[Hyūga Shigure]

"masterchef mizu no kuni". "No matter how many people you may lose, you have no choice but to go on living." IN THE GROOVE The best thing about the dormitories were the kitchenette they had. Shigure had a passion for cooking, and he had to admit he was feeling rather inspired. After all the time he spent exploring the gastronomy of the Land of Waters, he felt more than eager to try his luck with his own version of a local dish, and the one he had in mind for the night was the Kirigakure Soba. The last time he ate it was with Koume back in Mizu no Tera, and he was hoping to surprise the girl with his own version of it. Needless to say he felt quite sad when he heard the news of her dropping out of the exams. He wondered what happened to her during the second round, maybe he could ask Ichii or Okingshi about it later. In any case, that sad news didn't dissuade him from cooking, if anything it was a good way to cope with that unfortunate turn of events, and the prospect of getting back to the kitchen was overly exciting. The young man had a large smile on his face as he took long steps towards the kitchen area. He carried a grocery bag with fresh ingredients he had bought, and he had a few pans and utensils of his own; a chef worth of respect had some attachment to their own tools, right? Once he got there, he quickly placed both bags - the grocery items and the utensils - on the counter and started removing them from the bag and organising them in an orderly fashion. Shigure was quite well organised in his cooking, he was skilled due to the years of careful practice, but he would never really wing it. He liked to approach cooking with a carefully laid out strategy, and the items he brought to the place spoke for themselves. "This will turn out great! I need to nail this recipe before going back to the Land of Fire, for I won't have other opportunities to learn it." he was speaking to himself, getting into the groove of cooking and forgetting that this kitchen was still a public area of sorts, and he would be having some company really soon. "So what if it seems hopeless? If it were me, I still wouldn't give up. Embrace your dreams. And, whatever happens, protect your honour as a Shinobi, for the price of freedom is steep." Between Round 2 and 3 Dormitory's Kitchenette [Himishi Jou] [377 words]

[Himishi Jou]

Jou told himself that he was going to refrain from doing any sort of cooking while he was here. He needed to focus solely on the exams...but he just couldn't fight the urge for long, especially with the food he tried here. At this point, Jou practically had tried the different dishes that were served here, and this only served to increase his need to cook. Not able to hold this back any longer, Jou gave in and decided that he was going to cook something up today. There was a particular dish he tried before that caught his attention the most...the donburi.

That rice bowl dish was simply divine and very much worth the hefty price. Jou not only wanted to recreate this dish, but he wanted to see if he could add his own twists to it. Jou had just got back from shopping, bags of various ingredients in hand. Not only that, but he had bought a few pans as well, unfortunately not having brought any with him from home since he was attempting to NOT cook after all....but the poor guy just couldn't help it. The need to cook pumped through his veins...probably a little more than his 'secret' love of wrestling.

As Jou made it to the kitchenette, the boy would find that it was already in use. "O-Oh..." He muttered, trying to be as quiet as possible. Jou was sure he saw this person around before. Certainly one of the other genin participating. He overheard the guy talking about nailing some recipe which quickly got Jou's attention. He looked curiously at what this man had laying about on the counters. He was almost tempted to ask about what he was going to cook...but Jou's timidness won him over, unfortunately. Jou was about ready to turn around and leave, maybe try again later, but as he took a step, the Himishi accidentally dropped a bag holding his pans which no doubt would make a loud noise. Jou winced a bit and froze up...

The last thing he wanted was attention drawn to him...but perhaps this time it will be a good thing?

