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The saying 'History is written by the winners' serves as a central motif that Eiichiro Oda's epic creator Eiichiro Oda has long integrated into the narrative. Popular tales frequently fail to capture the full reality, including the most powerful characters in this story's complex history. Kozuki Oden wasn't a silly showman dancing through the roads of Wano; he acted out of duty and conviction. Bartholomew Kuma wasn't a merciless antagonist who separated the Straw Hat Pirates, as well; he was helping them. Similarly, the Davy Jones legend meant beyond just a pirate's contest in pursuit of emblems and crews.

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

Myths often fail to capture the full reality, even for the most influential figures.

The series's most recent look back, detailing the God Valley event, stands as one of the story's best storylines to now. Apart from the thrill of seeing legends in their prime, it's gripping to observe them before they turned into symbols — when their reputation had yet to surpass their human nature. History, as written by the World Government and recounted through secondhand stories, painted our understanding of figures like Gol D. Roger, Xebec, and even Monkey D. Garp. But each of the government's records and the stories of those who were acquainted with them turn out to be unreliable, revealing only fragments of who these individuals really were.

The Individual Before the Legend

The future Pirate King may have been driven by mission and the daring spirit that ignited a new age of piracy, but before he became the King of the Pirates, he was a youth ruled by passion and wanderlust. When people speak of his myth, they typically refer to his later journey, the grand quest in search of the Road Poneglyphs that point toward the final island. Yet little is understood about his first journey, the one that shaped him prior to glory discovered him.

Back then, Gol D. Roger knew little of the world's hidden history. His affection for Shakky led him to God Valley, where he discovered the Global Authority's most sinister realities: the extermination "games," the monstrous appearances of the Gorosei, and including the existence of the planet's unseen sovereign, Imu. We haven't seen Roger's thoughts about all that's happening in the Divine Isle, but perhaps finding the son of a God's Knight on his ship will make him realize his role in the globe and pursue the truth he glimpsed from Xebec's situation.

The Reality About The Infamous Captain

Prior to this recollection, what we were aware of of Xebec was derived mostly from the former Fleet Admiral's account, both to the audience and to young Navy recruits. He depicted Rocks D. Xebec as a despicable, power-hungry man determined to achieve global control, someone so dangerous that Roger and Monkey D. Garp had to join forces to overcome him. But as it turns out, the strategist wasn't even there at the Divine Isle; he was only echoing the World Government's approved narrative of occurrences, the exact story the sovereign authorized to conceal the reality about Rocks D. Xebec and the event itself.

In reality, The captain, whose real name was Davy D. Xebec, was a principled man who sought to overthrow the ruler and dismantle the decadent World Government. We are unsure if he was guided by lust for power, revenge for his family, or a wish for justice, but when he discovered the government's plan to eliminate the island where his family resided, he abandoned his ambitions of conquest to save them.

This love for his family proved to be his undoing. After confronting the sovereign, he forfeited his will and liberty, turning into a marionette controlled to their authority. Now, with what little awareness remains, he begs with Gol D. Roger and Garp to end his life — thinking that dying would be a kindness compared to the living hell he endures. The truth of Rocks is thus very different from the tale narrated by the former Fleet Admiral, and the comic presents him in a favorable manner during the God Valley incidents.

Could He Be Still Alive Today?

But was Rocks actually die? An intriguing idea is that he is even now a slave to the ruler in the present day, acting as The Man Marked By Flames, keeping the World Government's only remaining ancient stone in continuous movement to prevent the ultimate treasure from being discovered.

Garp's Secret Rebellion

Another protagonist of the God Valley incident is Garp, who has endured criticism from followers for a long time for doing nothing as Admiral Akainu murdered Ace. That feeling only grew more intense after the time jump, when he endangered everything to rescue Koby at Hachinosu, leading many to wonder why he couldn't do the same for his biological grandchild. Comparable doubts have now resurfaced with the God Valley recollection: how can Monkey D. Garp serve the Marines, aware the World Government treats genocide and enslavement as sport for the upper class?

The truth reveals something different. The instant Garp witnessed the Elders' monstrous shapes, he struck without hesitation. His partnership with Gol D. Roger was not meant to defeat some villainous Rocks D. Xebec, but a bold act of defiance, an effort to stop the sovereign, who was using Xebec as a pawn to wipe out everyone in God Valley, including apparently, including the Celestial Dragons themselves. This incident is probably the cause Monkey D. Garp detests the World Nobles in the present day and why he not once wanted to be promoted to Fleet Admiral, answering straight to them.

The Past's Untrustworthy Storytellers

Even though the readers are seeing the Divine Isle incident through a recollection narrated by Loki, covering perspectives and occurrences he obviously wasn't present for, I believe we can treat this account as completely accurate. The manga may offer an explanation in the future, maybe connected to the giant's still mysterious paramecia ability. Nevertheless, the Divine Isle event perfectly embodies the idea that the past is recorded by the winners. This mindset is {