It’s no longer a question of if, but rather a question of when…

I think this struggle Sanji is going through is directly linked to what he said towards the end of Wano. There’s been a silent tug of war between being a ruthless warrior of science who would kill for the sake of the mission, and the prince charming we know and love.
I think there’s a lot Oda set up for the Straw Hats in Wano and we’ll be seeing this resolve. Sanji’s unshakable moral code has hindered missions time and time again, where he could normally get around it by depending on his Nakama like Robin and Nami.

Now Sanji has been told he has the potential of a King, but is being held back. I could imagine his mind is thinking that his moral code is in the way once again, and giving into his germa genes is an option that he has but would never go to. But there’s no one here with him right now to help take on Zaza. Sanji’s got the pressure of Elbaf and potentially the world on his back. Zoro is trusting him to get the job done. Will we see Sanji revisit this dilemna. And what would this mean for his haki?

The description of Cyclopes: The Cyclopes were gigantic, one-eyed beings with enormous strength. Originally, there were three of them: Arges, Steropes, and Brontes; capable blacksmiths, these were the sons of Uranus and Gaea and the brothers of the Hecatoncheires and the Titans. They were imprisoned by Cronus but released by his son Zeus, for whom they forged his famous thunderbolt as a sign of gratitude. However, at a later time, poets spoke of a different type of Cyclopes, a race of dim-witted and violent one-eyed shepherds dwelling in the caves of the island of Sicily.
Source: https://www.greekmythology.com/Myths/Creatures/Cyclopes/cyclopes.html

Who could they be in One Piece?

My money is on the Galley-la giants for a few reasons. Firstly they were respected craftsmen, who may have ties to the creation of Ragnir.

Second they are also imprisoned current day, no idea by who though. Tying similarity to Greek mythology, the Galley-la giants will likely be freed by someone who bares similarities to Zeus in One Piece.

And lastly The Cyclopes were essential for overthrowing the Titans, to quote:

“In time, however, the Cyclopes and the Hecatoncheires were released from Tartarus by the only one of Cronus’ children not to be eaten by him at birth: Zeus. Zeus did this at the advice of Gaea, who had informed him that he wouldn’t be able to depose Cronus without their help. True to Gaea’s words, the Cyclopes played a crucial part during the Titanomachy.

Namely, not only did they side with Zeus in his war against the Titans, but they also forged Zeus’ mighty thunderbolt, along with a trident for Poseidon and a helmet of invisibility for Hades. With the help of these weapons, Zeus and his party emerged triumphant from the Titanomachy, banishing the Titans to Tartarus once and for all.”
Source: https://www.greekmythology.com/Myths/Creatures/Cyclopes/cyclopes.html

Everyday i put more stocks in Usopp getting Ragnir

Loki being able to hold out against Imu for this long has really surprised me. Yet Imu seemed healthy in this chapter. It gives me hope that Luffy might put on a show against Imu. But i’m worried that the table will turn hard against Luffy and Loki. What do you think?

One time, fair enough. But twice, in one arc?? The fact that in both cases, Imu was possessing them, and both have shown the ability to resist Imu’s Domi reversie, gives me the impression there is something more going on.
If i had to guess, if someone is under Imu’s influence and they resist hard enough they can avoid doing damage to those they love. Similar to Law’s devil fruit ability

After taking an Omen powered kick by Imu, I think the chances of us seeing the true Black Leg Sanji could never be more likely.

The question is why would he tap into a power so dark? And I think the answer lies in his Germa genes. We might see a Sanji so desperate to save someone or complete a mission, that he surrenders his will to his genes.

I think this opens up a chance to see the conversation between Zoro and Sanji in Wano pay off. Maybe Zoro will actually try to kill Black Leg Sanji?

After taking an Omen powered kick by Imu, I think the chances of us seeing the true Black Leg Sanji could never be more likely.

The question is why would he tap into a power so dark? And I think the answer lies in his Germa genes. We might see a Sanji so desperate to save someone or complete a mission, that he surrenders his will to his genes.

I think this opens up a chance to see the conversation between Zoro and Sanji in Wano pay off. Maybe Zoro will actually try to kill Black Leg Sanji?

Introduction

It’s clear from Imu’s behaviour that Vivi is special to Imu. He is fine showing aggression, and a desire to erase these remnants from the past such as Luffy, Blackbeard and more recently Loki. But when it comes to Vivi, Imu’s language is different. And this likely stems from his complicated relationship with Alabasta’s previous ruler, Queen Nefatari D Lily. And as he confirms his suspicions about her actions in the past, he makes his move on Vivi. I question why not send an order to eliminate her? Why would Imu declare he desires Vivi? Does he desire vengence, answers or even closure? Regardless of the reason, it’s hard to imagine what value Vivi, who is unaware of her Kingdom’s past and has no confirmed special powers, would be able to provide Imu, the ruler of the world.

Imu definitely knows something about Vivi that we don’t. The question is what? And how does that align with Imu’s goals?

Essentially, I believe there could be two reasons why Imu desires Vivi, for now i’ll focus on one of them.

