Chapter 13: Shanks, What Clout Do You Have? Not a Single Strand.
Inside it lay the Devil Fruit he had obtained three years ago.
Paramecia type—Warp-Warp Fruit (Teleport-Teleport Fruit).
In the original storyline, it was the ability of Van Augur, the sniper of the Blackbeard Pirates.
It could be said to be a Devil Fruit perfectly suited for a sniper.
But for Dante, it was certainly not just an auxiliary fruit for sniping.
When his strength could no longer progress an inch, Dante might consider eating this space-related Devil Fruit.
Once developed to awakening, it might bring him many surprises. For instance, teleporting all enemy attacks thousands of miles away; rapid teleportation to achieve a "Kamui intangibility" effect, immunizing against all attacks; casually teleporting Devil Fruit users into the sea…
If the Paw-Paw Fruit could push out pain and travel the world, why couldn't his Warp-Warp Fruit do the same?
In Dante's view, while Mythical Zoans were indeed powerful, Paramecia types weren't weak either, especially those involving conceptual abilities.
As for why he hadn't eaten it yet…
Dante was waiting.
He was worried about a certain suspicion: would Devil Fruit users be rejected by the final island if they arrived before the right time?
In the original story, Buggy missed out on the great treasure because he suddenly, inexplicably developed a high fever on the eve of landing on the island,
while no one else had this symptom.
The biggest difference between Buggy and the others was that Buggy was a user of the Chop-Chop Fruit.
So Dante didn't dare to gamble. The fruit wasn't going anywhere anyway; he could wait a couple of years.
Besides, during these two years, he could focus his energy on improving his Haki. After all, Teacher Kaido said: "Haki reigns supreme above all else."
Dante naturally wouldn't put the cart before the horse, turning himself into a seemingly awesome fruit user who'd kneel the moment he encountered Conqueror's Haki infusion.
Was Kid awesome?
His awakened electromagnetic cannon could seriously injure an Emperor with ease. One shot could wipe out entire fleets.
But his own Haki couldn't keep up. With a bit of Future Sight, Shanks caught his start-up lag, dodged like he was walking a dog, and秒杀 (one-shotted) him with a Divine Departure.
Thirty billion berries, taken down as easily as slaughtering a chicken.
Therefore, no matter what, Dante would not abandon his Haki training.
He wanted to develop the hardest Armament Haki in the world, see further with Future Sight, and possess Conqueror's Haki that would lose to no one.
Sailing with the Roger Pirates was now the fastest way for him to improve his Haki, essentially replicating Shanks' path to rise…
Knock knock…
While Dante was lost in thought, a knocking sound came from the door.
"Uncle Bittam?"
A strange red light flashed in Dante's eyes, and an image of the fat man opening the door instantly appeared before him.
Pulling on his pants, Dante opened the door. Sure enough, it was his sniper mentor,
the sniper of the Roger Pirates, Bittam.
"Dante, not asleep yet?"
Bittam held a long, bandage-wrapped object in his hand. He familiarly patted Dante's shoulder.
Dante nodded and invited him in to sit.
"This is…?"
"I came to congratulate you, Dante. The potential for Conqueror's Haki isn't something just anyone has," Bittam said with a laugh, directly handing the object to Dante.
It had to be said, as Dante's mentor, Bittam was very responsible, teaching him more applications of Observation Haki and sniper techniques diligently. He deserved to be called Dante's mentor.
Dante took the object and immediately recognized what it was from the feel.
A long rifle.
Quite heavy…
Dante unwrapped the bandages layer by layer, revealing a sleek black sniper rifle inside. Its design was particularly cool, and both the barrel and the scope were made of excellent materials without exception.
This material is really good…
It's all fcking Seastone!*
Holy shit…
Dante was at a loss for words. He had originally planned to become a Devil Fruit user who could fight, tank, and snipe. What was he supposed to do now?
Could he not have both teleportation and a sniper rifle?
"Uh… it's definitely a good gun!" Dante said, looking into Bittam's expectant eyes. He naturally couldn't bring himself to say anything disappointing.
I'll just have to keep it bandaged when I use it.
Besides, it was indeed an excellent rifle. Any seasoned sniper would know upon handling it that hitting targets several kilometers away would be no problem at all.
If the bullets were coated with Armament Haki or something like fruit abilities, it could theoretically shoot even further.
"Hahahaha, of course! I spent a fortune on this back in the day. But I've gotten used to my old partner here," Bittam said, patting the rifle he always carried, "so I never switched. It's your lucky day, kid!"
Bittam laughed heartily, clearly also happy that this fine gun had found a good home.
Because Dante was worth it.
There weren't many snipers who possessed Conqueror's Haki. It had been years since someone like Dante, a unique seedling, appeared. His future prospects were limitless.
Bittam himself didn't have Conqueror's Haki; he could never become one of the world's strongest as a sniper in this lifetime. But Dante had that hope.
So this move was also an investment in the future of sniping!
"I originally planned to give it to you tomorrow, but I saw Shanks was still awake, so I figured you probably weren't asleep either and came today."
Hearing Bittam's words, Dante, who had been fiddling with his new weapon, paused. He raised an eyebrow curiously.
"What's that guy Shanks doing crazy stuff in the middle of the night for?"
"Probably because of you," Bittam said, a smile curling on his lips seeing Dante's confusion. "Seeing you, someone his age, easily defeat an enemy officer probably stung him a bit."
Then he laughed heartily.
As a child raised by Captain Roger from a young age, Shanks had exceptional talent and was seen by Roger as the successor to his will.
Dante was his own disciple.
Now, Dante > Shanks.
Didn't that, in a way, mean Bittam > Roger?
"It seems Shanks also has the heart of a强者 (strong person)."
This was actually normal. Shortly after boarding the ship, Shanks, who had already been gifted the straw hat by Roger, had developed a初步心态 (initial mindset) of looking down on the world and was entrusted with the expectation of being the "King of the Next Era."
Dante's appearance undoubtedly placed a ceiling on this guy who was supposed to be invincible among his peers.
The fact that Shanks, who had traveled with the Roger Pirates since childhood, couldn't surpass Dante, who grew up in a town, was like the genius young master losing to the grassroots chosen one.
Didn't that mean Captain Roger's will shouldn't be inherited by him? That this straw hat shouldn't belong to him?
Shanks couldn't accept it.
Even though Dante didn't deliberately target him, the inherent gap still made Shanks subconsciously compare himself, hoping to one day regain his position as the MVP among the three youngsters.
After Dante awakened his Conqueror's Haki during the day, Shanks started pushing himself hard that very night.
"Keep it up, Dante. You might be overtaken if you let your guard down."
Dante didn't feel much pressure from Bittam's words.
After all, he never intended to inherit any will or become the Pirate King.
Wanting to see what One Piece really was… was purely for nostalgia and curiosity.
If he really wanted to become the Pirate King, wouldn't it be simple? Wait for Roger to die, take the Eternal Pose to Laugh Tale for a revisit, declare he found the great treasure, and be done with it.
However, he did take strength quite seriously.
He couldn't have a situation where, in the future, wanting to have some fun or show off, he'd be forced to flee just because Shanks interfered. That guy was notoriously meddlesome.
Shanks might have clout with others,
but in front of him and Buggy,
he didn't have a single strand (of clout).