Chapter 7 - Timed Quest Theme
"Whoa! They really did make this place look nice".
No matter how cheery Yukihira-kun sounded, it did little to distract Hayato from the tall and beautiful problem about three paces away from him.
The blonde gamer-chef's fingers itched to comb his fingers through his hair. He had a rough night and couldn't get a wink of sleep. Argghh! Why was he such a dweeb?! The universe shrugged its shoulders for the millionth time. He did his best to resist looking at any of his party members and kept his eyes on the in-station mall with dogmatic determination.
He nit-picked at his burgundy sleeveless sweater, feeling hot and cold at the same time. Damn it! He should've worn something with long-sleeves if he knew she was going to be here today. His arms were just as pathetic as Tsurugi-senpai said… limp like over-cooked pasta. His cheeks flushed and because of his sensitive, fair skin, it was likely to break-out and spread everywhere. He would be bright enough to be seen from ten kilometres away. His heart wouldn't calm down from the moment he dragged himself out of the bed he bunked with Yo-kun. He spent three times as long in the bathroom to fix his hair and drenched himself in deodorant which pissed the hell out of Yo-kun and Yukihira-kun.
'This is the worst day of my life…! I wished I was as good-looking as Cloud Strife… strong like Geralt of Rivia… and charming like Dante… both versions'.
Hayato submitted to surreptitiously glancing from under his blonde side-fringe to the party as they whistled and huffed at the huge expanse of the enemy's aesthetically pleasing territory.
'Don't look at her… don't look at her… Shit! She's looking this way!'.
Hayato spun around and dramatically threw his leather-gloved hands up and accidentally smacked his hand into his forehead with a loud thwack! He had the random intention to fake being focused on the furthest store-window, which housed a mannequin dangling a sparky pink leather hand-bag from her fingers. Kami-sama was punishing him today…
'I can do this… just concentrate on the objective. Attention to detail is my strength. Zoom in on the important features.'.
He shook his head and prepped for war. Hayato had to admit that the new in-station mall was the epitome of modernity! It was so clean, sleek and blindingly white. He felt like stepping into a science-fiction movie drowning in futuristic designs and aesthetics. Without looking, the blonde caressed his smart-watch, changing his current track which was country-western track into electric pop. He felt the upbeat rhythm of the sixty-beat per minute D-Major, four-chord composition take him on a less frazzled path to divert his crippling anxiety.
The shopping mall was an architecture that schools and hospitals could only dream of. The walkways flowed like tributaries to the main rivers of people, not a sharp angle to be seen. It smelled like heaven in a hand-basket and the floor shined like a lake at sunrise. Hayato loved shopping centres! It was his Mecca for the video-games, figurines, manga, tech, gadgets, and the latest fashion and of course every shopping centre had to have a music shop. He could roam the aisles shuffling to wicked battle-tracks. He would bask in the attention of the sale staff and pawed over the new video-game album releases. He would try demo games and get a free promotional keyring for the latest video-game promotions to add to his over-flowing collection. He would come in feeling ordinary and then leave feeling like a billion-yen warrior prince. His purchases spoke of his fanboying for video-game soundtracks and first person shooters on his various social media pages.
"So this is one of those in-station mall places, eh? So fancy!", chirped Yukihira-kun.
"They all look the same to me", Yo-kun yawned from behind his hand before lazily roving his eyes on anything that wasn't over-stimulating.
"You've got one in your home town, Mitsunaga?".
"Of course. The one where I live was built three years ago".
"Yeah". Hayato swung his arm around Yo-kun's neck, careful not to jostle his beloved headphones too much "Too bad Yo-kun couldn't make it to watch his dad do the special ribbon cut— oof!".
Yo-kun's knife-hand strike lodged into his unprepared diaphragm faster than one could roar 'Fusrodah!'.
"Man, with one of these things around, our shoutengai wouldn't stand a chance!", said Yukihira-kun, not even noticing.
Hayato recovered with an imaginary 'Healing Spell: Curaga' and did well to avoid his best friend's admonishing glare. Whoops, he forgot. He normally couldn't stand looking at his friend when he was silently fuming and tried to avoid it as much as possible. Looking into his eyes was like watching the world end. Was that thing with his father still a no-go subject in front of non-Guild members?
"Umm… that's not something to joke about, Souma-kun…", squeaked Kurase-chan.
That girl was so adorable! When Hayato first saw her, she was a jumbling mess of nerves fidgeting and fiddling with the hems of her clothes until the threads almost unravelled. The way she looked down at her toes, escaping any form of eye contact made him want to reach out and pat her on the head and tell her that everything was a-okay. He could tell she was really close to Yukihira-kun before he transferred to Tootsuki. She was happy to help around Yukihira Diner when she should be home and relaxing after-school. Yukihira-kun spoke highly of his middle school friends back at the Rapport Building Training Camp during their D&D tutorial, one night. Yukihira-kun mentioned Kurase Mayu amongst the few names in his tight circle. He talked about how she was eally studious, caring and polite, always tried her best and never broke a promise. It was just that she had a tendency to freak out like a spooked cat, got all nervous for no reason and was prone to tears at the slightest thing. Despite all that she had a strong heart. Hayato-kun knew that Yo-kun and himself were random strangers whenever they were in the same room, but he didn't want it to be so. She was the spitting image of how Yukihira-kun described her. Small, cute and sensitive. Any friend of Yukihira Souma was a friend of Ginsekai Hayato!
So he thought offering his given name for her to use would help to ease the tension and show he was super-friendly to be around.
Also…
Being the rank-one first person shooter of The Guild meant his eyes missed nothing.
The way she looked at Yukihira-kun from a distance was like a mirror of himself. Hayato always had a soft spot for people that were just like him.
"Oh yeah, thanks Nikumi! I'm really glad you made the time to come and help out".
Oh, be still his beating heart!
Hayato dragged his foot beside Yo-kun as his baby-blue eyes swelled up. His eyeballs gravitated towards the tall, bronze shining goddess bestowing Yukihira-kun with a scathing glare. It was fucking sexy, that lucky bastard! He would give his right arm for any sort of attention from Mito Ikumi! The bright lights of the in-station mall shined onto her tall curvy height like a spotlight upon the divine summit of Mount Olympus. It made her skin glow like rich, sweet cocoa beans from Venezuela. He imagined it would feel soft and silky from a light, soft-scented balm which made her skin extra soft and shimmery. Hayato was on the verge of swooning for the tenth time. He was dead-sure her plump, luscious lips have been touched by the nectar of honey-suckles. His combat boots felt too heavy as it clonked clumsily and he concentrated on feigning nonchalance. She was wearing a light purple top which barely covered her upper body. It hung across her gorgeously ample breasts like tissue paper sticking to her supple skin with only rain-water, sparing no expenses for the wondering eye. Her toned and trimmed midriff revealed itself proudly and he was sure his ecchi self was coming out. She wore a mini-skirt that was so short that it was doing him no favours at all! He was so glad his cargo pants were loose and baggy so no one could spot his boner! It hung low on her wide hips with only a leather belt with a large silver buckle to hold. The slits on both sides left tantalising thoughts in his steamed brain. It gave the perfect view of her thick, strong mocha-hued thighs.
