Chapter 28: The Awakened Seat
Picking the piece of paper on the stools before them, the gathered eight first years began to inspect the names of the nine other students before him. 'The Council of Ten'. And if the collective looks on all their faces were anything to go by, they were all summarily shocked. Megumi most of all, by one name in particular.
"Kensuke... Tadokoro!"
"No fricking way!"
"What the hell?"
As Megumi stared down at the sheet of paper in her hands, her wide eyes and a slightly ajar mouth were signs that she too was blindsided by this information. Her fellow first years all gawked at her, stunned by the revaluation that her brother was on the Ten, and she was unaware of that fact.
"Your bother is on the Ten!" The shocked and dazed voice of Alice Nakiri overwhelmed the other voices of Ryo, Hisako and Takumi.
"I-I-I" Megumi stammered looking to deescalate the sudden unease in her stomach not to mention the jealously from her friends. "I didn't know... Kensuke never told me..." her voice fading slightly. "Apparently, he kept it to himself. And since he is a second year, we first years don't have lessons together. I rarely see him around campus. Let alone get a chance to talk to him".
"Still", Akira added. "You could have sought him out. He is your brother after all. I would have assumed that you would have wanted to see him". The mood became tense again as Megumi realised that, in a way, Akira was right. She hadn't made any attempts to contact her brother, she had relied on Isshiki telling her about him whenever they had lessons together.
"Stop ganging up on Megumi!" Sōma interjected defensively, taking her hands into his, making her heart flutter. "It's not her fault that she didn't know her brother was on the Ten. So quit acting as if it is!" Hugging his girlfriend, Sōma soothed her nerves and rubbed her back before brushing some a strand of hair from her eyes. Then Megumi murmured, to no one in particular.
"I should have tried to reach out to him more".
—
"You sure do protect your woman", Ryo spoke nonchalantly, looking at Sōma. "You don't have to rub your new found relationship in our faces". The look on the redheads face almost immediately darkened as he leapt to his feet and shoved Ryo.
"You have no right to judge my relationship with Megumi, since you and Alice seem too inept to even acknowledge your feelings. Especially as your practically joined-at-the-hip all day everyday!" That was sufficiently enough aggravation for Ryo to also jump to his feet. "You know nothing about me and miss Alice..." he was then cut off by the white haired girl slapping her hand over his mouth and dragging him back into a seated position.
"Ryo apologises for his choice words", Alice smiled before glaring at her aid. "Just because you're envious doesn't mean you can belittle others", she chided him.
From the other side of Alice, Erina stood up and moved towards Megumi slightly red faced, and then embraces her. "I-I-I'm happy for you..." she whispered before spinning around and pointing her hand at Sōma. "T-T-Thank you for the mangas... Yukihira".
Before he could blink, Erina had bolted back to her seat beside Hisako, and began talking to the rose haired girls anew, leaving Sōma to catch Hisako's grateful eye. Catching Mimasaka's eye, momentarily, during the copy chef's conversation with Takumi, the redhead boy smiled. To which he received a friendly smile back, reaffirming the thanks that the other boy felt for breaking him out of Eizan's orbit.
Sōma was just about to turn his head and strike up a conversation with Akira, about getting another food comparison day at the Shiomi seminar someday, he felt Megumi's fingers interlock with his and her head rest upon his shoulder. Looking into those shining golden hazel eyes, so full of a quiet strength and a fervent kindness, had the affect of once more reminding himself why he loved her. He was about to tell her so, when a shout rang out... And all eyes were on tenterhooks.
"Introducing the Tōtsuki Elite Council of Ten!"
—
The voice belonged to a kimono attired female staffer, her brown hair tied up and with a ribbon through it. Then, from atop a wooden scaffold, a bare chested man wearing a loincloth, began striking out a bass line on a large drum resulting in all of the first years craning their necks to carefully observe each and every one of the Council of Ten. Hawkishly. For a brief moment it seemed as though time slowed down to a rate where the few falling acer leaves, from the above trees, cast blurred lines through the air.
