Chapter 11: Kaarage of Youth
Hey everyone I'm back with a new chapter. This one took a little longer because I got stuck trying to figure out the Fall Selections but luckily a friend of mine helped me square that all away and now I got season 1 and some of season 2 figured out. So thanks for being patient. I hope you like what I have planned. Please Review and Enjoy.
It was nighttime and we find ourselves at Yukihira as Soma had gathered Andy, Ikumi, Mayumi, and Mr. Tomita for his plan.
"What is the ideal way for someone to eat Kaarage?" Soma asks.
"Easy when it's hot," Andy said.
"Exactly. Kaarage is best when it's from straight out of the fryer." Ikumi nods.
"Right. But Mozuya's dishes don't do that." Soma grins.
"What do you mean?" Mayumi asks.
"Mozuya's kaarage comes in boxes used to seal off heat. Meaning they won't be eaten until the customer is home and not right away. Their customers won't open them up and eat them at the station." Soma explains.
"Makes sense, there's no food court at the station, so the only option they have is takeout." Mayumi realized.
"Which is where our shopping district excels. We get tons of customers who want something they can eat while looking around. And with all the school crowds that let out in this area, we can use that to our advantage. Chomping down on hot, fresh, fried goodness is when chicken is at its best." Soma explains.
"Meaning we don't have to fight them on their terms at all. We're gonna make something that people can eat right away." Andy grins catching on.
"And that way we can use this location to its full advantage." Ikumi nods.
"Exactly. The term in this case is fried chicken for eating and walking. I'm feeling good about our chances now." Soma said.
While everyone was pumped for this Mr. Tomita was extra pumped.
"Whoo! I'm all fired up! I'll help make an exciting dish too!" Yuya said confusing them. "After all I'm a lunchtime expert too. We'll take those suckers down!" He declares before leaving.
"Yeah, good luck with that Mr. Tomita," Soma said doubtful he'll be able to pull that off.
"Is it just me or does he act similar to someone we know?" Andy sweat drops.
"Unfortunately," Ikumi growls thinking of the head of Don RS.
Meanwhile, at the station, things were going well at Mozuya.
"The All-Japan Kaarage Championship! We won the gold Medal 3 years in a row folks because we're Mozuya! Step right up folks and get the best chicken in the land!" Kinu calls out to the customers.
From the back, an employee approaches her.
"Excuse me Ms. Kinu, we've received the invoice from the consultant for this month." She said.
Hearing this Kinu narrows her eyes in frustration but hides it with her fan. 'Maybe I should just be done with that 4-eyed dweeb. I can't afford to keep paying his ridiculous fees anyway.'
"Are you okay ma'am?" The employee asks.
"Oh nothing that concerns you," Kinu assures. 'As long as Mozuya has its secret marinade we're all set. Sure, we're all set up in this impregnable fortress thanks to that dork but this fortress is mine now.' She grins.
Back at Yukihira, we see Soma showing them his first idea for a new dish.
"A package so you can eat it on the spot. Then add some toothpicks. Something like this maybe?" Soma asks showing them two different pieces of fried chicken with toothpicks in them made from a container shaped from a milk carton.
"You plan on reusing milk cartons?" Ikumi asks.
"Yeah, we get a lot of elementary and middle school kids who come through here. And they all love kaarage. So I have 2 options. One is flavored with curry powder and the other with some gooey grated cheese all over it." Soma explains.
Taking a bite of each one Mayumi had a smile on her face.
"What do you think?" Soma asks.
"They're delicious. Both the curry and the cheese but uh…I feel like Mozuya's was more satisfying in terms of taste and texture. So I don't think this measures up." Mayumi admits.
"Plus your packaging. It's so small compared to Mozuya's. With the toothpicks, it feels more like a free sample than a dish." Andy adds.
"And the ingredients seemed to be only concentrated on the surface. We gotta improve the quality of the ingredients throughout." Ikumi adds.
"What if you tried putting the chicken on a stick so you can eat with one hand?" Mayumi suggests.
