🔗 Share this article

The saying 'The past is recorded by the winners' is a central theme that Eiichiro Oda's epic creator Eiichiro Oda has for some time integrated into the narrative. Popular tales often do not capture the full reality, even for the most powerful characters in this world's intricate history. Oden wasn't a silly performer dancing through the roads of Wano; he behaved out of duty and conviction. Bartholomew Kuma was not a merciless villain who tore apart the Straw Hat Pirates, either; he was doing them a favor. Likewise, Davy Jones meant more than a buccaneer's game in search of flags and crews.

In installment #1164 of One Piece, we witness the culmination of this idea. The entire God Valley story serves as a cautionary tale, instructing readers not to evaluate the characters too hastily.

Legends often fail to convey the complete reality, including the most influential characters.

The series's latest look back, detailing the God Valley incident, stands as one of the series' finest arcs to now. Apart from the excitement of witnessing icons in their prime, it's gripping to see them before they turned into symbols — when their fame had still not surpass their humanity. The past, as written by the World Government and recounted through secondhand tales, painted our perception of individuals like Gol D. Roger, Xebec, and including Monkey D. Garp. But both the government's records and the stories of those who knew them turn out to be untrustworthy, revealing only fragments of who these men truly were.

The Man Before the Legend

Gol D. Roger may have been driven by purpose and the bold attitude that ignited a fresh era of piracy, but prior to he became the Pirate King, he was a youth ruled by emotion and wanderlust. When individuals discuss his myth, they usually refer to his second voyage, the grand expedition in pursuit of the guide stones that point toward Laugh Tale. Yet not much is understood about his initial travels, the one that shaped him before fame found him.

At that time, Roger knew little of the globe's hidden history. His love for the barkeep led him to God Valley, where he discovered the Global Authority's darkest truths: the genocidal "games," the grotesque appearances of the Five Elders, and even the presence of the world's hidden sovereign, the mysterious leader. We haven't seen Roger's reflections about everything occurring in the Divine Isle, but maybe finding the son of a Holy Knight on his ship will lead him to understand his role in the world and pursue the truth he glimpsed from Rocks D. Xebec's situation.

The Truth About Rocks D. Xebec

Before this flashback, what we knew of Xebec was derived mostly from Sengoku's version, both to the viewers and to young Marines. He painted Rocks D. Xebec as a despicable, power-hungry man determined to achieve world domination, someone so threatening that Roger and Garp had to team up to overcome him. But as it transpires, the strategist was not there at God Valley; he was only echoing the Global Authority's sanctioned version of events, the very story Imu approved to bury the reality about Xebec and the incident itself.

In reality, 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 guided by lust for power, retribution for his family, or a wish for fairness, but when he found out the regime's scheme to eliminate the land where his kin lived, he abandoned his dreams of conquest to rescue them.

This devotion for his relatives proved to be his undoing. Upon facing Imu, he forfeited his determination and liberty, becoming a marionette controlled to their authority. Now, with what little consciousness is left, he pleads with Roger and Garp to end his life — believing that death would be a mercy compared to the torment he endures. The truth of Rocks D. Xebec is thus very different from the story narrated by Sengoku, and the manga shows him in a positive light during the Divine Isle incidents.

Could He Be Still Alive Today?

But did Rocks actually die? An interesting idea is that he is still a slave to the ruler in the present day, acting as The Man Marked By Flames, keeping the Global Authority's only remaining ancient stone in continuous movement to keep the ultimate treasure from being found.

Garp's Hidden Defiance

Another protagonist of the God Valley event is Garp, who has endured backlash from fans for years for doing nothing as Akainu murdered Portgas D. Ace. That sentiment only grew stronger after the timeskip, when he endangered everything to save Koby at Pirate Island, causing many to question why he couldn't do the same for his biological grandson. Comparable questions have now resurfaced with the God Valley recollection: how can Garp serve the Navy, aware the World Government considers genocide and enslavement as entertainment for the elite?

The reality uncovers something different. The instant Monkey D. Garp saw the Gorosei's monstrous forms, he struck immediately. His alliance with Gol D. Roger wasn't to defeat some villainous Xebec, but a courageous act of rebellion, an attempt to stop the sovereign, who was using Rocks D. Xebec as a pawn to eliminate everyone in the Divine Isle, even it seems, even the World Nobles themselves. This event is likely the cause Garp despises the World Nobles in the current era and why he not once desired to be promoted to Fleet Admiral, reporting directly to them.

The Past's Unreliable Narrators

Even though the readers are seeing the God Valley event through a flashback recounted by Loki, covering viewpoints and events he obviously was absent for, I think we can consider this account as completely truthful. The manga may provide an reason in the future, perhaps connected to the giant's yet unknown Devil Fruit. Still, the God Valley event excellently exemplifies the idea that the past is recorded by the winners. This attitude is {