The three walked along until they reached the main temple. As Toriko and Shuu abruptly stopped, Éclair ran into the back of her partner. Toriko looked down at the girl, "What are you doing?" Her eyes were closed and her hands were clasped. She looked back up at the man, "Toriko, you just have no idea how appreciative I am that we're not being bombarded with death traps. I'm trying to keep it up so it doesn't start again." Shuu pointed, "Well you've made it to the temple. There are three levels of training here. Basic, middle level and hard level. Once training of the highest level is complete in the main temple, the treasure can be obtained. The Bubble Fruit." Toriko nodded "Ahh, I see. But where are the Bubble Fruit exactly? I see some soap bubbles in the garden~ could that be~" Éclair shook her head, "Really Toriko? You think they're just gonna have their sacred treasure in the front garden? I know they said we have bad etiquette because we show no appreciation, but at least appreciate the security they have around here. A place this secure certainly doesn't have something that important right out in the open." Shuu nodded, "Yes we do. Come see."

The three walked over and looked at the fruits emerging from the water. They lightly floated up and it's color illuminated. The girl gasped, "How wrong I was." As she watched the fruits floating, she could feel something majestic about the whole experience. Toriko couldn't take his eyes off the fruit. "So these are Bubble Fruit?" He reached his hand out and advanced toward a fruit he locked onto. Éclair took her eyes off the fruit to look at Toriko. She thought it was possible. Could he really get the fruit at this point? He was so close~ and~ "What?" Toriko looked around as the fruit popped. Every single one of them burst and Éclair gasped, "Whoa, and I was so sure you had it!" Toriko nodded, "I did too. I guess Food Honor really is the key." Shuu waved the man over, "Toriko, would you honor me with a match?" "Huh? You want to fight with me? Assistant Master are you sure?" The man nodded, "Please follow me. There is an arena up ahead." Éclair grit her teeth, "Um Shuu~" "It's okay, I won't damage him too badly." She raised her eyebrows, "All the money in the world couldn't buy you confidence like that. Good luck you two."

The two followed Shuu to the arena where they'd start their fight. The rules were quite simple. The first person to say 'I give up' was the loser. Éclair smiled, "Give em hell Toriko! ~Uh, but not too much of course." Shuu nodded, "Let's begin. ~By the way Éclair, after this is over, we too will be having a match." The girl's eyes amplified, "What!?" A smug look of self confidence overwhelmed her face, "Alright then, I won't back down." The girl started shadowboxing, "You don't know what you're in for." Of course she was not a fighter, but to her this seemed like it would be fun at the very least. Her eyes looked back to the match at hand and she saw something she wasn't used to. Toriko couldn't get a hit on the man. Try as he may, but Shuu was just too quick. ~But it wasn't just speed, it was skill. Her eyes couldn't keep up with how fast the man was. She was very impressed as he unusually bested Toriko. She could tell he was holding back at first, but when he went all out, he still didn't get any results. His fighting got a bit more reckless, and it ended up turning into a game of survival for the girl.

She dove out of the way as the temple around her started coming down from the attacks. So much rubble and rocks were coming down, and it was a miracle that she could dodge it all. The girl panted, "This is just as bad as being attacked by the temple itself." She peeked at the fight from around a large stone. The two stood face to face and Shuu began "Do you give up? Defeat must be admitted before training can begin." The bluenette lowered his head, "Yeah I get it. I give up. You win, for now anyway. Once I learn Food Honor we'll fight again." Éclair ran over to her partner, "Don't feel bad. If it's any consolation I'm still proud of you. ~And you should be happy that I'm still alive because you fought too recklessly. I almost died!" He ruffled her hair, "Ah, you're alright. I'm starving, can we get something to eat?" Shuu nodded, "Of course. Come on, the preparation of the meal will be our battle Éclair. "The girl smiled, "Good! That's much better than a fight! I feel so relieved"