Hyūga Shigure

[Hyūga Shigure]

"masterchef mizu no kuni". "No matter how many people you may lose, you have no choice but to go on living." ACCIDENT Shigure was completely immersed in his 'cooking groove', to the point he didn't even notice that someone else was approaching the kitchenette while he was laying his ingredients on the counter and pre-heating the pans. It was only when the boy vocalised something that the Hyuuga noticed he was no longer alone there, which prompted him to stop what he was doing and turn around to see who had approached the place. As he turned around, he saw a fellow participant in the Chuunin Exams, a boy from the Hidden Rock Village. He had never talked to him before, so he really didn't have much of an opinion of him, but the Hyuuga was good at reading people, and when he saw the boy, he couldn't help but to notice the curiosity and interest in his eyes. The Hyuuga cracked a smirk in the corner of his mouth noticing that, but before he could actually talk to the boy, he started turning around to leave, and that made Shigure exhale sharply. "Maybe he also doesn't like me because we are from enemy villages... Taki seemed to have a strong opinion on the Leaf... That kinda sucks, but whatever..." he thought to himself, feeling rather disappointed. However, in maybe a wicked twist of fate, Jou accidentally dropped his bag of pans, making a loud noise in the area. The Rock boy was clearly embarrassed by that, judging by the way he froze up there, so Shigure acted quickly. The Hyuuga kneeled beside him and started picking up the pans and putting it back in the bag. "That happened to me the other day, only I dropped ingredients so it sucked hahaha!" he said in a rather carefree tone, shaking his head. "At least with the pans, nothing a quick wash won't fix, ain't that right?" he said, glancing over towards Jou with a large, friendly smile on his face. "So what if it seems hopeless? If it were me, I still wouldn't give up. Embrace your dreams. And, whatever happens, protect your honour as a Shinobi, for the price of freedom is steep." Between Rounds 2 and 3 Dormitory's Kitchenette [Himishi Jou] [323 words]

[Himishi Jou]

Jou's attempt to get out of there was thwarted by his own clumsiness! As the bags containing the pans fell to the ground, Jou's heart nearly sunk. He stood there completely quiet as those pans banged against the ground, creating enough noise that would've drawn a lot of people in. Fortunately for Jou, there didn't seem to be anyone else around besides the Konoha genin...but even in front of just a single person, it was certainly humiliating in Jou's eyes.

The young Himishi didn't dare to turn and face the guy, anticipating an eruption of laughter. Jou was half tempted to just leave those pans there and make a run for it, but then he heard the guy approach...and instead of laughing, he was quick to help pick up Jou's things. Jou glanced down as he spoke, a bit caught off guard by this. "I-I...uh...yeah..." Jou said before finally finding the will to crouch down as well to pick some up. "I know what that's like." Jou added, having his fair share of ingredient accidents as well.

Seems that Jou was quick to misjudge yet another person. The guy didn't seem to be the least bit rude, nor did he seem to care what village Jou was from. "Th-thanks." Jou said once he finally got his things together and looked at them, making sure none were damaged. The pans certainly need some cleaning now, but that will probably have to wait. "I-I'll come back later to wash them off." Jou said as he glanced over at the man's ingredients once more. "Are you preparing Soba?" Jou's cooking curiosity kind of got the better of him. He was able to get a rough idea of what the guy was preparing to make from looking at the ingredients alone. But then he immediately thought of how intrusive he was being and quickly shook his head.

"S-Sorry for taking up your time." Jou said, giving a quick bow, but made sure to not drop any of his pans again...and most importantly his own ingredients. With that, Jou was once again ready to take his leave.

Hyūga Shigure

[Hyūga Shigure]

"masterchef mizu no kuni". "No matter how many people you may lose, you have no choice but to go on living." DREAM It was good to have someone relating to our own experiences, and when Jou mentioned that he knew how that felt, Shigure chuckled lightly and nodded. After the two of them grabbed all the pans that fell on the floor, the Rock shinobi thanked the Hyuuga for the help and he shook his head. "No worries!" his tone was casual and quite friendly, which might have sounded odd considering the fact that they hailed from enemy villages, but that didn't seem to bother the Leaf shinobi in the slightest. The boy said he would come back to wash his pans later, but Shigure shook his head. "Don't worry, we have plenty of space, and I'm not using the sink right now. So if you want, you can go ahead." he replied, turning around and heading back to the counter, where he had his ingredients laid out. As he got there though, the boy spoke to him once again, prompting Shigure to glance back at him with the corner of his eyes and a smirk. "Oh? I see you have the eyes of a cook. You got it. I'm trying to replicate the Kirigakure Soba I tried in Mizu no Tera." he explained, turning around to face Jou more properly. "You see, it was quite unique and tasty... And I want to be able to still experience that once I go back to the Leaf. So I decided to try my hand at it, and if I get it wrong, I would still have enough time to have it again at a local restaurant! I will never pass on a delicious food! Plus... I quite enjoy cooking." he said in an enthusiastic tone, turning back to his own ingredients. "It's one of my favourite hobbies. If I was not a shinobi, I would like to be a chef!" he admitted, revealing one of his silly 'alternative universe' dreams. "So what if it seems hopeless? If it were me, I still wouldn't give up. Embrace your dreams. And, whatever happens, protect your honour as a Shinobi, for the price of freedom is steep." Between Rounds 2 and 3 Dormitory's Kitchenette [Himishi Jou] [322 words]

