They were supposed to be bonding and getting to know each other, but the scene in the kitchen suggested otherwise. Ran and Mizuki were having a kicking competition as they chased each other through the kitchen. Rico was busy browsing the web for the latest trends while awaiting texts from his fangirls.

“Ran, Mizuki, please refrain from running in the kitchen. We do not wish for either of you to get injured. Rico, if you could finish cutting those vegetables.” Kongou warned them in a calm yet stern tone, but unfortunately for the older male, his request fell on deaf ears. “Mizuki, was this not your idea? If I recall correctly, you suggested that we spend time together as a team. Rico and Ran, both of you also agreed to his idea.”

Earlier that day, Mizuki was wandering through the streets in search of entertainment when he caught sight of something unusual. “What are you guys doing here?” Team B’s leader ran up to his cast members with a smirk, “Are you guys on a date or something?”

“Date? Is that the best you could come up with, Mizuki?” Zakuro raised his eyebrow and let out a sarcastic smile.

Before Mizuki could react, Qu stepped forward with a smile on his pink, glistening lips, “Since Team C members haven’t had the chance to get to know each other, Mokuren wanted us to spend quality time…dancing together. A team building ‘exercise’ in short.”

“Team-building exercise? The fuck.” Mizuki flashed a sardonic smile, “That sounds lame. Hey Mokuren, since when have you started caring about your team? Remember Team W?” The feral youngster tried to take a jab at Mokuren’s past, hoping to add more fuel to the fire he had started.

Mokuren glared at the boisterous individual, carefully watching his shoulders shaking from laughing rambunctiously. “I remember Team W, just as I’m sure you remember Team P.” Those razor-sharp words caused Mizuki to freeze temporarily. “Now if you’re done, we have better things to do.”

Though he had rejected the idea initially, the thought of team bonding slowly grew on Mizuki. In the end, the young leader had suggested spending quality time with his group members.

“Old man, let them be kids. After all none of us are interested in cooking.” Rico brushed off the wild actions of the kids and suggested Kongou do the same. With a heavy sigh, Kongou continued gathering the remaining ingredients, “I am aware that you do not share the same interest as me, but I informed you that the owner demands new recipes; moreover, he demands the recipes by tomorrow.” Kongou continued his monologue, complaining about the lack of time to test out all the recipes when suddenly a loud thud rang through the kitchen. The wrestler turned his head to see Ran picking up a pan from the white tiled floor, “Ran. Be careful!”

The green head was known for his patient personality, but now, his patience was wearing thin. He didn’t know which was worse, the constant beeping of the notifications from Rico’s phone or the screams of the childish boys. Even then he tried his best to ignore everything and kept his mind calm. They’re kids. Beep. This is expected. Scream. Focus on the recipes. Beep. Scream. Bang. Beep. Scream. Beep. Beep. Beep. Scream.

“Mizuki…Ran…PLEASE STOP!” Kongou rushed up to his teammates, and in one swoon, he threw Ran over his shoulder and grabbed the back of Mizuki’s jacket, lifting him off the ground.

“Hey old man, put us down!” Ran protested, hitting the muscular man’s back with his fists.

“What the hell, uncle!?” The team’s immature leader flailed in an effort to free himself from the tight grip.

“Calm down, old man, otherwise you’ll get more wrinkles.” Rico put his phone aside and made his way to the angered bodybuilder. The red-headed fashionista tried to pacify Kongou, while the boys struggled to free themselves of the stronghold on them. Sniff. Sniff. The chaotic scene suddenly came to a halt when the members heard soft sniffing sounds behind them.

This entire time one member had been fully submerged in the work he had been assigned without a single complaint. The four men attentively watched the singer of their group chopping onions with tears in his eyes. Despite the sharp stinging, Heath skillfully diced the onion into perfect cubes while wiping the tears with the back of his right hand. Unbeknownst that he had 4 pairs of eyes watching his every move, the sickly green head, made his way to the pots and firmly gripped the handles of the biggest pot.

“Uh.” Heath grunted as he attempted to lift the heavy pot in vain. Even though he failed to raise the kitchen vessel off the counter, the stubborn singer refused to give up. After five attempts, he finally managed to heave and lug the vessel to the stove, but his actions caused Heath to start wheezing. The remaining members exchanged a few glances before Kongou placed Mizuki and Ran on the ground.

Wordlessly, the leader donned an apron before strolling to the chopping board to dice the remainder of the onions. Ran grabbed his apron and skipped to the other chopping board while Rico made his way to the stove.

“So, Mr. Chef, what are your orders?” The redhead tilted his head, glancing sideways at Kongou with a playful smirk on his pale lips. Kongou relaxed his shoulders as his eyes scanned the unexpected scene in front of him.

After a few hours in the kitchen, the members of Team B gazed at the fruits of their labor. Laid out neatly in front of them were three traditional recipes—Maccheroni Alla Napoletana, Loukoumades, and Valdostana Pizza—modified by Kongou, each dish appearing tastier than the prior. Ran and Mizuki immediately went for the hearty macaroni dish, while Heath decided to taste test the pizza first.

“Looks like the team bonding venture was a success.” Rico stood beside Kongou with his left hand on his hip and watched the three hungry men eating with content.

“You think so?” Kongou gave a sincere smile, “I don’t think we need any sort of team bonding because we’re already a team.”

Unknown to the men in the kitchen, a pair of purple eyes spied on them through the gap in the kitchen door. “Team bonding is lame, huh?”