One Piece is an anime that certainly has its share of strong and powerful characters. This comparison related to One Piece, one of many on Proximity Japan, is about Dracule Mihawk, the best swordsman in the world of One Piece, and Kaidou, the former emperor and, for many years, the physically strongest character in the entire series. In this article, we will analyze both, as we will pit Mihawk against Kaidou to finally determine who is the strongest of the two.

Kaidou is stronger than Mihawk and would win in a fight. And even though Mihawk is a better swordsman than Kaidou, the fact that Kaidou is physically stronger than Mihawk and possesses a Devil Fruit would give him victory in this duel. Of course, both are among the strongest characters in the entire series, but there's no doubt that Kaidou would ultimately outshine Mihawk here and be able to defeat him in a direct fight.

The rest of this article will expand on the answer given above by comparing Mihawk and Kaidou in more detail. Through several categories, you'll see who is stronger and why our answer is the way it is—that is, why Kaidou would ultimately be able to defeat Mihawk.

Physical powers

Mihawk's enormous superhuman physical strength, complemented by his mastery of the sword, contributes to his talents as the world's most formidable swordsman.

Mihawk has the ability to instantly generate very powerful jets of compressed air or energy streams with incredible range and enough force to easily destroy battleships and an ice mountain. He also stopped Zoro, a strong and ferocious swordsman, with only the knife he held in one hand. Mihawk is extremely agile and is capable of making long and high jumps. He moves quickly enough to counteract the enhanced speed of Luffy's Gear Second. In addition, he possesses excellent reflexes.

Thanks to his muscle mass, Kaido possesses enormous physical strength. He has managed to capsize nine giant prison ships. Kaido is powerful enough that his scream alone causes visible damage to the area around him. One of Kaido's greatest strengths is his inability to die; in fact, he has suffered seven defeats, been captured by the Navy or enemies eighteen times, been tortured over a thousand times, and been sentenced to death forty times. However, no execution, whatsoever, has worked.

Additionally, Kaido, who enjoys killing himself, jumped 10,000 meters above the ground, generating a massive shockwave that could have drowned a nearby ship, but he only suffered a headache. Kaido and Big Mom have proven themselves as powerful as Charlotte Linlin by being able to split the sky in two with a single blow, much like Shanks and Edward Newgate had done. Big Mom has yet to be defeated, which is a powerful testament to Kaido's courage.

This is a category in which Kaidou triumphs over almost everyone. The guy is an absolute powerhouse, and there's no denying he would surpass Mihawk in this category, hence his first point.

Points: Mihawk 0, Kaidou 1

Devil Fruit

Like Zoro, Shanks, and a few other powerful characters, Dracule Mihawk hasn't consumed any Devil Fruits in his life and owes his powers and abilities to his natural skills and training. Dracule Mihawk is a formidable fighter, and the fact that he achieved all of this without any help, simply through his training, makes him even more impressive. There's a reason Mihawk is considered the best swordsman in the One Piece world, and we can only confirm it from this perspective.

Kaido ate the Uo Uo no Mi, Model: Seiryu, a Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit that allows him to transform into an oriental dragon, similar to Momonosuke, the main difference being that Kaido has a gigantic dragon-like size and appears to have control over his transformations. However, he will be unable to maintain this form if he takes too many strong strikes, such as those thrown by Luffy. He can also growl loud enough to unleash lightning.

An easy one here. Kaidou has a very powerful Devil Fruit, while Mihawk doesn't. Given the obvious power difference here, we can only conclude that Kaidou wins this point as well.

Points: Mihawk 0, Kaidou 2

RIGHT

Mihawk can use at least two of the three types of Haki. Mihawk has strong control over Observation Haki, as evidenced by how easily he was able to track Luffy while using Gear Second. Mihawk has the same ability to discern people's emotions as Luffy and Otohime. He can use Armament Haki, just as Zoro did when he fought Pica.

This is demonstrated in a flashback when Mihawk tells him about the strength of his black sword and claims that he should also be able to transform his katanas into swords. Zoro is even restricted from drinking alcohol until he produces any. It is also possible that he can use Conqueror's Haki, but this has not yet been confirmed.

One of the few individuals to master all three varieties of Haki is Kaidou. Kaidou was shown to be able to command Kenbunshoku Haki by detecting Kozuki Oden's presence on Enma while Roronoa Zoro was using it. After her and Big Mom's joint strike, she also used it to detect the voices of supernovae, allowing her to pretend they were still alive.

Like Charlotte Katakuri or Luffy, Kaidou's control allows him to use it in sophisticated ways and predict the future. Kaidou's mastery of Busoshoku Haki is also exceptional. Kaidou is one of a very small number of people who can use Haoshoku Haki. They both generated the typical lightning discharge when they collided with Charlotte Linlin using his Kanabō.

Since we don't really know if Mihawk can use all three types of Haki, we have to give this point to Kaidou as well since it has been confirmed that he can use all three.

Points: Mihawk 0, Kaidou 3

Weapons

Mihawk wears a cross knife pendant around his neck. Although he is depicted using it as an eating tool, when combined with his swordsmanship, it can also be a deadly weapon that can defeat any swordsman of ordinary or lower skill, including Zoro, who used three swords in their fight.

Mihawk noticed that it was the smallest sword he owned. Mihawk uses the black sword Yoru as his primary weapon. The Yoru is a human-sized, single-edged sword with a cross-shaped tip. When someone challenges him for his title and has the courage or strength to do so, he only draws this sword; otherwise, his Kogatana is sufficient.

When fighting opponents, Kaidou wields his Hassaikai, a massive metal kanabo filled with spikes that matches his size. He possesses tremendous physical strength and can use it to crush and throw his opponents long distances. He was able to use it to break through Luffy's powerful defense-enhanced Busoshoku Haki and knock him out in one fell swoop.

He also used it to deflect Charlotte Linlin's strike with her incredibly powerful sword, Napoleon. It is unknown what happened to the double-barreled pistol Kaidou used to kill Kozuki Oden or if he still has it in his possession.

This is undoubtedly the only category where Mihawk wins without a doubt. Mihawk is a more skilled swordsman than Kaido and wins this category, despite Kaido's powers and abilities.

Points: Mihawk 1, Kaidou 3

Mihawk is good, but Kaido is a beast

Ultimately, Kaidou is the stronger of the two. Mihawk may be the best swordsman in the series, and he's better than Kaidou at that, but in everything else... well, it's pretty obvious why and how Kaido wins, as he's one of the most powerful characters in the series.