The long-awaited conclusion to a legendary shonen manga is finally in sight, but how many new directions will the story take before coming to an end?
The Final Saga of One Piece is, without a doubt, one of the most anticipated finales in the history of shonen manga. Considering how the series has been in serialization for nearly three decades, there is no shortage of pressure on Eiichiro Oda’s shoulders to get things right, and conclude the story in a manner worthy of the work he has put into it over the years.
Although the story is now said to be in its last act, there is still a ways to go before the world bids adieu to the Straw Hat Pirates and their adventures, with many unresolved plot points that need to be tied up. Whereas the Egghead Arc, which opens the Final Saga, is now nearing its conclusion, the road ahead still remains a bit unclear in terms of how many more years are left till the manga ends. Based on all these factors, how many more arcs are left in the Final Saga of One Piece?
The Remaining Mysteries Of One Piece
First and foremost, the most prominent lingering question is about the nature of the One Piece treasure itself. Other equally important mysteries are related to the Void Century, the Ancient Weapons, the Poneglyphs, the Great Kingdom, and Joy Boy. It is widely known that all these threads are intricately connected by the events of the great war that led to the formation of the World Government, and the only real way to solve this puzzle is to either find the actual One Piece treasure on Laugh Tale, or decipher the Rio Poneglyph. Whether these two methods are mutually exclusive or not is up for debate.
Other questions tied to these mysteries revolve around the Five Elders and Imu, with regard to their longevity and potential immortality, as well as their abilities, which resemble Devil Fruits and Haki, but could be something more sinister. Next come the mysteries surrounding Blackbeard’s heritage and ability to wield multiple Devil Fruits, along with the secrets of the Rocks Pirates and their involvement in the fabled God Valley Incident. Lastly, there are also many queries about the origins and true nature of Devil Fruits, along with the Will of the D., which could prove crucial in the long run.
What Has The Egghead Arc Set Up So Far?
Now that the Egghead Arc is counting down to a moment where Vegapunk is set to reveal the truth of the One Piece world, it may be safe to assume that a lot of this will be completely or partially addressed by the end of this story arc. These revelations may also bring up new questions about what may transpire in the upcoming Elbaf Arc, as well as in the story arcs to come. All this hinges on whether Vegapunk’s message will be broadcast to the world in its entirety — an outcome that the Five Elders are desperately trying to prevent.
If they do succeed in halting the transmission either completely or partially, there will be far more unanswered questions as the story shifts into the Elbaf Arc. However, if the entire message goes out to the world, there will be a significant shift in the global balance of power on the seas, if the truth about the Void Century or the World Government’s origins comes out. One other query is centered on the story of Joy Boy and Sun God Nika, who was revealed to be a legendary figure in the warrior nation of Elbaf.
To Elbaf And Beyond
To begin with, there are a lot of significant reunions awaiting in Elbaf — from Nico Robin and Jaguar D. Saul meeting again, to Luffy finally coming face-to-face with Shanks after becoming an Emperor of the Sea. In addition, there is also a strong likelihood of more secrets from the Void Century coming to light through the texts that were salvaged from the Library of Ohara by Vegapunk and the giants of Elbaf. Hence, even if Vegapunk’s message does not reveal everything, there may be more lore drops lying in wait on Elbaf.
After this, it is anyone’s guess whether the crew will travel directly to Laugh Tale, or if there are a few more destinations they must journey to before finally claiming the One Piece. On the way, there will certainly be a few more battles that need to happen, beginning with Blackbeard’s foreshadowed fight against Shanks, Luffy confronting Ace’s killer Akainu, along with the climactic showdown against the Five Elders and Imu. There is also a strong chance that Blackbeard may be Luffy’s final opponent, and this could end up being the most dramatic battle of them all. Naturally, all this would take at least two or three more arcs at the minimum, unless a ferocious battle royale is in the cards.
A War To Change The Entire World
The prospect of a final war eclipsing the events of the Marineford Arc, has been built up for quite some time, especially with the Straw Hats now directly entangled with the Five Elders. Whether this war will be against the World Government itself, or between a host of other factions is still yet to be determined, but there is no doubt now that One Piece will feature a massive battle the likes of which the world has never seen, in its final act.
A conflict of such massive scale would naturally require at least one arc of build up, and another one for the actual events of the war itself, adding more threads that need to be set up and concluded in this Final Saga. By conservative estimates, this may leave the Final Saga with around four or five arcs, with more generous approximations tending towards six or even seven story arcs at the most. The latter estimate may be a bit too much given how story arcs have grown considerably longer throughout the series.
Whereas the pre-time skip sagas generally consisted of three, four, or five arcs on average, the Straw Hats’ journey through the New World has featured fewer but longer story arcs, where major arcs exceed fifty chapters or more in each saga, with a few exceptions. Nevertheless, it is hard to imagine One Piece wrapping up in the next one or two arcs, and since Egghead is nearly done, with Elbaf soon to come, it may stand to reason that at least three or perhaps even four more arcs remain until the Straw Hats reach the end of their journey, and the dawn of the world emerges.
