Hello~! This will be my first every fanfic in here, I'm not really new, but this is also just a draft. I just decided to publish this here. If there are mistakes and errors, don't mind to point it out so I can edit them in the future when I make this story official. :D

Enjoy!

Dis...

...gus..

...ting...

'Disgusting!' she thought, sounding extremely in dismay. 'They don't go together at all...' she continued as she leaned down from her seat, allowing her dark-red hair to fall over her shoulders. 'They're a devastatingly bad match!'

In front of her, a small grill was turned on with charcoal and fire, and above it were pieces of squid tentacles covered in peanut butter.

"Squid tentacles and peanut butter..." her shoulders shook, restraining from letting her laughter leak through as her hand run through her red bangs, just covering her eyes. "I can't help but laugh, it's so disgusting..." she snickered, the squid tentacle covered in peanut butter in between her teeth just hanging there.

"Souma," her father called from inside, catching her attention as she raised her head and faced the door. "Your friend's here."

"Hai!"

She stood up, grabbing the white headband cloth wrapped around her left wrist and pulled. She wrapped it in front of her forehead, covering some of her bangs, before pulling the rest of her hair up into a high-ponytail with the headband.

"Let's do this, then!" she grinned, pulling the ends of the cloth to tighten it, her golden-yellow eyes were shining with determination.

A moment later, two bowls filled with rice and seasoning was placed in front of the table by two individuals. Their judge, a young female student, stared in excitement at the two dishes in front of her.

A middle-aged man reached his hand up to the back of his head, pulling the tie holding his brown hair out and allowed them to fall on his shoulders. Afterwards, he held his hand out, a calm smile on his face. "Enjoy."

Beside him, a young girl with astounding golden eyes pulled the edge of the headband, letting her red hair to fall gracefully on her chest and her back. She grinned, her hand doing the same gesture like the man beside her. "Dig in!"

The female student with short, chin-length brown hair smiled, holding the spoon in her hand. "Itadakimasu!"

A male student slid the doors of the Yukihira diner open, a smile already on his face as his friend looked over his shoulder. "The cooking battle's on!"

His friend widened his eyes slightly, a surprised look on his face. "So Mayumi's the judge today?" he proclaimed as the female student named 'Mayumi' took a spoonful of rice on her mouth, chewing on it thoughtfully.

After swallowing, Mayumi felt something jolt through her body, causing her thighs to squeeze together, a warm tingle running down her spine, and her legs rubbing on each other. She leaned her head back slightly, breathing out in pleasure with a small and faint moan as a red blush rose up her cheeks.

As Mayumi sighed out, the young teen with red hair had her arms crossed over her chest, a grin on her face and stared at the man in front of her. The man with brown hair had his hands on his hips, sharp eyes staring back at the young girl in front of him.

"You think...today's the day-"

"Shh! Mayu's thinking!"

Mayumi had her eyes closed in deep consideration, her hand on her chin in a thoughtful way. After what it seemed like a lifetime later, her hand, with eyes still closed, moved to the bowl on her left, a smile on her face. "This one!"

Everyone immediately cheered and clapped as the brown-haired man raised his arm in victory, his eyes closed and a triumph smile appeared on his face.

"Shimatta!" the red-headed teen exclaimed, falling on her knees in defeat. "Oyaji wins again!"

Mayumi stood up from her seat, a worried expression on her face as she stared at the beautiful red-head.

Yukihira Souma, age fifteen, sat on the ground with a grumpy look on her face at her defeat as her pink lips formed a cute pout, not caring about her bangs falling over her bright golden eyes.

"Souma," Yukihira Jouichirou, age thirty-eight and restaurant owner, smiled down at his daughter. "You still need more training." he stated, an underlying hint of warmth on his tone. Souma noticed it but only turned around.

"Looks like I've lost today." Souma said and walked away from her father, her hands on her hips, and ignored what he had said previously (but not the warmth).

"Say that after you win at least once." Jouichirou countered right away before getting close to the red-headed teen in chibi-form. "You're probably getting close to five-hundred losses now, aren't you?" he inquired, amusement lacing his words.

"Hah?!" Souma turned around, her eyes narrowed at her father and raised a fist. "Don't get cocky, that was only four-hundred and eighty-nine!" she defended back.

"You're still getting close."

"Urusai, oyaji!"

As the father-daughter duo continued to argue, the customers began to eat the rice the two had cooked, some moaning in pleasure, their clothes practically falling off, and pleasurable tingles crawling on their backs.

"B-but yours was really good, too, Yukihira-chan!" Mayumi reassured the red-headed female, her fisted-hands above her chest. "I've never had such delicious Chinese fried rice!" she continued.

