WITCH OF TERROR
Part 11: His Ideal World
HINAMIZAWA, JUNE 1984
Shinji Banabara was sound asleep when all of a sudden his sleep was disturbed by a penetrating light through his window which hit him in the face. He squinted as he put one hand out in front of his face to block out the sunlight. "Ugh…" he groaned.
"Shinji," his mother, Shiori Banabara, said with a stern look on her face and fists to her hips. She wore a white blouse over a blue knee-length skirt and over her outfit she wore a pink apron. She looked like the typical housewife. "You better wake up young man or you'll be late for school."
"Tell everyone I'm sick," Shinji told her as he pulled the covers back over his face but they were yanked away by his mother. "Mou…Kaa-chan!" he cried out. He was wearing boxer shorts and a t-shirt as bed clothes.
"Now, young man. To the bathroom, pronto," she ordered, pointing at his door. Shinji slowly got out of bed and saluted.
"Hai, Kaa-chan," he obeyed. Shiori smiled and ruffled up his hair but he removed her hand from his head. "Kaa-chan, if I've told you once and I've told you 100 times already. I'm not a kid anymore."
"Aw~ but you'll always be my little boy." Shiori hugged him and kissed his forehead. "Good morning."
Rolling his eyes, Shinji returned the the token of affection and greeting, "Good morning to you too, Kaa-chan."
Shinji got to the bathroom and started brushing his teeth and looked himself in the mirror. He really did resemble his mother as they both had the same indigo hair, eyes and the twin ahoge that stuck out from the top of their heads. The only difference was that her hair was longer and he wore his short with a centre-parting. He spat and rinsed before stripping off his clothes to take a quick shower. After he was done bathing, he dried himself with his towel before he put on his school clothes which consisted of a white shirt with black slacks. He also added a black vest with pockets on the outside and inside. He then combed his hair. As he was combing, he saw something on in his reflection. He saw XIII just above his left eyebrow. He gasped, dropping his comb, and looked at his reflection to see the mark gone.
"Must be my imagination, or my eyes are playing tricks on me," he said to himself. He then went down to join his family for breakfast. At the dining table was his father, with a newspaper. Shotaro Banabara had raven-colored hair and wore his hair short in the same centre-parting style as Shinji. He also sported a pair of glasses over his eyes as he read the headlines.
Also sitting at the table were Rika and Hanyuu Furude. They were his foster sisters. His parents had taken them into their home because they didn't have any parents. Rika's parents had been friends of Shinji's parents and therefore, out of the kindness of their hearts, Shinji's parents had taken them in. Shinji concluded that his mother wanted to have little girls to spoil. Rika's hair was long and dark blue while Hanyuu's was also long and violet. They were dressed for school as well.
"Ohayo, minna," Shinji called as he came downstairs to join them for breakfast. It was eggs, toast and cereal. Shiori had just finished heating up the coffee before putting it on the table.
"Late again, huh, Shin-niisan?" asked Rika, smiling.
"I'm not late," he denied, "You're all are just too early." Rika stuck her tongue out at him and he stuck his tongue out at her in response.
"No tongue-sticking at the breakfast table," Shotaro warned. He folded up his newspaper and put it down on his lap. "Now, everyone. Let's dig in. Itadakimasu!"
"Itadakimasu!" the rest of the family joined in before eating their breakfast. Shinji glanced at everyone and smiled. He already had a feeling that this would be a great day.
There doorbell rang and Hanyuu said, "It must be Rena-san."
Shiori giggled, "Ah, always the devoted girlfriend."
"I'll get it," Shinji said with a blush as he got up to open the door. There stood Rena, his classmate and girlfriend. They'd been going out for a month since he first came to the village and she was a really cute girl. She was his age and dressed in the typical sailor uniform of female highschoolers. "Ohayo, Rena-chan."
"Ohayo, Shin-kun!" Rena returned the greeting before kissing his cheek. The sound of whistling came from the dining area and Shinji rolled his eyes in response. "It's time for school!"
