[Ding…]
[Congratulations, Host. Achievement unlocked: First Branch.]
[Reward obtained: Legendary Cooking Utensil, Eternal Spirit Knife.]
A clear chime rang out, followed by two lines of text.
A moment later, the words transformed into a hexagonal badge.
The System interface appeared, and the badge flew into it.
━━━━━ SYSTEM ━━━━━
Host: Evan Whitaker
Profession: Master Chef, Gourmet Hunter
Ability: Gourmet Cells (Awakening 56%)
Skill: Complete Compendium of Spells
Achievement: 1
Rank: Army-Class
━━
[Item]
📦 Derous Knife
📦 Eternal Spirit Knife
━━
World-Specific Mission: Earn Money (980,000/2,000,000)
Mission Reward: Dimensional Door connects to a new world
━━
Normal Mission: Create a dish that strengthens the soul (0/1)
Mission Reward: One recipe
━━
Special Mission: Explore a new world and search for new ingredients
Mission Reward: Unknown
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
So I’ve unlocked an Achievement System, and achievements come with rewards too.
Not bad at all.
Evan was thoroughly pleased.
“Come inside. Food’s on me.”
Since he was in such a good mood, Evan decided to share the joy with Kaguya and the other two.
Besides, making something delicious would fill the area with an enticing aroma and hopefully draw in a few customers.
He entered the kitchen.
All the cookware and utensils had already been prepared, while his Storage Space contained plenty of ingredients.
Evan took out an assortment of vegetables, meats, and seasonings, then picked up his newly acquired Eternal Spirit Knife and began processing everything one by one.
His knife skills were genuinely impressive.
Every cut was quick, precise, and steady.
Hundreds of slices of meat came out virtually identical in size and thickness.
Once the ingredients were prepared, Evan instructed White Zetsu to produce some wood and carve it into skewers.
Meanwhile, he pulled a hot-pot basin from his Storage Space and started preparing the broth.
When it came to food whose aroma could spread everywhere, the first thing Evan thought of was hot pot.
Back in the day, whenever he walked down a street with a hot-pot restaurant, he could smell that irresistible fragrance from a long way off.
If ordinary ingredients alone could produce an aroma that tempting, then what would happen if he used higher-quality ingredients?
Wouldn’t it basically become an aromatic bomb, spreading its fragrance for miles?
Filled with pleasant expectations, Evan carried the hot-pot basin outside.
“What in the world is that red stuff? Is it actually edible?” Hiruzen stared at the blood red broth and the layer of chilies covering its surface.
His butt clenched instinctively.
That much chili…
If I eat this, my poor ass might never recover.
“Of course it’s edible. And it’s delicious. I guarantee once you’ve had it once, you’ll want it again.”
Evan passed the hot-pot basin to the White Zetsu following behind him.
Then he extended his right index finger and traced a perfect circle across the tabletop.
Bang!
Clunk!
Two sounds followed in quick succession.
A circular opening large enough to hold the hot-pot basin appeared in the center of the table.
After setting the basin into place, Evan brought out a lit stove from the kitchen and positioned it beneath the pot.
Then he had White Zetsu bring out the sliced vegetables and meats, arranging the dishes one after another around the table.
“This dish is called Hot Pot.”
Evan pointed at the bubbling red broth.
“I’ll demonstrate how to eat it first. Start by mixing a dipping sauce that suits your own taste. Then use your chopsticks to pick up some meat or vegetables and cook them in the boiling broth. Once they’re done, dip them in the sauce and eat.”
Evan lifted a cooked slice of beef from the pot and placed it into his dipping sauce.
“Different ingredients need different cooking times, but I’m sure you can figure that much out.”
“Of course, of course.” Hiruzen wore the peaceful smile of a kindly old grandfather.
Kaguya said nothing.
She simply stared silently at Black Zetsu on her shoulder.
“…”
Her meaning couldn’t have been clearer.
Black Zetsu jumped down.
The unidentified black blob rapidly writhed and reshaped itself into a bizarre arm.
Two extra fingers sprouted from either side, each bearing an eye, while a mouth appeared on the back of the hand.
It picked up a pair of chopsticks and stood ready for action.
