CH. 82 - The Iris High Cooking Competition

 Later into the season, the group sits in their clubroom doing different things in silence. Kitaro plays a game on his phone as Milo braids Tsuki’s hair. He looks frustrated as Milo smiles happily. Shiori writes in her book as Hikigaya taps a pencil on some paper with a contemplating look. Touma turns the page of a book he reads as Haru stares at everyone minding their own business. He sighs out loud before standing up.

 “Okay, well if the Helper’s Club is gonna be this slow, I’m heading out.” Haru says. Lucy looks at him dramatically shocked.

 “You’re quitting?” she asks. Haru looks stunned by her question.

 “No! I’m going to look for people who have problems that need helping!” Haru says back.

 “Perhaps there are simply no problems that require our assistance. Surely with Sugawara’s help, there is no problem you cannot solve.” Riley interjects. Haru looks at her with dull eyes.

 “Until just this moment, I totally forgot you weren’t a stuffed animal in the corner.” Haru says plainly.

 “Hey!” Mormo shouts as he climbs onto the desk. “There’s only one stuffed animal here, and it’s her!” Mormo shouts, pointing at Hisana, who looks confused. Alice then speaks up.

 “Maybe we’re just that good?” she proposes. Kitaro sweats with a raised eyebrow.

 “Yeah, I doubt that.” he says before focusing back on his game.

 “Regardless, we should really be trying harder to help others. It’s not like a problem is just gonna walk through our door.” Haru says, motioning towards the door. Hisana tilts her head.

 “That’s how it usually works, doesn’t it?” She asks questioningly. Haru looks at her before the door slides open, and Ryuji walks through.

 “Look at that. A problem walked through our door.” Kitaro says sarcastically as Chizuru bumps him a bit with a cute pouty look. The others are surprised as he enters the room with a neutral look on his face.

 “What’s up, main? Where ya been?” Haru asks with a big smile as Ryuji shrugs a bit and walks past him to a seat next to Lucy.

 “You okay, baby?” Lucy asks, concerned.

 “Mm.” He hums briefly in response. Lucy has a concerned look as the others can tell something is up with him.

 “What’s wrong, Ryuji?” Chizuru asks.

 “Nothing.” Ryuji says. Lucy places her hand on his softly. He looks at her a bit surprised as she gives him a soft look.

 “Talk to us.” She says softly as he exhales a bit.

 “Nothing’s actually wrong.” He says as he pulls out a flyer from his bag and places it on the table. The others gather around and look at the flyer with mixed reactions. 

 “The Iris High Cooking Competition?” Suiyoubi reads.

 “I heard about that. Aren’t they holding that in honor of that famous chef who passed away?” Sugawara asks. Alice shrugs as Riley answers.

 “Yes. His name was Sir Franco Gardner. He was a master in the culinary world.” Riley explains. They look at her, surprised as she stares back. “I only partake in the finest of dishes.” She says.

 “Right…” Haru says as they all sweat at her response. Lucy looks back at Ryuji with a soft look.

 “Why did you bring this out?” she asks.

 “Did you want to try out?” Hikigaya asks. Ryuji nods while looking at the flyer.

 “I went to the Home Ec class trying to find others to join me since it is a team event, but they have all been scouted by other teams.” Ryuji says with a disappointed tone despite his neutral expression. Hikigaya stands back and rubs the back of his head.

 “It sounds like a big deal. I doubt there’ll be anyone else left who’s willing to participate.” Hikigaya says, thinking.

“It says here that some of the judges are gonna be popular and famous chefs from around the Districts. It really is a big deal.” Shiori says. Ryuji nods as Lucy looks sad that this happened to her boyfriend. Chizuru stares at the flyer while thinking before smiling, coming up with an idea.

 “Wait, Ryuji. Do the people who enter need to have any experience or specific classes?” Chizuru asks.

“No, anyone can join.” Ryuji says, lifting his head a little.

 “Well, that settles it!” Chizuru says with a big smile. The others look at her as Haru looks confused.

 “Settle it how?” he asks.

 “We’ll join! We can help him win the competition!” Chizuru says happily. Some of the group look excited at the idea while others look concerned.