"OK!" Shinji put his backpack on before putting his shoes on.
"Wait for us, Oniisan!" Hanyuu called as she and Rika also put on their backpacks before joining the two teens on the walk to school. Rena, seeing the two girls, instantly had stars shining in her eyes. Shinji knew that look. She was in Take-It-Home mode.
"Rena-chan, control yourself until after school, OK?" Shinji requested, "I'll even let you take me home."
"OK!" Rena chirped, back to her normally perky self. "Let's go to school!" They then went on their way. Shiori shook her head as her son once again forgot his lunch bento.
"It's fine," said Shotaro. "That Rena girl obviously made one extra just for him, as always."
"Yes," agreed Shiori. "She'd make a good wife for him, don't you think?"
The village of Hinamizawa was a small community with a population of roughly 2000 people. Because it was a small community, there was also only one school building with only one classroom where children of all grade levels sat. It was a difficult job for Chie-sensei, the only teacher around, but she loved children and teaching them new things, and was able to spend equal time with them to instruct them as best she could.
Shinji and his family had moved to Hinamizawa a month ago to escape the hustle and bustle of the noisy city and Shinji, a city boy, instantly fell in love with the place. Actually, he fell in love with Rena when he went out exploring on his own and found her junkyard. Their eyes had met right on the spot and Rena had been facing away from the setting sun that caused an orange halo to surround her.
His first words when he saw her were, "Are you an angel?" and she'd responded with a red blush. He'd also saved her. She'd been standing on a pile of junk which came loose under her weight and would've been impaled upon some rusted spikes if he hadn't caught her. After that, he was introduced to her friends.
"Yo, Shin-chan!" a green-haired tomboy called. That was Mion Sonozaki and she was the eldest in class, not to mention the class president who was the heiress of the Sonozaki Clan, one of the Three Great Houses of Hinamizawa. The Sonozakis were the actual rulers of the village with the Kimiyoshis acting as sort of a public figurehead with Chief Kimiyoshi as its head. The Furude Clan dealt with religious matters concerning Oyashiro-sama, the local deity of the village. Rika and Hanyuu were the only members of the great clan living in the village, in face.
"Whasup, Mion?" Shinji greeted with a salute of his own. He would tap his forehead with his fist to salute his friend. She was standing in the middle of the path that led to school, near the old watermill. With her was Keiichi Maebara who'd lived in Hinamizawa for a year. Shinji obviously saw sparks between the two and teased them about getting together, which they hadn't, yet. "Oh, and a good morning to you too, Keiichi."
"Hey, did you check out yesterday's episode?" Keiichi asked.
"Would I ever miss an episode?" Shinji retorted. Mion rolled her eyes as Rena giggled.
Shinji and Keiichi had something in common. They were total fans of the Kamen Rider Series. When Shinji had been small, he watched the Kamen Riders fight against the monster that belonged to megalomaniacal organizations in order to protect the world and he'd never grown out of that phase. Every Sunday morning, he would wake up and watch the latest episode. Every year, a new Kamen Rider series would begin, continuing the show with a new protagonist hero and even more battles. The current series was called 'Kamen Rider Showa' and its titular hero had the power to become any and all of the previous Kamen Riders.
As the gang walked to school, Keiichi and Shinji discussed the latest episode they had seen the day before.
"I really hate that Gebok guy," said Shinji. "He's always trying to mess with Showa's life."
"You never did like that mad scientist," Keiichi pointed out. "And it was really shocking that he was the one who made Showa in the first place. He's practically his dad."
"Gebok's still a bastard," Shinji affirmed.
"So true," agreed Keiichi.
"You do realize it's a show for kids, right?" Mion deadpanned.
"Don't diss Kamen Rider!" snapped Shinji. "It's the best TV show ever! You should check it out."
"I have better things to do on a Sunday morning than watch kiddy shows, thank you," said Mion as she flipped her ponytail.
"Like trying to get a date with Keiichi," Shinji mumbled but Mion heard him loud and clear.
