The crowd's excitement lingered throughout the arena after the principal accepted Gin's proposal.
As Hayama and Ryo slowly walked off the stage, both looked unsatisfied with the result as tension was clearly felt between them.
However...
"Whoaa!"
"Tsunayoshi Ito!"
The crowd, who used to hate his arrogance, slowly grew to like this maverick as they cheered loudly.
In a small section of the crowd, students who saw Tsuna coming in had their expressions turn stony as they gave him a thumbs up and mumbled, "Fellow man of culture, we are fully on your side!"
Spread more cultural understanding among the ignorant!
It was their ultimate goal, and through Tsuna, they could see it happening.
"Since when do I have these people supporting me like this..."
Tsuna blinked in confusion at this group of people.
"Huh? Ah... I see..."
However, seeing their expression made him realize something as his expression turned stony as he returned the thumbs up with a nod.
"..."
Meanwhile, Soma walked to the arena quietly, his eyes locked on Tsuna. He chuckled, "A three-way battle, huh? Seems like you're fine with this arrangement..."
"Well, who cares about it. I'll win regardless," Tsuna shrugged, making Soma chuckle along and add, "It'd be cool to defeat them both."
"Sure," Tsuna replied as he slowly made his way to his workstation, with Soma doing the same.
However...
These words immediately halted both Hayama and Ryo, who were about to leave the arena. They turned to take a look.
Ryo, with his headband still on immediately clicked his tongue in annoyance and cursed, "Motherfucker, you think you're the best?"
"Defeating us both at the same time? Quite a delusion..."
Hayama shook his head before turning back, walking out slowly as Ryo did the same, taking off his headband.
His fiery personality vanished into thin air as he made his way through the corridor, muttering to himself, "I'll win this... I will..."
"Though I said that..."
Soma muttered as he prepared his ingredients on the countertop. His playful expression was nowhere to be seen, replaced by a determined gaze.
He sighed before regaining his composure and looked at Tsuna.
"...I have to defeat Tsuna first, then."
He felt that if he could beat Tsuna, Hayama and Ryo would be nothing, and victory would be his.
"Ah, he's at it again..."
"...Yeah..."
"...Let's not call him the Lone Wolf anymore. We should call him the Shameless King..."
The crowd muttered among themselves while pointing their fingers at Tsuna, who was slowly raising a DIY banner promoting his restaurant. His usual shameless self-promotion made them all sigh in exasperation.
They truly couldn't understand how someone could be this shameless.
"Wait..."
"Huh?"
"Look at that..."
To everyone's surprise, this time...
The Shameless King wasn't alone!
"Huh?"
Even Tsuna himself seemed a bit baffled as he looked at Soma, who had somehow raised a DIY banner with Yukihira's restaurant on it. Tsuna couldn't help but chuckle as he asked, "I don't know why you suddenly did this, but I respect the hustle, Soma."
"After seeing what you've got from doing this, I figured it'd be wise to follow along."
Soma smirked, and both of them chuckled amusedly.
"..."
The crowd watched in stunned silence, unable to believe that Soma had joined in on Tsuna's shameless self-promotion.
They seemed to genuinely respect each other, leaving the crowd a bit speechless.
The initial excitement slowly died down, replaced with exhaustion as everyone sighed.
Similarly...
"H-How shameless..."
Erina's face turned hot from second-hand embarrassment, her lips twitching slightly.
She couldn't help but look at the two idiots with annoyance in her eyes, angrily pouting.
As one of the Elite Ten Council members in charge of the election, Erina took great pride in the competition.
She had personally invited some special guests to attend as judges. Seeing them using such a prestigious event and tainting it with a lousy promotion for their small restaurants was an insult to her!
"Hmph! Low-class people..."
Erina grunted, looking away in her seat.
She was completely dissatisfied with both Tsuna and Soma, as she always had been.
"Ahem..."
The moderator lightly coughed to gather everyone's attention and announced, "Now that both participants are in the arena and ready to battle, let's proceed to the next round of the semi-final!"
"The theme for this battle is hotpot! You have three hours to cook, so please use your time wisely! Then... let the battle begin!"
Her voice brought back the lively atmosphere as the crowd roared in excitement.
Both participants immediately began preparing their ingredients on the table. Their movements were slow and precise, showcasing a high level of technique in every single step they took.
"Hmm... I thought they'd be clowns after that lousy promotion..."
Tsunozaki's lips twitched at the unexpected ads amidst the election, as it was her first time seeing such a thing in the history of Totsuki Academy's Autumn Elections.
However, seeing how they showcased their skill in the arena, her eyes lit up as she continued, "They're both pretty skillful..."
"Uwaa, I-It's making me nervous..."
Sonoka put her hands over her cheeks, still a bit traumatized by her indecision in the last round.
"Ha! It's fine, Sonoka. With the quality we had earlier, I doubt they could match that..."
"Fufufu, you might be surprised, Tsunozaki..."
Inui lightly curled her lips as she chimed in from the side, surprising Tsunozaki, who tilted her head, "Huh? Are you familiar with them?"
Inui nodded, her eyes twinkling with excitement.
"Of course, we are..."
Mizuhara shook her head while looking at Tsuna in the arena. She vividly recalled how Tsuna had defeated Shinomiya back then and felt a slight thrill at the prospect of tasting his cooking once again.
"Ah, now that I think about it, both of you must've met them at the training camp. So, that's why..."
Tsunozaki's eyes lit up as she remembered that Inui and Mizuhara had also attended the training camp.
"Seems like you have high expectations..."
She was intrigued.
Dojima crossed his arms over his broad chest and spoke, "Every single one of them who made it to the semi-finals is a talented student. You can expect a great dish from each of them..."
"Oh?" Tsunozaki raised an eyebrow before chuckling, "Is that so? Then I look forward to seeing what they can do."
"Uwawawa..."
Hearing these words only made Sonoka more nervous as sweat drenched her back.
In the arena, Soma meticulously set up his station, incorporating Tsuna's feedback to enhance his broth and diversify his vegetables.
He had taken extra care with the beef, inspired by Tsuna's Galbi BBQ.
"And now, my trump card..."
Soma muttered to himself, glancing at the eggs he had bought from the convenience store on his way to the academy that morning.
A smirk played on his lips.
It was a sudden improvisation, inspired by a simple yet comforting breakfast he had eaten in a rush that morning.
Oyakodon!
"Hmm? Eggs, huh?"
Tsuna noticed the slight difference in Soma's setup this time and wondered what he would do with the eggs.
"He's quite a thinker..."
Tsuna was amused by this.