🔗 Share this article

The saying 'History is recorded by the winners' serves as a central motif that One Piece author Eiichiro Oda has for some time woven into the narrative. Legends often do not capture the complete truth, even for the most influential characters in this story's intricate past. Kozuki Oden was no foolish showman prancing through the roads of Wano; he acted out of duty and principle. Bartholomew Kuma was not a merciless villain who separated the Straw Hats, either; he was doing them a favor. Likewise, Davy Jones meant beyond just a pirate's game in pursuit of emblems and crews.

In chapter #1164 of the manga, we see the culmination of this idea. The entire God Valley narrative serves as a warning story, advising audiences not to judge the individuals too quickly.

Legends often do not capture the complete truth, including the most influential figures.

One Piece's latest flashback, detailing the Divine Isle incident, stands as one of the series' finest storylines to now. Beyond the thrill of seeing legends in their peak, it's compelling to see them prior to when they turned into icons — when their reputation had still not outgrow their human nature. The past, as recorded by the Global Authority and retold through hearsay tales, painted our perception of figures like Gol D. Roger, Xebec, and including Monkey D. Garp. But both the government's records and the narratives of those who knew them prove unreliable, revealing only pieces of who these individuals really were.

The Man Prior to the Myth

Gol D. Roger may have been driven by purpose and the daring spirit that ignited a fresh era 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 individuals speak of his legend, they usually refer to his second voyage, the epic expedition in search of the guide stones that point toward Laugh Tale. Yet little is understood about his first journey, the one that molded him prior to fame found him.

At that time, Roger knew little of the globe's secret history. His affection for the barkeep guided him to God Valley, where he discovered the World Government's darkest realities: the genocidal "contests," the grotesque forms of the Gorosei, and even the presence of the world's unseen sovereign, Imu. We are yet to witness Roger's reflections about all that's happening in God Valley, but perhaps finding the child of a Holy Knight on his vessel will make him realize his role in the world and seek the reality he glimpsed from Rocks D. Xebec's situation.

The Truth About The Infamous Captain

Prior to this flashback, what we knew of Xebec came almost entirely from Sengoku's version, each to the viewers and to new Marines. He depicted Rocks D. Xebec as a despicable, power-hungry man determined to achieve global control, someone so threatening that Roger and 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 World Government's sanctioned version of occurrences, the exact narrative Imu authorized to bury the truth about Rocks D. Xebec and the incident itself.

In reality, The captain, whose real name was Davy D. Xebec, was a ethical man who aimed to overthrow the ruler and dismantle the decadent World Government. We are unsure if he was guided by lust for power, retribution for his clan, or a desire for fairness, but when he discovered the regime's plan to annihilate the island where his family lived, he gave up his dreams of domination to rescue them.

This devotion for his relatives proved to be his undoing. Upon confronting the sovereign, he lost his will and freedom, becoming a marionette enslaved to their authority. Now, with what limited awareness is left, he begs with Gol D. Roger and Monkey D. Garp to kill him — thinking that dying would be a mercy compared to the living hell he endures. The reality of Rocks is thus far from the tale narrated by the former Fleet Admiral, and the manga presents him in a favorable manner during the God Valley incidents.

Is He Still Alive Today?

But did Rocks actually die? An interesting theory is that he is still a slave to Imu in the current timeline, acting as the scarred individual, keeping the World Government's last Poneglyph in constant transit to keep the One Piece from being discovered.

Garp's Secret Defiance

A further key figure of the Divine Isle event is Garp, who has endured criticism from followers for years for doing nothing as Akainu murdered Ace. That sentiment became even stronger after the time jump, when he endangered all to save Koby at Hachinosu, causing many to wonder why he couldn't do the identical for his biological grandson. Comparable doubts have recently reemerged with the Divine Isle recollection: how could Garp work for the Navy, aware the Global Authority considers mass murder and enslavement as sport for the upper class?

The reality reveals something distinct. The moment Monkey D. Garp saw the Elders' grotesque forms, he struck immediately. His alliance with Roger was not meant to defeat some villainous Rocks D. Xebec, but a courageous act of defiance, an attempt to halt the sovereign, who was manipulating Rocks D. Xebec as a tool to wipe out all in the Divine Isle, even apparently, including the Celestial Dragons themselves. This incident is probably the reason Monkey D. Garp despises the Celestial Dragons in the current era and why he not once wanted to be promoted to Admiral, reporting straight to them.

History's Unreliable Storytellers

Although the readers are viewing the God Valley incident through a flashback narrated by the giant, including perspectives and occurrences he clearly was absent for, I think we can treat this account as completely accurate. The series may provide an reason later, perhaps connected to Loki's still mysterious paramecia ability. Nevertheless, the Divine Isle event perfectly embodies the notion that history is written by the winners. This attitude is {