Nouvelle

by Zancrow

{Soma / Erina} Akira challenges Erina to her Elite Ten Seat; forcing the heiress to accept the help of Soma if she wishes to remain in power. So why does this forced partnership, initially extremely hostile, seem like the perfect recipe neither of them knew they needed? [Slow-Burn] [ft. Ryou/Alice, Aki/Megu, Taku/Hisa, Eishi/Rin, Isshi/Nene] ((26/28: The Yukihira Solution))

25. The Eizan Conspiracy

Rating: T+

Pairing: Soma/Erina

Genre: Otherwise known as "Erina Nakiri's Confessions of a Rebellious Princess".

Notes (Zancrow – Author):

Hello everyone! Zancrow here!

We are nearing the end! With this Chapter out, we only have three (3) more chapters left! So as we prepare for the climax of this seemingly never-ending story; I still want to take the time to thank each and every one who has supported this story thus far. Especially fellow "Shokugeki no Soma" writers who still take the time to follow up on my version of events, seriously, thank you. Also, special shout-out to Destroyman, who has read my stories since I first started posting here, from "Baka & Test", "My Hero Academia", and of course "Shokugeki no Soma". Seriously dude, you rock!

Trivia (3 / 5):

I have a Word Document filled with research for this story. It has a character sheet, pairing list, story summary / synopsis, chapter lists and even a Shokugeki list with the would-be results. It's about fourteen (14) pages long, and (as of this writing) the character sheet features about 151 different named characters (105 from the actual manga, anime or spin-offs; while the other 46 are Original Characters (OCs)). Quite a few of those have not appeared in "Nouvelle" yet and probably won't, but they're there for a reason. I'll explain more of that later, but regarding those OCs, I was initially very hesitant to add them. Why? Because I'm not a fan of OCs, like, at all. But I felt I needed different characters than what the canon source provided, and in time, I grew to understand why writers add OCs to their stories. You grow to care for them. From Yukichiko, to Kotaru, to Ava, to Julius, to even Fukuzawa; I feel I could not have told this story as well as I did without them to help move the plot along.

Disclaimer: Don't own Shokugeki no Soma.

---

"And now, judges, please state your results!" the host for the 41st Annual Autumn Elections announced as the audience became even more engrossed by the concluding match. It had been an event like no other, most of them agreed, and they were almost equally divided on who they believed would walk away with the illustrious crown.

"Seems like we caused quite a stir," a fifteen year old Rindou noted, her sharp eyes scanning the auditorium.

"I don't think it's a "we" thing," an equally fifteen year old Eishi countered, "It's not every day that students see an actual fruit bat get cooked up into a soup."

"How else was I supposed to make my version of Paniki without one?" she asked, completely missing the point of Eishi's comment. She was so used to experimenting with her exotic ingredients that she tended to forget that most people were not.

"…And then you gave it a weird name," Eishi added.

"Hey!" Rindou defended. "How could I cook Paniki and not make a Batman reference? If I were a judge, I'd take a point off right then and there if it wasn't named like that!"

"…Right," Eishi replied, his expression more bemused than anything. Ever since he first met this girl, he couldn't help but be constantly shocked by her behavior, which seemed to come as natural as breathing to her. Then again, he never in is life had had more fun cooking than when he was in a kitchen next to her. Opposites attract for a reason it seemed, even if that opposite named her dishes as "The Dark Paniki Rises" of all things.

"But, hey," Rindou spoke up, and it caused Eishi to stammer back a bit as he noticed that she had edged closer to him without him even noticing. Too close really. "With this, if you win, it means you're one step closer to your goal. You could end up in B.L.U.E.!"

"…You think?"

As the judges went back and forth on which of the Autumn Election's finalists deserved the title of champion, the runner-ups looked on from up in the audience. They were fully invested in the results, but not for the same reasons as the rest of the audience was. They wanted to know who they would declare an open challenge to once this event was over, in order to reclaim the dignity they had "lost" when they were defeated… By crushing the undefeated victor.

"I didn't expect it to be such a tight race," Soumei noted, standing alongside his fellow students. He turned to the side to face his fellow Autumn Election competitor, the petite Momo, who was clenching onto her toy Bucchi in apparent frustration. "Hey, beansprout, still mad about losing to Eishi in the semis, or that the judges thought you were in your first year of middle school?"

She shot him a glare as soon as he asked.

"Ah… middle school comment it is," he answered his own question.

"…It's not that," she defended, and he was surprised she actually took the time to speak at all. Ever since the school year had started, he had not once heard her utter a single word to any fellow student. She wasn't actually silent, per say, but her voice was usually reserved for judges, or teachers, or would-be customers.

"Oh, finally gracing me with the honor of a conversation I see," he mocked politeness, even if he knew this could shut her off completely and result in her never talking to him again. He should have probably thought this through a little bit more, since he actually liked the sound of her voice.

"I would have beaten him if our theme had been desserts," she added, and he was surprised. Seems he hadn't fully screwed up with her, rather, he seemed to have awakened her fighting spirit.

"Yeah, I can relate," he replied. "I was the one who ended up getting desserts as a theme against Rindou in the semi-finals after all, and it was not pretty. I guess people like us are not all that used to defeat after all."

"Hmm…" was all Momo managed to mutter.

"And I'd say that goes double for him," Soumei added, his attention drifting towards the end of the row they were seated, where the student who had scored highest in the preliminaries, Tosuke, sat. He had his eyes glued to the match-up, his fingers curled up into fists, as if wanting to challenge both Eishi and Rindou right then and there. "…Despite being a clear favorite, he lost in the first round to Tsukasa. That's gotta hurt."

"Hmm…" Momo repeated, her eyes still fixated upon the future First Seat.

Then the audience went wild as the result were displayed on the big screen.

"I cannot believe this!" the host declared as the entire auditorium began to cheer and applaud in equal measure. "This year's Autumn Election Champion is none other than…"

"Eishi," he heard his name be called out, causing him to turn his attention back to the conversation at hand. He was in an important meeting with Fukuzawa Eizan after all; it would be in his best intentions not to start daydreaming. "Did you understand what I meant?"

"O-Of course," the First Seat lied.

"Very well then," the ever stern Fukuzawa voiced, before he moved to pull out a sealed envelope from his briefcase seated on his desk. Eishi had failed to hear the last few words Fukuzawa had told him, but he more or less figured what the envelope was. Or rather, what it contained. Even so, despite knowing its contents, he couldn't help but be outright surprised when he was handed the invitation. "Congratulations are in order, I suppose," Fukuzawa added, in what was probably the driest congratulations Eishi had ever received in his life.

"I, yes, thank you," he told him, despite him feeling anything but grateful. He turned the envelope over, grasping it in his hand cautiously, as if the letter itself was going to hurt him. In a way, in probably was.

B.L.U.E.

The big letters read the name of the event to end all other events, the final goal of many would-be chefs and aspiring gourmet aficionados. The Bishoku Leading Under-35 Entrance was known worldwide, and simply getting invited was a career highlight. But getting an invitation before graduating high school? That was completely unheard off. Well, almost unheard off.

"You have earned it after all," Fukuzawa followed, noticing how silent Eishi had become. "So as promised, I moved the Earth itself to get you into that competition. It may be still a bit until it's time for it, almost a year in fact, but with this you have your position secured. Just as you secured our Tootsuki sponsorship."

"Of course, I am… grateful," Eishi replied, and he tried his best to believe in his own words.

The conversation ended shortly afterwards. Fukuzawa had a lot of things to get done before the Stuffed International's Grand Hiei Gourmet Fest began, which was just around the corner, and they had important guests stated to start arriving within the hour, so he needed all the time he could get to himself and his business. Eishi understood, so he wasn't too offended when he was shooed away like a little kid after receiving his gift for good behavior.

Eishi made his way out of the office and down the many halls of Stuffed International, completely lost in thought. He still held the letter, flicking it in between his fingers, trying to convince himself that it had been fully earned. That he deserved to be invited.

He continued to walk aimlessly until he came face-to-face with fellow classmate and the Third Seat of Tootsuki, the silent Tosuke Megishima. Tosuke was busy glancing down at his phone, his back rested against the wall, his expression one of complete concentration.

'…Should I?' Eishi asked himself, stopping for a moment. 'It is what friends would do, right?'

Tosuke seemed to notice Eishi just outright stopping on his tracks and beginning to stare directly at him, causing the taller young man to pause his activities and face the First Seat. "Eishi…" he began, causing the latter to tense up without really knowing why. "Something up?"

"Uh, yeah, actually," Eishi began, trying to gather his composure and sound completely calm. "I was just notified of something, take a look," he told Tosuke, as he pulled the envelope up, allowing the big, bright letters of the "B.L.U.E." logo to show. "It seems I caught their eye."

"That's…" For once, Tosuke's voice carried some emotion, which surprised Eishi. The young man had sounded honestly surprised, but could Eishi blame him? Who wouldn't be? "So you got an invite to BLUE? Can't say I'm all that surprised. If anyone has a chance there, it's you. Congratulations."

Second driest congratulations.

Was this becoming a trend?

"Uh… thanks," Eishi replied, feeling that maybe he should just hide the invite and wait until a better moment to tell everyone the "good" news.

"Have you told her yet?" As soon as Tosuke asked, Eishi froze. Tosuke didn't have to elaborate for Eishi to understand who he meant. Her. The girl that had been climbing up the ranks alongside him from the start. The strongest and craziest chef he had even faced in his life, and the one person who would be able to read him like a book without any effort. The one person who already suspected something, hence why she had been giving him the cold shoulder all these past few days.

"I… well…" Eishi began.

