Shokugeki no Sōma: Nashi Saito de Chīfu

by Gale-Dragon

Ever since he picked up a kitchen knife at age three, Sōma knew he wanted to be a chef. For twelve years, he cooked in the kitchen of his family diner. But he doesn't cook like you or me. No, he has his own cooking style, and that style will change the world of cooking forever. After all, Sōma's blind.

5. 5: Hell Camp pt 1

Gale-Dragon: Hello everyone, sorry for not updating for a while, college takes up a lot of free time.

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Shokugeki no Sōma: Nashi Saito de Chīfu. Chapter 5: Hell Camp pt 1

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"Talking"

'Thinking'

(Author commenting)

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The Polaris Dorm was riding on a bus that was taking them to the Friendship & Team-Building Cooking Camp sight, that camp was better known to the students of Totsuki as 'Hell Camp'. Each member of the dorm was munching on some delicious, handmade onigiri made by Megumi for the long ride. Turns out the country girl is quite the chef, she just had a bit of stage fright and doesn't do very well in front of people. That was the reason why Megumi was doing so horrible in class.

"Megumi-chan," Sōma said, getting the person in question's attention, and added, "I have an idea to help you get over your stage fright." Megumi was listening. "This is sort of how I cook," the blind redhead stated with a soft smile and added "Just focus on the food you're cooking. When you do that, everything in the background just disappears and you can show everyone your skills."

This made Megumi's heart flutter a bit.

Maybe... Maybe this is would help the country girl get through the Hell Camp.

~}i{~

When their bus arrived at the camp location, they couldn't help but be utterly amazed at the magnificent building before them. Okay, well, Yuki was utterly amazed. The location of the camp was at one of the many amazing, five-star resorts that Totsuki owned; although, the one before the Polaris crew was more of the start location of the camp. Sōma had to be the only one in the immediate area who was not staring up at the majestic building. The blind student was more focused on what his sister was saying.

"And make sure you ask where the hot springs are this time around, alright Nii-san. We don't need another incident like last time," Mayu stated as she picked up her bag.

"Don't worry Mayu, I'll make sure to ask," Sōma said with a don't-worry wave.

Mayu rolled her eyes and said, "Just don't cause too much trouble with the employees here."

"Where are you going Mayu?" Ryoko asked the female Yukihira when she saw that she was walking away from the hotel they were supposedly staying at.

"A different hotel for my school," Mayu said simply.

"You're school is at one of the Totsuki Resorts?" Shun asked in a curious tone.

Mayu nodded and explained "Yes, for a mandatory school event. My school and Totsuki are on very good terms, so they're using one of the Totsuki Resort Hotels to host their event."

"Ahh," Marui stated adjusting his glasses and said, "So you have to be with your school and you're not going to be here to help Sōma."

"Don't worry," Sōma said with a smile and added, "The resorts have staff that is specially trained to work with guests who are disabled or has a special needs."

"How do you know that?" Yuki asked curiously.

"Oh, the Headmaster told me this before we left," Sōma stated before explaining "There are going to be two of the Totsuki Resort staff members that are going to help me during the camp."

"The Headmaster himself told you..." Ryoko asked with a raised brow.

"Yeah, he had to arrange the help anyway," Mayu stated before one of the Totsuki staff members called the students to come into the resort. Mayu waved bye to her brother and friends and headed off to the resort next door.

The rest of the Polar Star Dorm walked into the 5-star hotel in front of them.

~}i{~

Totsuki Resort Hotel, Totsuki Villa (Grand Ballroom)...

Despite having every single first-year student of the Totsuki Culinary School within its walls, the room was as silent as a soulless graveyard during the night of a new moon. Who could blame them; this was a Training Camp from Hell after all.

"Yukihira?" the Polaris group heard someone from a nearby crowd say. When they (minus Sōma) turned towards the voice they saw Mito Ikumi standing in front of them.

"Oh, Nikumi, it's been a while," Sōma said with a smile as soon as he recognized the voice. The tanned blond immediately turned pink and told the blind redhead not to call her by that nickname out loud. "I thought you were okay with it?" Sōma asked curiously.

Ikumi blushed and practically shouted, "I am NOT okay with it!" Sōma still wasn't getting the implication.

That was when Chapelle made his announcement on the stage over the speakers. "Good morning everyone," Chapelle said into a microphone, getting everyone's attention. The teacher continued "I will now give you a quick overview of this Cooking Camp. Today marks the first day of the Totsuki Institute Friendship and Team-Building Cooking Camp. It will last six days and five nights. Each day, you will be given an assignment that, in some way, relates to the culinary arts. These assignments differ every year. On this first day, all of the 980 students here will be divided into 20 groups. Once this presentation is completed, you are each to proceed to your designated area and join your group. Each instructor will set a baseline grade for each assignment. Any student, who does not meet that grade, will fail. Buses are waiting on hand to send these students back to the Institute immediately... Where they will be formally expelled. Speaking of your instructors, we have invited guest teachers to judge your work." The students immediately wondered who these guests are.

Chapelle then said "Each guest has made time in his or her busy schedule to be here for this camp. Please welcome these Totsuki Institute Alumni."

All of the first-year students turned to stone statues as soon as they heard these words, well, nearly all of the students.

The Totsuki Alumni were the diamond students of Totsuki who had survived all three hellish years of the harsh and demanding school. Here, standing before the new generation of students stood the culinary geniuses who beat the near-impossible single-digit odds to reach graduation at Totsuki.

One of the Alumni, the one with wine red hair and silver glasses, sniffed the air and then said "You there. Ninth row from the front, the boy with the scar above his eye." The nearby students turned to look at Sōma, who made no notion that stated that he knew the Alumni was talking about him.

Shino's :;: French Restaurant :;: Chef Shinomiya Kojirō.

Shinomiya walked towards Sōma, sniffing the air as he did. "Oh, sorry, you," the Alumni stated as he stood in front of the boy standing next to Sōma, and then said rather nonchalantly "You're expelled. You can go home now." That student immediately asked why in a frantic tone.

Shinomiya was about to explain when Sōma said, "Your hair-care product has a citrusy scent to it. That smell can easily overpower the fragrance of whatever you're cooking, not to mention it's a bit on the noxious side."

Shinomiya blinked a bit, noticing that Sōma didn't even look at them when he spoke, then said "That's exactly right! Fashion is an important ingredient. If the chef is unfashionable, then dishes are that much less attractive," then he told the student he just expelled as he turned to walk away "I suggest you choose unscented hair-care products in the future."

Sōma wanted to disagree with the whole 'fashionable' thing the Alumni was talking about, but the expelled student suddenly shouted "Wait! Expelled! For that one little thing?!"

Shinomiya glared at the former student from over his shoulder and growled out "That "one little thing" is enough to lose your customers. Are you trying to run my restaurant out of business?" That nearly made the boy wet himself. Sōma couldn't help but notice the word usage in that sentence.

"That's Chef Shinomiya! He's the first Japanese chef to be awarded France's Plusol Award!" one student shouted as soon as they saw the redheaded Alumni.

Shinomiya walked away from the crestfallen boy, glancing secretly at the redheaded boy only to notice that he had his hands resting on top of a white cane. The Alumni said nothing as he continued to walk back to the stage.

