Category: Crossover

Anime(s)/Manga(s): Yakitate! Japan/Inuyasha

Genre: Romance/Comedy/Spiritual/Cooking/some Drama

Pairing: Kagome/? (It's either going to be Kuroyanagi Ryo, Suwabara Kai, Meister Kirisaki or even a harem with these three)

Warning: Gonna be some cursing and swearing in Spanish, French, and maybe some other languages.

Summary: Once defeating Naraku, returning home for good while meeting Sesshoumaru again, Kagome was expelled from school. But, with this, Kagome saw this as an opportunity to follow her late father's footsteps in making bread, especially his specialty – Wine Bread. After tirelessly working and practicing making bread with her Miko energy, she finally participates in the Newcomers Exam for the Pantasia bakery. Will Kagome be able to become an Official Fruit and Wine Bread Artisan and follow in her late father's footsteps? And will she be able to find potential love among these groups of fine, talented, and intelligent bread and pastry makers?

Chapter One

The heaving of breath, surprised voices of pedestrians, and called out apologies could be heard through the streets as Kagome speedily rollerbladed her way to the Pantasia store's Main branch building. Looking down at her watch, careful of the pint-sized glass Mason jar tucked in her arm, Kagome yelled, "Ah! Crap! I'm gonna be late!" before picking up the pace of her speed, after turning a corner with the help of a light pole that was positioned at said corner.

Today was the day when she would take the Newcomers' Exam at the most popular Bread bakery store; Pantasia and Kagome couldn't believe how late she going to be... 'And all because of Jii-chan and Hojo-kun...!'

Earlier this morning, before everyone woke up, Jii-chan – being the early bird he was – had spotted her mason jar of her bread's most important ingredient for its taste and had put it in the fridge when it wasn't supposed to. And to add more things to her plate before her appointment at Pantasia's Tokyo Main branch, Hojo came over saying that she shouldn't go to the exam because of her 'condition'.

Obviously, Jii-chan told him another bogus excuse about her being sick again!

'Why the hell did Jii-chan tell him I had Swine Flu?!' She screamed internally before she came closer and closer to her destination.

About a month after defeating Naraku, Kagome was able to go home for good but only to be told that she was expelled because of her countless absences. But after meeting with Sesshoumaru, who was an executive manager of a well-known bakery shop, Kagome found a new career path to take after remembering her late father's occupation as a bread artisan. From what her mother said, her father was the best when it came to making breads with wines as an ingredient, as well as certain fruits like strawberries.

From her memories, Kagome could still taste the sweetness and moistness of her father's creations that he made for his family and customers by using fresh fruit and the best foreign wines, most especially his infamous strawberry bread that he always made in the summer and his cranberry bread for the fall and winter.

It was a month after Kagome had returned home when she met up with Sesshoumaru again and the Miko was making one of her father's old bread recipes since it was a holiday for the local bakery her family always bought bread from. From what the Inu Lord had said, he had smelled a particular sweet scent coming from the house. And when he noticed that Kagome was in the kitchen, adding chopped strawberries to some dough while there was something in the oven, he was curious as to what she was making.

"I'm making one of my late father's specialties; Strawberry Bread. In the oven right now is Red Wine French for my mother."

Once both loaves of bread were done, Sesshoumaru got a taste of both of them and was impressed but their taste, texture, and aroma. He even watched the process of her kneading the dough for her Strawberry Bread and asked how she was able to make the dough ferment a little quicker than normal.

Kagome's simple answer was that she was channeling her Miko energy into her hands to make them warmer than the average person's, thus helping the yeast in the bread to ferment quicker. She laughed at Sesshoumaru's expression after hearing her use her Miko energy in such a way. But she also added that when she grew nervous or if any of her emotions fluctuated, then the energy just subconsciously flowed to her hands, making them warmer than normal.

It was her own version of Solar Hands but it was nowhere near like the Solar Gauntlets the more muscular artisans gained after working their arms out through weightlifting, swimming, martial arts; anything that helped increase the muscle mass to also increase the blood flow into their hands.

