Gil: "I see," my son said, looking me straight in the eyes.
Around him were members of Sword and some trusted members of the G8. In other words, Gil's followers.
Basically, I was just now explaining the whole situation to him, especially that Pandora's box had already been opened.
Dragon had called me to say that I had cut off the food supplies to the World Nobles, which was the first step to creating a crisis in the Holy Land.
The next step is to poison the food they consume; that way, the food, drinks, and other things will cause them to get sick.
And when I'm in a difficult position, attack. Invade the Holy Land.
That's when my strategy would come into play. The idea is to have three teams: the ones that would fully deal with the enemies, the Knights of God; the ones who know how to fight, the Gorosei; and Imu. The other team will be in charge of rescuing the slaves and ensuring their escape without complications, and the last and smallest team will be responsible for finding the World Nobles, imprisoning them, and possibly using them as hostages to force the other side to surrender or something like that.
The first part is ready; the second part is almost ready; they just need to switch the goods without them noticing, which is more complicated to do than to explain.
Gil: "So, if you're telling me about this, it's because you want my cooperation," he said calmly.
Dante: "If possible," I replied with a smile.
???: "How could you say something like that? You should be sent straight to Impel Down just for being here," said some marine inside.
But Gil just snapped his fingers to silence him; I gave him a look that made him pale and silenced him. Then he turned his gaze to the members of Sword.
Gil: "I wonder what you all think."
The men stared at each other.
At that moment, a guy with pink hair and some bandages walked forward and looked at me with determination. This kid was Koby.
Koby: "I know perfectly well that it's something I couldn't accept as a Marine, but what I've seen the World Nobles do, along with slavery and some bad experiences with some Marines, makes me think about it a lot."
???: "Hey, Koby, you're not thinking what I think, are you?" said a blond-haired guy I recognized as Helmeppo.
Koby: "If I have the opportunity to help people and make a change, then I'm going to do it." He said with determination, looking at his comrades.
His comrades looked at him in disbelief, but that quickly turned to smiles. They also knew how the world and the Marines worked; that's why they had joined Sword, so they wouldn't be tied to the World Government and could still be Marines.
Gil: "Perfect," he said, almost shouting as he stood up. "I'm not entirely happy with how the World Government operates either; we can continue to deliver justice, but without being bound by conditions or protecting those who do wrong."
Dante: "So you're going to join?" I asked them.
At that moment, a girl stepped forward, whom I immediately recognized as Akainu's daughter.
Hibari: "But I don't understand, why are you doing this if you're a World Noble? And what will happen to the Marines after all this?" she asked.
Dante: "First of all, I'm not a World Noble. I lost that privilege a long time ago, and I'm doing this because I can't stand seeing those guys treated like superior beings and gods, treating others like trash or worse. That's why I left. Second, the Marines would remain largely the same, only they would be self-reliant, since if everything goes well, they won't have a World Government to command them anymore; they'll be able to decide for themselves."
To be honest, I don't think the World Government will fall, since an institution like this is necessary to control the world; what would change is what it controls, something it doesn't do. The current World Government rules the world through the World Nobles and the Gorosei. With the change, these people would disappear, and those with less power would have to take their place on a rotating basis. Something more democratic and less monarchical. Because if the World Government disappears, the Marines will be left without a budget, and each island will be left to fend for itself.
That's why we should always strive for change, not destruction.
Gil: "We're going to support this movement, which has a chance of working, but only under two conditions." He said, making a two-finger gesture.
Dante: "Tell me."
Gil: "First, we'll be the team in charge of rescuing the slaves, the innocent people."
Dante: "Just you?"
Gil: "I have more people who will agree with this, don't worry, and secondly, he has to help us rescue Garp."
I just smiled at Gil, which he returned.
Dante: "Sounds good to me."
Gil: "They agree to that?" he said, looking at the marine with green hair and a cap, known as Prince.
He just sighed.
Prince: "We're in," he said with a smile.
And with that, we have new allies and a new direction to go.
Dante: "I informed Dragon about this new information," I said, stopping and going out to find the Den Den Mushi.
...
Third-person POV
The Thousand Sunny could be seen at sea; they had just left their adventure on Elbaph, but the atmosphere inside the ship was tense. This was because they had recently read the newspaper and learned about Garp's current situation.
All the Straw Hats were outside, looking at their captain standing at the bow of the ship, gazing at the horizon. They were debating whether to continue their journey or go to rescue Garp from the Blackbeard Pirates.
