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The saying 'The past is recorded by the winners' serves as a key theme that Eiichiro Oda's epic creator Eiichiro Oda has for some time integrated into the story. Popular tales frequently do not capture the full truth, even for the most powerful characters in this story's complex past. Oden was no foolish performer dancing through the streets of Wano; he acted out of honor and conviction. Bartholomew Kuma wasn't a ruthless villain who tore apart the Straw Hats, either; he was helping them. Similarly, the Davy Jones legend meant more than a buccaneer's contest in search of emblems and followers.

In installment #1164 of the manga, we see the peak of this theme. The whole God Valley narrative serves as a warning story, advising audiences not to evaluate the individuals too quickly.

Legends frequently do not convey the full reality, including the most powerful figures.

The series's latest flashback, chronicling the God Valley event, stands as one of the story's finest arcs to now. Beyond the excitement of seeing icons in their peak, it's compelling to see them prior to when they turned into icons — when their fame had still not outgrow their humanity. The past, as written by the World Government and retold through secondhand stories, painted our perception of individuals like Gol D. Roger, Xebec, and even Garp. But both the regime's accounts and the stories of those who knew them turn out to be untrustworthy, showing only pieces of who these individuals really were.

The Individual Prior to the Myth

The future Pirate King may have been driven by purpose and the daring attitude that ignited a new age of buccaneering, but before he was known as the King of the Pirates, he was a youth governed by emotion and the desire to explore. When individuals discuss his myth, they typically mean his second voyage, the grand expedition in search of the Road Poneglyphs that lead to the final island. However not much is understood about his first journey, the one that molded him prior to fame discovered him.

Back then, Gol D. Roger was largely unaware of the globe's secret history. His love for Shakky guided him to the Divine Isle, where he discovered the Global Authority's most sinister truths: the genocidal "games," the monstrous forms of the Five Elders, and even the existence of the world's unseen ruler, the mysterious leader. We haven't seen Roger's thoughts about all that's happening in the Divine Isle, but maybe discovering the child of a God's Knight on his vessel will lead him to understand his role in the globe and seek the truth he glimpsed from Rocks D. 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 the former Fleet Admiral's version, each to the viewers and to new Navy recruits. He depicted 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 turns out, the strategist wasn't even there at the Divine Isle; he was only echoing the World Government's sanctioned version of occurrences, the exact story the sovereign approved to conceal the truth about Rocks D. Xebec and the event itself.

In reality, Rocks D. Xebec, whose true name was Davy D. Xebec, was a principled man who sought to overthrow the ruler and dismantle the corrupt World Government. We are unsure if he was motivated by ambition, retribution for his clan, or a wish for justice, but when he found out the regime's scheme to eliminate the island where his family lived, he abandoned his dreams of domination to rescue them.

This love for his family proved to be his undoing. After confronting the sovereign, he lost his will and freedom, turning into a marionette controlled to their power. Currently, with what limited consciousness remains, he begs with Roger and Garp to end his life — thinking that death would be a kindness compared to the torment he suffers. The reality of Rocks D. Xebec is thus far from the story narrated by the former Fleet Admiral, and the manga presents him in a positive manner during the God Valley incidents.

Is He Living Today?

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

Garp's Secret Defiance

A further key figure of the God Valley event is Monkey D. Garp, who has faced criticism from fans for years for standing by as Akainu murdered Ace. That feeling only grew stronger after the time jump, when he risked all to save the young Marine at Hachinosu, leading many to question why he couldn't do the identical for his own grandchild. Comparable doubts have now resurfaced with the Divine Isle flashback: how could Monkey D. Garp serve the Marines, knowing the Global Authority considers mass murder and slavery as sport for the upper class?

The truth uncovers something different. The moment Monkey D. Garp saw the Elders' grotesque shapes, he struck immediately. His alliance with Gol D. Roger was not meant to defeat some villainous Xebec, but a courageous act of defiance, an attempt to halt Imu, who was using Xebec as a tool to wipe out everyone in God Valley, including apparently, even the Celestial Dragons themselves. This event is likely the reason Monkey D. Garp detests the World Nobles in the current era and why he not once desired to be promoted to Fleet Admiral, answering straight to them.

The Past's Unreliable Storytellers

Even though the audience are viewing the God Valley incident through a recollection recounted by Loki, covering viewpoints and events he obviously was absent for, I believe we can consider this version as entirely accurate. The manga may provide an reason in the future, maybe linked to the giant's still mysterious Devil Fruit. Still, the God Valley event perfectly embodies the notion that history is recorded by the victors. This attitude is {