it's been too long of a wait, lets get into it
"Someone once said... there exists a group of active Volcanoes, which erupt with the most delicious chocolate fondue. *The Chocolate Fonduecanoes! And somewhere there is a species of lions whose manes are made of delicious dango that hang off each hair and when perfect are shaken out and float through the air like dandelion seeds. The *DanDangoLions! The world is in gourmet age, where seekers quest for yet unknown flavors.
When we last saw our heroes Jaune and Summer agreed to assist with the capture of the legendary full course of the gourmet hunter Acacia. After 7 months of grueling training the group they were awaiting has finally arrived. Will they succeed in the capture of the legendary salad?
Time till capture: three hours*
The atmosphere was rather tense inside Tenguu Castle, due to the owner storming out to retrieve the visiting party. Jaune and Summer just sat at the table they had prepared for their guests. They could hardly blame the red skinned man, Toriko and the others were expected to arrive a few hours ago. It wasn't until he returned with the heavily drunk heavenly kings that they finally got down to business of the goings on of the human and gourmet worlds before they set out for AIR.
But as soon as they sobered up it turned to catching up session between Jaune and his uncles, as well as introductions between him and Komatsu. The passed on IGO president had taken them to visit few times during the blonde's childhood bringing all manner of ingredients from the human world.
The first time they met they were surprised that the old man had an actual biological child that was Jaune's mom. Primarily due to the stories chief Mansam shared of the president's general lack of interest in relationships. Though he did mention that he often visited woman they confirmed to be Jaune's grandmother some years before he took in Toriko and the rest of the heavenly kings.
Their visits were something that he and his sisters really looked forward to during their childhood. Toriko and Coco playing with all of them, Sunny giving the girls beauty tips, and even Zebra having his fun scaring him and sisters. Except for Saphron of course, she had her own fun challenging his attitude. But the best part was without a doubt all of them sitting down to dinner with the ingredients they brought over for them. Especially when they brought over items from their full course menus. Even if Coco and sunny were the only ones with anything at the time that could actually be eaten.
Toriko took one more sip of his IE tea before he turned his attention back to his nephew."This has been great and all, but I have to ask. Did you decide on anything for your full course?" Jaune sat up and got a little bit excited. He all but forgotten to tell anyone about it since he got here, what with training with Brunch and Summer.
"Actually, yeah! Just the hors d'Ouerve right now. I decided on it... kinda on my way here." he rubbed the back of his head in his awkward way, not really wanting to go into the life or death scenario that led him to AREA 8.
"OOOH! Well, don't keep us waiting! Show it to us!"
"I wouldn't mind having a look."
"So long as it isn't gross I'll partake."
"Out with it already kid!"
"Ya been holding out on us this whole time?"
"Well, he has been side tracked our with training."
"What kind of ingredient is it, Jaune-kun?" Komatsu asked putting down his tea. The rest of them sitting leaned in to hear about the blonde's staring course.
"Well... I guess you can say it's a food that I put my soul into." A joke that went over their heads for now, but one that would certainly make Yang proud.
They watched as Jaune held up his hands and began to channel his aura into its food state. His hands were filled with about nine balls of aura, each of which were bite-sized. Everyone sitting leaned forward in surprise. The blonde motioned for everyone at the table to take one, a second later each of the restaurant's occupants were holding the aura based treat within their fingers. The light blue, nearly white, sparkling aura bites amazed everyone sitting at the table once they bit into them. They all tasted the meals Jaune had the pleasure of eating through his life, with added meals of his time in AREA 8.
However none were more mesmerized than the hair user of the four heavenly kings.
"M-my goodness, to bring out such flavors from within your very memories and soul! You have done something truly remarkable to create this beautiful taste! THIS IS SUCH A WONDERFUL FIRST DISH, JAUNE!" Who was driven to tears committing his dish to his memories.
