Classique

by Zancrowe

{Soma / Erina} As rival schools attempt to crush Tootsuki in the biggest Tournament Arc; Azami finally attempts to retake control of his daughter; while Asahi decides it's time to usurp the Nakiri Throne from that very heiress. Only problem? Erina's boyfriend. [ft. Asahi/Dove; Loren/Nao; Ryou/Alice; Isshi/Nene; Taku/Hisa; Akira/Megu] ((43 / 44: To You, 10 Years From Nao))

29. The Légumes Magician

Notes:

Hey Everyone! Zancrowe Here!

The Side Pairings Poll Results Are In! You can find the Top 10 Rankings down below, at the end of the Chapter, as well as the entire ranking up on my Profile Page!

Also, I apologize for how long this update took. I must have rewritten this chapter about 3 or 4 times, since it didn't feel like it conveyed what I wanted it to, and this is a very important chapter (heck, from here until the end, they all are!). That said, place your bets, Kojirou Shinomiya vs. Azami Nakamura! Also, just what is going to go down at this Grand Ball everyone keeps talking about? Please, read on, and don't forget to share your thoughts with me!

Remember you can find me at Twitter as "Zancrowe", where I usually post a lot of Food Wars / Shokugeki no Soma related stuff, as well as a little from the newest Tenmaku Cinema chapters from the same creators!

Youtube Page: I have one with upcoming Sorina & Food Wars content (I swear, content is coming!)! Link is on my Profile Page or just search up "Zancrowe" on Youtube.

Disclaimer: Don't own Shokugeki no Soma.

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During all the commotion that was caused due to the sudden and surprising arrival and declaration, Soma took a brief respite and went back to his phone for a moment, the strange text Mayumi had sent him earlier still an enigma to him, and he was concerned, but things at this party (of sorts) had gotten very off the rails.

The tension in the air was outright palpable, he'd note, as what had just been a fancy celebration had turn into an outright culinary warzone, albeit one where the host of the event itself, Mr. Roberts, remained blissfully unaware of the stakes at play.

On one side you had Azami Nakamura, the definition of a proper gentleman in the eyes of the public until only recently, where the words of his daughter's boyfriend and his own niece caused an online movement to be created against him; who now had just culminated a rather victorious set of events in his favor, managing to force both former and current members of the Elite Ten to clash against each other before he personally took on and took out the Seventh Seat, both off the Intercontinental Shokugeki, and if he'd have his way, out of his daughter's very life.

But, on the opposite side, you had Kojirou Shinomiya, who just like Azami, was a First Seat graduate of Tootsuki, who had gained quite the reputation both for his amazing talent as well as for just how ruthless the man was when directing a kitchen. A perfectionist to a fault, he rarely got involved in such social events despite the massive amount of invites he'd receive year-round, earing himself quite a reputation as an ant-socialite, so it was surprising to see him here, declaring a challenge to Azami, all to defend a current student of a school that the Magician himself seemed to have purposely distanced himself from until just recently (or when otherwise outright forced to return by the likes of Doujima).

"You wish to challenge me, Shinomiya?" Azami voiced, keeping his tone in check, less he'd give any of the guests at this little event any more gossip than what the meddling brats had already. This little… intervention had not been part of his predictions, sadly, but it wasn't something he couldn't content with. "What a grand idea, however, is it not a little… much? For I feel that for two former First Seats to engage against one another is something that should be reserved for a much bigger audience."

"Then call off your match against this brat," Shinomiya shot back, lifting his hand and pointing to a pouting Soma with his thumb. Could his Master stop treating him like a kid in such a huge event? "You already have your team and your conditions set, taking the fight directly to the kids is low… even for you."

"Low?" Azami asked, with a laugh. "Young Soma Yukihira here agreed to our terms, I merely obliged. Gave him an opportunity no one else would. Nothing that happened is improper or against any formerly established rules."

"You are not going to ruin his career," Shinomiya warned. "So put up or shut up. Either you call of the conditions of your match against him, or you take me on in order to legitimize that so-called victory."

"I would thread lightly, Shinomiya," Azami returned the warning with his own, the man's tone darkening considerably. "All I've ever done is for the wellbeing of my family, and I merely wanted to make it clear to the boy that spreading lies about that is, well, frowned upon. Also," he added, his eyes sharpening as he stared the Légumes Magician down. "A man with such an illustrious career, and such distinguished goals, to risk his image in such a public loss, well, let's just say just as you worry about these "kids", I worry about you. You are younger, so I do feel responsible if I am the cause that your career ends up derailing due to poor decisions."

The room grew quiet, for just a moment, and while Azami's façade held, Shinomiya just outright laughed. Everyone turned to the young man, who had to take but a moment. "That's funny. Yeah, I mean, I would be intimidated, I guess, but it's pretty hard to be afraid of a chef whose own career got wrecked by a damn hashtag."

"Oh, burn!" Rindou could be heard calling out from the sides, alongside Alice's laughter, as everyone else utterly froze in place.

Azami's glare was no longer hidden at all, and he began to understand, even if a little bit, that part of the reason Soma Yukihira had proven to be such a persistent pest in his life was no doubt thanks to Shinomiya's influence and teachings. So, if he had to nip this in the bud, then fine, so be it.

"Don't say I didn't warn you," was all Azami said before the Shokugeki began, "You're going to find there are some tricks even beyond your abilities, I'm afraid."

"You'd be surprised," Shinomiya countered, matching Azami's glare with his own. "There's still quite a few tricks up this magician's sleeve you'd best watch out for."

To the excitement of all those present not in the "know", and to the sheer fright of all those that were, Azami and Shinomiya demonstrated that they were clearly overly familiar with the inner workings of Tootsuki, as true to their graduation prowess, both men got ready for their Shokugeki in mere moments. It helped that everything had been pre-set up for the prior match-ups, and that this was a culinary event in itself. But still, it was something else to see two masters of their craft get ready to throw down, something that had every Elite Ten member, former or current, utterly conflicted on how to even feel.

On one hand, this was going to likely define how the entire International Shokugeki was going to conclude, with the worst possible scenario leaving them all screwed.

On the other hand… it was still Azami Nakamura versus Kojirou Shinomiya, and it was hard not to get hyped for that.

Soma was debating whether or not to reach out to his Master, wondering if he should wait until the Shokugeki was over or not, and also wondering if it even mattered. He was going to get a scolding regardless. But, his indecisiveness got sidetracked when he saw another familiar face come into view, a little slower paced than his Master had, and for good reason.

"Miss Inui!" Soma called out, causing his group to all turn back towards the woman, and soon enough, many guests also took notice of her. She was, after all, just like their host Azami or their esteemed "guest" Shinomiya, culinary royalty. And, Soma quickly noticed, even if he had last seen her not that long ago, she seemed about to outright burst. Woman looked so plump and likewise so pretty. She was also pouting at him, because of course.

"Hinako," she corrected, as Soma quickly stepped to where she was walking in from, and without even thinking of it, extending his arm to help her down the steps and towards a nearby empty seat. Most of the people watching just stared, a bit taken off-guard by the sheer politeness on display by this young gentleman, who did it out of instinct so he had no idea anyone had been surprised. "It's that hard for you to drop the "Miss" part, isn't it?"

Soma just laughed, gently showing her to the seat. It may or not be somebody's, but it was hers now. "I don't say it because I think you're that much older than me. It's just, I respect you, like a lot."

"Hmm…" Hinako pondered for a moment, before she just smiled at the boy that her husband cared so much for yet never admitted as much. "How about… Miss Hinako then, fair compromise?"

"Yeah," Soma said with a smile and a nod.

As Hinako sat down, with Isshiki walking up to the two and pulling up her chair for her, earning himself a surprised "thank you" in response, the soon-to-be mother turned to the two, "Seems we made it here just in time. Are you kids alright?"

"Yeah, although I'm still processing this…" Soma admitted, signaling towards Shinomiya.

"I am quite surprised Soma here has such respectable and reliable masters at his disposal for such a last minute save," Isshiki added, which got a giggle out of Hinako.

"I… I didn't call them," Soma corrected, which caused Isshiki to turn to him with a raised brow.

"…I did," a soft voice spoke up, as both Soma and Isshiki turned, revealing Megumi with her hand raised, smiling sheepishly at them. "I'm so terribly sorry for getting you all involved, I had meant to send that text to my mom and, well, I accidentally – ack!"

"Oh for you anything baby girl!" Hinako quickly grabbed Megumi and brought the girl into her arms for quite the hug, causing Megumi to squirm in place, crying out for her to be careful and not hurt herself, all which Hinako outright ignored. "Oh shush you, I will never be too fragile not to take my beloved into my arms. I haven't seen you in so long! Oh! How I've missed this precious little angel!"

"Myff H'mphko pwwss! (Miss Hinako please!)" Megumi tried to say, muffled by the woman's embrace, while Soma and Isshiki just looked on, amused at it all.

The crowd could be heard gossiping about the young lady's arrival, all murmuring her name or admiring her abdomen, enough that it caught Azami's attention, who turned towards the former Second Seat, and offered the young woman a smile. "And there she is," Azami noted, "The Mist Empress herself. Quite the gathering of talent tonight has become."

"I'm sure that means a lot coming from –" Hinako began, tilting her head a bit, shifting a powerless Megumi around her arms effortlessly, before she was cut off.

"Hinako, please, don't say what you are about to say," Shinomiya quickly voiced in. "Let me take care of the guy."

"I wasn't going to call him that," Hinako whined with a little knowing grin. "There are children present after all."

Azami just kept his smile in place, even if he found it all remarkably less cute that everyone else did.

"…So the current Elite Ten have the back-up of both Master Kojirou Shinomiya and Master Hinako Inui?" Soumei noted, smirking at the sight, before he turned to his little group of six. "I think we are out of our depth on this one."

"Seems like it," Momo said, holding onto Bucchi tightly against her frame.

"This still feels like it's a match-up a bit too out there even for us," Sonoka mentioned, and Tosuke only nodded, as the man utterly known for his hatred of the Shokugeki system was unable to keep his eyes away from the arena about to have what felt like a Shokugeki too grand even for Tootsuki itself.

"That's the fun of it then," Rindou quickly added, tackling Sonoka into a quick hug, earning herself a quick, surprised shriek from the young woman, before she turned her catlike eyes towards her boyfriend. "But what's our next move? You did promise to leave things to them, no?"

"That I did," Eishi replied, forcing himself to look away from the upcoming battle and towards the other, current Elite Ten. "Nene," he voiced, causing the young girl to turn to him, as she too had been outright mesmerized by the sight of Master Shinomiya about to engage against Azami of all people. "As… overwhelming as this match-up is, like, the stuff of dreams outright, I… I can't help but worry. If Soma Yukihira is eliminated, and because of my interference to boot, I –"

"Master Shinomiya is an exceptional talent," Nene said, her sharp eyes on Eishi for a moment. "I, like you all, am surprised he appeared when we most needed him, but I'm done having doubts. Just as I have placed my faith in my Elite Ten to win the day, I too trust him to overcome even Mr. Nakamura. So stop worrying over everything."

"Yeah, for once let's allow the adults to work things out, eh?" Kuga added, resting his head on his hands, eyes on the two Masters, eager to see them at work. The rest of the Elite Ten, Alice, Kurokiba and Takumi, all kept their eyes glued to the match, while Akira walked up to where Soma, Megumi, Isshiki and Hinako where at, politely reaching in and tugging Megumi's skirt down a bit. The girl in question shrieked at this, quickly sitting up, her face red.

"Don't worry," Akira assured, "Just a preventive measure, nothing has been shown yet," Akira went on to explain, even if the girl in question was still blushing madly, having almost flashed the whole room thanks to Hinako basically cuddling her up like a baby.

"Oh, whoopsie, almost showed the entire party your tushy," Hinako said with a little giggle, which earned her a pout from the embarrassed girl, who she just proceeded to pull by the cheeks, before she turned to Akira for a moment. "What a kind gesture, Mr. Autumn Election Winner, many thanks!"

Akira just smirked and nodded at the comment, half at Hinako's genuine affection, half at Soma being utterly unable to feign how irked he felt whenever Akira's title was mentioned.

"It is not surprise," Isshiki informed, finger raised and all, "He is Megumi's boyfriend after all. It is natural he'd be protective of her."

"One does not have to be a –" Akira had begun, clearly intent on letting Isshiki know that boyfriend or otherwise, he'd do the same for any girl, but he was quickly interrupted a sudden glare being aimed his way.

"He's Megumi's… what?" Hinako voiced, in a tone so dark it sounded utterly off. The three boys all froze in place, as Megumi shivered, since she was still being held by the woman by the cheek. Hinako glared at the Fifth Seat through her closed eyes, somehow, before she slowly lifted her other hand and used it to point to her captive Megumi. "He's this Megumi's boyfriend?"

"…ah…" all three boys voiced in unison, all three utterly at a loss on how to respond, before Akira forced himself to nod and add, "Quite. Although not official, that's more or less where I hope we're at."

Hinako's glare only intensified, as did Megumi's growing blush, before the young woman just did a one-eighty and turned away. "Hey Kou!" she called out, her tone as jovial as always. "Megumi got herself a boyfriend! Can you believe it?! That's so damn cute!"

"Someone actually wants to date her?" Shinomiya merely asked, his attention to his would-be craft.

"Stop being mean to our baby!" Hinako reprimanded. "You know she's a national treasure and I won't let you bully her! She's the Sixth Seat after all, aren't you? Oh yes you are! Oh yes you are!" Hinako continued on to say by taking hold of Megumi's face with both her hands and cupping her cheeks in full. The young girl had not felt this dotted upon since she had been five. It was embarrassing beyond belief, but… also kind of nice.

Meanwhile Akira just stared, utterly confused at what had even transpired. Soma and Isshiki felt it best to not say anything else at this point.