Éclair stood beside Shuu in front of an Enamel Cabbage. The task was simple. Cut 0.8 millimeter strips of the cabbage the fastest. Shuu looked at the girl, "This is alright? A race?" She nodded, "Yeah, I'm pretty quick at chopping one of these up." "Okay, then how about the person who loses goes without a meal?" The girl smiled, "Okay." Toriko yelled, "You can do this Éclair!" She looked at the man, "Just cheer me on. That's all I need." "You seem very confident." The girl turned back to the cabbage, "I wasn't always, but certain things happen in life that build you up and change you. You're support is one of those things Toriko." She looked over at Shuu, "You ready?" He nodded, "Yes, begin." She started off quickly and cut into the cabbage. Her cuts were quick and precise. She was in her own zone as she prepped the food. In her head she could hear nothing but a calming ocean breeze. Shuu put his knife down, but Éclair kept going. She took a peek over and saw that the man was done, "Huh?" She wasn't even halfway done by the time he was. She looked up at the man, "You're amazing Assistant Master. I more than quadruple your time." "You did very well yourself Éclair." The girl twiddled her thumbs, "Shuu do we really have to go without a meal?" Toriko ran over with tears in his eyes, "No! Shuu-chan, please don't make us skip a meal! Please!"

After having much less than a satisfactory meal, the two were off to sleep. It was a hard day for them, but usually the first day is the toughest. A noise filled the girl's ears in the middle of her sleep. It was a loud ringing sound. She heard the doors in front of her slide open and Shuu bowed, "Good morning." The girl rubbed her eyes, "Morning? Huh? It feels like we only got 2 minutes of sleep." Toriko nodded, "Yeah, why are we up so early? This sun isn't even up yet." "This is how early we wake up here. I have clothes for you two. Get dressed and we'll start your training." Toriko nodded, "The faster we learn Food Honor the faster we'll get the bubble fruit." Éclair nodded, "You're right. I guess there is a method to this madness of waking up early." Shuu stood up, "Today you'll be learning Food Meditation."

They sat in a temple ready to give thanks. Shuu started, "To learn Food Meditation you must calm your heart and listen to your pulse. You must clear all worldly thoughts to give thanks. The objects in front of you are Torchorsetails. To keep them lit you must focus purely on gratitude or they'll burn out. Try to maintain them for 30 minutes and then we'll have breakfast." Éclair put her hands together and cleared her mind of worldly thoughts. Within a few short seconds both her and Toriko's torch went out. She looked over at the man "What did you do!? And I know it was you because I emptied my mind!" The man pouted, "No way! I only strayed for a split second." Shuu looked back, "That was quick. Display thoughts of gratitude and the torch will relight." Éclair looked at her partner, "We can do this. ~But next time don't take me down with you. Okay, let's start over!"

Some time passed and they finally did it. Éclair sighed as she fell over, "Toriko I'm so tired, but at least we did it. How the hell can giving gratitude be this difficult!?" Shuu came back, "Alright it is time for breakfast." The two were excited to finally get something to eat, but of course there was a catch. Another delicate ingredient wouldn't quite fill their stomachs. The work that needed to be put in was far too difficult for what they'd get out of it. Failing once again, they moved to the next bit of training on partially emptied stomachs. They were out at another part of the temple. "You know what the fundamental posture for food honor is?"

Éclair raised her hand, "Ooh, I know, I know." She put her hands together, "As Chin told us, hands together and bow, yes?" The man nodded, "Correct, here you will be learning the proper form for it." "We bow and put our hands together all the time. Before every meal in fact." Toriko nodded, "Yes. I give thanks to all the ingredients in this world. Now let's eat." As he bowed, a sharp needle grazed the bridge of his nose. Éclair pointed, "Toriko! You're bleeding!" Shuu looked at the two, "Please try not to let your form deteriorate, you could get really hurt." Éclair put her hands together again, "Okay, we've got it this time I think." It was like déjà vu all over again. The needles came flying and they were both bloodied and battered. The girl pouted, "You said we could get hurt, but we really could have DIED!" "This training is no game. Posture is of the utmost importance. Now please, let's finish with a meal. I have a Roast Ham seed for both of you. It blooms a Ham Flower. Until the flower blooms, please look after it without any breaks or sleep."

