[One Piece] “Nobody Can Explain Why Luffy Beat Katakuri” — Japanese Fans Still Aren’t Convinced

#16 WHOLE CAKE ISLAND

Monkey D. Luffy vs Charlotte Katakuri — May 2018
Did Luffy actually earn that win… or did the fight just end?

Luffy won. That much is official.
But when Japanese readers looked back at the fight, something felt off.
If Katakuri dominated almost the entire battle, why did Luffy walk away standing?


■ “Katakuri Basically Lost to Himself”

1:Anonymous Pirate
Why did he even win……?

2:Anonymous Pirate
Katakuri overused Haki.

3:Anonymous Pirate
It was basically self-destruction.

12:Anonymous Pirate
Didn’t he lose because he got attacked by his own side?
If that didn’t happen, he wouldn’t have lost.

26:Anonymous Pirate
Because he stabbed his own stomach?
Or because Observation Haki makes you bad at tanking hits?


■ Snake Man, Stamina, and “That’s It?”

5:Anonymous Pirate
Snake Man, obviously.

8:Anonymous Pirate
Luffy won on stamina. He’s younger.

16:Anonymous Pirate
Katakuri was winning the entire time,
and then suddenly Luffy won. That shocked me.

40:Anonymous Pirate
He got completely dominated,
no Awakening, no Gear 5, and still won?
Katakuri is probably top 10 in the world.

54:Anonymous Pirate
>>40
He used Snake Man though…


■ Mochi vs Rubber Makes No Sense

13:Anonymous Pirate
Mochi vs rubber.
Mochi probably doesn’t take slashing damage.
It’s sticky.
It’s fluid.
Basically Logia-tier.
So why did he lose……?

27:Anonymous Pirate
Serious answer: rubber vs mochi.
Rubber should have higher durability.
Mochi being sticky means it can’t disperse damage as well.

29:Anonymous Pirate
>>27
It was hard as hell though.


■ “One Piece Injuries Have Always Been Nonsense”

19:Anonymous Pirate
Doffy’s toughness was already ridiculous, so whatever.
How was he even moving with his organs destroyed?

24:Anonymous Pirate
>>19
Robin literally got stabbed near the heart and lived.
That part doesn’t matter.
What matters is that Luffy won without finding a real strategy.

28:Anonymous Pirate
Still more believable than Crocodile, so it’s fine.


■ Awakening, Power Scaling, and Bounty Anger

31:Anonymous Pirate
Katakuri should’ve beaten him with Awakening.
Now Awakening Katakuri just looks stupid.

33:Anonymous Pirate
I still can’t accept that a 1 billion bounty guy lost.


■ Random Tangents, Because It’s a Thread

34:Anonymous Pirate
If Katakuri fought Sabo, would he just turn to charcoal?

37:Anonymous Pirate
>>34
Grilled mochi!


■ “This Is Just How One Piece Fights Go”

35:Anonymous Pirate
Everyone blames Katakuri,
but fights have always been like this.
Same with Alabasta officers.
They dominate, beat the hell out of Luffy,
then suddenly lose in one hit after the Straw Hats “awaken.”

39:Anonymous Pirate
>>35
Enemies are fragile as hell now.
Getting taken out by a hammer is just garbage.

36:Anonymous Pirate
Observation Haki should’ve been counterable somehow.


■ Final Doubts

57:Anonymous Pirate
Has Luffy ever beaten anyone alone without help?

59:Anonymous Pirate
The guy sank Luffy in mochi, didn’t finish him,
and went off to eat donuts. Absolute idiot.


👉 Why Japanese readers argue this way

Japanese fans aren’t asking how Luffy won —
they’re asking why the fight decided to end.

Katakuri dominated for too long.
The turning point wasn’t a clear tactic, awakening, or evolution —
it felt like narrative exhaustion rather than victory.


👉 This wasn’t about power — it was about discomfort

To many readers, Luffy beating Katakuri didn’t feel earned or stolen.
It felt unfinished.

The unease comes from seeing a top-tier enemy lose
without a clean mechanical explanation —
a recurring fear that late-stage One Piece victories rely more on momentum than logic.


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