She was perfect.
He was far from perfect…
"Oh uh… This wasn't a bother for you was it?", asked Yukihira
"Not. At. All". She grounded out.
Hayato frowned and turned away. He cranked up the volume hoping that it could drown his mounting anxiety a bit. Yukihira-kun hadn't been in Tootsuki all that long and he could already talk to Ikumi-san by an adorable nick-name just like that. It was obvious that she hated it… but she didn't do anything to really stop him. Hayato-kun had known the heiress to the Empire of meat sales and distribution since middle school and apart from cooking, video-games and analysing music, she was in his every waking thought… and he was not even a blip on her radar and why would he be? Yet, Yukihira-kun was acting all familiar with her, like he was her old friend. He was like a bright sun, all the planets gravitated around him. Something twisted in his heart. A guy and girl who shared the same goal working together are guaranteed to become way closer, right? Well… anyone with the normal allotment of courage, that was, and Hayato felt he had none of that.
"Hey. What are you staring at?".
Ikumi-san caught his eyes and Hayato immediately felt like a dirty letch. The imperceptible twitch in her round cheeks stabbed his chest like a bayonet. His insides trembled and instincts demanded him to tuck his tails between his legs and flee in shame. Her gorgeous blonde hair bounced around her head like a fashion model captured in slow-motion camera shots. Her deep topaz eyes dug into him as if trying to scrape him off her expensive, heeled sandals.
"N-Nothing!".
Hayato released an embarrassing squeak and scrambled behind Yo-kun. His best friend grunted and shot him with his razor sharp sapphires which made him offer a placating smile for an apology. Yo-kun sighed and shook his head. He was used to his antics when it came to these sorts of things and Hayato was grateful for it. He was used to being the coward of the group since that was how he'd always been before that fateful day when Yo-kun found him sitting by himself at the back of the toilet blocks eating lunch.
"You Guild people are weird…".
Hayato could just vapourise like a wraith right now. The voluptuous beauty scoffed before turning away. Urghh… his heart…
"No-more weirder than anyone else at Tootsuki", Yo-kun deadpanned.
"What?!".
"What?", drawled Yo-kun as if he had a split second of amnesia.
'What is he doing?! Does he want an ass-whooping?!'.
Ikumi-san blanched and Hayato face palmed. His stomach was falling out his arse and he shrunk further behind his best friend's back.
"You're that guy, Erina-sama's been hung up over, aren't you…".
Ikumi-san stopped and sauntered over, pulling up her incredible height against the pair, appearing ready to spill blood. Yo-kun and Hayato halted in their tracks as she cut off their path. She leaned forward and Hayato got an eyeful of her endless cleavage. He didn't know if he was in hell or heaven! His nose suddenly felt full of liquid, ready to flow freely out his nostrils like a dam.
Yo-kun stiffened at the mention of the Director's grand-daughter.
Nakiri Erina was like an open book which nobody wanted to read. It was so easy to figure out her emotions, especially when she was miffed, enraged, embarrassed and everything in between. Nobody wanted to be around that. She usually went from zero to a hundred which left her hapless victims dizzy and spiritually bruised. Was she on PMS all the time?! Every time Yo-kun and Nakiri Erina were within the same vicinity, the air was charged with so much tension that everyone felt awkward without knowing why. Most people couldn't read Yo-kun but Hayato, Kasai-senpai and Tsurugi- senpai could.
Tsurugi-senpai and himself cornered Yo-kun right before leaving the apartment for Sumiredouri Shoutengai and accused him of being attracted to Nakiri Erina because they felt like being arseholes. Oh, Yo-kun turned so red and got so ridiculously mad that he bit their heads off which left everyone stunned… but their suspicions were confirmed.
Their President of The Guild had a little thing for the Nakiri Princess and he didn't even know it!
The unlucky bastard in-mention kept up his infamous unblinking gaze as if this sultry meat-goddess didn't affect him, but failed miserably. He was trying so hard to maintain his composure! Poor thing! Hayato snapped out of it and 'eeped' when she sucked her teeth in derision.
"Nothing happened between Nakiri and I", grumbled Yo-kun. He coughed into his fist and finally looked away, pulling up a bored mask over his pinking face.
"Sure. That's what she said too", said Ikumi-san drawled.
"Hey, it's the fried chicken place over there", blurted Yo-kun.
Yo-kun dropped the conversation like it was hot, and nodded towards the long queue of salivating families winding between cordoned off sides all leading up to the enemy's hideout. Hayato was released from the intoxicating beauty's attention and straightened up as he went back into quest mode. Damn. That place looked awesome. Mozuya definitely pulled out all the whistles and stops! Golden brown, crispy fried chicken lounged behind the glass counter, bathing under the bright heating lights, teasing customers to buy huge packs at once. Pretty waitresses beamed and pampered dine-in customers and brought out plates and plates of scrumptious smelling karaage dishes piled with crunchy succulent bits to excited tables ready to cram them into their hungry mouths.
"Welcome! Welcome! Step right up, don't be shy!".
A shrill voice pierced the air which amazingly, was enough to jar Hayato from the music dancing in his ears. Wow, that was a first. He pulled his earphones out and stuffed them into one of his many pockets on his cargos. Hayato's gazed landed on the source and concluded that he had never seen anyone that looked like a snake hybrid outside of a video-game! She was a short woman dressed in a pencil skirt and a yellow pinstripe uniform with a Mozuya badge on the front. She waved a white sensu around, hauling the customers into her shop. Her eyes were crinkled so tightly that he couldn't even see her eyes and she smiled so largely that it looked too alien for a human. Kami-sama… she was a basilisk in disguise. He realised her face looked so creepy because there weren't any natural creases around her eyes and mouths when she smiled like a crazy-arse killer. Maybe she had shots of botox to her face? It's kind of popular nowadays, right? Her sickeningly choppy pitch as she dipped and trilled her shout-outs for customers hurt his ears and he was sure that even dungeon bosseswould want to crawl back into their mother's womb if they heard her.
"Welcome to Mozuya's, where we specialise in fried chicken!".
"What?! The place you're going up against is Mozuya's?!", gasped Ikumi-san as she whipped around to Yukihira-kun.
"You've heard of it?", he asked.
"Duh, it's a super famous fried-chicken chain in the Kansai region", informed the busty beauty. "That lady over there must be Nakamozu Kinu herself, head of Mozuya's. She took a little shop based in Kyoutou and turned it into a regional mega-chain. She already has the historic achievement of winning gold at the national fried-chicken championship three years in a row under her belt. Now she's looking to make it four and experts say she could win it".
"Man, there are a tonne of housewives here too", commented Yukihira-kun.
"Yeah and it'll only get more packed during dinner time", added Kurase-chan.
"It's especially popular with the young to middle aged women because their take-home packages are fashionable", continued Ikumi-san. "Lots of train commuters go out of their way to stop by this station just so they could come here"
Hayato already noticed that. The queue was about eighty percent women wearing pants or long, and flowing dresses and skirts. They waited patiently, but eagerly to place their order and receive their delicious pack of piping hot fried chicken. The boxes' crimson printed design was cute and trendy. There was a round, minimalist chicken image on the lid with the name Mozuya embossed in simple, but cute font. It was about the size of a high school textbook which made it comfortable to hold in ones hands.
