Waifu Wars: A Food Wars Fanfic

Ch. 73 Advancement Exams: Stage Three

(Author's Note: Still pretty bummed about the Shokugeki No Soma manga ending, but at least we got Season 4 premiering today! Maybe my story will have caught up to the anime by the end of the season...)

On the last day before the Stage Three matches, the hotel kitchen was frantic with activity. Alice, Ikumi, and Ryoko were scrambling to perfect their dishes, offering each other their opinions while working side by side. From sun-up till sundown, and even later into the night, these three were putting in maximum effort. Ryo Kurokiba was apparently next door in the other kitchen, working alone.

The stove-tops were covered with pans, and the ovens were filled with pots. Whisks, blenders, basters, and everything in between was getting put to use. Aside from these common kitchen sounds, the girls themselves were silent. They each knew the stakes going into Stage Three, and all three were feeling the pressure.

After Ikumi put her 4th (or was it 5th? 6th?) rack of lamb into the oven and lowered the temperature, she suddenly looked up. Alice, who'd just punched some numbers into her rotary vacuum evaporator, noticed this and gave her a questioning look.

"Hey, have you seen Torrey?" asked Ikumi.

"Hmm...not since our date yesterday," said Alice, pausing to think.

"Don't remind me," said Ikumi, pouting.

"You asked!" said Alice.

"He's really not going to practice his dish?" said Ryoko, chiming in from her corner. She was still holding a fresh boysenberry pie in her hands, having just removed it from the oven.

"I know he usually gets by on luck, but he's still a hard worker. This is weird, don't you think?" said Ikumi.

"Yeah. Towards the end of the date, he seemed a little...different. Idk how to explain it," said Alice.

"It's always tough to tell what he's thinking," said Ryoko.

"Even though we made up, I still feel bad about the things I said to him before the train ride," said Ikumi, her thoughts trailing back to the past.

"And what does 'made up' mean, exactly?" said Alice, scowling. Ikumi was waving her hands awkwardly.

"All I did was apologize!" said Ikumi.

"Phew. I thought you meant something else," said Alice, visibly relieved.

"A-anyways, I hope he's doing okay..." said Ryoko.

"Samezies," said Alice.

************************************************************

At first, three days sounded like an eternity to spend in Otaru. These days passed in the blink of an eye, however. Before Torrey knew it, he was entering the kitchen of Hattazushi, minutes before the start time of his Shokugeki with Ikumi and Alice.

This renowned sushi restaurant wasn't just the site for Stage Three- it was also where Torrey had spent the entire previous day practicing his dish. His casual approach toward the match had been a result of his guilt, a way for him to subconsciously level the playing field for his opponents. Casting aside his emotions had allowed him to put in maximum effort. With nothing holding him back, he was now determined to succeed.

As soon as he walked into the kitchen, Torrey was greeted by his opponents.

"Torrey-kins!" said Alice, jubilantly.