Souma only had a blue, depressed aura around her. "Arigatou..." she thanked the brown-haired female, her eyes shadowed with animated tears running down her face. "I've also got a new dish ready that I had just made up. Would you like to try?" Souma held up a bowl in one hand and chopsticks on the other.

Mayumi instantly brightened up, a kind smile on her face, as well as a faint pink blush. "Really? I would love to!"

"It's a flame-grilled squid tentacle with peanut butter." Souma explained, her voice going lower in a somewhat scheming and dark way.

Mayumi only blinked, "Eh?"

The others behind Mayumi gaped in shock and the female with short, sandy-blonde hair stared with wide eyes. "Mayu!"

"Whoa, she's at it again!"

"She made another crazy one!"

Mayumi could only back away in fear as Souma closed in on her, her hand raised with the tentacle already in between the chopsticks and a mad, sinister grin on the red-head's face. "Here, dig in. It's so disgusting, you'll laugh."

"N-no—!"

Before Mayumi could even finish, Souma already placed the peanut butter tentacle inside the brunette's mouth. "Mmn!"

The moment it touched her tongue, Mayumi instantly felt like a tentacle had wrap around her wrist, on her thigh and everywhere despite her protests.

"Iie!"

It ripped off the front of her uniform, the tentacle roaming on her stomach as more of them wrapped themselves around her wrist, arms, legs, and ankles, and one nudging on her cheek as Mayumi struggled. It was massaging her chest, her small of her back, her hips and more.

'The flavor of the tentacles took a turn in the wrong direction.' she described, 'It tasted so bad, it felt like my whole body was being groped by them.'

Was what the girl said afterwards.

Cooking was an endless wasteland... A wasteland dotted with flavors both delicious and disgusting.

"And I want to walk beyond that horizon." Souma stated, nearly glowing in the light as the blue sky surrounded her.

"Urusai, baka-chan! Walk there yourself!" the sandy-blond girl reprimanded, a tick mark throbbing on her head. And the imaginary blue sky behind Souma disappeared instantaneously. The sandy-blond looked away from the red-headed beauty to look at the shivering Mayumi she held by her shoulders, waterfall-tears falling down the brunette's face. "Hang in there, Mayu! Are you okay?" she asked worriedly.

Mayumi only continued to comically cry in chibi-form, "The squid... The squid is..." she couldn't continue as her body quivered, her tongue most probably violated from the disgusting taste.

The same male-student who entered the restaurant leaned in towards his friend. "Yukihira-chan is always so happy when making people eat her mistakes." he whispered.

His dark-haired only agreed. "If not for that habit of hers, she'd be a decent chef." he looked over behind him to see Souma still admiring her own work while facing to no one in particular.

Jouichirou stepped out of the room, standing beside the red-head. "But the dried sardines with strawberry jam that I made was still worse, huh, Souma?" a small smirk was on his face.

Souma smiled back languidly, "Ah, right." an image of a plate filled with dried sardines layered with strawberry jam with stem leaves on top appeared on their heads. "That was the nastiness of epic proportions." she agreed, her tone going devious.

"Right?"

In chibi-form, Souma only wiggled her arms slowly, a smirk on her face. "But the peanut butter tentacles are far worse!"

"No way! Sardines with jam are worse!"

"Peanut butter tentacles are worse!"

In midst of their banter, the customers in the background only deadpanned or sweat dropped at the two. "Yeah, with a 'tou-san like that, I guess she makes sense..."

"Mine was worse!" the father-daughter duo yelled simultaneously and the many customers could only sweat drop at the moment.

After the cooking battle earlier, it was now night time and the Yukihira restaurant was still buzzing with business and customers loving the food.

"One liver and garlic chives meal," Souma smiled while she placed a cooked dish to three-people's table.

"Could I get the meat and tofu meal?" one customer asked, raising his hand at the red head. His friend beside him also raised a hand, "I'll have today's special."

Souma smiled; "Got it!" she faced her father, telling him the orders. "One meat and tofu and one special!"

"Got it," Jouichirou responded back, shaking the pan up and the food jumped up on the air and landing back on the pan gracefully.

The last customers head out of the restaurant, all satisfied and stuffed with the food the father-daughter duo had made.

"Whew, I'm full!"

"Thank you for the meal!"

"Thanks for coming!" Jouichirou said from inside.

In a car near the Yukihira restaurant, the window slid down for a woman with sunglasses looking over at the place, an unreadable look on her face.

Souma placed the tray of bowls and plates down on the table before grabbing a wet cloth, wiping the table nearby and the rest as well. Afterwards, she started wiping the glasses and cups, rubbing them clean and spotless.