 “Yeah, that’s great and all, but some of us aren’t exactly five star chefs…” Hikigaya says.

 “Not everyone needs to be. The teams are only five people, so we’ll pick the best ones.” Sugawara says, reading the flyer.

“Two ingredient grabbers, one food runner, a sous chef and a head chef. Sounds simple enough.” Lucy says, leaning her chin on Sugawara’s shoulder, reading the flyer as well.

 “Then the rest of us can cheer you on!” Milo says excitedly.

 “Or spread the word of the obvious winning champ.” Tsuki says with a supportive smirk. Everyone then turns to Ryuji. He is surprised and blushes a bit.

 “What do you say? Can the Helpers Club help you with this problem?” Chizuru asks playfully as he nods softly.

 “Great, then let's get started.” Shiori says with a determined smile. Haru smiles with his hands on his hips.

 “Huh. I guess problems really do just walk through the door.” He says before joining the others as they get to work.

 The group strategizes and practices as much as they can when the day of the competition quickly arrives. Shiori runs through the game plan with the group.

 “Now, there are three other teams. Each is composed of talented and skillful students from all years. They are cutthroat and vicious, but so are we. There will be four judges watching our every move and evaluating every action we take, three of whom are real chefs who are honored in the culinary world. We have to make sure we are ready for anything the other teams might throw at us.” She says as images of the other teams and the judges appear. Chizuru then continues.

 “Here’s the team. Alice and Tsuki will be the ingredients grabbers. You will run from the starting point and make sure to grab whatever ingredients we need for our planned dish from the tables and shelves. Collect them and place them in the hand basket for the food runner. That’s when you’re up, Shiori. You will deliver ingredients for the chef and sous chef as they need them as well as deliver the finished dish to the judges. Our sous chef will be Lucy since she has experience in the kitchen with her dad, and rounding out our team is head chef Ryuji.”

 The group smiles at him as he sweats a bit, keeping a composed look. They are all dressed and ready for the event as people pour into the school, looking forward to the event. They gather around a large dirt field area mostly used for sports during the school day. Four makeshift kitchens are set up across from a big area filled with shelves, fridges and tables full of food under a canopy. In the crowds of people, the others pass out flyers with Ryuji and ‘Team 4’ printed on them.

 “Here you go! Be sure to cheer for Team 4!” Milo says with a smile as Haru waves the flyers over his head.

 “Make sure to watch Team 4 because they’re gonna win this!” he shouts with a smile as Sugawara sweats and people stare at them. The others are dispersed throughout the crowd doing the same. At the higher end of the field sits a long table under another canopy, where the chef judges are waiting.

 “Welcome everyone! Welcome, as we prepare for a spectacular event unlike any we’ve seen here at Iris High before! I am your announcer, Shuhei Arataka, and with me are the judges! From Districts far and wide, here have some professional and famous chefs! Jordan Ainsley from District 14 and owner of Heaven’s Diner! Keller Plake, four time Steel Chef champion! And Augustine Gouso, owner of Gouso’s and writer of the best selling book ‘Everyone Is Able To Bake’! They will decide who wins today’s competition and get the recognition of three amazing chefs! Let’s see the teams now!” Shuhei shouts before pointing at the first team stepping out. A round boy with a snicker look and his team of cheater looking allies.

 “Team 1 led by Alphonso Jacobs!” Shuhei announces. Alphonso smirks with a dirty look.

 “These idiots don’t know what’s gonna hit them.” he says with a mean attitude. The second team then begins to step out. A tall, skinny girl with bags under her eyes leads the way with a few other nervous followers.

 “Team 2 led by Sharley Popov!” Shuhei shouts. She gets an angry look as she clicks her tongue in disapproval.

 “This setup looks horrendous.” She grunts. The third team steps out with a short girl leading the way in a march. Her eyes are closed as the rest of her team follows behind her march.

 “Team 3 led by Atsushi Mira!” Shuhei announces. Atsushi stomps in front of her station as she snaps a pointer stick down.

 “Line up!” Atsushi shouts.

“Ma’am!” Her team shouts as they do as told. 