"You haven't, have you?" Tosuke asked, his eyes narrowed as if he were scolding his fellow seated member.

"Well, you see, I just got the invite about a few minutes ago, and, well, I was going to, but I bumped into you and I-" Eishi stammered thought an explanation, of sorts, all the while Tosuke nodded in understanding. Or in frustration, Eishi couldn't tell.

But his train of barely coherent words were soon interrupted by a blood-curling scream, which echoed through the halls like a phantom realizing it had been condemned to the darkest pits of hell itself. It causes Eishi to outright jump, and even the usually unflinching Tosuke was taken by surprised. The two boys quickly made their way towards the source of the scream, both as fast as their legs could carry them.

Had a student been hurt? Burned? Cut a thumb clean off?

Was someone choking? Having an allergic reaction?

They had all been given classes on what to do during such cases, but neither could say they were fully prepared for it.

Or was it an actual ghost? Given the way the scream had sounded, it wouldn't be that farfetched if such was the case.

So they ran, and reached the kitchen were the sound had come from in record time. Tosuke pushed the door open as if it were made of paper, outright breaking it off the hinges and launching it to the floor, as Eishi followed closely behind.

They were not met with the sight of blood. Nor were they met with the sight of anyone burned, cut, choking or otherwise in pain or stress.

They were met by Rindou, on the floor, looking horribly flushed and heavily out of breath that her expression was outright erotic in a way. She was gasping for air, pulling onto her collar in an effort to regain some air. Both Eishi and Tosuke were at a total loss as to what was even happening.

"Ah, I'd call that a success," a voice spoke up from behind the two, causing both students to turn and face the one responsible for her current condition. One dopey looking Soma. "Granted, I didn't expect to get almost squashed by a door, but that's a risk all chefs have to take… I think."

"You?" Eishi began, noticing how Soma seemed somewhat pleased by the chaos he had somehow caused. "What were you two even doing in here?"

"…And what is that horrendous smell?" Tosuke asked, covering his nose as a surge of something horrid went right up his nostrils and cleared his sinuses in the worst way imaginable. Once Tosuke said it, Eishi couldn't un-smell it, causing the white-haired youth to also cover his nose it a vain effort to keep his lungs clean.

"Oh, that, that's my challenge to her!" Soma declared as he pointed to the fallen Rindou, sounding outright proud of whatever biohazard he had concocted. "See, here they are!" Soma then pulled out a tray of something so frightening it made both third years turn pale. "These are the cockroaches my opponent there had used, and in turn I took a syringe and stuffed my squid tentacles with peanut butter, then stuffed the tentacles into the cockroach, then stuffed that into cookie batter and baked it for a bit. The end result? This little beauties here! I call them the "Stuffed Cookieroaches! Get it? Stuffed? Because of-"

"I get it! Enough, please, I beg you, shut up," Eishi quickly interjected as he shut Soma's voice completely off and turned to Rindou. "Rin, seriously? Are you really messing around at a time like this?"

"Ah, I gotta give props to the boy," she said, standing back up despite looking as if her knees were still a bit weak. "That was absolutely horrifying to eat, but for some reason, I almost tempted to eat another bite. That takes talent, I'll admit."

"You finally found someone as crazy as you," Tosuke intersected, which earned him a thumbs up from Rindou.

"Yep!" Rindou proudly stated. "And I have to be careful, otherwise this kid will leave me in the dust. He's something else."

"It wasn't m-"

"Rin, you can't be serious," Eishi interrupted Soma's catchphrase, earning himself an unseen pout from the boy which lasted a lot longer than it had any right to. "We have important guests to tend to in less than an hour, actually, less than half an hour by now. Why are you wasting time with this boy?"

"You mean, why am I not sucking up to the big boys to further my own career? Is that it? Is that what you want me to do?" she replied in a tone so serious even Soma was caught off guard. The tension shifted so quickly, as both Eishi and Rindou stared each other down, the former's hand clenching onto the envelope he had forgotten he had left at full display.

"That's uncalled for," Eishi replied.

"Is it really?" she shot back, as Eishi flinched. He was utterly unprepared to handle Rindou when she was outright mad at him. It rarely ever happened, and when it did, it was for dumb reasons that made sense only to her. Now? He half agreed with her, and it irked him even more.

"I worked for this invite," he began. "I struggled for it, just like we swore to do. Having connections is part of how a chef operates. What is Tootsuki Academy if not just another name in our resume? What is the Stagiaire is not another reference to use? Like it or not, this is how adults achieve their goals, not simply doing our best in order to achieve our dreams. That doesn't cut it out here."

"Oh, big words for someone hiding behind big people," she said, laughing a bit. "I know you better than that Eishi. Don't try to prove your point to yourself by voicing it against me."

"That's not what I'm-"

"Then what's this then?" she interrupted, her tone angrier. "Are you proud? You got invited to BLUE, of all things, shouldn't you be jumping for joy or something? Shouldn't that reflect itself on your cooking at least? Don't you get it? If you go to BLUE as you are now, you'll be squashed! We promised each other to devour anyone and anything in our way to the top, but right now, as you are, there's no way you can accomplish that!"

"You think I'm actually losing my way?" he asked, clenching his fist so hard he crumpled the letter. "My cooking has only gotten better. I'm doing what needs to be done, Rindou, or have you forgotten, I am the First Seat after all." And as soon as he spoke those words, he instantly regretted them.

"All right, that's it, I'm sick of this back and forth," she declared, taking a step forwards, hands in her pockets, standing up to Eishi, both of them merely inches apart. "Care to wager that?"

"…Are you…!"

"Am I what?" she asked, her eyes outright glowing. "If you really think you can buy your way to BLUE, then you'd certainly have no problem in protecting your seat from someone who has never attempted to take it from you."

"Rin… Let's not," he paused, looking to the side. He noticed Tosuke was averting his gaze, deciding his phone was once again the more interesting alternative. Eishi felt betrayed. He then looked at Soma, who seemed way more invested in their conversation than he had any right to be. "…We can't do this, not now. Let's calm down, and focus on this event. I-we can talk about this later… I don't want to argue with you."

"…Neither do I," she voiced, earnestly. "But I feel like I don't know you anymore. I… I can't lose the Eishi I know, the one who promised me everything I've been fighting for; for as long as I can remember. So if this is what it takes, then so be it."

"But we really can't, not now," Eishi explained. "We have our duties. We can't just have a Shokugeki of all things right now."

"Hey!" Soma barked. "What about my match against you all?"

"That… doesn't really count," Eishi answered, causing Soma to glare at the young man, feeling outright ignored.

Then it hit him. He remembered Erina's words. How she had been clear that he needed a strategy for his plan to work. And how he needed the Elite Ten's support. It was the reason why he had challenged them in the first place, despite how poorly thought out it really was. He was sure Erina would get everything he would need on her end, so he needed to do the same. 'So, for her sake, for once in your life, swallow your pride Yukihira,' he told himself as he steeled himself. 'Take advantage of the situation, and use this. Use this to get back to Tootsuki. To get back to her!'

"Maybe it doesn't," Soma began, causing all three seniors to pause and turn to the boy, whose tone sounded a lot more composed than they had expected. "But it is a challenge all the same. If you guys can accept mine, surely you two can go at it without any problems. In fact, we could even combine the two."

"Pardon?" Eishi asked, already a bit annoyed by this kid's insistence at butting in. More-so, at how much Rindou seemed to have bonded with him, which he'd never admit to anyone.

"What do you mean Soma?" Rindou asked, using his name for what seemed like the first time, which irked Eishi even more, even if he refused to show it.

"Simple," Soma explained, "Some time ago, I had a disagreement with Master Chef Shinomiya, regarding a schoolmate of mine, so I challenged him to a Shokugeki, which then-"

"Shinomiya!" Eishi spoke up, eyes wide. "You did what?"

"Umm, Soma, that's not something you can just drop on people like an afterthought," Rindou added, also surprised.

Tosuke said nothing, but his attention was once again fixated upon the conversation instead of his phone, his game of "Duel Links" on stand-by.

"Uh, yeah, guess I skipped a lot of context there," Soma sheepishly admitted, rubbing the back of his head a bit. "Anywho, that's not really important. You see-"

'…It really should be…' his seniors all thought.

"-since Tadokoro, my friend by the way, was in the middle of it all, she also had a challenge against Shinomiya, so we ended up combining both challenges in a way," Soma explained, even if the actual events did not happen like he was actually telling it. But they didn't need to know that. "Shinomiya had Tadokoro teamed up with me, as he assistant chef, against him in order to prove her worth to remain at Tootsuki. And she did, just in case any of you were worried."

"Did you two…?" Eishi began.

"…Actually defeat…?" Rindou followed.

"…Shinomiya…?" Tosuke concluded.

Soma paused, giving the trio a knowing smirk.

They were all shocked beyond belief.

"Heck no!" Soma admitted, causing all three to want to smack him right then and there. "We lost, badly. I'm still a bit sour about that, so let's also skip that part. What I do want to focus on, though, is the challenge itself. Why don't we test that theory out, First Seat," Soma continued, turning to face his senior. "With my senior Rindou as my assistant chef, if I can beat you guys, if I can beat you, then we can prove her point and mine as well."

"That's the most utterly-" Eishi began, but he was cut by Rindou.

"Oh, that's right, we did agree to that, didn't we?" Rindou beamed, her tone doing a 180 and sounding characteristically chipper all the sudden.

"Huh?" both Soma and Eishi voiced simultaneously. Rindou simply smiled.

