a piece Nerona Emu and Monkey d. Luffy went on a two-week long break on July 12, 2026, following the release of Chapter 1188, which featured a battle between the two. This two week long break is now finally over, a piece Heading towards the release of chapter 1189, which will be officially published on July 26, 2026 in Weekly Shonen Jump issue #35. The previous chapter showed Monkey D. at Nerona Emu's hand. Luffy's necklace was shown.
The focus will now likely shift to Luffy's Wings, which are going to do everything they can to weaken Luffy's enemy and give him a chance to return to battle. At the same time, One Piece Chapter 1189 is also likely to focus on Princess Shuri and Brooke, as well as Nerona Emu's direct relationship with her.
One Piece Chapter 1189 is likely to focus on Zoro and Sanji
a piece Chapter 1189 is likely to shift the focus away from Luffy's defeat against Nerona Emu and focus on Zoro and Sanji, and there's one main reason for that. To understand that Eiichiro Oda is now focusing on the battles between Zoro and Sanji, we only need to go back to One Piece chapter 1171, where Oda showed the events after the death of King Harald. Harald received the Covenant of the Depths from Nerona Emu, as did both Killingham and Somers. When Harald died, Nerona shuddered at the thought that the emu Elbaf had a being strong enough to kill a giant with the power to destroy an entire world. An important aspect was highlighted by the King of the World at that time, when he said that every holy knight's death comes at a great cost to him.
Emu: Those monstrous traits made Harald a true monster? Yet he was fired? What is hidden in Elbaf?
Five Elders: We will inspect the Abyss Pentagram carved by Harald in Elbaf.
Emu: That's not necessary. This will result in the death of another knight. Each contract comes at a high price to pay for Mu.
– Exchange between Emu and Gorosei confirming Emu's weakness after Harald's death, One Piece Chapter #1171
This means that with the death of each of these individuals, Nerona Emu takes a hit in terms of overall strength and suffers greatly. As such, Luffy can very well be saved on Elbaf by defeating Zoro and Sanji, his wings, Sommers and Killingham, or simply killing them. To that end, One Piece Chapter 1189 is likely to shed a lot of light on the Pirate King's wings as this is the only way for Luffy to get some relief in his battle against Nerona Emu. Zoro and Sanji will finally begin their battle against Sommers and Killingham in full, and hope to gain full control over the Haki of their victor in this battle. Zoro must fully learn how to control this power, and Sanji must bring it to the surface and then master it in a similar battle, which will be quite a challenge for the Wings.
for that, a piece Chapter 1189 will finally build towards these two men mastering these abilities and then pushing their enemies on the back foot. It's only a matter of time before both Zoro and Sanji fully master their Conqueror's Haki and destroy these two Holy Knights for good. This then, in turn, significantly weakens Nerona Emu and allows Luffy to catch his breath for a moment and go into battle once again.
Sanji: What about me? Do I have a winner?
Embezzlement: You too have the qualities to become a winner. But for some reason, I sense a dangerous self-deprecation in you. If you really want Luffy to be the pirate king, then you must become a “king” yourself.
– Gaban Confirms Sanji's Latent Conqueror's Haki, One Piece Chapter #1187
Why can Luffy fight against Nerona Emu?
a piece Chapter 1189 may mainly focus on Zoro and Sanji, but Monkey D. Luffy needs to catch a break as well. Luffy may be able to free himself from Nerona Imu's Blade of Nothingness: Vohu and recalibrate. If there's one thing we do know, it's that Luffy's Gear 5 officially failed against Imu, and he's in no condition to continue fighting. To that end, helping Luffy might interfere with this already ongoing battle against Imu on Elbaf.
The Straw Hats do what they can to save Luffy and make sure he fights Nerona Imu. a piece Chapter 1189 could see someone like Loki return to battle, at least momentarily, to free Luffy from the Blade of Nothingness: Wohu. We can also see Luffy trying to aid and distract Imu until Luffy recovers, but it's also possible that the biggest distraction comes from Scopper Gaban, who is on the sidelines but the strongest of the bunch.
One Piece Chapter 1189 may focus on the Imu and Gunko Plotline
Towards the end of a piece Chapter 1188, we saw Princess Shuri finally freed from Ragnir's ice. Brooke finally had a conversation with him. Emu's attention was immediately drawn to him, and by putting two and two together, he realized that Brook was the same man he had seen years ago in Asperia. Thus, since Luffy is now defeated, One Piece Chapter 1189 could show Nerona Emu speeding to where Gunko is. This will allow Luffy to recover and, at the same time, set up a confrontation between Nerona Emu and the other Straw Hats who are currently on Gunko's side.
“The guy with the afro who calls Gunko “Princess Shuri”? Could this be it?” — Imu discovers Brooke and Shuri's connection, One Piece Chapter #1187
It will also set up Gunko's psychological confrontation with Emu on one side and Brooke on the other. It is here that Gunko can potentially fight his influence against Nerona Emu and alongside the Straw Hat Pirates. Needless to say, if this happens, it will surely be an exciting moment for all of us to witness.
One Piece Chapter 1189 is mostly going to be a setup chapter for exciting Holy Knight battles, Monkey D. Luffy's rescue, and Princess Shuri's return to good side. It will still be brimming with excitement, and we can't wait to see it all brought to life. After the break, Eiichiro Oda might be full of energy to deliver a few more chapters before going on break. Until the break from the jump, fans should expect more one-piece chapters from the author, which means exciting developments are definitely going to be next.
All new chapters of One Piece by Eiichiro Oda are available to read through Manga Plus and Viz Media.
