Sabo’s Upcoming Yonko Level Power-Up, Explained 

This article contains spoilers from the Elbaf Arc of One Piece

Key Takeaways

• Sabo can fight an admiral, showcasing his impressive strength.
• Sabo’s full strength remains unknown, making it difficult to scale.
• Sabo needs Conqueror’s Haki to stand against the Yonko, hinting at future power-ups.

Sabo is a major character in the Final Saga of One Piece, given that he is the Chief of Staff of the Revolutionary Army, which finds itself at the center of a major war. Given his position, fans know that he possesses tremendous strength and at the same time, that his role in the upcoming arcs is going to be absolutely massive. Clearly, Sabo can be considered to be one of the best fighters that fans have seen in the series. However, a lack of focus on this character, and the Revolutionary Army, in general, means that fans don’t know much about what he is truly capable of.

That said, fans can say for sure that Sabo’s strength is currently not on the same tier as the likes of the Yonko of the One Piece World, but he could potentially gain new powers that will see him reach this level very soon.

Sabo’s Current Power Level Is Very Impressive For A Chief Of Staff

• Sabo Can Fight An Admiral
• Sabo’s Full Strength Remains Unknown

It is very difficult to scale how strong Sabo truly is in One Piece. For one, fans have very little to go off of, such as his limited fights where he has never even gone all out even once. Often, fans judge a character by their bounties. In the case of Sabo, his old bounty was revealed to be 602 million berries and that certainly was high enough at one point. However, right now, 602 million berries isn’t all that impressive at all. In the age where individuals gain bounties close to 3 or 4 billion, this amount is insignificant, and it certainly doesn’t portray Sabo’s strengths well. As such, this should be disregarded, because by now, he’s likely to have received a new reward already and his updated reward is likely in the billions, undoubtedly.

I’ve had enough regrets! – Sabo

In One Piece’s post-timeskip, fans have seen him take part in a few clashes here and there. In the Dressrosa Arc, Sabo was revealed to the fans for the very first time, and there, he fought against characters such as Jesus Burgess. Now, Burgess is certainly not anywhere close to an Emperor himself, but Sabo making quick work of him is proof of the fact that he is quite strong. On top of that, he later gained the power of the overpowered Logia Mera Mera no Mi, which gives him the power to manipulate flames, as well as transform into flames as well. Sabo has continuously trained this power ever since, and Oda has mentioned that he keeps this up every single day. Because of his meticulous training with the powers of this Devil Fruit, Sabo has learned to control it quite well and has gained a decent grasp over its powers.

In the Dressrosa arc, Sabo fought against Admiral Fujitora, someone whom fans know to be one of the mightiest characters in the entire series, and held his ground well enough. In fact, the fight was quite even, but, at the same time, it must be remembered that Fujitora was only buying time, and so was Sabo. These characters weren’t truly going all out, which makes it very hard to figure out how this fight would have been if they were both serious.

Another indication of Sabo’s level of strength is the fact that he was able to sneak up on the Five Elders in Marijoa and launch a powerful Hiken at them, with a Rook Check immediately being directed at Imu. Clearly, the Elders suffered damage from this attack, but, the fact is that they have the powers to recover instantaneously, as seen in the Egghead Arc. They suffered no damage, while Imu ended up consuming Sabo’s flames. Still, Sabo remained standing even after taking a very deadly attack from Imu themselves.

Sabo’s Haki Power Is Immense

Clearly, Sabo has grown greatly in terms of his Devil Fruit power manipulation, but at the same time, fans also know that he possesses tremendous Haki. In fact, Sabo is one of the best users of the Color of Arms haki in One Piece, and even his Observation haki seems to be quite great.

But, all the powers that he possesses are certainly not enough to give him an elevated position comparable to that of an Emperor.

Why Two Major Power-Ups Are Close For Sabo

Sabo Needs Conqueror’s Haki To Be A Serious Threat

Fans might be wondering as to why Sabo even needs a power-up. After all, he’s pretty strong, and not every character needs to be around the level of the Emperor. The answer to that question is in Oda’s portrayal of Sabo as an individual who is continuously growing in terms of power and influence in the world. Sabo was recently hailed as a hero following the death of King Cobra. Of course, he had nothing to do with his death, but the world perceived it as such. Sabo came to be known as the Flame Emperor, and, just in name alone, it is clear to see that Sabo is considered an Emperor of sorts.

I don’t mind taking the blame if it fans the flames of revolution! – Sabo

On top of that, it was clearly stated in the story that Sabo’s infamy has now surpassed that of Dragon. This is a massive point that not enough fans are paying attention to. For Sabo’s infamy to surpass that of Dragon means that his bounty is likely to be incredibly High. After what he did and how he became a hero to the masses, Oda has specifically put tremendous importance on Sabo, which has to have a payoff. Sabo’s portrayal has to be better in the future, which means that he will gain major powers soon enough.

The fact that Sabo was considered to be the Flame Emperor, and given that he is Dragon’s Number Two, fans should not be surprised to see him utilize the power of Conqueror’s Haki soon enough. Supreme King Haki is especially common in individuals with an undying spirit and the will to reach the top. Sabo fits the billing, and he should certainly have this power. Furthermore, both Luffy and Ace have had access to Conqueror’s Haki, which leaves behind Sabo and Oda would certainly not leave him hanging. Sabo will gain this ability at some point or will be revealed to have already awakened it long ago, but kept it a secret.

Either way, fans will get to see him use this power in the Final Saga, and potentially even the advanced form of it, given that the primary form is of no use to him at this point in time. All his powers taken into consideration, Sabo should be an individual worthy of standing in battles against the Yonko.

On top of Haki, fans know that has now gained a Devil Fruit and that he could go on to awaken it. Of course, Devil Fruit Awakening can take years for a few individuals, but, given that Sabo has been training meticulously day and night to improve upon its usage, he could perhaps go on to awaken it soon enough. It isn’t unheard of for people to awaken Devil Fruits in a short amount of time. For instance, Kaku only ate his Devil Fruit around the time of the Enies Lobby Arc, and at some point during the timeskip, had already awakened it. Sabo is a much bigger genius than Kaku, and could potentially go on to awaken the Mera Mera no Mi in a shorter period of time.

One Piece is available to read via Viz Media. The series can be read by the fans officially and for free on the Shonen Jump and the Manga Plus apps. The release date for the next chapter of One Piece, One Piece 1132, is set to be December 1, 2024.