Everyday Life Starting with Food Wars

Yukihira Soma, still half asleep, grabbed the hose, turned on the tap, and poured water all over the tomato patch. The water splashed up and soaked half of his trouser leg. He wiped his face and finally woke up a bit. He saw Chen Yuxing squatting in the field picking cabbage and casually asked, "Why are you up so early? Weren't you full from a midnight snack last night?"

"I took some digestive pills," Chen Yuxing said without turning his head.

“After you fell asleep last night, Marui flipped through two Chinese culinary classics and said that the pure egg dough for dragon beard noodles is a blind spot that only top-level pastry chefs dare to touch, because it is too difficult to knead.”

"Why would he be looking at this in the middle of the night instead of sleeping?"

Isshiki Satoshi was suppressing a laugh behind him. Yukihira Soma yawned again, finally managing to pull the heels of his shoes out of the mud. He walked to the cabbage section and started squatting down to pick vegetables. After picking a few, he looked up again, as if he had suddenly remembered something, and said, "By the way, Isshiki-senpai, I want to talk to you about that meat bowl shokugeki."

"Sure, we'll discuss it in detail when I get back at noon."

For the next period of time, the group divided the work and cooperated.

Chen Yuxing picked two full baskets of tomatoes, one basket of eggplants, and half a basket of cabbage; Isshiki Satoshi cleared away the weeds and planted two rows of cucumber seedlings on the cleared land; Yoshino Yuuki harvested a basket of eggs, and the chicks in the henhouse ran out again, so she chased them several times; after watering the fields, Yukihira Soma wiped his sweat and sat on the edge of the field, then sneezed twice, probably because he was allergic to pollen.

A little after seven o'clock, Ryoko Sakaki and Megumi Tadokoro also came to help, each carrying a pot of hot tea and a large stack of paper cups. Ryoko Sakaki poured the tea and distributed it to everyone, while Megumi Tadokoro handed the paper cups to her roommates who were working, one by one. She had a habitual caution on her face. Every time someone took a cup and thanked her, she would quickly nod and then move on to the next person.

By nearly 7:40, the sun was already higher in the sky, and the temperature in the field had suddenly risen. Isshiki announced that work was done, and everyone carried the last batch of harvested vegetables into the kitchen. Then they sat together at the long table in the canteen to wait for breakfast.

Mrs. Fumio brought out a large pot of white porridge, along with her own pickled radish and pickles. After drinking two bowls of porridge, Soma Yukihira seemed to have recharged and started discussing with Daigo Aoki whether they should have another fried food showdown that night.

Chen Yuxing finished a bowl of porridge and was about to get another when Tadokoro Megumi suddenly stood up from her seat, walked to his side, and said in a soft but steady voice, "Chen Yuxing, for breakfast... I'd like to try making rice balls. Could you help me check it out?"

Chen Yuxing thought for a moment, then put down his bowl: "Sure, I'll help you."

In the kitchen, Megumi Tadokoro stood in front of the main worktop, tying an apron around her neck. She put her hair in a low ponytail, took a deep breath, and began to work out the steps one by one.

She was going to use the leftover rice from last night. Mrs. Wenxu had cooked a large pot of rice last night that she hadn't finished, and it was now stored in the refrigerator, which was perfect for making rice balls.

She first added a little of her homemade rice seasoning to the rice, mixed it well, and then divided it into three portions. The first portion was to be filled with pickled plums, the second portion with bonito flakes mixed with sesame seeds, and the third portion with roasted seaweed flakes.

Her technique for wrapping rice balls was very steady, and she followed the rhythm that Chen Yuxing had reminded her of before.

First, make sure the rice balls are roughly the same weight. Then, press an indentation in your palm to place the filling. Finally, squeeze the rice balls to shape them. You should control the pressure better than before, so that they don't fall apart too loosely or crush the rice into hard lumps too tightly.

One of the rice balls wasn't sticking together evenly with seaweed when she wrapped it. She frowned, put that rice ball aside, and made a new one.

