Éclair was so defeated, she felt like a failure and she didn't want to hear the disappointing words of her team. The bluenette walked toward the woman, "Your head is bleeding." She touched the back of her head as she hadn't realized she was bleeding out. "Small potatoes. I lost the Century Soup. A small GT Robot snuck its way past everyone and stole it from me. It knocked me into the wall and I must have blacked out. If I were alive I would have fought it to the death of me." Toriko put a hand on her shoulder, "Well it's a good thing you were incapable of fighting. Your life is worth more than the soup ever will be." She looked over to Match, "I am so sorry. I wish I could have filled the belly's of all those street kids." She punched the ice, "Dammit! There was so much riding on this."
Toriko wrapped his arm around the girl, "Hey, going out on an adventure that you risked your neck on and failing happens, even to me. Don't worry about it." She hugged the man, "I gave it my all Toriko, I really did." Teppei nodded, "She did, even slapped me to get to the soup." She mumbled under her breath, "I said I was sorry~" Toriko laughed, "You slapped Teppei, you are a little firecracker Éclair!" She was still sad about not finding the soup, but everyone's humor was cheering her up. "I thought he was trying to stop me from getting the soup. ~Toriko, are we ever gonna address what happened to your arm?" He shrugged, "It's like you said, small potatoes. It may have cost my arm, but I learned a new technique." She poked his nub, "An arm for a technique is not a good trade Toriko!" "Well at least I'm still alive?" She smiled, "Yes, that's something to cheer about."
The ground began to rumble again and Éclair grabbed hold of Toriko, "What is that?" "Probably the two beasts still going at it." She shivered, "Beasts? I'm glad I didn't have a run in with them." The blond girl pointed, "Everyone is injured? It must have been tough." She looked at Takimaru's body and back up to Toriko, "Takimaru, is he~ Is he gonna live?" Match shrugged, "We still aren't outta the woods yet. Who's to say we all aren't gonna die." The girl released her hold on Toriko, "We will live! You know why, because I failed to get the Century Soup and there are still hungry kids in Nerg City. Match, I will personally cook a large banquet of food for those kids because of my failure." She grabbed his hand, "You have deep eyes, and I read every last bit of them loud and clear. You are~ a good guy you know." Teppei commanded the attention of the group, "Right now I am getting ready to rid Ice Hell of the last bit of the Gourmet Showcase. There's still one last drop of the soup up there so prepare to catch it." Éclair smiled as she took her hand back, "Sorry Match, looks like I'll be needing both hands right now."
Everyone watched as the legendary Showcase was coming down. They stood with their hands out waiting for the soup to fall. Small shards of ice were getting into the girl's eyes as she looked out for the last drop. She wouldn't budge though, nothing would keep her from looking for the soup. She saw the final bits of ice come down followed by a small drop. It was the last drop of Century Soup. It came down at what seemed to be slow motion in her mind. She felt a wetness fall into her hands and aurora in her eyes. The last drop of the Century Soup was in her possession. Everyone looked at the transparent soup as it was in her hands. Match drew his blade, "That last bit is mine!" Toriko took a fighting stance, "No, I want it!" Éclair screamed out, "Wait! There has to be a more sensible way to settle this!" Teppei nodded, "She's right. I don't think I deserve the last bit of soup so I'll cross myself out of the equation."
Match sheathed his blade, "My purpose for getting the soup was to feed the kids. There's no point in just me having some." Toriko drooled next to the soup, "I want it so badly!" Éclair looked at the soup, "You know this whole time I thought I was at the bottom of the list of people who deserve the soup. But I take that back. I will have the last drop of Century Soup. The soup sang me a melody I couldn't soon forget. I need to have this drop so I can recreate the Century Soup." She put the liquid to her mouth, "This may be the last drop from Ice Hell, but it isn't the last drop of Century Soup, I promise." She sipped the soup and her body felt immediately tense. "I'll be damned!" Her knees weakened and she fell back into Toriko's arm. He looked at her, "What! What did it taste like? Tell me!" She put her hands over her face as she laughed uncontrollably, "I'm just so happy. Don't look at me, I must look hideous hahahaha!" She lowered her hands and exposed her overjoyed face.
