Autumn Spice I

September 1 was Gokudera's first day of school. A first day he was not allowed to skip by his boss so their class knows he existed while his boss?

Watching the Autumn Elections in Hall A.

In Hall A was Soma, Ibusaki, Ryoko and Marui. It was natural that Rei was watching this one.

Or so they thought!

She's in Hall B instead.

'You're not watching in Hall A?' Reborn stated.

'The atmosphere is too tense and serious for me its choking!' Rei shuddered. 'Even if the guys there are strong and competent. But I can already predict the results. Niichan will be in 2nd Place for Hall A losing to the Genius of Shiomi Seminar, Hayama Akira.' she said. 'That man's a master of spices. He has one hell of a nose so he knows his spices while niichan started only a month ago, its impossible to catch up in a short time for a normal person. Me? I got my Gourmet Sense to help me out to enable me to catch up to his years of work.'

'Call it Hyper Intuition will you?'

'Nah, I'm sticking to Gourmet Sense.' Rei snorted. 'In this Academy lies three people with superhuman senses. God's Tongue, Aromatic Sense and my Gourmet Sense. Hyper Intuition sounds too Fiction-y nobody'd take me seriously if I say it like that as my reason for being good.'

'Yare yare...' Reborn shook his head in amusement. 'But in any case, I got someone to videotape Hall A for me. Nono's also interested and is also scoping out the Elite Ten since as Donna you cannot cook for even Servants.'

'Just so you know those guys are worth hundred million bucks in yen per year. Even Consultations along costs ten millions in just an hour or two.'

'Easy enough. Your family's net worth is nearly a hundred billion in Euros. Very wealthy that its a mere chump change.' they got themselves the closest seats at front.

They were sitting among the VIP Guests, Primo knows how Reborn managed that, which was why Rei dolled herself up and dressed professionally in an expensive suit imported from the west in high-class wool and silk from Kiton K-50 and her shoes from Louis Vuitton.

Rei set up a Video Camera on a Tripod, secured it into a favorable angle.

Isshiki was the Council Watcher.

'Ne ne Isshiki-kun, when will you come work for my company~?' one of the twin Curry Queens, Sendawara Orie, the Main Judge of Hall B spoke. And she sounded er...endearingly seductive. 'Hurry up and become one of my possessions, OK?'

'P-possessions?!' Rei squeaked in a whisper to Reborn.

'I'll teach you when you're older.' Reborn said flatly.

'Fufu, I'm still a student...'

'Hey, its OK if you drop out of school right now, I'll support you for the rest of your life~hey~hurry~you meanie~'

The other VIP Judges sweatdropped while red-faced due to how innocently sensual she sounded.

'Senpai's popular...' with older ladies!

'Maa maa this happens a lot, Sawada-chan.' said Isshiki who was aware she was here on her family's behalf thus had to use her hated real name. 'I'm that good.'

'Er, young lady, who are you?' an elderly man asked Rei.

'I'm Granduncle's Heiress of the Vongola Company in Italy, Sawada Shiho, his grand-niece.' said Rei, speaking in very formal Japanese. 'He couldn't come so he had me watch and videotape with occasional commentary for him since he wants new blood in his Culinary Division. Some people are as old as he is and near retirement. Doing this is just part of my studies as heiress and I'm also a student here going by another name for anonymity while living with a host family.'

'Oho, Italian eh?'

'1/4 Italian though. Granduncle's pure Italian.'

'So as a student, who do you think will stand out?'

'Eight will stand out in this hall...but based on data I have, from Top 1 to Top 8 but sadly we can only have four per block. Block B's strongest is Nakiri Alice. Second to her will be Nakiri Erina's Secretary Arato Hisako, followed by Aldini Takumi, Tadokoro Megumi, Houjou Miyoko, Aldini Isami, Yoshino Yuuki, and Sadatsuka Nao.'

Files were quickly browsed.

'Why are these students worth mentioning~?' Orie asked her.

'Nakiri Alice is the Golden Child of Molecular Gastronomy, having several patents to her name and one of the Top Experts of the field at a mere age nine. Her work is surely delicious with great scientific and artistic sense. Combining Science and Culinary Skills makes her the top contender in the Preliminaries. Arato Hisako comes from a long line of Traditional Chinese Medicine Experts, and she believes her Empress is Erina-sama, thus as her Dietitian aside from her Secretarial Work, serves both medicinal and nutritious cuisine that gives great Yang Energy to diners that also wipes away stress and fatigue. Makes sense considering Erina-sama's workload...'

