SailorStar9: After getting Chapter 44 out, this is Chapter 45 of this fic. (Sighs) Guys and girls, is it too hard for you to leave a review, instead of just putting this fic up on your favorited list and story alerts? So, please be a dear and read and review. Seriously guys, we need more obscure Sailor Moon crossover fics!
Disclaimers: Shokugeki no Souma and Sailor Moon belong to Tsukuda Yūto-sensei and Takeuchi Naoko-sensei respectively. Me, on the other hand, own absolutely nothing, except the pairings in this fic and plot, I hope.
Pairings: Unofficial!Takumi/Ami, Souma/Megumi later, established!Isami/Makoto
Chapter 45: Song of Hope
"Wait, what did Yukihira just say?" Mito gaped.
"This meal..." Shōji gawked.
"Is actually..." Daigo blinked. "A Shokugeki between him and Nakiri?"
"What an unbelievable idea." even Takumi was stunned.
"To think he's planning to complete their course meal with a Shokugeki..." Megumi started.
"Come to think of it, does Erina-cchi have an ultimate dish to call her specialty?" Yoshino wondered.
"She has the talent to make any genre of cuisine into a pro's dish." Sakaki noted.
"I'd heard that she challenged Senzaemon-dono countless times." Hisako recalled.
"But apparently, he hasn't acknowledged her yet." Alice piped in.
"I can't believe it." Mito remarked. "Erina-sama..."
In the arena...
"Honestly, I was wondering what would come out of your mouth." Erina sighed. "I never expected a Shokugeki. I guess the term 'teamwork' doesn't exist in your dictionary."
"Of course not." Souma retorted. "Do you see teamwork between us? Did you forget how much we fought during the mock battles on the Tsukikage? On the other hand, this suits us even more than working together."
"Idiot." Erina chided in resignation and went back to her prepared ingredients. "The main ingredient currently heating? C'est bon. The sauce? Non. The fond? C'est bon. The seasonings? C'est bon. The croûte? C'est bon. The butter? Non. Yukihira, about the ingredients I just said 'non' to, I'll be putting them all in storage containers later. Make midnight snacks of them, if you wish. I'm going to be changing my recipe because of you, so I need to be stricter with my ingredients; so that I'll be able to create a completely new dish."
On the sidelines...
"It appears the rebels are going to start making a completely new main dish." Urara declared. "But there isn't much time left."
"Starting now?" Kurokiba echoed.
"She's making a different dish?" even Hayama was shocked.
In the arena...
"Yukihira, I test-tasted for you in your last dish." Erina instructed. "So you should be an extra pair of hands for me in return. One haché lemon rind, then mélanger the seasonings I ask you to. You have thirty seconds. As soon as the meat is finished heating, wrap it in the croûte and put it under the broiler. We only have one chance." the sauce reduction is complete. The croûte is complete. The garnishes are complete. The browning under the broiler is complete. "On the next step, hurry!" she barked.
On the sidelines...
This is quite different from her usual graceful and reserved approach. Takumi mused. It's much more forceful, like a rushing flood of passion.
She's currently knocking everything out of her way in order to create her new dish. Isshiki smiled.
At the judges' table...
It doesn't matter what she does. Azami was confident. It's too late. After that horrid appetizer, whether or not she tries to present a specialty or not, the match has already been decided.
In the arena...
What I have now that I didn't have before... Erina renewed her resolve. If I can't figure that out, I won't be able to complete my specialty. The path I'd taken up until now... this is the only dish... this is the only ultimate dish, one capable of defeating Yukihira. "Please enjoy." she presented her dish.
On the sidelines...
"So that's Miss Erina's specialty." Kurokiba remarked, seeing the presented dish.
"What a beautiful and juicy slice of meat." Alice gushed.
At the judges' table...
"This is the main dish of our two-course meal." Erina declared. "A chicken-and-egg rice bowl."
On the sidelines...
"A chicken-and-egg rice bowl?" Shōji exclaimed.
"That's supposed to be a rice bowl?" even Hisako was confused.
"The same Erina-sama who'd treated rice bowls are lowly B-grade cuisine until now?" Mito was shocked. "She made a rice bowl?"
