In the world of One Piece, Eiichiro Oda, the creator of the series, has established two primary power systems, those being Haki and Devil Fruits. Devil Fruits were officially introduced to us in the very first chapter on July 18, 1997, in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump Issue #34. Since then, Eiichiro Oda has significantly expanded upon the concept of Devil Fruits. When it comes to Haki, this ability was only properly explored at the midpoint of the series in One Piece Chapter 597, shortly before the 2-year timeskip. In the Elbaf arc, Haki has since gained tremendous importance, and it can even be said to be a power rivaling even more significant than Devil Fruits in some ways.
That said, One Piece’s Elbaf arc, specifically its climax following the arrival of Nerona Imu in Chapter 1179 on April 5, 2026, in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump issue #19, has introduced a new ability exclusive to the elites of the World Government. This power is Omen, granted and used by none other than Nerona Imu. Omen can offer a buff even greater than Devil Fruit and Haki in significant ways, as demonstrated in One Piece Chapter 1189 on July 26, 2026.
One Piece Chapter 1189 Confirms Imu’s ‘Omen’ Surpasses Standard Devil Fruits And Haki
When one consumes a Devil Fruit, they gain a significant ability, depending on what fruit they eat, at the cost of their ability to swim. Devil Fruit abilities can be incredibly overpowered, but they can also be very limited. As such, eating a Devil Fruit is more like a lottery, which can grant someone strong abilities but others only a small buff. Haki, on the other hand, works very differently. While Haki is present within everyone, as explained by Rayleigh in Chapter 597, on August 30, 2010, only a handful are able to awaken it. Taking it to the next level is even harder because it requires one to take part in high-level battles and test their abilities against the biggest challenges. Not everyone can become a master of Haki, and in many ways, mastering this power is even harder than eating a Devil Fruit.
“Luffy, I have trained you. But the true power of Haki only blooms in the heat of battle. The more you face off against stronger enemies, the stronger you will get!” — Silvers Rayleigh explains Haki bloom, One Piece Chapter #886
That said, there exists a power-up in the world of One Piece that requires neither the hard work of Haki nor the luck of Devil Fruits, but still grants significant strength greater than either of those. That is the power of Omen. Omen was officially introduced to us in One Piece Chapter 1180 on April 20, 2026, in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump Issue #21. This ability is utilized by Nerona Imu, and he officially explained it as his military might. According to Imu, Omen is present within all living things, but only a select few can make use of it. This makes it very similar to Haki in certain ways, but Omen can be made use of only after corruption, according to Imu’s own words. In other words, those who crave power through shortcuts and are corrupted by Imu’s influence can gain this power.
“Omen is my military might. It’s a power that dwells within all living things. People crave power. However, if the power they crave is obtained through ease, it leads to corruption.” — Nerona Imu explains Omen, One Piece Chapter #1181
Nerona Imu granted Imu Omen to both Sommers and Killingham in One Piece Chapter 1180, and they later demonstrated their strength in Chapter 1189 on July 26, 2026, in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump Issue #35. Needless to say, both Sommers and Killingham have been powered up to tremendous levels where they can compete with the absolute top tiers of the One Piece world, confirming once and for all that Omen is a power-up rivaling and, in some cases, even surpassing both Devil Fruits and Haki.
How Imu’s Omen Pushed Sommers And Killingham To Near Yonko Level
In One Piece chapter 1189, Nerona Imu’s Omen power-up that he bestowed to Sommers and Killingham was showcased to us firsthand. Before the Omen power-up, both Sommers and Killingham were comfortably beaten by the likes of the Straw Hat Pirates and those who fought in Elbaf, such as Scopper Gaban. In the case of Sommers, he was easily cut down by Gaban in One Piece Chapter 1149 and in the God Valley flashback by Rayleigh. Both Luffy and Loki also dealt with him rather easily, so Zoro should have been able to defeat him as well.
Zoro: King of Hell, Three-Sword Serpent! 103 Mercies, Dragon Damnation!!
Sommers: Gram!
Sommers: You see, Roronoa Zoro? This is the power that conquered the world!
— Sommers overpowers Zoro’s strongest attack, One Piece Chapter #1189
However, following his Omen power-up, Roronoa Zoro failed to land even a single hit on him. In fact, Zoro’s strongest technique, known as 103 Mercies – Dragon Damnation, with which he dispatched King in the Wano arc, was effortlessly stopped by Sommers and brushed away as if it were nothing. This puts Sommers significantly over King in terms of power level. The fact is that this technique should have left lasting damage on a Yonko and even an Admiral of the One Piece world. For it to be stopped effortlessly by Sommers means that he can now compete in the same league as the top tiers of the One Piece world. The same applies to Killingham as well, who was previously defeated by Sanji but now is significantly stronger than him.
As has been quite easily, quite clearly portrayed in One Piece Chapter 1189’s release on July 26, 2026, in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump Issue #35, Omen is a far easier power-up to attain for anyone. It grants the biggest buff, taking someone who should logically be no stronger than a Yonko Commander to the level of a Yonko in the blink of an eye. It must also be noted that both Sommers and Killingham are not among the absolute strongest of the Holy Knights. In fact, when compared to the likes of Gunko, Shamrock, and the others, they are relatively weak. This means that when individuals like Shamrock or the Five Elders are granted an Omen boost, they will naturally reach much higher levels of power, surpassing even the Yonko in the process, making it the greatest power buff in the entirety of One Piece.
Imu’s Omen Boost Comes With A Legendary Weapon Buff
One of the biggest reasons why Sommers and Killingham surpass Devil Fruit users is that these Holy Knights have now also been powered by weapons of the creators of the world. Through the Omen, the weapons of the 19 Kings who swore an Oath of Equality in front of the Empty Throne have been handed to them. In the case of Sommers, this is the Sword of Wrath: Gram, and in the case of Killingham, it is the Spear of Holy Command: Longinus. Both these weapons boost their already tremendous strength even further and make them monsters for anyone to deal with.
“800 years ago, the 19 Kings who forged this world took an oath of equality, thrusting their weapons into the ground around the Empty Throne. Blade of Chaos, Tohu! Vohu! Nemesis! Longinus! Stigma! Muramasa! They are the 19 weapons of those who brought the world to heel! The Great One used Omen to bring them back and grant them to us. There are no lies among the legends each family passed down!” — Sommers explains the Weapons of the world creators, One Piece Chapter #1189
Given that 19 weapons exist in total, they will be distributed among the Holy Knights and the Five Elders and be used by Imu himself in the Final War. This means that all of Imu’s underlings will receive a significant boost of strength, which we are eagerly waiting to see. No matter which way we look at it, Omen is a power that surpasses anything we have seen in One Piece, and it will be that much more difficult to see it being surpassed.
All the new chapters of Eiichiro Oda’s One Piece manga are available to read via Manga Plus and Viz Media.
I’m Abhishek Sharma, an author at TigerJek.com. I enjoy exploring games, testing different strategies, and turning what I learn into clear, useful guides. My goal is to help players understand the game better and improve without the usual confusion.