'Aldini Takumi along with his twin Isami is from a Trattoria in Tuscany. They're pretty famous in their region, being already Sous Chefs at a young age to the family diner...and many eyes are on them in Tuscany that rumor has it their father sent them here to improve their standing and prestige in the Gourmet World. Tadokoro Megumi came from a family-run Ryokan in Tohoku that specializes in Hanging Goosefish Cutting. Its no restaurant but she outcooked all adults at a young age in her Port Hometown so she was sent here by her family as well with great focus in Hospitality-Style Cuisine. Houjou Miyoko is the heiress of her family's restaurant in Chinatown that has a 50 years history. She possesses great strength to work the biggest and heaviest wok used in Chinese Cuisine, easily outdoing an adult male twice her age, enabling her to bring out the best in Chinese Food.'

'Yoshino Yuuki's family has great connections to a Hunter's Circle thus specializes in Wild Game Cuisine. She has access to even rare Game Meat of high quality considering she has a couple large ducks down there to present some variety outside the usual meat to be presented. And Sadatsuka Nao has a rather interestingly peculiar reputation...she specializes in Boiled Dishes with peculiar and kooky ingredients, causing people who saw her work to call her the Boiling Witch. Creepy, but still delicious. Just that...it stinks. Makes me wonder what kind of Curry it'll be using pungent ingredients enough to make people run for the hills...'

'That kind of makes me nervous.' said Kita Osaji, known gourmand anxiously.

'Hummm...give me all the kids stated.' Orie asked Isshiki.

"Give me, she says?!"

"That's a rather dreadful thing to say!"

'They're about to stand out now that the boring part's done with.' Rei grinned as the atmosphere shifted, students starting to make commentary.

'Are you sure about Tadokoro though...she seems quite clumsy.' cue Megumi accidentally tipping her ground spices over.

'Its endearing in a uniquely cute way though. Just by watching her, nobody'd expect anything from her due to how she looks and cooks, not as intense and showy as anybody but her strength shows in her food to make up for her clumsy wallflower appearance. Its something we, her dormmates understand. Neh, senpai?'

'Fufufu...she's grown big even though she's still clumsy. But she's one of the stars here.' said Isshiki. 'I'm looking forward to it and see that your predictions hit the mark in their ranking.'

'I never fail in gut instincts.' said Rei wryly.

'Yellow pasta...he most likely knead it with Turmeric or Mustard Seeds...can pasta even make good curry?' another judge wondered.

'Knowing him he'll make it work.' Rei grinned. 'Isami's also working on tomatoes to extract an interesting ingredient out.'

'I see...its interestingly a novel idea!' Isshiki agreed, realizing what was done with tomatoes.

'Tomatoes are an indispensable ingredient for Italian Cuisine...it seems he is aware of their special traits as well.' said Orie.

'Normally you'd fry spices in oil but...' Hisako poured her spices into a pot. 'Huh?!'

'That's for the sake of both bringing out flavor while extracting medicinal components out. It'll turn out as soup instead of typical thick sauces or stews but it seems Sadatsuka has the same idea, only...what the hell is in her pot other than Squid Ink? And she's laughing while brewing...'

'I can see why she's called a witch...its like I'm watching Black Magic being done down there...'

Boys let out a typical perverted roar with a red face...considering that unlike other girls who wore typical chef uniforms, Houjou Miyoko wore a high-slitted, form-fitting qipao with her legs covered in sheer stockings. Doesn't help that she has firm, large breasts, and full-figured shapely legs and derriere.

'What's with teenagers these days...' Reborn chuckled. 'Kids grow fast these days.'

'Jeez, you enjoy chinese dresses eh?'

'If a lady wearing it made it work. Very few can wear a qipao and have a flattering figure to match.' said Reborn. 'Er, why is Tadokoro praying to a Goosefish before cutting it?'

'Well, cutting such a slimy thing while hanging is difficult not to mention something that big...a Chef cooking Goosefish has to hang it since its unmanageable in a cutting board or kitchen counter. But this requires quick knifework and timing...probably the prayer is for meditation to calm her nerves and psyche herself up for the task. Very few people can prep a large hanging Goosefish. Our student audience clearly doesn't understand what's it like to do it in a grand stage like this so they say disparaging remarks right now...even if she can do it, she still needs to psyche up as one thing done wrong...even professionals make mistakes with Goosefish.'

