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The adage 'History is recorded by the victors' is a central motif that Eiichiro Oda's epic author Eiichiro Oda has long integrated into the story. Legends frequently do not convey the full reality, even for the most influential characters in this story's intricate past. Oden wasn't a foolish showman prancing through the streets of Wano Country; he acted out of duty and conviction. Kuma wasn't a merciless villain who separated the Straw Hat Pirates, either; he was doing them a favor. Likewise, the Davy Jones legend meant more than a pirate's contest in search of flags and crews.

In chapter #1164 of One Piece, we see the culmination of this idea. The whole Divine Isle narrative acts as a cautionary tale, instructing readers not to evaluate the individuals too quickly.

Legends frequently fail to convey the complete reality, even for the most influential characters.

The series's most recent flashback, detailing the God Valley incident, represents one of the series' best arcs to now. Beyond the thrill of witnessing icons in their prime, it's gripping to see them prior to when they became icons — when their fame had yet to outgrow their human nature. The past, as written by the World Government 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 narratives of those who were acquainted with them prove untrustworthy, revealing only fragments of who these individuals truly were.

The Individual Before the Myth

Gol D. Roger may have been guided by mission and the bold attitude that sparked a new age of piracy, but prior to he was known as the King of the Pirates, he was a young man governed by passion and wanderlust. When individuals discuss his myth, they typically mean his later journey, the grand quest in search of the Road Poneglyphs that point toward the final island. However little is understood about his first journey, the one that molded him prior to fame discovered him.

Back then, Roger was largely unaware of the globe's secret history. His affection for the barkeep guided him to the Divine Isle, where he discovered the Global Authority's darkest realities: the genocidal "contests," the grotesque forms of the Gorosei, and including the existence of the world's unseen sovereign, Imu. We are yet to witness Roger's thoughts about everything happening in the Divine Isle, but perhaps finding the child of a Holy Knight on his vessel will lead him to understand his place in the globe and seek the truth he caught a glimpse of from Xebec's situation.

The Truth About The Infamous Captain

Prior to this flashback, what we knew of Xebec was derived almost entirely from Sengoku's version, each to the viewers and to new Navy recruits. He depicted Rocks D. Xebec as a vile, ambitious man bent on global control, someone so threatening that Roger and Monkey D. Garp had to join forces to defeat him. But as it turns out, the strategist was not present at the Divine Isle; he was merely repeating the Global Authority's approved version of events, the very narrative Imu approved to conceal the reality about Xebec and the incident itself.

In reality, The captain, whose true name was Davy D. Xebec, was a principled man who sought to overthrow Imu and dismantle the corrupt World Government. We are unsure if he was guided by ambition, revenge for his family, or a wish for fairness, but when he found out the government's scheme to annihilate the land where his kin lived, he gave up his ambitions of conquest to rescue them.

This love for his family proved to be his downfall. Upon facing the sovereign, he forfeited his will and liberty, turning into a puppet controlled to their authority. Currently, with what limited awareness remains, he begs with Roger and Garp to kill him — believing that death would be a kindness in contrast to the living hell he suffers. The truth of Rocks D. Xebec is thus far from the story told by Sengoku, and the manga shows him in a favorable manner during the God Valley events.

Could He Be Still Alive Today?

But was Rocks D. Xebec really meet his end? An interesting idea is that he is even now a slave to the ruler in the present day, serving as The Man Marked By Flames, maintaining the World Government's last Poneglyph in continuous movement to prevent the One Piece from being discovered.

The Hero's Hidden Defiance

Another key figure of the God Valley incident is Monkey D. Garp, who has faced backlash from followers for a long time for standing by as Admiral Akainu murdered Ace. That feeling became even more intense after the timeskip, when he endangered all to rescue Koby at Hachinosu, causing many to question why he was unable to do the identical for his own grandchild. Similar doubts have recently resurfaced with the God Valley flashback: how could Monkey D. Garp work for the Marines, aware the Global Authority treats mass murder and slavery as sport for the elite?

The reality uncovers something different. The instant Garp witnessed the Elders' monstrous shapes, he attacked without hesitation. His partnership with Gol D. Roger wasn't to vanquish some evil Xebec, but a bold act of rebellion, an effort to stop Imu, who was using Rocks D. Xebec as a tool to wipe out everyone in God Valley, even apparently, even the World Nobles themselves. This event is likely the reason Monkey D. Garp despises the Celestial Dragons in the present day and why he not once desired to be elevated to Admiral, reporting directly to them.

History's Unreliable Narrators

Even though the audience are viewing the God Valley incident through a recollection narrated by Loki, covering perspectives and occurrences he clearly wasn't present for, I think we can treat this version as entirely truthful. The manga may offer an reason later, perhaps linked to Loki's yet unknown paramecia ability. Still, the God Valley event perfectly embodies the idea that the past is written by the winners. This attitude is {