Chapter 39: China Vs. Taiwan

Day One continued

"Come get some hot and delicious Hújiāo bîng!" Sōma's voice carried through the air, turning many heads and even breaking a few customers away from the sprawling line, outside Kuga restaurant, over towards him.

Delighted at seeing customers moving towards them, Megumi and Ikumi continued prepping the ground pork, soy sauce, black pepper and scallions. Meanwhile, Sōma was was busy diving a large ball of dough into many smaller balls, ready for the meat-pepper filling to be placed inside. Glancing over to his right, the redhead smiled as he saw the determination and pride on their faces.

'Thanks guys! Together we will get top sales!'

Turning his attention back to the task at hand, Sōma began to take the smaller dough balls and press into them some of the meat pepper filling. Once he had accumulated two dozen raw buns he brushed water across the top of each bun before sprinkling on some sesame seeds. Then one by one he began to placing them into, and around the edges, of the tandoori stone oven. To the confusion, awe and amazement the gathered customers eager to witness their food cooked before their eyes inside this strange oven.

As the hújiāo bîng cooked within the stone ovens, eager customers began brandishing plum tickets. "If you'll wait just a few more minutes", Megumi stated taking tickets and placing them inside the collection box, given to them by the festival committee. "I'm sure that you'll be pleased with the resulting flavours".

Grinning, Sōma reached into the oven and started to remove buns that had been cooking for longer, and were ready to be eaten. "Okay guys!" He excitedly exclaimed to the smallish crowd of customers. "Food time is now". One by one as the customers were handed their hújiāo bîng, as well as a napkin, they became enamoured by the pepperiness and juiciness of the meat, combined with the crunchiness of tithe pastry exterior.

Rolling her eyes but with a soft smile on her face, Megumi snuck a brief glance toward her boyfriend handing out hújiāo bîng. "Could he be anymore corny?" Ikumi murmured beside her. "I mean really... it's food time". Yet, Megumi could tell despite the exasperated sigh from the meat master, Ikumi was also just so in awe of watching Sōma cook. Chuckling slightly, she responded. "I doubt Sōma even registered what he said could be construed as corny".

It was then that both girls saw walking towards them chef Kuga, followed by four of his fellow staff, a look somewhere between cocky and joyful was adorning the spiked blonde boy's face, as he greeted them. "How'ya doing guys!" Just as Sōma handed over a hújiāo bîng to an awaiting customer, he found an arm being draped over his shoulders whilst the rest of the person took in the small food stand and the side table, where Megumi and Ikumi were currently working at. And frowning from.

"Kuga-senpai". Sōma's response was polite and showed off his genuine happiness for being acknowledged by the eight seat but at the same time there was a hint of annoyance. "Shouldn't you be cooking right now, instead of here mithering me".

Kuga simply grinned in response as he gestured one of his staff forwards, whom was carrying a tray of food. "I brought you some of my signature mapo tofu, and in response..." he reached forwards and plucked a cooked hújiāo bîng from the stone oven, "I'll take one of your oven baked buns".

—-

Glowering at his attitude, preparing to give the eight seat attitude back, Ikumi calmed herself upon seeing Sōma's soft smile. And although he didn't say anything, she could tell that he didn't see any potential negatively from Kuga. 'Its okay. This place is just our rival friendly checking up on us', she told herself, from reading Sōma's eyes. Trying to distract herself from how she was blushing, at imagining the real sōma calling her meat-meat, Ikumi grabbed at a new mix of ground pork and began to mix in soy sauce, sugar, scallions and crushed pepper corns.

Not noticing the slight frown on Megumi's face, nor the way Sōma's eyebrows crinkled with worry, Ikumi carried on prepping the ground pork. "I heard on the grapevine", Kuga enquired enviously, "that you were lucky enough to get your hands on some Pine tickets. Soo... I guess you'll be visiting the mountain area sometime".