"I believe you and I are far beyond any limitations being placed in our cooking," Azami voiced, his attention on Shinomiya, who turned to side-glance him. "A three-star main entrée. Would that suffice for our theme?"

"Sounds good to me," the man with the glasses replied, his eyes hidden by their very glare. Azami smiled, and with a snap of his fingers, his assistants, all lead by Shawn, proceeded to get the judges once more in place, and all the food within reach of both men.

And without even needing any words being said, Shinomiya and Azami just gave each other a look, and begun, with all their years of education, experience, and beliefs riding on the dish they were about to create…

-0-

Mayumi Kurase never considered herself to be a "lucky" girl by any means.

Her grades were average at best. Her parents were usually away on business so having a full house was a rarity (which was why, as a child, she spent most of her time at Yukihira's anyways). Her closest friends had all moved schools, leaving only her and Aki from the original group still there. And her childhood crush, what she had assumed would have been the love of her life, had also gone away, to an illustrious culinary school (and she only had, like, the most basic understanding of cooking at best, so there was no way she could go with him). He had then proceeded to bring home a supermodel (Ikumi), and if that hadn't been enough of a blow to her self-esteem, then went back and returned with an outright goddess (Erina).

No, she wasn't lucky, but this had been absurd! And she tried her best to glare at the laughing Aki, since this wasn't funny at all!

"I'm sorry Mayu," Aki said with outright tears in her eyes, "But I think you're blowing this right out of proportions. I'm sure Hiro here didn't mean any harm in it."

"I didn't at all," the little brother, one Hiro Kurase, quickly defended, before he turned to his older sister, "And I've said how sorry I am, you're not gonna, you know, tell mom and dad… right?"

"I should…" Mayumi threated, and the young boy shrieked, while Aki just laughed a bit more. She stopped when Mayumi turned her glare right back to her.

"Okay, okay," Aki voiced, raising her hands defensively. "Can you at least explain what exactly happened? I'm sure it's not as bad as you are making it out to be."

"Well…" both siblings seemed to mutter, both staring at the ground, before Hiro was the first to tell his part of the story, that didn't actually start with the young kid at all…

"Where is our meeting spot again?" Daigo asked, clearly exasperated.

"If you had brought your phone," Shoji argued, "Then we could have used the GPS on it to find where we're supposed to go!"

"Me?!" Daigo countered, "You're the one with the phone with the dead battery!"

"Yeah, only because you took my charger without telling me and charged a phone, that let me repeat, you left back at the damn dorm!" Shoji argued back. The two muscle-heads nearly smacked their foreheads against each other, sparks outright flying out of their eyes in rage, pretty much ready to beat each other up despite their prior victory over the Noir team, effectively the biggest victory of their culinary career so far. That didn't seem to matter anymore, as Daigo and Shoji were moments from beating each other up if they weren't interrupted by quite the unassuming, little voice.

"Are you two from Tootsuki?"

"Eh?" the duo voiced, turning to the side, since they were in the middle of a somewhat crowded sidewalk, and while most people gave their little comedy routine a side-glance and moved on, it was surprising to have a young boy of all things take notice of their uniform. "Erm, yeah," Shoji replied, eyeing the young lad, "You a fan kiddo?"

"Not really," the boy in question replied, causing the two to feel their eye twitch in unison. Then why…? "But I am a friend, or well, my sister is a friend of someone who attends that school. Maybe you guys know him. Name's Soma Yukihira."

"Wait, seriously?" Daigo asked, shocked, "You know Soma? Why, we don't just know him, he's a pal of ours. We're from the same dorm."

"Heck, we were part of the squad who helped him get back into Tootsuki," Shoji added, boasting, "And right now just got out of an intense cooking duel meant to help him and the rest of the Elite Ten against the fearsome Midnight Chefs."

"…Weren't you the guys playing Yu-gi-oh?" the kid asked, and both dudes felt themselves crack. Before either could try and explain that the true purpose of that whole… thing was not the card game, but rather, the cooking, the kid just added, "But, that's cool. My name's Hiro, and my elder sister Mayumi is a friend of Soma's, ex-classmate too. And since I couldn't help but overhear that you two were… well, utterly lost, could I perhaps interest you in stepping into my house and using my phone? Funnily enough I also left it charging, so I had to skip – I mean, excuse myself from school to go grab it."

"Uh… sure," they both said in unison, nodding, as little Hiro flashed them a smile and them moved past the two, signaling them to follow him, saying that his place was "close by", as Daigo and Shoji looked on.

"He's… quite the eloquent kid," Daigo noted, impressed.

"Guess Soma's not the only strange dude to come out of this place, lucky us," Shoji added, before the two of them decided to screw it and just follow little Hiro towards his home, hoping they'd get their hands on a phone before the others left them stranded here in the Sumire District.

Luckily, little Hiro seemed to live pretty close by, as they reached his home fairly quickly, following the kid into his living room where he noted that they could sit. Daigo and Shoji both felt utterly out of their element, just crashing into a random kid's home like this, even if he was Soma's friend's little brother.

"My parents aren't home," Hiro told the two, "And my sis is back at school," he added, carefully omitting the ramifications of why he wasn't at school himself. Luckily for him, neither Tootsuki student seemed to catch on to that little detail. "Feel free to sit down and wait here, I'll go fetch my phone so you guys can make a call."

"Thanks little bro," Daigo voiced, practically throwing himself onto the couch, since that last duel within a duel had taken a lot out of him.

"Say, mind if I use your bathroom for a sec?" Shoji added, since being literally chained to the floor for two hours did not do wonders for your bladder.

"Oh, sure. It's down the hallway, to your left," Hiro told him offhandedly, which quickly earned him a little thank you from the guy, as the young boy moved in the opposite direction, intent on heading towards his room and getting his phone. But, he gave a little pause. It was here he noticed another pair of shoes by the main door, tucked away to the side, very easy to miss. And it was here the young boy felt a slight shiver. "Eh… W-Wait a moment!"

"That's enough," a blushing Mayumi interrupted Hiro's retelling, her eyes to the wall. "You get the point."

"Wait, it's getting to the good part!" Aki argued. "I mean, I don't recall those names? Are they really friends of Soma? And what does Hiro mean by playing? And… was he hot?"

"Aki!"

"It is important Mayu!" Aki defended, "And if you leave me in doubt my mind will just fill in the blanks with something worse, so, come on, give me the details!"

"…You are despicable," the cute girl noted with playful (sort-of) disdain, before she sighed and told the story from when she got… involved…

Unfortunately, the warning came a bit too late, as Shoji had already opened the bathroom's door, although the guy did ask "What's wrong little dude?" when he heard the kid yell at him, but he got his answer not in the form of a verbal response from Hiro, but from the sight before him.

There was, he presumed, Mayumi. The elder sister who was most certainly not at school, and most certainly not expecting company as the young girl had just come out of the shower, very evidently not wearing a single article of clothing to cover her exposed, petite frame. She shrieked, he shrieked louder.

"Kyaaa!" she screamed out, grabbing the nearby towel from the rack, outright dropping a handful of lotions and soaps in the process, making a mess in the floor, before simultaneously throwing the nearby shampoo bottle at the invading guy who had just walked in on her nude. Shoji, if by nothing but pure chef's instincts, managed to catch the bottle inches from his face.

"Gah! – Oh, hey, I caught it," he said, somewhat surprised at his own reflexes, but failing to register that shampoos are usually followed by conditioners, and said bottle of conditioner was tossed right into his crotch, causing him quite the… discomfort, to put it lightly.

Daigo, sitting down ever-so obediently, as a good guest should, just tilted his head in confusion at the sudden sounds of screams all-around, and before he could even ask, he saw his pal Shoji slowly make his way back into the living room, with one hand on a random bottle of shampoo and the other holding onto his groin. This was strange even for them, Daigo noted.

"The hell?" he asked. "Was all that screaming you? Did you pass a kidney stone or something?"

"N-No, worse," the pained young man replied, before he ushered to Daigo to get up. "We should leave, now…"

And again, before Daigo could even ask, a girl clad in nothing but a towel clumsily wrapped around her frame came into view, outright murder in her eyes, followed by the little kid, looking like he had seen a ghost or something. Little dude was afraid, and granted, so was Shoji.

"Who are you?!" Mayumi cried, her glare on Shoji, before she took notice of Daigo, "And you, for that matter?! Why are you both in my house?!"

"I-I am so terribly sorry!" Shoji cried out, arms extended, begging for mercy. "I-I just needed to use the bathroom. We didn't know there was anybody in here!"

"Why didn't you knock?!"

"Why didn't you lock it?

"It's my house!" Mayumi cried out, her face utterly red, "And I was alone! I'm going to call the cops!"

"P-Please don't!" Shoji cried, literally. "I'm not some random pervert. We're just friends of Soma's and your little bro offered us some assist. He didn't think you were here either."

"…yeah," Hiro softly voiced in, already fearing his new game was going to be taken away for quite a while. "I thought you were at school."

"I was, but I felt a bit under the weather, so I excused myself," she voiced through gritted teeth, "What's your excuse?"

"Um… samesies?"

"Hiro, I swear I'm – Hey, where are you two going?!" Mayumi screamed back, as she noticed the two dudes softly trying to escape the scene.

"We could just leave," Shoji offered, sweating profusely.

"And if you do call the cops," Daigo added, "Make sure to clarify he was the one who did the stuff, I was seating here from the start."

"Really dude?!"

"All I'm saying –"

"Get out!" Mayumi then screamed, so loud that Daigo and Shoji could swear it made the windows vibrate. "And I swear if I see either of you again I will have you both arrested!"

"Yes ma'am!" the both cried in unison, before they outright ran out of the house, even leaving their shoes behind in the rush, something they didn't notice until they were quite the bit away and they were not going back for them.

Mayumi, meanwhile, hugging her body with her arms, turned to Hiro, a very pronounced pout on her face. "…I can't get married now thanks to you." And little Hiro could only laugh in nervousness, as he was now quite sure he was grounded for life and that said grounding went over the hierarchy of even their parents. That's how screwed he was.

The girl with the worst luck in the world, in her eyes at least, knowing that this meant things had gotten out of hand over at Tootsuki… because of course, simply went to pick up her phone, and in the simplest terms, send a text to Soma.

"SOMA WHAT THE HELL?!"

"All because Hiro here decided to bring strangers home, uninvited!" Mayumi accused, and her little brother squirmed in his seat.

"I thought you weren't here," he almost cried. "Don't be mad."

"To be fair, you made it out to sound like the entire town had seen you in the buff," Aki added, which caused Mayumi to turn crimson, out of either further embarrassment or anger. Probably both. "The guy was appreciative of the sight, so that's good."

"Aki!" Mayumi called out. "I don't care at all about –!" she screamed, but got interrupted the moment her phone vibrated, quickly picking it up and noticing a text from Soma. Pouting at the phone, she read the message. "…"What's wrong? Everything okay?" he asks, like, seriously? I text him like I'm dying and that's his response?"

"Boys are dimwitted like that," Aki noted, as Hiro turned to her with a little pout, which made her quickly pat him of the head affectionately. "Not you sweetie, you are very much a gentleman through and through, and Mayu's not mad at you. She's never mad at you. Or at Soma at that. What fault does he have in all this anyways?"

"…It's not that?" Mayumi explained, her expression shifting for a moment. "…Hiro saw those two idiots in a duel against some very shady characters, and they told him the others were involved. You've seen what's going on online. Soma… and Erina, everyone, they're in a rough spot. I'm worried…"

And as Aki and Hiro stared, Mayumi proceeded to send another text to Soma, a little calmer now, hoping that this gut feeling of hers got proven wrong… somehow.

-0-

"It's nothing. But is everything okay with you guys? Anything I can help with?"

Soma smiled upon seeing Mayumi's little text response. He took the time to text her back, letting her know the truth, that he was indeed involved, alongside pretty much everyone else, in a high stakes match at the moment, but that he had back-up, and that he had faith everything would work out alright. And he didn't lie. He did have faith, even if he knew, knew that this Shokugeki, out of every single one he had ever witnessed, was the one that most could go either way… and that was a frightening thought.

The nine judges all looked on in awe at the talent on display, from the twins Natsume Sendawara and Orie Sendawara, Shigeno Kuraki, Makito Minatozaka, Luka Miyano, his little girl (and not officially a judge) Akari Miyano, Yaeko Minegasaki, Kaito Sakamoto (who was still wondering where the hell Jouichirou was at), Takeo Sadatsuka and Toshio Sadatsuka, to the also not a judge but no one would tell him that, the party's main man himself, one Mickey Tiberius Roberts.

Shawn Aida watched on, alongside the rest of the crew working for Azami, on stand-by.

The former top five plus one of the Elite Ten, Eishi, Rindou, Tosuke, Sonoka, Momo and Soumei, all stood to the side, their eyes on the two Masters engaged in the duel.

Further along stood the current Elite Ten, or rather, nine of them, as two of their members were elsewhere, one understandably so (Erina), the other not as much (Eizan). But, the nine that were there, Nene, Isshiki, Kuga, Akira, Megumi, Soma, Alice, Kurokiba and Takumi all stood next to Hinako, who had her eyes glued to her husband. Her smile was infectious, they all noted, but even she couldn't quite hide that a part of her was worried. This was a massive challenge, even for the illustrious Légumes Magician himself.

Shinomiya had quickly gotten his tools out and begun to prep his ingredients. The man was scarily efficient, and just as fast, or heck, even faster than what Soma or Megumi remembered him being, as his hands seemed like blurs for moments when he really got moving. He began in earnest with a trademark cooking technique of his, the beurre monté, a very versatile French technique of mixing melted butter with water and emulsifying it, allowing the sauce to withstand temperatures even higher than normal butter could without breaking down. It helped to cook a wide arrange of dishes, and he needed it for what he was trying to create. Then, as he moved to his trademark, his fresh selection of vegetables, ready for use, he got hit by an aroma that seemed to come straight out of nowhere.

