Rating: T+

Pairing: Soma/Erina

Genre: Romance; Drama; Hurt/Comfort; Shonen; Slight Mature Themes

Notes:

Hey Everyone! Zancrowe Here!

Listen here! I have never, ever written a Chapter this damn long. Over 39k words! Were this 'Nouvelle' that would easily qualify for around five (5) Chapters worth of content. But, because my update is late, and because I wanted to deliver on what I promised last Chapter, I pushed through. This is utterly insane. Like, I feel at this point I have to hire a food consultant myself, just to do these things properly.

Like, damn, I can't even properly express how hard this Chapter was to make, and considering the behemoth of a Chapter that it turned into, well… guys, please level with me here. Help a guy out. Let me know what you think. That one review each of you leaves, it honestly, no joke, makes this entire thing possible. This story will only get harder from here-on, and I really, really want to enjoy this ride down to the very end of the journey with each and every one of you!

So please, be kind, rewind-I mean-Review!

Oh! And you guys wanted Shokugeki action? Well, then, happy to serve! Here's Shokugeki action up the wazoo! And I swear, if any of you come in and tell me any of these matches are undercooked, well, I won't really do anything to ya, but I will glare intensely at the screen, so you have been warned!

Now then, back to 'Necronomicon'… ( -_-)/º

Disclaimer: Don't own Shokugeki no Soma.


The up-and-coming Poster Boy for this current generation of Polar Star students, one Loren Frechette, just stood, smiling as he heard the crowd all cheer at his inclusion to the party. How stupid could they be? To cheer for the very person that would assure their upcoming failure? This whole place really was the absolute worst. And with the biggest of smiles, he stared Soma Yukihira down, the one boy Azami had raged on and on about the most in this last year alone. To take him out would be to carry favor for Azami at the highest level.

'I will not go back to living in the streets,' Loren noted, as he turned a bit, to the stands, his eyes meeting with Dove's, who was trying her best to hide a knowing smile and a sparkle of pride in her eyes. '…And I'll make sure you'll be okay. I promise, Dove.'

He turned back, back to his "team", but not before his eyes caught sight of someone else.

Nao.

He paid her no mind. Whether she looked confused, or angry, or scared, it didn't matter. It's a dog eat dog world out there, and Loren was not going back into a world of poverty and loneliness for anyone's sake. Especially not that little witch.

"I guess I should have expected him to have something else up his sleeve," Soma noted, and Loren turned to him. It sort-of annoyed the younger boy that his teammate sounded far less worried than he had hoped he'd be. "I mean, this really does screw me over big time, right?" Soma added, "Since I don't think you're going to have a change of heart and actually help me out, now will ya?"

"Eh…?" Loren just muttered, a bit thrown-off. Was nothing ever serious for this idiot? "…Not particularly," he said, deciding to not even hide his true intentions at this point, since it was just between the two of them. "I'll try and make sure you lose gracefully at least."

"Now ain't you the nicest," Soma noted with a grin, before he turned his eyes towards the screen, as it began to flicker. Loren just frowned. Did this guy not understand the magnitude of what this meant? Or had he just accepted his loss…? No, it wasn't that. He hated to admit it, but he had grown to know Soma Yukihira enough. This wasn't admitting defeat. This was more akin to admiring a challenge.

Stubborn to the bitter end, eh?

Soma, on the other hand, just moved from his spot and towards where a very worried Erina stood, also staring blankly at the screen. She seemed to be frozen on the spot, which did little to ease his worries about her and her condition.

"You sure you're up to this?" he asked, and it seemed to outright spook her that he had just spoken up from next to her.

"Soma!" she cried out, before catching herself, and with a blush adding, "Don't do that. A-And yes, I am fine… enough. I'll get by. It's just," she tried, her hand over her mouth defensively. "Just the fact that they're bringing in all the ingredients is enough for me to almost taste them from here. Just that light, lingering scent, and I'm… ack, it's disgusting!"

"Hey, whatdya know, you can call other stuff disgusting too!" he said with a hearty laugh, "I just thought that was reserved strictly for me and my-!" he added, and would have added more, but her intense glare cut his laughter short.

"This is no laughing matter!" she exclaimed. "I am trying to get myself in order, and if you are just going to mock me, go focus on your stuff, elsewhere!"

"Guess that never changes," he noted amused, which earned him another glare. He just smiled at her at this, since he knew this was less her being angry and more her being worried. And he couldn't blame her, he was worried too. "But at least you have a good aide, unlike my guy."

"Huh?" Erina asked, her eyes now shifted towards Soma, who in turn had his eyes on the ever jovial little Loren. "…That's Loren Frechette, is it not?" a confused Erina asked. "Freshman, transfer student much like you were. Why worry about him? From what Julio told me, the boy is very talented… I mean, Julio exaggerated a lot, but he is usually a good judge of quality, so the boy has to have some genuine skills in him."

"Well, yeah, but, no," Soma replied, and Erina just looked on. What?

"What?" she flatly asked.

"Oh, yeah, I never got a chance to tell you," Soma noted, realizing that this once straight-forwards tournament arc of theirs had taken so many twists and turns that it became hard to keep track of everything going on at times. "…Loren is actually a mole for your father, infiltrating Tootsuki in the hopes of harming me or something to that extent. I already confronted him about it too and we-Why are you looking at me like that?"

"What do you mean why am I looking at you like that?!" she screamed, so much that the entire stadium seemed to give pause and turn to the couple. For once, Soma was the more embarrassed of the two at the display, as Erina seemed too mad to notice. "Did you not think such a detail should be of the utmost importance to share with me?!"

"I mean, I didn't want you to worry-"

"Well I'm worried now!" she screamed out. "If you have proof, then let's get that little weasel disqualified and get you a proper aide at once!"

"Eh… erm, well…" Soma stuttered for a bit. He knew Erina. She wasn't going to be all that accepting of his little plan.

"…Oh no. No, no, no. Do not tell me you actually…" Erina said as the realization hit her. She knew Soma. And she wasn't at all accepting of whatever little plan he had cooked up. "Soma! You are not risking this school for someone who is actively trying to sabotage us!"

"I know it sounds bad," he defended, and her glare was ever present. "Okay, correction, it is bad. He's been a very naughty kid, but, like, this is your father's handiwork, Loren's not the one to blame here."

"Then all the more reason to get my father to stop with this nonsense," Erina declared, arms crossed, frowning and pouting in equal measure.

"But you see…" he began, and her pout grew. Gods she was adorable when pissed… which was most of the time. "I think the kid has more talent in him than either Azami gives him credit for, or he himself does for that matter. I don't want to ruin that."

"Good God Soma!" Erina argued, "First Mimasaka, which I at least understood. Then even Eizan, which I was heavily against, but now even this. This is not someone you can face-off against, he is your aide. If he is against us, he will easily destroy your cooking with none the wiser. You can't just risk it all like this."

"I know," Soma replied, and his tone did not sit well with her. She could feel the "but" coming from a mile away. "…But still, he's just a kid-"

"He's a year younger than us at most," Erina corrected.

"Just trust me, okay?" he asked her, turning to her fully. She was ready to argue, to just push right past him and head directly towards her father and give her a piece of her mind. This was going too far. First Dove, now this Loren boy too? But… The way Soma looked at her, so self-assured, that same look of confidence she could never quite tell if it was pride or stupidity or both; but that look made her give pause.

"…This is my home," Erina told him, her tone lowered. He nodded, he knew. "And I know you enough to know you wouldn't risk it for just some kid. But Soma… I could lose everything."

"You won't," Soma assured her, "I promise. I will help you keep this place open. I swear to you. But please, just give me the chance to get through to him. He's still a young boy, I don't want to crush him, I want to teach him… Can I?"

She sighed. Why? Why was she so weak to this boy? "…Fine. Don't you dare fail me, you hear?"

"Yes ma'am!" he said, all smiles, with a salute. She couldn't help but smile back. How she loved him so, stupidity and all. Then… "Oh… kinda forgot I don't have a knife to use for this round…"

"Huh?"

"Oh!" Soma noted, remembering he hadn't told her that either. "I kinda got into an unofficial Shokugeki with Asahi, and I bet my knife and lost, so I really should have asked Takumi for his Mezzaluna before we headed down-Why are you looking at me like that?"

"SOMA!"

As Erina's screams echoed throughout the entire arena, and through the entire world as the cameras caught all of it in HD resolution, Urara had her attention shifted from the power couple to the judges' table. Her earpiece prompted her about an incoming declaration, so, as per her script, she voiced, "Uh… your attention please. It seems our esteemed judges of the WGO wish to say something else. What quirky thing will they come up with now I wonder? Heh, heh, heh…"

'…That damn brat,' Decora thought, her head rested on her fist, as she stared at the participants. All twenty of them. Two teams of five each, with an aide per chef. Quite the number of people for this one. But, ignoring that, her attention shifted to Anne, who had been the one to call out for the chance to speak up.

"If I may," Anne voiced, and it was clear, that even without a microphone, her tone was demanding. Everyone quickly got quiet and turned their attention to the judge, as she signaled to the score card present by their table. "As you all heard little Miss Urara here explain, this round will be based on a point tally. For those of you here from Tootsuki, you may be reminded of the Autumn Elections you all hold yearly. This is not a bad comparison, but…"

At this Anne gave pause, her eyes on the participants now, her expression just a little bit sharper.

"Do not think the scoring will be the same," Anne continued. "At the Autumn Elections, while fine judges are often selected, most of which have ties to Tootsuki or have even been students in the past, we of the WGO grade our dishes to a much higher degree. Our level of, let's say, perfection, is much higher than what any of those judges would consider. As such, I must stress, that for those of you who scored highly in the Autumn Elections, do not let that cloud your judgment. This are not the Autumn Elections, and we are not celebrity judges. Now that we are tasked on giving a score, your dishes will be judged as if they were being served on BLUE."

At this the entire auditorium could be heard gasping, all surprised at this announcement. Even the competitors, all used to this level of cooking, couldn't help but flinch at the sound of that illustrious event. BLUE, the end all, be all for young chefs, and likewise the goal of many participants here. Even the Noirs themselves all narrowed their eyes at the mention.

'Judging it as if it were the BLUE?' Julius noted.

'Now isn't this an interesting development…?' Ashitaro thought, his eyes still on Isshiki.

'This means I can see firsthand how rigid the scoring for BLUE usually is, that's… exciting really,' Asahi supposed with a little smirk. His eyes then turned to Dove, whose eyes seemed to still be taking in the surprise announcement.

'The Bishoku Leading Under-25 Entrance world youth cooking championship, held by the World Gourmet Organization,' Dove remembered Azami explaining it in detail to her, and just how utterly important such an event was to a young chef's life. 'That's the title Azami wants Erina to someday claim for herself. I wonder how well you'll do now, little princess?'

Back at the arena, the ten main contestants all looked on, the initial shock of the announcement long passed, and now, nine out of ten of them stared the judges down, as if insulted by the mere thought of such a thing ever shaking them up. All, save, of course, Erina, who was doing her best not to faint.

'BLUE! BLUE! They are going to judge my dish as if this were freaking BLUE and I'm at my absolute worst!' she inwardly screamed, despite her best attempts at keeping a poker face. It was not really working.

"Seems they are quite sure of themselves, eh Anne?" Histoire noted, his eyes on the teens.

"Well, they have proven themselves to be quite apt, I mean, they wouldn't be standing on this arena otherwise," Charme added, smiling.

"But BLUE is something that they shouldn't really take lightly now, should they?" Courage said, all smiles.

"…Perhaps you should make it a bit cleared to them what we mean," Decora concluded, turning to Anne. The younger woman just nodded.

"Allow me to say at least this much," Anne explained. "Satoshi Isshiki's Japanese Rocky Mountain Oysters Deluxe…"

Isshiki's eyes shifted towards the judge, recalling the dish that had burned his palm to a crisp, but wondering why she was bringing it up now.

"…Ryou Kurokiba's Ӕbleflӕsk…"

Up in their seats, Kurokiba glanced down, upon hearing his name. He was softly glaring at the judge, wondering what she was going on about.

"…Hakeem Akintola's Akintola Piri Piri Chicken…"

Hakeem looked on, as little Aisha tugged on his sleeve and signaled downwards, asking over and over what the judge was getting at. Honestly, Hakeem had an idea, but he had a fragment of an idea. If it included him, then surely…

"…Akira Hayama's Thirteen Spices Eel Matelote…"

Akira narrowed his eyes, understanding a bit more. But… was this going to be a positive sign, or yet another thing to be wary off?

"…Erina Nakiri's True Gourmet Caesar Salad – Surf & Turf Edition…"

A barely keeping herself there Erina flinched at the mention. She couldn't hope to replicate that dish even if she had a day's worth of time.

"…Lucrezia Russo's Vero Buongustaio – Rainbow Chimichanga…"

The Italian team all began to gossip at the mention, while Lucrezia looked on, her eyes briefly on the seating Takumi with the other Elite's, then at Isami, who seemed to have looked up at her at exactly the same time. This caused the girl to blush and shift her focus elsewhere.

"…Takumi Aldini's Chimichanga Fritto Senza Salsa…"

Takumi just stared, turning briefly to Kurokiba, as he too had been called out. Was this what he think it was?

"…and Alice Nakiri's Four Seasons Tsuivan; Silver Edition…"

The second Nakiri princess tilted her head a bit, at first wondering if she was going to get mentioned, but now wondering if that was a good thing or not. She didn't get much time to ponder this, as Anne was quick to explain.

"…These aforementioned eight dishes are without a doubt the best dishes served in this competition so far," Anne explained, and at this, the crowd, the students, the challengers, and even the Elite Ten all felt a sensation they couldn't quite explain. "These spectacular eight dishes, made wonderfully by these chefs I just mentioned, would, quite frankly, be over-qualified to be served in the Autumn Elections. No First Year student starting out should be capable of a dish of that caliber."

The audience remained silent. They could feel the "however" coming.

"However," she said, and they all grimaced, "Where those same eight dishes be served at BLUE, well, at best, they would be given an individual score of fifteen out of twenty, for what would amount as a seventy-five out of the possible one-hundred."

Fifteen? Out of twenty?

15?

Totaling just a meager 75?

The crowd kept quiet, as the competitors all looked on, frowning at the judges themselves, at Anne in particular. Except for Erina, who was almost hyperventilating. Or Soma, who had just realized he had not been called out in this "exceptional" list of hers. Hell, he was the only one from his current team down there not to be mentioned! Hell times two, Takumi and Kurokiba got mentioned, and they weren't even in this round!

"Now, don't be discouraged if you weren't mentioned by Anne," Courage added, and Soma could have sworn she had directed her words at him and no one else. "Every single other dish served in this competition… except-the-gluten-free-weird-one-but-we-don't-talk-about-that-one, have been delightful dishes worthy of students of your caliber."

"Indeed," Histoire said, lifting his index finger to add emphasis to his words. "If one were to judge those dishes with our grading system, well, I do not think a single dish would get a score lower than, say, twelve, perhaps?"

"I say twelve is about right," Decora noted. "Thirteen is much too high for those dishes, but I do agree with Anne. Fifteen seems fitting for those dishes she mentioned."

The five Elite Ten students down at the arena all stared, frozen in place, as slowly but surely they all managed to regain their spirits.

"Is it just me," Alice voiced, her tone clearly not all that happy at the revelation. "Or did she make it sound like that fifteen is, like, the passing score we should at the very least aim for? Not like every single dish she mentioned was us busting our asses past our breaking point to even make!"

"Every dish she mentioned was one where we were pushed to out limits, that is true," Akira noted, frowning. "My dish was the result of me almost suffocating due to Hakeem's technique, and having to do something outside my comfort zone to match it."

"Yeah, same here!" Alice added. "Mine was getting called a nepotism princess by that oaf and wanting to tell Erina how much I love her!"

"A-Alice, not again!" Erina barked, once again red in the face.

"Mine was less impressive," Isshiki noted, his hand on his chin, contemplating what this all meant. "But it did leave me with quite the scar, so to speak. Not sure it's something I want to try and replicate. And considering Ryou's dish was basically a love confession to Alice," Isshiki added, as now Alice was the one blushing madly and shouting a "hey!" at him, much to his amusement, "and Takumi's dish was a direct response to the Italian's team's accusations and his own pride being at stake, then yes, we can all say that our very best dishes, with us pushing ourselves to the brink, would just barely qualify us as "okay" in the eyes of the ever imposing BLUE."

"Well, Erina just cooked normally, didn't you?" Soma noted, turning to the blonde heiress. The solemn look she gave made it clear she wasn't replicating that anytime soon.

"It was…" she lamented. "But, with how I am now, without the God's Tongue, I can't match that."

"Don't let that get you down," Akira quickly cut in, his eyes on the still flickering screen. Was that thing ever going to stop? "This changes nothing. We go out there, do our best, and that's that. We even have assistance this time, so use that to your utmost advantage."

"Very well stated," Isshiki noted.

"…I guess," Erina lamented still.

"I guess nothing! We've got this! You'll do fine!" Alice corrected fiercely.

"That we do," Soma simply said, his eyes falling back to the little squad of first years behind them all, the five gathered and gossiping about, as his eyes fell on Loren, smug little Loren. "…That we do…"

"Alright!" Urara screamed into the microphone, getting everyone's attention back. "Now, with that announcement out of the way, the power levels for this upcoming match set as if this were an episode of Dragon Ball Z, let's get this show on the road!" she roared, as she signaled to the screen. "In this Five-Course Challenge, outside of the secret-supposedly-random ingredient, we have our special themes already picked! So, for our first match, the contestants and their aides will be tasked with creating a one-bite hors d'oeuvres! So, in order to stop that stupid screen from flickering endlessly less we give someone a seizure; who will our first contestants be?!"

"That girl is going to get us in a legal dispute with those remarks of hers," Soe noted, unamused.

"The crowd loves her though," Leonora defended, smiling at the sight, and at her two adorable girls standing side by side.

Mana said nothing, her eyes shifting from the screen towards Erina, and wondering why did her daughter look so… off?

The Elite Ten looked on, at all their names flickering about.

The Russian Team did the same.

And the aides, save for Loren, all waited on baited breath, for who amongst them would be the first to perform in front of millions…

Then the screen gave them their answer.

Alice Nakiri (w/ Cilla Pedersen) vs. Sasha Yelchin (w/ Fabi Ozerova)

"And we're up!" Alice noted firmly, taking a deep breath. Right off the bat, the girl who had closed last day's match was starting this one right up.

"Oh… I get one of the princesses," Sasha noted with glee, signaling to her aide. "Let's get this done well little Fabi!"

"Remember what we rehearsed," Ekaterina warned her, and Sasha gave their Team Leader a firm nod. "Stick to the script, and do not underestimate any of them."

"Yes ma'am!" Fabi commented, firmly. Sasha, on the other hand…

"Ah… you sound so cool Katya," she said with sparkle in her eyes. "I want to record you, can you order me around again?"

"Wha-? Sasha! Keep your head in the game!" a blushing Ekaterina cried out. "Less fan girl, and more master chef! Go!"

"And our first selection has been made!" Urara announced, signaling to the ladies approaching the main arena. "From Tootsuki Academy, our platinum princess who saved us all with a wonderful display last time, our ever-popular Eight Seat, Alice Nakiri!" Urara introduced, to the hundreds upon hundreds of cheers. "And, serving as her aide, we have Cilla Pedersen, esteemed member of the Nakiri International Research team and one of our Queen's Miss Leonora Nakiri's top subordinates!"

The applauses continued, as did the cheers, and Cilla felt herself freeze up. It was as if it hadn't clicked with her until just this very moment just how big a deal this truly was. She would be right there, in the thick of it all, assisting her lady Alice, to save Tootsuki Academy itself. This… was a bit much.

"And, our opponents for this round," Urara continued, signaling to the Russian Team, "Is one Sasha Yelchin from Moscow International! And her aide is from, as I'm told totally not just right now, a very renowned family from Mother Russia itself, Fabi Ozerova!"

Amongst scattered cheers and comments, Sasha and Fabi moved towards their spot in the ever-large kitchen, as Alice turned to her team, nodding firmly and deciding to hell with it she'd give it her all.

Cilla, on the other hand, was frozen in place.

"Cilla," her long-haired twin called out, "You mustn't keep Milady Alice waiting."

"…Don't you think that maybe they made a mistake in choosing us?" Cilla voice, meekly, which was surprising to hear for her sister. "I mean, we're excellent in food research and critique, but when it comes to cooking prowess, I would not consider myself anywhere near Elite Ten level. Like I could never hope to match the likes of Miss Hisako, Miss Ikumi or even Julio."

Elsewhere, Julio felt offended, and he had no idea why.

"Now is totally not the moment for you to begin doubting yourself!" her sister exclaimed. "Or me, for that matter!" she added, fiercely, 'Especially since Milady Erina is sick, so if you think you have it bad, I have to pull double duty… Ah, I think she's right, this is bad! Really, really bad!'

"Berta's right," came a softer voice, which caused both twins to turn. The ever meek Mitsuru looked conflicted, especially since if they felt strange being there, he felt even more so. But, he shook it off, and spoke to the short-haired girl. "Cilla, you are amongst our year's top students. Accepted directly into the Nakiri Research Institute from middle school is not a feat even those amongst the Elite Ten can manage easily. You are an amazing chef, and excellent as an assistant, you'll do great."

"It's easy for you to say since you're not breaking the ice-" she began, but he stopped her. And he did it speaking softly.

"I am the worst chef out of all five of us here," he admitted, and it sounded so genuine it made the girl just pause and stare. "…I'm not saying it for pity, or to try and wiggle my way out of this. It's scary beyond belief. Messing up, here, means likely ruining the chance our Elite Ten members have of succeeding. But we wouldn't be here if we were afraid of the challenge, of the competition. Every single day we risk expulsion, that's how this school was built, and look, we're still here. Some, maybe not for the right reasons," he paused, and Loren frowned. He didn't want to, but as the little group of five all listened in, he couldn't quite just move away. "…But we are here all the same. We are a team. And you are amazing Cilla, and I've always believed that, ever since I met you."

"Oh, come on Mitsuru," Cilla said, for once, feeling a bit bashful at all the attention. Since when had this guy gotten so direct? "As if you even had any idea which one of us was which when you met us," she said, signaling to herself and her sister. "So I get the pep-talk, really, but-"

"Of course I knew who each of you were," Mitsuru countered, pouting. "I always found your short hair cuter. Besides, I… eh…"

"Eh?" Cilla just said.

"Eh?" Berta repeated.

"Eh? Raymond added.

"…Eh?" even Loren couldn't help himself.

"…W-What I meant was-" Mitsuru tried, but Berta cut him off.

"Now is not the time for these type of jokes!" a very flustered young girl yelled back at him at the top of her lungs, before she outright huffed and pushed right past all of them, heading right towards where Alice was. The remaining four all stared, with three of them slowly turning to the fidgeting young reporter and the bombshell of a news story he had just unveiled about himself, of all things.

"So…" Berta voiced, as a very wide grin slowly crept onto her face. "Do you like, like-like my sister?"

"I-!"

"Does he ever," Loren cut in, rubbing the back of his head, his eyes back on the arena. Berta let out a very thrilled shriek at this, and began pestering Mitsuru for all the details, as the poor boy tried his best to deny the obvious. Raymond just looked on, before Berta pulled him in too to, as she states, have a guys' chat and get the information out of him. Raymond had no idea nor did he much care about what she even meant. But during it all, blushing madly, the poor young reporter did let out one last defiant shout.

"Loren you traitor!"

"Heh," Loren noted, amused. "You seem more offended by this than by what really matters…"

Ignoring all the shouts she could still hear, Cilla took a stance right next to Alice, who was quick to notice her aide's change in expression.