Ristorante F :;: Italian Restaurant :;: Chef Mizuhara Fuyumi

Ginza Hinowa :;: Sushi Restaurant :;: Head Chef Sekimori Hitoshi.

Neither the Italian chef nor the sushi chef made any notion that they even acknowledged the students, or if they were excited to be here. Hard to tell what they were thinking with those blank expressions.

Poor Megumi was getting some rather "unpleasant" attention from two of the Alumni. Okay, they were flattering and nice, but they were scaring the poor timid student.

Tezoro :;: French Auberge :;: Chef Gotoda Donato.

Kirinoya :;: Japanese Restaurant :;: Chef Inui Hinako.

Chapelle's glaring at the two flirty Alumni was enough to cause for them to finally leave poor Megumi alone and head back to the stage.

Now the main focus was on a towering figure surrounded by a blazingly bright and frightening aura on stage.

Totsuki Resort's Head Chef and Company Director:;: Dōjima Gin.

Dōjima Gin was one half of the Legendary Duo of the Totsuki Culinary Institute, Totsuki's First Seated Gemini Chefs.

Why was this title so big at Totsuki? The two students that made the famed Gemini Chefs could never defeat each other, nor could they win against one another, not even for the famous and most sought after 1st Seat of the Elite Ten. So, since every single Shokugeki the two Gemini Chefs invoked for the right to be 1st Seat kept ending in a tie, they both became the 1st Seat of the Elite Ten. The first time this has EVER in Totsuki's long lustrous history. The two Gemini Chefs where Dōjima Gin and a person by the surname of Saiba, who disappeared years ago (close to two decades to be more precise).

So basically, the imposing figure standing on stage before the first-year students was one of the greatest diamonds to ever come out of Totsuki.

Chapelle handed the mic over to Dōjima for him to make his speech.

Dōjima began his speech "Welcome, everyone to the Totsuki Resort Hotels. The Alumni gathered here today are all head chefs and owners of their own restaurants. For the six days, you are here, you will each be treated as one of their employees. In other words, that means if your work isn't up to our standards... *Runs his right thumb across his throat* You're Fired! As you've already seen, the instructors can expel you at any time for any reason. I wish you all the best of luck. That is all."

With that, the students were scattered into the 20 groups.

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Sōma and Megumi were in the same group and their instructor for sed group was Inui Hinako, much to the poor country girl's dismay.

Inui told everyone to gather in pairs of two, the same pairs that were assigned in Chapelle-sensei's class. This made Megumi's heart swell with joy as she immediately ran up to the blind redhead.

"Yukihira-dono?" asked one of two of the resort staff members who walked up to Sōma.

"That's me, how can I help you?" the redhead asked as he turned to the voice.

"Ah, no, we're a part of the 'Assisted Help' staff for the resort," the other staff member said with a smile.

"Ah, you're the ones the Headmaster told me about. I do have to thank you for volunteering for this," Sōma said with a small smile. The two introduced themselves as Nabu and Aki. They told the redhead that they would be helping him in dressing his plates during the assignments that do not involve a teammate.

Inui got the two Assisted Help staff members' attention and asked to talk to them. This, in turn, allowed a blond teen to stomp on Sōma's foot and grind it. "Since you're still going, I'm going to assume that you did that on purpose," Sōma said in a rather unfazed tone.

The blond smirked and said, "Yep. I was hoping I'd go against you sometime in camp, but never thought I'd get my chance on day one." A more rounded teen with semi-wavy short black hair and a menacing looking glare stood behind the blond.

Megumi started shaking when she stuttered with fear tears in her eyes "Ano, e-excuse me? Th-this is already a really hard class... I, ano, don't think we should be fighting... So, ano, guys?" The teenage boys made the notion that they heard the poor nervous girl.

The blond smirked and said, "I finally have a chance to stomp you flat, Yukihira Sōma!"

That was when Sōma smirked back and said, "Well good for you and congrats. So listen, I get you're trying to pick a fight, but you can get off my foot now. You've made your point so you can stop."

Inui suddenly opened a snack bag, and thus getting the group of students' attention as she said, "All right, everyone!" The Totsuki graduate sat on a bench with a platter of tea and added, "I will be sitting right here, so if you have any questions about today's assignment, feel free to ask." One of the students told chef Inui that she hasn't told them what the assignment was. "Oh? I haven't?" Inui asked rather absentmindedly. The chef stood from her seat and said, "Goodness, I guess I best explain it, then." The majority of the student in the group wasn't sure what to say at the moment.

Chef Inui waved her right hand in the air and said "My assignment, is to use these ingredients here," then moved her hand towards some bare table and window that was showing a beautiful natural setting with the running river, lush green trees, and grass in the background, and added "To cook a Japanese main dish. Any dish will be fine." One of the students told the Totsuki graduate that there wasn't anything there (on the table). Inui giggled before saying very happily "Oh, yes there is. There are lots of things! A beautiful bountiful nature, a clear blue river. It's a treasure trove of wonderful ingredients!" The reaction of the group, or rather, the entire group minus four certain individuals (pretty sure you know who they are ready ;-)) were utterly surprised by that particular fact.

Inui continued her explanation of the assignment "This building and property have long been privately held by the Totsuki Institute. A fence marks its boundaries. If you cross that fence, you fail. To pass this assignment, you must find your ingredients inside this area only, prepare them, and present them to me and these two (waves to Nabu and Aki, who waved back) in a Japanese dish that meets our approval."

Sōma had to cover his ears as those same students gasped in a deafening tone. 'Honestly, why are they so surprised? It's a hell camp after all,' the blind red had thought as he uncovered his ears to hear the rest of the assignment.

"Any seasonings, oils, and utensils you may need are provided inside this room. You may also use any of the fishing rods and hunting equipment located in the shed," Inui explained happily. The Totsuki graduate happily clapped her hands together and said "You have two hours. Ready? Begin." It took a few seconds, but those same 45 students who kept getting shocked and loud finally realized that the assignment had finally begun.

Sōma quickly covered his ears again when a barrage of noises exploded in the kitchen/hall/classroom. The majority of students were talking over one another in a panic, trying to find out what ingredients they need for a main Japanese dish, where to find the ingredients they need in the environment and the fact that they only had two hours to get everything prepared. As soon as all of the noisy students were gone, Sōma uncovered his ears and thought 'Cht, with the way they were acting, you would think that they were just told that the entire world was going to end in two hours rather than a cooking assignment. That's rather pathetic, and not just by Totsuki standards. '

"Let's make a contest of it, Yukihira," Sōma blinked when he heard the foot stomper's voice.

"Contest?" The blind redhead repeated in confusion.

With a confident smile on his face, the blond teen stated "Yes. Let's decide which of us is better, once and for all!" The blonde walked up to the Totsuki graduate and said in that same confident tone "Chef Inui! I would like to hand this decision to you. Your impartial judgment can put this matter to rest, and declare for all which one of us made the better dish!"

The young woman blinked in a slightly surprised manner before saying "Hm? Why would I want to do that? It has nothing to do with my assignment, so I'd rather not, thanks anyway," then popped a Kaki no Tane cracker into her mouth. Nabu and Aki couldn't help but feel sorry for the teen at the moment.