[Himishi Jou]

Jou was a little surprised at how casual this man was being, especially since their villages weren't on good terms. During his previous attempt at the Exams, Jou could remember how a lot of the genin there were expressing their hatred for each other, most of this due to the opposing villages they come from. Even now in the current exams, there are still some genin who are clearly thinking this way as well. Although Jou wasn't antagonistic, it was still clear that he was a bit hesitant around some of the opposing genin. Then there are people like Kashiwa, Ichi...and now this guy.

"I-I uh...okay..." Jou couldn't really argue with the guy there. He certainly has enough space by the sink to wash the pans without disturbing the fellow cooker. Jou made his way there and prepared to clean, but even though Jou wanted to keep to himself, his curiosity for and love of cooking got the best of him, and he asked about what the man was making.

The moment he brought up the guy's ingredients, Jou immediately started to regret it. He didn't want to come off as nosey and now he was expecting the guy to yell at or insult him for trying to get into his business...but like earlier, the guy was approaching this surprisingly casually. As Jou proceeded to clean each pan, he looked over at the man while he got into what he was trying to make. Jou was not...expecting to find someone else as passionate about cooking as he is, and someone who should be seen as an enemy no less! Jou both looked a little surprised but clearly focused on what the guy had to say.

"Wow...r-really?" Jou then looked over at his other bags that were filled with ingredients which were placed on the counter a bit further from the sink. "I wanted to see if I could replicate the Donburi." Jou admitted as he was just about finished washing. "The way they prepared the undercooked beef cuts was just right it was hard to ignore. Oh and how they neatly presented it and the vegetables on top of the rice...just thinking about it is mouth-watering." Jou added, almost appearing as if he were in a dream. It was almost jarring how his mood changed the moment food was involved. The moment Jou realized he was rambling a bit though, causing him to quickly glance away as he rubbed the back of his neck. "W-Well...cooking is just fun...y'know?" Jou smiled a bit. "I think I would've been a chef as well..."

Hyūga Shigure

[Hyūga Shigure]

"masterchef mizu no kuni". "No matter how many people you may lose, you have no choice but to go on living." JOINT EFFORT? Jou placed himself beside Shigure and started cleaning up his pans, but the conversation was flowing naturally. Jou seemed rather surprised with Shigure's revelation that he was trying to replicate the Kirigakure Soba, and mentioned that he wanted to replicate another dish, and Shigure arched both brows, in surprise. "Seriously? That's awesome! I was thinking about giving the Donburi a shot later!" he admitted, chuckling lightly as he finished cutting the ingredients and checked on the pan; the water had just started to boil, meaning he could add the vegetables to one of them, and put the meat in the oven, which he quickly and skillfully did. Jou's description of the dish stuck inside Shigure's mind. He had the eyes of a chef, and that was something he admired. That profession was something he coveted, even though he knew he couldn't embrace it yet. Still, that was a dream he wasn't really giving up though; he hoped that by the time he retired from his Shinobi career, he could potentially open up a restaurant somewhere in the Hidden Leaf. Despite the young man's embarrassment when they talked about such a dream, he admitted he would like to be one as well and Shigure nodded with a large smile. "Yeah, that would be great. Well... So we are both fellow cooking enthusiasts so... Wanna help me make this Kirigakure Soba? This unlikely alliance between the Leaf and the Rock will increase our chance of success! What do you say?" he suggested with a rather enthusiastic tone. Then, something suddenly hit him, making him arch his brows and laugh out loud, shaking his own head. "Oh dear, where are my manners?! I'm Shigure, by the way. From the Hyuuga clan." he said with a light bow with his head. "So what if it seems hopeless? If it were me, I still wouldn't give up. Embrace your dreams. And, whatever happens, protect your honour as a Shinobi, for the price of freedom is steep." Between Rounds 2 and 3 Dormitory's Kitchenette [Himishi Jou] [303 words]

