Discussion Rob Lucci and CP0

[Notice me Escanor senpai]

Who is the man behind the mask? His appearance is quite similar to Rob Lucci, and he's back to CP?​

Chapter 801 had a few interesting bits and even mysteries like who is Jack and what is the deal with Sanji.
But right off the bat we get reintroduced to Rob Lucci no less, and he's seen with Spandam....who is now working for him. I didn't expect this, really. Last time we officially saw Rob Lucci and his gang was in their cover story, as they were seen fleeing from the WG in the aftermath of Enies Lobby.

Now we learn that not only did they make it, but that Rob Lucci at least is back to CP0. It looks very much like it because of how he's seen with Spandam, and he's wearing the traditional CP attire, with a mask and everything. But more importantly he's discussing things with someone who is part of CP0.
We don't know the details of how things went with those two, and how Lucci got reinstated in CP, going all the way to CP0 which is said to be the strongest CP unit and under direct command of the Tenryuubitos.
But we can ask ourselves why he got reintroduced in such a way, at this time, and he's most likely now a member of CP0?
The way I understood it is that Oda is planning an arc where Lucci or CP0 will be antagonists.
It is clear to me now that Oda plans for his story to span on at least 10 years. And while the set goal at the moment for Luffy is to advance in the NW, and he can only do that by confronting the Yonkos, I doubt we will see him fight them in succession, in a very short span. For example while it can be that Luffy is going to fight Kaido next, logically it will take years in real life for Luffy to face another Yonko. And in the manga there will be events that lead to that, with other antagonists appearing in between.
It's also clear that Luffy is not currently at Yonko level, or he can't take the strongest of them. Because yes I can totally see some being stronger than others, BB in particular strikes me as a very troublesome opponent. So in order for Luffy to become stronger he needs to hone his skills against other strong opponents,before facing the Yonko.
So for example it could be that before facing Kaido, Luffy will have to face on top of DD, Jack a pirate who seems to be affiliated to Kaido himself.
And if we consider the parallels between Dressrosa and Alabasta, we could say that the story arcs will be distributed in a similar fashion as the first part, with some details getting changed like the setting, characters etc.
So right now it looks like:

• Dressrosa/Alabasta: Luffy faces a Shichibukai.
• Zou/Jaya:leads to the events of the next arc. Jack could end up being the antagonist of this arc.
• Wano/Skypiea: Luffy faces a strong opponent who isn't a Shichibukai or a member of the WG. This is when I believe the showdown with Kaido will happen. Not saying that Wano is a sky island, just to clear that up.

Logically after this we should get something similar to the Water 7 arc in the first part which lead to Enies Lobby. This is when I believe CP0 will become antagonists, even if it's not Lucci himself who will be part of it.

As for how CP0 can be a threat, when Luffy and the SHs already dealt with CP9, in 2 years there was plenty of time for Lucci for example to become stronger.In particular he could have learned Haki which imo would only make Rokushiki even more deadly.I'd like to learn how Lucci was able to come back to CP too, and this can only be done if we see more of him in the future.

Of course things might not go exactly like I said, or at all. Actually I'd very much like that since right now it's a bit predictable, but one thing I'm sure of, we won't see Luffy take the Yonko in successive arcs. With that in mind it makes sense to come up with other characters that aren't Yonko, like the Shichibukai(with the 7th one being possibly an antagonist too) or CP that will be antagonistic to the SHs.

This is my analysis/predictions about why we're seeing Lucci now.
Also it can be seen that Luffy using Lucci's name to take part in the tournament is some sort of foreshadowing.

What do you guys think? Do you find it interesting to see Lucci and by extension CP be antagonists again? If so do you think he would have become stronger?
Personally I think the fight with Lucci was tough and I enjoyed it quite a bit, so I'm interested in seeing what he can do now.

Please share your thoughts.

 

[Eigengrau]

Honestly, I was a bit bothered by the whole Lucci bit in this chapter, for a couple of reasons.

To be honest, at first I didn't see the connection right away that tied Lucci and Spandam to CP-0, so when I kept seeing on the forums how everyone was talking about this as if it were a sure thing, I just couldn't "see" it, figured everyone was thinking Spandam to be the guy in the middle from the CP-0 trio, and Lucci couldn't just be any of the other 3 because his figure just didn't match.

Only after re-reading the chapter did I notice the "CP Aigis0", as shown on the page you included on your post.

