The casino doors swung open, and Tsunade emerged, clutching a large bag of money. A wide smile spread across her face. Her husband, the veritable god of gambling, was truly incredible; he had won back all the money lost in no time.
"Let's go, Li Xing, Shizune, I'm treating you to drinks!" Tsunade declared, leading the way like a magnate. Li Xing and Shizune exchanged smiles and followed hand in hand, a familiar scene for them.
...
Inside a bar, Li Xing held Ton Ton, while Tsunade and Shizune drank incessantly.
A young girl with short, orange hair suddenly sat down next to Li Xing. Li Xing chuckled inwardly, thinking it was ironic that a thief would target him.
"You guys drink, I'll go get something," Li Xing told Tsunade and Shizune before leaving the bar with Ton Ton. Tsunade and Shizune hadn't even noticed their money had been stolen. Sometimes, too much success could be a bad thing.
...
"Yo! Little girl, you've stolen quite a bit of money! Seeing is sharing, how about you give me half!"
In a small alley, Nami was happily counting her money when Li Xing suddenly appeared behind her, a sly smile on his face.
"Impossible, you..." Nami initially didn't react. The moment she turned and saw Li Xing, Nami immediately scooped up the money and began to run.
"Sage Art: Earth Style: Earth Style Wall!"
A wall instantly rose in front of Nami, blocking her path. When Nami tried to escape elsewhere, she found herself surrounded by four high walls, leaving only two people and a pig trapped inside.
"You... Who are you? I can give you back this money if you let me go," Nami, sensing Li Xing was not someone to be trifled with, reluctantly offered the money to him.
However, it was evident that Nami's eyes were fixed on the bag of money, and her hands were unwilling to let go.
"Little girl, stealing is a bad habit. It's fortunate you encountered me today. If a bad person had caught you, you would have lost both your money and your person!"
Li Xing snatched the money bag and opened it. Fortunately, nothing was missing, or Tsunade would have scolded him.
Then, Li Xing looked at Nami. "My beautiful little thief cat, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Li Xing, the strongest in the world. This pig is Ton Ton. And you?"
"Nami. I've returned your money, can you let me go now?" Nami planned to leave first and find an opportunity to get the money back later, as long as she could avoid this man.
"No problem, but before that, I want to tell you something. Arlong's words might not always be trustworthy. Don't act impulsively until you have absolute certainty."
With that, Li Xing vanished. The Earth Style Wall also disappeared. Nami was stunned. How did this man know? What did Li Xing mean?
...
On the Nebula.
"What? You said my money was stolen? Oh, it's found? That's good, that's good." Tsunade was talking to Ton Ton when she exploded upon hearing the news of the theft. Thankfully, Li Xing had recovered the money.
Meanwhile, Ino, Karin, and Yugito each held a set of clothes, presenting them to Li Xing to change.
Ino had a black suit. Karin had an imperial dragon robe. Yugito's choice was even more outrageous: a pink cat-girl costume.
In the end, Li Xing chose Ino's suit, as it was the only one that seemed remotely normal.
"What! I still think Xing-kun looks better in regal attire."
"No, my cat-ear outfit has more flair."
"Stop arguing, Xing has already chosen my suit, so I win this time!"
The three continued to argue, each convinced their choice was the best. However, Li Xing preferred loose-fitting clothes, and Ino's suit was the most sensible, hence his decision to wear it.
"Li Xing, we bought so much food, you have to make dinner tonight!" Anko excitedly ran over with two large bags. She knew Li Xing was the best cook.
Li Xing looked at the bags and felt speechless. All the food purchased was sweets. What else could be made besides cakes and pastries? Fortunately, Konan had bought normal groceries.
Meanwhile, Mei Terumi, accompanied by Kaguya, had bought many clothes and skirts, even some intimate apparel. As soon as Kaguya returned, she stayed by Li Xing's side, her clinginess surpassing even Yugito's.
...
After a day of sightseeing, everyone decided to continue their voyage towards what people in this world called the Grand Line, rumored to be the most exciting place in this world.
