Some of the participants murmured, clearly unsure what a Gourmet Hunter was. Gon was curious as well, so Kairo decided to explain.
Kairo: "A Gourmet Hunter searches for rare and exotic foods from around the world to create new dishes. Naturally, they're also excellent cooks. There are ingredients most people haven't even heard of—for example…"
As Kairo listed the ingredients, the participants looked confused, but Menchi was clearly impressed by his knowledge.
Menchi: "Oh, that's impressive. You know a lot about Gourmet Hunters and their ingredients. Are you aspiring to become one?"
Kairo: "No, I'm not. But I am something of a gourmet myself—I've eaten a wide variety of foods and enjoy cooking as well." (Which was true.)
Menchi: "Interesting. You don't seem like the type to cook, but I shouldn't judge a book by its cover. I look forward to tasting your food."
Kairo: "So does that mean the exam is—"
Menchi: "You guessed it right. Phase Two is a cooking test."
When the participants heard this, many were shocked and dumbfounded. Menchi continued with the explanation: first, we would prepare our dishes for Buhara, who would select the type of food and judge the dishes he found satisfactory. Once Buhara was pleased, Menchi would choose a different dish to taste and judge. In short, both of them had to be satisfied—both had to declare the dish delicious—for a participant to pass. The test would conclude only when both judges were full. All cooking facilities had already been prepared.
The participants murmured nervously. Leorio complained because he had never cooked before, while Kurapika hadn't expected a cooking exam. Many were scared, unsure what Buhara would request.
Buhara finally spoke: he requested a whole roast pork. Upon hearing this, the participants relaxed—they knew what kind of dish it was and that it would be relatively easy to prepare. Leorio could even manage it.
Buhara added, "I don't care what kind of pork it is, as long as you catch it somewhere in the Biska Woods."
The participants agreed, and then Buhara used his stomach as a drum to signal the start of the Hunter Exam Phase Two.
We entered the forest to search for the pork. Even though I knew there was only a single species involved—the Great Stamp, a massive carnivorous boar—I still planned to catch more than one for myself. Before Gon could even discover its weakness, I had already taken down five of them, flicking playing cards with perfect accuracy right at their vulnerable spots. When Hisoka noticed me using playing cards as weapons, he simply smiled. I ignored him and headed back.
I returned to the area where Menchi and Buhara were waiting, carrying all five boars with one hand. I was the first to arrive. Buhara commented that one was enough, but I explained that the extras were for me to eat later. He didn't mind. I started cooking and served his portion first.
When Buhara tasted my dish, he immediately declared it delicious. Of course it was—aside from being perfectly roasted, I had seasoned it with a carefully balanced blend of spices. He urged Menchi to try it as well. She did, and also said it was delicious, adding that she was excited to see how I would prepare the dish she had assigned.
By the time the other participants returned, I had already finished cooking my own meal and was calmly eating. They were stunned by how quickly I had completed everything, but with no time to question me, they focused on their own dishes.
One after another, they presented their pork to Buhara, and he devoured every plate without hesitation. Still, deep down, Buhara knew the truth—among all the dishes he tasted, mine was the most delicious.
The participants couldn't believe how much Buhara could eat—his appetite felt impossible for someone his size. Even Leorio, a doctor, couldn't make sense of it.
As for me, I had already cooked and eaten all four of my remaining boars, bones included. That alone stunned several participants; those bones were so hard that even Buhara not eaten them. Leorio stared at me in disbelief and wondered aloud what my teeth were made of.
Eventually, Buhara was finally full. His round concluded, leaving only seventy-one participants who would move on to prepare their dishes for Menchi's test.
The participants celebrated, thinking the next challenge would be easy—but Menchi quickly dashed their hopes. Unlike Buhara, she would judge very harshly. For her challenge, she requested sushi and it must be nigiri sushi. Most participants were confused; only one, Hanzo—the bald ninja—knew what to do, grinning the entire time. I, on the other hand, was still dumbfounded. How could sushi not be popular? The world of Hunter x Hunter is strange—after all, in the real world, sushi was already widely known in the 1980s–1990s.
Then I heard Menchi's quiet voice: "I don't blame you guys for not knowing it. It's the ethnic cuisine of a small island nation."
Hearing that, it clicked—Menchi had mentioned this in the 1999 anime. I remembered it, yet I was still shocked. Japan in the HxH world is just a small island nation, and its name isn't even Japan—it's "Japon"? What the…? I decided to keep my surprise to myself and not question it any further.
Menchi said she had already prepared the main ingredient—rice—which she offered as a hint. After that, we were on our own. The participants stood around, confused about what to do, so I headed straight for the lake. Just as I was about to leave, Gon called out to me.
Gon: "Where are you going?"
Kairo: "Searching for fish. Obviously—you need fish to make sushi."
Gon: "You need fish to make sushi?"
I simply nodded and continued walking. When the other participants heard that, many of them immediately rushed off to look for fish as well. Hanzo looked annoyed that someone other than him knew what sushi was. Kurapika asked whether it was okay to share that information so openly.
I shrugged. "So what? They'd figure it out eventually."Kurapika agreed.
When we reached the lake, I realized there were no saltwater fish—meaning no tuna. Only freshwater fish. I needed to reconsider my options and hoped I could find something like salmon or eel. Luckily, my hopes were answered; I managed to catch the types of fish I wanted. I even caught extras in case I needed multiple attempts.
Back in the kitchen, I began preparing my sushi. I cooked the fish thoroughly to remove parasites—it took time, so I finished much later than the others. When I was done, I presented five types of sushi: salmon, eel, trout, carp, char paired with dipping sauce. All cooked perfectly. If Menchi refused to accept cooked freshwater sushi, I would have been annoyed—because cooking is the safest and best way to prepare freshwater fish.
Fortunately, she accepted it, since it still counted as nigiri sushi. And when she tasted my dish, she was stunned by how delicious it was. She couldn't believe sushi made from freshwater fish could taste that good. She passed me on the spot.
Buhara was equally surprised; he hadn't expected anyone to satisfy Menchi completely, though it made sense since I knew a lot about gourmet cuisine.
The participants were stunned that someone had actually passed Menchi's harsh judgment. They tried to imitate what I did—unsurprisingly, they failed miserably.
Some time later, Menchi declared she was full. In the end, I was the only participant to pass her test.
Naturally, the participants were furious—they simply couldn't accept the outcome. Buhara could only facepalm; having just a single person pass was far too extreme for this stage of the exam.