Every Emperor in One Piece, Ranked by Their One-Shot Attack

The Yonko in One Piece represent the peak of piracy due to their ability to end a battle in an instant. No matter whether via Advanced Conqueror’s Haki, awakened Devil Fruits, or overwhelming physical strength, each Emperor in One Piece wields at least one move guaranteed to destroy even highly skilled opponents in a single blow.

Examples include Kaido crushing Gear 4 Luffy or Shanks defeating Eustass Kid in one hit; Eiichiro Oda has repeatedly shown that top-tier battles can end in seconds. So here is the complete ranking of Emperors based on their strongest one-hit attacks.

Series Title	One Piece
Manga Author	Eiichiro Oda
Anime Rating (Mal) – as of May 16, 2026	8.73 / 10
Manga Rating (Mal) – as of May 16, 2026	9.21 / 10

7 Buggy’s Greatest One-Shot Technique Is Pure Luck

Buggy is the only Yonko whose ultimate weapon relies not on strength, but on incredible luck. Buggy was mistakenly viewed as the leader of Cross Guild by the World Government after Chapter 1056, although Dracule Mihawk and Crocodile were the true monsters behind the organization.

From Marineford all the way to Impel Down, Buggy surprisingly manages to survive every single catastrophe that would normally wipe out any normal pirate off the map immediately. Thus, his “one-shot ability” is essentially making the world believe he is far stronger than he actually is.

6 Big Mom’s Soul Powers Can End Fights Instantly

The Soul-Soul Fruit power of Big Mom makes her one of the most dangerous Yonko in the One Piece series. During the Whole Cake Island arc, it was revealed that Charlotte Linlin can steal the lifespan of anyone who fears her through Soul Pocus, instantly defeating weaker enemies without even physically attacking them.

Unlike Kaido and Whitebeard, Big Mom does not always use brute force for everything she needs to do. She turns fear into a weapon and combines it with moves like Ikoku Sovereignty and Maser Cannon to act like an unstoppable calamity.

5 Blackbeard Combines Darkness With Tremor Crushes

Marshall D. Teach became uniquely dangerous after stealing Whitebeard’s Gura Gura no Mi in Chapter 577. By combining darkness with earthquake powers, Blackbeard created one of the deadliest offensive styles in One Piece.

With the Yami Yami no Mi, Blackbeard can negate the ability of other Devil Fruits, effectively making the strongest asset of any opponent useless at once. Afterward, Blackbeard strikes with powerful earthquake techniques capable of destroying the whole region.

4 Kaido’s Thunder Bagua One-Shotted Gear 4 Luffy

Kaido completely changed the power scale of Wano in Chapter 923 when he instantly knocked out Gear 4 Luffy with Thunder Bagua. At the time, Luffy had already defeated Katakuri, yet Kaido overwhelmed him with shocking ease.

The terrifying part of Thunder Bagua is its speed and precision. Kaido combines monstrous physical strength with Advanced Conqueror’s Haki, creating an attack that even elite fighters struggle to react to. Thunder Bagua is one of the most shocking attacks used by the Yonko, and it immediately showed the massive strength gap between commanders and Emperors.

3 Whitebeard’s Gura Gura Blows Could Destroy Armies

Whitebeard earned the title of “Strongest Man in the World” because of the overwhelming destructive power of the Gura Gura no Mi. Sengoku even stated during Marineford that Whitebeard possessed the power to destroy the world.

Even while sick and heavily injured, Whitebeard devastated Marineford with earthquakes powerful enough to split the sea and overwhelm Admirals. Prime Whitebeard was likely even stronger. Unlike precise attacks such as Divine Departure, Whitebeard’s strikes felt like entire natural disasters crashing onto the battlefield.

2 Luffy’s Bajrang Gun Defeated Kaido in One Blow

Luffy’s Gear 5 transformed him into one of the strongest fighters in the series, but Bajrang Gun became the ultimate proof of his Yonko status. In Chapter 1049, Luffy created a gigantic Haki-coated fist powerful enough to overpower Kaido’s Flaming Drum Dragon form and send him deep beneath Wano.

What makes Bajrang Gun special is that it represents the culmination of Luffy’s entire journey. Oda turned the same pirate who got one-shotted by Thunder Bagua into someone capable of defeating the “Strongest Creature” with a single finishing blow. That full-circle progression made Bajrang Gun feel even more impactful.

1 Shanks’ Divine Departure Destroyed Kid Instantly

Shanks takes the top spot because no other Emperor has displayed such overwhelming efficiency against a powerful opponent. In Chapter 1079, Shanks used Divine Departure to instantly defeat Eustass Kid and heavily damage Killer before destroying their fleet.

What shocked fans most was how effortless the attack looked. Kid had just helped defeat Big Mom in Wano, yet Shanks erased him before the battle truly started. By using the same legendary technique once associated with Gol D. Roger, Oda finally showed why Shanks has remained one of the most feared pirates in the world despite his limited screen time.

Here are some of the questions fans may have –

Now the big question – which Emperor’s one-shot attack do you think would be the hardest to survive in One Piece? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.

The One Piece anime is currently available to watch on Crunchyroll.