"Souma," Jouichirou called out, looking over his shoulder at his daughter. "When you're done, kill the flame on the charcoal grill." he told her. Souma said nothing as she continued to clean the glasses, seeming deep in thought. When there was no response, Jouichirou fully turned his attention to his daughter, a hint of concern in his eyes before it was replaced with confusion.

"I should've shaken the pan three more times for that Chinese fried rice..." Souma mumbled, absently rubbing the piece of cloth on the sides of the cup. There would have been a chance that she could have won if she paid more attention to how many times she shook the pan. A frown soon adorned her features. 'I'll be graduating from middle school soon. After that, I'll be able to study cooking more.'

An image of her standing in front of the Yukihira restaurant flashed on her mind. 'I want to surpass otou-san as soon as I can! Then, I'll take over as chef for this restaurant!' she unconsciously gripped the cloth tighter on her hand.

Jouichirou continued to watch his daughter from the corner of his eye, his face blank and unreadable.

The sound of the entrance door sliding open got Souma finally out of her thoughts and perked up, lifting her gaze from the cup. "Ah, welco—" she stopped herself mid-way and her face darkened briefly, shutting her mouth close.

In front of Souma were four (unwanted) people, three men in suits and one woman with dark-violet hair, and all four were wearing dark glasses.

"Pardon us." the woman said, walking forward as she faced Jouichirou's figure, seeing him still busy with the dishes before turning away. "It looks like you're still open, but please forgive us for barging in." she continued, nearing the red-headed teen in front of her.

"I'm urban life planner, Minegasaki." she introduced, pulling her shades off her eyes to reveal purple orbs and leaned down, her bust shifting slightly.

"What would you like?" Souma immediately asked with her arms crossed, looking somewhat impatient and bored at the same time.

"Eh?" was all the violet-haired woman could say, confusion laced on her tone. Not understanding what the teen meant.

Souma only continued with nonchalance, "Today, we recommend the golden-eye sea bream sashimi, and..."

"Iie," she cut the red-head off, a smile on her face. "I'm here today to consult once more about the plan we discussed the other day." she placed a thin paper-book, with an image of a luxurious building, in front of the table across the red-head. "We'd love to bring this comfortable and luxurious urban apartment building, designed in the 'Garden Residence' concept, to this town—"

Before she could finish, Souma dumped the grill-cooker on top of the paper with one hand and a cloth underneath to cool the heat on the metal handle. The woman backed off slightly in surprise, finding it a little rude to be interrupted.

"In short, you people are land sharks, and you want us out of here." Souma started; voice bland and disinterested. The men stared in disbelief at the guts the red-head had to cut off their boss, whilst Jouichirou only continued to wash the dishes, seeming to ignore their presence. "We've all heard this." a blank smile was on Souma's face. "Go home. We have no intention of shutting this place down."

The woman still had her business-smile on her face, "Then," she set down a card in front of the grill, and in the card had her name on it, 'Minegasaki Yaeko'. "I'll just leave my card here. Call me anytime."

Yaeko looked over her shoulder to see the owner of Yukihira restaurant, missing the dark look that surfaced the gold-eyed teen's face before turning blank. "But, sir, given the times, I'm sure it'll grow increasingly difficult to manage a small-scale eatery like this. I hear many restaurants agonize every day over keeping up their stock."

"We don't have that problem." Souma commented dryly, catching Yaeko's attention.

"Is that so?"

Souma grunted softly and quietly, "Yukihira takes the responsibility of offering the meals our customers want." she answered monotonously.

"Oh, how wonderful!" Yaeko smiled brightly, but the smile never reached her eyes and it didn't fool Souma. "You're everything the service industry should be!" she complimented, before a deceitful look appeared on her face as she tilted her head to the right. "But if you can't serve what your customer want," she took a step closer to the red-head, crossing her arms under her busty chest. "How will you take responsibility?" she finished, staring expectantly.

Souma stared for a second before sighing, her eyes closed as she grabbed a utensil-clip, picking the business card between them. "If that happens...we'll gracefully close up the shop and go out of business." an empty smile was on her face when she raised the utensil above the grill and released the card, letting it flutter down to the grill and crumble up in ashes by the gentle fire.

Yaeko watched it disappear into small particles before lifting her gaze back to the red-head with her business-smile, unfazed. "You won't take it back?" she asked kindly.

Souma stared back, an unreadable glint in her golden eyes. "Un,"

Yaeko stared at the red-head's golden eyes a little longer, a glint in her eyes, before wearing her shades back. "Then I'll return later." was the last thing she said before she and her men walked out the door, leaving the building while Souma observed them go.

When they finally left, Souma turned to her father, "Oyaji! The salt! Throw the salt!"

"Nope. That'd be a waste of salt."

