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The adage 'The past is written by the winners' serves as a key theme that Eiichiro Oda's epic author Eiichiro Oda has for some time woven into the narrative. Legends frequently fail to capture the full truth, even for the most powerful characters in this world's complex history. Oden wasn't a silly showman dancing through the streets of Wano Country; he behaved out of honor and conviction. Bartholomew Kuma wasn't a merciless antagonist who separated the Straw Hats, either; he was doing them a favor. Likewise, the Davy Jones legend signified more than a buccaneer's contest in pursuit of flags and crews.

In chapter #1164 of One Piece, we witness the culmination of this idea. The entire Divine Isle narrative acts as a cautionary tale, advising readers not to judge the individuals too hastily.

Legends frequently fail to convey the complete truth, even for the most powerful characters.

The series's latest flashback, chronicling the God Valley event, represents one of the story's finest storylines to date. Apart from the thrill of seeing icons in their peak, it's gripping to observe them before they turned into icons — when their fame had yet to outgrow their human nature. The past, as written by the Global Authority and recounted through hearsay stories, painted our perception of individuals like Gol D. Roger, Xebec, and including Monkey D. Garp. But each of the regime's accounts and the stories of those who were acquainted with them turn out to be unreliable, showing only pieces of who these individuals truly were.

The Individual Before the Myth

Gol D. Roger may have been driven by mission and the daring spirit that ignited a fresh era of buccaneering, but before he became the Pirate King, he was a young man ruled by passion and the desire to explore. When people discuss his myth, they typically refer to his later journey, the grand expedition in search of the guide stones that lead to the final island. However not much is understood about his first journey, the one that shaped him prior to fame found him.

At that time, Gol D. Roger was largely unaware of the globe's hidden history. His affection for the barkeep guided him to the Divine Isle, where he discovered the Global Authority's darkest truths: the genocidal "games," the grotesque appearances of the Five Elders, and including the presence of the world's unseen ruler, the mysterious leader. We haven't seen Gol D. Roger's thoughts about all that's happening in God Valley, but maybe discovering the child of a God's Knight on his vessel will lead him to understand his place in the globe and seek the reality he glimpsed from Rocks D. Xebec's situation.

The Truth About The Infamous Captain

Prior to this recollection, what we were aware of of Rocks D. Xebec was derived mostly from Sengoku's version, each to the audience and to young Marines. He painted Rocks D. Xebec as a despicable, ambitious man determined to achieve global control, someone so threatening that Roger and Monkey D. Garp had to join forces to overcome him. But as it transpires, the strategist wasn't even there at the Divine Isle; he was only echoing the Global Authority's sanctioned version of occurrences, the exact narrative the sovereign authorized to bury the truth about Rocks D. Xebec and the event itself.

In truth, The captain, whose real name was Davy D. Xebec, was a ethical man who sought to overthrow Imu and dismantle the corrupt World Government. We are unsure if he was guided by lust for power, revenge for his clan, or a wish for justice, but when he discovered the regime's scheme to eliminate the land where his kin lived, he abandoned his dreams of conquest to save them.

This love for his relatives proved to be his undoing. After facing the sovereign, he forfeited his will and freedom, becoming a puppet enslaved to their authority. Now, with what limited consciousness remains, he begs with Roger and Monkey D. 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 story narrated by the former Fleet Admiral, and the comic shows him in a favorable manner during the Divine Isle incidents.

Could He Be Still Alive Today?

But was Rocks really die? An interesting idea is that he is still a slave to the ruler in the current timeline, serving as The Man Marked By Flames, maintaining the Global Authority's last Poneglyph in constant transit to keep the One Piece from being found.

The Hero's Hidden Rebellion

Another key figure of the God Valley incident is Garp, who has endured backlash from fans for years for doing nothing as Akainu killed Portgas D. Ace. That sentiment only grew more intense after the timeskip, when he risked all to save the young Marine at Hachinosu, leading many to question why he was unable to do the same for his own grandson. Similar questions have recently resurfaced with the God Valley recollection: how could Monkey D. Garp serve the Marines, knowing the World Government considers mass murder and slavery as entertainment for the elite?

The reality uncovers something different. The moment Garp witnessed the Elders' grotesque shapes, he attacked immediately. His partnership with Roger was not meant to vanquish some evil Xebec, but a bold act of rebellion, an effort to halt Imu, who was using Xebec as a pawn to wipe out all in the Divine Isle, even it seems, even the World Nobles themselves. This event is likely the cause Garp detests the Celestial Dragons in the current era and why he never desired to be promoted to Fleet Admiral, reporting directly to them.

History's Untrustworthy Narrators

Although the readers are seeing the God Valley event through a recollection narrated by the giant, including perspectives and events he obviously was absent for, I think we can consider this account as completely truthful. The manga may provide an reason later, maybe linked to Loki's still mysterious Devil Fruit. Still, the Divine Isle event excellently exemplifies the idea that history is written by the winners. This attitude is {