 “We will crush the opposition and show this crowd what real food tastes like!” Atsushi shouts. The team stomps in unison as the judges sweat a bit.

 “Okay, well lastly but certainly not leastly, Team 4 led by Ryuji Sato!” Shuhei shouts excitedly. The group makes their way across the field to their station as they look nervous. Ryuji holds his head up with a neutral look as the other teams stare with disapproving looks.

 “This chump again.” Alphonso scoffs.

 “Looks like he finally managed to get a team of randoms.” Sharley mocks.

 “He doesn’t have what it takes to make it in this world.” Atsushi says spitefully as Ryuji keeps his gaze focused forward. They take their places at their stations, Ryuji and Lucy in the cooking area as Shiori, Alice and Tsuki line up in the front, ready to run towards the ingredient area. 

 “They have a little under an hour to prepare four dishes of the same kind for our judges. The teams are ready, are you?” Shuhei asks the crowd with an anticipating look. The teams ready themselves as the crowd awaits the commencement of the competition.

 “Ready..?” Shuhei says into the mic. Team one digs their foot into the dirt a bit as Shiori sweats.

‘We got this. For Ryuji.’ Shiori thinks firmly.

‘For Ryuji!’ Alice and Tsuki think with intense looks on their faces as a whistle blows sharply. Suddenly, all runners and ingredient grabbers take off in a sprint towards the ingredients. 

 “And they’re off! Only the grabbers can get ingredients for their dishes, the runner must wait! But they need to be quick because there are only so many ingredients! You don’t want to run out of stuff you need!” Shuhei announces with an excited look as the grabbers swiftly search through the shelves while staring at a list.

 “What else do we need?” Alice asks hastily. 

 “Uh, we need tomatoes!” Tsuki says while reading the list. Alice looks around and spots the small bags of tomatoes. She reaches for a bag, but before she can grab it, one of the boys from team 1 shoulder checks her hard, causing her to stumble into the table. He grabs two bags before chuckling and running off. Alice looks frustrated but quickly grabs the only one left. The tomatoes in the bag aren't nearly as fine as the other bags. She sighs in disappointment before putting the stuff in the basket. They quickly turn as they lift the basket to Shiori.

 “Here, Shiori! Go!” Tsuki shouts. She grabs the basket with a determined look and bolts back to the cooking station. Lucy quickly takes the basket and opens it up.

 “Okay, what do we need first?” she asks.

 “The sauce. Get me the tomatoes and basil.” Ryuji says calmly as Lucy grabs them. She hands him the tomatoes with a concerned look.

 “Are these gonna be okay?” she asks. Ryuji looks at it before smiling at her.

 “Of course.” he says confidently. They get to work preparing and cooking the food.

 “Stir faster! Faster, faster! Alright, now get over here and check on the meat! What are you doing? Throwing up in the pan? Move, I’ll do it!” Atsushi shouts while snapping her pointer at the sous chef, hurting them as they obey her commands before being shoved out of the way.

 “How can I help now?” the sous chef asks Shirley, who just glares at him.

 “Just shut up and let me focus.” She says sharply while preparing a part of her dish. At team 1’s station, the sous chef rushes around while trying to do everything as Alphonso kicks back in a chair.

 “Let me know when you’re done there. I’ll double check your work.” He says while leaning back. Meanwhile, Lucy and Ryuji sweat and cook rapidly, putting effort in everything they do. Shiori runs back and forth a few times with different ingredients they need or forgot, as do the other teams’ runners.

 “Let’s get a word in with our judges. What do you have to say about the teams you see before you today?” Shuhei asks, pointing the mic in their direction as the first judge, Jordan Ainsley, speaks.

 “Well, I can say I’ve never been a part of a competition with kids before, but I’m sure they’ll think of something wonderful to cook up for us today. Let’s just hope it isn’t raw or a total letdown.” He says with a strong tone, clapping his hands together. Shuhei moves over to Keller Plake, a younger woman with a soft, happy look on her face.

 “What do you think of the contestants today?” he asks.

“I think it’s so sweet to see such youth with so much passion. It is certainly a hard industry, so starting young is very good.” she says with a smile as Shuhei moves onto the final other judge.

