After digesting most of his food, or so he hoped, Kitano led her back.
“Let’s go, back to my place.
I’ll make you something delicious tonight.”
“Delicious?” Oguri Cap’s ears immediately perked up like a radar, accurately catching the keyword, and her previously somewhat lazy steps instantly became lighter.
“Yes, Chinese cuisine and…
a few Japanese dishes you like,” Kitano said, his mind already racing through the inventory in his fridge and pantry.
“Luckily, I made a strategic-level purchase yesterday, otherwise tonight would have been a famine scenario.”
Back at Kitano’s apartment—he was grateful he’d bought a three-bedroom apartment with a living room—Oguri Cap naturally sat on the living room sofa, hugging her rice ball plushie, completely relaxed as if she were at her own home.
Kitano, meanwhile, went to tidy up the guest room for her.
After making the bed and preparing clean towels and toiletries, a thought inexplicably flashed through his mind: “Luckily, there are extra rooms…”
This thought inevitably brought back a painful childhood memory.
It was during a stay at Oguri Cap’s childhood home.
The next morning, he woke up to a strange weight and pressure, horrified to find that the young Oguri Cap had somehow, at some point, curled up on him like a koala, sleeping soundly, her drool almost soaking the shoulder of his pajamas.
At that time, Oguri Cap’s mother, who had come to wake them up, opened the door and saw that exact scene.
The expression on the auntie’s face—a mix of surprise, understanding, and a subtle smile that seemed to say, “Ah, young people are just so affectionate”—is still fresh in Kitano’s memory.
“Back then, I couldn’t have cleared my name even if I tried…” Kitano still felt his scalp tingle just thinking about it.
“At that moment, I had only one thought: I’m done for, there’s no way to explain this now.
Before I go down, I must shout, ‘I’m not a lolicon!’ This plotline, if it happened now, could easily fill three episodes of a legal drama!”
He shook his head vigorously, quickly banishing this dark past from his mind, silently repeating, “Clear mind, calm heart.”
When he came out after tidying the room, Kitano found that Oguri Cap had already turned on the TV, which was playing a recorded sumo wrestling match.
She watched with intense focus, even putting down her rice ball plushie and standing up to mimic the actions of the sumo wrestlers on screen, earnestly performing shiko, the warm-up exercise where sumo wrestlers alternately lift their legs high and stomp them down.
She lifted her leg, stomped it down, her movements meticulous.
Although her stature was petite compared to a sumo wrestler, her steady stance possessed a certain gravitas, making the floor subtly vibrate with her stomps.
“What are you…?” Kitano was a little curious, instantly reminded of characters in Baki or Kengan Ashura who grew stronger through strange training methods.
“Trainer Kitahara said this movement helps with perception and stabilizing one’s center of gravity.
Also, their lower bodies are very stable, and their core strength is very strong.”
As she spoke, she even tried to mimic a low-center-of-gravity squatting posture, as steady as a small stone lion.
Kitano watched her earnestness in integrating sumo training methods into her daily routine, once again feeling a peculiar sense of incongruity and amusement.
“This guy’s thinking really is always straight to the goal, without any detours.
Is this a different kind of everything can be trained?”
He mused internally, “Next time, will she be watching gymnastics to learn flexibility, or F1 racing to learn straight-line bursts?”
“Alright, you take your time researching.
I’m going to prepare dinner,” Kitano said, shaking his head.
He tied on an apron and walked into the kitchen, like a general about to step onto a battlefield.
In the kitchen, the large quantity of ingredients he had purchased in advance was already in place, and some had even been pre-processed, which greatly saved time.
To prepare for Oguri Cap’s arrival, he had made thorough preparations this time, akin to total logistical mobilization before the Normandy landings.
He took a deep breath and began to get busy.
The kitchen had transformed into a temporary gourmet hub.
The countertops and stove were laden with various dishes; their abundance and quantity were enough to make anyone seeing them for the first time gape in astonishment.