[Himishi Jou]

Of all the things Jou was imagining would happen at the exams...meeting a fellow lover of the culinary arts was not one of them. This was a welcomed change of pace from what has been happening in the exams so far though. "O-Oh yeah? Well, I highly recommend you do." Jou added, referring to the donburi. It was almost unreal, having Jou find another person besides Haruka or Kazu that he can hold a conversation with, one that just flows so well. It made sense given both his and this guy's shared interest.

Jou was just about done with cleaning his pans, currently on the final one when the conversation took a shift, one that Jou was not expecting. "R-Really?" The guy wanted Jou to help him with cooking the soba! Honestly, Jou was kinda hoping something like this would happen. Although he very much enjoys cooking by himself, working with a fellow cook made things all the more exciting, plus the number of things he could learn from this guy regarding food! This was an opportunity Jou was sure as hell not going to pass up. "Heck yeah!" Jou exclaimed a bit, doing a little fist pump...but the moment he realized what he just did, he tried to reel it back a bit, looking a little sheepish. "I-I mean, sure. I can always work on the Donburi later."

These two were practically bonding...and they haven't even done any proper introductions. The moment the older genin, Shigure pointed this out, Jou was a little embarrassed about this not crossing his mind at first as well. "A-Ah right, sorry!" JOu then did a bow as well. "Nice to meet you Shigure. I-I'm Jou...of the Himishi clan." He then stood back up properly with a small grin.

Jou then finished up with the cleaning and washing his hands before turning back towards Shigure. "Now with introductions out of the way...." Jou then tightened his headband from the back almost as if he were preparing for battle. "Let's get to business." he added before getting right to it! Jou took out some of the vegetables he was going to use for the donburi and started cutting them up on a chopping board with a knife to add to what Shigure has already done. Jou was starting to focus, get into the groove of it. He also prepared another pan of water to boil since this was going to be twice the amount soba!

Hyūga Shigure

[Hyūga Shigure]

"masterchef mizu no kuni". "No matter how many people you may lose, you have no choice but to go on living." COOKING BUDDIES Trying the Donburi was definitely added to Shigure's to-do list, especially when it was so highly recommended by a fellow food enthusiast such as Jou. When he invited the Rock shinobi to cook with him, he looked very excited at the prospect and that made Shigure chuckle lightly and widen his smile, giving him a firm nod as confirmation, and Jou decided to jump into that proposal. He had to admit it, he was excited. He never really cooked with anybody else, as the members of his family were either his servants, or his immediate family, and all of them frowned at the prospect of the heir doing menial choirs such as cooking. "Yo, you don't have to hold it back. I get excited about these things too! And at least I feel a bit more free to be myself here, away from the prying eyes of my family! Hahaha!" he admitted in quite the carefree tone. In any case, now that they were properly introduced, they could go ahead and get down to business. He did take a mental note that he was from the Himishi clan. If he was being honest, he didn't know much about them, but traditional clans were usually worth notice. Jou was getting fired up and that also got Shigure more hyped up for the cooking and he nodded again. "Let's do it, Jou! The best Kirigakure Soba!" the excitement and determination in his tone were a clear sign that he was aiming for a great result. Jou started adding more, and Shigure went for the dough, to prepare the noodles for the soba, working with his hands with quite the skill. The Hyuuga was quite capable with his hands and fingers, an odd way to merge his kekkei genkai and fighting style with his passion for cooking, and in a short time, the dough was ready to be cut into the strings of the noodles. "This is looking good!" he chuckled, glancing over to Jou. "So what if it seems hopeless? If it were me, I still wouldn't give up. Embrace your dreams. And, whatever happens, protect your honour as a Shinobi, for the price of freedom is steep." Between Rounds 2 and 3 Kitchenette [Himishi Jou] [337 words]

