The God's Chef ~Intoxicating Desire~ BETA

Chapter 41

The 31st of August cane the next day. The wind blew towards the many students walking all together to the stadium. Bright and early in the morning, the crisp air blew their faces.

Dreading the fact that Rei didn't get to go back over to Tsukasa's place right after her little private taste testing job, ecerytime she makes eye contact with Soma or even talk to him, she couldn't help but blush.

Surrounded by her polar star friends who are in the same group as she is in, she just so happens to be right next to her brother.

The hall was big. With many seats filling the spacious room, she carefully looks over at Yukihira talking to people. With Alice and her aide just leaving, a tanned male with long pale hair is the next to open his mouth.

"There's a lingering trace of spices on your fingers." Rei's eyes opens wider a bit. Holding in her smile, she looks over at the tall male.

"Hayama!"

"I guess you've been giving this your best shot." Making a quick mental note that Hayama has a special trait, she continues to eavesdrop into their greeting.

"Yup! I want to let you taste really great curry!" With his voice in its usual form, Yukihira suddenly swings an arm around Rei's shoulder. "Cause with Rei's help, I'll be able to come first place!" His usual stupid face appears. Flinching when Yukihira suddenly touched her, she looks away with a blush.

"Heh," Glancing over at the fat looking girl in his eyes, Hayama tched and looks away with amusement in his eyes. Walking away, another person walks up to them.

"Yukihira!" Glancing over to her left, a blonde looks over at Yukihira then trails down at the her. Noticing the arm around her shoulders, he does a double take. "You--!"

"Morihika Rei, you must be Aldini Takumi." Bowing, she preys off his arm and stepped to the side. With Aldini's blue eyes going back and forth the two, Yukihira finally acknowledges him.

"Oh, Takumi it's been a while."

"I... I'll say this to you now!"

"Hehehe, hell never guess that Rei's his girlfriend." Yoshino snickers into Sakaki's ear, which did go unheard.

Exploding with a blush, he suddenly yells. "I'll say this to you now! Your true rival is me right here--!"

"Hey, who's the guy next to you?" With his gold eyes trailing over to his side, he finds him uninterested to what he has to say.

"Who? It's Isami, of course." Reintroducing Yukihira the slim man who stands beside him, it finally processed into his head.

"Lies!" [Yukihira]

"What? Sure Isami always loses a little weight ecru year when the summer heat gets to him." [Takumi]

"This is because of the summer heat?!" [Yukihira]

"I'm all better now, don't worry. I'll be back to my old self come fall and winter." [Isami]

"I'm surprised you're alive." [Yukihira]

"Anyways, now you know this is Isami!" Takumi yells. Coughing, he closes his eyes and regains his composure. "Okay, let's start over, Yuk--?!"

"Thank you for your patience, everyone. Eyes on the front stage, please." With the lights goings off all of a sudden, everyone couldn't help but flinch of jump.

"Hey, what's going on?" Looking at the brightly lit stage, Yukihira asks.

"It's starting, obviously." Pushing up her glasses, Rei thanks the darkness for hiding her blush.

"We'll now have the opening speech by the current director of Totsuki Academy, Nakiri Senzaemon." A mascyalr man with broad shoulders walks up to the stage. Clad in a bleak green robe, his eyes shines white for everyone at the moment, scaring them.

"Nakiri Senzaemon..." Some whispers to themself. Staring up at his ruby eyes glancing over at every student, they came to a three second halt when they spot a certain girl with a large ball of messy hair on the top of her head.

"He's the old guy who gave a speech at the opening ceremony." Hearing Yukihira mutter to himself, Rei recalls how shocked she was to realise that the sudden transfer student was him.

Senzaemon takes a deep breath in and suddenly coughs loudly. "D--don't mind me... I just choked on something." With his hands gripping the sturdy table he apologises. "When I breathe in the air here," He stands back up. "I can feel all the energy coursing through me, body and soul."

"This is the Hall of Heaven and Moon. Under ordinary circumstances only the Elite Ten may use this space to challenge each other in Shokugekis." Rei's breath hitches when she hers him say that. "To show our respect to the countless victors who have won the first seat," A chill goes down her spine. "It is tradition to display their portraits." Bright lights suddenly flashes on and aim at the many pictures of past first seat weilders at the top of the walls. Skimming though each and every portrait, Rei's eyes came to a stop when she spots Tsukasa's.

"Countless unforgettable battles have been fought, and countless specialties have been born here. This I'd why the memory if the never ending battles fought here hang in the air like fog!

And this is also where the main tournament for the Autumn Elections will be held."

"So in other words, only the students who pass the prelims..." Marui looks at the stage with determined eyes.

"Right, only they can stand on this stage to fight." Ibusaki continues for him.

"You will all make a new mark on history here! Let is meet here again, chefs of the 92nd class of Totsuki Academy!" With his arms wide open, Senzaemon looks directly at Rei while he says it.

"YEAHHHH!"

Walking back to the backstage, the many students here agrees loudly.

"Oh, Takumi what'd you what to talk about earlier?" Suddenly looking back to the blonde situated right behind him, he asks.

"Never mind."

Smiling at his neve changing personality, Rei continues to look at the stage.

"We'll now explain the rules for the preliminaries. As indicated on our written notice, the topic is a curry dish." The host, Kawashima Urara, holds her metal mic firmly in her hands. In the usual autumn Totsuki's uniform, the back of her hair is decorated wig a large bow.

"You ahv three hours. Out of sixty candidates in the preliminaries, only eight total may advance to the main tournament. In other words, only four from each group. Can daftest should relocate to their group's designated spaces. The preliminaries will begin at eleven o'clock."

~*~

The large clock hung that is hung up high on the wall ticks slowly. In Hall B, it was filled with many spectators. With a special seating for special gusts above all the people sitting, Rei glances up one last time to see Tsukasa sitting in the middle of a room. With a glass separating them, she looks down, both from guilt and nervousness. With the arrows finally in place, everyone looks up at the jumbotron.

"Begin... cooking!" Bright red eyes appears on the screen. South out the command, Senzaemon commences the preliminary.