East Blue.
Foosha Village.
Makino's bar was as lively as ever. But recently, an out-of-place stall had appeared in front of the bar. It was a simple wooden stall, with a single wooden board standing on it. Two large words were scrawled crookedly on the board in ink: Dungeon Shop.
"Hahaha! You brats! Still trying to run away from me!"
A hearty laugh exploded at the village entrance. Garp was back. Under each of his arms, he held a desperately struggling little brat.
"Let me go! You damn old geezer!"
Ace, on the left, was full of anger, flailing his limbs.
"Waah! I'm gonna be King of the Pirates! I don't wanna be a Marine!"
Luffy, on the right, was crying so hard a snot bubble came out, his legs kicking wildly in the air.
The smile on Garp's face vanished instantly. Veins bulged on his forehead.
"So noisy!"
"Quiet down for me!"
His free hands clenched into fists.
Bonk!
Bonk!
Two merciless "Fists of Love" landed accurately on the two brats' heads. Large bumps immediately swelled on Ace's and Luffy's heads. They both saw stars and instantly quieted down.
Garp nodded in satisfaction. Just as he was about to haul his two overly energetic grandsons away, his gaze caught sight of the strange stall. His footsteps paused.
"Dungeon Shop?"
Garp narrowed his eyes and walked over, intrigued.
Behind the stall, a young man was lying on a rocking chair. The young man had white hair, wore a simple white t-shirt and beach shorts, and had a pair of sunglasses perched on his nose. He swayed gently with the rocking chair, his entire being looking so lazy he was about to fall apart.
Garp's massive figure cast a shadow, completely covering the young man.
The young man's rocking chair stopped. He reached up a finger, slowly pulling his sunglasses down a bit, revealing a pair of jet-black eyes.
"Welcome."
He spoke, his tone lazy, with the hoarseness of someone who had just woken up.
Garp's expression instantly darkened. This kid, what's with this attitude! He was the Marine Hero, Garp! How dare this kid speak to him with such an attitude?
Two puffs of air snorted from Garp's nostrils. He leaned down, his immense presence pressing toward the young man.
"Kid."
His tone was aggressive, carrying a hint of gunpowder.
"This place of yours... is called Dungeon Shop?"
Garp's finger tapped heavily on the wooden board with the writing.
"But how come I don't see a single product?"
The young man pushed his sunglasses back up his nose, a playful arc hooking his lips.
"Now, customer, you can't say that."
"The things I sell aren't cabbages you can just stack on a shelf for people to pick over."
His voice was still lazy, but it held an unquestionable certainty.
"It's an experience."
"An... experience you'll never forget for the rest of your life."
Garp's brow furrowed even tighter, two jets of white steam shooting from his large nostrils.
"An experience?"
He grinned, revealing a mouth of white teeth, his smile filled with a dangerous aura.
"Fine! I'd like to see just what kind of trick you're pulling, kid!"
"Speak! How do I experience it!"
The young man gave a lazy yawn and held up three fingers.
"It's simple."
"Just choose the dungeon package you want."
"Beginner Dungeon, trial price, one million Beri."
"Intermediate Dungeon, advanced price, ten million Beri."
"As for the highest-level Advanced Dungeon..."
He paused, his dark eyes looking at Garp from behind the sunglasses, and slowly uttered a number.
"One hundred million."
The air instantly froze. Both Ace and Luffy stopped struggling, staring wide-eyed at the white-haired young man who had just spouted such nonsense. The smile on Garp's face stiffened. The next second, his entire face darkened, the veins on his forehead throbbing wildly like earthworms.
"You damn brat, you're crazy for money!"
Garp's roar nearly blew the roofs off Foosha Village.
"One million?! One hundred million?!"
"Why don't you just go rob someone!"
"Don't get excited, don't get excited."
The young man waved his hand, signaling him to calm down.
"Mr. Garp, this is clearly marked pricing, no deception of young or old."
"Once you've witnessed the magic of the dungeon, you'll naturally feel it's worth more than the price."
His tone was as flat as if he were commenting on the nice weather, but that confidence made Garp's anger get stuck in his throat. This kid is either a lunatic, or he really has some skill.
Garp stared at him for a good ten seconds. He suddenly snorted, his clenched fist relaxing.
He stuck out his pinky and, ignoring everyone, started picking his nose.
"Big talk."
"Since you're so confident, I'll give you some face today and take a good look!"
