Elbaf’s Main Villain Is Yet To Be Introduced 

The Elbaf arc of One Piece is well and truly underway and fans know that it keeps on getting more exciting with each passing chapter. Elbaf has been phenomenal in every aspect, but if there’s one thing that fans are still in doubt about, it is the main antagonist of the arc.

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Usually, Oda has his main antagonists of a particular arc introduced early, and in the case of the big arcs, long before the arc itself even begins, as was the case with the likes of Arabasta, Dressrosa, and Wano Country. In some other instances, the villains get introduced rather early into the arcs, and in Elbaf it felt as if Oda was taking this road when he introduced a powerful individual right at the very beginning. Despite that, however, it is abundantly clear in the story that the main villain of Elbaf is still not highlighted and there will most definitely be some confusion regarding this as the story continues and One Piece edges closer to its end.

Shamrock Figarland And His Duty To Marijoa

• Shamrock Isn’t Elbaf’s Main Villain
• The Holy Knights On Their Own Would Be Underwhelming

It goes without saying that fans were extremely excited when Shamrock Figarland was introduced in the story as a mighty fighter who could potentially even take on the likes of Luffy in battle and give him a run for his money. Shamrock coming to Elbaf made this arc just that much more exciting for all the readers, and the hype shot up through the roof immediately after. Clearly, at the time, every fan expected Shamrock to be the main villain of the arc, but that wasn’t the case. Shamrock was in Elbaf with the goal of eventually bringing it under the control of the World Government and he most definitely did take steps towards accomplishing just that. He offered Loki a position among the Holy Knights, and at the same time, dealt a lethal blow to him when it was clear that Loki was not going to take up on the offer.

He then switched the plan to kidnapping children from Elbaf and taking them back to the Holy Land of Marijoa. However, when he summoned the Holy Knights to accomplish this, immediately after, it became clear that Shamrock himself was to head back to Marijoa. This order came directly from above, meaning it was given either by Garling Figarland, or by Imu directly. Shamrock’s presence is requested to deal with the threat that the Holy Knights face, that is, the Revolutionary Army, and potentially even the Blackbeard Pirates. With that, it’s clear that Shamrock Figarland isn’t Elbaf’s main antagonist.

Fans do know that there are three Holy Knights in the country, those being Gunko, Saint Shepherd Sommers, and Saint Rimoshifu Killingham. While it goes without saying that they’re mighty fighters, possibly even as strong as the Admirals, or stronger, they don’t carry the same threat as Shamrock and they won’t suffice as the main antagonist of Elbaf either. It is even harder to see them as the main antagonists when taking into consideration the fact that Shamrock, their captain and the strongest, was right there, and now, he simply isn’t. The threat of the Holy Knights is most definitely real, but it doesn’t feel as if they pose the biggest of dangers to the country.

Why Loki Is A Future Ally

Loki Has Likely Been Framed For Harald’s Murder

If there is one thing that the fans know, it is the fact that Loki is also a strong contender for many to be the main villain of Elbaf. However, this likely isn’t the case either. Loki is strong and would suffice as Elbaf’s ultimate enemy. Even though he possesses powers that only Shanks could stop at one point, and will definitely be a step up from the Holy Knights as the main antagonist of the arc, he, too, isn’t the main villain here and that’s clear to see.

Even though Loki has been built up as the man who will destroy the world, and also as the destroyer of Elbaf, there is a deeper secret about him that fans need to pay attention to.

Loki is kind at heart. He might not show this on the surface, but his conversation with Mosa-kou was a clear indicator of the fact that whole people think Loki is a bad guy, he is actually not evil at all. Furthermore, Luffy, who is a great judge of character, easily trusted Loki and it seems as if Oda wants to build a bond between those two. Based on that alone, the idea of Loki being a villain doesn’t seem right.

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But, if all that isn’t enough to tell one that Loki is not the main antagonist of the Elbaf arc of One Piece, then perhaps they need to consider the fact that the Harley, which was introduced rather recently in One Piece, shows Ancient Giants fighting alongside Nika. If this is a glimpse of the future, then Loki is destined to be Luffy’s ally. Even if this is a glimpse of the past, fans know that Ancient Giants resembling Loki have to join forces with Nika soon enough, and that’s precisely why Loki cannot be the villain of Elbaf.

Who Will Elbaf’s Main Villain Be?

Perhaps, Elbaf’s Villain Is Not Here Yet

There are two ways in which Oda can go about the main antagonist of Elbaf. But, before tackling those, fans should already keep in mind that the Holy Knights on their own most certainly aren’t the main Elbaf villains. With that said, Oda can handle this in two ways. The first way is rather simple, and it is to have Luffy fight against Loki in a fight where Loki eventually realizes that Luffy is the Sun God and chooses to follow him. This would, in a way, pit Loki against Luffy for now, but later on, it would make him his ally, potentially at the end of the arc. The Holy Knights, meanwhile, will likely be tackled by the other members of the crew, or Giants.

The other way Oda can deal with the issue is by introducing a powerful foe for Luffy to take down, such as an even stronger Holy Knight akin to Shamrock, or perhaps another foe of a similar level that fans don’t know of yet.

In either case, Elbaf is only just getting started and fans know that there is a lot of excitement still to come in this arc. Be it through Loki, Shamrock, or a new character entirely, Luffy will have an interesting wall to scale here.

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 1141, is set to be March 2, 2025.

One Piece

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

• 

  Mayumi Tanaka

  Monkey D. Luffy (voice)

• 

  Kazuya Nakai

  Roronoa Zoro (voice)