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The saying 'The past is recorded by the winners' is a key motif that One Piece creator Eiichiro Oda has long woven into the story. Popular tales often do not capture the complete reality, even for the most powerful characters in this world's complex past. Oden wasn't a silly performer dancing through the streets of Wano; he acted out of honor and principle. Bartholomew Kuma was not a merciless villain who tore apart the Straw Hats, either; he was helping them. Similarly, the Davy Jones legend signified beyond just a buccaneer's contest in pursuit of flags and crews.

In installment #1164 of the manga, we see the peak of this idea. The entire Divine Isle narrative serves as a cautionary tale, instructing audiences not to evaluate the characters too hastily.

Legends frequently fail to capture the complete truth, even for the most powerful figures.

One Piece's latest flashback, detailing the Divine Isle event, stands as one of the series' finest storylines to date. Beyond the excitement of witnessing legends in their peak, it's gripping to observe them before they turned into icons — when their fame had still not surpass their human nature. History, as recorded by the Global Authority and retold through secondhand tales, painted our understanding of figures like Gol D. Roger, Xebec, and even Garp. But both the government's records and the stories of those who knew them turn out to be untrustworthy, revealing only pieces of who these individuals really were.

The Individual Prior to the Legend

Gol D. Roger may have been guided by mission and the bold attitude that ignited a fresh era of buccaneering, but before he was known as the Pirate King, he was a youth governed by emotion and wanderlust. When individuals speak of his myth, they usually mean his later journey, the epic expedition in pursuit of the guide stones that lead to Laugh Tale. However little is known about his first journey, the one that molded him before glory found him.

Back then, Roger knew little of the world's hidden history. His love for the barkeep guided him to God Valley, where he uncovered the World Government's most sinister realities: the genocidal "contests," the grotesque forms of the Five Elders, and even the presence of the planet's unseen ruler, the mysterious leader. We haven't seen Gol D. Roger's reflections about all that's occurring in the Divine Isle, but maybe finding the child of a Holy Knight on his ship will make him realize his place in the globe and seek the truth he glimpsed from Xebec's predicament.

The Reality About Rocks D. Xebec

Prior to this flashback, what we knew of Xebec came mostly from Sengoku's version, each to the audience and to new Navy recruits. He painted Xebec as a vile, ambitious man bent on world domination, someone so dangerous that Gol D. Roger and Garp had to team up to overcome him. But as it transpires, Sengoku was not there at God Valley; he was merely echoing the Global Authority's sanctioned version of events, the very story Imu approved to conceal the truth about Xebec and the event itself.

In reality, The captain, whose real name was Davy D. Xebec, was a ethical man who sought to overthrow the ruler and dismantle the decadent Global Authority. We don't know if he was guided by ambition, retribution for his family, or a wish for justice, but when he discovered the government's scheme to annihilate the island where his family resided, he gave up his dreams of domination to save them.

This devotion for his family became his downfall. After facing Imu, he forfeited his determination and liberty, turning into a marionette enslaved to their authority. Now, with what little awareness remains, he begs with Roger and Monkey D. Garp to kill him — thinking that dying would be a mercy compared to the torment he endures. The truth of Rocks is thus far from the story told by Sengoku, and the comic shows him in a positive manner during the Divine Isle events.

Could He Be Still Alive Today?

But did Rocks D. Xebec really die? An interesting idea is that he is even now a servant to Imu in the current timeline, serving as The Man Marked By Flames, maintaining the World Government's only remaining ancient stone in continuous movement to prevent the ultimate treasure from being found.

The Hero's Hidden Rebellion

A further key figure of the God Valley incident is Monkey D. Garp, who has endured backlash from fans for a long time for doing nothing as Akainu murdered Portgas D. Ace. That feeling only grew stronger after the timeskip, when he endangered all to save Koby at Hachinosu, leading many to wonder why he couldn't do the identical for his biological grandchild. Similar doubts have recently resurfaced with the God Valley flashback: how could Garp serve the Navy, knowing the World Government considers mass murder and enslavement as entertainment for the upper class?

The reality reveals something distinct. The moment Monkey D. Garp witnessed the Elders' grotesque shapes, he attacked immediately. His partnership with Roger was not meant to vanquish some villainous Xebec, but a bold act of rebellion, an attempt to halt the sovereign, who was manipulating Rocks D. Xebec as a pawn to wipe out everyone in the Divine Isle, even apparently, including the Celestial Dragons themselves. This incident is likely the reason Garp despises the World Nobles in the present day and why he never wanted to be promoted to Fleet Admiral, reporting directly to them.

History's Untrustworthy Narrators

Although the readers are viewing the God Valley event through a flashback narrated by the giant, covering perspectives and events he clearly was absent for, I believe we can treat this version as entirely accurate. The series may provide an reason in the future, perhaps linked to Loki's yet unknown paramecia ability. Still, the Divine Isle incident perfectly exemplifies the notion that history is written by the winners. This mindset is {