The Cosmic Emperor Joins the Team

The Slime Leader grew excited and urged, "Eat up. Once you're full, we'll go teach that brat Midora a proper lesson."

Ichiryu was still hesitating. After a moment of thought, he said, "Such a tiny bean contains such enormous energy. If it were soaked in water, wouldn't a single bean be enough to feed millions, even tens of millions of people?"

The Slime Leader said helplessly, "Why are you agonizing over this again?"

Setsuna explained with a smile, "They're called Senzu Beans. They restore stamina or heal injuries by percentage. If used to feed ordinary people, it would still take five beans to fill one person up."

"Is that so?" Ichiryu gave a wry smile before adding, "Don't you want the power of a Gourmet Demon? The Slime Leader is incredibly strong. If you gained his power, conquering the world would be nothing more than a trivial matter."

Setsuna smiled freely. "I'm not so despicable that I'd bury my conscience just to gain power. Besides, I don't believe I need to rely on someone else's strength to reach the summit."

"Haha, just as expected of Jiro's disciple. You're as proud as he is." Ichiryu laughed as he swallowed all four Senzu Beans. An utterly terrifying aura shot into the sky.

The atmosphere has stopped moving. No—the Earth's rotation has stopped too! Setsuna was horrified. Jiro still needed to throw a punch to halt the Earth's rotation, yet Ichiryu had accomplished it through sheer presence alone. He truly was the strongest man in this world.

Fortunately, Ichiryu quickly reined in that aura.

The Slime Leader nodded approvingly. "Not bad. Only this kind of power is worthy of being my host."

However, Ichiryu shook his head. "You should stay with Setsuna instead."

Before the Slime could erupt, Ichiryu continued, "You know my personality. Even if my Gourmet Cells recover, I still won't go against my heart to indulge in those delicacies. You'd only suffer if you stayed with me."

"You once told me that a Gourmet Demon's greatest desire is its appetite. There's no need for you to stay by my side and suppress yourself. Besides, even if you leave, does that mean we won't be friends anymore?"

The Slime fell silent for a moment, then raised his head with obvious displeasure. "Fine. That bastard probably won't die anyway, so let's leave it at that. You make it sound like I begged you to become my host. I used to be a cosmic emperor. I originally wanted to guide you into becoming one too, but since you lack that ambition, I'll choose someone who can bear it instead."

With that, he turned to Setsuna. "Although I'm annoyed that Ichiryu made the decision for me, you brat really do suit my tastes. Don't worry. Follow me, and I'll show you just how vast the world is."

Setsuna smiled. "Likewise, I'll show you just how boundless the universe is."

The Slime Leader froze for a moment, then burst into laughter. "That arrogance makes me like you more and more, brat. Open up your Gourmet Cells."

As he watched the Slime Leader enter Setsuna's body and the noise in his ears finally ceased, Ichiryu laughed heartily. "Old friend, stop forcing yourself. Hurry and let Setsuna take you out to enjoy some good food."

The Slime was not one to fuss over such things. He quickly adapted, materializing a complete set of tableware within Setsuna's Gourmet Cells and shouting with drool dripping from his mouth, "Setsuna, brat, hurry up and taste all kinds of delicious food!"

Setsuna remained calm. "No rush. I still don't know what form you Gourmet Demons take. You won't usually spy on me, will you?"

The Slime was not offended. His rough edges had long been worn down by Ichiryu. "We Gourmet Demons only share your sense of taste. As for observing the outside world, if you remove the restrictions on your Gourmet Cells, I can see outside as well."

"Got it." Setsuna snapped his fingers and asked, "What do you want me to eat?"

"Meat, of course meat!" The Slime cheered loudly, not forgetting to accuse Ichiryu. "That idiot Ichiryu eats vegetables every day. I'm practically turning into a plant!"

"I still have some of the Four-Beast Burgers from last time. I was planning to take them back and share them with my friends, but since you put it that way, I'll eat a few more."

Setsuna tapped Titan's forehead, where it was wrapped around his right arm. "Titan, spit out Treasure Chest No. 3."

He had discovered that Titan's internal space was incredibly useful. It could completely serve as a spatial storage device.

Titan did not even need Setsuna to remove its body restrictions before spitting a large treasure chest out of its tiny body.

Setsuna opened the chest, took out a burger, and began eating.

"Meat—and top-quality meat at that!" The Slime nearly cried. He was a dignified cosmic emperor, yet his dream was so humble that all he wanted was meat. What other cosmic emperor was as miserable as him?

"Not enough, not enough! I want even more meat!"

Ten days passed, and the Slime Leader became increasingly noisy—or rather, he revealed his true nature. Sitting cross-legged in the Gourmet Cells, he commented, "I can only give today's dish ten points. Of course, the full score is one hundred. Is this what you consider fairly good food? I mourn for your taste, poor child. Don't tell me you've never enjoyed real gourmet food before?"

Setsuna's mouth twitched slightly. He even suspected that Ichiryu had deliberately dumped this burden on him.

Both were cosmic emperors, yet Frieza was so polite. Why was the Slime Leader such a chatterbox?

The Slime shook his head and sighed. "Sigh, but I can't blame you entirely. After all, this is just one planet. Back when I ruled the universe, ten thousand planets cooked food for me every day. I've tasted cuisine from across the entire universe."

Hearing the Slime boast about his glorious past again, Setsuna chuckled. "Have you really tasted every kind of food?"

The Slime answered without hesitation, "Is that even a question?"

Setsuna asked with a grin, "Then have you tasted food from other universes too?"

"Don't underestimate me." The Slime sneered. "I used to be a cosmic emperor. Do you think I wouldn't know that other universes existed? I've eaten plenty of food from the red, blue, white, green, and black universes."

"In that case, how about we make a bet?" Setsuna tempted him.

"A bet? What kind of bet?" the Slime asked.

"We'll bet on whether I can bring out food you've never eaten before," Setsuna said. "If you lose, you'll have to obey my orders completely from now on. If I lose, I'll do whatever you tell me to."

"Hah? You?" The Slime clutched his stomach and laughed within the Gourmet Cells until tears streamed down his face. "Since you're rushing to give me a benefit, there's no reason for me to refuse."

"Good. Then let's wait and see." Otsutsuki Ichiraku, the honor of the Naruto World's Gourmet World rests entirely on you.

Although the Naruto World's food certainly could not compare with this world's, it was still cuisine with flavors from another universe. It should at least earn some decent reviews, right?

If that failed, he could take the Slime to the Dragon Ball universe in the future. The food on Dragon Ball Earth had, after all, been certified by the God of Destruction.