At that moment, a Den Den Mushi began to ring. Robin quickly went to retrieve it, surprised by who it was.
Robin: "Oh, it's Dante," she said.
At that moment, everyone except Luffy went to Robin.
Nami: "What does my father want right now?" she said, sounding serious and somewhat impatient.
Zoro: "I just hope it's something serious," he said, still remembering the gifts he had given them a while ago.
At that moment, Robin answered.
Dante: "Hello, can you hear me?"
Robin: "Yes, Dante, what's up?"
Dante: "Well, we have a situation involving Garp and the World Government," he blurted out.
Nami: "You already know that Garp was captured by the Blackbeard Pirates," she said.
Dante: "But they don't know it was for rescuing Koby, and right now I'm allied with them and the revolutionaries to go and rescue him and, while we're at it, take on the World Government."
Usopp: "WHAT? Are you crazy? That's suicide! Is he thinking of inviting us to join in on that madness?" he said, hugging Chopper.
(Note: I forgot the gift for Chopper, lol).
Dante: "Actually, I have a plan to save him and bring down that whole World Government system."
Robin was about to speak, but at that moment a serious Luffy appeared.
Luffy: "Robin, put him on for a moment; I want to talk to Sensei." Robin does as he's asked. "It doesn't matter what that plan is; if you have something to take those guys down and save Grandpa, I'm in."
...
Dante's POV
Ace: "So, what's the plan?" he said from a Den Den Mushi.
I had brought several Den Den Mushi to communicate. Currently, all the Straw Hats, Koby, and I are in the room.
Koby had traveled with me to where the Straw Hats were, since he wanted to be part of the operation to save Garp, something I finally agreed to.
There was one Den Den Mushi for Ace, who would alert the others about the Straw Hat fleet; another for the Marines/Sword that Gil spoke to; and the last one for the revolutionaries that Dragon spoke to.
Dante: "The first phase involves poisoning the World Nobles' food and rescuing Garp. A select group in this case: Luffy, Zoro, Sanji, Jimbe, Koby, Robin, Chopper, and me, while the rest of the Straw Hats will meet with the revolutionaries."
Yamato: "Are you sure about that, Dante-sensei? There are too few of you to do something of that magnitude." His voice came from Ace's Den Den Mushi.
Dante: "I'm capable of taking on five Titan captains at the same time; besides, we won't be fighting with honor, it'll be kill or be killed when we arrive."
Gil: "I agree; knowing your power, it should be enough; we just have to be careful with Kuzan and Teach."
Dante: "Exactly, Luffy will take care of Teach, and I'll take care of Kuzan." I said, finishing the point. "If everything goes well, the next step is to attack the Holy Land; this will begin when we rescue Garp. Sword and the revolutionaries attacked from Paradise, while the Straw Hat fleet attacked from the New World; the idea is that those who went to rescue Garp will be the reinforcements and head to the places where help is most needed."
Dragon: "Sounds good to me."
Gil: "Likewise."
Luffy: "I agree."
Ace: "If Luffy says it's okay, then I'm with him."
Dante: "Alright, we'll leave on the Skíðblaðnir as soon as it's light; the rest will go on it."
And with that, the war meeting ended—super short, but maybe that's for the best.
Dante: "Well, get ready for tomorrow." I said, standing up, grabbing a Den Den Mushi, and leaving the room.
Nami: "What are you going to do, Dad?" she asked, seeing me take the snail.
Dante: "I'm going to see if we can get some allies and say goodbye." I said with a smile, whispering the last part. Because, from what I remember of the manga, I can only think of one way to defeat Imu.
And so I left the room, letting the others talk and get ready. I needed to talk to my family, perhaps for the last time.
...
Dante: "I wonder if my ship can handle any more weight." I complained.
Jimbe: "I'm so sorry, Dante; I wish it were smaller."
Dante: "I don't mean that, Jimbe. I mean, I don't know how many people we'll have to get out of there." I said apologetically.
Robin: "What do you mean?"
Dante: "Besides Garp, there are more prisoners; Koby and the others only saved those who were passing by; for example, Moria and his phantom henchmen are here, according to Koby; also, I heard from another source that Pudding was kidnapped and brought here."
Luffy: "Pudding?" he asked.
Dante: "Sanji's former fiancée."
