This article contains spoilers from the One Piece manga.
Roronoa Zoro is one of the most important characters in One Piece, being one of the Wings of the Pirate King. He holds tremendous importance, with his ambition of becoming the World's Strongest Swordsman being right next to Luffy's goal of becoming the Pirate King. To achieve his goal, Zoro has to grow stronger, and fans are very well aware of that fact. Zoro always tries to push himself beyond all his limits and by doing so over the years, he has reached a very high level.
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That said, Zoro still needs to grow further if he is to defeat Mihawk, the world's strongest swordsman. The last major power-up that Zoro got in One Piece was most certainly Enma. As most fans will know, Enma is one of the 21 Great Grade swords in One Piece which belonged to Kozuki Oden. This sword has a special power to drain the Haki of those who wield it and bring it out to the absolute maximum. It allowed Zoro to bring out his Conqueror's Haki and granted him a means to scar Kaido, as well as defeat King later down the line. Now, however, Zoro is in desperate need of a new power-up and that is exactly what Oda is preparing right now in the Elbaf Arc.
After Enma, Zoro Will Gain Conqueror's Haki Mastery
Oda has already made it quite clear that Zoro needs to grow further in the Elbaf arc and he has also given the fans the exact way in which he will progress further. Zoro's next step is to master his Conqueror's Haki. Up until now, Zoro wasn't even aware of the fact that he had Conqueror's Haki. As such, he could not control this power to the best of his abilities. It was Enma that was doing the heavy lifting all the time and bringing out his Haki to injure his enemies.
If I can’t even protect my captain’s dream, then whatever ambition I have is nothing but talk! Luffy is the man who will become the Pirate King!” — Roronoa Zoro in One Piece
That is precisely why Oda introduced a character like Scopper Gaban in the Elbaf Arc, who reprimanded Zoro and explained to him that the true power of Haki can only be brought out when it is fully controlled. Zoro apologized to Gaban for failing to meet his expectations, as well as for being Luffy's shield. Now, Zoro will have to take things up a notch and learn how to control Conqueror's Haki. Conqueror's Haki control is most certainly going to be Zoro's next big power-up in the Elbaf Arc, and fans absolutely cannot wait for it.
Zoro Will Finally Become an Admiral-level Level After Elbaf
Bringing out Conqueror's Haki at will is going to make Zoro stronger when it comes to the mass of his Haki. In turn, this will allow him to do things like deal deadly damage to his enemies and, later down the line, even counter the immortality of figures such as the Holy Knights and the Five Elders.
How can you call yourself a crew of the future Pirate King? The true power of Haki can only be brought out when it's controlled. — Scopper Gaban to Roronoa Zoro, Elbaf Arc
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Of course, doing so will not be easy for him, but that is exactly what the Elbaf Arc is for. It is highly likely that Zoro will trade blows with either the Holy Knights, or Dorry of the Giant Warrior Pirates who has been Domi Reversed by Imu. Zoro will have to defeat him, and once he does that, he will be on a whole new level, closer to the Yonko than ever before.
After this point in the story, Zoro will officially be ready to face Mihawk, because there isn't much that he can learn after mastering his Conqueror's Haki.
Zoro Vs Mihawk Is Coming In The Final Saga
Once Zoro learns the power of Conqueror's Haki properly, there isn't going to be much that he can improve upon in One Piece. This is precisely why it will be the perfect opportunity for him to try his luck against Mihawk once again. Zoro versus Mihawk is one of One Piece's biggest fights and it is fast approaching.
In fact, after the events of the Elbaf Arc, it is highly likely that Oda will build up towards this battle and it will likely happen before the Great War begins.
I’ll become stronger for her! Until my name reaches heaven itself…I’ll become stronger!…I’ll become the Strongest Swordsman in the World!” — Roronoa Zoro after Kuina's death
How Zoro Will Defeat Mihawk
As far as how Zoro will defeat Mihawk goes, fans know very well that gaining control over his Haki will push him to a level very close to that of Mihawk. On top of that, Zoro will eventually go on to blacken his blades, and of course, he also has the power of Ashura at his disposal.
All these things combined will most definitely give Zoro the edge in the battle and allow him to surpass the current world's strongest swordsman, Mihawk. In the final war of One Piece, perhaps Zoro will establish himself as the greatest swordsman who ever lived in the One Piece world, that would certainly be quite a sight for the fans to behold.
Eiichiro Oda's One Piece will be featured in this week's Weekly Shonen Jump Issue. The official release date of One Piece Chapter 1168 is December 7, 2025. In Japan, One Piece drops at 12AM JST on Monday, which is 11:00 AM EST, or 8:00 AM PT. Fans can read the chapter for free on Manga Plus and the Shonen Jump apps.
- Release Date
- October 20, 1999
- Network
- Fuji TV
- Directors
- 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
Cast
-
Mayumi TanakaMonkey D. Luffy (voice) -
Kazuya NakaiRoronoa Zoro (voice)
WHERE TO WATCH
One Piece is a Japanese manga written and illustrated by Eiichiro Oda. The series follows protagonist Monkey D. Luffy and his Straw Hat Pirate crew as they explore the Grand Line to find the King of the Pirates' ultimate treasure, the One Piece, in order to become the next king. The manga's popularity helped it spin off into a larger media franchise, including an anime with more than 1,000 episodes.
- Studio
- Toei Animation
- Creator
- Eiichiro Oda
- Streaming Service(s)
- Crunchyroll, Netflix, Hulu, Pluto TV