"WHAT WAS THAT!" she shouted. Shinji grabbed Rena's hand.
"We have to run or we'll be late!" Shinji yelled before running with Rena to school. They left a trail of dust behind them as a result.
"GET BACK HERE, BANABARA!" Mion shouted as she gave chase, leading a trail of dust behind her as she dashed after the boy.
"Come on, we better go after them before Mion kills Shinji," Keiichi said to Rika and Hanyuu who both could not agree more.
The gang arrived at the Hinamizawa school house. Rena and Shinji exchanged smiles and didn't look tired at all. Mion had found them but she'd been enjoying the run so much that she forgot why she was mad at Shinji in the first place. Keiichi, Rika and Hanyuu reached them soon after before they entered the building.
As they reached the door to the classroom, Shinji was about to open the door when he remembered something important. He pulled his hand away from the doorknob and said, "After you, Keiichi."
"Why?" Keiichi asked, cocking an eyebrow in suspicion.
"It's just that you look like you need to take a seat after that run," Shinji responded.
Keiichi opened the door and all of a sudden a bucket tipped over and spilled something sticky all over Keiichi. "WHAT THE HELL!" he shrieked. Then, a nearby fan turned on and feathers were blown in his direction, sticking to his body due to the adhesive substance he now wore.
"The old tar and feather trick," said Shinji, "But without the tar. Good work, Satoko."
"Hohohoho!" Satoko Houjou laughed. The blonde imp just loved playing pranks. Of course, she claimed to be a Trap Master of the highest caliber. "Tricked again, Keiichi-san!" The rest of the class laughed at the victim of Satoko's latest prank.
"Dammit, Satoko!" Keiichi growled. Of course, with his new feather coat it just looked ridiculous. "What did you do!"
"Oh, I just mixed flour with some water and put it in a bucket then after that I blew feathers at you," she summarized.
"I…am…gonna…KILL…you!" Keiichi threatened but then a book hit him in the back of the head. He turned and glared at Shion. "Shion!"
"Don't bully Satoko-chan," Shion scolded. Shion was Mion's twin sister and they looked a lot alike. The only exception was that Shion wore her hair down as her sister wore her hair up in a ponytail. She also worked at a restaurant called Angel Mort and wore the sexiest uniform he'd ever seen. Clearly the place relied on using their waitresses' sex appeal to draw in customers.
"I'm not gonna bully her, Shion," Keiichi said through clenched teeth, "I am going to just teach her a lesson." Someone put his hand on his shoulder and Keiichi looked to see it was from his best friend, Satoshi Houjou.
"Come on, Keiichi. Let's get you cleaned up," the blond young man said. She was Satoko's older brother.
"Can't you control your kid sister?" Keiichi asked.
"It's all in good fun, Keiichi," Satoshi replied as he led Keiichi to the bathroom. "Hope you packed your gym clothes."
Shinji applauded, "As expected of our little Trap Master."
After Keiichi got himself cleaned up, Chie-sensei entered the classroom. She started taking attendance before starting the lesson. Since Satoshi, Shinji, Mion, Shion, Keiichi and Rena were the oldest in the class and in high school, they worked together on their lesson. Mion found it hard to focus.
Chie-sensei then went over to Shinji and asked, "Banabara-kun, when will your mother finish her next book?"
"It should be out in stores by the end of next week, sensei," Shinji replied. His mother was a popular author for a series of adult romance novels while his father helped her get her works published. Together, they were a team.
"Oh, good!" Chie-sensei beamed. She was a fan of his mother's works.
At lunch time, Shinji frowned when he realized he'd forgotten to bring his bento while Hanyuu and Rika had theirs. "Kuso…I must've forgotten it while I was rushing."
"That's OK, Shin-kun," said Rena as she put a bento in front of him. "I made an extra one just in case you forgot."
"Rena…" Shinji's eyes watered and he grasped her hands, "Arigato." The background seemed to sparkle as they gazed lovingly at each other.
"Oi, people are eating here," Mion told the couple. "Go and be romantic someplace else." Shinji stuck his tongue out at her in response.