Their first destination was Reverse Mountain, the sole entrance to the Grand Line. Of course, entering directly through the Calm Belt was also an option, but Li Xing wanted to experience the sight of rivers flowing upstream.
...
As night fell and the Nebula sailed at sea, five pirate ships surrounded them. The largest of them, without a word, opened fire. Fortunately, the Nebula was protected by a barrier.
"Dinner entertainment has arrived. This is the world's pirates. Show no mercy," Li Xing reminded everyone.
Indeed, with the exception of Kaguya, Yugito, and Shizune, everyone else wanted to test their strength.
"Let me go first!" Tsunade leaped into the sea, clapping her hands. Countless trees erupted from the surface, instantly destroying the five ships. What was once an endless expanse of ocean now had a forest that appeared out of nowhere, but it wasn't an island; the roots of the trees reached the seabed.
"Wood Style: Deep Forest Emergence!"
Li Xing nodded at the sight. "It seems Tsunade can use Wood Style now that she's reached the Six Paths."
"My turn," Ino stood on the deck, waved her hands, and all the pirates in the surrounding fleet began to slaughter each other.
"Mind Disturbance Jutsu!"
"Honestly, don't you want to try the power of these Devil Fruits?" Karin flicked her hair and stepped forward. With a punch, several bolts of lightning shot out, scorching Tsunade's Wood Style creations. Half of the pirates were instantly annihilated by this attack.
"I can do it too, and it's even prettier than yours." Tsunade was instantly displeased. She had created the Hundred Healings Jutsu herself, and now not only Li Xing, but even Karin was using it better than her.
Then, a multi-colored flame appeared on Tsunade's fist. With a forceful punch forward, the flames spread out in a fan shape, instantly obliterating all the pirates.
"Isn't that just imitating Li Xing's Rainbow Light Cannon? I can do that too." Mei Terumi glanced at it and immediately thought of a technique Li Xing had used before. This kind of chakra expulsion technique wasn't difficult.
"Tsunade-sama, you finished them all by yourself, and we didn't even get to fight." Anko shouted in disappointment at not getting a chance to participate.
"Next time, next time for sure," Tsunade chuckled lightly and jumped back onto the ship.
"The journey has just begun, no need to rush. You all can release ninjutsu without hand seals now, very good, commendable," Li Xing said, applauding them.
"Let's continue! Forward to the Grand Line!"
...
Nightfall...
Everyone was asleep when Anko secretly snuck into Li Xing's room and, without a word, crawled into his bed.
Li Xing jolted awake. When did rats appear on the ship? He immediately threw off the covers and found Anko, naked, clutching his waist.
"Anko?"
"Shh! Keep your voice down, don't let anyone hear."
Li Xing threw a piece of clothing over Anko to prevent himself from giving in to temptation later.
"Speak. What do you want?" Li Xing knew that Anko wouldn't be like this without a reason; she must want him to do something.
"I'm the only one left on this ship. Don't you think that's unfair?"
Li Xing immediately guessed Anko's intention. This was rather direct, but since things had progressed this far, Li Xing wouldn't refuse Anko's request.
However, Li Xing didn't act immediately. Instead, he hugged Anko and asked, "You won't regret this, will you?"
Anko shook her head and said, "I won't regret it. At first, I thought you were a bad person. Later, you made me food, and you basically granted every wish I made as a captive, so I thought you were a very good person. Konan also said that you are the only one in heaven and earth, and it would be a regret not to seize this opportunity."
"So that's it, you listened to Konan! Konan persuaded you to come tonight too, right? Are you sure you're not just acting on impulse?"
"Are you even a man? I'm like this, and you're still asking so many questions. Besides, you feel something for me too, right? Otherwise, why would your body temperature suddenly rise?" Anko then took off her clothes, unbuttoned Li Xing's shirt, and pressed herself against him.
Li Xing stopped overthinking. It was already like this, and not proceeding would make him less than an animal. They then melted into a tender embrace...
(Alright, they've all been 'taken care of.' I'll focus on everyday life in the pirate world for now. Once we enter the main storyline, they will be taken offline. For now, I'll write more about daily life.)