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The saying 'History is written by the victors' serves as a key motif that One Piece creator Eiichiro Oda has long integrated into the narrative. Popular tales frequently fail to convey the full truth, including the most powerful characters in this story's intricate history. Kozuki Oden wasn't a foolish showman dancing through the streets of Wano; he acted out of duty and principle. Bartholomew Kuma was not a ruthless villain who separated the Straw Hat Pirates, either; he was doing them a favor. Likewise, Davy Jones signified more than a pirate's game in pursuit of emblems and crews.

In installment #1164 of the manga, we witness the peak of this idea. The whole God Valley narrative acts as a warning story, advising readers not to evaluate the characters too hastily.

Legends often fail to convey the full truth, including the most powerful figures.

The series's latest flashback, chronicling the Divine Isle event, stands as one of the series' finest storylines to date. Beyond the excitement of seeing icons in their peak, it's compelling to see them before they turned into icons — when their fame had yet to outgrow their human nature. History, as recorded by the Global Authority and retold through secondhand stories, shaped our understanding of individuals like Roger, Rocks D. Xebec, and including Monkey D. 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 men truly were.

The Individual Before the Legend

Gol D. Roger may have been driven by mission and the daring attitude that ignited a fresh era of buccaneering, but before he became the Pirate King, he was a young man governed by emotion and the desire to explore. When people speak of his myth, they usually mean his second voyage, the epic quest in pursuit of the guide stones that lead to Laugh Tale. Yet not much is known about his initial travels, the one that shaped him prior to fame discovered him.

Back then, Roger knew little of the world's hidden past. His affection for the barkeep guided him to God Valley, where he discovered the World Government's most sinister truths: the genocidal "contests," the monstrous forms of the Gorosei, and even the presence of the planet's unseen ruler, Imu. We haven't seen Roger's thoughts about all that's occurring in God Valley, but maybe discovering the child of a Holy Knight on his ship will make him realize his place in the world and seek the truth he caught a glimpse of from Rocks D. Xebec's situation.

The Truth About Rocks D. Xebec

Prior to this flashback, what we knew of Xebec was derived almost entirely from Sengoku's version, both to the audience and to new Marines. He painted Rocks D. Xebec as a vile, ambitious man bent on global control, someone so threatening that Gol D. Roger and Garp had to team up to overcome him. But as it transpires, the strategist wasn't even there at the Divine Isle; he was merely echoing the Global Authority's approved version of occurrences, the very narrative the sovereign approved to conceal the reality about Xebec and the event itself.

In reality, The captain, whose real name was Davy D. Xebec, was a ethical man who aimed to topple the ruler and dismantle the decadent Global Authority. We don't know if he was motivated by lust for power, retribution for his family, or a desire for justice, but when he found out the regime's scheme to annihilate the island where his family resided, he abandoned his dreams of conquest to rescue them.

This devotion for his relatives became his downfall. After confronting the sovereign, he forfeited his determination and freedom, turning into a puppet enslaved to their power. Now, with what little awareness remains, he pleads with Roger and Garp to kill him — believing that dying would be a mercy in contrast to the living hell he suffers. The truth of Rocks D. Xebec is thus very different from the story narrated by the former Fleet Admiral, and the comic presents him in a positive manner during the Divine Isle events.

Is He Living Today?

But was Rocks D. Xebec actually meet his end? An interesting idea is that he is even now a slave to Imu in the current timeline, acting as the scarred individual, keeping the World Government's only remaining Poneglyph in constant movement to prevent the One Piece from being discovered.

The Hero's Hidden Defiance

A further protagonist of the God Valley incident is Monkey D. Garp, who has endured backlash from fans for a long time for doing nothing as Akainu killed Portgas D. Ace. That sentiment became even more intense after the time jump, when he risked everything to rescue the young Marine at Hachinosu, causing many to wonder why he couldn't do the same for his own grandson. Comparable questions have now resurfaced with the Divine Isle recollection: how can Monkey D. Garp serve the Marines, aware the World Government considers mass murder and enslavement as entertainment for the upper class?

The truth uncovers something distinct. The moment Garp saw the Elders' grotesque shapes, he struck without hesitation. His alliance with Gol D. Roger was not meant to defeat some evil Rocks D. Xebec, but a courageous act of defiance, an attempt to stop the sovereign, who was using Rocks D. Xebec as a tool to eliminate all in God Valley, even apparently, including the Celestial Dragons themselves. This incident is probably the cause Garp despises the World Nobles in the present day and why he never desired to be elevated to Admiral, answering directly to them.

The Past's Untrustworthy Narrators

Although the audience are seeing the Divine Isle incident through a recollection narrated by Loki, including viewpoints and occurrences he clearly was absent for, I believe we can treat this version as completely truthful. The series may provide an explanation later, maybe connected to the giant's still mysterious Devil Fruit. Still, the God Valley event excellently exemplifies the notion that the past is recorded by the winners. This attitude is {