Waifu Wars: A Food Wars Fanfic

Ch. 29 Thistles and Thorns

It was 3pm on Wednesday when the Cessna Citation X landed safely at the academy's private airport. A car was already there, waiting to take Torrey and Rindo directly to Azami Nakiri's office.

Rindo was in a hurry to meet with her fellow council members before they began the first round of resistance "mop-ups", a series of Shokugeki battles against the various clubs and societies that had chosen to fight rather than yielding to Azami's new regulations. During the drive, Rindo explained that there were nearly 100 challenges, and since Central only had about 30 members, it would take some time to complete the process.

Once they arrived at their destination, Rindo led Torrey up to Azami's office. "Sorry, I wish I could stay for your meeting, but I gotta get ready for my Shokugeki. Good luck in there!" she said, before running off to join her peers.

Torrey found the prospect of facing Azami alone to be frightening. My nen-skills are no match for his dark aura...

He was finally making his official decision. There would be no going back after this. Even if his friends didn't approve, even if they hated him for siding with their enemy, Torrey would have to live with it. This was the only way for him to continue his culinary odyssey. He took a deep breath and knocked on the door.

"You may enter," said Azami's voice.

Torrey entered the large room, which was sparsely furnished except for a few small tables surrounded by regal looking chairs. Azami's desk itself was rather small, and was tucked away in the far corner of the room. He was seated there, clicking away at his laptop, and still hadn't looked up to see who his visitor was.

"Name and purpose?"

"Umm...Torrey Waldenpond."

"Tormund! My apologies. Please, have a seat," said Azami, rising from his chair and gesturing towards the open one across from him. "I've had many visitors wasting my time with trifling matters these past few days, and time is of the essence. Rome wasn't built in a day, so they say." Torrey approached nervously, put-off by the Dean's sudden attitude reversal.

"Mr. Nakiri, Sir..."

"Please, call me Azami. I'm assuming you're here to discuss my offer?"

"Well, there's not much to discuss, S- Azami. It took me awhile to realize it, but I made a huge mistake when I rejected your offer the first time. I appreciate you giving me a second chance at this school, and I'd like to accept."

"Splendid. You're a wise young man, and I knew you'd see the error of your ways. As the new Dean of Totsuki, I couldn't let such talent go to waste. Under my watchful guidance, I believe that you can become a true master of gourmet and a key cog in my new culinary machine."

"Thank you, Azami."

"And just so you're aware, thanks to the new rules put in place by one of the former council members, all Shokugeki's from here on out will be judged fairly and impartially. From what I understand, the results of your last Shokugeki reflected an unfortunate display of politics that had nothing to do with skill in the kitchen. I trust that you won't hold a grudge against your fellow Central members Etsuya Eizan and Nene Kinokune. They too, will be important cogs."

"Of course. It won't affect our work. You said 'former council member'?"

"I nearly forgot to mention. I've just released three council members who failed to understand my vision for this academy. Soon we will be having a Battle Royale to determine how the seats will be filled; I encourage you to participate. For now, though, we have the mop-up's to worry about."