It was the next day, and school had ended for Souma as she walked away, slinging her bag over her right shoulder.

"What do you wanna do now?"

"Ano... Karaoke?"

"What are the rules, then?"

As the other male students continued to chatter, Mayumi noticed Souma's ever-so-noticeable spiky red and dark-red hair tied in a low ponytail. Mayumi watched the red-head walk away, worry visible in her eyes as the contest previously popped into her head.

"Mayu!" her friend called, and Mayumi jolted out of her thoughts. She stared at the red-head one last time before turning away, catching up with her friends.

Souma was now walking back home, holding a bag in one arm to her chest. A vibrated ring was heard and she took her phone out, her eyes reading the screen. Seeing the familiar contact, she pressed the screen and brought her phone to her ear. "Oyaji?"

"Yeah, you home yet?"

"Iie, I picked up some stuff for breakfast." she told him, "What's up?" she asked, knowing that that wasn't all there was to say.

"I'm out taking care of some things today."

"Eh? That's unusual." she frowned slightly.

"I won't be home until tomorrow, so you don't have to open the restaurant."

A small smile twitched on Souma's face. "Hai,"

It was silent on the end of both lines, with Souma just waiting in case her father would say more, before he spoke up again. "Hey..." Souma grunted softly, notifying her father that she was listening.

"What do you plan after middle school?"

Souma looked at her phone from the corner of her eye as she stopped in her tracks, confused as to why he would ask her that again. "You should know that. I'll study cooking at the restaurant." Jouichirou was silent for a moment.

"...I see." and with that, he hung up the phone, leaving the red-head a little more confused. She pulled the phone away from her ear, staring at it with confusion. "What was that about, otou-san?" she mumbled, feeling heat rushing to her cheeks and sighed. Souma doesn't really call Jouichirou 'otou-san' that much; rather, she just calls him 'oyaji'.

'And...' she continued in her mind, looking at the sunset beside her as it slowly sets down behind a few buildings. 'What's so important that he'd close the restaurant for a day?' she frowned, continuing her walk back to home. It was unusual for him to close it down since that never really happened. Well, at least not all the time.

'Otou-san doesn't really talk about himself that much.' she paused, setting her gaze on her feet as images flashed on her head. 'Now that I think about it, I might not know anything at all...about my otou-san as a chef.'

Souma closed the fence of the back of the restaurant. She walked past the trashcans and stalked to the door where all the ingredients would be. She took the key out, hearing it jiggle, and inserted it in the doorknob before pulling the door open.

She didn't expect what came next.

"Eh?" but Souma's eyes went wide at the sight that greeted her. All the meat was on the ground, ruined and tampered as salt was everywhere and a few pieces and chunks of meat splattered. 'The meat...' she moved her gaze to the ingredients and seasonings that were also in ruins inside the shelves.

'...is ruined?' she finished, taking a single step inside the pantry as her mind whirled with why's and how's. 'A burglar? No, a burglar wouldn't do this...' she examined the place, before something popped into her head and her eyes widened slightly. She opened the door connected to the pantry and outside the diner, sliding the door open.

Souma looked out, eyes everywhere outside and was confused for a moment before a splatter was heard near her feet. She looked at the white goo before turning her gaze behind her, and gasped as her attention was now on the banner that had the name of her father's restaurant. The sign was covered, and the name could no longer be distinguished.

"Ara!" a cheery, feminine voice was heard behind the red-head. Yaeko made herself known with a smile, her eyes hidden underneath her dark sunglasses. "Things here appear to be much more in order than yesterday." she smirked behind the red-head's back. "Maybe it's because that ugly sign is covered up."

A second later, her guards walked up behind her whilst Yaeko nudged her shades. "Ah... Somehow, I'm in the mood to eat some meat." she mocked, knowing that all the meat was destroyed. Then, she removed her sunglasses, her eyes closed with a smile on her face. "That marbled steak I always have in Roppongi is just the best!" she explained, walking inside the restaurant with her guards following after her. Souma just had an unreadable look in her face.

"The juice just fills up my mouth," she described as the image of the steak in a pan with butter on top flashing on her head and sat down on one of the seats in the diner.

"Ne, little girl," she started, her leg going over her other one with her arms crossed under her chest. "Make me the juiciest meat dish you can make." she requested, and when seeing the red-head outside the door, she smiled. "Oh? Don't tell me you can't make it. Your customer is asking for meat."

Souma only continued to remain silent, her red bangs covering her eyes. Yaeko pushed more, "Can't you serve it?" she questioned, her tone going to a mocking edge. "Little girl, didn't you tell me yesterday..." she paused, a small smirk on her painted lips. "...that if you couldn't serve a customer, you'd go out of business?"