Her smile stretched from ear to ear, literally. Toriko frowned "Why are you looking like that?" Her face turned red, "I just, I feel blissful you know. The soup was amazing." The bluenette stood her upright, "You better not forget those ingredients." She shook her head, "No way. I couldn't forget if I tried. When I get back, I'm going straight to my kitchen." She staggered to her feet, "That feeling I had. I want everyone to experience it." Teppei looked up, "You guys feel that, there's a powerful energy that just landed." Toriko nodded, "We should get out of here. We probably couldn't handle another fight." Zongeh pointed to an exit, "Let's go through this way! I call it the Zongeh exit." Match pointed down the same path, "I feel a draft coming through this way, it's probably near an exit." Éclair smiled, "Good eye Match." They rushed toward the exit leaving Zongeh to throw a fit. The blond girl looked over at Match, "I'm glad you're okay." Her face turned red and she looked away. The scarred man noticed she was purposely avoiding eye contact and he focused on her until she looked back at him. "Thank you Éclair, I'm glad you're okay too. You risked just as much as we did to try and get the soup." The girl smiled, "Well I wouldn't say just as much, but I did give it all I got."
The light at the end of the tunnel could finally be spotted. The blond girl pointed, "Look! We're home free!" The adrenaline pushed them faster toward the exit and the cool outdoor breeze hit them. Éclair jumped up and down on the ice, "I never thought I'd be happy to see this view again! We're saved, we're~" "Where's the ship?" The girl's face fell as Match reminded her that their only ride left them on the frozen tundra. Éclair picked up a piece of fallen ice and threw it at Teppei, "I forgot that this moron ruined it for us!" Toriko raised an eyebrow, "Wow, you really are abusive toward Teppei. But what do you mean he ruined it?" She sighed as she sat at the edge of the cliff, "This sucks. Our suits have been bugged the whole time and once Teppei said the soup was gone that old bastard left us to die." A familiar voice spoke from the sky, "No one's gonna leave my boys to die." Éclair bushed her hair back, "I'm a girl Granny Setsu." Her eyes amplified, "Granny Setsu! What are you doing here and what are you riding in?" She laughed from the window, "Come on into my Limousine Jellyfish, all of you. ~Unless you want to be in that freezing weather still." Everyone raced inside and Éclair bounced on the fluffy insides. "It's so poofy in here. That reminds me of Cotton Candy Poof Ball." She got a bit sad as she mentioned it. Toriko frowned, "You weren't actually going to name the Wall Penguin Cotton Candy Poof Ball were you." She nodded, "Sure was."
Her slum ended quickly as she smelled a delicious aroma coming from the upper deck. She followed her nose to a lounge like area, "Granny Setsu, you made us food?" She smiled, "Eat up boys, it's meant for consumption, not to be stared at." "I'm a girl Granny Setsu! You keep saying boys. ~Oh hell, what do I care?" They all put their hands together, "I give thanks for the vast bounty this world provides. Now let's eat!" Éclair grabbed a pair of chopsticks and dipped her hand in all the food. "This is so great! I died and went to food heaven!" She noticed Match wasn't eating. He was too busy looking at his injured men. Éclair grabbed a bowl of stew and handed it to the man, "Eat up Match. It'll make you feel better." She smiled as she grabbed the spoon, "You don't want me to baby feed it to you do ya? If you don't eat, I'll do it." He chuckled at her enthusiasm and took a bite from the spoon. She handed the man the spoon and smiled, "I think you've got it from here."
She picked up a skewer and walked to one of the windows in the limousine, "Thank you, Ice Hell. You have not only taught me patience, but endurance, and strength. You have given me new friendships and strengthened old ones. Most of all, you taught me that 100% perfection is not possible. Failure is only failure if you give it power, but if you push through, it becomes a strength you learn from. For that, I give humble thanks." She heard the sound of hands clapping, it was Toriko. "You really know how to monologue." Her face turned bright red as her embarrassment illuminated, "Uh, how do you keep hearing these things. I'm taking quietly! ~Well, now I'm not."
She poked Toriko's arm with the skewer, "What are you gonna do about the missing arm thing?" "Granny Setsu's taking us to the healing country, Life. We'll be in good hands there." He rubbed the back of the girl's head, "At least you aren't bleeding anymore, but you could use some work too. You took a pretty hard blow." She shook her head, "Tempting, it is, but I can't. I have a kitchen singing my name." "Singing it?" She grinned largely, "Ever since I ate that Jewel Meat my tongue had definitely become more golden." She sighed, "I feel like I have so much on my plate, I have so many people to make this soup for. I promised you I'd get you the Century Soup, and Toriko, I don't break my promises. I intend to work on this 'round the clock." She looked at the group, "Not only that, I have to make it for those hungry kids too. That means so much to me." Toriko snickered, "I'm sure it does, and it helps that it'll put you in good graces with Match huh?" She folded her arms, "You speak like that again, and you'll be missing that other arm."
