Chap.85 First battle

Tony double-checked a few pages and confirmed the fact that all eligible opponents belonged to one of the worlds where food is the core of everything: Toriko!

But the roster in front of him was much more complete than he knew. Leaving aside the beasts, there were characters like Tommy Rod or special preparation ingredients like the Balloon Whale.

Most frighteningly, there were opponents like King Monkey Bambina towards the bottom of the list, which was simply suicide.

-You seem to know something about the opponents? -commented Tayuya insightfully raising an eyebrow as he noticed his partner's expression.

The others looked at Tony, any information was useful at that moment.

-"Yes, they are ingredients," Tony summarized, "These beasts have something called 'capture level' and the higher it is, the harder it will be to defeat them, find them or get them. But at the same time, the better the taste and benefits for whoever eats it.

-But there are humans too! -Choji exclaimed.

-Humans are also food in the natural world," Anko replied nonchalantly.

-Do you have details about each beast? -Shikamaru asked.

-I only know of a few," Tony shook his head, "I can say that the beasts at the top of the list are the simplest and as we go down the level it increases. For example, this Pudding Pig could be defeated by an ordinary civilian with a stick in his hand. But for the Galala Crocodile, civilians are no different than chickens.

-And these options? -Karin pointed to a spot slightly below the top of the list- They look like common vegetables, they don't seem to be dangerous.

-Those are ingredients that require "special preparation" -Tony explained- This Ozone Grass you pointed out requires the collaboration of two people to remove the outer leaves at the same time and must even be bitten at the same time to prevent it from rotting.

Everyone listened carefully to every detail. No one wondered why Tony knew about these things, when they knew that the opponents were "food" in one way or another, for them it was natural that he had some knowledge.

-What is the plan? -asked Tsunade.

-I think we should first check if my estimates of his strength are correct -proposed Tony- The Galala Crocodile has a level five catch, which is low enough so we won't have big problems, but it will help you to get a general idea of the type of strength.

-What do you know about him?

-Despite being a bit big, don't underestimate his speed. He has enough bite force to snap off an arm like a twig and you need to watch out for the Baron Leeches he has in his mouth. If they suck your blood, you won't stop bleeding for half a day or until we win.

-Let's go with that then -it was smart to verify the information to avoid having unwanted accidents.

[Chosen opponent: Crocodile Galala].

[Victory conditions: Kill the opponent.]

[Select if you want a solo confrontation or you'll get help from your companions!]

-I will fight together with everyone.

[Countdown begins, get ready!]

Since they had just arrived, everyone was in top form and I needed to know how the rewards were divided. Otherwise, he had chosen Lee and Choji to test the waters.

Once the countdown was over, a large crimson crocodile appeared in front of everyone. He looked around in confusion and when he caught the presence of some prey in front of him, he began to drool.

-I don't like the way it's looking at me," Tsunade commented in annoyance.

The Galala Crocodile used the momentum of its six legs and jumped at high speed to try to bite Lee, Anko and Shikamaru all at once.

-Konoha Whirlwind! -Lee kicked the beast and managed to deflect it. But then he noticed that its legs had some leeches on them.

Anko pulled out several snakes to try to hinder the huge beast, but the Galala Crocodile effortlessly shattered the bindings. Shikamaru tried to connect his shadow, but despite his success his strength simply wasn't up to par.

Choji expanded his fists and punched the back of the Galala Crocodile, causing damage but scowling at the hardness of the scales. Tayuya used the sound of the flute to try to alter the perception of balance, which proved helpful for Choji to dodge a pigtail that nearly hit him.

Tsunade landed a punch to the side and left a clear dent in the body. A much more fitting result than the others.

-Karin! -Tony shouted at him as he pulled out the Derous knives and threw a rock in front of him.

-ROOM!" Karin reached down and a blue semi-sphere covered everyone, before anyone could react- Shambles!

The Galala Crocodile suddenly exchanged places with the stone in front of Tony and with a flick of the knives, its head and tail were separated from the central part of the body.

Tony could have quickly dealt with the opponent, but he needed the others to have first hand experience.

[Victory condition successfully met.]

[Congratulations on obtaining the reward: Physical Strength Enhancement (minor).]

[A specialist will be provided to deliver the reward.]

-What was that? -Tayuya and the rest were speechless. They barely managed to push or damage the beast because they underestimated the creature, believing it was just a bigger animal. The only one who gave better results was Tsunade, who considered it some kind of chakra beast.

Karin explained to them while catching her breath that it was a new ability she had developed, as she agreed with Tony after eating the Ope Ope no mi. It was the first time she had exchanged something so big and heavy, so the amount of energy it took was not small.

-You are amazing Karin -Tsunade sighed as she thought she understood how complicated it was to develop such a skill.

Naruto was from the Uzumaki clan, but he never showed interest in studying properly!

-What's the specialist that was mentioned? -Tayuya asked as he looked at Tony.

Before Tony could answer that he doesn't know, a female voice echoed in the Colosseum.

-That would be me.

A slim, beautiful, youthful woman with fair skin appeared at some point next to him. Her hair is short and dark in color, with large, long lashed eyes with thin lips that showed a tender smile. She was wearing a long dark colored dress with a V-neckline, while on her waist she has tied a large white apron. Her neck has a dark colored necklace with a white line.

Everyone looked at her surprised by her sudden appearance and when Tony recognized who she was, his eyes almost popped out of their sockets.

-Froese?!

The renowned "Goddess Chef" made her appearance!