[Himishi Jou]

Jou was a little concerned about looking too excited about this. But when it comes to cooking it was almost hard for Jou to contain himself. He didn't want to come off as immature or a dork in front of this guy, but it looks like Jou was just overreacting about this. He felt a bit at ease knowing that Shigure can relate, bringing a gentle smile to the young Himishi's face. Jou even chuckled a bit at the end before nodding lightly. "Yeah, I totally get that." Jou claimed before turning his direction to the food. "My parents don't really care if I cook." Jou claimed, his smile growing a bit weak. Although one could probably see this as a plus, or not really having any significance...Jou's parents did not truly care about him at all.

Jou did not try to linger on these thoughts though...Instead, he focused back on the cooking, and with Shigure being pumped about it, Jou's negative thoughts were pushed to the back, making way for his shared excitement for cooking! So with another, much more enthusiastic nod, Jou got to work with Shigure.

As Jou finished cutting up more vegetables, he noticed how Shigure prepared the dough, and how gentle and precise he was with it. It was impressive and truthfully much more skilled than Jou, and the young Himishi was not known to be sloppy with his craft. "You're really good at this, Shigure-san." Jou claimed. Shigure was so precise with cutting the dough into strings, it was almost as if he has the Tomokenzangan...which although Jou wasn't serious about that guess, he still wasn't exactly far off.

"Oh!" The young Himishi then thought of something and headed over to his bag of Donburi ingredients and started rummaging for something. "I was going to use this for the Donburi, but..." He then took out some rice vinegar, followed by a container of sesame seeds...and some Miso! "We should try adding these. Especially the Miso." Jou said. He placed them on the counter and then prepared to toast the sesame seeds. The moment Shigure said that this was looking good, Jou glanced over at the man and gave him a thumbs up and nod. "This is going to be really good." he added with clear confidence.

Hyūga Shigure

[Hyūga Shigure]

"masterchef mizu no kuni". "No matter how many people you may lose, you have no choice but to go on living." SUCCESSFUL COOPERATION Shigure didn't know the context of Jou's family, but he couldn't help but to feel a bit envious of the fact that his parents didn't seem to care about his choice of hobbies. It was honestly tiring - at times - to be the heir of a noble clan like the Hyuuga. All eyes were on him at all times, and when the said eyes are the Byakugan, it means that you are definitely being watched at all times, no matter where you try to hide within your own house. It was a heavy burden and a great responsibility, and people seemed to be oblivious to the fact that he needed a way to blow off some steam, and that cooking was this safe place. When Jou gave him a compliment on his manual skills, Shigure chuckled lightly. "I'm good with my hands. I guess it comes from my Taijutsu style. My eyes also give me great precision, it is a strong doujutsu. I guess I ended up transferring some of my ninja skills to my cooking, but it's only natural. I'm sure you do the same, in your own way, right?" his tone was quite friendly, and Shigure was showing himself to be quite open and laid back. They were from enemy villages, yes, but right now they were neutral, and he saw no reason why he couldn't be friends with people from other nations. If they wanted to ever break this cycle of hatred and war, those steps needed to be taken after all. As he finished preparing the noodles, he looked over at Jou, who brought out some important ingredients, which would add a great flavour to the Miso and Shigure gave him an enthusiastic nod. "Oh man! I love that! Well... I guess you can make a better broth than me, so please, go all out, Jou-kun!" he said, chuckling lightly as he got excited with the prospect. The meal was proceeding smoothly and the smell was already intoxicating, and it was making Shigure's stomach rumble. He was looking at the pans in anticipation as they reached the point in which they were almost ready to be served. "Man, I can't wait to try this! Our teamwork is great! If I had to bet, we improved upon the original, eh?!" he said, winking at Jou. "So what if it seems hopeless? If it were me, I still wouldn't give up. Embrace your dreams. And, whatever happens, protect your honour as a Shinobi, for the price of freedom is steep." Between Rounds 2 and 3 Kitchenette [Himishi Jou] [392 words]