"Don't be jealous, Onee," teased Shiom.
"Why would I be jealous?" scowled Mion.
"Because you might grow into a spinster," joked Shinji only to receive a kick under the table. "Ow!" Everyone laughed and Shinji sighed before he joined in. He glanced out the window and he saw something. It looked like a man garbed in ninja gear and wrapped up in bandages. When Shinji blinked, the man was gone.
"Hey, Shinji, what are you looking at?" Satoshi asked as he noticed Shinji looking out the window.
"I thought I…" Shinji shook his head. "Never mind."
It was final period and once Chie-sensei had told everyone they were free to do anything, Mion had called, "GAMING CLUB, ASSEMBLE!" with a whistle and everything. Shinji, along with the rest of the club, all posed together like a team of superheroes that had just been rallied by their leader.
Today's game would be 'Water Pistol War'. It was a free-for-all tournament where they were armed with water pistols and tried to take each other out. If one got wet, they were out of the game, no matter what. Shinji grinned happily, his ahoge twitching after Mion had declared today's game. Rena, Mion and Shion were wearing white t-shirt with bloomers and when white t-shirts got wet…Shinji wiped the drool off his lips at the thought.
Competition was fierce as water flew through the air, splashing everyone in the war. There were wet casualties. The young ones stood no chance. Hanyuu, not wanting to shoot anyone even with a water pistol, accidentally shot herself with her own pistol. Rika, of course, got taken out by Satoshi.
Satoko had decided to really go all out with the use of water balloons that she filled out while hiding away from the others. Unfortunately, she got taken out when she tried to throw one at Shinji and he ducked. The water balloon bounced off the tree behind him and back at her, breaking against her face and soaking her wet.
In the middle of the game, Keiichi, Mion and Shion had a Mexican standoff, holding two water pistols each as they aimed at each other while standing in a circle, daring anybody to make the first move. The twins, however, decided to take Keiichi out first. Blood was thicker than water, after all, but then they turned on each other, taking each other out in the process.
It was the end of the game and that left only two players remaining. There was Shinji and Rena left and the two looked at each other fiercely. Shinji looked her in the eye but then his eyes wandered, going down from his face, to her white shirt, and then her long legs which were shown off by her tight red bloomers. His pants started feeling tight as well but he shook off the feeling. In the Gaming Club the main doctrine was to win at any cost and as much as he loved Rena he was not going to lose to her.
Rena shot at him but he dodged, zigzagging to avoid the hits. He was going to wait until she ran out of ammo. These small water pistols could only carry so much water before going empty. Rena kept shooting until she could only manage short squirts from her guns. "Oh no!" she gasped.
"Oh, yeah!" Shinji grinned as he got to her face and aimed his water pistol at her. "You lose, Rena-chan." However, her eyes then turned green and he froze when he saw them looking at him. "What?" He was then shocked out of his frozen state when Rena turned the hose on him and drenched him to the bone.
Mion declared, "OK, Game Over! Rena is the winner!"
"Ah…man…" Shinji groaned. He was soaked.
After the end of school, the gang parted ways to go home. Shinji and Rena decided to head to the junkyard for another one of her treasure hunts. He didn't care much for treasure hunting. All he cared about was spending time with Rena. They walked, hand-in-hand, and then bumped into someone along the way.
"Takano-san, good evening," Rena greeted the blonde nurse that worked at the Irie Clinic. She saw us linking hands and smiled.
"Oh my, how nice to be young and in love," she said, a palm to her cheek. Shinji's brows furrowed. What was Miyo Takano doing in Hinamizawa? Shouldn't she be…shouldn't she be…where was she supposed to be, he wondered?
"Shin-kun and Rena are going to the junkyard together," Rena told the woman.
"Not exactly romantic," said Takano.
"It depends on a person's taste, I guess," Shinji responded, his voice slightly cold. He didn't like Takano all that much but he just couldn't fathom why.