"Hmm, chicken-on-a-stick is a pretty common concept. We need something more." Soma pauses. "Hang on I got a few recipe notebooks in my room. I'll go get them."
"Hey Soma, mind if I give it a whirl?" Andy asks.
"Sure I'll be right back," Soma said walking out of the room.
Making his way to the back of the kitchen, Andy took out his headphones and scrolled through his iPod.
"What's he doing?" Mayumi asks confused.
"Pull up a seat. You're in a for show." Ikumi grins sitting down in front eager to see it.
(Play Sweet Home Alabama by Lynyrd Skynyrd)
Looking around Andy grabbed the chicken, flour, sauces, soda, spices, ketchup, pickles and brown sugar.
One, two, three
Turn it up
Big wheels keep on turnin'
Carry me home to see my kin
Singin' songs about the south-land
I miss Alabamy once again and I think it's a sin, yes
Well I heard Mister Young sing about her
Well I heard ol' Neil put her down
Well I hope Neil Young will remember
A southern man don't need him around anyhow
Sweet home Alabama
Where the skies are so blue
Sweet home Alabama
Lord I'm comin' home to you
As he moved around the kitchen, Andy was spinning and moving his body to the beat.
"What is this?" Mayumi said amazed.
"It's amazing is what he is." Ikumi sighs.
Mixing the ketchup, part of the soda, brown sugar and pickle juice from the jar into a bowl Andy mixes them together. After slicing the chicken into thirds, he covers them with spices before mixing the rest of soda into the fry batter.
Taking the chicken Andy loads them into the fryer.
While the chicken cooked Andy pounded and rolled the dough before putting it in the oven making it into biscuits.
When they were done he spun around and drizzled the biscuits in sauce before putting the chicken on it.
(Song End)
When the song ended Soma walked in to see Andy present them with delicious-looking chicken biscuits.
"Enjoy." Andy said taking the headphones off.
"A chicken biscuit? Clever. It definitely adds more to the whole walking and eating." Soma said.
"And with its size, it definitely adds more to the experience." Ikumi agrees.
"I used the tanginess from the ketchup and brown sugar mixed in with the sour taste of the pickle juice to create the sauce." Andy said as Ikumi and Mayumi took a bite of it and instantly both girls moaned to the taste.
"You put the soda in the batter to help make the frying lighter but still give it that crisp taste." Ikumi moans.
"Yep and when you mix that in with the spices I rubbed onto the chicken before I battered it the aromas were sealed into the chicken and stayed with it while it was frying." Andy said.
"It's hot and spicy but also tasty and delicious." Mayumi moans.
"And with the warm fluffiness of the biscuit, it's almost like a warm embrace." Ikumi sighs.
Looking at Ikumi, Andy chuckles getting her attention.
"What's so funny?" Ikumi turns revealing she had a little sauce on her lips.
"Sorry Nikumi but you got a little." Andy chuckles.
Grabbing a napkin, Andy wipes it off her causing Ikumi to turn bright red.
"N-Next time just tell me! Don't do stuff like that out of nowhere!" Ikumi said turning away.
"Sorry," Andy said before looking at Soma. "What do you think Soma? Is this good enough?"
"Hmm you got the concept down but I think we might need to make a few tweaks. The sandwich is good but we need something extra special to set us apart from Mozuya." Soma ponders.
"Aw man. Thought I had it." Andy mumbles.
"Also the whole biscuit route makes it feel too Western so we might need to make something more accustomed to this area," Ikumi said.
"I guess you both make good points." Andy sighs sitting down.
"Hey don't worry we're getting close," Soma assures.
Throughout the day the three chefs were trying various different types of dishes and Mayumi tasted all of them.
"This one might be the juiciest one yet." She smiles.
"Mozuya uses breast meat which is low in calories and has a less fat content. It might make it more popular with the diet crowd but if you want a the best type of fried meat you gotta use the thighs." Ikumi said.
"Any type of dark meat is better. Drumsticks and wings are super popular in Western cooking. Good thinking Nikumi." Andy smiles.
"Cut it out." Ikumi blushes.