Shinomiya frowned, and turned.

Azami had just removed the lid to one of his saucepans, and the smell was outright intoxicating. Azami had mixed, what Shinomiya assumed was due to the smell alone, ketchup, soy sauce, brown sugar, mirin, Worcestershire sauce, grated fresh ginger and minced clove garlic, all expertly divided and prepped, into what he could only assume was turning out to be quite the delectable Tonkatsu Sauce.

"Is there something wrong, Shinomiya?" Azami asked, catching the Légumes Magician's stare. "Surely something as simplistic as this sauce is not enough to rattle one such as you?"

Shinomiya just smirked. He could see how everyone seemed to have been utterly captivated by the aroma that had filled the entire place, with even the Tootsuki students having to feign that they weren't outright salivating over the delicious scent before them. Everyone was being captivated by it… everyone except for one person. And… Shinomiya understood why. This was her domain after all…

Facing down Hinako Inui in a Shokugeki was the equivalent of getting bombarded by an outright onslaught of steam and aromas, all thanks to her dominion over Japanese style sauces and how effortlessly she mixed them with any and all themes she'd get in her matches. And, normally, Shinomiya didn't much care, because he had been able to get the better of her most of the time. For every ten matches they'd have, he'd claim seven or so of them, so now, that she had thrown out this last, childish challenge at him, he was sure he could best her yet again. But, for some reason, the very steam from the saucepans she wielded outright covered the entire arena like a thick mist or fog. He hadn't understood it then, but he did now…

"If I win," she repeated, and she sounded like her very life was riding on that Shokugeki. "You stay, here. You don't go to France. You wait until I graduate and we can go together, alright?!"

"…You are making no sense Hinako," he had argued back, not really understanding what her deal had been. And despite it all, he had won, much like he had predicted, but upon seeing a glimpse of her face the moment the match was called, the sheer despair in her eyes, he didn't much feel like a victor at all…

Hinako had her eyes on Shinomiya, and he could tell she was worried. And damn it all, that's the last thing she needed now. So he shook his head, and replied, "I am more than familiar with the culinary arts of maximizing the usage of Japanese sauces and how frightening that can be, so rest assured Nakamura, you won't scare me away using a lesser version of the arts my wife excels at."

"How frightening," a clearly not at all shocked Azami simply replied.

Shinomiya, despite it all, went and took hold of his vegetables, and just like he beat over the head again and again to both Soma and Megumi, proceeded to cut them all in moments. Focus. It was what he most told the two. Let the vegetables talk to you, let them tell you how to use them. And then… bend them to your will. Make them obey. Make them give in. Make them flourish under your touch and make them… perfect.

He sliced through his ingredients with such finesse and skill that everyone outright gasped, having sworn the man had cut off a finger or something by using a knife so scarily fast, but he was untouched. He then scratched his knife right along the cutting board, and tossed all the cut vegetable into the saucepan with the heating beurre monté, letting it all simmer, before he turned towards his chosen meat.

Azami had his eyes on Shinomiya for a moment, narrowing them just slightly at the sight, before he smirked. 'Such a pity it is, that one so talented as you decided to finally become involved in this opposite of me,' he thought, before he took out the two meats he'd use for his dish: chicken and pork. 'But you made one, singular mistake today, Kojirou Shinomiya. And it will cost you dearly.'

Azami then proceeded to slice each meat individually, getting perfect cuts all-around, matching Shinomiya's earlier cuts effortlessly, garnering him equal praise from the judges, all thrilled at the display, all of them excited at what they were witnessing, as the Tootsuki alumni all felt a chill. Soma himself could only glare, seeing that Azami could indeed go even beyond what he had done so during their own match, inwardly cursing at just how good this monster of a man really was.

The man clad in black continued by seasoning his chicken and pork cuts in a variety of spices and herbs, all carefully selected by his True Gourmet philosophy, before he then dredged them in flour. He then took out a selection of high quality eggs, which he proceeded to coat each cut of meat in them. Followed by coating them all in bread crumbs, before tossing them each into the deep fryer with the seasoned oil.

The aromas only intensified. The judges were all super eager. Azami smiled. Shinomiya frowned.

'There's something more to what he's doing,' Shinomiya internally noted. His eyes shifted towards Azami, then towards the crowd. He didn't quite notice anything worth being alarmed over. 'It's quite clear he's working on a version of Katsu, with both chicken and pork… But even if it's a True Gourmet or whatever version of the dish, it shouldn't be at a caliber that I cannot reach… so why?' Shinomiya added, his frown deepening. 'Why does it feel like I'm walking into a trap…?'

Azami had begun to work on his sides, while Shinomiya was close to getting his meat prepped, while his vegetables basked in their buttery bath. Golden beets, butternut squash, sweet potatoes, acorn squash, he had chosen his veggies carefully. Expertly. Not a single ingredient wasted or missing. So why…?

'That's it!' Shinomiya inwardly exclaimed, taking notice of the sheer lust in the eyes of the "judges" over Azami's craft. 'That crafty bastard… This goes beyond just our dishes, he's outright cooking to their tastes. These aren't professional judges from the WGO, some of them aren't even judges at all. He's catering to their preferences, that way, even if our dishes are theoretically equal in taste, they will still side with him over me due to the familiarity behind his dish. Damn it, it makes sense. These people are not my usual clientele, they're not here for my dishes, rather, they're here for his! And he knows that!'

Azami proceeded to pull out the deep-fried meat the moment it "screamed", letting the world know it was ready. And he smiled. He could tell, given Shinomiya's slight hesitation that the younger man had figured it out. But… 'Too little, too late. Satisfying the customer is part of a chef's true calling. And, you'll learn, that True Gourmet leaves no one unsatisfied. You too will be forced to bow down before it, Kojirou Shinomiya, I'm just surprised it came this early on in my Administration.'

"I-Is Master Shinomiya alright?" Megumi asked, worried, having never seen her Master give pause, ever. The closest was when Gin and Hinako had gone to her defense way back then, but this…

"He's fine, the guy's unbeatable, I'm sure he'll manage," Soma replied, his faith on the Magician unwavering. His Master could manage this in his sleep, of that he was sure.

"Kou…" Hinako softly voiced, her eyes narrowing a bit. It was indeed a rare sight…

Shinomiya stared for a moment. It was brief, but this just irked him. He knew Azami Nakamura was talented. He knew it was moronic of him to believe he could not lose this match. He knew he himself was not unbeatable. But…

He then looked at Megumi…

"I said it's not a joke!" he remembers Megumi screaming as loud as she could, causing the nearby staff of Shino's Tokyo Restaurant to be taken a bit back. "I have improved greatly, so much so that you won't even recognize my skills anymore. A-And I was sent here because of how good I am. And I'll be here, helping you, whether you like it or not!"

…and at Soma…

"…That was close," he remembers Soma telling him relieved, while lying flat on the floor, having just caught the plate meant for a baby-reveal inches from the floor. After Shinomiya had outright praised his efforts, the boy had gone on to just laugh and say, "Heh… An assistant chef's job is not done until the dish is at the table, so I've got you."

…and of course at Hinako. His wife. The future mother of his child…

He turned, looking all around, before his eyes fell on Hinako again. There she was, stunning as he had ever seen her. He frowned a bit, because if anyone would ever dare to prank him, it would be her, but even he knew she wouldn't go that far. He knew her enough. Too much, some would say. So when their eyes met, he smiled at her.

And she nodded.

Shinomiya proceeded to take a deep breath, and for once, follow his own damn advice. Focus. He had started out with an idea, and he'd finish it. He'd force the ingredients to go even beyond what he had initially planned, and make the judges outright beg him for more.

"You think you're quite clever," Shinomiya noted, as he got back to his choice of meat. Azami glanced his way ever-so innocently. "And I'll admit, it's not a bad ploy. But I just can't agree with this idea of your True Gourmet being the be-all, end-all of cuisine. That's just not possible."

"It makes sense that you'd have doubts," Azami replied, utterly unbothered. "As you have yet to taste what I can accomplish with it. Once you do, however, you will see the truth. No chef will ever be left astray, no guest will ever be left dissatisfied. No one will be left hurting over this craft ever again, because I have solved the culinary arts for all, and I have found the one, true response. So, once I am done, you'll see for yourself… what culinary perfection tastes like."

"…I would almost believe you, you know?" Shinomiya told him, and this did make Azami pause. An admittance of "almost" defeat? "You do have the pedigree, the talent, the background, the experience, and the sheer insanity to theoretically accomplish this."

"And yet you still doubt me."

"I doubt you because, if you had really created the perfect culinary arts methodology," Shinomiya shot back, and the look in eyes demonstrated nothing but outright animosity towards Azami. "You would have long helped your daughter get better, and I wouldn't have seen that young girl outright break in my house because she couldn't handle all this damn stress that could and would break an adult, much less a teen!"

"What?" Azami just asked, flatly. "Erina? What are you even saying? She's never been…?"

"Oh, she didn't even tell you that, didn't she? Figures…" Shinomiya continued. "How lousy a father you must be to not even know what your own daughter is going through and lash out at the very people attempting to help her. You want to know why I know you have not perfected cooking, you egocentric bastard? Because if you had, and if you truly cared, you wouldn't have challenged Tootsuki Academy at all and your first and only priority would have been taking care of her and basking her in that very culinary delight, so she wouldn't have to worry about stuff kids should never worry over. Girls her age should be concerned about their studies, their friends and relationships, and whatever trend is on social media, not saving the very roof over hear own damn head!"

"You are getting involved in issues that are far above your pay grade, Shinomiya," Azami warned. "Keep this up, and the lawsuits are going to lead you to outright ruin, and trust me, no one is walking in through that door to save you."

"Unlike what you're used to, I'm no child," Shinomiya shot back. "You win this, and you can outright have my restaurants if you want. But…"

He had always cared, deep down. About Tootsuki. About these kids. About their futures, about their wellbeing, about everything. Because, when he knew it may come his turn to lead someone, someday, he realized that, their faces… Megumi, Soma… Erina… all came to mind. And when he heard of this whole mess, he felt a burning in him unlike ever before…

"…I refuse to lose to someone like you…"

Because he had heard the stories, about how Azami and Mana had treated their own daughter, and their own marriage, and how everything had spiraled out of control. And a part of him wondered, how? How could a man do this? As he sat around, tired from work, he saw Hinako walk into the living room, the small baby bump already forming. His wife came to pester him about something or the other, but as much as he pretended to be annoyed, all he could think of… was how could a man just rip out this part of his life and go on pretending it didn't happen? How could a man say he loved his wife so, then proceed to bed another woman? Or how could a man hold a child, call it his own, but then hurt that very kid?

"…Because unlike what you have taken pride in…"

So, he promised himself, that he would never, ever go down that road. And, to Hinako's utter surprise and delight that night, he just pushed the furniture back, and danced with her. Because he was tired, but he wanted her to know how much he loved her. And as he placed his hand on her stomach, he also promised the baby inside, that no matter what this life would throw their way, he'd always be there to support them both.

"…My biggest pride in this world will always be my wife and child, and I'm not going to let the face of the culinary industry be a man who does not know how to honor either."

The flames seemed to explode out of the stove for a moment, as Shinomiya took hold of his biggest skillet and threw everything into it. He proceeded to twist and turn his ingredients all over the place, browning them just the right way, down to the most precise motion. It was almost like a dance, controlling such an intense flame… no, not controlling. Bending it to his will, mastering the fire itself to burn exactly the piece he wanted it to, down to the centimeter. The crowd watched, and they couldn't help but let out an audible gasp the moment Shinomiya just tossed everything into the air, a glistering of colors adorning the air for the briefest of moments, before it all fell back down effortlessly into the skillet. The man, the chef, was clearly pushing himself, if his heavy breathing was any indication, but for this, he could and would go even beyond that. A few more twists, a few more steps, and soon enough… his dish was complete.

Azami had to bite his tongue to avoid saying anything that could be used against him. In this line of work, words held power. It was something these brats didn't yet understand. But Shinomiya did, so he would allow his dish to do the talking for him. He took cautious care with his own craft, taking his deep-fried meats and his boiling sauces and setting them up on several plates, likewise completing his dish. And as the nine judges, alongside everyone else in that auditorium, stared with their hearts about to burst out of their chest, and their mouths salivating at the sights and aromas, both men finally presented their dishes…

Kojirou Shinomiya had presented them his Coq Au Vin w/ Vegetables Mélange in Beurre Monté.

Azami Nakamura had presented them his True Gourmet Heaven & Earth Katsu w/ Tonkatsu Sauce.

Both men stood before their judges, both of them clearly worked up past anything they had experienced in years, having to genuinely push themselves against such a serious opponent, that it was quite the sight.

The Tootsuki students all watched, outright afraid of even whispering, their nervousness at what was to come almost unbearable. Hinako had her eyes on her husband, her lips pressed against each other, forming a thin line, as it had been years since she had last seen him be pushed to such lengths.

The judges all slowly turned towards the dishes in display, half of them outright afraid to even touch them because they outright looked like works of art meant to be exhibited in a museum, not feasted upon. Granted, the intoxicating aroma almost made resisting a moot point, as they knew they were going to give in no matter how much it felt like blasphemy to touch these dishes.

"Well?" both Shinomiya and Azami asked in unison, before both men gave pause and professionally glared at one another.

"You have to forgive them for being so awestruck by what is being displayed," Toshio Sadatsuka offered, extending his arm and taking a piece of Azami's Katsu with his chopsticks. "Most here are not used to displays between such high caliber chefs. In fact, I'd wager my friends here have only judged students up to this point, so if you bring it up to our level, you cannot blame them from getting cold feet."