"We're here!" Granny Setsu excitedly yelled out as they were landing in the healing country. Éclair looked out the window again, "Aww, I must make the soup. I must make the soup. I must make the soup. Stupid tempting country Life. I wish I could stay here, but I know that's not possible." Red and blue butterflies filled the Limousine Jellyfish and Éclair swirled around in them, "They're so pretty. But why are they here?" Specific butterflies were landing on people. Granny Setsu looked at the confused girl, "Red butterflies mean the patient is in need of urgent care, blue means the injury isn't that bad, and both means they're on the brink of death." She scanned the room and it was only red butterflies landing. She felt fluttering on the back of her head and shouted, "What color is it? Please tell me I'm not gonna die!" Toriko nudged the girl, "It's just a blue butterfly, calm down. You'll be fine." The group started to exit the Jellyfish and Éclair waved, "I hope you get healed up good and fast. I will have a soup for you, don't you worry." She ran to the bluenette and wrapped her arms around him, "Please be careful Toriko. Get some rest and make sure you call me when you're better. All of you call me. I want to know your progress." Setsuno walked over to the young chef, "I can see how serious you are about recreating this dish, so I will drop you off at the hotel myself." "Thank you Granny Setsu."
It was a mildly long belly filled ride back to the hotel, but they finally made it. Éclair walked down the stairs of the Limousine Jellyfish and Setsuno laughed. "Hnh hnh, aren't you forgetting someone?" The tiny Wall Penguin raced down the stairs to get to her. She opened her wingspan and let the little ball of joy jump right in. "You were in there the whole time? Well, since you're here, I may as well keep you."
Setsuno walked alongside the girl into the hotel. Everyone stopped what they were doing to glance at the national treasure. Éclair's boss yelled, "Someone wait on this lady, we have the living legend in our hotel!" She shook her head, "It's alright, I'm getting ready to skedaddle anyway." Éclair turned to her, "You certain? Please, let me repay you for all you've done with my own cooking. Though I haven't done it in a long time, I'll give you dinner and a show. I haven't sung for my customers in years, but for you Granny Setsu, I don't mind at all." She laughed, "Éclair, you're such a wonderful young lady. If you want to repay me, hurry and make the Century Soup." She smiled, "Aww, you addressed me as a girl again. And okay! I will do it! You can count on me!"
Once she actually got in front of her kitchenware, she started to recollect on the ingredients Granny Setsu used in her soup. "Silk Chicken Bones, Sirloin Onion. What else did she have? Well let's start with what I know. As soon as she fired up the stove, she was lost for words. Better yet, she was lost for lyrics. "That's weird, I've never had a song just NOT come to me while I'm cooking. I heard the melody so clear back in Ice Hell, but I'm not getting anything. Not to worry, I can cook without a song." She started putting ingredients into the pot and starting up her broth. She exhaled forcefully, "Five minutes into the kitchen and I'm already dying a little." She looked down, "So much is riding on this, how can I fail?"
Hours and days passed. The more ingredients she put in, the better the soup tasted, but it wasn't nearly transparent yet. "Come on soup! Let's see, what else do I need?" She wiped the sweat from her face, "I know this. I know exactly what the soup tasted like. My preparation must be wrong. I need more ingredients too. Cotton Candy Poof Ball, I'm gonna put you in my hotel room for a bit okay? I need to visit the World Market. I need more ingredients."
She walked around the bustling World Market and her mind was focused on one thing, making that soup. She pulled out her wallet, "Looks like living on a budget is an understatement, but money issues will just have to wait on the back burners. I'd rather be poor than fail." She saw a large stack of cash placed in her hand. "And I'd rather you be wealthy and successful." She knew that hard accent from a mile away. "Vanilla!" She hugged her baby sister, "How did you know I'd be here?" "I didn't. I planned to spend that cash on more exotic rice, but something far more important came." Éclair looked at the money in her hand, "I don't know what to say, this is one of the nicest things~" "Anyone has ever done for you, blah, blah, blah, cliché. Don't mention it. Us Reinbou's have to look out for each other. Just make sure you give me a call when it's done." The blond looked at her sister confusingly, "When it's done?" "Oh so you weren't planning to share with your baby sis? Please Clair, I live in Gourmet Town. I have connections. I knew what you were up to from the second you left my shop. Give me a call when it's done. I want to see what I just invested in." Éclair kissed her sister's hand, "You invested in a goldmine. I won't let you down Vanilla."
She raced back to the kitchen with all of the ingredients in her arms. "Okay, so that money got me everything I needed. Time to get dirty again." She rolled up her sleeves and noticed the kitchen door open, "Oh Cotton Candy Poof Ball, as much as I'd love to give you the attention you deserve, I need to concentrate on this soup. So much weight is on my shoulders little guy. I'm sorry." He backed out without a question and it made her feel somewhat sad that she denied him, but the top priority was the soup. She started chopping the ingredients, "Plumb Onions, Gold Carrots, what else? Cubed Pepper." She smelled the soup in front of her, "It smells so good, a taste?" She slipped the appetizing soup, "It's good, but it's not right yet. Not even close. It needs shellfish, but not just any, I've gotta get this right."
