DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of the characters or the series at all. This fanfic was written because I love Kagerou Project.
The air was tense. The tension in the room was heavy. The sound of gunshots resounded throughout the old building every few seconds. Was it a threat? No, it couldn't be.
"Hm…?"
"Oh, Konoha, back from playing baseball? You're just in time to see Ene-chan get beat."
The white-haired cyber being Konoha wandered into the secret base of the Mekakushi Dan to see a grinning cat-eyed blonde lounging on a sofa with a magazine held against his chest. Sitting on the floor in front of the blonde was a dark haired boy in a red jersey, Shintaro. A bored yet focused expression was plastered on his face.
"Onii-chan is really good. You should get some lessons from him, Hibiya-kun," a blonde girl in a pink jacket commented. She was leaning on the younger boy who appeared to have given up escaping her grasp, resigning to sip his soda from a straw.
"Why would I want to do that, Oba-san?" Hibiya responded without changing his expression. He maintained that face even as Momo began pinching his cheeks in retaliation for his attitude.
Konoha simply turned his head toward the television screen. Shintaro was playing a shooting game against an opponent. According to the kill count, both players were neck and neck. According to the total score counter, however, the player on the left had an obscenely high number. It was most likely because the combo counter on the Shintaro's side had hit the triple digits.
"Time!" the voiced announcer of the game called the end of the match.
"Awwww! I lost!" a female voice was heard from the speakers of the television. The screen turned black for an instant and in its place was the figure of a girl. "Rematch! I want a rematch, Master!"
Shintaro placed his game controller to the side. With a sigh, he answered, "That's the fourth match we've had."
"Here's some tea, Shintaro."
"Ah. Thanks," a half-hearted word of gratitude escaped Shintaro as he took the cup of tea from Mary, the white haired medusa of the Mekakushi Dan.
Not realizing that Shintaro wasn't taking note of her, Mary smiled innocently and laughed. Walking over towards Konoha, she also handed him a cup of hot tea from the metal tray she was holding. It was then that she noticed something. "Oh, what's that thing in your hands, Konoha?"
Konoha lifted the green item he had brought in with him. It was a stuffed doll, one of a triceratops to be exact. "Triceratops," he proudly told the white haired girl.
"Oh? Did you get it from the kids in the neighborhood? It's so cute," Mary smiled, her eyes fixed on the green plush doll.
Konoha nodded in reply to Mary's question. It had been given to him after he stopped to play with the children around the area. He felt a sort of attraction to the doll when he saw it. He had taken it happily, although the kids said his expression didn't really show it.
"Come on! One more match, Master! I'll win next time!" Ene, the electronic girl on the television screen, cut through the peaceful atmosphere between the white haired duo with her demands for Shintaro.
The winner of the previous rounds rejected the challenge. "I'm tired of playing round after round. Get someone else to play against you."
"Aww, why stop Shintaro-san?" asked Seto. The boy in green sat cross-legged on the floor with a bubbly smile on his face. "You've got such a streak."
"Oh, how about we let Kido play against Ene-chan?" Kano suggested a mischievous glint in his eyes. "The loser has to take off something they're wearing."
"Idiot," a red faced girl in a purple hoodie smothered the blonde joker's face with a pillow. Kido relaxed the pressure on him when the boy stopped struggling, mildly disappointed he was still conscious.
Mary stifled her laughter and left to the kitchen to get more tea. Konoha walked slightly closer to the television to take another look at what was going on. He was curious as to what the ruckus was all about.
It was a relaxing day for the Mekakushi Dan. Konoha observed the actions of every member in the group as he sipped the tea he had been given. Shintaro and Ene were arguing about the shooting game results. Kano was laughing at Kido's embarrassment. The younger Kisaragi, Momo, was playing around with Hibiya. Seto and Mary were laughing playfully as Mary refilled his cup of tea. Konoha kept his gaze moving from person to person.
He had become part of a very strange group of people, although he too was also an abnormality. They played around with reckless abandon and made every occurrence a little extraordinary. The Mekakushi Dan was a strange bunch, but seeing them hang out, talk, and play games brought an oddly soothing atmosphere to the party. Peace truly was the best, he concluded as he drained the last drop of his tea. The warm weather was making him sleepy but relaxed.
…
"… noha… Hey! Konoha!" A voice disrupted Konoha's blank state. It was Shintaro who held a game controller in his hand.
"Hm?"
"Spacing out again?" the NEET in red stared incredulously at the white haired android. "You want to play for me?"
"Master! What are you doing running away!? I said another match with you!" Ene's complaints and shouts continued. She didn't seem to mind, however, as an energetic smile was plastered on her face.
Konoha walked around the sofa, placed his stuffed triceratops between his legs, and went up to the game system, but instead of taking Shintaro's controller, he reached for something else: a gun controller. Turning to Shintaro, the white haired boy made a "V" sign with his fingers, "Treat me to barbeque."
"Eh?" Shintaro was not the only one dumbfounded. Ene also echoed a similar reaction.
"What's this? Looks like we have another match," Kano commented on the scene from his "throne" on the sofa. "Is Konoha declaring his victory by saying the loser's punishment?"
"He's probably just hungry," Hibiya, who knew Konoha a little more than the others, quickly responded to Kano's playful provocation.
"You sure a splatter game is okay for you?" Ene's voiced a lot louder than before. The volume on the television speakers had been increased by the digital girl. At first, Ene sounded slightly worried, but she quickly covered it up with an energetic shout. "Wow! Looks like we've got challenger! Ha- I mean, Konoha wants to challenge you, Master!"