Reasoning - Vivi the Vessel

Recently it’s been confirmed that Imu’s real body can’t handle being in the outside world. He’s mainly appeared and interacted with the world by possessing someone else. We might see Imu possess more people, but so far we’ve only seen him take over Saturn and Gunko. The Goresei are special in their own right, Yokai transformations, unaging and undying bodies. It makes sense Imu could fully manifest through them. However, Gunko is the only Holy knight we have seen do this.

Now if we also consider the fact Gunko having an unaging body, and her appearances being in the flower room with Imu, it’s safe to say Imu and Gunko have a relationship unique to other God’s Knights and even the Goresei. And what could this relationship be? I believe it’s similar to Orochimaru in Naruto. Where Gunko is Kimimaru, and Vivi is Sasuke. To explain, I believe one of Imu’s goals is to freely descend to the lower world, and needs a vessel to do that. Gunko might have been a potential vessel which is why we see her in the flower room so much. But for whatever reason she had potential, but wasn’t good enough for some reason, like Kimimaru.

This brings us to Vivi, she has blue hair just like Gunko, but I don’t think this is enough to justify why Vivi could be seen as a Vessel. I want to speculate that Imu needs a stable vessel who is both Celestial Dragon and a D. I believe this was hinted at by Garling who had kids with a potential D or Davy clan member at God Valley. And now we’re in a flashback with Queen Candelle who is speculated to be a Celestial Dragon, and King Ruben a Davy clan member.

So I think Shamrock and Gunko were attempts to provide suitable vessels to Imu. Both not successful. I think the irony could be that being a D clan member goes beyond just blood, it’s something that can be inherited. We know Queen Lily was on the side of the 20 kings who later became Celestial Dragons, and yet she sighed herself off as a D. Beyond the complicated relationship I think this is a key point to consider for why Imu might desire Vivi. She does have a unique lineage and this could be displayed through her unique blue hair.

Conclussion

Once Imu learned that Lily was a D, he decided he desires Vivi. This could imply Lily being a D in the past was terrible for Imu, but now Vivi is a D now and there is something to be gained. And it’s tied to his biggest weakness we know so far. An inability to stay outside of the Holy Land. Vivi could be the solution to breaking this curse set on Imu.

My second reason is more tied to how they both see the world, but this could be tied to manipulating Vivi to giving up her body and soul. But i won’t delve too much into that right now.

I would love to hear your thoughts, why does Imu desire Vivi?

With how Oda’s set up Imu and this upcoming war, I do believe Imu will succeed in subjugating the Giants.
The Giants will be a mercenary group under the WG that can rival even the Navy.
Elbaf would also be their place of deployment, and might even end up looking like hell. Ragnarok also comes to mind when i think about the end of Elbaf.

I don’t have enough to make a theory about this but would love to know how you think Elbaf will end?

Overview

Many have already begun to suspect Queen Candelle to be a Holy Knight. I subscribe to this as I believe Oda was very intentional in her design. And that goes as far as body language. Comparing her introduction and the one of Garling before God Valley, the similarities are uncanny.
From the gloves on the sword, the detached smile and stance. There’s this sort of elegance to her that rings alarm bells.

Now when we consider the fact that Brook has knowledge of the Holy Knights in present day we have to consider how? Was it his time as a pirate? Well I believe the reason he knows about them is through his time spent at the Kingdom of Esperia. And I believe it is the Holy Knights, in particular Queen Candelle who orchestrated the death of King Reuven.

Reasoning

I’ve included pictures of some key interactions between current Brook and Gunko from my perspective, but i believe it paints a picture that Princess Shuri murdered her Father the King. However, Brook fails to mention the fate of Queen Candelle. Why is that when he seemed to hold her to such high regard before? When he is crashing out to Gunko regarding the death of King Reuven, why not mention the Queen in the same breath. What was her fate?

It’s fair to assume to Brook’s knowledge, Gunko isn’t responsible for the Queen’s fate. For someone as strong as her it’s hard to imagine many other things that could kill her. Based on Brook and his motivations I believe he thinks she’s dead, not killed by Gunko directly but doesn’t return from the Holy Land implying the WG are behind it. So how does this all go down? Well I’ll first ask Why does this all go down?

Motivations

I believe just like Queen Candelle, King Reuven also has his dark secrets. His design choice also being intentional by Oda. Long story short, based on his rough appearance, long nose, at a minimum he could have ties to the underworld, but to stretch this further he could be from the Davy clan or have ties to them. We already know the Davy clan operate in the underworld too.
So what if Queen Candelle being a Celestial dragon and Holy Knight went to the lower world to gather information, like Garling? And like Garling she discovered a lead to the Davy clan through King Reuven. And once she discovered something key, this triggered the downfall of Esperia, Gunko being brought to the holy land and King Reuven killed at her mind-controlled hands.

Side note: Do the holy knights have a mission to breed with the D clan, or Davy clan? Mostly headcanon but I suspect Shank’s Mum could have been a Davy or D clan member. If this is the case but with King Reuven, it would explain what makes Gunko, Shanks and Shamrock so special.

Conclusion/Predictions

Overall, due to Queen Candelle’s design, strength and the involvement of the Holy Land, I believe she is a Holy Knight. This is just a theory compiled from a lot of the discussion i’ve seen around this latest chapter. So would love to get your thoughts. And finally to ask, does the Kingdom of Esperia become the grounds for a Hunting tournament?