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The saying 'History is written by the winners' is a key theme that One Piece author Eiichiro Oda has for some time integrated into the story. Popular tales frequently do not convey the full reality, even for the most powerful characters in this story's intricate history. Kozuki Oden was no foolish performer prancing through the roads of Wano; he acted out of duty and principle. Bartholomew Kuma was not a merciless antagonist who separated the Straw Hats, as well; he was helping them. Likewise, the Davy Jones legend signified more than a pirate's contest in pursuit of emblems and crews.

In installment #1164 of One Piece, we witness the peak of this theme. The whole God Valley story serves as a warning story, advising audiences not to evaluate the characters too hastily.

Myths frequently do not convey the complete truth, even for the most influential figures.

The series's most recent look back, chronicling the God Valley event, represents one of the series' finest storylines to date. Apart from the excitement of seeing legends in their peak, it's compelling to see them prior to when they became symbols — when their fame had still not outgrow their human nature. History, as written by the Global Authority and recounted through secondhand stories, shaped our perception of individuals like Roger, Xebec, and even Garp. But each of the regime's accounts and the stories of those who were acquainted with them turn out to be unreliable, revealing only pieces of who these individuals really were.

The Individual Before the Legend

The future Pirate King may have been guided by mission and the bold spirit that sparked a fresh era of buccaneering, but prior to he was known as the Pirate King, he was a youth ruled by emotion and wanderlust. When people discuss his myth, they usually mean his second voyage, the grand expedition in pursuit of the guide stones that point toward Laugh Tale. Yet little is known about his initial travels, the one that molded him before fame found him.

At that time, Roger knew little of the globe's secret past. His affection for the barkeep guided him to the Divine Isle, where he discovered the Global Authority's darkest truths: the extermination "contests," the grotesque appearances of the Gorosei, and even the existence of the world's unseen ruler, the mysterious leader. We haven't seen Gol D. Roger's thoughts about all that's happening in God Valley, but maybe discovering the son of a Holy Knight on his vessel will lead him to understand his role in the world and pursue the reality he glimpsed from Xebec's situation.

The Reality About Rocks D. Xebec

Prior to this recollection, what we knew of Rocks D. Xebec was derived mostly from the former Fleet Admiral's version, both to the viewers and to new Marines. He painted Xebec as a vile, power-hungry man determined to achieve world domination, someone so threatening that Gol D. Roger and Monkey D. Garp had to join forces to defeat him. But as it transpires, the strategist was not present at the Divine Isle; he was merely echoing the Global Authority's sanctioned version of events, the very story the sovereign authorized 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 principled man who sought to topple the ruler and dismantle the decadent Global Authority. We don't know if he was motivated by lust for power, retribution for his family, or a desire for justice, but when he found out the government's scheme to annihilate the land where his kin resided, he gave up his dreams of domination to rescue them.

This love for his relatives became his undoing. After confronting Imu, he lost his determination and freedom, becoming a marionette enslaved to their authority. Currently, with what little awareness remains, he begs with Roger and Monkey D. Garp to kill him — believing that dying would be a mercy in contrast to the torment he endures. The truth of Rocks D. Xebec is thus very different from the story told by Sengoku, and the manga shows him in a favorable manner during the Divine Isle events.

Could He Be Living Today?

But did Rocks D. Xebec actually die? An interesting theory is that he is even now a servant to the ruler in the current timeline, acting as the scarred individual, keeping the Global Authority's last Poneglyph in constant transit to prevent the One Piece from being found.

The Hero's Hidden Defiance

A further protagonist of the God Valley event is Monkey D. Garp, who has endured criticism from followers for a long time for doing nothing as Akainu murdered Ace. That sentiment only grew more intense after the time jump, when he endangered everything to save the young Marine at Hachinosu, leading many to question why he couldn't do the identical for his own grandchild. Similar questions have recently resurfaced with the Divine Isle flashback: how can Monkey D. Garp serve the Marines, knowing the World Government treats genocide and enslavement as entertainment for the elite?

The truth reveals something distinct. The instant Monkey D. Garp witnessed the Gorosei's grotesque forms, he attacked without hesitation. His alliance with Gol D. Roger was not meant to vanquish some villainous Rocks D. Xebec, but a courageous act of rebellion, an effort to halt the sovereign, who was using Xebec as a tool to wipe out all in the Divine Isle, even it seems, including the World Nobles themselves. This event is probably the reason Monkey D. Garp despises the Celestial Dragons in the present day and why he never desired to be elevated to Admiral, answering directly to them.

History's Unreliable Storytellers

Although the audience are seeing the God Valley event through a recollection narrated by Loki, including viewpoints and occurrences he clearly wasn't present for, I think we can consider this account as completely accurate. The series may offer an explanation in the future, perhaps linked to the giant's still mysterious paramecia ability. Nevertheless, the Divine Isle event perfectly embodies the notion that the past is recorded by the winners. This mindset is {