Toriko and Éclair both put their seeds inside a pot and watered it. They sat overnight waiting for something to happen. Though she knew it was gratitude she needed to focus on, her mind couldn't help but wander from time to time. Finally morning came and a small bud emerged. Éclair smiled, "Look Toriko! We got something! I would do my victory dance, but I'm pretty sure that's not warranted." Shuu came back, "Ahh I see it took one night to bud. The more gratitude you give, the faster it will blossom. Do your best to keep appreciating because if you don't~ you'll never have a meal." A chill was sent down the girl's spine. What was that evil glint in his eye? The two focused even harder and in due time, the flower did exactly as expected. Éclair propped up, "Okay, now I think it's time for my victory dance!" She picked up the pot and danced around with it. "Oh yeah, who's the most honorable honoring honorary honoree? I am! That's right! Me!" Toriko wiped the sweat from his forehead, "Damn that was hard. Let's eat this and head to sleep."

It was night and the two were still up talking. The blue haired man looked at his partner, "So, what do you think about this training anyway?" She shrugged, "It's frustrating as hell." The man nodded, "Yeah." "But~ At the same time, I think it's pretty cool. It just reminds me of back in the day when I was training as a chef with my best friends. Instead of growing together, we grew apart. This training kind of reminded me of that time because, Toriko, I don't think we're growing apart. Honestly, ever since I met you I think we've been growing together. When you lost to the Assistant Master, I felt kind of strange. I never thought I'd see you lose to anyone. And maybe it's just my crazy perception of you, but I think you can do anything. Every day I am reminded that I am your partner, and it is an honor that I hold even higher than being a chef. ~though that's the reason I am your partner. Toriko let's beat the Assistant Master and learn this Food Honor." The man nodded, "Yeah! Let's do it!" She rolled over and closed her eyes, "Goodnight...~I love you~..." The man sat up, "Huh?" "I said goodnight, see you in the morning."

They were back sitting before their Torchorsetails. Sweat dripped off the side of their faces as they lit the torches. It finally burned out and Shuu smiled, "You've done it. You lit the torch for 30 minutes." Éclair jumped up "Woo! We did it! I feel good!" "Then tomorrow we'll extend the time to an hour with more Torchorsetails. The more torches means the greater concentration you'll need. The two sighed, "Damn." There were more difficult tasks ahead of them, and it seemed like every food task was the hardest. From the Icefish Soumen to the pudding from a Pudding Camel, everything was so hard. Éclair's stomach growled, "I fear that we'll never be able to eat again!"

Back in front of the Roast Ham seed is where they sat. Having failed on all the other tasks, they were hungry and irritable. Toriko stood up and swatted in the direction of the pot, "Dammit! Is doing this even making us any better!?" Without warning his attack came out quickly and forcefully. It split the ground and took out one of the outer structures. Éclair shook the man, "Toriko you bastard! I know you're mad because we haven't eaten, but you can't just destroy things!" "I-I wasn't trying to." Shuu walked forward, "It was your power of concentration. It has increased due to repeated gratitude. In other words, your useless movements have been cut down. Toriko nodded, "I think I finally understand Food Honor." "And you're still at the beginning of it. With more training you will only get better. Éclair, your skills have improved as well. Come."

They stood before a Puffer Whale and the girl frowned, "You want me to prepare this?" "Yes." She picked up her prized knife and sliced into the fish. It was as if she'd done it thousands of times. The technique came so easy to her, and within seconds she had the poison sack in her hands. "Wow, I'm even surprised, and I'm the one who did it!" Toriko smiled, "That was great Éclair!" Shuu looked at the girl, "Perhaps you haven't noticed something important about the Puffer Whale? It isn't gold because it hasn't notice that you've removed the poison sack. Your moves were so delicate from the power of concentration. With the power of Food Honor, there are even some chefs who can remove the poison sack without knocking being applied. There are even records of fish that continue to swim without knowing they are dying after the handling of a chef." The girl smiled, "I'm gonna do it! I'm gonna become one of those chef's one day." Toriko nodded, "Let's do it then! Let's master Food Honor and grow stronger, together!"