One Piece's Elbaf arc may use Yggdrasil as a Norse mythology base, and it could lead to Akainu debuting Logia Awakenings

One of the biggest reasons why One Piece’s Elbaf arc has been so highly anticipated by fans stems from its expected use of Norse mythology as a major influence. Chapter 1127, released earlier this weekend, took a step in the direction of confirming these suspicions via the introduction of the Yggdrasil tree on Elbaf. Yggdrasil’s inclusion is especially relevant since it serves as a link to the “nine realms” of Norse mythology.

These nine realms also contain their own figures, stories, and legends within Norse mythos, which One Piece fans are excitedly speculating could soon come to the Elbaf arc. In fact, there’s even a chance this is finally how Logia Awakenings debut in the series, with none other than Admiral Akainu himself being the first Awakened Logia user seen.

One Piece’s Elbaf arc will see Akainu become a major antagonist and reveal Logia Awakenings in the process

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As mentioned above, Yggdrasil links the nine realms in Norse mythology, and is said to represent the backbone of the cosmos. One Piece could be referencing these nine realism via the suns symbol seen throughout the series, which is made up of nine total circles. The series may already be having some of its central Straw Hat Pirates be visiting the realm of Asgard in the form of Luffy and co’s current adventures.

Icelandic historian and poet Snorri Sturluson once wrote that Valhalla, Odin’s residence in Asgard, is the biggest palace in the realm which lets him look over all of Asgard. This could be referenced via the Bigstein Castle, which seems to be high up in the sky and very grand relative to other buildings seen in chapter 1127. Coincidentally, there’s also a cat in the Bigstein Castle, wearing a crown similar to what Loki is sometimes depicted wearing.

Loki is also said to own a cat himself in multiple mythological sources. It’s thus possible that Norse mythology and the realm of Asgard is being further referenced in One Piece via the reveal of Loki being somehow involved in current happenings. The series has also already introduced an Elbafian character named Loki in the form of Elbaf’s apparent prince, seemingly setting up exploration of Norse mythology via these characters.

One Piece's Elbaf arc is all but guaranteed to work in significant amounts of Norse mythology (Image via Toei Animation)

The series could further introduce additional characters inspired by the Aesir and Vanir, different groups of Norse gods, who are associated with Yggdrasil. The term “Yggdrasil” even references Odin via the word Ygg, which is an alternate name for Odin. It thus seems likely that the Norse god will be introduced soon, and may have even been the silhouetted character seen in chapter 1124’s final panel.

There are also other possible influences or connections to both Norse mythology and Elbaf’s Yggdrasil in the series. On the former, one of the realms of Yggdrasil is called Jotunheim, with its people the Jötunn, also called the Frost Giants. The Yeti Cool Brothers may be one further reference to Norse mythology, and could also suggest that more characters of their species will be introduced in the Elbaf arc.

There are also other lands in One Piece which could be connected to Elbaf via Yggdrasil, such as the Torino Kingdom which has a massive tree that could just be a Yggdrasil root. There’s also the fiery land of Muspelheim in Norse mythology, which could be the homeland of the Oni and Ancient Giants within the series’ world. In turn, this could be why Yggdrasil is so vital to the survival of Elbaf; it truly does link Elbaf to eight other realms or islands which are significant to their culture.

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It’s also worth mentioning that the destruction of Yggdrasil is associated with a battle which is essentially that which marks the world’s end in Norse mythology. One mythological figure associated with this battle is Surtr, a Flame Giant who leads his fellow people into battle against the gods during Ragnarök. Mangaka Eiichiro Oda could be building into this reference via the appearance of former Admiral Akainu/current Fleet Admiral Sakazuki in the Elbaf arc.

Representing Surtr, Akainu could enter Elbaf and begin Ragnarök. Setup for this exists in a cover story, which sees Akainu taking a pair of scissors to an ancient bonsai tree. Akainu is also joined by Kizaru here, who has been seen felling trees in-series before. Specifically, there’s one tree labeled 27 in this scene, with Yggdrasil not-so-coincidentally being introduced in chapter 1127.

As for why Akainu would show up in Elbaf, it may be in retaliation for the Giant Warrior Pirates’ rescue of Luffy and his allies during the Egghead arc’s events. The Egghead arc also saw Saturn comment on how he’ll have to erase them from history if they stand with Luffy. Likewise, destroying Yggdrasil would seemingly be a quick and easy way to do so considering how integral it seems to be to Elbaf’s survival as a country.

Akainu could play a major, antagonistic role in One Piece's Elbaf arc (Image via Toei Animation)

However, Yggdrasil is a massive tree, and while Akainu’s flame powers in One Piece are impressive, it’s unclear if he’d be able to take it down. This could be where a Logia Awakening is introduced, possibly leading to a further Surtr reference by giving Akainu a flame giant-like appearance in his Awakened form. Thus, he’ll use this newfound power to set Yggdrasil ablaze, starting the battle of Ragnarök and further mirror the mythological Surtr’s journey and role.

It’s also likely that this will lead to other Norse mythology references, such as the Bifrost rainbow bridge. While it connects Asgard to the realm of humans in Norse mythology, its role here may be to give the Giants somewhere to flee as the Straw Hats battle in the Elbaf arc’s rendition of Ragnarök. This could even lead to more connections to Yggdrasil’s nine realms, further cementing Yggdrasil’s significance in the Elbaf arc’s events.

Final thoughts

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While Akainu certainly has the motivation to go to Elbaf and fight the Giants, it’s the potential connection to Surtr if he does so which suggests his Logia Awakening will come. Likewise, given the evidence above, this seems like one of the most likely plot developments to expect from One Piece's Elbaf arc as of this article’s writing.