"It's time to build an army. By the way, I wonder if the World Government has a force of Devil Fruit users. I should really try to get in touch with Vegapunk. But based on what I know about Vegapunk's personality, he probably wouldn't help the World Government too much."
Artificial Zoan Devil Fruits were first created by Vegapunk, so it was natural that he could mass-produce them. However, considering that Vegapunk had left a possibly artificial Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit on Punk Hazard and that the World Government had forced him to work for them, it was unlikely he would put in much effort.
For Daniel Davis, having taken control of Wano, it was essential to establish his own army to ensure stability. Artificial Zoan Devil Fruits could significantly enhance the strength of ordinary people, so it made sense to use them.
With the artificial Zoan Devil Fruits he currently possessed, Daniel Davis could easily form a combined army of land, sea, and air forces. The air force would primarily consist of dragon species from the Harry Potter world, along with various birds. The air force would be more than sufficient. It had to be said that Caesar's Devil Fruits were quite strange, with their abilities being entirely random.
"Wait, land, sea, and air... that doesn't seem quite right. Oh, right, the navy can't be formed." Daniel Davis realized the problem with his initial thought. Due to the side effects of Devil Fruits, users couldn't enter the sea, making it impossible to form a proper navy.
Speaking of which, after taking over Baroque Works, Daniel Davis had inherited several Devil Fruit users, including the current user of the Clone-Clone Fruit, Bentham (Mr. 2 Bon Kurei), a flamboyant cross-dresser.
From the actions of Kurozumi Semimaru, it was clear how powerful the Clone-Clone Fruit could be. Unfortunately, Bentham's personality was too erratic for covert operations. If sent on a mission, he would likely be exposed quickly.
As for the other Devil Fruit users, while some had decent abilities, their overall strength was lacking. They were passable in the first half of the Grand Line, but in the New World, their combat power was insufficient.
The biggest difference between pirates and the Marines was that pirates had to rely on themselves to train and improve, whereas the Marines had systematic training. Techniques like the Six Powers, Armament Haki, and Observation Haki could be taught to those with potential. Pirates, on the other hand, rarely had access to such training.
At most, pirates could learn a thing or two from their enemies during battles, like Luffy learning Soru (Shave) or Sanji learning Geppo (Moon Walk). But that was about it. Very few pirates mastered all Six Powers or Life Return. This was understandable, as pirates were more likely to spend their time eating, drinking, and boasting rather than following strict training regimens.
Since Daniel Davis had decided to take control of a country, it was essential not to fall behind in military strength. The saying "truth lies within the range of artillery" held true. A strong military might not necessarily wage war, but it was crucial to have one. Otherwise, countries like Alabasta and Dressrosa would find their survival at the mercy of others, relying on passing pirate crews to save them.
To be honest, if Doflamingo hadn't used Sugar to control the citizens, he might have been a more suitable ruler than the Riku family. Similarly, Crocodile ruling Alabasta might not have been entirely bad. At the very least, he could have deterred pirates.
As for Princess Vivi and her father's governance philosophy, Daniel Davis found it utterly baffling. Despite the World Government's current state, they still believed the World Government would deliver justice. Most of the World Government's member nations didn't trust it but had no choice but to comply due to the vast power disparity.
Daniel Davis had once suggested that Vivi strengthen the military. As a country with hundreds of thousands of soldiers, improving their weaponry would have been more than enough to protect the nation. Unfortunately, Vivi had rejected the idea.
Perhaps because they were descendants of the twenty kingdoms, they blindly trusted the World Government, believing the Marines would protect them. This naive and somewhat laughable mindset was one of the reasons Daniel Davis had left Alabasta.
This kind of naivety reminded Daniel Davis of something he had read online in his previous life. When his country was poor, it had decided to develop nuclear weapons at all costs. Many people had opposed this, claiming it was unnecessary and a waste of resources.
They argued that many countries without nuclear weapons were doing just fine and that the resources could be better spent elsewhere. Fortunately, the country's leadership hadn't been swayed by these opinions.
Indeed, even in the Marvel world, many countries without nuclear weapons were doing fine. However, these people seemed to ignore the fact that these countries had little to no say in global affairs.
Thankfully, in this world, there were people like Dragon and Sabo in the Revolutionary Army who had a clear vision. Otherwise, the world would be doomed. The Revolutionary Army here was entirely different from the one in Akame ga Kill!.
"Kaido, do me a favor. I want to hire some members of the Big Mom Pirates to help."
"Hire?"
Kaido was immediately confused by Daniel Davis' request. It was unheard of for someone to hire members of a Yonko's crew.
"That's right. Wano is currently facing a severe food shortage. They can create food, right?"
Most members of the Big Mom Pirates had food-related Paramecia Devil Fruits. Once awakened, these fruits could produce vast amounts of food. In Big Mom's crew, there were quite a few awakened Devil Fruit users.
The islands under Big Mom's rule, such as Whole Cake Island, Nut Island, Cheese Island, Candy Island, and Flavor Island, were all created using their abilities.
If we were to rank the living standards of the territories under the Yonko, Big Mom's territory would undoubtedly be at the top. People living there might face other challenges, but they would never go hungry.
Second would be the Red-Haired Pirates. With only one ship, their protection fees were the lowest, and some places only paid a symbolic amount to signify they were under Shanks' protection.
The Whitebeard Pirates would come in third. While Whitebeard was known for his loyalty and Marco and the others weren't greedy pirates, the sheer size of the Whitebeard Pirates—nearly 50,000 members—meant that protection fees couldn't be too low. Moreover, with so many members, it was inevitable that some would mistreat the citizens of the islands they protected. As long as it wasn't too severe, the Whitebeard Pirates couldn't do much about it.
