Chapter 8: The Second Half of the Cooking Test x 'Ninja' Hanzō
"I can't eat anymore!"
Buhazi sat on the ground, clutching his belly, which was several sizes larger than before, his face filled with contentment.
Hmm.
Although his stomach had only expanded a few sizes, Buhazi had forcefully devoured seventy whole roasted pigs. Moreover, except for Lorin's, all the others' pigs were entirely unprocessed—no blood drained, no innards removed.
Given the size of a Snout-nosed Rampaging Pig, each one easily weighed over two tonnes, so seventy pigs amounted to… one hundred and forty tonnes!
Seeing this scene with his own eyes, Lorin's expression stiffened slightly.
Of course, he knew Buhazi, as a nen user, must have used some kind of nen ability to assist, but even so, one hundred and forty tonnes was outrageous.
Looking at Buhazi, Lorin could only marvel at how he seemed to belong in the wrong world.
If he weren't a Gourmet Hunter in the world of Hunter x Hunter but instead a Gourmet Hunter in the world of Toriko, then with Buhazi's appetite, he would absolutely be a super rising star in the Gourmet Hunter world!
"The test is over!"
Menchi rolled her eyes at her partner, then announced, "Seventy people have passed the pig cooking test!"
Standing up, she addressed the numerous examinees below, "I won't be as lenient as Buhazi. My test is extremely strict."
After thinking for a moment, she continued, "For the second half of the cooking test, I want to eat—sushi!"
"Sushi?"
"What kind of dish is that?"
"Never heard of it…"
All the Hunter examinees were bewildered, exchanging glances as they confirmed that none had ever heard the name of this dish.
"Hehe, you don't know it, do you? But that's normal because it's a local dish from an obscure little island nation, not well-known." Menchi grinned mischievously.
"However, I can give you a bit of help. The basic ingredients and tools for making sushi have already been provided. Here's a hint: I will only accept nigiri sushi!"
After finishing, Menchi ignored the still-confused faces of the examinees and directly announced, "The second half of the Hunter Test's cooking exam begins now, and the time limit is until I'm full."
However, unlike in the first half, where Buhazi had announced the start and all the Hunter examinees rushed out of the test venue, this time, they were all perplexedly studying the ingredients Menchi had prepared in advance—namely, a large pot of already steamed rice.
Except for Lorin and… a certain ninja who was openly chuckling.
"He's smiling so happily…"
"He must know this dish."
Some examinees near Hanzō had already noticed the ninja's conspicuously open laughter.
Exchanging glances, a few decided not to confront him directly but rather to secretly follow Hanzō and observe how he prepared the dish.
…
"Cooking with rice?" Gon was full of curiosity.
"There should be other ingredients! Look at the prepared knives; you wouldn't need them just for rice. They're probably for handling other ingredients," Killua analysed seriously.
"And nigiri sushi—it must be a dish formed by shaping it with your hands," Kurapika mused.
With his broad range of reading—oops, I mean extensive book knowledge—Kurapika felt like he had seen something about sushi in a book before.
"I recall reading that sushi is a dish made by combining rice mixed with vinegar and other seasonings, along with fish," Kurapika successfully retrieved the relevant memory from his vast knowledge base.
But that was all he could recall, as Kurapika's reading preferences did not include cookbooks!
"Fish! But there isn't any fish prepared here!" Leorio exclaimed in surprise.
Hmm.
It was in a completely normal voice, without any attempt to lower the volume.
Instantly, the examinees present turned to look, and the next moment, everyone rushed out.
"We need to add vinegar too!" Lorin looked as though he had just learned something.
Hmm.
Though he knew what sushi was, he only knew what the finished dish looked like.
He wasn't much better than the others when it came to knowing how to make it or what seasonings were needed.
That was also why Lorin hadn't rushed out immediately to catch fish.
…
In the forest, Lorin emerged from the lake, holding a carefully chosen fish… of an unknown species, but at least it looked normal. He then returned to the testing venue.
Because of his meticulous selection in the lake, when Lorin returned, many examinees were already lined up to deliver their dishes to Menchi.
However…
There were sushi rolls made from minced fish wrapped in large chunks of rice, sushi consisting of an entire fish encased in rice, small portions of rice enveloping tiny fish, and skewered fish and rice 'sushi'.