 “And you, Augustine Gouso, what do you have to say? Thoughts on the competition so far?” Shuhei asks. The slim man with an aged face and a very serious look stares at the teams as he speaks.

 “I think that the contestants are doing average at best, except for team 1. They seem to have this whole thing perfected. But I must also agree with Ms. Plake. The industry can be harsh and very difficult to enter without any kind of background or assets to support you. That means they each will need to work even harder if they want a shot at working in a high end restaurant, let alone their own. Having said that, I must take note about team 4.” He squints as he stares at them. Shuhei looks confused.

 “Their head chef, Ryuji Sato, seems to have no culinary background at all. Neither of his parents has any stake in the industry, nor is he taking any kind of classes or extracurriculars for it, and his team is even worse. Surely, they don’t expect to win with such a lack of training and assets.” He says sharply as Shuhei looks at them.

 “I suppose you’re right. But let us wait and see how they compete. Who knows? Maybe they’ll surprise us all!” Shuhei says with a smile as Augustine sits back a bit.

 “I doubt that.” He says under his breath with a smirk. Back in the stations.

 “We have to start the chicken now.” Ryuji says clearly.

 “Right, here.” Lucy says while bringing over the pack of chicken. Ryuji quickly slices it open and preps it while looking around.

 “The parmesan…” he says softly. Lucy stirs a pot of pasta as Ryuji looks up with a slightly stressed look. “We need parmesan.” He says. Shiori hears and gets right to work.

 “Right!” she says with a nod, taking her basket in hand and rushing to the ingredient table. “Parmesan cheese, please!” She shouts as Tsuki rushes and locates a small amount of cheese.

 “Right here! This is the last of it.” He says while placing it in her basket. She nods and turns around. As soon as she does, Atsushi in her station looks towards the crowd to the right of the judges' table. She nods with a glare as a student in the crowd in an incognito outfit nods back before pulling out a slingshot. He pulls it back and aims as Shiori dashes across the field.

The student breathes for a moment before releasing the shot and shoots a small stone directly into the forehead of Shiori. It hits her hard as she is shocked and slightly hurt by the stone. She falls over, dropping her basket and the cheese in it. It flops onto the ground towards Atsushi’s station. Shiori lifts herself a bit, holding her head when a foot stomps on the last of the parmesan cheese. Her eyes widen in shock as she looks up at the runner of team 3.

 “Aw, sorry, did you need that?” She asks with a smirk and devious glare before laughing and turning away. Atsushi stares at her on the ground with a belittling look.

 “Looks like you guys should’ve gotten a real food runner on your team. Maybe then the food wouldn’t be on the ground.” She says with a glare. Shiori gets an angry look before hitting the ground, grabbing the basket and getting up.

 “Oh no! Shiori from team 4 tripped and dropped the last bit of cheese! Team 4 is in a sticky spot. What will they do now?” Shuhei says with a shocked look.

 “Ryuji, I’m sorry. I dropped the parmesan..” Shiori says disappointedly. Lucy is shocked as Ryuji stares for a moment.

 “What now? What should we do?” Lucy asks worriedly. Ryuji thinks for a moment before looking at her.

 “Bring me sesame seeds and olive oil.” Ryuji says. Shiori nods before rushing back and doing just that.

 “What’s this? It looks like they’re still on the move! What could they be cooking up now?” Shuhei asks enthusiastically. 

 “How interesting! Switching up the recipe mid session. How youthful and exciting!” Keller says happily.

 “I suppose that is worth a few points. Things go wrong in the kitchen all the time. Quick thinking is a must.” Jordan notes.

“It will be hit or miss, coming from a preset recipe that is.” Augustine says while examining them through his glasses.

 In the crowd, the slingshot student chuckles before trying to step away but is stopped when he bumps into someone large. He looks up with wide eyes as Touma stands before him, his arms crossed and anger across his face. The student gets a scared look before being grabbed by the face and dragged away by Touma out of the crowd.

