Tom was confident that though he was poor, the world itself overflowed with food.Trees dropped fruits the size of watermelons. Rivers were thick with fish that tasted sweet even raw. The air smelled of herbs.His adaptable body ensured he could eat almost anything. At first, bitter herbs made him gag. Poisonous berries made his stomach burn. But each time, his body adjusted. What once harmed him became sustenance.
His status window blinked with tiny changes:
[Age: 5
Strength: 4 → 5
Endurance: 3 → 6
Adaptability: Active – Beginner
Haki:Dormant]
Tom grinned.This body is the real monster. If I can train properly, I'll never need what they rely on(Gourmet cells).
For the next years, Tom lived as a feral boy in the wilderness.He lifted fallen logs until his arms tore, then healed stronger.He sparred against beasts far larger than him, dodging claws and teeth.He meditated under waterfalls to sharpen his Observation Haki, hearing the voices of insects, beasts, even flowing rivers.When a beast's scales were too hard, his fists bled… until Armament Haki began to coat them faintly black.When predators ambushed him, his Observation Haki warned him in time.When he focused at night, he could faintly sense whispers from creatures—his Voice of All Things.
At ten years old, his status window looked like this:
[Strength: 50
Speed: 47
Endurance: 60
Armament Haki: Novice
Observation Haki: Basic
Voice of All Things: Dormant
Conqueror's Haki:Dormant]
Tom whispered to himself:"One day, Toriko and the Heavenly Kings will shake the world. Before that, I'll forge my own path."
Unlike others, Tom never sought Gourmet Cells. He saw their potential—but also their curse. His body was already evolving with adaptability.Where Gourmet Cells mutated to power, Tom sharpened his natural body to perfection.Villagers sometimes spotted him, a ragged boy carrying the carcass of a beast twice his size. Rumors spread of a wild child with black fists and eyes that saw everything. But Tom remained alone.He fought, he ate, he adapted, he grew.
By fifteen, his stats were monstrous for someone without Gourmet Cells:
[Strength: 280
Speed: 260
Endurance: 340 → effectively limitless thanks to adaptability
Appetite Energy: 150 (natural, not Gourmet Cell-based)
Adaptability: Superpower – Active
Armament Haki: Adept
Observation Haki: Intermediate
Voice of All Things: Weak – Active
Conqueror's Haki: Dormant]
Tom stood on a cliff, staring at the horizon. Tom knew,the storyline was about to start. He clenched his fist, black with haki."Ten years. I've given everything to training. Now, it's time to step into the real stage."And with that, Tom began walking toward human civilization again—toward Toriko, Komatsu. He was going to raise a storm in the Gourmet World.