This is chapter seven of my alternate ending to Erased. Sit back, relax, and enjoy.

These next two chapters will be the meat and bones of the story, it's finally gonna get interesting.

Chapter 7: Satoru's Mission

Today is an important day. If things go wrong today, our plan will most likely fail. We had to do this, today was the day.

Like the previous nights, I got almost no sleep. The same thoughts went through my head time and time again. Maybe today will be the day that all those thoughts will no longer control me.

That morning, we went to Keion Elementary School to speak to the principal. Arusu told her of our arrival, and she wanted our help to avoid any possible abductions. Walking into the school almost felt like moving to a new town. It almost felt like I was leaving Chiba and all my friends forever. It was unwelcoming, but it was what we had to do.

"Come in, come in. It's very nice to see you all.", the principal requested. She seemed as if she was ecstatic to see us, probably because no one else was brave enough to take initiative. "Arusu, it's good to see you again. How have you been?", she informed him. "Hanging in there, thank you." "Good, now take a seat.", she requested.

"I believe you are all aware that we had a series of missing children two years ago. It may just be happening again, and we need to act now. To do this, I came up with a plan. Satoru, Sachiko, Arusu, no matter how difficult it may be, will you still comply?". "Yes.", we all replied at the same time. "Excellent. Now, listen closely."

"We have our fair share of lonely students, every school does. Satoru, you will pretend to be a new student and blend in with everyone else. I have told all the teachers to inform you of any students that may be at risk. I believe this is the best way to lower the chances of a missing child. Sachiko, Arusu, the police are investigating the town for the whereabouts of Mr. Yashiro, they will want some help. Satoru, here's your schedule and a school map, try your best to blend in and not stand out. That is the plan, any questions?". We all stayed silent.

"Good luck Satoru, don't let us down.". I left right after she told me that. If this was the first step to find Yashiro, I had to do it. It didn't matter what it was. It felt a little weird being in a new school, trying to blend in with everyone else. I was treated like a new student, but I had no problem blending in with everyone else. No one really stood out as lonely, until a teacher came to me before the day ended. His name was Tadashi Komatsu, a fifth-grade homeroom teacher.

We went into the faculty room, and he told me about a girl in his class. "Satoru, I have a girl in my class who may be at risk. Her name is Niko Hattori, have you seen her today?". I didn't really recognize anybody, so I couldn't answer that. He showed me a picture of the girl. "She is usually found at the park after school, it would be suspicious of me to go by myself when it's dark out. That's why I need your help Satoru, will you do it?". "Of course.", I confidently responded.

I went back to the hotel later that day to check-in. "Hey Satoru, how was your day?", my mom asked. "It was ok, one of the teachers informed me of a lonely girl.", I responded. I waited for a brief second and asked, "Where's Arusu?". "He wanted to catch up with a few things, he'll be back soon." She informed me. This was his hometown anyway, no reason for him not to. Plus, he could possibly find something out about Mr. Yashiro! "Satoru, why don't you sit down and eat? You can tell me everything then.", she suggested.

"The girl is Niko Hattori. The teacher, Mr. Komatsu, told me she goes to the park after school. I need to go there and keep her safe.". "That's great Satoru, this might even be your chance to find him.", she informed me. I was completely aware of that, could this be the day? "Satoru, I was hesitant of letting you go on this mission in the first place. I didn't want my baby boy to get hurt again. Now I realize that you must finish your quest to save all of us from Yashiro.". Her voice started to break. "Don't worry about me mom, I know I'll be ok.", I assured her. "Mom, if I'm not home by 7:00 tonight, you know what to do.", I told her before walking out. This time I wouldn't go it alone, I would rely on my mom, Arusu, and the police force. "Satoru, you need some protection. Take this knife and use it as a last resort. I know you don't want to kill Yashiro, rather put him behind bars; however, if you are about to be killed, use it.". I was truly ready. I wouldn't be scared this time, I would stand up to him.

I left the hotel and found Arusu coming back. "Arusu!", I yelled. I ran over to him. "Hey Satoru, how was school?", he asked. "It was ok.", I responded. "Where are you going?", he questioned. "There's a girl that I need to protect. She goes to the park after school. I'm going to go there and keep her safe.", I told him. Arusu looked nervous. He bent down and put his hand on my shoulder. "Satoru, this going to be important to find Yashiro. If you see him tonight, you can't be scared. You need to eliminate the fear and stand up to him. That is the only way he will be brought to justice. Satoru, I believe in you. That is what I have learned over these last few days, to believe. Good luck Satoru.". Arusu smiled and stood back up. He went back into the hotel, and I started running to the park.

My mom got me a watch so I could know the time, which really helped. I got to the park at around 5:00, and Niko wasn't there. I thought that waiting there would be a little awkward, so I walked around town. At about 6:00, I came back to find a girl sitting on a bench, reading on a book. It had to be Niko, it looked exactly like the girl in the picture. I thought I would've had to be the first to talk, but she did instead. "You must be the new kid, right?", Niko looked up asked. "I am, I was just walking around town.", I responded. "Why don't you take a break here? It gets kind of lonely.", she asked. It was going better than expected.

For the next half hour, we did a mix of talking and awkward silence. It was really nice. It was like a runback of when I saw Kayo at the park. I walked Niko home as well, I thought everything was in the bag.

I was in a quiet ally where most of the houses already had their lights off. Everything was going smoothly until I heard a voice. "Satoru Fujinuma, it's nice to see you again.", the voice quietly told me. I slowly looked behind me, paralyzed in fear. As soon as our eyes met, I blacked out.

I didn't know how long I was out for. When I woke up I was on a bridge. It was the bridge where Yashiro killed all the victims. I was on the edge, looking down to certain death. It had to be a thirty-foot drop, with nothing but rocks and dirt at the bottom. "Satoru, I'm sorry, but this is how it has to be.".

I remembered something, the knife in my pocket. I took it out and screamed, "Die Yashiro!". I stabbed him right in the stomach. He fell over and started bleeding. I looked down at him, and he faintly said, "Satoru, thank you for keeping Niko safe.". It didn't sound like Yashiro, it sounded like, Mr. Komatsu.

I was in disbelief, I slowly backed off from his dying body towards the center of the bridge. "Wait, it was Mr. Komatsu?", I asked myself. I felt an evil presence behind me and a voice that whispered in my ear, "Always has been.".

I was a little discouraged while writing this, mostly because it was challenging and I couldn't make it work too well. But, I managed to get it to work.