File 9: The Chosen Detective
"Aki-kun, Momoki-san is here! Did you prepare everything this time?"
Ayako was by the door, with Momoki waiting outside for Akihito. Akihito was busy getting all his documents and suitcase ready for their big day.
The day had come. The day to visit the Kura building that they were called in for a few weeks back. Momoki had discussed with Ayako about Akihito's sleeping problems since he fell asleep on the train and was almost late to the meeting a few weeks prior. If it weren't for Momoki's actions in catching Akihito on the train, they would have been screwed by the authorities for their tardiness.
This time, Ayako asked Momoki to come to their Tokyo home so that they could go together for their big day. Muku was in the dining room eating her toast and preparing her school supplies as well as her money. Akihito was drinking his coffee while he double checked the location on the map.
"Is this the right location, Momoki?" Akihito muttered while he showed him the address from his phone and compared it to the map that was laid out on the table.
Momoki looked over Akihito's shoulder and saw the address on the phone. It was the correct address that they were both given, so he nodded.
"Yes, Narihisago. I'll wait for you to get ready outside- "
"Wait! You can just enjoy some snacks while I get my things! Please don't trouble yourself even more."
Akihito quickly gobbled up his toast, gulped his coffee, and went into his room to get changed. Momoki sat down near the couch, waiting for him. Muku also then went into her room to get the rest of her school supplies as well. Ayako was waiting patiently with Momoki while they sat down, watching Akihito and Muku frenzy themselves while getting their important materials to be ready for work and school.
"So, how has everything been Misses Narihisago?"
Ayako looked back at Momoki and chuckled. Ever since Momoki told her that Akihito almost missed the meeting due to him falling asleep on the train, she had been strict on what he was doing outside, making sure he did not get into any trouble.
There just had to be a reason for his sleep deprivation.
"Nothing much, Momoki-san. I'm still unsure on what has been stressing Aki-kun so much that he is having sleeping problems again. Everything seemed to work fine for the first few weeks before he suddenly had sleeping problems."
"Did you offer him some sleeping pills or some sort of remedy?"
"We tried, but Aki-kun always rejects them. There must be something on his mind again."
Momoki closed his eyes and posed his hands into a thinking position. Ayako was right, but it seemed like Akihito could have been pretending to be cheerful and happy so that they can move on from the Face Lifter case that had traumatized Muku a while back. But it could also mean…
"Momoki! I'm done changing. I got everything ready and prepared now. We can leave as soon as possible."
Momoki looked up to see Akihito with his suitcase and papers ready. He was fidgeting for his phone and was making sure his photograph was still safe inside his coat. Right after Akihito's remark, Muku came rushing out of her room with her backpack and phone ready as well. She seemed confident and ready to go to school.
"Dad, what took you so long? Aren't you going to take me to the train station again?"
"Sorry, Muku. Dad is a bit forgetful today. I can walk with you to the train station today."
Momoki looked up to see Akihito was struggling to hold a map along with his phone to double check the address again. He got up and grabbed the map from under his armpits while he was looking at his phone. Muku seemed a bit impatient and was looking at her phone to check the time.
Then Momoki offered to walk with Akihito and Muku to the train station.
"Are you sure, Momoki? You already waited for me and even came to my home just to make sure we could go to the Kura building together today…"
"It's fine, really. I'm sure your daughter would be fine with me anyway. All of you have lived at my house before after all."
Akihito thought back to what Momoki just said. He meant the time when he lived at his friend's mansion right after the Challenger's incident. He and his family had stayed there while the police investigated his home for evidence of a break-in and to give Akihito's self defense testimony during the court case. After staying at Momoki's home for a couple months, they moved into a bigger house to start anew again.
But that changed with the Face Lifter case. It seemed like the Narihisago family wasn't safe from serial killers and Akihito had been rumored to be cursed a few times while he was in the Fukui Police Department.
Hopefully with a new life in Tokyo, they could move on from all the bad luck and hope there were no more killers going after them.
"Are you fine with it, Muku?"
"That's fine, Dad. He is your friend after all. You two always go out drinking late at night and Momoki-san always brings you home on his back…"
"Shush, you don't need to talk about that! Okay I get it. Now let's get going."
