Kazuma had made a bet with Mizuno, Tsukino's sister but he's totally clueless on baking melon buns. The sushi shop owner whom Kazuma met when he fainted arrived at the main branch to treat them to some sushi.
Kawachi's match between him and Motohashi. Kawachi wins, but only after trying his best after receiving a huge scare from Matsushiro. Shachihoko, Azuma's next opponent is introduced, as well as the next theme for the next round.
Feeling totally hopeless, Azuma becomes depressed, while Kawachi goes on to win his match. The day of the match between Azuma and Shachihoko has arrived and Azuma prepares an okonomiyaki-style sandwich on panini bread. But will it win him the match?
The episode carries on from episode 16, and ends with Azuma's win. After Koala's loss, Mizuno fires Koala, but later re-hires him after realizing how much she loved him.
Sukino goes to her mother's grave as it is her mother's anniversary while Kawachi is versing Katsuo "Pig-boy" Umino in the Pantasia main branch. Kawachi is surprised to see Tsukino not coming to his match and wins.
After Kawachi's dreadful defeat at the hands of Kanmuri, Azuma decided to take revenge for Kawachi. During Azuma's match with Suwabara, Azuma baked Japan #44, a bread that allows you to go heaven.
Episode begins with a short overview of the past few episodes. Matsushiro also suggests that Kawachi go train at a church during the finals, before facing Suwabara.
Kawachi meets a young nun who turns out to be his mentor on baking bread, during his stay. The competition between Azuma and Kanmuri begins, however both are desperate to win.
Kawachi returns after shockingly changing his hairstyle into an afro. Meanwhile Azuma and Kanmuri battle it out, Meister Kirisaki, the judge for the finals, gives Kanmuri a full score by the display of peacock feathers on his mask.
The final match between Kawachi and Suwabara starts. Kawachi introduces his "singing" French bread, a technique he developed during his training, Suwabara also introduces his "dancing" French bread.
After the awards ceremony, Yukino tries to convince Meister and her grandfather that she had nothing to do with the sabotage of Kawachi's bread. Kawachi is shocked to find bread in the rice cooker and demands to know what Azuma is doing.
Kanmuri is now an employee of the Southern Tokyo branch in place of Kawachi, who has moved to the main store. Kanmuri reveals that Yukino is secretly selling stocks of Pantasia to St. Pierre.
Yukino hires three men from the St. Pierre Kyushu branch with the ability to replicate bread recipes. He tricks the men into making the special diet bread sold by Pantasia. Hearing St. Pierre's plan, Pantasia combat it with their special "Black Japan".
Azuma, Kawachi, Suwabara, and Kuroyanagi now depart for France. Just before going through the gate, Kanmuri hands Kawachi a box which he can open in case he's in trouble. The three newcomers stay in France for a month for training .
Kawachi goes along with Kanmuri's plan, suggesting Rodin's famous Thinker be made as their bread that will be presented in the opening of the Monaco cup. After its completion, Kawachi as planned accidentally ruins it.
The first part of the preliminary round begins. In the first round, a roulette wheel is used to select ingredients for the bread. The bread must be made with only the ingredients that were selected by the roulette wheel.
Team Japan ends up passing the first round. Pierrot the judge of the Monaco cup then relates the story of how he became a clown. At the end of the story, Team Japan has fallen asleep, as it was 3 a.m.
The second part of the preliminaries. In this part, a slot machine is used to get ingredients as indicated on the coins in the slot machine. But the more coins that are gained the more of a disadvantage is gained.
The Monaco cup goes into the finals, in which only the best teams remain standing. The Japanese team learn that Shachihoko, who was introduced in episode 14 is on the American team.
The first part of the quarter-finals in Monaco is to make bread in less than 60 minutes; only then will 8 teams be left. The Japanese team nearly didn't pass because of one fatal mistake made by Azuma, using a microwave.
For the second part of the quarter-finals, the final eight are brought to a deserted island. There each team must make a sweet bread with ingredients that can only be found on the island. The Japanese team is stuck in a bad position.