"~Mou, aren't you red in the face?" Alice noted, a little knowing smile in her face.

"Nothing worth concerning yourself over Milady," the blushing girl replied.

"Now then!" Urara roared, signaling once more to the screen, "Our theme, please! And let's hope it's a normal one!"

As the screen flickered again, up above, where the four remaining Elite Ten students sat, Kuga just looked on, his expression half amused, half worried. "…Are we sure leaving the assistance duty to those two twerps is the best idea?" he wondered, signaling to the twins.

"Still mad at all the teasing?" Nene asked, to which he scoffed.

"As if," he denied. "It's just that they barely ever take anything seriously. I know they are talented, but man do they love to hear the sound of their own voices."

"I just find it charming that there's another set of twins in this school," Takumi noted, eyeing the two girls. "I had not known. They work with Alice right, so you know of them, don't you Kurokiba?"

"Yeah, they're good at what they do," Kurokiba replied, "And I don't think Mr. Nakiri could have picked any other person who could work with Alice's gastronomy equipment better than those two."

"Is that right?" Takumi voiced, his attention on Alice and Cilla, as the two girls stared down their two opponents, the ever eager Sasha and the intensely rigid Fabi.

"~My, isn't this place empty."

The four Elites paused, hearing a familiar voice approach them. Turning, they were greeted by not one, but by five familiar faces, with Rindou being quick to flash them all a big, wide grin.

"What's up squirts?" she greeted. "We were on our way to find our seats, but we sort of realized that with five of you down there, there would be five seats available here, so, as former Elite Ten members, we can still seat here, right?"

"We didn't realize any of that," Soumei corrected, arms crossed, and eyes closed.

"She went and decided that all on her own," Momo added, holding onto Bucchi tightly. "Outright dragged us up here with her."

"Oh! You two are so quick to throw me under the bus!" Rindou flared, before she smiled again, "But, they're right! It's kinda boring being away from everyone, and it feels a lot more exciting here! So, can we seat?!"

"…Ah, I think I know you well enough to know I can't really stop you if I wanted to," Nene noted, nodding. Rindou was quick to smile and pat the girl on the head, causing her to blush, before she sat right down. The rest of the former top five of the Elite Ten followed suit, filling out the empty seats. Well, most of them.

"How come there's only four of you up here?" Soumei asked, noticing an extra empty chair.

"That would be Shouko's," Kuga replied, his tone indicating how annoyed he was with that situation. How annoyed they all were.

"Shouko?" Eishi voiced, thinking, "Which one is that?"

"Seriously, dude, you should do a better job at remembering your juniors," Rindou reprimanded the guy, who gave off a wave as an apology. "She's a second year, well, I mean, third year now, and quite the cunning little lady it seems."

"You all are going to lose if you let her do as she pleases," Momo said, her eyes on the arena. "As First Seat, you should have taken care of this by now."

"Ah… I know, but-"

"Ease up there shorty," Soumei quickly cut it, patting Momo in the head. It seemed to work in flustering the girl into shutting up. "These guys here are dealing with stuff we never had to deal with. Besides, if it were us, with our doormat of a First Seat," he said, motioning to Eishi, who blurted out a "hey!" in response, "and a slacker of a Second Seat," he added, motioning to Rindou, who with a pout also exclaimed a "hey!" in response, "We would have been equally screwed."

"Thanks, Soumei," Nene voiced, softly, her eyes downcast. "But Momo's right. I need to solve this, and solve it now. I-I have a theory, so maybe, if we're lucky, we can get to the bottom of this soon."

"A theory?" Kuga voiced, surprised, "Since when do you have-ouch!?" he began, but was silenced by a very quick elbow to the ribs by Nene.

"That's good to hear…?" Soumei noted, a bit confused, but he was already used to the antics of these guys. He still turned to their quietest member, and with a smirk, added, "And what about you Tosuke? Any sage advice you want to share?"

"Not at the moment, no," the ever tranquil giant replied, his eyes on his phone's screen, busy texting away.

"You've been texting no-stop since we got here," Rindou noted, etching closer to the former Third Seat, her curiosity peaked. "Who you texting?!"

"Rindou, don't be so-" Eishi began, trying to spare Tosuke the effort, but the man in question replied with zero hesitation.

"My girlfriend."

"…Eh?" all eight other Elite Ten member, both current and former, all voiced out in unison, all equally surprised. Tosuke seemed not to be bothered in the slightest.

"Girlfriend?!" Eishi exclaimed, "Since when?"

"Oh! So it's okay if you ask now, huh?!" Rindou shot back, annoyed, but still wanting to hear Tosuke's answer.

"Congrats man, really, we didn't know," Soumei added.

"Is she someone we know?" Momo asked, actually very invested in the answer despite her usual attitude.

"Thanks," Tosuke just replied. "And yes. Sonoka Kikuchi. She was one year our senior. Maybe you remember her."

All other eight members took their sweet time in processing that reply, before, without a word, all eight of them just sat right back, straight onto their chairs, their eyes facing forwards to the arena, their faces expressionless. 'Oh… her…' they all thought in unison, as the picture of the outright supermodel of a former senior, current graduate of their academy, and Owner of Western Restaurant Shunkatei, came to mind, and they all, even the girls, couldn't help but mutter an ever-so soft… "…Lucky bastard…"

"And the ingredient is…!" Urara called out, just as the screen stopped. Alice and Sasha both took a good, long look at the ingredient that would play a part in their bite-sized opening act, and both girls took a deep breath.

Grapefruit

"Alright Cilla, let's get to work!" Alice called out, forcing herself to move, and with it, forcing her aide to move as well. Cilla scurried along, pushing any and all thoughts that did not concern the culinary arts out of her mind for now, as she followed Alice's lead. The heiress was quick to pick out a few big, plump, juicy, ruby red grapefruits from the storage, examining each carefully to pick out the best ones. Once she had decided on them, she turned to Cilla. "I'm going to get some juice out of these babies, about, let's say, nine ounces. So, cold water, twice as much please!"

"Eighteen ounces coming right up!" Cilla replied, as she motioned towards the best bowl she could find for the task at hand, before she begun to collect the water down to the drop her Lady needed for her craft.

On the other side of the kitchen, Sasha pouted. Alice really was impressive, she noted, being so quick to settle on a dish despite, or because of, the limited time they were given. Not to be outdone, however, not in front of Katya and much less in front of Dove, Sasha begun her own work. She took her own hold of several grapefruit, choosing the juiciest of the bunch she could find, before turning to her aide. "Fabi! I'm going to make a splendid sauce with these, in the meantime, pick out some of the creamiest brie you can find and divide it into even pieces, I'll work on them once I'm done here."

"Yes Sasha!" Fabi responded, as she practically ran towards her part of the station and begun her work. Within a few minutes at most, all four girls were heavily involved in their craft. Each of them nervous, but none of the allowing it to show.

Fabi was the first to finish her assigned task, with Sasha quickly jumping in and using the creamy brie to spread it over a handmade selection of cracker-like pieces of bread she had made. Leaving that in the oven for a bit resulted in crispy pieces with the melted like brie almost glued to it, which allowed her to pasture them with the grapefruit sauce she had worked on, leaving it at the perfect level of consistency. All that remained was a topping for the topping, with Fabi quickly allocating several chives on each piece to complete the one-bite delicacy.

Feeling the pressure of their opponents making headway while they lagged behind, Cilla quickly set the water aside, and having worked with Alice and her family enough, had a decent idea of what the princess was making. So, as Alice drained the juice from the grapefruit, Cilla begun to prep her molecular gastronomy machinery. Alice didn't even bother to look her way. Normally, she'd be very cautious with her equipment, but if it was Berta or Cilla, she knew it would be in good hands. So she focused on her craft.

Once she had the required ounces of juice, she turned, and Cilla had everything prepared. Smiling at the younger girl, Alice quickly bounced her way towards her main machine, and got ready. With the cold water set aside, Alice took hold of exactly one gram of sodium alginate, and proceeded to mix it, in a large bowl, with half of the fruit juice, or to be exact, four-and-a-half ounces of it. She set the ingredients into her immersion blender, allowing it to constantly mix. Her bright, sharp eyes on it, once she begun to see the foam form on the very top, Alice knew she had it at the consistency she needed.

So she stretched her hand, and Cilla handed her the remaining fruit juice. Alice softly poured in the rest, before she emptied out the mixture into a medium bowl, careful to remove any air bubbles from it. Cilla quickly approached her with the cold water, to which Alice took out another ingredient, this being three grams of calcium chloride. She dissolved the calcium chloride into the cold water, and using a whisk, spent over a minute carefully mixing it so it would dissolve completely.

Then, taking hold of one of her syringes, the very same set that had afforded Takumi his victory over Lucrezia. This made Alice smile, making her feel that they were really all in this together. With that pleasant thought in mind, she filled out the syringe until the halfway mark. The resulting mixture was the right amount of thick, so, pleased with her results, she turned to the calcium chloride bath she had prepped.

Carefully, she began to drop the mixture into it, creating small balls of the fluid within, being extra careful to achieve the exact same size for each of them. This part was tricky, and it required a steady hand. Her father had always said she had a good pulse, and would have made for a fine Doctor had she not wanted to be a Chef, and boy did she need to prove it now more than anything.

Signaling to Cilla, who quickly brought the cold water over, Alice proceeded to gently remove her creations from the bowl with a straining spoon and placing it into the cold water bath. As she did this, carefully with each one, five in total, one for each judge, Cilla went ahead and prepared the serving spoons for the display. After a few more minutes on the cold water, Alice removed the pieces, and set them up on the serving spoon, ever so carefully, before she began to grin widely at the result.

It was here Cilla allowed herself to breathe again.

"I have absolutely no idea what our Eight Seat even did there," Urara commented, "I'm not sure if even half of that is even supposed to be edible, but it looks like she's done, and…" she paused, turning to Sasha, who was also approaching the judge's table, "…and she's not the only one. Both contestants done, and with twenty minutes to spare. Quite the speedy match, eh?"

"That looks needlessly complicated," Sasha noted to Alice, as Fabi stood by her side.

"Culinary excellence is born out of experimentation after all," Alice countered, smirking, as Cilla stood by her, as firmly as she could to try and match Fabi's almost military-like stance.

"Now then… judges!" Urara declared, her hand signaling to the five WGO members awaiting the first part of their would-be five-course meal.

"Well now," Charme noted, his eyes on the two distinct dishes set before them. "This has got to be the most polar opposite servings on a theme I have ever come across. It is outright impressive, really," he added, and the other four couldn't help but nod.

On one side, they had Sasha's Lightly Baked Grapefruit Brie Bites, simplistic in design to a fault.

And on the other, there was Alice's Grapefruit Caviar, looking more like a science experiment than an actual dish meant for human consumption.

Still, as the crowd, and especially, their respective teammates, all looked on, the WGO Bookmen knew better now that to doubt any of these kids, so, before any of the dishes got cold (or warm, or whatever what Alice had served wasn't supposed to get) they took hold of each bite-sized piece, and took their single, significant bite.

"~Oh my, this is quite the delight!" Courage swooned.

"Seems our little upstarts took the BLUE scoring system as a challenge indeed," Charme noted, equally impressed.

"My, how very frightening," Anne simply said, as she took hold of a nearby marker and began to take notes. The other four judges did the same, and it seemed, they began to draw conclusions to what their scores would be.

"Here we have it folks!" Urara announced, gripping the microphone tightly in anticipation and worry. "We haven't seen the judges make use of their notepads in this event thus far, but considering this match is score-based, it looks like that is about to change! What scores will our first two-erm-four participants receive?!"

"First we have Alice Nakiri's score," Anne motioned, and the five judges tapped the screens below them, revealing in those small screens, and reflected in the giant screen up above for the audience to see, what scores she had been given.

There was a brief pause, as the audience, alongside both Alice and Cilla, slowly took in the results. Then… and outpour of applauses.

Fifteen points from each judge.

"Oh my goodness I did not screw up!" Cilla cheered as she jumped up and down in celebration.

"…An all-around score of fifteen, huh?" Alice noted, eyes narrowing a bit. She should be happy and proud, she knew, but… 'Part of me was hoping for a little more. Just making the bare minimum should not be cause for celebration. I can't get careless now…'

"…And, Sasha Yelchin's score," Anne continued, and with the same tap of the screen, the score changed and was reflected for all to see. Sasha involuntarily flinched.

Three judges had given her a vote of twelve, while the other two had given her a vote of thirteen.

With the judge's seated as follows: Histoire, Charme, Anne, Decora, and Courage, the scores ended up as:

Alice: 15/15/15/15/15

Sasha: 12/13/12/13/12

Alice's 75 points vs. Sasha's 62 points.

"And with that, Tootsuki's in the lead!" Urara roared, as the applause and cheers grew. The scoreboard also reflected the total numbers, now showing:

Tootsuki Academy's Total: 75 points.

Moscow International's Total: 62 points.

"You did it Milady!" a very happy Cilla quickly congratulated the princess, who merely pouted at the comment.

"What do you mean "me"?" she voiced, her playful tone evident, before she turned to the younger girl with a fond smile. "We did it," she corrected, "Thanks so much for the assist."

"Of course!" Cilla replied almost to tears. The rest of the Tootsuki squad, watching from the sidelines, all cheered and clapped, but none more-so than Berta who looked almost more excited than her own sister at the results.

"…Damn it, I couldn't quite match her," Sasha voiced, frowning. Fabi was quick to motion next to her and give the elder girl a soft bow.

"My apologies," she told her. "I was inefficient in-"

"Stop that," Sasha quickly cut in, jabbing the girl with her index finger in the forehead, causing the aide to mutter a "but" that went ignored. "We both did what best we could. It hurts, but it makes sense. But don't let yourself get down. After all…" she added, as she turned towards Tootsuki Elite Ten, as Alice bounced her way back towards the sidelines, greeted by her team's outpour of praise and congratulations. Oh, how little they knew. "…We're all just the opening act for Katya anyways…"

"Expertly done!" Isshiki was quick to congratulate.

"Damn it, now you have two dishes worthy of those fifteen points," Soma noted with a smirk. "Getting kinda greedy, ain't ya."

"Seems someone's jealous about my increased skill level," Alice noted with her tone trying to resemble how she spoke to him back during their match at the Autumn Elections. "My, were we to face-off again, why, I couldn't quite promise I wouldn't leave you utterly bested," she added, before she paused, and then just laughed. They both did.

"…You did great," Soma just said, smiling at her.

"Yeah, and you'll do so as well," Alice replied, smiling back. "Isn't that right?!" she then added, all spunky once more, as she turned to Akira, the only one who had yet to utter a single word of praise. "Not even a single word of congratulations to your fellow Lab Coat Trio member, for shame."

"That's not a thing," Akira voiced, before he shook his head. "Still… why must I congratulate you when we both know you did a fine job?"

"Because friends like to hear friends supporting them!" Alice shot back, pouting, then she turned to Erina, "Or am I wrong?"

"Ah…" Erina tried, finding it hard to speak without getting her tongue all riled up. Like, damn, she could taste Alice's creation from here, how was she even supposed to…? "…No, you are correct," she forced herself to say, ignoring the horrible sensation. "You were amazing Alice. I-I…" then she couldn't help but blush, especially the moment Alice smile turned into a wide grin. "…I…"

"~You what?" she teased.

Erina then frowned, glaring at her, but she knew she had to give as much as she received, so… "…I am very proud," Erina just said, forgoing the wordplay and just speaking the truth, if only this once. "And I love you more than I could ever properly express. You really were wonderful out there, just as your namesake, my sweet, little princess."

"Oh… I…" Alice stammered a bit, looking down, before her grin reverted back to a smile. "…You really mean it?"

"Always."

"Dah!" Alice squealed, before she just grabbed Erina and gave her a tight squeeze. "Love you lots too!"

"Yeah," Erina replied, blushing madly. "You've made that vividly clear."

"Those two are indeed adorable," Sasha noted, walking back to her side. "Sorry Katya, couldn't quite measure up."

"The groundwork has been set," Ekaterina commented, her eyes on the two Nakiri princesses, "As long as I'm not up next, we should have this won."

"Now then!" Urara announced, just as the screen began to flicker again. "For our second round, with Tootsuki now leading by thirteen points, we have ourselves the plated appetizer theme battle," she continued, before she signaled to the screen, "which will be fought between…!"

"You were amazing Cilla!" Berta quickly went and hugged her sister, who almost seemed to collapse into her twin's arms.

"I… was… so… nervous…" Cilla just muttered, finally allowing herself to just… stop functioning. That had been too much. How could these Elite Ten members do this repeatedly? They were monsters alright.

"We could tell," Raymond noted with a smirk, which caused both twins to pout at him.

"I didn't understand a thing you did, but good on you," Loren just voiced, before he tugged at Mitsuru. "Aren't you gonna say something?"

"Must you be vile until the bitter end?" Mitsuru whispered back, clearly blushing, clearly annoyed. Loren just smirked.

"Hey, once this place get shuts down, this might be the last time you get to be in the same vicinity as this girl," Loren advised, and Mitsuru felt lightheaded. "So man up and say something. Trust me, I'm not that bad a guy."

"Are you seriously going to-?" Mitsuru tried, but Cilla spoke up, interrupting the little private conversation he two boys seemed to be having.

"I want to make one thing crystal clear," she said, her tone as commanding as she could manage.

"Yeah?" both boys replied, a bit taken back. Her intense gaze didn't help.

"…I earned that victory by my merit alone, outside of Milady Alice of course," she declared, and the kids all just stared at her, confused. None of them had said the contrary. Then, slowly, her developing blush gave her away, at least to her ever excited sister. "This was not in any way due to what you said to me, you hear me Mitsuru!" Cilla cried out, her index finger pointed at the boy accusingly, which caused him to freak out. "So don't you dare get any ideas, you hear me!"

"I-I would never…" Mitsuru tried and failed to reply. Berta just stared, a knowing smirk on her face, wondering just which of the two was blushing more between the meek reporter and her younger twin.

"And our next set of competitors are…!" Urara roared into the mic, just as the flickering screen came to a halt. "…Yes!"

Satoshi Isshiki (w/ Mitsuru Soutsuda) vs. Aleksei Ozerov (w/ Boryenka Ozerov)

The huge uproar that screen caused, especially amongst the Third Years in the audience, was deafening. The hype could be felt, as all eyes fell on the young man that had been absent from this event after the very first day. Their highest ranked Elite Ten still in the competition. And in the eyes of many, the very best Tootsuki had to offer. A claim that even the likes of Erina, Akira or Soma were not that quick to try and dispute.

"You've got this Satoshi…" Nene voiced, her hands clenched, eyes on him.

"Let's see some of that Third Year power!" Kuga shouted out, his fist into the air.

"He really has become the central pillar of Tootsuki, hasn't he?" Eishi noted with a soft smile, as he turned to Rindou.

"Who would have guessed he'd become this school's ultimate weapon?" she replied.

Up on the audience's seats, the Polar Star gang and friends all roared at the match-up, with everyone present crying as loud as they could for Isshiki to wipe the floor with his opponent. As they did, Megumi just had her eyes on Isshiki, her hands held tightly against one another. 'You've got this! I would have never gotten his far without your support… None of us here would have… So…' she thought, before she poised herself, and pushing herself up, shouted out, "You've got this Isshiki!"

The rest of their friends all paused at the sudden outburst from the meek girl, but soon enough joined her in her cheer. All of them bounced up and down, cheering for the Polar Star's poster boy. All except for Nao.

'You can do this…' she begged, 'Please, you're the only one who can stop him,' she added, her hands trembling at the thought. But it didn't matter. He was the only one who could realistically protect her. Isshiki was the only one she knew who could and would try and stand up to her brother.

But then, even if she didn't want to, her eyes drifted to the side, towards the other boy she had slowly gotten to trust enough to reveal everything to, and yet, who now stood there poised to bring everything right down. Throw her right into her brother's grasp without a second thought. She just dug her nails into her thighs, her visible eye watering.

'Damn it Loren!' she inwardly cursed, 'What are you thinking? Are you really… really going to…?'

"Man, that's one hell of a reception, ain't it?" Soma noted with pride, his eyes on his senior.

"Not an unearned reaction," Erina added, her arms crossed, but relieved. If any of them had the chance of scoring higher than fifteen in this match, it was this young man that had gone out of his way to save Soma way back then, and now, it seems, would have to save her in turn.

"Like, Isshiki's a total badass, so it makes sense," Alice said, her hands to the back of her head, eyes on the cheering crowd.

"I can't imagine what this pressure must feel like," Akira voiced, his eyes on Isshiki. "But you are every bit as good as those cheers make you out to be. Someday, soon, I'll come for your seat, and I will beat you… But, right now, you are our top. So, take him out."

"…You all seem to think I am immune to performance anxiety," Isshiki joked, before he flashed the four a definite thumbs up. "But I will not let my lovely juniors down. Let's get this done properly," he added, before he turned towards where the younger aides stood, standing-by. "Are we ready for this Mitsuru?"

"Ah… Oh, yeah-Yes!" Mitsuru forced himself to say. The young reporter stepped forwards, trembling with each step, his vision almost blurry due to all the stress he currently found himself under. Not even the cheers from Berta and Raymond helped much, since in the back of his mind, he couldn't quite shake the thought that he really, really was the worst one of the bunch…

"H-Hey…"

Mitsuru froze, mid-step, as he heard Cilla speak up. The young girl lightly brushed her short hair to the side, away from her eyes, which were looking to the side, a light blush still plastered all over her face.

"…Good luck," she whispered, and then just turned away in a huff.

Mitsuru just looked on, eyes wide as could be, before he clenched his fists and nodded. He gave the group the best confident look he could muster, and made his way alongside Isshiki towards the arena, where their opponents, the ever imposing Aleksei and his aide Boryenka both stood proudly.

"It is the utmost honor to face Tootsuki's best student," Aleksei spoke as soon as Isshiki and Mitsuru stepped into the arena, and there was nothing but sincerity in his voice. Isshiki just smiled in return. "This is indeed what a life on an academy of cooking prowess should lead to. Such a fine clash against such a worthwhile opponent. You have my utmost admiration comrade," the Russian young man with the thickest accent added.

"The honor is all ours," Isshiki replied, with just as much genuine respect. "To all you competitors, from so far and wide, to have made it all the way here. I am nothing but impressed and in awe," he added, before he turned a bit, his eyes on Aleksei's aide. "Apologies if I am mistaken, but I couldn't help but notice, both he, young Boryenka and the aide from the prior match, young Fabi, both seem to share your family name. Relatives, or mere coincidence?"

"Nyet," Aleksei replied, a big smile on his bearded face, "We are all one big family. Boryenka here is my younger brother, eldest of the triplets at that."

"Oh, triplets!" Isshiki noted, his eyes on the boy and then on the other aides. They all did look alike after all.

"My family is renown back home, very big in international markets too," he explained, signaling to his family members. "Boryenka is elder of the triplets, Cyzarine is middle triplet, while Dima is youngest triplet. Evegnii is my younger boy cousin, while Fabi is younger girl cousin. I, as eldest of all, am next in-line for the family business. Quite possibly next in-line for team's leadership position, but Miss Ekaterina exists, so I cannot yet stake my claim on that throne."

"I see," Isshiki noted, his eyes now on Ekaterina, his expression sharpening, "I take it she's quite the gifted individual?"

"You've seen nothing yet," Aleksei warned, and his jovial tone became a bit more serious, "She came out of nowhere and took over our institute in less than a year. So you best be able to utterly destroy me, Tootsuki's best student, cause if you cannot, none of you will stand a chance against her."

"Dully noted," Isshiki replied, his hand finding its way onto his knife's handle.

