Lovers

That night, a man and a woman walked along a small path.

"Thanks, Hina. I had a really good time today."

At Hina's doorstep, Luo Sa smiled. It had been a long time since he'd felt this relaxed.

"I had a great time too!"

"Yeah, get some sleep then. I'll head off now!"

Luo Sa nodded and turned to leave.

"Wait... wait!"

Luo Sa looked back in confusion and saw Hina blushing, her hands fidgeting on her white dress, looking like a little girl.

"Um... could... could you do me a favor?" Hina stammered.

Luo Sa was stunned for a moment, then nodded.

"Well... could you be my boyfriend?"

Hina blurted it out. As soon as she said it, she froze, and so did Luo Sa.

"No, no, no—I mean, could you pretend to be my boyfriend?!"

Hina started explaining frantically, her little heart pounding uncontrollably.

"Pretend?"

Luo Sa couldn't help but glance down at himself, inexplicably relieved.

"Huff, huff." Hina took a deep breath, then said, "That's right. I want you to pretend to be my boyfriend and come with me to a party!"

"Give me the details!"

Luo Sa didn't agree right away. Parties and such—honestly, as an orphan, Luo Sa really disliked those rich-people-only events.

"This Love Festival party has a couple's challenge at the end. The first-place prize is a Devil Fruit, but you have to enter as a couple to compete!"

Once she'd said it, Hina felt more relaxed inside.

After actually speaking up, she realized it wasn't that hard after all.

"A Devil Fruit?"

Luo Sa remembered that in the original story, Hina's Devil Fruit should be the Kankan Fruit.

Was this Devil Fruit the Kankan Fruit?

Or it could be some other fruit. If so, he'd be changing the original story!

But that was interesting, wasn't it?

"Alright. I said as long as it's not too much, I'd agree to anything."

"From now on, I'm your boyfriend!"

Luo Sa grinned, a playful smile on his face as he looked at Hina.

"Th-then it's settled!"

Hina's face flushed red as she hurriedly ran back into the house.

The next day.

In Garp's family compound, Luo Sa's figure moved at lightning speed.

Suddenly, he paused, then his form turned into a white blur again.

Strangely, at the spot where Luo Sa had just been, another Luo Sa was still standing!

Slowly, Luo Sa came to a stop, and instantly, two Luo Sa figures appeared in the yard!

"Hah, this Shadow Clone technique is barely at the entry level. But at this stage, it's still useless in real combat. I need to keep developing it."

Only after truly becoming a spirit did he realize how hard it was to learn skills.

Take this Shadow Clone, for example. To use it, you first needed to be fast enough to leave an afterimage.

Then you had to inject ordinary elemental energy into that afterimage to manifest a real shadow clone.

And even now, Luo Sa could only create one shadow clone, and he couldn't control it to move with him.

"Hah, I'll stop physical training here for now. Next..."

Luo Sa felt the ordinary elemental energy inside him was nearly depleted and took a deep breath.

Then, very solemnly, he picked up a book from the chair.

The cover of the book read: Basic Fist Technique.

That was right. What Luo Sa was going to train next was fist technique.

After all, Garp's title was the Iron Fist, and with it, he had stood against the Pirate King, Roger. It was arguably the strongest fist technique in this world!

However, Luo Sa did not aim too high by directly learning Garp's Iron Fist Technique. Instead, he planned to start from the most basic fist techniques, determined to lay the firmest foundation for himself.

Moreover, in his plan, he intended to become a Fighting-type Pokémon, which would also serve as a foundation for his future combat skills!

Garp fully agreed with this and found him this Basic Fist Technique.

This Basic Fist Technique was, in fact, a distillation of fist technique essentials compiled from the vast repository of fist technique data in the Marine Headquarters' archives!

According to Garp, even his Iron Fist Technique was derived from it.

If I can't take first place in the Ranking Tournament with this, I'll have let Old Man Garp down. Sighing inwardly, Luo Sa's eyes instantly turned resolute.

Then, right there in the arena, Luo Sa planted himself in a horse stance, his legs as steady as a rock, while his free hands held the Basic Fist Technique for careful study.

After a period of comprehension, Luo Sa put away the Basic Fist Technique and began to practice each move meticulously in the arena.

Knock, knock, knock.

Just then, a sudden knock sounded at the door.

Luo Sa looked up at the gradually setting sun, then glanced thoughtfully at the door.

Opening it, he saw Hina standing outside with a flushed face, just as he expected.

Hina looked truly beautiful today. A pink one-piece dress fit her perfectly, and the butterfly hair clip on her head made her appear even more lively.

"Morning, Hina."

Luo Sa cleared his throat to cover his awkwardness.

"Mhm."

Hina's face was red, her voice as faint as a mosquito's buzz, and she handed him a bag.

Luo Sa took it and saw that it contained a set of clothes, along with a mask.

"A masquerade ball?"

Luo Sa's eyes lit up. If he didn't have to show his face, that would be for the best!

Soon, Luo Sa changed and came out.

A small suit fit him perfectly, and the Bird Mask on his face was clearly something Hina had carefully chosen.

Seeing Luo Sa come out, Hina also took out a Bird Mask and put it on.

With her face covered, Hina relaxed completely. She walked over to Luo Sa and took his hand. "I'm counting on you today, Luo Sa."

Luo Sa nodded. Since he had agreed, he would naturally give it his all!

Under Hina's lead, the two arrived at the town's Red Light District.

The Meeting Bar was located right at the center of this area.

Although it wasn't yet eight o'clock, the place was already packed with people.

Most of them were couples, and occasionally a few bold ones would openly flirt with each other in public, making both Luo Sa and Hina feel quite awkward.

"Please show us your invitation!" the waiter at the entrance of the Meeting Bar asked with a bow.

Hina quickly took out the invitation and handed it to the waiter. After receiving permission, she took Luo Sa's hand and walked inside.

Boom-chicka-boom!

Inside the bar, passionate music blared as countless young men and women danced and sang, the only commonality being that everyone wore a mask.