This bothered me because:

- When they were first introduced, Robin, Caesar and Law all recognized the 3 guys as being CP-0, and the 3 were introduced as such, and this leads me to believe that these 3 are the only "main force" behind CP-0's name;

- I know they're supposed to be "intelligence", but they didn't seem to know/care about Doflamingo's Underworld tradings, but granted, they were kinda forced to abide by what he wanted while he was still the King/had leverage over them and the Celestial Dragons.

Now, we see Spandam and Lucci as being part of CP-0, and they're talking about the weapons gone missing from the Port and all that. I'm just not too sure if Lucci was talking to one of the other 3 guys, isn't it possible that Lucci only got to "enter" CP-0 for some personal reasons? We also saw him as a broker during the Caesar's livestream, so I would be inclined to say that Lucci - as a CP-0 member - is playing double-agent, but seeing as CP-0 is supposed to be the strongest intelligence in the world, I don't think they'd just let it slip under their radar.

So, considering that Spandam is, for lack of a better word, crap, and that the way Lucci got beaten by Luffy makes me firmly believe that he can never grow strong enough to ever beat Luffy again (after all, Luffy did put him in a coma back then), and also that Lucci seems to have been paired with Spandam, I think they're both just underlings, scouts of some sort, doing the lackey job.

I really, really don't see how Lucci could ever be a big part of CP-0, he's just an extra to me, we already know from the others' reactions that the other 3 are CP-0, that's just what I think :v

Also, when Lucci says "Doesn't matter. Return now.", what is he saying, actually?
If he's talking to any of the other 3, I don't think he's that important to be talking that way to any of them, so maybe he's not saying "come back here at once", but rather "it doesn't matter, go back, there's nothing more you/we can do here now"?

I believe that's what he's saying, "you guys can return now, keep going, I will deal with this", and it would definitely hint some more that Lucci is really nothing more than an underling, and seeing as he has Spandam right there with him, maybe Lucci has a small team of his own, foot soldiers that are expected to do their job before having to call in the big-shots (Admirals in the case of the Marines, and with CP-0 it would have to be anyone from the 3 dudes).

Edit:

Don't get me wrong, I'm still glad Lucci go to show again up, finally! Even though everyone expected this to happen at some point, and I like how you drew the parallels, makes me very excited for the next Enies Lobby. Could this all lead to Sabo getting captured? I'm thinking it would be way too similar to what's already happened, but who knows, right? They seem to be rather pissed off at the Revolutionaries, so instead of wanting to send a message to the pirates, they could be looking to make a statement towards the RA.

And that's also another thing, regarding Lucci. Now that he's back, I can't see him having any grudge whatsoever against Luffy. Last time, they wanted to kill Nico Robin, one of Luffy's nakama. After having lost Ace, and grown stupid-strong ever since then, Luffy isn't just going to let that happen again, so what exactly is Lucci going to do this time around?

He failed to do his job last time, and I don't think he'd ever become strong (or stupid) enough to attempt it again, especially now. I don't see Luffy breaking a sweat if he had to deal with him again, Lucci couldn't possibly have become that strong, so again, to me, this all points to Lucci doing someone else's bidding (same as last time, I guess), but he at least won't be confronting Luffy directly, unless the CP-0 higher-ups make that happen.

Otherwise, this whole scenario could even set up Lucci do become one of Luffy's allies, same as with Bellamy (not holding a grudge, not mocking him, his friends, beliefs, etc.)

I'd rather see that, Straw-hats + old CP-9 against CP-0 in the new Enies Lobby arc or sumtin :3

 

[Hannibal Psyche]

I don't think Lucci and Spandam are up the chain in CP-0, they don't resemble the first 3 CP-0 members we were initially introduced to. I'd say Lucci and co. are new recruits so I don't expect much from Lucci and co.

 

[ShenGao]

Inb4 Sanji will be captured and scream with tears in his eyes: "I want to live! Take me back to the sea with you!"

But in all seriousness, i don't like this "Lucci gets back into the story and is probably an enemy again" setting. He was defeated, he lost, if he gets back into the story and once again fights against Luffy it would contradict that what Luffy believes in, to defeat an enemy and break their spirit/will to continue instead of killing them.