Sanji: "I don't know who this Miss Pudding is, but if there's a damsel in distress, it's a gentleman's duty to rescue her," he said, appearing out of nowhere, dropping his cigar, and becoming serious.
At that moment, Hachinosu was spotted from a good distance. We stopped.
Koby: "What's going on? Why did we stop?"
Dante: "Before we start, let's take out a Titan captain while we're at it." I said, summoning the AT. "When I fire, everything moves. Luffy, go with Sanji, and Zoro with Jimbei; I just need discretion and a safe place to hide Chopper."
Chopper: "I'm so nervous," he said, his face showing worry and fear.
Robin: "Don't worry, you'll be with me every step of the way," she said, giving him a piece of candy, which made Chopper's eyes light up and he instantly lost all his tension.
Dante: "Attention." I said, having the anti-tank weapon ready.
I had my sights set on the only guy I could see from this distance: Sanjuan Wolf. The sight was right on his head. Using Observation Haki, I needed to deflect the sight by about 4 cm.
Everything's ready; pull the trigger.
BANG
Everyone except Robin and Chopper jumped out of the ship.
I saw Sanjuan Wolf fall to the ground on the island, dead, his size causing chaos and destruction. Luckily for them, he was shrinking little by little.
I needed to act fast. This special rescue team was made up of two parts: the rioters and the stealth squad. I was part of the stealth squad, along with Chopper and Robin.
Robin and Chopper's job was to find Garp and heal him, hoping he could help us. My job was different: to kill them without them realizing who was with them.
When I arrived on the island, explosions were already going off, so I jumped off the ship and ran with a knife coated in Haki, searching for the different types on my list.
I quickly found two of them together. As I moved toward them, I looked to see who would be more difficult to take down in one hit.
I arrived at the location to find Doc Q and Catarina Devon. With a flash of light, I sliced his throat in half, killing him instantly.
Dante: "Two out of nine," I said, looking at Katarina.
Catarina: "Damn it," she said, transforming into Burgess.
I didn't have time to lose; I had to meet up with Kuzan quickly. So I pulled out a flare gun I had hidden and fired it into the air.
The flare exploded above us; I looked over as I dodged a punch from Catarina, used Geppo, and got out of there.
Just as she was about to follow me back, an electrical current engulfed the area, and a bolt of lightning struck her.
Dante: "I'm counting on you, Princess," I said to Luna, who had appeared from the darkness, her body covered by a black cloak.
After the meeting, I had called Hancock for help, and she agreed, but only Luna was coming. The rest of the Kuja pirates would join the Straw Hats' fleet.
Thanks to her Devil Fruit, she was able to arrive before us and infiltrate without being detected. She was just waiting for my signal to find out who she would fight.
Catarina, now recovered, tried to attack Luna but had to defend herself against the lightning-charged Mjolnir, taking the blow head-on and being sent flying, injured.
Dante: "Once you're finished, take care of the smaller ones; there are several, so they'll be at it for a while."
Luna: "Understood, Father." She said, transforming into lightning and following Catarina.
Currently, Luffy was able to quickly defeat Vasco Shot, and right now he's facing Teach. Zoro is facing Shiryu, Sanji is facing Laffitte, Jimbe is facing Avalo Pizarro, Ronin and Chopper have encountered Van Augur; they can keep them occupied, and Luna is with Catarina.
I leaped to the top of a building; below me was the former Marine admiral, Kuzan.
I had sensed him and was ready to counterattack, so I kept my distance and didn't attack.
Kuzan: "He's got quite a show going on here in Hachinosu." He said simply, his hands in his pockets, without looking at me.
Dante: "And what are you going to do?"
Kuzan: "To be honest, I'd rather not do anything," he said, taking his hands out of his pockets and finally looking at me.
Dante: "I feel sorry for you," I said directly. "Abandoning your ideals just because the institution you were at didn't appreciate them is like not knowing how the world works."
At this, Kuzan used Geppo and arrived where I was.
Kuzan: "Shut up, Aisu Suta." He said, unleashing a barrage of ice at me.
Using Soru, I dodged it, summoning Fusion Sword and attacking.
Kuzan: "Aisu Bōru," he said, raising a ball of ice that froze the sword.
I just clicked my tongue at this, since it froze my hands as well.
Dante: "What a pathetic man, being brought down by what you once pursued. Do you think the world is against you?" "Are you going through a second puberty?" I said mockingly, making him angry.