Aleksei did the same, taking hold of the massive cleaver of his that seemed to make Aisha blush.

Mitsuru looked on, his hands shaking and being utterly unable to stop them from doing so.

Boryenka just stared, the ever-quiet young man staring holes into Mitsuru for some reason. The usual aide-on-aide ceremonial glare, he assumed, but this only served to make the poor boy even more nervous.

Regardless, all four were set, and with a raise of her fist, Urara declared the match. "Now we have our second match of the day! On this corner, representing Tootsuki, many-a schoolgirls' dreamboat if there ever was one, the fan favorite Second Seat, Satoshi Isshiki!" she announced, despite how the crowd's continued cheers almost drowned her out entirely. "And, as his aide, one of our up-and-coming reporters of the Tootsuki News Division, and fellow Polar Star who has been rumored by some to be Soma Yukihira's protégée, one Mitsuru Soutsuda!"

"Damn right!" Soma was quick to shout out with a wide grin, as the applauses continued. A very nervous Mitsuru could barely form a smile at all the sudden attention. The twins were right, this was insane.

"And, representing Moscow International," Urara continued, "We have the first son and heir of the Ozerov Restaurant Chain & Supply, Aleksei Ozerov!" she introduced, as the young man in question posed proudly. "And with him, the first of a set of triplets who we were told were just run-of-the-mill students, but who are also somehow part of an illustrious family overseas, make of that what you will, Boryenka Ozerov!"

As a few scattered laughs could be heard across the stadium, Azami, up above, standing next to his aide Shawn and as far away from any camera as he physically could while still getting a clear look at the action, just frowned. He should really have that girl replaced.

"Anywho… Contestants, get ready!" she announced with all her might. "Now then! Our ingredient!"

The screen's trademark flickering came to a halt, and all four competitors took note.

Shrimp

"Most fortunate!" Aleksei exclaimed loudly, before he turned to his aide. "We shall deliver our family's version of the Shrimp Olivier. You know what to do brother."

"Understood," Boryenka replied with a firm nod, as both he and Aleksei both moved to their station, and begun the prep work required for their dish. They began by taking out a multitude of ingredients, washing them thoroughly, and setting them up on the cutting board to get the needed measurements just right. With just those words alone, both siblings knew who did what, with Aleksei making mincemeat out of the larger ingredients with his huge cleaver as if he were cutting through butter with a hot knife thanks to his rather impressive strength, while Boryenka took care of the secondary, smaller ingredients, for more precise and simpler preps.

It was quite the sight, and not something Isshiki could be blamed for getting a bit unnerved by.

"…My, it's almost as seeing our Aldini twins at work, such chemistry," he mused, impressed, before he turned to Mitsuru, as the younger boy seemed on the verge of collapsing. "Fret not, young one, we may not be as in-sync as our opponents, but strangers we are not. We can and we will rise up to the occasion. Their dedication is such that they've outright declared their dish for the world to hear from the very start of the match, and as such, we'll answer in kind. Mitsuru, our dish will be a Shrimp Kakiage Tempura, so if you please, assist me in getting everything prepped."

"Y-Yes!" Mitsuru replied, moving quickly. He needed to help Isshiki as best he could, nervousness be damned. He needed to push any and all thoughts that did not concern this match aside. Whatever secrets he had just spilled to Cilla, and whatever her reactions had even meant, and how torn he was over what Loren was trying to do, all of that and more, out of his mind for now. Now all that mattered was the results. All that mattered was that Shrimp Kakiage Tempura, and he'd focus on nothing else.

The two began their work, following closely behind to the Russian team's efforts, taking out a handful of ingredients and setting them all up to be properly washed. Unlike Moscow International's start, here Isshiki and Mitsuru decided to divide and conquer. Mitsuru did the washing, while Isshiki focused on the cuts and peeling. His left hand on each ingredient, and with a simply flick of his right wrist, the entire ingredient, be it the shrimp, the veggies or the rice noodles, was cut to outright perfection. It was almost too fast to see. Mitsuru, washing as fast as he could, had barely finished with one ingredient than had Isshiki already cut it perfectly, taking hold of the next. The Polar Star senior was clearly a force of nature with the knife, and as the silence of the once-riled up crowd showed, even they were in awe at the display.

"Is it me," Asahi softly muttered, laidback, his ever-observant eyes on Isshiki's technique. "Or did this guy actually improve since his last match?"

"I think it's more like…" Dove replied, her sharp eyes on him as well, "He's completely serious this time. These Tootsuki students didn't take the challenge all that serious at first, but now, now they know. This is his actual skill."

"Careful," Asahi teased. "A little more and you'll sound impressed,"

"What? Can't a girl admire how a man handle's his knife?" she replied back with the tone to match, wink and all. "But don't worry, if that makes you nervous, I'll keep you safe. As our team's best chef, I'll take him out before he gets to you."

"Best chef?" Asahi repeated, his head tilted slightly, but the smile evident. "You sure about that?"

"Very much so."

"Oh really?"

"…Get a room, please," Julius was as close to begging as the two had ever heard him, and despite themselves, they couldn't help but blush at his comment, despite the two of them attempting to play it off.

"I'm just mocking him," Dove quickly course-corrected.

"As if," Asahi countered, "She's head-over-heels over me and can't seem to take "no" for an answer."

"Oh, you wish!" Dove shot back, her head turned to the King.

"Do I now?" Asahi laughingly replied to the Queen.

"Regardless of whatever dangerous game you two seem to be playing," Julius decided to just try and continue his original train of thoughts, even as his words did cause the two to flinch, since he wasn't wrong in the slightest. "Satoshi Isshiki has been one of our greatest obstacles from the start," Julius noted, his own eyes on the senior. "I've worked for years under the Eizan family, and Etsuya is as gifted as they come, and ten times as proud. And even he was wary of Isshiki's talent. Coming from the same guy whose underestimation of Soma Yukihira led to his downfall, and by extent, all of this, it says a lot about just who Satoshi Isshiki is as a chef. You two best be cautious."

"Oh, never did say I wouldn't take him seriously," Asahi noted, and for once, his tone did in fact indicate his sincerity. Dove just nodded in response, since despite how she had been trained purposely to take out Erina, and by extension, Mana; even Azami had warned her of the wildcard that was Isshiki.

"…Is that so?"

The three other Noirs paused, each turning to their last member, who had not really spoken all that much all day long. Ashitaro's eyes seemed to be starring holes right into Isshiki, as a sinister smile slowly plastered itself over his face.

"Sorry to disappoint you lot," Ashitaro said, turning towards his team, causing the three to tense up. It was hard to not be defensive around this guy. "But Satoshi Isshiki is mine. I didn't agree to all this stupidity just to fight some mediocre Second Years that can barely win their matches. I'm taking out Tootsuki's top. Besides," he added after a little pause, his eyes shifting elsewhere. Towards where his little sister sat. None of the three other Noirs much liked what they saw in his eyes. "…He's interfering in somewhere he doesn't belong, and for that, that burn on his hand, will be the least of his concerns…"

Meanwhile, Isshiki had moved to prepare the batter, while Mitsuru had begun to set the oil to a proper boil. The difference in temperature was important, the kid knew, so he was careful to set it just right. Isshiki, with his hands gripping the bowl and the mixing spoon, was careful to get the density at the desired level. 'It is both good and bad that we got shrimp as an ingredient,' Isshiki noted, as he set the bowl to the side, and motioned towards the shrimps themselves. 'Such a versatile ingredient, both a blessing and a curse in a way. It allows us a lot of wiggle room to work with,' he added, before his eyes shifted towards his opponents, 'But it offers them the same.'

As Isshiki worked the shrimp, Aleksei took hold of his peeled and cut Yukon Gold potatoes, bringing the yellow-fleshed colored pieces into a boil, and taking them out after exactly seven minutes and thirty-seven seconds, setting them aside to cool, before extending his hand outwards, where Boryenka was quick to hand him the next piece to be boiled: carrots. Setting them into the pot, he then moved towards the two sets of prawn he had prepped. The ever large brown rock shrimp, and the more common medium shrimp, getting them ready by working on them as two separate batches. It was a work of repetition. Cook. Cool. Dry. Meanwhile, Boryenka took care of the other vegetables, handling the bright green peas, the chopped dill, the pickles and the onions.

Seeing just how fast their opponents were moving, Mitsuru felt a shiver run up his spine. Aleksei's aide was more than able to keep up with his elder brother. He, on the other hand, could barely keep up with Isshiki, and that had just been the pre-cook prep. Meaning, now that they were moving to the true cooking part of it, things were just going to get worse.

Biting his own lips to try and think straight and focus, Mitsuru turned, taking hold of Isshiki's prepared batter to set it aside, trying to move ahead with the next part, but instead, he moved right into Isshiki, who had also moved towards the stove right before them. This resulted in a small clash between the two, and to the gasps of the entire audience, Mitsuru dropped the bowl right from his hands.

He cried out, eyes wide.

The entire student body felt faint.

Nene and Kuga both couldn't even blink.

The Elite Ten down at the arena all felt their throats dry up.

Ashitaro was quite literally a second away from laughing out loud…

…but the bowl never reached the ground.

"Stay calm Mitsuru," Isshiki softly told the boy, not a hint of anger in his voice. Mitsuru looked on, blinking twice, before he looked down, and he couldn't help but gasp. "I know this is rough," Isshiki continued, "But you are not here on a whim. You've been a part of our journey since before you became a part of our dorm at the start of the year. You've helped Soma out a lot during his preparations for his match against Subaru, and have been with him since. So, you've been a Polar Star far longer than anyone else of your year… So chin up, we all make mistakes, but I got you, just make sure you've got me."

Mitsuru, utterly impressed and likewise as moved to outright tears, just nodded, before he bent down, and retook the bowl that Isshiki had somehow both caught and balanced on one foot.

"How on Earth did he manage that?!" Urara noted with the widest of grins. Soon, the silence became a thunderous applause once more. "Now that's the Tootsuki prowess we all strive for! Satoshi Isshiki really is showing us how it's done!"

"…What a frightening foe…" Aleksei noted, his eyes on the Second Seat, noting how Isshiki had been caught utterly off-guard and all of that had been nothing else but sheer reflexes and pin-point skill.

Mitsuru, shaking his head, upped his step and went towards where he was needed, getting to work, finally managing to properly push all his thoughts to the side. His eyes did, however, catch sight of the boy that started it all, and in a way, his biggest source of inspiration.

Soma just offered him a knowing smile and a nod. And he knew what to do.

Smiling as well, Isshiki took hold of the shrimp and the vegetables, throwing them all on the burning pan, and for a moment, even he felt a bit hesitant. That burn had been no joke. Despite how it was already fully healed, the mark left from a burn that severe took years to fully vanish from the skin, and a part of him felt the phantom pain when he took hold of the pan's handle and felt the heat from within.

But… what kind of chef fears fire?

A hot, burning flame is not but another tool to be used.

'And this is far more than just a mere cooking competition,' Isshiki noted, gripping the handle harder, and, with a nod from his head, allowing Mitsuru to begin tossing in the batter-dripped ingredients into the burning pan. 'Little Erina and little Alice's very livelihood depend on this victory, as does little Nao's very safety. As such, I cannot allow something so childish to hold me back. Apologies, my fellow classmates, but I have returned, and I will not allow Tootsuki to fall!'

He ignited the flames to their strongest setting, letting out a burst of flame that seemed like an outright explosion, as the young man flicked and tossed the contents within his palm as expertly as he could ever manage. The flame was intense, and with each scratch that the pan made against the metallic surface of the stove, sparks flew, and the flames seemed moments away from escaping and burning everything. But, Isshiki kept it all under control. He tossed the ingredients up high, and caught them all effortlessly.

The young man was sweating heavily thanks to the heat, and as much as he would have much enjoyed just stripping everything off and finishing up like that, he'd rather avoid Nene teleporting down to the arena and quite possibly throwing him into the open flame.

Said girl, her glasses almost fogging up thanks to the heat that was so intense even those seated up above could feel it, had trouble keeping her emotions in check. She, despite herself, knew Isshiki was a handsome young man. But seeing him like this, so focused, so intense, it was simply too much.

One last tug, and Isshiki pulled the pan and all the perfectly fried shrimp and vegetable tempura from the burning stove, before tossing all the ingredients into the deep bowl, in order to deep-fry the final parts of the dish, just as Mitsuru finished up decorating the plates that were to be used.

One minute. Two. Enough.

Isshiki took everything out, and set it on the table, and within moments, both he and Mitsuru had the dishes prepared, five plated appetizers ready for consumption.

Not to be outdone, Aleksei and Boryenka finished setting up their own response to Isshiki and Mitsuru's dish, and within moments, all ten dishes were presented to the five judges.

"And here we have it!" Urara declared, signaling to the large screen. "With naught but a few minutes to spare, both contestants have brought forth their plated appetizers! What will the judges think?! Will Tootsuki's lead grow?! Will Moscow International make an unexpected comeback?! Will anyone ever make a sixth plate for the starving hostess over here who has to be japing away for hours on end without breaks?!"

"…That girl is indeed quite spirited," Anne noted with a little smile, her eyes on the ever perky hostess before she set her sights on the dishes before them all. They all did. Even Decora couldn't help but frown at what was before her.

"You okay Dee?" Courage asked, tilting her head to the side, looking at Decora puzzlingly.

"Fine, just curious as to what this round will bring," she lied, in a way. "We have not tasted a dish from the Second Seat since the very first match."

"Too true!" Histoire was quick to add. "I wonder what the seemingly universally declared strongest student of Tootsuki brings to the table this time around."

"I-" Charme was about to add his input, because damn it, when one of them spoke, they all did, but Isshiki quickly cut in.

"I ask you to please pay those thoughts no mind," Isshiki said, and the five all looked at him, with varying levels of confusion. "…You see, I am flattered that my classmates believe in me so, and I will do my best not to disappoint them. But, at the end of the day, I am the Second Seat. Above me there is still a very gifted young lady, and it is only thanks to underhanded tactics from our own side that she has not been able to showcase her prowess. Were it not for her, I would not be here. I would not be able to stand before you all. So I thank you all for the praise, but I am still underneath Nene Kinokuni, please remember that."

The entire audience seemed to freeze at the words their Second Seat had uttered, or rather, the declaration, as even the cameramen seemed to have caught on and, for a moment, shifted all the televised attention towards the seated First Seat.

The very red-faced, sinking into her seat, First Seat.

"W-Why of all t-time must he begin to sprout all of t-that…" she squirmed, not even having the strength to glare at the utterly mad laughter that was coming from Kuga.

"~Oh, that's quite the statement," Urara was quick to catch on, stepping next to Isshiki with the widest grins. "Seems there some truth to the rumors about you two. Like, is it always a thing between the First Seat and the Second Seat?"

"Who knows?" Isshiki just replied, all smiles. Everyone just stared. That man's strength really knew no bounds.

"You heard it here first folks!" Urara announced, utterly more invested in that than in the actual match that her studies and future depended on. "Another couple in the works it seems! Or, actually, probably even more than that… I mean, underneath Nene Kinokuni, huh? That's quite a way to phrase it…" she added with a grin.

"…That is true. It would be easy to misconstrue," Isshiki noted.

"Yep!" Urara added with a laugh.

"Not that I'd mind of course!" Isshiki said.

"Of cour-eh?" Urara just… gave pause. Her brain had to do a restart for a moment, as did, probably everyone else's there.

Silence followed.

"…Oh my," Alice could be heard muttering, her hand on her lips, eyes a bit wide. Erina was blushing madly, and both the usually stoic Akira and the usually dimwitted Soma had their eyes wide as wide could be, utterly shocked at the… intimate acknowledgement.

Nene would have fainted if she could have willed herself to. Instead…

"SATOSHI!"

"…Let's try and keep things PG, okay," Anne was the first to voice, to which a still smiling Isshiki just nodded to. She, alongside the rest of the judges, decided it best to move right along and just take their taste of the dishes before they got cold. With chopsticks on hand, the five took a taste of Aleksei's dish first, savoring it to the last moment, before they turned and took hold of Isshiki's and did the same. To say they were in ecstasy would be an understatement.

The judges, still in a trance, seemed struggling with themselves to try and put that taste into words, and more so, into a score, but as they struggled, up on the audience, Ashitaro suddenly got up. The silence of the stadium, thanks to Isshiki's earlier remarks, made his move far more obvious to everyone around him.

He had stood up so suddenly that it had actually spooked Asahi and Dove, while Julius had just frowned at him. Even he didn't much trust this guy. Still, as far as Dove was concerned, she felt beyond creeped out, despite her usual bravado. This, however, did not explain how her hand had reached out and taken hold of Asahi's in any way. Upon noticing this, blushing, she quickly let go, muttering a quick apology, to which the surprised boy just nodded to.

Still, far more frightened than Dove could ever be, was Nao. The little witch outright shrank into her seat, her visible eye widened the moment he had moved. She couldn't help it if she tried. She was always acutely aware of where he was and what he was doing, and even with as far away as he was, him moving suddenly felt like he was moving towards her.

"Nao?" Megumi was quick to voice, the worry evident in her voice.

"…You okay?" Hisako added, which surprised Nao, as the little witch turned towards the two girls, trying her best to fake confidence. Hisako just gave her a look that was the polar opposite of every single other time the two exchanged glances. Granted, Nao had probably earned herself that scorn thanks to all the stalking, but still…

"…It's just…" Nao tried, but as she looked back, out of the corner of her eye, she could see her brother wasn't looking down at her.

He was looking down at Isshiki.

Isshiki himself stared right back up, his eyes narrowed.

"Ah… that's Ashitaro Sadatsuka, from the Neo-Noirs, right?" Urara announced, equal parts confused and freaked out by the guy's actions. "Related to our Nao Sadatsuka, or so I'm told, why is he…?"

"That he is…" Isshiki noted. Aleksei looked up as well, not really liking the way Ashitaro was staring down at his opponent.

"He's related to Nao?" Berta asked Cilla.

"What a creepy brother," Cilla answered Berta.

"Isn't Nao that chick that used to follow you around, always glaring at you?" Raymond asked, turning to Loren.

"Hmm…" Loren muttered, arms crossed, already decided against intervening any further… But… What did that guy even want? Against his own advice, Loren still looked up, still saw Ashitaro staring down at Isshiki, and he could see how Nao seemed to visibly shrink into her seat and had to be talked to by the other Polar Stars and company to help keep her calm. Such an asshole that guy was… '…Not your problem Loren. Not your problem.'

"You're gonna get us eliminated," Asahi called out, his wary eyes on Ashitaro, but his tone making his warning clear. "Sit your ass down."

"…heh…" Ashitaro let out a chuckle all the sudden. It would have surprised the trio of Noirs more if they weren't already on-edge about him. "Heh, heh, heh!" he then let out a loud laugh, before he sat back down, looking as pleased as could be. "…He didn't understand it at all!"

Isshiki frowned, trying to process what little he heard from Ashitaro, outside the laughter, before Anne cleared her throat, getting the attention back to where it should be. "…Ignoring all the interruptions, and I must remind the Challengers not actively participating not to interrupt these matches, allow us to get to the grading, shall we?"

Isshiki and Aleksei both turned their attention back towards the judges, and with after some long pondering, and several interruptions, it seemed they had reached their conclusions.

Aleksei had offered them his Bold Shrimp Olivier.

Isshiki, in response, had served them his Shrimp & Bits Kakiage Tempura.

Both dishes looked divine, and tasted even better. So the judging began.

"I will offer Aleksei's dish a total of sixteen points," Histoire said, as the number 16 flared up on screen, much to the audible gasps heard throughout the audience. A higher score than fifteen?!

"I will have to agree, sixteen as well," Charme added with a smile.

"I would go that far," Anne voiced, "Fifteen feels about right to me."

"I disagree," Decora said with a wicked smile. "Sixteen sounds about right."

"Eh…" Courage just mused for a moment. "I think I'm with Anne of this one. Fifteen!"

"With those numbers, Aleksei has gotten an overall score of seventy-eight points, surpassing Alice's earlier seventy-five!" Urara announced, holding a curse in at the realization. Why? How? His dish didn't look all that impressive. Still, if he got that much… "Now, how does our Second Seat score?!"

The judges gave pause, and with a press of their screens, they each offered their points. The entire audience all stared, counting at the numbers and recounting, each certain they had counted it wrong. It couldn't be, right?

There was no way it was… lower.

Isshiki: 15/16/16/14/15

Aleksei: 16/16/15/16/15

Isshiki's 76 points vs. Aleksei's 78 points.

"…Huh?!" Urara just blurted out, as Isshiki stared at the screen, eyes wide. "I-Eh, I mean, with that, Isshiki gets a total of seventy-six points, one higher than Alice's efforts, but-"

"Stop measuring the scores with mine!" Alice blasted so loud she made Urara jump, as the second princess of Tootsuki was looking mightily pissed at all the comparisons.

"Geez, sorry!" Urara replied, frowning, "…As I was saying, it still two points lower than what Aleksei managed… for some reason! More foul play, what gave off that impression?!" she added, before she outright glared at the judges.

"Sorry kid, but this is how it is," Decora was quick to shut her down, her hands to the side. "It was very close, but it seems my colleagues and I agree that Aleksei just understood the assignment better."

"Assignment?" Isshiki repeated, his eyes still on the score, until it hit him. "…Don't tell me that's also a factor?"

"Huh?" both Urara and Mitsuru, the latter who was already blaming himself for the two point discrepancy, muttered.

"You've caught on it seems," Anne explained, her arms crossed, a knowing look on her face. "While this has now become a five-on-five, all-or-nothing match, this is still a Shokugeki. Since we aren't actively comparing your dishes against each other until the full course is served, what do you think becomes a major component in our grading system?"

Erina, Soma, Alice and Akira all stared at Anne, already half-expecting more problems and things to bring them down, but it seemed that Isshiki understood.

"…I see," he voiced. "It's not just taste, presentation or how much it adhered to the theme and ingredient, but also," he added, as he turned, his eyes to his team, or rather, on a surprised Alice. "…how well it follows the dish served before."

"Exactly," Histoire said. "In fact, at least in my eyes, your dish, were this to be a simple one-on-one match-up, would be superior, no doubts in my mind. But as an appetizer to follow up Miss Nakiri's earlier hors d'oeuvres, well, it simply didn't match up at all."

"The fact that you scored so high despite how utterly polarizing the difference in taste was goes to show just how utterly divine your dish by itself was," Charme added, and his tone made no attempt to hide the genuine praise found there-in.

The scorecard shifted once more, now showing the new combined scores:

Tootsuki Academy's Total: 151 points.

Moscow International's Total: 140 points.

Isshiki and Mitsuru returned back to their side, as Aleksei and Boryenka did the same, as Soma, Erina, and Alice were all quick to go to them and congratulate them on the match. Akira offered his own nod of acknowledgement, even if his attention was more focused on this new little… detail the judges had purposely selected to avoid mentioning.

"That's just plainly unfair!" Alice cried out, hands on her hips, clearly pissed.

"They're trying to box us in," Soma noted, his eyes on the judge's table. Alice muttered a "huh?" in response, to which Soma just added, "Just a thought."

"Yukihira's right," Akira voiced, as he walked towards where the others were. "Our style are vastly different, while our opponents thrive in this teamwork of theirs. And we fell for it. Their dishes have followed a theme, broadly, but still a theme. Focused exclusively on Russian culinary arts at their core. On the other hand, we answered with molecular gastronomy and classical Japanese, which couldn't be further from each other if we tried."

"Then they should have told us that too!" Alice barked, pouting at the judges.

"It's not… that simple," a struggling Erina did her best to voice her thoughts. "We should have seen this coming. It is a five-course meal. For chefs of our caliber, this should have been obvious."

