Vivre Card, it was revealed that Oda originally planned the moniker "Clairvoyant" for him, suggesting that he could possibly see the future as well. If that truly is the case, then it would explain why Shanks never lost to him in a duel. With the ability to kill Observation Haki, Shanks would certainly have given Mihawk quite a rough time.

One Piece is now entering its final Saga and Shanks will most certainly be a prevalent character in it. His abilities have remained a mystery up until now, however, more focus will be thrown on him soon. Fans will certainly get to see all of his powers slowly and Shanks will get the chance to show everyone why he deserves the title of "The Killer of Observation Haki."

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