Hayato suddenly saw something cross the corner of his eyes and he quickly turned to follow what his keen vision picked up. Huh?… Oh fuck… that was the saddest situation he'd ever seen.
"Hey, Yukihira-kun. Isn't that Tomita-san?". Hayato tapped the red-headed chef and pointed to the poorly disguised man shuffling and ducking behind commuters to get closer to Mozuya.
"You're right. What are you doing here, sir!". Yukihira-kun waved his hand up and grabbed the Tomita-san' attention.
The poorly disguised adult looked utterly shocked to be recognised and pulled his overly-large trench coat closer to his body. His out-of-fashion shades and wrong-era fedora wasn't fooling anyone. Yo-kun scratched his head and he tilted his head at the bentou shop owner's ridiculous behaviour.
"S-Souma-kun! The Guild too! I… Uh… I thought I'd tag along to s-see if I could help out!".
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"Oh. So what's with the get-up?", asked Yukihira-kun.
"Enemy territory. If they find out who I really am, it could be dangerous", he whispered.
"Right…".
"You should be careful too, Souma-kun. If they—".
"C'mon now, there's no need for all this sneaking about!".
Oh no… that ear-splitting voice…
"Why don't you just line up with the other customers? Kaaaiiichooouuu no Shoutengaaaiii…".
Hayato thought of video-game demons as menacing and frightening, but the apparition that spawned from thin air behind Tomita-san's defenceless back made Hayato shit a lego garage. Her creepy-as-fuck grin emerged from behind like a kabuki mask from the darkness and the corners of her slanted eyes slid up to her temples as if someone took a knife and carved it into her unholy face. Her pale skin certainly matched a poltergeist and Hayato felt a collective shiver erupt from everyone's spine in the party. Up close, her features were really sharp and angular encased by full-round-face. Definitely the face of a pain-in-the-butt villain.
Nakamozu Kinu.
"Are these young folks from the Shoutengai too? Here, taste a bite on the house!".
Once she released her freaky claws from Tomita-san's shoulder she whipped out a metal tray of fried chicken from behind her back, like the disguised wicked witch from Snow White and the Seven Dwarves pulling out her apple basket. Urrgghh… the similarities were uncanny. Crispy, beautifully battered pieces sat there prepared with toothpicks stabbed into them ready for the taking. Hayato licked his lips nonetheless as the fried chicken pieces whispered to him, seducing him to have a taste.
"Really? Don't mind if we do!", declared Yukihira-kun.
Just like that, everyone reached out and grabbed one and popped it into their mouths.
'Holy fucking Bahamut. This is so good!'.
The outside was fried to light crispiness while the tender chicken inside was bursting with an umami juiciness. Together, they packed such a flavourful combo attack! It was like a barrage of X O triangle, square buttons pummeling his tongue.
"A-Amazing! How did you make something this yummy?", asked Kurase-chan.
"Oh hohoho! So you'd like to know?" The old bag targeted the support mage of the group "We start with natural oumi chicken breasts. Oumi chickens are a top-quality breed. Completely grass fed! But what really seals the deal is our special shoyu-based marinade made with a blend of grated apple and dozen secret herbs and spices which we thoroughly coat our chicken in. Then we delicately fry up each pieces to crispy perfection. It's so delicious and people have been calling it the World's Best Fried Chicken! Ohohoho!".
Nakamozu snapped her sensu together and cackled behind it.
"Are you sure you should be blabbing about your secret recipe like that?". Yukihira-kun stepped forward. "We're here to scout you guys out, you know".
"Oh, no problem! No problem! It's not like you could ever make anything like that". She dismissed him. "And besides, how pathetic can you get, kaichou no shoutengai. Hiding behind a bunch of women and children. All you did was stand around and stare as your customers found better places to go. Don't you have any pride? Although, it's not as if having a creepy-looking man like you loitering around the shop didn't scare you off in the first place!".
Tomita-san's flinched terrible as each comment struck him.
"You're such a LOSER".
.
… Loser…
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… Loser…
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…LOSER…
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.
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… Get out of Tootsuki, you fucking loser…!
… Otaku Losers like you will never be one of us…!
… What a useless loser! That's why your parents left you and made you an orphan…!
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"HEY".
White knuckles and straining leather from clenching his fists too hard, and gritted teeth from effort to remain composed, his coiled form exuded an animosity that was like acid. Burning. Slicing. Potent. Hayato's face felt scarlet with suppressed rage. Every word stung fueling the fire that burned inside him. Every belittling phrase was like gasoline to it. When the final fizzy candy with the engraved 'loser' was added to soda inside of him…
He shoved Yukihira-kun out of the way.
"Listen here, you fucking, mincing COW. Being smug and condescending doesn't make you important. It makes you an ARSEHOLE!".
"What?! How dare y—".
"Your passive-aggressive trick doesn't mean SHIT to any of us and let me fucking tell you somethi—".
"Ginsekai!—", he pushed Yukihira-kun's hand away.
"It must be nice being a self-righteous, critical BITCH—".
"Please, Hayato-kun!—", he ignored Kurase-chan's plea.
Multiple hands clamped down onto his shoulder and it only drove him harder to spit as many curses as he could in the cow's ugly face. What gave her the right?! What gave her the FUCKING right?! He fought the resistance with all his might, his vision bleeding red and his ears muffling out every other sound except his roaring blood.
"I don't have to put up with this! Someone get security!".
The taste for blood intensified as soon as she re-opened her fucking mouth. His muscles burned as his restrainers dragged him across the shiny tiled floors away. Bewildered eyes swiveled to him but he didn't fucking care! His arms were locked on each side and his combat-boot clad feet kicked against the floor like a stubborn colt, trying to reach back at the disgusting creature who insulted their client!
"Call Tomita-san ANYTHING one more FUCKING time and I'm gonna rain down on you so FUCKING hard—".
"Enough! Ginsekai—".
She was getting further and further away! Hayato kept hollering louder and louder across the in-station mall until his throat was raw, but he pushed hard and harder.
"— That you'd have to be re-assembled by FUCKING AIR-CRASH INVESTIGATORS!".
"STOP!".
The enraged blonde teen choked on his tongue. His eyes snapped up and he drowned in a sea of deep, blue oceans. Worried rippling pools of water searched his face and a chill washed up his exposed arms. Gushes of wind whipped through his hair, his strands scratching across his face and dried red leaves skidded around his boots. Cool hands pressed to his scalding face. His sensibilities began to return, fractal by fractal. He realised he was heaving like a caged animal and took big gulps of fresh spring air to stop the bubbling sob that was going rip out of his throat.
'Oh god… oh god… what have I done…'.
"You okay?".
He shut his eyes. No. No. No. He was such a disgrace to The Guild…
"I-I'm so sorry!... I'm so sorry Yo-kun! I-I didn't m-mean—".
"Hey it's alright. It's over".
