One Piece's previous chapter was quite intense and gave the fans a glimpse of the ongoing events on Onigashima. Although most fights have been dealt with already, the alliance still needs to wait for Luffy to finish his fight against Kaido before they can plan the escape from the island. Raizo and Izo's fights against Fukurokuju and Maha respectively concluded as well and, once again, those on Kaido's side suffered a major blow. One Piece 1042 will be crucial for the progress of the story and expectations from Luffy's fight against Kaido are very high.

Furthermore, Orochi is nearing the end of his reign as well as Komurasaki ensured that he is weakened severely after hitting him with a sea prism stone nail. Most importantly, CP0's mission to kill Luffy in order to prevent the worst-case scenario might be tackled in One Piece chapter 1042 and there's every reason to be excited about it.

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What To Expect From One Piece 1042?

One Piece Chapter 1042

As with the last chapter, One Piece 1042 will likely give the fans a look at several events unfolding at once. The most important issue at hand is the CP0's mission to eliminate Luffy. Although the leader of the group rightfully looked worried about having to intercept the fight between two Yonko level characters, given that this is an order from the Gorosei, he will have to carry them out. Interestingly, X Drake was nearby when he received the call meaning he could very well help Luffy and deal with the leading member of CP0. However, Drake is already quite injured so he'll likely have some trouble dealing with the CP0 leader.

It goes without saying that One Piece 1042 will focus on Luffy's fight against Kaido as well. In the previous chapter, Luffy underwent his Gear Fourth: Snakeman transformation in order to land some powerful blows on Kaido and once again reclaim the upper hand in the battle. Kaido, being a Yonko, will certainly not be so easy to best so fans should expect the fight to continue in the upcoming chapter of the story. Interestingly enough, Luffy mentioned that this was his last usage of Gear Fourth, meaning if Luffy loses to Kaido temporarily, Gear Fifth could be next. Chapter 1042 of the story will certainly feature an incredible fight between Luffy and Kaido.

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This, however, is likely not going to be the end of the fight. The actual fight between Luffy and Kaido has just begun and, since Luffy is the main character, this fight will likely span across a few chapters, as is expected of his fights. There is a decent chance that Luffy runs out of Gear Fourth in the next chapter or gets overwhelmed by the Yonko because traditionally, Luffy's gears during the big fights are either new or have much more tension built up before he enters the final form.

One Piece Chapter 1042: Time For Gear Fifth?

Luffy Gear Fifth One Piece

It is safe to say that Luffy's Gear Fourth isn't going to be enough to take down Kaido. Luffy almost always uses new powers when he jumps into a big battle and fans already saw that happen against Doflamingo, followed by Cracker and Katakuri. Kaido, being the strongest of them all, should be able to push him to a point where he is forced to rely on Gear Fifth. For Gear Fifth to make an appearance, however, Gear Fourth will need to run out, meaning Luffy's clash against Kaido is going to become much more difficult than anything he's ever faced before.

Luffy might be potentially beaten to a point where he's out of Gear Fourth, and this would open up the room for his awakening. Previously, the Gorosei mentioned they wanted to hide the true name of something unknown from the annals of history. Given the orders that they gave to the CP0 recently, it can be assumed that the object they're afraid of is the Gomu Gomu no Mi or, to be more precise, the awakening of the Gomu Gomu no Mi.

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The CP0 might intercept Luffy's fight against Kaido, however, they will only end up pushing him that much closer to awakening. In the next few chapters, fans will probably see Luffy enter a new form and take a final stance against Kaido in a life-or-death battle. For now, fans should look forward to Luffy's Gear Fourth display against Kaido, which will likely be a big chunk of One Piece 1042.

When Will One Piece 1042 Release?

One Piece 1042 Release Date

One Piece just returned from its break week with chapter 1041 which means that fans will be able to enjoy the next chapter of the story without any interruptions from either Oda or the magazine. One Piece is set to return with the upcoming issue of Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump magazine. As such, One Piece 1042 will release on March 6, 2022. Fans can read the new chapters on Sunday via the Shonen Jump and the MangaPlus apps for free.

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