'Yes but I keep hearing the word Dunce around towards her...'

'She apparently has the misfortune of having elitist classmates who're heirs of renowned restaurants in Junior High who look down on the fact she's from the Countryside and from a humble Ryokan. Its easy to see she was psychologically attacked that she ended up performing clumsily, even sabotaging her work and unable to defend herself due to well-placed tricks she had no proof. Only our dorm knows her talent as a result. But once she obtains 4th place, she will come out of the muck she was forced into and become one of the jewels. Her oppressors will see that she is more powerful than they who came from famous restaurants and she, from a humble Ryokan they look down on. Yet in the Training Camp, she caught the attention of the Elite Ten Alumni who quickly offered her a spot in their kitchens. Most notably by Inui Hinako and Gotouda Donato.'

'Oho? Let's see her work then.'

When the three hour prep time ended...

'Yeeees, that's enough, Time's Up!' a girl spoke in a cheerful peppy cutesy manner. 'The judging will now begin! I'm your MC Kawashima Urara! There are five Judges! Each judge can give 20 points! This means the dishes evaluated can gain a perfect 100 score! The Four Students who get the best scores will advance into the Main Tournament! Let's begin with the first student! Evaluate it please~!'

'So Shiho, what do you think of this one?' Reborn asked her.

'...no good.' Rei smiled ruefully. 'Just because curry originated from India doesn't mean he can just make a generic dish and tweak it to improve it a little. He made three fatal mistakes. Too generic, no originality and its lacking in curry traits in regards to aromatic, spice and heat impact...probably didn't use much spices beyond cookbook standards when the stars I stated can bring out the maximum potential of their wares. We can hardly smell a thing here and to think he brought a plain thing on this stage when everyone here knows all about Indian Curry...let's just say his career's over before it can even start. To think he thought he can present such a thing here...how naive.'

Her words were agreed upon by her seatmates.

Indeed, as Kita Osaji has said when the student demanded why was it worth only 33 points angrily...

'Who do you think we are?' Kita drawled menacingly. 'We eat dishes made by professionals on a daily basis. Even if we say its well-done, we're still factoring in that you're a student...well, you're pretty good considering you got us to give you points at all.' he sneered. 'Let's see, I guess earning a score of 50 would be most satisfactory, I guess?'

Thus the next students after him cannot back-talk when the next few points were less than 30, one even got a six!

'Looks like dozens made fatal curry mistakes worse than Mr. 33.' Reborn said wryly.

'One month and this is all they did...how sad.' Rei shook her head.

Soon, Sadatsuka Nao stepped up.

'The incredibly low scores are coming right after another!' Urara cried in dismay. 'Next dish is...' when Nao opened the cover of her dishes...it released a putrid stench!

'Hiiiieeee! I knew it!' Rei freaked out, pinching her nose hard.

'I-IT STINKS!' Orie cried. 'What IS this stench?!'

'Go ahead...' she said in a creepy voice. 'This is Sadatsuka Nao special...Jet-Black Curry Laksa.' everything, is all black!

'UWEEEEE! IT STINKS!' the students wailed.

'WHAT IS THIS?!'

'IT SMELLS LIKE A SEWER CONCENTRATED TEN TIMES OVER!'

'Pandemonium...utter pandemonium!' Urara cried in a nasal voice from suffering from the smell. 'You wouldn't think a Gourmet Festival is being held here...! This is a scene of heeeell!'

'Somebody presented an original dish at long last but I want to cry...it stinks so bad!' Rei whimpered. 'This foul stench...its Kusaya!'

'I KNEW IIIT!' Kita burst out from her commentary. 'I KNEW I RECOGNIZE SOMEWHERE! WHAT'RE YOU THINKING USING IT FOR CURRY?!' he yelled at Nao.

'Laksa...slippery noodles that come from Southeast Asia...and it seems the roux is mostly of Squid Ink.' Ando Shingo stated in disgust from the smell.

'This has bioweapon potential.' Reborn remarked as Leon became a Gas Mask. 'Its that bad.'

'That's not fair! Give me one too!' Rei whined indignantly that he has defenses and didn't give her one.