A calming and gentle voice flowed in one ear and straight to his heart, like a piano medley. Hayato continued to hyperventilate until he was sure the tempo in his chest settled back to normal. The inferno of fury continued to bake his insides, but he kept the oven door of his control sealed tight. Shame terrified him to no end and prayed to every deity that he didn't mess things up again, that he didn't screw up. He held onto one of Yo-kun's hands with his leather glove-clad hand and squeezed, never letting go.
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Never.
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… I don't think you're a loser, Hayato-kun… I think you're really cool…
…I concur. Your unfathomable kindness makes you more of a valued person than your witless peers…
…You have heart, squirt. How about you join our RS too? Whaddaya say?…
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"It's a pleasure to meet you Iwato-san". Yozora nodded.
"Y-Yeah you too. Man, I'm so excited to be working with The Guild!". He catapulted forward. "I saw you at the TGS last year and it was amazing".
Yozora sized the nephew up as soon as he had laid eyes on him. The boy had been pacing back and forth behind the counter when he walked in. Iwato-kun had straight short hair which fell extremely close to his head like a swimming cap, the spitting image of his uncle. He had exceptionally large eyes which Yozora jokingly credited it to perhaps an over consumption of energy drinks, or maybe over-indulgence of sugar… In the end he settled with the notion that he was born to look perpetually surprised and alert. They sparkled and twinkled, excitement as he refused to back down from Yozora's own scrutinising. He looked willing to do anything, which would make completing the quest easier.
Yozora looked over to Hayato-kun. He stood a bit off to the side and looked around a bit with a false smile on his face. It strained too hard and his jaw was still clenching and unclenching. Not to mention that his eyes were unusually distant. Despite that, he was alright now, just a bit shaken up and hopefully whatever track he was back to listening to was calming his nerves and guiding his mind to a better place. The outburst earlier in front of Mozuya knocked everyone off their feet. It took all their collective strength to haul him out of the station as he spat threat after threat at the Mozuya CEO as if his life depended on it. The savagery and vitriol that spewed from the most generous and the kindest boy's tongue he'd ever known was so seismic and even Yozora feared what his best-friend would unleash next. Women and children parted like the Red Sea and their owlish eyes followed their every move like judging and sentient surveillance cameras. It wasn't until they spotted the tops of tall security guards pushing past commuters to get to Mozuya that Yozora clamped his hands over Hayato-kun's mouth and finally they were out the exit in the open air.
The boy was an utter mess.
But he pulled through. Yozora made sure of that.
It broke his heart to see his best friend almost back at square one… He might be wearing trendy and fashionable clothes that spoke of his passionate and outlandish love for pop-culture, and now had a eye-catching hair-style to so that he could forget who he used to be whenever he looked in the mirror… but in that moment … he was the spitting image of the broken boy whom he first met… easily torn apart by words that came from useless bigots…
"I know, your uncle told me. But right now, we don't have a lot of time. He said we could have free-reign. Hayato-kun and I have come up with a plan to help return your uncle's store back to its former glory".
"Right! Umm… my uncle said that Yukihira Diner is joining the cause. Is that true?".
"Yeah. The whole Shoutengai is in trouble so we've got to be extra. Yukihira-kun and other allies from Tootsuki are working back at the Diner to come up with fried-chicken recipes to undermineMozuya's. They'll draw first blood.With The Guild… we'll own them, hard".
Yozora licked his lips. Iwato-san's eyes became saucers before coughing into his fist and broke out a nervous smile.
"So what's the plan?".
"The Games and Arcade Centre will host a series of Free-For-All gaming event targeted for all ages. This is the perfect time because it's past mid-semester now, so junior high students will be free from their exams to do whatever they want. We're gonna provide them with some much needed fun to start their break on a crescendo where they can play the latest and most popular multi-player and co-op games you've selected on the Playstation 3".
"Don't forget, we have the university students too!", yelled Hayato-kun from across the shop.
Yozora smirked.
"That's right. University and college exams are also finished. School and University peak hour times are different. They usually get home at later hours, so the high school students will be done by the time the University students arrive at the station. Old generation gamers from the nineties or early 2000s will definitely target the arcade machines, as well as the PS3. There is nothing like getting your hands on memorable games from your childhood. Ask any nineties or early 2000s guys and girls what their favourite game of all time is. I guarantee you, they will talk about the ones from their generation or the games they first played, rather than the newer ones. Nostalgia is a powerful thing. Even if they grew out of gaming or just haven't played in so many years, but as soon as they hear the music and hear the sound effects, they won't be able to resist reliving that favourite childhood memory and get their hands on it. Trust me on that".
"O-Okay!".
Yozora circled the store and held his arms up wide as if he was a bishop in his cathedral.
"You have the space and everything you need here in the store to pull it off! But The Guild will manage and organise all the specifics for you. Hayato-kun and I will host gaming-music themed cooking demonstrations to feed and entertain the crowd for the event. The more they play, the hungrier they get".
"Do you think this is going to work?".
Yozora placed his hands on his hips and looked at Iwato-kun square in the face.
"The Shoutengai is only as good as its people. I've seen good people here, including you and your uncle. As long as you believe in yourself, in your uncle, in your workers, in the Shoutengai and in us and put in the hard work, you'll succeed with flying colours".
Yozora could see the weight lift from Iwato-kun's shoulders as if an overly large child had just leapt off after a satisfying piggy-back ride. He stood taller now. His face broke into a grin and he nodded in excitement. That's it, now Iwato-kun had the determination of a paladin.
"Yeah! Okay let's get started. What do we need to do first?".
"First, we need all hands on deck. The merchandise at the store window needs to be relocated, the shelving is taking up too much valuable space and need to be pushed to the back of the store. I want those arcade machines which are doing nothing in the back, to be out the front where the storefront window is. I saw power outlets near there so we can move the power-board and extension cords there too".
"Yes, sir! Shigo-san, Hikari-san, Kino-san. Please take the products off the shelves and pack them in boxes, then move the shelves to the back!".
Iwato-san called out towards the back and three people came running. Two men and lady who wore matching glasses and matching uniforms stumbled out and pulled to a stop as if responding to a drill command. Yozora jumped up! Were they lurking in the back the whole time?! Yozora hadn't seen anyone move so fast since Hayato-kun. They nodded and immediately did as they were told. Yozora didn't miss the curious and bewildered glances they snuck at himself and Hayato-kun. They whispered to each other in hushed tones as they delegated and broke down the tasks into little chunks. Yozora watched as they shuffled and flitted back and forth from each other, filling their arms with games and merchandises.
"I told them The Guild was coming and they didn't believe me", whispered Iwato-kun.
Yozora bobbed is head, finally understanding the cautious tip-toeing around them and looks of disbelief. The back of his head prickled and his cheeks felt warm. Right now, they had no time for introductions or getting over embarrasment; they have a shoutengai to save within three days. Busy bees knuckled down and started to systematically gather the stock and broke out some cardboard boxes to pack things up and move them to be un-packed safely and orderly later. Yozora rubbed his chin and tried to figure out what needed to happen next so that everything could go smoothly.
"Seikan-san said there are two flat-screen TVs out the back that we could use. Bring them to the other store-window and hook up the Playstation 3. Pick out three of your best co-operative and multiplayer games to go with it", continued Yozora.
