On the deck of the Going Merry, Su Xiaoqi saw Princess Vivi, along with the other members of the Blackbeard Pirates.
Van Augur was standing atop the mast, holding his gun aimed at Su Xiaoqi. Lafitte stood right beside Vivi, keeping constant vigilance. As for the last one, Doc Q, he looked as if he was terminally ill, lying feebly on his horse's back.
But what made Su Xiaoqi most wary was Blackbeard himself. One had to admit, this guy was truly cautious — not only had Burgess restrained Nami, but from the moment they walked from the cabin to the deck, Blackbeard never let down his guard against him for even a second. He had even activated the power of his Yami Yami no Mi (Dark-Dark Fruit).
Su Xiaoqi's gaze lingered on Princess Vivi for a moment before a satisfied smile appeared on his face. Looking at Blackbeard, he said,
*"I want this princess of Alabasta. Name your terms."*
*"Zehahaha!"* Blackbeard laughed heartily. After having Lafitte and Burgess bring Vivi and Nami to his side, he said:
*"You can only choose one of these two women. The one you abandon, I'll throw her into the sea."*
Su Xiaoqi looked at Blackbeard as if looking at an idiot and held out his hand.
*"Hand me a knife."*
*"What do you mean?"*
Blackbeard was confused. *I'm just asking you to choose one, and you're asking me for a knife?*
Su Xiaoqi spoke with disdain:
*"I'm seriously doubting whether you're a pirate or not. Why bother making it so complicated? Just chop that orange-haired woman into pieces — wouldn't that be simpler?"*
On the opposite side, Nami's face was filled with utter disbelief. *I'm your group member, okay? He just said he'd throw me into the sea, but you want to chop me up into pieces?*
*So I scammed you out of fifty thousand points — but you've scammed me before too! That makes us even! Do you really have to hold a grudge like this?*
Furious, she vented all her emotions in the group chat, cursing Su Xiaoqi for wanting to toy with her body.
Su Xiaoqi glanced at the group chat nonchalantly, then looked back at Blackbeard and urged:
*"Hurry up, give me the knife. Make sure it's sharp — I like the feeling of one clean cut."*
*"You bastard! I won't forgive you even in death!"*
At this moment, Nami was seething with rage. If it weren't for the big oaf restraining her, she would have rushed over to punch Su Xiaoqi in the face.
*"Could it be that these two don't actually know each other?"*
Although Blackbeard was a bit confused by their antics, suspicion still lingered in his mind. He looked at Su Xiaoqi and said:
*"You've seen the princess of Alabasta now, so show me your abilities."*
Su Xiaoqi smiled.
*"What's the point of just looking? Captain, don't you want to try me out personally? That way I can also see whether your crew is worth me joining."*
*"You want to fight me?"* Blackbeard gave a contemptuous grin and said mockingly:
*"That depends on whether you're worth my personal attention. Boys — get him!"*
As soon as the word "get" left Blackbeard's mouth, Van Augur on the mast pulled the trigger, and both Burgess and Lafitte rushed toward Su Xiaoqi.
Su Xiaoqi had been keeping an eye on that sniper on the mast from the moment he stepped onto the deck. The instant Blackbeard gave the order, he moved.
*"A Teleportation Fruit?"*
Blackbeard, seeing Su Xiaoqi instantly appear on the mast and take down Van Augur, made a guess. Among the Devil Fruits he knew of, excluding the ones already eaten by others, only this fruit's ability matched the feat before his eyes.
After knocking Van Augur unconscious with a punch, Su Xiaoqi reappeared on the deck, dragging him along, and hurled him toward Doc Q. *This old schemer's Sick-Sick Fruit is absolutely disgusting.*
He had no intention of becoming a woman — going to the bathroom would be a nightmare.
*"A bunch of useless trash."*
Blackbeard's face darkened at the sight of his crew being so easily handled. He activated his Dark-Dark Fruit.
*"Dark Water!"*
In an instant, Su Xiaoqi felt a powerful suction pulling his body toward Blackbeard.
With Su Xiaoqi in his grasp, Blackbeard laughed loudly:
*"Zehahaha! My Devil Fruit is called the Dark-Dark Fruit, the most powerful of all Devil Fruits. Your Teleportation Fruit is fast, but now you can't use it anymore."*
*"Boy, join my crew. I'll spare your life and even give you this orange-haired woman. Otherwise, I'll chop you up like you said earlier."*
From start to finish, Blackbeard had never intended to give Vivi to him — she was far too valuable to him.
Su Xiaoqi struggled a few times, then stopped. Just as Blackbeard thought he had resigned himself to fate, a smirk appeared at the corner of Su Xiaoqi's mouth.
*"Hah!"*
With a loud shout, Su Xiaoqi released all the ki in his body at once, breaking free from Blackbeard's grip.
*"What's going on?"*
While Blackbeard was still stunned at the failure of his Dark-Dark Fruit's effect, Su Xiaoqi's fist slammed into his chest, sending him flying into the sea.
The sudden turn of events left the rest of the Blackbeard Pirates dumbfounded. Lafitte was the first to react, shouting:
*"Hold him off! I'll save the captain!"*
In the next moment, wings sprouted from his back, and he flew toward where Blackbeard had fallen.
Su Xiaoqi hadn't expected these Blackbeard Pirates — despite being murderous scum — to be so loyal to their captain.
Burgess, Van Augur, and Doc Q staked their lives to buy Lafitte time. By the time Su Xiaoqi finished them off with a Kamehameha, Lafitte had already dived into the sea.
*"Su Xiaoqi! What are you standing around for? Go after them! This is your chance to kill Blackbeard!"* Nami shouted.
*"Chance my ass."* Su Xiaoqi cursed inwardly. Of course he knew this was the perfect chance to kill Blackbeard. Of course he wanted the points.
But he wasn't about to tell Nami that he couldn't swim — that he was a complete landlubber. That would get him laughed at for life.
Ignoring Nami, who was baring her teeth at him from the side, Su Xiaoqi walked over to Vivi, intending to untie her.
But the moment his hand reached out, Vivi desperately struggled and shouted angrily:
*"You devil! I'd rather die than let you touch me — *tui*!"*
Su Xiaoqi was stunned as a mouthful of saliva hit his face. Nami was also dumbstruck — then burst into uncontrollable laughter.
Five minutes later, after learning the truth, Vivi awkwardly apologized while helping wipe Su Xiaoqi's face:
*"I'm truly, deeply sorry. I didn't know you were here to save us — and that you were Nami's friend."*
Nami pouted.
*"Vivi, you don't have to apologize to him. For all you know, he might actually like your spit. Just now, he even said he'd rather chop me up than give you up."*
Vivi's face flushed. She looked at Su Xiaoqi and said:
*"I'm actually not usually like this. Just now was really an accident."*
*"I haven't introduced myself yet — my name is Nefeltari D. Vivi. It's a pleasure to meet you, and thank you for saving me."*