Stunningly powerful in their respective universes, it's only natural for fans to wonder how Naruto's Baryon Mode stacks up against One Piece's Monkey D. Luffy and his Gear 5 abilities. Ever since the days of Super Saiyans and Sailor Moon, transformations and power-ups have become a staple part of shonen manga, but which of these modern greats deserves the crown?

Luffy's Gear Fifth debuted in One Piece chapter #1044. This chapter reveals that Luffy's Devil Fruit is a Mythical Zoan class fruit titled the Hito Hito no Mi: Model Nika. The power of this Devil Fruit is said to be the most ridiculous in the entire world, only limited by the user's imagination. In contrast, Naruto's Baryon Mode, which debuted in Boruto chapter #51, is a transformation heavily rooted in the application of more grounded scientific principles. In a process similar to nuclear fusion, Naruto sacrifices his and Kurama's chakra as the raw materials used to create new energy. Both Gear Fifth and Baryon Mode also cause substantial strain to the user, risking their lifespans to prolong their transformations.

Related: One Piece's Luffy vs Dragon Ball's Goku: Can Gear 5 Beat a Saiyan?

Naruto's Byron Mode Would Beat Luffy's Gear 5

In terms of the actual transformations themselves, Baryon Mode provides a significant increase in power at the cost of an even greater risk to the user. Before assuming Baryon Mode, the planet-devouring alien Isshiki seemed untouchable, but afterward, Naruto had clearly surpassed the gap in power between them. However, this power only lasted for a short time, and even with his ridiculous levels of stamina, Naruto could only hold out for what seemed like minutes at best.

Gear Fifth is a more interesting case when it comes to determining what the form is capable of. While Luffy is notably much stronger in Gear 5 thanks to his ability to manipulate his body at whim, Gear Fifth really shines in its increase to his durability. Luffy was capable of tanking Kaido’s most powerful attacks just by stretching around them and was also capable of molding his surroundings with the same level of durability. However, as Kaido points out, Luffy remains vulnerable to slashing attacks, which is something Naruto's Rasenshuriken is capable of delivering countless amounts of at the microscopic level.

Even with Luffy’s increased durability, Baryon Mode comes with an extremely potent form of durability negation in the ability to shave off an opponent's lifespan through mere contact. However, this occurs when Naruto comes into contact with an opponent’s chakra, which means Luffy (who doesn’t have a chakra system) may be immune, but the power drain may very well affect his Haki and life force.

Luffy's Gear 5 Form May Get Stronger Than Naruto In The Future

One important factor in determining who would win between Gear 5 and Baryon Mode is that Luffy's new form may grow even stronger as One Piece gets closer to ending. Author Eiichiro Oda has stated that the manga's current arc acts as the first part of the story's final saga which means fans will see how strong Luffy becomes at his peak before One Piece ends. With the Egghead Island arc providing more than a few opponents worthy of fighting Gear 5, the form's arsenal of abilities and powers continues to grow.

Luffy definitely isn’t lacking in the power department, as he scales past Doflamingo’s strings, which were able to stop a meteor from landing, and past Kaido, who casually held up an island-sized fortress. Naruto, however, can potentially be scaled much higher as he should be stronger than the Perfect Susanoo, which carved apart an entire mountain range, and Kaguya, who threatened to destroy an entire planet within her dimension. Both fighters have shown the ability to move at relativistic speeds, with Naruto and Luffy having both dodged light-based attacks. While Luffy should have an edge due to his future sight ability, Naruto is used to fighting opponents with similar abilities, such as the Sharingan.

One Piece is a complicated series to measure strength feats with because of its wacky and sometimes inconsistent power scaling. Some of the series' most powerful characters have been known to fight for several days straight, something that most Naruto characters would likely not be able to do. Still, Luffy's strongest attack saw him create an armored fist the size of a mountain at the end of the Wano arc. Gear 5's Bajrang Gun attack hit Kaido's giant dragon form so hard he was sent flying down from the sky and through Wano's layers of earth until he hit underground lava pools.

Naruto Could Probably Beat Gear 5 Without Baryon Mode

The immense amount of strength that Baryon Mode gives Naruto would likely be more than enough to stop Luffy's biggest attacks. Stopping and destroying meteors was something Naruto was able to do at the end of Naruto Shippuden, even before using the sacrificial Baryon transformation. During the Baryon mode fight against Isshiki Ōtsutsuki, Naruto was able to lift and throw Isshiki's massively heavy Disruption Cube. When Boruto tried breaking a cube with his strongest attack, he couldn't even scratch it.

Realistically, Naruto manages to edge Luffy out in every stat that matters in this fight, except for stamina. If Luffy wants to stand a chance, he must stretch out the fight as much as possible until Kurama and Naruto burn up all their chakra to maintain Baryon Mode, causing one of them to die. The transformation could not be performed again, leaving Naruto in a less powerful state. Still, Luffy's abilities are likewise prone to exhaustion after high-level combat, so any victory would depend on creating a sweet spot that would be difficult to achieve. Without that, Naruto doubly wins the day in every other category if his ability to lessen Luffy's lifespan is intact.

Like many battles in anime, the strongest fighter doesn't always win. Under some extraordinary circumstances, Luffy's Gear 5 could potentially beat Naruto's Baryon Mode. However, at the end of the day, Baryon Mode is stronger and faster than what fans have seen of Gear 5 so far. While both Gear 5 and Baryon Mode are iconic transformations, it seems as if Luffy still has a way to go before he surpasses Naruto. However, One Piece is still far from over and readers can expect to see the future Pirate King become even stronger by the time the series finishes.

Watch the Naruto, Boruto, and One Piece anime's on Crunchyroll and Funimation.

Source: Crunchyroll Collection (1, 2), MarcoThePhoenix, darkssage2406 /YouTube