The image below should show what has happened to that cane.
Yes, it is a distortion. Two of three larger inner canes show the apparent "V" shape, the third element - the lower one in my photo - shows an undistorted view. That actual cane is itself a 3+3 cane central group in white with a pale pink cogged coating.
I think the distortion occurred in the original pulling of the cane but not along its entire length. When the elements were bundled into the full complex cane, two of those elements had the distortion and one did not. When the full complex cane was stretched, the miniaturisation of the inner elements certainly appears to show two "V" shapes.
Looking closely at the "V", it is not just the bottom of the "v" that is a different colour cane, but also the two ends of the "v". The undistorted example shows three pale blue canes and three dark canes.