One Piece's Divine Isle Flashback Demonstrates Why Myths Aren't to Be Trusted Without Question

The adage 'History is recorded by the victors' serves as a key motif that Eiichiro Oda's epic creator Eiichiro Oda has for some time integrated into the narrative. Popular tales frequently fail to capture the full truth, including the most influential characters in this world's complex past. Oden wasn't a silly showman dancing through the roads of Wano Country; he acted out of duty and principle. Bartholomew Kuma was not a merciless villain who tore apart the Straw Hats, as well; he was helping them. Similarly, the Davy Jones legend meant more than a pirate's game in search of flags and followers.

In installment #1164 of One Piece, we see the culmination of this theme. The entire Divine Isle narrative serves as a warning story, advising audiences not to judge the individuals too quickly.

Legends often fail to capture the full reality, including the most influential characters.

One Piece's most recent flashback, chronicling the Divine Isle event, stands as one of the story's finest storylines to date. Apart from the excitement of witnessing icons in their prime, it's compelling to see them before they turned into icons — when their fame had still not outgrow their human nature. History, as recorded by the Global Authority and recounted through secondhand tales, painted our perception of individuals like Roger, Xebec, and even Garp. But each of the government's records and the stories of those who knew them prove unreliable, showing only fragments of who these individuals truly were.

The Man Before the Legend

Gol D. Roger may have been driven by mission and the daring spirit that ignited a new age of buccaneering, but prior to he became the Pirate King, he was a youth ruled by emotion and the desire to explore. When people discuss his myth, they typically mean his later journey, the grand quest in search of the Road Poneglyphs that point toward the final island. Yet little is known about his first journey, the one that shaped him prior to fame discovered him.

Back then, Gol D. Roger was largely unaware of the world's secret past. His love for the barkeep guided him to God Valley, where he uncovered the Global Authority's darkest realities: the extermination "games," the monstrous forms of the Five Elders, and even the presence of the world's hidden sovereign, Imu. We haven't seen Roger's thoughts about everything happening in God Valley, but maybe discovering the child of a Holy Knight on his vessel will lead him to understand his role in the globe and pursue the truth he caught a glimpse of from Xebec's situation.

The Truth About The Infamous Captain

Before this flashback, what we knew of Xebec was derived mostly from Sengoku's version, both to the audience and to new Marines. He depicted Rocks D. Xebec as a despicable, ambitious man determined to achieve world domination, someone so dangerous that Gol D. Roger and Monkey D. Garp had to team up to overcome him. But as it turns out, the strategist was not present at the Divine Isle; he was only repeating the World Government's approved narrative of occurrences, the exact narrative the sovereign authorized to conceal the reality about Xebec and the incident itself.

In reality, The captain, whose true name was Davy D. Xebec, was a ethical man who sought to overthrow the ruler and dismantle the corrupt World Government. We are unsure if he was guided by lust for power, revenge for his clan, or a wish for justice, but when he discovered the regime's plan to annihilate the land where his family resided, he gave up his ambitions of conquest to rescue them.

This love for his family became his undoing. Upon confronting Imu, he forfeited his will and freedom, becoming a puppet controlled to their power. Now, with what little consciousness is left, he pleads with Gol D. Roger and Monkey D. Garp to end his life — thinking that dying would be a kindness in contrast to the torment he suffers. The reality of Rocks is thus very different from the story narrated by Sengoku, and the comic shows him in a favorable manner during the God Valley incidents.

Is He Living Today?

But was Rocks really die? An intriguing theory is that he is still a slave to the ruler in the current timeline, acting as the scarred individual, maintaining the World Government's only remaining ancient stone in constant movement to prevent the ultimate treasure from being found.

The Hero's Hidden Rebellion

Another protagonist of the Divine Isle incident is Monkey D. Garp, who has endured criticism from fans for years for standing by as Akainu killed Portgas D. Ace. That feeling became even stronger after the time jump, when he risked everything to rescue the young Marine at Hachinosu, causing many to question why he was unable to do the identical for his own grandson. Comparable doubts have now reemerged with the God Valley flashback: how could Garp serve the Marines, aware the World Government treats genocide and enslavement as entertainment for the elite?

The reality reveals something different. The instant Monkey D. Garp saw the Gorosei's grotesque forms, he attacked without hesitation. His alliance with Gol D. Roger was not meant to defeat some villainous Xebec, but a courageous act of rebellion, an attempt to halt the sovereign, who was using Rocks D. Xebec as a pawn to eliminate all in God Valley, including apparently, including the World Nobles themselves. This incident is likely the cause Garp despises the Celestial Dragons in the current era and why he never wanted to be promoted to Admiral, reporting straight to them.

History's Untrustworthy Storytellers

Although the readers are seeing the God Valley event through a recollection narrated by the giant, including perspectives and occurrences he obviously was absent for, I believe we can consider this account as entirely truthful. The manga may offer an explanation later, perhaps connected to Loki's yet unknown Devil Fruit. Still, the Divine Isle event excellently exemplifies the idea that the past is written by the winners. This attitude is {