Third-person POV.
A ship full of pirates could be seen celebrating their fate. They had just raided a town, stolen food, money, and alcohol, and taken advantage of some women. They were having a happy time partying until, out of nowhere, their ship was cut into four pieces.
Some of the pirates died from the cuts, others fell into the sea, but since they were in a place with no islands around them, they were doomed to die.
Dante's POV
I laid my sword back on the edge of the ship as I watched from the sky how that other ship sank along with its entire crew.
Yamato: "It was necessary to do that," he said, seeing what I had done.
Dante: "I don't like pirates very much, and I'm not a hero anymore to worry about people's lives." I said, returning to the helm, directing the flying ship to continue its course.
Balesca: "I agree with Dante. Those pirates committed several serious and horrible crimes. They deserve the fate that awaits them." He said, holding binoculars and reward posters. "But it would have been nice to get at least their heads, at least for the reward."
Dante: "I don't care. There are so many pirates in the world, like a hydra. Destroy one and 10 more emerge."
And that left the conversation about pirate hunting.
Yamato: "Hey, Balesca, why do you dress like a religious person?" he said innocently.
Balesca: "Well, I never knew my father, and my mother wore this outfit; she was a respected priestess in a church. When I was 10, the place where I lived was attacked by pirates. My mother defended me and managed to keep me alive in exchange for her life; to never forget her, I wear this outfit. It was less revealing, but with it constantly breaking, I decided to modify it with what I already had."
Dante: "Hey, now that we're asking questions, what's your Devil Fruit? I have an idea of what it might be, but I'm not definitive about it."
Balesca: "Sure. If we're going to be together, I should tell them."
Dante: "Who said anything about us being together?" I replied, ignoring my opinion, as if I were air.
Balesca: "My Devil Fruit is canceled. I'm a Cancel woman. I can cancel many things, including attacks or abilities of my opponents, as well as mechanisms and similar things."
Dante: "So, when did you touch me? When we were fighting, you canceled my Devil Fruit?"
Balesca: "Exactly. He could also cancel Haki; the only thing I've never been able to cancel is the effects of Kairoseki, since they affect me before I can use it. He could also cancel other things just by pointing at them, like ranged attacks or something that comes out of the body or is generated in the air."
Yamato: "So you could cancel Dante's Devil Fruit just by pointing at him?"
Balesca: "No, I had to touch him."
Dante: "Your fruit sounds very strong."
Balesca: "In theory, yes, but only when my opponent is weaker than me; I would have been able to defeat you when we fought."
I just nodded at what she said, since she was right; someone stronger or faster than her physically could destroy her.
Balesca: "That's exactly why she was Hades's bodyguard; I had his back when we fought. If it weren't for the fact that I ran into Admiral Aokiji and ended up so badly injured that I had to escape, maybe things would have been different."
She's somewhat right, but that never happened, so there's no point in thinking about it too much.
Yamato: "Hey, Dante, so where are we going now?"
Dante: "I want to pay a visit to an old acquaintance and the daughter of an old friend."
Yamato: "So where is that?"
Dante: "In the East Blue."
...
I was sitting in an armchair I had brought myself to wait for the host of this place, which, to be honest, was ugly and tacky, even more so considering it's a park, and even more so considering it's an attempt at an amusement park; there's nothing to have fun about.
I had left Balesca and Yamato somewhere else doing and talking about girl stuff, and when I say that, I mean that, since Yamato thinks he's a man, so things like how many boyfriends I cheat on in a month don't count as girl stuff to them.
???: "That useless human can't compare to us, the superior race." A guy's voice was heard.
???: "You're right, Arlong, we should have done something more to him for trying to go against us."
At that moment, the door to this depressing place opened. At the entrance stood my old friend, Arlong, the big-nosed fish; beside him was his entourage. I don't know if they were all there, but there were about seven fish besides him.
As soon as he saw me, he stood still, staring in shock, as if staying still would avoid being seen by a predator.
???: "What's a human doing here?"
???: "How insolent."
The voices of the fishmen could be heard; I only responded with a wave and a smile.
Dante: "My dear old friend Arlong, the brainless fishman, how has life been treating you?" I said simply and with a hint of mockery.
???: "Damn."
???: "How dare you say that to Arlong?"
???: "Yes, put him in his place, Arlong."
