A speedboat bearing the name Gastro Gig was docked at the harbor.
Saku Hayashi approached at a leisurely pace, with Tom following behind him carrying a travel bag.
Since Jerry was not around for him to play with, Tom had decided to find something else to pass the time.
“Long time no see.
Is this a pet you recently adopted, Saku Hayashi?” a muscular man with blue hair asked as he looked at Tom.
Three distinctive scars ran beneath his left eye, resembling wounds left by a creature’s claws.
Standing 2.2 meters tall and possessing an immensely muscular physique, he radiated physical power.
He was Toriko, one of the Four Heavenly Kings.
Toriko had already begun making a name for himself as a Gourmet Hunter in this Gourmet Age.
Unknown to the public, he was the son of the Gourmet God Acacia and the Chef God Froese.
Three separate Appetite Demons also resided within his body.
At this point, Toriko’s strength could only be considered decent.
He had not trained for very long and had never entered the Gourmet World.
Even in the Human World, he generally remained in relatively peaceful regions and rarely ventured into harsh environments such as Ice Hell.
However, if Toriko genuinely tried to become stronger, his rate of improvement would be absurd.
Saku Hayashi stood 1.85 meters tall.
Compared with Toriko’s massive build, Saku Hayashi’s muscles appeared more balanced and proportionate, approaching an ideal golden ratio.
“His name is Tom, and it would be more accurate to call him family,” Saku Hayashi corrected.
Tom nodded repeatedly, deeply moved.
They were family now.
Toriko nodded before introducing the person beside him.
“This is Komatsu, my client for this expedition.
He’s an exceptional chef.” Saku Hayashi smiled at Komatsu.
Although Komatsu looked relatively ordinary, his large nose made him extremely recognizable.
“Mr.
Toriko, how did you know I was a chef?” Komatsu asked curiously.
He did not remember introducing his occupation.
“Haha!
Toriko’s nose is even more sensitive than a dog’s,” Saku Hayashi explained.
“His sense of smell is among the finest in the world.
He can detect scents ordinary people would never notice.” “Hey, are you praising me or insulting me?” Toriko laughingly complained.
“Komatsu, I can smell the aroma of food on your hands,” Toriko continued.
“It’s the kind of scent that only comes from handling ingredients for a long time—and they were all high-quality ingredients.” Komatsu nodded before asking hesitantly, “Mr.
Hayashi, you look familiar.
Have I seen you somewhere before?” Saku Hayashi’s face was extremely familiar, but Komatsu could not immediately remember where he had seen him.
“You probably saw him in a newspaper,” Toriko said.
“Saku Hayashi is Tsurara’s partner.” “Senior Tsurara’s partner?!” Komatsu made a face worthy of a shocked reaction image.
He immediately remembered.
Tsurara was ranked thirtieth in the World Chef Ranking, and Saku Hayashi frequently stood beside her.
He could be seen in many photographs featuring Tsurara.
“There’s no need to be so surprised.
With your talent, Komatsu, you’ll enter the top one hundred sooner or later,” Saku Hayashi encouraged him.
Komatsu had yet to develop any confidence in himself, but his future achievements would be astonishing.
His Food Luck alone could easily rank among the five strongest in the world.
“The top one hundred?
I’m nowhere near that level yet.” Komatsu scratched his head, lacking confidence.
To him, every chef within the top one hundred was practically a living legend.
“Komatsu, don’t underestimate yourself.
I agree with Saku Hayashi,” Toriko said with a smile.
Saku Hayashi found the exchange amusing.
Was this the instinctive compatibility created by fate?
Toriko and Komatsu truly were the pair meant for each other.
“Are you people planning to leave or not?” Captain Tom stuck his head out of the cabin and called to them lazily.
“We’re coming!” Three men and one cat boarded the speedboat.
The hull immediately sank slightly deeper into the water.
Toriko weighed far more than an ordinary person, already exceeding two hundred kilograms at this stage.
The speedboat raced across the sea, cutting through the wind and waves.
Saku Hayashi and Toriko calmly enjoyed the sea breeze against their faces.
Neither seemed concerned about what awaited them, appearing as relaxed as if they were taking an ordinary stroll.
