Summary
Eiichiro Oda’sOne Pieceis not only a world-renowned and extremely influential manga about pirates,but it is also infamous for being incredibly longsince it has been in serialization for over twenty-seven years. This is quite an ambitious story, and the same can be said about its many story arcs.
After all, arcs inOne Pieceare often comprised of numerous characters, locations, and events all unfolding at the same time, so it’s only inevitable that they would end up taking a huge number of chapters to write, with the final count sometimes even exceeding the 100s. There’s no doubt thatOne Piecehas some of the most extensive story arcs in the medium, and these are some of the most impressive examples of their huge lengths.
Updated August 01, 2025 by Julián Fernández Loyarte:As the One Piece manga continues its serialization, some of its most recent story arcs have managed to surpass previous ones in length. When the original version of this list was written, the Egghead Arc wasn’t completed, but now that this part of the story is over, this article has been updated with its new proper placement. Two more entries for arcs that were missing from the original article were added: the Marineford Arc and the Water 7 Arc.
12Marineford Arc
31 Chapters
TheMarineford Arcis one of the most important story arcs in the entireOne Piecemanga, as it’s the conglomeration of every single plot point that was previously established, not to mention that it’s entirely set in a huge war where most of this world’s important figures are fighting against each other. When taking all of this into consideration, it makes a lot of sense as to why it’s so extensive.
However, most fans may be shocked to realize that the Marineford Arc is not as long as they thought, and with 31 chapters in total, it just barely made it onto the list. This surprising length is due to two reasons. Most of the arc is made up of action scenes (which usually take a few pages in the medium of manga) and it works as a follow-up to the Impel Down that came before it.
11Punk Hazard Arc
46 Chapters
Most fans believe thatOne Piecearcs began to extend their length a lot more after the time skip, and thePunk Hazard Arcis one such case, seeing as this is one of the very first story arcs that is set after said crucial moment.
However, its length of 46 chapters is entirely justified by the fact that this is the beginning of the already extensive Dressrosa Saga, sothe Punk Hazard Arc is where most of its key players and prominent themes are introduced: Caesar Clown, SMILE Fruits, Trafalgar Law’s alliance with Luffy, the plan to take on the Emperors of the Sea and more.
10Thriller Bark Arc
48 Chapters
While most arcs usually are just a small part of a bigger Saga, theThriller Bark Arcis notorious for being relatively self-contained. In 48 chapters, Eiichiro Oda manages to tell the story of the Straw Hat Pirates’ encounter with the Warlord of the Sea, Gecko Moria, and his eccentric crew.
Inspired by classic horror movies, this arc features dark moments, creepy locations,and fascinating creatures like zombies and ghosts. Not to mention that, since Gecko Moria steals the shadows of many relevant characters to make his army of zombies grow, the ensuing battles against him end up being surprisingly long, especially after the inclusion of the powerful ancient giant known as Oars.
9Fish-Man Island Arc
51 Chapters
After a brief reunion on the Saobody Archipelago, theFish-Man Island Arcis the very first big arc that takes place after the time skip, and the stakes in it are quite high. Not only have the Straw Hat Pirates been wanting to visit this location for many chapters, but they also arrive just in time to deal with the appearance of Hody Jones and his New Fish-Man Pirates.
Fish-Men and Merfolk have been a huge part ofOne Piece’s lore way before this arc, but Eiichiro Oda saw it as an opportunity to further expand on these races and the horrible discrimination that they face on the surface. That’s exactly why he took his time to write about the backstories of Queen Otohime, Fisher Tiger, and Jinbe, who would later join Monkey D. Luffy’s crew.
8Water 7 Arc
53 Chapters
Sometimes it’s easy to forget that the legendary Enies Lobby Arc wouldn’t be as exciting as it is if it wasn’t for theWater 7 Arcthat came before it. Even if its main purpose was to set the stage for the story arc that followed it, it still had to juggle multiple plot threads at the same time, which not only managed to pull off seamlessly but also explains its surprising length.
