Peerless Noodle

After fifty judges tasted Ichiraku House's Delicious Ramen, they all predictably gave it a perfect score of 2 points.

Although the industrial technology of the Naruto World lagged behind modern society, ordinary people there did not have all that much exposure either.

Still, one had to admit that the people of this world maintained a rather rigorous sense of professional ethics.

As all the judges handed in their perfect scores, the old man struck the copper gong once more and solemnly announced the competition's results.

"The match has concluded, and the total score for Hongle Ramen is 78 points!"

As the old man made the announcement, he looked toward the Ichiraku side with a trace of unspeakable shock.

"And the total score for Ichiraku House's Delicious Ramen is 103 points!"

"Therefore, the title of Konoha's top seasoning ramen... still belongs to Ichiraku Ramen!"

When the announcement ended, Aunt Ichiraku smiled, feeling an even more heartfelt awe toward her Little Master.

Had it not been for Naruto imparting kneading techniques she had never encountered before, alongside those secret seasoning mixes she could not even name, Ichiraku House would definitely have lost to Hongle in this competition.

"Mother, we kept the top seasoning title!" Ayame said excitedly. After saying this to Aunt Ichiraku, she cast a deeply respectful glance at Naruto.

"Aunt Ichiraku, follow the script I gave you a moment ago when speaking to everyone."

Naruto was standing beside Aunt Ichiraku at that moment. Because ANBU and Root Ninjas were simultaneously monitoring him, he could only speak as quietly and discreetly as possible.

"Understood, Master." Aunt Ichiraku responded in a soft voice as well.

With the competition results announced, those ramen chefs who were eager to learn now swarmed over.

Naturally, they did not dare to dream that Ichiraku would reveal the secrets of kneading dough, but as long as they humbly sought a hint or two, they could improve the springiness of their own ramen-which would still be a good thing to some extent.

As for how that indescribably savory and ultimate broth had been concocted, nobody dared to ask about that.

"Master Ichiraku, does your Delicious Ramen have a name?"

"That's right, Master Ichiraku, a human delicacy like this Delicious Ramen needs to have a fitting name, doesn't it?"

The looks that the ramen chefs directed at Ichiraku at that moment carried intense fervor.

Ichiraku was quite nervous at the moment too, because the script Naruto had given her did not mention the name of the Delicious Ramen!

"Uh... I've already thought of a name." Aunt Ichiraku forced her composure, turned her head to look at Naruto, and said, "Disciple, why don't you tell them for me?"

As soon as Aunt Ichiraku said those words,

not only were the surrounding people stunned, but even Hongle, who had been relatively calm after losing the match, had a slightly altered expression; his eyes actually revealed a look of anger because Ichiraku addressed Naruto in such a manner.

"Hmm? That kid actually became Ichiraku's disciple?" An ANBU Ninja frowned and said in a low voice.

"What's so surprising about that? Isn't he the one who loves eating ramen the most?"

The leading ANBU squad leader nodded upon hearing this. "Anyway, it's better to report this matter to the Third Hokage."

Atop another tree crown not far away,

two dark figures with gloomy auras stood like statues, having not moved a single bit since landing there except for breathing.

Yet upon hearing that Naruto had become Ichiraku's disciple, the leading Root Ninja slowly took out a manual and seemed to be recording something clearly.

Adapting to the situation on the spot, Aunt Ichiraku directly handed the crowd's questions over to her little apprentice, and all the ramen chefs looked toward Naruto in anticipation.

If she had not spoken directly, but instead let a little apprentice make the announcement, such an arrogant way of doing things would certainly have displeased everyone in the past.

Yet at this moment, not a single person felt that Ichiraku's action was haughty; instead, they felt it was only natural.

After all, although there used to be a gap between their ramen-making skills and Ichiraku's, they could still see the tail lights; but with the presentation of this competition's entry, everyone was pushed straight into despair.

They were convinced that without obtaining the Delicious Ramen recipe, relying on their own research meant they would probably never be able to personally produce such peerless ramen in this lifetime.

With such shock in their hearts, everyone felt that Ichiraku's arrogance was justified; if it were him, they would do the same thing.

"Young fellow, hurry up and tell us the name of this Delicious Ramen!"

Seeing that everyone wore expressions of eager inquiry, Naruto thought for a moment, smiled, and said, "Master says the taste and chew of this ramen can both be considered number one under heaven..."

Naruto deliberately and outrageously drew out his pronunciation, which nearly caused the numerous ramen chef uncles to spit blood in frustration.

"So, what on earth is the name of this number one ramen under heaven?"

"Little kid, spit it out already! You're killing me with suspense."

Seeing that the atmosphere had built up just about enough, Naruto blurted out, "It is... the Peerless Noodle!"

"The Peerless Noodle? This..."

"Peerless, number one under heaven...?"

"What a great name... Master Ichiraku, please accept my bow!"

[Ding! Received 400 Shock Points from Ichiraku House!]

Naruto had not expected that he could not transfer the Shock Points from the numerous ramen chefs.

Had the monitoring ANBU and Root Ninjas not suddenly appeared, Naruto stepping forward personally would definitely have allowed him to harvest a massive wave of Shock Points.

Upon hearing the name Naruto had chosen, Sasuke also felt that it matched the taste of the ramen extremely well.

Others might not know, but as Sasuke's business partner and temporary school girlfriend, how could Sasuke not know that this name was not thought up by Ichiraku at all, but rather by Naruto, the mastermind behind the whole affair?

"Naruto... why are you so mysterious?"

Watching Naruto, who was surrounded by the crowd, still chatting and laughing with ease, Sasuke increasingly felt that Naruto was unfathomable and inscrutable; this person always refused to play by common sense.

"The Peerless Noodle!"

"The Peerless Noodle!"

At that moment, all the ramen chefs actively fawned over Ichiraku.

Instantly, the atmosphere in the plaza climbed to a peak once more.

By comparison, Hongle's unattended faction looked somewhat bleak and gloomy.

His three disciples were packing up their cooking utensils with dejected expressions, occasionally raising their heads to look at the lively scene over at Ichiraku House, their faces full of unwillingness.

Unlike yesterday, Hongle seemed like a completely different person. Faced with such a stark difference in treatment, he did not panic in the slightest, nor did he hurriedly pack up his things and leave in defeat like the others; instead, he maintained a poised and unshakeable demeanor.

"Master, let's just leave."

"Ichiraku House's ramen truly deserves the title of peerless."

"Hmph, big mouth."

Hearing his disciple's words, Hongle frowned slightly and was just about to continue reprimanding him when he suddenly heard Ichiraku's loud announcement.

He hadn't paid attention at first, but once Ichiraku began talking about the alkali stone, Hongle could no longer sit still.

"Everyone, quiet down!"

Having received Naruto's signal, Ichiraku immediately took over Naruto's position and announced publicly, "The Peerless Noodle is not something I researched all by myself!"

As soon as those words were spoken, the originally lively plaza instantly turned quiet.

Everyone looked at Aunt Ichiraku in sheer disbelief.

"That's right, the birth of the Peerless Noodle could not have happened without another master's journey of thousands of miles in search of knowledge."

With that, Aunt Ichiraku looked toward Hongle on the opposite side of the crowd and said in a loud voice, "He is the one who brought back the most crucial recipe ingredient for the Peerless Noodle."

Aunt Ichiraku's voice grew louder and louder. "He is none other than... Master Hongle!"