Did Shanks Beat Loki In The Past?

This article contains spoilers from One Piece’s Elbaf Arc.

Key Takeaways

• Shanks and Loki met in the past, with hints of a possible confrontation.
• Loki claims to be a Sun God and poses a threat, chained in Elbaf’s underworld.
• Shanks might have prevented Loki’s escape, potentially leading to his rise as a Yonko.

Loki is one of the most important characters in the Elbaf Arc of One Piece and certainly an individual whom Oda plans to reveal a ton of information about in the upcoming few chapters. Oda recently introduced Loki properly, but his first mention in the story came around One Piece’s Whole Cake Island Arc, which is where his connection to the Big Mom Pirates was revealed to the fans. It was clearly stated in the story that Loki wanted to marry Lola, Big Mom’s daughter, however, due to her abandoning her family in search of grasping her own destiny, this marriage came to a crash, and eventually, the relationship between the Big Mom Pirates and the Giant Warrior Pirates soured even further.

Since then, Oda made no mention of Loki in the story, but he went on to reveal him properly in the Elbaf arc. Now, Loki has already been properly revealed to the fans, and more interestingly, he might even have a connection to the Emperor, Red-Haired Shanks.

Shanks And Loki’s Former Confrontation

Shanks And Loki Met Recently In One Piece

In One Piece chapter 1130, it was revealed to the fans that Loki believes himself to be the Sun God and the one who will go on to destroy the world. Loki is confident of the fact that he is the chosen Sun God, and it seems that the people of Elbaf believed this as well, in one way or another. Of course, the people of Elbaf don’t necessarily see Loki as the Sun God. However, they certainly do see him as a massive threat who can go on to destroy the country, to say the least. This was confirmed by the people of the Giant Warrior Pirates themselves, and they openly believe Loki to have the strength to do so. Loki himself is also confident about his powers and abilities, as was seen in One Piece chapter 1130. The people of Elbaf have already chained Loki and put him in the underworld, where he has been tied to the Treasure Tree Adam and secured with sea prism stone chains.

Yes, Shanks was here recently! – Loki

It is possible that Loki’s connection to the Sun God might have interested the emperor Red Hair Shanks. Shanks, as fans know, has something to do with the Nika fruit and, at the same time, the entire mystery surrounding the Sun God as well. It is believed that just a while ago, in One Piece, the red-haired pirate sought out Loki and met with him around this time.

It was also stated that Loki has since then tried to escape on a few occasions, and perhaps, Shanks came when Loki could have been causing trouble or, in the midst of attempting to cause some sort of trouble.

Why Shanks Could’ve Beaten Loki In The Past

• Shanks Became A Yonko 6 Years Ago
• Loki Was Imprisoned 6 Years Ago

It must be noted that Shanks and Loki are connected to each other. In One Piece chapter 1131, Loki clearly stated that he knew Shanks and called him a chicken pirate. Of course, Loki was not serious about calling Shanks a chicken, as he clarified later himself. He only wanted to tease Luffy due to having observed a close connection between him and Shanks. But, when Luffy demanded an answer from Loki as to how he knew the red-haired Emperor, Loki did not provide an answer. In order for him to get any answer, Loki wants Luffy to free him first, and, as fans know, if Loki is free, then, the world of One Piece, specifically Elbaf, is essentially going to be destroyed.

Can you believe it? I’ve been chained here for 6 years. – Loki

As was stated in the previous chapter of One Piece, Shanks came to the underworld, but Loki was chained. Perhaps, this was because Shanks wanted to see the person who called himself the Sun God with his own eyes. Perhaps, Shanks wanted to get a measure of Loki, and was disappointed upon realizing that he is not the Sun God. This could potentially be why Loki doesn’t entirely like him. But, it is also possible that Loki was attempting an escape around this point through some external source of help.

If Loki got help at this point in the story, then, perhaps it was Shanks who culled the disaster and prevented Loki from escaping. This could be another reason why he doesn’t really like him. It is unclear as to how Shanks and Loki know each other, but, it is implied that 6 years ago, Loki and Shanks met in Elbaf, and potentially even went on to fight.

Clearly, the truth of the matter will only be revealed when Luffy goes on to free him, which is a significant price to pay, given that once he is free, he could very well go on to attack Luffy and, more than that, destroy the entirety of Elbaf.

Did Shanks Become A Yonko After Loki’s Capture?

Shanks Could’ve Beaten Loki In The Past

Curiously enough, it was revealed in One Piece chapter 1131 that Loki has been imprisoned in the underworld for 6 years. For those who do not remember, Shanks also became a Yonko 6 years prior to the current events of the story. It is also highly likely that Shanks became a Yonko around the same time that he visited Elbaf. This is because to become a Yonko, a pirate must have a great influence on the sea and preferably have some territories as well. Shanks, as fans know, has Elbaf under his protection, which means 6 years ago, he had already visited Elbaf.

This further puts emphasis on Shanks having done something heroic in this country that not only strengthened his bond with the Giants of this land, but also forced him to take this country under his protection and then rise to the title of Yonko. Perhaps, stopping Loki’s rampage was the reason why Shanks ended up becoming one of the Four Emperors of the Sea, and saving Elbaf from a cataclysmic event is why the Giants of Elbaf are indebted to him and why Shanks sees himself as a protector of this land.

Then, with the World Government realizing that Shanks had the support of Elbaf recognized him as one of the Four Emperors of the Sea, which would connect all dots. Of course, there’s a lot of information that the fans are yet to know pertaining to the red-haired Emperor, and hopefully, Loki goes on to reveal the truth of the matter soon enough. But, given all the clues that have been provided, the idea that Shanks was responsible for stopping Loki’s escape attempt looks likely more than ever.

It seems that the next few chapters of One Piece are going to continue to elaborate upon these events and potentially even give fans the answer to their questions. Furthermore, with Shanks directly being involved in the Elbaf arc, a lot of mysteries surrounding this character will finally be answered, and readers absolutely cannot wait to see more of that. For now, they simply need to sit back and let Oda handle his story while they continue to theorize.

One Piece is available to read via Viz Media. The series can be read by the fans officially and for free on the Shonen Jump and the Manga Plus apps. The release date for the next chapter of One Piece, One Piece 1132, is set to be November 17, 2024.