And what kind of threat is he supposed to be now? You could compare his pre-TS strength to that of a Pacifista. It took Luffy everything that his Gear 2 and 3 could unleash to defeat both of them. Now, post-TS, he oneshoted a Pacifista with a Gear 2 Jet Pistol. In these 2 years Luffy's strength reached incredible heights, but now a defeated enemy is supposed to be a danger again? How? What could make him more dangerous than Doflamingo, the person who could destroy a whole island with one technique. Devil Fruit Awakening? The same thing Doflamingo had but it took him who knows how long to achieve and Lucci could achieve that in just 2 years?

Just make him some small fodder or underling of the World Government and make him a small part of a bigger Arc like Bellamy, but please don't make him the next big bad boss.

 

[Notice me Escanor senpai]

Honestly, I was a bit bothered by the whole Lucci bit in this chapter, for a couple of reasons.

To be honest, at first I didn't see the connection right away that tied Lucci and Spandam to CP-0, so when I kept seeing on the forums how everyone was talking about this as if it were a sure thing, I just couldn't "see" it, figured everyone was thinking Spandam to be the guy in the middle from the CP-0 trio, and Lucci couldn't just be any of the other 3 because his figure just didn't match.

Only after re-reading the chapter did I notice the "CP Aigis0", as shown on the page you included on your post.

This bothered me because:

- When they were first introduced, Robin, Caesar and Law all recognized the 3 guys as being CP-0, and the 3 were introduced as such, and this leads me to believe that these 3 are the only "main force" behind CP-0's name;

- I know they're supposed to be "intelligence", but they didn't seem to know/care about Doflamingo's Underworld tradings, but granted, they were kinda forced to abide by what he wanted while he was still the King/had leverage over them and the Celestial Dragons.

Now, we see Spandam and Lucci as being part of CP-0, and they're talking about the weapons gone missing from the Port and all that. I'm just not too sure if Lucci was talking to one of the other 3 guys, isn't it possible that Lucci only got to "enter" CP-0 for some personal reasons? We also saw him as a broker during the Caesar's livestream, so I would be inclined to say that Lucci - as a CP-0 member - is playing double-agent, but seeing as CP-0 is supposed to be the strongest intelligence in the world, I don't think they'd just let it slip under their radar.

So, considering that Spandam is, for lack of a better word, crap, and that the way Lucci got beaten by Luffy makes me firmly believe that he can never grow strong enough to ever beat Luffy again (after all, Luffy did put him in a coma back then), and also that Lucci seems to have been paired with Spandam, I think they're both just underlings, scouts of some sort, doing the lackey job.

I really, really don't see how Lucci could ever be a big part of CP-0, he's just an extra to me, we already know from the others' reactions that the other 3 are CP-0, that's just what I think :v

Also, when Lucci says "Doesn't matter. Return now.", what is he saying, actually?
If he's talking to any of the other 3, I don't think he's that important to be talking that way to any of them, so maybe he's not saying "come back here at once", but rather "it doesn't matter, go back, there's nothing more you/we can do here now"?

I believe that's what he's saying, "you guys can return now, keep going, I will deal with this", and it would definitely hint some more that Lucci is really nothing more than an underling, and seeing as he has Spandam right there with him, maybe Lucci has a small team of his own, foot soldiers that are expected to do their job before having to call in the big-shots (Admirals in the case of the Marines, and with CP-0 it would have to be anyone from the 3 dudes).

Edit:

Don't get me wrong, I'm still glad Lucci go to show again up, finally! Even though everyone expected this to happen at some point, and I like how you drew the parallels, makes me very excited for the next Enies Lobby. Could this all lead to Sabo getting captured? I'm thinking it would be way too similar to what's already happened, but who knows, right? They seem to be rather pissed off at the Revolutionaries, so instead of wanting to send a message to the pirates, they could be looking to make a statement towards the RA.

And that's also another thing, regarding Lucci. Now that he's back, I can't see him having any grudge whatsoever against Luffy. Last time, they wanted to kill Nico Robin, one of Luffy's nakama. After having lost Ace, and grown stupid-strong ever since then, Luffy isn't just going to let that happen again, so what exactly is Lucci going to do this time around?

He failed to do his job last time, and I don't think he'd ever become strong (or stupid) enough to attempt it again, especially now. I don't see Luffy breaking a sweat if he had to deal with him again, Lucci couldn't possibly have become that strong, so again, to me, this all points to Lucci doing someone else's bidding (same as last time, I guess), but he at least won't be confronting Luffy directly, unless the CP-0 higher-ups make that happen.

