🔗 Share this article

The saying 'The past is recorded by the victors' is a central motif that Eiichiro Oda's epic author Eiichiro Oda has long integrated into the narrative. Popular tales often fail to capture the full reality, including the most powerful figures in this world's intricate past. Oden was no silly performer prancing through the roads of Wano; he acted out of duty and conviction. Kuma wasn't a merciless villain who tore apart the Straw Hats, either; he was doing them a favor. Likewise, Davy Jones meant beyond just a pirate's game in search of flags and followers.

In installment #1164 of the manga, we see the peak of this idea. The whole God Valley story serves as a cautionary tale, advising readers not to judge the individuals too hastily.

Legends frequently fail to convey the full truth, including the most influential characters.

The series's most recent flashback, chronicling the Divine Isle incident, represents one of the series' finest storylines to date. Apart from the thrill of witnessing legends in their prime, it's gripping to see them before they turned into icons — when their reputation had still not outgrow their human nature. History, as written by the World Government and recounted through hearsay tales, shaped our perception of figures like Gol D. Roger, Rocks D. Xebec, and even Monkey D. Garp. But each of the regime's accounts and the narratives of those who were acquainted with them prove untrustworthy, revealing only fragments of who these individuals truly were.

The Individual Prior to the Myth

Gol D. Roger may have been guided by purpose and the daring attitude that sparked a fresh era of piracy, but prior to he became the King of the Pirates, he was a young man ruled by emotion and wanderlust. When individuals discuss his legend, they usually refer to his second voyage, the grand expedition in pursuit of the Road Poneglyphs that lead to the final island. Yet not much is understood about his initial travels, the one that molded him before fame found him.

At that time, Gol D. Roger was largely unaware of the globe's secret past. His love for Shakky guided him to God Valley, where he uncovered the Global Authority's most sinister truths: the genocidal "games," the monstrous forms of the Five Elders, and even the presence of the world's unseen ruler, the mysterious leader. We are yet to witness Roger's reflections about all that's occurring in God Valley, but maybe finding the son of a God's Knight on his ship will lead him to understand his place in the world and pursue the reality he glimpsed from Xebec's predicament.

The Reality About The Infamous Captain

Before this flashback, what we were aware of of Rocks D. Xebec was derived mostly from Sengoku's account, each to the audience and to young Marines. He painted Xebec as a despicable, ambitious man determined to achieve global control, someone so threatening that Gol D. Roger and Garp had to join forces to defeat him. But as it turns out, the strategist was not present at the Divine Isle; he was merely echoing the Global Authority's sanctioned narrative of occurrences, the exact story Imu authorized to bury the truth 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 Imu and dismantle the corrupt World Government. We are unsure if he was motivated by ambition, retribution for his family, or a desire for fairness, but when he found out the regime's scheme to annihilate the land where his kin lived, he gave up his dreams of domination to rescue them.

This love for his relatives became his undoing. Upon facing Imu, he forfeited his determination and freedom, turning into a puppet enslaved to their power. Currently, with what little awareness remains, he begs with Gol D. Roger and Monkey D. Garp to kill him — thinking that death would be a mercy in contrast to the torment he suffers. The reality of Rocks is thus far from the story narrated by Sengoku, and the comic shows him in a favorable manner during the God Valley events.

Could He Be Still Alive Today?

But did Rocks D. Xebec actually meet his end? An intriguing theory is that he is even now a servant to Imu in the current timeline, acting as The Man Marked By Flames, keeping the Global Authority's only remaining ancient stone in continuous transit to prevent the ultimate treasure from being discovered.

Garp's Secret Defiance

Another key figure of the Divine Isle event is Monkey D. Garp, who has endured criticism from followers for a long time for standing by as Akainu murdered Portgas D. Ace. That sentiment only grew more intense after the time jump, when he risked everything to rescue the young Marine at Hachinosu, leading many to wonder why he couldn't do the identical for his biological grandson. Similar questions have recently resurfaced with the God Valley flashback: how could Monkey D. Garp serve the Navy, aware the Global Authority treats genocide and slavery as sport for the elite?

The truth uncovers something different. The moment Monkey D. Garp witnessed the Elders' monstrous forms, he attacked immediately. His partnership with Roger was not meant to vanquish some evil Xebec, but a courageous act of defiance, an attempt to stop Imu, who was using Xebec as a tool to eliminate everyone in the Divine Isle, even it seems, including the Celestial Dragons themselves. This event is probably the cause Garp despises the Celestial Dragons in the present day and why he not once desired to be promoted to Admiral, answering directly to them.

The Past's Unreliable Narrators

Although the readers are viewing the God Valley incident through a recollection narrated by the giant, covering perspectives and events he obviously was absent for, I think we can treat this version as entirely accurate. The manga may provide an explanation in the future, perhaps connected to Loki's still mysterious Devil Fruit. Nevertheless, the God Valley incident perfectly embodies the notion that the past is written by the victors. This mindset is {