After cooking, she arranged the rice balls on a plate and pushed it onto the counter.

Chen Yuxing picked up a plum-filled rice cake and took a bite. The rice was cooked to a perfect consistency, with a slightly salty and sour taste.

The taste of that pickled plum was like a small lamp being lit on all the taste buds at the same time, and a refreshing sensation spread from the surface of the tongue.

"You shaped the rice perfectly today. The firmness was just right, not falling apart or too tight, and the filling was also very evenly distributed." He put down the rice ball. "If I were to give it a score, it would be A-."

Tadokoro Megumi paused for a moment: "...A-?"

"I'm just a little bit away from getting an A in the regular course. The key is that the saltiness of the bibimbap sauce could be reduced a little bit. Right now, the saltiness is a little overpowering when paired with the pickled plum, but overall it's already very good."

Tadokoro Megumi didn't speak. Her eyes were red, but this time no tears came out. She nodded forcefully, her voice almost as loud as the force of her nod: "Mm!"

She brought the plate of rice balls into the cafeteria, and everyone who tasted them exclaimed, "Xiao Hui, your rice balls are so delicious!" Yoshino Yuuki was so excited that she stood up and hugged her.

Soma Yukihira chewed on a rice ball filled with bonito flakes and asked indistinctly, "Did Megumi really make these rice balls? They're so delicious!"

"It was my classmate Xing who helped me out," Tadokoro Megumi said.

"None of that matters, it's just super delicious!"

Daigo Aoki has already started catching the third one.

As the meal was coming to an end, Marui Zenji brought in a stack of letters from the doorway, flipping through them as he said, "These are the same ones I put in the mailbox this morning, all addressed to 'Chen Yuxing'."

He placed the stack of envelopes in front of Chen Yuxing.

Chen Yuxing opened the top letter.

"Food Wars Challenge - "

Upon hearing this, Soma Yukihira nearly dropped the rice ball in his hand. Yuuki Yoshino also came over, pressing down on the edge of the table with one hand and flipping over the envelope in his other hand to look at it: "So many envelopes?"

Chen Yuxing didn't speak. He opened the second and third letters. Each one was almost the same: his name was at the beginning, the challenge dish was in the middle, and the conditions of the bet were at the end. Some challenges had small bets, such as betting only a bento box, while others had very large bets, with the loser having to leave the research club or be suspended from classes for three weeks. Some of the challengers' names were ones he had heard of, while others were completely unfamiliar to him.

There are at least a dozen letters spread out.

Ryoko Sakaki frowned: "What's going on? How come they all came overnight?"

"The news about yesterday afternoon has spread."

Isshiki Satoshi flipped the challenge letter over, glanced at the signature, and put it back. "You got an A+ in French class, and you had Kuga Terunori personally deliver a food battle speech at the Chinese Cuisine Research Club. Overnight, everyone in every research club in the entire school knew that a transfer student had smashed the ceiling of Chappell's grades with a French omelet and then slammed Kuga Terunori's restaurant with a plate of Mapo Tofu. Do you think they would just sit idly by?"

He put down his cup: "Right now, the line of people who want to boost their reputation by defeating you is probably already open until next month."

Chen Yuxing folded the challenge letters one by one and stuffed them into his school uniform pocket, yawning: "What a bunch of troublesome things, but I'll accept them all."

Chapter 10 Food Halberd

After Chen Yuxing neatly folded the stack of challenge letters and stuffed them into his pocket, the cafeteria suddenly became quiet for a short while.

Then everyone exploded.

"You accepted them all?!"

Yoshino Yuuki's chick jumped off her lap, and she almost fell off her chair. "Ah-Xing, are you crazy? There are more than a dozen here! Are you going to fight more than a dozen food battles in a row?"

“It’s not a dozen or so.” Marui Zenji flipped through the unopened envelopes one by one, pushed up his glasses, and said, “Some challengers wrote more than one letter, so the actual number should only be five.”

