‘One Piece’: 10 strongest Marines, ranked

They are the bane of every pirate on the high seas. They are the might of the World Government. One-third of the Three Great Powers. They are absolutely not to be trifled with. They are The Few. The Proud. The One Piece Marines.

Well, they’re actually the numerous and the often cowardly. One of the planet’s largest fighting forces in existence, the Marines are the “peacekeepers” of the world’s waters, though they’re often the ones starting the fight and more often running off when it doesn’t go their way. When it comes to finishing fights, however, only a select few marines can hold a candle to the powers of the pirate forces across the waves. These are the toughest of the tough. The 10 strongest Marines, ranked.

10. Tsuru

Tsuru is a veteran who worked alongside Marine legend Monkey D. Garp in the days of Gol D. Roger. Unlike the long-retired Garp, she still holds a position in the organization and is easily one of its most powerful members. While the full extent of Tsuru’s abilities isn’t known, her resume alone proves her to be one of the toughest in a strength-based meritocracy like the Marines. She’s a user of the Woshu Woshu no Mi, a Devil Fruit that allows her to quite literally hang foes out to dry like yesterday’s dirty laundry. In her youth, she was so feared that even the young Donquixote Doflamingo turned tail and ran from her rather than face her in combat. She chased him halfway across the New World, and she’s still chasing pirates to this day.

9. X Drake

X-Drake’s pirate LinkedIn resume is seriously impressive. He’s the Captain of the Marines special forces unit, SWORD. He’s a high-ranking member of the Beast Pirates under Kaido, and he’s a member of the Worst Generation along with all-time great fighters like Luffy, Zoro, and Trafalgar D. Law. He possesses a Zoan fruit that allows him to turn into an allosaurus, a literal fighting dinosaur. Plus, he’s an exceptional Haki user and is perhaps one of the most intelligent fighters on this list. He infiltrated the crew of one of the Four Emperors of the Sea, after all. I’d like to see Akainu try to pull a stealthy stunt like that.

8. Ryokugyu

Like Tsuru, we haven’t seen all that much of Ryokugyu’s powers, but his rank alone proves that he’s one of the best that the Marines have to offer. Ryogukyu is currently one of the Three Admirals, chosen through the World Military Draft—meaning that he was quite literally appraised as one of the best fighters in the world BEFORE he joined the Marines. He easily defeated King and Queen, two of the most powerful members of the Beast Pirates, and was able to arrest former Warlord Edward Weevil, (possible) son of the World’s Strongest Man, Whitebeard. He’s also a strong Haki user, and he possesses the power of the Mori Mori no Mi, a Logia Devil Fruit that allows the user to turn their body into plant matter. He’s basically Groot if Groot was a psychic ocean cop.

7. Fujitora

Now, we’re getting into the big leagues. Like Ryokugyu, Fujitora was drafted into service, meaning that he was one of the world’s most powerful people before he was granted the awesome authority of a Marine Admiral. He’s one of the greatest swordsmen in all of One Piece, second only to sword saints like Dracule Mihawk and Silvers Raleigh. Though blind, he can sense his foes’ movements using his exceptional skill at Observational Haki. He also possesses the power of the Zushi Zushi no Mi, a Devil Fruit that grants him control over gravity. If that wasn’t enough, Fujitora is also the owner of the Yakuza Kasen, a cane sword that is one of the 12 Supreme Grade Blades—the finest swords in all of existence.

6. Kizaru

Former Admiral Kizaru has one of the deadliest Devil Fruit powers in all of One Piece: the Pika Pika no Mi. The Pika Pika no Mi is a Logia-type Devil Fruit that allows the user to transform their body into light. “So what?” You might think, “The sun hits me with that every day when I walk outside, and I’m fine.” Sure, but unlike the sun, Kizaru’s light beams explode on contact. He shoots them out of everywhere. His fists. His feet. His eyes. He’s also able to use his Devil Fruit power to attack at the speed of light. The man can become intangible, so attacks pass through him, and he can create afterimage clones of himself and stand on cannonballs while they’re flying through the air. Long-term exposure to him will probably give you skin cancer, too.

5. Aokiji

Aokiji is a certified badass, and his certification comes from his training under all-time Marine great Monkey D. Garp. When it comes to physical ability, Aokiji is in a league of Garp’s own. Like Luffy’s grandfather, Aokiji is capable of phenomenal punching power. Who needs a Supreme Grade sword when you have the fists that the Sun God gave you? And yet, a killer haymaker wasn’t all the Aokiji was blessed with. He’s the owner of the Hie Hie no Mi, a Logia-type Devil Fruit that gives the user the power to transform into and manipulate ice. His powers allow him to self-freeze and shatter when hit by an opponent, only to put himself back together. He can also create weapons out of ice and coat his fists in the stuff to make his punches stronger. He can even circumvent Devil Fruit user’s weakness to water by turning it into ice before he sinks!

4. Kong

We haven’t seen much at all of Kong’s combat powers, but considering that he’s the current Commander-in-Chief of the World Government and was a Fleet Admiral of the Marines, it’s safe to say that he’s one of the organization’s very best. He served next to the legendary Senguko (we’ll get to him) in his younger days, meaning that he must have been a formidable warrior. His political and military might is unrivaled in the World Government except by the Five Elders (and Imu) themselves, and he is in command of the entire Marine force and the Seven Warlords of the Sea—at least until the latter was abolished. He also has the power to invoke the One Piece nuclear strike Buster Call against any island or organization he sees fit. Sometimes, power isn’t just what you can do but who you can get to do it for you.

3. Monkey D. Garp

While Monkey D. Garp is getting on in years, he was once the greatest Marine warrior who ever lived. Known as “Garp the Fist” and the “Hero of the Marines,” Garp won fame and renown with nothing but the ham hocks at the ends of his forearms. He’s one of the few people in existence who could fight toe to toe with the former Pirate King Gol D. Roger and is an undisputed master of Armament and Observation Haki. He is also able to use the exceedingly rare and powerful Supreme King Haki, which allows the user to overwhelm foes through sheer force of will alone. But Garp’s greatest power? The power of education. He’s been a mentor to some of the world’s greatest fighters, including Aokiji and Monkey D. Luffy himself.

2. Sengoku

Looks can be deceiving. While Sengoku may appear to be a goat-loving old goat, the man ain’t named after the most violent period in Japanese history for nothing. A former Fleet Admiral of the Marines who served alongside Garp and Tsuru in his prime, Sengoku is one of the most formidable fighters the organization has ever known. He owns the Hito Hito no Mi, Model: Daibutsu, a Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit that allows him to transform into a giant golden Buddha statue. With the force of his giant, gilded empty palm alone, he’s able to send out shockwaves that rival the seismic power of the continent-shattering Gura Gura no Mi currently in Blackbeard’s possession.

1.  Sakazuki

Formerly known as Akainu, Sakazuki is the current Fleet Admiral of the Marines and is shaping up to be an end-of-series level Big Bad. After all, Sakazuki is the man responsible for killing Luffy’s beloved older brother figure, Portgas D. Ace, an undeniably exceptional fighter. Sakazuki possesses the Magu Magu no Mi, a Logia-type Devil Fruit that allows him to transform his body into living magma. Said to be the strongest Devil Fruit in terms of raw attack power, Sakazuki combines his Magu Magu abilities with his considerable mastery of Observational and Armament Haki. Combined with his unbending “might-makes-right” philosophy, Sakazuki is easily one of the toughest foes Luffy will ever face.