"Thanks for saying so uncle Sunny, it really makes me happy." The knight happily responded to his ecstatic uncle.
Everyone else were taking the time to enjoy the flavors. From the subtle to the bold of the many dishes he had over his life. It was truly delicious, but felt incomplete to some extent. He noticed to when he tried it again after some time with the bewitching cooking. Each meal adds to his first dish's flavor and it makes the eater want more. A truly splendid hors D'ouerve for the up and coming huntsman/gourmet hunter.
"In any case, we really need to thank you for supplying the human world with relief ingredients when they were in trouble." Toriko offered his thanks to the chef and baker. Much of their prep training for the capture mission was having Jaune and Summer collect various ingredients from each of the Heavy rain regions while they honed his aura and gourmet cell usage while Summer polished her skill set with both her knife and weapon.
But they may have gone a bit overboard.
"No problem, but fer awhile after that the only ingredients left for us were these *Takoyakintama." Brunch said holding up said food item for them to see.
"Gross!"
"But it ain't yer guy's fault." He said putting the food down. His face taking on a more serious expression."It was that Gourmet Corps boss. I swear if i see 'im I'm bustin' his frikkin' head open."
"Well if you do it'll be a load off my mind. Komatsu and I already met him in person." Toriko said finishing his tea.
"Ah?" Brunch's intelligent response.
"But seriously, he's almost definitely the strongest out there right now." His expression took on the same seriousness the tenguu showed a second ago. "He could probably destroy the whole planet if he felt like it."
Hearing that made the remnant born very nervous. After learning about what went down during the cooking festival and the rise of the Nitro they were not entirely sure who were the real bad guys between NEO and the gourmet corps. Both sounded bad enough on their own, but the former had spies in the IGO and under Midora's nose.
"But he is also the man who's stomach is the most empty." The heavenly king added with a solemn look.
"Who cares? I say i'm way hungrier than that guy." Brunch countered.
"What the hell are you talking about? I'm obviously the hungriest, now bring me some seconds Tenguu!" Zebra demanded, tossing back more of his tea.
"YOU LOT STUFFED YER FACES ENOUGH ALREADY!"
"We have more to talk about but I'm afraid we are on a tight schedule." Coco took hold of the conversation."we need to see the Daruma hermit."
"Yeah, Old man Daruma is around. Glad you guys got here as fast as ya did. Pops is on his last legs and might keel over anytime." Brunch's declaration shocked the visitors.
"Right now he should be over in the Kappa hot spring the last time we checked in with his doctor." Jaune said easing some of their minds.
"He's in good hands, She's renowned physician from the human world looking after him." Summer added bringing further relief to the capture team. Which was then ruined by the town guide bursting through the doors of Tenguu castle.
"THERES BAD NEEWWWSS!" Mappy was shouted at the top of his lungs.
"The hell's going on Mappy!?" Brunch asked shooting a confused look at the sapient frog.
"It's chief Daruma! His condition has taken a turn!"
"WHAT!?" Everyone shot up from their seats knocking back the chairs, save for Zebra who was still drinking his tea.
After a rather... interesting encounter at the Kappa hot springs, the heavenly kings were given the plan to cross the heavy rain region and instructions on AIR's capture. Their plan went as such. They along with the Bewitching food beast knights would be split up into four teams to cross the separate hills of the heavy rain region. Brunch and Zebra would bust their way through Star dust hills. Coco and The blue oni Dinner make their way past the Poison rain medows. Sunny, Summer and the Kappa Nosh have to rush the Beehive plain. And the last team of Toriko, komatsu, Jaune and Mappy would take Careruu to cross Horse king hill.
Capture mission: Start.
"So you heard the old man peeking? No wonder ya took your sweet time getting to the spring." Brunch and Zebra were talking as they walked up to their selected path. "And didn't he rope ya into something stupid a while back?"