"…It pains me to say it, but she's right," Isshiki noted, sighing. "I'm sorry for such an unsavory result. I didn't realize the truth behind this match, and as such, affected us all."

"You're sorry?!" Alice cried out, "I was the one who messed up! I overcomplicated our starting dish, now there's no way we can somehow bring it all back!"

"Now that's not true," Soma noted softly, and his team couldn't help but stare at him like he was crazy, given that little smile that was slowly forming. Hell, who were they fooling? Of course he was. "…This is actually quite interesting actually, how to mix-and-match different styles is what a true chef should always strive for. Besides, our next theme might just save us, right?"

At this the other four gave pause, until they each recalled what the next theme was.

The palate-cleansing salad.

"…A palate-cleansing salad. If we manage a good enough dish with that theme it might just become the reset button we need," Akira pondered, his hand on his chin. "That way we can better match the final two themes, and with our lead still in place, manage to squeeze out a win even with this setback."

"You think?" Alice asked, head tilted. It sounded risky, but again, they didn't have much of a choice.

"I think you two have quite the solid plan," Isshiki noted, before he couldn't help but frown. '…I know it does not help to overthink this, especially now,' Isshiki thought, his eyes back onto the audience. Back onto him. 'He knew. Ashitaro was able to see my mistake with nothing but a glance…'

"Okay, sure, that's a thing too now I guess," Urara voiced, clearly not at all happy with that explanation, but she was sure she could scream and cry all she wanted and the results wouldn't be changes, so she pressed on. "Anyways, moving on! Our next theme is the palate-cleansing salad, sounds simple enough! So, who will fight who?!"

The screen began to flicker once more, just as Aleksei turned towards Ekaterina.

"Milady, with this our synergy should carry us through," he told her, but all she did was frown.

"…I had planned as such," Ekaterina noted, closing her eyes for a moment. "It was the reason why I had that goof Gautier Pierre share the Elite Ten's Shokugeki records with us. It was quite clear, that despite how gifted they are, their teamwork is piss poor. However," Ekaterina added, her sharp eyes opening, staring directly into the shifting screen. "…Satoshi Isshiki still scored phenomenally high. With such contradictory dishes, a score almost on par with your own, we cannot get careless. This next match…"

"…Might just decide the Round as a whole," Akira noted, as he too looked at the screen. This was going to be their do-or-die moment. They needed to bring out the best salad imaginable, reset everything and then use that as the blueprint for the final two dishes. All they needed was…

Then the screen stopped. The opponents had been chosen.

"Yes!" Urara cheered as loud as she could.

But even her microphone assisted scream was completely overshadowed by the sheer shouts and applauses the audience gave out thanks to the sheer joy and relief they felt at seeing that name in that screen. When they needed it most, they could not think of a better chef for the job.

Everyone was sure of it…

…Everyone except for the chef herself.

Erina Nakiri (w/ Berta Pedersen) vs. Ekaterina Antonova (w/ Evgenii Ozerov)

Erina said absolutely nothing. Her eyes, wide as plates, however, told an entire story.

Ekaterina, on the other hand, had a look that screamed both thrill and fear. "So I am against her, am I?" she noted, clenching her fists. "A cornered rat will bare its fangs, so I wonder just how dangerous an opponent you'll become, Erina Nakiri?"

"So it's the Japanese princess versus the Russian princess?" Gautier, up above with the rest of the Challengers, noted with a smirk, "So, my dear Camille, any more wagers between the two of you?"

"Shut up!" a very flustered Camille barked back, before she turned her eyes towards Ekaterina, who somehow seemed to sense her stare, as she turned and met her eyes. The Russian beauty gave her a flirty smile, and with her hands, made the form of a heart, which cause Camille to feel light headed.

"Aww! You can be sweet," Urara announced, catching hold of the gossip unfolding. "And here I thought you were just a Russian rich bitch stereotype. Who knew?"

"Careful of who you call a stereotype Urara Kawashima," Ekaterina warned playfully, wink and all, and Urara could only feel a sweat drop down her neck at what Ekaterina's priorities seemed to be. "Evgenii, let us move."

"Sure thing ma'am," the young man, roughly the same age as the aides Tootsuki was employing, replied as he walked towards the arena with their Team Leader. He stared down each and every one of the girls on the opposite side, all of the in those form fitting uniforms, and he couldn't help but lick his lips at the sight. Japan had such fine schoolgirls, he noted. What luck!

"…Erina, I… erm," Soma tried, knowing that all their talk about how important this next match was didn't at all account for her participation in it. "…You'll do fine."

"Mm-hmm," she muttered, not having blinked since the challenge had been announced.

"Erina? Just do the best you can," Alice tried, patting her poor cousin on the back, "Y-You'll be okay. You're Erina Nakiri, the very best. A-And you have Berta with you. You don't need that dumb tongue of yours for this!"

"Mm-hmm…" she repeated, frozen on the spot.

"Erina… Earth to Erina… Hey!" Soma had to raise his voice a bit, getting in her face, to at least force her to turn her eyes to him. She looked about to cry. "…Erina, you are more than just the God's Tongue. And you are one of the best chefs, ever. Not even my dad has been able to replicate my mom's dishes, and yet, without even trying, you've done that and more…"

The other three Elites, alongside the five aides, all looked on, all wondering what was the story behind that comment. Soma didn't even notice, as his attention was fully focused on Erina.

"You are my biggest source of inspiration, and the one goal I have that I know I still have a lot to learn before I can ever hope to reach it. To reach you," he admitted, and she looked on, her eyes shutting a bit, as her nervousness took over.

"Soma… that's…"

"You can do this," he told her, taking hold of her hands with his. Soft yet strong, as everything about this boy was. She looked down, at their interlocked fingers, before she raised her eyes to meet his. He gave a small pause, before saying, "The Erina I know is strong, gifted, wonderful, and doesn't need her tongue to be able to out-cook anyone. You'll get through this. Because I still need those lips of yours-" he said, and the moment Alice, Berta and Cilla all muttered a surprised "~Oh?" at his comment, he couldn't help but frown a bit, "-By which I mean that you haven't called any of my dishes delicious yet," he explained, eyes narrowed, as the three other girls all pouted in response. Such a smooth delivery, and he had to ruin it?

Soma was sure his girlfriend would not really be in the mood for him to joke, that yeah, he also needed her lips for other reasons too; because of course he did. But, he'd keep quiet for now.

Erina, however, just replayed his words in her head, and it got to the point, feeling so worried and down, she couldn't even be bothered to keep up the façade. "Soma…" she said, her voice trembling slightly. "Let's not fool ourselves. Everything I cook is because of my tongue, and… and we both know by now, your dishes, I mean, they're not-"

But his index finger on her lips stopped her.

"Don't say something you'll regret now," he told her with a knowing little smirk. "One day, I will make you say those words, but when you are well. After this whole mess is over. So… as much as you trust me, know that I trust you. You can do this. And if you ever feel you can't, know, I've got your back always. I promised you this place won't be shut down, and I won't fail you. You trust me?"

"…Always," she simply replied, softly resting her head on his open palm, as he caressed her gently, which seemed to give her just enough strength to push herself into the ring.

She was shaking. She was nervous. And she damn well wished she could have just remained in his hands, soaking in his touch, safe. But… she had a job to do. A very way of life to protect. Not just hers, but for everyone who was wearing or had ever worn the Tootsuki uniform. The Academy her grandfather had raised from an average school to the very top of the world, and it now fell on her arms to keep it that way.

Berta followed along, to the cheers of her fellow aides, but unlike them all, she knew she had quite the battle ahead. 'Milady Erina is unwell. I must help her to the best of my abilities… Gods, this is nerve-wrecking!'

As the four competitors stood in the center of the arena, to the seemingly never-ending applauses and cheers, Erina and Ekaterina stared each other down, sort of. Ekaterina did, while Erina was looking at Ekaterina's hair more than anything else, anything to avoid direct eye-contact.

"I am beyond thrilled to be able to take you down Erina Nakiri," Ekaterina said with boast.

"…Hmph," the Nakiri heiress seemed to dismiss, to the sheer euphoria of everyone present who did not know her well enough. To this, this was just their ice queen not bothered in the slightest even when pitted against a Team Leader.

But her team knew…

Hisako knew, and up above, she couldn't help but notice that her best friend's social media accounts were blowing up. Everyone who was watching, an audience that had grown to insane numbers after Soma's declaration and the hashtag of Protect Erina had been born, all seemed to have taken note of a change in the Tootsuki heiress.

Ikumi and Julio too, were noticing something very off about her. She had a very stubborn way of carrying itself, they knew by experience by now, but this… this wasn't that.

Megumi herself had an uneasy feeling about all this.

Up above, Soe, Leonora, Mana and Azami all wondered, in their own way, why Erina seemed so… different.

And inwardly, Erina knew. As she glared into the nothingness, the smell of all the uncooked ingredients, disgusting from the sidelines, now utterly unbearable within the arena itself, the Tootsuki Heiress was sure that not since the Summer of '59 had a Nakiri been so utterly screwed!

"Are we ready?!" Urara cheered, none the wiser.

"Naturally," Ekaterina boasted.

"…" Erina said nothing outwardly, as inwardly she said, 'AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!'

"Is… your sister always that… stiff?" Dove wondered, her eyes on her would-be "rival" (enemy? target? whatever she was?) with a confused expression. "She does not look all that there."

"I thought it was just me…" Asahi noted, also noticing her change in demeanor. "But she does look, I dunno, rigid. Hope she's not feeling sick."

"Either that or it's Soma's fault," Dove noted, and Asahi just turned to her, a confused expression on his face. What on Earth could that dumb boy be responsible for at this point? "What, they're at that age. They probably went at it and he got a bit too excited when giving it to her right up her b-"

"My baby sister doesn't do those things!" Asahi cried out, causing the entire group of Challengers to just pause and turn to him and his sudden outburst. Dove was just laughing at this point. He… wasn't.

"What kinda things?" Aisha asked ever-so innocently, turning around from his seat.

"Ask again when you're older sweetie!" Dove replied, still all smiles, while Asahi sunk back into his seat, pissed off, now glaring daggers at the oblivious Soma Yukihira. He damn better not have…

"Now then!" Urara continued, bringing the attention right back. There had been an awful lot of screaming today, she noted. She hoped it wasn't a bad omen or something. "You know her! You love her! Many of you want to be stepped on by her, you know who you are, the one and only, Fourth Seat and Heiress to this very Academy of troubles, Erina Nakiri!"

At this, even despite her condition, Erina couldn't help but just turn to Urara with the most "WFT?" expression on her face.

"And, her aide is none other than, and this might give you guys a bit of déjà vu, but the description still fits, we have Berta Pedersen, esteemed member of the Nakiri International Research team and one of our Queen's Miss Leonora Nakiri's top subordinates!" Urara continued, holding in her laughter at Erina's former expression, as she then turned towards the opposing team, "And standing against our future queen is none other than Moscow International's Team Leader, the ever deadly Katya Anto-!"

"Do not call me Katya!"

"I'm just kidding!" Urara quickly waved her off, grinning from ear to ear. Ekaterina was sure once they had control of Tootsuki this girl would be the first one kicked right out. "I meant to say, Ekaterina Antonova, and serving as her aide is Evgenii Ozerov, yet another member of that remarkable yet unremarkable family and whatnot!" she added, just as she turned towards the judges, "So… What is our ingredient going to be?!"

The screen flickered quickly, and as the four competitors all looked up, it came to a halt and gave them all its response:

Hedgehog

"…eh?" Erina, Ekaterina and Urara all muttered in unison.

The judges all looked on, with Anne giving the girls a pitiful look, Charme turning to Histoire, who in turn just shrugged, while Courage motioned at Decora if she had any clue what to do in this scenario, to which her friend and fellow judge could only muster a, "No clue," in response.

"They are aware of what a palate-cleansing salad is supposed to be, right?" Akira couldn't quite say without a scoff at the end.

"…Sometimes I think we really do deserve to get shut down," Alice said with a sarcastic laugh, knowing Tootsuki was just as responsible for this outlandish and ill-fitting themes as the WGO was.

"The ideal ingredient would have been anything but a protein, but of course, our luck is so rotten at this point that we should begin preparing for the worst from the get go," Isshiki noted, he himself pondering how a salad whose purpose was to have a smooth and delicate flavor could ever be made with hedgehog meat in it.

"Hedgehog, huh?" Soma read, before his eyes fell on his girl. She really looked like she was struggling to just be there, and it irked him in ways he couldn't even properly explain. And, because of these stupid rules, he couldn't just barge in and be by her side, like she had done with his match against Eizan. Instead, thanks to Azami and Mana and the whole lot of them, he had to stand back and watch her force herself more and more. And if she didn't break, he would, or quite possibly break someone before this was all said and done.

'Hedgehog meat on a salad… The WGO really does think itself hilarious,' Ekaterina thought to herself with a very unamused look on her face. She then turned her sights on Erina, who was also laser-focused on the ingredient selected. 'I can see the wheels in your head turning Erina Nakiri. I wonder, what is the answer the God's Tongue provides under these circumstances?'

'I can't do this! I can't do this!' the wide eyes Erina who was currently sweating bullets repeated over and over in her head. 'Just the thought of toughing hedgehog meat is… ah, I can already imagine the taste! Gross! Disgusting! Repugnant! Like a monkey attempting to play Mozart on a broken piano and lamenting the fact that he does not know how to use a phone in order to call up a repairman to fix it!'

'Milady Erina is frozen solid,' Berta noticed, her worried eyes on the heiress.

'No…! Erina, damn it, get a hold of yourself!' Erina screamed at herself. 'And, for the love of everything you hold dear, do not throw up on this arena! For God's sake, leave some dignity to your name! Do not… Ack! I'm going to faint am I not…?!' she lamented, before she forced herself to outright avoid crying out, '…Soma, save me!'

'I can't imagine how she must be feeling, for someone who's talent outright eclipses us all to be this torn up. So I need to step up,' Berta thought as she clenched her fists and took a deep breath. This was not the time for them both to freeze up. 'Come on Berta, move, you gotta go fast!'

Berta then pushed her body to move, stepping to Erina's side and gently taking hold of the elder girl's hand. Said elder girl almost yelped at the touch.

"Sorry, Milady, but…" Berta offered, releasing her hand but still gripping onto her sleeve. "I don't know how bad you're feeling, but," she whispered softly, and it made Erina's eyes soften a bit. "I am here with you. I am well aware I am far from being at any level near you, but please, whatever you cannot do, instruct me, guide me. I will do my very best to try and match your standards."

"…Oh sweetie…" Erina felt a knot on her throat, before she shook her head. Bad idea. She just felt dizzier because of it, but, ignoring that, she forced herself to un-freeze from that spot. "Sorry, you're right. Let's move… And Berta?"

"Y-Yes Milady?"

"Thank you," Erina told her, and it sounded so damn genuine that Berta felt her heart actually stop for a second or two. This was the Erina Nakiri, her outright idol, thanking her so… "Alice is right about you. About you both. You two are utterly amazing, and I am ever so grateful for it. For you. So… please, help me."

"O-Of course!" Berta outright yelled, before she caught herself, and blushing, corrected, "I-I mean, yes, of course, whatever you need."

Despite how miserable she felt, Erina couldn't help but find the younger girl adorable, and it did help improve her mood, and with it, she hoped, her condition. So the two girls moved to their side of the arena, all the while Ekaterina had long ago begun her prep work. Evgenii had taken every ingredient his leader needed for her match and thoroughly washed all of it, which allowed Ekaterina to focus solely on just the cuts and the cooking. Once he was done with his part there, he stood to the side, giving the Russian princess ample room to work her magic, and work it she did.

Taking the washed hedgehog whole, Ekaterina brandished her razor sharp cutting knife and with a speed and precision that matched Isshiki's own, cut the animal up in half, so fast it seemed that it took moments for the meat to even register it had been cut. Such a show of force, once thought to be exclusive to Tootsuki, now aimed right at them. Still, Ekaterina, while boastful, wasn't suicidal. She knew her opponent was the God's Tongue. 'I cannot get careless here,' she noted, as she raised her eyes, in order to see her opponent working in her own craft. 'Show me what you can do Erina Na-eh?'

Said Erina Na-eh? was standing about ten feet from the kitchen, a hand over her mouth for some reason, as she signaled to the poor Berta what to do and what to take from what. It was the absolute worst looking game of charades imaginable, and it had Berta running back and forth from the kitchen counter to Erina for some guidance and instructions, then right back to the kitchen, as fast as she could possibly muster.

"What the hell are you doing Erina Nakiri?!" Ekaterina cried out, her fists clenched, holding the saucepan and using it to point accusingly at the heiress. "Is this meant to be some form of mockery?!"

Erina shook her head, still as far away as she could be while still technically being "in the ring", all the while she tried and fail to get words out. Ekaterina felt a vein pop.

"What on Earth is that stupid sister of yours doing?" Dove just blurted out, feeling a twitch in her eye. She was acutely aware that Erina wasn't as gifted as everyone made her out to be, their little "game" during that accursed family dinner had made that vividly clear, but this was even beyond that.

"I…" Asahi tried, but he honestly had no idea. 'Is she mimicking me? What I did to that Third Year by using the little girl to cook for me? I mean, that's a super fun way to insult someone's ego, I'll admit, but to try and pull that stunt on these Challengers, a Team Leader no less, even I wouldn't be able to make that little stunt work in my favor. What are you doing?'

Berta, running all over creating, took the best cuts of the hedgehog meat she had prepared and ran right back to where Erina stood. She reached the heiress almost out of breath by this point, and it really made her shiver at the thought that all she was doing was the prep work. She had yet to actually cook anything. This… this wasn't good.

"M-Milady," the poor girl on the verge of collapse spoke up. "Please tell me if any of these cuts suffice. And-And what I should focus on next…"

"…O-Okay, next is-ah, Berta, just please pull the meat away from-hmph!" Erina had to cover her mouth again, as the sensation of throwing up hit her the hardest yet, and she had to outright turn away and force her thought on anything but the dishes being prepared.

"Ah! Sorry!" Berta quickly cried out, as she ran back, putting the meat on the counter, then ran right back to a still struggling Erina. "…I-ha… ah… W-What's… next…?"

"Just…" Erina tried, and it hurt to see Berta so worn out on a match where she should be the assist, not do all the work like this. Still, what else could they do? "U-Use as little meat as possible, the thinner the cut the better. Hedgehog meat is usually compared to the taste of chicken or tuna, but that's not all that precise. However, we'll work with what we can. We… You can make an Arugula Citrus Salad. The citrus vinaigrette can help mask the flavor of the meat and makes for a perfect palate cleanser. As for the meat, keep it simple, just grill it. A little salt and pepper, nothing else, and cut it into bites. Focus more on getting the best oranges and-ack!" she squealed, as she now got a flashback of the taste of oranges and it felt horrible.

Sensing her discomfort, Berta just nodded. "D-Don't worry Milady, I-I got it!" she declared, turning around. "I can make that just fine! So rest assured!" she told Erina, before she darted back to the kitchen, and begun to work. She was utterly busy doing everything, picking the ingredients, washing them, prepping them, and beginning to prepare the would-be salad, all the while throwing the thinnest cuts of hedgehog she could into the grill, lightly seasoned as instructed, and proceeded to place a heavy press on them so they would grill evenly.

Erina could only look on, holding herself as best she could, equal parts impressed at Berta's ability and disgusted at herself for putting the younger girl under such stress.

"…Are you okay?" Urara asked her, and Erina knew she had to look awful, as the ever-perky hostess had spoken to her with the microphone aimed away, a look of genuine concern in her face. Erina frowned. At one point in her life, she did not like this girl at all, and would have just scoffed at any and all concerned aimed her way. But…

"…I look that bad, huh?" she just replied in earned, with a small laugh.

"You look like shit," Urara said, "And you kinda also look very… erm, bitchy by making your aide do all your work. Everyone looks baffled, to say the least. And I would have not put this past you, had I not gotten to know you back at that cruise. You take cooking seriously… So…"

"I'm doing what I can," Erina replied. "At this point, rumors about me can't possibly get worse, so who cares? Right now, what matters is we win. And my tongue's acting up, so I can't… well, cook."

"…Oh…"

"Yeah," Erina lamented, her eyes on the struggling Berta, and everything she was doing to try and get the dish done.

Soe and Leonora both looked on, glancing down at the sight before them, before Leonora turned to her husband, the worry evident in her eyes. "Everyone in social media, and the reporters announcing this match worldwide are conflicted over what her actions mean… but I know that girl," she told him firmly. "Soe, she isn't well. This is too much. Way too stressful for a student, we have to stop this match. Look at her, she's utterly pale!"

"I know, I know," Soe noted, eyes narrowed, fist on the glass, almost cracking it once again. He knew those symptoms. He knew that body language. "Don't tell me that it's…"

"The God's Tongue," Mana concluded, taking a few steps and reaching the glass herself, her eyes down at her daughter. She outright ignored her brother's look of frustration or his wife's look of sheer fury at her. "…It will eventually bare its fangs on the person born with it. All this mess, the worldwide attention, and the very Intercontinental Shokugeki, it just caused her symptoms to develop far quicker that it did on me…"

"Which would give credence to my proposal, would it not?"

The three adults tensed, each turning to the approaching Azami, who was also looking down at the arena. Down at his struggling daughter.

"You all were so quick to throw me under the bus. Call my approach abuse, yet here you three are, doing nothing while she has to suffer down there under God knows what stress. My True Gourmet teachings can still save her. Soe, Mana… Call this thing off. Forfeit. I can still offer you a portion of Tootsuki's new administrative powers. And I can assure you both Erina and Alice will be well taken care of."

"You are aware you are mostly to blame for her condition, right?" Mana shot back, arms crossed, eyes narrowed.

"Me?" Azami replied, almost as if offended. "At least I have attempted to find a solution to her problem. What would you have her do? Abandon her family and resort to living off overmedicating herself and injections?"

"Don't you dare!"

"You know it's true!" Azami shot back. "That's all you managed to come up with in all this time you've had with this condition. An addiction to anxiety medication and a phobia of the very culinary arts that made you famous in the first place."

"That's-!"

"Back off Nakamura," Soe warned, stepping forwards, his glare on Azami, who just narrowed his eyes further. "Do not belittle my sister like that. Not after everything you've done."

"Soe, with all due respect," Azami just casually replied, "Do not intervene on matters that pertain to my family."

"Oh fuck off," Leonora was quick and to the point, and even Azami had to turn to her with a curious look. There had been a lot of pent up venom behind those words evidently.

"…Should we stop the match?" Mana asked, turning to Soe, and he couldn't help but tense up. After all this time, everything that had happened, in just this instance, there was the ever proud and, in her eyes, never wrong, Mana Nakiri, outright without any idea of how to handle this. It was clear, that beneath all the façade, his little sister was still there, and she was scared.

"If… If it's for her safety, I suppose we should," Soe noted, with a heavy heart, as his eyes shifted to Azami, who had the closest thing to a smile present. "…Call it off."

"You will soon realize this was the only correct path to take," Azami told him, before he turned, signaling to Shawn to hand him a microphone. As Soe and Mana both stared blankly at the arena, both lost in thought, and as Leonora had to visibly struggle not to slap the shit out of everyone present, Azami was quick to announce to the world, "Your attention please," he called out, and everyone, from the participants, to the audience, to the judges, all paused and turned to the man clad in black. "It seems quite clear that all this situation that has spiraled out of control, born of both exaggerations and lies, has taken a toll on my daughter's health."

Everyone just looked on, shocked, but none more so than Erina herself, '…Father?'