"Got it. Why do we need to move the arcade machines, though? Can't they stay at the back?".
"Because, my friend! We need colourful lights, music, noises, and action happening out front and centre to attract people. We want them to see the fun stuff. If you put the party in the back, nobody is gonna know about it!", chirped Hayato-kun.
That's right. All the classic gaming devices and demo-stations were pushed to the back of the store. What were they doing there? Collecting dust for the sake of being memorabilia which no-one would see beyond the collection of twenty-first century games and merch. Eighties games were legendary and quintessential to the existence of the modern games. Their music and archetype were studied by gaming developers and were the basis for everything they had today and it was a crime that they were shoved to the back like old people abandoned to nursing homes. Seikan-san said nostalgia wouldn't let him get rid of those beautiful arcade machines. Well… sitting untouched beyond the reach of gaming fans out there… they might as well be dumped for scraps. If they Games and Arcade Centre wanted to be on the front page again, they needed to remind the public exactly what they were all about.
"Bring out the Wii console and Mario Cart game too. The elementary school kids are gonna drag their parents over once they hear the commotion".
Iwato-san scribbled down onto a notepad and nodded furiously as Yozora commanded. Hayato-kun leapt to help the three shop attendees, much to their surprise and pleasure. He pulled some random topic out of his butt, and forced it onto the shop attendees like a spurt of rainbow after an abrupt rain. They were held prisoner to Hayato-kun's loud and gleeful opinions about anything he could think of and answered his question in unsure, but happy words. The rag-tag group soon melted in fun and easy conversation as they worked together. Trust Hayato-kun to break the ice. Okay, while the re-organisation of the shop was underway, Yozora continued to rattle of the rest of the plan to Iwato-san. It was going to be a long. Yozora rolled up his sleeves and got busy moving and rearranging things.
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"I can't believe this took a whole day!". Hayato-kun wiped his brow and leaned against the last arcade machine they heaved with the box-trolley.
Yozora strained to see through the sweat trickly past his eye-lids. Fantastic. The whole floor was cleared and ready to be filled with people. Everyone had already collapsed on the floor and gulped down water as they murmured their achievements for the day in half-arsed cheers. They had turned one of the metal shelves on its side to prop up the two flat-screen TVs and the Playstation 3 and Wii-console. The controllers sat neatly on their docks ready to be used and the variety of games laid splayed out, ready to be picked. The arcade machines were wiped down and cleaned until the bright designs were gleaming and the screens were crystal-clear and teeming with neon colours, blinking and winking with glee. Yozora was proud. It was coming together nicely even if it took a chunk of the day.
"Umm…". Iwato-kun fiddled with his glasses. "I don't mean to be a party-pooper but…".
"What is it?". Yozora turned his head.
"Mozuya is in the most advantageous position anybody could have. From the train-station, they can attract the attention of the commuters coming through and those still on the trains. Our customers won't even look at the Shoutengai so how will we get their attention before Mozuya does?".
Yozora turned his head the other way and was instantly met with his best-friend's tired but present smirk. Iwato-san continued to huff and puff under his breath and Yozora felt the air grow quiet and still.
"By using the one thing every single person on the planets has in their pocket!~" sang Hayato-kun.
Bi-bi- bi- bi… bi- bi- bi- bi-… bi- bi- bi- bi-…
Yozora rolled his back down on the carpet and grabbed his phone. How much he'd give for a nap right now… noon was his favourite time to doze off and forget about everything. His eyes drooped and his limbs sank by his side and he didn't want to move. But he had to because his phone wasn't going to answer itself. Sluggishly lifted it to his face and answered.
"Yeah?".
"Mitsunaga, how's your end holding up?".
"We're done with set up. You?".
"We've got a winning fried chicken recipe here. Come back to the diner and try it".
"We're on our way". Yozora hung up.
"Was it Yukihira-kun?", asked Hayato-kun.
The president of The Guild lifted his arms up towards the ceiling and just waited. On cue, Hayato-kun found his feet and went over to his friend and grabbed his wrists in a monkey grip and hauled him up. If Kasai-senpai spotted his act of petulance and toddler-like behaviour, he would frown at him and push up his spectacles with his middle finger to send the frosty message.
"Yeah, he's done with the fried chicken recipe. Let's go".
"Good timing, I'm so hungry".
"What's happening tomorrow?", asked Iwato-kun.
"We'll take care of tomorrow. You guys go rest. Leave it to us now".
"Okay. Thank you so much!".
"No worries! Good job guys!".
Hayato-kun was already out the door and waving his hands about, excited to run back to the diner to fill his belly with delicious fried chicken. Yozora took his time to stroll through the main strip. Sumiredouri Shoutengai was just a two days away from being post-card perfect. Dried leave swirled around like shoals of fish in a myriad of directions. Yozora smiled. He nodded at vendours and mongers who were working their slow days and they nodded back in kind, acquainted with him now because of Yukihira. Shop keepers busied themselves with cleaning, checking, and ordering and some simply stood outside to watch the day go by with stony faces.
"Yo-kun! Get your butt here, this tastes amazing!".
Yozora looked up and was greeted by Hayato-kun, Yukihira, Kurase-san and Mito-san crowding the front entrance of the famous diner. They each held something in their hands that looked like a mini-wrap of some sort. Yozora hurried it up and when he arrived at the diner, the overwhelming smell of hot oil, flavourful spices and cooking meat slammed into him. It made his stomach growl.
"What's that?".
"Our secret weapon".
A piping hot packet was thrusted into his hand and Yozora fought to drool right then and there. The glistening golden brown pieces of thicken overflowed from a halo of fresh lettuce. It's a fried chicken wrap! It was encased in a warm and loving cocoon of some sort of thin wrap that was just as light and crispy. The urge to squeeze the weighty food in his hand was great, it felt so good to hold it in his hand. He couldn't take it anymore and he bent down to take a bite of the Yukihira's and Mito-san's latest creation.
'Ah! The chicken is so tender!'.
Yozora's mouth hung open to let the steam escape. His tongue curled around each ripped-off piece of chicken and wrap and rolled it around in his mouth to let it cool. Each surface was blessed with punchy flavours. The crispy and crunch breading released the most satisfying sound as it yielded to his teeth. The chilli sauce sliced through and it's salty, sweetness and umami combination coating the chicken and wrap was delicious and left him wanting to take another point without finishing his first morsel. The juicy flesh of the twice fried chicken squirted with each chew and it sent his head into a spin with how gorgeous the high-quality meat tasted. The aromatic pepper and ginger filled him with embracing warmth which filled his throat and nostril. The flavours and texture came together to party in his mouth, and party in his heart. Yep this was a winner. This was going to shiv Mozuya in the gut.
Yozora polished off the rest of his fried chicken wrap before it had a chance to cool down.
"You made the crepe-wrap with rice flou—".
"Yep! We took inspiration of banh xeo from Vietnam. Rice and fried chicken is a match made in heaven, so we came up with an idea that can use rice and re-create it into a form that's easy to eat on the go and just as delicious. Better than only fried-chicken in a box, right? It starts with chicken thigh meat cut into big, thick chunks. Then they're set to marin—".