And then they appeared. Nine individuals entered the meadow, using the same pathway, used by the first years, walking out into the meadow opening. Craning his neck, Sōma tried his hardest to pick out Kensuke amongst the midst of them but as the Ten were all walking close together it was difficult.
However, his attention was suddenly diverted by the reappearance of the girl with long scarlet hair, who had walked onto the stage after his previous three food wars.
He hadn't thought very hard about who the scarlet haired girl had been, mostly because of the celebratory party waiting for him back at the polar star dormitory. But now, upon realising that she was on the Council of Ten, he was much intrigued about what king of chef she was. Moreover, reading from the list of names informs of him, aside from Isshiki and Erina, his food had now been appraised by three members of the Ten. The seventh, tenth and now the second seat.
Taking another look at the paper in front of him, Sōma took in the names of the Ten, their current academic year and their corresponding seat numbers:
(Third Year) Eishi Tsukasa - first seat
(Third Year) Kobayashi Rindō - second seat
(Second Year) Kensuke Tadokoro - third seat
(Third Year) Momo Akanegakubo - forth seat
(Third Year) Sōmei Saitō - fifth seat
(Second Year) Nene Kinokuni - sixth seat
(Second Year) Satoshi Isshiki - seventh seat
(Second Year) Terunori Kuga - eighth seat
(Second Year) Etsuya Eizan - ninth seat
(First Year) Erina Nakiri - tenth seat
—
Taking up their seated positions opposite the assembled first years were nine of he current Council of Ten, dressed in school uniform they all wore expressions ranging from imposing, indifferent, dissatisfied and confused. The sole exception to that range of emotion expressive individuals was the happy grinning face of Satoshi Isshiki, who right as he sat down was on the receiving end of an extremely harsh glare from the pigtailed and bespectacled Nene Kinokuni.
"Hello, my little fellows", a spiked blonde haired boy grinned leaning back on his hands and looking at each of the first years in turn. "Let's just cut the crap right now", he chuckled. "I have no intention of forging any friendships with you here, we are only here because it was mandated by the school director. Not even we can go against such directives".
The boy placed both hands together and playfully stuck out his tongue, "we are really busy too you know..." he was stopped by Eizan, who pushed his glasses up his nose and retorted.
"Really Kuga", Eizan bemoaned. "You might have shown some respect for Senzaemon. From whom we got a huge budget for this festival and the festival to come".
The aforementioned Kuga, brushed his spiked blonde haired out of his eyes and turned to the Eighth seat. "You're aways so obsessed with money Eizan, you should chill out or your blood pressure will kill you. Or you could battle me in a food war if you like. Prove that you are better than me..."
"Shut your mouth, midget!" Eizan responded coldly. The calm display on Kuga's face instantly vanished as annoyance erupted instead. "Don't call me small, four eyes!"
"Don't call me four eyes, you runt pip squeak!" Eizan roared back.
"Would you both please drop dead! Or at the very least be quiet", Nene yelled. Her voice dripping with contempt. "You two are such a pain in the arse".
"Shut up witch queen!" Kuga and Eizan both retorted before wilting under Nene's withering glare. "Die", was all she replied.
—
Meanwhile, the first years: Alice, Takumi, Hisako and Megumi were all kind of let down by the back talk and sniping between these Council seats. Yet, in the eyes of Sōma, Ryo, Akira and Mimasaka; Kuga and Eizan were the members that they deemed more willing than others to potentially take up a challenge from them.
Grining, Sōma knew that he wasn't going to get a better time to introduce himself so raising his hand, he got the Ten's attention. "Hey there, Sōma here", he stated calmly, as the upperclassmen's eyes all drifted over to him. "I want to join the Elite Ten right now... so would anyone of you be willing to accept a food war challenge from me?"
