By Rei Penber
Mihawk is a better swordsman than Shanks but does that make him stronger than the red-haired Yonko?
Shanks and Mihawk are two of the most powerful characters in the One Piece world. Known to be legendary fighters, these two characters have a deep history with each other. In the Great Pirate Era, they engaged in constant duels with one another and their battles were known to be legendary. As such, they became famed rivals and even the likes of Whitebeard, who was an even more legendary figure, were well aware of them. Unfortunately, the rivalry ended once Shanks lost his left arm. However, ever since then, he has gotten even stronger and acquired the position of Yonko.
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Mihawk, on the other hand, ended up becoming one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea. Following the recent Reverie, he is now a hunted pirate and a member of Buggy's organization, the Cross Guild. One Piece chapter 1058 gave fans a bit more information on the legendary Hawk Eyes. In the chapter, his swordsmanship was praised to be better than that of Shanks. This, once again, raises the question of who the stronger one between the two is.
Their Bounties
Both Shanks and Mihawk are incredibly powerful pirates and have made a great name for themselves. They are both held in legendary light in the One Piece world and feared all across the globe. As such, both of them have incredibly high bounties. Shanks has a bounty of 4,048,900,000 berries, which was introduced to the fans in One Piece 957, titled "Ultimate." Shanks is certainly an incredible fighter, however, he is not known to be reckless.
As fans know already, recklessness certainly inflates the bounty of an individual and for Shanks, that is not the case. In the case of Mihawk, his bounty was recently revealed to be 3,590,000,000 berries. This is quite close to the figure that Shanks has on his head, however, might be an indication that the two don't carry the same level of threat. Despite that, fans know that bounties are not a proper indication of strength. Mihawk having a lower bounty doesn't necessarily mean that he's weaker.
Mihawk's Swordsmanship
Mihawk holds the title of "World's Greatest Swordsman" and, as such, it is beyond any doubt that his swordsmanship skills are superior to those of Shanks. This was, once again, brought up in One Piece 1058 where he was specifically compared to Shanks. According to Brannew, Mihawk's swordsmanship skills are known to exceed even those of red-haired Shanks. Therefore, in terms of swordsmanship alone, Mihawk is certainly better. However, that certainly doesn't mean that Mihawk is stronger than Shanks. After all, swordsmanship is an art and Mihawk excels in it. Shanks' fighting style has not been seen in One Piece so far. In fact, Oda himself has teased Shanks's fighting style in an SBS, wondering how he truly fights. By merely carrying a sword, Shanks doesn't become a traditional swordsman.
A great example of death would be King the Wildfire of the Beasts Pirates. Despite carrying a sword, King never called himself a swordsman. Even Zoro acknowledged the fact that King wasn't a swordsman, to begin with, and had other abilities up his sleeve. As the fight went on, fans got to see him utilize the power of his Lunarian race, such as Karyudon, and use his sword to direct these attacks towards Zoro.
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Shanks' Haki
Shanks's biggest strength is his powerful Conqueror's Haki. Oda has, time and again, teased this incredible power of his. When he arrived on Whitebeard's ship, this power of his was apparent and even the likes of Jozu, along with Whitebeard himself, praised it. In Marineford, Shanks managed to intimidate everyone, and if One Piece: Film Red is anything to go by, Shanks' Conqueror's Haki scared two Admirals at the same time and knocked out a Vice Admiral of the Navy. Most importantly, Shanks was seen having the ability to direct his Conqueror's Haki towards someone from a great distance.
Clearly, Shanks has powers that don't relate to swordsmanship. By channeling Conqueror's Haki from a great distance using his sword, or doing things such as stopping his opponents from using Observation Haki, Shanks becomes a fighter with a very distinct style. While he does carry a sword and even uses it in combat, Shanks isn't necessarily a swordsman as his fighting style is way too diverse. As such, Mihawk can well have greater swordsmanship skills than Yonko Shanks and still be weaker than him. The portrayal shows them to be close in terms of power, however, Shanks likely holds an edge over his once-rival. While Shanks and Mihawk certainly won't fight ever again, in the future, both of these fighters will have their individual abilities fully explored by Oda. Mihawk Google most certainly fight Zoro at some point and go all out. At the same time, shanks and Luffy are destined to clash at some point as well. Shanks is still expected to be stronger than Mihawk however, the difference in power between the two is not going to be as too wide.
MORE: One Piece: Shanks' Conqueror's Haki, Explained
