43. Spike's Encounter With Garp!
In Logue town, Tom's captivating presence caught the eye of everyone who passed by.
Everyone who saw him couldn't help but turn their heads!
Despite all the attention, Tom remained confident and pleased with himself.
Believing that people were drawn to his beauty, Tom winked and blew kisses at passersby.
Whenever someone walked by, they could hear the sound of "barf~" trailing behind him.(T/N: I am having an existential crisis, please hel.....🤢)
Nami hid her face behind Spike, intentionally maintaining a distance from Tom.
She worried that others might mistakenly assume they were acquainted.
What a coincidence!
Just as Nami was considering putting some distance between herself and Tom...
Tom suddenly halted in front of Nami, extending his cat-like paw and giving her a wink.
Nami shuddered, suppressing the unease in her heart, and inquired:
"Tom, you mean, you want to go shopping by yourself?" Nami asked.
Tom nodded, taking the money from Nami. He strolled confidently alongside Spike, heading towards the barbecue shop.
He seemed like a real street swagger!
Nami muttered to herself, "These two..."
Nami covered her face, feeling at a loss for words with these two.
However, without Tom by her side, Nami's shopping experience was a bit more enjoyable.
Just as Nami was buying fruit, she couldn't help but shudder at the sound of conversation behind her.
"Vice Admiral Garp, we're heading to Logue town. Would you like to greet Colonel Smoker?"
Garp waved dismissively, replying, "The old man's just stopping by for some donuts. Why should I say hello to that brat?"
"But Vice Admiral Garp, you've already bought five senbei packets!"
Garp chuckled awkwardly, "Already that many, huh?"
"But I want to beat the record for consecutive eating!"
"That's not nearly enough, Bwahaha."
Nami glanced at the tall figure in the dog hat from the corner of her eye. She couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief, muttering, "Thank goodness he didn't recognize me."
Just as Nami pondered whether to inform Tom, she suddenly hesitated.
She thought to herself, considering Tom's current look...
"Um... never mind, it doesn't seem necessary."
After parting ways with Nami, Tom and Spike fully embraced their street swagger.
With a hefty piece of barbecue in one hand and a bottle of milk in the other, they strutted along with unmissable swagger, casually humming a stylish tune!
Whenever they spotted a shop selling meat or pastries, Tom and Spike would march right in without a second thought.
Then, much to the surprise of onlookers, they'd swiftly display a large spread of food on a table, before turning and heading to the next spot.
Before long, cats and dogs devoured food all across the street, drawing crowds of onlookers.
But what astonished the spectators the most was this:
No matter how enormous Tom and Spike's appetites seemed, they devoured their meals at a speed visible to the naked eye, before swiftly moving on to the next store!
"Those oddball woman and her dog sure can eat!"
"You're telling me! I can't cook as fast as they can eat!"
Amidst the chatter of the crowd, Garp, still on the hunt for a donut shop, noticed something peculiar.
"What's happening up ahead?" he asked, intrigued.
Upon inquiry from the sailors accompanying him, a sailor replied, "Vice Admiral Garp, it seems a peculiar woman and her dog have garnered quite the attention due to their voracious appetite."
This news elicited a hearty laugh from Garp. After exclaiming "interesting" three times, he navigated through the crowd and reached the entrance of a restaurant.
Witnessing Tom effortlessly gulp down an entire fish, leaving only a clean fish bone behind, Garp burst into laughter, clutching his stomach.
Upon seeing Garp wearing a dog hat, Tom paused momentarily, then turned to Spike with a puzzled expression, asking, "Your brother?"
Confronted with Tom's existential question, Spike fell into deep contemplation.
Had he ever pondered if he truly had a long-lost brother?
Just as Spike was lost in contemplation, he noticed a smirk forming on Tom's face.
In a swift move, Tom snatched the bone from Spike's mouth.
Then, with a mischievous whistle, he approached Garp, playfully swaying back and forth in front of him, teasingly mimicking Spike.
This spectacle of Tom left the onlookers completely dumbfounded.
A bold realization dawned on the spectators:
"This woman is teasing this Marine as her pet dog!"
Even Garp, wearing the dog hat, was left bewildered, gazing at the eccentric "woman" adorned with heavy makeup before him with a perplexed expression.
"Is this guy for real?"
Noticing Garp's lack of response, Tom's patience began to wane. He lightly tapped Garp's head with the bone, while whistling louder, attempting to capture the attention of the "dog" in front of him.
"She is actually treating a Marine like a pet dog!"
"Isn't she afraid of getting herself killed?"
.....
Garp froze in place, the corners of his mouth twitching uncontrollably.
"What do I look like to you?"
Just as the infuriated Garp clenched his fists, ready to teach Tom a lesson...
As Spike snapped out of his contemplation, he suddenly noticed something missing from his mouth.
The bones were gone!?
With a fierce glare, Spike shook his head vigorously, locking onto what Tom held in his hand!
"Damn cat!"
Furious, Spike raised his fist the size of a sandbag, ready to pummel Tom.
"Stupid cat, daring to snatch my bones, I've had enough of your antics!" Tom exclaimed.
Before the words could fully leave his mouth, Spike sent Tom flying with a powerful blow, just as Garp's fist was about to land.
In a swift turn of events, just as Spike felt a sense of crisis, he was driven into the ground by Garp's merciless iron fist!
The bone that Tom had been holding slipped from his grasp and was caught unconsciously by Garp.
It all unfolded in a blur of swift actions.
The events unfolded so swiftly that the spectators around couldn't quite make out what had happened.
All they could discern was that in a split second, a white blur flashed into view, followed by a black figure being flung out.
Upon closer inspection, the peculiar woman seemed to transform into her pet dog?
Not only were the onlookers unable to fully comprehend what had transpired, even Garp himself was momentarily taken aback, feeling a bit bewildered by the turn of events.
As Garp glanced down and noticed Spike sporting a one-meter-tall bump on his head, a cold sweat broke out on his forehead.
Awkwardly, he smiled and said, "I'm sorry, I hope I didn't hurt you."
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