Subbed: Yakitate!! Japan – 26

Episode 26 features the third place battle in the Pantasia Newcomers Battle between Suwabara and now Afro-tized Kawachi. A battle between Dancing Bread and Singing Bread. Kawachi has a late start but pull out a bucket full of water to add to his oven, providing him with a great amount of steam, but for what purpose?

As Kawachi gloats, Suwabara asks him if he should be watching his bread to make sure it cooks properly, Kawachi responds that his bread will let him know when it is ready. Soon after a sound fills the air and Kawachi announces that his bread is Singing, Meister says it is crying and thereafter everytime Kawachi talks about his singing bread he has to correct himself from saying wailing before saying singing.

Since Suwabara’s bread finishes first and is unleashed in a snake-like dance, he demands it be sampled immediately. He also asks that Meister do the sampling as during the last round he was denied even a tasting of his Ultimate Croissant by Ryou. However Ryou manages to steal a bite and begins dancing. Kawachi, who thought that Suwabara’s bread was merely moving because it had been so long, is shocked until Ryou explains that the longer the french bread is the better it will taste, and that back before Napoleon declared a length, royality of the era of Louis XIV used to dine on the longest bread that could be made.

Kawachi’s bread finishes singing and he takes it out to be sampled. Upon biting into it Ryou is swept into a very drawn out pun about an American Classmate of his, twice held back (thus being a Double Classmate, which can be shortened to Double Crust), and begins to reminisce off in his own little world (without ending up kissing Meister this time) and make up things that never happened (at least according to Kid). While Ryou rambles on, Kawachi explains the beauty of his singing bread to Suwabara.

As Kawachi explains, Manager asks Azuma if he plans to move to the Main Store (7 times the pay as Tsukino explains). Azuma responds by rhetorically asking if that extra money would help him exchieve the ultimate Ja-pan 7 times faster. However, whether Kawachi would go to the main store if he wins third place remains unknown as it is his dream.

Ryou, having finially snapped out of his reverie, declares the match a tie, awarding both Suwabara and Kawachi third place. When pressed for a reason, he explains that Suwabara excelled at making the ideal french bread while Kawachi did equally well at making an unusual variant on french bread.