Shitatsuzumi Yoshiko

**Shitatsuzumi Yoshiko** (舌鼓淑子（したつづみよしこ）, *Shitatsuzumi Yoshiko*?) is a chef serving Resanerié Sadis Dialine, as well as a student and debate representative of a School Garden school.

## Appearance

Shitatsuzumi is described as a gloomy girl, and while acting as a servant to Resanerié, she wears a chef uniform.

## Personality

Shitatsuzumi tends to speak in quiet mutters. Her artisanal spirit means that she verbally explains her dishes after they are eaten. She tries to keep her ability a secret from others to prevent them from finding out its weaknesses.

## Background

Initially Shitatsuzumi was apparently an ordinary girl, but would come into the service of Resanerié Sadis Dialine, along with Tougyo Kea, Renka Ephilty and Sanki Ai, with Shitatsuzumi acting as Resanerié's chef. The five attended separate schools in School Garden and became the debate representative for their respective schools.

## Chronology

### Toaru Kagaku no Railgun (light novel)

*Main article: Toaru Kagaku no Railgun (light novel)*
On the day of the entrance exams, she and the other debate representatives supported Resanerié as she executed her plot to take School Garden into the skies and make it independent from Academy City under her control.

As Misaka Mikoto began her rematch with Resanerié, she and the others moved to stop Uiharu Kazari from accessing the intranet and publicly revealing the data Yugure Kanaria had found. During the failed attack, she fought with Shirai Kuroko, denying the nature of her ability as Kuroko as she gradually deduced it. Although she eventually managed to inject vinegar into Kuroko's bloodstream using a shockwave, Kuroko used her ability to precisely impale her head to cut off other pain, and finished the chef with her darts as she moved to deal a final blow.

## Abilities

Shitatsuzumi's esper ability is **Material Flare** (爆発膨張（マテリアルフレア）, *Bakuhatsu Bōchō (Materiaru Furea)*?, lit. "Explosive Expansion"), which allows her to greatly amplify flammable gases, with trace amounts being produced when any material is burnt, to cause explosions and invisible shockwaves. Her use of this ability starts from her rubbing her hands (which her casual movements try to hide), producing friction and heating. As well as firing off shockwaves, she can concentrate them into a 2m "kitchen knife" for her to wield.

She is capable of utilizing high pressures, such as those generated by explosive blasts from her ability, for both culinary and offensive purposes. In the case of the former, she can use it to have flavor permeate through an object while ignoring osmotic pressure (such as seasonings in meat and for a jelly bean given to her empress, instantly injecting gum syrup while pressurized to around 100,000 atmospheres). In the case of the latter, as seen in her battle with Shirai Kuroko, using an explosive blast to provide a pressure of around 1000 atmospheres, she can launch a mist of vinegar (CH3COOH at a concentration of 3%) in a fan shape, ignoring the defenses of the skin and directly injecting it into the bloodstream, with potentially fatal pain.

She presumably has a degree of debating skill, being the debate representative of her school.