Arlong didn't say anything, didn't even move; it was as if time had stopped there. Some noticed this and looked at me strangely.
Arlong: "Dante," he said tersely, "what are you doing here?"
He didn't sound arrogant or superior.
Unlike his companions, who said things without knowing, he was aware of the world, and he knew what I had done and my reward. One far superior to his; compare it to the current Yonkou; that only demonstrated my threat level.
Dante: "Nothing, I was just passing by to see the daughter of an old friend; I imagine you know her, since, from what I understand, she lives on this island. If you want, I can give you a more detailed description. Woman, orange hair—does that sound familiar?"
???: "Nami?" said one of the fishmen.
Dante: "So you know her; that saves me time or not."
Arlong: "Don't tell me..." he said almost in a whisper, sweat running down his skin.
Dante: "Don't worry, the woman you killed wasn't my friend; I'm talking about her biological mother, so don't worry about those repercussions. That was long ago, and there's no point in punishing something that happened long ago."
Honestly, I didn't care about Bellemere; she was already dead, and nothing could be changed about that.
Arlong: "So why did you come?" he said.
Dante: "Don't you hear? I didn't know that superior races don't listen, or is it that you only listen when you're sucking each other off?"
(Note: Sucking oneself refers to being a bootlicker, but in a more vulgar way.)
???: "You're a..." said one, trying to hit me.
Arlong: "Wait."
I didn't get to say anything else, as I punched the fish man who tried to hit me in the head; I used all my strength, along with Haki and Internal Destruction, with the sole intention of destroying his head, which I did. Now you'll ask, why? And it's simple. To show how weak and easy to kill you are against someone like me.
The blow made everyone else take a few steps back, except me.
They stared at the corpse of their comrade lying on the ground, his eyes scattered around, the remains of his brains scattered on the ground. It wasn't a pretty scene to behold.
Dante: "I see that it is not possible to socialize with you here." Even a monkey would understand that they shouldn't be so arrogant and should learn to come down from their high horse once in a while," I said, looking at the corpse. "Unless you want to end up the same as him or worse."
Arlong didn't say anything, but I could see his fury and resentment growing, and the funniest thing was that he couldn't do anything; he wasn't stupid enough to risk his life for nothing.
Dante: "Well, let's get to the point, my dear friend, may she rest in peace. You wouldn't want anything bad done to your daughter, would you?" I saw some nodding in fear. "Therefore, I hope you don't do anything to her—in fact, that you don't touch a single hair on her—or else something will await you, like your partner with his brains split open there on the ground."
???: "Something worse?" one said.
Dante: "Exactly, you're all fish, and fish eat each other." As soon as I said that, I saw everyone's skin turn red. white in some way. "I'll lock them up and mutilate them little by little to make food out of their parts, in addition to great torture, both physical and mental. Can you imagine seeing yourself without your limbs and other body parts, knowing that you're going to be thrown into a large cauldron to be boiled to death and served to the sea kings?"
Silence reigned; I saw some of their legs trembling; others were almost going to the other world with their pale faces.
Dante: "Obviously you shouldn't worry about that as long as you don't do anything bad to Nami; you can continue charging her those 100,000,000 belly coins as long as you don't touch her; I don't care."
Nami's grudge against Arlong was quite serious; I don't know if it was just because of Bellemere's death or because of the lie. I know fishermen aren't interested in women, but you never know; besides the sailors around here, they preferred to avoid something that was never known.
I could take her, but I'd have to take her older sister too, and I have nowhere to leave them afterward. If I babysat, then I would have brought my other children with me on my travels, and there's a reason I don't. Not to mention that I know less than half of them.
Besides, I think she'll be happier with the life that fate brought her to this world than with me, making true companions and friends.
Dante: "That's what I had to do. Not to mention I have spies on the island, so I'll know if anything happens to her, whether at your hands, at the hands of your men, or at someone else's, just so you know." I said to Arlong as I walked past him. He patted her shoulder. "It was a pleasure. I hope I don't have to come back here to make sushi. That would be a shame."
As for having spies on the island, that's a lie, just like cooking them; it was just to put pressure on their minds so they wouldn't dare do anything crazy.
I had already secretly visited Nami without her seeing me; I saw that she was doing well, all things considered. She's still a long way from being that thieving, greedy cat in the future, but judging by her behavior, at least from the time I've watched, she's not far behind.
