England. France. Germany. What common thread binds these three nations together? Answer: each is famous for producing unique, distinctive, delicious bread. But what about Japan, home to rice and delicacies of the sea? Is there not a doughy, gastronomic delight they can claim as their own? The answer is no...until now! Kazuma Azuma, a 16-year-old-boy blessed with otherworldly baking powers, has taken it upon himself to create Ja-pan, the national bread of the land of the rising sun!

After a brief sojourn in Izu, Kazuma returns with the special ingredient he dreams will win him the Pantasia Rookie Tournament. The challenge this time is a dubious one indeed: to bake a loaf of bread that won't mold for three entire weeks. Meanwhile, Kazuma's brother-in- arms Kawachi has been undergoing intense training to up his baking acumen, but does he have what it takes to develop his own "Hands of the Sun"?