"Well, I'm off to see Jirou-san," said Takano. "He says he has something special for me tonight. Later, you two. Ja ne." She then walked off. Shinji watched her leave. He just thought that turning his back on the nurse would be a bad idea.
Still, it felt weird. He didn't think Takano should be in Hinamizawa but he couldn't make sense of the feeling. Weird.
There wasn't much treasure hunting going on at the junkyard. However, Rena and Shinji were exploring. They were exploring each other.
The two were in Rena's minivan and the girl was flat on her back and clenching the mattress covered floor of the van as Shinji and she made out. The reason she was clenching the mattress so tightly was because Shinji was making her feel so good. His tongue was in her mouth, he had one hand up her shirt fondling her, and another one up her skirt rubbing her.
They had moved from simple kissing to fondling with Shinji doing most of the fondling. Rena moaned as Shinji continued to make her body feel so good. She was also sweating, her body hot, like she was on fire. His mouth left hers as he kissed her neck. She called his name, "Shin…Shin-kun…" She could feel something building.
That was when he saw a face staring right at them. It was green, with horns, and looked like a demon. Shinji cried out in shock as he saw the face and fell on his rear. Rena, surprised and panting, asked, "What's wrong?"
"I…I…" Shinji stammered. The demonic visage was gone. "I…I dunno…" What had he just seen? Whatever it was, it'd just spoiled the mood for them. "I think we better go home."
Rena pouted, upset that they couldn't go all the way today. She'd been looking forward to it too. They fixed up their clothes but Shinji decided to keep her bra as a souvenir. She called him a pervert and he did not deny it one bit. This was not the first time he'd kept something off hers, after all.
Still, it was a shame. She'd looked so good and so delicious. He wanted to eat her in the minivan and hear her scream his name. Maybe some other time. He just really felt like something was off about today.
Shinji returned home a little later than usual but his parents expected that. They weren't blind. They knew he went out with Rena after school. He recalled, with a shiver, how his parents gave him 'The Talk'. It was made even awkward when his mother used her books for references and visual aid. The trick he used to make Rena cum had been from one of her books. He knew more about pleasuring a girl than any other guy his age. Heck, Satoshi and Shion hadn't reached a step beyond kissing as far as he knew.
"Tadaima," he said as he came into the house.
"Okaeri nasai, Shinichi," his mother greeted.
Shinji blinked. "Wait, Kaa-chan what did you just call me?"
Shiori blinked, confused. She replied, "I called you by your name."
"No, you called me…never mind." Now his ears were playing tricks with him. "I'm going to take a bath." He went upstairs. A minute later twin feminine screams could be heard. The word 'HENTAI!' was loud and clear followed by two slaps.
"Maybe I should've told him Rika and Hanyuu were in there," Shiori mused aloud. Shotaro let out a snort of laughter. "I thought you were going to fix that lock, anata."
"Sorry, sorry," he apologized.
Shinji was in the bath, soaking in the tub, with red handprints on both his cheeks. As he relaxed in the water, he thought back to what he thought he'd heard. His mother had called him Shinichi and the only Shinichi he knew was the protagonist of his favorite TV show, Kamen Rider Showa whose civilian identity was named Shinichi Sanban.
After his bath and dressing himself, Shinji went down to join his family for dinner. Rika and Hanyuu still glared at him and he sighed. It would be awhile before they forgave him for walking in on them. He looked at Hanyuu and for a moment he imagined her with horns. 'OK, this day is just weird,' he concluded. He was hearing and seeing things a lot and he wondered if he was slowly losing his grip on reality.
He also had a nagging feeling he should be somewhere else and he was supposed to be doing something important but he didn't know where he was supposed to be or what he was supposed to do. It gave him a headache just thinking about it and then the thought just vanished before returning again with another headache following it.
"Rika-chan, Hanyuu-chan, are you both ready for the Watanagashi Matsuri (Cotton Drifting Festival)?" Shiori asked her two foster daughters.
"We've been practicing for the sacred dance," said Rika. This would be the first time Rika would be performing the sacred with a partner. Hanyuu was working hard as well.
