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The adage 'The past is written by the winners' is a central motif that One Piece author Eiichiro Oda has for some time integrated into the story. Popular tales frequently fail to convey the full reality, including the most powerful characters in this story's intricate past. Oden was no silly performer prancing through the roads of Wano Country; he acted out of honor and principle. Kuma was not a ruthless antagonist who tore apart the Straw Hat Pirates, either; he was helping them. Similarly, Davy Jones signified more than a pirate's game in search of flags and crews.

In installment #1164 of One Piece, we witness the culmination of this idea. The entire Divine Isle story acts as a warning story, instructing audiences not to judge the characters too hastily.

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

One Piece's latest flashback, chronicling the God Valley event, represents one of the series' finest arcs to date. Beyond the excitement of seeing legends in their prime, it's compelling to observe them before they became symbols — when their reputation had still not surpass their humanity. History, as recorded by the Global Authority and retold through secondhand tales, painted our perception of individuals like Gol D. Roger, Rocks D. Xebec, and including Garp. But both the regime's accounts and the stories of those who were acquainted with them turn out to be untrustworthy, revealing only pieces of who these individuals really were.

The Man Before the Legend

The future Pirate King may have been guided by purpose and the daring spirit that sparked a new age of buccaneering, but before he was known as the King of the Pirates, he was a youth ruled by emotion and the desire to explore. When people speak of his legend, they usually mean his later journey, the epic expedition in pursuit of the guide stones that lead to the final island. Yet not much is known about his first journey, the one that molded him before fame found him.

At that time, Gol D. Roger knew little of the globe's hidden past. His love for the barkeep led him to God Valley, where he uncovered the Global Authority's most sinister realities: the genocidal "games," the grotesque forms of the Gorosei, and even the presence of the world's hidden sovereign, Imu. We haven't seen Gol D. Roger's reflections about everything happening in the Divine Isle, but maybe discovering the child of a Holy Knight on his vessel will lead him to understand his place in the globe and pursue the reality he glimpsed from Rocks D. Xebec's predicament.

The Reality About The Infamous Captain

Before this flashback, what we were aware of of Xebec was derived mostly from the former Fleet Admiral's account, both to the viewers and to young Marines. He depicted Xebec as a vile, ambitious man bent on global control, someone so threatening that Roger and Garp had to team up to defeat him. But as it transpires, Sengoku was not there at God Valley; he was merely repeating the World Government's sanctioned version of occurrences, the very narrative the sovereign authorized to bury the reality about Xebec and the event itself.

In truth, Rocks D. Xebec, whose true name was Davy D. Xebec, was a principled man who aimed to topple Imu and dismantle the corrupt World Government. We are unsure if he was guided by ambition, retribution for his clan, or a wish for fairness, but when he found out the government's scheme to eliminate the land where his kin lived, he gave up his dreams of conquest to rescue them.

This devotion for his family proved to be his downfall. Upon facing Imu, he forfeited his determination and freedom, becoming a marionette controlled to their power. Currently, with what limited consciousness is left, he begs with Gol D. Roger and Garp to end his life — believing that dying would be a mercy compared to the living hell he suffers. The truth of Rocks D. Xebec is thus very different from the story told by Sengoku, and the manga shows him in a favorable light during the Divine Isle incidents.

Could He Be Living Today?

But did Rocks actually meet his end? An interesting idea is that he is still a slave to the ruler in the current timeline, acting as The Man Marked By Flames, keeping the World Government's last Poneglyph in constant transit to prevent the ultimate treasure from being discovered.

The Hero's Secret Defiance

Another protagonist of the God Valley event is Garp, who has faced criticism from fans for a long time for standing by as Akainu murdered Ace. That feeling became even more intense after the time jump, when he endangered everything to rescue the young Marine at Pirate Island, causing many to wonder why he couldn't do the identical for his own grandson. Similar doubts have now reemerged with the God Valley recollection: how could Monkey D. Garp serve the Marines, knowing the World Government treats genocide and slavery as sport for the upper class?

The reality reveals something distinct. The instant Monkey D. Garp saw the Gorosei's monstrous forms, he struck immediately. His alliance with Roger wasn't to vanquish some villainous Rocks D. Xebec, but a courageous act of defiance, an effort to stop the sovereign, who was using Rocks D. Xebec as a pawn to eliminate everyone in God Valley, including apparently, including the Celestial Dragons themselves. This event is likely the cause Monkey D. Garp despises the World Nobles in the present day and why he not once desired to be promoted to Admiral, answering straight to them.

The Past's Untrustworthy Narrators

Although the audience are viewing the God Valley incident through a flashback recounted by Loki, covering perspectives and events he clearly was absent for, I think we can consider this version as entirely truthful. The manga may offer an reason in the future, perhaps connected to Loki's yet unknown Devil Fruit. Still, the Divine Isle event perfectly exemplifies the idea that the past is written by the victors. This mindset is {