"Hmm… true as that may be, some things are simply inevitable," Azami assured. "I still do implore you all to do your best and judge these dishes to the best of your abilities and –"

"You're Sadatsuka junior, correct?" Shinomiya cut in, a pointed finger towards the man not that much older than Azami himself. When the business man did a small nod in response, eyebrow raised at the usage of "junior" to describe him, as he felt that label fit his son Ashitaro more than it did him, Shinomiya added, "Then, please, refrain from sneaking in yourself into our ranks by saying "our level". I've heard of you. Aren't you the guy who the Asura wiped the floor with during the first Intercontinental Shokugeki?"

"Why you –!" Toshio quickly blurted out, fist clenched and outright furious, but he was stopped by an old hand getting raised and placing itself before the man. "Father?!"

"Do not make a scene here," the elder Sadatsuka, Takeo, warned. "That's why you lost all those years ago, and why you can't seem to keep your personal relationships in check," the father spat out, and the man, far too old to have to just suck it in and take it nevertheless sucked it in and took it, much to Shinomiya's utter mocking delight. "These Tootsuki chefs have always been cocky to an extreme. That Senzaemon clearly rubbed off on all of them. Nevertheless, let us judge these dishes impartially, such as is requested. I have the utmost faith in your magnificent craft… Azami."

"Please, feel free to taste what the pinnacle of True Gourmet can accomplish," Azami proudly declared, extending his arm to showcase his craft, as the judges, some reluctantly, took a piece, dipped it in the sauce, and took a bite. And it was honestly too much. Even the ever boastful Toshio had to stagger back at the sudden rush of flavors that had just assaulted him. It seemed like such a simple dish at first glance, crafted to perfection of course, but there was something more to it. As if Azami had somehow broken the glass ceiling of what was culinary possible and reached a new height of flavors never believed possible.

"Can I try…?" little Akari asked bouncing up and down on her seat, before her father, Luka, gave her a little piece of the Katsu, to which the little girl gave a little dance in her seat as soon as she tasted it. "It's so yummy!"

"Oh, she's simply adorable!" the young woman, Shigeno Kuraki, noted, in utter ecstasy over the taste of Azami's craft, but not so much so that she didn't outright swoon at the sight of little Akari being precious. "Did you like the food Akari?"

"Yep!" Akari replied, still all smiles.

"Ever since I began to cover this Intercontinental Shokugeki, Akari here has been growing more and more invested in the culinary world," her father noted. "I wonder if I have a future little chef on my hands."

"Really?" Shigeno noted, before she turned back to the little girl. "You want to someday cook yummy stuff like this?"

"Would I!" the excited little girl replied, all smiles, to which Azami just extended his other harm to showcase that exchange.

"And I assure you, little Akari, that under my administration, you will be able to achieve this level of perfection without all the years and strain it would normally take," Azami boasted, as the other judges all reveled in the flavor. Even Kaito couldn't help but be utterly impressed by what he had just tasted, as despite his own skill, he knew he could never manage something like this. This was clearly at the level of Jouichirou, someone he never thought could ever be even reached, much less matched. How was this possible? Azami, for his part, used this as a showcase of his vision. Of his power. "Once I take over Tootsuki Academy, I implore you to enroll Akari into it, and within a year, she'll manage to cook a dish that would make even the high school alumni tremble."

Shinomiya frowned, the idea of indoctrinating such a young girl into such an absurd agenda not sitting well with him at all, but as everyone stared at the scene with either joy or worry (depending on where you sat in the debate) little Akari softly added a little detail even her father didn't know.

"…But I already won a Shokugeki against a high school girl."

The crowd, mostly all the judges, all turned towards the young girl, utterly baffled by her words, as Azami tilted his head slightly, having not expected her to say that. Was she simply lying to garner herself praise from the adults, he wondered, but as her father asked her what she meant by that, as there was no way she had ever taken place in one of those duels, given she wasn't even a student, she simply replied with the last thing Azami ever expected to hear.

"But I did," she affirmed, then she pointed to Azami. "His son Asahi gave me a recipe to follow, and I cooked against his opponent, a very pretty girl with pink hair. The judges gave me the win, well, kinda, because it was Asahi who instructed me, but it counts!"

"You did that?" her father asked, baffled, before he turned to Azami. "Your boy won a match with Akari's help?"

"I… I was not made aware…" Azami replied, utterly caught off-guard. 'It had to be during that so-called Undertaking where the Third Years challenged all of the remaining Challengers, including my Neo-Noirs. I heard from Dove how she had utterly impressed Mana with her efforts, and I am aware my son won, but he did this? My… that boy really is something. I'm honestly too impressed to even be mad.'

"Not even a student and she already has a win under her belt," Shigeno said with a little clap, much to the little girl's delight. "I'm sure Tootsuki will welcome you with open arms no matter who is at the helm. And afterwards, you can consider going to work at my restaurant!"

"Already trying to scout out talent, eh?" Makito Minatozaka quickly said with a grin, which only earned him a laugh from the woman.

"You never told me that," Luka voiced, his eyes on his daughter, "So that explains your sudden interest in the culinary world."

"Well, yeah, but that wasn't the first time I've been thinking about cooking," Akari admitted, and the judges all turned to her again, before, to everyone surprise, she pointed her little index finger towards the crowd. To a rather surprising individual. To someone who made Azami's blood boil. "Last year Soma did these amazing tricks while cooking that breakfast-thingy at the resort that I couldn't help but laugh along. He's great!"

"Oh, that's who she is, no wonder she looked familiar," Soma mused, ignoring all the sudden stares once more aimed his way. 'If only she knew that her positive reaction back then saved me. I really ought to thank her properly.'

"What is it with you and adorable little girls being impressed with your cooking?" Alice asked, her head tilted. Soma shrugged.

"Careful, if Kanon finds out you have another little fan she'll get mad," Megumi added, still unable to escape Hinako's grasps, but at least now turned in a way she could actually see the arena. At this Soma just laughed. It was true.

"My, then I suppose I am glad I didn't expel him back then, if he managed to impress such a lovely little lass," Shinomiya spoke up, standing alongside Azami, and signaling to his own craft. "However, if you thought his dishes were, in your own words, yummy, I implore you to have a taste of the dishes created by the man who taught that knucklehead half of what he even knows."

"Hey! What do you mean half?!" Soma whined. "More like two-thirds at most!"

"You are aware that's more, right?" Takumi added, and Soma just pouted.

The judges all then took a piece, carefully, of Shinomiya's craft, and took a bite. Unlike Azami's drizzling Katsu, which seemed to explode in your mouth, Shinomiya's Coq Au Vin was more akin to a feat for the palate, the flavor increasing with each bite, as the chicken braised with wine, bacon, onions and mushrooms seemed to pack such a punch that it made eating all of it almost a daunting task. If it felt tastier with each bite, how much could they handle before it was too much?

"So yummy!" Akari squealed in delight, and this made Shinomiya smile. He wondered if maybe Hinako's right, and they did get a girl after all, if she'd be as playful and lovely as Akari.

"Are we… honestly supposed to pick between one of these two dishes?!" elder twin Natsume couldn't help but blurt out. How were they supposed to do that?

"I don't think we're qualified…" her younger twin Orie added, and the other judges couldn't deny it.

"This is so good I may just faint!" Mr. Roberts could be heard screaming, almost falling off his chair, but the rest of the group ignored him. Kaito was utterly caught off-guard, yet again, by yet another dish that could realistically clash against Jouichirou's best. Toshio was shaking in place out of sheer jealously, while the elder Sadatsuka inwardly cursed at Senzaemon, noting that his boasts about his alumni was nothing to scoff at. Yaeko, who wanted nothing more than to have that brat Yukihira expelled and ruined (doubly more so since the kid seemed to not even remember her at all!), was just quivering, since the taste of both dishes was much too grand for her to even get her thoughts in order, much less cast an actual vote.

"Judges…?" Azami voiced, focused.

"…your verdict?" Shinomiya concluded.

The eleven would-be judges, as in nine actual ones and two extras, all took a big, long while, as everyone looked on, having outright forgotten how to even breathe. Then, with shaking hands and trembling lips, the voting began.

"Glasses guy gets my vote!" Akari announced, proudly. Girl wasn't aware her vote didn't count. Her father, however, smiled, and nodded. "Quite, I guess my vote goes to Kojirou Shinomiya too."

'Is that a genuine vote or are you just following your daughter's uninformed decision?' Azami wondered, but decided against voicing it. Instead, he kept his attention on the others. It wasn't like he was expecting a landslide victory after all. Not against Shinomiya.

"You know, I think I agree with Akari here," Shigeno added, all smiles. "I'll vote for Shinomiya too."

"My vote goes to Azami Nakamura," Toshio flatly stated, before he turned his glare towards Shinomiya. "Is my vote valid or do you feel I need to explain myself?"

"From you?" Shinomiya shot back, "I expect nothing but honesty. Please, carry on."

"My vote is likewise for Nakamura," the Sadatsuka patriarch voiced, "But it is close. Far too close for someone who claims to have mastered the culinary arts with this True Gourmet philosophy."

"How very kind of you," Azami muttered, but the look in his eyes made it clear he was anything but happy at those words.

"I give mine to Kojirou Shinomiya," Kaito said, despite all his inner turmoil, 'This is no way even fair. Both dishes are far beyond what any of us here can even properly comprehend. I am not trying to be biased, but the truth is I am utterly uncertain if I am voting professionally or not…'

"I'll have to go with Azami, personally, although this was delectable beyond belief," the executive producer of "Is That A Kitchen?" said, giving his own vote, tying up the score.

Both Shinomiya and Azami tensed, neither wanted it to go down to the wire like this. Then the twins spoke up, in unison, and that at least meant that the winner was to be declared. But…

"I vote for Azami / Kojirou," the both said, each voting for separate man, as they both gave pause, turning to each other, each utterly baffled by her twin's selection. As the two young women argued with each other as to why her twin was wrong, Azami and Shinomiya felt their blood run cold.

Four votes for each. This was too damn close.

"I… gah!" Yaeko tried to say, but the moment she opened her mouth both men turned to her with an outright menacing glow in their eyes. They just glared, as if daring her to vote, and the once proud and dominating young woman felt utterly terrified at the implication of being the one to decide this whole thing. Her petty revenge against the teenager was so not worth any of this. "I-I feel I am clearly not eligible to make such a vote, as unlike everyone else here, I am not involved in the culinary world, so I'll have to abstain."

Yaeko avoided their glares like a champ, while Azami and Shinomiya were left utterly petrified in sheer fury at the declarations… 'Abstain? Does that leaves this match as a draw…?' they both thought in unison, but before either man could complain or try and force the woman to give a verdict, the last "judge" spoke up.

"Oh, goodie, that means that last vote is mine!" Mr. Roberts stated with glee, as both chefs shattered. Oh no, why him? "Let's see, while both dishes were, to quote little Akari, super yummy, I think I'll have to give the slight edge to my friend Azami as…"

Azami couldn't help but grin at the notion, since, if that blasted Yaeko was chickening out, then by all accounts, the party's host should get…

"…No wait, I got confused, the chicken with the weird name was not Azami's, it was the other guy's, right?" Mr. Roberts quickly added, and just as quickly Azami's smile flipped right upside down. "He's was the yummier dish out of the two, me thinks…"

Shinomiya could quite keep his eye from twitching. How was such a moronic man so high up in the culinary ranks yet know so damn little about the process? Either someone's nepotism baby or an extremely lucky fellah that fell upwards in the culinary world. But did this mean…?

"Hmm… But that Katsu is fantastic, man, being a judge is hard… so…" Mr. Roberts declared, as both Azami and Shinomiya tensed, before the big, stupid man just said, "I'll give one vote to each dish!"

"You cannot do that," both Azami and Shinomiya voiced with outright venom, unable to contain themselves.

"B-But it's my birthday and I can't really call either dish bad!"

'That's not how any of this works,' both chefs thought in unison, both wondering if stabbing the chubby man in his own party was doable, but they just sighed, before Azami simple turned towards Shinomiya, meeting the magician's eyes for a moment. "Kojirou," Azami voiced, "I think it's quite clear a match between the two of us requires a higher caliber of judges than those we have on hand, and I assume, that just like me, you would not be content with such a coin toss of a victory if granted."

"Perhaps," Shinomiya replied, his glare ever present. "However, just like that, I can't just allow you to ruin the lives these kids have struggled so hard to gain. So faulty judging system or not, I will not back down if you intend on eliminating Soma Yukihira from his well-earned participation in the Final Round of the Intercontinental Shokugeki."

Azami stared, before he closed his eyes. When he reopened them, his eyes were on the young Soma. Soma tensed, but Azami said, "…Very well. We shall consider this match unresolved. So we'll reach a happy medium between us. I'll abstain from removing young Yukihira from either the event or the school," Azami granted, before he added, "As long as he avoids any further mention of my person or my relationship with my daughter to anyone."

"H-Hey! Wait, what's that even supposed to mean?" Soma quickly blurted out, walking up to the stage where the two men stood, his eyes on Azami. "You mean I have like a gag order or something? No way! Besides my Master would never be content with – mphm!"

"That sounds lovely," Shinomiya quickly added, using his palm to shut Soma up, and take Azami up on his terms, since it gave Shinomiya what he really wanted anyways, which was to keep Soma in this. Not like the kid was going to go to any gossip talk shows in the coming weeks or anything.

"Perfect," Azami declared, sounding anything but pleased, before he turned to the judges, and by extension, the rest of the party's crowd. "Now then, please forgive this interruption, let us continue with the festivities."

"W-Wait!" Soma managed to voice out, breaking off Shinomiya's grip. The Magician could be heard calling out to him, but Soma stared Azami down for a moment, causing the elder man to give pause. "…I don't care about talking about you… But nothing you do will ever keep me from Erina. Not you, not her mother, not your son, not your protégé, not anyone you can employee. Are we clear about that?!"

