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The saying 'History is recorded by the winners' is a central theme that One Piece author Eiichiro Oda has long woven into the story. Legends frequently fail to capture the complete reality, including the most powerful figures in this story's complex history. Oden wasn't a foolish performer prancing through the streets of Wano Country; he behaved out of duty and principle. Bartholomew Kuma wasn't a merciless antagonist who tore apart the Straw Hat Pirates, either; he was doing them a favor. Likewise, Davy Jones signified beyond just a buccaneer's game in search of emblems and crews.

In installment #1164 of the manga, we witness the peak of this theme. The whole God Valley story acts as a cautionary tale, instructing readers not to evaluate the individuals too quickly.

Myths frequently do not capture the full reality, even for the most influential characters.

One Piece's latest flashback, chronicling the Divine Isle event, stands as one of the story's best arcs to date. Apart from the excitement of seeing legends in their peak, it's compelling to see them prior to when they became symbols — when their reputation had still not surpass their humanity. History, as recorded by the World Government and recounted through secondhand tales, painted our perception of figures like Gol D. Roger, Rocks D. Xebec, and even Garp. But both the government's accounts and the narratives of those who were acquainted with them prove unreliable, showing only fragments of who these individuals truly were.

The Man Prior to the Myth

The future Pirate King may have been guided by mission and the bold spirit that sparked a new age of buccaneering, but prior to he was known as the Pirate King, he was a youth ruled by passion and the desire to explore. When people speak of his myth, they usually mean his second voyage, the epic quest in pursuit of the Road Poneglyphs that point toward Laugh Tale. Yet little is known about his initial travels, the one that shaped him prior to fame discovered him.

At that time, Roger was largely unaware of the world's secret history. His affection for the barkeep guided him to the Divine Isle, where he uncovered the Global Authority's most sinister truths: the genocidal "contests," the monstrous appearances of the Gorosei, and even the existence of the world's unseen ruler, Imu. We haven't seen Roger's reflections about everything occurring in the Divine Isle, but maybe finding the child of a God's Knight on his ship will lead him to understand his role in the globe and pursue the reality he caught a glimpse of from Rocks D. Xebec's predicament.

The Truth About The Infamous Captain

Before this flashback, what we knew of Xebec was derived mostly from Sengoku's account, each to the viewers and to young Navy recruits. He painted Rocks D. Xebec as a despicable, ambitious man bent on global control, someone so dangerous that Gol D. Roger and Monkey D. Garp had to join forces to overcome him. But as it transpires, Sengoku was not there at the Divine Isle; he was only echoing the Global Authority's sanctioned narrative of events, the very story Imu approved to conceal the truth about Rocks D. Xebec and the event itself.

In reality, Rocks D. Xebec, whose real name was Davy D. Xebec, was a ethical man who aimed to topple Imu and dismantle the decadent Global Authority. We are unsure if he was motivated by lust for power, revenge for his family, or a desire for justice, but when he discovered the regime's scheme to annihilate the island where his family lived, he gave up his ambitions of domination to rescue them.

This love for his family proved to be his undoing. After confronting the sovereign, he lost his determination and liberty, turning into a puppet enslaved to their authority. Currently, with what little awareness remains, he begs with Gol D. Roger and Garp to kill him — thinking that death would be a kindness compared to the living hell he endures. The truth of Rocks D. Xebec is thus very different from the story told by Sengoku, and the comic presents him in a favorable light during the God Valley incidents.

Could He Be Living Today?

But was Rocks D. Xebec really die? An interesting theory is that he is even now a servant to Imu in the present day, serving as The Man Marked By Flames, maintaining the World Government's last Poneglyph in continuous movement to keep the One Piece from being discovered.

The Hero's Secret Defiance

A further protagonist of the Divine Isle event is Garp, who has endured backlash from followers for years for standing by as Akainu murdered Portgas D. Ace. That sentiment only grew more intense after the timeskip, when he endangered everything to save Koby at Hachinosu, leading many to wonder why he was unable to do the identical for his biological grandson. Comparable doubts have now resurfaced with the God Valley flashback: how can Monkey D. Garp work for the Navy, aware the Global Authority treats mass murder and slavery as entertainment for the upper class?

The truth reveals something different. The moment Monkey D. Garp saw the Gorosei's monstrous shapes, he attacked immediately. His partnership with Gol D. Roger wasn't to defeat some villainous Rocks D. Xebec, but a bold act of defiance, an attempt to stop the sovereign, who was using Rocks D. Xebec as a pawn to eliminate all in God Valley, even apparently, even the World Nobles themselves. This event is likely the reason Monkey D. Garp despises the World Nobles in the present day and why he not once desired to be elevated to Admiral, answering straight to them.

History's Untrustworthy Narrators

Even though the readers are seeing the Divine Isle event through a flashback narrated by the giant, including viewpoints and occurrences he clearly wasn't present for, I think we can consider this account as completely truthful. The series may provide an reason in the future, maybe connected to the giant's still mysterious paramecia ability. Nevertheless, the God Valley incident excellently exemplifies the idea that the past is recorded by the victors. This mindset is {