"Huh? O-oh… Ano… I see," the blond's confidence flew right out the window at this point.

Megumi felt a little sorry for the blond while Sōma snickered a bit and said "So now what? Your antics have turned this awkward, y'know."

The rounded teen burst out in laughter when he said "GWAH HAHA! That was so lame, Nii-chan (1)! HAHA!"

The blond then shouted in a panicked and annoyed tone "SH-SHUT UP! DON'T YOU START LAUGHING TOO!"

Megumi now had a shocked look on her face when she thought 'Nii-chan? They're related? They don't look anything alike!'

Sōma raised a brow and thought 'So other twins are attending Totsuki.'

The blond turned his attention back on the blind redhead and stated in a matter-of-fact tone "A-Anyway! I will never lose to you Yukihira! Anything you make, I will make better!" The chubby brunette grabbed the blond by the collar as the blond shouted "YOU HEAR ME YUKIHIRA?!" the pudgy brunette then started dragging his twin brother away as he said pretty casually "Okay, time to go, Nii-chan."

Well, that was odd.

Megumi quickly told Sōma "S- Sōma, we ought to hurry with our dish too!"

Sōma nodded and stated "You're right, but we need to think carefully about the ingredients that we're going to put into our dish and how we should acquire them. Is there a map of the property?" The country girl quickly looked around the room. As soon as she spotted a map, Megumi grabbed Sōma's hand and dragged him towards it.

Chef Inui saw this and smiled before popping another cracker into her mouth.

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Outside on the property grounds, more specifically, around a clear, rushing river…..

The majority of the students were by the river, collecting ingredients for their dishes, or trying to. Some of these students were shouting and arguing about not being able to catch any fish, some who DID catch a fish were talking about their dish and realized that they don't have access to certain ingredients, and some were looking for simple ingredients that were literally right in front of them but weren't able to see them due to the stress of the assignment.

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With a smirk and while munching on her snack, Chef Inui thought 'When people are thrust into sudden, unforeseen situations, their field of vision shrinks considerably. Their thoughts scatter and go in circles. They don't think their choices or actions through. *sips her tea* This assignment is just a small test. Any chef who fails something this minor has no place at Totsuki.' The accomplished chef casually glanced at a big map of the property of the building she was currently in that she placed on one of the walls before all of the students arrived, just to see if anyone would even notice the big obvious thing during the assignment. With a smile, Inui saw Megumi looking of the map and telling Sōma what was on the property. 'Those two are off to a good start,' the Empress of the Mist thought as she popped another cracker into her mouth. She couldn't wait to see how many students would succeed in this small assignment and she also wondered what the blind student could do.

~}i{~

Megumi and Sōma decided to head to the barns to get their ingredients for their dish since the rivers were crowded and too noisy.

The blind redhead told the country girl "Just because the theme was Japanese, doesn't mean we have to use fish as the main ingredient." So the two were currently looking in the barn, and both were relatively surprised that they were the only ones there.

"Sōma, would chicken make a good ingredient for a Japanese dish?" Megumi asked her blind teammate as she watched as he somehow managed to get ahold of a freshly laid chicken egg with minimal damage from the mother hen.

"Chicken should be fine, but we still need…" Sōma said before remembering the criteria for the assignment. "Whatever is 'Here'," the redhead muttered as he remembered the sound of Chef Inui munching on some kind of cracker.

"Megumi, what was Chef Inui eating when she gave us our assignment?" Sōma asked his teammate as he carefully placed the fresh egg in a basket while simultaneously keeping the hen away.

Megumi blinked a bit in confusion and said "Ano, she was eating Kaki no Tane Crackers… They go well with some green tea, but why'd'ya want to know that?"

Sōma smirked and stated, "I know how we can use chicken in a Japanese dish." Megumi knew that smirk, that smirk meant that the blind redhead had something amazing planned. "Do you think you can find some herbs in the area if I told you what to look for?" Sōma asked the country girl, whom in turned nodded and said "Yes I can. I use ta go foraging in the mountains a lot back home."

The blind redhead couldn't help but smile.

~}i{~

Sōma and Megumi had to return to the kitchen because A) they needed to procure a cooking station, B) Sōma needed to memorize the structure of the station so he can cook, and C) Sōma could de-feather the chicken after he memorizes the cooking station layout. The duo ran into the cheeky blond and the chubby brunette right outside the door. Sōma immediately started teasing the blond about his earlier behaviour as the flustered blond started shouting at the redhead to shut up.

The first thing Sōma noticed as he entered the kitchen was the heavy scent of fish in the air. "Did everyone go to the river for fish?" the blind student asked no one in particular as he pitched his nose. A lot of the students seemed to be grilling their fish, from what Sōma could smell.

The blond scoffed and said "Just because the dish has to be Japanese doesn't mean it MUST be fish. Cht, honestly, doesn't anyone here have any creativity at all?" This got the other students attending.

While still pinching his nose, Sōma said "Actually, Megumi and I are using a chicken we found in the barn. So, what did you find to use Mr Oh-so-creative?"

That was when the blond flashed a plucked waterfowl out so everyone could see and said: "I found a Duck."

The other students were utterly shocked at the find, most of them wondering where on earth he found a duck. With a smirk, the blond said "And not just ducks, they had chickens and rabbits inside the area too. I was totally surprised that no one even thought to look for them!" This caused the other students to the yammer about how they missed the obvious fact that there were more than just fish in the area as well as chatter about not knowing how to dress a duck or rabbit. The blonde immediately shooed away the other students so he could get to a cooking station. The blond placed a hand on Sōma's shoulder, telling him to move out of the way too. That was when Sōma felt about the other's hand.

The next thing everyone knew, Sōma grabbed the blonde's hand as he was moving away, and thus causing the blonde to go off balance for a second. "Oi! What the hell are you doing!" the blond shouted with red cheeks as the redhead rubbed his hand, this earned stares from everyone in the kitchen.

Sōma released the blonde's hand and said, "Sorry, *moves out of the way* go right ahead." With red still dusting his cheeks, the blond immediately rushed past Sōma to the nearest cooking station. Megumi was a bit confused with her teammate's odd behaviour.

The blonde and brunette twins started cooking. "Isami, butcher and trim this, would ya?" The blonde told the brunette.

The chubbier twin gave a toothy grin and had a menacing gleam in his eyes when he said: "On it!"

Faster than the eye can see, the brunette started slicing the duck with ease.

Megumi was amazed at what she saw and thought 'Oh, wow! He's slicing off the breast and thigh meat with such precision! He's going so fast, but he hasn't hit the bird's innards at all!'

The chubby brunette noticed the country girl staring at him and asked in a completely calm tone "Hm? Do you need anything?"

Megumi immediately, and nervously, stated "O-oh! No, I-I was just thinking how good you are at that."

The brunette twins chuckled and said "You think so? Thanks… But my Nii-chan is three times faster at it than I am." That was when Megumi was able to see the blonde sliced the duck chunks in a way that will allow for it to absorb more sauce so fast she didn't even see it happen. The blonde rolled the duck in bread, added some spice, grilled it on a frying pan, carefully poured out the fat from the pan; all of this was done with ease.