Kuzan: "You know nothing." He said, Freeze the entire building.
I jumped to avoid being frozen. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see the multiple explosions and how the island was distorted by the force of Pizarro's Devil.
Kuzan: "You're just a wannabe hero, more of a bum than anything."
Dante: "First of all, I'm proud of my status as a bum; in other places, it's called being unemployed. And second, this wannabe hero has had more achievements and merit than you. The marines still treat me with respect and admiration, while you're just a filthy, miserable traitor." I said, throwing the Fusion Sword to the ground.
It wouldn't do me any good, since getting close would freeze everything. I'd need to fight from a distance, so I summoned Ebony and Ivori, grateful I'd brought plenty of ammunition.
Kuzan was furious, and that worked in my favor.
Ignoring the current of darkness that surged and the thunderclaps that filled the air, I used Observation Haki to engage Kuzan in battle.
Anything he threw at me was either repelled or dodged; I generally used bullets to quickly destroy structures or raw ice.
My bullets, infused with advanced Armament Haki, sliced through the ice like melted butter, wounding Kuzan in several places.
Kuzan launched several ice spikes at me from his position; instead of destroying them, I dodged them, and with pinpoint accuracy, I managed to strike him directly in the lung and stomach. This caused him to stagger to the ground, falling to one knee.
(Note: The fight technically lasts longer, but since most of it involves throwing ice and random bullets constantly, I skipped it, as it would have been like writing the same thing on a loop. Also, Dante instantly reaches each opponent; this one takes a while; I just skipped that to keep this from getting too long.)
Taking advantage of his moment of weakness, I ran toward him in my hybrid form.
Kuzan barely had time to react; we clashed fists, but unlike me, he was injured, so the blow made him spurt blood from his chest.
At that moment, a huge explosion was heard, which threw Kuzan off his game, so I grabbed his arm and pulled him close enough to punch him in the stomach.
Dante: "Heruzu fisuto: Hakai no michi"
The blow destroyed everything in its path, creating devastation and destruction.
Once the smoke cleared, Kuzan, still conscious and badly wounded, was visible. Before the blow, he had managed to cover himself in ice and Haki, blocking part of the attack.
Dante: "How boring. You never intended to win."
Kuzan: "Just kill me. I failed at everything. I don't feel I deserve to live," he replied.
Dante: "That's not true," I said, walking slowly. The line of darkness grew more violent. From my position, I could sense four people fighting Teach: Luffy, Garp, Luna, and Moria's subordinate, for some reason.
They had almost finished their fights.
Dante: "I may be in a deep depression now, but that doesn't erase everything you've done: saving your friends, helping people, saving a little girl who was destined to die because of other people's mistakes."
I could see the change in his expression.
Kuzan: "But I..." I didn't let him finish.
Dante: "That doesn't matter. They were mistakes, and the important thing is being able to correct them, to find a solution; you're still saved."
Kuzan had no intention of fighting; I knew that from the start. I only goaded him into ending the fight as quickly as possible; most likely, if anyone had faced him, they would have defeated them, whoever they were.
I turned my gaze to the final battle brewing on the shore of Hachinosu.
Kuzan: "Why are you doing this?" he said resignedly.
Dante: "Because I'm a hero. I must be a pillar of light and save those who deserve salvation, including those who succumb to their own darkness," I replied, now standing beside him, and with a kick, I knocked him unconscious.
I picked him up like a sack of potatoes and went to where they were fighting.
On the way, I ran into Chopper, Robin, Sanji, Pudding, and a badly injured, savage Moria.
As soon as I arrived, I threw Kuzan to the ground like he was trash in front of Chopper, startling him with the suddenness of it all.
Dante: "You can give him first aid, or he might die," I said, making Chopper run even though I was only inches away from him.
Chopper: "He has multiple bullets lodged in his body, including one in his lung and one in his stomach."
Dante: "It was nothing," I joked, making him give me a strange look.
Robin: "Don't you think you went a little too far?" she said, looking at the badly injured Kuzan.
Dante: "That was my way of freeing him; that way his punishment was physical and not mental."
At that, Robin remained silent, understanding the hidden meaning of my words.
At that moment, I saw the couple very close and distressed.
Dante: "I see your divorce didn't last long," I said to them.
Sanji: "Shut up," he said violently; it should be noted that Pudding remained silent, perhaps because she didn't care about the mockery or because she was afraid; who knows?