"The kid here does have an open challenge against us all, so I'll squeeze my own challenge in with him," she seemed to agree. "That way, we can both get a shot at ya. What do you say to that, Mr. "I'm-so-elite-I-no-longer-need-to-uphold-childhood-promises", huh?"

"You don't seriously think that as an assistant chef you could possibly win this," Eishi meant it as a question, but it came out as a statement. He knew what the result would be. It would simply serve to humiliate her, and he didn't want that.

"I do," she corrected. "And Eishi, don't refuse this, alright?"

He paused, eyeing the girl, before he nodded. If it meant that much to her, if she was that worried, then he had no choice but to prove her wrong, even if it meant crushing her. And the young Yukihira boy as well.

"…Agreed."

"Peachy then!" she exclaimed as she went back to her usual high spirits, which he was sure was purely acted at this point. "So, Soma, let's get down towards the main kitchen and get ready! We have a lot to cook and the guests are almost here. I can't wait to see Momo's face when I go in there with you!"

As Rindou talked, she practically carried Soma away, who had the face of a man who had no idea if he had taken the correct strategy or not but was now stuck with his decision. Eishi and Tosuke remained behind, with Tosuke doing the only sensible thing and immediately throwing the cookieroaches to the nearest trash.

"She really can't be bargained with when she sets her eyes on something, can she?" Eishi voiced, not sure whether at Tosuke or at himself.

"…Indeed," Tosuke replied, his attention elsewhere. "Still, for what it's worth, I'm excited to see a rematch between you two. Seems like it's been a lifetime ago."

"Yeah…" Eishi agreed. "The Autumn Election."

"That boy is this year's runner-up as well," Tosuke added, before he turned to Eishi, whose expression was utterly unreadable. "…Just like you were."

Eishi said nothing.

-0-

"Word out on the campus," the second year Tootsuki student, Rentaro Kusunoki, spoke up, his tone oozing with mockery, "Is that a few members of the Elite Ten are doing something inappropriate. There's no way that would be true, now would it?"

"Define inappropriate," Alice instructed with a tone very much matching his own.

"Milady, don't encourage them," Ryou added.

"What? It's a valid request."

"Valid as it may be, you're not one who should need a refresher in things like the policies governing our system implemented by your own family, princess," Mea replied.

"Oh my, calling me a princess and everything," Alice faked astonishment, "If we're roleplaying and everything, shouldn't you at least wait until you're spoken to before you speak? I mean, compared to me, you'd be a plebeian, correct?"

"She would indeed be," Erina added just before Mea opened her mouth to reply, adding her own spice of sarcasm to their conversation. "But that aside, as you can all clearly see, we were just in the middle of finishing up a few practice duels. There may be a few leftovers around, somewhere, but do note that I charge even for my leftovers."

"She's just as stuck up as everyone says," Rui spoke softly.

"What was that sweetie?" Erina turned to the other blonde girl in the room. "You spoke too low."

"What are you four trying to get at?" Akira intercepted before things got even tenser. He knew of these students, at least in passing. How annoying they could be, and he didn't have time for that. "If you wish to speak about inappropriate conduct, please take it to a teacher or higher. However, I'd advise against it, given as to how the students you seem inclined to accuse are made up of four Elite Ten members and the two Tootsuki heiresses. So I wouldn't waste my time, if I were you."

The rebellious first years stared down their upperclassmen, each of them as serious as they could be. The Rentaro burst out laughing.

"Oh man, you first years always take things way too seriously," he commented, throwing his arm around Mea and Rui, pulling both girls closer to him. "We're just messing with all of ya, not much we could do even if you were putting on an unofficial Shokugeki with the intent of causing trouble down the line. Not that you would, of course."

"Never in a million years," Isshiki added, coming forwards with Nene and Kuga following closely behind. "It was a thrilling match, however, you should have seen it Rentaro. How very unfortunate we are not allowed to actually wager anything unless it's approved, would have made for a terrific Shokugeki, though."

"Why am I not surprised to see you in here Isshiki?" the tattooed classmate of Isshiki told him.

"Now why would that be?"

A worried Megumi turned to Isshiki, wondering how serious this confrontation would get, but was shocked by the sight just right behind them all. 'All the evidence of the Shokugeki…' she realized, 'was completely cleaned up! How on Earth did Isshiki manage that so quickly?'

"You four," Nene added, her tone firm and proper as if she were questioning them. "You've accepted to take part of the upcoming Hiei event, correct?"

"…That's correct," Shigemichi finally spoke up, surprising even his own classmates on how mellow a tone he took.

"First time I've ever hear Kumai speak," Kuga said. "And believe me, we take English together, and not once have I heard him utter a single syllable. Guess this competition has you excited, huh big guy?"

"…Yes."

"…It shows."

"But why are you asking Kinokuni? I'm sure Eizan already sent you all the list of students participating," Mea told her, as she elbowed Rentaro on the ribs in order to make it clear she did not want his arms to stay over her shoulders.

"Just to confirm, been hearing a few things going on around that have a few students in distress."

"Oh dear."

"He's doing what!?"

All the students froze at the sudden shout, but rather than because of its suddenness, they were surprised by the user. The ever prime and proper Erina Nakiri had just screamed right out of nowhere, as she stared at her phone with her eyes insanely wide open and her hand now covering her mouth, a small blush on her face.

"Oh, apologies," she mouthed. "I-I totally forgot I had to meet a client, like, right now, so I'll just be excusing myself."

And she ran right passed all of them.

"Milady, wait!" Hisako said as she trailed behind her, with both girls running out of the burrowed auditorium in a haste. The rest of the students just looked on, half of them having no idea what had just transpired, and the other half probably guessing the "client" was none other than a certain redhead chef currently doing something risky or stupid.

Or probably both.

-0-

Soma was somewhat surprised when he first passed through the special dining room prepared for their special guests and saw that it had been set up for no more than nine or ten people. He had long grown accustomed to serving massive amounts of people at a time, the only exception to this being the time his food was to be judged in a Shokugeki by three to five experts on the culinary arts. He had assumed that this party, given the amount of staff at hand, was meant to appease to at least thirty individuals, but it seemed like Roberts had wanted to spare no expense to wow his precious, if few guests.

Soma took a peek from behind the slightly opened door that divided the kitchen and the dining area, curious as to who his future "customers" would be. They had slowly begun to arrive and had been lead through the halls into their designated room, and that made Soma anxious to begin.

He even saw how his new friend Honda had been the one to lead the last person inside, and despite how utterly a mess that boy had seemed before, he carried himself properly when he needed to.

"Nervous?"

"A little," Soma answered, then paused. He turned his head to his side, noticing the Third Seat of Tootsuki standing beside him. "Oh, Megishima, my bad man, didn't see you standing there."

"…I see," the elder boy replied. "You were on that cruise ship, right? So you must have at least seen her."

Tosuke Megishima signaled to the guest Honda had just brought inside. Soma gave a focused look.

"Hmm…" he pondered out loud, feeling as if he should know the answer. "She seems familiar, but I can't put a name to that face."

"That's Yunko Aizawa," Tosuke replied. "The Captain of the Luxury Cruise Hiei."

"Oh!" Soma clapped his hands in delight. "The Captain is here too? Perfect, never did get a chance to serve her our food back there!"

"You seem overly confident."

"Not really," Soma said, his tone much more sincere than Tosuke had expected. Guess he had gotten too used to overly cocky people than he had forgotten how genuine confidence sounded like. "I knew from the start how hard these was going to be, but if I want to grow in my career, I can't just stay in my comfort zone, now can I?"

"I suppose not."

"Hey, hey," Soma said as he tugged Tosuke sleeve, as if he were a small curious child, which if you really looked at it… "Who are those other people? You know?"

Tosuke shifted his vision back towards the dining area.

"That one is Makito Minatozaka," Tosuke described as a well-dressed man in his early forties made his was to his assigned seat. "He's a television producer, and someone who occasionally judges for Tootsuki."

"Ooh…"

"And those two are the Sendawara Sisters," Tosuke continued, as two blonde women were guided inside. "Orie is on the right, while Natsume is on the left. They have also judged as Tootsuki on occasions."

"Ah, I think I've been judged by one of them," Soma noted. "Can't remember which one for the life of me though."

Others who made their way inside Soma did not need an introduction to, as he had met them all before one way or another. From their host Mickey Tiberius Roberts, his father's fiend and "boss" Kaito Sakamoto, the always serious Fukuzawa Eizan, his daughter Yukichiko Eizan, and even her ex-boyfriend Julius Bedlam. He had a firm grasp on all of them, so Tosuke didn't really bother.

Until another person came in, one Soma didn't recognize.

"And her?"

"That's Anne Waltz," Tosuke replied. "She's a First Class Examiner of the World Gourmet Organization. I'm somewhat surprised she is all the way over here."

"Why'd you say that?"

"…We were expecting them at the showcase, not here."

"I see!" Soma cheerfully said, then turned his attention back to his future attendees. 'Okay, part of being a chef is treating you clients properly, so focus Soma. You have Captain Aizawa, Mr. Minatozaka, Miss Sendawara Part 1, Miss Sendawara Part 2, Miss Waltz, Mr. Sakamoto, Daddy Eizan, Sister Eizan, Julius and of course Mr. Roberts himself. That makes ten people! Although, neither Yukichiko nor Julius seem to be taking a seat… and speaking of which, isn't Kotaro coming over too? Or my dad, for that matter?'

Soma glanced down at his phone, looking at the hour, realizing it was almost time to start. He also decided to text a short message to Erina, just to let her know what he was currently up to, and to wish him luck. It read: "About to challenge Eishi Tsukasa is a Shokugeki. Wish me luck!"

