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The adage 'History is recorded by the victors' serves as a key motif that One Piece creator Eiichiro Oda has for some time woven into the narrative. Legends often fail to capture the complete reality, including the most powerful figures in this story's intricate past. Kozuki Oden wasn't a foolish performer prancing through the roads of Wano Country; he acted out of duty and principle. Bartholomew Kuma was not a merciless antagonist who separated the Straw Hat Pirates, either; he was helping them. Similarly, Davy Jones meant beyond just a buccaneer's contest in search of flags and crews.

In installment #1164 of One Piece, we witness the culmination of this idea. The whole Divine Isle narrative serves as a warning story, instructing audiences not to evaluate the characters too hastily.

Myths often do not capture the full truth, even for the most powerful figures.

The series's most recent flashback, detailing the Divine Isle incident, represents one of the series' best arcs to date. Beyond the excitement of witnessing legends in their peak, it's compelling to observe them before they became icons — when their reputation had yet to outgrow their human nature. History, as recorded by the Global Authority and retold through secondhand tales, shaped our understanding of individuals like Gol D. Roger, Xebec, and including Garp. But both the regime's records and the stories of those who were acquainted with them turn out to be untrustworthy, revealing only fragments of who these individuals really were.

The Man Before the Legend

Gol D. Roger may have been guided by purpose and the daring attitude that sparked a fresh era of buccaneering, but before he was known as the Pirate King, he was a young man ruled by passion and the desire to explore. When people discuss his legend, they typically mean his later journey, the epic expedition in pursuit of the guide stones that point toward Laugh Tale. Yet little is understood about his first journey, the one that shaped him before glory discovered him.

At that time, Gol D. Roger was largely unaware of the world's hidden past. His affection for Shakky guided him to God Valley, where he uncovered the Global Authority's darkest realities: the extermination "games," the monstrous forms of the Five Elders, and including the existence of the world's hidden sovereign, Imu. We are yet to witness Gol D. Roger's reflections about all that's happening in God Valley, but perhaps finding the son of a Holy Knight on his ship will lead him to understand his place in the globe and seek the reality he glimpsed from Xebec's situation.

The Reality About The Infamous Captain

Before this recollection, what we knew of Xebec came almost entirely from Sengoku's version, each to the viewers and to young Navy recruits. He depicted Rocks D. Xebec as a despicable, ambitious man determined to achieve world domination, someone so dangerous that Gol D. Roger and Monkey D. Garp had to team up to overcome him. But as it transpires, the strategist wasn't even present at the Divine Isle; he was merely repeating the World Government's approved narrative of events, the very narrative Imu approved to bury the truth about Xebec and the incident itself.

In truth, 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, revenge for his family, or a desire for fairness, but when he discovered the government's plan to eliminate the island where his family resided, he abandoned his dreams of domination to rescue them.

This love for his relatives proved to be his downfall. Upon facing the sovereign, he lost his determination and liberty, becoming a marionette controlled to their authority. Now, with what little consciousness is left, he pleads with Roger and Monkey D. Garp to end his life — thinking that death would be a kindness in contrast to the torment he endures. The truth of Rocks is thus far from the tale told by Sengoku, and the comic shows him in a positive manner during the Divine Isle incidents.

Is He Living Today?

But did Rocks really meet his end? An intriguing idea is that he is even now a slave to Imu in the current timeline, serving as The Man Marked By Flames, keeping the Global Authority's only remaining ancient stone in continuous movement to prevent the ultimate treasure from being found.

The Hero's Hidden Rebellion

Another key figure of the God Valley incident is Garp, who has faced backlash from followers for years for standing by as Akainu killed Portgas D. Ace. That sentiment only grew stronger after the timeskip, when he endangered all to rescue the young Marine at Hachinosu, leading many to wonder why he was unable to do the same for his own grandson. Similar questions have now reemerged with the God Valley flashback: how could Monkey D. Garp work for the Marines, aware the Global Authority treats mass murder and slavery as sport for the upper class?

The reality reveals something distinct. The moment Garp witnessed the Elders' monstrous forms, he struck immediately. His alliance with Roger was not meant to vanquish some villainous Xebec, but a courageous act of defiance, an effort to stop Imu, who was using Rocks D. Xebec as a tool to wipe out everyone in the Divine Isle, including it seems, including the World Nobles themselves. This incident is likely the cause Garp despises the Celestial Dragons in the present day and why he not once wanted to be promoted to Fleet Admiral, reporting directly to them.

History's Untrustworthy Storytellers

Although the readers are seeing the Divine Isle event through a flashback narrated by the giant, including viewpoints and occurrences he clearly was absent for, I think we can treat this account as completely accurate. The series may provide an reason in the future, perhaps linked to the giant's yet unknown paramecia ability. Still, the Divine Isle incident excellently exemplifies the notion that history is recorded by the victors. This attitude is {