After that, he had suggested that, since he knew she wasn't in school anymore, she could take the Newcomers Exam at the Bakery shop he worked with and try her luck in getting a job there. He even said that he'd help get her name added to the list of Newcomers taking the exam and all she had to do was prepare herself for the first round.

The Miko was brought out of her thoughts as she saw the main branch store of Pantasia coming into view and almost crashed through the doors while asking if she was late.

Through her heaving, trying to catch her breath, she missed everyone looking at her strangely while a man, who looked to be in his early twenties looked at her silently before asking, "And your name would be?"

With her breath now evened out a bit, Kagome answered, "Higurashi... Kagome..."

The man, Kuroyanagi Ryo looked at his clipboard for the name. When he found it, he noticed a small note saying that the name was entered by Inúmura Sesshoumaru. Kuroyanagi raised a brow at this, 'She must have some talent for Director Inúmura to acknowledge... especially with being a perfectionist himself...'

Looking back at the raven-haired girl, Kuroyanagi answered her former question, "You barely made it by a few seconds. Take your rollerblades off, receive your number, and get ready for the exam with the others."

Once Kagome caught her breath, she nodded before setting her jar of raisins and wine down and took a seat on the hard floor to undo the straps of her rollerblades before slipping her shoes on and her pads off.

As she did this task, Kuroyanagi continued to watch her before noticing the jar she set beside her. He could see that there were raisins inside but didn't know what the red liquid they were submerged in was. Guessing that the Director informed her on what the first round may be, he let it slide considering he was curious as to what she might make, as well as the extension of her skills.

But with undeniable curiosity, he walked up to her sitting form and leaned down to pick up the jar to examine the contents without opening the jar.

Yes, there were raisins inside but the liquid they were submerged in still escaped him. It wasn't carbonated so it couldn't be a sort of soda yet it looked just as thick as red grape juice. The jar was almost cold, making the older man (by only six years) believe it was previously refrigerated. Kuroyanagi glanced at Kagome and noticed her looking at him with a secretive smirk before speaking, "Yes, the jar is an ingredient I prepared early last night since I doubt you would be able to supply to me."

Her smile then turned sheepish as she packed her rollerblade gear in her back and slipped on her shoes, "But because my Jí-chan being the early bird and didn't know that the ingredient needed to be kept at room temperature, he ended up putting it in the fridge so that's why it feels a but chilled. I'm hoping it'll become lukewarm at least before I use it."

Kuroyanagi nodded, accepting that she wasn't going to tell him what the liquid was until after the first round was over, he handed the jar over to Kagome as she stood but not before giving her a reminder, "That's fine. As long as it doesn't have any manufactured additives and only grade A natural ingredients, you can use it."

"Yes sir." Kagome smiled at him, before walking off to ask which number she was on the list and borrowing an apron since she wasn't able to bring her own with her being in such a hurry not to be late.

After receiving her Examinee number, number thirty-three, and as she was pulling her hair back after setting her jar on a table, Kagome scoped out the others who were taking part in the exam. So far, she could see that they all had the potential to become fine artisans, despite there being one of two that were overconfident in their skills, but she could already tell that which ones were going to be disqualified just by appearances.

Sesshoumaru, during his last visit, had dropped a hint here and there about the Examiner being very strict and VERY good at observations, but Kagome believed she had nothing to worry about with her appearance since she believed herself to be very hygienic and was always careful about washing her hands and pulling her hair back.

The only thing she worried about was her skills since she hadn't been making bread for very long and her family and few friends were the only ones who ever ate it. Not to mention, she felt that her breads didn't even come close to competing against the original taste her father always managed to bring out on his recipes.

With a sigh, Kagome was finished putting her hair back with an elastic hairband and tied a folded bandana over her forehead and under her bangs to help keep sweat and stray stands out of her face and way from any dough that she would knead before picking up her jar and continued to look around.

"Lots of competition, isn't there?" Came a soft and sweet voice from behind Kagome, almost surprising her into dropping her jar.

Looking to the owner of the voice, she saw a girl who looked to be around her age with her dark sandy hair pulled back by a light pink headband and wearing a female baker's uniform that was lavender with a red scarf around her neck that tied into a knot that settled just over her heart. The girl also had a soft and kind smile while her eyes were sizing her up but not in a bad way.

