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The adage 'The past is written by the victors' is a central motif that One Piece author Eiichiro Oda has long integrated into the story. Popular tales often do not capture the complete truth, even for the most powerful figures in this world's complex past. Kozuki Oden was no silly showman prancing through the streets of Wano; he acted out of honor and principle. Bartholomew Kuma was not a ruthless villain who tore apart the Straw Hat Pirates, as well; he was doing them a favor. Likewise, Davy Jones signified beyond just a buccaneer's game in search of emblems and crews.

In chapter #1164 of One Piece, we witness the culmination of this theme. The entire God Valley narrative serves as a cautionary tale, instructing readers not to evaluate the characters too quickly.

Myths often fail to capture the full truth, including the most powerful figures.

One Piece's most recent flashback, chronicling the God Valley incident, represents one of the series' finest storylines to now. Apart from the thrill of witnessing legends in their prime, it's compelling to see them before they turned into symbols — when their reputation had yet to surpass their human nature. History, as recorded by the World Government and retold through hearsay tales, shaped our understanding of figures like Roger, Rocks D. Xebec, and including Monkey D. Garp. But each of the government's records and the stories of those who were acquainted with them prove untrustworthy, showing only fragments of who these men really were.

The Individual Prior to the Legend

The future Pirate King may have been guided by purpose and the daring spirit that sparked a new age of piracy, but prior to he became the King of the Pirates, he was a young man governed by emotion and wanderlust. When people discuss his legend, they typically mean his later journey, the epic quest in pursuit of the Road Poneglyphs that point toward Laugh Tale. Yet not much is understood about his first journey, the one that shaped him before glory found him.

Back then, Gol D. Roger was largely unaware of the globe's hidden history. His love for the barkeep led him to God Valley, where he discovered the World Government's darkest truths: the extermination "contests," the grotesque forms of the Gorosei, and including the presence of the planet's hidden sovereign, the mysterious leader. We are yet to witness Roger's thoughts about all that's occurring in the Divine Isle, but maybe finding the child of a God's Knight on his vessel will make him realize his place in the globe and seek the truth he caught a glimpse of from Xebec's predicament.

The Truth About The Infamous Captain

Prior to this recollection, what we knew of Rocks D. Xebec was derived mostly from the former Fleet Admiral's version, each to the viewers and to new Marines. He painted Rocks D. Xebec as a vile, power-hungry man determined to achieve world domination, someone so threatening that Roger and Garp had to join forces to defeat him. But as it transpires, Sengoku was not present at God Valley; he was only echoing the World Government's approved version of occurrences, the very narrative the sovereign approved to conceal the reality about Rocks D. Xebec and the event itself.

In truth, The captain, whose real name was Davy D. Xebec, was a ethical man who aimed to topple the ruler and dismantle the corrupt World Government. We don't know if he was motivated by ambition, revenge for his clan, or a desire for fairness, but when he found out the regime's plan to eliminate the island where his kin lived, he abandoned his ambitions of conquest to save them.

This devotion for his family proved to be his undoing. Upon facing Imu, he forfeited his determination and liberty, turning into a puppet controlled to their authority. Now, with what limited awareness is left, he pleads with Roger and Monkey D. Garp to end his life — believing that dying would be a mercy compared to the torment he suffers. The reality of Rocks is thus far from the story narrated by Sengoku, and the manga presents him in a positive manner during the Divine Isle events.

Is He Living Today?

But was Rocks 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, maintaining the World Government's last ancient stone in continuous movement to prevent the ultimate treasure from being found.

Garp's Hidden Defiance

Another key figure of the God Valley event is Garp, who has endured backlash from followers for years for doing nothing as Admiral Akainu murdered Portgas D. Ace. That feeling became even more intense after the time jump, when he endangered everything to save the young Marine at Pirate Island, causing many to wonder why he was unable to do the identical for his own grandson. Similar doubts have recently reemerged with the Divine Isle flashback: how can Garp serve the Navy, aware the Global Authority considers genocide and enslavement as entertainment for the upper class?

The truth reveals something different. The instant Monkey D. Garp saw the Gorosei's monstrous shapes, he struck without hesitation. His alliance with Roger was not meant to defeat some evil Xebec, but a courageous act of rebellion, an effort to halt Imu, who was using Xebec as a pawn to wipe out all in God Valley, even it seems, even the World Nobles themselves. This incident is probably the reason Garp detests the World Nobles in the current era and why he not once wanted to be elevated to Fleet Admiral, reporting directly to them.

The Past's Unreliable Narrators

Even though the audience are viewing the God Valley event through a recollection recounted by the giant, covering viewpoints and occurrences he clearly wasn't present for, I believe we can treat this version as completely accurate. The series may offer an explanation in the future, maybe connected to Loki's still mysterious Devil Fruit. Still, the Divine Isle event excellently exemplifies the notion that the past is written by the victors. This attitude is {