One Piece's The Elbaf Arc looks to be one of the most important in the series so far, with plenty of big moments and revelations for fans to eagerly await week after week. Oda is great at setting things up and knows when to give his readers a big reward. So far, the arc has done a great job of getting readers excited about and speculating about future events.
While it doesn't look like it's coming to an end, some major revelations have already been made in Elbaf. You'd think it would be hard to top some of the highs that came out of Wano and Egghead, but Elbaf just looks like it's full of important reveals and set-ups for even more reveals. With all that has happened so far, these discoveries stand out as some of the greatest revelations made in the Elbaf Arc.
Garp's fate after his attack on Hachinosa
The legendary hero is not out of the game yet
Garp has long been considered one of the most powerful characters of his era, with First Class Garp achieving legendary status for his exploits as a renowned marine. So when the infamous Vice Admiral went to attack Hachinosa to save Koby, fans expected Garp to go all out. He did so, and while his fight with Kuzan showed that the old boys still had plenty of fight left, he ended up losing by being impaled by his former pupil.
Some fans were worried that this was the last they would see of Garp, but thankfully that is not the case. In the very first chapter of the Elbaf arc, it is confirmed that Garp survived his attack on the pirate fortress. Now a prisoner of the Blackbeard Pirates, Garp's fate is up in the air.
Zoro learns that he can use Supreme King Haki
The second strongest Monster Trio is even stronger
Zoro is undoubtedly the strongest fighter of the Straw Hat crew after Luffy. While Sanji is powerful in his own right, the Straw Hat swordsman has been given time to shine time and time again. While fans already knew he was a force to be reckoned with, Elbaf revealed something about Zoro that even he didn't know.
In chapter 1152, Scopper Gaban revealed that Zoro possessed High King Haki, much to the surprise of the careless First Officer. Although he earned a rebuke from Gaban, we now know that Zoro is one of a select few One Piece characters who have been confirmed to have Supreme King Haki and are still alive. This could end up being a huge advantage for the Straw Hats and the people of Elbaf as they fend off the Knights of God.
Harley & Ancient Mural in the Treasure Tree Adam
Key pieces to understanding One Piece history revealed
Franky was first mentioned by Treasure Tree Adam in the Post-Enies Lobby Arc, and almost two decades later, fans finally got to see him. As Ripley shows them around the tree, Lilith and Franky are shown to an ancient device that Lilith estimates to be at least 3,000 years old. That's a massive revelation, but even more significant is the ancient mural carved into the tree. The mural depicts part of what is said in Elbaf's Harley, an ancient text that describes various past events and contains prophetic riddles.
There was fire in the land.
Mankind succumbed to greed and touched the forbidden sun.
The enslaved prayed and the sun god appeared.
The earth god was enraged and covered the world in death and darkness with his serpent of hellfire.
And they will never meet.
There was breath in the void.
The forest god tamed the demons and the sun spread the fires of war.
They dreamed of the crescent moon.
They dreamed of the moon.
Man killed the sun and became a god, and the sea god attacked.
And they will never meet.
There was emptiness in the chaos.
The uncomfortable remnants remember the promised day and hear the voice of the crescent moon.
The Sun God dances and laughs and leads the world to its end.
The sun returns and brings a new morning.
And they will definitely meet.
Because of Harley's enigmatic nature, Saul notes that the interpretation of the text is highly dependent on who is reading/translating it. In this case, it's Robin. The text and mural definitely have the answers to the mysteries fans have been searching for. The question is how long it will take them to figure it out.
Shanks' family heritage is confirmed
Something that fans have been speculating about has become a reality
Shanks has always been one of the most important characters in One Piece, despite playing a large role in the narrative thus far. The character's massive reveal came in the form of his twin Shamrock, who was revealed to be one of the Knights of God. This confirms something that was mentioned in One Piece Movie: RED; Shanks is a member of the Garling Family, with Figarland Garling being his and Shamrock's father.
Shanks also dropped the bombshell that Shanks is aware of his World Noble heritage and that he even gave up his family and birthright after briefly returning to Mary Geoise in the past. We learned even more about the twins in the God Valley flashback, which revealed that they were born on an unfortunate island to a redheaded mother who was ruthlessly disposed of by Garling a year after their birth. While Shanks was seemingly saved by the Dragon, Shamrock was left to be raised by the corrupt world nobles.
