One Piece: The Immortality Of The Holy Knights And Five Elders, Explained

Watching the One Piece story progress, it’s clear we’re getting closer to the end. So it wasn’t surprising to see the major players who’ll be involved in the final battle finally revealed. On the World Government’s side, we’ve now met the Holy Knights and the Five Elders.

These characters are all incredibly strong, but their true danger to the heroes of One Piece comes from the fact that they can’t be permanently defeated. This article will explore how the Holy Knights and the Gorosei achieve this immortality, and what, if anything, can overcome it.

There Are Three Covenants That Are Granted By Imu

Loyalty to the Ruler

For 800 years, Imu has secretly been the world’s true leader, so it wasn’t shocking to viewers that they were presented as the strongest character in One Piece when introduced during the Elbaf arc. This arc clearly demonstrated the source of their fearsome reputation, particularly through their use of the Domi Reversi ability against the Giants.

The Elbaf flashback offered some insight into Imu’s powers, revealing they stem from a unique Devil Fruit ability that lets them grant powers to others. While Imu’s technique, Domi Reversi, forcibly transforms people into demons, there are also three agreements, or contracts, that people willingly enter into to gain abilities.

Joining the Depths Covenant grants immortality and increased strength, but members are required to follow commands.

There are three Covenants: the Shallows, the Depths, and the Abyssal. Each one gives the user unique powers, and those powers become stronger the deeper into the Covenants you go. The Shallows Covenant is the most common – King Harald, for example, once possessed it temporarily.

During the flashback to Elbaf, Harald received this contract after demonstrating his loyalty to the World Government. While it doesn’t appear to grant any powers, it prevents the user from defying Imu when they are nearby. Importantly, this contract is the initial requirement for becoming a Holy Knight.

The Holy Knights Have The Depths Covenant

Special Abilities Manifest

Becoming a Holy Knight means receiving the Depths Covenant, also known as the Deep-Sea Contract. Like the one you’re seeing, this contract compels complete loyalty to Imu, the one who grants the mark. In return, it also bestows extraordinary powers.

What’s truly remarkable is that these users become completely invulnerable to any attack unless it’s infused with Conqueror’s Haki. This effectively makes them immortal and safe from all harm. It’s arguably the strongest defense seen in the series, highlighting that only the most powerful and skilled fighters pose a threat, given how uncommon Conqueror’s Haki is.

Honestly, one of the coolest things about this group is their ability to teleport – they can just step through these glowing pentagrams and be miles away! Becoming a Holy Knight isn’t easy, though. You really need to be a powerhouse, whether that’s through eating Devil Fruits or becoming a master of Haki. That’s why it’s almost exclusively reserved for the strongest Celestial Dragons and those loyal to them.

The major downside to this deal is complete obedience to Imu, and the risk of them controlling or possessing you at any time. We’ve seen this happen – Harald was manipulated into betraying his friends on Imu’s command, and Imu easily took control of Gunko. What makes it even more frightening is that Imu can do this to anyone, anywhere in the world, no matter how far away they are.

The Five Elders Are The Users Of The Abyssal Covenant

The Greatest Authority

The Gorosei are Imu’s most trusted and long-serving commanders in the Final War. While they appear to be the highest-ranking leaders of the World Government, they’re actually just carrying out Imu’s orders and plans for the world – a position granted to them by Imu themselves.

I’ve learned the Five Elders have received the most significant contract of all – the Abyssal Covenant, also known as the Deep-Deep Sea Contract. It seems this agreement grants them everything the previous contracts did, like immortality and immense strength, and ensures their complete loyalty to Imu. However, like those before them, that loyalty also means Imu can control and command them as she pleases.

The most concerning aspect of the Abyssal Covenant is its apparent connection to the Elders’ ability to transform into powerful, demonic beasts. This transformation is remarkably similar to how Mythical Zoan Devil Fruits work, granting users the power to become huge, monstrous creatures. Furthermore, the Elders also exhibit smoke-like abilities, suggesting they share traits with Awakened Devil Fruits.

Honestly, the Abyssal Covenant is terrifying because it completely takes away your free will. Once you use it, you’re just a puppet doing whatever Imu wants, and they can control you from anywhere! What’s even worse is that if you even think about going off-script, Imu can just snatch the powers away – and that instantly kills you. It’s a total loss of control and a really dangerous gamble.

One Piece can be streamed on Crunchyroll.

2026-02-10 19:37