Summary
One Piece chapter #1119 seems to reveal that Franky has Armament Haki. There is some confusion surrounding the idea of Franky having Haki, but a future chapter will likely clear things up. The Straw Hat Pirates need to start learning Haki to properly deal with their enemies in the final saga.
Warning: Contains spoilers for One Piece chap #1119. A common criticism A piece in recent years, although the Straw Hat Pirates are the main characters, Most of them still can't use Haki. The mysterious power known as Haki has become extremely common over the years to the point where almost everyone has some form of it, and given the importance of the Straw Hats, it's strange that only a handful of them know how to use Haki.
It's always been strange that most of the Straw Hat Pirates don't seem to know Haki, but that might finally change. One Piece chapter #1119 featured a huge show of power from the Straw Hat Pirates against the Gorosei's Saint Mars, and thanks to some dialogue from Luffy, Franky may have finally developed Haki.
There's a bit of ambiguity with this quote, but if true it's a good sign for what to expect from the Straw Hats in the final story.
One Piece May Have Finally Given Franky Armament Haki
A vague quote from Luffy reveals that Franky may have used Haki in this chapter.
In One Piece chapter #1119, in order to deal with the Gorosei's seeming immortality, Luffy chose to blow up Saint Mars so they could leave in peace. To that end, Luffy had Sanji, Franky, and Bonney attack him with their attacks to give him a power boost, and when Bonney was shocked to hear that they were hurting him, Luffy said that it was natural since they were using Haki. Franky was one of the people Luffy was talking about there, so it's possible that Franky used Armament Haki.
However, there is still a bit of ambiguity here. Aside from the fact that Franky has never used Haki before, while Luffy reacts to Bonney's use of the plural about the people who hurt Luffy, it is unclear whether Luffy is referring to everyone in that scene or if it is just Sanji and Bonney who are explicitly using Haki. It is still not completely confirmed that Franky used Armament Haki. A piece chap #1119. However, that's too big a detail to leave unanswered, so ideally a later chapter would clarify whether or not Franky has Haki.
Why the Straw Hat Pirates Need to Learn Haki Before One Piece Ends
The Straw Hat Pirates Need a Major Power Boost
Whether or not Franky actually knows Armament Haki, One Piece #1119 only reinforces the idea that the entire Straw Hat Pirates will need to learn it before the series ends. With the way the series continues to introduce incredibly powerful characters, to the point where Luffy couldn't even hurt the Gorosei despite reaching Gear 5, it becomes increasingly difficult to justify the entire crew not knowing this power, even if not every member is a warrior. The Straw Hat Pirates need to know Haki to justify dealing with their ultimate enemy. A pieceand ideally that will happen soon.
However, there's no good chance the Straw Hats will drop everything and start learning Haki, but even that's easy to deal with. Haki has been shown to awaken in people in dire situations multiple times, and given how high the stakes have become, The Straw Hat Pirates could easily start awakening Haki in their battles in the final saga. That could be the explanation for Franky suddenly having Armament Haki, and if everyone else followed suit, it would add a lot A piece as it comes to an end.