One Piece's creator teases Laugh Tale will appear in 2026

Eiichiro Oda's message at Jump Festa teases the Straw Hats' next destination is Laugh Tale

One Piece was the last franchise to get on stage during Jump Festa 2026, as usual. The annual event, sponsored by Shueisha, is the biggest celebration of anime and manga in Japan, and it's also where the hottest news about the upcoming year is shared, usually. One Piece gets the biggest spotlight every year, and while Jump Festa 2026 was lacking big announcements for the franchise, it was revealed that the next story arc could show the final destination in this long journey: Laugh Tale, the island where the One Piece waits.

The Jump Festa lineup was packed, and it included a spectacular trailer for JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Steel Ball Run, and the announcement of a special anime episode for My Hero Academia, which will adapt the extra final chapter published in the last volume of the manga. One Piece opened with a retrospective on Tony Tony Chopper, the Straw Hats' lovely doctor, which spotlighted his best moments from the manga, before the anime voice actors took turns in a mock competition to see who would voice Chopper in the live action. Obviously, Ikue Otani, who voices Chopper in the anime, won, and it was confirmed she will also give her voice to the character in the Japanese dub for Netflix's show. Then, a teaser for the new season of the anime, the Elbaph Arc, was shown, revealing it will begin on April 5, 2026.

Every year, fans keep their eyes on the announcement shared during the event by One Piece's creator Eiichiro Oda. While his words are always a bit cryptic, this is a great teaser of what's to come next year for the best-selling manga. This year, Oda's message was as follows (translated by @sandmap_AP on X):

"One Piece anime film is not progressing smoothly. After Elbaf arc, we will go to that island: the one you could only reach by becoming Pirate King.

The man marked by flames will also appear. Characters who never met before will finally encounter each other; those two, and also those two. One Piece will move forward at high speed next year. As I’ve gotten older, I’ll continue writing while also taking care to maintain my health and life."

The most interesting part of the message is surely the mention of the island that can be reached only by becoming Pirate King. Oda could be referring to Laugh Tale, the legendary resting place of the One Piece treasure, which can only be found by gathering the four Road Poneglyphs. The last people to set foot on that island were Gol D. Roger and his crew, so that means that fans could finally get their first glimpse at the One Piece, or at least at its location, in 2026.

2026 will be a big year for the One Piece franchise. The anime will switch to a seasonal production model, focusing on guaranteeing the highest quality possible to fans, even if it means that only 26 episodes will come out. An anime remake, produced by Studio WIT, is also in production, but there is no news about its release. Season 2 of the live-action show will premiere in March, and a third season has already been confirmed. The manga also keeps marching toward its epic conclusion, but that's still a few years away, luckily.