Zebra recalled the encounter he first had with the daruma. "Oh, you're talking 'bout my full course's desert. Yeah, in return for the ingredient he gave me I listened in on what the female daruma were saying about 'im."
"Yeah, that sound's like something the geezer would want."
"For real though... the hell is it with people having 'hermit' or 'sage' in their name being huge pervs?"
"Not a clue, but look we're here." they reached the crest of the trail and looked down at the area they had to tread. Zebra was already able to hear what their heavy rain path entailed miles before they reached it. Meteorites of all shapes and sizes pummeled the region before them in fiery splendor.
"God damn. This path makes missile strikes and air raids look cute by comparison."
"That's Stardust hills for ya, the air pressure and magnetic field brings down space rocks of all sizes giving the place its name."
Zebra grinned. "Then we better smash our way past these meteors and charge through."
Meanwhile, Coco and Dinner were making their way through the falling torrent of poison rain and hail. Sunny, Summer and Nosh were dealing with the squals of lasers on their way to Slow rain hill. Nosh's only advice was: "Dodge, dodge and dodge some more~"
As for the main capture team of Toriko, komatsu, Jaune and Mappy are riding Careruu through undoubtedly the most dangerous path. Right where a member of the 8 kings calls her territory. The ride itself put a toll on the three humans. The intensity of the air pressure caused by the horse king made it very hard to breathe. And just the sight of the absolutely massive equines made it even harder.
"All riiiight, this is where we gotta stop." Mappy slowed his automotive amphibian partner to a stop by some trees in front of the King's line of sight. As they all stepped out they took in the full appearance of the one that claims the title of area 8's monarch. The strongest of the phantom beast Herac species.
Horse King Heracles.
Toriko could barely stay composed, though his face visibly showed his unease. He looked down at the capture level measure device on his wrist and wondered if any number could do this creature justice. Komatsu reacted as he always does, though the shock briefly transformed his nose back to its original more wide appearance. Jaune had felt small before with Grimm, and even his friends, but was able to keep his head. Looking back, anything on Remnant would have no chance at scratching a hair on its coat.
"I can hardly breathe!" Jaune gasped out.
"Tell me about it, the air here is like freaking cement!" Toriko said breaking out in a cold sweat.
"Yep, that's cuz of the Horse king, she needs all the air sheee can get. It's why we gotta grow more trees." Mappy explained the reason for the odd fruit bearing trees.
Mappy walked towards one of the trees around where they stopped. "These heeeree are Air trees. They produce way more air than any other tree and if they get something with strong life as fertilizer they put out way more volumes of higher quality air."
They had a bad feeling when he said that about the thick fruit dangling trees.
"Now that we are here Iii can tell you the real plan to get past here." Mappy turned to the four of them with a solemn smile. "Right here is where I'll diiiiee and become fertilizer for the trees."
The frog's automotive partner slowly rolled forward, a tears leaking out of its eyes as it let out a sad 'Gero'.
Small tears were building up in Mappy's eyes as well. "Cheer up Careruu, do it for meee old friend."
"Hold on Mappy, you can't be serious about this!?"
Whilst Toriko tried to get the sapient frog to reconsider his choice, Komatsu turned towards the air tree and took his 2nd generation Melk knife. Jaune in a similar show of bravery in front of the Horse king placed his hand on the air tree and flashed his aura.
"Hey! Are you crazy!? Why would take your knife out here of all places!?"
"Because, I can hear the ingredient's voice!" The fear was still on his face but was merged with an excited smile as he looked in the direction past Heracles.
Mappy followed Komatsu's line of sight and panicked.
"The only thing that way is the food king AIR!" The horse king was quick to pick up on the chef's intention and expressed his displeasure by sending a glare at the group.
However unlike a normal creature's glare Heracles shooting one was more literal.
The force from just the glint in its eye hit the group like several cannons, nearly blasting them all off their feet.
"It's already enraged! but were haven't even given the sacrifice yet! We couldn't lay one finger on the food king without approval!"