"She really is the Meat Master," Soma said impressed.
'Meat Master? Oh, that's why he calls her Nikumi.' Mayumi realized.
"Okay we have the meat figured out, now we need the marinade," Soma said.
"Andy's BBQ marinade was good but I feel for this one we should use soy sauce and Ichimi-pepper seasoning," Ikumi suggests.
"And for the batter cornstarch is probably our best bet," Andy said.
"Uh I don't have any of that." Soma cringed.
"I can go buy some for us." Mayumi offers.
"Thank you," Soma said as she headed out.
'We didn't have anything at first, but they have idea after idea. I knew those three were great but this is amazing.' Mayumi thought running to the store.
That night, the four of them were putting on the finishing touches.
"Alright, all our flavors are coming together. We have our meat and our marinade all set." Ikumi said.
"Now all that's left is figuring out how to get people to eat our food," Soma said.
"Soma!" As the back door opens up Mr. Tomita comes in holding something that's all wrapped up.
"Mr. Tomita?" Soma acknowledges.
"Uh, why didn't you come in through the front door?" Andy asks.
"With this, I needed to sneak in through the back entrance. I finally discovered it! The perfect dish for walking and eating! This radical dish captures all the knowledge of Tomita-Ya Bentos!" He declares revealing his wrapped item. "Behold! A Fried Chicken Onigiri!" He said showing them a classic onigiri with a piece of kaarage on top.
"Uh…hate to tell this but it's been done." Andy raised an eyebrow.
"Wait what?!" Tomita said shocked and confused.
"People already sell these, you know?" Ikumi points out.
"They make them in convenience stores." Mayumi sweatdrops.
After a few seconds, Mr. Tomita burst into tears and covered his face. "I'm so embarrassed."
"Such a waste of space." Ikumi said bashing him.
"I thought it was a hit for sure! I mean fried chicken and rice is the ultimate combination. Right?" Mr. Tomita asks.
"Yeah, that's kinda why it's already been made." Andy points out.
However, Soma was realizing something from this.
'Something new impact. Something easy to carry. And something that elevates the flavor.' And then it hit him. "Mr. Tomita you're a genius!"
"Huh? You think so?" He asks pointing to his dish.
"No not that. But that over there. It's gonna work. We'll roll this thing out tomorrow night!" Soma declares getting everyone's attention.
He had something big planned. And needless to say, everyone was eager to help.
While Tomita went to the print shop to get flyers, Ikumi was getting chicken thighs to be delivered, Andy was getting all the marinades ready, and even Mayumi was helping with something special.
Seeing all this Soma couldn't help but grin.
'This will be a surprise attack. By tomorrow before dinnertime when the daily feeding frenzy is at its peak we will invade the enemy stronghold and there will be no chance for them to fight back.' Soma declared.
The next day as the sun was going down and we were approaching dinner time.
Out in front of her store, Kinu was on the lookout for hungry customers to line up at her store.
"It'll be dinnertime soon. I can't wait for things to get moving." Kinu said fanning herself.
"Man club activities were long today." A few students said as they walked by.
"I know. I was starving and I still had like an hour." In their hands, Kinu saw they were holding some kind of food.
It looked like some kind of chicken dish but it had lettuce, a strange sauce in a wrap.
"What is that? Is that Kaarage? No, it couldn't be. No Kaarage could possibly make you want to buy it more than Mozuya. No worries. No worries." She assures herself.
The next day at the same time, she was out front trying to attract customers.
"Come on! Step right up! Come get the best Kaarage at Mozuya!" Kinu calls out before noticing more people with that strange wrap.
Confused she noticed that it had the Sumire Shopping District logo on the paper portion making her narrow her eyes suspiciously.
And the day after that, Kinu was losing it.
"What the hell is going on?! Where are people getting these weird cones full of crap?!" She snaps before looking at an employee. "You there. What are our sales?"
"Oh I uh just emailed you my report just like always." The employee said.
"And they were good right?" Kinu asks.
"Well actually, our sales have been down by 20% for the past 2 days." She admits shocking Kinu.