Not really minding, Kagome smiled nervously before answering, "Yeah... it's a bit overwhelming since they all look to have a lot of potential. And I can see a couple of very talented artisans present as well, which makes me a little more nervous since I'm still a but of a newbie."

The girl next in front of her gave a soft but good-natured laugh before she gave a reply, "I'm sure that you'll do pretty well, especially when you look like you brought a special ingredient for your bread." She then looked apologetic before speaking while holding her hand out, "Ah, I'm sorry. I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Azusagawa Tsukino... I specialize in French breads. And you?"

Kagome returned the smile before taking Tsukino's hand into hers, "I'm Higurashi Kagome. I guess I specialize in Fruit breads, as well as wine breads."

Tsukino then blinked before looking at Kagome's hand that she still held. From what she could feel, they were slightly warmer than the average of people, including bakers. She wondered if this girl in front of her had the infamous Solar Hands before letting the warm hand go.

Catching how Kagome's specialty was within Wine breads, Tsukino glanced at the jar she held in her left arm, "You specialize in wine breads? Is that what's in that jar?"

Kagome blinked before looking around. Seeing that no one was really paying them any mind, just waiting for things to start, the Miko believed it was safe to tell her, "Yes. These are raisins that I had soaked in red wine last night. It's supposed to be one of the key ingredients to the bread I plan to make for the first round."

"How do you know that the first round will allow you to make your choice of bread?"

"Oh, a friend of the family gave me the heads up. But since I didn't any other surprises to be spoiled about the Exams and anything more about the examiners, I told him to withhold anything else he knew about the Examinations." Kagome could help but chuckle at Tsukino's surprised yet curious expression before adding, "I know he means well and that he wants me to be prepared but I think the less I know about something, the more fun I get out of learning about that something."

As Tsukino was going to ask who Kagome's family friend was, the front doors of the shop opened before a young brunette boy in causal travel clothes, wristbands, and a travel pack with a rolled-up sleeping bag yelled out, "Afternoon! I'm counting on you from today on!" Then with a salute, he introduced himself, "I'm Azuma Kazuma!"

Kagome could see Kuroyanagi look down at his clipboard before speaking, "Azuma Kazuma, eh? You're five minutes late." And even though the boy, Kazuma apologized for running a little late, Kuroyanagi ignored it and added with strict authority, "Five-point deduction."

Despite Kazuma wondering what he meant and was obviously confused, murmurs could be heard from the other examinees while Kagome gave a wince, remembering that Sesshoumaru told her that the exams would be based on a sort of point system and was thankful that he told her that much and also thanked whoever was watching over her that she was able to make it in time by mere seconds.

"Got it, people?" Kuroyanagi asked before he went on to explain, "This examination uses a point deduction system. You begin with ten points. If you lose all your points, you'll be disqualified. If you're disqualified, gather your belongings and go home. Understand?" He then turned to the rest of the examinees and announced, "In that case, we'll begin the Pantasia main store's new employee examination. All of you, line up on one side."

Again, Kagome gave a wince at the strictness of the Examiner and wondered if Sesshoumaru had hired the guy himself. Don't get her wrong, he was a very handsome guy and she was certain that he was given the position of Examinee for a damn good reason... but his straightforwardness and his "my way or the highway" tone of voice kind of enforced her to believe that Sesshoumaru hired him personally.

But she also couldn't help but feel bad for Kazuma since he came all this way to take part in the exams only to have half of his points taken off for just being late. And as he seemed to already be on the examiner's bad side.

After he was brought out of his daze by Kuroyanagi's voice, Kazuma clenched his fists up in determination, not realizing that he also made the heat of his hands a lot warmer, making the same heat visible and rising from those hands.

The heat from his hands didn't go unnoticed by Tsukino, nor did it escape Kagome.

The girls glanced at each other and it was all they needed from each other to confirm that the other had in fact seen what happened to Kazuma's hands and wonder if he did in fact had Solar Hands or something similar to it.