Yaeko's eyes trailed up to where the sign would be located at, "Your sign already looks much better. It's a perfect timing." her gaze went back to the silent red-head, leaning her head down slightly. "You should just shut this restaurant down." she suggested, before bringing the back of her hand beside her mouth and laughed, cheeks flushed slightly.

Souma inhaled silently before breathing out heavily, gaining their attention and stared at her in puzzlement. "A juicy meat dish?" Yaeko brought her hand back down, feeling a little on edge at the intense feeling from the red-head.

Souma started un-wrapping the white cloth in her wrist, pulling it away as it fluttered around her in an elegant way. "Is that your order?" she inquired, pulling her school jacket (for males) off her shoulders in one go, her bangs still blocking her eyes. "Swear that you'll never enter this restaurant again, if I serve a meal that satisfies your palate."

Yaeko's eyes widened in shock, not expecting the red-headed teen to accept the challenge.

Souma pulled the edges of her headband that covered her forehead and pulled her hair to a high-ponytail, and also pulled the tie of her white apron on her waist.

Yaeko leaned back on her seat and the three men took a step, visibly intimidated by the female-teen as the wind somehow waved her apron around.

Souma's head snapped up, her golden eyes glinting with something unreadable and glared at them, her lips pulled back to a snarl. "The battle's on!"

The red-head's back faced the four adults behind her as she leaned on the counter, getting ready, before pulling a cutting-board out in front. She also threw in some potatoes, letting them roll down on the table.

Souma held a knife above and near her face; eyes blocked by her hair, before with one shift of her head, her bangs immediately showed her determined, golden eyes and grinned. She instantly started slicing the potatoes in half and twice, doing it repeatedly with the other row of potatoes.

After, she began slicing and mincing some onions, cutting them to near-crumbs and slicing another vegetable into tiny pieces with incredible speed.

With the fire high, Souma grabbed a cloth and used it to open the cover of the pot, letting the steam blow off from the potatoes. She also started heating up the bits of onions, watching them turn to a beautiful brown color.

Yaeko and the three men watched in astonishment and shock at the performance the red-headed female was giving them, their eyes wide at her speed and precision

"Wait..." Yaeko muttered, before turning to one of her guards behind her right. "You ruined everything in the fridge like we planned, right?" the man with slightly long black hair nodded, "H-hai! We didn't leave a single scrap of meat behind."

Yaeko looked back at the red-head who was still cooking, her eyes filled with shock and bewilderment. "I asked you for juicy meat!" she exclaimed, her voice still toned-down, and brought a thoughtful hand to her chin. Her mind was whirling with thoughts but was still stumped to a dead-end. "What are you making, without any decent ingredients?!"

Souma only had a wide grin on her face, her hair blocking her eyes once more, as she grinded something on the steel bowl. Then, her hands released graceful rosemary leaves that were small and delicate, letting it fall on the meat on the table. Salt and pepper seasoning also being used.

Souma pulled back a thin, yet strong, roll of string, a grin stretching on her face began wrapping it around the meat. And when she was done, the gold-eyed teen placed meat into the oven, turning it on.

Next, she grabbed a bottle of wine, pouring it into the pan and began frying it with something that the four customers couldn't see. The butter she put in there was slowly getting swallowed by the wine.

Yaeko could only stare with wide eyes and mouth slightly open in shock at the presentation in front of her as the three men decided to comment.

"Why—?!"

"How did she..."

"...make such a perfect..."

"...pork roast?!" Yaeko finished, the sight of the meat in front of them was nearly glistening under the light, the outside brown and crispy and beautiful, and the sauce below it, the wine Souma used, looking absolutely divine.

The red-head looked at them all, now holding the plate of meat with one hand and the other on her hip. "Let me answer that," she smiled, bordering to a smirk, and pointed at the dish in her hand. "This is potatoes wrapped in the thick-cut bacon I bought for tomorrow's breakfast." she told them, before placing the dish in the table in front of them, snapping her finger.

"It's called 'Gotcha' Pork Roast!" she grinned, almost looking triumph, but close enough.

The four stared dumbfounded at the red-head and the dish, unable to fully process the information in their heads.

"Potatoes...?"

"'Gotcha'?"

"Roast?"

"That's right." Souma nodded slightly, grabbing the plate in her hand once more and gestured with her other hand. "First, I steam the potatoes..." she trailed off, blinking before looking around the four, appearing clueless. "Eh? What's this atmosphere?" she asked, and anyone could literally see question marks floating around her head.

Yaeko put a hand on her chin, her eyes blank and looking a little offended. "Are you making a fool out of me?" she questioned. Souma stared impassively when the business-woman slammed a hand on the table. "I told you to serve me meat!" Yaeko stated, annoyance and a hint of anger lacing her tone.

