One Piece: The God Valley flashback will restart soon

With the release of the latest One Piece spoilers for the upcoming chapter 1148, fans finally saw Scopper Gaban enter the fray in Elbaph. More specifically, he immediately begins attacking Saint Shepherd Sommers, the apparent ringleader of the Holy Knights’ mission. While Gaban does lasting damage to Sommers here, fans are also excited for another reason.

After Gaban attacks Sommers, the latter comments on how it’s “been a long time,” which fans are taking to mean the two know each other. While this is unconfirmed due to it being based on an unofficial translation, it’s certainly possible given their apparent ages. The fact that Gaban is an ex-Roger Pirate further supports the idea that the two are familiar with each other.

One Piece fans likewise already have ideas on how they could be acquainted, with a particularly popular explanation being the God Valley Incident. In the Egghead Arc, it was confirmed that the Holy Knights were present for the event, in addition to the already confirmed Roger Pirates. It’s thus entirely likely that the two clashed there and are familiar with each other as a result.

However, many are taking this hypothetical connection a step further. The God Valley Incident is considered one of the most significant yet mysterious events within the series’ worldbuilding and lore. With this in mind, fans are asserting that the pair’s rematch may lead to not only additional information on the event, but a full-on flashback to it.

Gaban vs. Sommers could be One Piece’s next slow but steady step in revealing the God Valley Incident

One of the biggest pieces of evidence supporting this idea is how One Piece mangaka Eiichiro Oda has approached the flashback so far. Prior to the Egghead Arc, fans had only gotten bits and pieces of information which didn’t add any real context. A flashback detailing Bartholomew Kuma’s life starting with his role in the God Valley Incident marked the first true look fans got at it.

However, since Kuma left the island midway through the overall incident, fans didn’t get a look at any major battles that were a part of it. With the Elbaph Arc coming directly after the Egghead Arc, it would make sense for Oda to also continue the God Valley flashback in the Elbaph Arc. The fact that Gaban and Sommers likely know each other from God Valley further supports this.

Further supporting this idea is the fact that Gaban knew specifically how to deal lasting damage to Sommers. Combined with Sommers’ dialogue, this suggests that the two know each other from a previous fight they’ve had. At the very least, it confirms that Gaban has clashed with the Holy Knights before, with the God Valley Incident being the most likely stage.

A final piece of evidence to support this idea is exactly how Kuma’s flashback of the God Valley Incident ended. One Piece’s Egghead Arc saw the final scenes of his flashback tease the next focus to be on the clash between the Marines, Rocks Pirates, and Roger Pirates. Given that the Holy Knights were also confirmed to be present, it’s likely they were involved in this next stage.

Final thoughts

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While the above is speculative, there is strong literary and in-world evidence to suggest that a new God Valley Incident flashback is coming. While it’s difficult to say exactly when it will start, the beginning of Gaban and Sommers’ fight suggests it isn’t too far away. Fans can expect to know more with the official release of chapter 1148 on Monday, May 12, 2025 in Japan.

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