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The saying 'The past is recorded by the victors' is a central theme that One Piece author Eiichiro Oda has long integrated into the narrative. Popular tales frequently fail to convey the full truth, even for the most influential characters in this story's complex history. Oden wasn't a foolish showman dancing through the roads of Wano Country; he behaved out of duty and conviction. Kuma wasn't a merciless villain who tore apart the Straw Hats, as well; he was doing them a favor. Likewise, Davy Jones signified more than a pirate's game in pursuit of emblems and followers.

In chapter #1164 of the manga, we see the peak of this theme. The entire Divine Isle story acts as a warning story, advising audiences not to judge the individuals too quickly.

Myths often fail to capture the complete reality, including the most powerful figures.

One Piece's most recent flashback, detailing the Divine Isle incident, represents one of the story's best arcs to now. Apart from the thrill of witnessing icons in their prime, it's compelling to see them before they became symbols — when their reputation had still not surpass their human nature. History, as written by the Global Authority and retold through secondhand stories, shaped our perception of individuals like Gol D. Roger, Rocks D. Xebec, and including Garp. But each of the government's accounts and the narratives of those who were acquainted with them prove unreliable, revealing only fragments of who these individuals really were.

The Man Prior to the Myth

Gol D. Roger may have been driven by purpose and the bold spirit that ignited a new age of piracy, but prior to he was known as the King of the Pirates, he was a youth governed by passion and the desire to explore. When people discuss his myth, they usually mean his second voyage, the grand quest in pursuit of the guide stones that point toward the final island. Yet not much is known about his first journey, the one that shaped him before fame found him.

Back then, Roger knew little of the world's hidden history. His affection for the barkeep led him to the Divine Isle, where he uncovered the World Government's most sinister realities: the genocidal "contests," the grotesque forms of the Five Elders, and including the presence of the world's unseen ruler, Imu. We haven't seen Roger's reflections about everything happening in the Divine Isle, but maybe discovering the son of a God's Knight on his vessel will lead him to understand his place in the world and seek the truth he caught a glimpse of from Xebec's predicament.

The Truth About Rocks D. Xebec

Before this recollection, what we knew of Rocks D. Xebec was derived mostly from Sengoku's account, both to the viewers and to new Marines. He depicted Xebec as a despicable, ambitious man determined to achieve world domination, someone so threatening that Roger and Monkey D. Garp had to team up to defeat him. But as it transpires, the strategist was not present at God Valley; he was only echoing the Global Authority's sanctioned narrative of events, the very narrative Imu authorized to conceal the truth about Rocks D. Xebec and the incident itself.

In truth, The captain, whose true name was Davy D. Xebec, was a principled man who aimed to overthrow Imu and dismantle the corrupt Global Authority. We are unsure if he was motivated by lust for power, revenge for his clan, or a wish for justice, but when he found out the regime's plan to eliminate the island where his kin resided, he abandoned his dreams of domination to save them.

This devotion for his relatives proved to be his undoing. After confronting Imu, he lost his will and freedom, turning into a puppet enslaved to their power. Now, with what little consciousness is left, he pleads with Roger and Monkey D. Garp to kill him — thinking that dying would be a mercy in contrast to the torment he suffers. The truth of Rocks is thus far from the tale narrated by Sengoku, and the manga shows him in a positive light during the God Valley incidents.

Could He Be Living Today?

But did Rocks really meet his end? An intriguing theory is that he is still a servant to Imu in the present day, serving as the scarred individual, maintaining the World Government's last Poneglyph in continuous movement to prevent the One Piece from being discovered.

Garp's Secret Rebellion

Another key figure of the Divine Isle incident is Monkey D. Garp, who has endured criticism from followers for a long time for standing by as Akainu killed Portgas D. Ace. That sentiment only grew more intense after the time jump, when he risked all to rescue the young Marine at Hachinosu, causing many to question why he was unable to do the same for his biological grandchild. Comparable doubts have now reemerged with the Divine Isle flashback: how could Garp work for the Navy, knowing the Global Authority considers mass murder and enslavement as entertainment for the upper class?

The reality reveals something different. The instant Garp witnessed the Elders' grotesque forms, he struck without hesitation. His partnership with Roger was not meant to defeat some evil Rocks D. Xebec, but a courageous act of rebellion, an effort to stop the sovereign, who was manipulating Xebec as a tool to eliminate everyone in the Divine Isle, even apparently, even the Celestial Dragons themselves. This event is likely the reason Garp detests the Celestial Dragons in the present day and why he not once wanted to be promoted to Admiral, answering directly to them.

History's Untrustworthy Storytellers

Although the audience are viewing the Divine Isle incident through a recollection recounted by the giant, covering perspectives and events he clearly was absent for, I believe we can consider this account as entirely accurate. The series may offer an explanation later, perhaps linked to the giant's yet unknown Devil Fruit. Nevertheless, the God Valley event perfectly exemplifies the notion that the past is written by the winners. This attitude is {