Read Advanced Chapters On My Patreon:
patreon.com/ayan41x
[ For every 100 power stone, I will add 1 more chapter ]
---
Joichiro was completely focused on his cooking at that moment, and although he heard Ryūga's words, he didn't have time to reply.
Twenty minutes later, he quickly made another snowflake fish fillet dish.
Smelling the aroma emanating from the dish, Joichiro took a light sniff.
Soon, a joyful smile appeared in his eyes.
"This is the taste!"
"Adding a touch of herbs completely elevates the aroma of the dish; this is the flavor I truly desire!"
"That Ryūga boy,she actually had this trick up his sleeve..."
Joichiro was muttering to himself, but suddenly his expression changed.
It was only then that Joichiro realized why Ryūga was able to offer such crucial and constructive suggestions for his cooking in such a short time.
If a dish is unpalatable, the chef can easily spot its various shortcomings.
However, the dish I made earlier was perfect in every aspect. It would be difficult for an ordinary chef to find the slightest flaw hidden deep within the dish amidst all that perfection in a short period of time.
Even Ah Yin and the others probably couldn't find the slightest flaw in their cooking in just a few seconds...
Has Ryūga been hiding his true strength all along?
Joichiro couldn't help but look at the stairs that Ryūga had just climbed.
"That brat Ryūga is getting interesting..."
Just as Joichiro was muttering to himself, Dojima Gin and the others pushed open the door of Polaris Dormitory and walked in.
"Huh? What's that? It smells so good... Joichiro, are you cooking?"
Riko Ebisawa walked up to Joichiro, her eyes shining as she looked at the dish he was holding:
"Wow, snowflake fish fillets! Senior Saiba, did you make this dish just now?"
"It looks delicious, can I try some?"
Nakamura Azami also laughed:
"Thank goodness, Senior Saiba didn't make any more culinary disasters in the communal kitchen, otherwise I probably would have had to run out again..."
Joichiro glared at Nakamura Azami and said:
"Is my cooking really that scary? Since you've said so, next time I make some 'disastrous' dishes, I've decided to let you try them..."
"No, what do you mean by 'disastrous cuisine'? My cooking should definitely be called 'delicious food"
"The dishes I make are absolutely delicious! You guys have all been corrupted by Ryūga. What kind of 'dark cuisine' is that? That's an awful term..."
Joichiro muttered a dissatisfied grumble.
Seeing his expression, Riko Ebisawa said with a smile:
"Okay, okay, we won't tease Saiba-senpai about his cooking anymore, provided you don't make anything that tastes bad..."
"The dish that Senior Saiba is making looks really good. May I try it?"
"Sure, I made a few extra portions, let's all try them."
Upon hearing Joichiro's words, they all rushed into the kitchen.
Dojima Gin picked up a piece of snowflake fish fillet from the plate and put it in his mouth.
With his eyes closed and chewing for a moment, Dojima Gin's eyes lit up.
"Huh? This dish is interesting!"
"Joichiro, how did you come up with this idea!"
"The snowflake fish fillet is already crisp and delicious with an irresistible aroma, and you've gone out of your way to enhance its fragrance and flavor with mint and lemon... Hmm? There seems to be some herb flavor in it too... It makes the dish feel very sophisticated!"
Riko Ebisawa squinted her eyes and exclaimed happily:
"Senior Saiba's cooking skills have improved again. This dish is much tastier than the snowflake fish fillets you made before... The refreshing mint aroma and the subtle sweet and sour taste of lemon juice blend together perfectly, and with the addition of herbs... Mmm... It's truly a wonderful dish!"
Azami Nakamura also ate a piece of the snowflake fish fillet made by Joichiro, and then he said:
"I heard that today, Saiba-senpai accepted a food battle challenge from a second-year student. The theme of the challenge seemed to be fish fillets. Could this be the dish that you brought out to fight today, Saiba-senpai?"
Joichiro Saiba smiled, and then he said:
"During the Food Wars, I did make a snowflake fish fillet dish, but the taste of that dish is somewhat different from the one I made now... Ah Gin, let me tell you, I've only just realized that this junior from our Polar Star Dormitory seems to be quite something..."
"He really surprised me today!"
"A junior? That surprised you?"
Dojima Gin was slightly taken aback, then he asked in confusion:
"Joichiro, who are you talking about? Is it Ryūga-kun?"
"It's Ryūga-kun!"
Dojima Gin pointed to the food on the plate and said:
"During the competition, I forgot to add the herb seasoning to my snowflake fish fillets, so the mint flavor somewhat overpowered the aroma of the cod... I realized then that the dish had a flaw, but I couldn't quite figure it out for the time being. I was planning to wait for you guys to come back and then have you taste it for me..."
"It just so happens that Ryūga came back first, so I let him try it first..."
"As you all know, Ryūga is a bit introverted, so my original plan was to treat him to my cooking... But I didn't expect that he would immediately spot the flaws in my dish and offer suggestions for improvement..."
"Look, the herbs you're eating, the herbs in this dish, are what Ryūga suggested to add..."
Upon hearing Joichiro's words, everyone in Polar Star was somewhat stunned.
Riko Ebisawa said in disbelief:
"No way, Ryūga actually found the flaws in Saiba-senpai's cooking at a glance?"
"Even without the herb, this dish would still be an excellent one. I doubt even I could spot this flaw and offer suggestions for improvement in such a short time..."
Joichiro smiled and said:
"That's why I said that we younger generation seem to be more complex than we appear on the surface!"
"This guy was trying to hold back from us... Looks like we'll have to really tap into his potential!"
Upon hearing Joichiro's words, Gin Dojima nodded and said:
"I've actually been quite worried about Ryūga. I've heard from other sources that his grades in junior high have always been poor, and he's even been secretly called a bottom student by many people... I was planning to give him some extra training when I had some free time, but now it seems that this guy really has something up his sleeve!"
"By the way, you might not know this, but I feel like Ryūga has changed a lot lately... A few months ago, he came to borrow my private gym. I thought it was just a passing fancy, but I didn't expect him to actually stick with it. Have you noticed that Ryūga's physical condition is really much better than before...?"
Upon hearing this, Riko Ebisawa immediately responded:
"It seems that's really the case. Even though he's wearing clothes, I can clearly feel that Ryūga's body has become much stronger... Has Ryūga experienced some kind of shock? How could he suddenly change so much during this period of time?"
"Who knows? But it's good that Ryūga is improving; I don't want anyone in our Polaris Dormitory to fall behind..."
Dojima Gin smiled and continued:
"I have an idea that might help us get a closer look at just how much Ryūga has been hiding from us..."
"Isn't the school going to hold a school festival in a few weeks?"
"I'd like to let Ryūga run the shop on his own during the school festival. Firstly, it will give his some experience, and secondly, it will allow us to observe his abilities more closely... What do you all think?"
"Let Ryūga run the shop all by himself at the school festival?"
Joichiro was taken aback by these words, but quickly shook his head and said:
"This approach doesn't seem feasible. Ryūga is still only a middle school student. Middle school students usually participate in the school festival as a class group. There has never been a middle school student participating in the school festival as an individual before. More importantly, Ryūga himself may not want to participate in the school festival alone, after all, this event is quite tiring... On the other hand, even if he were willing to participate in the school festival individually, he is still just a middle school student. We don't really know his abilities right now..."
---
[You can also now Read the next chapter for Free on my Patreon]
patreon.com/ayan41x