Hiruzen’s eyebrow twitched at the sight.
The instincts that had earned him the title of Professor immediately kicked in, and he began studying Black Zetsu, wondering whether the strange creature was some kind of jutsu or summoned beast.
“Dig in.” Evan picked up a slice of beef and dropped it into the pot.
Black Zetsu and Hiruzen immediately did the same.
When Evan took his beef back out, they copied him again.
Not knowing the cooking time wasn’t a problem.
Just copy the guy who did.
“Hiss… That’s incredible.” Hiruzen chewed the spicy beef.
It was tender and succulent, soft without losing its texture.
The rich juices filled his mouth, the meat smooth and fragrant without being greasy.
The hint of heat didn’t detract from the flavor at all, instead, it added just the right amount of stimulation.
Every pore in his body seemed to open at once.
“I’ve never eaten anything this delicious in my life!” Hiruzen exclaimed loudly.
As the Third Hokage, he had sampled countless delicacies over the years, things that flew through the sky, swam through the water, and ran across the earth.
Yet not one of them could compare to this Hot Pot.
No. I need another piece.
This time, I’m going to savor it properly.
“???”
Hiruzen moved his chopsticks toward the plate of sliced beef.
Then he froze.
One lonely slice remained.
His old eyes bulged.
“Chew, chew.”
Hiruzen’s head snapped around.
His tiger-like gaze locked onto—
The plate of freshly cooked beef sitting in front of Kaguya.
And the black hand reaching toward the very last uncooked slice.
Clack!
A flash of cold light came first.
Then the chopsticks struck like a dragon.
Hiruzen caught Black Zetsu’s chopsticks between his own and smiled with exaggerated kindness.
“My friend, one should respect the elderly and care for the young. Hoarding delicious food all to yourself simply isn’t right.”
“Respect the elderly?” Black Zetsu sneered.
“I’ve been alive for over a thousand years, and you’re lecturing me about respecting my elders? If anyone should be showing respect here, it’s you.”
Comparing age with me?
Who gave you that kind of confidence?
“Uh…” Hiruzen choked.
He genuinely hadn’t expected this pitch black thing in front of him to have lived for more than a thousand years.
But something like that wasn’t enough to defeat Sarutobi Hiruzen.
His skin thickened instantly.
“I wasn’t wrong. Compared to you, I’m still practically a child, aren’t I? So you should care for the young and let me have this slice.”
His wrist twisted.
Hiruzen knocked Black Zetsu’s chopsticks aside.
His eyes sharpened.
His chopsticks shot forward, piercing the air with a shrill whistle as they raced toward the final piece of beef.
“In your dreams! That piece is for Mother!” Black Zetsu shouted.
His arm writhed.
Two black tendrils sprouted from it and lashed toward Hiruzen’s rapidly descending chopsticks.
“What?!” Hiruzen’s heart, tempered by decades of danger and bloodshed, received a tremendous shock.
That woman gave birth to this pitch black blob?!
His arm, normally steady as a mountain, involuntarily trembled.
“Got you!” Black Zetsu immediately seized the opportunity.
His eye sockets were completely black, making his actual expression impossible to read, but the delight in his voice made it perfectly clear that he’d spotted an opening.
The two black tendrils slithered like agile snakes, weaving through every obstruction before accurately wrapping around Hiruzen’s chopsticks.
“You… You deliberately lied to shake my concentration!” Hiruzen ground his teeth.
If Black Zetsu hadn’t falsely claimed that the three-eyed woman was his mother, he never would have been startled.
And if he hadn’t been startled, his chopsticks never would’ve been stopped.
“When did I lie?”
“You claimed she’s your mother!”
Black Zetsu exploded.
“You dare question the bond between Mother and me?! I’ll fight you to the death!”
His entire body puffed outward.
In an instant, the black blob transformed into something resembling a sea urchin and launched itself straight at Hiruzen’s elderly face.
Hiruzen naturally began dodging in a fluster.
Evan calmly watched the two ancient geezers fool around.
Then, while neither of them was paying attention, he reached out with his chopsticks and stole the final slice of beef.
He dropped it into the broth, cooked it to perfection, then happily placed it into his mouth.
Delicious.