[Himishi Jou]

Jou listened quietly and with clear interest as Shigure talked about being good with his hands and such. "Oh you use taijutsu?" Jou questioned as he looked a little more at Shigure handling the food. Jou certainly did not doubt him. "I've always wanted to get better at taijutsu...but I'm still having some rough time with it, y'know?" Jou was no one to ignore when it comes to hand to hand, or even wielding his combat knife...but he was no true taijutsu user. "I'm a lot better when it comes to ninjutsu." Jou added, and even though that is true...Jou still needed to work on controlling his chakra. As it stands now, it feels like he uses a little more than he should be. The young Himishi wanted to get better at managing his chakra flow, not wanting this to be a major issue down the line.

"I um...My clan has...a doujutsu too." Jou finally added since he certainly did not forget about the leaf genin's earlier comment about having one. "I guess you can say some of that rubbed off on my cooking skills as well." Jou chuckled lightly, referring to how precise and careful he is with his cooking as well, a bit interesting since Jou has never once used his Tomokenzangan for cooking purposes. Despite how much he loves cooking, Jou does not believe that he should be using his clan's kekkei genkai to assist him with it...Besides, Jou feels that using his doujutsu would take away from the fun of cooking!

Jou did not feel really worried about telling this guy about his doujutsu like he normally would. There was just something about Shigure's laid-back attitude that was a little contagious. He's from an enemy village...yet Jou felt at ease...Their shared love for cooking certainly helped with it, but a lot of it was also due to how nice Shigure is. Would make Jou almost wonder why their villages were enemies...but he knew that this of course goes way beyond just them two which is a whole other story...

Jou shook his head a bit, still with a little smile on his face. He wanted to say that his broth-making skills weren't anything special, but Jou was finding it harder to doubt himself with all of this going on. He was too much in the groove, evident in how he started to mix these ingredients together, getting really focused. When cooking, Jou usually felt like he was in his own little world, almost always forgetting that other people are around in those moments...but this time, he was fully aware of Shigure and what he was doing which in turn only made Jou want to try harder...while still having fun.

He needed enthusiastically in agreement with Shigure. "My stomach's rumbling just thinking about it. I can't wait to see the end result as well!" Jou added. Here Jou thought cooking couldn't get any more enjoyable, but now he was practically grinning!

Hyūga Shigure

[Hyūga Shigure]

"masterchef mizu no kuni". "No matter how many people you may lose, you have no choice but to go on living." ALL READY Shigure gave Jou a firm nod. "Taijutsu is my main specialty." he confirmed. He saw no problem in saying that, for his clan was widely known in the Ninja world due to their taijutsu prowess, with the Gentle Fist being known as the strongest style of Taijutsu in the world. Maybe Jou didn't know about it yet, but he would in due time. A lot of people had problems with developing their skill in Taijutsu, and that was normal. Shigure chuckled lightly when Jou mentioned that. "A lot of it involves body awareness. Get to know yourself, what you can and cannot do, and this will help you develop your taijutsu skill. You don't have to excel on it, if you are a Ninjutsu specialist, but it certainly will help you. Ultimately, every combat has a physical aspect. I can give you some pointers if you want." he offered, glancing over to Jou with a friendly smile on his face. Jou also mentioned his clan was also blessed with a doujutsu, and that picked Shigure's interest. His eyes looked rather ordinary, so perhaps his doujutsu was more akin to the Uchiha's Sharingan, which only fully changed upon activation. The Hyuuga's eyes were more clearly different, but he also knew of those with a mixed Hyuuga blood who would only display the Byakugan upon activation, so maybe it was just a matter of bloodline purity; the Hyuuga did claim to be one of the most ancient clans in the ninja world, and he could see how that was probably true. With their cooperation, the Kirigakure Soba was all but ready, and they just needed to pour it on the bowls, and once they did that, they had pretty much five servings of it. The smell was intoxicating, even better than the one he had tried in Mizu no Tera a week or so ago. Smiling from ear to ear, he turned to Jou and laughed in excitement. "Jou! This is amazing! You are an amazing cook, my friend!! I wouldn't have achieved this level of cooking without your help! I'm so happy! Hahahaha!" he admitted, giving the Himishi an enthusiastic thumbs-up. "So... Are you ready to dig in?!" he asked. "So what if it seems hopeless? If it were me, I still wouldn't give up. Embrace your dreams. And, whatever happens, protect your honour as a Shinobi, for the price of freedom is steep." Between Rounds 2 and 3 Kitchenette [Himishi Jou] [364 words]