Otherwise, this whole scenario could even set up Lucci do become one of Luffy's allies, same as with Bellamy (not holding a grudge, not mocking him, his friends, beliefs, etc.)

I'd rather see that, Straw-hats + old CP-9 against CP-0 in the new Enies Lobby arc or sumtin :3

Those are some valid concerns but I'll try to address a few things:
Although Spandam is "paired" with Lucci, maybe HE's the lackey, not Lucci. Actually I see it more like Spandam being Lucci's lackey period, after the latter gave him a thourough beating. So in order to spare his life, Spandam could have swore loyalty to Lucci. 2 years is a long period of time, if anything it looks like Lucci could have become stronger and gotten reinstated as part of CP0, who are the strongest CP period. Even if he's just a recruit like you say, it's a great feat that he could be deemed now as someone who's eligible to be part of CP0.
Next gathering intelligence doesn't mean they'll take action, it's actually the responsibility of a country, or in this case the WG/CDs to decide whether or not they should take action. It was indeed Lucci who was watching Ceasar's live stream, with someone who closely ressembles Blueno. But in the end if he doesn't receive an order telling him what to do about Ceasar or Doflamingo, he won't do anything. It's just like in real life, it's not the spies themselves who decide what to do, they just spy on other countries or terrorists etc.
So this is more of an issue of the WG being the usual monsters, who don't care about civilians, and who let Doflamingo become a Shichibukai in the first place.
Right now we don't have a clear idea of CP0's structure, all we know is that 3 of them showed up to announce the news about DD's resignation. And one of them, the short one was previously seen talking to Doflamingo before the Summit war. Who knows how many members they have. It could be more or less than CP9, and tbh I really can't see CP0 being comprised of three people, that's not how we make an intelligence team.

Also please don't forget that CP0 already left the island before DD's defeat, and decided to come back for the RA, as said by Sabo himself. Even if Lucci wasn't amongst those three, he could have been stationed nearby, actually Mariejoie isn't far away. And these events are happening 3 days after DD's defeat, so I guess there's plenty of time for him to show up even if he wasn't on Dressrosa earlier.
And my impression on Lucci is a bit different, during his fight with Luffy the latter was seen struggling quite a bit. In fact I clearly remember one of the fans concerns about this arc was that Luffy shouldn't struggle too much against DD, like back in his fight with Lucci. So even if in the end he lost, it doesn't take away how much of a powerful foe he was. And there is still room for him to grow, by learning Haki and who knows maybe even the awakening, which is now confirmed to be the next stage for mastering one's DF.

So I think I'll wait and see how things go, I'm not gonna judge right now about his introduction or whether he'll be a lackey and stuff like that. Oda knows best how to tell his story, and if he want CP0 in general to be antagonists, then so be it. It could end up being one of the best arcs, in terms of fighting.

---------- Post added at 07:48 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:40 PM ----------

I don't think Lucci and Spandam are up the chain in CP-0, they don't resemble the first 3 CP-0 members we were initially introduced to. I'd say Lucci and co. are new recruits so I don't expect much from Lucci and co.

Again it might be he was stationed nearby, this is happening 3 days after DD's defeat, and Sabo left 3 days earlier. So there's enough time for him to get there, even if he's not among those three.

---------- Post added at 07:52 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:48 PM ----------

Inb4 Sanji will be captured and scream with tears in his eyes: "I want to live! Take me back to the sea with you!"

But in all seriousness, i don't like this "Lucci gets back into the story and is probably an enemy again" setting. He was defeated, he lost, if he gets back into the story and once again fights against Luffy it would contradict that what Luffy believes in, to defeat an enemy and break their spirit/will to continue instead of killing them.

And what kind of threat is he supposed to be now? You could compare his pre-TS strength to that of a Pacifista. It took Luffy everything that his Gear 2 and 3 could unleash to defeat both of them. Now, post-TS, he oneshoted a Pacifista with a Gear 2 Jet Pistol. In these 2 years Luffy's strength reached incredible heights, but now a defeated enemy is supposed to be a danger again? How? What could make him more dangerous than Doflamingo, the person who could destroy a whole island with one technique. Devil Fruit Awakening? The same thing Doflamingo had but it took him who knows how long to achieve and Lucci could achieve that in just 2 years?

Just make him some small fodder or underling of the World Government and make him a small part of a bigger Arc like Bellamy, but please don't make him the next big bad boss.