He honestly didn't realize the heart attack that message would induce a mere moments later on an entirely different country than were he found himself currently.

"Well, okay, hey Megishima, thanks a lot man for helping me with knowing who's who out there!" Soma happily thanked the elder boy, as he eyed the guests. Counting the chairs, if you excluded Yukichiko and Julius, there would still be at least two people missing from the guest list.

He wondered who else would show up.

"…Not a problem," the Third Seat replied, but then had most of the color drain from his face. Soma eyed him, half curious half worried, then turned to look at where the boy was looking, right towards the door leading their guests into the dining area. There he was, guided by Second Takumi, was his dad, almost late as usual, Soma noted.

Soma turned back to Tosuke, who seemed in a state of shock.

"You okay there, or should I call a-?"

"No, it's just, someone else just came, someone we most certainly didn't expect," Tosuke replied, as the boy seemed to steady himself and regain some composure. "Are they serious though, are we expected to cook something for that man of all people to taste and judge? We should have been focusing on this instead on the employee training if that was the case."

"That man?" Soma asked, looking back to the group. "Which one of them do you mean?" Soma asked as he struggled to see who else had just arrived, wondering if his dad had his big fat head in the way or something.

"Oh, you don't know him either?" Tosuke said. "That man is Jouichirou Saiba, and he's undoubtedly one of the greatest chefs in the world. Easily Top Ten. An ex-Tootsuki alumni, he and a few other were responsible for our North American branch being awarded to us, by basically defeating their top students and winning the establishment."

"Damn, really, I didn't know that!" Soma said, surprised. Just how much did his father accomplish in that school in only three short years? "Never knew my pops was such a big deal to so many."

"No, he is," Tosuke added. "Your pops is really one of Tootsuki gre-"

Silence.

"Gre?"

"…What did you call him?"

"What? Oh, pops? I meant that as in dad. You know, father?"

"Jouichirou Saiba is your father?"

"Yeah!" Soma replied, still not properly aware of just how big of a deal such a revelation was to those within the cooking industry. "He goes by Yukihira now, though, but you can still call him Saiba if you want. He's pretty chill about it."

"Alright, everyone, show time-oh, Soma, didn't see you there," Yukichiko announced as she and Julius walked in towards the allotted kitchen, almost hitting Soma in the face with the door as she did. Soma and Tosuke took a few steps back to allow the two to enter, and soon she had the attention of the entire top half of the Elite Ten (and Soma). "You guys can start now. They are going to be having their meeting now, which should last about an hour, which in turn is how long you guys have to have things ready."

"Or at least, those of you making our main course," Julius elaborated, as Yukichiko frowned. "Have you decided how you all are doing everything?"

"We have," Eishi replied, stepping forwards. "Soumei will be taking care of the "Soup of the Day", Tosuke had the "Appetizer" dish, I follow up with the "Main Course", and Momo will of course finish with the "Dessert". We can have them all ready well within-"

"Ahem!" Rindou added. "Aren't you forgetting something?"

"Ah, well, yes," Eishi forced himself to reply. "Both Rindou and I will follow up with two main courses, as it were. We will try our hardest not to ruin our guests' appetite."

"Two?" Yukichiko asked. "Oh wait, are you seriously…?" she turned to Soma, and both he and Tosuke nodded in unison.

"So it's really come to this, huh?" Saito said, as Momo stared silently. She pulled Bucchi closer to her body, her attention focused entirely on the boy hell-bent on ruining their perfect set up since he first arrived.

"We are so ready for this!" Rindou announced before turning to Soma. "You heard the lady, we are starting now, so get your butt over here Soma! We begin our experiments no!"

"Lady!" Yukichiko repeated, insulted. "I'm like just two years or so older than you!"

As Rindou replied something that didn't really come of across as an apology in the slightest, Soma began to step forwards to go to her, but he was stopped by Tosuke, who simply voiced: "I'll admit, I didn't think much of you at first. But, if it's true what you've just said, maybe, just maybe, this little challenge will be far less one-sided than I assumed. I won't say anything to them, not yet, so rest assured."

"That's fine," Soma replied, flashing Tosuke a surprising grin he had not expected from the boy. "You can tell them anything you want. Who my father is doesn't change who I am. If you didn't think much of me, that's fair, but let my skills change your mind, not anything else. And I promise, this won't be one-sided in the least."

"A Shokugeki, was it?" Julius asked as Soma walked passed him, and the young chef nodded. "I see, but, with Mr. Roberts as the primary judge, don't hold out for any miracles. You cannot win this."

"…I've never heard that before," Soma stated with a hint of sarcasm, and before either could say anything else, his phone began to ring. The surprised redhead quickly took it out and answered, completely annoying everyone present as they had already been given the order to start cooking. "Oh, hey Erina, how hard did you crush you know who?"

"Very, but that's not the point here!" Erina shouted from the other end, loud enough for everyone else to hear her clearly.

"Is that Little Erina?" Rindou asked, recognizing the voice. "Hey Erina! Hey Soma, tell her I said "hi"!"

"Ah, Rindou says "hi"."

"Tell that annoying woman to mind her own business."

"Erina says "hi" back."

"I did not!" Erina shouted again, but decided against pushing it any further. "What are you doing? You're supposed to be getting the Elite Ten to side with you, not declaring war on them. Especially not on Tsukasa."

"That's what I'm doing," Soma protested. "It's the only way I know how to, besides, this people only speak one language, you and I both know that."

"Even so," Erina paused, and Soma could feel her uncertainty. He wasn't a stranger to the feeling at the moment either. "No, you're right. You work best when you're doing something stupid, I shouldn't be surprised by this."

"Ah, what an affectionate way to insult me."

"Mila-I mean, Erina, wait!" Soma heard Hisako out of breath on the other end. "Was all of that something regarding Soma? It was, wasn't it?"

"Of course it was, he's doing something reckless again."

"I figured," he heard Hisako reply. "Hey Soma, good luck on whatever it is you are doing!"

"Hisako wishes you "good luck", as do I," Erina repeated her words and added her own, which caused Soma to smile softly.

"Yeah, don't worry, tell Hisako I've got this," Soma replied, before noticing the glares he was getting and deciding it would be in his best intentions to cut the conversation short and get to cooking. "I need to go now. We sort-of started already. Give you a call once I'm done?"

"…You are permitted."

"You really are hard to talk to, you know," Soma added, as he said his quick goodbyes and hung up the call, turning his attention fully on his own efforts on getting back to her. "Sorry about that everyone," he apologized to the group. "Let's do this then!"

-0-

"So, you and Erina really are a thing?" Rindou's voice broke the silence for the fifteenth time since they started, but for once her question was something other than food related or utter nonsense, much to Eishi's surprise, who pretended not to be overhearing their conversations from his side of the kitchen. It had already been fifty minutes since they started, so they were already at the stage of final preparations, and couldn't risk focusing on anything but their dishes.

"I guess we are," Soma replied, taking a taste of the sauces he had on the stove. They tasted utterly amazing, which both excited him and irked him at the same time, as Rindou had taken care of them almost on her own. In fact, most of the prep work she had long finished, making her the only one among them barely doing any cooking at the moment. "It's odd, we haven't really spoken much about it, like, giving it a label or anything. Not that I'd even know how that procedure goes, but I think you can call us that. I want to be with her, I like her."

"I'm honestly surprised, I mean, Erina's pretty hot looking," Rindou mentioned, mimicking an hourglass-figure with her hands. "If you know what I mean."

"…Yeah, it's come to my attention."

"But I never saw her as the "high school sweethearts type", kind-a like how Nene is, and now that I think of it, like how Momo was during her first year before she got to know Soumei," Rindou added.

"I can hear you," Momo could be heard from behind a large stack of batter that had risen out of nowhere. What on Earth was she making? "Don't start sharing our stories with him."

"For someone who specializes on sweets, you're always such a sourpuss," Rindou said with a pout.

"I wasn't that high on romance myself to be honest," Soma confessed, his attention still focused on his preparation but a small smile falling onto his lips. "But there's something about that girl. She's hard to understand, hard to get along with sometimes, yet she pushes me forwards. I've never been happier cooking than I am when we share a kitchen, that's all I can say."

Rindou looked on, her expression changing slightly. Then she heard a plate fall. It didn't break, because Eishi reflexively placed his foot on the way, causing the ceramic plate to bounce off his chef shoes and land safely on the slip-free rugs. Without missing a beat, he bent down, picked it up, and placed it on the side, to be washed later.

"Soma Yukihira," Eishi said. "Will you allow me to focus on this, please?"

"Oh, my bad," Soma apologized, not even getting mad about it. He knew some chefs preferred to work in silence. Soma himself was unused to a noise-free kitchen, it made him anxious if anything not to hear people just talking as they worked, but to each their own.

Rindou said nothing else, but she turned her attentions from the pensive redhead towards the seemingly composed white-haired chef. She was sure he wasn't as clear minded as he played himself to be, and dropping a plate because of some little chatter was proof enough.

Eishi, for his part, was sharing a similar thought. He looked down at his hands, and he could see it. They were shaking, not enough to hinder him, but enough that it became annoying. Was he nervous? Why, why would he be? 'Calm down,' he told himself. 'Don't let them get to you, focus. I enjoy cooking all the same, whether Rin's with me or not… I, I'm sure of it. I'm…'

"Guys, we have trouble," Soumei walked in, the Fifth Seat having gone out to the dining area to inform that state of his dish to Julius, looking like he had just seen a ghost. "There's one more guest out there they didn't tell us about."

"Who?" Eishi asked.

"It's Jouichirou Saiba," Soumei responded, clenching his fists. "The actual "Asura" is right out there, and he's going to be eating our dishes."