"What?! Why didn't you tell me anything?! Are you girls slacking off?! You giving them the best customer service?!" Kinu snaps.
"Excuse me." Two businessmen ask walking over.
"Oh yes, how can I help you?" Kinu asks changing her attitude instantly.
"Is this the Kaarage place with the Sumire mark on it?" He asks making her growl.
"I believe you mean the shopping area in front of the station." She said struggling to keep it together.
"Shopping area huh? Thanks." They said before leaving.
Nearby a little girl and her mommy were looking for a place to eat dinner.
"What do you think sweetie? You want Mozuya for dinner?" The mother asks.
"Huh? I want the Kaarge from Sumire." The girl said pissing Kinu off even more.
"Sumire huh? Sounds good to me." The mother said as they walked right past the store.
"Customers are passing us by?! This is unacceptable!" Kinu growls in rage.
"Uh, ma'am maybe you should report it to your contact." The employee suggests nervously.
"I don't need some dumb kid to help us, you idiot!" Kinu snaps. "I need to see what's going on with Sumire with my own eyes!"
Making her way to the shopping district, Kinu looked in shock and disbelief as the once-empty shopping district was bustling with people.
"This place was a ghost town 3 days ago. How is this even possible?" She asks.
At the Tomita Bento shop tons of customers were lined up.
"I'll take one of those please."
"Me too."
"I'll take three!"
Inside we see Soma with his headband on as he, Andy, and Ikumi were cooking up a storm in the back.
"You got it! One minute, please. I need another batch!" Soma calls out.
"On it!" Ikumi said as she was getting the chicken out of the marinade. For the thighs they had them soaking in the marinade of soy sauce and pepper all day.
"Batter all up and ready!" Andy calls out sliding it out.
"Perfect," Soma said taking the chicken and batter from them both at the same time.
In the front, Mayumi and Mr. Tomita were blown away by their teamwork. Somehow even with his headphones on Andy was able to time himself perfectly with the two of them.
And once that chicken hit the fryer the aroma filled the air.
"Man that smells so good I can't stand it." One student said.
"I wanna eat some right now." Another drooled.
'After we fry the chicken we take it from the oil and have the heat slowly work its way through and then we fry it again to make it crispy. Finally, we add lettuce leaves and herbs and we tuck in a special lightly fried pan wrap. We top that with a Thai Fish Sauce to give it that tangy surprise and with a final dash of coarse black pepper.' Soma thought as he finished up the dish. "Order up! Sumire Mark Kaarage Roll!"
"This is so good!"
"It's still sizzling!"
As all of the customers happily dug in and enjoyed it Soma noticed Kinu watching from behind the crowd.
Tapping Andy on the shoulder, Soma hinted for him to follow.
"Mr. Tomita we'll be back in a minute," Soma said as they headed out.
"What? Where are you going?" Tomita asks clearly not wanting to be left alone.
"Oh for crying out loud. Ikumi keep an eye on him." Andy said.
"You got it." Ikumi nods.
'Just what is in that wrap? A crepe? Something that they use for tacos? What is that?' Kinu thought.
"Well look who it is Soma. The lady who told you that you were in over your head." Andy said getting her attention.
Startled Kinu turns around to see both teenage boys behind her.
"Hey yeah, it is. Why aren't you standing in line like everyone else?" Soma asks.
"Wh-When did you two start planning this strategy?" Kinu stutters.
"About 3 days ago," Soma said surprising her.
"3 Days? But how? How were you able to get attention so quickly and so fast?" Kinu asks.
"I'm from New York City a place where there's a million restaurants similar to you. So if you want to get customers you have to make sure you stand out above the rest." Andy said taking out his iPod.
"First we had Andy play a few loud tunes to attract the students and he put on a little show to grab their attention. The guy has moves." Soma smirks.
"Thank you." Andy smiles.
"But before that, we had to get the right supplies. The Sheet Metal Place made the Sumire Branding Mark for us. The ingredients are from the butcher and grocer." Soma said.
"Fortunately I knew a girl who oversaw all of it. To make sure we had what we needed." Andy said glancing at Ikumi.
