About Hie Hie no Mi
The Hie Hie no Mi is a Logia-type Devil Fruit that allows the user to create, control, and transform into ice at will, turning them into a Freezing Human (氷結人間, Hyōketsu Ningen?, Viz: "Ice Man", Crunchyroll: "Freeze-Man"). It was eaten by Kuzan, better known as former Admiral Aokiji.
As a Logia, this fruit allows its user to transform into the element of ice, as well as create and control it on a potentially massive scale, especially to freeze their surroundings. Particularly potent even by Logia standards, with this power running for a ten-day battle it was strong enough to permanently warp the very climate of one half of an island into a frozen, uninhabitable wasteland. The Hie Hie no Mi's power is considered a superior counterpart to the Yuki Yuki no Mi's, ice being a superior freezing agent to snow, with this Devil Fruit's power also being able to replicate snowing as in the case of Punk Hazard.
While other Logia fruits give their users the ability to dissipate out of harm's way by turning into their respective elements, it is interesting to note that this fruit is one of the few Logia fruits that can be hit with a physical attack. This is mainly because ice is a solid-state element, and thus, the user cannot simply dissolve out of harm's way as most Logia-users can with their fluid bodies, and it is slower in terms of reforming the body when damaged. However, most attacks are still ineffective against this fruit because its user can simply shatter and reform the ice composing them on impact. It is also apparent that the user can control the ice in his body to mold it and change its shape, as seen when Kuzan formed a hole in his chest before Whitebeard stabbed through Kuzan with his naginata, allowing Kuzan to avoid contact with the Haki-infused weapon.
Strengths and Weaknesses
Kuzan freezes the surrounding sea.
As a Logia, this fruit allows its user to transform into the element of ice, as well as create and control it on a potentially massive scale, especially to freeze their surroundings. Particularly potent even by Logia standards, with this power running for a ten-day battle it was strong enough to permanently warp the very climate of one half of an island into a frozen, uninhabitable wasteland. The Hie Hie no Mi's power is considered a superior counterpart to the Yuki Yuki no Mi's, ice being a superior freezing agent to snow, with this Devil Fruit's power also being able to replicate snowing as in the case of Punk Hazard.
While other Logia fruits give their users the ability to dissipate out of harm's way by turning into their respective elements, it is interesting to note that this fruit is one of the few Logia fruits that can be hit with a physical attack. This is mainly because ice is a solid-state element, and thus, the user cannot simply dissolve out of harm's way as most Logia-users can with their fluid bodies, and it is slower in terms of reforming the body when damaged. However, most attacks are still ineffective against this fruit because its user can simply shatter and reform the ice composing them on impact. It is also apparent that the user can control the ice in his body to mold it and change its shape, as seen when Kuzan formed a hole in his chest before Whitebeard stabbed through Kuzan with his naginata, allowing Kuzan to avoid contact with the Haki-infused weapon.
Kuzan's instantly frozen target being at risk of frostbite or death.
The user can instantly freeze anything that comes in contact with them, whether the user grabs onto the foe or the foe makes contact with the user's body. If the frozen area is not treated properly and immediately, then the resultant frostbitten areas will suffer permanent tissue damage. If a body is frozen entirely, the victim can survive for a certain period of time, and can be saved if thawed out carefully, but will be left in a very brittle form that will result in instant death if shattered. In order to thaw properly, the victim's body must generate heat internally, by putting low-temperature water onto it continuously until defrosted, and then massage the frozen area; if external heat is applied, it will cause the frozen tissues to crack. Though it has not been shown, both Blackbeard and Garp have asked Kuzan to unfreeze their subordinates after he attacked them, implying that the user can manually undo the effects of the Devil Fruit.
Kuzan's ice being counteracted by Ace's fire.
Kuzan has resistance towards cold, due to his Devil Fruit's element, being able to move around in cold environments with barely any protection. The ice seems to cancel out with fire when they clash, as seen against Portgas D. Ace's Mera Mera no Mi. However, the ice seems to be ineffective against Whitebeard's earthquake abilities, since the freezing powers against the emperor failed due to the ice shattering before disabling the target; the vibrations from the Gura Gura no Mi also shattered the ice and kept Whitebeard from being frozen solid. In addition, Akainu's magma abilities were able to melt the ice generated by Kuzan in seconds. However, it should be noted that Kuzan was able to fight against Akainu on equal terms for ten days straight.
Kuzan is also able to travel great distances and move at high speeds by turning his entire body to ice, as seen when he moved from his seat on the execution platform into the air to freeze two tsunamis created by Whitebeard.
Most of this Devil Fruit's attacks require Kuzan to be in physical contact with his enemy directly to freeze them, yet Kuzan has found ways to extend his combat range, such as creating ice spears or ice tridents. Its freezing ability can also be seemingly countered if the target has sufficiently strong enough Supreme King Haki and the ability to defend themselves with it, as seen when Garp's Haki prevented Kuzan from successfully freezing him completely. Other than that, the user is also vulnerable to the standard Devil Fruit weaknesses. However, the fruit's power over ice is one of the few known powers that allows its user to counteract the standard Devil Fruit weakness of falling into water, as they can simply freeze the liquid and create a surface to stand on, thus preventing sinking and drowning.