"You were the same way at first, Nikumi-cchi..." Yoshino reminded.
"But it is rather unbelievable." Sakaki agreed with the general consensus.
"There's no rice course in French cuisine." Hayama recalled. "Even with traditional Japanese courses, it's served after the main course. Yet she is presenting it as her main dish? This is definitely a choice not written in any cooking textbook anywhere."
At the judges' table...
"Honestly," Azami sighed. "I can't believe my own daughter created a dish that's this far from the correct answer. It's absolutely deplorable. I can tell it deserves zero points just by looking at it. I can't even bring myself to eat such a dish."
"Oh my, but you're supposed to judge cooking by its taste." Erina taunted. "How truly amazing that you can judge a dish merely by looking at it, Father. But if those two chefs who embody your personal ideal of what's correct, say that my dish is delicious, I'm sure you'll change your mind."
"What's this?" Rindō smirked. "I think she's provoking us. What do you think, Tsukasa? Should we accept?"
"There's no harm in tasting it." Tsukasa replied. "I was curious about Yukihira's dish, too."
"Very well." Azami shrugged. "Tsukasa, Kobayashi, go ahead and try."
"But this is a two-course meal." Erina reminded. "So, you'll have to start with the appetizer."
"Here you go." Souma handed the two third-years his dish. "This is my specialty: Countdown Caveman Meat, Cheeky Youngster-Style, True Yukihira Cooking."
"This looks interesting." Rindō grinned. "Don't mind if I do." I see... she mused as a jolt shook her body. Well done, Yukihira. This is definitely good enough to be called a specialty.
He's definitely evolved from before. Tsukasa admitted. That's amazing, Yukihira.
"But does this dish really work as a course?" Rindō asked the important question.
"I can't help but feel that whatever the next dish may be, it can't follow this." Tsukasa agreed.
"Let's taste this specialty of yours, Nakiri." Rindō called.
Eggs mix with the soft chicken meat and juices, and it all melts in my mouth. Tsukasa was chewing the bite-sized chicken. The center of the meat is rare, while the edges are broiled to a crisp. It was cooking in a perfect way to take advantage of the luxurious jidori chicken's qualities.
The sauce is made of eggs, cream, salt and pepper, heated to a thick creaminess in a hot water bath. Rindō dissected the sauce components. The turmeric gives it a vibrant yellow color, helping to create this rich and creamy scrambled egg sauce.
Floating in top are special, fragrant rice crackers. Tsukasa realized. Freshly steamed rice and minced squid spread finely with some sesame oil, then deep-fried to a crisp.
The thick sauce, along with the crunchiness, plays amazingly off the juiciness of the chicken. Rindō continued chewing. The chicken and egg sauce and then the crackers made from rice. These three elements make it a chicken-and-egg rice bowl. "And the piece of this dish that's playing the biggest role is the croûte wrapped around the chicken breast."
On the sidelines...
"Croûte..." Megumi blinked. "That's a base of bread or pie dough seasoned with savory spices, right?"
"It's a helpful addition that can boost the aroma, texture and presentation of a dish without overpowering its distinctive flavors." Takumi added.
At the judges' table...
"Correct." Erina affirmed. "That's where the biggest secret of this dish lies. Since I abandoned my original plan, in order for this completely new dish to work, I needed to add certain ingredients to the croûte that I'd planned to wrap around the chicken. Those ingredients were minced squid legs and peanut butter."
On the sidelines...
"Squid legs and peanut butter?" the first-year residents of Polar Star Dormitory echoed.
"Is she serious?" even Ibusaki was skeptical.
At the judges' table...
"It's the squid legs and peanut butter that connects the appetizer and the main dish." Erina declared. "It's a critical piece of the puzzle. The peanut butter's mild richness adds subtle depth to the chicken, making it and excellent secret seasoning. And the moderately salty bitterness of the squid legs is extremely effective in tying the croûte's flavor together with the meaty juiciness of the chicken. It's a horrid combination that Yukihira keeps trying to get us to eat, but when it's in my hands, I can turn it into an elegant gourmet dish. The jidori chicken breasts and the squid and peanut butter croûte are the main part of this dish. I revised all of the sauces and garnishes so that they would support them. So that after you ate Yukihira's dish, the deliciousness of my own dish would be elevated to the maximum."