"And the Printing shop made all the flyers and paper sleeves for us to use. We got everything we needed right here in this shopping district in just one night." Soma declares.
All around them, various other stores in the Shopping District were selling their merchandise.
"I got ice-cold beers! Perfect to go with your Chicken rolls!"
"Sale on Taiyaki!"
"Ramune 2 for 1!"
'Unbelievable. These two managed to bring life back to Sumire-Dori. I underestimated them. In one day they set up the perfect battle formation against Mozuya.' Kinu thought.
"Hey Soma what is it she said about us a few days ago?" Andy asks.
"That we had no sense of identity or competitiveness and it was only natural we fall to ruin. Something like that." Soma summarizes.
"Sounds about right. Well, it seems like you were wrong after all." Andy said.
"Yep. This shopping area is like nothing you've ever seen." Soma declares.
Hearing this Kinu was beyond pissed off. "Oh please! What makes your Kaarage so great?! Sooner or later Mozuya is gonna crush you!"
"Well don't say that." A student interrupts as he and his friend walked over.
"What?" Kinu said turning her attention to them
"Unless you're gonna try some grandma." He suggests.
"Yeah, it's crazy delish." His friend said.
"Young man where are your parents and who are you calling grandma?!" Kinu asks offended.
"Oh yeah, she did give us a free sample of her chicken once," Soma recalls.
"It's only right that you give her one too." Andy agrees.
Stepping back Andy allows Soma this victory since it's his home.
Making Kinu a Kaarage wrap he presents it to her hot and fresh.
"Order up." Soma taunts.
Taking it Kinu takes a big bite and instantly moans to the taste.
"This wrap. It uses rice flour. Dear lord, it's like a banh xeo. It's so simple. The concept of this dish is piping hot white rice combined with juicy fried chicken. He reinterpreted the ultimate family meal. Packaging it so it's easy to eat while walking, while still showcasing its original flavors." As Kinu kept eating she was sucked into the food fantasy. "Students coming home from after-school activities, mothers in a hurry to get dinner ready, a place for commuters to relax. The peaceful murmur of city streets…it feels so well. The atmosphere of this place awakens the senses. Profit, and earnings, are the two most important ingredients to any fine cuisine. This is…this is…The taste of youth!" Kinu said as she found herself in a baseball game scoring the winning home run and being hoisted up into the air.
Exiting the fantasy, we see Kinu on her knees in defeat as Soma took off his headband.
"You're welcome." Soma declares winning this fight.
That night, they were all cleaning up after a long day of cooking.
"Well, I guess we saved this Shopping District," Ikumi said.
"Yeah, not how I planned to spend this break but it was fun I guess. Plus I got to hang out with you outside of school." Andy said getting her attention. "I owe you one for doing this."
"So…say I wanted to cash in a favor in the near future would you maybe say yes to spending time with me?" Ikumi asks.
"Absolutely. I love spending time with you." Andy smiles making her blush.
"Thanks for all the help guys. Andy, you can go back first I need to take care of a few things around here before leaving." Soma offers.
"Really? You don't think someone is gonna take over the shopping district while we're washing dishes?" Andy jokes.
"I think I can manage," Soma smirks.
"Well, maybe I can catch the last train before it heads out. Just better make sure all my stuff is packed." Andy said looking at the time.
"You know my car is picking me up in a half hour. If you'd like you can ride with me?" Ikumi offers nervously.
"Thank you, that would be a big help," Andy said.
Walking past them, Soma approaches Mayumi.
"Say Mayumi would you like to…maybe." Soma starts.
"Yeah?" Mayumi lifts her head up.
"Would you maybe like to work part-time with Tomita?" Soma asks confusing her.
"Huh?!" She said turning around to face him.
"It's going to take a lot of hard work to get our new Kaarage roll famous. Frankly, I'm worried about leaving him on his own." Soma said gesturing to Mr. Tomita who was sitting against the wall completely exhausted. "And I don't think I'll be able to help out much."
"Oh I don't know. I've never worked a part-time job before! There must be someone more suited than me!" Mayumi said nervously.