Last would be the Beasts Pirates. Kaido's strategy was extreme exploitation, and the living conditions of the people under his rule were almost as bad as those in countries crushed by the Heavenly Tribute.
"Kaido, it's rare for you to contact me. What's the occasion?"
"It's Daniel Davis. He wants to borrow some of your crew members." Kaido explained Daniel Davis' request.
Although Daniel Davis had mentioned hiring, Kaido didn't bring it up. As a genuine "Fifth Emperor," not a watered-down version like Luffy, Daniel Davis' status and treatment were entirely different.
"I see. No problem. I'll send Katakuri and some others over."
When not suffering from her hunger pangs, Big Mom wasn't just a glutton. She had her cunning and shrewd side as well.
This was the convenience of status. Some things could be accomplished with just a word from someone of equal standing, while others, no matter how much effort they put in, would never achieve the same result.
It was like the billionaire in Hunter x Hunter who spent nearly a hundred billion trying to save his girlfriend in Greed Island but failed to achieve his goal.
In theory, with a hundred billion, one could hire someone at the level of the Zodiacs. Unfortunately, the billionaire hadn't been able to reach that level.
"This is amazing. With this, we won't have to worry about going hungry."
Watching Katakuri and other food-related Devil Fruit users from the Big Mom Pirates create food, Akame's eyes turned to Daniel Davis with a hint of resentment, as if saying, "If I had known about such Devil Fruits, I would have chosen one."
Akame's resentful gaze left Daniel Davis at a loss for words. Given Akame's obsession with food, if she had eaten a food-related Devil Fruit, awakening it wouldn't have been difficult. As for strength, one shouldn't underestimate food-related abilities.
Katakuri had managed to develop his Paramecia Devil Fruit to a level similar to Logia-type fruits.
"Sorry, I didn't think of it at the time." Daniel Davis immediately apologized to Akame. Food-related Devil Fruits hadn't crossed his mind back then.
"Maybe I can find a skilled chef and give them Streusen's Devil Fruit." Watching Katakuri and the others, Daniel Davis suddenly had an idea.
Streusen, a member of the Big Mom Pirates, had the Cook-Cook Fruit, which allowed him to turn anything into food. He had been with Big Mom since she was a child and had remained loyal to her all these years. He was likely the only person alive who knew the truth about Mother Carmel.
Streusen held a high position in the Big Mom Pirates and hadn't come along.
"Charlotte Pudding. Big Mom sure has some interesting ideas, wanting to arrange a marriage alliance. But I'm not interested."
Daniel Davis' frequent association with women was no secret, and he had gained a reputation as a womanizer.
Since arriving in Wano, Charlotte Pudding had been trying to get close to him. Combined with her behavior and occasional comments from Katakuri and others, Daniel Davis quickly realized what was going on.
Big Mom loved marriage alliances. Her crew consisted of her children and sons-in-law. She had over forty husbands.
It was said that Big Mom had once been interested in Whitebeard, wanting to have a child with him. The same went for Kaido. Daniel Davis strongly suspected that Kaido's daughter, Yamato, might actually be Big Mom's child.
Daniel Davis was very curious about Yamato, not because of her obsession with Kozuki Oden—after all, there were all kinds of strange people in the world, like those who believed in drinking disinfectant as a cure. Even Luffy had his die-hard fans, so it wasn't surprising that Kozuki Oden had his.
What puzzled Daniel Davis was why Yamato, Kaido's daughter, was of normal height. The height difference was too great. Even among Big Mom's many children, there wasn't such a disparity.
Although Daniel Davis had no interest in a marriage alliance, he didn't dislike Charlotte Pudding. After all, she was a beauty, even if she had a split personality due to her childhood trauma.
"This is the proper use of the Big Mom Pirates. Whitebeard really wasn't very smart."
With the food-related Devil Fruit users in the Big Mom Pirates, they could make a fortune just by selling food. Whitebeard's hometown, suffering from the Heavenly Tribute, had been in a state of poverty with severe food shortages. Whitebeard had spent most of his plundered wealth on his hometown, even to the point of not having money to buy alcohol and relying on his status as captain to mooch drinks.
In fact, during his prime, Whitebeard could have asked the Big Mom Pirates for help. Clearly, he hadn't thought of that.
Similarly, neither the World Government nor the Revolutionary Army had considered this. In fact, Daniel Davis hadn't thought of it either until recently. After realizing it, he immediately informed Dragon of the Revolutionary Army. It was said that the Revolutionary Army was now collecting food-related Devil Fruit users.
Food created by Devil Fruit users might not taste as good as natural food, and even the Big Mom Pirates rarely ate food created by their abilities, usually only as snacks.
But when people were starving, taste wasn't a concern. The people of Wano's impoverished villages weren't in a position to be picky.
Of course, Daniel Davis had invited the Big Mom Pirates not just to create food but also to help improve the environment. Through Devil Fruit awakenings, they could neutralize the pollution caused by the artificial Devil Fruit factory.
The pollution in Wano was so severe that the fish in the rivers and the animals in the mountains were contaminated. Consuming them would result in poisoning. The only safe food came from the Taoyuan Farm.
Previously, the produce from the Taoyuan Farm had been sufficient to sustain the Flower Capital and the Beasts Pirates. However, now that it had to supply the entire country, it was no longer enough.
"I never thought Devil Fruits could be used like this."
Daniel Davis wasn't one to keep secrets. He informed Morgans about what Katakuri and the others were doing in Wano, and the news shocked many across the seas.
(End of Chapter)
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