Azami turned, slowly, his eyes on this pest that refused to give up, but knowing the stage he was currently on, the people that surrounded him, and the state of his reputation as it was, he smiled. He smiled and Soma's glare did not waver.

"And I wish you both nothing but the best," Azami lied as expertly as humanly possible. "Take care of my daughter, make her happy, and prove the naysayers wrong when they say that such a high school romance you two share is bound to dissipate into nothingness before either one of you even graduates."

"…I'm glad I have your blessing," Soma snarked back, a knowing smile on his face, "And rest assured… I'll take really good care of her."

Soma and Azami stared each other down, and Azami knew this was just karma biting down on him after all the stupidity he himself had spewed against Senzaemon regarding his own relationship with Mana. But that, just like the old man had said, had failed, and this little rebellious romance his daughter had with this troublesome boy would as well. But for today, he'd let it go, because his reputation was not yet recovered enough to forbid it. After the dance, after the Ball, after the interview, well, now that would be a different scenario, wouldn't it?

Then a series of claps could be heard, causing all the parties involved to give pause, turning to the side, as another man stepped in, applauding the little showdown that had just transpired, and it was both an expected presence to some, and outright mystifying one to others.

"Damn, do they grow fast," Jouichirou proudly declared, smiling. "And here I came rushing worried you were bullying my kid, but it seems everything is under control. So nice of you to wish my son well with your girl, hope you're not just saying it though."

"Jouichirou Saiba," Azami noted, sighing. "It seems today is destined to be filled with nothing but interventions from all generations of Tootsuki."

"Well, you did declare war on us," Jouichirou shot back, "So it's a given quite a few of us would want a piece of you. But relax, I'm not here to challenge you, at least, not anymore. I do owe a newlywed couple an apology gift though," Jouichirou muttered, causing everyone present to wonder what he was even talking about. "But, that aside, its Yukihira now. You are aware, no?"

"Right," Azami flatly voiced, "My apologies."

"Oh shove your apologies right up your – Oh!" a surprising (another one at that) voice spoke up as she approached from behind Jouichirou, popping her head and catching sight of the massive crowd before her. "Quite the party we crashed, oh, hey, I know most of this people! Hate quite a few of them too…" Riko mused, utterly not caring who heard her or how they interpreted her words. She then extended her arm and pointed accusingly at Azami. "And you, Azami, stop picking on our children! If you want to challenge someone, take your pick, as either Jou or I would be more than happy to take you on!"

"I… I think that's already been settled," Jouichirou softly whispered to her, which caused Riko to tilt her head in confusion. Jouichirou then signaled to the stage, towards where Soma stood, or rather, to the man next to him.

"That's the Légumes Magician!" Riko noted in awe, at the sight of Kojirou. The young man seemed utterly confused. He knew who she was, because who didn't, but who the heck was the other guy? "Oh! And seated over there is another one from Tootsuki. The Mist Empress, wow, quite the little get together, as I can also see the recent Elite Ten graduates and almost all the current Elite Ten here. What did we just miss?"

"Just, business as usual Riko," Azami replied, and Riko just glared at him, but Azami just shrugged it off. He clearly wasn't in the position to try and take on either Jouichirou or Riko after having just dueled against Shinomiya (and even if he didn't want to admit it, Soma too), so he'd relent and let things play out until the upcoming Ball. "Please, all of you, enjoy the festivities. The air has been cleared, and we've all reached an agreement, so let's leave it at that for now. Jouichirou, Riko, always a pleasure to see you both," he said, his eyes on his former seniors, "Kojirou, and Hinako, it has been quite the experience. Despite my plans, I am proud to see my school's graduates be so quick to assist the current alumni if they believe them to be in need. It makes sense why Gin speaks so fondly of you both," Azami added, his eyes shifting towards the young couple, before… "…and, to the former Elite Ten, and especially, the current Elite Ten, I hope to see you all at this upcoming Ball. This event is for all of you. Enjoy it, and afterwards, we shall see one another at the Final Round."

And with those words spoken, the man clad in black turned around, and walked away, with Shawn and the rest of his workforce quickly scattering around and following their boss. Shawn himself was able to catch up to Azami by one of the many dark hallways, away from the crowd.

"…Sir?" he asked, already fearing any form of retribution. He could tell his boss wasn't happy.

"Just going to get some fresh air," Azami merely said. "These duels, they barely count as even a proper Shokugeki, so worry not, I am unbothered by them. What could an unofficial draw ever prove against my True Gourmet plan?"

"Exactly sir!" Shawn admitted, smiling, relieved, "It's just a draw. Four votes each, made by mediocre judges. I am certain once the WGO sees your brilliance on display, they will see the light. Everyone will. Miss Decora certainly has, and the rest will follow suit."

"…Yes, just a draw…" Azami repeated, his face away from Shawn, his eyes to the ceiling. It had been four votes each, as Roberts' vote was nonsense and Yaeko refused to make herself worthwhile…

"Glasses guy gets my vote!"

"…just a damn draw…" Azami said through gritted teeth, as the first vote that they weren't supposed to count rang in his ear, making the man clench his fist so tightly he outright drew blood…

Back at the party proper, everyone had gone back to business, chatting away and setting the music right back up. The past and present Elite Ten all got together, with Eishi quickly apologizing for the entire mess that his rash actions had caused, with the others just telling him it was fine and that everything had worked out. Soma, never one to hold grudges even if the other person deserved it, quickly just laughed and said it had been a treat to be able to take on both Eishi and Azami in quick succession, even if he was pissed he had "barely" lost against the latter, which took massive effort from the others to avoid correcting him. It had been too close for comfort, so they'd let him have this.

"Kou! Look, this one's extremely cute too!" Hinako called out, having now switched Megumi for a very embarrassed Nene, who looked utterly unable to even voice a complaint at the sudden show of affection. "And she's the First Seat, you know how rare a girl First Seat it? Actually… Why is that so rare? Kou! I think Tootsuki's sexist!"

"I don't think that's how that works," Shinomiya voiced, inwardly apologizing to the new First Seat for the crazy woman who had her hands all over her, before he turned towards his "students", as a very proud looking duo of Soma and Megumi both stared at him, all smiles. "Wipe those gross smiles of your faces."

They stopped smiling.

"That was utterly reckless and moronic of you," he called out to Soma, "And you called on me by mistake. So I take back the praise, even your correct calls are nothing but mistakes," he then turned to Megumi. Both of them just stared, pouting. Shinomiya frowned, then sighed, then placed each hand on their heads, causing the two to let out a little laugh and giggle respectively. "…Still, you two did good. The Sixth and Seventh Seat, my, how Tootsuki has fallen… but, for what it's worth, I am proud of you both. Keep up the good work."

"Yes master!" both teens quickly saluted, both perked up, grinning from ear to ear once more. Even Shinomiya was unable to hide his own little smirk.

"Hey, thanks a lot for saving my brat," Jouichirou voiced up, approaching Shinomiya alongside Riko. "You have my gratitude. And you have no idea how much this means to the kid, he thinks the world of you."

"Oh, you are this one's father?" Shinomiya noted, shaking Soma by the head to signal "this one", as Soma just pouted. "There is no need for gratitude, I merely am watching out for my students. These two work… well enough I suppose. And certainly Nakamura had no business ruining their careers like that. Still, it is a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Yukihira," Shinomiya noted, nodding at the man, before he turned to Riko. "And Miss Ebisawa, I am surprised to see you here. Had I known these brats had someone of your caliber as backup, I would have felt that my presence was unneeded."

"Oh, no, you take the thanks, and you were very much needed," Riko countered. "Because we got totally lost, so we would not have arrived on time at all," she said, before she pointed at Jouichirou and added, "And because he made us get here late, I am so not gonna keep my promise. You don't know who he is, right? Well, he's the Asura, Tootsuki's Golden Era's Second Seat in the flesh."

"Riko, there's no need to advertise –"

"Y-You're the Asura?" Shinomiya outright blurted out, his eye twitching. Hinako could be seen giving pause, her eyes wide, her hands frozen in place, as in, stretching Nene's cheeks as far apart as they would go. As Nene squirmed, and Kuga just laughed, the two Tootsuki graduates looked utterly shocked. "The Asura himself, the man who took on fifty opponents at once, and one of the youngest candidates to ever be invited to the BLUE, is… this brat's father?"

Said "brat" frowned, as Megumi laughed.

The current Elite Ten all just looked on, the surprise already spoiled for them, and even the former Elite Ten had had that twist sprung on them back before the Hiei Showcase. Only Sonoka looked petrified by the news, and it took Tosuke slowly explaining it to her that they all knew for her to regain some color.

"Yeah… I am," Jouichirou just said. "I'm not trying to hide it or anything, it's just, that I don't consider myself that same man anymore. My life changed quite a bit after Tootsuki, and Soma here worked hard for everything he accomplished, I didn't use any connections or gave him any leg up against the competition."

"It shows."

"…Eh?"

"I had heard how amazing you were," Shinomiya said, arms crossed and eyes narrowed, "But this brat needed a mountain load of training to even classify as passable, which I provided, so you are clearly not as high and mighty as Tootsuki makes you out to be if this is the best your training can accomplish."

"Why is everyone gunning for my throat these days?" Jouichirou muttered with a little laugh. "Yeah, yeah. Maybe one day you and I can duke it out, see if all of Soma's boasting about your abilities hold up."

"Perhaps we could," Shinomiya noted, before he smiled. He then turned to Jouichirou, and added, "But… pathetic chef he might have started out as," Shinomiya said, and ignoring the "Hey!" from Soma, added, "You did raise a splendid young man. I've seen the way he cares for his friends, for little Erina. Heck, he outright challenged me just to keep the other dunce in Tootsuki, so I wasn't surprised by him ending up in a Shokugeki against Azami of all people. So… you've done a good job raising him."

"And from the look of things," Jouichirou noted, his eyes shifting to Hinako, who offered him a smile and a little wave, finally allowing Nene to escape her grasp. "If this is any indication, you're on your way to do quite the great job yourself. Thank you, Kojirou Shinomiya, for taking such good care of this kids."

The two men shook hands, firmly, as Riko just smiled as she walked past them and, to the boy's surprise, took Soma into a quick, yet firm, hug. "And you," she said. "I'm so proud. Holding your own against Azami is no mean feat, and neither is keeping Nao safe. You have no idea how grateful I am."

The blushing boy simply nodded, and unable to not smile, said, "Of course, at this point, she's practically family."

And Riko said nothing. She just looked back at Jouichirou talking to Shinomiya, and her eyes seemed to say something her lips never did. Still, she decided to enjoy the celebration of the crisis averted, and her initial plans of confronting her ex-husband directly tonight was best left for later…

-0-

After a day of massive clashes, that started as the Tootsuki alumni versus Asahi's Noirs, that then shifted to the current Elite Ten versus the former Elite Ten, that somehow shifted again into two desperate battles, one being Nao and Loren against the former's despicable brother, and the other being Soma's desperate attempt at stopping Azami, which in turn led to yet another surprise Shokugeki in the form of Shinomiya versus Azami… suffice to say, it had been a very hectic day, and everyone was tired beyond belief.

Tootsuki could also, sort-of, consider the day a victory on their end, even if the biggest brawls had not ended exactly in their favor, they were still in the game. They could still turn this around, somehow. That would entail taking on and taking down the Neo-Noirs. That in itself seemed like an impossible task to overcome, but for now, they would celebrate the little victories earned.

And maybe, try and enjoy that little Ball before their livelihoods were once more at stake…

"You were honestly incredible today," Isami voiced, walking alongside Hisako, the two having decided to stop in a middle ground of sorts, as Isami was headed towards the Resort while Hisako had a last minute stop to attend to at the library nearby. The rest of the Polar Stars and friends were taken back to their dorms, which left these two walking the sidewalks with the night sky as their roof. "I remember Shun warning us that that Sarge girl was the toughest from the Noirs side, and you utterly floored her."

"I just did what was needed," Hisako replied, smiling despite trying to brush the praise off. "They needed to go down, for Erina's sake. For all our sakes actually. And you're one to talk. The one you defeated was said to be Asahi's main guy, so I can't imagine he'd be that far beneath the military woman."

"He was the one who praised her the most actually," Isami countered.

"Still…" Hisako offered, "It was a team effort. Everyone did amazingly. And…" Hisako added, her eyes drifting towards the case Isami held onto, a little smirk in her features. "…That's not the Mezzaluna I know. Going to the resort to return a tool from a "friend", eh?"

"You got me," Isami said with a little laugh. "I want to branch out from my brother, just a bit. I love him to bits, I can't ever deny that. But I want to be my own chef, do my own thing. And I know he does too. He can achieve so much, so I'm thinking it's time I leave the Mezzaluna to him fulltime. Maybe get one for myself," Isami said, and he paused, his eyes on the briefcase he carried. "…Although, three blades is a bit excessive, maybe I can find a two-bladed one, middle ground and all that."

"You'll be amazing with whatever tool you get," Hisako replied, "But I hope you are aware that Takumi thinks the world of you. He would never care if you keep using the Mezzaluna for the rest of your lives."

"Oh, I know, but us more responsible siblings have to make sure they don't do dumb stuff like that and actually think about themselves for once."

"Us?"

"You know you also fit the description," Isami noted, smiling, and Hisako couldn't help but smile back.

"…Erina is quite a handful, I'll admit."

The two shared a little laugh at the… understatement being said, but it was still somewhat true, what Isami had said that is. Once upon a time, Hisako would have never ever dared to ever consider herself anything remotely close to family to her "Lady", much less a sibling. But, right now, after so long, she couldn't see her as anything but her sister.