"If it won't let us then we'll just have to force our way in. Mappy take Careruu and get everyone to the meeting point."
"Eh!? But what about the plan?"
"That plan wouldn't have worked out Mappy." Jaune said taking his hand off the tree.
"Jaune's right. Besides, if you sacrifice yourself we wouldn't be able to eat AIR together." Toriko took a stance facing Heracles. "Plus Komatsu's cooking will get me through this fight."
At his word the three of them had piled into Careruu.
"Allright, Let's go! TIME FOR TOP GEAR CARERUU!" the amphibian vehicle took a large inhale and extended its entire body in an instant. Enough for an entire third row of seats, and bellow them four more tires came out of its body. All making for a total of eight. Jaune and Komatsu braced themselves as they shot past the hills at incredible speeds, darting in between the less than pleased horses.
"LOOK OUT!" A Daruma Horse had intercepted their escape.
"I got this one!" Jaune thrust his hands out calling on his aura once more. Just as the hoof was about to come down on them a solid wall of white aura repelled it for them to speed past. He got that technique from Ren's initiation footage.
The residents of the hills were ready to give chase but were stopped when they felt the whole of the region quake.
"Kakusan Kugi Punch!"
Toriko plunged his fists straight into the ground multiple times. The shockwaves traveled in all directions underground halting their movements before erupting upwards further corralling them from going.
"Not so fast, but you're all gonna have to tangle with me for a bit!" by now the Horse king stood its full height of 22,000 meters.
"And Heracles, if you really need a sacrifice I'm happy to oblige." his features changed to their more feral and demonic appearance when he called upon his intimidation.
"But only IF you can kill me!" At this point his entire appearance changed to that of his gourmet cell demon. A giant red skinned oni with white hair and teeth bared in a vicious smile.
'Okay, so now I'm facing off against one of the eight kings! Gotta buy as much time as possible. Ten? No, five minutes! They better hurry with the capture. I have no idea how long I'll be able to hold her off!"
"ALL RIGHT! COME AND GET SOME, HERACLES OF THE EIGHT KINGS!"
Jaune and Komatsu struggled to keep their eyes opened from the speed they were going. However after their initial escaped Careruu was starting to slow down and the area around them seem to slow down as well until they came to a full stop.
"We're here." True to its name, the rain falling on the rocky plain looked to be stuck in mid air. Rather, it was the air pressure of the hills caused by the food king's releasing super dense air slowing the rain.
"It really does fall in slow motion." This was as far as Careruu could take them having exhausted nearly its energy for the trip.
"Come on, we need hurry and get to AIR!" Komatsu hopped out of his seat only to find that as soon as they could hardly move.
"Damn it, it feels like I'm trying to walk at the bottom of the ocean." It took Jaune an incredible effort just to walk at a normal pace.
"Yoouu can the foooood king for that. The super dense air it releases is what causes the slow rain. It's also why Careruu slowed down, he can't take in much air here." Mappy explained their current predicament to the two humans.
"It does feel like walking through water now that you mentioned it." A familiar deep voice spoke up out of nowhere.
"Zebra!/Uncle Zebra!"
"But that's only proof that AIR is ripe for the taking." They noticed his route partner was absent.
" You made it, Zebra! But, where's Brunch?" Komatsu asked the voice user.
"He split to grab the knife." Zebra answered.
"The one made by Melk the first! The one that can cut air!" Komatsu asked in awe.
"That's the one." Zebra checked around the meeting spot with his hearing for a moment. "Looks like we're the first to make it. I don't hear Sunny or Coco near yet."
"Yeah, we had to get out of there in a hurry." Jaune said thinking back at their escape. He was amazed he still had aura to spare after that. Part of his training involved doing the same to the lazers and meteors on the other two paths. But they had nothing on an angry Daruma horse.
"Guess we were too fast. what about Toriko?" Zebra noticed his blue haired sibling was missing from the group.
