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The adage 'The past is recorded by the winners' is a central motif that One Piece author Eiichiro Oda has long integrated into the story. Popular tales often fail to capture the full reality, including the most powerful figures in this story's complex history. Oden was no silly showman dancing through the roads of Wano; he behaved out of honor and conviction. Kuma wasn't a ruthless antagonist who separated the Straw Hats, either; he was doing them a favor. Likewise, the Davy Jones legend meant beyond just a pirate's contest in search of emblems and crews.

In installment #1164 of One Piece, we witness the culmination of this idea. The entire Divine Isle narrative serves as a cautionary tale, instructing audiences not to evaluate the individuals too quickly.

Myths often fail to capture the complete reality, including the most influential figures.

The series's most recent look back, chronicling the God Valley incident, represents one of the story's best storylines to date. Beyond the excitement of seeing legends in their peak, it's compelling to see them before they turned into symbols — when their fame had yet to surpass their humanity. The past, as recorded by the Global Authority and recounted through hearsay stories, shaped our understanding of individuals like Gol D. Roger, Xebec, and even Monkey D. Garp. But both the regime's accounts and the stories of those who were acquainted with them turn out to be untrustworthy, revealing only fragments of who these men truly were.

The Individual Prior to the Myth

The future Pirate King may have been guided by mission and the daring attitude that sparked a new age of buccaneering, but prior to he was known as the King of the Pirates, he was a young man governed by emotion and the desire to explore. When people discuss his myth, they usually mean his later journey, the epic quest in search of the Road Poneglyphs that lead to Laugh Tale. Yet little is known about his first journey, the one that shaped him prior to glory discovered him.

Back then, Gol D. Roger was largely unaware of the world's secret past. His affection for Shakky guided him to God Valley, where he discovered the World Government's most sinister realities: the genocidal "contests," the grotesque appearances of the Five Elders, and even the existence of the planet's hidden ruler, Imu. We are yet to witness Roger's reflections about everything occurring in the Divine Isle, but perhaps finding the son of a Holy Knight on his vessel will lead him to understand his role in the globe and pursue the reality he caught a glimpse of from Rocks D. Xebec's situation.

The Reality About Rocks D. Xebec

Before this flashback, what we were aware of of Xebec came mostly from Sengoku's account, both to the viewers and to young Navy recruits. He painted 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, the strategist was not present at the Divine Isle; he was merely echoing the Global Authority's approved narrative of occurrences, the very story Imu approved to bury the reality about Rocks D. Xebec and the event itself.

In reality, Rocks D. Xebec, whose true name was Davy D. Xebec, was a principled man who aimed to overthrow the ruler and dismantle the corrupt World Government. We don't know if he was guided by ambition, retribution for his clan, or a desire for fairness, but when he found out the regime's plan to eliminate the land where his kin resided, he gave up his dreams of domination to rescue them.

This devotion for his relatives proved to be his undoing. After confronting Imu, he lost his determination and liberty, turning into a puppet enslaved to their authority. Now, with what little consciousness remains, he pleads with Roger and Garp to kill him — thinking that dying would be a mercy compared to the living hell he endures. The truth of Rocks D. Xebec is thus far from the story narrated by Sengoku, and the manga presents him in a favorable light during the God Valley incidents.

Could He Be Living Today?

But did Rocks really meet his end? An intriguing theory is that he is still a slave to the ruler in the current timeline, acting as the scarred individual, maintaining the Global Authority's only remaining Poneglyph in continuous movement to prevent the One Piece from being found.

The Hero's Secret Rebellion

A further key figure of the God Valley incident is Monkey D. Garp, who has endured criticism from fans for years for doing nothing as Admiral Akainu killed Ace. That feeling became even more intense after the time jump, when he endangered all to save the young Marine at Pirate Island, leading many to wonder why he couldn't do the identical for his biological grandchild. Comparable doubts have recently reemerged with the God Valley flashback: how can Monkey D. Garp work for the Marines, knowing the World Government treats genocide and enslavement as sport for the elite?

The truth uncovers something distinct. The instant Monkey D. Garp saw the Elders' grotesque forms, he attacked without hesitation. His partnership with Roger wasn't to vanquish some evil Xebec, but a bold act of rebellion, an effort to halt Imu, who was using Xebec as a tool to wipe out all in the Divine Isle, including apparently, even the Celestial Dragons themselves. This event is probably the cause Garp despises the World Nobles in the present day and why he not once wanted to be elevated to Fleet Admiral, answering straight to them.

The Past's Unreliable Narrators

Even though the audience are seeing the Divine Isle incident through a recollection narrated by the giant, covering perspectives and events he obviously wasn't present for, I believe we can consider this account as entirely truthful. The manga may provide an explanation later, maybe connected to the giant's yet unknown paramecia ability. Still, the Divine Isle incident excellently exemplifies the idea that the past is written by the victors. This mindset is {