"Hey!" the two heard a familiar voice call out, both turning in unison to see Takumi jogging towards them, waving at the two. They both raised their hands and offered a wave and a smile in turn.

"Watch," Isami whispered to Hisako, moments before Takumi reached them. "He's going to address you first."

"Huh? Why –?" Hisako tried to ask, but Takumi unknowingly cut her off.

"Hisako, Isami, so glad I caught up to you both!" Takumi greeted, reached the two, before he gave quite the puzzled look the moment they both started laughing, with Isami giving Hisako a knowing look and the girl shifting her glance to the side. Takumi was confused. "What's so funny?"

"Nothing brother," Isami quickly replied. "And let me guess, things were unnecessarily complicated?"

"Oh, you know it," Takumi admitted, nodding, before he pushed forwards and took his twin into a tight hug. "But, damn it, I'm so proud!" he said, and Isami just blushed, before he hugged the blond back. Takumi then let go, but kept his hands on Isami's shoulders, the joy in his face evident. "I saw it! All of it! Dude, you totally wrecked that Noir! Awesome work Isami!"

"Heh, and Erina told us you guys went away," Isami replied, eyebrow raised. "Who did you have to defeat now?"

"Ah, that's just…"

"C'mon, spill," Hisako edged him on, "Erina's back at the Polar Star dorms waiting for Soma and the others to return, so I'm not up to speed on what's been going on. What did you guys rush out for?"

"Just Eishi and the others causing trouble, not purposely mind you," Takumi explained, "Just misguided, so we needed to… guide them, more or less. We had a team battle like the one the Neo-Noirs did against the Team Leaders…"

"And?" Isami asked.

"I had to take on Soumei."

"…And?" Hisako asked.

"…And I… won," he didn't even get to finish the statement, before both Hisako and Isami shouted and bounced up and down, both hugging the blond tightly, all three of them grinning ear to ear. "Hey, come on, it was a team effort. We all did a lot today," Takumi quickly added, signaling to all three of them. "All of us, not just the Elite Ten members."

"Yeah, but still, defeating the former Fifth Seat is not something to scoff at," Isami noted, the pride in his voice evident. "Still," he added, turning to Hisako for a second, "I should get going. It's late and we shouldn't be at that resort at this hour. So I should get going."

"Bye," Hisako said with a little wave.

"Give Lucrezia my regards," Takumi added, nodding, "And my thanks, for lending you her Mezzaluna and all that."

"Sure, sure," Isami voiced, as he walked away from the pair, leaving Takumi and Hisako alone at the crossroad that led towards the library she was heading towards.

"And you're headed to the library now it seems?" Takumi inquired, and Hisako nodded. In the blink of an eye she had been left alone with the boy she had been, sort-of, kind-of dating. I mean, where they? They had gone out, they (or at least she) had had a blast, and she honestly wouldn't mind if they did… but…

"I wanted to pick up some shoujo manga for Erina," Hisako explained. "She guided us through that battle expertly, and I want her to be able to relax a bit tonight. A little reading, a hot bath, a game of Sevens, just a few things to try and help her relax."

"You spoil her more than her actual employees do," Takumi said with a little laugh, and Hisako just gave him a playful pout.

"It's what sibling do," Hisako said with pride, and Takumi just looked on. The day had been so hectic that he still felt his heart pounding heavily against his chest, but for some reason, despite how exhausted he was, just talking to this girl helped calm him almost instantly. It was strange. It was an effect almost as if returning home, which didn't make much sense. Hisako then began to walk towards her destination, motioning at Takumi to walk with her, but she was stopped when he held her gently by the wrist. She gave pause, turning to him. "…Takumi?"

"Hisako," Takumi began, his bright blue eyes on her, which she wasn't sure if he knew just how weak that sight made her at the knees. But not as weak as… "Would you do me the honors of being my date for the Grand Ball?"

For a second, the world itself seemed to stop spinning for Hisako, as the girl could do little else but blink in response. She slowly forced herself to react. First to nod, then to try and squeeze out a "yes" from her lips. "Yes, Takumi, yes, I would l-love to."

"Magnifico," Takumi replied, and she really needed him to stop switching to Italian because she just loved that native tongue of his. Language! She meant she loved the language, clearly. "And I assure you, this is going to be the best time you'll ever have."

"Oh, you don't have to…" Hisako gave pause, as she felt Takumi's hand, still lingering on her wrist, let her go, but something remained. She took a look at her own arm, and saw a pretty, little bracelet was now adorning it. "Takumi! What's… this?" she asked, her eyes wide, her hand to her lips to try and avoid showing just how much she was blushing. "How did you…?"

"I practiced that on the way back too many times to count," Takumi admitted with a laugh. "I was at a very fancy place, saw that, made me think of you, so I got it. The hard part was getting it onto your wrist with just one hand without you noticing. I had to practice that."

"Oh, it's so pretty," Hisako said with outright sparkles in her eyes. "And you, come on!" she cried out, playfully punching him on the shoulder, "That's cheating. You can't just spring this on a girl like this, not fair… But, how did you manage to get it on my wrist with just a hand."

"Practice," Takumi repeated. "You'd be surprised how long I had Megumi with her arm raised while I tried to get it right," he said with a laugh, and Hisako laughed too.

"You guys abuse that girl's well-meaning nature, you know?"

"In all fairness," Takumi defended, raising his hands, "Once it was clear she was tired, I stopped, even if she insisted she could go on for as long as needed."

"So you didn't manage it with her?"

"No," Takumi admitted. "I actually managed it with Yukihira."

Hisako laughed so loud she almost snorted. She had to hold herself to avoid embarrassing herself like that. "Are you serious?"

"I was afraid his hands were too big to be compared to your more delicate ones," Takumi explained, taking hold of her hands, fingers interlocking with fingers, as the blushing girl looked on as the Italian softly spoke to her. "But it seems it was actually more difficult with him. Once I managed to get it right, well, doing it to these lovely wrists of yours proved easy enough. And well worth it on your reaction alone."

"You are too much," Hisako said, her eyes to the side. He just smiled.

"I just wanted to make it clear, that I know it's probably the worst timing ever, with everything that's going on," Takumi declared, and Hisako looked on, her eyes widening. What was he…? "But when I saw you up on that screen, taking care of business as only you can, and when I was going up against Soumei, all I could think off, was… this," he said, gently tugging at her hands, and it made her forget how to breathe. "Ever since we got placed together on the Stagiaire, I can't seem to get you out of my head. And I finally know why. Because I may be competitive, I may have my head up in the clouds more often than not, thinking about my rivalries way too much, but now, for once, Yukihira, Kurokiba and Hayama can eat my dust. Because as much as I treasure Erina, Alice and Megumi, and I do, the prettiest, most beautiful girl in all of Tootsuki is right here, in my hands, and all I want now is to have her in my arms, now, and always."

Hisako's face was the same color as her hair.

"Takumi!" was all she could squeal.

"I've fallen for you, mio preziosa," he told her, and she flinched. Stop using Italian she begged. "And I want nothing more than for you to give me a chance. What do you say? The dance is just the start. Would you like to be my girlfriend Hisako?"

Forget Italian, she couldn't speak English anymore. Or Japanese for that matter.

She had to settle for a very nervous nod.

His smile then almost knocked her out.

"May I give you a kiss?"

It was here Hisako forgot how to function. She remembers her daddy's words very well…

"Find yourself a nice boy who will treat you right."

She was sure she couldn't find one nicer than Takumi. The boy was a fairy tale prince brought to life. And she also remembered those few times she and Alice bantered about boys, and the princess would always say…

"Nice boys are okay, but bad boys were the fun's at. A good boy sounds kinda boring, no?"

'N-No, you're wrong Alice, so wrong!' Hisako shot back, easily a year too late, her eyes as wide as could be. 'The right good boy can make you actually mumble in even your inner thoughts!'

"Well…?"

"You are doing this on purpose," Hisako muttered, pouting, "Why must I say it?"

"Because it'll always be you the one who decides," Takumi replied matter-of-factly. "I will simply oblige… every single time."

"…hmm," she tried. "…fine."

"May I?"

"Y-Yes, just hurry up and –" Hisako stammered, utterly out of her element, before she felt Takumi gently pull her in closer. She closed her eyes, puckering her lips out of instinct alone, before she felt his lips… on the back of her hand. She froze, as he gave her hand a sweet kiss, which was very romantic, she'd admit, just… "O-Oh, of course you meant –"

Then he placed a second kiss on her lips, causing her eyes to widen even more, as the boy's soft touch could even be felt in his lips. He shifted his hands around, one hand on her waist, pulling her against his frame, the other on her chin, tugging it gently to kiss her deeply, before he shifted that hand to caress her cheek and brush her hair, all the while the girl couldn't stop her body from trembling. The kiss ended much too quickly for her liking, and he soon parted, leaving her with puckered lips and glossy eyes. He smiled, she almost fainted.

"You are every bit as lovely as I imagined you'd be," he told her.

"…And you are far too much for me right now if I'm being honest," she blurted out, trying to regain herself from the passion of the moment.

"I can accept that," Takumi noted, before he extended his hand. She looked on, puzzled, before she realized that, right, boyfriend and girlfriend, so she took hold of his hand, and together, hand on hand, they walked towards the library. They slowly began to talk about anything and everything, both as happy as could be, both lost in a moment neither of them would ever forget…

-0-

"Hey!" Erina cheered alongside her makeshift team of Tootsuki's best, all gathered at the Polar Star dormitories entrance, them all awaiting the return of their friends.

"Hey!" Soma and the rest of the Elite Ten cheered back, each of the waving at the group as they got off the limousine and walked towards their friends.

Two different groups, fighting two different food wars for a common goal, both sides, for what seemed like the first time in forever, more or less victorious in their combined efforts.

"Is it true?" Nao quickly approached the group, or rather, Soma in particular, pulling in a reluctant Loren with her. "You guys went on to take on and actually won against Eishi and the others?"

"We sure did!" Soma confirmed with a smile and a thumbs up. "It was one heck of a Team Shokugeki, and all six of us, well, Tadokoro, Alice, Kurokiba, Hayama and Mr.-I-Need-To-Be-Elsewhere-Takumi managed to pull it off," Soma boasted, proudly, using his thumb to point to his group. "These guys all rocked it, and it was thanks to Nene we even made it that far, but don't tell me… did you get involved?"

"Sure did!" it was Nao's turn to confirm. "I did the craziest shit and challenged Ashitaro!"

"That's dangerous," Soma noted, frowning a bit at her, but she seemed utterly happy right now, so things must have worked out. "Then again… I got into a Shokugeki with Azami afterwards, so I ain't one to talk. Still, you win?"

"Nope! I got wrecked!"

"Honestly, same."

Then the two idiots just lifted their hands up in celebration of their respective defeats, as everyone else just tried their best to ignore them and move on to go congratulate the others. Loren, for his part, was just standing there awkwardly, wondering just how one's life could turn so comically upside down, when he then felt Soma's hand on his head.

"And what about you?" he asked him, "My guess is Nao here wasn't alone during that throw down, eh?"

"…hmm," was all Loren voiced, his eyes to the side, as Nao perked up even more.

"Little traitor here actually came to my defense," she giddily explained, "He stormed right in, stood before Ashitaro, and actually cooked alongside me. And he was great! Oh! And we're dating now!"

"Is that so?" an amused Soma asked, still caressing the annoyed Loren's head, while smiling at them both. Then he said what Loren expected him to say, until he didn't. "Make sure to take care –"

'…of Nao,' Loren thought he'd say.

"…of each other," Soma actually said, and while Nao just smiled and nodded, Loren just looked on, having a difficult time hiding the emotions on his face. How could a man as smart and gifted as Azami be as wrong about someone as he was about Soma Yukihira?

"You guys did it!" the Polar Star students screamed as they all rushed into hugs disguised as tackles against Megumi, Isshiki, and even the others, much to their surprise. Isshiki was quick to, somehow, grab Yuuki, Ryoko, Shun, Marui, and even the poor Madoka into a tight embrace, tears in his eyes at this massive expression of love and youth!

"And you all did marvelously!" Isshiki exclaimed like a proud older brother, "Prouder, I could not be."

"We beat the Noirs!" Yuuki exclaimed, her bubbly personality now a sheer contrast of the massive bloodlust she had earlier displayed during her matchup.

"Seems all our careful planning paid off," Marui added, smirking, "All fourteen duels were settled in our favor!"

"With this Asahi's forces have diminished into almost nothing," Madoka, still-unused to Isshiki's grander than life affections, muttered.

"…The Neo-Noirs are still more than a threat," Shun noted, but the moment almost everybody turned to him with a frown, he hastily added, "B-But that doesn't take away from our victory."

"Learn to take in the sights, Shun," Ryoko advised, her eyes on him. Intently. Shun just forced himself to hold steady. "We're all in this, and it is so amazing that we could all pitch in to help, for as little as it was."

"Far from little actually," Nene voiced, approaching the group alongside Kuga, "Such a potent army at that guy's disposal would have spelled trouble for us if they caught us off our guard. You all saved us from quite the predicament."

"Indeed! Hold your heads up high my young – ack!" Kuga tried to chime in, but he was quickly interrupted by a tackle-hug of his own by none other than Yuuki. "H-Hey!"

"It was so amazing!" Yuuki beamed, still clinging onto an embarrassed but pretending not to be Kuga, "Did you guys hear all about our duels?!"

"…We were told about most of it," Kuga admitted, his eyes to the side, since everyone was apparently now smirking at their general direction, much to his annoyance. "You did a great job against the guy with the… culinary claw, was it?"

"Yeah, real Freddy Krueger like shit!"

"That sounds… very comical."

"It was utterly absurd," Yuuki admitted. "But he did have the skills to back it off, just not…" she then pointed at herself proudly, "…enough to take on this master chef!"

