Hello again!

I started writing this one on Thursday, so it's kind of rushed.

Disclaimer is in the first chapter.

After a long and tiring day, Lumine and Paimon had met up with Zhongli at Third-round Knockout and were waiting for Naruto. As it turned out, Zhongli had really brought Mora (much to everyone's surprise), which meant Naruto had gone out for nothing. Lumine felt disappointed at this but she avoided vocalizing it. Right now, they were listening to Iron tongue Tian telling a story about the papers in the Jade Chamber. "Even a small piece of this 'paper snow' can hold may secrets and is therefore invaluable to any merchant." Just as Lumine expected, the word 'invaluable' had a direct effect on her travelling companion as Paimon suddenly forgot all about the food on the table and started paying rapt attention to the storyteller. She had often wondered what mattered to the fairy more, Mora or food. The Traveler chuckled and proceeded to indulge herself in the once in a lifetime opportunity of getting a treat from Zhongli. She wished Naruto was also here (much to her confusion) but she ignored it in favor of saving his portion from Paimon. One look at the fairy however, told her that those worries were unfounded.

Feeling the light sea breeze and the voice of the story teller, Lumine let out a loud sigh and let the tension from the past few days melt from her shoulders. 'This is so peaceful. I really could get used to this. Wish you were here Aether. You'd love this.' She let out another sigh, this time filled with regret. 'If only I'd woken up sooner, I'd be by your side Aether. I won't have to go through this whole journey and we could've just left this cursed world behind.' A tear rolled down her cheek but she wiped it away. She buried her feelings with a deep breath and continued eating.

Just as she was going to take another bite, a soft voice drew their attention to the rooftops. Standing on one of them was a blue haired woman with light purple eyes and what looked like horns. 'Must be a head piece. Either that or she's one of the Adepti. Probably the second one.'

"Hello there Traveler! My name is Ganyu, an emissary from the Liyue Qixing. Lady Ningguang sent me to fetch the Traveler and her companions to the Jade chamber. I already told your other companion Naruto before I came to find you. Please, lady Ningguang is waiting." With that, Ganyu refused to elaborate further and left via the rooftops.

For a second, Lumine stared at the place where the horned woman had been before shaking her head. "Come on Paimon. Let's go. Sorry Mr Zhongli. Guess we'll have to save the treat for some other time."

Zhongli just chuckled. "Don't think too much of it. In Liyue harbor, visiting the Jade chamber is considered to one of the biggest privileges there is. Having this opportunity just after arriving here is a very rare instance." With a quick nod, Lumine bowed to Zhongli and hurried off towards the jade chamber with Paimon. When they were out of sight, he closed his eyes and sighed. When he opened them again, gone was the gentle old man and in his place was the God of Contracts, Morax. 'You have gone too far this time Tsaritsa. I have ignored your transgressions for this long but now, it is at a point where I may have to step in, lest I let the Heavenly Principals awaken. If that happens, then I will make sure that your subordinates will never step out of line in my harbor again.' The absence of an earthquake, an explosion of Geo or even a hum of resonance in any Vision in the vicinity was a testament to the control he had perfected over his millennia of walking Teyvat. With a sigh, Zhongli finished up his food, paid with Mora freshly made in his pocket (an idea he had Naruto and his Kunai pouch to thank for) and made his way to meet a certain Streetward Rambler. He'd need friends to keep himself in line.

Meanwhile, Lumine and Paimon made their way to the Jade chamber that was floating over Yujing terrace. On the way, the little fairy kept chatting about how the Jade chamber held the most valuable secrets in Liyue and how they could become the wealthiest people in the harbor if they made friends with the Tianquan. Lumine just sighed and tuned out her rambling and focused instead, on how to get to the Jade chamber. 'Wait. How do we get up there. Ganyu said nothing about that.'

Back in the Jade chamber, Ganyu sneezed, much to the worry of basically everyone except for Naruto. The horned secretary almost never sneezed. Meanwhile, the blond was wondering what was taking Lumine so long to arrive. "Hey Ganyu? You did tell her how to get up here, right?" Ganyu blinked. "Right?" She tried to avoid eye contact, which gave away her mistake. "*sigh* You really need to sleep Ganyu. Anyway, I think Keqing is in the area, so she should be able to find out what's going on. If not, then I'll go down myself."

While that was going on, Lumine had made Paimon aware of their predicament and the little fairy had suggested going to Mount Tianheng to see if there was a way from there. Seeing as there was no other choice, she obliged and they were now on the path to the top of the mountain after beating up some poor hillichurls who just wanted to attack some travelers… ok they deserved it.