'There's no delay, no wasted movement, every emotion flows seamlessly from one into the next. It's amazing! Who is he?' Megumi thought as she watched the blond in amazement.

Sōma walked up next to Megumi and said: "Yeah, I'm not surprised he can do that much, at least." The country girl turned to Sōma and asked what he meant. Resting his hands on the top of his cane and said: "His hands are the hands of someone who knows their way around a real kitchen." Megumi blinked before she realized that that must have been the reason why Sōma was feeling the blonde's hands.

'Sōma must've noticed something about his hands and felt them, to confirm his suspicions,' the country girl thought as she made sense of her teammate's earlier behaviour.

The blonde brushed some sauce onto the duck and placed it in the oven. "Forno (Italian for 'Oven')… Accendere (Italian for 'Alright')…" The blond said softly as he watched the oven heat up. "Oh, right. I haven't introduced myself yet. My name is Aldini Takumi," the blonde said with a confident smile, before adding "And this is my younger twin brother, Aldini Isami. We work at our family's Trattoria back home in Italy."

"Trattoria?" Megumi asked out loud.

Takumi explained to the country girl "It's the Italian word for a lower-end eatery that serves the masses." This got Sōma's attention pretty quickly. Takumi rubbed his left sleeve as he said "I'm just like you, Yukihira. I too am a chef who's spent his life protecting the family restaurant." The chef showed the country girl and redhead the name stitched onto his sleeve 'Trattoria Aldini'. With a smirk on his face, Takumi stated "What was it you said? You have "No intention of losing to anyone who hasn't served a single customer"? How about you save that line until after you've beaten me. Yukihira or Aldini… I don't care if you're blind or not, I will prove to you that I am better!"

With a smirk on his face and as he wrapped his bandanna around his head, Sōma stated "Sounds interesting. Bring it on!"

"By the way, what's the name of your family restaurant?" Sōma asked the Aldini twins as he found an unoccupied cooking station. It took a few seconds for Takumi to realize that Sōma couldn't have seen the uniform of the Trattoria Aldini.

The blond blushed at that simple fact as he said, "It's called Trattoria Aldini…"

Isami couldn't help but snicker at his older brother's silly mistake as he thought 'And Nii-chan thought he sounded so cool when he said he didn't care if Sōma was blind or not.'

Sōma smiled and said "That has a nice ring to it. My family's restaurant is called Shokujidokoro Yukihira."

As the duck was cooking in the oven, Takumi pulled out a Mezzaluna, Italian for a half-moon blade.

Inui noted 'It's a two-handed blade that is used in many facets of Italian cooking.'

That was when Takumi started mincing the vegetables into a paste at an incredible speed. Isami then told his brother "Seven minutes until the breast meat is finished roasting."

Takumi happily told his twin "Good! We'll use that time to finish the salsa!"

"Okay, Nii-chan," was all the chubbier twin stated casually. The next thing everyone knew, Takumi handed the Mezzaluna off to Isami, whom in turn started mincing more vegetables. The two finished off their dish with utter ease.

The Aldini twins were the first ones to check in with Chef Inui. With a smile, Takumi said "Light and casual is the hallmark of true Italian cooking." The 45 other students in the group were utterly flabbergasted at how fast the Italian twins made their dish, not to mention finding all the ingredients in the immediate area. Mind you it didn't even take the twins an hour to make their dish.

Aldini Twin's Dish ~ Spicy Roasted Duck with Green Salsa~.

With a mellow smile, Takumi said "Bon Appetito," to the Totsuki graduate.

When Chef Inui took a bite out of the roasted duck meat, she felt that the whole dish tasted like she was being serenaded by a handsome man in a corny duck outfit that she would gladly give into. Inui also noted that the Salsa Verde that the Aldini twins used was the instant version, not the regular version that took a little over a week to make, and that it was made of uruka (a sweetfish), flavoured with soy sauce, salt, and mirin. The young woman noted that minced Japanese perilla leaves and green onion to give the salsa its green colour. Another thing Inui noted was the yuzukosho (a seasoning made from chilli peppers, yuzu fruit peels, and salt) was also used, which gave the salsa a distinctive Japanese flavour, to make a Japanese-Style Salsa Verde.

The 45 students couldn't help but be utterly impressed by the sheer fact that the half-Italians were able to find so many ingredients in the area, let along Japanese ingredients.

Nabu and Aki tried the dish; both couldn't help but smile at the flavour. To them, it felt like they were at a beautiful opera with hundreds of adorable little ducklings watching a mallard duck singing out loud. The two staff members nodded at the Totsuki graduate. With a smile, Inui said "Aldini Takumi, Aldini Isami… You pass!"

The half-Italian twins fist-bumped each other and said at the same time "Grazie (Italian for 'Thank you or Thanks')!"

Megumi couldn't help but note how alike Sōma and Takumi were in terms of being able to think on their feet when it comes to making a dish.

"Oi, Chef Inui," Sōma said to the Totsuki graduate, who did acknowledge the redhead before he asked, "Ya mind if I tasted the duck?" Inui blinked a bit before she handed Sōma the plate and gave him a pair of chopsticks. After tapping on the plate to search for the meat, he took a bit of the duck. Takumi raised a brow at the redhead's actions. "It's good," Sōma stated after he swallowed the dish, then added, "I never actually had a duck-like this before, so I wasn't sure what to expect, but this is pretty good."

"So you admit that I made an amazing dish," Takumi stated in a completely confident tone.

Sōma finished what he had on his chopsticks and said in a completely nonchalant tone "Yeah, I mean, it was really good." That caught the older Aldini twin off guard and caused the younger to chuckle at the blonde's actions. Takumi wasn't expecting Sōma to complement the dish he and his brother made.

"The two of you are challenging each other if I recall correctly, right?" Inui asked the half-Italian twins, country girl, and blind redhead, all of whom nodded in agreement. "If I can expect a dish on par with what I just tasted, then I shall gladly make an exception and judge for you which one is tastier," Inui stated in a completely calm tone. Takumi was utterly excited until the Totsuki graduate started talking about…. Uh, let's just say that what she was suggesting didn't match her semi-absentminded demeanour.

"Ano, she's talking a little too fast for me. What is she saying?" Sōma asked the blond, who had a WTF look on his face as the accomplished chef went on with the "odd" requirements should one of the two teams lose.

"Ano, don't worry about the losing condition," Takumi stated in a deadpan tone as he watched Inui holding Megumi's hands and complementing the poor terrified country girl about her lovely fingers. Isami, Nabu, and Aki were a little weirded out over Inui's obviously "weird" behaviour, more on describing the "Losing Conditions" then scaring poor Megumi out of her skin.

After Sōma placed the plate on a nearby countertop, he told Megumi to get the things he asked for as he started memorizing the layout of the cooking station. The country girl nodded, pulled out a piece of paper (she had a notepad on her for moments like this) that she had written all the ingredients that Sōma told her to look for on, and she trekked off back into the fenced-in area of the property. Sōma then walked back to the Totsuki graduate and asked "Chef Inui. You said as long as it's Here, we can use Anything, right?"

Blinking in a bit of confusion, Inui said, "Yes, you can use anything found within the fenced-in area." She wasn't sure why the blind redhead was asking this question.