"I can tell what you guys did from eating one. We're from Tootsuki too, remember? Give Hayato-kun and I some credit". Yozora chuckled, holding up his hand.
Yukihira's grin was blinding and his excitement could barely be contained. Even Mito-san looked extremely proud of what they created. He thought he'd never see Kurase-san looking relaxed or relieved, but right now she wasn't flustered, twitchy or tripping over trying to help. Hayato-kun was busy inspecting the kitchen looking over the ingredients they used.
"So what are you bringing to the table, Mitsunaga", asked Yukihira.
"We're hosting an An All Ages gaming event and doing live cooking demos tomorrow", replied Yozora. "Grab everyone's attention and pull them to centre of the Shoutengai and get some food there stomachs".
"How are you going to do cooking demos? They don't have a kitchen there. Are you going to bring a portable stove?".
"There's no way a portable stove would achieve anything in our battle with Mozuya, Yukihira!".
Mito-san cuffed him across the head in a fit of fury. Yozora didn't miss the way Hayato-kun grabbed his chest and swooned. He was so weird sometimes. The red-headed chef propelled forward, stunned and bruising from the impact. He rebounded in a blink of an eye and rubbed the sore spot, giving the meat-specialist the stink eye.
"Think portable cooking stations".
"EH?!".
The dumbstruck group floundered. Their breaths cut off short as if stuck underwater and only slow warbles left them. It sounded unbelievable and he totally understood that. Who would've thought an itty-bitty insignificant RS like The Guild with barely any support and funding from Tootsuki would have something as sophisticated, grand and expensive as a bunch of portable cooking stations in their inventory bag. Wait until they found out what were in the extra equipment slots, which Yozora wanted to save for another time. All the portable cooking stations at Tootsuki were school-owned and were only loaned to RS's that were higher ranking, the Elite Ten and basically anybody else who were influential in the school, or whom the school could benefit from.The Guild flew under the radar ever since they first formed and unbeknownst to most people in at Tootsuki, it worked to their advantage when it came to accumulating their own funds and gears.
The Guild's blog and inbox for quests could reach places and people Tootsuki wouldn't bother to, to support the most unpopular RS in the school.
"We scored some state-of-the-art portable cooking stations from the CEO of Panasonic. We catered for his daughter's wedding reception and the after-party two years ago. The bride and groom are big Pokemon fans, and it was through their Pokemon hobbies that they met and fell in love. So all the gourmet food dishes we invented were Pokemon music themed. Anyway, they were really impressed by the quality of our service and food and so they rewarded us with something super-useful for all our other quests", said Yozora.
"Hold up…". Yukihira leaned forward and narrowed his eyes. "I've been in your clubroom and it's tiny. Where do you keep them?".
"We have our own storage unit under The Guild's name for other things we can't keep at Tootsuki!". Hayato-kun jumped in.
"Wait… there's more?!". Mito-san slammed her hands on the kitchen bench.
"The manager of one of the Quarez offices in downtown Tokyo hired us to organise and cater for his son's university graduation dinner party for friends and family. He's a fan of the Zelda series", continued Yozora.
"Quarez is Japan's biggest self-storage company and delivery service… and they rewarded you with your own storage unit?!" gasped Kurase-san.
"Yeah. But we didn't need anything huge so technically it isn't a loss for the company to give us a smaller one. The manager said we can keep it free of charge and use their delivery service until The Guild is finished. Again, it's peanuts to them".
Under Kasai-senpai's leadership, The Guild was able to establish useful connections and items to add to their arsenal. Yozora felt those were big shoes to fill, but he was confident that he could do the same and spread The Guild far and wide… spread the joy… continue to break barriers… unite people with food and music.
"So you've already called in Quarez to deliver your portable cooking stations to The Games and Arcade Centre for tomorrow?".
"Yep. The manager was happy to send it out first thing in the morning" Hayato-kun yawned. "Oh yeah, we've brought speakers and sub-woofers to play music to go with the food and atmosphere. Hence the huge luggage".
"That's more like it. What songs are you going to play?", asked Yukihira.
"We've picked out our party mix, customised for the event. We've got some special techno and dubstep arrangements from Witcher, Final Fantasy, Devil May Cry, Halo, Pokemon, Mario, you name it, to get the crowd hyped. But the icing on the cake will be Bonus Track from the album we are studying right now for my cooking performance" said Hayato-kun.
"Which would be…".
"My specialty cooking style is Teppanyaki!".
Yukihira-kun whistled lowly. Yozora could see that Mito-san was holding in her incredulity very nicely. Although there was a disgruntled stiffness in her shoulders as if she didn't still quite believed them. He looked over to Hayato-kun and as predicted was standing the furthest away from Mito-san and was back to mooning over her like a lost calf. Thankfully for him, she didn't seem to be paying attention to him all that much anymore… which wasn't new anyway.
"All right!", yelled Tomita-san. "We'll start a huge advertising campaign right as these go on sale. I'm going to have to get started making fliers and posters. If I really push, I could have it together in say… A week. Things are about to get really busy".
Yozora shook his head.
"No, we're launching our attack tomorrow afternoon".
"B-But the f-fliers and p-posters! I'll never make it in time!", Tomita-san horrified gasped mirrors everybody else's concern.
"Relax, Tomita-san!".
Hayato-kun kicked off the door-frame he was leaning on. How on Earth did he find the energy for switching between being upbeat and getting panic attacks around Mito-san?
"You've hired The Guild, remember? Gamer-chefs who analyse video-game music to create innovative recipes? We've performed in TGS and 'cons' every year to do things like this all the time. And how do you think we get quests from all across Tokyo? We've come this far and have gain this much by racking up a pretty big online presence within the gaming and anime circle, and creating a new demand for the twenty-first century food culture. You're talking to children of the internet".
"S-Social media…?".
His prehistoric reaction was almost endearing.
"You want instantaneous advertising and promotions?". Yozora lifted his arms up. "Internet, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, our blog, Reddit, Line and everything else teenagers can access on their smartphones will do all that for you!".
"That's right…", Yukihira-kun turned around. "Posters and fliers can only go as far as you can run. But everyone is always carrying their phones wherever they go, logging onto their favourite apps, updates, and checking the latest news and trends while they're walking or riding public transport, or at school and at home… anytime… anywhere… That's perfect! That's how we'll let everyone know what's going down in Sumiredouri Shoutengai!".
"You guys can pull it off?". Mito-san quirked her brow.
Yozora cocked his head at them.
"We're the kings of social media".
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Two Days Later
"Well? How is it?".
"No problems sir!", Kinu chirped in her phone. "It's only natural of course, what with someone of your stature backing us up".
She could smell the money rolling into the bank account. She didn't need to check the sales statistic to know it's there. Everyday, the lines and arrows on the graph climbed and climbed and it filled her with a sickening fascination for how much higher it would go or when it would fly off the charts. Karaage senmonten Mozuya was such a far cry from what it was five years ago. Her family business was just a humble take-out and diner in Kansai making their specialty fried chicken for the ordinary working family. But Nakamozu Kinu wanted more than that… So much more… Her home town loved her family's fried chicken but her father and mother just refused to expand! They could've been swimming in riches in her childhood! It was such a waste and a mistake on their part, but no longer.
