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The saying 'History is written by the winners' is a key motif that One Piece creator Eiichiro Oda has for some time integrated into the story. Legends frequently fail to convey the full reality, even for the most influential characters in this story's complex past. Kozuki Oden wasn't a foolish showman dancing through the roads of Wano Country; he acted out of honor and principle. Kuma was not a merciless antagonist who tore apart the Straw Hats, as well; he was helping them. Similarly, the Davy Jones legend signified beyond just a pirate's game in search of flags and crews.

In chapter #1164 of the manga, we see the culmination of this idea. The whole Divine Isle narrative acts as a warning story, advising readers not to judge the characters too quickly.

Legends often fail to convey the complete reality, including the most powerful figures.

One Piece's most recent flashback, chronicling the Divine Isle event, stands as one of the series' best arcs to date. Apart from the excitement of witnessing legends in their peak, it's compelling to see them prior to when they became symbols — when their fame had still not surpass their humanity. History, as recorded by the Global Authority and recounted through secondhand tales, painted our perception of individuals like Roger, Rocks D. Xebec, and even Monkey D. Garp. But both the regime's accounts and the stories of those who knew them turn out to be unreliable, showing only fragments of who these individuals really were.

The Individual Prior to the Myth

Gol D. Roger may have been guided by mission and the bold attitude that sparked a new age of buccaneering, but before he was known as the King of the Pirates, he was a youth governed by passion and the desire to explore. When individuals discuss his myth, they usually refer to his second voyage, the epic quest in pursuit of the guide stones that lead to the final island. Yet not much is known about his first journey, the one that shaped him before fame discovered him.

Back then, Gol D. Roger knew little of the world's secret history. His love for Shakky led him to the Divine Isle, where he uncovered the World Government's darkest realities: the genocidal "games," the monstrous appearances of the Gorosei, and even the presence of the planet's hidden ruler, Imu. We haven't seen Roger's thoughts about all that's happening in God Valley, but maybe finding the son of a God's Knight on his vessel will make him realize his role in the world and pursue the reality he glimpsed from Rocks D. Xebec's situation.

The Truth About Rocks D. Xebec

Before this flashback, what we knew of Xebec was derived mostly from Sengoku's version, each to the audience and to young Navy recruits. He depicted Rocks D. Xebec as a vile, power-hungry man bent on world domination, someone so dangerous that Roger and Monkey D. Garp had to join forces to defeat him. But as it transpires, Sengoku wasn't even there at God Valley; he was merely repeating the World Government's approved narrative of events, the exact story the sovereign approved to bury the reality about Rocks D. Xebec and the event itself.

In reality, The captain, whose true name was Davy D. Xebec, was a ethical man who aimed to overthrow Imu and dismantle the corrupt Global Authority. We don't know if he was motivated by ambition, revenge for his clan, or a desire for justice, but when he discovered the regime's scheme to annihilate the land where his kin lived, he gave up his dreams of conquest to save them.

This devotion for his relatives became his downfall. Upon confronting the sovereign, he forfeited his will and freedom, turning into a puppet controlled to their authority. Currently, with what little consciousness remains, he pleads with Roger and Monkey D. Garp to kill him — believing that death would be a kindness compared to the torment he suffers. The truth of Rocks D. Xebec is thus very different from the tale told by the former Fleet Admiral, and the manga shows him in a positive light during the Divine Isle incidents.

Is He Living Today?

But was Rocks D. Xebec actually meet his end? An intriguing theory is that he is even now a servant to Imu in the present day, serving as the scarred individual, keeping the World Government's only remaining Poneglyph in continuous movement to prevent the ultimate treasure from being discovered.

Garp's Hidden Defiance

A further protagonist of the God Valley event is Monkey D. Garp, who has faced criticism from fans for a long time for standing by as Admiral Akainu murdered Portgas D. Ace. That feeling only grew more intense after the time jump, when he endangered everything to save Koby at Hachinosu, causing many to question why he was unable to do the identical for his own grandchild. Similar questions have recently reemerged with the God Valley recollection: how could Garp work for the Navy, knowing the World Government considers genocide and enslavement as sport for the elite?

The reality reveals something distinct. The moment Garp witnessed the Gorosei's grotesque shapes, he struck without hesitation. His partnership with Gol D. Roger was not meant to defeat some villainous Xebec, but a bold act of defiance, an attempt to stop the sovereign, who was manipulating Rocks D. Xebec as a pawn to eliminate everyone in God Valley, including it seems, even the Celestial Dragons themselves. This incident is likely the cause Monkey D. Garp despises the Celestial Dragons in the current era and why he not once desired to be promoted to Admiral, answering straight to them.

The Past's Untrustworthy Narrators

Although the readers are seeing the Divine Isle event through a recollection narrated by the giant, including perspectives and events he obviously wasn't present for, I think we can consider this version as completely accurate. The manga may offer an reason in the future, perhaps connected to the giant's still mysterious paramecia ability. Still, the God Valley event perfectly exemplifies the idea that history is written by the winners. This attitude is {