It's worth noting that all these fish were completely unprocessed live fish; to call this 'dark cuisine' would be an understatement. freewebnσvel.cѳm
Even a dog would shake its head at such things, let alone Menchi, a Gourmet Hunter with exceptionally high standards for food.
Still, Lorin found it rather entertaining.
Just as Lorin returned to his cooking station, a confident bald-headed Hanzō approached Menchi with a plate of sushi.
"Finally, it's my turn! Ta-da, here's your sushi!" Hanzō presented his dish with great confidence.
Judging by its appearance alone… it was indeed far superior to the previous 'dark cuisines'.
Most importantly, the fish on top was finally not one of those unprocessed, scale-covered live fish.
At long last, seeing a normal dish, Menchi breathed a slight sigh of relief.
However, just by looking at the sushi before her and at Hanzō in his ninja attire, Menchi could guess his background.
So…
After taking a bite, Menchi said bluntly, "Fail. It tastes terrible. Do it again!"
"What did you say?" Hanzō was stunned, staring at Menchi in disbelief.
"I said it doesn't taste good. Go back and redo it!" Menchi reiterated seriously.
"What do you mean it doesn't taste good?! Sushi is just rice shaped into a bite-sized oblong, with a bit of wasabi and raw fish. Anyone making this dish would have a similar result!" Hanzō shouted angrily.
The next moment.
"It's over!" Hanzō turned to look at the other Hunter examinees below, realising his mistake.
At that moment, the examinees' eyes gleamed with excitement.
"You idiot," Menchi's temper flared instantly.
Originally, Menchi intended to have Hanzō redo the dish to see if he could come up with some creative new type of sushi.
But who would have thought he would be foolish enough to blurt out the method for making sushi?
"Menchi!" Buhazi quickly stepped in to prevent Menchi from hitting Hanzō and managed to calm her down.
Returning to the sofa, Menchi was still visibly annoyed.
"There's no helping it. Since the method for making sushi is already known, we'll now focus solely on evaluating the taste!" Menchi said angrily.
"Evaluating taste…"
Buhazi was speechless.
Not to mention Menchi's own cooking skills, which could rival any five-star hotel chef, but her current attitude…
As her partner, he knew Menchi's personality well.
When she mentioned judging by taste at times like this, the evaluation criteria…
"We're doomed!" Buhazi sighed silently, using his phone to send the details and his predictions to the Hunter Examination Committee.
Chapter 9: Passing the Test x Exam Ends
The second venue of the Hunter Test.
"The rice is too hard! Fail."
"Not acceptable, the way you sliced the fish doesn't follow the grain, fail!"
"The shape of the rice ball is not up to standard."
"Too slow, the warmth from your palm didn't transfer to the fish, fail!"
Menchi's continuous criticisms resounded as one examinee after another had their sushi judged as failures.
"Menchi, you're being too strict!" Buhazi interjected, trying to persuade her.
"Shut up!" Menchi, already in a bad mood, roared and resumed berating the examinees' dishes.
"I knew it would turn out like this!" Buhazi sighed helplessly.
"When Menchi gets like this, there's no stopping her. Hopefully, the Chairman will send someone soon!"
"Examiner Menchi, here's my dish." Lorin placed a tray in front of Menchi, putting another portion in front of Buhazi.
"It's you!" Menchi glanced at Lorin. She had a deep impression of him from the first half of the cooking test.
Naturally, she had a good guess about Lorin's intentions. However, she didn't mind or, rather, preferred smart people who could discern her real purpose for the test, especially over clueless fools.
"Just so you know, your dish from the last round was good, but that doesn't mean I'll pass you because of it!" Menchi snorted.
"Of course." Lorin nodded. He wasn't surprised she saw through his little scheme, as he hadn't concealed much in the first place.
There was no need to, anyway.
After all, the point of the test was for the participants to figure it out!
He was merely being polite and didn't show any disdain towards Gourmet Hunters.
What was wrong with that?
As for his true intentions, they went far beyond what a mere display of wit could reveal.
"Hmm…" Menchi lifted the lid on Lorin's tray and let out a soft exclamation upon seeing the dish.
