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47: Banana Bread vs. Hazelnut Pound Cake

"Team Elite versus Team Baking Society," he exclaimed. "The reigning champs against this competition's dark horses. The showdown between Shiori Aida and Koyuki Tamura will commence momentarily!"

"This guy's crazy annoying," Shiori spat from her respective station.

Koyuki stood across from her, in his own space. "He's a breath of fresh air compared to you."

She scowled at him, hard. "The theme?" she demanded.

"The! Theme! For! Today! Is!" Mr. Oto drawled. "'To Overcome.' You have a little over an hour and a half to complete a treat befitting that topic. Breads, cakes, cupcakes, confections—absolutely anything is fair game! PS, that hurt my feelings, Miss Aida!"

Shiori rolled her eyes. Mr. Oto flinched. After a swift breakdown of final rules, he opened up the hall to questions. None arrived, leaving no more room for chatter. The first segment of this round launched with a deafening buzzer and the timer counted down from an hour and half.

There was no hesitation whatsoever in their movements. Koyuki and Shiori scrambled to gather the ingredients of their choice then returned to their stations. Their determination—focus—was suffocating, even at my distance.

Nori stroked his chin. "That Koyuki... it should be a crime how easily he takes my breath away."

Chiaki deadpanned.

"If Ko heard that, he'd be insulted."

"It's a compliment," he reassured him. "Koyuki's the one and only man I want underneath me."

.

.

.

"In ranking. I meant in ranking."

"No, Nori, the other way is good too," I interjected. "Koyuki's exactly the type of guy you want lying beneath you."

"Teru... please... I know it's a joke but there are children nearby."

"Chil...dren?" Hayate murmured, question marks floating above his head.

"Sorry, sorry," I chuckled.

Time ticked by briskly. Amidst that, Koyuki's steadfastness was inspiring. His hands moved with the precision and proficiency of an expert. Flour, ground cinnamon, brown sugar, bananas... I squinted to affirm the elements he was incorporating. My eyebrows darted to my hairline in realization. He was making... banana bread?

"This is... Tsuya's recipe," Chiaki noted.

I frowned. I knew I'd seen this exact recipe, albeit briefly, back at Nori's villa. He was recreating his brother's dessert. What about Shiori...

Toasted walnuts, pears...

My train of thought screeched to an abrupt halt.

"No way," I stammered, slack-jawed. "Both of these are Etsuya's recipes. With tweaks...? How..."

"All throughout middle school, Shi and Ko received lessons under Tsuya. They admired him and treasured his talent," Chiaki explained. "Their sole goal was to upstage him. So, day in and day out, they worked to improve their skills, altering his recipes or coming up with their own. But—"

"—they could never beat him," I finished.

He nodded. "In terms of each other, they were evenly matched. Just as they've never won against Tsuya, I don't think they've ever beat one another either."

"So, this showdown is their chance to finally do so?" Nori mused.

Hayate primmed his mouth. "Yuki... can't lose, then."