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The saying 'The past is written by the winners' is a key theme that Eiichiro Oda's epic creator Eiichiro Oda has long woven into the story. Legends often fail to capture the full reality, including the most influential figures in this story's complex history. Oden wasn't a foolish performer dancing through the roads of Wano Country; he behaved out of honor and conviction. Bartholomew Kuma wasn't a merciless villain who tore apart the Straw Hats, either; he was doing them a favor. Likewise, the Davy Jones legend signified beyond just a pirate's game in search of flags and crews.

In chapter #1164 of the manga, we witness the culmination of this theme. The entire Divine Isle narrative acts as a cautionary tale, instructing audiences not to judge the individuals too quickly.

Legends frequently do not capture the complete reality, even for the most influential characters.

One Piece's latest flashback, detailing the Divine Isle incident, represents one of the series' finest arcs to now. Apart from the excitement of witnessing icons in their peak, it's compelling to observe them prior to when they turned into icons — when their reputation had still not outgrow their humanity. History, as recorded by the Global Authority and retold through secondhand tales, painted our understanding of figures like Roger, Xebec, and including Monkey D. Garp. But both the government's accounts and the narratives of those who were acquainted with them turn out to be unreliable, showing only pieces of who these men really were.

The Individual Prior to the Legend

The future Pirate King may have been driven by purpose and the bold attitude that ignited a new age of buccaneering, but prior to he became the King of the Pirates, he was a youth ruled by passion and wanderlust. When people discuss his myth, they typically refer to his second voyage, the epic quest in search of the Road Poneglyphs that point toward Laugh Tale. However not much is understood about his initial travels, the one that shaped him prior to glory found him.

Back then, Roger knew little of the globe's hidden past. His love for Shakky guided him to God Valley, where he uncovered the Global Authority's most sinister truths: the genocidal "games," the monstrous forms of the Five Elders, and even the existence of the planet's unseen ruler, Imu. We haven't seen Gol D. Roger's reflections about all that's happening in the Divine Isle, but maybe discovering the son of a Holy Knight on his vessel will make him realize his role in the world and seek the reality he glimpsed from Rocks D. Xebec's situation.

The Truth About The Infamous Captain

Before this recollection, what we knew of Xebec was derived almost entirely from Sengoku's account, both to the viewers and to young Marines. He depicted Rocks D. Xebec as a despicable, ambitious man determined to achieve global control, someone so dangerous that Gol D. Roger and Monkey D. Garp had to join forces to overcome him. But as it transpires, the strategist wasn't even there at God Valley; he was merely echoing the Global Authority's sanctioned narrative of occurrences, the very narrative the sovereign approved to conceal the truth 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 Global Authority. We are unsure if he was guided by lust for power, revenge for his clan, or a wish for fairness, but when he discovered the government's scheme to annihilate the land where his kin resided, he abandoned his dreams of conquest to rescue them.

This love for his relatives proved to be his undoing. After facing the sovereign, he lost his determination and freedom, becoming a puppet enslaved to their authority. Now, with what limited consciousness remains, he pleads with Gol D. Roger and Garp to kill him — believing that dying would be a kindness in contrast to the torment he endures. The reality of Rocks D. Xebec is thus far from the story told by Sengoku, and the manga shows him in a favorable manner during the Divine Isle events.

Is He Living Today?

But was Rocks really die? An interesting theory is that he is even now a servant to the ruler in the current timeline, acting as The Man Marked By Flames, keeping the Global Authority's only remaining Poneglyph in constant transit to prevent the One Piece from being discovered.

Garp's Hidden Defiance

Another key figure of the Divine Isle event is Garp, who has faced criticism from followers for years for standing by as Akainu killed Portgas D. Ace. That sentiment became even stronger after the timeskip, when he endangered all to save Koby at Hachinosu, leading many to question why he couldn't do the same for his biological grandson. Comparable doubts have now reemerged with the Divine Isle flashback: how could Monkey D. Garp serve the Navy, aware the Global Authority considers mass murder and slavery as sport for the elite?

The reality uncovers something different. The moment Garp witnessed the Elders' monstrous shapes, he struck without hesitation. His partnership with Gol D. 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 pawn to wipe out all in the Divine Isle, including apparently, including the Celestial Dragons themselves. This event is likely the cause Garp detests the World Nobles in the present day and why he not once desired to be promoted to Admiral, answering directly to them.

The Past's Untrustworthy Storytellers

Although the readers are seeing the Divine Isle incident through a recollection narrated by Loki, covering viewpoints and occurrences he clearly wasn't present for, I believe we can consider this version as completely truthful. The manga may offer an explanation in the future, maybe linked to Loki's yet unknown paramecia ability. Nevertheless, the Divine Isle event excellently exemplifies the notion that the past is recorded by the winners. This attitude is {