The Top Idol Next Door Can't Help But Crave My Guilty Pleasure Meals-Chapter 6Volume 2 .4 - Ill Show You the Hidden Side of Arisu Yuzuki!

ROUND 6 – I’ll Show You the Hidden Side of Arisu Yuzuki! 4

“Voilà, done. Now, Yuzuki…”

“…”

With sharpened focus, Yuzuki was making incisions in the nerikiri with a bamboo skewer.

I found myself captivated by her serious profile.

She tucked her hair behind her ear without taking her eyes off the Japanese sweet, as if in her world, there was nothing but that single piece of Japanese sweet.

In less than five minutes, Yuzuki’s Japanese sweet was complete.

The quality was unbelievable for a first attempt.

“Mmhm…”

However, Yuzuki’s lips formed a pout as if she seemed unsatisfied with the result.

“I think it’s well made. At first glance, it looks like a real product.”

“But Suzufumi’s is prettier, and that’s annoying…!”

It seems her innate perfectionism had surfaced while working on it.

Yuzuki leaned in close to the table, comparing the two pieces of Japanese sweet.

“I’ve done this many times, so it’s only natural.”

In reality, I had practiced this hastily before I left.

“Well, let’s eat them right away. Fresh sweets (Namagashi) don’t last long.”

“Uh, but bean paste is just a lump of sugar and calories…”

“Don’t worry. Compared to Western sweets, it has less fat, and it’s small, so one piece won’t be a problem.”

Seemingly unable to reject something she made herself, Yuzuki gently brought the nerikiri to her mouth.

“…Even though it’s bean paste, it’s light on the mouth. The sweetness is refreshing and easy to eat…”

Yuzuki slowly savored the Japanese sweet as if appreciating its essence.

“It tastes even better when you made it yourself, right?”

Now, after the hands-on experience, it’s time for a nationwide Japanese food tour.

Osaka’s representative: Takoyaki.

Hiroshima’s representative: Steamed oysters.

Hokkaido’s representative: Grilled squid skewers.

While strolling through the tourist spots, we kept rolling out menu items that anyone might impulsively buy from street stalls.

Seemingly caught up in the excitement, Yuzuki makes a half-hearted excuse, “This isn’t falling for the food, it’s just tourism!” as she reaches for the array of food laid out on the table.

“The Takoyaki, with a soft batter, exudes a pleasant fragrance from the pickled ginger and chopped green onions. The Steamed oysters are plump and rich—truly the ‘milk of the sea.’ And the Grilled squid skewers, with the bitterness of the liver mingling with the refreshing taste of ginger… it’s impossible to stop eating…!”

With Yuzuki’s cheerful food report as background music, I go to the kitchen to prepare the next dish.

“Ahh… everything was so delicious… School trips are the best…”

Yuzuki exhales deeply as she finishes her tea. It seems she thoroughly enjoyed our indoor food tour.

After the hands-on experience and the food tour, it’s finally time for the climax of the school trip.

The real dinner is about to begin.

“Sorry to keep you waiting, Yuzuki.”

I place a dish I prepared in the kitchen on the table.

“Tonight’s dinner is an assortment of tempura.”

“Ah, fried food! And such a mountain of it…”

Tempura is a world-renowned Japanese dish that stands alongside sushi and sukiyaki.

Meat, fish, vegetables—each wrapped in a golden batter like it’s a work of art.

The thin and light batter enhances the flavor of the ingredients, allowing you to literally taste the feeling of ascending to the heavens.

“It’s unfair to bring out fried food at this time! It’s a whole different level of immorality compared to the rest of the menu!”

“Heh, now that you’re fully in meal mode, can you really refuse tempura?”

Today’s lineup includes whiting (type of fish), shishito peppers, eggplant, shiso leaves (perilla), and large prawns.

Enjoy them with tentsuyu dipping sauce or matcha salt, whichever you prefer.

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“After coming this far, you might as well eat it. Are you planning to flee before the final act?”

“Ugh…”

Her stomach’s morale is at its peak. Any retreat order now could incite a riot.

But after grimacing at the bitter challenge, Yuzuki pushes the plate of tempura back.

“…I won’t eat it.”

Hmm, it seems that sheer momentum alone won’t be enough to push through.

“I’m fully satisfied with the ‘food tour’ we’ve had so far. It seems that your plan to enrich the side menu has backfired!”

Despite her strong stance, she keeps glancing at the tempura, obviously very conscious of it.

“The whiting and vegetables are in season right now, you know? Why don’t you try to feel the change of the season with your tongue?”

“I-I won’t be swayed by such sweet talk!”

“And the prawns are impressive too, okay? You don’t often come across prawns this big.”

“They’ll probably send them to the office as a year-end gift… probably.”

While saying this, Yuzuki covers her eyes with her hand, like a child trying not to catch sight of something indecent.

“I’ll ask you one more time. Are you sure you don’t want it?”

“…I don’t want it.”

“I’m going to take it away then. Is that okay?”

“…”

Until now, she would have pounced on the food the moment I tried to take it away. It seems that tactic no longer works.

Her determination is admirable.

“Alright, I give up on the tempura. It’s my loss this time.”

I take the plate of tempura away and carry it back to the kitchen.

“…I did it…”

Yuzuki placed her chopsticks down and quietly clenched her fist.

“Finally… I have finally overcome the temptation of Suzufumi’s cooking head-on! Even though I missed out on the tempura made with seasonal ingredients, I’m not the slightest bit… regretful… at all…”

Yuzuki’s loud declaration was full of a tragic sense of victory.

Was there ever a more painful victory speech?

But, the battle isn’t over yet.

“…Suzufumi? What are you doing?”

In the kitchen, I had taken out a new weapon.

It was a bowl.

As expected of a hotel in collaboration with a dinnerware manufacturer, the cupboard was stocked with bowls as well.