I don't think it will go like that lol, but who knows with the latest theories about him being a former Tenryuubito.
It can be CP0 as a whole, and he could just be one of them. I don't think we've seen him getting redeemed like Crocodile,so it's not like he made peace with Luffy or anything of the like. And Rokushiki+Haki should be interesting. There's also the awakening, so maybe if he becomes like Chopper's Monster point he could be a threat.
I'm not too fond of seeing certain characters being reintroduced, even having Enel become a Shichibukai never really got me interested. But CP0 could end up playing a role in the future, I don't think Oda just introduced them like that for the sake of introducing them. So we might see them clash with the SHs in the future.
Oh and just to clear that up, I don't think Lucci is CP0's boss either, he's a regular member, a new recruit maybe but not a lackey.

 

[M3J]

Inb4 Sanji will be captured and scream with tears in his eyes: "I want to live! Take me back to the sea with you!"

But in all seriousness, i don't like this "Lucci gets back into the story and is probably an enemy again" setting. He was defeated, he lost, if he gets back into the story and once again fights against Luffy it would contradict that what Luffy believes in, to defeat an enemy and break their spirit/will to continue instead of killing them.

And what kind of threat is he supposed to be now? You could compare his pre-TS strength to that of a Pacifista. It took Luffy everything that his Gear 2 and 3 could unleash to defeat both of them. Now, post-TS, he oneshoted a Pacifista with a Gear 2 Jet Pistol. In these 2 years Luffy's strength reached incredible heights, but now a defeated enemy is supposed to be a danger again? How? What could make him more dangerous than Doflamingo, the person who could destroy a whole island with one technique. Devil Fruit Awakening? The same thing Doflamingo had but it took him who knows how long to achieve and Lucci could achieve that in just 2 years?

Just make him some small fodder or underling of the World Government and make him a small part of a bigger Arc like Bellamy, but please don't make him the next big bad boss.

You're acting as if Lucci can't improve in few years like Luffy did. It's all possible, especially if Lucci tried various ways to get better. I don't mind seeing Lucci as an enemy, but I'm not sure just how much of an enemy he will be. Probably has respect for Luffy, but he is a part of CP0.

 

[Notice me Escanor senpai]

You're acting as if Lucci can't improve in few years like Luffy did. It's all possible, especially if Lucci tried various ways to get better. I don't mind seeing Lucci as an enemy, but I'm not sure just how much of an enemy he will be. Probably has respect for Luffy, but he is a part of CP0.

Yeah and if someone like Bellamy can learn Armament Haki, then it shouldn't be a problem for a former big baddie like Lucci.

 

[HereNThere]

You're acting as if Lucci can't improve in few years like Luffy did. It's all possible, especially if Lucci tried various ways to get better. I don't mind seeing Lucci as an enemy, but I'm not sure just how much of an enemy he will be. Probably has respect for Luffy, but he is a part of CP0.

I know right? Just because someone is defeated in the past, doesn't mean they can't develop anymore. Crocodile was beaten by Luffy once, but he was doing better in Marineford that Luffy did and I bet he's going to come back even stronger than that. Lucci could very well be much more of a threat now, than he was then, especially if he has haki. Will he be strong enough to nearly kill Luffy like last time? Probably not, but to assume he didn't improve in the slightest when everyone has changed in these past to years isn't right.

---------- Post added at 02:03 PM ---------- Previous post was at 02:02 PM ----------

Yeah and if someone like Bellamy can learn Armament Haki, then it shouldn't be a problem for a former big baddie like Lucci.

Exactly, and Bellamy is a textbook example of fodder (strength wise).

As for CP0, I don't think they'll be antagonist again, at least, they won't be direct antagonist like in Water 7/Ennis Loby. Lucci's induction into the group does make me think that they are Agents that are deep undercover. Like, they have actual bounties deep. Which would mean that even the marines don't know they still work for the WG if they were to appear out of uniform deep.

 

[Hannibal Psyche]

Inb4 Sanji will be captured and scream with tears in his eyes: "I want to live! Take me back to the sea with you!"

Lol, this made me giggle.

Lucci's strength is nothing close to that of a Pacifista, it took a Luffy who was pretty comfortable using both Gear 2 and 3 along with Zoro to defeat one and Luffy could barely maintain gear 2 when fighting Lucci. I'd say they're much stronger, but I'm sure that Lucci would have improved a great deal, not enough to be a threat to the likes of Luffy who has defeated someone as formidable as Joker.

