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The adage 'History is written by the victors' is a central motif that One Piece creator Eiichiro Oda has long integrated into the narrative. Legends often do not capture the complete reality, even for the most powerful figures in this world's complex past. Kozuki Oden wasn't a silly performer dancing through the streets of Wano; he acted out of duty and conviction. Kuma wasn't a ruthless antagonist who separated the Straw Hat Pirates, either; he was helping them. Likewise, the Davy Jones legend meant beyond just a pirate's game in pursuit of emblems and followers.

In installment #1164 of the manga, we witness the culmination of this theme. The entire God Valley story acts as a cautionary tale, advising audiences not to judge the individuals too quickly.

Legends often fail to convey the full reality, including the most powerful characters.

One Piece's latest flashback, detailing the God Valley incident, stands as one of the series' finest storylines to now. Beyond the excitement of seeing icons in their peak, it's compelling to observe them before they turned into icons — when their reputation had yet to surpass their humanity. The past, as recorded by the Global Authority and retold through secondhand stories, shaped our understanding of figures like Roger, Xebec, and including Garp. But both the regime's records and the narratives of those who knew them prove unreliable, revealing only pieces of who these individuals really were.

The Individual Before the Legend

Gol D. Roger may have been driven by purpose and the daring spirit that sparked a new age of piracy, but before he was known as the King of the Pirates, he was a young man ruled by emotion and wanderlust. When individuals speak of his legend, they typically refer to his later journey, the epic quest in pursuit of the guide stones that point toward the final island. Yet not much is understood about his initial travels, the one that shaped him before glory found him.

Back then, Gol D. Roger was largely unaware of the world's secret history. His affection for Shakky 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 including the presence of the world's unseen sovereign, Imu. We are yet to witness Roger's thoughts about all that's occurring in God Valley, but maybe finding the child of a Holy Knight on his vessel will lead him to understand his role in the world and seek the truth he caught a glimpse of from Xebec's predicament.

The Truth About Rocks D. Xebec

Prior to this recollection, what we knew of Xebec was derived almost entirely from the former Fleet Admiral's version, each to the audience and to young Navy recruits. He depicted Rocks D. Xebec as a despicable, ambitious man bent on global control, someone so threatening that Roger and Monkey D. Garp had to team up to overcome him. But as it transpires, the strategist was not present at God Valley; he was merely repeating the World Government's sanctioned narrative of occurrences, the exact story Imu approved to conceal the truth about Rocks D. Xebec and the incident itself.

In reality, The captain, whose real name was Davy D. Xebec, was a principled man who aimed to topple the ruler and dismantle the decadent World Government. We are unsure if he was motivated by ambition, retribution for his clan, or a desire for justice, but when he found out the regime's scheme to annihilate the land where his family lived, he gave up his ambitions of conquest to save them.

This devotion for his family became his undoing. After facing the sovereign, he forfeited his will and freedom, turning into a marionette controlled to their power. Currently, with what little consciousness remains, he begs with Roger and Garp to kill him — believing that death would be a kindness compared to the living hell he endures. The truth of Rocks is thus far from the tale narrated by the former Fleet Admiral, and the manga presents him in a positive manner during the God Valley events.

Could He Be Living Today?

But was Rocks D. Xebec really die? An interesting idea is that he is even now a servant to Imu in the present day, acting as the scarred individual, keeping the Global Authority's last Poneglyph in continuous movement to keep the One Piece from being found.

The Hero's Secret Rebellion

A further protagonist of the God Valley incident is Monkey D. Garp, who has endured backlash from followers for years for standing by as Admiral Akainu killed Portgas D. Ace. That feeling became even more intense after the time jump, when he endangered everything to rescue Koby at Pirate Island, causing many to question why he was unable to do the identical for his own grandson. Comparable questions have now reemerged with the Divine Isle flashback: how could Garp work for the Marines, aware the Global Authority treats mass murder and enslavement as sport for the upper class?

The reality reveals something distinct. The moment Garp saw the Gorosei's grotesque shapes, he struck immediately. His alliance with Roger wasn't to vanquish some villainous Xebec, but a bold act of rebellion, an attempt to stop the sovereign, who was manipulating Xebec as a pawn to eliminate everyone in the Divine Isle, even apparently, even the Celestial Dragons themselves. This incident is likely the reason Garp detests the World Nobles in the current era and why he never desired to be promoted to Fleet Admiral, reporting straight to them.

History's Untrustworthy Narrators

Even though the audience are seeing the Divine Isle incident through a flashback recounted by the giant, covering viewpoints and occurrences he clearly was absent for, I believe we can treat this version as entirely accurate. The series may offer an explanation in the future, perhaps linked to the giant's yet unknown Devil Fruit. Nevertheless, the God Valley event excellently embodies the idea that the past is written by the victors. This mindset is {