"Naturally," Kuga replied, and his eyes hovered briefly to the side, as both Nene and Isshiki signaled at him with a bob of their heads, before he turned his eyes back to Yuuki. The girl really did seem to outright shine whenever she was happy or excited, and it was so contagious that having her even smiling in your general direction made you smile as well. Which, much to his growing frustration, probably meant… "Say, regarding this upcoming, nonsensical Ball our Overlord Azami wishes to throw for us all out of the kindness of his heart, would you be willing –?"

"Yes!" Yuuki cried out, tackling him again, this time knocking him down on the floor, and landing right on him. The petite girl was outright bouncing with glee at the notion, sparkles in her eyes, as Kuga only smiled and looked on. She really was too cute for his own good.

"Yuuki hitting up a senior, how very bold," Ryoko noted, looking at the scene approvingly, "Between her and Loren with Nao, we've got quite the daring individuals here in Polar Star," she noted, before she turned to the side, to Shun, who had his hands on his pockets and his eyes on Yuuki and Kuga. "…I mean, we already know Isshiki is taking Nene to the Ball, obviously the power couples themselves, Soma and Erina, and Kurokiba and Alice, are also going. Ikumi and Urara have their boys already claimed, and even our ever meek Zenji managed to muster enough courage to ask Madoka out, who he was afraid of rejection for who knows what reason, cause we all can see what's there, except him apparently… so where does that leave… us?"

"…It leaves me with a dozen or so apologies to give out to each and every one of you," Shun admitted, turning to Ryoko. "…And that wouldn't even cover just the ones I owe you. Ryoko, I lied to you, wanting to keep you out of harm's way, hoping to take my dumb cousin's offer and upset Asahi's ranks, somehow, but I was wrong. I was over my head, and it took Soma knocking some sense back into me, and Erina swooping in to save us both, for me to realize that… But, more importantly, I realized how miserable I felt just being out there, without my friends… without you next to me. I… understand now why Soma is willing to challenge the world itself just for Erina. Because when someone matters you this much, the entire world being against you is a small price to pay just to be by that person's side."

"Shun…" Ryoko voiced, pressing her lips tightly afterwards. She was upset, angry even. And she wanted to let him have it. But, she knew him. She knew he was speaking from his heart, and quite a bit at that. And it made her happy. So, instead of clinging to what could have gone wrong, the million and one scenarios where this would have all gone down the gutter, she'd settled for the little victories earned. "…I feel the same. So I won't make you promise me you won't do any other insane thing, but please promise me you'll at least take me with you."

"As long as you are willing," he replied, his eyes on her, the few times she could sort-of make out his ever-elusive eyes. "I'll take you with me wherever I will go from now on."

"Does that include the Ball?"

"If you'd do me the honors?"

She laughed. Then playfully brushed his bangs back with her hand, allowing her to see his eyes without any obstructions. "It's a date then!" she said with a wink, and he smiled. He just hoped he could avoid any of them catching onto the fact that he was almost trembling, his nerves getting the better of him in the best way possible.

"Milady Alice!" both Berta and Cilla rushed the princess, who quickly spread her arms and took both girls into a tight hug.

"Ah! My precious twins! How the heck did you two end up involved in this mess?" Alice asked, as Kurokiba stood by her, giving the two younger girls a nod of acknowledgement.

"We just had to rush to get Loren to that bad-guy bar so that he could sweep in and save Nao!" Berta explained.

"And we made it just in the nick of time!" Cilla added, "And they were both so cool! Also her brother is so creepy! Someone send him to prison!"

"We… will see what we can do about that," Alice noted, wondering how they could try and resolve that, but she then glance upwards, noting how Erina slowly approached her. "And look at you, dearest cousin of mine, leading an entire charge to a perfect victory. Super proud of you."

"Says the girl who won a Shokugeki against a Second Seat graduate," Erina shot back, smiling at Alice. "I'm even prouder. You did wonderfully, you all did," she added, her eyes on Kurokiba briefly, who did smile at hearing that, "But you all didn't have to go out of your way to keep me out of the loop like that. That was risky. I could have helped with negotiations and de-escalations. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been stuck here listening to who is taking who to the dance."

"Raymond finally asked me out!" Berta said super excitedly. The boy in question was a bit further back, seating on the floor next to the dorm's entrance, listening to a story that Daigo seemed to be telling at Shoji's expense, as he, Mitsuru, Subaru and Julio all listened in, seemingly captivated by whatever it was that had occurred. Mitsuru was even taking notes. "And my sis didn't get left behind, fufufu…" she added with a dignified, albeit teasing, laugh, which caused the short haired twin to pout.

"M-Mitsuru and I just agreed to go as friends," Cilla almost muttered, red in the face, "Stop trying to make everything romantic…"

"D'aww, that's adorable!" Alice screamed out, hugging both girls even tighter, as Erina looked on, smiling at the sight. This… This felt right. "Still, talking about adorable, aren't we missing a few victors here?"

"Hisako and Isami went on ahead," Erina explained. "He needed to return the Mezzaluna he took to Lucrezia, while she… actually, Hisako didn't tell me where she was going. I should call her."

"Oh, shush you!" Alice quickly butted in. "I'm sure she's fine!" she noted, and when Erina gave her a confused look, Alice added, "What? Takumi had some urgent "business" to take care off once he managed to get that pretty bracelet onto Soma's wrist, so I'm sure she's perfectly fine right now!"

"Wait… the what on Soma's…? I-I, okay, never mind," Erina said as she shook her head. She trusted Hisako, and she trusted Alice, so if she said everything was fine, then it was, despite how strange that had all sounded. "As for the others, well, Ikumi went directly with Hakeem elsewhere, surprisingly he was there witnessing the match it would seem. Urara, of course, headed out to meet up with Kotaru and the others, although not before I gave her a little gift meant for Kanon. And Miyoko texted that she had some personal matters to tend to, so I found it best to give her some space, just texting her that if she needed anything, to just let me know."

"What about that Ken guy?" Soma could be heard asking, turning from Nao and Loren for a moment to face the cousins, as they both turned to him, alongside the younger twins.

"…Who?" all four girls asked in unison, and Kurokiba had to struggle not to laugh. Soma just frowned, because they were the ones that had the galls to call him forgetful and inconsiderate at times, and they just forgot about… Ken what's-his-face.

"That the guy that keeps challenging you?" Kurokiba asked, eyes on Soma. The redhead nodded.

"Yeah, we had nobody else to pick with so little time to spare, so we went with him," Soma explained, his eyes on the girls, as it took Erina a bit until she caught on who he meant.

"Oh… him, yeah, I think he stayed behind with his father's company personnel," Erina explained, almost certain that that was the case. "He also won… sort-of."

As everyone seemed eager to tell food war stories to each other and how their respective matches went, Akira, standing by the limousine, arms crossed, just sighed. He didn't understand where these people got so much energy from. He was exhausted. Taking on Rindou was not something anybody could ever just shake off, especially when right afterwards he ended up witnessing two nail-biting duels with the very future of Tootsuki on the line. It had been way, way too much.

"Quite a day, wasn't it?"

He still smiled. Because Megumi always made him smile. He opened his eyes, seeing her standing ever-so prettily before him, her hand on her little skirt. A smile worth a million.

"Indeed," he admitted, "I don't have the masochism fetish everyone else here seems to have. This is about as much of this as I can take."

"Oh, I wouldn't say that, because things are going to look very grim for your future if that's the case," Megumi noted, and Akira raised a brow, curious about what exactly was she saying with that. Before he could ask her, she simply tippy-toed herself towards him, and boosting herself up, gave the boy a quick kiss on the lips, this time it being her to catch him utterly off-guard and surprised, his eyes wide, unable to hide the surprise. "…Because if you are going to be dating me, these people are going to be a part of your life whether you want them to or not. So stop being so gloomy, you have a lot of friends now, so the whole lone wolf act doesn't much cut it anymore, wouldn't you say?"

"Ah… I," he tried, but all he managed to do with grin. "…Fine, you win. You're right. Guess this makes us a true couple then, right?"

"I'd be offended otherwise."

"And you'll be my date for the Ball?"

"I better be," Megumi teasingly threatened, "You do not want to see me angry if you don't take me."

"Is that so?" he asked, and they both just shared a smile, and Megumi, being Megumi, just pushed herself against him, tenderly wrapping herself in his arms, her head near the base of his neck, and even then, he could still feel her smile. This girl was honestly, simply too much…

And it was like this how they continued all throughout the night, an unplanned get-together between the Tootsuki alumni, originally meant to be rivals or stepping stones for the best of them, now fire-forged friends willing to risk expulsion or worse just to protect anyone in their inner circle. The group slowly joined completely, all seated outside, with a makeshift fire as if they had all gone camping, with stories of their battles being exchanged back and forth. From the shocking teamwork demonstrated by the six Elite Ten members against Eishi and the others, to Soma's utterly frightening battle against Azami, to Shinomiya's last minute save, everyone got a chance to tell their story.

Soma even told Nao what Riko had latter on told him, that she had an idea to help him, and she wanted her involved too. Nao was utterly surprised to hear that her momma had seemingly grown fond of the guy she refused to admit she was starting to view as a brother; but her shock only grew when Soma explained that his dad had been the ex-boyfriend of her mom. The girl didn't even know how to even react to that at all.

The conversation then shifted towards the Ball, and everyone talked about, what else, but who was to go with who, with the current dateless members of the group falling into two camps: the "I can handle that" like Subaru and Julio, both men assured that they'd get a date before the big day, or the "I'm so screwed and not in the good way" like Daigo and Shoji were, afraid that the fact that barely anybody knew of them meant that getting a date in so few days was almost impossible. Surprisingly, Soma came to their rescue, more or less, telling them not to worry, that he had an idea to help them. Little did they know just how much this would really screw them over, but that's a story for later.

Erina herself ended up singing praises for each member that contributed to her overwhelming victory against her brother, and especially, she gave extra emphasis on just how annoyed Dove was during it all. Loren clearly did not take too kindly to having the topic be badmouthing his sister, and surprisingly, the ever stern and ice-cold queen of Tootsuki merely smiled and apologized, letting the boy know that it had been friendly-ish banter, and nothing else, and she quickly shifted the topic away from the kid's infuriating sister.

But… they talked about everything and everyone, and during it all, Soma couldn't help but just soak the sight of Erina in. Not under the stress of the competition. Not faking herself for the crowds, for the cameras, or for even her own family. Here, out in the open, surrounded by just friends, she laughed hard, she made jokes, she exaggerated the tales she told, she joined in on the cheering whenever the topic shifted to any of the couples, and she even bobbed her head a bit to the musical tunes Kuga played for all of them with a harmonica he somehow knew how to use. It was mesmerizing, and it was what Soma most wanted to protect above everything. So, when she stood up, excusing herself for a moment, he did the same…

"Hey…" he said, following her inside the Polar Star dorms. She gave pause.

"Hey yourself," she replied, turning, brushing her backside a bit since she wasn't used to seating on the grass like that. "Now, don't get any ideas," she quickly warned, finger raised defensively. "This time I am not staying over. I have to make sure all the non-Polar Stars make their way back to their dorms, and that included me. So you are not sweet-talking me into it."

"Really? That's a shame," Soma noted, arms crossed, resting himself by the door's frame. "Guess that's what I get for wasting the one time you did agree to stay and go out to spend the night with your brother instead."

"Equally romantic I'd assume?"

"Oh, no, yeah, Asahi's a real charmer," Soma said with a laugh. Then he pushed himself off the door and towards her, and she tensed, because knowing him as she did, either he was simply going to say something dumb, or just rush her and throw her onto the dining table and outright devour her whole. But surprisingly, for once, it was neither… "But, Erina, this dance, this… interview your father wants to do. You okay with all this?"

"…I know that you don't much agree," Erina replied, breathing in. Soma nodded. "I've made it clear to my father that I will not bend to his will. I will fight alongside you all for this school. For this home. The purpose of the dance is to have fun, and you can see it, no? Even with how nerve-wrecking this whole thing has been and still is, just how excited everyone is for it?"

"And the interview?"

"…It's just a publicity stunt, one of many I will have to do throughout my whole life," Erina admitted, and the way Soma looked at her was not exactly the way she wished. Especially because a part of her agreed with that look. "We will stop my father, but… that doesn't mean I can't fix my image. Fix my family's image. We go in there, lie a bit, explain the truths, and we get the press to stop taking pity on me and making my parents out to be these inhuman monsters when in reality, yes, they are flawed. Yes, they could have handles things differently, but I'm a big girl now. I can take the high road."

"Is it always going to have to be you though?"

"What?"

"They mess up, and it's you the one who has to extend her hand and fix it all," he said, and it wasn't a question. "Holding them accountable for what they did does not make you a bad person Erina. In fact, you've been far too forgiving."

"…We've been over this," Erina noted, eyes narrowed, but not in anger. "They don't want our family to be this broken. I can't just not…"

"But what is it that you want?"

And Erina just stared, her hands forming little fists, because she had honestly forgotten when it was the last time someone had earnestly asked her such a question…

-0-

Dove made her way to the Resort very late at night. It had been quite the day, probably one of the most out there even for someone like her. She did notice, on her way towards her suite, that the place was getting more and more packed with reporters and journalists every day, no doubt all of them getting pre-event interviews done and getting ready for the big event itself. She avoided most of them like a champ, and even the ones that caught sight of her, she expertly just flashed them a practiced smile the moment the photos got taken, only to switch to her real annoyed and tired look the split second she was out of frame.

This day was too much.

Ashitaro was a monster, she didn't want him in her team at all.

Loren also had a little girlfriend now, of course related to the after-mentioned Ashitaro good measure, and she wasn't sure how a protective older sister should even respond.