"So, after speaking it with Tootsuki's Acting Headmaster, and the WGO's former Bookmaster, we have come to an agreement," he announced, and everyone felt a collective chill run down their spines. Soma was outright glaring at the man. Said man could barely contain the smirk on his face. "The very situation that caused a global outcry, is now outright responsible for my daughter's declining health. As such, regardless of what is thought of me or my career, my focus is and always will be on Erina's wellbeing. So, we've decided to conclude this Intercontinental Shokugeki. Moscow International, Tootsuki Academy hereby has conceded the match in your favor."

"Wait?! We did what?!" Urara blasted out, eyes wide, just as the audience all began to cry out against that announcement.

Azami ignored the noise. It didn't matter. He got what he wanted. What he needed. Now he could get Erina back. Get her the treatment and training she needs. Make her, mold her into someone who can conquer the God's Tongue, and not the other way around.

Loren just looked up, utterly surprised by the turn of events, and, admittedly, conflicted. So this was it? It's over?

Nao, on the other hand, was a quivering mess. Megumi, Yuuki and Ryoko all crowded over to her, since she had gone pale, and they tried to speak words of encouragement to her, but she didn't even hear them. She couldn't. 'We lost…?' she thought, as her entire world collapsed. '…I… I'm going back home… no… please, no…'

"What, who decided that?!" Alice cried out, utterly pissed.

"That bastard was looking for the perfect opportunity to spring this little deal out," Akira muttered, his glare evident.

"This is bad," Isshiki noted, his eyes shifting towards Nao, and it pained him to see the state she was in.

"Have we though?" Soma just said, and as his three teammates and the four aides all looked at him, confused, Soma shifted his eyes towards the arena, towards Erina herself. "…I'm not entirely convinced we've thrown the towel just quite yet…"

Erina, sensing his look, turned. Her eyes met Soma's, and for once, his eyes didn't say much. He wasn't telling her anything. Rather, he was waiting for what she would say. Almost as if… if she was okay with this, then he'd be too. That wasn't quite it, she knew, it was far more complex than that, but she understood enough. So, with a heavy sigh, she motioned to Urara, who despite her freaking out at the moment, still handed her microphone to Erina.

"…I am thankful for the concern, father," Erina spoke up, and all eyes, both at the stadium and across the world, fell back on her. Azami looked on, his eyes showing a mix of pity and irritation at her stubbornness, but she met them with just as much ire in hers. "But we do not concede an inch of this Academy to anyone. Not now, not ever. So, I apologize for the interruption, but this match continues."

"Erina, sweetie, you are unwell-"

"Wrong. I've never felt better."

"Erina, please, you clearly are having troubles with-"

"Nonsense, I feel perfectly fine."

"Sweetie… you are quite literally standing at the edge of the arena-"

"I like the view here."

"That doesn't even make-Listen, Erina, my dear-"

"No."

"-you have-Erina, please, don't do this to yourself. What's done is done. It has already been decided," Azami informed, as Erina's glare only grew. "This… This is for your wellbeing. You will thank me one day."

"You are wrong father," she argued. "I know what I need, and quitting is not it. It just happens I was just about to get into the kitchen right now just as you ever-so arrogantly interrupted us. For shame."

"Do you expect any of us to believe that?" Azami shot back, annoyed. When had his daughter become such a bold liar? "What purpose does being so far away from the kitchen until halfway into the match possibly even have?"

"Give Katya a fair handicap."

"That bitch!" Ekaterina could be heard crying out, which Erina outright ignored, her narrowed eyes firmly on her father's.

"…Be that as it may," Azami said. "What's decided cannot be undone. The match is over. This event has concluded."

"On the contrary, it hasn't," Erina shot back, her tone just as fierce. "I-I…" she faltered a bit, as her eyes turned to the side. She glanced at Soma, and his firm stance, ready to take to whatever it was she decided upon. She couldn't help but inwardly smile at this. Her eyes also met Alice, who looked even more pissed off than she was, if that was somehow even possible. But she understood. This was an insult to her as well. And Erina did not take that lightly. Her eyes also caught sight of all her friends. The Elites seated above, both old and current, all worried for her more-so than about themselves. To the Polar Stars and company, from a very ill-looking Nao (which worried her) to a very concerned looking Hisako (because of course). She even looked up towards her brother, and as their eyes met, Asahi had no idea how to even react. The young man had barely even begun to realize that all his plans were moments from collapsing onto themselves and there was not a thing he could do to stop it… but, seeing his little sister look up to him, all he could do was give her a soft smile and nod. Right now, his plans didn't matter. Do what you must, little sister, was more or less what his eyes conveyed. Seeing all this, and so much more, Erina turned her sights back onto Azami, and took a deep breath.

"…You don't have to force the issue Erina," Azami added.

"But I do," she corrected. "Do you not see? How could Tootsuki possibly have surrendered? Under whose authorization could we have possibly given up without finishing the fight?"

"Erina," Azami tried, closing his eyes for a moment. He didn't want to humiliate his daughter in front of all the people. He wasn't the bad guy here. "Your Uncle Soe and your Mother both have-"

"And I do not care!" she roared back. "No disrespect meant for my Uncle, for my Aunt, for my Mother, or even for you, Father, but none of you are the heiress of this Academy! That title falls to me and to me alone! And I will not repeat myself! Tootsuki Academy has not surrendered!"

The silence that followed, as her words echoed throughout the world, was quickly eclipsed by the sheer number of applauses and cheers that outright drowned out Azami's attempts at a response. The man could only clench his teeth in fury at the display, as his daughter was quick to hand the microphone back to Urara and then made her way towards her side of the arena.

"I guess that's that," Soe noted, feeling rightfully called out.

"Always been proud of that girl," Leonora said with outright sparkle in her eyes.

"…Erina, what are you doing?" Mana couldn't help but mutter, since she knew what forcing yourself past your breaking point looked like, and that was it.

Azami said nothing else, just stood by. He knew that trying to force the issue any more would be seen very poorly in the public's eye, so he had to back down. But, his eyes still shifted down to Loren, who caught his message loud and clear.

Crush them.

"You have some nerve Erina Nakiri," a very furious Ekaterina voiced as soon as Erina got into the ring with her.

"Naturally," Erina replied, her tone as jovial as she could fake it. 'I am winging it at this point,' she admitted inwardly, 'but, let's count our blessing here. That adrenaline rush might just last me enough to try and complete this dish. Berta already did a lot of the work, so, after all that boasting… just stick the landing!'

"And you heard it folks!" Urara declared, not even bothering to wait for a proper confirmation. As far as she was concerned, Erina had the final word, so the match continued. "Sorry for that interruption. The clock was stopped, so contestants, get ready for the final lap!"

Erina and Ekaterina both clenched their fists in unison at those words, then proceeded to move to cook. They each took hold of their chopped vegetables and their prized meat, before taking hold of what would be their main ingredient to combat or compliment the hedgehog meat, oranges for Erina, and potatoes for Ekaterina.

As both blonde ice-queens got to work, Berta could finally throw herself to the ground, gasping for air. This had been a rollercoaster of a day, and it was only reaching its halfway point. But, as should be expected by any Tootsuki student at this point, it got worse.

"Hey, polka-dots," Evgenii called out, and Berta had to look up, curiously, before she realized he was speaking to her. It took her a little longer to understand what he meant, and once she did, her face flushed and she quickly crossed her legs and pushed her skirt down, blushing madly. "That was quite an insulting display against our lady," the boy likewise seated on the floor opposite Berta spoke up, his eyes making it clear he was outright undressing her with his eyes. She did not at all approve of that. "It did get you all hot and bothered, so that's a plus."

"…Are you for real?" Berta said, glaring. "Keep your eyes to yourself you creep."

"Don't be mean," Evgenii said with a laugh. "If you've got it, flaunt it. And you definitely got it. So, what do you say? Once this place closes down, want to head over to Moscow International? We are all very against keeping any of you lesser Tootsuki alumni around, but for you, well, I could give you a proper recommendation."

"Screw you!" Berta just cried out, before she got up, very careful of how her skirt moved, and walked right back towards where Erina was trying her best to cook. The Nakiri princess, despite being a nervous wreck at the moment, managed to catch sight of her aide, and it bothered her.

"What's wrong?" Erina voiced, despite the fact that her adrenaline boost was wearing off and she was getting sick again. But, Berta, aside from looking worn out, looked bothered. Almost teary eyes. "Sweetie, relax, we can do this."

"…Ah, yes, certainly," Berta replied, wiping her face with her sleeve, "Ignore me. I won't get in your way."

"Wait," Erina spoke up, moving next to the girl. "What happened?"

"It's nothing Milady."

"Berta," Erina repeated, "What happened?"

"…Just," Berta muttered, wanting to fool herself into it not being a big deal, but once she did tell Erina a very quick version of what had bothered her, the look the Tootsuki princess gave made it clear she also thought heavily against it.

"Ekaterina!" Erina called out, outright causing the Russian princess to jump, turning to her with a look of both anger and confusion. The judges all stared, as if this was any attempt by Erina to distract her opponent, she'd have to be called out on, culinary royalty or otherwise, but it was far from that. "Keep that dog of yours on a leash!" Erina ordered, using her mixing spoon to signal to Evgenii, as he walked towards Ekaterina, pretending to be just as confused as the rest. "He does not get to disrespect Berta, or anyone here, like that!"

"Disrespect?" Ekaterina repeated, head tilted, before she turned to her aide, "The hell did you do?"

"I did nothing," he lied, as he shifted his eyes towards Berta, which made her inwardly flinch. "We were just chatting, and when I told her how it had been disrespectful how this Academy had interrupted this match give their heiress more time, she stormed off."

"That's not what happened you creep!" Berta called out.

"Berta is not one to lie," Erina firmly told Ekaterina, and the latter just stared for a moment. "Harassing a girl is something I will not permit."

Ekaterina looked on, her eyes on Erina for a moment, then on Berta briefly, before she just sighed. "…Evgenii, get out of the arena. I will conclude this match by myself. We shall talk later."

"What?!" he cried out, shocked. He had just been messing around. "Milady, I assure you-"

"Are you speaking back to me?"

Evgenii just froze. Ekaterina had not even raised her tone. But he knew, he knew she was pissed. So, without saying another word, he just walked off. His job was done regardless.

"…Berta, you may fall back as well," Erina told the girl, who turned to her with confusion and worry. "Don't give me that look, I am in no way punishing you," Erina added with as best a smile as she could muster. "I just want to be fair. Seems Ekaterina can be righteous, so we will answer in kind. Relax, I can conclude this, you've done enough, thank you."

"O-Of course," Berta just said, and did as she was told, falling back and regrouping with her fellow aides. They all quickly went to her, her sister specially, asking what the hell had happened, to which she gave the full version of events to. At this, she had to hold Cilla back from going over to the other side and pummeling Evgenii, while Mitsuru was quick to tell her to just denounce it to the judges. Berta decided against it, since they were in thin ice as was, and Ekaterina had taken him out anyways. Loren said nothing, but it still irked him despite himself. Did he really need to help that team win?

Raymond, the odd man out, looked as if he had trouble even following what had happened, but he had turned to Evgenii, a curious look on his face.

"You did not have to call off your own aide Erina Nakiri," Ekaterina told Erina.

"Just a courtesy," Erina replied.

With the clock ticking away, both princesses concluded their dishes, and once Urara called for the match's conclusion, both girls served the five plates upon the judges table, both looking exhausted, but Erina seemed on the verge of collapsing.

"Okay, after so much… confusion, we finally reached the end of this match," Anne noted, as she and the other judges all took in the sight of the dishes before them.

Ekaterina had offered them an Authentic Hedgehog Olivye Salad.

Erina had offered instead an Arugula Citrus Salad ~ Strange Variation.

Then the tasting began, first Ekaterina's dish, and as each judge took a bite of the ill-themed salad that was supposed to cleanse their palate for the main entrée to come, they couldn't help but outright moan at the taste. How on Earth had this girl managed this?!

"~Oh, this is outright org-I mean, heavenly!" Courage said with a very bright blush, lost in the euphoria of the taste.

"Such light flavors, so delicate, like the most gentle of touches on the most delicate of places!" Charme swooned, lost in the flavors as well.

"Oh my, it's so good, and refreshing even, I can't even make out the meat in it… how did she…?" Anne noted, almost lost to the taste, as she turned to Ekaterina.

"It's all in the cooking of the meat ma'am," Ekaterina replied with a knowing smirk. "I soaked the potatoes alongside it, so they would absorb the flavor evenly, and only set into the salad that which was cooked to the utmost taste. By allowing such a simple taste to linger, rather than just cleansing your palates, it in turn, will most likely…"

"Leave us begging for more!" Histoire noted with glee. This was honestly insanely impressive.

"The perfect response for the third dish in a five-course meal," Decora then said, her smirk matching Ekaterina's own. "My, I have to admit, were this the actual BLUE, you just might have a shot…"

"I-I… thank you very much!" a very proud, and slightly caught off-guard Ekaterina replied with a smile and a bow.

"N-Now then, for Erina's dish," a still struggling Anne declared, and soon enough, all five judges took a bite out of Erina's own salad. Erina was not even blinking at this point, and as she, Berta, and the rest of their group all looked on, trying to find that one spark in their eyes that always came when someone ate a dish from the Erina Nakiri.

But it never came.

In fact, Anne's eyes just frowned, almost as if at the plate itself. She was soon joined by the rest of her colleagues. All five of them just stared, before Anne turned to the girl in question, who despite her best efforts, was starting to show more and more how uncomfortable she felt even being there.

'You really are unwell Erina,' Anne noted grimly, 'This… This shouldn't happen. We should force children past their breaking point like this… I know I must judge this fairly, but… it feels so wrong.'

"Uh… judges?" Urara asked, and everyone was just staring, wondering, at the edge of their seats.

Hisako could feel something was way, way off.

Nao, at least now calmed down, or rather, calmer, also felt it strange that their reaction had been so… plain.

The judges said nothing else, instead, all five gave out their scores. The first one scores was Ekaterina, and upon her score being plastered on the screen, a thunderous applause from her teammates erupted, and they had every right to do so.

Ekaterina: 18/18/18/18/18

"Oh shit," Urara said, before she caught herself, "I mean, like, damn. With the highest score seen so far, Ekaterina Antonova earns herself eighteen points across the board, for a mind-numbing total of ninety points!"

"That's our Katya!" Sasha cried out, as the entire team continued their cheering. Ekaterina looked on, almost lightheaded, as her eyes scanned upwards, just briefly, and her eyes met with Camille's, who despite all the flirting and the teases from Ekaterina to her, for once, the sheer look of pride and happiness in Camille's eyes made the Russian princess blush and avert her eyes.

But then, the score changed, reflecting Erina's score, and the cheers started as soon as everyone read her name… only to die just as quickly as soon as they saw the score.

"…That…" Alice said, eyes wide.

"…This can't possibly…" Akira muttered.

"…How could…?" Isshiki stated.

"…Erina," Soma said with clear worry, as he turned to the girl in question, who was looking at the screen as if it was the very end of the world itself. And in a way, it might as well be…

Erina: 10/11/11/10/11

"I-Is that score accurate?" Urara asked, her eyes on the judges. Anne nodded solemnly. "…And with that," Urara forced herself to announce. How? How could this be happening? "Erina Nakiri ends up with a score of just fifty-three points, almost half of what her opponent got."

Silence followed, as everyone realized that Azami Nakamura might have been right after all.

With Erina's 53 points vs. Ekaterina's 90 points, the small lead they had had outright turned into nothingness. Worse still, they were now on the losing end of that lead, as once the screen reflected their current point total, Tootsuki realized just how screwed they were. Current point tally sat at:

Tootsuki Academy's Total: 204 points.

Moscow International's Total: 230 points.

"Oh my God," Urara just said, still struggling. "What had been a small, but clear lead in Tootsuki's favor has turned around in one fell swoop. Now, Moscow International finds itself with a twenty-six point lead over Tootsuki Academy… What are we going to do with just two matches remaining?!"

Erina, however, was just frozen on the spot.

She had tried. She had mustered enough strength in herself to move, to cook. She had been fully prepared to be unable to match Ekaterina. She had prepared her ego for that blow… But this? How had she fallen that low? It was… over, wasn't it? Her father had been right… Her father had been right all along-

Her thoughts were quickly interrupted the moment she felt someone grab her by the collar of her uniform, pulling her forwards, causing the princess to stare out in shock. Everyone else reacted the same way, as no one had ever seen anyone treat such a fearsome girl in such a manner. But Ekaterina did not care.

"What the hell was that Erina Nakiri?!" she screamed in Erina's face. "All that talk! All that speech about the power and authority you wield! And this-this is what you muster?! Is this an insult to me and my team?! Your team still has six Elite students, does it not?! If you were so ill why did you not switch with the remaining one?! Why did you drag yourself out here for such a mediocre performance?! Or is this just more of your attempts to look like a little victim in front of the whole world?!"

"I would never want that!" Erina cried out, clenching her teeth in anger. "You haven't the slightest idea what it is to be me! What it is what we are going through!" she told the Russian, before she took hold of Ekaterina's wrist, firmly. "Now let me go," she warned, and despite her intense glare, Ekaterina just pushed Erina away, and walked off.

Erina stared, fixing her uniform, and trying her best not to cry.

The judges, Anne in particular, had been ready to call them out, but it seemed the girls managed to deescalate the situation themselves. Still, it was clear emotions were running high. And likewise, by the look of things, it was clear that the Intercontinental Shokugeki was fated to end today after all.

By the time the commotion had subsided, Soma had already rushed over, stepping towards Erina, and he had every intention on calling Ekaterina out, consequences be damned, but Erina instinctively threw herself into his arms. He held onto her tightly, surprised, but understanding. She pressed her face into the nape of his neck, and he was sure she was crying softly, and just as he had imagined, it really did break him inside.

"I messed up," she said.

"No you didn't," he argued.

"You can't deny reality Soma," she added, slowly shifting her view to match his. Then she let out a little, sad laugh. "Who am I kidding? It's you. You'll still try to if you think you can manage."

"Damn right," he admitted. "Because, in my eyes, you stopped Azami from ending this event on the spot. That gives us a fighting chance still. And just like I promised, I got you, so let's get you back to the sidelines and away from all this food. We… we'll make it someway."

"…Hmm," was all she could muster. Erina still followed along as Soma led her towards the others, were Alice was quick to take her into a tight hug and Isshiki was quick to offer her so words of solace. Erina just nodded at them, knowing their intentions, knowing she would do the same in their shoes, but that didn't change the fact that she had still screwed up big time.

"H-Hey now, we're still in this, right?!" Urara tried her best to sound encouraging. It came out as super nervous instead. "…Where's that undefeatable Tootsuki spirit at, eh?! Let's show them we may be down but not out! Come on! Next round; who's up?!"

The screen began to flicker once more, and within time, it gave everyone their answer. Normally such a result would be exciting, but everyone knew, that even he could not pull out a victory from where none existed.

He, on the other hand, begged to differ.

Akira Hayama (w/ Raymond Rivera) vs. Grigory Kholod (w/ Cyzarine Ozerova)

"…Akira, I'm…" Erina tried, turning to the Indian chef, who simply smiled.

"Do not apologize to me," Akira simply told her. "I have nothing but the utmost respect for you. And I cannot begin to imagine how it must feel to have all this pressure squarely on your shoulders. I don't think I, or none of us really, would be able to shoulder it all as you have. But rest assured, we have not fallen yet," he declared, firmly, before he turned his eyes to the aides, "Raymond, come, we're up."

"Yes sir!" Raymond replied, before he turned to his own little group, giving the lot a firm nod, before he gave pause on a very unamused Loren. Before the blonde boy with the black tips could complain, he issued his warning. "Watch me," he told Loren. "I will show you what your rival is truly capable of, and why I will be besting you at this year's Autumn Elections! You hear me Frechette?!"

"…Sure, whatever floats your boat," Loren just said, already decided that it was best to play along until his match, which given the order to players involved, would be the next and last. 'How fitting…'

Akira and Raymond both stepped into the arena, where they were joined by the gigantic man that was Grigory Kholod, and by his hilariously short-in-comparison aide Cyzarine Ozerova. Grigory was easily the tallest competitor by far, eclipsing even the likes of Alex or Hakeem, and despite himself, Akira couldn't help but thank the heavens this was a Shokugeki and not a fist fight.

"Representing Tootsuki Academy we have last year's Autumn Election Winner," Urara began, making a tremendous effort in sounding, well, excited. "The main star of the Shiomi Seminar, our Fifth Seat who took Tootsuki by storm when he openly challenger our very Queen, Akira Hayama! And, as his aide, an upstart who also belongs to the Shiomi Seminar, and the leading First Year in what amounts to Shokugeki victories, Raymond Rivera!"

Akira did his best to ignore the fact that while there were cheers and claps to be heard, it was evident the entire mood had died with Erina's massive loss. No matter how much Urara boasted about them, it didn't change the fact that this was an uphill battle they all very much doubted he could do much against.

"…Show some support you hypocrites!" Urara blasted, totally irked, directed at the crowds, who all turned to look at her, surprised at her sudden lash out. "You all think it's so easy to be down here and giving it all in front of millions?! The Elite Ten are giving everything they've got, while you lot just sit there and watch! So show the some support, damn it!"

The claps and cheers slowly increased, almost forcefully so, but it still made Akira laugh a bit. Urara really had changed a lot. Then again, so had he. As he turned, his eyes on all the crowd surrounding him, his eyes caught sight of Megumi, looking as a Megumi does, worried, concerned, and wishing against all odds that she could in some way help.

He offered the lovely girl the fondest of smiles he could.

She returned it tenfold.

Akira then closed his eyes. That should suffice. He knew what to fight for. So, borrowing from Soma and Kurokiba's playbook, he decided to dedicate this next batch to her, and her alone. After all, this could realistically be the very last dish he got to cook within Tootsuki Academy, so what better swan song was there?

"Now then, judges!" Urara announced, turning to the judges' table. "This next one is the big one. The main entrée itself. So what is the ingredient?!"

With a nod, the screen was made to flicker again, and within a few seconds, it gave them their answer:

Soy Sauce

"Oh…?" Urara noted. "That's a versatile, convenient ingredient… for once."

Akira and Grigory both read the ingredient, and both went on the move. Akira quickly reached into his storage container, taking out a bottle of Soy Sauce, and setting it to the side. He knew he would need to make a main entrée with that in it, but he had yet to think up of something… No, that wasn't true. He knew what he wanted to make. He just didn't quite know how to pull it off.

"Akira?" Raymond asked, standing at the ready. "…What do you need me to do?"

"…That's a very good question," Akira noted, narrowing his eyes. He stared down at all the ingredients present. As always, Tootsuki was well equipped with everything they would realistically need, and if not, they could always be escorted to the storage rooms in the back and bring in some extra stuff. But, it was hard to pick ingredients out when you had doubt how to properly make your dish into a reality. Still, no sense in just freezing on the spot and doing nothing. "…I am unclear as to how we are going to manage this," Akira admitted, his eyes shifting towards his aide. "But, we'll start by trial and error. This is going to sound insane, but let's try and get out, wash and prepped, pretty much one of everything available."

"O-One of everything?!" Raymond couldn't help but blurt out, before he caught himself, shaking his head, "I mean, sure! Let's!"

"I am aware it is an asinine suggestion," Akira noted, before he too began to take everything he could out, brandishing his knife and beginning to work. "But nothing ventured, nothing gained; so let's put everything on the table, literally."

As Akira and Raymond seemed to be counting inventory as opposed to prepping for their dish, given how much of a mess of things they seemed to be making, everyone's attention shifted towards their opponents. Little Cyzarine just stared, as the ever silent Grigory took out a few necessary ingredients and got to work. She awaited instructions, and when none were given, she felt a vein pop.

