Elbaf Arc Explains Why Blackbeard Wants Choppers Hito Hito no Mi

One Piece's The Elbaf arc has put a special focus on the Doctor of Straw Hat Pirates, Tonytony Chopper, and his Devil Fruit, Hito Hito no Mi. For years, Chopper's Devil Fruit seemed pretty underwhelming, but the Elbaf arc off One Piece has given it a special ability that can make it one of the most important weapons in the final battle against Imu. Elbaf has also finally answered why Blackbeard visited the Drum Kingdom over two years ago, and why he sought Chopper's Hito Hito no Mi in the first place.

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An overview of Teach's hunt for special Devil Fruit users

Image via Toei Animation.

It's no surprise to know that Blackbeard is on the hunt for different types of Devil Fruits. When Blackbeard joined the Whitebeard Pirates, he did so with the intention of finding Yami Yami no Mi. Once he gained access to this Devil Fruit by killing Thatch, he immediately jumped ship and formed his own crew. Teach then went from place to place with certain special intentions. The first place he visited was the Drum Kingdom, and when he got there, Wapol and his guards immediately left, and Blackbeard destroyed the whole country. This was quite strange, as he does not make decisions without thinking them through. If Blackbeard visited the Drum Kingdom, there was certainly a reason for it, and it meant he was looking for something.

Now it's practically confirmed that he was looking for Hito Hito no Mi. This was also teased by Oda in the Fishman Island arc, where Blackbeard's special hunt for Devil Fruit users was first mentioned. Upon hearing this, Chopper feared that Blackbeard would come after his Devil Fruit, cleverly foreshadowing the reason he visited Drum in the first place.

How Elbaf binds Chopper's Devil Fruit to Blackbeard

Image by GameRant

One Piece's Elbaf arc has done a phenomenal job of putting special emphasis on Chopper's Devil Fruit. In Chapter 1177, Chopper faced a Domi Reversi giant, and with a single punch he was able to turn him back from his demon form to his human form. In other words, Chopper has a power so strong that he can counter the threat of Domi Reversi effortlessly.

This explains why Blackbeard wanted Chopper's Devil Fruit. Knowing that he would have to go up against the power of Imu at some point, Blackbeard likely sought Hito Hito no Mi to counter the power of Domi Reversi effortlessly.

Will Teach get his hands on Hito Hito no Mi?

It's pretty clear that Blackbeard wanted to use the power of the Hito Hito no Mi for himself, but by the time he got to the Drum Kingdom, Chopper had already eaten the Devil Fruit. On top of that, Chopper ended up becoming an important crew member of the Straw Hat Pirates, and this basically means that Teach will never get his hands on this Devil Fruit.

Of course, there may be times where Blackbeard will try to get his hands on Chopper, such as when the Straw Hats and Blackbeard Pirates clash, but it goes without saying that he will not succeed in this. Instead of Hito Hito no Mi, Blackbeard has to settle for another ability to help him counter Domi Reversi, as his main plan has clearly failed.

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Assesses Chopper's important role to come in the final saga

As for Chopper, being able to completely counter Domi Reversi has given him a very important role in the Final Saga. Starting in Elbaf, in the land of the giants, Chopper will be the key in turning all the afflicted giants back into humans with the power of Hito Hito no Mi. Given that this Devil Fruit gives one the ability to regain their humanity, it explains why it counters Domi Reversi perfectly.

Also, when the Great War begins, Imu will likely use demonic powers again, and Chopper will become the cure for those demonic powers, saving countless lives in the process. Not only will this further Chopper's own dream, but it will add a unique new dimension to his Devil Fruit powers that most fans found underwhelming until now.

One Piece Chapter 1178 will be available to read on Manga Plus on March 29, 2026.

One Piece

Release date

October 20, 1999

Network

Fuji TV

Directors

Hiroaki Miyamoto, Konosuke Uda, Junji Shimizu, Satoshi Itō, Munehisa Sakai, Katsumi Tokoro, Yutaka Nakajima, Yoshihiro Ueda, Kenichi Takeshita, Yoko Ikeda, Ryota Nakamura, Hiroyuki Kakudou, Takahiro Imamura, Toshihiro Ma Shihi Endo, Toshihiro Ma Shihi Endo, Kadota, Sumio Watanabe, Harume Kosaka, Yasuhiro Tanabe, Yukihiko Nakao, Keisuke Onishi, Junichi Fujise, Hiroyuki Satou

Author

Jin Tanaka, Akiko Inoue, Junki Takegami, Shinzo Fujita, Shouji Yonemura, Yoshiyuki Suga, Atsuhiro Tomioka, Hirohiko Uesaka, Michiru Shimada, Isao Murayama, Takuya Masumoto, Yoichi Takahashi, Momoka Toyoda

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  Mayumi Tanaka

  Monkey D. Luffy (voice)

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  Kazuya Nakai

  Roronoa Zoro (voice)