🔗 Share this article

The adage 'The past is written by the victors' is a central motif that Eiichiro Oda's epic creator Eiichiro Oda has for some time woven into the narrative. Popular tales often do not capture the complete reality, including the most powerful characters in this world's complex past. Oden was no silly showman prancing through the streets of Wano Country; he acted out of duty and conviction. Bartholomew Kuma was not a ruthless antagonist who separated the Straw Hat Pirates, as well; he was doing them a favor. Likewise, the Davy Jones legend meant beyond just a pirate's game in search of flags and followers.

In chapter #1164 of the manga, we witness the peak of this idea. The entire God Valley story serves as a cautionary tale, instructing readers not to judge the characters too hastily.

Myths frequently fail to convey the complete reality, including the most influential characters.

One Piece's most recent look back, chronicling the Divine Isle event, represents one of the story's finest arcs to date. Apart from the excitement of witnessing legends in their prime, it's gripping to see them prior to when they became symbols — when their fame had still not outgrow their humanity. History, as recorded by the World Government and retold through secondhand tales, shaped our understanding of figures like Gol D. Roger, Xebec, and including Garp. But each of the government's records and the narratives of those who knew them prove untrustworthy, revealing only pieces of who these individuals truly were.

The Individual Prior to the Legend

Gol D. Roger may have been guided by mission and the bold attitude that ignited a fresh era of buccaneering, but prior to he became the Pirate King, he was a young man governed by emotion and wanderlust. When people speak of his myth, they typically mean his second voyage, the epic expedition in pursuit of the Road Poneglyphs that lead to Laugh Tale. However little is known about his initial travels, the one that molded him before fame discovered him.

Back then, Gol D. Roger knew little of the world's secret past. His affection for Shakky guided him to the Divine Isle, where he discovered the World Government's most sinister realities: the extermination "games," the monstrous forms of the Five Elders, and including the presence of the planet's unseen ruler, Imu. We haven't seen Gol D. Roger's reflections about everything happening in the Divine Isle, but perhaps discovering the child of a Holy Knight on his ship will lead him to understand his place in the world and pursue the truth he caught a glimpse of from Xebec's predicament.

The Reality About Rocks D. Xebec

Before this flashback, what we knew of Xebec was derived almost entirely from Sengoku's version, each to the viewers and to new Navy recruits. He depicted Xebec as a despicable, power-hungry man determined to achieve global control, someone so dangerous that Gol D. Roger and Monkey D. Garp had to team up to defeat him. But as it transpires, Sengoku was not present at the Divine Isle; he was only echoing the World Government's approved version of events, the exact narrative the sovereign authorized to conceal 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 aimed to topple the ruler and dismantle the corrupt Global Authority. We are unsure if he was guided by ambition, retribution for his family, or a desire for fairness, but when he discovered the regime's plan to annihilate the land where his family lived, he abandoned his ambitions of conquest to rescue them.

This devotion for his family became his downfall. Upon facing the sovereign, he forfeited his determination and liberty, becoming a puppet enslaved to their power. Now, with what little consciousness is left, he pleads with Gol D. Roger and Monkey D. Garp to kill him — believing that dying would be a mercy compared to the torment he suffers. The reality of Rocks D. Xebec is thus very different from the story told by the former Fleet Admiral, and the comic presents him in a favorable manner during the God Valley incidents.

Could He Be Living Today?

But was Rocks D. Xebec really meet his end? An intriguing idea is that he is even now a slave to the ruler in the present day, serving as The Man Marked By Flames, maintaining the Global Authority's only remaining 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 Garp, who has faced criticism from fans for years for doing nothing as Admiral Akainu murdered Ace. That feeling became even more intense after the timeskip, when he endangered everything to save Koby at Hachinosu, causing many to wonder why he was unable to do the identical for his biological grandchild. Comparable questions have recently resurfaced with the God Valley recollection: how could Garp work for the Navy, knowing the World Government considers genocide and enslavement as sport for the elite?

The reality uncovers something distinct. The instant Garp witnessed the Elders' grotesque forms, he attacked immediately. His alliance with Gol D. Roger wasn't to defeat some evil Xebec, but a bold act of rebellion, an attempt to halt the sovereign, who was manipulating Rocks D. Xebec as a tool to eliminate all in the Divine Isle, including it seems, even the Celestial Dragons themselves. This incident is likely the cause Monkey D. Garp despises the World Nobles in the present day and why he not once desired to be elevated to Fleet Admiral, reporting straight to them.

History's Unreliable Storytellers

Although the readers are viewing the God Valley event through a recollection recounted by the giant, including perspectives and events he obviously was absent for, I believe we can treat this version as entirely accurate. The series may provide an explanation later, perhaps connected to the giant's yet unknown Devil Fruit. Still, the God Valley incident excellently exemplifies the notion that history is recorded by the victors. This attitude is {