Konoha's gaze was straight, looking at Shintaro straight in the eyes. There was an odd determination in his eyes, some sort of confidence, perhaps?
Shintaro found the Konoha's desire to play interesting. He wondered if there was more to the spacey android than he originally assumed. "Is that right? Well, if you want a real shooting match, I'll switch controllers too."
As Shintaro stood up and switched his normal controller for a gun controller, the NEET began to wonder if Konoha was good at shooters. Shintaro was already good at gun shooter games, so for Konoha to want to challenge him with that controller meant the android had some ace up his sleeve.
"Onii-chan, you're actually getting serious?" the NEET's younger sister was shocked. She knew her brother was a gamer. He never used the gun controller unless he really wanted to win.
"Konoha doesn't seem worried," the NEET aimed the gun controller at the android, an arrogant smirk stretching across his face.
Konoha did not speak. He merely copied Shintaro's actions. He stood expressionless, but the blank stare appeared to be brimming with confidence.
"My money's on Shintaro."
"Good luck, Konoha!"
Cheers from the rest of the Mekakushi Dan were divided between Shintaro and Konoha (minus Seto and Mary because Seto had to explain the rules of the game to her). On the game screen, Ene moved around to select the rules of the match, acting as a cursor.
"It'll be a simple five minute match. Whoever has the most points at the end wins. Jeez, I'm a little jealous that Master's going all out on Konoha instead of me… Unfair…"
Shintaro and Konoha both relaxed their arms as Ene wandered to the start icon on the screen.
"Ready!"
Both boys tightened their grip on the gun controllers.
"Set!"
Shintaro stretched his shoulder and neck muscles. Konoha added his other hand to the gun controller's handle.
"Go!"
And the splatter game death match between the NEET and the android began...
…
…Only to end with a landslide victory for Shintaro.
"Ah. I lost…," Konoha flatly stated the outcome of the match without any real concern. Konoha's point count was in the thousands, but Shintaro's had been in the high hundred thousands.
"I can't tell whether I should be surprised or not," Ene responded, the image of her on screen had her arms crossed around her chest. "Master, that was a little mean."
Shintaro was still stunned from the results. "Yeah. Even I can't argue with that."
"Kido, my winnings?" Kano, who had bet on Shintaro before the match, was now claiming his prize money of one thousand yen.
Eyes twitching, Hibiya and Momo both felt sorry for Konoha who was unable to get even half of his opponent's score.
"I knew he would lose, but not that badly."
"Hibiya-kun, did he know how to play? Those were some really weird arm motions…," Momo was trying to figure out if Konoha was simply trying to act cool or just wasn't used to the gun controller.
"Seto, can you teach me how to play later?" Mary asked the boy in green who was leaning against her.
"Of course, Mary-chan, but do you really want to hold a gun?"
"A-Ah. Maybe not…"
Conversation and noise quickly spread around the room. Konoha did not seem to mind as he placed the gun controller gently on the ground and reached for his triceratops doll. He held it against his chest with both arms. He looked at the creature's button eyes and entered what was possibly a staring contest with the inanimate object.
Feeling mildly guilty for the absolute defeat, Shintaro walked up to the taller boy. "Urgh. My bad. I didn't think that was your first time playing. I'll treat you to barbeque to make up for it."
Upon hearing the word "barbeque", Konoha ceased his staring contest and extended his hand to the eighteen year old NEET. He gave Shintaro a "thumbs up", expressing his happiness.
"Eh? Onii-chan's paying for barbeque? That means I'm going to eat my fill!" the younger Kisaragi suddenly shouted after hearing Shintaro's words.
"What? I'm only treating Kono-"
"Barbeque? We haven't had that in a while have we, Kido?"
"Yeah. I'm looking forward to it," Kido's hands entered the pockets of her hoodie. She was inwardly happy about not having to cook.
"Hm… if the Leader says it, I guess that's that," Hibiya stood up, able to escape Momo's grasp when she loosened it to pump her fists in the air for getting to eat barbeque. He felt a little sorry for Shintaro but still played along. He too wanted to eat some barbeque.
Shintaro again tried to defend his wallet. "You guys, listen to m-"
"Chicken would be nice."
"Beef for me." Seto and Mary were already drooling at the thought of grilled meat.
Konoha opened his mouth to speak. "Shintaro, I love you."
"Don't say something that can be interpreted the wrong way!" Shintaro's retort was quick and the comment was thankfully ignored by the rest of the Mekakushi Dan.
"Let's face it, Master. You'll have to treat all of us," Ene told her "master" with a smirk.
"You don't even eat!" the NEET's responses were becoming filled with less and less energy considering he had to deal with so many people looking forward to barbeque. He was getting tired from all the comebacks, and he knew his wallet was in jeopardy.
Konoha stared at the people around him silently. He watched Shintaro panic and try to salvage some bit of his wallet. The others were also blissfully talking about the food they were looking forward to, ignoring the NEET who was treating in the first place. There was chatter between everybody. Laughter and noise filled the room they were all in. The Mekakushi Dan was as lively as ever.
Konoha then tilted his head downwards, staring his plush doll in the eyes again. There was a spark of happiness in the android's eyes. His mouth curled into what possibly could have been a small smile.
The state of the world was peaceful, he concluded.
My second favorite KagePro character is definitely Konoha. An air-headed amnesiac? Yes please! Considering Konoha's State of the World had a character line-up at the end, I tried to show all the character relations I could. I didn't realize how easily the characters can split off into twos until I wrote this actually. Possible pairing fun? Maybe... *shifty eyes*
I had fun with this one. Hopefully I portrayed everybody well. ~Richi