"Oh, I can't wait to see," said Shiori, smiling. "Shinji, make sure to take a lot of pictures."
Shinji nodded, "OK, Kaa-chan." He was always with his trusty camera. The Watanagashi Matsuri was a sacred festival in Hinamizawa that was celebrated in honor of Oyashiro-sama. After the sacred dance, all the villagers would each be given a ball of cotton representing their sins and then the villagers would take their balls of cotton to be sent adrift along the river. Thus, they'd be cleansed of all their sins. Of course, failure to do so would bring about Oyashiro-sama wrath and a horrible curse. The curse stated that one person would die and another would disappear. That was Oyashiro-sama's curse.
It sounded like a scary story meant to scare misbehaving children into being good but the villagers here believed it.
After dinner and doing his homework, Shinji went to bed. Of course, his rest would not be dreamless. He would be having dreams, intense dreams which would grow more and more vivid with each night he slept. In these dreams he saw himself doing incredible feats, possessing amazing powers, and basically defying the laws of physics itself.
In these dreams, he was a Kamen Rider Showa.
Shinji told his friends about his dreams which made them laugh. Mion told him he should stop watching Kamen Rider if it gave him weird dreams and Keiichi thought that being a Rider was awesome. Well, being the Rider was awesome but not how someone became a Rider. In the series, being a Rider was both a blessing and a curse and it was more the latter rather than the former. Being a Kamen Rider meant never to have a normal life ever again.
Shinji's weekdays followed the same routine and he enjoyed it. He would wake up, have breakfast with his family, go to school with his friends, play games with his friends after school, and show Rena how much he loved her when they were both at their private spot. They never went all the way though this week. Something kept interrupting.
On Saturday, he and his friends had a picnic at the Furude Shrine and Shinji swore he saw someone dressed in samurai armor standing at the shrine before vanishing from sight. Was he seeing spirits? He didn't tell his friends about this. He didn't want them to think he was crazy.
When he went to bed on Saturday, he had another dream. He and a group of other people were at a haunted hotel and fighting off well-dressed Minotaurs. He woke up with a start that night as well, drenched in cold sweat.
It was Sunday and the day of the Watanagashi Matsuri. He was going to hang out with his friends today and he had a feeling it would be a lot of fun. Festivals also meant games and the Gaming Club members all loved games.
As soon as they were together, Mion announced the activities' list and it said list were numerous contests with most of them being eating contests. They ate takoyaki, taiyaki, yakisoba and kimchi. To put it simply, they visited every booth that sold food and ate to their hearts contents. It was the most fun Shinji ever remembered.
Then they came upon a shooting gallery and Mion wanted a teddy bear. She, however, failed. Keiichi, however, didn't and he won the bear for her which she accepted with a blush. Shinji took a picture of the moment like he had so many times before.
Later that night, it was time for the sacred dance. Rika and Hanyuu, dressed as miko, took the sacred hoes and cut open the cotton mattress together. Shinji took a picture of the scene. This was his first time seeing something like this…but he had a nagging feeling he'd seen it many times before.
"Shin…"
"Huh?" Shinji blinked. Was someone calling his name.
"Shin…"
It was in the wind, a whisper.
"Shin…ichi…"
There it was again. What was it? Then, he realized something was amiss.
Everyone was frozen and not frozen in the sense that they were covered in ice but frozen like someone had hit 'Pause' in the middle of a video. Everyone was stationary, everyone but him.
"What…what's going on?" Shinji asked, looking around. He called his friends' names but they did not respond. He became confused and terrified. "What's going on!"
"Shinichi, you have to wake up," Shinji heard and he spun around. He gasped as he saw them. the bandaged ninja, the green demon and the samurai! They were real and they were talking to him!
"Who-who-who are you?" Shinji stammered, stepping back in fear.
The green Oni snorted, his muscular arms crossed, "You know who we are, Shinichi. We're your Tsukumogami."
"Tsuku…mogami?" Shinji repeated. They sighed.