After Akihito and Muku waved at Ayako, the three of them embarked on their walk to the train station. Akihito took his phone out to look for the directions of the Kura building. Muku was skipping in front of them, looking back at them occasionally to see if they were still there.
"So, are you ready to get your real job position, Narihisago?" Momoki asked while they were walking through a crowd of people going to work, "There seems to be many positions in the new Kura sector, so we should easily get something."
"Probably as part of the normal staff," Akihito muttered back, "I don't know if we're worthy of being part of the main Kura staff that deals with the machine."
"Are you sure? We could go to that selective meeting after all, and they kept talking about the basics of the machine…"
"Momoki, I thought that meeting was for everyone that joined that sector, not just us."
As Momoki and Akihito kept talking while walking along the sidewalks to the train station, Muku saw the train station not too far ahead from them. She turned around to wait for them to come closer to her.
"Guess we're here, guess we'll split up now!" Muku said as she waved goodbye, walking towards the train station entrance.
But before Akihito was about to leave, he was promptly stopped by Momoki. He was pointing with the phone and the map towards the same train station.
"Seems like we're also taking the train again, Narihisago," Momoki said as he checked his phone for directions, "Which station does Muku-chan get off from?"
"Tokyo Station."
"Looks like we're going in the opposite direction of her school."
The two of them then went into the train station and traveled towards the Kura building. Resting on the train, Momoki and Akihito were preparing themselves for their introductions into the new Kura sector. In the train full of crowded people, it was morning rush hour once again. They spent the rest of the trip resting on the train, while many people came and went.
After a couple stops, they got out of the train station and looked around. Not too far from them was the Kura building. It seemed hidden away and seclusive from the other residential houses nearby.
As they walked closer, the Kura building came into view. It seemed small from a distance but as it turned out, the dimmed glass windows had caused their view to become distorted from the building's actual size. The building seemed to tower over the smaller residentials and other buildings nearby, despite not being a skyscraper that they had seen before inside inner Tokyo. But the building seemed wide enough to contain something enormous. The Mizuhanome.
"We're here, Narihisago."
"Wonder who is going to give us a tour of the building. The pamphlets and the meeting didn't give us much apart from the basics, Momoki."
"Guess we'll have to find out."
And the two men walked into the Kura building, hoping for more information on the new speculated technology and their new job positions.
"Welcome to Kura, Funetaro Momoki and Akihito Narihisago."
They walked in and were greeted by an old man. He seemed to have been waiting for them for some time. He looked a bit fragile but kind, as he greeted them at the entrance. He had white hair pulled back by two small ponytails and a beard. He wore a brown suit, a light waistcoat, a white shirt, and a yellow tie. His eyes were closed but could somehow see them walking by.
He held up his right hand, as if he wanted them to shake hands with him. Akihito and Momoki looked a bit nervous at his gesture.
"Oh? I forgot that we're not in Europe and the Americas anymore. Pardon me," the man said as he held back his hand, "I just came back from an overseas trip, so I had to shake many hands there…"
Akihito and Momoki quickly bowed at the man, unsure if he was their assistant or advisor for the Mizuhanome. Upon seeing them bow, the man bowed back and clapped his hands. A few people showed up in front of them.
"What is it, Chief Hayaseura?" said one of the ladies, who was holding out a board filled with a list of names, "Are they the new members for this facility?"
"Chief?!"
Akihito and Momoki looked back at the old man in awe.
"Oh, I'm so sorry. I haven't introduced myself. My name is Takuhiko Hayaseura. I am the Chief of the Kura sector and the Head of the Wellside Organization. Please wait a moment while we get you two prepared for your new roles here."
The Chief went on to discuss some duties with the ladies surrounding him. After a couple minutes with them, he turned around to tell Akihito and Momoki some news.
"Seems like there is a shortage of assistants around here. Everybody has been testing everything to make sure things are in order. So, in their place, I shall be your tour guide instead."
Akihito seemed surprised by the Chief's gratitude while Momoki felt uneasy. He had anticipated that they would get a tour but didn't realize that they were going to be alone. There seemed to be no other people walking in, asking for a tour.
"Chief Hayaseura, where are the other Kura staff members? Did we come in too late for our first day?" Momoki asked, sounding a bit worried.
The Chief looked back at Momoki and touched his shoulder.
"Of course not. You two made it in time. There is no need to worry about such trivial things."