After some time, they reached the top and looked around. The summit of the mountain provided a lovely view of the expansive harbor, almost making them forget about what they were here for. Luckily, Lumine remembered and they got to work finding a way to get up to the Jade chamber. "Maybe those updrafts can help?" Lumine hummed and decided to give Paimon's idea a shot. She pulled out her handy glider and let the updraft carry them up to a floating platform which was considerably closer to the Jade chamber. Sadly, it was still too far away for them to safely glide before her arms got too tired and made her fall to her death. Amber had warned her about that and how it had almost happened to Naruto. With a sigh, Lumine looked around from the platform, trying to find out if there was another way to get to her destination.

Eventually, her eyes settled on the old ruins and the Guizhong ballista they had repaired earlier. "Hey Paimon? Think we can see something from the ballista?"

Paimon hummed. "It's worth a shot. Let's try it!" With that, Lumine jumped down and unfurled her glider to glide down to the part that looked like an old walkway hanging out over the beaten path. A few seconds later, she gently touched down before walking out to the familiar oversized crossbow and using its scope to look for a path to the top. "Anything?" The blond shook her head with a sigh.

"Hey! Who goes there?" Just then, a group of armed Millelith guards surrounded the ballista and pointed their spears at the duo. Lumine raised her hands in surrender to appease the guards and made her way down with Paimon who had imitated the gesture. "What are you doing here? Are you the ones tampering with the Guizhong ballista?" That got their attention and Lumine discreetly started gathering Geo energy in her foot.

"Wah? Tampering? We fixed it! if you don't believe us, then ask Mr Zhongli!" Unfortunately, Paimon's words seemed to fall on deaf ears as the guards moved to form a tighter circle around them.

"Sorry, but you're under arrest! Guards! Arrest them!"

"*sigh*Not again." Lumine raised foot and struck the ground with as much force as she could, making a ring of stalagmites push away the guards. Then, she summoned her sword and settled into a rather lose battle stance. She didn't want to hurt them but still wanted them to know that she meant business. 'What a night this is turning out to be.'

She kept her eye on the Millelith in front of her as she slowly turned in a circle. This would have been easier with a someone else but she didn't have that luxury. Suddenly, one of the Millelith lunged. Lumine dodged and used the hilt of her blade to hit him in the back. That served as the signal and all the guards lunged as Lumine raised her sword to-

"Stop!" A firm and commanding voice rang out across the ruins as both parties stopped dead in their tracks. "Release them." As one, all the Millelith stood at attention and moved all the spears away and moved to reveal their savior. Said savior was a woman of around Lumine's height with purple themed attire and purple hair with distinct 'cat ears' at the top. The woman walked up to her and looked her over before giving her a smile. "Hey there. You must be Naruto's companion." The name made Lumine perk up. "Weren't you supposed to be at the Jade chamber; or did Ganyu forget to give you directions?" She put a hand to her chin in thought before suddenly perking up. "Oh, right, my apologies. My name is Keqing and I am the Yuheng of Liyue. You're the Traveler who saved Mondstadt from the Stormterror crisis right? Naruto has told me a lot about you."

'Yuheng? Like the one that perfumer said Naruto had been trying to woo?' Lumine didn't know why that was the first thing that came to her mind, but it left a bad taste in her mouth. She wisely chose to ignore it in favor of getting to know the person in front of her. If she was a high ranking official, she could have some info on her brother. With that thought, she gave the Yuheng a smile and held out his hand for her to shake. "Nice to meet you, Lady Keqing. I only played a small part in saving Mondstadt, but yes, I did help. Am I wrong to assume you're the pen friend Naruto has mentioned?"

Keqing nodded as she gave Lumine a firm handshake. "Yes, that is me. I assume Ganyu didn't tell you about how to get to the Jade chamber?" Lumine shook her head. "Well, she hasn't been catching up on her sleep. Looks like I'll have to deal with that. Either way, this is how you get to the Jade chamber. First, you go to Yuhei pavilion and find a guide. Then, ask him…" All the while, the Millelith were praying to Rex lapis that they don't get booted from the ranks.

*Timeskip*

Lumine and Paimon made their way to Yujing terrace after preparing a gift and looked around to try and find the guide Keqing had mentioned. The had parted ways with her after a last minute conversation on their views of the Adepti and their views.

After some time, they settled on a rather bland looking person standing next to a rock with some green gems. Lumine approached the man and Paimon started talking to him. "Hello! Do you sell the moon here?"

The man stared at them for a few seconds like they were the biggest idiots he'd met before smiling and asking, "Yes we do. How many would you like?"

"It's inconvenient to speak of numbers here." Lumine followed up and the guide smiled.

"Well said. Speaking of which, are you the guests Lady Ningguang has arranged to meet for today?" Paimon eagerly nodded ad began rambling about the gift thy had prepared before Lumine clamped her hand over the little fairy's mouth. The guide just chuckled. "In that case, please use this to ascend to the Jade chamber." The duo thanked him and left for the chamber. 'Hmm… The code used is the one for the Yuheng, just like that boy. Is the code getting leaked?"