"It would appear that witch has done it again," said the bandaged ninja.
"Indeed," the samurai agreed. The samurai identified himself, "I am Yabuki, spirit of the Higurashi no Yaiba."
"You can call me Zennin, spirit of the Kage no Hoshi."
"And I'm Gokuaku, spirit of the Oni no Hone."
"Yabuki…Zennin…Gokuaku…" Shinji repeated, the names sounding familiar. "Higurashi no Yaiba…Kage no Hoshi…Oni no Hone." His head hurt, throbbing, especially above his left eyebrow.
"Shinichi, you have to wake up," said Yabuki, "This is a dream."
"A dream?" Shinji asked.
"It's not real," Yabuki clarified. Shinii stared at him, speechless. "Shinichi?"
"No…" Shinji shook his head. He denied, "No, this is real! You're the ones that are not real!"
"Shinichi, listen to us," said Yabuki desperately. "You have to wake up! You have to or else you and Alan will die!"
"A…Alan…" Shinji's head throb. "Who is…Alan…" That name made him think of the color green and a shining emerald light. "What…what's happening…?" Nothing was making sense.
"Shinji, this is all an illusion. This is the life you wanted and it is making it true but it is all a lie, everything," said Yabuki. "As much as you want to believe it's real, you can't live your life in a dream, not when there is so much at stake."
Shinji looked at his frozen friends and clenched his fists. Was it true? Was this all an illusion? He looked back at the Tsukumogami. They may have looked odd and out of place but they did not look dishonest.
"Make your decision, just make the right one and what you think is best," said Yabuki before he started to fade from view along with Gokuaku and Zennin.
"Wait!" Shinji called but they were gone. He murmured, "Make the right decision…"
"Shinji?" Rena asked. Shinji looked to her. Everyone was moving. Time had sped back up. "What's wrong?" she asked.
'This…isn't real?' Shinji asked himself.
After the sacred dance, the villagers lined up to receive their balls of cotton to send adrift on the river. It didn't take long until Shinji's group was next and as they each received their balls of cotton, he thought back to Yabuki's words.
He actually had a feeling that all this wasn't real. It was all too good to be true. The dreams he was having were his memories and this was a dream. That was what they meant. He wasn't dreaming that he was Kamen Rider Showa, he really was…
"Shin-kun, it's your turn," Rena said to him. He looked to her. "Shin-kun, what's the matter?" He put his hands on her cheeks. "Shin-kun, what are you doing?" she asked, confused. Everyone was watching as he gazed into her eyes tearfully.
He wanted this to be real, he really did, but the truth was this was just his ideal world, the world he wanted to live in, a dream he wanted to be real. It was a world without Kamen Riders and Kaijin, a world without heroes and villains. It was a peaceful world. It was a world where he'd never been taken by GIN-SHOCKER and made a cyborg. It was a world where his father Shotaro Banabara lived and his family was whole. It was a world where he didn't have to fight for every second of his life.
It was the world he'd always wanted and needed. However, it wasn't the real world. And right now, the real world needed him.
"I'm sorry, Rena-chan, but I have to go," he told her before kissing her deeply. "I'm sorry, but there's something important I have to do right now. Just remember that I love you." It was breaking his heart to leave, even if this was an illusion. It felt nice for things to follow a certain routine. It felt nice just to be normal with normal problems. It felt nice just to be who he always wanted to be. "Sayonara…"
But he wasn't Shinji Banabara, not anymore. His name was Shinichi Banabara and he was also known as…Kamen Rider…
"Hen…SHIN!" he called out into the heavens, a light blasting from his waist and bathing everything in its radiance.
Kamen Rider Chrome: They say a true hero puts others before himself and have to make hard sacrifices for the greater good. Shinichi here had the chance to live in a world where everything was normal and peaceful and he was just a regular kid who was carefree. However, it was all just a realistic dream and he had to wake up. He could've been happy, but he gave it up because he had a mission. Well, next we'll take a glimpse at what Alan's ideal world would be like.
