Chapter 225: Joichiro: I Can't Tell Anymore
Shokugeki World.
Invited by Erina, Kenji arrived in her world.
"This is... the laws of the culinary way?" Kenji murmured to himself. He reached out and grasped, and an ethereal, illusory thing appeared in his palm.
Kenji could now sense many things. The culinary "Way" of the Shokugeki world was very active. No wonder the food they made had the feeling of being drugged, and even tasting it gave the sensation of being high. But, although the culinary "Way" was active, there were no real powerhouses.
"What culinary 'Way'?" Erina asked curiously. Wait, this isn't a slice-of-life world?
"It's nothing. It won't affect you. Didn't you say there was a banquet?" Kenji said, shaking his head.
Seeing that Kenji didn't elaborate, Erina didn't ask further and led him to the banquet hall.
At a glance, there weren't many people. Aside from the Nakiri family, there were some former graduates. All of their eyes were fixed on Kenji.
"Little friend Kenji, thank you for resolving the God's Tongue curse for Mana and Erina."
Senzaemon Nakiri gave Kenji a formal, deep bow, expressing his sincere gratitude. To be able to see his daughter eat like a normal person... at his age, he was so happy he could do a thousand push-ups, pull-ups...
"It was a small matter. The God's Tongue isn't really a curse, just an imperfect super-tasting ability," Kenji said casually with a wave of his hand.
"Thank you," Mana Nakiri said gratefully. Unlike in the manga, without the influence of the God's Tongue, her arms were not emaciated.
However... that look in her eyes... why was it the look one gives a potential son-in-law?
Kenji scratched his head. Am I imagining this?
"We're all friends. If I can help, I'll naturally help," Kenji said.
Since he had come all this way, he certainly hadn't come empty-handed. He had brought some gifts. Although they weren't super-precious, their taste was enough to crush any ingredient in this world.
"Mmmh~"
...
Here we go. Kenji nodded. One after another, moans began to rise, as if it were a collective drug trip. This world truly was magical. When Erina ate at his place, she had no such reactions. This was the difference between worlds.
I want to die...
Erina lay prone on the table, her exposed ears as red as if they were bleeding. She just couldn't get used to this kind of thing. Seeing it from a third-person perspective was so embarrassing she wanted to curl her toes. It was simply a public execution.
She didn't understand. Eating in Kenji's world was so normal. Why was it that the moment she returned to her own world, she reverted to this?
"Erina, what's wrong?" Gin Dojima scratched his head. Why does she look like life is worse than death? Is it puberty? Youth... it's great, isn't it?
"Haha, it's nothing. It's just that our reactions when we taste delicious food are a bit too shameful," Senzaemon said with a helpless laugh.
Eyes hazy, face flushed, moaning... If you knew what was happening, you'd know they were eating. If you didn't, you'd think they were doing something illicit or taking drugs. Thank goodness they weren't using the ingredients from Kenji's world, or the Nakiri family's "Pulse" would have erupted, and it would have been even more embarrassing.
"Hiss... I think I understand now," Joichiro covered his face, his tone bleak.
Memories of the past appeared, flashing through his mind one by one.
"We were too used to it, so no one ever noticed how strange it was. Now that it's been pointed out... is there a time machine?" Joichiro wanted to go back and stop himself from making those expressions.
"No. This is an irresistible force." Gin Dojima had also realized it. The corner of his mouth couldn't help but twitch. He could no longer look at that posture in a normal light. It was just too lewd. This was not a proper tasting.
"The men are one thing, but when the women eat delicious food, their reactions are even more exaggerated," Kenji said seriously.
Erina and the other women were incredibly embarrassed.
"Please stop talking..."
"Want to try this?"
"Stinky Tofu Mayonnaise Squid Tentacles?"
Joichiro took out his specialty dish. An explosive stench instantly permeated the hall.
"What a talent!" Kenji gave him a thumbs-up. Although it couldn't compare to Raiden Ei's The Hour of Judgment, it was still some heavy-duty stuff. How did his brain even work, to be able to pair these ingredients together?
"Joichiro. The door is over there. Please take your squid tentacles and leave," Mana Nakiri's face was ashen. As someone from the same generation as Joichiro, they knew each other. Back then, she hadn't known the evils of the world and had tasted those squid tentacles. The sharp senses of the God's Tongue had made her experience it more directly than anyone else. She had almost been sent to the afterlife on the spot. So many years had passed, and he was still making this stuff. He really had no class.
Erina's face was full of resistance. There was no way she was eating that. Even if she could turn off the ability of the God's Tongue, she didn't think this kind of bizarre cuisine was something a normal person should eat. It had to be disgusting.
"Joichiro, want to try some dark cuisine from my place? I guarantee it's a flavor you've never tasted before," Kenji said, a smirk on his lips.
"Oh? Interesting. Let me try."
Joichiro didn't take it seriously. How bad could it be?
"Gurgle—"
Kenji took out The Hour of Judgment. The purple, unknown broth bubbled, and the mist rising from it formed a skull.
Joichiro: "..."
I spoke a little too loudly just now. Can I take it back?
Even he, who had seen all kinds of dark cuisine, was breaking out in a cold sweat. Dark cuisine was, at least, still in the category of cuisine. The Hour of Judgment, no matter how you looked at it, looked like poison.
Erina knew of The Hour of Judgment, but this was the first time she had seen it. If she used the God's Tongue to eat that... she felt her tongue would be directly destroyed.
"Hiss... what an ungodly dish," Mana couldn't help but say. She was certain this was a dish not of this Earth, but she had absolutely no desire to taste it.
"The great Asura... surely you're not going back on your word?" Gin Dojima patted Joichiro's shoulder, egging him on with schadenfreude. Good friends... of course they were for screwing over. To be able to see Joichiro make a fool of himself, he naturally had to give him a push.
"Afraid?"
"It's just dark cuisine. I've eaten plenty." Joichiro gritted his teeth and scooped up a small spoonful.
This was a man's pride. He definitely couldn't back down.
Kenji got ready. He was prepared to rewind time at any moment to save Private Joichiro.
"...Gulp."
Joichiro swallowed it in one go. His eyes instantly widened. This taste... was indescribable.
His vision instantly blurred. He had arrived in a dim world. Before him was a river of death.
"Tamako?"
Joichiro saw his deceased wife on the other side of the river, waving at him. He was instantly horrified. Where was he?
Before he could think any more, the world spun, and his vision returned to the banquet hall.
"Joichiro, are you alright?"
Gin Dojima looked at his old friend with concern. Just for a moment there, it was as if his soul had left his body. His eyes were completely blank. If Kenji hadn't intervened, who knows what would have happened.
"I saw... Tamako."
Joichiro's smile was a bit forced. Was that a hallucination just now?
He couldn't tell. He really couldn't tell anymore.
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