Meanwhile, Lumine and Paimon used the jade elevator to ascend to the floating palace in the sky. Once they got there, they were greeted by a familiar face. "Lumine! Paimon! There you are!" Naruto's voice rang out as he ran up to meet them. "You guys sure took your time. I'm going to guess Ganyu forgot to tell you the code? Keqing told me before leaving again, that the Millelith found you at the Guizhong ballista trying to fire an assault on the Jade chamber. I'm glad that was just a misunderstanding. I don't want to keep doing 'favors' for Ningguang anymore. So, what happened?" Lumine smiled and dove into an explanation on what had happened, which left Naruto wheezing until they mentioned the gift. "Wait… Paimon, tried to cook? I hope you taste tested it."

After they were done catching up, they made their way into the Jade chamber. "By the way, how are you up here at this time? And how do you even know how to get up here. Also, how do you know the Yuheng? She seems like a major figure in Liyue."

Naruto smiled at Lumine's questions. "I have a code. As for Keqing, I happened to stumble on her operation against Treasure hoarders being surrounded by them. Turns out, she had been fighting for the whole day and was just about to be exhausted, so I stepped in to help out. Anyhow, we're friends and that's all that matters."

With that, Naruto went about leading them into the Jade chamber, but before they could enter, a lady wearing a lavish dress stepped out to the chamber. "I've been waiting for you, returnee from Jueyun Karst. I hope your stay in Liyue has been amicable?"

Lumine almost scoffed but Paimon was staring in awe. "It's an honor Lady Ningguang. Since this is our first time meeting each other, we've prepared a gift for you."

Ningguang smiled. "A gift for me? You have my thanks. However, since I'm your host, I should be the one serving you."

"Wow. This place is really high up. Even Paimon hasn't gone up this high. And she can fly!" The fairy's comment drew everyone's attention.

Ningguang smiled again. "This room floats higher than the peak of any mountain and from here, one can survey all of Liyue harbor. I have been gathering the funds to build this chamber from the time I started learning the merchant's craft. After becoming the Tianquan, I commissioned the best craftsmen in all of Liyue to build it and I have spared no effort to extend it. At first, this Jade chamber was but a single room but now, it blocks out the sun over Liyue harbor. Someday, I belive that it will overshadow all the seven nations."

Everyone looked at her in awe while Naruto sweatdropped. 'How many times do you think she practiced that in front of the mirror?' Kurama laughed. "Probably from the time she made this contraption." Naruto snickered quietly, but the Millelith caught sight of him covering his mouth.

The next second, he found himself surrounded on three sides by Milleith guards, drawing a worried look from Lumine and Paimon and a confused one from Ningguang. "How dare you laugh at her Eminence the Tianquan? Apologize now!"

Naruto held up his hands in surrender and took a step back. "Calm down fellas… we can talk about this." Lumine looked right behind him worriedly, but Naruto didn't pay any mind to it because he had bigger this to worry about. That notion was quickly dismissed as he realized that he had walked right to the edge of the Jade chamber. Apparently the Millelith also realized this as one of them moved to try and grab him, but he was too late. "WoahhHH!" With a shout, the whiskered blond fell downward and a loud thud echoed not long after. "I'm ok!" Everyone ran to the edge to see a terrified Keqing standing off to the side of the rising green and grey platform with a groaning Naruto faceplanting on the cold stone.

Zhongli blew over his cup to cool his tea before taking a sip. The familiar warmth moving trough his body brought a smile to his face as he put down his beverage and looked at his companion. "Thank you for the tea, Streetward Rambler, or should I call you Madame Ping?"

Madame ping gave a warm chuckle. "Please call me Madame Ping. If you'll do that, then I'll call you Zhongli." Zhongli smiled. In all his years of life, spending time with his friends was one of his favorite things to do. "So tell me Mor- I mean Zhongli, what brought you to me?"

Zhongli's smile only left his face as he drank some more of Madame Ping's tea. "Nothing much. I just wanted to spend time with an old friend. Perhaps you can help me with adjusting to the city?"

Madame ping smiled. "Of course, of course. By the way, do the others know of this?" Zhongli made a confused face, causing Madame Ping to let out a laugh. "You know that they will be quite saddened by your absence. Even though you were our leader, we were much closer as friends. Dare I even say that Cloud Retainer may have had her eye on you."

Zhongli put his hands in his face and groaned. "For the last time, Madame Ping. There is nothing between us."

Madame Ping laughed. "I know, I know. I'm just joking. No need to get so flustered."

After some time, the smile returned to Zhongli's face. Spending time with his friends never lost its simple luster and if it weren't for Madame Ping, the Zapolyarny palace just might find itself buried under a meteor. Say what you would about his strength being weak now, but he was nowhere past his prime.

