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The adage 'History is written by the winners' is a key motif that One Piece creator Eiichiro Oda has long woven into the narrative. Popular tales often do not convey the full reality, even for the most powerful figures in this story's intricate history. Kozuki Oden wasn't a silly performer dancing through the streets of Wano; he acted out of duty and conviction. Kuma wasn't a merciless villain who tore apart the Straw Hat Pirates, as well; he was doing them a favor. Similarly, Davy Jones meant beyond just a buccaneer's contest in pursuit of emblems and crews.

In installment #1164 of the manga, we see the culmination of this idea. The whole Divine Isle narrative serves as a warning story, instructing audiences not to evaluate the characters too quickly.

Myths often fail to capture the full reality, even for the most influential characters.

The series's most recent look back, detailing the Divine Isle incident, represents one of the story's best storylines to now. Apart from the excitement of witnessing legends in their peak, it's compelling to see them prior to when they turned into icons — when their reputation had yet to surpass their humanity. History, as written by the World Government and recounted through secondhand stories, shaped our perception of figures like Gol D. Roger, Rocks D. Xebec, and even Garp. But both the government's accounts and the narratives of those who were acquainted with them prove untrustworthy, showing only fragments of who these individuals truly were.

The Man Prior to the Myth

The future Pirate King may have been driven by purpose and the bold spirit that ignited a new age of piracy, but before he was known as the Pirate King, he was a young man governed by passion and the desire to explore. When people discuss his myth, they typically mean his second voyage, the epic quest in pursuit of the Road Poneglyphs that point toward Laugh Tale. However little is understood about his first journey, the one that shaped him prior to glory discovered him.

At that time, Roger knew little of the world's secret history. His love for the barkeep guided him to the Divine Isle, where he discovered the Global Authority's darkest truths: the genocidal "games," the monstrous forms of the Five Elders, and including the presence of the world's unseen sovereign, Imu. We haven't seen Gol D. Roger's reflections about everything happening in God Valley, but maybe discovering the son of a God's Knight on his ship will lead him to understand his place in the globe and pursue the reality he glimpsed from Xebec's situation.

The Truth About The Infamous Captain

Before this recollection, what we knew of Rocks D. Xebec was derived mostly from Sengoku's account, both to the viewers and to young Marines. He painted Xebec as a vile, ambitious man bent on world domination, someone so dangerous that Roger and Monkey D. Garp had to join forces to defeat him. But as it turns out, the strategist was not present at God Valley; he was only echoing the World Government's sanctioned narrative of events, the very story Imu approved to conceal the truth about Xebec and the incident itself.

In reality, Rocks D. Xebec, whose true name was Davy D. Xebec, was a ethical man who aimed to overthrow Imu and dismantle the corrupt World Government. We are unsure if he was guided by ambition, retribution for his clan, or a desire for fairness, but when he discovered the government's plan to eliminate the island where his family lived, he abandoned his ambitions of conquest to save them.

This devotion for his family proved to be his downfall. Upon facing the sovereign, he forfeited his determination and freedom, becoming a marionette controlled to their authority. Now, with what little consciousness is left, he begs with Gol D. Roger and Monkey D. Garp to kill him — thinking that dying would be a kindness compared to the living hell he suffers. The reality of Rocks D. Xebec is thus far from the story told by Sengoku, and the comic presents him in a favorable light during the Divine Isle events.

Is He Living Today?

But did Rocks D. Xebec actually meet his end? An intriguing idea is that he is still a servant to Imu in the current timeline, serving as the scarred individual, keeping the Global Authority's last Poneglyph in constant movement to prevent the One Piece from being found.

Garp's Secret Rebellion

Another key figure of the Divine Isle event is Monkey D. Garp, who has faced criticism from fans for a long time for doing nothing as Admiral Akainu killed Ace. That sentiment became even more intense after the timeskip, when he endangered everything to rescue the young Marine at Hachinosu, leading many to question why he couldn't do the same for his own grandchild. Comparable doubts have recently reemerged with the Divine Isle recollection: how can Monkey D. Garp work for the Marines, knowing the World Government considers mass murder and enslavement as entertainment for the elite?

The reality reveals something different. The instant Monkey D. Garp witnessed the Elders' grotesque shapes, he attacked without hesitation. His partnership with Gol D. Roger wasn't to vanquish some villainous Rocks D. Xebec, but a bold act of defiance, an attempt to stop the sovereign, who was using Xebec as a pawn to wipe out all in God Valley, including apparently, including the World Nobles themselves. This incident is probably the cause Monkey D. Garp detests the World Nobles in the current era and why he never desired to be elevated to Admiral, reporting straight to them.

History's Untrustworthy Storytellers

Even though the readers are seeing the Divine Isle event through a recollection narrated by Loki, covering viewpoints and events he clearly was absent for, I think we can consider this account as entirely truthful. The manga may offer an reason in the future, perhaps linked to Loki's still mysterious paramecia ability. Still, the Divine Isle incident excellently exemplifies the notion that the past is recorded by the winners. This attitude is {