Despite being dumber than Naruto, Luffy might be better than him in terms of battles.

SUMMARY

Naruto and Luffy have been compared since the characters first appeared in anime and manga.
The most common comparison between the two characters has been their approach to dealing with foes during fights and battles.

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Comparisons between Naruto and Luffy have been going on since both characters entered the anime and manga worlds. Both of them have uncanny similarities as the main characters of Naruto and One Piece, but they also differ in terms of ambitions, mindsets, and the way they deal with their problems.
Naruto in Naruto Shippuden
However, the biggest comparison that fans have made between the two characters is regarding their way of dealing with their enemies during fights and battles. Both of them follow a different approach while fighting villains. While Luffy adapts in the middle of the battle, Naruto is known to employ unique tricks with the help of his jutsus.

Although using new tricks in dealing with the enemies does make the battle intriguing, Luffy’s ability to learn in the middle of the battle proves that he has a better battle IQ than Naruto, despite being the dumber character of the two. And he has shown this multiple times during his battles against villains in One Piece.

Luffy’s Extraordinary Ability to Adapt During Battles in One Piece

Although Luffy might seem dumb and careless in many ways, the one aspect where he has proven his intelligence multiple times is during his battles. The One Piece protagonist has fought a lot of different villains who get stronger with every arc, but Luffy still manages to defeat them, no matter how many times he loses the fight.

During his battles, he possesses the rare capability to adjust and learn from his mistakes, which allows him to devise a strategy that eventually defeats the enemy. The first time fans saw him adapting through the battle was when he was fighting Crocodile in Alabasta. It was the first time Luffy was fighting a Logia user, and he instantly came up with the plan of soaking his body in water so that he could hit Crocodile and tackle his sand abilities.
Sir Crocodile vs. Monkey D. Luffy (Credit: Crunchyroll)
The second most talked-about battle of Luffy is when he was fighting Katakuri. Katakuri had the advantage of future sight, which made it impossible for Luffy to hit him. However, Luffy used the erratic punches of Gear 4 Snakeman and his endurance to counter Katakuri’s Future Sight and defeated him in just 14 punches.

Luffy’s Battle IQ is Higher Than Naruto’s

If the overall characteristics of both Luffy and Naruto are taken into consideration, Luffy might seem dumber than Naruto. Naruto might lack in terms of academics or basic sense, but Luffy intentionally chooses to ignore these things and do what he feels like, no matter what the consequences may be in the future.
Naruto and Luffy
In terms of battles, Naruto’s array of jutsus like Shadow Clone, Rasengan, etc. gives them an opportunity to include variety in his fights and use a unique way every time he fights a new enemy. His fight with Kaguya Otsutsuki is the biggest example of his creativity when he shocked the antagonist using his s*xy jutsu.

While these methods highlight the creativity of the character, they do not prove that he can adapt during such fights. He mostly just increases the number of shadow clones which gives him an advantage or changes the properties of his Rasengan to make them more effective.

Luffy, though, learns new techniques and methods during the ongoing battle, which not only shocks the enemies but also Luffy’s allies. He can adapt his techniques according to the villain’s strength and abilities, making it difficult for them to defeat him.