"Speak to me!" she cried out. "How am I supposed to help you if you don't tell me a thing?!"

"…" Grigory said nothing. Still, he turned, handing her a batch of over a dozen potatoes, before he turned back and returned to his stuff. She just blinked.

"I am going to assume you want these peeled and washed," Cyzarine deduced, frowning, before she added under her breath, "…I swear if you wanted me to throw these away I will scream."

The giant young man took hold of what would become his main meat: venison. He proceeded to branding a far smaller knife than anyone would have expected from the man, just as small for him as Aisha's was too big for the kid, but just as strange as the sight was, his skill with it was anything but utterly amazing. He got up close and personal with his meat, making tender cuts and precise incisions, with such cautiousness that he seemed like another person entirely. Grigory then proceeded to toss the meat into a marinade of ingredients with high acidity levels, mostly vinegar and dry wine.

Setting that aside for a moment, he turned to the vegetables, and taking hold of a set of bell peppers, onions, mushrooms and tomatoes, he carved them all up expertly before he placed them to the side, getting the at the right size so they could compliment the high amount of fat that would come from his meat of choice once he threw everything to grill. But, of course, he had to modify his recipe, because of course, the ingredient of the match had been a… bothersome one.

So he took hold of the lightest soy sauce available, and placed it at his side. It mattered not. In order to follow Ekaterina's lead, he would do whatever necessary. She had secured their victory, all he had to do was hold onto it.

Cyzarine then approached him again, with the potatoes peeled and ready. "Anything else?" she asked, annoyed.

"…Cubes," he instructed, and she rolled her eyes.

"Sure, at least I got a single word this time," Cyzarine noted, as she took the potatoes back and begun to cut them up into the ideal pieces. She already knew what he was going to make, seeing everything else he had set, so she didn't really need any further instructions. The lack of communication still annoyed her though.

"I can sort-of see what that big guy is making," Alice noted, her head tilted to the side, "But I can't make heads or tails of what Akira is doing?"

"He really is throwing everything but the kitchen sink at this dish it seems," Isshiki noted with a laugh. Even he had trouble following what it was the Autumn Election Champion was thinking.

"…He's not the type to get agitated easily," Erina added, as she turned her eyes from Akira and to Soma. "Any ideas what he could be trying to achieve?"

"Not really," Soma replied in earnest. "But, yeah, he hasn't given up. I don't think he's trying to figure out what to cook, but rather, how…"

As the four looked on, Akira had pretty much emptied out his storage case, and he was currently frowning at the massive selection before him. 'This is the cooking equivalent of turning on a streaming service, having tons to watch, and not being able to pick a single thing to watch. I mustn't lose a single unnecessary second. Think, you know what you want, just find a way to make it real. Just, what would be better suited for…?'

"Akira, I finished with these," Raymond announced, as he set a sample of proteins to the side, which caught Akira's eyes. Of course, those would work.

"Perfect," Akira noted with a smile. "You've hit at the first piece of this puzzle Raymond. We're starting with that… which gives me another idea. Gather the fruit, I'll need equal parts fruit slices and fruit juice."

"From all of them?" Raymond asked, dreading the response. There were… quite a lot of fruit here.

"…Specifically that one," Akira noted, signaling to a certain round fruit. Raymond's eyes widened, and he realized what Akira intended. With a nod, the boy began to work. As did Akira. He took hold of his meat of choice, and with his knife, began to make them take shape. He cut it all in an utmost perfect manner. He then filled a pan with oil and brought it to a boil. Tossing the meat into it until it was golden, he then tossed in a bit of garlic and ginger, letting it all mix in, and as soon as he heard the ingredients "scream", he emptied half a bottle of soy sauce into an empty wok, setting it ablaze, and draining meat and veggies of the oil and tossing them into the wok. With both hands, he took hold of the larger than life pan, and began to toss and turn the ingredients over and over, making sure every side was made properly. And just as he was close to done, "Raymond!"

"Right here!" his aide replied, bringing him the fruit slices and fruit juice, which the Indian Chef quickly took hold of, and proceeded to throw into the wok, and as it cooked to the desired level, he turned his eyes to the side.

'One last step,' Akira thought, his eyes narrowed, 'To think I've been forced to this extent…'

As Urara and the Bookmen all watched, Grigory took his benison from the grill, and with it and the potatoes and all the other vegetables, proceeded to skewer it all into five sets of Shashlik, before he set them all on the plates Cyzarine had prepared, and proceeded to place them to the judges.

"And… he's done!" Urara announced, as the judges all looked on at the simplistic, yet steaming dish before them. Urara couldn't help but tense when she turned back to Akira, who looked to be in the midst of his cooking still, and the clock was ticking.

"This is…?" Charme asked, his eyes on the dish before them.

"Shashlik, is it not?" Courage asked, her eyes on the big, buff dude.

He nodded. Grigory had served them Grigory's Grigorious Shashlik (Trademark Pending).

Everyone just stared, more so at the stupidity of the name than anything else, but the smell was heavenly despite it all. Cyzarine, utterly red in the face since she was the one forced to offer the judges the dish's name, did her best to just stand to the side and avoid eye contact with anyone. Oh, how she wanted this day to be over.

"Well, let's dig in," Anne noted, and within moments, the judges were chowing down, taking hold of the skewer and biting down at the perfectly cut and cooked cubes of venison and veggies. "~Oh," Anne gasped, sensing a familiar taste deep within. "~Oh," she repeated, just as all the other judges felt it too. "This in itself is a traditional Russian dish, but I can feel it, the soy sauce was outright injected into the venison, almost as if it were its very blood. What an utter fascinating combination of cultures in one plate, erm, stick."

"Such a delicate touch," Decora noted, her eyes on Grigory. "For such a big man, this is a surprising detail that would be so easy to mess up. I'm impressed by a man who is so good with his big, strong hands."

Grigory looked on.

Then he blushed.

Cyzarine wanted to sink into the floor.

"So… judges, the score…?" Urara expressed, outright dreading even asking at this point. The judges all paused for a moment, before they lifted their hands and gave out Grigory's score. The gentle giant looked on, and it was good… enough.

Grigory: 15/16/15/16/15

"With a total of, damn it all, seventy-seven points, Grigory has gotten his score!" Urara announced, much to the conflicted reactions from the crowd. On one hand, it was thankfully lower than Ekaterina, but that was to be expected, as, one, she was the Team Leader and by default their very best, and on the other hand Soy Sauce usually did not mix well with main Russian dishes, so it was very, very bad news that he had scored as high as he did despite all that. At seventy-seven, he still got a better overall score than either Isshiki or Alice did, which made one thing crystal clear…

…Tootsuki was screwed.

"…Well, it was a good run folks, let's just-" Urara continued, but just as she spoke she was smacked by a fragrance of spices that knocked her silly. She turned, mouth-watering, and instantly recognized that sensation.

"Apologies for the delay," Akira announced, as both he and Raymond stood in front of the judges, with the dishes on hand. "Took us a while to get it just right."

"And Akira has just barely made it in time to the judges!" Urara announced, still trying to decipher what he had made. "Does this mean we still got a shot?!"

"Naturally," Akira replied, surprising her. "After all, is that not what Tootsuki Academy is all about? Overcoming adversity and being the best in our fields. Not a single one of us would be here still if we wouldn't live and breathe those very ideals," he added, before he turned back towards the judges, just as Anne gave him a curious look.

"Well said," she noted, "But… in order for us to begin the tasting, you should set your dishes on our table. Wouldn't want points deducted because it got a bit cold, you know?"

"This is a risk I am willing to take," Akira replied, surprising her. He still set a dish on the table, but just one. And he pushed it forwards, much to the confusion of everyone present. "…Because I want to hear your judgment before anyone else's, if it's not too much to ask, ma'am."

Decora's expression was something else.

To the sides, watching everything unfold, Gin turned to Jun, confusion visible in his expression. "What is the boy doing?"

"Not sure," Jun said, "But, I know him. He's latched onto something. He's not one to take needless risks."

The other judges, and the crowd at large, all stared, wondering what was going on. Decora was frozen on the spot, and she could outright feel Azami peering down at her, glaring daggers onto her back. 'D-Did I make it too obvious at any point?!' she cried inwardly, "I thought I was careful! Damn it, I am a professional, I can't allow some brat to come in and demand I bend over to what he wants me to-'

"Well?" Akira voiced, and his voice made her flinch. But worse still, the smell of his dish was so, so alluring. She could see Courage drooling next to her, itching to get a plate of her own. Decora still glared, her eyes on the boy's, but he's eyes were sharper. He had clearly seen through her, and she had no idea how. "Take a bite, ma'am. We both know you are dying to bite down nice and hard."

She cursed inwardly, blushing at his wording, but deciding to just play along and take a bite out of his dish. This proved to be a mistake. The moment she bit down, she felt herself stripped of all her clothing and her senses, taking this young man's meat into her mouth whole, savoring and liking it from the base to the tip, before the inner juices exploded into her throat, and despite herself, she swallowed it down to the very last drop.

"~Oh-okay!" Decora moaned loudly, as she had to hold herself with her chair, her grip hard, just to keep herself steady. It had been quite a mix of flavors, but the spice behind it had been something else. "…Damn, I-I mean, it… it-it was…"

"Hmm," Akira noted, pleased, "Raymond, if you please, let's not keep the other judges waiting."

With those words spoken, the other four judges finally got their plates, and given Decora's reaction, they all quickly took a bite. It was intoxicating, honestly, flavorful to a fault and spiced up almost like a sci-fi drug.

"~It's so good!" Anne moaned.

"~I want more!" Histoire moaned.

"~This is even better than se-I mean-a full body massage!" Courage moaned.

"~-" Charme moaned, but was once more interrupted.

"I take it you realize the strategy Raymond and I have employed behind this dish, do you not my esteemed judges?" Akira asked, the confidence in his voice staggering, and excluding Charme's cries of becoming a running gag, the judges all nodded.

"Why, indeed," Anne replied, having noticed the ingredients chosen, and after tasting it, realizing just how much of an impact it had. "You used gumbo shrimp as the main meat, and mixed it with spices of your expertise and oranges, to create a form of Spicy Orange Shrimp, a very popular dish in…"

"…Chinese-American Restaurants," Akira concluded, as he turned to the side, where he could outright see the amount of shock on both Erina's and Soma's faces. "Flavors born out of the mixing of different countries styles, quite the Nouvelle style of cooking, but I am rather fond of it."

"…This is insanely ingenious," Histoire noted, his chopsticks holding onto a sauced-up shrimp. "By combining shrimp and oranges, you made something that complimented both Satoshi Isshiki's Shrimp & Bits Kakiage Tempura and Erina Nakiri's Arugula Citrus Salad ~ Strange Variation. Like, I cannot fathom a better response to this theme…"

And just like that, the crowd was speechless.

'Akira… You seriously managed to pull that out of thin air just like that…?!' Megumi thought outright impressed beyond belief.

'He actually…' Alice thought, eyes wide.

'…used our disjointed dishes…' Isshiki thought, eyes also wide.

'…and made something amazing with it…' Erina thought, outright wondering just how much better had this young man become since they had last face-off against one another.

'Damn it,' Soma thought, arms crossed, resisting the urge to pout. 'You really are something else. Like, that is just crazy.'

"…I-I mean, let's not get carried away," Decora tried, still blushing at the sensation that refused to go away from her tongue no matter how much water she drank. She turned her glare to Akira, who just looked on. "It is amazing, I will attest to that, but there is a flaw, is there not… Anne?"

Akira turned his eyes to the brunette, who seemed to struggle with herself for a moment.

"…Yes," she replied. "While an amazing dish, and a fantastic answer to your team's… unique choices, you decision to serve only Decora first and hold out on us did in fact cool your dish off a bit. I think we would have all enjoyed it a lot more had you just served it all at once, as it custom."

"Indeed," Charme finally got to voice. "Why hold back on us like that."

"I had a point to make," Akira admitted, but he still placed his hand into his pockets, before he pulled something out. The judges looked on, confused even more, as Akira added, "But that's not a flaw. It's by design. As I should correct you, Bookmen. My dish is not only a callback to Isshiki's and Erina's dishes, but also to my fellow White Coat Trio member."

And with a flick of his lighter, the five dishes were set ablaze, and everyone collectively lost their minds.

He didn't?! There's no way this man could have…?!

"Molecular Gastronomy is quite tricky indeed," Akira noted with a grin, "But well worth the effort. So, if you feel it was too cold when you tasted the dish, let it simmer, and enjoy it once more."

And, just like that, Akira finally presented them his Orange Flambé Prawns with Armagnac.

"White Coat Trio for life!" Alice could be heard cheering, jumping up and down like a little girl, turning to the seated area with a wide grin. "See Ryou! Told you it was a thing!"

"She's never going to let me live this down…" Kurokiba muttered, sinking into his seat, as Takumi just laughed. Damn that spice bastard and such a magnificent display.

"The Molecular Gastronomy from Alice, the shrimp from Isshiki, and the oranges from Erina," Urara summarized, utterly impressed beyond belief. "Akira has done what was thought impossible and actually, pardon the pun, course-corrected this five-course meal in one fell swoop!" she added, to the growing cheers of the audience who were staring to allow themselves the chance to at least, at least hope for a miracle. "J-Judges?!" a still very worried Urara asked, turning to them. "The score?! Give us a damn number!"

The five were frozen in place, and looked like they would remain so, until Decora outright screamed out in anger and slammed her finger into the screen, granting Akira her individual score for his dish. He smiled, and the audience lost it. Soon enough, the other four joined in, and his score was totaled.

"No way…" Hisako just blurted out, almost out of her seat, eyes wide as plates. The rest of the Polar Stars and friends were all equally blown away. "H-How on Earth is it fair that he keeps getting that strong?!"

"From the Bookman Decora," Megumi voiced, her eyes wide in shock, almost to the verge of tears. "…He got her to give him a perfect score of twenty…!"

Akira: 18/17/18/20/18

"Oh my God!" Urara squealed so hard the microphone almost broke. "In what has got to be the biggest turnaround in culinary history, Akira has managed to secure one hell of a score, with a total score of ninety-one, actually surpassing Ekaterina's score!"

Akira's 91 points vs. Grigory's 77 points.

And, as the crowds cheering continued, the screen shifted once more, showing the updated numbers for the team match, which now showcased:

Tootsuki Academy's Total: 295 points.

Moscow International's Total: 307 points.

"Wait, what?! Grigory lost?!" Sasha yelled out, utterly perplexed. As the giant and the tiny girl made their way towards their own side, the ever silent young man just hung his head down in shame. "Ah… there, there, we still got this…"

"That we do," Ekaterina voiced, before she turned sharply towards Luka, who almost shrieked at the glare. "Allow me to make myself clear Luka," she threatened, and he gulped, "Your opponent is going to be Soma Yukihira. I do not care how opinions on his prowess seem to dwindle within these place at times. He is the Autumn Elections Runner-Up, the winner of the Hiei Showcase, the only alumni ever accepted back to Tootsuki Academy, and the current Seventh Seat of the Elite Ten. Do. Not. Underestimate. Him!"

"U-Understood madam!" he replied with a salute. I mean, they still had a twelve point lead, but he wasn't going to risk it. He was giving it his all and then some. A mad Katya was not worth the risk of failure.

But, curiously, as the Russian squad spoke, one more student walked up to them, just not one of their teammates.

Ekaterina blinked, wondering if the kid had gotten lost. "…Can we help you?"

"Not really…" Raymond voiced, his face showing barely any emotion. Then he turned right towards Evgenii, and punched him straight across the face.

The young Russian aide fell on his ass to the floor, grasping at his bleeding nose, just as all the shocked expressions began to escape the lips of everyone. Ekaterina just stared, blinking, somewhat impressed by the stones it took to try that when there were nine other members standing by.

"H-Hey!" Anne cried out, standing up. "Violence isn't accepted here!"

"An assault like that can get you and the chef you assisted disqualified, you know?" Decora added, a small smirk forming. She had no idea what had led to that, but hey, it works.

"Why?" Raymond just asked, turning back to the judges, sounding outright sincere. Anne just gave pause, not sure how to handle this at all.

"I assure you he was just stretching and his fist innocently connected with that other kid's nose," Akira proposed, without even a shift in his tone, as the five judges turned their incredulous looks from Raymond to him.

"As if we'd buy that!" the five cried out. Akira just shrugged. Points for trying he supposed.

"…Do not mind this," Ekaterina waved off, surprising the judges, especially Decora, who was certain the Russian princess would jump at the chance. "Evgenii sort of deserved that, so you'll get no complain from us."

"He almost broke my nose!" Evgenii complained, still failing to stop the blood from flowing.

"And I will break far more if you don't shut up," his older brother warned. And Evgenii just froze in place and kept quiet. If Raymond had knocked him on his ass, Aleksei would knock him out cold. "To speak in such a manner to a lady, how utterly repugnant to our family name, you will be grounded once we arrive home, understood?"

The young man just nodded. Today was not his day.

Satisfied, Raymond walked back towards Akira, and the two made their way back towards their side.

"Quite unexpected of you," Akira noted, at least relieved they weren't disqualified.

"He deserved it," Raymond simply said, before he turned to Akira with a smile, "And you were amazing. I still have a long way to go before I can ever hope to match you."

"Hmm…" Akira noted with a smile of his own. "You'll get there. This victory is just as yours as it is mine, so be proud. Go and rub it in Loren's face."

"Yes sir!" he proudly replied, and rushed right back towards where his fellow aides stood. The four looked on, and as he took his stance, right in front of the still stupefied-at-just-what-was-even-happening-anymore Loren, he exclaimed, "Did ya see-?!" he began, but was quickly interrupted, as Berta quickly tugged at him by the sleeve.

"…Seriously?" she asked, and they could all see the small blush on her face. The little shy smile forming despite her best attempt otherwise.

"Huh?" he just mouthed, his hands to the back of his head, as if nothing had happened. "What?"

"Would have never taken you for being such a gentleman," she just said, and she had a hard time looking at him in the eyes. The olive-skinned boy just blinked, waving it off, telling her he just did what he wanted, but before he could even get the excuses out, she just pressed on and gave the boy a quick kiss on the cheeks, for once, shutting him up properly.

Cilla had the goofiest grin imaginable.

Mitsuru was blushing madly by proxy.

Loren was wondering if the realized they were both still standing like right in front of him.

"Thanks," Berta said, still blushing. Raymond said nothing, just turned away in a huff, the moment of triumph against his "rival" ruined. But, well, he was glad she wasn't crying anymore at least.

"Lab Coat Trio!" Alice could be heard celebrating, cheering as Akira approached them all. "It is official! Yeah baby!"

"Do not make me regret saying, please," Akira almost begged, but his smile was evident. He then turned towards the rest. "See? We're still in this. All it takes is everything you've got and then some. Simple, no?"

"At first I was hesitant, but now I am assured," Isshiki noted with pride, before he gave Akira a hearty thumbs up. "You have my approval to marry Megumi."

"I feel you're jumping the gun a bit there," Akira noted, not that the thought was unpleasant.

"I feel proper congratulations are in order," Erina cut in, offering her once-upon-a-time biggest opponent a soft smile. "You've certainly become very, very skilled."

"Yeah man," Soma added, jumping in eagerly, "That was such an insane idea. And you nailed it!"

"Hmm…" Akira mused, as he turned towards the redhead. "I wonder, would Erina call that dish of mine, where she to taste it, delicious?"

"Huh?" Erina, Alice, and Isshiki all muttered, their heads tilted. Since when did Akira care about that? It was kind-of amusing to them, to say the least… except to Soma.

"What was that?" Soma asked, his tone dangerously low. "Sorry man, I must have misheard you."

"No, you heard me right," Akira corrected. "You've failed to do that for a while now, right? I think I could probably manage that as I am now."

"Oh, is that-" Soma tried, actually feeling irked, but then he felt Akira's fist hit gently against his chest. It almost reminded him of the way his father spoke to him, more or less how he'd imagine what an elder brother would be like.

"Listen," Akira voiced, and his tone now lacked the mockery from before. All that remained was sincerity. "We're at the last stretch, and you're our last guy. Do not mess up. I mean, if you can't even manage to get a score similar to mine, well, why would I ever be afraid to lose to someone as pathetic as that?"

Soma's eyes narrowed at the words, but despite how it made his blood boil, he also understood the intent behind those words. So clenching his fists, Soma just smiled. "Yeah, don't worry, that score of yours won't remain the highest for much longer," he replied, before he turned to Erina, who had already chalked that whole scene under her "shit boys do just cause" folder inside her mind before she caught sight of his gaze on her. Before she could ask, he spoke up, "Erina, mind lending me your knife. I'll work on getting a proper one soon enough, but, well, you know…"

Erina just sighed, because this was dumb beyond belief, but she digressed. She took hold of her knife, before she flipped it, handle aimed towards Soma. He took hold of it, and with it in hand, she said, "You can keep it," she said, and he just looked at her curiously. "I know it doesn't hold a candle in sentimental value to the one you had, but, I assure you I… hmm… the girl who used to own this knife loves you every bit as much as the woman who used to own your other one, 'kay?"

Soma's eyes were wide at this declaration that came completely out of left field, and for once, he was left speechless. Erina, blushing and a bit lightheaded, just turned away, pushing her long blonde locks back, smacking him in the face with them purposely, before she moved a bit back, leaving the boy in a daze of her words and her perfume.

"The boy is smitten…" Alice said with glee, to which Soma could only nod and laugh.

"Alright, final match time!" Urara announced, as everyone's attention returned to the arena. It was already clear who was going to go next, so this time the screen went to it quickly, showcasing:

Soma Yukihira (w/ Loren Frechette) vs. Luka Vetrov (w/ Dima Ozerov)

'Finish this now!' Azami screamed in his head.

'You've got this kiddo!' Dove prayed, her hands held together, for once, genuinely worried.

'Soma's really going to go out there with Loren as his aide… Dude's crazy…' Asahi noted.

'…Loren…' Nao just thought, as her dorm mates and their friends all cheered for the supposedly unbeatable team that was moving forwards to the arena.

Loren walked up, right alongside Soma, towards the main area, where Luka and Dima awaited. They both looked nervous, probably believing all the cheers and taking them at face-value. Little did they know. Little did any of them knew. Raymond had edged him on, as a rival would. Berta and Cilla had cheered as loud as they could. All but Mitsuru, who looked so conflicted he couldn't even talk. What a waste of a reporter, wasn't it? He should have given the news to everyone. Gotten him expelled as soon as they knew. But he was just as big a fool as Soma Yukihira was. And they all deserved what was coming next.

"You all set Loren?" Soma asked, his head turned to the boy.

"You were warned," Loren just said, and Soma nodded. Yes, he had been indeed.

"And here we have it, our final match of the day! Will Tootsuki manage to reclaim those elusive twelve points to etch out a victory, or will this be our fated defeat!" Urara dramatically announced. Even she made herself gulp at the thought. "But, fret not, as our next team is one of our greatest! Representing Tootsuki, the guy who said he'd use every single one of us as stepping stones, but did not specify that meant also getting us in this mess to begin with, the one, the only, our Seventh Seat, Soma Yukihira!"

The cheers started again, louder and louder. Soma's friends were the loudest because of course they were, but everyone was applauding and cheering. Everyone was looking on. All the Second Years, specifically, even Soma's most forgotten rival Ken Dakekanba, couldn't help but cheer at the boy now risking it all to save them. And the First Years, those innocent, oblivious kids all cheered like crazy at the sight of their ace-on-the-hold Loren, who was just smiling.

"As his aide, the boy who has taken this school by complete surprise, who made Julio faint his ass into a trashcan, for some reason, the newest Polar Star and Tootsuki's new culinary genius, Loren Frechette!" she said, and the First Years, especially the girls, all cheered as loud as could be.