 

[ShenGao]

Lucci could have trained in these 2 years, he could have gotten a power boost BUT would this training and the resulting power boost be in any comparison to the training the Monster Trio had? Just as a reminder, these 3 were trained by the Pirate King's Vice Captain, the world's strongest swordfighter who crossed many times the swords with Shanks and lastly a big shot from the Revulotion Army who is also the king of an island full of dangerous and strong fighters.
Who would have trained Lucci, the guy who was chased by the Marines after his defeat? Or do you think that self training can equal the training of the 3 previously mentioned people?

 

[Fox666]

Who would have trained Lucci, the guy who was chased by the Marines after his defeat? Or do you think that self training can equal the training of the 3 previously mentioned people?

The cover story ended with the CP9 meeting their presumably master. I suppose who trained the CP9 in the first place is qualified.

 

[Australopithecus]

Inb4 Sanji will be captured and scream with tears in his eyes: "I want to live! Take me back to the sea with you!"

While dressed like this

This made me laugh for minutes.

---------- Post added at 09:56 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:53 PM ----------

I don't think Lucci and Spandam are up the chain in CP-0, they don't resemble the first 3 CP-0 members we were initially introduced to. I'd say Lucci and co. are new recruits so I don't expect much from Lucci and co.

That's what I think too.

 

[Hannibal Psyche]

Lucci could have trained in these 2 years, he could have gotten a power boost BUT would this training and the resulting power boost be in any comparison to the training the Monster Trio had? Just as a reminder, these 3 were trained by the Pirate King's Vice Captain, the world's strongest swordfighter who crossed many times the swords with Shanks and lastly a big shot from the Revulotion Army who is also the king of an island full of dangerous and strong fighters.
Who would have trained Lucci, the guy who was chased by the Marines after his defeat? Or do you think that self training can equal the training of the 3 previously mentioned people?

I don't think it really matters who trained them, the only thing they were taught was how to use haki and i'd assume it's the same principles for everyone. The only thing that makes a difference is the potential that the individual has and the SHs as individuals are essentially geniuses. Buggy had his tutelage under both Rayleigh and the Pirate King and he's still weak, his only saving grace is the fact he has a Devil fruit that makes him immune to good majority of damage.

I don't see it fit to attribute their strength to tutor, but mainly as a result of their potential, at the very best they got good guidance; still, unlike other Supernova and Pirates, they dedicated a whole 2 years to just training while others didn't get that opportunity and were active.

---------- Post added at 04:04 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:02 PM ----------

While dressed like this

This made me laugh for minutes.

---------- Post added at 09:56 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:53 PM ----------


That's what I think too.

Lol, I forget what exactly happened for Sanji to end up as an Okama temporarily.

 

[Shasha23]

Yeah and if someone like Bellamy can learn Armament Haki, then it shouldn't be a problem for a former big baddie like Lucci.

not everyone can archive haki as Ray-san said, but seeing as Lucci was by far the most challenging opponent Luffy had to face I would say he probably has haki but alas Oda has already hinted to the fact that not everyone can archive it so don't get your hopes up too high as I think we wont even see Lucci fight ever again

 

[Notice me Escanor senpai]

not everyone can archive haki as Ray-san said, but seeing as Lucci was by far the most challenging opponent Luffy had to face I would say he probably has haki but alas Oda has already hinted to the fact that not everyone can archive it so don't get your hopes up too high as I think we wont even see Lucci fight ever again

So Bellamy who has been fodderized twice now by Luffy can get it, but not Lucci, who like you said yourself is one of the most challenging opponents Luffy had to face? I fail to understand this logic. Rayleigh can say what he wants, but ever since the SHs entered the NW we saw many characters use at least one form of Haki, Armament Haki being the most frequent one.The fact there's many Haki users in the NW. Then we have someone like Usopp who is supposed to be one of the weakest SHs awaken to Observation Haki. To me it makes no sense that during these two years Lucci wouldn't train or awaken to at least one form of Haki.
And don't worry, I'm not getting "my hopes too high", we're simply discussing the possibility for him to play an antagonistic role in the future inside CP0. And from the looks of it it doesnt look like you guys are receptive to this idea, even if it's a possibility now that he has been reintroduced in such a manner.