Once everyone was lined up and in order by their given numbers from Kuroyanagi's right to left, Kuroyanagi introduced himself announce what to expect of the exam, "I'll be the person in charge of this examination, Kuroyanagi Ryou. Pantasia's Tokyo main store's new employee recruitment will be decided by the trials to follow. However, there will be only one chosen out of the thirty-five here."

This caused everyone to murmur in surprise while others looked around nervously. Among the nervous ones what Kagome herself with her unease causing her to grip the jar in her hands a little tighter, making her unconsciously warm her hands with her Miko energy and also warming the wine and raisins a little quicker.

Her nervousness was soon momentarily forgotten as she heard Number Thirty-five, Azuma Kazuma speak excitedly, "Whoa, this is really serious." This also caused the other examinees to turn toward him as he continued with optimistic determination, "But oh well, I'll just do my best until the end. Yeah!"

His words made Kagome smile while also giving her a little more courage.

'Just as he said... 'Just try your best. And if there's a chance that I'm disqualified, that's okay. I'll just try again at the next exam they have or apply at another bakery.' With that thought, Kagome heaved a sigh and smiled as she continued to hear him speak.

"I won't lose! I'll fight with Japan!"

That last part made Kagome blink in confusion. 'Japan... Ja-pan...?' after a second, the pun clicked and Kagome gave a silent chuckle, finding not only his personality cute, but also the pun that sounded like something her little Shippó make.

As a matter of fact, Azuma Kazuma's determination and personality to be similar to her son's when it came to optimism and energy.

"Which part of the country are you from?" All optimism was crushed by the Kansai accented voice of the examinee from Kagome's right as he spoke as if what Kazuma had said was the stupidest thing he heard, making Kagome and Kazuma turn to him as he continued with his arms crossed over his chest, "You're quite carefree, aren't ya? Do you know how difficult it is, to be recruited by Pantasia? 'Minus-Five-Points'-han."

'Sounds like he's trying to hide that he's from Osaka or trying to change it to proper Japanese...' Kagome thought while finding herself almost immediately disliking how the guy carried himself with a cocky arrogance as if anyone similar to Kazuma was beneath him.

Kagome raised a brow as she glanced at him from the corner of her eye while Kazuma looked at him with innocent confusion. It didn't take long for the guy between them got impatient and started to explain while looking at Kazuma with narrowed eyes, "Listen up." He lifted his index finger and pointed at the younger boy, "Pantasia is the charisma of the bakery world."

Kazuma looked at him with slight interest in what he had to say while Kagome murmured so softly the bleach haired boy couldn't hear, "You don't say..."

"Merely being able to work here... it's recognized by everyone to be something prestigious." His voice grew more excited as he continued, "What's more, you may even be in charge of your own store! It's the same as being a winner in this world!"

'So he's only doing this for the fame and money...' Kagome thought as the reactions the Kansai speaker received from Kazuma and Kagome were somewhat indifferent. Kazuma found the information interesting and all but also weren't interested in gaining anything like that and Kagome didn't care much for it either.

The guy soon became annoyed before almost yelling, "What's with that indifferent reaction?!"

Kazuma gave a pouted frown as he answered, "It can't be helped, I have no interest in such things."

This piqued Kagome's interest while it confused and surprised Number Thirty-Four before Kazuma explained, "The reason I came to Japan's number one bread shop is because I thought I could find a hint. It's because I thought I might find an opportunity." Kagome turned to him to see that he was starting to grin excitedly as he clenched his fists once again, "An opportunity to know the true form of the new Japan... That's all!"

Kagome smiled softly once more at his goal that wasn't obscured but the want to be famous or get rich or even the chance to manage his own store. It was almost similar to her except she got back into making bread because she wanted to be just as good as her father was in making the ultimate bread with wine as an ingredient.

Kazuma's raised voice caught Kuroyanagi's attention, making the Examiner call out, "Hey! Don't make idle talk!"

Not wanting to get in trouble, the boy next to Kagome started to act familiarly with Kazuma like they were old buddies while calling back to Kuroyanagi that he and Kazuma were old buddies before Kazuma got him off of him by saying that he never met the guy before.

