This article contains spoilers from One Piece's Elbaf arc.
One Piece fans are absolutely loving the Elbaf arc and everything that Oda has done with it. There's absolutely no denying the fact that this is the most exciting the story has been since the conclusion of the absolutely phenomenal war in Wano. Right now, Oda is exploring the Loki flashback of Elbaf, and it is quite exciting at the moment as the events of the God Valley Incident are being explored. Whenever Oda explores a flashback, fans tend to love the developments, largely due to these flashbacks being the best part of the story. However, at the same time, whenever these flashbacks begin, fans naturally start to miss the Straw Hat Pirates. It's been a few months since the Loki flashback of Elbaf began, and right now, it is safe to say that the story is nowhere close to giving the fans a Strawhat Pirates return.
It's The End Of An Era For The One Piece Anime
The One Piece anime is entering a new era, and major changes are ahead.
The fact is that the Loki flashback is still dealing with events from around 38 years ago. After this, there's still a lot of exciting content that's left to cover, meaning the Straw Hat Pirates won't be returning anytime soon, at least not in 2025.
The Straw Hat Pirates Likely Won't Return In 2025
The Loki Flashback Will Continue For Now
- A big chunk of the story remains to be uncovered
- Big reveals will follow
The Straw Hat Pirates are the core of the story of One Piece, but it is quite clear to the fans that even without them, One Piece has so much more to offer that Oda can keep everyone on the edge of their seats. The latest Loki flashback has proven just that, having made Rocks D. Xebec the protagonist and giving the fans a direct look at his whole life, all the way to the events of God Valley.
Don't say a word, Chopper! I know exactly what's going on. — Luffy in Elbaf after sensing Imu
Now, Loki and Harald will likely take back the important roles in the story, and fans will most definitely see more of them in Elbaf. It must be remembered that the whole flashback is actually about the story of Loki and the death of Harald in August Castle 14 years ago.
Right now, however, the story is nowhere near 14 years. Oda is still dealing with the events of 38 years ago, and it seems God Valley will continue for at least two more chapters. On top of that, there are also other important things that must be covered, such as Harald ripping out his horns. The story will likely focus on the Roger Pirates as well, as well as Garp and Dragon. Fans also know Harald goes to Marijoa again and meets Shanks after the death of Roger. A lot of intriguing details will have to be covered in this flashback.
One Piece Finally Explains Why Shanks Gave Up His Arm In The Beginning
Shanks lost his arm at the beginning, and the true reason for that has finally been revealed in One Piece.
Eventually, the story will go back to 14 years ago, which is when Loki will kill King Harald, and even after that, there is the battle of Loki vs Shanks that takes place 6 years ago. These events will span across 10+ chapters, without a doubt. In other words, it'll take at least 3-4 months for Oda to cover them, which means that the Straw Hat Pirates won't be back anytime soon.
Only one man was able to stop him in the past, and that was Red-haired Shanks! — Scopper Gaban to Luffy Loki
The Straw Hats Will Return in 2026
Harald's Death Is Far Away
The Elbaf arc of One Piece will continue with more focus on Roger, Shanks, Loki, and Harald after the death of Rocks D. Xebec, which will push the Straw Hats to the background for now. For those wondering when Luffy and the crew will finally return, the answer is quite simple. They won't be coming back in 2025. To see the Straw Hat Pirates, fans will have to wait until 2026. It's hard to guess exactly when they'll return, but based on everything that still needs to be covered and answered, the Straw Hats won't be back before January 2026.
One Piece Chapter 1165 will be out next week. As usual, One Piece is going to drop on Sunday. In Japan, One Piece drops at 12AM JST on Monday. However, the vast majority of international readers will see the chapter available on November 9. The official release date of One Piece Chapter 1165 is November 9, 2025. Fans can read the chapter for free on Manga Plus.
- 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
- Studio
- Toei Animation
- Creator
- Eiichiro Oda
- Streaming Service(s)
- Crunchyroll, Netflix, Hulu, Pluto TV