"Wait, really!" Rindou quickly got onto her feet, her eyes wide as she went over and poked her head out of the kitchen. "Oh my God, there he is! He's skinnier than I thought he'd be, to be honest."

"Rin, get you head in here!" Eishi shouted after the girl, who just turned to him and stuck her tongue out at him.

"Wait, but this isn't my cutest design," Momo said, her head poking out of her would-be pastry. "I need to make this even better, and I only have less than an hour to do so. T-This can't be happening!"

"What are you complaining about?!" Soumei countered as he ran back to his soup. "You go last, you have time, and I'm stated to serve in just under eight minutes! Damn it, why didn't they tell us such a chef was going to be here today!?"

"Tosuke also serves first," Momo added, turning to face the taller boy. "Worried? Had we known, you probably should have done one of your specialties for the "soup of the day", a ramen perhaps."

"Perhaps," he replied to the petite chef. "It is surprising."

"You don't sound all that surprised," Eishi noted.

"I'm still processing it," Tosuke lied.

Soma looked on, acting none the wiser as the group of third years began to turn their focus on improving their dishes as best as they could, their nervousness showing quite clearly, which annoyed Soma to no end. 'Why are you guys cooking something that's not your best from the start? Jeez, I hope I don't become like that when I'm older.'

"Hey, Soma," Rindou voiced, as Soma noticed that the girl had walked right back to where he was cooking. "Listen, relax, okay. Jouichirou is a pretty big deal, but he's not the man we need to convince. Our main judge is still the big boss Roberts, so try to focus on that, okay?"

Reassurance, he assumed, which was well-meaning but unneeded in his case. He sort-of wanted to tell her not to worry, that his father was not as scary as the stories made him out to be, but he also enjoyed seeing the others squirm. And, surprisingly, Tosuke kept his word, and said nothing on this matter.

"Oh, no, it's okay. I was doing my best from the start, so the Prime Minister himself could walk in through that door, and nothing in my cooking will change."

Soma could feel how the other chefs in that kitchen tensed up at his words, which he realized had sounded way more like a jab than he had intended.

Rindou merely smiled. "And I think I don't have anything else to add here, carry on little grasshopper."

"Yes my master," Soma replied.

And as the minutes passed, the Elite Ten cooked as best as they could with what they had been given, and surely enough, Soumei and Tosuke were set to serve first. Soumei delivered his soup to the guests, with Tosuke following closely behind with his Appetizer plates. They both made enough to serve at least fifteen people, just in case anybody wanted seconds. And, despite their nervousness (one more than the other), the big bad Jouichirou Saiba was quick to compliment both boys individually on their craft. In fact, to them, he was the most approachable at that table, a close second being a tie between Kaito Sakamoto and, surprisingly, Anne Waltz.

Then came the big guns, with both Soma and Eishi stepping out of the kitchen with their prepared dishes on hand, a single sample ready to be judged before they served the rest of the guests. Soma could see how all the staff at hand, including Honda and Second Takumi, were utterly shocked at seeing him walk alongside Eishi, food in tow. Most of the guests also seemed surprised, seeing as they all seemed to know about the Elite Ten students to some degree, and by extension, they knew not of Soma. Well, aside from his dad and Mr. Sakamoto, the former who gave him a knowing look and the latter which seemed even more nervous for Soma than Soma himself.

'Mr. Sakamoto looks more like my dad than my actual dad,' Soma noted.

"Alright, everyone, after that magnificent display of prowess from Tosuke and Soumei, we have a little treat in store for everyone here," Roberts announced, as he got up from his chair and walked towards the two boys, both standing as straight as they could. "The First Seat of Tootsuki Academy, Eishi Tsukasa, has agreed to duel against my star employee from our cruise, Soma Yukihira! Both will be presenting a main course dish, and as I've never been granted such an opportunity before, I shall be judging them as a Shokusheki."

"Shokugeki," Julius called out, and Roberts quickly apologized and corrected himself.

"Star employee?" Captain Yunko Aizawa asked. "So he's the one everyone was talking about, regarding those magnificent sale numbers."

"He was working alongside my boy and a group of Tootsuki students," Sakamoto told her, his voice taking a rather fatherly tone. "And I must say, he's quite something else. A very gifted young chef."

"He has to be," she followed. "I've seen Kotaru cook, and if he can match that, then he's truly something."

"Yunko, just wait, he is certainly good, but remember, these are the Elite Ten," Fukuzawa interjected, a little annoyed, as usual. "And this fellow here, Eishi, he's a cut above the rest."

"Wait, Yukihira," Natsume muttered. "Wasn't he the kid back during…?"

"You know of him?" her sister Orie asked.

"I'm certain he was involved during the Autumn Election this year, one of the highest on my Block."

"Oh, how much so? My highest was the other Nakiri girl, Alice."

"Oh, he wasn't the highest, I still wish I could get my hands on Akira Hayama, but for a close second, he still left an impression."

As the twins talked, everybody had their eyes fixated on the dishes before them and before Roberts, with the sole exception of one person. Anne had her attention focused entirely on Soma, and it was so obvious that even the usually oblivious Yukihira felt her stare. He quickly offered her a goofy grin, which she was quick to return with a softer smile.

"Now then, oh, Julius, what follows?" Roberts called out.

Julius sighed. Then walked to the side of his boss.

"Contestants, please present your dishes," Julius deadpan announced. "Place them forwards so that we may all witness the greatness of the-you-know-yadda-yadda enjoy."

"Dude has a way with words," Soma noted. Eishi nodded, bemused.

"We really need to work on your speeches Julius," Roberts muttered, before he turned to the two chefs. "Go ahead, my chefs."

Eishi Tsukasa presented his dish: "Pan-Roasted Venison Roast w/ Rosemary". It was absolutely beautiful to look at, as the steak-like meat was sliced into perfectly even chunks, with a very vivid red-brown color adorning them. Aside from the Rosemary mentioned in the name, it also came with a very pretty looking mashed potatoes and steamed vegetables, creating quite the complex color scheme in a single plate. The smell itself was intoxicating enough, and despite himself, Soma felt his mouth water.

'That looks like a slow roast,' Soma noted, doing his best not to seem impressed by what he was seeing. 'That would take at least three hours for him to properly prepare it. Did he start before we all did, or what? He couldn't have, he was with us not that long ago. How did he even…?'

Soma shook his head and presented his own dish: "Bifteck & Poulet au Poivre w/ Cognac Sauce". Unlike Eishi's dish, Soma and Rindou's dish looked horribly put together in turn. Four meat fillets, none of them equal in size, two steaks, two chicken breasts, all finely coated in cracked peppercorns, forming a very tight and burned look. The sauce was sprayed all over the dish, creating a chaotic, yet alluring look; and the smell seemed to match Eishi's in its sheer temptation inducing levels.

"You've taken Soma to France I take it?" Kaito asked Jouichirou, who simply laughed a bit as he shook his head.

"Nah, that's all him," Jouichirou admitted. "He lost to Shinomiya once, and he's been obsessed with that cuisine style ever since. Didn't think he'd mix those two things however."

"Mix what?"

"French and Chinese." Kaito heard the answer, but it did not come from Jouichirou. Instead, it had come from Anne, who had motioned herself a bit more forwards as she took a better look at both dishes. "That's it, isn't it? "Steak au Poivre" is also known as "Pepper Steak", which I take it is how he got his inspiration. Mixing it with chicken, is like mixing "Pepper Steak" and "Pepper Chicken", right? Then again, is that even really Chinese or more like American-Chinese?"

Soma steadied himself, as he saw that Roberts moved to taste his dish first. He tensed, knowing he was to be judged first. Roberts cut a piece of the chicken first, before he cut some of the steak, mixed the two, and took a sauce filled bite. His expression was of pure euphoria, and as he took the time to savor the flavor, Soma could see how Rindou stood behind them, her back rested against the kitchen door and her arms crossed. Her sharp eyes were fixated on the three of them.

Then, without a word, Roberts moved to Eishi's dish. The older boy also tensed, but he faked it a lot better than Soma did. Roberts cut the deer meat into a moderate piece, and mixing it a bit with the Rosemary, took a bite. His look, once again, was of sheer bliss, but again, he said nothing. The three competitors all looked on, as Roberts seemed to try and regain his ability to talk. It took several long seconds, until he was able to announce his findings.

With a serious look, Roberts announced…

"They are both so YUMMY!" he squealed like a little girl, causing both Soma and Eishi to almost drop their plates in response. "Oh, my goodness, you all have to try both of these. I-I could never pick one or the other, you both win, good job boys!"

"Say…?" Eishi began. 'Where did the…?'

"…what?" Soma finished. '…big bad Mafioso go…?'

The rest of the guests just looked on, surprised, but decided to follow suit and simply take him for his word. As the staff moved to serve the other dishes to each guest, Soma and Eishi just stood there, unmoving. The world had stopped for the two. Even in their minds, there was nothing, just silence. They could, however, hear Rindou laughing like a madwoman, on the floor clenching her stomach, on the verge of outright tears. And as the staff moved almost through them to reach the kitchen and back, Julius stepped up to them and placed an understanding hand on both their shoulders.

"I told you you couldn't win this," he told them, offered no elaboration, and walked away.

Soma and Eishi remained in a state of shock for a good thirty minutes until Momo pushed them away so that she could serve her "Dessert" without two creepy mannequins in the way.

-0-

"I thought I'd find you here," Jouchirou spoke up as he exited the building, reaching the staircase where his frustrated son was currently seating on. The man stared down at the boy, who seemed to be sporting a rather childish pout at the moment, something he had also expected.