With a smirk and as he felt the bench that the graduate was sitting on, Sōma said, "Then it should be fine if we use *swiped the bag of Kaki no Tane crackers off the plate* This for our dish." Inui wasn't too happy about the fact that Sōma took her snack, but she had to accept it. After all, it WAS within the scope of the rules for this assignment.

'Yukihira, what on earth are you thinking?' Takumi wondered before Sōma asked him to hold onto the bag of crackers for him while he memorizes the layout of the cooking station. Without much of a choice, the older Aldini was left holding the bag of crackers as the blind redhead walked off towards a free cooking station (using his cane to guide him). Takumi looked at the Kaki no Tane crackers and wondered what this was going to be used for.

}i{ 20 Minutes left for the Assignment }i{

Inui, Nabu, and Aki took a bit of another team's dish. "This wasn't tasty at all," the female chef stated as the other two nodded in agreement. "Do it again," was all Inui said as a hoard of students were in the mists of despair because they were failing this first assignment. Truth be told, you can count on one hand how many pairs have passed this assignment, the Aldini twins being one of those pairs.

Inui then started talking at Aki and Nabu about the fact that all of these grilled fish were starting to taste the same. "I know that we're not trained for this type of thing, but you do have a valid point, Inui-sama," Aki stated as he ran a hand through his brown hair.

Nabu thumped his chest before saying "I've never had that much fish before. Urp! I think I'm going to need an antacid and a mint." Inui then told all who did not pass that they still had time to make another dish before time was up. These students were starting to panic and racing out of the kitchen.

Isami grinned and said, "Boy, I'm really glad we passed already, Nii-chan." Before looking at the annoyed and fidgeting blond and added, "So how about you relax a little?"

Takumi was watching Sōma as de-feathered the chicken when he said "Doesn't Yukihira realize he has less than 20 minutes left? And that his teammate hasn't come back yet?"

Isami simply stated "But if he runs at a time, then you win by default, right? What's wrong with that?"

That was when Takumi shouted at his younger brother in his over-passionate tone "What I want is a Head-to-Head, All-out Battle! I will not accept any stupid "Victory by Default"! Don't you understand? There's no real satisfaction in winning that way."

Isami's smile faded as he said, "Okay, Nii-chan, I understand."

That was when one of the other team pairs walked up to the half-Italian twins and asked: "Then what was the point of you challenging him to a cook-off anyway?"

"Yeah, I mean, it's pretty much an easy victory," said the other student on the team.

"What do you mean by that?" the Aldini twins asked at the same time, neither understanding what that team meant by that statement.

"The guy's blind. Not much he can do on his own," said one-half of the other team pair with a shrug, then the other has stated "The only reason he's even lasted this long at Totsuki had to be out of pity. He'll be kicked out with this assignment."

The Aldini just looked at this team in pure shock. 'How could these two be talking about Yukihira like that? Did they not see his Shokugeki with Mito Ikumi? And how well he did during that match? Not the mention the pure fact that he won? With his own cooking skills?' Takumi and Isami thought at the same time. True, Sōma speech at the opening ceremony was one reason why the older Aldini twin targeted the redhead, but the thing that solidified Takumi's goal on making Sōma his rival was the Shokugeki the redhead was in. During that very Shokugeki, the Aldinis could easily see that Sōma had the pure skills to back up his words.

"If you two bozos have time to talk shit about someone, then I can assume that you're finished with the assignment," Sōma stated in a cold, icy tone as he rinsed off the now featherless chicken in the sink, then he added, "And considering how loud you're talking, you wanted me to hear that."

The annoying team folded their arms and snickered "So what if we did?"

Sōma scoffed and stated plainly "Then it means you guys aren't worth the time of day."

That team took that personally when one snapped, "What the hell is that supposed to mean?!"

The blind redhead sniffed the air and asked: "Is someone burning their fish on purpose, or is someone not paying attention to their dish?" The Aldini twins then sniffed the air. Yup, something was defiantly burning. A stack of smoke was spotted emitting from a cooking station nearby.

"Crap! Our fish!" the team standing next to the half-Italian twins shouted as they rushed towards their station. Inui immediately failed the team, due to their safety negligent. (Safety Lesson; Never leave a working stove unattended when it's on and if there's something on it).

Megumi managed to burst into the kitchen with the food items on the list she made in a nice little basket. The country girl raced up to Sōma and said in an out of breath tone "I got everything on tha list."

The blind redhead smiled and said "Thanks, Megumi."

That was when Takumi shouted at the country girl "YOU'RE LATE! THERE'S ONLY HAVE 15 MINUTES LEFT! ARE YOU TRYING TO FAIL SO YOU CAN MAKE YUKIHIRA ESCAPE WITHOUT A FIGHT?!" While the blond was shouting, scaring poor Megumi out of her skin and accidentally squeezing the Kaki no Tane bag in his hand. Isami immediately told his older brother that he was crushing the bag.

Takumi immediately started apologizing to Sōma, whom nonchalantly stated "Don't worry about it. You actually saved us some time, so thanks," as the blond handed the redhead, who was holding his hand out, the crushed bag of crackers in confusion. Sōma then added as he wrapped his bandana around his forehead "And besides, we've got a whole 15 minutes to work with." Takumi was a bit confused by that before Sōma stated: "If I made our customers at the restaurant waits that long they'd all go home."

After rolling up his sleeves, Sōma said: "Let's get started, Megumi!" The country girl agreed to that and started preparing the vegetables. Megumi then remembered when Sōma walked back with her to the kitchen after they got their chicken.

}i{ Flashback }i{

"Deep-fry the chicken? Isn't that practically a dime a dozen in the food industry?" Megumi asked Sōma as they walked down a path towards the kitchen before she asked "And besides, we don't have flour, panko, or anything we can use for the breading? Ano, you were planning on using some kind of breading on the chicken, right?"

Sōma smirked and stated "I know that, but don't worry; we already have the perfect breading for the chicken. It just doesn't look like breading at the moment."

}i{ End Flashback }i{

Takumi was looking over the ingredients that Sōma and Megumi collected. 'Saving him time?' the blond wondered before he finally realized what the redhead was planning. As he watched Sōma pour the Kaki no Tane into a clear plastic bag, Takumi thought 'Yukihira is going to crush those crackers and use them as breading for the chicken!' The blind redhead then started pounding the crackers with some kind of hammer (that's used for cooking).

Inui watched as Sōma and Megumi cooked their dish. The Totsuki graduate couldn't help but be rather impressed by the pure fact that the blind redhead made absolutely no hesitation in any of his movements as he cooked, not even when he was cutting the chicken. Mind you Inui was also watching Megumi as well, but the way the redhead was moving… 'You'd think he had a perfectly normal vision," Inui thought to herself. Aki and Nabu were watching as well and couldn't help but wonder if Sōma was going to need their help during the rest of the camp. The rest of the students who either passed (remember, only a few did), failed or completely given up on the assignment were utterly awestruck by the display that the redhead was doing, how flawless each one of Sōma's movements was.

After a good five minutes, Sōma and Megumi presented the three their dish. "Oh my, look at this! My Kaki no Tane crackers have turned into a lovely breading!" the accomplished chef said with utter glee.