He flicked his finger, an extremely casual motion.
"I'll take the cheapest one!"
Garp glanced at the young man with an "I'm doing you a favor" look.
"One million Beri, right? Put it on my tab!"
"If I feel it's not worth the price..."
He grinned, his white teeth flashing with a cold light.
"I won't be paying, you know."
"As you wish."
The smile on the young man's face widened.
"Beginner Dungeon, opening for you."
As soon as the words fell, he raised his right hand and tapped his index finger lightly in the air.
Voom.
The space in front of his fingertip rippled visibly. The next moment, a blinding white light erupted without warning, instantly engulfing Garp.
The white light came and went quickly. In front of the bar, only the simple stall, the leisurely young man on the rocking chair, and two bewildered little brats remained.
The whole world was quiet.
The young man leaned back comfortably in his chair, looking at the semi-transparent panel only he could see, and began to ponder.
"Beginner Dungeon... where would be the most fun to send this old coot?"
That's right. His name was Blake, an unlucky sod who had transmigrated to this world a week ago. Fortunately, he had awakened a golden finger called the "Myriad Heavens Instance System", or "Multiverse Dungeon System."
As long as he got people to clear dungeons, he could get rich rewards.
Make him risk his life? What a joke!
Finding the strong people of this world to be his "power-levelers," making them work for him, and squeezing an "entrance fee" from them on the side. Wasn't that better than anything else? Killing two birds with one stone, it was simply wonderful.
Blake stroked his chin, a mischievous smile on his face.
"Heheh."
He comfortably crossed his legs, looking at the virtual panel only he could see. On the panel, several lines of text glowed with a faint blue light.
[Available Dungeon Pool]
[Beginner Dungeon: Desert King]
[Introduction: In the endless sea of sand, challenge the Sand Warlord who plots to usurp a kingdom.]
[Beginner Dungeon: Strongest Spear]
[Introduction: On the battlefield of cloud and thunder, face the Third Raikage who withstood a Tailed Beast Bomb with his bare body.]
[BeginDungeon: Visitors from Beyond]
[Introduction: Above the concrete jungle, single-handedly annihilate a Leviathan beast from deep space.]
[Intermediate Dungeon: Eye of the Moon]
[Introduction: Face the power of a god, challenge the one who absorbed the God Tree and opened the Eye of the Moon, Six Paths Madara Uchiha.]
Blake's gaze swept over the panel, his fingers tapping rhythmically on the armrest.
"Desert King... Crocodile?"
He pouted.
"A Logia user is a dimensional-level threat against people who don't know Haki, but an old coot like Garp... his Armament Haki is practically just muscle by now. One punch and he'll turn that sand right back into minerals."
"Boring. Next."
His gaze fell on "Visitors from Beyond."
"Fight a big iron snake?"
A trace of disdain appeared on Blake's face.
"That old guy Garp uses warships as punching bags. A monster of this level is probably just a one-punch affair. No, no, that's no good. No entertainment value, no dramatic conflict at all."
What he wanted was fun. The kind of fist-to-flesh, spark-flying, top-tier show that would get the audience's adrenaline pumping!
Finally, his gaze landed on the second beginner dungeon.
[Strongest Spear].
Blake's eyes lit up. The curve of his lips widened, revealing a positively wicked smile.
"Oho?"
"Now this is interesting."
"The Third Raikage. A monster who developed his pure physique and Lightning Chakra to the extreme. Hell Stab: One-Finger Nukite, known as the 'Strongest Spear'. Lightning Release Armour, known as the 'Strongest Shield'. To cover his comrades' retreat, he held off an army of ten thousand ninjas alone, fighting for three days and three nights until he died of exhaustion. A true man, a real iron-blooded badass!"
Blake rubbed his chin, his mind already picturing an earth-shattering confrontation.
Marine Hero, Garp the Fist. His fists were the Fists of Justice that had shattered countless legends.
The brute of Kumogakure, the Third Raikage. His finger was the Strongest Spear that had pierced all defenses.
When Garp's iron fist met the Raikage's Hell Stab...
That scene.
Tsk tsk.
"The ultimate showdown of spear versus shield, the peak collision of taijutsu versus taijutsu!"
Blake slapped his thigh in excitement.
"This is the one!"
"Let this old man who's always spouting 'Justice' go and feel the 'loving embrace' of a top-tier badass from another world!"
"Hehehe, I hope his old bones... are still tough enough."