The morning sunlight spilled over the town streets, driving away the night's chill. The townspeople began their day's work, and steam rose from the bun shops, mingling with the aromas of all kinds of food and making Rokuya's stomach growl even louder.
Inside a reasonably clean-looking udon shop.
The owner stared dumbfounded at the handsome, black-haired boy before him. Empty bowls had already piled up like a small mountain in front of the boy, yet he showed no sign of stopping, slurping as he frantically stuffed noodles into his mouth.
"Boss! Five more servings of tempura udon! And two more pork cutlets!" Rokuya lifted his head amid his busy eating and called out indistinctly.
Sitting opposite him, Shinobu Kocho rested her chin on one hand. A bowl of plain noodles sat before her, but she had stopped eating after only a few bites. Watching Rokuya eat like a reincarnated starving ghost, she could not help poking his arm. "Tell me, Takanashi Rokuno, are you a pig? Where exactly did you burn off all that energy last night? Even if you used that 'Demon Body' thing, surely you don't need to eat this much!"
"Gulp." Rokuya swallowed his mouthful of noodles and answered with complete conviction, "What do you know? This is called building strategic reserves! If an Upper Rank suddenly jumps out, how am I supposed to cut him down on an empty stomach? Besides, I'm still growing. What's wrong with eating a little more?"
"Still growing? You're already seventeen. What more are you going to grow into? A mountain like the Stone Hashira?" Shinobu Kocho pictured Rokuya turning into a muscular hulk like Gyomei Himejima and could not help shuddering.
While the two were bickering, a sudden noisy commotion came from the street outside.
Still stuffing pork cutlet into