With a smile, Sōma said "Go on, Chef Inui. Don't let it get cold now. Dig in."

With that, Inui, Nabu, and Aki took bits out of their respective pieces of the dish. The two Assisted Help staff couldn't help but feel like they've been pulled into a wide-open field of pure, utter joy. "What a wonderful crunch! And yet the chicken's meat was still hot and deliciously juicy! The breading perfectly contained inside its protective shell the savoury flavour of the chicken!"

Aki looked at the strip of deep-fried chicken and said "The Kaki no Tane crackers were already seasoned, right? So the breading itself was had a solid, delicious taste." All of the other students were practically drooling at the sight of the dish. "Not to mention the dipping sauce is perfect! The Ki no Me (the young leaves of the Japanese pepper plant) mixed with the Tamago no Moto is positively light and fluffy!" Nabu said as he dipped his chicken strip in the dip before taking a bit.

Tamago no Moto; mayonnaise without the vinegar, it is simply egg yolks and vegetable oil whisked into a creamy consistency. It's often used to bring ingredients together or to add flavour to a dish.

"Some salt and minced Ki no Me as an overall refreshing taste to the chicken erasing any oiliness and giving it a refined flavour. That wonderfully smooth creaminess hiding between the crispy crunchiness of the breading really spurs the appetite!" Inui stated with a happy smile.

Then Nabu said "Don't forget the breading and deep-fried mountain vegetables on the side cannot be ignored, either. They provide an eye-pleasing contrast with a range side-by-side with the deep-fried chicken."

Megumi then asked Sōma "Where on earth did you get the idea for this?"

With a smile, the blind redhead said "In Japanese cooking, there's a type of tempura called Okakiage. Basically, when deep-frying things, you used crushed-up Okaki rice crackers instead of panko to give the dish some uniqueness and kick. I made this at home once when I was a kid with my dad."

That was when Takumi asked, "And that gave you the idea to use the Kaki no Tane crackers in place of the Okaki rice crackers?"

Sōma nodded and stated, "I call it the, *pause to think* Ah!, Yukihira style Okaki-no-Tane Chicken!"

"Did you just make that name up?" Takumi asked in a bit of a huff. Sōma chuckled out a yes.

Nabu and Aki nodded at Inui, who stated "Yukihira Sōma, Tadokoro Megumi. You Pass!"

Megumi patted Sōma on the shoulder when he said: "Happy to serve!"

~}i{~

Inui clapped her hands and said in pure joy "Time's up! This concludes today's assignment." With these very words, roughly half of the students were on their knees in utter despair because of the simple fact that they failed the assignment, while the other half of the students sighed with complete relief because they were able to pass.

Takumi got the Totsuki graduate's attention by saying "Chef Inui. Would you please give your judgment on our dishes? Please." Nabu and Aki turned their attention to the female chef. Inui was about to make her decision when her phone rang. She picked up the phone and said to the person on the other line "Goodness, what is it? I'm in the middle of an important decisi-"

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING, HINAKO?! IT'S PAST TIME FOR YOU TO BRING YOUR GROUP BACK HERE!" The students could easily hear whoever is on the other end of that call. "QUIT SCREWING AROUND AND GET YOUR ASS HERE, YOU IDIOT!" Shouted the caller.

Inui then got all panicky when she said: "I-I'm so sorry, Chef Shinomiya!" Then she told everyone that they needed to hurry back to the hotel. NOW! She hung up and was about to rush towards the bus when she was stopped by Takumi and Sōma asking her about who won. "Oh dear, I almost forgot," Inui stated before calming down and saying "My official decision, is that this challenge is a draw. Now everyone, hurry to the buses! Fill the seats from back to front!" The accomplished chef then raced off towards the entrance of the building.

"Well now… That was anticlimactic," Sōma said nonchalantly. Takumi had to agree with that.

Then the blond got back into his fiery mode when he said: "But we WILL have a match that will show which of us is the better chef!"

"Sure, whatever. But how do you wanna do it?" Sōma asked in a pretty nonchalant tone of voice.

Pointing at the blind redhead, Takumi stated in a completely calm and sure voice "A Shokugeki! One day, I will challenge you! Don't try to get out of it. Accept it like a man. On that day, I will stomp you flat! Look forward to it, Yukihira. And do try to get better." Takumi then turned, heading towards the door, and said: "Until we meet again, Yukihira Sōma."

}i{

The students for Inui's group boarded the bus. Takumi was sitting right next to Sōma. The blond was looking as nervous, and utterly embarrassed, as hell. With a cocky smirk, Sōma said "Well, well, it looks like we "Meet Again". Shall we have that Shokugeki now so you can "Stomp Me Flat"?"

Covering his face in pure embarrassment, Takumi said pretty loudly "Shut Up! Don't Talk to Me!" Isami was cackling at the blind redhead and his older twin's antics.

When Takumi finally calmed down, he thought back to the dish he and Sōma made during their assignment. 'That assignment made me use every skill I had to the fullest. When I hit on the idea of using duck, I thought I'd won. But he somehow managed to match me. Damn it! The challenge ended in a draw, so why do I feel like I've lost?' the blond thought to himself as he placed his elbows on his knees and rested his chin on his folded hands.

"I'm glad I met the two of you," Sōma said suddenly, getting Takumi and Isami's attention.

"How so?" the younger Aldini twin asked curiously.

That was when Sōma said calmly "Meeting people from other countries, each with their own type of food culture… Just like my dad did has done in the past and is still doing at the moment… And it's also nice to know that more people at Totsuki are willing to look past the "Disabilities" of others." Takumi immediately thought back to the two jerks that bad mouthed the blind redhead. For some reason, the blond had a strong feeling that Sōma had experienced this kind of thing far too many times to count, even before Totsuki.

"Only people with low intelligence and are completely ignorant would condemn someone who has done nothing or is different from them," Takumi stated softly. Megumi could tell that the half-Italian twins were good people, so she said to them that if they wanted they could visit the Polaris Dorm whenever they wanted (so long as it wasn't during class or important school events, and if they passed Daimidō Fumio's test). The Aldini twins smiled and said that they will.

The bus continued on its merry way.

~}i{~

Sōma and Megumi met up with Ryoko, Ibusaki, Yuki, and a semi-dead Marui in front of the main Totsuki hotel. The maroon coloured haired teen hung up his cell phone and told his dorm mates "It's confirmed. Everyone from the Polaris survived day one." The members of the Polaris Dorm cheered with joy, Marui gave everyone a very weak thumbs-up.

Ryoko and Megumi were talking about how exhausted they were because of their respective assignment.

Yuki then happily said "What are you talking about? Tired?! Now is when the fun Really starts, ladies!" The Polaris Dorm members stared at the orangette as if she was speaking a different language, or in Sōma's case, listening to all of Yuki's strange words. Yuki then explained with utter joy "Dinner and a bath, and then our own guest rooms! I'm sure each and every one will be luxurious, gorgeous, and utterly decadent! I intend to enjoy every last second of them!"

Ah, so that's why she's super happy.

}i{

When the Polaris group walked into the hotel, they were greeted by hordes of muscled men and Sekimori Hitoshi.