"There's no room for negotiations anymore. Give this restaurant to me!" she continued, narrowing her eyes at the red-headed teen. "Listen to me! The chefs who find true success, work in first class restaurants or luxury hotels like the ones I've produced." her purple eyes seemed to hold fury underneath, almost as if she thought Souma was mocking her palate.

"This is a failure! If you ask me, this restaurant isn't even worth existing!" she said, eyes closed with her arms folded under her chest. Yaeko jolted slightly, snapping her head back up when Souma practically slammed the dish on the table.

"This one dish will tell you whether or not Yukihira," Souma started, head bowed and eyes covered before lifting it up, golden eyes reflecting Yaeko's face. "Is even worthy of existing." she finished, her tone somehow having the intense control and the purple-eyed woman stared back with wide eyes.

A heartbeat later, Yaeko was now sitting in one of the tables, her arms crossed as she glared back at the red-head's enticing golden eyes, the dish of the night right in front of her. Souma leaned forward slightly, one hand on the surface of the table and one hand on her hip.

"Oagariyo!" Souma smirked slightly.

After a moment of silence, Yaeko continued to stare at the dish served in front of her, before suddenly, the smell of the potato-wrapped-bacon soon found its way to her nose. She inhaled the smell, a blush appearing on her face as her eyes turned hazy and cloudy, almost as if under a spell by just the smell.

Her hand reluctantly, and hesitantly, reached for the steel fork, before finally grasping it in her fingers. The men behind watched with nervousness and anticipation. Yaeko then gently stabbed the fork in the meat, slicing a piece that was neither too big nor too small.

Souma remained blank-faced, eyes covered, as Yaeko slowly brought the meat to her slowly opening mouth. Then finally, her lips closed around the fork, the meat now inside her mouth.

Her purple eyes widened instantly when a burst of flavor suddenly exploded in her mouth, almost as if the potatoes burst out of the bacon wrapped around it. 'Each time I chew, the fragrant juice of the slow-roasted bacon...pours into my mouth!' the flavor of it nearly made her legs weak and her chest feeling fuzzy and warm. After the whole thing was swallowed, she gasped out, almost resembling a moan, as her cheeks heats up in flames.

When Yaeko was no longer in her fantasy of flavors, she leaned her head back slightly when the red-headed teen leaned closer to her face, a smirk present. "You look like you're enjoying that." Yaeko gasped faintly at the statement, not believing that one bit and cursed at her body's refusal to refuse that statement.

"This was made at the restaurant you ridiculed." Souma said, her golden eyes boring into Yaeko's purple ones. "Shall I tell you the secret of this flavor?" the business-woman only stared, and Souma took that sign to explain.

The image of the potatoes being steamed in the pot prior was imprinted in their heads. "I steam the potatoes until they're soft," Souma showed them some eringi mushrooms. "Then chop mushrooms full of fiber to soak up the oils-" Green onions were shown as well. "-and onions to add sweetness, and knead them together."

The two were chopped into pieces and mixed into the potatoes. "Then I wrap thick-cut bacon around it," the image then soon turned to the potato-wrapped bacon getting cooked in the oven with a kite string tied around it with rosemary leaves on top of it, "and roast it slowly in the oven. That makes the bacon crispy on the outside, while the potatoes and mushroom soak up all the savory flavor and oils of the pork."

The red wine was mixed with soy sauce and sweet sake, including the butter earlier getting melted inside the mix. In the bowl, the mixed wine was poured onto the meat. "And so... A sensual new texture, crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside, is born!" Souma explained, and the smell of the glamorous meat soon reached the other three men, all looking intimidated by how enticing and inviting the smell was.

Yaeko was squirming in her seat, hand in-between her knees as the red-headed cook continued to talk. "A long time ago, when I made potato salad to serve a customer, I made a mistake in plating it, and the meat juices got soaked into the potatoes."

Souma had her eyes covered once more, her tone serious. "That's where I got the idea for this dish..." then she lifted her head up with her hands on her hips, a smile on her face. "...From a mistake."

The aroma still continued to fill the air, almost the entire diner, and Yaeko squirmed in her seat, eyes shadowed. "So what?" she gulped, feeling breathless. "You can't call this a meat dish!" she protested, her grip on the fork trembling. "But... I can't..." she slowly started, and gripped the fork tighter. "...stop eating it!" she declared, her feet curling from her shoes and her chest heaving before standing up.

Yaeko brought her fork up, hesitantly turning it down since a part of her mind wanted to resist, but she couldn't. 'I want to taste more meat juice!' right when her fork was about to stab into the delicious meat, Souma immediately took the plate away seconds before she could. The purple-eyed woman looked shocked at the red-head, with a hint of desperation. "Wh-what are you doing?!"

