One Piece's Impel Down arc may be the key to the Gorosei's hellish powers

One Piece chapter 1113 is set to be released on April 29, 2024. The spoilers for this chapter were pretty wild as Vegapunk's livestream had begun, wherein he revealed a part of his message about the "truth of the world."

Moreover, the chapter also showcased the despair of the Gorosei who stood helpless as Vegapunk made his moves. Since Gorosei's introduction, these have become even more intimidating, even though most of them still have not revealed their true powers. While fans consider mythology more prevalent in predicting the powers of Gorosei, the answer to this question could be in the series itself.

In fact, the answer to the powers of the Gorosei could be in the Impel Down, which took place in the most dangerous prison of the Grand Line. Thus, fans are speculating how these grand beings could be related to the levels of Impel Down in One Piece.

Disclaimer: This article contains potential spoilers from the One Piece manga series and has the author's opinion.

One Piece: Exploring the relationship between the Gorosei and Impel Down

Impel Down as seen in the anime (Image via Toei Animation)

After fighting a battle against Blackbeard in One Piece, Portgas D Ace lost and was handed over to the World Government. He was then sentenced to death at Marineford and kept inside the most dangerous prison on the Grand Line, the Impel Down.

Impel Down was located inside the Calm Belt and was the maximum security prison in possession of the World Government in One Piece. The prison was divided into six levels and Ace was kept on level 6, where the most feral prisoners resided. Monkey D Luffy set out on a journey, alongside Hancock, to save his brother before he got executed.

When he snuck into Impel Down, he met Buggy on level 1, who offered him his help in exchange for the piece of jewelry he was wearing. Galdino joined them at level 2, and Bon Clay at level 3. Luffy fought Megallan in level 4. where he almost died and was thrown down to level 5. Bon Clay came to save him, and they were transferred to level 5.5, the Newkama Island.

At this level, Luffy was treated and added Ivankov's allies to his team to save Ace. Unfortunately, as they marched towards level 6, Ace was no longer there. They later made a narrow escape with Jimbe's help, and Bon Clay sacrificed his escape to let his friend see his brother again.

The Five Elders in their devil forms (Image via Toei Animation)

In chapter 1110 of One Piece, all Gorosei were summoned to Egghead Island by Saint Saturn, and their devil forms were revealed. Even though most of them still haven't revealed their true powers, their devil powers could be related to the levels of Impel Down, and it could be speculated as to what horror they possess.

Each level of Impel Down could represent one of the Five Elders, due to the similarities between them, and each Gorosei gets their hellish powers through the sacrifices (murder of criminals) done on each respective level. The criminals got stronger as the levels descended from 1 to 6. Let's see which level could be designated to which Gorosei.

Level 1 (left) and Level 2 (right) of Impel Down (Image via Toei Animation)

Level 1 of Impel Down is titled Crimson Hell, which Luffy crossed pretty easily with the help of Buggy. This level consisted of razor-sharp trees and dangerous spiders who chased after the prisoners until they were sliced through the trees.

Saint Saturn's devil form was inspired by gyuki (or ushi-oni), a Japanese mythical creature having the appearance of a bull and a spider. So, he could be getting his powers from this level, which could relate to the fan theory of him being the weakest Gorosei (as level 1 was for the weakest criminals, and involved fewer sacrifices than the lower levels).

Level 2 of Impel Down, meanwhile, is titled the Wild Beast Hell, where Luffy met Galdino. This level consisted of wild beasts like basilisks and sphinxes who chased after criminals until they died.

Saint Marcus' devil form was inspired by Itsumade, a Japanese mythical creature having a similar appearance to a basilisk, a hybrid of a snake and a bird. As level 2 was filled with beasts like Itsumade, he could be getting his powers from this level.

Level 3 (left) and level 4 (right) of Impel Down (Image via Toei Animation)

Level 3 of Impel Down is titled Starvation Hell, where Luffy met Bon Clay. This level consisted of vapors erupting from level 4. This level was characterized by a scarcity of water and food, which turned criminals helpless and begging for death.

Saint Ju Peter's devil form was inspired by a creature named Sandworm, which is a creature that burrows in the sand in deserts. As deserts are characterized by a lack of water, he could be getting his powers from this level.

Level 4 of Impel Down is titled Blazing Hell, where Luffy fought Megallan and Bon Clay betrayed him. This level consisted of a big pot of blood boiling continuously over a raging flame, thus torturing criminals through extreme heat.

Saint Warcury could be related to this level as his powers are still a mystery, other than his display of the Conqueror's haki. His devil form was inspired by a Chinese mythical creature that resembled a wild boar, the Fengxi.

Level 5 of Impel Down (Image via Toei Animation)

Level 5 of Impel Down is titled Freezing Hell, where Luffy was thrown after he was drowned in poison and Bon Clay returned to save him. This level consisted of extremely cold temperatures, which killed the criminals either through frostbite (losing body parts) or hypothermia (long exposure to cold temperatures).

Saint Nusjuro's devil form was inspired by Bakotsu, a Japanese mythical creature having the appearance of an undead horse. His powers were pretty similar to Brook's hybrid attacks, which combined his devil fruit powers and his swordsmanship, thus slashing his enemy with an ice slash. As this level consisted of ice-cold temperatures, Saint Nusjuro could be getting his powers from this level.

The sixth level and Imu

Level 6 (left) of Impel Down and Imu (right) (Image via Toei Animation)

Level 5 of Impel Down is titled Eternal Hell, where Luffy and Ivankov freed Crocodile and Jinbe in hopes of escaping from the prison. This level was characterized by its mysterious nature where the names of criminals disappeared as they rotted to death.

One of the biggest mysteries in One Piece includes the ruler of the World Government and the person who rules over the Five Elders, Imu. So, Imu could receive their powers from the sacrifices at this level, and as only the strongest are sacrificed here, this could indicate the power level of the ruler of the World Government.

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Edited by Susrita Das