🔗 Share this article

The saying 'The past is recorded by the victors' is a key motif that One Piece author Eiichiro Oda has for some time woven into the story. Popular tales frequently fail to convey the complete truth, including the most influential characters in this story's complex past. Oden was no foolish showman prancing through the streets of Wano Country; he behaved out of honor and conviction. Bartholomew Kuma wasn't a ruthless antagonist who tore apart the Straw Hat Pirates, as well; he was helping them. Likewise, Davy Jones meant beyond just a buccaneer's game in pursuit of flags and crews.

In installment #1164 of One Piece, we see the peak of this theme. The entire Divine Isle story serves as a warning story, instructing readers not to evaluate the individuals too quickly.

Legends often do not capture the complete truth, including the most influential characters.

One Piece's most recent look back, chronicling the God Valley event, represents one of the story's finest arcs to date. Beyond the excitement of seeing icons in their peak, it's gripping to see them prior to when they turned into icons — when their reputation had yet to outgrow their humanity. The past, as recorded by the Global Authority and recounted through secondhand stories, painted our understanding of individuals like Roger, Xebec, and even Monkey D. Garp. But both the regime's accounts and the narratives of those who knew them prove untrustworthy, showing only pieces of who these individuals really were.

The Individual Before the Myth

The future Pirate King may have been guided by purpose and the bold attitude that ignited a new age of buccaneering, but before he was known as the King of the Pirates, he was a young man ruled by emotion and the desire to explore. When individuals speak of his myth, they usually refer to his later journey, the epic expedition in search of the Road Poneglyphs that point toward the final island. Yet not much is known about his first journey, the one that molded him before fame found him.

At that time, Gol D. Roger was largely unaware of the world's secret history. His love for Shakky led him to the Divine Isle, where he uncovered the Global Authority's darkest truths: the extermination "games," the monstrous forms of the Gorosei, and including the presence of the planet's hidden ruler, the mysterious leader. We haven't seen Roger's reflections about everything occurring in God Valley, but perhaps discovering the son of a Holy Knight on his vessel will lead him to understand his place in the globe and pursue the truth he caught a glimpse of from Xebec's predicament.

The Reality About Rocks D. Xebec

Prior to this recollection, what we knew of Rocks D. Xebec was derived almost entirely from the former Fleet Admiral's account, each to the audience and to new Navy recruits. He depicted Rocks D. Xebec as a vile, ambitious man bent on world domination, someone so dangerous that Gol D. Roger and Garp had to team up to defeat him. But as it turns out, Sengoku wasn't even there at God Valley; he was only repeating the Global Authority's approved version of events, the exact narrative the sovereign authorized to bury the reality about Xebec and the incident itself.

In truth, The captain, whose real name was Davy D. Xebec, was a ethical man who sought to overthrow the ruler and dismantle the corrupt World Government. We are unsure if he was motivated by lust for power, retribution for his family, or a desire for justice, but when he discovered the government's plan to eliminate the land where his kin resided, he abandoned his dreams of conquest to rescue them.

This devotion for his relatives became his undoing. After confronting the sovereign, he lost his will and liberty, turning into a marionette controlled to their power. Now, with what little consciousness remains, he pleads with Roger and Garp to kill him — thinking that dying would be a kindness in contrast to the living hell he suffers. The truth of Rocks is thus very different from the story narrated by Sengoku, and the comic presents him in a positive manner during the Divine Isle incidents.

Is He Still Alive Today?

But was Rocks D. Xebec actually meet his end? An intriguing idea is that he is even now a servant to Imu in the current timeline, acting as the scarred individual, keeping the Global Authority's last ancient stone in constant movement to keep the ultimate treasure from being discovered.

Garp's Hidden Rebellion

A further protagonist of the Divine Isle incident is Monkey D. Garp, who has faced criticism from followers for a long time for doing nothing as Admiral Akainu killed Ace. That feeling only grew stronger after the timeskip, when he risked all to rescue Koby at Hachinosu, causing many to question why he was unable to do the identical for his biological grandson. Similar doubts have recently resurfaced with the God Valley recollection: how could Monkey D. Garp serve the Marines, aware the Global Authority considers genocide and slavery as sport for the elite?

The reality reveals something distinct. The instant Monkey D. Garp saw the Elders' monstrous forms, he attacked without hesitation. His alliance with Gol D. Roger was not meant to defeat some evil Xebec, but a courageous act of defiance, an attempt to halt the sovereign, who was manipulating Xebec as a pawn to eliminate all in God Valley, including apparently, including the World Nobles themselves. This event is likely the reason Monkey D. Garp despises the World Nobles in the present day and why he not once desired to be promoted to Admiral, answering straight to them.

The Past's Untrustworthy Storytellers

Although the audience are viewing the God Valley event through a flashback narrated by Loki, including perspectives and occurrences he clearly wasn't present for, I believe we can treat this version as entirely truthful. The manga may provide an reason in the future, perhaps connected to the giant's yet unknown Devil Fruit. Nevertheless, the Divine Isle event excellently exemplifies the notion that the past is recorded by the winners. This attitude is {