On the sidelines...
"Just as Yukihira took advantage of the God Tongue, Nakiri took advantage of Yukihira's gross cooking." Takumi was impressed.
"They basically took each other's strengths to bring out the best in both of the dishes." Megumi beamed.
"It's times like this I consider myself very lucky Mako-chan hasn't picked up any of the Yukihira's bad habits." Ami remarked.
"You're amazing, Erina-cchi!" Yoshino cheered.
At the judges' table...
"You jerk." Souma smirked. "First you steal my line, and now this?"
"You're the one who started this fight." Erina huffed. "I won't hear any of your complaints."
On the sidelines...
"Nakiri, you truly have changed." Isshiki remarked.
"But I don't think Azami-dono is very happy about that." Ami nodded towards the silently fuming Azami. "His precious little daughter whom he had locked up in a glided cage has now broken free of her cage and cooking with a bright smile he'd never witnessed before."
At the judges' table...
Yukihira's appetizer doesn't help the main dish. Rindō savored Erina's dish. It exists to help surpass it. And without a doubt, this dish definitely surpasses the appetizer. Despite how crazy their methods were, they managed to pull this one-tow punch amazingly.
I feel like I'm in a concert. Tsukasa envisioned. Different instruments and different voices are working together at an extremely high level, and in one miraculous moment, they come together perfectly and come blasting through the speakers. With one taste, the pressure from the sound blasts you and drags you in without mercy.
On the sidelines...
"The dish managed to move the first and second Seats." Hisako remarked.
"Now Uncle Azami has no choice but to acknowledge the dish." Alice spoke.
At the judges' table...
"I see." Azami stated. "It appears as though you've put some work into it. I'm sure that if Tsukasa and Kobayashi have acknowledged the dish, it's somewhat delicious. But let me be up-front. Not matter who made this dish, I have no intention of ever acknowledging it. Honestly, I never wanted to see my daughter dragged down to this level. Preparing this dish so frantically that she was out of breath. Not even a hint of elegance left. Erina, because of that thoughtless boy, you were forced to create this impromptu dish against your will. If that continues, you're going to suffer until it suffocates you. It's 'passion' that is unnecessary to you. I can absolutely say that this dish is leagues away from true gourmet. It is an pile of impure, contaminated slop."
"Unnecessary passion?" Erina echoed. "I appreciate your concern. However, there is one more addition to this dish that allows it to transform. Behold the true form of my specialty. " she poured a bowlful of aspic chicken cubes over her chicken slices.
"From the looks of it, these are cubes of aspic." Decora noted. "Amazing!" she gushed, taking a bite of the coated chicken.
The rich scent of the roasted jidori chicken is tickling my mouth. Even Anne was taken in.
"Very well." Azami relented. "I will tak
e a bite so that I can at least scold my misguided daughter."
The aspic cubes have completely melted, adding luxuriant layers to both the flavor and the texture of the dish. Decora squealed.
The crispy rice crackers have soaked up all the jidori's unami and the scrambled egg sauce is even creamier than before. Anne gushed. The perfect balance of this dish makes it godly.
"I've made up my mind." Erina declared. "Cooking needs freedom. And to make sure it remains free, I will take on any pain that may come my way. Thus, I have completed my specialty, Le Plat Véritable: True Gourmet That Escape Paradise, Delinquent Daughter Style."
"Freedom?" Azami scoffed. "Determination? The pain those things cause will suffocate a chef's heart and ruin them. Just like it did to him. True gourmet; a world where chefs can stay healthy and vibrant. No one will suffer there. Everyone will be saved. That is my great revolution. That's why I refuse to accept this. These dishes are impure. These dishes are full of pain and suffering and that makes them impure garbage."
On the sidelines...
"What?" Yoshino blinked when a deep hammering sound reverberated through the hall.
"This sound..." Alice recognized the drone.
At the judges' table...
"Well Father?" Erina inquired. "How does it taste?"
On the sidelines...