"You didn't make the sushi according to that bald fool's recipe?"
"This round isn't about following the nigiri sushi recipe, is it?" Lorin shrugged.
"Besides, I don't think someone unskilled in cooking could make sushi that satisfies a Gourmet Hunter's palate."
"Finally, someone gets it!" Menchi snorted softly, picked up a piece of sushi from the tray, and ate it.
"Hmm… The knife skills are lacking, the shaping technique isn't good enough, the rice-vinegar ratio is off, and the fish preparation is slightly undercooked," Menchi critiqued mercilessly.
Immediately, some examinees who were anxiously listening to the conversation between Lorin and Menchi burst into laughter.
"Hehe, no matter how much he tries to curry favour, it's still a fail!"
"The Hunter Test isn't something you can pass with a few cheap tricks!"
The group of examinees whispered amongst themselves, mocking without restraint.
"But…"
"I like your bold and innovative approach to cooking, and it's not unpalatable. You pass!" Menchi declared loudly, hinting at her true meaning.
With that, the examinees who had been mocking Lorin froze, their expressions turning sour.
"Bold and innovative… not unpalatable…" Kurapika's eyes widened as Menchi's hint suddenly clicked.
"I understand now, the real purpose of this test!"
"The real purpose?" Gon asked, puzzled.
"Exactly. This exam isn't about the cooking itself; it's about bold innovation or, more accurately, testing our courage and ability to explore the unknown," Kurapika explained excitedly in a low voice to Gon and the others.
"The reason why the examiner chose an obscure dish like sushi and provided various ingredients as hints was to test our observational skills and bravery in venturing into unfamiliar territory."
"As for the taste of the dish, it's merely the result of exploring the unknown, a reflection of one's capability. Naturally, it shouldn't be too terrible."
"How did I not realise this until now?" Kurapika felt a pang of regret.
Because he had some knowledge of sushi from literature, he instinctively began recalling details about it and tried to recreate it from memory.
Then, Hanzō had outright revealed the recipe, preventing him from discerning the true content of the test.
Kurapika wasn't alone; there were many intelligent examinees. Following Menchi's repeated hints, they, like Kurapika, finally grasped the real objective of the test.
Many excitedly began preparing their dishes anew.
Onstage, seeing this, Menchi finally breathed a sigh of relief, feeling both amused and exasperated.
The test she'd designed wasn't hard at all; a little thought was all it took to discern her purpose.
Yet this group had first mocked Gourmet Hunters, and then one or two troublemakers disrupted the proceedings, turning her carefully prepared test into a chaotic mess.
But now, things were finally back on track.
However… ƒrēewebnoѵёl.cσm
Among the examinees who had figured it all out, there were still those who didn't understand.
"I refuse to accept this!" One of the examinees who had previously mocked Lorin, number 255, was red-eyed and punched a hole in the cooking station.
"Why did he pass? You listed so many flaws in his dish!" Tuo Dou shouted angrily.
"Because I'm the examiner! If I say he passes, he passes. If I say you fail, you fail," Menchi snorted. Had she not been the examiner, she wouldn't have even bothered with such a fool.
"Damn it, I'm not here to become a chef; I want to be a Bounty Hunter! I don't recognise you as an examiner. What gives you the right, as a Gourmet Hunter, to judge me?" Tuo Dou roared furiously.
"That's too bad. This year, I'm the examiner. You'll have to find one you approve of for next year's Hunter Test!" Menchi replied impatiently.
"Don't be ridiculous!" Tuo Dou rushed at Menchi in a fit of rage, clearly intending to resort to violence.
But just as he reached Menchi, Buhazi moved. Despite his large frame, he was incredibly fast and slapped Tuo Dou away before he could react.
The overwhelming force sent Tuo Dou flying across the park, landing unconscious at the park's entrance.
"Mind your own business!" Menchi glared at Buhazi and put her knife away.
"Well, Menchi, if you killed someone, it would be a big problem!" Buhazi chuckled.
"Hmph, thanks to idiots like him, I've completely lost my appetite." Menchi snorted, raising her voice.
"I'm full. The exam is over. The second stage of the Hunter Test, cleared by one person!"
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