One Piece: Can Mihawk use a special type of Future Sight? Explored

Dracule Mihawk, the formidable "Hawk Eyes", is set to be Roronoa Zoro’s final and greatest opponent in One Piece. This is because Mihawk holds the title of the World’s Strongest Swordsman, surpassing even “Red-Haired” Shanks. Having only witnessed a small glimpse of Mihawk’s capabilities, One Piece fans can’t wait to see his full might finally unleashed.

While waiting to showcase the full scope of Mihawk’s skills, One Piece has already established him as one of the franchise's most powerful characters, as befitting his title of the World’s Strongest Swordsman. Just the mere incidental force of Mihawk’s most nonchalant attacks is enough to destroy icebergs as large as mountains, hinting that his real strength is nothing short than extraordinary.

Mihawk’s past battles with Shanks and his forthcoming showdown with Zoro—both Conqueror’s Haki users—suggest that Mihawk himself wields this elite power. His transformation of the sword Yoru into a Black Blade implies his prowess with Armament Haki too. Mihawk is also implied to be a master of Observation Haki, but what’s truly interesting is that he may possess a power surpassing even the ability to see the future.

There are some instances that suggest that Mihawk may have used a special type of Future Sight to project a vision of the future into Luffy’s mind.

Disclaimer: This articles contains major spoilers from the One Piece manga up to chapter 1150.

The enigma behind Mihawk’s eyes remains a mystery in One Piece

The Color of Observation

Observation Haki in the One Piece anime (Image via Toei Animation)

As a powerhouse, Dracule Mihawk is almost certainly a master of Haki, including the Color of Observation. This Haki type is a sort of sixth sense that equips users with a wide array of sensitive and precognitive abilities. By focusing appropriately, Observation Haki users can sense and pinpoint the presence, emotions, and overall strength of other living beings even without seeing them.

All Observation Haki users can predict other people’s moves and intentions, but successfully dodging or countering attacks hinges on their own combat prowess. Highly skilled users can achieve “Future Sight”, an advanced ability that allows them to anticipate the upcoming events to the point where they can see a precise sequence of what will happen next.

Zunesha projecting a vision into Momonosuke's head (Image via Shueisha)

While Future Sight can grant a massive edge in combat, its real effectiveness depends on the user’s overall fighting skills. If the user predicts an attack but can’t dodge or counter it in any way, the blow will land regardless. Alongside Future Sight, two other supernatural abilities could also be advanced, special forms of Observation Haki.

The exact nature of these abilities remains unclear, but both give their users sensory powers. The Breath of All Things enables the users to attune with the surrounding environment—including both living beings and inanimate objects—by entering a state of awareness that amplifies the user’s instincts. The Voice of All Things can be used to interact telepathically with any entity, be it people, animals, and things of all sorts, through connection with their innermost voice.

Luffy and Mihawk’s controversial scene in Marineford

Luffy envisioning his arms cut off by Mihawk (Image via Shueisha)

One Piece‘s main character, Monkey D. Luffy, has always had a natural gift for Observation Haki, particularly in sensing other people’s emotions and intentions. After honing the basics of Observation Haki in his training under Silvers Rayleigh, Luffy learned to use Future Sight during a battle with Charlotte Katakuri.

Yet, a certain scene seemingly implies that Luffy first unlocked his Future Sight potential long before, and without even realizing it. During the Paramount War, Luffy ran into Dracule Mihawk. Well aware of Mihawk’s strength, but also determined to save his brother Ace at any cost, Luffy tried to get past “Hawk Eyes” in a desperate bid to reach Ace.

Luffy was ready to attack Mihawk when he suddenly pulled back, halting mid-motion and reconsidering his idea as if he somehow realized what would have happened if he attacked Mihawk. The manga depicts Luffy’s hesitation as he appears to visualize Mihawk chopping off his arms.

Luffy and Mihawk in One Piece chapter 561 (Image via Shueisha)

The interpretation of this scene is controversial, with many fans assuming that Luffy subconsciously used Observation Haki to briefly see the future and foresee the result of his attack toward Mihawk. This theory isn’t baseless, given the several instances where Monkey D. Luffy and Roronoa Zoro unleashed their latent Haki abilities even before the timeskip, albeit unknowingly.

So, it wouldn’t be unprecedented for Luffy to use Haki even before actually learning how to use it during his two-year training. Furthermore, Mihawk noted that Luffy was unusually calm, which could be another indication of Observation Haki being used, as composure is—according to Katakuri—required to use Future Sight.

In the heat of facing Mihawk’s overwhelming presence, Luffy may have instinctively tapped into his Haki to activate the Color of Observation and, thanks to his immense potential, even look into the future for a moment. However, an equally compelling interpretation suggests that the scene reflects Mihawk’s own Haki rather than Luffy’s temporary awakening.

Mihawk’s mysterious eye power

Mihawk's incredible Observation Haki (Image via Shueisha)

In One Piece, Shanks and Mihawk decided to bet on the new generation’s potential, acting as both mentors and rivals for Monkey D. Luffy and Roronoa Zoro, respectively. Mihawk, in particular, ended up testing both Luffy and Zoro. He pushed them to prove they could rise to meet his expectations.

