*Texas.*
Outside the Sawyer Estate.
Old lawyer Farnsworth’s words, “This is Texas,” left Heather stunned.
What's so special about Texas?
Aren’t they part of the United States?
Does that mean they don’t have to follow the law?
Farnsworth quickly gave his answer.
They really don’t.
“Heather, this is Texas,” Farnsworth sighed. “Here, where the ‘people are simple and honest.’ Those thugs...
2025-04-23 02:20:44 +0000 UTC View Post*Texas.*
*Newt Town.*
*Outside the Sawyer Estate.*
A white sedan slowly approached. Under Heather’s watchful gaze, an elderly man with a white beard and a suit stepped out.
"Mr. Flanworth?"
"That’s me. And you must be Heather?"
The old man looked at Heather kindly.
"Yes, that’s me."
Heather nodded. "Thank you for coming all the way from Dallas."
"It was my duty."
Flanworth e...
2025-04-23 02:20:26 +0000 UTC View Post"Ah—!"
Nikki screamed, startled.
"Don't yell! It's just me!"
Nikki looked behind her. It was Ryan.
"You scared me half to death!"
Nikki turned and hugged Ryan, planting a long, wet kiss on him.
Turns out, this woman had been hooking up with Ryan for a while now, and her boyfriend Kenny had no idea.
But Kenny wasn't exactly a saint either. He was in the living room getting high after dinner.
Looking at it this way, Heather was surrounded...
2025-04-23 02:19:50 +0000 UTC View PostThat guy was actually pretty skilled. He ditched the baggage and vanished in the blink of an eye. Roy didn't bother chasing after him.
"Roy, are you okay?"
Heather came running over, completely out of breath. The way her chest was moving reminded Roy of that massive earthquake scene in the movie "San Andreas."
"I'm fine! Heather, I managed to get your stuff back, but I didn't catch the kid."
Heather looked at Roy with gratitude.
"Just getting the things ba...
2025-04-23 02:18:37 +0000 UTC View PostTwo days later, at Mermaid Harbor.
Waves crashed against the hull, scattering foam across the water’s surface. Yet the massive Ship of Hope remained as steady as a mountain.
*"Alright, line up for ticket checks—no cutting!"*
A tanned, muscular crewman snipped a corner off each passenger’s ticket, motioning for order.
*"Lord Orochimaru… something feels off."*
At the back of the crowd, a fair-skinned boy with whit...
2025-04-22 05:38:42 +0000 UTC View PostNo hesitation.
Hikari locked the door and windows, drew the curtains, and sat cross-legged on the bed.
Eyes shut, she shoved the revolting strip of flesh into her mouth.
The meat had no distinct odor—its texture, somewhere between chicken and fish, was almost novel. But the way it writhed and squirmed the more she chewed made her grimace.
Gulp.
After a few perfunctory chews, she swallowed.
At first, nothing happened.
But Hikari didn’t let h...
2025-04-22 05:36:58 +0000 UTC View Post"Miss Hikari, your dinner is here."
A handsome waiter stood at the door, pushing a cart piled high with meat. The doorbell chimed politely.
"Enter."
The door was unlocked.
Before he could even step inside, the sound of crunching echoed from within—gnawing, grinding, the kind of noise that made his own teeth ache in sympathy.
Pushing the cart in, his vision gradually adjusted to the scene.
In the spacious, well-lit room, a long mahogany dining table...
2025-04-22 05:36:29 +0000 UTC View PostHaikawa Port — a bustling harbor city on the western coast of the Land of Water.
Its proximity to the Land of Fire made it a hub for merchants, politicians, and pleasure-seekers alike. What was once a tiny fishing village had morphed into a glittering nexus of trade and vice.
But where there’s light, shadows fester.
While the city center thrived under the Mizukage’s watchful eye, the slums festered with yakuza and desperation.
"Hey, old hag—where’s thi...
2025-04-22 05:35:10 +0000 UTC View Post———
Whoosh!
White bone splashed through puddled water.
Without warning, Hikari lunged at Bloodhound.
The masked ninja spun to flee—but she closed the gap in an instant, her bone blade slashing downward toward his spine.
CLANG!
The razor-edged strike didn’t cleave him in two as she’d expected. Instead, it bounced off his back as if she’d struck a mountain. Her wrist trembled from the recoil.
Seizing the opening, Bloodhound bolted.<...
2025-04-22 01:11:35 +0000 UTC View Post"Bones harder than steel, yet able to morph freely. Overwhelming strength, speed, defense, and technique—no weaknesses in taijutsu."