She was now the owner and CEO of her family business.
"Keep close tabs on the pulse of the market and make the best moves as early as possible. That's the first law of successful business".
Her blood boiled.
"Such a worrier for someone so young! Everything is fine here. It's all smooth sailing! The only blip is a bunch of kids in the shoutengai trying to cook something up".
"Kids?".
"But that's just a triviality. Hardly worth mentioning at all!". Kinu flipped her ponytail and laughed. "Anyway, business is booming as usual! It's only a matter of time before this whole town belongs to Mozuya!".
The need to crush the street urchins in the inferior shoutengai was like a rat gnawing at her soul, relentless, unceasing. They think they could go up against a multi-million dollar franchise? Laughable. She ought to teach them a lesson, but they'd get there's when their little schemes fail and she wouldn't need to lift a finger. But… that weird blonde one from yesterday still annoyed her to no end. She went to sleep with his words haunting her mind until her brain shut down for her nightly rest. He dared to mouth off at his senior and use crude language at a lady such as herself?! That brat!
Kinu snapped her sensu shut.
"Look into those kids just in case. If anything happens, call me right away. Got it?".
Click. Boop… Boop…Boop…
Ugh! More uppity kids thinking they could order adults around! This Eizan Etsuya character was such a pain in the arse. He talked as if he was better than her. A viper in a teenager's body. She hated kids. It was one of the reasons why she refused to get married and have any of her own. She could barely deal with her nieces and nephews. His business sense and strategies were a gold mine and so she endured his exorbitant consultation fees and his smart-arsery so that Mozuya could take over Japan in the karaage scene. She imagined the four-eyes' face rearranged with the business end of a shovel.
One thing the two of them had in common was their taste for money. Money was a manifestation of power and Kinu did enjoy the power she had over being the only one fulfilling the customers' desires and cravings.
"Alright. Let's see how long the queue will line up today~".
Kinu got up from her office seat and straightened her uniform. She pasted on her favourite Cheshire smile and picked up her sensu, ready to wave in the customers. She crossed the floor in her low heels and opened the office door. She weaved though the short corridor until she emerged out into the open store front of the in-station mall.
"This is it! The afternoon rush has begun! Time to make our money for the day!".
Before she could count how many families were filling up the cordoned off area for take-aways, the store manager approached her.
"Um Nakamozu-san, we've just received the invoice for this quarter's consultation fees".
'Ugh! That kid doesn't waste time, does he'.
"Hmph. I think we'll terminate our contract with that snotty little kid. There's no need for him anymore".
As long as she had her family's secret marinade recipe, she was safe. Not only that, she now had the impregnable fortress of a modern store-front in the trendiest and most advantageous location. A ghost town of a shopping district would disappear. Today, like every other day. She would simply sit back inside her castle and let this whole town throw their money at her!
'Hmm, the line is shorter today. But it doesn't matter. Those bunch of students over there will – Huh? They walked right past…'.
Kinu stopped fanning herself and opened her eyes. What's going on? They strode past as if Mozuya didn't exist. That was preposterous. The irresistible aroma of fried chicken was powerful and mouth-watering. Weren't their appetite whet? Weren't they hungry? Maybe they already ate… wait… What where they holding in their hands. Ice-cream? No, it looked like fried chicken… Kinu watched those boys like a hawk and soon they picked up the pace until they jogged and then full out sprinted towards the exit, not a look back.
Kinu opened her fan again and spotted another group of students craning their necks over their smartphones. She smirked. Heh, they'll be wanting some after-school snacks right now and Mozuya was per— aaaaand they were gone.
'What? Where are they running off to…'.
Kinu snapped her sensu shut again and marched to the entrance of the in-station mall. Another student rushed past her and jostled her elbow, almost sending her to the light pole. She was about to yell after him for being careless and bumping into her, but nothing left her mouth when she spotted a flood of young kids and students alike cramming into the entrance of the shoutengai. They were carrying their smartphone in their hands and waving them around as if recording something.
"You! Over there!". She yelled at a passing kid.
"Uh… yes ma'am?". He stopped in his tracks and turned to her.
It was that blasted fried chicken again! He held it halfway to his mouth. She had spotted a total of seven kids holding that in their hands. It was golden fried chicken nestled amongst crispy lettuce all wrapped up in some sort of thin tortilla. The scent was tantalising. There was a brand on the wrap which looked like a flower of some sort, right in the middle. It damn looked familiar. She squinted her eyes and read the label on the paper wrapping.
Sumiredouri Shoutengai
'URGH! THOSE BRATS!'.
"What's going on over there?". She pointed her sensu at the growing crowd of people flowing into the entrance.
"Oh! The Games and Arcade Centre is holding a free-for-all gaming event in collaboration with Tomitaya Bentou shop. They're show-casing the latest video games for everyone and some eighties and nineties arcade games. Anyone can have a go! It says that people of all ages can come and join the fun, play and watch. There's a live cooking demonstration too with music! See for yourself".
The annoying boy showed her his phone and she leaned down to inspect. It was already set to Facebook and she read the post, confirming everything the boy said. What? Gaming event? Next, the boy switched from Facebook to Snapchat and Kinu's eyes widened at the short video before her probably filmed by his friend. It was those brats from yesterday! The mouthy one and the one with disturbing eyes. They were dressed up in some ridiculous outfits cooking away flamboyantly behind two cooking stations that were parked just to the side of The Games and Arcade Centre. It was teeming with people holding the very same chicken wrap with the infuriating brand and small cardboard packs of street food lined with napkins with the brand again! Kinu's temple pulsed with anger. She looked up away from the screen and saw young teenagers holding their phones and pointing too.
"Twitter is exploding with these Gamer-che—".
"Here". Kinu thrusted his phone back at him.
She was going to put a stop to this!
She sprinted as fast as she could in her low heels to the shoutengai. The crowd flowed down the same way as the rivers met its banks. It moved like a multi-headed beast that shared only one brain. Everyone was on their bloody smartphones! She spotted various social media sites over their shoulders, all talking about a collaboration gaming event right in the heart of the shoutengai. The graphics for the image post on Facebook was impressive, which she hated to admit. The crowd was so jubilant and joyful. The atmosphere was one of elation, the warm spring air punctuated by whoops and cheers coming from the centre. A cacophony of applause and cheering, clapping and stamping feet exploded. Palpable excitement buzzed through the energised air.
"It says here that they've got old-gen games too! Fuck, nothing beats the original stuff. I haven't played one of those in ages. Let's go guys!".
"Mum, I want to play Mario Kart! Can we, please?".
"You had good marks on your test this semester, so sure sweetie. We can get some Sumire Fried Chicken wrap too".
"The Games and Arcade Centre is letting us demo on the new PS3 Slim model! We have to check it out!".
"Oh my god, I heard they're letting us play the Marvel vs. Capcom and Tekken games for free! I'll probably have to buy it after I try it out!".