Rocks' story is revealed
The Mysterious Rocks Pirates aren't so mysterious anymore
One of the highlights of the Elbaf arc so far was an incredibly detailed, chapter-long flashback sequence that revealed a lot about Elbaf's former king, Harald, the God Valley incident, and the legendary D. Xebec Rocks.
Rocks has long been a mysterious character, and Odo's flashbacks not only answer a lot of questions about him that fans have had for years, but also make him one of the most likable characters in the series. Not only was Rocks revealed to be Blackbeard's father, but Oda also confirmed that he was part of the legendary Davy Clan and changed his name to Rocks to overthrow the world government.
It turns out that Rocks is one of the few people who knows about Ima, having discovered him during a rampage on Mary Geoise. Rocks also sent his wife Eris and their son to hide in God Valley, which played a role in what happened on the island during the Native Hunting Competition.
We don't know everything about Loki's past
The latest candidate for the straw hat may not be what it seems
The people of Elbaf do not think highly of Loki, and it seems with good reason. The disgraced prince is said to have murdered his father Harald and boasts that one day he will “end the world”. It's fair to consider Loki a villain with all of this in mind, but Oda has hinted that there's more to Loki's actions.
Part of the extensive flashbacks seen so far in Elbaf reveal that Loki was neglected and abused by his mother and her loved ones since birth due to his unusual eyes. This explains why Loki seems so arrogant and belligerent. Loki is not evil; he just can't form close bonds with the people around him, including his half-brother and even his father. But the real reason Loki is considered an irredeemable villain by the people of Elbaf is his supposed parricide. While not everything about King Harald's death has been revealed, what Oda has shown so far suggests that Harald fell victim to Imu's Domi Reversi technique. Confronted by his father in this state, Loki probably defeated him either in self-defense or as an act of mercy. So if that's the case, why wouldn't Loki try to clear his name rather than stay trapped in Elbaf's underworld for 6 years? There's definitely more for Oda to uncover, but we can be sure that we're not getting the full truth about Loki or his past.
The God Valley incident comes to light
An event that will forever change the world in one piece
While Oda revealed something about the God Valley incident during the Egghead Arc, Elbaf shows the incident in its entirety, showing the main players, catalysts, and how it will affect future events in the series.
Shakky is revealed to be the top prize for a native hunting contest being held on the island, prompting the Rocks and Roger Pirates into action to rescue her. Rocks' real motivation for the attack is that the World Government announced the capture of Davey's clan members for the first time in 800 years, with his father, grandmother, wife and son caught in the middle.
Dragon's backstory is finally revealed to readers, revealing that he was a sailor stationed on the island during the incident. Questioning the morality of the native hunter competition, the dragon rebels and attempts to save Shanks and Shamrock at the behest of their dying mother, while calming down a world noble who is about to shoot the young Kum. While we know that Shanks is able to escape the clutches of the World Nobles, Dragon is injured by Satchels Maffey and is unable to save Shamrock.
Sensing the situation taking a turn for the worse, Imu shows up on the island with Saturn, much to the surprise of Garp, Roger, and Rocks. It is also revealed that Kaido stole the Uo Uo no Mi, Model: Seiryu, from Big Mom, who planned to give it to Katakuri.
There is certainly more to learn about this event, but the last few chapters have been an absolute goldmine of information covering one of the most important events in One Piece history.
One piece
- Release date
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October 20, 1999
- Network
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Fuji TV
- directors
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Hiroaki Miyamoto, Konosuke Uda, Junji Shimizu, Satoshi Itō, Munehisa Sakai, Katsumi Tokoro, Yutaka Nakajima, Yoshihiro Ueda, Kenichi Takeshita, Yoko Ikeda, Ryota Nakamura, Hiroyuki Kakudou, Takahiro Imamura, Toshihiro Maeya, Yûji Endô, Nozomu Shishido, Hidehiko Kadota, Sumio Watanabe, Harume Kosaka, Yasuhiro Tanabe, Yukihiko Nakao, Keisuke Onishi, Junichi Fujise, Hiroyuki Satou
- Writers
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Jin Tanaka, Akiko Inoue, Junki Takegami, Shinzo Fujita, Shouji Yonemura, Yoshiyuki Suga, Atsuhiro Tomioka, Hirohiko Uesaka, Michiru Shimada, Isao Murayama, Takuya Masumoto, Yoichi Takahashi, Momoka Toyoda
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Mayumi Tanaka
Monkey D. Luffy (voice)
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Kazuya Nakai
Roronoa Zoro (voice)