"Some kind of sensory ability that doesn’t rely on sight. Ambushes are useless. High genjutsu resistance too—my Mist Illusion lasted less than a second. Doubt any other genjutsu would work."
Bloodhound and Mist Crow rapidly exchanged intel.
The more they spoke, the more their dread grew.
Monstrous strength. A body like temper...
2025-04-22 01:09:28 +0000 UTC View PostThe night grew darker, the stars and moon swallowed by the void—leaving only the firelight clinging to the treetops, flickering like a dying pulse.
A flash of flame.
Uzukage’s eyes sharpened.
His hand snapped forward.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Two kunai streaked toward Hikari’s face.
At the same instant, Bloodhound roared, channeling chakra into his legs and kicking off the ground with enough force to blast ...
2025-04-22 01:08:14 +0000 UTC View Post*Nightfall.*
Kaguya Hikari fed another log into the fire, watching as flames licked up the edges of the wood, casting flickering light across the campsite.
The memory of the girl from earlier—the one who’d snuffed out their flames with Ice Release—lingered in her mind like a stain.
"One day, I’ll slaughter every last kekkei genkai user. I swear it."
Her brother had held her as she cried, their matching blue eyes burning with the ...
2025-04-22 01:07:00 +0000 UTC View PostBeneath the hazy moonlight…
Whoosh—whoosh—
Two figures darted across the treetops, landing softly alongside fluttering leaves.
"Bloodhound, how much longer until we catch up?"
The pair wore masks—one shaped like a crow, the other a dog. They were Uzukage and Bloodhound, dispatched on a kill order by their captain, Ōtengu.
Bloodhound didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he pulled a kunai from his ninja pouch. The blade was ordinary, its edge stain...
2025-04-22 01:06:20 +0000 UTC View PostChapter 356: Akatsuki on the Other Side of the Battlefield – The Byakugan Fusion!
The raging winds sweeping across the battlefield suddenly ceased, and even the distant rumbling rock river came to a halt.
A deep silence fell over the surroundings.
Clouds rolled across the sky.
The blazing sun slowly peeked through the gaps in the heavy cloud cover, its radiant light inching across the scarred and battered earth.
It shone directly upon the massive, collapsed gia...
2025-04-22 01:01:36 +0000 UTC View PostChapter 261: The Guest
"Are you an agent from BSI?"
Outside the small town of Bandera.
The commander in charge of the operation couldn't hide his surprise as he looked at the peculiar appearance of Agent Phil.
He had already been informed that this mission involved the BSI, a special division tasked with investigating supernatural cases.
However, the agent standing before him looked far too unusual.
If not for his cooperative demeanor from the b...
2025-04-22 00:58:59 +0000 UTC View PostChapter 216: Copying the Impure World Reincarnation Technique
From the letter Pakura left, Hattori figured she must have returned to the Sand Village. It seemed likely she went back to confront Rasa.
Hattori was more than pleased with this turn of events. He wasn’t too worried about Pakura’s safety. After the last incident, Rasa, if he had even a scrap of common sense left, wouldn’t dare to make any rash moves.
Besides, Pakura had already faced death once before, so ...
2025-04-22 00:57:46 +0000 UTC View PostAfter asking the question, Ollie could clearly sense Maxim's hesitation. The atmosphere between Maxim and Cliff also felt a little strange.
"What's up?" Ollie asked, a little confused. Back in his familiar environment, Ollie was his usual energetic self again, teasing, "Did you guys do something wrong?" He was wiggling his eyebrows, looking like he was trying to dig up some forbidden secret.
But Ronan could feel that something was off.
Actually, the moment Cliff and M...
2025-04-22 00:57:02 +0000 UTC View PostA spotlight pinned the stage’s center, where black tape marked an X—the heart of the action, the spot where magic sparked. It was mesmerizing.
Instruments lined the stage: drum kit, piano, multi-tiered keyboards, plus jazz staples like sax, French horn, and trombone—a symphony’s worth of gear.
In front of the stage? Nothing. Bare ground, open sky, exposed pipes overhead. Without the snow globe light and shifting beams dangling above, you’d swear it was an abando...
2025-04-22 00:56:45 +0000 UTC View PostSo, what exactly does it mean to have "a lot of people"?
Three hundred? Five hundred?
Three thousand? Five thousand?
Honestly, without a stadium or some defined area to frame it, it’s tough to judge with the naked eye. When you’re looking out at a flat horizon, your line of sight and field of vision can actually get in the way of seeing the big picture. Once the number of people crosses a certain threshold, the sheer vastness of a sea of humanity makes the n...
2025-04-22 00:56:28 +0000 UTC View PostIn any mixed-performance gig, the lineup and slot times are everything—think prime-time TV or summer blockbuster season. Stage shows are no different.