"You've got a strong sense of responsibility, so I'm betting I can trust you with this," Soma said getting her attention.
"I do?" Mayumi asks.
"Back in middle school, you used to work late doing things for the student council. Even in elementary school you never skipped your tasks to water the flowerbeds. I'd feel better knowing you were here and keeping an eye on things." Soma said making her blush.
'I thought Soma was someone who was completely out of reach, but…he noticed me?' Mayumi realized.
"I mean I don't want to force you—" Soma starts.
"I'll try to do my best!" Mayumi said with enthusiasm.
"Really? Great. I'll come back to air out the shop every once in a while. We can catch up then. I'll even cook for you if you want."
"Really?" Mayumi blushes at the thought.
Seeing this both Andy and Ikumi glanced at each other.
"Wow…does she?" Andy starts.
"Yep." Ikumi deadpans. "Does he even see it?"
"Ehh it's hard to tell with Soma sometimes." Andy sighs.
"Well while he makes sure those two can keep this place in business I'll get the car to come pick us up." Ikumi said.
"Okay I'll just grab my stuff and head out," Andy said.
Soon the two of them were driving back to Totsuki but the ride was uncomfortably quiet.
'Oh, my god. Andy is in the car with me?! I finally get some alone time with him and I'm wasting it!' Ikumi thought before glancing at him. "So Andy, you and Soma how did you end up coming to help him?"
"Our dads went to Totsuki together. He stopped by and asked Soma and me to air his restaurant out. Although I'll admit this was not how I originally wanted to spend this week off. Sorry, I ruined yours too." Andy said.
"Ruined? Hardly. I probably would have spent the whole week doing nothing." Ikumi said.
"But I thought you were busy. You said you had to make some adjustments to your schedule." Andy recalls making her flinch.
"Uh well, I was but then after I made time for you all that other stuff was moved to a later date," Ikumi said nervously.
"Well either way I'm glad you could come," Andy said.
Looking at his smiling face Ikumi couldn't help but chuckle.
"Funny if you had told me when we first met that I would be spending a whole week making chicken with you I'd say you were crazy but here we are," Ikumi said.
"Yeah you tried to expel me and all you cared about was meat," Andy said.
"Sorry about that. I was not in the right headspace." Ikumi apologizes.
"It's fine. I like this side of you better. I know you hate to admit but I think you needed to join Don RS way more than I did. You're way better at it than me." Andy said.
"I'm only better at it because you pushed me to be better," Ikumi said.
"Glad I was able to help somebody," Andy said as they both chuckled.
As the mood was lightened Ikumi decided to try having fun.
"So…what was the deal with Soma and that Mayumi girl?" Ikumi asks.
"He said they were childhood friends something tells me that girl wished they were more," Andy said.
"Does Soma even realize that?" Ikumi asks.
Deadpanning Andy looked at her with an expression that said. "What do you think?"
"Fair enough." Ikumi giggles.
"Yeah, Soma has food as his number one priority. Everything else in his life is fighting for second and I have no idea what place romance is." Andy said.
Slowly Ikumi scoots closer and strokes her hair.
"So uh what do you think? Where's Romance in your life?" Ikumi asks.
"I mean I'd like to think it's pretty important to me," Andy admits thinking about how he ended up with Erina.
"Well, what if you found yourself in a situation similar to Soma and Mayumi but the girl was too nervous to say she liked you. What would you think?" Ikumi asks.
"Honestly if you love someone you should just come out and say it. I know it might seem scary at first but if you don't take that risk then you'll constantly be questioning yourself." Andy said.
Little did he know Ikumi felt like he was talking right to her.
"I mean does that sound weird?" Andy asks looking at her and immediately Ikumi moves in.
"Andy I love you!" Ikumi declares before kissing him on the lips surprising him.
"N-Nikumi?" Andy said in shock as she separated. "You love me?"
"I do Andy. Being around you, hearing you praise me, tasting your food. I love every second of it and I love you. You showed me I didn't have to be what others expected me to be. I could be myself. Whenever I'm around you my heart races, my face turns red and I just had to tell you." Ikumi confesses.