The response was stunned silence. And then...
"What the hell Sōma!" Takumi abruptly yelled turning to face his culinary rival. "I forbid you to undertake such folly before you have faced me!" Takumi's expression was matched by Hisako and, surprisingly, Erina. Looking towards the only person he wanted to consult, Megumi, Sōma took in the tremendous amount of worry in her eyes. And yet, there was also an understanding of his wish and a belief in him as well. An unspoken bond of trust, friendship and love.
"Sorry guys", Sōma responded grinningly, to his fellow first years, "but I've got Megumi's permission".
—
From beside the scarlet haired girl, Kobayashi Rindō, the third seat's eyes flickered upwards and towards the blue haired girl. An action that went generally unnoticed by his fellow council students and first years. The sole exceptions being Megumi and Rindō, who picked up on his eye movements and who both smiled at him.
"Why the hell should any of us feel obliged to accept any challenge from a damned first year!" Kuga dramatically rejected. "I reject this challenge! We second years are busy trying to battle our upperclassmen too you know... little Yukihira-chin".
Before Sōma could affix any further addendums to his challenge request, he was further shot down by Eizan, Saitō, Momo and Nene. And then again by Isshiki, although his rejection was based on not wanting to see his "little kōhais" leave Tōtsuki.
"You understand now don't you, Yukihira-chin", Kuga spoke condescendingly. "To us, Isshiki excluded, you are not even a blip on our radar. So why should we fight someone whom is beneath our standing". Placing a finger to his chin, Kuga though deeply before continuing. "However, if you should ever find something that you think might actually beat me, then I would be willing to face you".
A small smile found its way onto Sōma's face and he began to think of ways to entrap the eighth seat into a food war situation. "You could always challenge Kuga on height", Nene coldly added, "you'd beat the pipsqueak midget hands down". Kuga furiously rounded on Nene yelling, "we're taking about food here you evil witch!"
"Drop dead", was the response he got back from Nene as she pushed her glasses up her nose, peered at him with disdain and then moved away from him. Before Kuga could angrily retort he was smacked over he head by Eizan. "What the hell..." Kuga spun around and yelled at the ninth seat but stopped himself upon seeing the utter shock on his fellow second years face.
Just up a head of Kuga, in between Momo and Rindō, the third seat had sat upright and had tied his medium length black hair into a topknot, leaving a few strands to fall either side of his black rimmed glasses. An action of his that suggested something had taken his notice, which was exceedingly rare to achieve.
So for Kensuke to be suddenly alert, was a sign that this first year had either drawn his curiosity or he was just indulging the first year's request out of boredom.
Either way, what usually followed was a show of his overwhelmingly culinary fire.
"No way..." Kuga muttered fearfully, completely at a standstill. "He's never shown any culinary interest in anyone before..."
"Kensuke", Rindō giggled leaning toward the black haired bespectacled third seat. "You could have warned us before hand that you were planning this". She then placed a hand on his shoulder and grinned. "I still demand a plate of food from you. The judges can wait their turn".
Turning his head towards the girl beside him, Kenosuke gave a small smile, which surprised Rindō greatly. He rarely showed any emotion other than contentment. "Even if I said no, you still would have helped yourself. Glutton".
If it had been anyone else, the jibe would have provoked an angry retort from her but as it came from him, Rindō simply laughed. Throwing her arms around the third seat, Rindō grinned. "Aww, you are getting better at letting the real you shine through, Kenny", she cooed.
Looking forwards and along the row of seated first years towards the red haired boy, Kensuke straightened his glasses on his face, and looked straight at the redhead boy. "S-Sōma Yukihira..." Kensuke stuttered, in a manner that instantly reminded everyone of his social anxiety.
For Kuga, however, hearing this was a massive upset to his greatest school goal. And going by the look on Tsukasa's face, he could tell that there was deep unease in the first seats eyes.
"I accept your challenge".