Vivi's special role in One Piece all but confirmed via theory on Imu, Lili, and the Op-Op Fruit

One Piece chapter 1116 was recently leaked, and one of the most interesting elements to a lot of fans was Imu's increasing interest in Nefertari D. Vivi, and a recent theory explains why that could be the case. It suggests that Imu and Vivi's ancestor, Nefertari D. Lili, waged battle with one another centuries ago, and the World Government leader has survived thanks to the help of the Op-Op Fruit.

There are a lot of questions surrounding Imu's existence in the One Piece series, going from what he or she is, their motivations, how he or she has managed to live for so many centuries, and the events in the Void Century that led to the creation of the World Government, where he or she most likely had a very significant role to play.

Within all of those events, there is a chance that Lili's actions with the Poneglyphs and her heritage as a Nefertari could play a role in Imu's interest in Vivi.

Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers for the series. Any opinion expressed here belongs to the author and not Sportskeeda as a whole.

---

Explaining Nefertari D. Vivi and Imu's conflict centuries ago in One Piece and the role the Op-Op Fruit plays in this

The theory explains that Imu was part of one of the twenty royal families that formed the World Government during the Void Century, and hers or his was the Nerona family, with this character being able to live for centuries because of the Op-Op fruit.

The ability of this fruit allows the user to give another personal immortal youth at the expense of said user's life and also has the possibility of personality-transplant surgery, where they can swap non-physical items such as souls, effectively putting one person in another person’s body.

It connects to Vivi's ancestor, Nefertari D. Lili, whose family was one of the royal ones who created the World Government, but she chose to not move to Mary Geoise and spread the Poneglyphs across the world, which angered Imu as he or she showed disdain towards one of Lili's descendants, Cobra.

However, the theory also suggests that the women in the Nefertari family have special abilities since Imu decided to kill Cobra and wanted Vivi captured alive.

Therefore, this theory concludes that, since Lili was never found, she and Imu switched bodies thanks to the Op-Op Fruit, and then the user, most likely a loyal servant to the World Government leader, gave him or her immortal life. Imu probably did this because of the Nefertari's special abilities or because he or she wanted to find the Poneglyphs and needed Lili's memories.

---

More details of the theory

Nefertari D. Lili and Imu in the anime (Image via Toei Animation)

The theory also points out that Imu's loyal servant was probably a God Knight and a member of one of the twenty families that founded the World Government. It even goes as far as suggesting that Dracule Mihawk could be a member of the Nerona family, as his eyes have the same design and color as Imu's in the One Piece manga.

All of this could also explain Imu's current problems with the Nefertari and the fact that perhaps he or she wants Vivi alive because the World Government needs a woman of that lineage to execute part of their plan. It could also explain why Lili did not join them centuries ago.

---

Final thoughts

This One Piece theory has a lot of legs when considering Imu's disdain for Nefertari D. Lili and the World Government leader's desire to capture Vivi. It could also add another layer to this villain's ability and how he or she has lived for so long in the series.

---

Related articles

• Dragon Ball and One Piece fans at each other's throats over valid critique for both series
• Luffy and Blackbeard's first meeting in One Piece is the key to understanding the Void Century war
• One Piece's most enigmatic enemy doesn't want Vivi Nefertari to realize her potential
• One Piece's latest reveal explains a key mystery about Shanks and his crew