"Why?" Urara wailed when her clothes were ripped off.
"Wait, this is..." Yoshino gawked, the Elite Ten's clothes were also momentarily ripped off.
"There's no doubt about it." Ibusaki confirmed, the ripples had reached him, Yoshino and Sakaki.
"The Gifting?" Mito cried out as her, Alice and Megumi were stripped to their undergarments.
At the judges' table...
"It just keeps spreading through the entire crowd." Azami was shocked by the ripple effect. "It's much bigger than it was with Tsukasa's and Rindō's course." impossible! Even though my brain rejects it, does my body acknowledge that it's delicious? "This shouldn't be happening!" he snapped. "This is some kind of mistake. If you destroy my grand revolution, the garden that protects chefs and the compass that guides them will disappear. Then, you will have to wander in the wastelands alone, Erina."
"No!" Hisako stepped in. "I believe that we've gotten this far because we're all heading toward our own distinct goals. There are others who continue to move forward; that truth allows us to take another step further, even if we are in the wastelands."
"You dare question the Director of Tōtsuki?" Azami demanded. "You're nothing more than a lowly servant to the Nakiri Family."
"No, I'm..." Hisako took a deep breath. "Right now, I'm Erina-sama's friend!"
"Hisako-cchi!" Yoshino frantically handed the other girl a towel to cover herself when the Gifting pulse ripped her clothes off.
"Father, Hisako speaks the truth." Erina addressed her father. "All the chefs with different values and thoughts than my own, the chefs that face their cuisine head-on, it's because I interacted with them that I was able to create this dish. My encounters with people you call 'contaminated' are the ultimate spice for my cooking."
"That's beyond foolish!" Azami refused to accept. "It's this passion that causes chefs to stray. To suffer! Eventually, it will break you. Just like it did to him. True happiness in chefs lies in living peacefully in the garden I've created for them."
"Could you not go deciding other people's happiness for them?" Souma retorted. "I didn't know about all the things that happened to my dad until recently, but my dad was happy after meeting my mom. I know that for a fact."
"That doesn't..." Azami hissed.
On the sidelines...
"I'm so glad I came prepared." Ami muttered, the Gifting ripples finally reached her, Takumi and Isshiki, ripping the two males' clothes off while leaving her clad only in the white hadagi she wore underneath her formal kimono.
"You don't seem too concerned." Takumi was surprised.
"I live in Juuban, Takumi." Ami deathpanned. "It takes a lot more than this to faze me."
At the judges' table...
I can't stop the Gifting pulse. Azami realized as the waves reached Tsukasa and Rindō before rippling to the judges table. The Pulse energy has nowhere to go. With the three female Bookmen stripped to their undergarments, he redirected the final wave to himself.
"In the final bout of the Team Shokugeki, the winners are..." Urara declared.
"Don't screw this up." Souma grinned. "As long as you're stealing everything from me, go ahead and say my line, too. You're the boss, who else is going to wrap things up?"
"The rebel forces!" Urara finished.
"Glad you liked it!" Erina recited the finishing line.
On the sidelines...
"Uncle Susumu, you devious S.O.B." Ami muttered when a new instant message popped up on her mobile phone.
"What do you mean, imouto-chan?" Isshiki wondered.
"Satoshi-nii, about the 'Shutting down plebeian restaurants' portion of Azami-dono's revolution, said 'plebeian restaurants' won't happen to also include major food food restaurant chains, would it?" Ami asked.
"I would assume those are also..." Isshiki's mind started churning. "Oh... now I see what Susumu-dono intends to do."
"Alice-san," Ami tiled her head to the other Nakiri. "Just how unscathed Azami-dono would come out if... I don't know,WcDonald's, Sudoh-Bucks Coffee and Was Burger, decide to file a joint corporate lawsuit against him?"
"They'll bury him." Alice gulped. "Six feet under. Wait, you don't mean..."
"Yup." Ami nodded.
"You Hakuizumis sure don't do things by halves, do you?" Takumi whistled.
SailorStar9: Any OOC-nes is regretted. *Grins* Don't you just love plot bunnies sometimes? Reviews are much appreciated.