And so, with that silent threat, I left the place, leaving the fishmen in disarray and with a corpse already rotting in their ugly park.
...
Dante: "So she's pregnant again," I said to Trini, who was on the other side of the den den mushi calling me.
Trini: "Yes, in fact, we found out shortly after you left on your trip; I only decided to tell you so you wouldn't take so long to return this time."
Dante: "I was just thinking about giving Luna a gift right now; I'll have to propose."
Trini: "You're finally taking responsibility for your children; it's about time."
Dante: "It's not that I didn't want to take responsibility for my children. I was busy, and they have a mother, at least most of them," he said the last part in a lower voice.
Trini: "Lie to yourself all you want; it doesn't matter anymore. What do you plan to do with the ones in Big Mom's territory?"
Dante: "I'm still thinking about it, and with Celestia's new pregnancy, I'll have more time to come up with a plan for them."
Trini: "Come back quickly. Isis isn't in a hurry to walk again, and more than that, she makes Marco go with her often." And with that, she hung up.
Balesca: "Hey, Dante, how many children do you have?" That question irritated me.
Dante: "System, how many children do I have so far?" I asked the system.
System: [So far, you have 10 children, if we count the one Celestia is currently developing.]
It's not that bad; I've had a few slips, and I haven't had any new children since, except for the last two, who happen to be from Celestia, so it's all good.
Dante: "More than one child," I told her simply.
She just puffed out her cheeks in annoyance.
Yamato: "Hey, Master, we've been on the boat for days; why don't we get off? I'm hungry."
Balesca: "If I want to clean the clothes we've already worn, we'll all smell bad."
Yamato: "I want to go inside for a bit, too."
Balesca: "And I want to stretch my legs."
Yamato: "I want to go to the bathroom."
Balesca: "I have to go to the doctor."
Yamato: "I have to see the mainland every 24 hours, or else I'll get depressed."
Balesca: "I have some relatives nearby; we can visit them."
Yamato: "I have to say my daily prayer, and my religion doesn't allow me to do it in the same place."
Balesca: "I have a lottery ticket to redeem."
Dante: "SHUT UP, YOU BOTH OF US! WE'RE GOING TO GO DOWN TO THE NEXT ISLAND WE FIND!!!" I yelled at them both to stop bothering me and making excuses.
I heard them both celebrating and high-fiving each other. I should never have hit Balesca on the boat, or rather, I shouldn't have brought Yamato with me. I can only lick my wounds in a corner in silence.
...
In the end, we arrived at a kingdom filled with factories and waste everywhere; it was as if the Industrial Revolution had arrived, but only with the downsides.
Balesca: "I regretted it. How about we find another island?"
Dante: "We must wait for the magic clock, which doesn't tell the time but places in the world, to recharge itself. Let's find out how long it takes to recharge; if it's only a few days, we can hold out."
And so I continued on the little path with the two women following me.
The place was horrible in its own way. Pollution, corruption, murder, prostitution; it pained me to see children the size of my daughter providing sexual services to survive. And that wasn't the worst of it.
At that moment, a girl who was playing with a metal can collided with me, causing it to fall. She looked at me in panic and knelt in front of me.
???: "I'm sorry, sir. It won't happen again. Just don't do anything to me or my family." She sobbed.
I just looked at her with pity. Seeing her like that, she had gauze and bandages on her body; some were dirty or had residual blood on them.
Dante: "Where are your parents?" I asked.
???: "My mother is at home taking care of my grandmother," she said fearfully.
Dante: "And your father?"
???: "At the factory. I haven't seen him in months."
And that was the big problem with this place, and it can all be said to be the fault of the world government.
This kingdom generates income based on the production of its factories, from there, and from overexploiting its workers.
From there, they get most of the money to pay the heavenly tribute; the rest goes to the royalty, and they pay their workers a little.
The worst part is the people who were filming the machinery. There are no steam engines here; it's powered by human resources, not unlike slaves.
Many men move mechanisms from different sides to make the entire factory work. Because of the weight and quantity of mechanisms, there are many men there who work and never leave. Many die pushing the mechanisms.
And the most overexploited people are the ones who have the least money and free time to see their families.
I could only feel anger inside me.