'You're a Chef and a Judge on Don Timoteo's behalf, deal with it.'

'Meanie!'

'What's Kusaya anyway?'

'It's any bluebacked fish pickled in Kusaya Juice then dried in the sun so it really stinks! Cooking it in even a village will cause an uproar and get you angry mobs!'

'This would guarantee you neighbor complaints just by grilling it a bit!' Kita grunted.

'Just by boiling it you get an amazingly bad smell...' Kouda Shigenoshin choked out.

'Additionally, this is my special Kusaya...its made from Flying Fish and Mahi-Mahi.' said Nao happily. 'I also used the Kusaya Juice I developed with the utmost care...!'

'Oh, great, she made an original, worser version of it too...' Rei whimpered. 'In an enclosed space like this hall is pure suffering!'

'0 points! 0 points I say!' Kita banged his fist on the table. 'I've eaten all kinds of delicacies, this can't be fit for human consumption!'

But Orie was going to eat it...

'Lady Orie, you can't be seriously trying to eat it?!'

'I'm just fulfilling my duty as one of the election's sponsors.' she said with an expression that she's about to do Bungee-Jumping before she made a disgusted look on the verge of tears. "Uweeee...the astringent smell and raw acidity are mixing...it smells like an uncleaned toilet~"

And she slurped some that got the VIPS horrified...

'I-it's delicious?' Orie squeaked before complaining. 'But it stinks! It stinks! Uwaaa but its delicious!' she cried, taking another mouthful. 'Even though it stiiiiinks!'

Gulping, the other judges tried some.

'This is an idea similar to Kapi, a spice made from fermented shrimp,' she gasped out, 'By using Kusaya which is way more peculiar than Kapi, the flavor is much deeper. Since the stock for Laksa is made from fish, its affinity is exceptional, it all makes sense!'

'The seafood's deliciousness is spreading in my mouth! The more I eat the more the stink becomes a good thing...' Kita was forced to admit it was good...

'The flavor spreads throughout through the use of coconut milk and spices like lemongrass, and by using Kusaya as the main ingredient the curry becomes much more delicious!'

'Cooking that puts on airs doesn't hold true beauty...' Nao spoke with a creepy smile. 'The true meaning of Gourmet Food lies beyond repulsiveness!'

The judges ended up addicted to it.

'It's here! The score is...?!' Urara cried as the scoreboard showed 84 points. '84!' she yelled, 'The first score over 50 points...Sadatsuka scored it!'

'Points off because of the smell probably...if she didn't like the stink so much, a dish of hers could have possibly gone 90.' Reborn commented.

'That's the sad part...' Rei choked out.

'Now, I'll continue being MC while we ventilate the Hall!' Urara spoke for ventilation much to stadiumwide relief. 'Will the next dish come forward please?'

It was Hisako next.

But the judges are still shaken by the impact of the first dish they could hardly smell a thing from her work. Due to how she did her work, its indeed, more like curry soup.

'So its medicine girl next?' Reborn mused.

'Yeah.'

Due to Reborn stealing books, Rei has a much deeper wealth of knowledge and understanding of many genres, this included.

'These two chefs have a history together...you could say that Sadatsuka-san is an M, and wishes for Erina-sama to ahem, lambast her with her sharp tongue.' Rei coughed causing numerous sweatdrops. 'She's her stalker even Erina-sama's bodyguards couldn't detect her until way too late only when she got so obvious due to sheer obsession and Arato-san did a much better job since...but one day both stalker and secretary got so fed up that a Shokugeki was arranged. If Sadatsuka wins, she will be the new Secretary. But Arato who was the winner wanted her to never go near Erina-sama in a 50M radius ever again.'

'Yare yare, what a history.' Reborn deadpanned.

'Here it comes...' after trying it out, Ando-sensei who was so quiet and thin as a stick, swelled up like a Kung-Fu actor and looked ready to fight!

'Oh my, to think your Uncle gets to eat Medicinal Cooking every day now...to think it has such an effect.' Reborn muttered. 'I'd like to see for myself back in the dorm, Shiho.'

'Alright, I'll make you some. Geez...'

'Well, looks like after a bewitching dish that pulled them underwater of a swamp of stinkiness, the judged looks like a priest basted them with holy water for Exorcism...sure looks that way.'

'It'd be fun to make a movie out of this!'

She got 92 points.