Internally, wincing at the unspoken dissatisfaction, Sōma simply shrugged and nodded. "Yeah", he responded, not taking his eyes off the work before him. "It sure was surprising when Kenosuke gave us a roll of tickets..."

"But, we were happy to receive them", Megumi interjected. "They were a gift from my brother, and we're looking forwards to seeing him".

Stomping towards the eighth seat, Megumi narrowed her eyes and scowled. "I thought you said that you didn't have a problem with him, but clearly you still have issues to settle. So for the good of our rivalry, and in the most cordial way I can muster... push off!"

Startled by the blue haired girl's outburst, Kuga blinked several times before narrowing his own eyes. "I. Don't. Have. Issues. With. Kensuke!" He growled, before realising the contradiction between his words and his diction. Spinning around on his feet, Kuga began making his way back towards his own festival restaurant flanked by his following staff. "Enjoy the food Sōma", he cheerily announced. "I hope you're still feeling good and strong by the end of today. Our sales competition is still on".

Putting on a halfway true smile, Sōma bid Kuga goodbye and agreed that their competition was still on before directing his attention over to the still scowling Megumi.

"Megumi..." Sōma began, wanting to see her scowl vanish from her face and be replaced with her usual lovely smile. "I'm fine Sōma. It's just... I don't like it when people look down on my brother. Or mistake his withdrawnness for arrogance".

Putting down a completed meat filled dough ball on the work surface, Sōma walked forwards and wrapped his arms around his girlfriend before pressing a kiss to the top of her head. "I love you so much, Megumi. Your kind and caring heart is something that I'll always love about you. Kenosuke is lucky to have you as a sister".

Encircling her arms around her boyfriend, the blue haired girl buried her face into his shoulder trying to clear her head of the annoyance Kuga had just involuntarily induced, so she could once again properly focus on assisting Sōma and Ikumi with their food stall. "You sure you're okay, Megs?" Sōma asked, patting her back comfortingly. "If you want a break, me and Ikumi a can hold down the fort".

Looking up into those golden eyes brimming with care and attention, Megumi shook her head and smiled up at him. "Yeah, I'm fine. Lets just beat Kuga, that will be his just desserts", she grinned, cupping his face within her hands and kissing his nose. Moving back over to the stall, the two chefs rejoined Ikumi in preparing, cooking and handing out hújiāo bîng to the growing number of voracious customers. "Okay then", he whispered half to her, "if you're sure".

—-

"So delicious!"

"Hújiāo Bîng directly opposite from Mapo Tofu! This is just so stunningly beautiful!"

"Fiery heat and flavour against juicy succulent peppery pork..."

"A battle between flavours! Mainland China and Taiwan!"

Hearing the customers reactions, and noting the whispering campaign of positive responses beginning to circulate in the immediate area, which was attracting attention of newly arrived customers, Sōma couldn't help but grin. "This is amazing Sōma!" Ikumi exclaimed, high fiving him and Megumi in turn. "We maybe behind Kuga right now but it's not by much, judging from the number of new people that are coming to us".

"Yeah, We got this!" Sōma responded enthusiastically before once more being inundated by more ticket wielding people, and smiling joyfully as he took great pride in watching his customers expressions of satisfactory deliciousness.

From his perch on the veranda, outside of his restaurant, Kuga clenched his fists together in equal parts jealousy and anxiety. His wish to equal Tsukasa's previous years unanimous five day top spot ranking, and then achieve another food war ago at the first seat and then there was his desire to simply have fun competing in sales against his newest rival.

'You truly are an unorthodox chef, Sōma. But I refuse to be beaten by a first year, before I've won Tsukasa's recognition'.

Shaking his head of any thoughts about Tsukasa, and Kensuke, Kuga turned around straightened his cooking attire and moved back into his restaurant stand, completely missing the frowning face of Rindō Kobayashi. The red haired girl was standing a little way away, eating and carrying two more hessian bags of more food, she was staring at his food stand and Sōma's. Grinning.