"Toriko... He stayed back to fight the horse king!" Zebra's eyes widened a bit at the information.
"We have to hurry with the capture before something happens!" Komatsu said with some panic.
"Hmm, you know, sound is transmitted better through solids and liquid than it is in air. It moves at least five times faster. So getting through here should take not time at all." Zebra opened his mouth and all four of them were surrounded by his sound waves.
"*Speed of Sound!"
Meanwhile, after some searching, Brunch had finally found the knife made to prepare AIR by Melk the first sticking out from the rocky terrain of Slow rain hills.
He reached for the handle and began to haul the blade out from the dirt.
'Damn, now this is one heavy-ass knife! No way Komatsu could swing this around.' After a full thirty seconds the knife was finally out from the ground.
The knife is truly a magnificent sight to behold. A very elaborate edge, decorated with all manner of patterns and gems near the tip. Easily ten times the size of Brunch, who could hardly believe the feeling of it in his hand. And hidden among the patterns was melk the first's signature along with a small inscription next to it.
[For My Grandson Jaune, from grandpa Ichiryuu.]
'Holy shit... I bet I could slice the continent clean in half.' With the ultimate utensil secured the tenguu charged up with his electricity and took to the air towards the giant air tree.
Along the way he noticed the other teams making good time as well. He saw the Coco and Dinner driving towards the tree in what he assumed was a poison doll of Careruu. Sunny was seen hauling Nosh and using his hair to travel at high speeds thanks to a new technique. Summer was following right next to them in a flurry of white petals.
'Heh, they're all making great time. Nice job everyone, we'll get this done in a flash.'
It wasn't a minute before they all converged with Komatsu's group at the giant air tree. When all groups got together at the base of it's root they took in the sight of the treasure that is AIR. The massive perfectly round vegetable hung from a rather thin stem of the very large tree.
It was then Komatsu shared what he gathered from hearing the ingredient's voice.
"So the fruit isn't ripe enough yet, is that right?" Zebra asked the lead chef.
"Yes! At this point it's a bit too early to cook it. If we go by the method Melk the first gave us then the total flavor would only bet at roughly seventy percent of its true taste."
"So I guess letting out the air inside little by little is a no go then." Summer confirmed.
"And we don't have that kind of time either. Toriko is still holding back the horse king." Jaune added to the pile.
"But I was able to figure out the true way to prepare it. The thing is we have to finish right when it ripens and falls if we want its propper taste. Ideally the exact moment it hits the ground. If we manage that we should even bring out 120% of its flavor!"
To most people that would sound impossible bordering on the absurd. But those that knew what the chef could do felt they would pull it off. However time was of utmost importance in the capture. The super dense atmosphere hindered everybody's mobility.
"The air here is gonna be a problem, and not just for us but for the ripening speed of AIR. But thanks to Melk we have a solution to that." Brunch held up the knife for everyone to see.
"This special knife was made just for this. Its unbelievable sharpness..." He paused and made a quick slicing motion."...cuts through even this super thick air." They were able to see the cut made in the space around them and felt all the restrictions to their bodies disappear.
"I handle preparing the atmosphere around it, that should speed up its ripening." Brunch declared to the rest of them.
"We're gonna need to feed its roots with more nutrients too. We got a few *kompyang stars from smashing through the meteorites." Zebra presented said food item.
"Coco and I were able to grab a few *zuccizucci." Dinner took out the spikey vegetables that resemble zucchini.
" And me and Summer snagged up a while bunch of *sweet potato snails on the way here!" Nosh happily showed off the bag containing the mollusks.
"GROSS!"
"I can revive the ingredients and keep feeding the roots their nutrients." Dinner said with confidence.
"I can pump aura into the fruit itself. that should quicken the process and boost the flavor just a little bit." The young blonde offered.
