🔗 Share this article

The adage 'History is written by the winners' is a key motif that Eiichiro Oda's epic author Eiichiro Oda has long integrated into the story. Legends often do not convey the complete truth, including the most influential characters in this world's complex history. Oden wasn't a silly performer dancing through the roads of Wano Country; he acted out of honor and principle. Kuma wasn't a ruthless antagonist who tore apart the Straw Hat Pirates, either; he was helping them. Similarly, the Davy Jones legend meant beyond just a pirate's game in search of flags and crews.

In installment #1164 of the manga, we see the peak of this theme. The entire God Valley narrative acts as a cautionary tale, instructing readers not to judge the individuals too quickly.

Legends often fail to convey the full reality, even for the most influential figures.

The series's latest flashback, chronicling the God Valley event, represents one of the story's best storylines to date. Beyond the excitement of witnessing icons in their peak, it's gripping to see them before they became icons — when their fame had still not outgrow their humanity. History, as recorded by the World Government and recounted through hearsay stories, shaped our perception of individuals like Gol D. Roger, Xebec, and even Garp. But each of the regime's accounts and the narratives of those who knew them turn out to be unreliable, showing only pieces of who these men truly were.

The Individual Prior to the Legend

Gol D. Roger may have been guided by mission and the daring spirit that sparked a fresh era of buccaneering, but prior to he became the Pirate King, he was a young man ruled by passion and the desire to explore. When people discuss his myth, they usually mean his second voyage, the epic expedition in search of the guide stones that lead to Laugh Tale. However not much is understood about his initial travels, the one that molded him before fame discovered him.

At that time, Roger knew little of the globe's secret history. His affection for Shakky guided him to the Divine Isle, where he uncovered the Global Authority's darkest truths: the genocidal "games," the grotesque forms of the Gorosei, and including the existence of the world's unseen sovereign, Imu. We are yet to witness Roger's reflections about all that's happening in the Divine Isle, but maybe discovering the son of a God's Knight on his ship will make him realize his role in the world and pursue the truth he caught a glimpse of from Rocks D. Xebec's situation.

The Truth About Rocks D. Xebec

Prior to this recollection, what we knew of Rocks D. Xebec came mostly from the former Fleet Admiral's version, both to the audience and to young Marines. He painted Rocks D. Xebec as a vile, ambitious man determined to achieve world domination, someone so dangerous that Roger and Monkey D. Garp had to team up to defeat him. But as it transpires, the strategist wasn't even there at the Divine Isle; he was only repeating the World Government's sanctioned narrative of events, the exact story Imu authorized to bury 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 decadent World Government. We are unsure if he was motivated by ambition, revenge for his family, or a desire for fairness, but when he found out the government's plan to annihilate the land where his kin lived, he abandoned his dreams of conquest to save them.

This devotion for his relatives became his downfall. Upon confronting Imu, he forfeited his determination and freedom, turning into a marionette enslaved to their authority. Currently, with what little consciousness remains, he pleads with Roger and Monkey D. Garp to kill him — believing that death would be a mercy compared to the torment he endures. The reality of Rocks D. Xebec is thus far from the story narrated by the former Fleet Admiral, and the comic presents him in a favorable manner during the Divine Isle events.

Could He Be Living Today?

But was Rocks actually die? An interesting theory is that he is still a slave to Imu in the current timeline, serving as The Man Marked By Flames, maintaining the World Government's last Poneglyph in constant transit to prevent the ultimate treasure from being found.

Garp's Hidden Defiance

Another key figure of the God Valley incident is Monkey D. Garp, who has endured criticism from fans for years for doing nothing as Akainu murdered Portgas D. Ace. That sentiment became even more intense after the time jump, when he endangered all to save the young Marine at Pirate Island, causing many to question why he couldn't do the same for his biological grandson. Similar doubts have recently resurfaced with the God Valley flashback: how can Garp serve the Navy, knowing the World Government treats genocide and enslavement as entertainment for the elite?

The truth reveals something distinct. The moment Garp saw the Gorosei's grotesque forms, he struck immediately. His alliance with Gol D. Roger was not meant to defeat some evil Rocks D. Xebec, but a courageous act of defiance, an attempt to halt the sovereign, who was manipulating Rocks D. Xebec as a pawn to wipe out all in the Divine Isle, even it seems, even the World Nobles themselves. This incident is likely the reason Monkey D. Garp detests the World Nobles in the current era and why he never desired to be elevated to Admiral, answering directly to them.

The Past's Untrustworthy Storytellers

Even though the audience are seeing the God Valley incident through a recollection narrated by the giant, including perspectives and events he obviously was absent for, I think we can consider this version as entirely accurate. The manga may offer an reason later, perhaps linked to the giant's yet unknown paramecia ability. Nevertheless, the Divine Isle incident perfectly embodies the notion that history is recorded by the winners. This mindset is {