The escalating events of the Egghead Arc in One Piece might have yielded yet another revelation regarding the mysteries of the Void Century with the awakening of the Iron Giant in Chapter 1092. During Luffy's battle against Admiral Kizaru, the massive robot whose origins remain shrouded in mystery, was roused from its centuries long slumber by the Drums of Liberation, the very rhythm Luffy's heartbeat takes on while in his Gear 5 form.

In the Wano Country Arc of One Piece, during the flashback to Kozuki Oden's travels with the Roger Pirates, there were a number of allusions to how the crew arrived at Laugh Tale far too early. There was also mention of a figure who would emerge over 20 years later to carry on the fight against the World Government. Considering the information that has been provided so far about the legendary status of the Hito Hito no Mi, Model: Nika — formerly known as the Gomu Gomu no Mi — there is reason to speculate that Awakening this Devil Fruit may be the key to claiming the One Piece and uncovering the true history of the world.

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The Enigma Of Joy Boy

A figure whose story is said to be the key to unraveling the truth of the Void Century, the name Joy Boy has been featured more and more prominently since he was first mentioned in the Poneglyph in the Sea Forest on Fishman Island. From Kozuki Oden's flashback to Roger's arrival on Laugh Tale, and Kaido's attempt to search for Joy Boy's successor, Joy Boy's influence on the story has grown more pronounced.

All this came to a head following Luffy's Awakening of his Devil Fruit, which was revealed to be the fabled Hito Hito no Mi, Model: Nika, that had eluded the World Government for centuries. Furthermore, during Luffy's fight against Kaido on the rooftop of Onigashima, the elephant Zunesha, who is said to have been one of the original Joy Boy's companions, proclaimed that Luffy was the second coming of this mythical figure.

There is little doubt that the original Joy Boy was a major ally to the Great Kingdom from the Void Century, and an important player in the Great War against the Twenty Kingdoms that banded together to form the World Government. Whether the title of Joy Boy is purely related to the Awakened form of Luffy's Devil Fruit, or something along these lines is still not entirely clear, and is one of the biggest pressing questions that must be answered in the series.

Awakening The Iron Giant

The mysterious Iron Giant is undoubtedly one of the best examples so far of the military might that was possessed by the Great Kingdom from the Void Century. Its size, said to rival that of the Ancient Giants, is truly fearsome on its own, without even mentioning the arsenal of weaponry it must have been able to deploy in combat. Additionally, as per Luffy's own deductions, the Iron Giant is an autonomous weapon that did not need a pilot for operation, unlike the Vegaforce-01, which was Vegapunk's attempt to replicate its design.

One major issue that the genius scientist encountered in this process was in recreating the power source used by the Iron Giant. He described it as a sort of Ancient Energy, the likes of which he was unable to fully emulate on Egghead Island. At present, there is a good degree of speculation regarding the potential connection between the Ancient Energy and the Mother Flame, which was used by the World Government to power the weapon that destroyed the Lulusia Kingdom.

If the two are similar, then it means that Vegapunk did succeed in imperfectly replicating the Ancient Energy, which is why the Five Elders are prioritizing the safety of the satellite York during the Egghead Incident, as she promised to build another copy of it for their use. From these conclusions, there arises another question. Could the power of Sun God Nika have a part to play in perfecting this source of Ancient Energy?

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Even if this were true, there is the unexplained phenomenon of the giant having attacked Mary Geoise 200 years prior to the start of the story. As there is no record of anyone having Awakened the Hito Hito no Mi, Model: Nika at that time, this incident is an anomaly that cannot be accounted for at present. Since the Iron Giant on Egghead Island was awoken by Luffy's heartbeat, it might not be too outlandish to claim that Gear 5 served as a trigger for its power source.

This opens up even more questions about how the original Joy Boy's powers may have been a key element in the advanced technology of the Great Kingdom, as well as the Ancient Energy they used. Unfortunately, since even Vegapunk does not fully understand the Iron Giant's inner workings at the moment, it may be some time before the truth behind its power comes to light.

Uncovering The Mystery Of Laugh Tale

When the late Pirate King Gol D. Roger arrived at Laugh Tale with his crew after conquering the Grand Line, they found a story written by Joy Boy and began to laugh, describing it as a "tale full of laughs," which led to the island gaining its current name. They also realized that they had arrived too early to use what they had seen there. Moreover, the original Joy Boy had also left a message both on Laugh Tale and on the Poneglyph of Fishman Island, indicating that he would reappear 800 years later to fulfill his promise.

Now that Zunesha has confirmed Luffy to be the second coming of Joy Boy, it can be deduced that this "return" is somehow tied to the Awakening of the Hito Hito no Mi, Model: Nika. From some angles, it could even be said that part of the Roger Pirates' inability to harness the full potential of what they found was a consequence of not possessing the Awakened Hito Hito no Mi, Model: Nika.

There is evidence to hint at the fact that this coveted Devil Fruit is just as vital to claiming the One Piece, using technology from the Great Kingdom, as well as uncovering the secrets of the original Joy Boy and the Void Century through the treasure on Laugh Tale. Currently, none of these connections can be confirmed but the growing body of proof that points at Luffy's Awakening being the key to Joy Boy's treasure is more convincing than it ever has been before in One Piece.

One Piece is available to stream on Crunchyroll.

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