"I should be able to help you directly with its cooking." Summer said brandishing her new knife/weapon Melk sharpened with Melk Stardust. A pair of ornate twin swords with rose vines engraved on the blades, each three and half feet in length. The pair was well kept but she knew that they wouldn't last for much longer. She affectionately named the duo 'Rose Nasty'.
"Aaannd if worse comes to worse I'll keep from hitting the ground with my plate shield." Nosh proclaimed with a smile on his beak.
Komatsu smiled at everyone."Allright everybody, we'll capture AIR at 120% of its flavor!"
Mappy seeing everyone so willing and ready to pull of capturing the hopes and dreams of his home brought tears to his froggy eyes.
"We'll need your help too Mappy!" The travel frog wiped away his tears and a look of new found determination.
"I'll hop right to whatever weee neeeed!"
Komatsu looked back towards Horse king hill and shouted at the top of lungs.
"WE'LL PULL OFF THE CAPTURE AND BRING AIR STRAIGHT TO YOU TORIKO!"
Just seconds after they left Toriko was prepared to go all out against the horse king. Still shrouded in his intimidation he tensed every last muscle and was about to launch an all out assault.
He didn't have a chance to move before Heracles tilted its head slightly downward and let out a tiny puff of breath from its nose.
A miniscule fraction of a second and Toriko's right eye could no longer see. No sound could be heard from the right ear, nor could he feel anything from the upper right side of his torso. The only reason he was still standing was the breath missed his legs completely. The tiniest exhale from the monarch of Area 8 and most of his body was abliterated in an instant. His illusion fell as did his body, next to very large crater to his right. Having done her job Heracles proceeded towards the giant Air tree.
Toriko's remaining vision was fading. His mouth and nose had been spared by centimeters, allowing him to taste and smell his own blood. His shirt and spectral robe were in tatters. However this would not be his end. Inside his robe was a very small jar. When he fell it broke and the ounce of liquid contained spilled onto his wounds. Immediately the flesh and bones lost regenerated. Not even a slight scar remained; his skull was restored along with his flesh and hair as though nothing happened. Though his arm was still reforming it would be perfectly fine once finished.
Before she proceeded any further Heracles stopped and turned its head back towards Toriko's body. But that wasn't what grabbed its attention. The air tree where Komatsu took his knife out and Jaune placed his hand on. Those two had done something to it. It happened in an instant but she knew. It started to produce larger quantities of air, while giving off a fragrance that pulled at her appetite. And spurred Toriko to look at the fruit from his position.
The chef cooked it the moment he took his knife out. As for what the blonde did it wasn't sure. The many fruits hanging on the stems rose above the tree and merged into a single stem bearing one multicolored that was now edible. The air fruit having been prepared fell from the stem...
Flashback.
"Hey Toriko, was your hair always blue?"
The odd question came from the elderly Nitro known as Chichi. He and the rest of the heavenly kings just finished having a meal prepared by the taste hermit.
"Actually, no. I don't remember it too much but apparently it was black when I was a baby." His answer sparked interest in the others.
"Is that true, Toriko?" Komatsu asked his combo partner.
"Now that I see it, only the hair on your head is blue." Sunny pointed out his black eyebrows.
Chichi narrowed his eyes. "Red isn't the only one... You got more than one demon inside you."
"Huh?"
"Your real lucky the other one didn't pop up earlier." He referred to their reactions to an apple with the scent of one of the food treasures rubbed on it.
"Now this is rare occurrenc~ You sure you're cool with me making show of this?"
"His body recovered, he just needs to eat that food and he'll survive you coming out for a few minutes...Maybe."
"Whatever. I always got room for dessert. I don't feel like having horse meat, but maybe I can have some fun."
Toriko's eyes shot open, parts of his body that recovered morphed into that of his other gourmet cell demon. Including part of his face which now was the Blue oni smiling in glee. His arm now in the demon's control stretched and shot towards the fruit. It clutched it in its claws before it was halfway from hitting the ground. And as quickly as it was grabbed the blue demon pulled it back towards his host's mouth that it forced wide open. The fruit slid down his throat and his cells went into overdrive.