"Five people is already outrageous!"

Daigo Aoki slammed his fist on the table. "That's not how you fight a food war! Do you know how much physical and mental exertion a food war takes? If you fight five in a row, by the third you might not even be able to hold the pan properly!"

Chen Yuxing picked up a piece of pickled radish and chewed it. After everyone had finished their rounds, he spoke up: "I've seen the bets. These five people are betting on the cost of ingredients—if they lose, they'll pay for my groceries for a whole academic year. In other words, after these five rounds, someone will cover the cost of ingredients for our Polar Star Dormitory for the entire year."

The cafeteria fell silent again.

This time it was quiet for longer than before.

“A…a whole year?” Daigo Aoki’s Adam’s apple bobbed.

"Does meat count too?" Shoji Sato pressed.

"The bet only states the cost of ingredients, but doesn't mention that it doesn't include meat."

"So, can you win?"

Ibuzaki Shun leaned against the corner of the wall and asked the most crucial question in a calm tone.

Chen Yuxing finished the last mouthful of porridge and put the bowl down: "Yes, I can."

This word is said as casually as saying "The weather is nice today".

At the other end of the kitchen, Mrs. Wenxu put the wok on the stove, glanced back at him, and the old woman's lips twitched as if she wanted to say something, but in the end she just snorted and turned back to continue frying her eggs.

Once things quieted down a bit in the cafeteria, Soma Yukihira, who had been engrossed in his meal, suddenly put down his bowl and scratched the back of his head.

"Actually... I also had a food battle."

Yoshino Yuuki's eyes widened to almost the size of the egg in her hand.

"What did you say?"

"It happened yesterday afternoon too."

Soma Yukihira leaned back in his chair, his hands behind his head. "I was visiting the Rice Bowl Research Club when I ran into that first-year student named Mito Ikumi who was measuring the space with his group, saying he wanted to abolish the Rice Bowl Research Club. The club president, Konishi-senpai, almost cried on the spot. He was a 1.8-meter-tall man with a pompadour, and tears were welling up in his eyes. I couldn't stand it, so I took over for the Rice Bowl Research Club."

"and many more."

Marui Zenji's glasses slid down. "Mito Ikumi? That 'Meat Invader'? The Mito Ikumi who never got an A or lower in meat cooking back in junior high?"

"Yes, it's her."

"What's the question? What is it?"

"Meat dishes. The main ingredient is beef, and the side dish must be a rice bowl."

Ryoko Sakaki put down the bottle of rice gluten juice in her hand: "Her family is the Mito Group—one of the largest high-end beef suppliers in Japan. Soma, do you want to compete with her in beef cooking?"

"correct."

Soma Yukihira grinned, as if someone were praising him.

"What's the stake? What is the stake?"

Jun Imusaki asked.

“If she loses, the Rice Bowl Research Club can stay in business and its funding will double. If I lose, then—” Soma Yukihira poked a grain of rice with his chopsticks, “I’ll be expelled.”

The air in the entire cafeteria seemed to be gripped tightly. Tadokoro Megumi covered her mouth, Yoshino Yuuki knocked the egg in her hand onto the table and forgot to catch it, Aoki Daigo and Sato Shoji exchanged a glance, and they both read the same sentence in each other's eyes: Both of this year's transfer students are crazy.

Are you out of your mind?

Daigo Aoki's voice cracked, "You've been betting on dropping out of school for less than a month?"

“It’s okay, I think I can win.” Soma Yukihira’s tone was exactly the same as Chen Yuxing’s.

Chen Yuxing glanced at him but said nothing.

Isshiki Satoshi remained seated at the head of the long table, not touching a single bite of food from beginning to end. He waited until everyone had finished speaking before asking, "Did you come up with the topic, or did she?"

“It was me. She said I could choose the topic, so I chose a meat dish.”