It was obvious to Kagome that this boy, who now said his name was Kawachi Kyousuke, would do everything he can to make sure he was ahead of everyone while also using his own skills in bread making.

'Better keep an eye on him...' she thought, keeping her jar of red wine and raisins out of the boy's sight.

She didn't pay attention anymore as Kawachi felt how warm Kazuma's hands were. And to test them, he put one of them under his armpit to test just how warm they were. After feeling that the warmth was slightly warmer than his armpit, Kawachi knew that he couldn't underestimate Kazuma.

From down the row, Kuroyanagi examined the appearances of all the examinees, starting from Number Twenty-three and working his way up to one, looking for anything that could ultimately disqualify them as bread artisans for Pantasia. As he was looking through the mid-teens, he hit the tops of the heads of Number Eighteen, Seventeen, and Fifteen before telling them they were ultimately disqualified and they could go home.

The three he disqualified soon demanded an explanation, asking why Kuroyanagi did so.

His answer came as, "It's simple." Then started to point to the contestants listing off the flaws he could see starting from Eighteen, who was dressed nice but missed trimming, "Nose hair!"

Then to Fifteen who looked big-boned, "The Stench of Sweat!"

And last, to Seventeen with an obvious flaw, "Railroad haircut! In short, you're all lacking and cleanliness. We have no use for people like you."

The harsh truth of such small little details being told to them so harshly was enough to make the three cry.

Kagome looked on with wide eyes at seeing how harsh Kuroyanagi was when it came to being straightforward even with stating something. 'Talk about tough...'

"Yike. He's a person who says cruel things easily, isn't he?" Kazuma asked, although it was more of a statement than a question.

Kazuma's voice caught Kuroyanagi's attention, "Number Thirty-five." After Kazuma saw that it was him that Kuroyanagi was calling out to, the Examiner was quick to say, "Two-point deduction!"

"EH?! WHY?!" Kazuma exclaimed, shocked and confused of the reason why.

"Your Hair is messy. It looks unclean." At this, it made Kagome check her bangs with her free to see if they weren't sticking out everywhere and if her ponytail wasn't messy either as Kazuma made his way to Kuroyanagi, unbelieving that the man called him unclean.

Then the voice of Tsukino – who was numbered Eleven – brought, not only Kagome out of her hair checking but also Kazuma out of his shock as she asked Kuroyanagi to stop making a big fuss over fixable things.

"For instance," she slipped off her headband and made her way to Kazuma, "If there's someone with messy hair... See? Now it okay. It's easily fixed, no?" once she slipped it on, the difference could be seen as clearly as day while making a point that it was something that could easily be fixed if given the chance to fix it.

And although she made a good point, it didn't seem like Kuroyanagi was pleased about it, "It's troublesome for you to do as you please."

Tsukino just smiled at him, "It should be fine." She then asked with an underlying taunt that was almost missed by Kagome, "Or will you fail me with a ten-point deduction?"

This made Kagome curious as she watched Kuroyanagi stare at Tsukino as Tsukino herself just smiled sweetly and giggled. The Miko wondered if they somehow knew each other after he turned, almost in a sulking way she found familiar that almost made her laugh, as he reminded, "No matter what happens I'll enforce the rules. Point deduction remains."

In reply, Tsukino tugged her ears outward and stuck her tongue out at him, "Stingy." making Kuroyanagi twitch in anger and annoyance.

It took everything Kagome had to not laugh aloud since she didn't want to risk getting any of her points taken. But she knew one thing, for sure. This Exam was sure to be interesting.

xoxox

Xoxoxox

Pan – Japanese for bread; also Spanish for bread as well. Thus creating the Japanese pun "Japan".

Kansai – Kyoto-Osaka dialect that's spoken in the Kansai region of Japan. To give the accent an American comparison, it could sound either like a Southern or Texan accent (comparisons between Osaka and Houston as large, business-oriented cities with rowdy reputations in the southern part of their respective countries are perhaps not without merit), or a nasal New York or Boston accent (closer in terms of the actual nasal sound of the accent, and New York's fast-paced reputation isn't far off from Osaka's)

-han – Kansai for the honorific of –san (Mr./Miss)