The seas of the One Piece world are the most turbulent they've ever been right now with three different factions fighting for supremacy, the Yonko, the World Government, and the Revolutionary Army. The Yonko are four of the most powerful pirates in the current age and they are known to rule the New World like Kings. Even the World Government fear them and their influence on the age and to combat them they use a collaboration of the SSG, which has now replaced the Shichibukai, and the Marines, who are their military face.
Among all the Marines, the Admirals are known to be the mightiest. It is a well-known fact that the Admirals are the strongest fighters of the World Government, with the Fleet Admiral being the strongest and the other Admirals being relatively close as well. Ever since the concept of the balance of power in the One Piece world was introduced by Garp during the Water 7 arc, the debate of who is stronger between the Admirals and the Yonko has been raging and fans might finally have an answer now.
The Balance Of Power In The One Piece World
To understand the difference of power between the Admirals and the Yonko, one needs to go over the balance of power that was established by Oda during the Water 7 arc. It was revealed that to balance out the power of the Yonko, the World Government needs the Marines and the Shichibukai to collaborate. This was evident from the Paramount War where the Shichibukai were summoned to join forces with the 100,000 Navy members in an attempt to stop the Whitebeard Pirates. Sengoku, the Fleet Admiral of the Navy at the time, clearly acknowledged that despite having the numerical advantage, it could have been the Navy who met their end on the day despite fighting a dying and old Whitebeard. It is also a misconception that a collaboration of the Marines and the Shichibukai balances out all the Yonko. It must be remembered that the Yonko themselves are in contention against each other and rarely ever collaborate.
As such, it takes a collaboration of the SSG and the Marines to keep one of the Yonko crew and their allies in check. The World Government, based on the sheer numbers that they possess, clearly hold the greatest power in the One Piece world. However, an alliance between two of the members of the Yonko would bring their downfall, as has been hinted on several occasions. Before the timeskip, when Shanks met Whitebeard, the World Government feared their unison quite a lot. In the Wano Country arc, Big Mom and Kaido's alliance was deemed to be so threatening that even Garp feared it. As such, two of the Four Emperors are certainly much stronger than anything that the World Government has at their disposal and that includes the SSG. The portrayal clearly indicates that despite having three Admirals at their disposal, along with several other strong Vice-Admirals, the Yonko cannot be stopped.
The Portrayal Of The Admirals Against The Yonko
The Marineford war gave the fans quite a good look at the comparison between an Admiral and a Yonko. In combat, the Admirals were held at bay by Whitebeard's Commanders with rather ease. Now, that's certainly not to say that the Yonko Commanders are as strong as the Admirals. For one, the Whitebeard Pirates were clearly an exception to the rule, belonging to the same era as Roger and being their equals. Secondly, the Admirals eventually won the fights they were in, although with underhanded tactics. Despite that, the portrayal clearly shows the likes of Marco being as strong as an Admiral in combat.
Akainu, who fought Whitebeard himself, went on to become the Fleet Admiral, and is portrayed as one who fights for supremacy along the Yonko and the current age. Despite that, Akainu wasn't able to defeat an old and dying Whitebeard who couldn't even tap into his Conqueror's Haki in combat. The Dressrosa arc also hammered home the same fact once again when Doflamingo didn't mind fighting the likes of Fujitora or even Aokiji shortly before that, however, the mere prospect of having Kaido angry at him sent shivers down his spine.
If that wasn't enough, shortly before Roger's execution, Shiki attacked Marineford and stopping him required the combined effort of Garp and Sengoku. Despite the two combining, Shiki was able to destroy half of Marineford and slaughtered several Marines before being sent to Impel Down.
In One Piece 1055, Oda all but answered the question of who is stronger between the Yonko and the Admirals and the answer to the question is the former, and by quite a mile. When Green Bull attacked Wano country, he openly declared that had Kaido been in the country to defend it, he would never have dared to attack, meaning he feared the presence of the Yonko. At the same time, the moment Shanks used his Conqueror's Haki, Green Bull was intimidated to the point where he practically begged the Yonko to not pick a fight with him.
Despite being an Admiral, Green Bull is certainly not strong enough to fight red-haired Shanks. That's not to say that the Admirals cannot fight the Yonko. They absolutely possess the weapons to take them on and combat, however, defeating them is a different question altogether. The Admirals and the Yonko are certainly not equal in power and the former will always reign supreme as the strongest in the One Piece world, which Oda once again showed in the previous chapter.