"Is that why you only allow me to call you Nikumi?" Andy realizes.
"Kinda." Ikumi blushes. "So…how do you feel about me?"
Pausing Andy looked at the girl next to him.
"Ikumi when I first met you…I thought you were a pain. Just another girl who thought like Erina, that as long as you were a good cook you could do whatever you wanted." Andy said making her cringe fearing the worst. "However, after we had our Shokugeki and we joined the same club I began to watch you change. You became fun to be around, someone I could count on and depend on, you became someone I'm glad to have in my life."
Hearing this Ikumi smiles happily feeling like her chest was about to burst.
"And…I guess I do have feelings for you as well." Andy confesses.
It was at that moment at Ikumi couldn't hold it in anymore.
Grabbing Andy she pulls him into a big hug.
Looking at the joy on her face, Andy saw how similar it was to Erina when they became a couple. And instantly remembered what she told him before leaving.
'As my boyfriend you are allowed to share the harem with me. Including picking out the girls for us.' Erina's words rang in his head.
"I should warn though dating me means you'll be part of a very uh "interesting" relationship," Andy admits.
"As long as part of it involves me and you, I'm fine with that," Ikumi said pulling him into another kiss on the lips. This time Andy happily returns it.
Pressing herself against him, Ikumi was on cloud 9 while Andy was also enjoying himself.
As the two of them made out passionately, Ikumi presses herself against her and as her breasts rubbed against Andy's chest he wrapped her arms around her to pull her in close.
After a few minutes the two of them separate for air.
"How long until we're back at Totsuki?" Andy asks.
"About an hour," Ikumi said.
Pressing his lips against her the two of them made the most of their time together.
Needless the rest of the ride back much like Andy's love life just got a lot more interesting.
A few days later, Andy and Soma were eager to get back to class after that break but before they could someone wanted to see them.
Being brought to a big office, both students stood across from Eizan.
"Hello there." Eizan smirks.
"Who are you?" Soma asks.
"I heard that you two created a new Kaarage dish and that it's a rather interesting dish. I'm the one who oversaw Mozuya's expansion into Kanto. But it's not just them. Ever since middle school, I've been the consultant to over 500 restaurants bringing in record-breaking profits for all of them." Eizan said.
"Wow sounds more like you should be working in business rather than cooking," Andy said.
"To me cooking is business. And I heard you two got the shopping arcade back on its feet. My strategy is ruined because of your play." Eizan said.
"So what? You want to punch us?" Soma assumes.
"Don't think I'll make it easy," Andy warns.
"Not at all. In fact, I want you to work for me. Both of you. Do so and neither one of you will ever need to look for work again." Eizan offers.
"Thanks but no thanks I got my eye on being the successor to my family restaurant back home," Soma said narrowing his eyes.
"Not interested. I'm no one's little pet. Did you really think we would say yes to such an offer?" Andy glares.
"Actually, I didn't think you would go for it, not with your reputation." He admits.
"Take it down a notch business boy. You're not even a chef—" Andy starts.
"Wrong. I told you cooking to me is business. And every business I take part in is a success. I'm the chef whom all chefs look to aspire to be. I'm standing on a far greater stage than either of you. Soma Yukihira and Andrew Grayson, I'm here to let you know that you both have been chosen to compete in the Fall Selection. But I wouldn't be excited. This means your antics won't slip through the cracks anymore." Getting up from his seat Eizan approached them both. "In the culinary world, I go by another name. I am…the Alchemist."
Hearing this both boys turned to him.
"Totsuki Elite 10 seat No.9. Etsuya Eizan. There is no greater stage and I look forward to crushing you both." He declares.
Narrowing his eyes, Andy was more than up for the challenge.
'Compared to dealing with Erina this guy will be a walk in the park.' Andy thought.
Andy might not have Erina as an enemy anymore but Eizan is definitely proving there are more asshole cooks in this school and they were eager for a piece of him and his friends.
And the Fall Selection is the next battleground for them.
