Possible we'll get the 8 years between Loki killing Harald 14 years ago and Shanks imprisoning him 6 years ago.
Need time for Loki to bond with Ragnir/explore the New World, since he's never left Elbaph, as far as we know.
This is another reason I'm leaning towards Nidhogg over Fenrir; Loki is going to leave Elbaph after this, and it's not like the Giants are going to sail him around after they think he's murdered Harald.
Loki being able to fly with Flame Clouds explains a lot about why the WG/Shanks took forever to handle him.
Loki meeting Linlin and fighting Shanks are very important events, if they're skipped here, we'll see them eventually.
Depends on if the narrator hijacks the flashback again, or not.
I could see Oda revealing Loki's Devil Fruit form in front of Shanks for maximum hype.