I understand that as insignificant creatures of this Earth, we continuously strive to be better and for something beyond our current capabilities. The mosquito who bit me on my arm after I touched down... you've reached the summit, buddy. I hope you have a shitty life.

- A tweet from Alice Nakiri's Twitter, October 15th, 8.23 p.m.

Soma gaped at the unfamiliar sight waiting for them at the arrival hall.

He hadn't been expecting any fanfare or spotlight from the public. Tōtsuki Academy was known worldwide and carried a fearsome reputation for churning out some of the greatest chefs the world has ever bore witness to, but as with most of its events involving their students, everything was very hush-hush and on a need-to-know basis. The general public was almost always left in the dark when it came to Tōtsuki legendary curriculum and tests.

So why was there such a big horde waiting for them at the airport?

"Yukihira, don't just stand there with your mouth open like a goldfish. Let's go to the front. It looks like grandfa – Senzaemon-dono is about to make an announcement."

"Alright." The redhead made his way through the crowd behind Erina, who had found him at the luggage claim a little after touch-down. She was dressed casually in a plain, practical yellow blouse and a pair of form-hugging jeans. Even in such a simple outfit, she still managed to look effortlessly beautiful and regal at the same time. Soma was one to speak his mind without too much hesitation, but the compliment on the edge of his tongue refused to be spoken for some reason. If it was Tadokoro and any other of his friends, he wouldn't think twice before commenting that they looked good in what they were wearing. (This also meant that he wouldn't hold back from pointing out if they looked weird; it goes both ways, after all) However, with the blonde, he decided that erring on the side of caution would be the better choice – after all, he didn't know how she would react to receiving a compliment, and from him, of all people.

Besides, he planned to heed the advice Isshiki had given him prior to the trip during breakfast, and that was to go along with whatever the tenth seat said to prevent any unnecessary conflict.

"I'm sure she'll come to realize that she needs you by her side sooner or later," The seventh seat had said breezily in between bites of his plate of food. Fumio had prepared a nutritious and filling American-style breakfast for everybody to kick-start the momentous day. "I've caught a brief glimpse of some of the challenges, and I have to say that nobody can single-handedly finish this. One looks particularly daunting! It's definitely going to be a test of more than just your culinary skills. If Erina-chan goes into the race thinking that it's going to be a stroll in the park just due to her ability, she's going to be in for a big surprise."

"So you're saying that until she comes around, I have to follow her around like a puppy?" Soma had asked, furrowing his brow. That wasn't something he was used to doing.

The smile that had touched the upperclassman's lips was one born of mirth. "Something like that. You're in a delicate situation, Soma-kun. I know that's not your style, but for the sake of this race, you have to do it that way. Erina can be a little…difficult at times, as we all know. This is the only option for you to get through to her so she'll acknowledge and treat you like her partner."

Soma couldn't help but release a sigh. "If you think that's the best way, Isshiki-senpai."

"I know so."

With the conversation early in the morning firmly in mind, Soma made his way through the crowd of students who parted like the Red Sea for Moses the moment they spotted the heiress leading the way. It appeared as if nobody was willing to incur her wrath so early on in the race, for fear of the possible repercussions.

"I guess being with a Nakiri does has its perks after all…" he mumbled to himself.

Before long, the pair were at the front of the sizable crowd, facing a makeshift podium where Senzaemon himself was standing, surveying the gathering students with an unblinking gaze. To his left and right were a group of people who Soma deduced to be Tōtsuki alumni; he recognized a handful of teachers from the academy, but most of them were unfamiliar faces. The entire holding area was cordoned off with black and yellow tape, resembling a crime scene from a movie. There were even security guards ushering the last trickle of first years towards the stage while keeping a watchful eye on the throng of onlookers on the other side of the tape.

Soma would have thought it all excessive, if not for the staggering number of people peering at them. Clicks of camera shutters and the occasional flashes made it obvious that the crowd wasn't made just of curious spectators, but also of news and camera crews that were hungry for their next scoop. He kind of felt like a wild animal in an enclosure with all the attention they were getting. Judging from the nervous murmurs and tension in the air, he wasn't the only one.

He dared a glance at his partner who was fiddling with the zipper on her luggage, having pocketed her passport and other important documents safely away. He had to give Erina some credit where it was due; while Alice had brought a gigantic luggage bag that would put the Titanic to shame, the blonde was lugging along a suitcase of much more reasonable size. She might be the very definition of befuddling at times, but at least she's sensible and logical.

As Soma noted that Erina was having trouble zipping her bag up due to the bulging contents, he slowly became aware of how conversations around him were slowly tapering off, replaced by whispers of anticipation and excitement. His confusion gave way to comprehension when he noticed that Senzaemon was adjusting the mic on the stand. He adjusted the strap of his bag to a more comfortable position around his shoulder and waited for the Food's Devil King to begin speaking.

"Welcome to Singapore, students of Tōtsuki!" Senzaemon-dono's booming voice filled the hall, effectively cutting off any last echoes of chatter and bringing all attention to himself. "The Amazing Food Race is about to begin in just a couple of minutes, so I hope everybody is feeling well and raring to go! Before that, however, I'll like to make a couple of important announcements. Please do listen carefully as this might determine whether you get a passing grade or not."

"There's going to be a number of challenges in each country. There's no pre-determined route you guys have to follow to complete the race. It depends entirely on the decisions you make. For example, when the first challenge is completed, you will be directed to the station master and she'll give you a couple of different colored hint cards to choose from. Each station in Singapore is marked with a separate color, so the color you choose will be the next station to be attempted by you and your partner. Regardless of the path you take, every pair has to finish all the stations in Singapore before they're given the plane ticket to the next country."

