On November 1, 2026, One Piece released Chapter 1197 in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump Issue 49. This entire chapter was focused on the cook of the Straw Hat Pirates, Sanji, and his duel against Saint Killingham of the Holy Knights. For the vast majority of the Elbaf arc, Eiichiro Oda has been focusing on the power of Conqueror’s Haki and has highlighted time and again how important it is, especially heading into the last stretch of the story. Now, after years of waiting, the cook of the Straw Hat Pirates and the left arm of the future Pirate King, Sanji, has finally awakened his own Conqueror’s Haki and, on top of that, learned to coat his entire body in it.
Alongside that, Sanji has also awakened a completely new level of flames and gained advanced Armament Haki in the process, making him one of the most dangerous fighters on the high seas right now. As things stand, Sanji is more than capable of rivaling the Yonko of the One Piece world, just like Zoro and Luffy.
One Piece Chapter 1197 Gives Sanji Advanced Armament And Conqueror’s Haki
One Piece chapter 1197 was absolutely phenomenal for the character of Black Leg Sanji, as it finally gave him a plethora of new power-ups. After going through emotional turmoil caused by the Ryu Ryu no Mi, Model: Kirin ability of Saint Killingham, Sanji was made to face his own fears and overcome them. Immediately after overcoming his fears and accepting himself for what he truly is, Sanji realized the true worth of his body. Due to being suicidal, Sanji was unknowingly suppressing his own true potential, and after removing all the mental limiters, he was able to push himself to a completely new level and unlock his latent potential.
“I won’t take a single hit from you any longer. I don’t care if you’re a Celestial Dragon or whatever. You’re standing there talking down to me in front of the people who took us in. You’re getting on my nerves. Your head is too high. I said, bow down, horse-man!” — Sanji accepts his true self, One Piece Chapter #1196
In One Piece chapter 1197, Eiichiro Oda gave Sanji two new upgrades, both pertaining to Haki. The first came as Sanji’s Armament Haki was refined to a completely new degree. This shouldn’t come as a surprise because Oda has previously confirmed to us that Haki is a power that blooms in the midst of battle. While fighting against Killingham, Sanji’s Armament Haki improved drastically, and as confirmed by the cook of the Straw Hats, this power of his rose to a level where it was simply absurd. Sanji also received a significant speed boost in this battle, as was clearly seen when he evaded light-speed attacks and blitzed Killingham on multiple occasions. That said, it was clearly stated in the chapter that Armament Haki alone was not enough. By the end of the chapter, Sanji figured out how to push his overall capabilities to the absolute maximum level and become an unbreakable shield.
“Armament Haki alone isn’t enough! I’ll make these legs of mine tougher than anything else!” — Sanji improves his Armament Haki potency, One Piece Chapter #1197
It was at this point that Sanji finally infused the Color of the Supreme King into his attacks, and his overall power reached a point where even taking a hit felt like he was the one doing damage. Now Sanji has officially ascended to the position of the Shield of the Pirate King.
Sanji: I did it!
Ivankov: Love is Defense!!
Sanji: I don’t even feel a hint of pain! This is like Armament Haki taken to the extreme. Even when I take a hit, it feels like I’m the one landing it!
— Sanji infused Conqueror’s Haki, One Piece Chapter #1197
Sanji Officially Wields The Toughest Defense In The One Piece World
Conqueror’s Haki, also known as the Color of the Supreme King, is a very unique ability and is found only within a handful of individuals with the disposition of a King. In One Piece chapter 597, which was officially released on August 30, 2010, in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump issue 39, Silvers Rayleigh states quite clearly that Conqueror’s Haki is a power that one must be born with. It cannot be trained, and as such, cannot be made stronger directly. The only way to make Conqueror’s Haki stronger is for the user themselves to grow stronger. In other words, Sanji was a born king, and now he’s fully manifesting his own potential.
“Though you can control the Color of the Supreme King, you can’t train it to be stronger directly. It is the embodiment of the spirit of the user. The only way to make it stronger is for the user to grow stronger.” — Silvers Rayleigh explains Supreme King Haki, One Piece Chapter #597
At the same time, in One Piece chapter 1010, which was officially released on April 12, 2021, in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump Issue 19, Kaido stated that only a handful of the strongest can wield this ability. Furthermore, Luffy also confirmed to us that one’s own body can be coated with the Color of the Supreme King, which improves both offensive and defensive capabilities. Usually, we only tend to focus on the offensive capabilities of the Color of the Supreme King, but there are quite a few users who are masters of the defensive side of this power. Sanji is the pinnacle of that.
By using the Color of the Supreme King on his own body, Sanji has become what could be stated to be the toughest being alive. This is because Sanji already has an incredibly refined Armament Haki, and on top of that, a Germa exoskeleton that can shatter even light. Added to that is his extremely refined Color of the Supreme King, and he becomes the toughest on the seas, worthy of being the Shield of the Sun God. Sanji’s defenses are by far the greatest in the entire series, and as he stated himself in One Piece chapter 1197 on November 1, 2026, even taking a hit feels like he’s the one doing damage.
Why Sanji Is Yonko Level After Elbaf
As things stand, Sanji has everything in his arsenal to be at the same level as the likes of the Yonko of the One Piece world. It is important to note that within the Yonko, there are multiple power levels. For instance, Kaido and Big Mom are not the strongest of the Emperors, while Shanks and Blackbeard are on a completely different level, with Luffy somewhere in the middle. Sanji and Zoro are nowhere near the level of Shanks, just like Luffy. But, they are most certainly more than capable of fighting against the likes of Big Mom and Kaido.
In the case of Sanji, it is quite clear to see how he has achieved this level. For starters, Sanji has incredibly refined Armament Haki, which he took to the maximum level in the battle against Saint Killingham, unlocking its advanced applications. Similarly, he has a Germa exoskeleton, the powers of which were such that he was able to blow away a Commander of an Emperor in a single kick. Sanji also has an advanced recovery rate and superhuman speed to the point where he can even evade light-speed attacks effortlessly and move at blinding speeds.
Finally, added to all that is his refined Color of the Supreme King, which allows him to shatter even Omen-based Armor, as seen in One Piece chapter 1197. All things considered, Sanji is more than capable of fighting Yonko-level enemies and, with great struggle, triumphing against them in battle. Moving forward, we are set to see more Sanji battles in One Piece against high-level opponents, and we absolutely cannot wait to see what Oda delivers.
All chapters of One Piece by creator Eiichiro Oda are available for fans to read via Manga Plus and Viz Media.