The Full Moon Party’s schedule made it clear: the real peak hit from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m.—the vibe at its wildest, the crowd at its hypest. Before that, it’s warm-up vibes; after, everyone’s wiped.
One Day Kings’ slot wasn’t prime, but it wasn’t awful either. For a last-minute add-on, 6 to 6:30 p.m. was a gift...
2025-04-22 00:56:13 +0000 UTC View Post*Chapter 1316: Unveiling the Veil*
Wave after wave, they came, unending and relentless.
Ripley could barely contain her excitement and exhilaration. It took every ounce of her strength to suppress the urge to scream. Instead, she stood quietly, savoring the thrill coursing through her veins.
They had done it.
From The Elephant to Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, all because of one person—Anson. Independent films, which had alw...
2025-04-22 00:55:50 +0000 UTC View Post“So… so strong!”
Outside the court, Ootori couldn’t help but exclaim in awe as he watched the tennis ball land perfectly on the baseline.
“Four Gods Martial Arts: Vermilion Bird!”
Shishido’s face was filled with shock. Just moments ago, when the ball descended from the sky, he could’ve sworn he saw a phoenix swooping down from the heavens.
“Is this the true form of martial arts tennis?”
Mukahi and Akutagawa were equally stunned, their hearts u...
2025-04-22 00:54:30 +0000 UTC View Post[The player has fused ancient martial arts with tennis, creating a special ability: Martial Arts Aura.]
[Martial Arts Aura Lv1: Extreme Burst, Body Like a Wandering Dragon. Awakens the ability known as "Aura," enhancing one's explosive power, speed, and strength.]
This was the special ability Ishikawa had just unlocked by merging ancient martial arts with tennis.
"Four Gods Martial Arts: Black Tortoise."
Outside the court, when Hiyoshi he...
2025-04-22 00:53:46 +0000 UTC View PostIce Tennis Club.
As the news of the match between Ishikawa and Akutsu spread, the other members of the tennis club, who were in the middle of their training, quickly gathered around to watch.
"Everyone, don’t forget your training tasks," Ishikawa said with a smile as the crowd grew. "If you don’t complete your training plan, you’ll have to drink my newly developed special herbal tea!"
Gulp.
The moment those words left his mouth, everyone...
2025-04-22 00:53:27 +0000 UTC View PostKanagawa Prefecture, Yokohama City.
Kanai General Hospital.
Evening.
The regulars of Rikkai Dai were gathered outside the rehabilitation room, their heads hung low, their expressions grim.
They had lost the Kantō tournament.
After promising Seiichi before the match, none of them had the courage to ask about his condition now.
"Everyone."
At that moment, Sanada, who stood at the front of the group, turned to face t...
2025-04-22 00:53:10 +0000 UTC View PostOn June 5th, Andrew O’Hare from Dunn Films personally attended the signing ceremony in the UK for the rights transfer of the last four Harry Potter books. For $5 million plus a 3% share of future profits, they officially secured the rights to the entire Harry Potter series.
Dunn had a quick phone chat with Andrew, who mentioned that J.K. Rowling seemed pretty cooperative—probably feeling a bit guilty and trying to make nice. Thanks to David Heyman’s mediat...
2025-04-22 00:52:37 +0000 UTC View PostAfter a week of navigating the process, the loan Dunn needed finally came through.
Dunn personally secured a $100 million loan based on his 15% share of the global box office for Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace. It’s a one-year term with a 10% annual interest rate.
Meanwhile, Dunn Pictures snagged $30 million from My Big Fat Greek Wedding and $20 million from Wedding Crashers, both on one-year terms with an 8% interest rate.
Si...
2025-04-22 00:50:55 +0000 UTC View PostBy June, the buzz around Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace had crossed oceans, sweeping the globe in a wave of excitement. Even though it had been out in North America for over ten days, its popularity showed no signs of slowing down. The hype was unreal—bigger than what Titanic had stirred up back in the day.
Major film studios were steering clear of its path. Any movie daring to share a release slot with Star Wars right now was doomed to b...
2025-04-22 00:49:28 +0000 UTC View PostTaxes have always been the biggest headache nagging at me.
California’s a tax nightmare. Personal income tax hits you with 39% federal and 9.3% state—totaling 48.3%. That’s basically half my income handed over to the government. Corporate taxes are just as brutal: 35% federal plus 8.84% from California, making it 43.84%. Nearly half of my company’s profits vanish!
Thankfully, corporate taxes aren’t like personal ones—you don’t have to pay them right on th...
2025-04-22 00:49:02 +0000 UTC View Post