The red-head's back faced her, not looking. "If you want more, promise me..." Yaeko's gaze moved to the appetizing meat on the teen's hand. "...that you won't come after this restaurant again." Souma practically demanded.

Yaeko narrowed her eyes, a forced smile on her painted lips as she held the fork, not about to put it away anytime soon. "Huh? Who would promise that?" she retorted, putting out a strong front but her will was slowly diminishing.

A mischievous smirk was playing on Souma's naturally rose lips. "Ah, I see." she started walking away from the woman, making her way to where the trash would be. "Then, it's a waste, but I have no choice." she mocked sadness, passing by the men as the smell grew closer to them. To everyone's view, it seemed like Souma's figure was slowly heading towards the abyss where the meat will no longer be seen by light ever again. "I'll have to take this, and..."

Yaeko's hand reached out, "M-matte!" she called out, her eyes wavering with faint tears as her voice now turned fully desperate. "I promise! I promise, okay?!"

Souma stopped in her tracks, her head peering over at her shoulder by the corner of her skeptical eyes. "Ah?"

Yaeko panted slightly, the smell reaching out to her and begging her to take the mouth-watering meat into her mouth. Her hands were now near her chest in a begging way. "Let me..." her eyes moved away from the red-head, and finally gave in to temptation. "...have...some...more, please?"

Souma stayed silent for a second before a victorious grin made its way to her face, and placed the meat back in the desperate-woman's table, the whole aroma swirling around the room.

Yaeko gulped and finally stabbed the fork into the meat, the juices sliding out. The other three men now had a fork in each of their hands as they, too, started eating along with the violet-haired woman.

Soon enough, they all took one bite of the heavenly meat, wrapping their mouths on the fork, and the juices nearly spilled out. The taste was so amazing, that it felt like their clothes had started getting ripped apart, just like the juices in the potatoes bursting in their taste buds, and the flavors bursting around their body, giving them a pleasurable feeling.

'Meat juices!' they all screamed, the juices getting together before, finally, exploding to small, droplets of enticing rain of savory meat juice.

Souma pulled the end of her headband, letting her messy red hair tied with it to flow out gracefully around her and fall on her shoulders. Her back was turned to the four adults, who were lying on the ground and full from the glorious meat, as the sun started showing itself, the rays washed over through the windows.

Souma was slowly wrapping the white headband back to her wrist, eyes closed as red lashes brushed against her cheek. Her head snapped up, golden eyes open, a triumph grin appeared on her flawless face.

"Osomatsu!"

Hours later as the sun started rising up from the clouds, Souma was sitting on top of a ladder-stool, green cloves covering her small and pale hands while she cleansed the white substance off the Yukihira sign, spraying it as well to remove it with the white cloth easily.

'No matter what happens, I won't let this restaurant go under.' she smiled fondly, her golden eyes softening ever-so-slightly. 'Yukihira is my castle for perfecting my cooking!' not only that, a lot of memories was also made there.

A street cat was sitting, watching the red-headed beauty up there, before running away when footsteps was heard from behind. Souma paused briefly from her cleaning and looked to the side, her eyes taking in the sight of her father, one hand in his pocket and the other slinging his bag on his right shoulder.

"Oyaji?"

Jouichirou had a small smile on his face, "Looks like something happened." he enquired.

Souma smiled back, a hint of sheepishness in it. "Nothing important." she said, "I just had a rude customer." before going back to cleaning.

Jouichirou's smile faded to a frown, an unreadable glint flashing through his eyes at the thought of rude customers approaching his daughter, but the thought went away as he was positive Souma knew how to handle herself. He stared a little while longer at the smile gracing his daughter's features while she wiped the sign clean, before speaking up again.

"Souma,"

The red-head paused again and gazed down at her father, a questioning look on her face. The two stared at each other, copper-gold clashing with golden-yellow. "For two or three years, I'm going to..."

Souma blinked, waiting for her father to finish his sentence, before Jouichirou—

"...close the restaurant."

—dropped the bomb.

"EEEH?!" Souma exclaimed in disbelief, her big golden eyes going wide, before realizing she accidentally tipped the ladder from pushing away from the sign, causing it to fall. "Kyaaa!" she squeaked, shutting her eyes close and wait for the impact when the sound of the ladder clattered in the ground loudly, but it never came.

Instead, she felt strong and secure arms on her shoulder and under her knees, getting pulled to a strong chest. Souma fluttered her eyes open hesitantly before peering up, seeing her father gazing down at her with a warm smile, and a hint of worry and concern in his eyes. His bag that he was holding prior seemed to be abandoned on the ground where he last stood, just to move his attention to his clueless daughter.

