Nobody ever takes the time to notice the wafts of mist over Inazuma Town in autumn when the sun has not quite yet come out to great the children walking to school. Kageno lives more on the hillside of Inazuma Town so he can see the gray mass every morning when he opens his window after getting up. They have the same colour as his hair, he notes. Maybe that's why they never notice him. Knowing that he was not the only one with this problem was kind of soothing. Even though his companion in misfortune is not human.
Back in elementary school Kageno had been a loner, kids called him creepy and weird. It had been the same when he graduated and attended Raimon Junior High School. It was better, yes, people did speak to him, maybe they had grown more mature and learned that they had to get along with everyone, but behind his back they still called him the creepy kid, like the children they were.
After he joined the soccer club right before the match against Teikoku Gakuen it got better. Most of the members were just as frightened of him as the rest of the school but he always felt the spark when they passed to him. It meant that they noticed him there, even in the corner of their eyes and decided that he would be the best choice for the task. It was trust. It felt good, it felt right. Kageno was by no means good at the sport, he was okay but so were most of the others. There were exceptions, like Endou, Gouenji, Kabeyama and even Kazemaru but more and more other players joined as the Raimon Eleven took on the Football Frontier. Excellent players. Kageno was the second one after Megane to get benched before the tournament even began – Domon was an outstanding defender. It did not bother him much. Silent was his nature.
The thought of quitting never came to Kageno's mind even though he was not of much use outside of training. Even there his performance must not have been exceptionally remarkable because Handa and the first years still got a panic attack when he so much as said something. It was nearly endearing. Max always snickered in the background whenever it happened. While other people would have been miffed, Kageno could not help but smile. They noticed him. The big grey waft of mist.