"HAHAA! THAT WAS DAMN TASTY!"
His blue cells cried out as they leaped out from his body towards Heracles, destroying the rest of his shirt and cloak. What's more is that his normally blue hair was now black. This was far more than just an illusion. The cooked air fruit had the nutrients to let his other appetite manifest physically. Toriko's body had fully recovered but he couldn't move. Now that got a better look his second appetite's face resembled him more than his red one. And like his red one the only article of clothing it manifested for it self was a loin cloth.
He watched as his other appetite's fist collided with the horse king's jaw.
"Now that was one hell of snort! Perfect for our little Rodeo!" While the king processed the fact this blue oni managed to land a punch, the appetite was already following up with another attack with its other arm.
"*DEVIL'S FORK*!" its left hand transformed everything from the wrist up into many sharp, sinister looking spikes. All aimed and hurling towards Heracles, who was quick to meet the attack with its own. Since its body was still turned towards the giant air tree it was quick to send a kick with its hind leg at blue oni. The impact of the collision shook the entire continent.
If someone was looking at the fight from space they would clearly see the explosion that ensued.
Creatures all over the land were sent into frenzied panic. Beasts of every kind scrambled to get away from the continent. It was also felt in the bewitching food world by every citizen and in the ozone garden where Old man Daruma and his caretakers were. He was wondering why the horse king was enraged. However there was a certain trio racing towards the path when they heard the commotion.
When the dust settled the horse king was fully facing Blue. Who, to keep itself in the area, had his claws stabbed deep into the earth.
'That guy's cooking is something else! And then there's blonde's little boost, talk about soul food! It's not enough to revive me, but those two gave me one hell of a start!'
Its smirk widened a bit when he felt all the aura he consumed leave and travel to Heracles when his attacks made contact.
Specifically towards its abdomen.
'Too bad the kiddo's treat wasn't meant for me.'
"That was quite the kick! If I'd taken it head on you would have knocked me clear into outer space." The horse king wasn't as amused as the appetite. "This next few minutes are gonna some kind of ecstasy for me, so hang in there dear host."
Toriko had barely risen to his knee since the fight began. Panting to get his breath steady. "Red and I like different tastes for sure, but the appetite that drives us all come from you." The Blue oni turned its attention back to its opponent.
"I could play with for a while Horse king... but you can't hide crazy frantic look in your eyes says it all. It's just the kind a desperate look any parent gets... You're pregnant ain't you?"
His words rung true. The monarch of area 8 was indeed with child. It had waited thousands of years for the food king to ripen. However time and time again it was snaked by the blue Nitro before it could ripen and fall release what she and the others of horse king hill craved. You see every creature has its preferred food type. Carnivores, herbivores, omnivores, etc. But she and the other horses eat one thing and one thing only.
Air.
They are all aerovores, but their king gets the most out of it. With one breath it can move and fight continuously for a month without stop. If it didn't move at all it wouldn't need to breathe for years or more. The amount of air it can take in one breath is more than 360 billion tons. In volume that is more than 300 million cubic kilometers. In fact she only exhales about 10% of the air she takes in. It's that reason why for the crazy low air pressure around area 8. Giving it the name 'The rain continent'.
But there is an event that requires a hundred times the normal amount of air inhaled. This is when it gives birth to its next heir, the next horse king. It has given birth many times before. But thanks to the Nitro they lacked the necessary air needed and were never strong enough to qualify as the next king.
As the legend goes only one AIR grows every few hundred years. Inside it contains enough fresh air to blanket an entire planet in a rich atmosphere. And when it falls it releases it all in seconds, blowing away every cloud in the continent. Bathing the dark lands in light and creating massive, solid rainbows of a hundred colors that span the entire world. It targets that moment to give birth, then the newborn run across the rainbow bridge. All while it lets out cry the resonates all over the world letting all know of its strength. The ancient peoples were awestruck by its bellow and named it the "Herac's Response". It could accomplish this as a newborn, it then became known and feared as Heracles.