"Once you finished preparing dinner for these gentlemen, your time is your own," Sekimori told the group. Yuki practically shouted who all of the muscled men were. The Totsuki graduate stated that they were members of a college bodybuilding club, amefuto club, and professional wrestling club. He also stated that each of the students will prepare Fifty (50) servings of a Steak Dinner for all of the muscled men.

While the majority of the students were freaking out just by that number, Yuki asked "Question, Sir! What about our dinners?"

Sekimori simply stated, "Once you've finished fifty servings, you're responsible for making your own dinner."

The orangette freaked a bit and asked "Making our own?! But what about the decadent hotel dinner?!"

The Totsuki graduate stated in an unemotional voice "There will be none of that. Also, please be aware that each student will be responsible for their own breakfast and dinners, not just today, but every day of camp."

Yuki's heart just shattered to a million itsy-bitsy, little pieces at that very moment.

Sekimori then looked at a pocket watch and said "One last thing. Any student who hasn't finished all fifty servings inside the next hour will be Expelled on the spot. Now, does anyone else have any questions about this assignment?"

Sōma raised his hand and asked "I have one question. Are the cooking stations in all of the Totsuki Hotels laid out in the exact same way?"

Sekimori looked at the redhead and said "Ah, you must be Yukihira-san. Dōjima-senpai already told all of us examiners about your 'condition'. You don't have to worry; every single kitchen you will be in during this camp is laid out the exact same way. However, be advised that we do expect you to complete every task without any leniency from Any of the examiners, the only help you are allowed to receive are the two Assisted Help hotel employees, understood?"

Sōma nodded at that and said "Understood Senpai. But just so you know, I wouldn't have accepted any leniencies anyway. This wouldn't be a training camp if there were." Sekimori couldn't help smile a small smile before telling all the students to get to their stations.

"Begin!"

That was when the next stage of hell started.

}i{ Ten Minutes Later }i{

Shinomiya Kojirō was walking through the hallway of the hotel. He had a lot of free time now because he failed the entire group that was assigned to him. After all, they weren't able to follow his orders to the letter. Shinomiya stopped right outside the hall where Sekimori was using to test his group. 'Isn't that blind kid in that group?' the wine red-haired man thought as he glanced into the kitchen. His mind flashed back to when he met with the blind redhead. The glasses-wearing graduate couldn't help but wonder 'Why is he even in Totsuki in the first place when he has such a major disability?' So the French chef walked into the kitchen to see the group completely. From what Shinomiya could tell, it was a battlefield in the kitchen. The muscled men who did get the steak dinners were happily wolfing it down, while the majority of the students were bickering with one another about not having time to argue because they needed to finish before the deadline.

"This, that, and that. The portions are too small. Do it again," Sekimori stated pointed out to one of the students, who was checking in before the food was given to the muscled men. Shinomiya easily figured out that the group was doing the Fifty Servings in One Hour test, and so far, he wasn't all that impressed. After all, the majority of the group were caving-in to the pressure.

"Shinomiya-sama? What are you doing here?" Nabu asked the wine redhead when he saw him.

This got Sekimori's attention immediately and asked: "Don't you have a group of your own to test?"

The French chef shrugged and said in his cocky tone "They were all incompetent jokes. They couldn't even follow orders. So they weren't worthy of staying in Totsuki."

The sushi chef had his doubts about that, but asked coolly "And you're here, because?"

Another student checked in, he had a completely terrified by the pure fact that two Totsuki graduates were standing before him. Sekimori looked at the dish and said "The soup portion's too small. Start again." The student paled and grumbled something along the lines of him still having 40 servings left and that he was going to fail the assignment. "Well, Shinomiya-kun?" the sushi chef asked folding his arms, waiting for an answer.

The French chef shrugged his shoulders and said casually "What? Can't I see how my fellow examiners and former schoolmates are doing?" Sekimori wasn't buying that.

"Checking in~," Sōma said as Aki lead him to the sushi chef, not realizing that the French chef was there.

After looking over the dish, Sekimori then stated, "Yukihira Sōma, Fifty Servings Completed."

The blind student unwrapped his bandanna and said, "Happy to serve." The students in the group couldn't help but think that the blind redhead was too quick. The Polaris Dorm students were happy that their friend passed, while Takumi shouted that he fell behind this time but he would catch up soon, Isami told his older twin that he needed to focus on his own task. But the rest of the students thought that the blind redhead was taking advantage of the Assisted Help.

Shinomiya just stared at Sōma as Aki and Nabu told him that they'll see him tomorrow for the next assignment. The blind redhead waved goodbye to the two Assisted Help staff and his dorm mates.

"Man, I was barely able to keep up with that kid," Aki said, after taking a nice deep breath when Sōma was gone.

"I saw. He's doing pretty well, he hardly needs our help," Nabu said with a chuckle as he folded his arms.

A glare of lightly glazed over the French chef's glasses as he watched the Assisted Help duo talked and walked out of the kitchen. "You still haven't answered my question, Kojirō," Sekimori stated as he refolded his arms. Shinomiya knew his former classmate was serious now.

~}i{~

As he walked down a hallway, Sōma held his cane in his left hand while he felt the wall with his right hand. His hand gliding across the wall at about shoulder level, so he can feel for the plaques that the hotel used for showing the guests where certain areas were. 'Well, being early is all well and good, but that means I've got nothing to do right now… I wonder if there is anything to listen to on TV?' Sōma thought as he continued down the corridor. Then, Sōma's hand felt a relatively large plaque. Curiously, the blind redhead's fingers danced across the raised dots on the lower portion of the plaque (That would be the Braille (2)). 'Grand Hot Springs…' Sōma read before thinking for a second. 'Ah! Perfect, I could use a relaxing soak in the Hot Springs. And with everyone downstairs, I get the whole placed myself,' the blind redhead thought as he felt the plaque for the direction of the Hot Springs. After he did, he went on his way.

}i{

When Hisako finished up with her 50 servings, her and Erina heading off towards the Hot Springs for their own, well deserved soak in the wonders waters.

"I apologize for making you wait, Erina-sama. I misjudged how long it would take me to complete the assignment," Hisako said to the honey blond, who replied "It's fine Hisako, as long as you completed the task," as she flipped her hair and added, "Besides, we'll still have the Hot Springs to ourselves."

The pinkette happily nodded in agreement. As the two walked up to the Hot Springs, they managed to spot a very familiar redhead walking into the men's section of the Hot Springs. Erina froze when she saw him, but it seemed as though he didn't hear the two girls before he entered the Hot Springs.

Hisako knew how the honey blond felt about that boy when she said "Erina-sama, just ignore him, he'll eventually fail before the summer. In fact, he could actually fail here at this camp tomorrow."

The honey blond huffed and stated, "He'd better because there was no way I would ever work and a second-rate comment eatery."

"If you really didn't want to work at Yukihira's, then you and those six others Seats shouldn't have made the bet with the Headmaster in the first place, Princess," Sōma said, poking his head out from beneath the flaps that led to the men's section of the Hot Springs. Apparently, he heard what was said.

Enraged, Erina shouted at the redhead "HOW DARE YOU EAVESDROP ON US!"