Most likely, when Sanji rescued her and learned that Big Mom had fallen, he restored her memories.
At that moment, Luffy in Gear 5 extended a giant fist while standing on top of a collapsing Teach.
And with one blow, he sent Teach flying at great speed, ending the fight, since he was unconscious due to what I sensed with my Haki.
Dante: "The battle is over; all the Titan captains have been defeated. Let's rejoin the others," I said, lifting a half-helped Kuzan and ignoring Chopper's complaints. We went to where Luffy and the others were.
When we arrived, we saw Luffy almost unconscious from using Gear 5, a battered Garp covered in new and old wounds, Luna lying down, gazing thoughtfully at the sky, and Perona nearly dead from a heart attack.
It turns out that when they escaped from prison, they couldn't escape here like Koby and the others because they were hiding on the island. Seeing the situation, they decided to help their former enemy. As the saying goes, the enemy of my enemy is my friend.
I threw Kuzan to the ground again as if he weren't a living being and approached Garp.
Dante: "I didn't think you'd have a midlife crisis now and throw yourself into danger like you're 20; you could have asked me for help."
Garp: "That was my mistake; I'll never do it again."
How could he not do it again if after this he's most likely going to retire?
I looked at Luffy.
Dante: "How are you, Luffy? Are you ready for what's coming?"
I saw him give me a "fine" look, as if he'd aged 60 years.
I saw Teach lying unconscious on the ground; the thought of killing him crossed my mind, but I realized that this guy wasn't a being of pure evil, just a villain and nothing more. All things considered, Doflamingo has done far worse than this guy; the difference is that Teach has corrupted power, and Dofy doesn't.
I picked up Luna, who didn't want to move, hoisted her onto my shoulders, and headed toward the others.
Dante: "Let's find the others and get out of here." I turned my head. "Robin, tell Dargon we're done here and everything went well, and to proceed to step two."
Luffy: "Can't we rest a little?" he asked.
Dante: "We'll have the whole trip to lick our wounds; you can take all the food from the island with you."
At that moment, Luffy went from being 80 years old to 20 again.
Luffy: "Seriously, you should have told me that first, Sanji. Come with me to get the food."
Luna: "Someone said food," my strange daughter said, jumping off my shoulder and following Luffy as if he hadn't just fought Catarina and Teach back-to-back.
Garp: "I think I'll follow them," he said, getting up as if nothing had happened and following them.
The rest of us just stared as if something strange had occurred.
Robin: "Well, at least we'll have energy for what's coming," she said humorously.
I didn't say anything; I just turned around and went to find a small boat and a rope to attach it to the Skíðblaðnir, so we could carry the food and the crutches we were taking.
Moria: "Wait." He said to Luffy, stopping him in his tracks. "I just want to thank you for helping me get revenge on Teach and also for defeating Kaido, something I couldn't do when I defended my homeland. In return, I ask that you let me help you with whatever you're about to do."
Luffy: "Okay, no problem with that," he said as if what Moria had just said mattered little, and went to find what was important: food.
Moria had a strange expression at this, but he didn't seem to care much.
Dante: "Hey, do you know what we're going to do?"
Moria: "No, what are you going to do?" he said.
Dante: "We're going to attack the Holy Land."
Upon hearing that, I saw his face light up with regret.
Dante: "Robin will explain everything relevant; I have something to do to make our journey more comfortable." And I left.
---------------------------------------------------------------
Well, folks, maybe this all ended up being a bit short, but at some point I was at 2000 words and I realized the story hadn't progressed much, so I made some creative decisions.
Also, I decided not to write any fights involving the Straw Hats, since I want to leave that to the best mangaka in the history of manga, GODA (sarcasm).
Finally, I don't know if I'll be able to finish the story in the next chapter; I'll see as I write, but maybe I'll manage, since I write from Dante's perspective, and if the protagonist doesn't witness a specific fight, like Zoro versus a God Knight, I don't write it, since he's not there in person, and that saves me writing time and gives me the chance to finish soon.
But if all goes well, it will be the last chapter and a short epilogue to wrap up this whole One Piece thing. I hope you enjoyed the chapter, and if you found it rushed, I can only say that I'd already been speeding up the fic's pace since the Ares storyline. I'll explain what happened at the end of the arc. Cheers.
(I updated the Fate section a bit and replaced the images in the character section)