Gojo’s voice is heading to the Grand Line.
Yuichi Nakamura, the voice behind Satoru Gojo in Jujutsu Kaisen, has officially joined One Piece as Loki — the giant prince at the center of the long-awaited Elbaph Arc. The announcement landed during the One Piece special stage at AnimeJapan 2026, alongside the arc’s two new theme songs and a fresh trailer. For fans who grew up with Gojo’s iconic voice carrying some of anime’s most intense scenes, hearing Nakamura step into One Piece as a character described as the most feared warrior in the Land of Giants felt like the internet was designed specifically to react to this moment — and it did.
Why the Gojo Voice Actor Casting Is More Than a Coincidence
Yuichi Nakamura was not picked randomly. Loki in One Piece is a giant prince — a figure of overwhelming, almost untouchable power who exists above the battlefield in ways ordinary fighters cannot comprehend. That description will sound immediately familiar to anyone who followed Gojo through Jujutsu Kaisen.
Nakamura has built his entire career around voicing characters who carry an impossible weight quietly — from Gojo to Reinhard van Astrea in Re:ZERO, his voice communicates authority and controlled danger better than almost anyone working in anime today.
The casting adds a layer to Elbaph before a single episode airs. When Loki finally speaks on screen, a significant portion of the audience will arrive with years of emotional memory attached to that voice — and Toei Animation almost certainly knew exactly what they were doing.
New Theme Songs, Robin’s Makeover and What the Trailer Is Telling You
The opening theme for the Elbaph Arc is “Luminous” by Aina The End — the show’s 29th opening overall, replacing “Carmine” by ELLEGARDEN.
What most articles do not mention is that Aina The End is a former member of BiSH, the punk idol group that performed a legendary final concert in 2023 before disbanding. She has been building a solo career since, and “Luminous” performed live at AnimeJapan 2026 in front of a packed crowd is a significant moment for her fans as much as for One Piece fans. The ending theme
“Sono Mirai” by rock band 36km/h closes the arc with a title that translates directly to “That Future” — a deliberate choice for an arc built entirely around long-delayed reunions.
The trailer itself is doing something specific that deserves attention. Every shot of Elbaph is framed wider and taller than anything in the Egghead arc — the animation is communicating scale before the story does.
CrunchyrollAnd then there is Robin. Her hair is shorter for the first time since the post-timeskip redesign over a decade ago, and the bangs are back. This is not a cosmetic update. Robin is about to reunite with Saul, the giant who saved her life during Ohara’s destruction when she was a child and whom she believed was gone.
She has carried that loss for the entire series. The new hairstyle brings her visually closer to the Robin who first met Saul — as if the show itself is acknowledging she is returning to an unfinished chapter of her life.
A Nami Special Is Also Coming in July
CrunchyrollThe AnimeJapan 2026 stage did not stop at Elbaph. A One Piece Heroines anime special was also confirmed, with a trailer and key visual revealed during the event. The special focuses on Nami and adapts the novel episode centered on the Straw Hats’ beloved navigator — one of the most enduring and emotionally rich characters in the entire franchise.
The premise is deliberately intimate. After buying a pair of shoes that hurt her feet, Nami returns to the shop and meets Lebno, who offers her a brand new pair — but only if she agrees to model in his show. It is a side of Nami the main series rarely has space for — confident, fashionable, and entirely in her element away from the battlefield. Robin is also confirmed to appear in original scenes created specifically for the anime. The special premieres July 5, 2026 on Fuji TV, airing in One Piece’s regular time slot.
Five Things to Know Before April 5
- One Piece returns April 5 on Crunchyroll after a three-month hiatus — the break was intentional, built in to give the production team time to adapt Elbaph faithfully
- Starting in 2026, One Piece moves to a maximum of 26 episodes per year across two cours, ending the weekly release format that has run almost without interruption since 1999 — fewer episodes, but each one is expected to be significantly denser
- Elbaph has been mentioned in the One Piece manga since the Little Garden arc over 20 years ago, making this premiere one of the longest-built payoffs in anime history
- Additional new cast members confirmed alongside Nakamura include Ayane Sakura as Gerd and Ryota Takeuchi as Road, with more announcements expected as the arc progresses
- The One Piece live-action Season 2 is currently streaming on Netflix, and Season 3 is already in production — meaning the franchise is running on multiple fronts simultaneously heading into what may be its biggest year yet
