The new Hinata restaurant in North America was a roaring success. The place was so huge that it contained sections for regular dining, Teppanyaki and a workshop area for cooking enthusiasts who would be taught how to cook great dishes with any of the Fujita sauces.

Like in Osaka, the queues were long and bookings were filled to the brim. Dishes that Ariel used to cook for Leon were selling out fast.

Each day, fans would scream for Ariel as she walked into the restaurant to work, so much so that Fujita added two more bodyguards to her entourage, making the total number to four bodyguards.

Wearing her smile at all times was a must, as were the meet and greet, and signing of autographs. Apart from managing the operations of the restaurant, Ariel's packed schedules now included teaching at cooking workshops, appearing on cooking channels on TV and Fujita's YouTube food channel.

The expansion was crazy, but it came with setbacks.

Bad reviews were popping online about the horrendous taste of some of their signature dishes. They were done by two of their chefs who did not cook according to the approved recipes. Quickly, she was summoned to meet Mr Fujita, who was clearly disappointed.

"Fire them," he ordered bluntly.

"But Fujita-san, I-I've never fired anyone before. I'm sure we can re-train them," she reasoned.

"It's business, nothing personal. Don't waste your time with incompetent staff who will drag our name down. Find me two suitable and competent chefs at once."

Ariel pressed her lips together with a bare nod. As one of the managing bosses of Hinata, the third in command after Mr Fujita and Hiroshi, Ariel swallowed hard and wasted no time calling the two chefs into her office, as was expected in the Fujita culture where decisions were to be made quickly and the boss' words were final.

Reluctantly, she did the deed, but not without ending off with a positive note on wishing them well. It was the first time she fired anyone, and it felt rotten. No matter how disappointed they were or if they were to beg with tears, her stoic expression must not betray her conflicting emotions, one of the attributes she was trained into while she was in Japan.

It made her recount her own experience with Leon. How in Leon's right mind could he heartlessly dangle the threat of being fired frequently to staff even over their little mistakes? Livelihoods were not to be messed with and no one was perfect. At least Mr Fujita's firing was reasonable. If possible, Ariel wished she was not the one tasked with the unpleasant deed in the first place!

However, bad reviews were tarnishing the business, which meant losing customers and losing profits. The weight on her to meet monthly KPIs was enormously stressful.

Ariel worried over who could replace the two chefs quickly since the workload was not getting any lighter and Hinata had to bounce back quickly. A smile escaped her face when she thought of two chefs she personally knew who could deliver.

————-

"We're family again!" exclaimed Hong as he and Han jumped in elation after being signed on as the new chefs of Hinata.

"You know I already miss you guys," Ariel embraced them with a huge grin. "It feels home to work with you all again."

"And now, you're my boss," Han chuckled, having previously been the head chef who took charge over her at the Orient Treasure.

"Way more successful as well," Hong added.

"And your salaries are double what Bloody Mary offered," reminded Ariel.

"We're out of her clutches, FINALLY!" Han raised his arms in relief.

"Tell me about it. She cut my pay the third time 'cos I forgot to add cucumber slice garnish, and Han couldn't take her micromanaging no more."

"I was prepared to quit that week and already accepted a job on a cruise ship, which meant many months without my family until you called me. So don't feel bad about "stealing" us away," Han finger-quoted, "In fact, you saved us!"

Ariel giggled at their cute expressions.

"So tell us, how's the Fujita boss like?" asked Hong.

"Definitely way better and much more reasonable. But he makes decisions quick in a flash and you gotta deliver regardless. If you can handle Bloody Mary, you can handle Fujita. We address him as Fujita-san, Japanese way."

"That's good to know," smiled Han.

"I'm honoured to be part of such a huge and famous company. It's a milestone for me," said Hong, wiping a stray tear.

"You guys deserve it. Now let's start your training. You'll be expected to teach at our cooking workshops as well. Brace yourself cos this is gonna be an intensive 3-week training"

"Yes, ma'am!" Hong and Han affirmed enthusiastically at the same time.

——-

"You did it again! See? My dad and I believe truly in you," Hiroshi complimented when the dishes the two new chefs churned out revived positive reviews, but not without the help of re-inviting the two famous food vloggers who finally gave their thumbs up after giving their first bad reviews on YouTube that started a chain reaction of other negative reviews.

"Of course, I'm Ariel Lee, the Fujita star who's come to save the day," Ariel boasted jokingly as she overtook Hiroshi on the arm and lock him down to the floor during their weekly evening Krav Maga practice.

"Very good," said Hiroshi, but not before overtaking her with his arms pinning her to the ground. "But don't forget, "長所は短所" - it means that being too reliant on our strengths can lead to one's downfall."

She overtook him again by turning her arms to unlock his hold and used her body weight to roll over and pin him down again.

"And one does not triumph before the victory," she returned a proverb.

"I see you're getting good at this," said Hiroshi.

Ariel flashed a raised eyebrow with a proud smile of victory.

"All boils down to determination, as you've emphasised in our first lesson."

"Impressive. Getting all confident, huh?"

"Well, you taught me well."

"Did I?" Hiroshi gave a one-sided playful smile. He beheld her pretty face decorated with beads of sweat. She was undoubtedly getting better and more confident with each practice, which also shaped her confidence at work.

That added to her attractiveness, and he found himself drawing towards hers closer and closer...

Realising what Hiroshi was trying to do, Ariel suddenly released her grip and got up, breathing out short breaths in panic. She was more afraid of what it reminded her than what he was trying to do. His action triggered a flashback of how Leon similarly tried to kiss her in Tokyo.

Why was it that everything Hiroshi did pointed her back to Leon?

"I'm sorry," Hiroshi snapped from his trance. "I know I shouldn't have."

She removed her helmet and protective gear without replying and gulped down her water to calm herself down.

"I-I'm tired, let's end this today," she left the room hastily without looking at him.

Hiroshi watched her disappear from the door, forlorn at her indifference towards him.

Determination - he recalled. He gave himself a firm nod and knew he must not give up.