Sōma sighed and said calmly "It's not considered eavesdropping when people are talking loudly. Also, you really need to calm down a bit, all that shouting isn't good, ya know."

With really red cheeks, Erina huffed out "Hisako! Forget the Hot Springs! We're going back to the room!" Before storming off with the pinkette quickly trying to keep up with the honey blond.

"Honestly Princess, are you really that bitter about losing the bet with the Headmaster that you won't even soak in the Hot Springs if I'm there or are you bitter that I actually won the Shokugeki?" Sōma asked the Nariki as she continued to storm off. When the blind redhead could no longer hear the stomping, he muttered an "Apparently she's bitter about both," before he went back to the Hot Springs.

}i{ About Five Minutes Later }i{

Takumi burst into the Hot Spring, shouting "YUKIHIRA! THERE YOU ARE! I MAY HAVE BEEN SLOWER THIS TIME BUT-" that was when the blond noticed that Sōma was sitting in the Hot Springs with the Totsuki Resort Head Chef and Company Director, Dōjima Gin.

"Hm? Looks like I've overstayed my time. I should get going."

"Okay, and thanks for the advice," Sōma said happily as the naked, muscled man walked out of the Hot Springs, leaving Takumi still in a state of shock.

When Takumi came to his senses, he shouted at Sōma "Y-Y-YUKIHIRA! Do you have any idea who that is?!"

"Yeah, Dōjima-senpai, why?" was the only thing the blind redhead asked as if it was nothing important.

"Gah! Then how could you be so casual with him like he's some normal guy?" the blond asked as Sōma leaned back in the Hot Spring.

During this, Dōjima couldn't help but smile.

~}i{~ Day 2, 9:00 in the Morning ~}i{~

Sōma and Megumi were now in Shinomiya Kojirō group for his assignment. The two could hear the other students talking about how he expelled the entire group from yesterday's assignment. The Totsuki student of the 79th graduating class was going over the recipe he wanted the group to make, a Nine-Vegetable Terrine, and explained that this was a solo assignment. Another thing that the chef stated was that they couldn't aid or advising others during the preparation was forbidden. The country girl was about to say something to Sōma but realized that he wasn't there.

"OI! You by the vegetables!" The French chef suddenly shouted, scaring practically all of the students of the group. That was when Megumi saw that Sōma was standing by the vegetables, more specifically, the table with a pile of cauliflower. Shinomiya stomped towards the blind redhead, stating in an angry tone "I haven't told you to start, and there's no way in hell I'm letting Anyone get a head start."

Without turning to the French chef or moving from his spot, Sōma asked: "Who picked out the vegetables?"

Shinomiya raised a brow and asked, "Why would you want to know?"

"Some of the cauliflowers are already oxidized and are starting to rot," Sōma stated plainly.

Shinomiya raised an eyebrow, wondering how on earth this blind teen could even tell if any of the vegetables were even fresh or not and asked, "What makes you think that?"

Sōma easily found and picked up a browning cauliflower, much to the onlooker's confusion and amazement, and stated "The smell obviously. You can easily smell the decomposing cauliflowers over the fresh cauliflowers, something that's pretty hard to miss. So the question here is, how could someone miss such an obvious smell?" That was when the blind redhead turned towards Shinomiya, tossed the browning cauliflower at the French Chef (who caught the vegetable easily), and stated: "Or maybe, those oxidized cauliflowers were put in the batch on purpose."

"What are you implying?" Shinomiya asked in a calm yet suspicious tone.

Sōma simply stated in a calm tone "Depends on whether an employee knew and did this on purpose or if you were the one who picked these vegetables."

This made the French Chef pretty mad when he snapped "Are you questioning MY authority as the Head Chef?!"

The blind redhead tapped his cane with an index finger and said "I suppose I am but isn't it the job of the Head Chef to make sure that every single ingredient that comes into their restaurant is in the condition that is needed to cook a particular dish? AND it's the Head Chef's job to listen to their employees when they note that something is wrong or if they could find a way to do something better." Sōma then gazed at Shinomiya with his unseeing eyes and asked in a more serious tone "Or has the first Japanese to earn the Pluspol Award lost any interest in listening to anyone but himself? That doesn't seem like that's going to get you another prodigious award."

This ticked Shinomiya off pretty bad. Megumi ran towards Sōma, trying to stop him from getting expelled.

~}i{~ Earlier that Very Morning, at 6:55 in the Morning ~}i{~

Sōma was doing some morning stretching in his PJs, to get him to wake up fully when he heard a knock on the door to his room. Wondering who that could be in this early in the morning (Since there was at least an hour before they needed to get to the auditorium for their assigned groups), the blind redhead grabbed his cane and walked towards the door.

"Who is it?" Sōma asked when he got to the door.

The blind redhead heard the person behind the door say "Room Service."

Sōma sighed when he heard and recognized the voice when he opened the door. "What are you doing here?" the blind redhead asked the person he seems to already know as sed person walked into the room.

"I have a huge favour to ask you, Sōma," the man stated plainly as he sat in a nearby chair as the teen closed the door.

"What kind of favour? And why now? Totsuki's in the middle of 1st-year testing." Sōma asked as he sat on the bed.

"Let me clarify," the man stated before adding "I need you to help save Shinomiya-kun from himself."

"I doubt that guy would want help from a 1st-year student of Totsuki, much less a blind one," Sōma stated plainly.

The man chuckled and said, "That sounds about right, but he needs the help and I know he's going to refuse to listen to me."

"Gee, I wonder why," Sōma stated in a sarcastic matter before asking "But why ask me?"

"Because," the man said, before taking a deep breath and added "I believe you can help me get Shinomiya-kun out of his stagnate. He's set up his exams in a way that would fail a majority of students because of this stagnate, and it's affecting his personal life too. And I'm asking you because you're going to be in his group today."

Sōma raised a brow and asked, "Do you have a plan in mind?"

The man smiled and stated, "Get him to challenge you to a Shokugeki."

"Any more details to that plan?" the blind redhead asked curiously.

Before the man could answer, his phone rang. After looking at the caller id, the man answered the phone. "I'm here, Hiromi," the man said over the phone.

Sōma could hear the person on the other end of the phone say "Gin, you need to get to Auditorium C in 15 minutes, finish whatever you're doing now and get there."

"Alright," Dōjima Gin said before hanging up.

"I'll give you the whole plan now, just make sure you get him Shinomiya-kun a Shokugeki," Dōjima told Sōma in a serious tone.

~}i{~ Present Time ~}i{~

Sōma could feel Shinomiya glaring at him when he thought 'Time to put your plan into action, Ojisan.'

~}i{~

To be Continued…

~}i{~

1) Nii-chan does mean big brother, but it's mainly used as a (cute) familiar address, meaning it's only used when someone knows an older (by a few years) guys. In Isami's case, he is addressing his older twin brother with this term, but (from what I've noticed in the anime and in the manga) he uses 'Nii-chan' to somewhat tease Takumi about his childish behaviour while at the same time showing respect to him.

2) Braille is a form of written language for blind people, in which characters are represented by patterns of raised dots that are felt with the fingertips.

~}i{~

Gale-Dragon: Oh my, things are getting interesting.