Dante: "Calm down, little girl, I'll bring your father home," I said, stroking her head.
...
Manager: "We can't release him for a few days; that will stop the machinery and we will lose millions," he said fearfully, as this person realized my identity. Despite this, he didn't want to let the people doing this extra work rest even a little.
I quickly approached the guy. Balesca and Yamato looked at me without saying anything.
The guy fell, and I could see the fear, waiting for me to do something bad to him. That means the propaganda on my bounty poster had worked. If that hadn't happened, this person wouldn't be looking at me with such fear, as if I were a great and dangerous pirate.
Dante: "7 days."
Manager: "What?" he said, confused, but still afraid.
Dante: "Give them 7 days of paid leave so they can be with their families; in the meantime, I'll get the whole mechanism moving."
Manager: "You alone?" he said, as if I were crazy.
I just nodded.
Dante: "We do this by fair means or foul."
He just stared at me.
...
???: "Stop everything," a person's voice was heard shouting to about 60 people turning a giant gear mechanism. This one moved most of the gears; the other gears in other parts of the factory were there to lighten the load a bit for the others, but this one was the most important.
By moving just this one, he could move everything else.
???: "They gave us 7 days off if the replacement can move the entire mechanism alone; make way."
The workers were confused; they thought they had misheard that one person could move all this for just 7 days straight.
At that moment, the person behind a door, listening to everything, entered. He came in almost naked, only wearing shorts up to his mid-foot. Yamato and Balesca followed not far behind.
No one knew who he was, as he has spent almost his entire life here, and he doesn't have money to buy newspapers, so I am a stranger to them.
When I arrived, there were still people there; They weren't moving the mechanism, but they were still in their position.
Dante: "Move," I said simply.
Everyone did as I said, hoping for a miracle.
I positioned myself, gripped the piece of wood that was meant to move the gear, and began to push.
Little by little, the gear began to move, and by default, the entire factory was working again.
The workers stared at each other in disbelief at what was in front of them, only to begin celebrating their week off.
The other gears from other locations were also freed. And at that moment, the only one keeping the entire factory, which was as large as the entire island, running was me.
And so began the days of me constantly moving the gear alone, without any help. Balesca and Yamato were there, but they only gave me food and water, and as little as possible so I wouldn't have to go to the bathroom. It reduced my strength, but that didn't matter; The important thing wasn't how much force I was using, but how much I could endure.
This wasn't without its problems; those who were informed about the world immediately reported my presence, but upon arrival they realized everything, and since some Marines still respected me enormously, not counting the presence of Baleca and Yamato, they decided to do nothing to stop me. However, that didn't mean they wouldn't call from headquarters in Marienford to report everything that was happening.
By the third day, I was already tired; my body began to sweat, and my energy was slowly draining. But that didn't stop me; I made the minimum necessary movements, didn't speak, and didn't expend any energy beyond what was necessary.
Balesca, as embarrassed as I am, took care of some of my needs, everything except going to the bathroom to relieve myself; I could still hold that one.
On the fifth day, a boat arrived directly from Marineford, and according to what I heard from Balesca, they were bringing a very strong Marine to imprison me, but they haven't done anything yet. They must be waiting for the seven days to pass, something I can hardly be thankful for, since he's coming to take me to Impel Down, something I wasn't going to allow.
That was for two more days; leave that to Dante for that day. I'll focus on moving the gears.
...
Third-person POV.
Marine: "Here's the report on what's happening," he said, handing it over to his superior and leaving to do other work.
This person looked at the papers and expressed their opinion.
???: "That's scary. I don't think any of the current admirals could do something like that. No wonder he has such a high bounty. I can't let it go." He said in a somewhat careless tone of voice.
???: "Admiral Kizaru," a voice was heard next to him.
The one identified as Kizaru looked to his side.
Kizaru: "What's wrong, Doll?"
Doll: "What are your orders?" said the one already identified.
Kizaru: "Hmm," he sounded thoughtful. "Let him finish the job; after that, we'll capture him."
Doll: "Are you sure?" she said.
Kizaru: "He won't move from there. There's no harm in waiting a few days so I can rest from Sengoku's orders." He said, grabbing a newspaper and walking toward a beach chair.
Doll stared at Kizaru, then looked back at the kingdom and clenched her fists tightly, staring directly at the factory where Dante should have been.