Quick answer

The Elbaf arc began in chapter 1126 and is still going after chapter 1196. It is ONE PIECE's arc in the land of the giants. In five phases:

Phase Chapters What happens
1. Arrival 1126–1141 The Straw Hats reach Elbaf. Loki is found in chains.
2. The Knights attack 1142–1151 The God's Knights target Elbaf's children. Imu takes over Gunko.
3. Loki's story 1152–1170 Fourteen years ago: Harald, the Knights' covenant, and why Loki killed his father.
4. Loki freed, Imu arrives 1171–1186 Loki is unchained. Imu comes to Elbaf in person.
5. The final battle 1187–now Luffy, Zoro and Sanji each fight a separate opponent. None of the fights has ended.

Next: chapter 1197 comes out on 2 November, after a one-week break. When is 1197?

Evidence layers.

  • CHAPTER-REFERENCED: each point is given in at least two independent post-release reviews (sources at the foot of the page). Where only one review says it, we say so.
  • No leak sites.

Phase 1 — Arrival (1126–1141)

  • 1126–1127. The crew heads for Elbaf, and part of it lands in an unknown place first.
  • 1130 — the cursed prince. Loki is introduced, chained up as Elbaf's "cursed prince". The same chapter reveals that Hajrudin is a son of the king.
  • 1134 — the owl library. Robin finds the owl's library, the start of a mystery that is still open. What's hidden behind it?
  • 1137. Shamrock appears as head of the God's Knights.
  • 1140. Scopper Gaban, Roger's former crewmate, gives his name.

Phase 2 — The God's Knights attack (1142–1151)

  • 1142–1143. Three God's Knights — Gunko, Sommers and Killingham — go after Elbaf's children. Who are the God's Knights?
  • End of 1149. Imu takes over Gunko through the Knights' covenant.
  • 1150. The power is named Domi Reversi (黒転支配). With it, Imu turns Dorry and Brogy, the old giants, into weapons. Who is Imu?
Illustration: giant children asleep among Elbaf-style wooden houses at night while shadowy nightmare monsters rise into the moonlit sky.
Phase 2: the God's Knights go after Elbaf's children. Our illustration, not a panel from the manga. Artwork: ABYSS CURRENT

Phase 3 — Loki's story (1152–1170)

1152. Loki starts telling Hajrudin what happened fourteen years ago.

Rocks and God Valley. Reviews place a further flashback to the Rocks era and God Valley around chapters 1154–1166. How it nests inside Loki's story is told differently from review to review.

Harald:

  • 1168. Elbaf's king, Harald, joins the God's Knights.
  • 1169. Harald goes out of control. Shanks and Gaban are at the castle. The chapter contrasts Shanks's shallow contract with Imu and Harald's deep one.
  • 1170. Loki kills his father.

Full record: Loki's Devil Fruit — the fruit and Harald's death are the same story.

Phase 4 — Loki freed, Imu arrives (1171–1186)

  • 1171. Hajrudin takes off Loki's Seastone chains.
  • 1175. Loki's fruit is named: Ryu Ryu no Mi, Model: Nidhoggr.
  • 1178. Loki's Niflheim freezes Imu inside Gunko's body. Imu slips out.
  • 1179. Imu comes to Elbaf in person, through the five-pointed mark, and coughs up blood.
  • 1180. Imu's black flames — Omen — revive and strengthen Sommers and Killingham. What is Omen?
Illustration: a colossal black dragon breathes a beam of white-blue lightning over an island of giant trees and waterfalls.
Phase 4: Loki, freed, and his Nidhoggr dragon form. Our illustration, not a panel from the manga. Artwork: ABYSS CURRENT

Phase 5 — The final battle (1187–now)

From 1187 the fight splits into duels. That start point comes from one review only.

Luffy and Loki vs Imu:

  • 1191. Luffy, Loki and Hajrudin hit Imu with a three-man attack, 三将轟国. Imu changes form again.
  • 1192. Imu's swords form a shield, and Luffy's attack gets through. Full report
  • 1193. Imu is slammed into the treasure tree Adam.

Zoro vs Sommers:

  • 1193. Zoro is "practising".
  • 1194. An arm he cuts doesn't grow back.
  • 1195. He says he has "got it" and chases Sommers. No result yet. Does Zoro have Conqueror's Haki?

Sanji vs Killingham:

  • 1195. Sanji takes the spear Longinus.
  • 1196. Killingham's power brings out Sanji's fear — Ivankov — and Sanji ends the chapter with your head is too high. No result yet. Why is Sanji afraid of Ivankov?

Brook and Gunko (1195). They meet but don't fight. Gunko insists she is "Gunko" and leaves in tears. Who is Gunko?

Illustration: Luffy, fist crackling with white lightning, and the giant Loki with a frost-covered hammer strike a dark figure wreathed in black flames toward a colossal tree.
Phase 5: Luffy and Loki against Imu. Our illustration, not a panel from the manga. Artwork: ABYSS CURRENT

What the arc hasn't answered

  • Zoro vs Sommers. Whether Sommers escaped or was beaten.
  • Sanji vs Killingham. Whether Sanji wins — and whether he gets Conqueror's Haki. Theory Radar before 1197
  • Imu. How long Imu can stay away from the Holy Land, and what the blood in 1179 means.
  • Gunko. What her "I want to live" means for her contract.
  • The owl's box. What is inside it, and what Elbaf has to do with Lili. Who is Lily?

Where the anime is

  • The Elbaf arc in the anime began in April 2026.
  • The 2026 run ended with episode 1180 on 27 September, which covers about chapter 1150 — the middle of Phase 2.
  • Episode 1181 is announced for 2027, with no date yet.

Read next