Much like when he pushed Zoro to overcome an injury to become stronger, Mihawk kept Luffy under constant pressure during the Paramount War, aiming to see if he could survive against all odds. Even when Vista stepped in Mihawk’s focus remained on Luffy. Mihawk marveled at Luffy’s gift for turning strangers into steadfast allies, a trait that left “Hawk Eyes” intrigued and amused.

It remains unclear whether Mihawk forced Luffy to briefly tap into his Haki or used his own prowess to influence Luffy, but what’s certain is that Mihawk was testing the limits of Luffy’s potential to verify what Shanks had told him about the young captain of the Straw Hat Pirates.

While Mihawk noted that Luffy seemed unexpectedly calm, Luffy’s appearance painted a different picture. Luffy’s wide, terrified eyes and his strained breathing betrayed his fear. So, Mihawk’s comment could be read as Mihawk praising but also mocking Luffy for resisting the urge to charge toward certain death.

Mihawk and Luffy in Marineford (Image via Shueisha)

The panel where Luffy visualizes his arms chopped off by Mihawk’s counterattack is immediately preceded by a panel showing Mihawk’s eyes, as if the World’s Strongest Swordsman was using some visual power. A strikingly similar close-up of Mihawk’s eyes was also present when he used Observation Haki to precisely strike Luffy in the midst of Marineford's crowded battlefield, despite Luffy’s high-speed movements and the chaos of thousands of people fighting.

In both instances, there’s an identical close-up on Mihawk’s eyes before the subsequent action. This suggests a deeper connection, especially since, in the One Piece manga, a close-up of the user’s eye is often shown right before Future Sight is activated. Everything put together, it’s plausible that Mihawk used a special form of Future Sight to project a vivid vision of the future into Luffy’s mind.

It’s also possible that Mihawk just unleashed some Conqueror’s Haki to intimidate Luffy, but the Color of Conqueror isn’t known to induce visions, making a unique form of Future Sight the more likely explanation.

A similar phenomenon occurred when Zunesha projected a vision into Momonosuke’s head, allowing the boy to see through Zunesha’s eyes. Granted, Zunesha didn’t project a vision of the future, but just its current perspective. Nevertheless, this scene included a close-up to Zunesha’s eye, mirroring the sequence in Marineford.

Eyes that could kill with a glance

The first mention of Mihawk's eyes in One Piece (Image via Shueisha)

Exceptional mastery of Observation Haki has always been meant to be a defining trait of Dracule Mihawk’s character, as evidenced by his original epithet of “Clairvoyant”, which hinted at his unrivaled perception. The same trait was emphasized by his moniker “Hawk Eyes”, evoking the bird of prey’s razor-sharp vision and lethal precision.

Remarkably, Mihawk’s first mention in One Piece is not even by his name, but by his “Hawk Eyes” moniker, describing him as a man whose eyes “could kill with a glance”. While this may be a metaphor for his daunting presence, this early emphasis on his eyes before the character’s actual introduction in the story is intriguing.

In One Piece, Mihawk's eyes are always drawn with red irises and two black circles spiraling around the pupils, peculiar traits shared with Zunesha and Imu-sama. Zunesha, a creature capable of projecting visions, has turquoise irises. Meanwhile, Imu’s eyes have red irises just like Mihawk’s.

The similarities between Mihawk and Imu in One Piece (Image via Toei Animation)

Recent One Piece manga spoilers revealed that Imu can also perform telepathy and even possess others from afar. So, the shared “spiral eyes” may be more than an aesthetic trait, hinting at mysterious powers, if not a hidden connection between Imu-sama, the shadowy leader of the World Government, and Dracule Mihawk, the World’s Strongest Swordsman.

The World Government’s imagery blends Christian religious themes with demonic iconography. Mihawk's duality echoes with his crucifix-like pendant and cross-shaped sword on one hand, and vampiric traits, including his name, cold-blooded attitude, and gothic castle, on the other. Also, the markings on Mihawk’s sword Yoru are identical to those on Imu’s Empty Throne, fueling speculation of a deeper connection.

Imu’s eyes develop additional spirals when the villain rages, a phenomenon that might also occur in Mihawk. With Mihawk having yet to reveal the full extent of his abilities, let alone having a moment of unrestrained fury, this remains a speculation.

Mihawk's full power has to be unreal (Image via Shueisha)

A solitary figure who avoids drawing attention to himself, Mihawk seems uninterested in pursuing the Pirate King title or becoming a Yonko. He rejected the opportunity to claim Yonko status after the Cross Guild’s establishment, even allowing the misconception that Buggy recruited him as his subordinate, a false narrative that led the World Government to crown Buggy as a Yonko.

Mihawk’s membership of Cross Guild was enough for the World Government to elevate the organization to the status of a Yonko crew. Moreover, despite mistaking him for a subordinate of Buggy, the World Government assigned “Hawk Eyes” a higher bounty than his supposed captain, which is a rare and telling exception. Looking forward to learn more about the World’s Strongest Swordsman, his reputation speaks volumes.