"…I should have picked up the clues, really," Soma said. "Mr. Roberts did say it was his first time judging a dish. Makes sense he'd have no idea how to distinguish between flavors, cooking techniques, presentation, all that."

"You really did try to win that, didn't you?"

"Of course, I need their support," Soma replied, turning around to properly face his father. "Besides, I'm sick and tired of losing. And that counts against you too. Speaking of which, you tried both dishes didn't you, which one you liked more?"

"Hmm…" his father pondered. "I can't seem to recall."

"Oh screw you!" Soma barked. "Just give it to me straight! Rindou and I gave our all to make that! We couldn't have lost to Eishi just half-assing it. I know for a fact that that dude is better than me, I have no doubt, but for all the prettiness in his displays, his dishes lack that, you know, that spark in them."

"I'll give you that," Jouichirou said. "His dish certainly lacked the "passion" one would expect from a Tootsuki top student. But, to give it to you "straight", as you wanted it…"

Soma narrowed his eyes, his attention fully focused on his father's careful choice of words.

"…I would have also simply called it a draw."

Soma wanted to punch a wall.

"A draw!?" Soma sounded offended. "That's even worse! A Shokugeki can't just be a draw, you know?!"

"You'd be surprised," Jouichirou muttered, while his son glared holes into the man's skull. "And I'm not trying to sidestep the decision either, you both went blow for blow until the very end. For what you lacked in presentation, his lacked in passion. For what you excelled in pure, condensed flavor, his excelled in perfect harmony between the ingredients. It's too close to tell, I'd have to have asked for seconds in order to fully gauge all the details, and knowing myself, I would have simply given you two a draw. Let the other judges decide."

"You'd make a shitty judge."

"Don't you think there's a reason Senzaemon has never invited me to judge anything?"

As father and son bickered back and forth about Jouichirou's judging talent (or lack thereof), Eishi stood behind the barely opened door leading to the stairs, his hand already on the handle, having stopped himself seconds before he had wandered outside himself. Rindou, wearing a jacket to protect herself against the chill of the night and arms in her pockets, stood nearby, having just reached her peer. She stared at the boy, who seemed lost in thought, his eyes shifted downwards. She didn't even know how to try and start the conversation she wanted, as she wasn't entirely sure what he had just heard nor did she actually want to continue in a cold war against him.

"Rin?" he asked out loud, surprising her a bit. "Is that what you were warning me about? The passion behind my cooking?"

"…Did Mr. Saiba…?" she asked, and the boy nodded.

"I… I had come to seek him out, hoping he'd prove me right and give me a proper conclusion to that half-baked Shokugeki between us three," he admitted. "And yet, there he is, giving us the same result, and calling my cooking "passionless". And, worse of all, I can't seem to find an argument against it."

"I, well, it probably sounds a bit harsher than it really is," she said. "I've just gotten to know you, for these last few years, so I remember how much you enjoyed working on your craft. The look in your eyes when you were behind a stove, that sort of thing, I just… didn't want that side of you to be sacrificed for these achievements you seem to be craving as of late."

"I guess I can understand that, at the very least," Eishi admitted, turning to face Rindou. He placed his hand on his pocket, and in a swift motion, pulled out the cause of all the recent controversy between them. "BLUE, the "be all, end all" event for anyone who wears a chef's uniform nowadays."

"Yeah… But, hey, what are you…?"

Eishi tore the invitation clean in half, envelope and all, in front of a shocked Rindou. Her eyes, rarely as wide as they were now, clearly caught off guard by his actions. He smiled, satisfied at being able to surprise her every now and then. It was refreshing.

"This is still way over a year away," he explained. "I'm certain if we give it our all, we can manage to make it there on our own. Both of us."

She practically jumped into his arms the moment she heard his words. Eishi was not expecting that, and he ended up having to force his body to hold onto hers with all his might to avoid falling backwards and end up on the ground next to the Yukihiras. She never noticed his struggle, as she seemed too thrilled at his proposition.

"Yes! That's it! That's it right there!" she gleefully said. "We can! And oh are we so gonna! Just you wait and see!"

"Yeah…" he said, taking a look at the girl before him, his mind remembering the few choice words he heard Soma say.

"But there's something about that girl. She's hard to understand, hard to get along with sometimes, yet she pushes me forwards. I've never been happier cooking than I am when we share a kitchen, that's all I can say."

Then they kissed.

He wasn't sure why they did. He wasn't sure if she said something else before they did, or even if he did. All he knew was that he wanted to, that he knew she wanted to, and that it felt right. So he dropped the broken invitation, and took the girl he cared for more into those very hands. He pulled her tight, she gripped his collar. He pressed his lips, she wrapped her tongue around his. He lost his breath, she forgot how to breathe.

"Rin… I…" he tried.

"Shh…" she instructed, placing her finger over his lips, stopping him from speaking. "I worked hard for this. Let me take my time."

His eyes widen, as did her smile. But then, from the corner of her eyes, she saw a slightly familiar sight. She didn't voice it, but out of mere reflex, Eishi also turned his head slightly, catching a glimpse of what had caught her attention.

'Wait…' he thought, warning bells ringing inside his head. 'Isn't that…?'

"Jouichirou…?"

The elder Yukihira turned to the side, as both he and Soma faced the person coming up the steps towards the two, who had just called out to him. The tone had been stern, but with a hint of surprise. The man was very well dressed, Soma noted, with clothing even more expensive looking than either the elder Eizan or their current "boss" Roberts. And he carried himself as he was worth ten times as much. Such a distinctive presence, despite being shrouded in mostly different shades of black. The man paused, his eyes scanning Soma briefly, before his attention was focused completely on his father.

"…Wait," Jouichirou said, and for once, Soma felt his father be genuinely surprised by something. One of the very few times honestly, the other one he couldn't even think of recently was finding Erina in his home, but that's for entirely different reasons. "Is that, it's can't be… Azami?"

Azami smiled in a way that Soma couldn't properly describe.

"The Jouichirou Saiba," Azami said. "A man so hard to pinpoint, one day in Japan, the other in New York. Imagine my surprise at finding you where I lest expected you. Stuffed International, really? This is what you're devoting your time to?"

"Kinda, yeah," Jouichirou answered. "But, man, what are you doing here? You say that about me, but you feel more out of place her than I do, if I can be blunt."

"Perhaps, I had no intention to come to this meeting," Azami said. "Considering the sponsorship the got for this event, I'd rather not associate myself with anything relating to that Academy, or to the WGO for that matter."

"Oh, that's right, she's there," Jouichirou muttered.

"Indeed, so I had intended on simply cutting ties with Roberts," Azami explained, and Soma noticed how even his gloves were black. Why? "My shares aren't that high here to be honest, so it's not much that I gain from this. Selling them and investing elsewhere might be more profitable in the long run, or at least less mentally draining, but if you're here, perhaps I might reconsider."

"Oh, you do whatever you want, don't mind me," Jouichirou added. "I'm not going to be here for long. Just helping out Kaito, remember him? He got into a little situation, and I just gave him a hand. Not going to stick around for much longer I'm afraid."

"…A pity."

"…Yeah," Jouichirou said, and then both he and Azami remained in silence, which left Soma feeling even more awkward than he did before. Before he could try and squeeze his way out of there, Jouichirou added: "Speaking of which, the one who is an actual part of all of this is this guy right here. My son: Soma."

"Uh… Oh, erm, hi," Soma greeted, caught off-guard by the late introduction. "I'm Soma Yukihira, what's up?"

"…Nothing much," Azami followed suit, surprising Soma. "My name's Azami Nakamura, it's a pleasure to make your acquaintance Soma Yukihira, I was an old classmate of you father's."

"Really?" Soma asked, his interest raising itself a bit. He turned towards his dad. "Is it from…?"

"Yeah, Tootsuki," Jouichirou replied. "As a matter of fact, Azami here is the father of someone you know from that very school. Care to guess who?"

"Huh? Someone I know?" Soma repeated, his eyes shifting to his father, then back to Azami.

"…That's not really that important a detail," Azami said. "I have things that still need tending to in that particular area, but I digress. I need to at the very least give my greetings to Roberts and the rest of the invited, if out of courtesy if nothing else. See what I'm able to salvage out of this business relationship, if anything. Excuse me."

Azami then began to move up the stairs, quickly reaching the step before Soma and Jouichirou, his eyes turning towards the boy one last time.

"Still, if there's anything you ever feel you need, do not hesitate to contact me," Azami told him, as he pulled a small card out of his wallet, and handed it to Soma. A business card, Soma noticed, a very fancy one at that. "I owe a lot to the man your father used to be, so consider me at your service."

"Oh, thanks, likewise, I think," Soma replied, finding Azami's choice of words strange to say the least, but Jouichirou said nothing about it, so Soma decided to simply accept the card and give his thanks. Azami then went right inside the building, and despite Soma's curiosity on asking his father who Azami was the father of, he never quite got the question out. Shortly, their conversation shifted to other things, from their plans on how to move forwards, to Soma remembering to call Erina and let her know how things had played out.

He also never saw Azami in that building again, so he shortly forgot about the pitch dark dressed man, except just once, as he pondered on who his child could even be. Soma's best guess, given the man's extremely handsome looks, sharp dressing ability and holier-than-thou attitude?

'…He's definitely Marui's dad I bet!'

Obviously.

-0-

The days passed much quicker than Soma anticipated. In the blink of an eyes, his time in Hawaii came to an end, and he found himself in the airport. From there, taking a plane for the first time, the somewhat motion sickness ridden Soma was flown from the Stuffed International's headquarters all the way back home. Or rather, all the way to the central offices that the Eizan family owned. He had heard everyone in that party they had organized was stated to arrive at Japan at different times, not all of them heading to the same location at first, but all of them stated to be at the Stuffed International's Grand Hiei Gourmet Fest.