Surrounded by a sea of flames, Kawachi and Suwabara are saved by one of the Egyptian representatives. The Egyptians are really the Monaco secret police; they are currently tailing team France, who are believed to be cheating.
Because of the incident on the island, a re-match is being held in Mexico. The objective is to make a bread with fish or a bread that tastes good with fish. Each team must skydive down towards the San Agustin River.
Rying to delay the Japanese team as much a possible, Pierrot develops a long term reaction over the course of the episode. Pierrot's reaction includes a complex code that only Azuma solves.
After being rescued from the cave, Azuma and the gang finally meet the king of Monaco, who is also the new chairman of the competition after the former one ran away after being suspected of fixing the competition.
Team Japan begins to prepare for their match against Kayser. On the scheduled day of the match, Kayser reveals their true form. While the match has started, Azuma has yet to arrive. During this episode, Suwabara's Lupan #6 is revealed.
The judging is about to begin, and Azuma arrives just before the final 20 minutes of the match. Pierrot refuses to eat Azuma's ready baked bread, because of too many unknown factors, but the king of Monaco, allows him to participate.
The group is outside a restaurant celebrating their victory, with Kawachi having a new wig for his hair after being shaved off. Kawachi is overconfident in their ability as usual, while eating lobsters.
Kawachi commenting on Suwabara being foolish in using his sword to carve a wooden log in the middle of the road. He doesn't understand why Suwabara is doing such a thing.
Monica and Suwabara are having their battle. Monica had already finished her bread not long after Suwabara finishes his, and when he does just as Pierrot was about to judge Monica's bread first, Monica told Pierrot to judge Suwabara bread.
With Suwabara having lost his match to U.S. competitor Monica, Kawachi is urged by Kuroyanagi to start working on his bread. While in his room, Kawachi sees Matsushiro, Kanmuri, Tsukino, and Kinoshita, whose name he promptly forgets.
While Sachihoko finishes his Egyptian bread, Alexandria, far ahead of Kawachi, Kawachi, unable to resist the urge to watch Pierrot's reaction, looks up to realise that time has stopped.
Pierrot is revealed to have "Bombay blood", and is on the verge of dying. The King of Monaco reveals he also has "Bombay blood" and goes to rescue Pierrot, where he pulls out all the stops to save Pierrot's life.
It's almost time for the final match of the Monaco Cup. The theme is "shelter", a bread with the taste of the competitor's homeland. Kuroyanagi briefs Azuma, Kawachi and Suwabara on Shadow White, Azuma's opponent in the final round.
It's the final match of the Monaco Cup. The arena is crowded. Shadow makes a Gopan bagel with rice flour made from a very hard and sticky rice and boils it in fine English tea instead of water, while Azuma makes Japan #61.
Azuma has finished his Japan #61 and serves it to Pierrot. After eating it, Pierrot is transported back 23 years in time, before he was born, and appears in the Monaco court.
After buying out Pantasia and merging it with St. Pierre, Kirisaki challenges Azuma and the others to another bread competition, the Yakitate. 9, which is to be televised nationwide, offering Kuroyanagi the position of judge and presenter.
The Yakitate. 9 begins. Pantasia's Kazuma Azuma is set up against St. Pierre's Takumi Tsubozuka, a member of CMAP (Cooking Meal Assemble People), a team of Japan's top celebrity chefs.
Azuma begins hollowing out the poor quality French loaf he had asked Kawachi to prepare for him in the previous episode and hammering the crust flat. Tsubozuka finishes baking first.
Due to an accident, Kuroyanagi loses his sense of taste. Azuma's opponent is Ken Matsushiro's old friend Ryuu Roumen, the ramen chef. The theme is Okuchi and this time the bread has been decided: Chinese-style steamed pork dumplings.
After CMAP finishes their mango curry bread and serves it up for Kuroyanagi, a helicopter shows up with the CMAP team's "Goddess of Victory": a Malaysian tapir. Kuroyanagi praises the CMAP team's mango curry bread, until Azuma serves him his "Saito Ja-pan": Mango Waffle Haniwa.