[Himishi Jou]

Shigure had Jou's full attention at this point as he started talking about taijutsu. From the leaf genin's words alone Jou could tell that he wasn't lying when he said he was a taijutsu specialist. Jou enjoys learning things from others, especially when he can tell that they are truly passionate about it and such. Jou took Shigure's words to heart and nodded. The young Himishi needed to get a better understanding of himself and his body...which really wasn't too far off from what he was already working on. If anything, this kinda helped confirm to Jou that he's on the right path which gave the boy a bit more confidence. "I would appreciate that." Jou added, willing to learn as much as he can to better himself.

The food that the two cooks have been working on was finally ready! The wonderful aroma coming from the soba started to fill the air which was both pleasant and mouth-watering. Jou wasn't as loud as Shigure, but the wide grin on his face was enough to show how satisfied he was. To create such a masterpiece with someone else was more than amazing to the young Himishi. "I'm sorry but I think most of the credit should go to you." Jou claimed...even though deep down, he is just as proud of his own work as Shigure was which his face of course wasn't hiding. "I've never cooked with someone else, especially a fellow chef." Jou added, not taking his eyes off of the soba.

Jou was already making his way to the bowls almost subconsciously mere seconds before Shigure asked, which embarrassed Jou a little as he paused, realizing what he was doing, but in the end, he chuckled a bit in response. "A-Ah yes, of course, Shigure. Jou said before finally getting the bowls, passing one to Shigure. Sure the food smells good and all....but tasting it was what was truly on the boy's mind.

Hyūga Shigure

[Hyūga Shigure]

"masterchef mizu no kuni". "No matter how many people you may lose, you have no choice but to go on living." I WANT SECONDS! Jou seemed interested in getting some pointers from Shigure later and the Hyuuga nodded. Obviously he wouldn't be sharing any crazy secret, but a review of the basics, the fundamentals was paramount for someone to develop a solid foundation of their fighting style. Even to this date, Shigure still practice the basic katas of the Gentle Fist over and over, and just like his father and uncle told him many times before, he would keep on practicing the basics until he died, for there's always ways to improve, you are never perfect. Going back to the cooking, once it was done and Shigure praised Jou, the Himishi said that most of the credit should go to Shigure, but the Hyuuga was quick to shake his head. "Hell no! When we work as a team, everyone shares the credit. Teamwork! That's what we've been tested on these past couple rounds!" he winked to the white-haired boy. And to be honest, Jou helped a lot, and he was quite skilled, so Shigure would never let him sell himself short like that. In any case, now that they were done with the preparation, it was eating time. Shigure sit in front of Jou and clapped his hands together. "Itadakimasu!" he exclaimed with enthusiasm. Then, he grabbed his chopsticks and started devouring the food at an almost comical speed. "It's delicious!!" he exclaimed in between his slurping of the noodles. In a matter of a couple minutes, Shigure had finished his first bowl and quickly got up to grab his second. "It's better than the one I had before! We did it, Jou!!" he added, chuckling lightly in excitement as he sit back down and started devouring the food with the same eagerness than before. Shigure did like to cook, but gosh, he liked to eat even more it seemed. "So what if it seems hopeless? If it were me, I still wouldn't give up. Embrace your dreams. And, whatever happens, protect your honour as a Shinobi, for the price of freedom is steep." Between Rounds 2 and 3 Kitchenette [Himishi Jou] [312 words]