"You need to watch what you're doing, Souma-chan." Jouichirou teased warmly (even if he was literally very worried for her safety and was glad he made it on time—), a fond smile on his face when the red-head in his arms flushed bright red in indignation at the honorific.

"Urusai, oyaji! A-and put me down and explain what you mean!"

"Hai, hai. You know, I'll have to apologize to our regulars."

"Apologize to your daughter first!"

"An old friend of mine suggested working together with me." Jouichirou explained, placing his bag on the table as Souma entered the restaurant behind him.

"Wha—" Souma stopped, disbelief clear in her eyes.

"I'll be living with them for a while, so I won't be back here."

The sakura petals fluttered to the ground as Souma walked to where her destination would be, her left hand gripping the map.

"But, you can't just..."

Her red head covered her golden eyes, slight frown adorned her face, and ignored the loud cars passing beside her.

"Oi, oyaji!"

"As soon as I get my stuff together, I'm leaving." Jouichirou continued, walking to who-knows-where.

"Wait..."

"I'll send you some money to live on."

"I said wait!" Souma raised her voice, finally getting her father's attention as he stopped on his tracks.

The red-head folded her hand into a fist, trembling ever-so-slightly, with her hair shadowing her eyes, "I always...want this restaurant to..." she hesitated, before hearing footsteps nearing her and a hand suddenly on her hair, gently rubbing it.

Souma blinked, lifting her head to see her father smiling affectionately at her. "It's time for you to go, Souma-chan. Go figure out what you want."

The paper in Souma's hand was crumpled by her tightened grip and she sighed, holding the bag she was slinging over her right shoulder (just like her father).

"Cooking school?" Souma uttered, staring at the paper in her hands that said 'Educational Intuition Engetsu Teahouse Culinary Academy Transfer Information'. "Why do I have to go to a school like this now?" she asked; a small pout of confusion on her face that the brown-haired man resisted the urge to just pinch her cheeks. He successfully did so (thankfully)

"It's a perfect timing, isn't it?" Jouichirou started, ignoring his former thoughts, "I'm closing the restaurant, and you can earn high school credits there." he said.

"Just go study there for three years."

Souma looked up from the form, and Jouichirou noticed her eyes getting glossy. "You'll... I can still see you again, right, otou-san? You'll call me?" she asked slowly, trying to remain impassive to the news and the way she called her father, but failed as her voice cracked.

Jouichirou's eyes widen slightly in surprise, before softening completely, filled with love and fondness, and pulled his daughter to a tight hug. Souma was still for a moment, before returning the hug by wrapping her slender arms around her father's torso and buried her face on his chest, hiding her burning, embarrassed, and teary eyed face. Souma was, after all, not one to really show sad emotions. Jouichirou noticed but made no comment, just smiling in his daughter's messy, yet incredibly soft, red hair.

"I promise."

Souma sighed again, her eyes shining with slight boredom and stuffed her free hand in her pocket (she was not wearing a skirt, rather, the same pants instead, because her father strictly told her to never ever wear a skirt, not that she could ever comprehend the reason why). "Paying to learn how to cook is stupid." she pouted, ignoring her bangs tickling her ears as best as she could to avoid giggling that was unlike her.

"A culinary school is just gonna be like..." she trailed off, thinking of an old man trembling and telling her how to do this and do that, all the students saying 'hai, sensei!', before a somewhat agonizing scream caught her attention.

"Ara?"

She looked to her right to see two male students on the ground in dismay.

"I failed the advancement test!"

"I'm done for... My life is over..."

Another voice of desperation got Souma's attention to look behind her, confusion on her pretty face.

"I beg you!"

The red-head saw a man on his knees, gripping a security guard's vest and arm. "I'll donate ten-million, or even twenty-million!" he screamed and sobbed, and the guard only eyed the man with distaste and irritation. "Just take back my son's expulsion!"

"What's going on...?" Souma mumbled, a confused frown on her face as she moved her head up, before a look of shock and bewilderment found its way.

Her eyes trailed on the sign that said 'Engetsu Teahouse Culinary Academy', her hand limply holding the phone that was now dialing her father.

"Oh? I didn't tell you?" Jouichirou's amused voice said though the phone.

"That's Japan's top culinary school, with a graduation rate of less than ten-percent." he continued, while Souma took in the sight of the 'academy' that seemed to be bigger than a mountain!

"It's a super elite intuition." he finished, and all Souma could do was gape at the culinary academy she'll be attending.

Culinary Academy her behind!

End of Ep. 1 and Chapter 1!

Since I'm new at writing here, 'cause I usually only read, I hope you don't mind some errors here and there. :D

Written: 07/29-30/18

Osomatsu~!