 As they continue to cook, time continues to drop. Eventually, Team 2 begins to plate their four dishes well before the other three teams. As the food runner delivers the first two plates to the judges, she is stopped by Sharley. The runner looks at her confused as Sharley hands her a small needle. The runner begins to sweat as Sharley stares at her. 

 “Why don’t you show Team 4’s runner some love?” Sharley whispers. The runner stares at the small needle and sweats nervously.

 “What am I supposed to do?..” she asks.

 “The needle is coated with a numbing agent. Just stick her leg when you’re running by and she’ll definitely collapse, taking their dishes out with her.” Sharley explains. The runner sweats as she grips the needle with a shaky hand.

 “Hey.” Sharley gets her attention. The runner looks up to see Sharley staring at her intimidatingly. “If you mess this up, I’ll kill you.” she says scarily as the runner gulps and nods.

 She grabs one plate and rushes to the judges' table, passing Atsushi’s station and approaching Ryuji’s. She sweats and shakes a bit before taking a deep breath. She quickly walks past Shiori, who is staring at Lucy and Ryuji, waiting for the plates, and as she passes her, she quickly pokes the needle into Shiori’s leg while closing her eyes and holding her breath. As she speeds on by and places the dish next to her other ones, she looks back at Shiori, expecting her to be in slight discomfort or for the agent to be working already, but nothing happened. She sighs with relief before rushing back to her station. Sharley smirks while staring at Shiori.

 “Soon enough, you’ll be out, no problem.” Sharley says. Soon, Ryuji and Lucy plate the dishes as Shiori grabs them and rushes them to the judges' table with no problem whatsoever. Sharley’s jaw drops and eyes pop in shock. “WHAT??” She turns to the runner and starts slapping them on the head and back angrily. “What did you do?! It should be working already! How did you mess this up!?”

 She shouts as the runner covers herself and yelps. Soon after, the dishes are plated and brought to the table. Shiori, Lucy and Ryuji sweat and pant as Alice and Tsuki join them. They stare at the judges as the dishes are brought to them.

 “Hey, what did you change to fix the cheese problem?” Lucy asks Ryuji and waits for a response but realizes he isn’t even looking at her. The others notice his silence and look at him.

 “Ryuji?” Shiori calls him, but he pays them no mind as he focuses on the judges and the food he put before them, awaiting their response intently. Team 1 sweats a bit as they watch the judges begin with their dish. Alphonso sits back and peeks one eye open at the judges.

 “Chef, shouldn’t we be up there waiting for their judgement?..” his sous chef asks.

 “I wouldn’t worry about it. I have no doubt I’ll win.” Alphonso says, relaxed as he’s been the whole time as Augustine smirks. 

 “Okay! Let us begin the judgement with team 1’s dish! It seems they cooked up a classic egg omelet with garden veggies and rice!” Shuhei announces. The judges take a few bites as Keller pushes the plate away with slight disgust.

 “I think not. Mushy veggies are never a good idea…” Keller says clearly.

 “The rice is undercooked, and so are the eggs.” Jordan says with a disappointed look.

 “I don’t know what you are talking about. The classic dish is genius and wonderfully prepared!” Augustine says without having taken a bite as he sweats. ‘I will admit, this dish is quite concerning. Letting the sous chef do all the work wasn’t the best idea…’ He thinks to himself as Shuhei spits out the food he ate. 

 “Yeah, well, mine was burnt… Anyway, the scores will be presented at the end along with a winner. Let us move on to Team 2’s dish! A stew with roasted corned beef and steamed vegetables. A thick broth of beans!” Shuhei says. The judges partake in the stew, receiving better reactions than the first dish.

 “I appreciate the traditional flavors.” Keller says.

 “The corned beef needed some more time.” Jordan says.

 “A bit too much salt in mine. Perhaps focus more on better seasoning.” Augustine says harshly. Sharley growls.

 “I’ll show you seasoning…” she says angrily under her breath.

 “I’m really loving the edible food, unlike last time… Anyway! Moving on, Team 3! Atsushi went with a fairly safe choice of… well, sushi haha!” He laughs as Atsushi jumps up on the counter enthusiastically.

