Pig Cage Town looked like a poor area.
When Garp walked in, his first thought about the town was that it was run-down and poor.
The houses inside were all connected together. Calling it a town made it sound like one huge apartment building. This building hadn't been fixed up in a long time, and everything looked old.
But even though it was small, it had everything it needed. Garp could see there were many shops. People walked around outside, chatting here and there. They were sweaty, but they seemed more alive than the people he had seen in the cities outside.
They didn't seem to react much when they saw him come in. Garp was fine with that. He walked around, looking at things. Then he saw a steamed bun shop and went inside.
Maybe it wasn't lunchtime yet, because there was only one person in the shop, the owner. He was lying in a chair with a book over his face. He didn't even notice Garp come in.
Garp didn't see anything special about the people here, but Sengoku had told him to be careful, so there must be something going on. Garp sat down and said to the owner, "Hey, boss! You've got a customer!"
Garp's voice woke the owner up. He jumped, took the book off his face, and saw Garp sitting there. Right away, he put on a friendly face and said, "What would you like to eat?"
"Steamed buns! Meat buns!" Garp said loudly. "Any kind of meat is fine!"
"Then... how about tiger meat buns? Or wolf meat?"
The owner looked at Garp and then hesitated. "You look like... you're from out of town?"
"Yeah, I'm visiting family and passed through here. I didn't know there was a town like this in the mountains," Garp said casually. When he said that, he realized what the owner had said before and raised his voice.
"Tiger meat? Wolf meat?!"
Do normal towns sell buns with that kind of meat in them?!
"We can't raise animals here. We have a few cows, but they're for work. So we have to hunt wild animals like tigers, wolves, and boars for food," the owner said with a sigh.
"It's dangerous, but we have no choice. That's life. If you're just passing through, you should be careful. There are a lot of wild animals ahead."
Garp asked even though he already knew, "Why was this town built in a place like this? With so many wild animals, why don't you move to a city?"
The owner shrugged, looking helpless. "People are much crueler than animals. All the tigers, leopards, lions, and wolves put together can't do as much harm as people do to each other. We'd rather fight wild animals, so we moved here."
"I see..." Garp sighed. That was true for this country, but no one could change the world, and he couldn't either.
"Then give me tiger meat buns," Garp said. He had eaten all kinds of meat, even from sea monsters. But that was because he was strong.
These people looked like regular folks, but they would rather fight tigers than live in a city. It was really something to think about.
Garp wanted to learn more about the town, so while he waited, he asked, "Do you get many outsiders here?"
If it was a closed-off town, they should be surprised to see someone like him. But almost no one seemed surprised when he came in, like it was normal.
"Not many people used to come. Our parents built this place as a safe place to hide. Not many people know about it, and even if they do, they wouldn't come to a place like this. There's nothing here, and it's dangerous."
The owner brought a basket of hot buns to Garp's table and said with a sigh, "But these last few years, people have been coming more often. This town used to be okay. It was simple, but we didn't have to fight tigers all the time."
"But because of those people, we're always worried now."
Garp raised an eyebrow. He felt like he was getting to the important part. So he asked right away, "Who's coming?"
But the owner's answer was disappointing. He sat down across from Garp and sighed.
"A gang from the cities around here. They've been coming to the town for the last year, looking for something. They always take a lot of stuff with them."
Seeing the owner's sigh, Garp said, "You're brave enough to fight tigers, but you're afraid of some gangsters?"
"That's how scary people are," the owner said, shaking his head. "People are more dangerous than any wild animal or monster."
"No one knows how to deal with people better than people do."
Garp stuffed a bun into his mouth and didn't say anything.
That was true in a way. Looking at it in a bloody way, human history was like a guide to killing people more efficiently. And it had gotten really good at it in this day and age.
What were those gangsters looking for here?
Garp noticed that the owner said it started a year ago. What happened a year ago?
A year ago...
The Shikon Jewel broke apart. If he had to guess something they were looking for, it would be a piece of the Shikon Jewel.
Could there be a piece of the Shikon Jewel in this town?
If there was, then the gang must have someone behind them. How else would they know where to find the Shikon Jewel piece?
Garp was about to ask about the gang when he suddenly noticed a commotion outside. It sounded like a lot of people were coming closer.
"Oh no! They're here again!" The owner looked back and his face changed. He quickly said, "You should hide, mister. If they see you, nothing good will come of it."
Garp looked over too. He saw a lot of people in black clothes coming in through the entrance of Pig Cage Town. He didn't hide like the owner said, but he didn't step forward either. He wanted to see what they were going to do.
"Do they usually come with this many people?"
Garp could feel the killing intent coming from them. He asked the owner,
"No... before, there were only ten or so people. Never this many."
The owner sounded worried. Garp finished the last bun on the table. The next moment, a gangster in black clothes kicked the door open and came in.
"Everyone get out! You punks, I'm telling you, if you don't hand over the treasure today, we won't be so nice!"
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