In the Water 7 Arc, the titular location (with its respective geography and history) is introduced, Franky and his family get involved with the Straw Hat Pirates, Nico Robin leaves the crew, Usopp gets into a fight with Luffy and CP9 tries to assassinate Iceburg. That’s quite a lot of stuff to get through in just 53 chapters.
7Enies Lobby Arc
56 Chapters
TheEnies Lobby Arcis arguably one of the most important and popular inOne Piecesince it made a huge impact on the world of the series and the fate of its protagonists. It would be much longer if it wasn’t for the fact that it’s meant to conclude the various plot threads that were already set up by the arc that preceded it, the Water 7 Arc.
In 56 chapters, the Enies Lobby Arc makes readers get attached to Franky, fully develops Nico Robin’s character, cements her as a member of the Straw Hat Pirates, and establishes CP9 and the World Government as their new enemies, all while presenting multiple fights that are some of the most creative and memorable in the entire series. And it all concludes with the tragic death of the Going Merry.
6Arabasta Arc
63 Chapters
TheArabasta Arc isthe very first big arc inOne Piecesince it was written as the exciting conclusion of the entire Arabasta Saga that began the moment the Straw Hat Pirates entered the Grand Line.The conflict between Luffy’s crew and Sir Crocodile’s Baroque Works is an intense one, as the fate of an entire country depends on it.
Because of these high and complex stakes, it only makes sense that the Arabasta Arc would end up taking so many chapters, especially when considering the fact that every single member of the Straw Hat Pirates got involved in their fight against a specific Baroque Works agent. Luffy even fights Crocodile on three separate occasions, which makes his eventual victory over the Warlord of the Sea all the more satisfying.
5Skypiea Arc
66 Chapters
TheSkypiea Arcis quite special because it feels very different from the usual One Pieceadventure, and it’s barely related to piracy at all. As a result of these crucial differences, it is logical that this arc would end up being so extensive, as it establishes the existence of the various Sky Islands and slowly develops their culture and politics.
On top of that, Enel is a very powerful villain at that point of the series, which results in a huge battle against him and his four priests that takes up plenty of chapters. Lastly,the flashback of Mont Blanc Noland and Kalgara’s tale is not only emotional, but it’s also essential to understanding the major themes of this arc. The Skypeia Arc is anything from filler, and those who have read it in its entirety certainly appreciate its good qualities.
68 Chapters
After the extremely long Wano Country Arc,One Piecefans were hoping that the following arc was going to be a short breather, similar to the Zou Arc that was set after Dressrosa. However, the recently concludedEgghead Arcdefied all expectations and didn’t let readers rest for one second, since it’s filled to the brim with crucial events and huge plot points. Who would have guessed it would end up becoming one of the longest arcs in the entire manga?
The Egghead Arc began with the anticipated introduction of Doctor Vegapunk and his six satellites, but, unbeknownst to most readers at the time, Eiichiro Oda saw this character as the perfect excuse to tell the story of Bartholomew Kuma and Jewelry Bonney, which is as sad as it is extensive. To top it all off, this was also the first time that the Five Elder Stars appeared outside of Mary Geoise and showed off their dangerous transformations. At the end of the day, the Egghead Arc had an enormous impact on the overall plot ofOne Pieceand readers are surely going to feel its repercussions until the end of the series.
3Whole Cake Island Arc
78 Chapters
If there’s something in which Eiichiro Oda excels, it’s seamlessly mixing many different characters, plot points, and themes into one big arc without it feeling overwhelming or confusing. And theWhole Cake Island Arcis an excellent example of this useful writing talent.
The first real appearance of Big Mom and her crew, the plan to steal her Road Poneglyph, the introduction of Germa 66, Sanji’s second backstory, and the mission to rescue him all take place within this one arc, and everything ends up working surprisingly well. To top it all off, the Whole Cake Island Arc also features the climactic clash between Luffy and Charlotte Katakuri, which is also really long, but it’s so engaging and amazing that its length doesn’t really matter.
