2022 has barely begun and One Piece has already presented fans with a whole new mystery to solve. In chapter 1037 it was revealed that there is a special Devil Fruit that has had its true name erased from history, seemingly due to its awakening. This has prompted many fans to try and figure out what this fruit could be and whether or not it's even been shown in the series yet. What's strange though is that according to the series, those who eat a Devil Fruit should immediately learn what the fruit is called as well as a general idea of what it can do.
This makes it very hard to believe that readers/watchers have seen the fruit yet, but it is possible that erasing its name worked way beyond just history books. If this were the case though, all signs point to Luffy and his Devil Fruit, the Gomu Gomu no Mi. Throughout the course of the Wano arc, characters have made comments in regards to either his fruit or his powers, most notably Who's Who, an ex-CP9 agent that was personally sent to secure the fruit and later imprisoned for his failure to do so. But why would Luffy's fruit, one that has been mocked by many characters, most notably those with seemingly better abilities, be so special?
One user on Reddit has posted their own theory as to why and it might even tie into the fruit that the World Government is so afraid of. In their post, they posit that Luffy's Devil Fruit is not the Paramecia Gomu Gomu no Mi, but rather a mythical Zoan type called the Hito Hito no Mi: Model Hanuman. It might be hard to imagine that all this time Luffy's fruit has been so special, but the theory does provide a decent amount of evidence to support this claim.
The theory begins by noting certain aspects of Luffy's fruit and powers that are somewhat special compared to other paramecia types. Firstly, Luffy's powers are always active, as opposed to many, if not all, paramecia style fruits in how it's turned his entire body into rubber. This is similar to how a logia fruit can turn its eaters into natural elements. His powers also allow him to transform into different forms that boost his physical abilities, such as Gears Third and Fourth, which is something much more common with Zoan fruits. It could even be argued that Luffy's body being made of rubber is itself a transformation, just one that isn't reversible.
Like all mythical Zoans, the story of Hanuman the Monkey God comes from real-world legends and mythologies, in this case from Hinduism. The tale goes that as a child, Hanuman mistook the rising sun for fruit and leaped up into the sky so that he could eat it. In one version of the story, however, Indra, the king of the gods, intervenes and strikes Hanuman with a lightning bolt that kills and sends him back down to the earth. Lord Shiva sees what's happened and decides to resuscitate Hanuman and afterward Indra even grants him abilities and powers to make up for his mistake, as do other gods.
The theory highlights how the abilities that Hanuman receives are very similar to Luffy's own. The body Indra grants him is supposedly as powerful as his thunderbolt weapon, Vajra, and is now also immune to that weapon as well. Hanuman also gained the power to change his mass and size at will as well as an immunity to fire.
Luffy's own abilities mimic all of these aspects of Hanuman's powers, which is strange considering Luffy's only actual power is being made of rubber. Gears Third and Fourth affect his size, shape, and possibly weight. Luffy also has a certain degree of immunity to fire as he is able to ignite his arm in flames with his Red Hawk and Red Roc attacks as well as withstand Kaido's Boro Breath. Luffy's body is also incredibly strong naturally and he can make it even stronger with Haki and its immune to electricity. While nothing in the Hanuman legend states that his body was turned to rubber, Luffy's body might have become that as a way of both granting him immunity to lightning as well as to facilitate the size/mass changing powers or even be a special effect due to the fruit's mythical nature.
Some of the other abilities given to Hanuman by the other gods are actually very reminiscent of Luffy's Haki powers or his nature. Hanuman's ability to know anyone's desires seems a lot like Observation Haki. Conqueror's Haki is also much like Hanuman's powers of having lordship over all creation and to be able to win and subjugate anyone. Then there is Hanuman's ability to go anywhere he desires, which sounds very much like Luffy's overall dream of being so free that he could do whatever he wants.
While the powers all match up pretty nicely with Luffy's, it's Hanuman's nature and purpose that really help support this theory. Hanuman is stated to be the God of Wisdom, Strength, Courage, Devotion, and Self-Discipline. He is the monkey child son of the wind god as well as a being that represented resistance to persecution. Not only is his name Monkey D. Luffy, but his father Dragon is heavily suggested to have wind-related powers and has a habit of would-be dictators and despots. Hanuman and Luffy also both have a knack for coming up with innovative methods of turning the odds in their favor and all of Hanuman's many titles fit Luffy's character perfectly.
With all this evidence, it's easy to see why this theory might be true. Not only are his powers and nature similar to Luffy's, but there are even parallels between the two throughout the series. If the World Government is meant to represent persecution or injustice, Luffy has stood against them just like Hanuman would have. Hyogoro has even stated that Luffy's Gear Fourth appearance is much like that of the Wisdom King, a Buddhist deity.
Considering how much of a priority the World Government put on attaining the Gomu Gomu no Mi, to begin with as well, it definitely seems like there is much more to the fruit than anyone but them realizes. The theory was posted months before chapter 1037 where the Gorosei discussed the potential dangers of that mystery fruit awakening, it should be noted that the same chapter contained an extensive look at Luffy's fight with Kaido. This makes it feel even more likely that they were referring to the danger of Luffy's awakening, and if the theory is correct, it's easy to see why they'd be so fearful of that happening.