"My, little dude has quite the fanclub," Asahi noted, outright impressed. Kid was good looking, he knew, but he had not expected that intense a reaction. "You might end up becoming an aunt soon enough…" he joked at Dove, but the moment he saw her reaction utterly freeze up and her glare turn outright murderous he stopped his laughter.

"He. Is. Baby," she said in no uncertain terms.

"Dove, he's like fif-"

"Baby!"

"And challenging our new dynamic duo are Moscow International's Luka Vetrov, who I have nothing noteworthy to say on," Urara just declared plainly, as Luka complained in response, which she also ignored, "And assisting him is hopefully the last of the Ozerov kids we'll be seeing in a while, Dima Ozerov! Now then, blah-blah-blah ingredient!"

With Urara's "stellar" introduction, the screen began to flicker one last time for the day, and with it, came their answer. As they all looked on, Loren caught sight of the only two people that should ever matter to him, now and always.

Azami and Dove.

Nothing else matters. No one else matters…

"Hey! This is kidnapping!" twelve-year-old Loren cried out, as Shawn held him by the back of the shirt, pointing him towards the very scary looking Azami. "Or child-trafficking! Don't know which one is worse, but I want neither!"

"Relax, I am not a bad person," Azami assured, before he caught himself, "Well, perhaps that's not accurate, but I am not that kind of bad person," he corrected, before he turned to Shawn, "Please, let the boy go, I do not wish to scare him."

Reluctantly, Shawn did as he was told, putting little Loren on the floor, which earned him a glare from said boy.

"And I apologize for the rough treatment," Azami added, extending his arm to the boy. The trio now found themselves in the offices Azami had been renting while he managed different business ventures in the States, and even he had to admit, the last person he expected to be a host for was for a troublesome, young pickpocket. "It's just, not only did you steal from me during a very important presentation I had, you actually changed the labels to my ingredients, causing my team to make quite the blunder."

"Heh, heh, heh," little Loren just laughed, "That's dumb, aren't you guys professionals or something?"

"Well, that is true," Azami noted, before he signaled to himself. "My name's Azami Naki…well, Nakamura."

"Hello Azami Nakiwellnakamura," Loren greeted with a smile. "You Chinese guys have such weird names!"

"I'm Japanese," Azami corrected, his eyes twitching. "And it's just Azami Nakamura. And this man here is my assistant and aide, his name is-"

"Shawn Aida," Loren voiced before Azami could. As both men eyed the boy curiously, wondering how and why he would know that. Then they both found out that Loren was currently holding onto Shawn's wallet and had taken out his identification. "Seriously, dude's an aide and his last name is Aida? Man, the universe really limited your opportunities huh?"

"Give me that!" Shawn cried out, taking his wallet and ID back, blushing madly as he did. How had this kid even managed that? "And I'll have you know that the Aida family is very well known in the culinary world!"

"Sure, sure," Loren dismissed, "Are you going to kill me, just tell me now, because this is weird. Two grown men, one little boy. Like, no thanks."

"On the contrary, I would like to offer you employment," Azami offered, etching back onto his chair, his eyes reading the boy's reaction.

"Child labor is also illegal," Loren stated matter-of-factly.

"Where did you learn this stuff?" Azami asked with amusement, "But, it is. And so is stealing. I could just hand you over to the authorities, but I feel you'd be out on the streets in no time. Is it worth it?"

"What is?" Loren asked, head tilted.

"Sleeping on the streets, stealing to survive," Azami explained, and he smiled when he saw that Loren frowned at each word. "I can't imagine how tough that must be."

Little Loren here just fidgeted, playing with his hands as he avoided eye-contact with Azami.

"I understand your hesitancy," Azami said, "In fact, I applaud it. I don't think I could survive in the streets as you have. But, I assure you, I mean you no harm. In fact, I am in need of a boy with your skills. Stealing without being noticed, destroying a kitchen from within with the greatest of ease. My dear boy, I feel you might just be the young man I need to help me save my daughter."

"Huh?" Loren gave pause, having been midway into thinking of a way to smash his little fists into Shawn's groin and run away. But, saving someone? "Save your daughter?"

"She is in dire need of her father," Azami explained, "And there are bad people keeping me away from her. If you help me save her, I promise you that you will never go hungry another day in your life. Nor would you ever sleep anywhere else but the most illustrious of beds."

"I dunno…" Loren noted, looking downwards. Then he puckered up. "…Is she hot?"

Azami almost chocked. "…Pardon?"

"Your daughter, is she hot?" Loren repeated. Azami's eyes visibly twitched. Shawn's face had drained of all color.

"I am her father, I am afraid I cannot answer that, nor would I want to," Azami tried his best to respond, "She is cute, about your age, but our agreement only goes so far. I am not asking you to get together with her. Last thing I need is her getting with some troublemaker."

"Her loss," Loren shot back, and Azami had to restrain himself from arguing that point any further.

"Nevertheless," he continued, "It's your decision in the end. I won't force you to do anything you do not want to. In fact, if you disagree, you may just walk away. I'll even allow you to keep the money you took from Shawn's wallet."

"He did what?!" Shawn cried out, taking his wallet back out, and finding that, yeah, he had indeed gotten robbed. Again.

"Tattletale," Loren said with a frown, Azami just laughed, and while Shawn wanted to strangle the kid, he did as was told and allowed Loren to keep the money. The rather large sum of money.

"So what do you decide?"

"…Hmm," Loren pondered for a bit. Azami just looked on. He knew this was a risk. Such a young, unruly boy. Last thing he had ever expected was to borrow a trick from Soe's book, but it could work. Beneath all the dirt, grime and mannerisms, he was sure he could polish, clean him up and train the boy to be quite the asset. "…Sure, fine. I've got nothing left to lose really. You've got yourself a deal Aizen!"

"Azami."

"That too!"

"Perfect!" Azami said with a proud smile. "Welcome to the team. From now on, Shawn works for you, so feel free to order him around as ever you wish."

"What?!" Shawn cried out, utterly shocked.

"Really?" Loren asked, before he turned towards the guy, giving him a look that started as cautious before he turned into the biggest shit-eating grin imaginable. "Stand on one leg."

"W-What, hey, sir!" Shawn pleaded, but Azami just shook his head.

"You heard your new boss," Azami just said.

So Shawn stood in one leg.

"Now hop in place!"

So Shawn began to bounce in place.

"Now dance La Macarena!"

So Shawn began to dance La Macarena.

"Now then, we've got much to discuss, later of course, for now, I'll let you enjoy your new… toy," Azami noted, finding it hard not to laugh at Shawn's pathetic excuse for a dance. "However, I feel I must ask. What's your name?"

"Oh," Loren paused, realizing he had not really introduced himself. "I'm Lo-Hey! Who told you to stop dancing?!"

So Shawn continued to dance La Macarena.

"I'm Loren Frechette!"

The last thing that young boy from those three years ago would have ever expected was to find himself on this grand stage, on live television, with hundreds of adoring fans. Some very attractive ones at that. Ah, the sacrifices he'd make for these people. But a promise is a promise. And Azami had kept up his end of the bargain, so he'd keep his. And as he looked up and saw the ingredient for their Dessert match, he couldn't help but smile.

'Now isn't that quite the fragile dish, so easy to make, so easy to ruin…' Loren thought with glee.

Soma frowned. This was going to be tricky. Their ingredient, which in itself could work as a theme by itself, as the screen showed, was:

Pancakes

With that all four participants moved onto their stations, each with an idea of what to do. Luka went to it quickly, Ekaterina's threat looming over him like a ghoul. "We're going with our school's traditional blini," he instructed to Dima, "I'll make the arrangements to spice it up, but for now, focus on the essentials."

"Yes!" Dima replied, and they both moved. Taking out the wheat flour, milk and eggs, the duo began to work with the ingredients, cracking the eggs open, setting them into a bowl, mixing it with milk, and getting the precise measurement for the flour. After which Luka turned his attention to what he would use to spice up the dish. He could try a filling, or a topping. Or both, since he needed to go all out. And in order not to allow a repeat of what had happened to Grigory, he needed to find ingredients that meshed well with everything that had come before. So, he began to search throughout his storage freezer for what the perfect combination would be. He could manage this, he could keep them in the lead.

Soma, on the other hand, tying his headband on tightly, let out a long sigh. He really had to hand it to himself this time. This was indeed the dumbest thing he had ever done.

"…Well, let's begin Loren," he said, turning to the younger boy. Loren just nodded. 'I can tell he has no intentions whatsoever to help us out, but since we are out in the open, it also limits how he can sabotage me. Let's see what I can work with, give the kid simple instructions.'

"What do you need?" Loren asked ever so innocently.

"Can you fry me up a couple of eggs?" Soma asked, and Loren just nodded. "Just get them crisp, one minute a top the stove should be enough, okay?"

"Got it!" Loren replied with a mock salute, and Soma just smiled. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all. As Loren went on his way to crack a few eggs and get them set up on the stove, Soma began working with his other ingredients.

'Sorry kid, don't want to hurt you, but I can't fail either,' Soma thought. 'Not like me to try and trick you like this, but best I can do is keep you busy working on stuff I don't need. So wreck those eggs as much as you want, I can manage here just-'

"They're ready senpai!" Loren quickly announced, far sooner than a minute should allow. Soma turned to him, ready to tell him to check them properly, before his eyes widened immensely. Loren had the spatula on hand, and taking hold of one of the eggs, had taken a very, very worrisome stance.

"L-Loren, wait!"

"Catch!"

Then Loren outright flung them at Soma, from right across the kitchen arena. Soma's eyes widened even further as he could outright see those eggs making a mess of the things he did want to use, so he needed to move fast. Taking hold of several plates, a few on each hand, Soma lunged towards where the first fried egg had been thrown to.

At the sight of this sudden spectacle, the entire audience let out an audible gasp. Urara just looked at the scene utterly dumbfounded, as the five judges, even Decora, just stared at whatever it was they were seeing.

Soma practically threw himself, managing to catch the egg with the edge of the plate, remembering how to breathe again as soon as he did, before he turned, and much to his horror, Loren had moved on to continue throwing the rest of the eggs to him. And the kid had fried thirty-six of them.

"Damn… it!" Soma cried out, moving again, and catching the next one by a hair, and the next one, and the next one.

Loren kept throwing the eggs at him, flinging them through the sky, as Soma struggled to try and catch them properly. The damn kid had good aim. Not at the plates mind you, but at everything Soma had been prepping beforehand. Kid saw through the deception with ease, and now Soma was playing catch with him as a result.

"Wha-wha-wha what are you two doing?!" Urara cried out on the microphone, getting freaked out. "This isn't the time to be showing off!"

As Urara's screams filled the arena. Soma continued to lunge and catch each egg, barely missing a few, and he had just enough time to barely put a plate on the table and grab another before he had to fling himself to catch another one. Loren also kept purposely aiming from one edge to another, making it harder and harder to Soma to keep up with each throw.

"What are they doing?" Akira just blurted out.

"Is-Is that part of the plan?" Alice asked, confused.

"…we're doomed…" Erina said, as she buried her head in her hands.

"Have to give him points for creativity," Isshiki noted, having not expected a back stabbing to be so… theatrical. Guess the kid was indeed a Noir at heart after all.

Several more flying eggs, and several more near misses from Soma, until the inevitable happened and one of the last eggs landed way too close to the edge of the plate, stumbling over, plate and all, and crashing into the ground. Soma paused, as all eyes fell on him, and at the broken mess "he" had caused.

"I thought you said you could manage it at this speed?" Loren asked, ever-so innocently.

Soma just looked up, and nodding to himself, gave the kid a knowing smile. Two could play at this game. "Yeah, my bad…" Soma just replied. "But enough of that, come on, time to get to work on cutting up our ingredients."

As Soma and Loren moved towards the cutting board, after Soma quickly picked up the shattered plate and the poor egg, he handed Loren a handful of vegetables to cut. He now knew giving Loren meaningless tasks wouldn't work, so strategy number two, keep him close.

"How do you want these?" the ever helpful, good boy Loren asked.

"…Well, we are under a time limit, so in order to cook them properly, what do we need?" Soma asked, his eyes on the boy.

"Thinner cuts then," Loren automatically replied, before he caught himself, turning to glare at Soma.

"At least you can say you learned something," Soma boasted, and Loren wondered if there was a way he could get away with stabbing the guy and make it look like an accident.

But, he decided to carry on. He took hold of the vegetables and began to cut away. He had gotten quite a nice hold on how precise he needed to be, so he managed very fine cuts. Expertly so in a regard. So, smiling inwardly, he continued to cut, and cut, and cut, and soon enough, he'd cut up everything so much that Soma would have nothing left to work with. Cut. Cut. And cut.

Then as he raised his knife for another decisive cut, when suddenly, the sound of metal on metal echoed throughout. A loud gasp was heard. Loren glared again, as Soma just looked at the boy.

Soma had blocked Loren's knife with his own, stopping him from ruining the already cut up ingredients.

Still, Loren pushed just a little bit with the knife, further down, while Soma held on, pushing upwards, keeping it at bay.

"I think you have this done a perfect job already," Soma noted, "Don't think you have to keep cutting away."

"Oh, and here I thought it needed just one more slash," Loren replied in kind, "Silly me!" he added, and slowly lifted his knife away.

He turned towards Soma, pretending to await instruction, but in reality he was just pointing at him with his knife, which Soma found amusing.

"What's next?" Loren asked.

"Watch that knife buddy," Soma replied, purposely making his first word sound similar to "wash" in order to keep their façade up. "Don't want any cross-contamination on our dish, alright?"

"Normally Loren would be exposed after his first stunt alone," Asahi noted, utterly amused at the madness unfolding before them all, "But given how over-the-top everyone here is, he fits in like a glove. They look like they are outright flexing their incredible skills rather than the actual behind the scenes fight they are engaged in," he added, before he turned to Dove. This gave him pause, because unlike every other instance they watched these matches, for just this once, the girl was utterly invested. Almost on baited breath, her eyes on the kid. "…Dove?"

"Dove?"

Dove Dillinger frowned at the sight before her. This was not the deal at all. As Shawn led her into what would be her new apartment, home-complex… thing, there she was introduced to some brat who was clearly checking her out.

"Who's the brat?" she asked, turning towards Shawn, annoyed.

"…Uh, well, that's-" Shawn tried.

"Hey! What did I say?!" Loren interrupted, his index finger pointed at Shawn. "Introduce me in song!"

"What?" Dove asked, utterly perplexed. Her confusion only grew when Shawn, this grown ass man, at the drop of a hat, did as he was told, not protest whatsoever.

"~This is Loren~" Shawn sang, horribly. "~He is Azami's other ward~" he continued, and Dove just looked on, horrified. What had she just gotten herself into? "~He told me to tell you to get along, oh, oh, oh~!"

"Bravo, bravo!" Loren said as he clapped. "You kinda suck, but it's okay, we got time to practice."

If looks could kill Loren would have dropped dead on the spot, but since they couldn't, Shawn had to simply bow to the kid and walk away. This left Dove with Loren, much to her dismay. Azami had not told her about any other kid under his care… or training or whatever.

"You're hot."

"No thanks," Dove quickly shut his attempts down. "Listen kid, I have something very important to do here, so do not get in my way, you hear me?"

"I have important stuff to do too!" Loren argued. And he was still looking at her cleavage. She wondered if Azami would mind it if when he got back this kid had been locked into the dryer. "I'm a… how did he call me again, an important ass it!"

"Asset you moron."

"Does that have anything to do with my butt?"

"In your case, I would hope not," Dove replied, and Loren thought about it for a moment, before he nodded. "So… do you have a boyfriend?"

"Yeah, not doing this," Dove just stormed off, taking hold of her luggage and moving past the kid, who of course, went right after her, asking her if she had a girlfriend instead. Dove just went into the first room she could find, got in, and shut the door tightly… before she realized he had snuck in too, so she had to reopen the door, throw him out, and close it again. "Leave me alone!"

And that had just been the start. Once Azami returned, and introduced them properly, Dove was quick to complain and make it clear she would not live with this damn brat. Azami, however, assured her that just as she had a part to play, so did he, and that it would help if they got along. Dove felt a vein pop.

"So… siblings then?" Loren asked, after approaching her for what felt like the one-hundredth time in that day alone.

"No, we are not siblings," she replied, irked beyond belief. "My mom's going to have a baby soon enough. That's going be my sibling, why, because she'll probably look like me, unlike you. We don't even have the hair to match. So… GET OUT OF MY ROOM!"

And once more Loren was thrown out like a ragdoll.

As Dove and the rest of the audience looked on, Soma and Loren had moved to creating the proper mix for the pancakes. That would be simple enough, but this put Soma on edge. Loren was behaving. That couldn't be good. As Soma mixed and made the batch as perfectly as he could, Loren just stood by, handing him what he needed, and surprisingly enough, he didn't spit on or drag the tools through the floor before he handed them to him.

"You look tensed," Loren noted, still all smiles.

"I wonder why?" Soma shot back, "You can still turn this around kid. People here genuinely like you."

"What makes you say that?" Loren just replied, clearly playing the part, and Soma just frowned. A part of him was wary, because of course, but another part of him genuinely wanted to help the kid out. But could he even?

Deciding to focus on his craft first, for the time being, Soma took hold of the bowl and moved to the side. Of course, it had been too good to be true, as no sooner had Soma taken a step, than had Loren placed his own foot before him, causing him to trip on it.

Here Soma began to panic. If he tried to hold onto something, he'd spill the bowl and all the contents, since he was holding onto it with both hands and it was rather heavy. If he did nothing, he was going to land face-first into the ground, or maybe even on the stove if Loren had aimed it right.

He heard the gasps from the crowd almost in slow motion, as his fight or flight instinct threatened to kick in, and lost his footing completely, since as he desperately tried to regain it, Loren just kicked him away with not but the tip of his shoe.

So Soma fell…

…right into Loren.

Loren's eyes went wide.

Forehead on forehead, Soma used Loren himself to hold himself steady, smashing his own head against Loren's. This act, smacking them both in the head, at least kept himself and the bowl away from the ground. Loren's wide eyes slowly turned into the most menacing glare Soma had seen on the boy, and he couldn't help but smirk at the sight.

"That all you got?" Soma asked, grinning.

"You wish," Loren threatened.

"…Uh…" Urara just muttered into the microphone, each moment baffling her more that the last. The entire crowd, expect those who knew, just looked on, utterly confused at what the hell they were even seeing.

"…Are they about to kiss?" Berta asked, head tilted.

"I could only wish," Cilla added, head also tilted.

"I don't think that's it," Mitsuru noted, wondering why it took them all so long to notice it. Nao had been right, they were indeed a bunch of morons.

"For a guy who hates Shokugekis, Loren is definitely grinning a lot in this match," Raymond said, arms crossed, staring at his rival, wondering what was going on inside that head of his.

The Polar Stars all continued to cheer, despite how strange everything seemed. Had Soma tripped, or had Loren? Who had save who? Or did they just both trip into one another? I mean, both being great chefs did not always guarantee kitchen chemistry. Heck, the school's power couple started out bickering in a mock restaurant and failing to get along, so it happened more often than not, but seeing it like what was happening now was just strange.

But, that was just the start.

No sooner had the crowd let out a sigh of relief at the fact that neither Soma or Loren had fallen down, than had the two gone to opposite ends of the kitchen, and while working with their respective parts of the dish, begun to outright fling their ingredients at each other.

"Peel these apples for me!" Soma shouted out, as he threw it towards Loren, who ducked and caught it on reflex.

"Here's the apples you asked for!" Loren said as he threw them at Soma with even more force, as Soma had to shield his face with his pan and let that block the blow.

"I told you I needed green apples, not red!"

Soma flung the apple back at Loren.

"My bad! Here it is!"

Loren flung the green apple at Soma.

"Wait! You were right! I do need the red one!"

Some flung the green apple back at Loren.

"Well then have both just to be sure!"

Two apples were thrown to Soma, who barely avoided getting smashed in the head and the groin by them. It was… a rather impressive arm Loren had.

"Peel these potatoes next!"

Throw.

"Potatoes don't go in pancakes!"

Throw.

"Hey, look at that, you're learning!"

Throw.

"How's this for learning?! Know what does go with pancakes, strawberries! Have the whole box!"

Throw.

"I'm not going to use these…!"

Throw.

"…Actually wait, I think I am, throw them back Loren!"

"To throw them in the trash?!"

Thrown. In the trash.

"…damn it Loren…"

As this continued, Urara felt that her left eye would not stop twitching. 'This goes far beyond the levels of absurd I've seen in this place…'

Luka, already almost done with his craft, turned towards the two, utterly confused if they were even taking this seriously or not. "…Hey, Yukihira, Frechette, aren't you guys-?"

"What?" both Soma and Loren spat out in unison, turning from their heated match and towards the young Russian, who felt a massive chill run up and down his spine. It was here that his situation was made evidently clear to Luka.

'This-This isn't even about me at all!' he cried out inwardly, 'It feels like I stepped into a fight between two predators! They aren't even looking at me!'

As Soma and Loren continued their little… game, Loren couldn't help but frown at it all. Who was this guy trying to fool? His girlfriend had already proven Azami's point clearly. She failed to measure up to Dove, and now, she was a mess. Only Azami could save her. Like he saved Dove. Like he saved him.

'Stop pretending this stupid place is some academy of adventure and friendship,' Loren had to resist from saying aloud, 'I've seen it firsthand. All professional cooking ever leads to is burnout and misery. Stop trying to fool me into thinking you jerks all actually care for one another, when this damn place is built so that you can crush your own friends just to further your own damn career!'

And just like that, he was back at that kitchen, standing by the doorframe, peeking in with one eye. There was Dove. She had messed up again. She had failed to do what Azami had wanted her to. And she was crying. Sitting on the floor, sobbing. All because of she had to be the perfect chef. All because she had to learn in two years what had taken most decades to learn. All because Azami had done something very bad to help her, so she owed him.

"…Dove?"

"Get out!" she screamed, still crying. This wasn't fun anymore.

"I-I'm not here to bother you this time, pro-"

"Leave me alone!" she screamed out, and threw the bowl she had failed to create properly at him. He shrieked, closing the door quickly, as he heard it crash against the wood, shattering on impact.

She cried. He cried too. And cry was all they did, because Azami didn't return for three days, and then, it was back to business as usual.

'…Dove, you've suffered too much…' Loren thought, as he stared up, his eyes meeting his sister's for what seemed in so long. How he missed her. 'Relax, I've got this. This ends today. You won't have to cook for him anymore. You won't have to do anything else he says. You'll be free. This time, I'll be the one to protect you… sis.'

Soma then turned, tossing the mix into the stove top, each evenly measured for the utmost flavor and fluffy texture, and no sooner had he done so, than had Loren stepped up to him.

"What's next?" Loren asked, turning the dial of the stove up several notches.

"Just letting it cook," Soma replied, setting it back down.

"You have enough sugar?" Loren asked, grabbing the jar and "accidentally" tossing it up.

"Plenty!" Soma cried out, as he caught the damn thing, upside down, but with the lid shut at least.

"You sure?" Loren asked, flicking at the lid, opening up, threatening to spill it all.

"Yeah!" Soma replied, holding it shut a nanosecond before it spilled all over, and setting it aside.

Soma then moved, and with his legs, pushed Loren to the back, behind him, much to the boy's ire.

"Prepare the plates for me, okay?!" Soma instructed, pushing him away from the pancakes and stove.

"Aren't the plates up here?!" Loren asked, pushing Soma in turn and opening the cabinet that rested above the stove.

"Nope! They're behind us!" Soma retorted, pushing Loren right back.

