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The adage 'The past is recorded by the victors' is a central theme that One Piece author Eiichiro Oda has for some time woven into the story. Popular tales often fail to convey the complete reality, including the most influential characters in this story's complex past. Oden wasn't a silly performer prancing through the roads of Wano Country; he acted out of duty and principle. Kuma was not a merciless villain who tore apart the Straw Hats, as well; he was helping them. Likewise, the Davy Jones legend meant beyond just a pirate's game in pursuit of emblems and followers.

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

Legends often do not convey the complete reality, even for the most powerful figures.

One Piece's latest look back, chronicling the Divine Isle incident, represents one of the story's finest storylines to now. Beyond the excitement of seeing icons in their prime, it's gripping to see them before they turned into icons — when their fame had still not outgrow their humanity. History, as recorded by the World Government and recounted through secondhand tales, shaped our understanding of figures like Gol D. Roger, Xebec, and even Monkey D. Garp. But each of the government's accounts and the stories of those who knew them prove untrustworthy, showing only pieces of who these men really were.

The Man Before the Legend

Gol D. Roger may have been driven by mission and the daring attitude that ignited a new age of buccaneering, but prior to he was known as the Pirate King, he was a youth governed by passion and the desire to explore. When people discuss his myth, they usually mean his later journey, the grand quest in search of the Road Poneglyphs that lead to the final island. Yet not much is known about his first journey, the one that molded him prior to fame found him.

Back then, Gol D. Roger knew little of the globe's hidden past. His love for the barkeep guided him to God Valley, where he discovered the World Government's most sinister truths: the extermination "games," the monstrous forms of the Five Elders, and even the presence of the planet's unseen ruler, the mysterious leader. We are yet to witness Gol D. Roger's thoughts about everything occurring in the Divine Isle, but perhaps discovering the child of a Holy Knight on his vessel will make him realize his place in the globe and pursue the reality he glimpsed from Rocks D. Xebec's situation.

The Truth About Rocks D. Xebec

Prior to this flashback, what we were aware of of Rocks D. Xebec was derived mostly from Sengoku's account, both to the audience and to young Marines. He depicted Xebec as a vile, ambitious man determined to achieve global control, someone so threatening that Gol D. Roger and Monkey D. Garp had to join forces to defeat him. But as it turns out, Sengoku was not there at God Valley; he was merely echoing the World Government's sanctioned version of occurrences, the exact narrative Imu authorized to bury the truth about Xebec and the incident itself.

In truth, Rocks D. Xebec, whose real name was Davy D. Xebec, was a ethical man who aimed to overthrow the ruler and dismantle the decadent World Government. We don't know if he was motivated by ambition, retribution for his family, or a desire for fairness, but when he discovered the regime's scheme to annihilate the island where his family lived, he abandoned his dreams of conquest to save them.

This love for his family became his undoing. Upon confronting Imu, he lost his will and liberty, becoming a marionette enslaved to their authority. Now, with what little consciousness is left, he begs with Gol D. Roger and Monkey D. Garp to kill him — thinking that dying would be a mercy in contrast to the living hell he suffers. The truth of Rocks is thus very different from the tale told by Sengoku, and the manga presents him in a favorable manner during the Divine Isle incidents.

Could He Be Still Alive Today?

But was Rocks D. Xebec really meet his end? An interesting idea is that he is still a servant to the ruler in the current timeline, serving as The Man Marked By Flames, keeping the Global Authority's only remaining Poneglyph in continuous movement to prevent the ultimate treasure from being found.

Garp's Secret Rebellion

A further protagonist of the Divine Isle event is Monkey D. Garp, who has endured backlash from fans for years for standing by as Admiral Akainu murdered Portgas D. Ace. That sentiment only grew more intense after the timeskip, when he endangered everything to save the young Marine at Hachinosu, causing many to question why he couldn't do the identical for his own grandson. Similar doubts have now resurfaced with the God Valley recollection: how can Monkey D. Garp serve the Marines, aware the Global Authority treats genocide and slavery as entertainment for the upper class?

The reality uncovers something distinct. The instant Garp saw the Elders' grotesque forms, he attacked immediately. His partnership with Roger was not meant to defeat some evil Rocks D. Xebec, but a courageous act of rebellion, an attempt to halt Imu, who was using Xebec as a pawn to wipe out all in God Valley, including apparently, including the Celestial Dragons themselves. This event is likely the cause Garp despises the World Nobles in the present day and why he never desired to be elevated to Admiral, reporting directly to them.

The Past's Unreliable Storytellers

Even though the audience are viewing the Divine Isle incident through a flashback recounted by the giant, covering viewpoints and events he clearly was absent for, I think we can consider this version as entirely accurate. The series may provide an reason in the future, maybe linked to the giant's yet unknown Devil Fruit. Still, the Divine Isle incident perfectly exemplifies the idea that the past is written by the victors. This mindset is {