Blackbeard Is Set To Acquire Kuma's Nikyu Nikyu No Mi

While many speculate that Teach's third Devil Fruit will be a Zoan type, I have reservations about that possibility. Zoan fruits demand mastery, and I don't believe it aligns with the type of Devil Fruit Teach is seeking. Luffy already wields a Zoan fruit, and it seems unlikely that Oda would give Teach a similar power, ensuring Luffy retains some chance of victory.

Teach's primary weakness lies in his lack of mobility, a flaw evident in his battles. Unlike other top-tier individuals like Big Mom, who can enhance her speed with Zeus, Teach lacks such advantages. His vulnerability to attacks was apparent when Law's Kroom easily hit him, a feat he struggled to accomplish against Big Mom even with Kid's assistance. Later in the fight, even Bepo managed to land a hit on him, a situation uncommon among top-tier fighters.

While Teach is undeniably strong, his mobility weakness sets him apart from the likes of the strongest Yonkos, such as Kaido and Shanks, who can swiftly blitz opponents. Teach has yet to showcase such speed. His only one-shot victory against Hancock was due to a cheap shot when she was preoccupied with Koby. Rather than a Zoan fruit, what Teach needs is a Devil Fruit that enhances his speed, and the Nikyu Nikyu no Mi seems to provide precisely that. With this ability, his mobility issues would be resolved, allowing him to teleport in front of opponents and strike with the Yami Yami no Mi or Gura Gura no Mi.

Moreover, the Nikyu Nikyu no Mi addresses another of Teach's vulnerabilities—his sensitivity to pain, intensified by the Yami Yami no Mi. Teach struggled with pain when attacked by pre-skip Luffy in Impel Down. However, he seems to have adapted to the Yami Yami no Mi's pain, as evident in his resilience against Law's shockwave. With the Nikyu Nikyu no Mi, Teach could redirect his amplified pain onto his adversaries, creating a dark parallel to Luffy's rubber-like resilience.

Considering Kuma's impending demise, the Nikyu Nikyu no Mi will need a new wielder. Among the available options, Teach appears to be a strong contender for acquiring this formidable Devil Fruit.

Blackbeard's Third Devil Fruit: More Than Just Mobility?

While the idea of Blackbeard seeking a Zoan Devil Fruit for his third power holds merit, your argument for the Nikyu Nikyu no Mi offers a compelling alternative that addresses more than just mobility issues. Here's a breakdown of your points and some additional thoughts:

Zoan vs. Nikyu Nikyu no Mi:

Zoan mastery argument: You raise a valid point about Zoans requiring training. Blackbeard, known for his pragmatic approach, might favor a more immediate power boost.
Uniqueness and thematic considerations: Luffy's Zoan doesn't necessarily preclude Blackbeard having one, but a different Zoan type could be interesting. Still, the Nikyu Nikyu no Mi's unique abilities offer a strong thematic contrast to Luffy's rubber and fit Blackbeard's manipulative style.

Addressing Blackbeard's Weaknesses:

Mobility: You're right, Blackbeard's lack of speed is a significant disadvantage. The Nikyu Nikyu no Mi's teleportation and repulsion could be a game-changer, allowing him to close the gap and utilize his devastating Gura Gura no Mi and Yami Yami no Mi powers more effectively.
Pain tolerance: The ability to deflect pain onto others aligns perfectly with Blackbeard's cunning and willingness to exploit his opponents' weaknesses. It also creates a fascinating parallel to Luffy's rubbery defense.

Additional Considerations:

Narrative impact: The Nikyu Nikyu no Mi's potential in Blackbeard's hands could raise the stakes significantly, creating a formidable antagonist.
Fruit availability: While Kuma's fate remains unclear, his potential death and the fruit's reappearance would add intrigue to the narrative.
Blackbeard's ambition: Beyond addressing specific weaknesses, Blackbeard's insatiable desire for power suggests he might seek a Devil Fruit that complements his existing ones, not just fixes his limitations.

Conclusion:

Your analysis goes beyond the typical "speed fix" argument and presents a compelling case for the Nikyu Nikyu no Mi. Its thematic fit, potential to address multiple weaknesses, and narrative impact make it a fascinating contender for Blackbeard's third Devil Fruit. Ultimately, only Oda knows what lies ahead, but your theory adds a thought-provoking dimension to the ongoing speculation.

Remember: This is just a discussion based on available information and personal opinions. It is not a spoiler or confirmation of future events.

Marshall D. Teach

Blackbeard's personality seems to be a strange mix of courage and cowardice, as well as high intellectual capacity and stupidity. While at times his character looks strong and fearsome, in others he will seem weak and ridiculous. He is very deceptive, joining the Whitebeard Pirates to find the Yami Yami no Mi and killing a fellow crewmate despite having spent two decades aboard the ship. He also deceived the Marines by joining the Seven Warlords of the Sea in an elaborate and convoluted fashion for the sole reason of gaining access to Impel Down in order to find new crewmates and later resigning from it in front of the fleet admiral himself saying that he does not need it anymore. He is also exceedingly power-hungry and greedy, aiming to become the next Pirate King.

Abilities and Powers

Tactical Skills

Blackbeard has shown himself to be an expert planner and a master at orchestrating manipulative schemes provided he has time to prepare; he waited two decades aboard the Moby Dick with the Whitebeard Pirates and even integrated with the crew dynamic solely to increase his opportunities of obtaining the Yami Yami no Mi (and also recruited some future members of his own crew during this time, indicating great charisma and leadership skills even as a regular crewmate).

Physical Abilities

Teach has an immense amount of superhuman endurance and durability. During his fight with Ace, he was engulfed in flames and pierced in the chest by two fire spears, but after putting out the flames, he was able to shake off the impact of the attacks. Another indication of his sheer endurance is shown when he took a Jet Pistol from an enraged Luffy, and was hit by one of Sengoku's shockwaves in his Daibutsu form only to come out with minor injuries both times.

Devil Fruits

Through an unknown method, Blackbeard became the first and so far, only known person to wield the powers of two Devil Fruits at the same time. Marco speculated that this was possible due to an unstated peculiarity unique to Blackbeard himself, having to do with an "atypical body structure" of some sort. He also pointed out that the other Whitebeard Pirates should be aware of this fact.

Yami Yami no Mi

Blackbeard ate the Yami Yami no Mi, a unique Logia-type Devil Fruit which allows him to create and control the element of darkness. The darkness appears reminiscent of a fiery black smoke. Unlike a normal Logia user, Blackbeard cannot turn intangible; in fact, any damage he takes will actually hurt worse than normal. Blackbeard has an infinite amount of space inside of his body made of darkness.

Gura Gura no Mi

Blackbeard, through currently unknown means, stole the power of the Gura Gura no Mi from the dead body of its previous user, Whitebeard. The Gura Gura no Mi is a Paramecia-type Devil Fruit that gives him the ability to cause earthquakes and generate powerful shockwaves. It is considered to be the strongest power of the Paramecia class, in addition, it is said that it has the power to destroy the entire world.

Busoshoku Haki

Blackbeard is an extremely skilled user of Busoshoku Haki. By hardening his arm, he was able to defend himself against a Seraphim's sword slash, which could cut Amazon Lily's large mountain in half.

Kenbunshoku Haki

Blackbeard is a highly skilled user of Kenbunshoku Haki. As he was able to sense that Luffy's bounty of Beli 30,000,000 was too low compared to his strength, and during his raid on Impel Down he was able to sense that Luffy's Haki had improved since meeting him in Jaya.