 

[Roarchu]

I think the former CP9 members are actually working undercover for Kaido as CP0

When Luffy beats Kaido, some of his underlings will jump with Luffy. Like maybe Lucci and Drake

 

[MBVC]

Before facing Kaido, Luffy must become much stronger by defeating more strong opponents:

We have seen SH fought an individual shichibukai & his underlings, SH vs CP9. Now is the right time for the next awesome upgrade: SH vs CP0 + 7th unknown shichibukai and after that is Luffy fights an admiral (either Kizaru or green bull) one on one in another warm up mini-arc before serving the main dish SH vs Kaido pirates.

As for the reintroduction of Lucci, he'll be either Sanji or Robin (if she knows how to use CoO+CoA) opponent. Sanji has been out of the picture for too long, when was the last time Robin fought seriously for her life? On the Sky island?

This awaiting match will give us some info of the growth from both sides, Lucci uses haki in his awakening leopard form comparing the to the fruits of Sanji or Robin 2 years training.

Of course, Luffy vs CP0 boss, Law vs an unknown 7th shichibukai and Zoro vs 2nd strongest in CP0, any complain?

 

[M3J]

so dumb and illogical to keep claiming Lucci can't get stronger or strong enough to challenge Luffy again like he did. Luffy and Zoro got as strong as they did not just because of their mentors, but because of how hard they pushed themselves. There's no reason to believe Lucci couldn't do the same, especially when he was on a pretty high level himself. He could just as easily challenge Luffy past Luffy's tolerance again, just Luffy could beat Lucci more easily than he did before.

Christ, when it comes to Luffy people like to be in denial. "But Luffy was tired because he fought in the Colosseum before and Bellamy's punches hurt him!! Who cares if Doflamingo was wounded badly?! LUFFY STILL DA BEST!!11 Lucci can't beat Luffy because he didn't get the training the Monster Trio did!!" Jeez.

Wouldn't be shocked if they never fight or choose not to fight. Most of the time Luffy's former enemies end up allying with him or not confronting him again.

 

[Holt]

Lucci doesn't seem like one of the higher ranked CP-0. Those 3 that appeared earlier on Dressrosa seem to be the main guys. Well it's possible that Lucci is also somewhere near the top but I don't think he will be the main antagonist. I'm sure he's gotten a lot stronger though. Lucci didn't mention anything about the the SHs or Luffy. It would have been nice for him to make some type of comment or remark so we understand just what he thinks in that regard. As for Lucci's strength, I think it's pretty obvious that he must have gotten a lot more powerful. He also had time to train after all. For those asking who could have trained him, well for starters, the CP-0 could have picked him up to tutor him. It would make sense that they saw him as a potential recruit and moved to groom him. Even if they didn't, getting that powerful on his own isn't far-fetched. It doesn't always depend on one having a tutor. DD was taught by the likes of Trebol and Vergo when he was a kid and look how powerful he is. Asides from their teachings earlier on, he probably achieved the rest on his own.

 

[TitaniumOxide]

Before facing Kaido, Luffy must become much stronger by defeating more strong opponents:

We have seen SH fought an individual shichibukai & his underlings, SH vs CP9. Now is the right time for the next awesome upgrade: SH vs CP0 + 7th unknown shichibukai and after that is Luffy fights an admiral (either Kizaru or green bull) one on one in another warm up mini-arc before serving the main dish SH vs Kaido pirates.

As for the reintroduction of Lucci, he'll be either Sanji or Robin (if she knows how to use CoO+CoA) opponent. Sanji has been out of the picture for too long, when was the last time Robin fought seriously for her life? On the Sky island?

This awaiting match will give us some info of the growth from both sides, Lucci uses haki in his awakening leopard form comparing the to the fruits of Sanji or Robin 2 years training.

Of course, Luffy vs CP0 boss, Law vs an unknown 7th shichibukai and Zoro vs 2nd strongest in CP0, any complain?

As much as I'd like Law to stick around and fight another shichibukai with the Mugiwaras, I don't see it happening nor do I want it to happen. Law is great but he isn't with the crew, just an ally, he should go his seperate way soon. This seventh shichibukai better be a shocker. That's all I'd say.

As for Lucci, it is pretty obvious that he's become even more badass than before. I mean Spandam who had a hella ego before is now Lucci's bitch. If he wasn't an awakened Zoan before he might be one now. And in these past two years he must have at least learned some haki. How can you be in the feared strongest cipher pol group without knowing how to utilize haki? Spandam might be the only one who lacks it, using his mouth to get to where he is at now.