 “Prepare yourselves, for you are about to taste a slice of delight... with the Atsushi Sushi Roll!” Atsushi shouts.

 “Filled with spicy tuna, baked salmon, and cucumber! Topped with cucumber and ahi, then drizzled with ponzu and karashi yuzu sauce!” Atsushi shouts as the judges stare surprised and confused.

 “Okayyy well you heard it! Let’s give it a try!” Shuhei says as they each take a couple bites, making delighted sounds.

 “What a tangy and spicy flavor!” Keller says delightfully.

“I am not a fan of raw food, but this is quite pleasant.” Jordan says, surprised.

 “I have had better.” Augustine says blandly.

 “I’LL SHOW YOU BETTER! COME HERE!” Atsushi shouts while struggling and swinging her fist in the air, her teammates trying to restrain her.

 “What pitiful lack of restraint. I’m deducting points.” Augustine writes down as Atsushi growls.

 “With this pleasant dish out of the way, it’s time for the final plate! Team 4 with chicken parmesan on angel hair but, as we know, they ran out of cheese during cooking, so what could they have possibly done to account for that?” Shuhei shouts as the judges look at Ryuji before them.

 “Come here, young man.” Jordan says softly. The group is surprised a bit, but he does as told and approaches the judges' table without hesitation. “Tell us about your dish.” Jordan says as Ryuji sweats nervously a bit but keeps his composure.

“I originally intended for classic chicken parmesan, but when we ran out of cheese, I had to get creative. Then I remembered something my mother used to make for me, specifically on chicken. Using sesame seeds and oil, I made tahini.” Ryuji explains. The judges are surprised by his answer but not shocked. “I used it in place of the parmesan because that’s something my mom used to do for me, so it came personally, and I felt it was the right choice.” Ryuji says proudly, with a shine in his eyes and a slight blush on his cheeks. The judges look amongst themselves before responding.

 “How sweet. It sounds like your dish was made from the heart.” Keller says.

“Yes, and tahini on chicken is quite a common combination despite the more advanced flavor. I look forward to trying it.” Jordan says with a smile.

 “Yes, well, as you said, it’s advanced and definitely not for teenagers to make. We shall see how the rest of your dish holds up with the sudden change of flavors.” Augustine says sharply while pushing up his glasses. The others are nervous as Ryuji stands tall and confident in his dish. Augustine puts a fork gently to his dish while thinking.

‘While I definitely appreciate the effort, young one, I’m afraid your loss is set in stone. For Alphonso is my own son and, as such, I will make sure my child wins and takes home the glory!’ He thinks with a ratty smirk as Alphonso snickers to himself.

 “I’ve got this in the bag. There’s no way my father is letting some nobody win. It’s all mine.” Alphonso says confidently as the judges take a bite of Ryuji’s dish. Augustine’s eyes suddenly widen as a blush comes across his face. He slowly chews before swallowing as his mouth hangs slightly open. He stutters and blushes in shock and delight before suddenly standing up and pointing his hand at Ryuji.

 “I DECLARE THIS BOY TO BE THE WINNER!” Augustine shouts as the other judges look at him in confusion and with a sweatdrop. Alphonso’s eyes pop out of his head in shock.

 “WHAAAT??” he shouts. Shiori and the others are surprised before smiling warmly and hugging each other happily.

 “I see you’ve made your choice, but we still need to discuss the real winner…” Shuhei says under his breath into the mic. Augustine sweats before composing himself.

 “Right, of course.” He says with his eyes closed and fist in front of his mouth while clearing his throat. He then opens one of his eyes and stares at Ryuji’s dish before happily and excitedly continuing to eat the food. 

 “Mm! How lovely! This truly was made with love and passion, I can taste it!” Keller says while chewing and blushing. 

 “The chicken is breaded and cooked to perfection. The pasta is al dente, with the right kind of seasoning and the tahini. Muah, perfect. Good job, boy.” Jordan says with a smile as Ryuji is surprised before blushing and nodding.

 “Thank you.”

 “Truly amazing! I see why Augustine had such an intense reaction! But with all that, the judges will now discuss with each chef individually about their dishes! All chefs line up!” Shuhei announces.