Isshiki Satoshi chuckled softly, shook his head, and stood up: "You and Hoshino, this year's transfer students are all so worrying. Let's go, let's go to the Food Wars Management Bureau to complete the formalities first. Five consecutive Food Wars require special approval from the Bureau, and you and Mito also need to officially register. We can take care of both things at the same time."

Chen Yuxing took the stack of challenge letters out of his pocket and spread them out on the table along with Yukihira Soma's food battle application, then checked them again.

"Oh, right."

He suddenly looked up. "Soma, what's the date of your Food War?"

Next Saturday.

Chen Yuxing looked down at the stack of challenge letters in his hand—all five letters were dated next Saturday.

"What a coincidence."

He showed the letter to Soma Yukihira, saying, "We were born on the same day."

"Let's do it together then."

Isshiki Satoshi untied his apron and hung it on the back of the chair, then changed into a proper school uniform shirt. Without that short apron, he suddenly looked like the "perverted naked apron senior" and the "seventh seat of the Elite Ten of Totsuki." This transformation didn't even require any transition.

"Let's go."

The Food Wars Administration occupies a dedicated hall in the central administration building of the Totsuki Campus. The hall has a Food Wars application window, a review coordination room, and a filing and archive area. The latest Food Wars announcements and the schedules of the filed Food Wars are displayed on the screens on the four walls. The air is filled with the smell of printer toner and paper documents mixed together, like the lobby of a government department. However, instead of administrative flowcharts, the walls are decorated with oil paintings replicas of famous Food Wars from different eras.

This was Chen Yuxing's first time in this place. He walked to the window and pushed the five challenge letters and his application form in together.

The staff member sitting by the window was a middle-aged man with a small mustache, wearing the Food Wars Bureau badge on his chest. He glanced at the materials and frowned slightly.

"Are you sure?"

"determine."

"Five consecutive food battles, each with a time limit of 60 minutes, with a change of food every half hour. You have the right to refuse any of them."

"Accept all."

The man with the mustache didn't say anything more, just typed a few keys on the computer and then pushed the registration form over for him to sign.

Meanwhile, Soma Yukihira had already submitted the food battle registration form with Ikumi Mito. The Bureau's reaction to this food battle was much calmer than their reaction to Chen Yuxing's series of battles.

However, since Soma Yukihira was not yet eighteen, the bet of dropping out of school required a guardian's signature. Soma Yukihira took out a fax paper from his pocket, on which the words "Joichiro Yukihira" were crookedly signed, along with a handwritten note: "If I lose, I won't send you any pocket money."

"My dad signed it."

He handed the fax to the window staff member, speaking as naturally as if he were handing over a regular parental consent form.

Isshiki Satoshi whispered behind him, "Your dad's handwriting is quite unique."

"He was on a business trip abroad and sent it by fax."

After completing the formalities, the mustachioed staff member filed the materials, then looked up at Chen Yuxing and Yukihira Soma: "Next Saturday, at the branch venue between the moon and the sky. Yukihira Soma vs. Mito Ikumi at 10:00 AM, and Chen Yuxing's five consecutive matches at 1:00 PM. The venue arrangements will be made together, and the judging will be coordinated by the Administration Bureau. Any other objections?"

"Nothing."

"Okay, then the registration is complete. The announcement will be posted on all channels on campus this afternoon."

As they left the administration building, several students recognized them in the corridor. Whispers rippled through the air as they followed behind. Chen Yuxing ignored them, as did Yukihira Soma. Isshiki Satoshi walked at the front, his gentle smile sending chills down one's spine.

"The two of you."

Isshiki Satoshi stopped in front of the administration building, hands in his school uniform pockets. "From now until the day of the Food War, you two will be the two most watched first-year students at Totsuki Academy. One has risked dropping out, and the other will have to participate in five consecutive Food Wars. The whole school is waiting to see you make a fool of yourselves. My only request is—"

He turned around, his eyes narrowing into slits: "Don't embarrass Polaris Dormitory."

They both nodded at the same time.