Once Kinu reached the epicentre, her nose was hit with fragrant aromas of vegetables, egg, noodles which screamed of festival street food. Kids clamoured around large flat-screen TVs battling each other on some asinine multi-player game. She had no interests in games, and whatever brain numbing entertainment they offered, had the kids and young adults hook-line-and-sinker. The retro bleeping of arcade games had the older teens and university cheering like sports team, deep and loud as they pressed a myriad of buttons furiously on the arcade machines. Ugly and primitive characters beated each other up on the cathode-ray scream which made everyone crowding the screen cheer and yell as if they were at the Soccer World Cup. Kinu growled and carried on, looking for those brats. She didn't need to travel far to find them. Music was blasting from hidden speakers and Kinu struggled to gain her bearings amongst the sights, sounds and smells pummelling her.
"Who's up next!".
"Me!".
"Hold the cardboard box steady now, I don't want to ruin my thirty-sixth streak".
Kinu's eyebrows arched for the sky! The two kids from yesterday were dressed up in some sort of costume. It was bright an colour and definitely belonged in some sort of fantasy realm. They stood behind cooking stations, cooking up a storm and the crowd cheered whenever one of them performed some sort of amazing trick, banging and flipping spatulas, moving sizzling noodles and vegetables about on the hot griddle. Teppanyaki?!
The music was energetic mix of beats and and synthesisers trilled through the air, the bass dropped so many times that Kinu's heart thumped through her stomach every time it did. It worked the crowd up into a frenzy as they took photos and videos on their smartphone, posting it all up on the internet.
"Their chef's uniform looks so good, doesn't it?".
"Yeah. It's totally inspired from Kingdom Hearts! Can you tell that, that one there is Roxas and the other is Sora?".
"Where did they buy them from? Do you think they had it custom-made?".
"I want to take photos with them so baaaaad~".
Kinu gritted her teeth. She pushed back through the suffocating crowd and made it back onto the main road. This was humiliating! How?! This place was a ghost town just two days ago! Burning rage rushed through her body like lava spewing from a volcano. She hissed, her frustration demanding release in the form of unwanted violence. Instead, it swept her off in waves of fury. The wrath consumed her.
"I'll take one please!".
"Me too!".
"That's two wraps, comin' right up!".
Kinu's back snapped straight. Those chicken wraps… those kids came up with something that was able to steal her customers away? Kids with their mothers stood around munching on their wraps with abandoned joy.
"Whoa hey! Look who's here! It's Mozuya!". She jolted and ice dripped down her back."Why all the sneaking around? You could just line up with everyone else you know".
She scoffed at that ugly twist of her own words. He really wanted her to rub it in, did he? He stood there with a smug grin on his petulant face. His arms crossed over his chest were puffed out. He thought he won!
"How long have you been planning this?", she hissed.
"Huh? Since three days ago".
"H-How?!".
"We got all our appliances and utensils from the hardware store. The Sumire branding mark was a special order at the metal workshop. All our ingredients and produce are from the green grocer and the butcher, which was overseen by the heiress of Mito Group. The entertainment is yours truly from The Games and Arcade Centre. The image posts, advertisements were designed by my friend Kurase-chan and her little brother, Hiro-kun. Event-management, advertising and promotions, social media, live music and cooking demos were done by the boys from the The Guild. It was their idea to turn this place into a mid-day mini-festival jammed pack with food, fun and great people and company".
Unbelievable… With that wrap… no… with that bunch of kids as the foundation, they've breathed a whole new life into this shoutengai! She underestimated them. They might be just kids, but they'd all got the minds of tacticians! In a blink of an eye, the brats built up an army that's got Mozuya surrounded. It's as if they built a castle in a day!
"Well, well, well. Look what the cat dragged in".
Kinu turned around and was confront by two of the other infantile vermin. They were decked out in colour schemes that belong at a fun-park than actual chefs in the kitchen. The dark-haired one was dressed in obviously a chef's uniform design, however it was embellished further. It was mostly black and grey and lined with silver and maroon. Instead of the double breasted front, it was held together with a longer zipper. Behind him, she spotted a grey hood which was folded own against his back. It was short sleeved and his lapels were folded down, held together with gold buttons which lined down his chest to stop it from flopping around while cooking. His chef's trousers were also grey and black. Red thigh belts fitted around both his legs and they puffed out a bit before tied off at the calves. The blonde one was sporting a more upbeat colour-scheme or white and black with red trimmings. Strips of black and white check designed were stitched across his front and his up his shoulders. His chef's uniform was also short sleeved which was fashioned into a form fitting jacket and in inner vest held together with a zip. His pants were half white and dark grey, stitched with huge fake pockets to the sides.
"What was it you said before? That's it's 'only natural' for a place with no competition or individuality to dry up right?", said the blonde one.
She bit her lip, her ire bursting at the seams.
"Think again", said the dark-haired one. "There is diversity everywhere. The Sumiredouri Shougentai has its own brand of power and artisans, and will survive. They've got something brighter and more valuable than just simple profits or big margins".
'Urghhh!'.
"Community and culture".
She crumpled to the pavement.
'Damn it…! They've beaten me…'.
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.
Eizan switched his tablet off. Keh… He didn't want to fucking hear it from Nakamozu. Their sales plummeted without warning in the last few days and it was only getting worse. Wrong, there was warning. She mentioned some kids scheming some half-cocked idea in the shoutengai opposite the store. He knew her pride wouldn't let her take his advice and check them out, so he sent some of his lackeys down there to scope the situation. They returned with three names.
'Yukihira, Mito and The Guild'.
The fucking Guild.
Eizan shoved his tablet back into his pouch and stormed off in the opposite direction. Frustrations poured from his pores. He quickened his pace to return to his office immediately and sort out the fucking mess Nakamozu landed herself in. His reputation as a business consultant was pristine and he had no plans for any smudges from little upstarts that could've been avoided. He'd been a culinary consultant since junior high for a variety of firms. It was his advice that renovated the kitchen of an old, long running traditional inn and revitalised its business. He'd accepted jobs from Michelin star restaurants to design new menu offerings. Mozuya was his most recent job and he was the one who guided that Kyoutou fried chicken shop to back-to-back gold medals in the national tournament. In total, he'd already handled over five hundred different jobs for dozens of clients.
"I can fuck over Yukihira and Mito… but not The Guild…".
He couldn't touch the fucking no-name RS.
Not with Ishikagaku and Yuujou still in the picture.
Uh oh... why does Eizan have such negative feelings towards Kasai-senpai and Tsurugi-senpai? (Just in case if anyone forgot, their last names are Ishikagaku and Yuujou)
Team Yukihira, Mito and The Guild pulled off their first quest together! Well done you all and now GET YOUR BUTTS BACK TO SCHOOL BECAUSE YOU STILL HAVE THE AUTUMN ELECTIONS TO POWER THROUGH! The Guild is packing more than any of the other character's realise ;)
Poor Hayato-kun... he's had it rough in his life, but he's totally in a better place now (I hope).
I didn't expect to be here so soon, but I'm glad to be welcoming back everyone to another chapter of The Guild :) I hope you found this chapter as enjoyable as I did writing it.
Let me know what you think, and I'll be back again!
Signing-off
-TripWire-dono
