"I'm so bored, Xie Wen! Can't I do just a tiny experiment, meow?"
Little Plushie lay on Xie Wen's back, constantly pawing at his ears and hair.
This voyage was fairly long, and Klee Meow had already spent several days aboard Cody's ship before it began. So, after exploring all five ships, the little bundle of boundless energy soon grew bored.
"Ahem, how about I tell you another bit of Naruto the Cat?" Xie Wen tried to change the subject.
But that trick didn't work very well on Klee Meow. For the restless Little Plushie, listening to stories wasn't much of a priority, especially when she wanted to do experiments-or, rather, play with bombs...
"I don't want a story right now, meow..." Klee Meow shook her head like a fluffy little rattle. "I've thought up several new formulas these past two days. They're sure to make some really amazing bombs, meow!"
"..."
Doesn't that give me even more reason not to let you experiment?!
Xie Wen pressed his aching head, then continued his desperate struggle. "Have you finished making your explosive tags?"
Compared to sinking the ship, merely burning a few pieces of furniture or a door panel was about the best outcome he could hope for.
"Nope, I gave up, meow!" Klee Meow replied with complete confidence. "Unless I use my Devil Fruit Ability, there's no way to make something like that, much less keep it stable. So wasting time on it is pointless, meow!"
How come you know how to analyze things calmly now? Why do you just do whatever you feel like when you're making bombs?!
Xie Wen's head hurt even more.
"Aww, I'll be careful not to cause any explosions. Um... any explosions that are too big, meow." Klee Meow clearly knew what he was worried about. She hugged his head and began wheedling. "Please let me, Xie Wen~ Pretty please, meow~"
Faced with such an adorable kitty pleading with him, Xie Wen, a hopeless cat addict, simply couldn't resist. Fortunately, he didn't lose his reason over it. Instead, being backed into a corner sparked an idea that would satisfy them both-
He could find Klee Meow a little boat, then tow it on a rope far behind the fleet. That way, even if she really did blow it up, they'd only lose a small boat. They didn't even need a boat, actually; a few planks lashed into a simple raft would do.
"Is all this really necessary?" Bax, whom he'd called over to help, felt Xie Wen was making a fuss over nothing. "If little Klee wants to experiment, can't we just clear out a room on the ship for her?"
Xie Wen glanced at the clueless man and said flatly, "Back in Paper Lantern Town, the bombs Klee used were the weakest ones she had..."
Bax recalled the alley that had been flattened, immediately grasped the gravity of the situation, and silently added a considerable length to the rope he'd prepared.
Once everything was ready, Xie Wen and Klee Meow boarded a little skiff together.
Klee Meow had eaten a Devil Fruit, after all. To keep her from falling into the sea if she blew up this "temporary bomb workshop," Xie Wen naturally had to stay beside her and watch over her.
As for Sanji Meow, of course he stayed aboard the ship to prepare their meals. His little body couldn't withstand Klee Meow's bombs.
Fans familiar with One Piece all knew that, before Luffy and his crew entered the New World and updated the game version, bombs in the One Piece world couldn't kill anyone. But that was only a joke. The real reason was that everyone there was as hard to kill as a cockroach.
Besides, even if the bombs didn't kill anyone, they could certainly cause serious injuries. Those Gang thugs from Paper Lantern Town were probably still recovering in hospital beds.
With Xie Wen's current strength, though, he was fully capable of reacting before a bomb exploded. Even if he couldn't throw it away in time, activating his Armament Haki and tanking the blast shouldn't be much of a problem... probably.
He could even train his Armament Haki in the process. With a little luck, he might even awaken the Observation Haki he'd made no progress with. After all, he had the ever-lucky Klee Meow beside him, and he himself was the supremely lucky player who'd pulled her!
Just as Xie Wen entertained these thoughts with a complete lack of self-awareness, a hissing sound suddenly reached his ears.
"Oops... looks like it failed again, meow..." Klee Meow pawed at her ears twice and gave Xie Wen a big, carefree grin.
You failed way too quickly!
While inwardly ranting, Xie Wen swiftly grabbed the little object belching white smoke and hurled it as far away as he could with all his strength.
BOOM!
With a deafening blast, a huge plume of water erupted behind the fleet. A vast amount of seawater shot into the air, then came crashing down over Xie Wen and Klee Meow's little skiff. Even Bax, watching the show from the stern, got splashed.
"Ptooey! Ptooey! Ptooey!"
Xie Wen vigorously wiped his face, spat out the seawater that had accidentally gotten into his mouth, and turned to look at Klee Meow, who was hiding behind him completely unscathed.
"Heehee~ Getting seawater on me feels really awful, meow. Don't be mad, big brother Xie Wen~" Little Plushie hugged his leg and rubbed against it ingratiatingly.
Looking utterly helpless, Xie Wen asked, "Didn't you say you'd be careful not to cause any explosions that were too big?"
"But... we're not on the big ship anymore, meow?" Klee Meow planted her paws on her hips and countered with perfect confidence. "That means I don't need to hold back their power!"
Your reasoning is so sound that I can't even argue.
Looking at Little Plushie's adorably self-assured face, what else could Xie Wen say? He could only rub Klee Meow's kitty head and praise her. "You really are a clever little thing, Klee."
"Heehee~"
Klee Meow scratched her cat ears shyly, as though she hadn't caught his meaning. But Xie Wen knew she had absolutely heard and understood him.
All he could say was that Palicos really did lean more toward the feline side. They were far too practiced at playing innocent.
For a while afterward, Xie Wen and Klee Meow periodically set off explosions behind the fleet like this. Meanwhile, once Sanji Meow revealed that he could cook-and cook very well-he immediately attracted the attention of several of the fleet's cooks. They kept pulling him aside to compare culinary skills, and from what Xie Wen could see, he was thoroughly enjoying himself.
Perhaps it was because of the huge explosions that kept coming from their fleet, or perhaps some of the West Blue's population had gone into the Gang business instead. Whatever the reason, Xie Wen and the others didn't encounter a single pirate along the way. Things were so peaceful that it hardly felt like the world of One Piece...
Well, if you didn't count Klee Meow's explosive experiments, it really was quite peaceful.
Still, Klee Meow's experiments weren't entirely free of accidents. Xie Wen did encounter one occasion when he couldn't throw a bomb far enough in time. It exploded just as it left his hand...
The result of that explosion was that Xie Wen, who had braced himself in front with Armament Haki, was blasted into the sea. Klee Meow rolled twice across the boat before getting caught against the bow, completely unharmed. And... an unlucky Sea King that had been about to attack the little skiff took the oncoming bomb head-on and was left utterly dazed.
In the end, Klee Meow got to play with bombs, Sanji Meow gained some ingredients, Xie Wen added an entry to his catalog, and the sailors enjoyed a feast...
Everyone was happy...
Probably.
Revising stockpiled chapters is so painful... _(`"∠)_
Before you continue