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The adage 'The past is recorded by the victors' is a key motif that Eiichiro Oda's epic creator Eiichiro Oda has for some time woven into the narrative. Popular tales frequently fail to capture the full reality, even for the most powerful characters in this story's complex past. Oden was no silly performer prancing through the roads of Wano Country; he acted out of honor and conviction. Bartholomew Kuma was not a ruthless villain who separated the Straw Hat Pirates, either; he was helping them. Likewise, Davy Jones signified more than a buccaneer's game in pursuit of emblems and crews.

In installment #1164 of One Piece, we see the peak of this idea. The whole God Valley story serves as a cautionary tale, advising audiences not to judge the characters too quickly.

Legends frequently fail to convey the complete truth, including the most influential figures.

One Piece's latest look back, chronicling the Divine Isle event, stands as one of the story's best arcs to now. Beyond the excitement of witnessing icons in their peak, it's compelling to observe them before they turned into symbols — when their reputation had yet to outgrow their humanity. The past, as written by the World Government and retold through hearsay tales, shaped our perception of individuals like Gol D. Roger, Rocks D. Xebec, and even Monkey D. Garp. But both the regime's records and the narratives of those who were acquainted with them prove untrustworthy, showing only fragments of who these men truly were.

The Man Prior to the Legend

The future Pirate King may have been guided by purpose and the bold spirit that ignited a new age of buccaneering, but prior to he became the Pirate King, he was a young man ruled by emotion and wanderlust. When individuals discuss his legend, they typically refer to his later journey, the grand quest in pursuit of the guide stones that lead to Laugh Tale. Yet not much is understood about his first journey, the one that shaped him before glory found him.

Back then, Roger knew little of the globe's secret past. His love for the barkeep guided him to the Divine Isle, where he uncovered the Global Authority's darkest realities: the genocidal "contests," the grotesque forms of the Gorosei, and even the existence of the world's unseen ruler, the mysterious leader. We haven't seen Roger's reflections about all that's occurring in the Divine Isle, but maybe finding the child of a God's Knight on his vessel will make him realize his role in the world and pursue the truth he caught a glimpse of from Xebec's situation.

The Reality About Rocks D. Xebec

Prior to this recollection, what we were aware of of Rocks D. Xebec came almost entirely from Sengoku's account, both to the audience and to new Marines. He depicted Xebec as a vile, ambitious man bent on global control, someone so dangerous that Roger and Garp had to team up to defeat him. But as it turns out, the strategist was not there at God Valley; he was only repeating the Global Authority's sanctioned version of events, the very narrative Imu approved 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 sought to overthrow the ruler and dismantle the corrupt World Government. We are unsure if he was motivated by ambition, revenge for his clan, or a desire for justice, but when he discovered the regime's scheme to eliminate the land where his kin resided, he gave up his ambitions of conquest to save them.

This love for his relatives proved to be his downfall. Upon facing the sovereign, he lost his will and liberty, becoming a puppet enslaved to their power. Now, with what limited awareness remains, he begs with Gol D. Roger and Monkey D. Garp to end his life — believing that dying would be a kindness compared to the living hell he suffers. The truth of Rocks D. Xebec is thus very different from the story narrated by the former Fleet Admiral, and the comic shows him in a positive manner during the Divine Isle events.

Could He Be Still Alive Today?

But did Rocks D. Xebec really die? An interesting theory is that he is still a servant to Imu in the present day, serving as The Man Marked By Flames, maintaining the World Government's only remaining Poneglyph in continuous movement to prevent the ultimate treasure from being found.

Garp's Hidden Rebellion

A further protagonist of the God Valley event is Garp, who has endured backlash from followers for years for standing by as Admiral Akainu murdered Portgas D. Ace. That feeling only grew stronger after the time jump, when he endangered all to rescue Koby at Pirate Island, leading many to wonder why he couldn't do the identical for his own grandson. Similar questions have recently reemerged with the Divine Isle recollection: how can Garp work for the Marines, knowing the World Government considers mass murder and enslavement as sport for the elite?

The reality uncovers something distinct. The moment Garp saw the Gorosei's monstrous shapes, he attacked immediately. His alliance with Roger was not meant to defeat some evil Xebec, but a courageous act of defiance, an attempt to stop Imu, who was manipulating Xebec as a tool to wipe out all in God Valley, even it seems, including the Celestial Dragons themselves. This event is probably the reason Garp despises the World Nobles in the present day and why he not once wanted to be promoted to Admiral, answering straight to them.

History's Unreliable Narrators

Even though the audience are viewing the Divine Isle incident through a flashback recounted by the giant, covering viewpoints and events he obviously wasn't present for, I think we can consider this version as entirely truthful. The manga may provide an reason later, maybe connected to the giant's yet unknown paramecia ability. Still, the God Valley event excellently exemplifies the notion that history is recorded by the winners. This attitude is {