Soma, Honda, Second Takumi and all the other Tootsuki rejects were quickly gathered in one of the bigger areas of the Eizan compound, just hours from the big event. Considering how they had just flown forward in time almost an entire day just the night before, the staff had been sleeping until past noon, and had just barely gotten up and ready to start preparing just less than an hour prior. Soma, for all his strengths, was almost still asleep, but he mentally slapped himself awake.

He scanned the area, to try and find his footing properly.

He could see Fukuzawa Eizan on the phone, busy with the event he presumed, given how angry, erm, angrier he looked.

Yukichiko Eizan was nearby, doing a very extensive inventory on all the products they were going to deliver to the stadium before the showcase began.

Julius was nowhere to be seen, but Soma was sure he was around somewhere, as he had flown together with all of them. Probably tending to a likewise MIA Roberts.

His dad and Kaito were elsewhere, than much he knew for certain, as his father had texted him that he had taken Kaito to pick up Kotaru and then make their way to the stadium. Kotaru had returned to Japan on the cruise, Soma figured, which he sort-of envied. Cruises he could manage. Trains maybe. Planes? No. Never again.

The Top Five of the Elite Ten had also gone straight to Tootsuki, and he presumed they were already getting ready to represent said Academy at the showcase, along with the others. He could only hope he had made enough of an impact during those last few days, as there was little he could do now. He had long spoken to Erina in detail on what he planned to do, and she reassured him she had everything ready on her end. He knew that much without her telling him.

Then Soma shifted his vision to the far right, and he felt slapped again. Except this time, almost physically.

Etsuya Eizan had just walked in, followed by a few of his employees tailing behind. The youngest Eizan stopped midway, his attention turning towards the staff made up of students, and for a moment, his glare meet Soma's cold stare.

"One moment," he told his employees, and the all took a step back. Eizan then approached the group, and they all quickly stood evenly against each other, almost as if they were far more scared of Etsuya than either Fukuzawa or Roberts. Soma couldn't exactly blame them. "Everyone, glad to see you all are mostly still here. I assure you all, none of you will regret this. Your career resurrection is mere hours away, and soon, if you do your very best, the entire world will know of you. The unsung heroes behind today's event, who will have the Eizan name as a reference from now until you retire. So, congratulations."

As if on cue, his other employees clapped. They kept on clapping until Eizan raised his hand, signaling them to stop. They did, in perfect unison. Soma was actually impressed.

"Now then, you all are to follow me," Eizan continued. "From now until we are all stated to leave towards the stadium, we are going to prepare all the prep work that the Elite Ten taught you all. So, if you all would, please begin to move towards the back where the makeshift kitchens have been assembled."

They all nodded, even Soma, and they turned and began to move towards their designated area.

"Oh, all except you, Yukihira," Eizan added, and Soma froze in place. "I heard how impressive you were, having what could be described as a Shokugeki against Eishi of all people. Quite the feat, impressing Mr. Roberts quite a bit in the process. I must say, out of all the staff here, you clearly have proven yourself more than worthy of our assistance in your future. We are very proud of you, Soma Yukihira."

"…Oh, you flatter me," Soma replied, turning and facing Eizan. "Still, I feel like I'm being singled out for a wrongdoing, rather than for being a good boy. Or is it just my imagination?"

"Nonsense," Eizan reassured. "It's just as I said, we are all proud of your display. Mr. Roberts already agreed to assist you in whatever way possible, which of course, means you won't really need to be at the showcase tonight."

"Oh," Soma voiced, hiding his real reaction as best he could.

"In fact," Eizan followed. "Mr. Roberts wants to show-off your talent to all of our staff here, and by staff I mean the ones here at my father's building. It will be challenging, serving a group of people of that size, but I'm sure you can manage."

'So, that's his plan,' Soma thought. 'He's still not sure what I'm trying to pull off at the showcase, so he's covering his ass and making sure I simply don't attend. I mean, it makes sense, can't fault him for that. But, do I have a back-up plan ready? I mean, I do have something, but could I realistically pull it off?'

"You can, can't you?"

"…Of course!" Soma beamed, and for a moment, Eizan seemed utterly taken by surprise. Soma savored every millisecond.

"O-Oh, right, of course you can."

"Yeah, just leave it to me!" Soma added, pumping his fist into the air in a show of faith. "I'll give these folks the best meal they'd ever have. And by serving these employees, I take it you want me to make them all a dinner of sorts?"

"…Yeah, something like that."

"Sure! I think I can manage that, will take me a few hours of course."

"Naturally," Eizan said, his tone shifting from assured to confused within the same word. "It will take you easily all day, you'd probably done long after we're gone, so don't bother making anything for us."

"Yeah, I figured," Soma replied, knowing what Eizan was getting at. He smiled, because he knew how to assure his next move. "So, once I'm done here, I'm allowed to attend the showcase, right? I know I won't make it in time to see the actual matches, but maybe I can get there in time to see the winner or the after-party, right?"

"Oh, yeah, sure," Eizan replied, unsure. He'd much prefer Soma remained completely away from the event, but he couldn't see anyway Soma could do anything against him once the event was safely concluded. Besides, it wouldn't look good to deny him such a thing in front of all of the staff, so he just shrugged.

Soma was then led towards the employee kitchen, as Eizan led the once-upon-a-time students towards their preparation area.

Once there, Soma found exactly what he had expected. A very big kitchen, with lots of ingredients ready for his use. The employee who took him there, a blissfully unaware young lady, told him that the kitchen was as good as his and that he could call upon them if he needed anything. Soma gave her his thanks, and got to work. He took out his phone, and tried to focus his plan. He knew what he needed to do, and he was sure he could get quite the few dishes ready, but if he just tried it the way Eizan wanted, he was certain he would be done way after the showcase was over. Both he and Eizan knew that.

So he began to text people. He texted everyone he knew he could count on. An S.O.S. message, sent to all his friends. He sat on the floor, his eyes closed. 'I got into this mess because I never asked anyone to bail me out…' he told himself. 'If I'm going to get out of it, I need help. I need them to pull through. So I need to see who's readily available.'

He took a deep breath.

The first reply quickly came.

He moved to look at his phone…

…Then another reply came.

…And another.

…And another.

…And another.

…And another. He lost track how many times his phone vibrated. He was certain everybody he had texted had replied something, and as he skimmed through the responses, he couldn't help but smile. 'You guys are the best.'

"…Hey, Soma?"

Soma looked up, surprised at someone calling out to him. Out of instinct, he hid his phone, lest some Eizan lackey find him not working at the moment. But it wasn't a lackey of any sort. It was Honda.

"Oh, Honda, what's up?"

"You alright man?" Honda asked, and Soma was surprised. "I mean, you told me how much you wanted to be at the event, so I kinda feel that you were done dirty back there. We all trained together these last few days, like what the hell?"

"Yeah, but really, I think I can manage," Soma replied.

"Sure, I guess," Honda said. "Just remember, if you need anything, just let me know. We are going to be moved to the bottom level where the merchandise is packed and shipped to the stadium. I was one of the ones that got stuck with closing duty, so I'm the last one to get on the bus taking us to the showcase, just in case you needed me for something."

"Nah man, it's cool," Soma reassured. "But, really, thanks. You've been a great friend."

"…Yeah, you too."

Soma and Honda exchanged a thumbs up, and as Honda began to retreat back to his area, Soma felt the bulb in his head light up. "Oh, hey, wait up!"

"Huh?" Honda stopped, turning back to the redhead.

"Um, actually," Soma said, rubbing the back of his head in a rather sheepish manner. "There's this one teeny tiny thing you could do for me now that I think about it…"

-0-

For the next few hours, Soma made the greatest effort in making as much of his food as he could, but just like he had anticipated, by the time the Eizans and the staff and everyone else that was required made their way out the building and begun to move towards the stadium, Soma was not even half done. He had less than an hour to finish, and he needed at least four more. By then, the showcase would most certainly be over, and his one chance at career redemption with it.

Then he received another text, and he began his "Plan B".

"Excuse me, Miss?" Soma asked, peeking his head into the room where the nice lady that had taken him into the kitchen was seated at.

"Yes, Soma, how can I help you?" she politely asked.

"Yeah, can I take my fifteen minute break now? Uh, nature calls, probably shouldn't have drank all that tea," Soma explained in a little more detail than was needed.

"Oh sure, go ahead," she quickly replied. "You don't even have to ask, you're not officially on the clock or anything. Mr. Eizan gave you free reign over everything until you're done, so take as many breaks as you think you need. Bathrooms are on the left, by the way."

"Thanks!" Soma was quick to leave her office and go straight down, towards the area Honda had told him he had been working at. He moved quickly, knowing he was short on time. The elevator seemed to take forever, and his sprint through the many hallways even more-so.

He then reached the shipping area, and prayed that Honda had been able to fool the Eizans. Soma reached for the door leading outside, and with a single tug he was proven right. The door had been left open, allowing the young Yukihira to go outside. Soma quickly went outside, praising Honda for his ingenuity. A small piece of cardboard between the door and the hinges, small enough not to be noticed, but thick enough to prevent full closure of the door. If Eizan tried to pin blame on anyone, he wouldn't be able to do it with sufficient proof, since Soma would make sure to destroy any evidence leading to Honda anyways. Regardless, that smug bastard was going to have much bigger problems than an unlocked door pretty soon.

So Soma reached the outside, leaving the door open, and was greeted by a sight he had not seen in what felt like ages.

