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The adage 'History is recorded by the victors' is a key motif that One Piece author Eiichiro Oda has for some time integrated into the narrative. Legends often do not capture the full reality, including the most powerful figures in this world's complex history. Oden was no silly showman dancing through the streets of Wano; he behaved out of duty and principle. Kuma was not a merciless antagonist who tore apart the Straw Hats, as well; he was doing them a favor. Likewise, Davy Jones meant beyond just a pirate's contest in pursuit of emblems and crews.

In installment #1164 of the manga, we witness the peak of this idea. The entire God Valley story serves as a warning story, advising readers not to judge the individuals too hastily.

Myths often do not capture the full truth, including the most influential characters.

One Piece's most recent look back, chronicling the God Valley incident, stands as one of the story's finest arcs to date. Beyond the excitement of witnessing icons in their prime, it's gripping to observe them before they turned into symbols — when their fame had yet to surpass their human nature. History, as recorded by the Global Authority and recounted through hearsay tales, shaped our understanding of individuals like Gol D. Roger, Rocks D. Xebec, and including Garp. But both the government's accounts and the stories of those who were acquainted with them prove unreliable, showing only fragments of who these individuals really were.

The Man Before the Legend

The future Pirate King may have been driven by purpose and the bold spirit that sparked a new age of buccaneering, but prior to he became the King of the Pirates, he was a youth governed by emotion and wanderlust. When people discuss his legend, they typically mean his second voyage, the grand expedition in search of the Road Poneglyphs that lead to Laugh Tale. However little is understood about his initial travels, the one that molded him before fame found him.

At that time, Roger was largely unaware of the world's hidden past. His affection for the barkeep led him to the Divine Isle, where he uncovered the World Government's most sinister truths: the genocidal "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 thoughts about all that's happening in the Divine Isle, but perhaps finding the child of a God's Knight on his ship will make him realize his role in the globe and seek the reality he glimpsed from Xebec's predicament.

The Truth About Rocks D. Xebec

Prior to this flashback, what we were aware of of Xebec came almost entirely from Sengoku's version, both to the audience and to young Marines. He depicted Rocks D. Xebec as a despicable, ambitious man bent on world domination, someone so dangerous that Gol D. Roger and Garp had to team up to defeat him. But as it turns out, the strategist wasn't even present at the Divine Isle; he was merely repeating the Global Authority's approved narrative of events, the exact story Imu authorized to bury the reality about Xebec and the event itself.

In reality, Rocks D. Xebec, whose real name was Davy D. Xebec, was a principled man who sought to overthrow the ruler and dismantle the decadent World Government. We don't know if he was motivated by ambition, revenge for his clan, or a wish for fairness, but when he discovered the regime's plan to eliminate the land where his kin resided, he gave up his ambitions of conquest to rescue them.

This devotion for his family became his undoing. Upon confronting Imu, he lost his will and liberty, becoming a marionette controlled to their authority. Now, with what limited consciousness remains, he begs with Gol D. Roger and Monkey D. Garp to end his life — believing that death would be a mercy compared to the living hell he endures. The truth of Rocks D. Xebec is thus very different from the tale told by the former Fleet Admiral, and the comic shows him in a favorable light during the Divine Isle incidents.

Is He Still Alive Today?

But did Rocks really die? An interesting idea is that he is still a slave to the ruler in the current timeline, serving as the scarred individual, maintaining the Global Authority's only remaining Poneglyph in constant movement to prevent the One Piece from being found.

The Hero's Secret Defiance

Another protagonist of the God Valley incident is Monkey D. Garp, who has endured backlash from fans for a long time for doing nothing as Admiral Akainu murdered Ace. That sentiment only grew more intense after the timeskip, when he risked all to rescue the young Marine at Pirate Island, causing many to wonder why he couldn't do the same for his biological grandchild. Similar questions have recently reemerged with the God Valley recollection: how can Garp work for the Navy, knowing the Global Authority considers genocide and slavery as sport for the elite?

The truth uncovers something distinct. The instant Garp witnessed the Gorosei's monstrous shapes, he struck without hesitation. His partnership with Gol D. Roger was not meant to vanquish some villainous Xebec, but a courageous act of rebellion, an effort to halt Imu, who was manipulating Xebec as a tool to wipe out everyone in the Divine Isle, including it seems, even the World Nobles themselves. This event is likely the cause Monkey D. Garp despises the World Nobles in the current era and why he not once wanted to be elevated to Fleet Admiral, answering straight to them.

History's Unreliable Narrators

Even though the readers are seeing the God Valley incident through a recollection recounted by the giant, including viewpoints and occurrences he clearly wasn't present for, I think we can treat this account as entirely accurate. The series may provide an reason in the future, perhaps linked to the giant's still mysterious Devil Fruit. Nevertheless, the God Valley event excellently embodies the notion that history is recorded by the victors. This attitude is {