"You sure?! I think I saw some up there!" Loren pushed him again.

They went like this, back and forth, from shoving to pushing to almost outright fighting each other as they each took hold of the other's position, and depending who was there, tried his best to sabotage the meal or his best to fix said sabotage, respectively.

Soma managed to save the pancakes well enough, and then he set his little secret recipe on the stove itself to allow it to cook. He could relax a bit now. Loren was at least limited in what he could do. As the crowd continued to gossip and talk about what would probably get dubbed the most confusing Shokugeki in history, Soma rested his back next to the stove, as Loren rested himself on the opposite side.

"…This really does put Nao in danger," Soma just said, arms crossed, staring at the boy. They both looked so utterly worn out.

"You really think that's what's going to make me flip?" Loren shot back, almost out of breath.

"You care," Soma replied. "You wouldn't have helped her otherwise."

"I won't risk Do… I won't risk everything for one dumb girl," Loren simply said. Then they both got quiet. Both tired, both looking at the clock. Ten minutes left. More than enough… Wait…

Soma felt a very bad feeling wash over him suddenly. Here they were, already pretty much done, and Loren… had just stopped. I mean, sure he could try and trip him up on their way to the judges table, but a second attempt would be hard to pass off as accidental. And Soma had gotten to know the kid enough to know he did not give up that easily. So that meant…

"Ah damn it, really?!" Soma cried out, opening the stove before the timer had reached its conclusion. Using his cooking mittens, Soma took hold of the very hot bowl, balancing between each hand because it was hot beyond belief before he set it on the table. Loren just looked on, smugly. Soma stared, wondering if this was nothing more that mental warfare at this point, but looking at his sauce, the specialty he was prepping for the pancaked themselves, he noticed it. It didn't look different, but by simply turning the bowl over, it was a given.

The damn thing did not bulge.

"Some sauce," Soma noted, grimly, as he turned to Loren, who cheekily looked at the dwindling clock.

"Is it supposed to be that thick?" Loren asked ever-so innocently. "Because it looks kinda gross."

"What did you even add to it? I didn't see when…" Soma just said, at this point less annoyed and more outright impressed. This kid was really, really something else.

"Me?" Loren asked, as if offended. "What did you add to it? You're the chef, I'm just the aide."

"…Sodium alginate," Soma realized, laughing a bit, "And quite a bit of it. Damn it, you got me good," he admitted, and Loren merely extended his arms, like, what would you know. But to the boy's surprise, instead of falling to the floor in defeat, Soma placed the bowl on the side and proceeded to fire up the fires once more. Loren looked on, frowning at the display before him.

"What now?" he asked, his jovial tone almost completely gone at this point.

"You know, for once, I have no idea," Soma replied in earnest, but his laugh was still present. "Guess we're both about to find out."

"You can't seriously expect me to believe you can-"

Then Soma threw several things into his pan, and with the fire on the highest setting, he proceeded to cook them all up with such intensity. Loren attempted to get in close, do something, anything to intervene, but the fire was so strong that it made him flinch and step back. How on Earth was anyone supposed to cook with a fire that out of control? First the stripper, now him? But, as Loren looked on, his eyes slowly widening, he could tell he was wrong. It wasn't out of control. It was bending to Soma's will. No chef is afraid of fire, and with minutes to spare, Soma ended up creating a brand new mix for the pancakes, and Loren had no idea how to ruin it, as he had no idea what it even was.

"Okay, seems we are getting our first dish!" Urara announced, as Luka approached the judges' table with his own dish, Dima following closely behind. All five judges were served, and they took a nice, long look at the thin pancakes with filling in-between and several fruit toppings on top.

Luka had served them Moscow Blini Surprise.

"This has been a sting of Russia's top hits from start to finish with your team, very impressive," Anne noted as she took hold of a nearby fork, and took a piece of the blini. Her fellow judges did as well, and soon enough, they all took a bite. It was very savory, sweet and tangy, the perfect meal ender. Without much fuss, the five each gave the dish their score, with Decora purpose going as high as she realistically could, and luckily for her, Courage did as well by sheer chance.

Luka: 15/16/15/17/17

"Oh, damn, that's pretty high," Urara said, as she felt herself shiver. "After Soma and Loren decided to play catch instead of cooking for some unexplainable reason, the overlooked Luka and Dima ended up serving quite the dessert dish, earning themselves a total of eighty points!"

'Yes, that's high enough,' Luka thought with a smirk. 'I don't have to beat this guy, just keep us in the lead, and with this, not even scoring as high as Milady Katya would grant you a big enough score for a tie. We did it! We won!'

The crowd, all of them with their hearts caught on their throat, all turned, their eyes on Soma, who quickly finished setting up his own stack of pancakes. Instead of multiple plates, Soma had set a tower of pancakes, covering them completely with whatever it was that he had just made. Loren looked on, certain that this last ditch attempt wasn't going to snag him a victory, but still wanting to stop him somehow, he just didn't know how.

Soma took hold of his dish, and stepped forwards, and Loren took a step too, making it look like he was just going to walk alongside Soma, but they both knew the truth. So, Soma stopped, a few feet from the boy, and sighed. He gave Loren a look, and honestly, despite everything, he couldn't quite say he was mad at him. Loren had to have his reasons, but still…

"Something wrong?" the always innocent Loren asked. Just two more steps and he'd have Soma swallowing all those pancakes in one gulp.

"…Yeah, let's settle this once and for all," Soma declared, and Loren looked on, frowning. What the hell did he mean by that? And as Loren poised himself for whatever Soma was planning, Soma brought that all down with just… one… word… "…here."

Loren's eyes widened again.

"What are you saying?!" Erina could be heard crying out from the side, as the crowd all began to murmur once more. The clock continued to tick, and time was running out, but even so, Soma just stood there, the plate extended to Loren, who was utterly baffled.

"What are you playing at here?" he asked.

"My Master has always said," Soma replied, his eyes never leaving Loren's, "That an Assistant Chef's job is not done until the dish is at the table," he added, "So, here, take it. Do your job."

"Is this some kind of joke?" Loren couldn't help but ask. He was on the defensive, because no one could be this stupid. "We are sort-of pass all this stuff."

"No Loren, we're not," Soma said firmly. "I get it, kinda. Your views on cooking are different than mine, but I still believe there is some genuine skill there, and you just proved it. If Azami won't see it, if Dove won't see it-"

"Don't mention her!"

"But I see it!" Soma shouted right back. "I see your struggle, I see all the hard work you put into this. I have worked in some of the toughest kitchens imaginable, with the best of the best, with my friends here, all who are insanely gifted, and yet, you want me to believe some kid with no talent could keep up with me in the kitchen for an entire round. Look at you, the only way you'd know for sure how to ruin that sauce what because you knew what was in it! You knew how it was made, so you knew exactly what to add to ruin in a way it wouldn't look different. I'm sorry, but that takes skill."

"Praising me won't change a damn thing," Loren warned.

"But I will praise you regardless," he said. "And I will also warn you. You won't get this victory of yours this half-heartedly. If Tootsuki closes, if we lose today, it won't be because I couldn't measure up, it'll be because you decided it. I won't lose to you Loren," he told the boy, and then, he handed him the plate, "But I will leave Tootsuki in your hands. Your call."

"Have you gone insane?!" Loren cried out, but the moment he moved, the stack of pancakes threatened to fall, so he instinctively steadied himself, keeping them upright, before he caught himself. 'Damn it, what the hell am I even doing arguing this?!'

'Just drop the damn plate Loren!' Azami was seething.

'Just let it fall kiddo, just let it fall…' Dove repeated over and over, almost shaking in her seat.

"Y-You really think I care about this damn place?!" Loren shouted out, much to the confusion of everyone present, since the time was running out and the "dream duo" was just arguing with each other over who took the plate to the table. What the hell was going on? Loren, however, was utterly angry. "You think I won't do it?! You think just because you put me in the spotlight I will care?! I don't care about you! I don't care about the dorm! I don't care about any of you at all!"

"What is wrong with Loren?" Yuuki asked, holding onto Terrubunny tightly. The rest of the Polar Stars looked on, all shocked at the display… until Nao stood right up

They all turned their eyes on the little witch, who held onto the rails, and had her eyes as wide as could be.

Loren looked up, seeing her up in the audience, standing up, pleading with her eyes, but for what, he didn't know.

No.

He didn't want to know.

'All I have to do is drop this damn thing,' Loren told himself, forcing himself to move. 'Don't look at her. It's not on you. Nobody cared for you when you needed them… Nobody came… well, except, Dove, but… No, it's not the same! It's horrible what her brother will do to her, but I have to protect Dove and myself! I can't risk it all for that stupid girl, just drop the plate; fall down; do something! Dropping this plate means we win! Dropping this plate…'

Is like dropping her right into her brother's hands.

"Your call, Loren," Soma voiced, eyes on the boy.

"…I-I…" Loren tried, but the knot in his throat made it hard to talk. "…I am not responsible for any of this! I'm just doing what I'm told! It's not my fault what happens if this place gets shut down! I-It's not my damn fault if she-! Ah! Damn it all!"

Soma's eyes widened slightly, as did the entire student body, as Loren just tossed the plate down with a loud, thunderous crash.

Everyone stared, utterly baffled by the events.

And yet, there it stood.

The plate, tossed firmly onto the judges' table, as Loren Frechette looked down, his vision outright blurry thanks to his tears.

"Oh, you both were insanely dramatic to the very end-eh, why are you crying sweetie?" Anne asked, noticing the young boy now in tears.

Loren tried to respond, but words failed him. 'I… I'm going back into the streets…'

Loren did, however, feel a hand place itself softly in the back of his head, patting him lightly.

"It's just, sometimes we even surprise ourselves," Soma replied, with a knowing smile, "I don't know what Azami has on you, or on Dove, but… you are a Polar Star now, and believe me or not, I've got your back. I will protect you every bit as fiercely as you have protected Nao."

Loren, still in tears, turned back, his eyes on the girl that had caused this entire mess in the first place. She was also crying. She sat back down, with the entire dorm moving to her, asking her what was wrong, if she needed to get out, if she needed some air. She just shook her head.

'Loren…' she thought, her tears overflowing in a way she had not cried in years, '…Thank you. Thank you so much…'

"Well, that was certainly… something," Akira noted.

"I am, like, totally lost. Did something groundbreaking just happened or something?" Alice added, her head tilted even further.

"You could…" Isshiki began, his heart beating so fast he felt feint.

"…say that…" Erina concluded, outright on the verge of fainting.

"Well, sorry to keep you waiting!" Soma quickly announced, signaling to the leaning tower of pancakes before the judges, "Dig in!"

The judges each took a piece of the multi-layered pancake tower, and it was here they noticed that each pancake with slightly colored differently. Multi-flavored then? They all proceeded to give it a taste, even the reluctant Decora, and no sooner had they gotten it into their mouths, than they felt they had taken a taste of an outright cloud!

"~Oh!" Anne, Courage and Histoire all sang out, in perfect sync and harmony, all three in bliss. Charme fell back, his eyes filled with tears of joy, while Decora was outright glaring at the plate before her. How? How had he managed this?! "This is certainly…" Anne tried, blushing a bit, "I have to say, the taste is so utterly, insanely sweet! Each of them… each of them feels sweeter than the last."

"Yeah, that's the intent," Soma said with a grin, as he took hold of another plate he had set up, surprising Loren, but instead of handing it to the judges, he handed it to the side.

"…seriously?" Urara just said, a very warm smile in her face, as Soma handed a small plate to her.

"You did say you were hungry," Soma replied, smiling back, "And you've done one hell of a job here, so enjoy your share," he told the happy girl, before he turned back to the judges. "As for those, well, since I was unsure of what to do given my… working conditions, so, well, I decided to try all my ideas!"

The judges all stared, their eyes from the chef and to the pancake stack.

"They are ordered from moderately sweet to the sweetest, all to ease you guys in through a satisfying journey of flavor," Soma explained. "I mean, after Akira's masterful dish, I knew the only way I could compete was not to compliment his dish, but to counter it!"

'Did he just say he was competing against his own teammate?' the baffled judges all asked themselves.

"Vanilla Purple Sweet Potato," Soma named, signaling to the first pancake. "This one was only possible because Loren wanted to add potatoes to the dish, which at first I declines, but then thought, what the heck, it can work!" he explained, and Loren felt himself flinch. "The next are Paleo Pumpkin, then Coconut-filled, then Banana Buttermilk, and finally Mexican Tres Leches pancakes! Each stuffed to the brim and poured over with that little syrup I just mixed up at the last second there."

'That last bit he made was the syrup?' Loren noted, stall standing by Soma's side, as an aide should, but he was a wreck of emotions.

"You came to this conclusion of instead of complimenting your teammates' dishes, you actively went against them all," Anne noted with the most amused expression imaginable. "What a cheeky chef. To outright laugh in the face of the WGO's method and instructions and do the polar opposite, my, the stones that takes."

"Shouldn't that be enough to deduct points?!" a rather desperate Decora asked, her eyes on Anne.

"Why though?" Soma just interjected, his eyes on the woman. She glared, he just smirked. "You can judge the taste well enough, can't ya? Otherwise, you would not have eaten so much of it, eh?"

Decora felt her face turn bright red. The nerve of this kid!

"B-But going against your team's dishes does break the theme of the Five Course Challenge, right?" Luka tried, his eyes on Soma, almost shaking at this point. Soma just turned to his ignored opponent, and offered the young man a nod.

"Probably," he admitted, "But, that's also a flaw in your guys' dishes in a way."

"Huh?" Luka, and by extent, the Russian team as a whole, all said.

"Like, I get the appeal, but every single one of you cooked just to compliment Ekaterina's dish," Soma told him, and he flinched at this. Anne just looked on, and gave out a little knowing smile. "Here at Tootsuki, we don't have Team Leaders. Even our Elite Ten can be actively challenged and their title stripped away. It keeps us on our toes, and I'll admit, it does make us lack a bit in the teamwork department," Soma noted with a small laugh, "But not a single one of us is ever satisfied with being just an opening act for anyone else. Here at Tootsuki, we all aim for the top! So, sorry, but no dish made by a chef afraid to ever challenge their Team Leader could ever hope to match any of us!"

Ekaterina glared at those words, as Erina, Alice, Akira and Isshiki all smiled proudly at his words.

The cheers returned, and as Urara happily chowed down at the fluffy pancakes, Decora felt her blood outright boil. She needed to fail this kid. That brat Loren had failed, things were getting out of hand. But try as she might, she couldn't find a flaw in his words, or in his dish.

Sometimes, a contrast works for a better finisher than a compliment ever does, and Soma Yukihira had served them a dessert that could very damn well work as a main entrée all on its own.

Cursing to herself, she still did her job and pressed down, offering Soma her score.

Anne nodded, offering hers as well.

Ekaterina's eyes widened, this, this couldn't be happening.

The crowd started to chant their name, Soma's and Loren's, with each number that appeared. Could they…? Would they…?

Charme gave the dish his score to the boys.

Histoire followed along, giving his own.

The Elite Ten, both down below and up above, all etched closer to the screen. Those numbers, so damn close! Please…!

Courage paused, pouting to herself for a moment, before she gave her own score, and with it, silence followed…

…before the outpour of emotion in the crowd overwhelmed everyone there. So loud, so sudden, and Urara, barely swallowing what she had in her mouth, had to do her best not to choke out of the sheer excitement of the sight before her. Before them all.

Erina just looked on, the softest smile imaginable in her eyes. Of course that would be the result.

'I'm sorry Luka, you seem like a nice guy, but I had bigger fish to fry in this duel,' Soma noted, taking his headband off, 'With Akira nagging me, Loren pushing me to my limits, and Erina in the verge of breaking, there no way I could just go down without a fight.'

As the score showed up on screen, Loren looked up. And as realization dawned on him, all he could do was close his eyes. 'I'm sorry Dove, I'm sorry Azami,' Loren finally admitted to himself, as his thoughts fell on Soma Yukihira, 'I… I just can't stop this guy…'

Soma: 19/18/19/18/19

"I-I can't believe it!" Urara beamed, bouncing up and down, "In what has to be the closest team match in all of Tootsuki history, Soma had helped us come right back from the brink with an outstanding ninety-three points, earning himself the highest score of the day! And with it…!"

The screens shifted again, for one last time. Soma's 93 points vs. Luka's 80 points, all tallied up against the previous scores, finally gave audiences all over the world the final verdict. And, because of course, it turned out as:

Tootsuki Academy's Total: 388 points.

Moscow International's Total: 387 points.

"By one, freaking, single, individual, point!" Urara cheered, as the audience all jumped up and cheered along with her, "Soma Yukihira and Loren Frechette have secured the win, and with it, the Fifth Round of the International Shokugeki! We! Are! Still! In! This! Yeah Baby Yeah!"

"It wasn't much!" a grinning Soma declared, before, to the surprise of his would-be aide, he took Loren's arm and raised up alongside his own, "Ain't that right, partner?!"

Loren said nothing, but at all the cheers, the applauses, he couldn't quite decipher just what he was he was feeling.

"Now I'm confused," Asahi muttered, his eyes on Soma, almost glaring at the boy. "Why, out of everyone I've ever faced off against, do you seem like a nobody one day, then turn out excellent creations the next? What sort of chef flip-flops between mediocre and masterful like that?" he noted, peeved, before he turned to Dove, wanting to ask her for her opinion, but the girl got up and darted right out of the audience area before he could, surprising him, "…Dove?"

Dove ran.

She moved past the halls, past all the entrances, headway into the VIP area. She needed to act fast. She couldn't just let him take the fall…

"…Loren," Dove hesitantly called out from behind the closed bathroom door, knocking on it softly. She felt horrible, her hands still bruised thanks to all the "training" she had to endure, but even she knew when she took it too far. When he didn't answer, she knocked again, "Listen, Loren, I'm sorry I acted out like that. This… This isn't your fault. None of this is."

"…It's fine," she heard him say from the other side. She could tell by his voice he had been crying. What a shitty person she was. Nothing but a bully in the end.

"No, it's not," she corrected. "Can I come in?"

"Wha-?! No, I'm naked!" he squealed. At this she couldn't help but laugh.

"Oh no! My virgin eyes, a naked man, whatever will I do?!" she joked, and she could outright feel his glare through the door.

"Not funny!"

"Just cover up the twig," she told him, and she felt the glare grow, and she just laughed.

"It's not a-ah, fine, come in," Loren voiced, and she heard his little steps motion to the door until he unlocked it. Once he opened it up, it was cleared still he had been crying, puffy eyes and all. But, weirder still, was the fact that the kid had not just covered up his privates, but pretty much himself entirely with several towels.

"…We have robes you know," Dove just said, confused.

"I… I know, just didn't bring one," Loren replied, eyes on the side. Dove looked on, before she saw something, and her eyes went wide. It was just a colored drop, but it did make her take hold of the towel on his head and pull it off, causing the boy to shriek as if she had pulled the one at his waist instead. "Eek-Hey!"

Dove, rather than saying something, just stared, eyes wide.

Loren took hold of the towel once more, pouting at her, before he went back to cover his now pitch black hair.

"That's rude…" he said.

"What did you do to your hair?!" she cried out, her hand on his head. "You're going to mess it up! Did you seriously dye it black? Why?! Are you going through an emo-phase I should know about? Listening to my My Chemical Romance songs again, are you?"

"Wha-No!" Loren shut back, before he paused. Then, blushing, his eyes downcast, just said the words that broke her, "…I just thought, if our hair matched, then maybe… you could actually see me as a brother… just…"

She just cried at this. She fell into a hug against the young boy, causing him to flinch. She pressed herself against him tightly, holding him dearly, his head at the nape of her neck.

"…Dove?"

"I'm sorry," she said, with tears. "This shit is really hard, I know. What Azami wants us to do, how much we have to improve, it so hard. And being away from my mom, I feel so… It just hurts," she admitted, before she pulled back, her eyes on his. "…But, from now on, let's do it. You'll be my little brother, and I'll be you big sister. We'll keep each other company, and keep each other safe… deal?"

"Yeah!" Loren replied with the widest of grins. Damn it, she would later note, he could be adorable at times.

"Now then," she recalled herself telling her little brother, "Let's fix that mess you made there. Ignore that stupid comment I made. You look better blonde anyways."

"But I want to look like you," he protested.

"You don't need to," she said as she instructed him to turn right back into the bath. When he clearly protested to the fact of being naked in front of her, blushing, she just sighed. "I'll get in with you," she added, "But you damn well better mean it when you say you see me as a sister, am I clear!"

"Well… you are kinda too old for me if we're both being honest."

"I will drown you in the toilet!"

"But-But what are you going to do with my hair?" he asked again, and she pondered it for a moment. "I really want us to look alike at least a little…"

"Then how about…?"

Dove then reached the main doorway, almost out of breath, and of course, there he stood.

Azami.

The man clad in black turned to her, his expression utterly unreadable, just as the day she had first met him. Dove's grip on the wall's border tightened, as she steeled herself, wanting to be anywhere but here, but as she heard the cheers in the background, all signaling Loren's failure, she could do no less.

For that boy with the blonde hair and the black tips.

This is are the things an older sister does.

"…Azami," she outright begged, "Please don't punish Loren. Please. He's done enough. Soma Yukihira is not someone he could have just beaten like that. Please, I can-"

"Why would I punish Loren?"

Dove froze. His words and his tone did not match.

"He's done his part," Azami told her, and it was here she felt his shadow extend itself right out of the walls, and lunge for her neck. "And, there's no reason to worry, after all," he added, and she felt the grip tighten around her, almost crushing her. "Because you won't fail me. For his sake, for mine, and for yours. You will do what I trained you to. No more childish tantrums, right… Dove?"

"Yes sir," she replied, and the shadows enveloped her whole…

-0-

"I'm still surprised you don't even bother to attend."

As the pair of siblings walked through the empty dorms, with every student back at the stadium still, all probably celebrating that sure-defeat turned into a paper-thin-victory, the elder sister had spoken up. She knew her younger brother, knew he wasn't all that invested, but still, this was still his school, his home, his career at the end of the day. He, in turn, didn't seem to pay her words much mind. He just led her towards his own dorm, which she later learned wasn't just a room in particular, but rather an entire floor of this fancy, multi-storied dormitory, because of course he couldn't settle for just one fancy-ass room. The privileges of money and power, she'd note.

Then his phone rang, and as he took it out, he just glanced at it, reading the name in the called id. Nene Kinokuni was calling. Raising a brow, he motioned with his thumb, before he just swiped to block the call.

"Isn't she a friend of yours?" Yukichiko asked, her eyes on the younger man.

"I don't think that's the correct word," Etsuya replied, placing his phone back on his pocket, before he used his free hand to push his glasses back onto their place, "In fact, if she's calling me, it means she's probably getting suspicious."

"Suspicious?" Yukichiko asked, stopping, as the siblings reached one of the many doors the younger Eizan seemed to own. "Etsuya… what are you getting yourself into now?"

"Just… business as usual," Etsuya replied, as he gave the door a little knock, which confused the elder sister, but not more-so than the reply that came from the other end did. Then, unlocking the door, both Eizans walked right in, and to say Yukichiko was shocked at the sight would be an understatement. Etsuya, well… "I think it's time we begin to move. Kinokuni is getting desperate, and I haven't the patience to deal with this for much longer…"

"~How rude," the girl seating on the room's bed said with the widest smirk, "So many fun night we've had, and this is how you treat me, hmph, men, am I right, big sis?"

"…I take it you are…?" Yukichiko, clearly unamused and annoyed, voiced.

Etsuya just stared, since he knew this was going to get out eventually.

"Why, who else, but Tootsuki Academy's future savior of course!" Shouko Kaburagi replied with glee.


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Long Time No See…