Back in the Jade chamber, Keqing was busy scolding the Millelith for their carelessness while Ganyu was trying to calm her down. Naruto was checking himself over and popped his dislocared wrist back into place with a crack, which made the medics he had refused cringe. Apparently, he had landed on his left and flopped into onto his front. Ninngguang was outside with Lumine and Paimon, taking about why she was called there. When they returned, Lumine looked a bit shook. When she came inside with the Tianquan, Naruto was popping his nose back into place, which also made a cracking sound that made everyone cringe. "Was that Whiskers' nose just now?"

Naruto sighed. "Yes Paimon. It was my nose. Since you're here, I'm going to guess that you finished your talks with Lady Ningguang?" Lumine nodded tiredly and yawned. "Tired?" She nodded mid yawn, making Naruto chuckle at how cute she was (the subconscious thought making Kurama and Kushina snicker) and face Ningguang. "Is there anything else you need us for?"

Ninguuang gently shook her head. "Not really. Feel free to make yourself at home for a while. In fact, why not take something to commerate your visit?" Lumine tried to deny it, but the Tianquan insisted and she watched as Paimon move towards something she had set up just for them.

After some time, Paimon let out a loud 'ooh' as she flew over to a certain wall next to the rather bland looking table. "Is this the legendary wall that storyteller talked about?" Lumine followed Paimon to the wall as she started rambling about the cost of a whole paper from the wall while Lumine just looked awkwardly at the fairy that had managed to draw everyone's attention. "Can we take a paper from this wall?"

The Tianquan smiled. "Of course, be my guest. I am dome with most of those anyway." 'Just one more push.'

Paimon squealed and flew around before moving for the largest paper until she noticed what was on it. "Wait, what's this?" The paper was a map that had an area circled in red. "Could this be a treasure map? Paimon wonders what we will find there. Come on Traveler! Let's go!"

"Hold on!" Naruto's voice made Paimon stop dead in her tracks. When everyone looked at him, Naruto had a disappointed face. "I see you're as clever as ever Ningguang" Lumine flinched. Before they were set to leave, Amber had told her that Naruto only changes how he addressed people under two circumstances, either he trusts them more than he did, or he was pissed; and right now, even Paimon could see that it was the latter. "First off, if you want us to do something, then prepare some Mora, unless you happen to be short. Second of all, that's not a treasure map Paimon. It marks the location of a Fatui base. Third of all, I already took care of that base. Right now, there is nothing but old ruins in that area. Anyhow, I think that's enough action for the day. How about we return to the inn?"

Lumine nodded while Paimon looked disappointed. The fairy sulked as the girl patted her head as they made their way out of the chamber. Once they left, Keqing turned to face Ningguang with a deadpan expression. "Didn't I tell you not to try anything funny with him? What part of that did you not understand?" With that, the Yuheng turned around and followed the trio out of the Jade chamber. "Hey! Naruto!" The blond turned around as Keqing walked up to him. "Sorry about that."

Naruto waved his hand with a smile. "Don't worry about it. That was nothing compared to somethings I've seen. Besides, it was Ningguang and not you, so don't go around apologizing for others. That will only cause problems for you. Also, tell Ganyu to sleep. She forgot to give her the code." Keqing chuckled and watched them with a smile, until they jumped off the chamber. She ran up to the edge and saw the two gliding down to the ground with their gliders and breathed out a sigh of relief.

Once they reached the ground, Naruto separated from the group while Lumine and Paimon made their way to their inn. He had said that he wanted to grab some food because he hadn't eaten, which made Paimon beg him to bring some for her. Naruto had laughed it off and agreed before leaving for Wanmin restaurant. Right now, Paimon had retired to her pocket dimension and Lumine was lying on her bed when a light knock sounded on the door. She reluctantly got off the cozy bed and opened the door to reveal a smiling Naruto holding some bags. "Hey! Did I wake you? I brought some food?"

Lumine smiled. "Thanks, but isn't this yours?"

Naruto waved his hand. "Don't worry about it. I have to spend the money I got anyway. So, wanna eat?"

Lumine looked back and smiled before leading him in her room and bringing him to the table where he placed the bags before taking out two food parcels and passing one to Lumine. Lumine accepted it with a smile and they began eating.

Meanwhile, inside Naruto's head, Kushina was gushing over her son's 'first date' while Kurama was lying down in the corner with a questionable expression on his. "Oi Minato." The man turned to face the fox. "Am I also like this when I'm telling Naruto to go for a girl?" Minato nodded without hesitation before tilting his head to dodge a frying pan aimed for his head.

'I should not have said that.'

3800 words.

Sorry for the late upload, I got busy with some things. As for announcements, I am planning to make a Naruto x ZZZ fanfic soon, so yeah. This might cause the updates to be shifted if there are a lot of people here who want that. Anyway, that's all. Please leave a review and Peace out!