Ron stepped into Sumas's space and announced, "Begin!"
At once, he felt the aura flowing through his body surge rapidly into the crystal ball, exactly as before. The orb shifted colors, and then—
Boom!
A thunderous shock resonated in Ron's mind. His consciousness felt as though it had been whisked away to another realm, where several shadowy figures appeared one by one in his field of vision.
A blue-haired youth grinning wildly.
A red-haired youth with a vacant stare.
A young man wearing a green bandana, his body bathed in deep purple.
A burly middle-aged man, all rippling muscle.
A short-haired woman in white, giving a sidelong glance.
In the next moment, all these images converged on the crystal ball.
Boom!
A sudden detonation echoed, and Ron's mind snapped back at high speed. In no time, he opened his eyes, took a breath, and summoned a figure before him. The newcomer had long black hair and a towering build—more muscular than Natsu, more imposing even than Hanma Baki. Compared to this man, Sasuke's stature wasn't on the same scale at all.
A single name rose in Ron's consciousness:
"Toriko! From the world of Gourmet Hunter."
Ron's eyes lit up. By now, he had a good sense of how a Nen Beast's strength was decided. Part of it came from the traits he absorbed, and part from the character's original setting. This time, there was no doubt Toriko's background was extraordinarily powerful—far beyond someone like Baki, Sasuke, Akame, or Killer Queen. After all, Toriko's universe eventually delved into cosmic proportions, where entire planets or even star systems could be eaten as food sources. Toriko was clearly no weakling.
"Still," Ron thought, "Toriko excels at close combat, just like Natsu—so they overlap a bit. Also, in the source material, Toriko's hair is blue. Here, it's black. Maybe because he doesn't have the blue Gourmet Demon? Nor the red or white ones either?"
Ron examined Toriko, and details began flowing into his mind:
"His main moves include Fork, Knife, and Spike Punch, while his primary ability is the Gourmet Cells. Consuming delicious, nutrient-rich foods allows him to grow stronger over time, making him a growth-type fighter. But apparently, there's no Gourmet Demon here."
Ron didn't mind the absence of a Gourmet Demon. Such beings had their own will, and he wasn't sure they'd listen to him if they existed inside a Nen Beast's body.
"Let's see how strong Toriko is."
With a single thought, Ron summoned Natsu and gave them both the same amount of aura. They met in the middle, and at Ron's signal—"Begin!"—the two Nen Beasts clashed in a flurry of strikes: fists, elbows, kicks. Ron watched from a distance, evaluating every exchange.
"In terms of technique, Toriko's a bit better. But Natsu has his flames, which Toriko doesn't, and moves like Fork and Knife aren't especially threatening to someone who controls fire."
Before long, Toriko was at a disadvantage. Of course, that didn't necessarily mean Natsu from the Fairy Tail universe would beat Toriko from the Gourmet Hunter universe if they were real. These were Ron's Nen Beasts—only approximations of their original power. Ultimately, a beast's strength depended on Ron's own Nen. Plus, Toriko had another edge that hadn't come into play yet: his Gourmet Cells. If he devoured enough high-quality food, he might surpass Natsu someday.
"It's not impossible," Ron mused. "That might work like a constraint and vow—exert effort to gain a big reward."
He dismissed Natsu and summoned Sasuke, allocating the same aura to both Sasuke and Toriko so they could fight. Since Nen Beasts never tire, they wouldn't weaken no matter how long they battled, as long as the aura remained evenly matched.
"Without using Rashōmon—Susano'o, Sasuke and Toriko seem evenly matched. Each has strengths, and neither one overwhelms the other. But with Susano'o, Sasuke gains the upper hand."
Ron waved a hand, causing both beasts to vanish.
"Toriko's power is good, though it does overlap some with Natsu and Sasuke."
He wasn't complaining, simply noting that in a team, you normally want a balanced lineup—tanks, fighters, rogues, support, and healers. Real-world battles didn't follow "patch updates," but it was still ideal to cover different roles.
Suddenly, Ron had a thought. He channeled a large amount of aura outward, summoning Natsu, Sasuke, Toriko, lampent, Akame, and Killer Queen all at once.
"Second Shadow!"
Using his second Nen ability, Ron saw a series of figures and numbers appear, indicating possible compatibility for fusion between Toriko and the others. Natsu and Sasuke still couldn't fuse any further, but the other beasts might combine in interesting ways.
When Ron saw the final results, his eyes widened in surprise.