The current Heracles had not remembered the last time it took a hit. Even after looking back tens of thousands of years. This was absolute proof of Blue's strength. It might not have caused any damage, but it was a potential danger to its child. And if there was one absolute truth this world it's that the most dangerous creatures are parents protecting their children...
So for the first time in several years it decided to breathe in.
It was hardly a tenth of a full inhalation. But it caused all the air in the surrounding area to disappear. The space they were fighting in became a vacuum. Every plant around them instantly wilted and died. Blue, despite his strong cells wasn't able to withstand the lack of oxygen for long and quickly retreated back into Toriko. Who wasn't fairing all that well either. Struggling to not succumb to the vacuum himself. He couldn't say he was surprised though, hardly anything in this world could actually fight one of the eight kings.
This was Heracles' 'Destroy Breath'.
There he was holding for the next few minutes being watched by the horse king. Waiting for the once again blue haired gourmet hunter to die. But Toriko wasn't one to just kick the bucket, even if he could do nothing. He stared back at Heracles with nothing but defiance and sheer fighting spirit. Partly thanks to the air fruit Komatsu and Jaune cooked for him. No matter who or what he faced, no matter how wide the gap, he would never show fear.
It was just the caliber of hunter he was.
And the horse king understands this. It stepped forward with a hoof raised for single finishing blow. That it would go that far for a single human was a huge sign of respect from the king.
But the strike never came.
The horse king completely turned around, its focus no longer on Toriko. Heracles new what was coming, it was unmistakable for it had tasted many times in the past. .
It was fresh air.
It had no idea why it was happening now but put no mind to it. It waited tens of thousands years for this exact moment. The fight didn't matter anymore. Right now was a one and only chance for her to give birth. The horse king inhaled with every thing it had and met the oncoming wind. The force was so powerful it completely blew away the vacuum that resulted from the attack earlier. And more than just that, it blew away the dense clouds covering the continent.
It was more than a windstorm, it was an honest to God 'Wind of hope".
Toriko wondered as he took in his own air. 'How long had it been... Since light has touched down on this land?' He looked up and noticed that giant rainbows had indeed formed overhead. And the other horses that retreated from their fight returned to the hill. All were feeling the abundance of fresh air, but they waited with stilled breaths. But they weren't the only ones.
Toriko recognized the three familiar scents that approached and turned to find Terry, Kiss, and Queen had arrived at the hills.
'Heh, so they came to watch the birth of their new rival.' He thought with a smile.
He looked back at the horse king and her new foal. It look different than the other phantom Heracs, much stronger and fiercer looking. And much like Terry's birth he watched the mother shower her child with a lifetime of love and affection. And once it was done the foal took of running across the rainbow bridge with magnificent bellow.
The Herac's Response was heard across the world for the first time in ages. Naturally it reached the other kings, the human world, and other powerful denizens of the planet. Not to mention their many friends in the human world.
But thanks to a young huntsman it also pierced a barrier and reached somewhere else entirely.
"What the hell?! You hear this Oz?"
"How could I not?!"
"My Queen something has awakened!"
"Just what are you playing at this time Ozma?!"
"WHAT THE HECK WAS THAT?!"
"Was that some kind of monster?!"
"Ruby, get off me!"
"Protect me Weiss!"
"Nora please get down from the table!"
"The queen shall not lose more of her knights of the lunch table!"
"...Jaune?"
And that is a wrap. Sorry I haven't updated in so long, hope everyone had a good thanksgiving and have good holidays in december. Also those ingredients up at the intro are just ones i came up with... at least I think I came up with them. anyway be sure to give thanks for all your delicious food, see ya.