i think the straw hat travels are set for the next couple of islands. The islands are the ones the worst gen trio were arguing about.
Thankfully Oda is giving us world changing events during the arc so we don’t need the SHs to leave elbaf in order to action somewhere else
Yeah this looks just more linear and more likely.
I was recently coping and fanficcing on the idea how a new arc out of nowhere could be established without breaking oda's agenda of possibly revealing and marketing the SHP's Elbaf designs.
So the steps would be something like that:
-Egghead ends and Luffy asks Dorry and Brogy to make a detour to Sphinx.
-Dragon and co infiltrate Impel Down and cause the next breakout.
-1 week passes: Luffy falls sick and slowly turns more and more into a resin shrivled grandpa due to an illness caused by the Nika powers, they arrive on Sphinx and meet with Marco. Same time the Revs and new Impeldown escapees reach old Marineford, Red Port and FMI, causing havoc while entering the New World.
-The Sphinx gang is waiting for the arrival of the remaining whitebeard pirates and Weevil.
-Luffy visits aces and whitebears grave, pays tribute but then falls into a coma. Vivi and big news arrive at Sphinx.
-Elbaf decides to establish a new decree where no humans are allowed to enter the lands of Elbaf due to current global circumstances. We learn that Elbafians have a close relationship with Vira due to the residing 3-eyes clan that rules and rebells in Vira. (Vira is in a 2 state conflict like Israel and Palestine)
-Vira is the closest island to Elbaf and also the closest island to the calm belt (west blue side). Its the new world's best shipwright island.
-Elbaf invites Nikaluffy formally to their island but only him, no crew mates.
-1 week passes on sphinx: we learn that more islands vanished across the globe. Weevil and wbps arrive at sphinx and Robin assumes that Sphinx is the next cleansing target because the world government tracks weevils and the others movements. Robin and Vivi command everyone to evacuate immedtialey.
-The SHPs entrust Luffy to dorry and brogy and co and they go to Elbaf as they believe that Luffys condition can be fixed in Elbaf.
-In order to find the man marked by flames the strawhats and whitebeard pirates + Lillith and Weevil and Morgans are escaping from sphinx to move to Vira. Buggy and co arrive on vira. We learn Shanks wason Vira but left it.
-Sphinx Island gets Lulusiad and we see Garling saying that it is time to claim Vira for the Figarlands, as they think it was their righteous home island before moving to Mary Geoise.
-The God's Knights are making their move.
-The man marked by flames gets shown lurking the seas of Vira.
-Blackbeard is setting sail for Vira to awaken Pudding's power.
-We learn that whoever it may be, Vira since a millenia has a strict policy to opperate against pirates. Vira gets revealed as strongest nation of humans.
-Pirates from the west blue obtained technology to cross the calm belt.
-Dragon heads for Vira.
-Katakuri heads for Vira with a ship and crew.
Chapter end.
Idk I imagine some crazy shit like that nowadays.
A mini marineford in Vira and an arc to bring all pirates in the world into position while Luffy is on Elbaf, waiting for his nakamas to enter.
Maybe an arc for Vivi to have her face the cruelty of world politics and war.