Another ecological disaster—likely caused by those dangerous creatures again!" muttered a tall man trekking through the dense foliage of the Low Whispering Forest. Named for its unique terrain, the wind here produced an eerie, intermittent hum that echoed like ghostly murmurs.
The man, Zed, was not native to this world. Once a struggling author in his past life, he'd succumbed to exhaustion after endless nights of coding. Upon reopening his eyes, he found himself reborn as a child in the universe of Toriko.
Before he could process his reincarnation, a surge of information flooded his mind—a "golden finger" system. Dubbed the Partner System, its objective was simple: locate a compatible partner, and rewards would follow. As an avid reader of transmigration tropes, Zed recognized the setup instantly.
The system had granted him a Novice Gift Pack containing the most crucial asset in this world: Gourmet Cells. Unlike ordinary cells, these were perfect—free from the lethal risks of awakening. In Toriko, forcibly awakening Gourmet Cells could prove fatal, as Komatsu nearly learned when his heart failed during AIR's cooking. Only Jiji's drastic intervention saved him.
Zed's cells, however, sidestepped such dangers. Moreover, his system allowed him to copy existing Gourmet Demons as puppets, avoiding sentient entities inhabiting his body. Relieved, Zed opted for Leader Slime over stronger options like NEO or White Ghost.
Why Leader Slime? In the original manga, Leader Slime's resurrection via Asardy's frail body had handicapped it against NEO's host, Acacia—a near-invincible vessel. Zed theorized that with a stronger host (e.g., Ichiryuu), Leader Slime could rival NEO. White Ghost, while powerful, demanded a physique Zed lacked—Toriko himself could barely withstand a fraction of its power.
Fate smiled on Zed. Reborn near the Healing Country, he was rescued by a wandering Regeneration Master who took him as an apprentice. When the master passed years later, Zed's talent earned him mentorship under Yosaku, a Regeneration Master rivaling the Gourmet National Treasure, Mellow Yurin. Now, as Yosaku's protégé and Jiji's junior, Zed's status soared.