And of course, she ended up here late as all hell, because after all the commotion, Asahi had insisted on them just staying behind and "hanging out". She had been very firm she needed to attend to her duties as the Neo-Noirs Team Leader, but the boy was… persuasive. A smile, a touch, a kiss, and she had found herself pressed against a wall, and then against a mattress.

She shook her head. Her relationship with that boy was going to wreck her life more than he himself had done to her undergarments, which she now had to wear by tying one side into a knot because he had outright ripped it apart.

She just blushed furiously when the vivid thoughts came back, and if she could take any solace from her predicament, was that she could hopefully someday catch Erina saying something she could shot down with "just like your brother", but… what would make sense in that context?

Dove digressed, then she opened her suite's door, then she almost screamed.

"Someone's been enjoying herself," Azami noted, the moment his protégé walked in, the man seated on the couch nearest to the front door. Dove looked on, taking a moment to slap herself awake and into the here and now. Azami just looked on. "Everything alright Dove?"

"Y-Yes," Dove replied. "I've just been checking the sights, like… around, and stuff…" she said, now in cold-sweat. Azami didn't have anyone following her, did he? She had been careful, right? He didn't suspect… right?

"You're a grown girl Dove, you do not owe me any explanations," Azami said, and he stood up. He then approached her, and she tensed. He extended his hand, and much to her surprise, he gently caressed her head, patting her for what felt like the first time. "And you have grown. You're no longer that lost little girl I found. I'm sorry for how harshly I've treated you and Loren at times. I know it isn't fair of me, to expect you to master something that took me a decade to learn in just three years. And yet, here you are, my greatest creation…"

"A-Azami, why…?" she blurted out, her eyes a bit teary. This didn't make any sense. "…Did something happen? Am I… in trouble?"

"No, you are not in trouble," Azami told her. "And yes, a few things did happen. Soma Yukihira intervened in my affairs once more, but it's nothing worth being concerned over. I just realized, with the entire world believing my methods are so horrid, and that my love for my daughter is false, I… I just felt like I needed to tell the one young girl who's been there for me all this time, that I am proud of all that she's become. And, that I want –"

And for a man built on plans and schemes, he was taken completely by surprise when Dove just rushed into his arms and hugged him, burying her face into his chest. She didn't even say anything, just held on tightly, and, despite himself, despite how he had planned everything he was going to tell her down to the word… he hugged her back. Held her close. Held her tightly.

"Thank you…" a crying Dove finally managed to say, peering up at him, her bright, blue doll-like eyes blurry with tears. He looked down at her, smiled, and tugged at her tightly.

"Anytime," he replied, then she seemed to realize what she was doing, and slowly distanced herself, trying to "act" like a student should, not like… a daughter would. Azami did not seem to notice it much.

"…Sorry," she outright whispered, and when he turned to her, as if asking what she had just said, she went with, "About the dance…"

"What about it?"

"I know you want me up on the stage for the interview too," Dove noted, and Azami nodded. "Well, I was thinking, if we want to make a show of force, so to speak," she added, making the effort to take a fighting stance and punch the air a few times to showcase what she meant by "force", or so Azami understood it, "Wouldn't it be, like, a great idea if I went with somebody to that dance? Like, you know, would be kinda weird if your protégé and the Team Leader of your team went alone to the most romantic event of the culinary world, you get what I'm saying?"

"…I get what you're saying," Azami repeated with a nod, and before Dove could try and elaborate, Azami added, "And yes, you would be correct, which is why I have the perfect candidate to be your date for this dance."

"I – Oh?! …Oh?" Dove couldn't even fake her disillusion, her crestfallen look saying it all. Still, she managed to at least say, "…You're not going to make me go to that thing with Shawn, right?"

"Shawn?" Azami asked, with a little laugh. "My dear, if Shawn ever showed any interest in you that is not purely professional, there's not a manmade craft that would find his body after I've dealt with him."

"Hmm," Dove just muttered, her eyes to the side. She kinda felt her mentor wasn't exactly exaggerating in that regard. Good to know though.

"I was thinking Asahi."

"The fuck?!"

The way Azami's eyes expanded at the sudden, unladylike language was only equaled by Dove's own horrified expression, her hands over her mouth like a little child who had just said the biggest no-no in existence.

"Do you dislike my son that badly?"

"No! I mean yes! I mean, Asahi? Really, huh, I would never have considered us – it!" Dove said everything and nothing at once, utterly unsure of what she was even supposed to do.

"It makes sense," Azami explained. "You are my protégé, my student, my greatest achievement. The answer to whatever question is made regarding True Gourmet or my plans with the Central Administration. He… is my son. One who I did not know existed until just recently. And I know what everybody thinks, even you must think it, but… had I known about him, I wouldn't have just abandoned him. Which, got me thinking… wouldn't it look nice, if my son, and my student, would go out. I'd find you both utterly perfect together."

"Hmm!" Dove just repeated, her eyes wide. "…Really?!"

"I think he does fancy you."

"…I-I, wait, for real?" Dove asked, before she caught herself and mentally smacked herself. Azami just nodded.

"I am a man, I know how boys act around girls they like," Azami explained, "And he's a good actor, but not that good. Just consider it, because I don't want you to be there and not have a genuine fun time. And the other boys here, why, none of them even come close to being at your level."

"I see…" she said even if she clearly did not. "…I'll ask him and see if he wants to go with me."

"Trust me," Azami replied, walking pass the girl, patting her again on the head, before he opened the door up. "He won't say no. Not to you. Never to you."

"…hmm," was all Dove could mouth as Azami walked out, before she shook her head and managed to ask, "Hey! About Loren, h-he might try and invite a girl from his dorm. Is that… Would that be okay?"

"Loren's done his part," Azami affirmed. "He may do as he pleases. The ones that still have a job to do is us. You winning this final round, and me changing the very nature of the culinary world…" the man said with a knowing wink, "No pressure."

"Right…" Dove replied, nodding, and no sooner had Azami closed the door to give the girl some privacy than she outright threw herself onto her carpet, her head outright spinning. She did manage, after a few minutes of staring blankly into the ceiling, to send two texts. One to Loren, telling him she had cleared him to take Nao to the dance. The second to Asahi, telling him his dad actually wanted them to go to the dance together. And, just like a school girl with a crush, she was utterly nervous at whatever response she'd receive, for as dumb as that sounded…

…Asahi's phone vibrated, but the young man himself was a bit further away from it. He currently sat at the lower parts of "Con Calma, Don Calma", his eyes on the recordings of each match that had gone through between his Noirs and the Tootsuki alumni. Yuunosuke slowly approached him, taking another one of the seats, eyeing the footage briefly, before he turned towards their king.

"I imagine this works perfectly for what you want?" Yuunosuke asked.

"This is cinema," Asahi noted with quite a bit of snark, grinning, "Although, to be frank, I did not expect all of you to lose damn it. A few victories would have helped."

"Yeah…" Yuunosuke said, eyes to the side. It wasn't like they had purposely lost or anything. "These Tootsuki bunch, Seated or not, are quite the handful."

"Yeah, they're great," Asahi replied, his eyes glimmering in the dark room as the recordings of each of the fourteen duels played out. "But let's see if my little sis is really that good at chess as she claims, for even if you lose all your pawns, victory is always possible as long as the King still stands…"

-0-

It was the middle of the night, in the meeting spot meant for all the Tootsuki students, a usually busy park filled with people, currently emptier than a graveyard, and twice as spooky. It was here a sole Tootsuki alumni waited, for the past seven hours, for his ride…

"THEY TOTALLY FORGOT ABOUT ME, DIDN'T THEY?!" Ken Dakekanba cried out into the never-ending darkness…

-0-

The days passed, and in a blink of an eye, the big day was upon them. Tootsuki opened its gates to everyone and anyone with connections to the culinary world, as the entire world tuned in to what was going to be the biggest event that combined gastronomy, fashion, talent, and celebrities. The dance was set to begin, and the entire world was getting ready to watch it live as if it were a reality television show, which at this point, it more or less was.

But this was it. The grandest event ever hosted by Tootsuki Academy, where romance was at the forefront, and every couple would get a moment to shine, was here.

The musicians got ready to take the stage.

All the guests were getting their most fashionable clothes on.

Every person was texting their date, making sure they were set.

The world was watching, and today, tonight, nothing else mattered but this.

And, as such, Tootsuki Academy formally invites you to the Intercontinental Grand Ball…

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The Time Has Come.

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Notes:

Hey Everyone, Zancrowe Here! Again!

Just in time for the Grand Ball itself, here is the Top 10 Side Pairings featured in Classique (and some in Nouvelle) as voted by all of you! Drumroll please…

10. Etsuya Eizan / Shouko Kaburagi

It's the main antagonist from Nouvelle, making his grand comeback, this time with his partner-in-crime who always hid in the shadows in tow. I loved the idea of actually using Shouko as an actual character, over just a gag like the manga did, so it was great to create this couple, even if it seems it ended in a rather tragic note.

9. Aisha Akintola / Kanon Nikaido

This was a huge surprise, being totally honest. Out of all my original characters, I knew Dove, Loren, Julius, Yukichiko and Ashitaro would be the most important ones of the bunch, some far less popular by design (looking at you Ashitaro), but to think the little slasher villain in the making that is Aisha having a little puppy-love with the pigtailed little darling that is Kanon (a manga exclusive character to boot) would actually crack the top ten of the poll utterly floored me! If you like these 2 twerps together, worry not, they have a moment come next chapter.

8. Jouichirou Yukihira / Riko Ebisawa

A ship built on starting over and second chances. Jou and Riko are the adult pairing I have given the most time to, so it's nice to see them here. Granted, the two are more preoccupied with saving their kids rather than their feelings, but there's still something there. Only time will tell what will come of this; if maybe it is worth it giving it another try.

7. Shun Ibusaki / Ryoko Sakaki

A very underrated pairing if there ever was one, and just very underrated (and underutilized) characters at that, I do love how you rarely ever see these two not together. I underestimated just how many fans Shun has, given how his "heel-turn" against Soma caused quite a stir, which I really did not expect. Good on him. And good on them for looking so great together. Seems they have also mended fences, which is neat.

6. Akira Hayama / Megumi Tadokoro

And here's my first "big" crack pairing, dating all the way back to the beginnings of Nouvelle. Back then, I still wasn't sure how big the story would be (much less that it would get an even bigger sequel), so I didn't much know who or if to pair Megumi at all. I teased her with Takumi for a moment, but all it took was one scene of Akira scouting Megumi and them interacting for both readers and yours truly to want to see more of them. And, lo and behold, how far we've come.

5. Eishi Tsukasa / Rindou Kobayashi

One of the most popular pairings in all of Food Wars, the two seniors have it all. Excellent chemistry, a (sort-of) childhood friendship, both of them are hot as hell, and they just play well of each other. While Nouvelle and Classique may not have featured them as much as I would have wished (damn stories have upwards of one-hundred and fifty named characters, I can only do so much!) it is still nice to have them here and to have fans enjoy those moments they share.

4. Loren Frechette / Nao Sadatsuka

Unlike Aisha, I did expect the Loren x Nao ship to work… just not this much. Loren, who I created specifically as a joke or parody of the usual self-insert OC in these types of stories (good looking, excellent at everything, everybody loves them, never in the wrong, etc.) which in my case I made the almost opposite (still good looking, just horrible at cooking, everybody loved a fake version of him, very much in the wrong, etc.) it still shocks me that he was welcomed by the fandom with open arms and allowed to grow and have his story told. Doubly so that it allowed me to use one of my favorite girls, Nao, and give her a much needed backstory and plot relevance. Also, their dynamic is hilarious to write, and I am so, so happy you all agree.

3. Takumi Aldini / Hisako Arato

A pairing almost too beautiful to be valid, Takumi x Hisako came from the idea to have a ship that could serve as a more level-headed version of the Sorina ship. The brash guy with the tsundere princess, just more down to Earth. And it worked! It took me a while to get their dynamic right, and as I write this I still don't know if their scene featured in this very chapter worked for you guys or not, but I adored writing it. Takumi is ever the gentleman, Hisako is ever the elegant beauty, and together they're utterly stunning.

2. Satoshi Isshiki / Nene Kinokuni

For a split second, back during Nouvelle, I was almost going to ship Nene with Kuga… then Isshiki's declaration happened in the manga. Never have I been so happy to be proven wrong at something. I fell in love with these two, and damn it, childhood romances don't always have to end in tragedy. And I know they are very beloved. So much so that I would have sworn they would have gotten an easy first place in this poll. But, even if another pair ended up there, that doesn't negate the fact that Isshiki and Nene are outright meant for each other, and I adore them to bits.

1. Asahi Saiba / Dove Dillinger

What can I say? Really? What can I say? One of my reviewers, who signs things here as just Guest, but who I've chatted with over on Reddit (known as holosimpz85 over there) once put it best: "Worst Shokugeki Boy x Antagonist OC". That is who these 2 are, so imagine my surprise when not only were they accepted, but ended up as the most popular on this list. Asahi was a character people begged me not to include due to how much they hate him (and given what the manga did, I cannot blame them), while Dove, unlike Loren, kinda plays all the OC tropes a little more straight, at least at surface level. But, thank you all. Thank you for giving this pair a chance. Thank you for allowing me to tell this story. And thank you for finding joy in this dark parallel of the Sorina ship, and as promised, I will do something "extra" with these 2 sometime in the near future. But for now, they have a dance to attend to, so, please, look forwards to that!

Not Included In The Vote For Obvious Reasons Were:

Ryou Kurokiba / Alice Nakiri: Would have been a wasted vote because they are just THAT popular.

Kojirou Shinomiya / Hinako Inui: They have a one-shot all for them and they getting a baby, they have enough.

Soma Yukihira / Erina Nakiri: I have written 2 entire novels and 2 one-shots about them! WHAT MORE DO YOU WANT FROM ME?!