A few weeks came and went as she attempted to perfect the soup. It was tiring when all she could think of day in and day out was the Century Soup. "Toriko and the others are still counting on me. This has to get done." She mixed liquor and spices into the blend, but it still wasn't right. "I feel like I'm on the brink of insanity here. This is the longest and hardest I have ever worked on a dish. Not to mention it's the longest I've went without speaking to Toriko. My stress level is beyond 10." The tiny pink furry opened the door with a growling stomach. "You know what Poof Ball, let's go grab a bite to eat. I'm hungry too. I've been working so hard on this I forgot to eat and take care of myself."
She sat alongside her furry friend outside of a small burger establishment. She sighed, "I just wish I could be done with the soup yesterday. It just sucks that everyone is counting on me. ~I'm counting on me. I think I'm putting the most pressure on myself." She took a bite of the burger, "This is so good huh Poof Ball?" The small bird gave her a reassuring grin. "I can't think of anything but that soup. It's consuming me. I'm just so tense. Do you think I can do it?" The small bird waddled over to the girl and gave her a tight hug around her leg. Éclair smiled, "You think so? Thanks for cheering me up little one. Your confidence in my cooking is more than enough to get me back into the kitchen!"
It had been three long tiring months since the woman started. Her soup was getting even better as each day passed, but it was still not right. She tasted the food before her, "It's just not right. What am I doing wrong? Better yet, what did Granny Setsu do?" She rubbed her chin as she thought back. "She used ingredients from the past, but she put her own spin on it if I'm correct. That's what I have to do. I can't think about recreating the legendary Century Soup. I have to make the first generation of Éclair Reinbou's Century Soup. I'll use modern ingredients of my own choice to make the soup. I want this to be authentic!" She scraped the soup and started over again. She heard the same melody from Ice Hell and she cocked her head. "Isn't that peculiar? Hmm, I need to make a call."
She stood outside of Setsuno's diner and the old woman opened her doors. "Éclair, it's about time you came by here." "Thanks for seeing me. I just feel so lost." She walked in and took a seat at the counter, "Granny Setsu, I haven't told anyone this, but I haven't cried since my parents died 9 years ago. But this soup ~Granny Setsu this soup. I haven't been closer to the brink of tears than I am right now. I feel like it's a never ending hallway of trial and tribulations. Please, taste my soup. Help me, tell me what I'm missing." The old woman tasted as small spoonful and her face looked shocked. The blond girl look down, "Am I that far off? How long did it take you to complete the soup?" "Hnh hnh, let's see. It took me about 30 years." Éclair pulled her hair stressfully, "I'm afraid if it takes me that long I'm not going to have any hair left! If it took you 30 that means it'll take a chef like me around 60, and that's only if I'm half as good."
She packed up the soup, "Thanks for tasting the soup Granny Setsu, this was ~eye opening." The woman smiled, "Éclair, remember what I said about food choosing you. Keep an ear out for what they're saying." "Thank you very much. I'm heading back to my kitchen right now. This soup is like a needle in my side. It's not going away until I do something about it. I will finish the soup, I just, I need to relax."
Éclair raced back to her kitchen and scraped everything. "I need to start over. I need to listen." She grabbed her knife again and her eyes amplified. She perceived a sound that she'd not heard in three months. "The melody, I can hear the melody of the ingredients. I can hear the words." She grabbed her choice of ingredients and began. "You're a one of a one, a one of a kind that you only find once in a lifetime." She stopped her song, "Is that what the soup was telling me? I-I just needed to listen." Hours passed and the transparent soup was right in front of her. She had a small sip and she cracked a smile, "Tastes exactly like Granny Setsu's. But just like hers, something is missing. One last ingredient. I just need to have a eureka moment already." She looked at the door, "Hey Poof Ball, mama's on the verge of discovery."
She waved the penguin in, "Come in, I don't mind. I just feel like I'm so close, yet so far. Let me fix you a bowl. Tell me if you like it, but please, spare my feelings. I've worked hard on it you know." She set a bowl of the soup before the penguin. The girl sat down and pet the little guys head. "Good to see my soup makes you drool. Makes me sweat like a pig." She watched as the small drop of drool fell into the bowl. What happened next was something she could never predict. The colors of an ancient curtain had been lifted. She gasped as a tear rolled down her face for the first time in years, "Eureka."