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The saying 'History is written by the winners' is a key motif that Eiichiro Oda's epic author Eiichiro Oda has long woven into the story. Legends often do not capture the full truth, including the most influential figures in this world's complex past. Kozuki Oden was no foolish showman dancing through the roads of Wano; he behaved out of duty and conviction. Kuma was not a ruthless antagonist who separated the Straw Hat Pirates, either; he was helping them. Similarly, the Davy Jones legend meant more than a pirate's contest in search of emblems and followers.

In installment #1164 of One Piece, we witness the culmination of this idea. The whole God Valley narrative serves as a cautionary tale, instructing audiences not to judge the individuals too hastily.

Legends often fail to capture the complete truth, including the most powerful characters.

One Piece's latest flashback, detailing the Divine Isle event, represents one of the series' finest arcs to now. Beyond the excitement of seeing icons in their peak, it's gripping to observe them prior to when they became symbols — when their reputation had still not outgrow their human nature. History, as written by the World Government and retold through secondhand stories, shaped our perception of figures like Gol D. Roger, Xebec, and including Garp. But both the regime's records and the stories of those who knew them prove untrustworthy, showing only fragments of who these men truly were.

The Man Before the Legend

Gol D. Roger may have been guided by purpose and the daring attitude that ignited a fresh era of piracy, but before he was known as the Pirate King, he was a youth governed by emotion and wanderlust. When people speak of his myth, they typically mean his later journey, the epic quest in pursuit of the Road Poneglyphs that point toward Laugh Tale. However not much is known about his initial travels, the one that molded him before fame discovered him.

At that time, Gol D. Roger knew little of the world's hidden history. His affection for the barkeep led him to the Divine Isle, where he discovered the Global Authority's most sinister realities: the genocidal "games," the grotesque forms of the Gorosei, and including the presence of the planet's unseen ruler, Imu. We haven't seen Roger's reflections about all that's occurring in God Valley, but maybe discovering the son of a God's Knight on his vessel will lead him to understand his place in the world and seek the reality he glimpsed from Rocks D. Xebec's predicament.

The Reality About The Infamous Captain

Before this recollection, what we knew of Rocks D. Xebec was derived mostly from Sengoku's version, each to the viewers and to new Navy recruits. He painted Rocks D. Xebec as a despicable, power-hungry man bent on world domination, someone so threatening that Roger and Monkey D. Garp had to join forces to defeat him. But as it transpires, Sengoku wasn't even present at the Divine Isle; he was only repeating the Global Authority's approved version of occurrences, the very narrative Imu approved to bury the truth about Rocks D. Xebec and the incident itself.

In reality, Rocks D. Xebec, whose real name was Davy D. Xebec, was a principled man who aimed to topple the ruler and dismantle the corrupt World Government. We are unsure if he was guided by lust for power, revenge for his clan, or a desire for justice, but when he discovered the government's scheme to eliminate the land where his kin resided, he abandoned his ambitions of conquest to save them.

This love for his relatives became his undoing. After confronting Imu, he lost his determination and freedom, becoming a marionette controlled to their authority. Now, with what limited consciousness is left, he pleads with Gol D. Roger and Monkey D. Garp to end his life — believing that death would be a kindness in contrast to the living hell he endures. The reality of Rocks is thus far from the story told by the former Fleet Admiral, and the comic shows him in a positive light during the Divine Isle events.

Is He Still Alive Today?

But was Rocks D. Xebec really meet his end? An intriguing theory is that he is still a servant to the ruler in the current timeline, acting as The Man Marked By Flames, maintaining the Global Authority's last Poneglyph in continuous 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 faced criticism from followers for a long time for doing nothing as Admiral Akainu killed Ace. That feeling only grew more intense after the timeskip, when he risked all to rescue Koby at Hachinosu, causing many to question why he couldn't do the identical for his biological grandchild. Comparable doubts have recently resurfaced with the Divine Isle flashback: how could Monkey D. Garp serve the Marines, knowing the Global Authority considers mass murder and slavery as entertainment for the elite?

The reality uncovers something different. The instant Garp witnessed the Elders' monstrous forms, he attacked without hesitation. His partnership with Roger was not meant to defeat some villainous Rocks D. Xebec, but a bold act of rebellion, an attempt to stop Imu, who was using Xebec as a tool to wipe out all in God Valley, even 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 never desired to be promoted to Fleet Admiral, answering straight to them.

History's Untrustworthy Narrators

Even though the audience are viewing the Divine Isle event through a recollection narrated by the giant, including perspectives and events he obviously was absent for, I think we can consider this version as completely truthful. The series may provide an explanation later, perhaps linked to the giant's yet unknown paramecia ability. Still, the God Valley incident perfectly exemplifies the idea that history is written by the victors. This attitude is {