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The adage 'The past is recorded by the victors' serves as a central motif that One Piece author Eiichiro Oda has for some time woven into the story. Popular tales often do not convey the full reality, even for the most powerful characters in this world's complex past. Kozuki Oden was no foolish showman prancing through the roads of Wano; he acted out of honor and conviction. Kuma was not a merciless antagonist who tore apart the Straw Hats, as well; he was doing them a favor. Similarly, Davy Jones meant more than a pirate's game in pursuit of emblems and crews.

In installment #1164 of One Piece, we witness the culmination of this idea. The entire God Valley story serves as a cautionary tale, instructing audiences not to judge the characters too quickly.

Legends often fail to convey the complete truth, including the most powerful figures.

One Piece's most recent look back, detailing the God Valley event, represents one of the series' finest arcs to date. Apart from the thrill of witnessing icons in their peak, it's compelling to see them prior to when they became icons — when their reputation had yet to surpass their human nature. History, as written by the Global Authority and retold through hearsay stories, shaped our understanding of figures like Gol D. Roger, Xebec, and including Garp. But each of the regime's accounts and the narratives of those who were acquainted with them prove untrustworthy, showing only fragments of who these individuals really were.

The Man Prior to the Myth

The future Pirate King may have been guided by purpose and the daring spirit that ignited a fresh era of buccaneering, but prior to he became the Pirate King, he was a young man governed by emotion and wanderlust. When individuals speak of his legend, they typically mean his second voyage, the epic quest in pursuit of the guide stones that lead to the final island. However little is known about his first journey, the one that shaped him before fame found him.

At that time, Roger knew little of the world's hidden history. His love for the barkeep guided him to the Divine Isle, where he uncovered the World Government's most sinister realities: the extermination "games," the grotesque forms of the Five Elders, and including the presence of the planet's hidden sovereign, the mysterious leader. We haven't seen Roger's reflections about all that's occurring in God Valley, but perhaps finding the son of a Holy Knight on his vessel will lead him to understand his place in the world and pursue the truth he caught a glimpse of from Rocks D. Xebec's situation.

The Truth About Rocks D. Xebec

Prior to this flashback, what we were aware of of Xebec came almost entirely from Sengoku's version, both to the viewers and to new Navy recruits. He painted Rocks D. Xebec as a despicable, power-hungry man bent on global control, someone so dangerous that Roger and Garp had to join forces to overcome him. But as it turns out, Sengoku wasn't even there at the Divine Isle; he was only repeating the Global Authority's approved narrative of occurrences, the very narrative the sovereign approved to conceal the reality about Xebec and the incident itself.

In reality, Rocks D. Xebec, whose true name was Davy D. Xebec, was a ethical man who aimed to topple Imu and dismantle the corrupt Global Authority. We don't know if he was guided by lust for power, revenge for his clan, or a wish for justice, but when he discovered the government's scheme to annihilate the land where his kin resided, he gave up his dreams of conquest to save them.

This love for his relatives proved to be his undoing. Upon facing the sovereign, he lost his will and liberty, becoming a marionette controlled to their power. Now, with what limited consciousness remains, he pleads with Roger and Garp to kill him — thinking that death would be a mercy compared to the living hell he suffers. The truth of Rocks D. Xebec is thus very different from the tale told by the former Fleet Admiral, and the manga shows him in a positive manner during the Divine Isle incidents.

Could He Be Still Alive Today?

But was Rocks really die? An interesting theory is that he is even now a servant to Imu in the present day, acting as The Man Marked By Flames, keeping the World Government's last Poneglyph in continuous movement to keep the ultimate treasure from being found.

The Hero's Secret Rebellion

A further key figure of the God Valley incident is Monkey D. Garp, who has faced backlash from followers for a long time for standing by as Akainu killed Ace. That feeling only grew more intense after the timeskip, when he endangered all to save the young Marine at Pirate Island, causing many to question why he couldn't do the identical for his own grandchild. Similar questions have recently reemerged with the Divine Isle recollection: how can Garp serve the Marines, knowing the World Government treats mass murder and enslavement as entertainment for the upper class?

The reality reveals something different. The instant Monkey D. Garp witnessed the Gorosei's grotesque shapes, he attacked immediately. His partnership with Roger was not meant to defeat some villainous Xebec, but a courageous act of defiance, an attempt to halt Imu, who was using Rocks D. Xebec as a pawn to eliminate everyone in the Divine Isle, even it seems, even the Celestial Dragons themselves. This incident is likely the reason Monkey D. Garp despises the World Nobles in the present day and why he never desired to be promoted to Fleet Admiral, answering straight to them.

The Past's Unreliable Storytellers

Although the readers are viewing the Divine Isle event through a recollection recounted by Loki, including viewpoints and events he obviously was absent for, I think we can treat this version as completely truthful. The series may offer an reason in the future, perhaps linked to the giant's still mysterious paramecia ability. Still, the Divine Isle event excellently exemplifies the notion that history is recorded by the winners. This mindset is {