"You are always getting yourself into the strangest of troubles, huh Yukihira?" Takumi Aldini told him, standing waiting for Soma just outside the building. He was not alone.

"I don't think you should be the one saying that, bro," Isami Aldini added. "It's been too long Soma."

"Much too long! You had me worried sick, I mean, us, all of us," Ikumi Mito corrected, a light blush on her face.

"He has the tendency to do that," Zenji Marui said, characteristically fixing his glasses with his index and middle fingers.

"We texted you as soon as we made sure the last school bus left. Yuuki almost got us caught sticking her head out of the van despite being told not to," Ryoko Sakaki accused with a laugh.

"Hey! How else was I supposed to know they all had left? Did you see how many people left this place?!" Yuuki Yoshino defended.

"…For what it's worth, it's about time you gave us a call, Yukihira," Shun Ibusaki told him.

"Yeah, man, you make us worry like that again and Imma kick your ass," Daigo Aoki threatened him on the verge of tears.

"Yeah, don't you dare leave us like that again, you hear!" Shoji Sato exclaimed, also in tears.

"…You guys," Soma spoke up, but something got caught in his throat. For a moment, he couldn't barely speak, because the sheer raw emotion he felt at seeing them all there almost made him cry, and he didn't want to do that in front of everyone.

Then they all jumped and hugged him and he could barely contain himself. Well, not all of them. Shun kept back, likely trying to avoid the massive tackle all the others gave Soma. Marui also seemed surprised by the group hug, as he was flung to Soma headfirst, slamming the redhead clean in the stomach, knocking the wind out of him. Yuuki was crying; while Ryoko tried her best to keep her balance but ended up landing onto of Daigo, who pushed a crying Shoji down, who pushed Ikumi directly into Marui and Soma, landing on both. She did not like that.

"Can't you animals behave?!" Ikumi shouted out, threatening to smash Daigo and Shoji right through the wall, as both boys held their arms out defensively. "And which one of you grabbed me?!"

"Sorry," Yuuki said, still on the ground, facedown. "That was me. I tried to grab onto something, grabbed something that made me sad, my bad."

"Made you sad?" Soma asked confused.

"Better if you don't know," Ryoko added, also on the ground. Most of them were.

"We are short on time," Takumi mentioned, as he extended his hand to Soma, "We really should save the hugs once we're all back at Tootsuki."

"Yeah, we should," Soma replied, taking the blonde's hand being helped back onto his feet. The helping hand turned into a firm shake, an unspoken salute between the two, two who had fought so hard to be there. "We still have unfinished business, don't we?"

"That we do," Takumi coolly replied.

"Now brother won't shut up about his rivalry for like two weeks," Isami said, causing the elder Aldini to blush bright red.

"Isami! I don't do that!" Takumi barked, and Soma couldn't help but laugh at the two. Then he looked to his right, as another friend approached, and he almost felt his entire world stop.

"Everything's ready. And I know we agreed to save the hugs until we are back at the academy, but…" Megumi Tadokoro announced, before she offered Soma a soft smile he had missed for so many weeks. "…Can I be a little greedy and get just one?"

He didn't answer. He simply hugged her. He pulled the girl onto the tightest hug he had ever given anyone, and she replied in kind.

"I guess this makes us even now, huh?" Soma asked her, hiding his face in the nape of her neck so she wouldn't see his face.

"I'll never keep count," she told him. "And you're stuck with me for the rest of your life, so be ready to depend on me as much as I do on you."

"Now, now," Fumio Damidou spoke up, approaching the group from the van they had all come in. Soma quickly smiled when he saw her, but he was surprised by the person walking right next to her. "We don't have much time. That stadium is already packed, and as we don't have VIP tickets, we can't just leave Soma at the entrance, so every second counts."

They all nodded, and Soma, still holding onto Megumi, turned to face the other friend to the rescue there with them. Out of everyone, he had not expected to see Subaru Mimasaka there.

"I am responsible for this after all," Subaru replied to the unasked question. "I couldn't quite live with myself until I did something about this."

"That works quite fine for me," Soma replied, and the two boys nodded to each other, the hatchet long buried.

Then they set their plan into action.

The Polar Star students and their allies had taken upon themselves to cook up as many dishes as they could, mimicking Soma's style as best they could. Then they brought them over, filling the van completely. And as Soma saw, when they said completely the meant it. Only Fumio, Yuuki and Ryoko had used the van to drive there. The others had taken a cab or a bus, as the van had been filled with too much food for them all to fit in. They still came to see Soma, and offer a hand at taking out the food. Their plan? Sneak the food inside, hiding it from the many cameras, and pass it off as Soma's own. Mr. Roberts and the Eizans were no longer there, so the other employees would not know any better. It took them roughly twenty-five minutes to have it all in the kitchen, which was good time, but still longer than Soma had hoped. He was cutting it way too short.

So, with everything ready, Soma moved to the next phase of the plan.

"Um, excuse me," he spoke up, alerting the young lady in her office once again.

"Yes, Soma, what do you need?" the ever polite employee asked.

"Food's ready!" he announced with a smile, utterly surprising the young woman who had been told there would be food prepared several hours from the current time. She didn't doubt the boy, though, and announced to the entire staff at hand that they could come up to eat. It took them several minutes to come up, and Soma felt every single second, his nerves as shaken as could be, but once they were all there, he announced: "Now then, please, as a gift from Mr. Roberts and those at the Luxury Cruise Hiei, please enjoy your meal. Happy to serve!"

And as they all begun to serve themselves from the abundance of choices, Soma quickly approached on of the guys he could tell was from upper management.

"Excuse me, sir?" he asked as polite as he could. "Etsuya Eizan told me I was free to head over to the showcase once I was done here; hopefully in time to catch some of the matches. May I be excused?"

"Oh?" the man spoke up, halfway immersed in the sheer seductive smell of the plates before him. "Oh, sure, if he said so, go on ahead. I'll write down the time you "clocked off", so you can call it a day for now. Enjoy yourself."

"Thank you very much," a pleased Soma replied, and before anyone noticed, he was long gone from that area. He ran through the halls, jumped on the elevator hoping it would make it go down faster, and ran some more once he went down. He agreed to meet up with Fumio and the others at the parking area, which would be a lot easier to access than the backdoor, which he had already long locked to make sure Honda's career was safe.

He made his way outside, and to his surprise, right in front of the building's exit, was a very expensive looking car. Its driver was about to get in, but paused when he saw the redhead dashing like a madman out of the building. Soma quickly recognized him.

"Mr. Nakamura?" Soma voiced, somewhat surprised. He had assumed this man had caught all ties with these people all those nights ago.

"Soma Yukihira," Azami said. "You seem troubled. Heading somewhere?"

"…Well, yeah," Soma answered, finding no problems in telling this man as much. "I'm heading for the showcase. I'm a tad bit late, so I'm in a little bit of a hurry."

"Oh, are you now?" Azami asked, but it hardly felt like a question. The man then offered Soma the closest to a genuine smile he had seen him make. "If you'd like, I can take you there myself. While I have no plans on attending, I still have the VIP pass, so I can probably save you quite a bit of time."

"Wait, really?!" Soma asked, astonished. He knew it wasn't part of the plan, but he also knew he needed every second he could get. So he took the deal. "Sure, if it wouldn't be that much trouble."

He sent his friends a quick text telling them of the change of plans, and they quickly replied, telling him how they'd meet him at the stadium then. Soma then got on the expensive car with Azami, which turned out to be a convertible, because of course it was. Azami quickly started the thing, and within moments, they were on their way.

"The wind is not a bother, is it?" Azami asked him. Soma shook his head.

"Nah, helps me relax if anything," Soma replied.

"Same here," Azami said.

"You really helped me out Mr. Nakamura," Soma told him. "I was seriously about to-" Soma stopped, as he received another text. It was from his dad, asking Soma if his plan had worked and if he needed to be picked up. "-to be a lot later than I am right now."

Soma also texted his dad back: "Don't worry, your friend Azami is taking me. See you there."

"No problem whatsoever Soma," Azami replied, his voice slightly distorted by the wind hitting the two of them.

Jouichirou texted Soma back: "Azami? Really? That's the weirdest thing I've read in a while. But cool."

Soma texted: "You think? He seems cool. BTW, who is he the father of? You never told me."

"You said you went to Tootsuki too," Soma tried to keep the conversation alive. It was the polite thing to do. "Were you a part of the Elite Ten. I mean, it's cool if you weren't, I'm not, but you totally seem like you were."

"…I was," Azami replied.

Jouichirou replied: "Umm… I didn't? Oh, well, he's Erina's."

Soma's world collapsed, as his eyes widened completely. He felt his body freeze up, and he couldn't even hide the sheer raw emotion he felt. This guy… was…?

He could still hear Erina's pained voice, echoing in his mind.

"…It's just, when you're a kid, you don't understand what abuse really means."

He bit his tongue, in an effort to keep quiet.

"He hits you because you've been bad, or he locks himself into a room with you because he's looking out for you, protecting you from the dangers of the world that took mommy."

He clenched his fists, in an effort not to slam then against the car.

"He'd spank me for not wanting to eat, slap me because I shouted back, and leave me locked in a dark room because I couldn't tell two stupid sauces apart."

He closed his eyes, in an effort not to look at him.

"And then I'd cry, and tell him I believed him. That he wasn't a bad daddy. And I begged him not to leave me, and he'd promise he wouldn't. And I'd believe him… again, and again."

"…Do you want to know more about me?" the man behind the tears asked, "Soma Yukihira?"

And Soma didn't know how to answer.

---

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