Kitano’s strategy was clear: many types, ample portions, diverse flavors, ensuring the gray monster’s stomach was filled completely and without any gaps.
He was incredibly glad he had made a warehouse-level purchase yesterday and pre-processed most of the ingredients; otherwise, he would definitely be in a frantic mess right now.
Just kidding, he still was.
First to appear was the formidable Chinese cuisine legion:
A large plate of bright red, fragrant mapo tofu, with tender white tofu cubes swimming in red oil and minced meat, more than triple the portion of a normal family.
A small mountain of shredded pork with green peppers, the pork and pepper strips intertwined, glistening with oil.
Golden and inviting pan-fried dumplings, like soldiers awaiting inspection, densely covered two large frying pans, with crispy bottoms and translucent skins.
In addition, there was a whole glistening soy sauce braised chicken, a huge bowl of rich and flavorful hot and sour soup, and a large plate of wok hei-filled Yangzhou fried rice, with distinct grains of rice mixed with shrimp, ham, and diced vegetables.
Following closely was the equally impressive Japanese cuisine contingent:
A heavy earthenware pot was bubbling with sukiyaki, with thinly sliced beef, tofu, konjac noodles, leeks, and various mushrooms simmering in the sweet and savory broth, so rich it almost overflowed. Visit g.com for the full chapter.
A whole salted grilled mackerel, roasted to a slightly crispy skin, emitting the unique aroma of sea fish.
A large bowl of potato salad piled like a small mountain, mixed with corn, cucumber, and diced ham.
And of course, Oguri Cap’s specially requested, intensely garlicky miso, made with a large amount of minced garlic, served in a small bowl.
Its strong, pungent aroma was her favorite.
There was even a large plate of freshly fried tonkatsu, golden and crispy, served with shredded cabbage and tonkatsu sauce.
And to cater to the other stomach after the main courses and dishes, Kitano had also prepared a substantial dessert array:
A whole rich cheesecake, so large it required two hands to hold, with an inviting caramelized top.
A large bowl piled high with fresh strawberries, mangoes, and kiwis in a cream fruit salad.
A family-sized tub of vanilla ice cream, with chocolate sauce and sprinkles on the side.
And a large plate of freshly baked muffins, exuding the aroma of butter and eggs.
Various aromas—spicy, fried, grilled, stewed, sweet—intertwined, collided, and merged in the kitchen, forming an incredibly impactful storm.
The aroma was so potent that even Oguri Cap, who was still mimicking sumo moves in the living room, completely lost her focus.
At some point, she had quietly moved to the kitchen doorway, peeking her head in, her blue eyes unblinkingly fixed on the continuous stream of food being prepared.
She tightly hugged her rice ball plushie, and her throat unconsciously made a soft swallowing motion.
As Kitano plated the last dish, he caught a glimpse of the eagerly watching figure at the doorway out of the corner of his eye, and couldn’t help but inwardly grumble:
“Good heavens, I’m practically preparing supplies for a Gourmet Hunter from Toriko before an expedition, or challenging the hidden quest in Cooking Master Boy to create glowing dishes with massive amounts of ingredients.”
He looked at the dining table, almost completely covered with bowls and plates, and thought, “With all this, it should…
be enough to fill her up about eighty percent, right?”
Kitano had a slight sheen of sweat on his brow, but looking at the finished dishes, he felt a strange sense of satisfaction.
He even had the illusion that he was playing Stardew Valley or Animal Crossing, preparing for a grand celebratory event.
“Forget it.
Being able to prepare a dinner for this simple-minded, immensely hungry childhood friend that will make her genuinely say delicious, and seeing her satisfied, seems…
like quite an accomplishment.”
Night quietly fell, the apartment’s lights warm and bright, isolating the city’s hustle and bustle outside the window.
All that remained was the busy figure in the kitchen, the young girl finally drawn by the aroma, peeking into the kitchen from the doorway, and the mouth-watering scent of home that permeated the entire space.
It really helps the fic grow!