"By now, all of you should have received your phones back. You are allowed to phone your family, text your friends, get the hints on search engines to try and find the next location… there are no particular restrictions to speak of besides for the obvious – any information communicated regarding the stations will result in immediate expulsion. Your phones have been bugged and will be monitored around the clock, so don't get any ideas."

"Lastly, each pair will have been given a satellite phone. Any updates on your accommodation or certain hints for some time-based stations will be sent through it, so be sure to keep it with you. There's also a school-issued sports watch that has a GPS chip embedded in it – it is of utmost importance that you wear it at all times. In case of any incident and somebody goes missing, we will be able to track you down through it."

Senzaemon paused and glanced to the people at his side. "With that being said, some of the teaching staff at Tōtsuki and other esteemed guests are also here in Singapore to help out with the event as station masters. You'll meet all of them in due time, so there's no need to introduce them to you."

"And… that's it. Are there any queries?"

The silence that met Senzaemon's question made it seem almost rhetorical. A wry smile graced the Food Devil King's weathered face. He waited a beat longer, then two before nodding. "If there are no further clarifications… Then let me officially get the ball rolling. The first ever Tōtsuki Amazing Food Race begins right now!"

The moment the last word left the school director's mouth, a cacophony of beeps resounded through the holding area. That, accompanied with the swift removal of the tape cordoning off the area and the rushing camera crews, made for quite a scene. A flurry of activities took place in the next few minutes; some pairs opted to make a rush out of the arrival hall to somewhere less crowded, so they can plan their next move, while others stayed put and checked their satellite phones for the first hint that had been sent out. There were also reporters swarming in on the students unlucky enough to be on the outer circle and demanding interviews.

It was a total mess.

Thankfully, the two of them were sitting pretty deep in the middle of the student body, so they weren't overly affected by the unfolding chaos. Soma stuffed his hands into the pockets of his jacket as he scanned the undulating crowd, trying to spot a familiar face but to no avail. Maybe his friends have already left? "Man, this is crazy. What are we going to do first, Nakiri? And do you need some help with that? You look like you're really struggling to get that zipper - "

"Take the phone from me and read the hint first." Erina, once again crouched over her bag and moving the zipper back and forth in irritation with one hand, either ignored his offer of help or didn't hear it. She was holding out the satellite phone towards him on her other hand.

Soma cleared his throat. "Once again, do you need help with that?"

The frostiness in her eyes when Erina met his would have been sufficient to freeze the world over with much to spare. "Even if I do, I won't be asking it from you ."

Ahh, so she had heard it. Soma briefly pondered what kind of evil deeds he must have done in his past life to accrue this much hatred from the heiress, but quickly dislodged the distracting musing to focus on the first mission.

"Alright, suit yourself." The redhead plucked the phone and toyed with the buttons on it for a moment before finding the power button at the top, which also functioned as the button to wake the phone up from sleeping mode. He was no stranger to phones with number pads – he used to own one of the first-generation Nokia a couple years back after all. It just felt way too bulky in his hand with how used he was to the sleek models nowadays. Still, it was kind of nostalgic to brush his fingers across the rubber of the pads. After a little more navigating through the menus, Soma found the message stored in the inbox and selected it.

Red when cooked, black whilst raw,

Underwater I live, though on land I do crawl.

Hard and soft my exterior may be,

Every direction is where I see.

Side to side, that's how I travel,

Endless flavors I can be cooked in, if my secrets you can unravel.

On the East of the island lies a jetty,

Where all of us can be found in a jiffy.

"Huh. This isn't what I was expecting." Soma scratched his head as he read the riddle over and over, trying to make sense of it all. He never was good at puzzles of any kind. All he got from it was that it's probably some type of seafood and they were supposed to be headed towards some place East of Singapore.

"What is it?" Erina asked with a furrowed brow. She had finally secured the zipper on her bag.

"It's a riddle of some sort. I guess we gotta solve it to get where the first location is supposed to be." Soma smiled sheepishly. "You wanna give this a shot instead? Maybe you'll have more luck with it than me."

The blonde took it from his proffered hand and started reading it. A moment later, she looked up at him in disdain. "This is pretty obvious, isn't it? You're telling me you don't know what this dish is?"

Soma blinked a few times. "Not a clue."

"Figures." Erina flipped her hair back and grabbed her bag. "Let's go and find a place with Wi-Fi to get the exact co-ordinates of the station."

"Hey, wait up! You're not even going to tell me the dish?" Soma hefted his bag up as well and jogged after the tenth seat.

"Nope."

"Come on, just a hint?"

"No, Yukihira."

"At least tell me – "

"No."

A/N: So, it appears I owe you people an apology for this really really late update. I'm very behind schedule atm, partially due to my insane work schedule for the past week and the next couple of days, and in part because I've been busy with farewell parties and preparing to travel to Australia to study for the next couple of years. It's all a little crazy, so bear with me while I sort my life out. Updates might be a little slower for now (I've been stuck at the next chapter for close to a week now, I don't have the time to even power up my laptop these few days) but I'll do my best to churn out at least two more before I fly next month. Then it's back to being off the grid for maybe a week or two while I settle in. No promises on that though!

Sorry for the short chapter as well, I just felt that it was appropriate to end here so you guys could try to figure out the hint on your own!

SO, THE IMPORTANT BIT! WHAT DO YOU GUYS THINK THE INGREDIENT IS? LET ME KNOW IN THE REVIEWS! (Eventually, I'll make a competition for one of the harder hints and give a reward to the first person to guess the dish/ingredient correctly. This is a little too easy in my opinion, so you'll get a virtual cookie if you get it right ;))

As always, thank you for reading. Until next time!