Komatsu, however, was trembling nervously and seemingly considering his final arrangements.
Could a weakling with a combat power of five like him really return alive from the Baron Archipelago?
“Saku Hayashi, do you still have any ingredients from the Gourmet World?” Captain Tom asked expectantly, poking his head out again.
“I’ll buy as many as you can provide.” Ingredients from the Gourmet World were incredibly popular in the Human World.
Demand far exceeded supply.
“I don’t have any left.
Whenever Miss Tsurara and I went there, we usually ate the ingredients inside the Gourmet World itself.
We rarely brought anything back,” Saku Hayashi replied, shaking his head.
Saku Hayashi and Tsurara had never traveled particularly deep into the Gourmet World.
They had only explored its outer regions.
Venturing farther inside would mean dealing with beasts whose Capture Levels numbered in the thousands, which would be rather troublesome.
“All right.
If you have any extra ingredients in the future, don’t forget about me,” Captain Tom said without much disappointment.
“Saku Hayashi, when did you visit the Gourmet World?
What was it like?” Toriko asked curiously.
For most Gourmet Hunters, the Gourmet World represented their greatest ambition.
They yearned to enter it even if doing so meant losing their lives and leaving their bones behind.
“It is equally cruel to everyone.” Saku Hayashi looked at Toriko and poured cold water over his growing excitement.
“If you entered now, practically any random beast could beat you half to death.” “Toriko, don’t assume I’m exaggerating.
The Gourmet World treats every visitor equally.
You need to possess either sufficient strength or exceptional Food Luck.” Take the Underground Forest as an example.
Even its weakest beasts possessed Capture Levels between seventy and eighty.
Creatures at that level generally traveled in groups and relied on one another simply to survive within such a dangerous environment.
Because of Toriko’s Food Luck, he probably would not die easily if he entered.
However, he would undoubtedly be beaten within an inch of his life.
Even Saku Hayashi and Tsurara had nearly suffered a disastrous loss during their first visit, despite training their bodies to adapt to numerous extreme environments.
“Is it really that dangerous?” Toriko asked.
He had never personally experienced the Gourmet World’s brutality.
“With your talent, Toriko, you could have entered much earlier.
The problem is that the environments where you usually operate are far too gentle.” Saku Hayashi spoke calmly.
“The most dangerous things in the Gourmet World aren’t its beasts.
They’re its complex and constantly changing environments.” In the original story, Ichiryū had deliberately arranged specialized training environments for Toriko and the others.
Every one of them had been chosen with painstaking care.
“Extreme cold, supergravity, unbearable heat, extremely low oxygen…” Saku Hayashi looked directly at Toriko.
“Can your body rapidly adapt to all those conditions?” His words deeply affected Toriko.
When Toriko honestly questioned himself, he could not confidently claim that he would survive the extreme environments Saku Hayashi had described.
“Compared with the Gourmet World, the Baron Archipelago we’re visiting is practically a paradise.” “A three-hundred-year-old Galala Gator only has a Capture Level of 8.
Even the weakest beasts in the Gourmet World possess Capture Levels between seventy and eighty.” “Seventy or eighty?!” Komatsu’s face transformed into another exaggerated reaction image.
A single Capture Level 1 beast already required ten fully armed professional hunters working together to subdue it.
“Now that’s outrageous.” Toriko finally understood how troublesome the Gourmet World was.
“It looks like I need to train seriously.” Saku Hayashi had already entered the Gourmet World several times.
Toriko could not allow himself to fall too far behind.
“There’s no need to rush.
Old Man Ichiryū will undoubtedly arrange suitable training for all of you,” Saku Hayashi said with a smile.
“The old man, huh?” Toriko smiled helplessly.
That fatherly old man would indeed arrange the training best suited to each of them.
“I understand.” “The Gourmet World sounds like a place someone like me should never enter,” Komatsu said fearfully.
Countless famous Gourmet Hunters had ventured inside and never returned.
Anyone capable of entering the Gourmet World and surviving was practically superhuman.
Saku Hayashi merely smiled.
Toriko was indeed not ready yet.
However, with Komatsu’s astonishing Food Luck, he would probably transform danger into safety no matter where he went.