Akihito then took out his phone and checked the time. Their arrival time did seem a bit later than the others, who were given an earlier time stamp to arrive at Kura. Did the Chief come here personally to greet them, or did he have some other motive?
"Now, shall we begin our tour of the Kura building?"
The Chief went towards the elevator and asked Akihito and Momoki to go in before him. They obliged and went inside, and the Chief began to push some buttons leading up to certain floors. Momoki noticed that some of the floors weren't marked. The odd shaped numbers on the elevator seemed off-putting, but he let it slide for now due to a possibility of the Chief having some strange habits which were being reflected on the building.
They stopped on the 5th floor and were led into a sparsely lit hallway. The floor seem bare compared to the ground floor they were on a while ago.
"Would you like to see the Mizuhanome cockpit?" the Chief asked, while leading them down the hallway.
Akihito looked around the bare hallways and noticed a room they just walked past. It was locked down using a passcode and some keys, as if it were protecting something important inside. He wanted to ask the Chief about the room but didn't want to interrupt the tour.
Soon, they stopped at another closed door. The Chief opened the door and showed them the room. In the center, there was a metallic looking futuristic device in front of them. The seating had a black leather covering and had two circular panels around itself. There was also a monitor set up in front of the cockpit as well.
"Can we touch it, Chief Hayaseura?" Akihito asked.
Momoki was leaning over to the cockpit and was trying to touch it as well. He leaned under the cockpit chair and saw the monitor with a green screen, showing a name on it. It seemed blurred out, as if it were still in its testing phase.
"You may, Narihisago-san. Momoki-san seems to be interested in this machine as well."
Akihito immediately went towards the machine, staring in awe at the new technology right in front of them. They had only seen it from the photographs taken from the presentation meeting not too long ago, but he didn't expect he would get to see the machine so quickly and upfront right afterwards.
The cockpit panels had big English letters with the words, Eject and Inject. They seemed to be starters for a manual dive, but it was possible that the machine was already linked through the building so that the main staff could launch a dive from another room.
Momoki was touching some parts of the Mizuhanome when he noticed some scratch marks and bits of dried blood from the backseats. It seemed it had already been used before.
"Chief Hayaseura, did anyone sit in this cockpit?" Momoki asked, hoping for a reasonable answer, "Is this machine really safe to use?"
The Chief chuckled at Momoki's question.
"Of course, people sat on it. Why else would the cockpit not be used? You two were hired to work with this machine after all. There is still testing going on, but someone will definitely sit on it again."
After Akihito and Momoki inspected the machine for a couple more minutes, the Chief then led them down the same bare hallway. It seemed never-ending, but they followed him towards the next room.
Not far from them, they saw a new set of aisles that seemed to house some glass walls. The rooms seemed bare, but they could make out some necessities such as a bed, a sink, and a table with a chair. There was a transparent door that was locked on all the rooms as well.
It looked like a prison.
"This is the Kura prison," the Chief said, pointing towards the rooms near them, "Right now, they are empty. But we will eventually house some criminals in this part of the facility."
Akihito thought back to the presenter that had mentioned the Kura prison housing criminals. Putting his hand to his chin, he thought that the criminals would be used to test the machine based on the meeting.
"Sorry to interrupt, Chief Hayaseura. I have a question," Akihito muttered.
"Go ahead Narihisago-san. Ask whatever you like."
"Are the criminals going to be in the cockpit?"
There was a moment of silence. The Chief paused for a moment before answering back.
"Criminals?" the Chief responded as he cleared his throat, "Why would we let a criminal use the cockpit? There is already an exceptionally good candidate for the machine already, Narihisago-san. A special one."
Momoki seemed confused by the Chief's response but let it slide for now. They hadn't been given their roles for the Kura sector yet, so he was unsure why he was showing them these important rooms so quickly. He looked back at Akihito in dismay and back unto the Chief.
Where were the other Kura staff members?
"I also have another question, Chief Hayaseura," Momoki asked this time, "How come only the two of us are being shown these rooms right now? What happened to everyone else?"
The Chief looked back at Momoki and then led them out of the Kura prison hallway.
"They already had their tours done by my other assistants, Momoki-san. You will see them once we finish the rest of the tour. Just be patient and we will get a break soon."
Afterwards, they went back into the elevator again. The Chief pushed the button to get them to the top of the Kura building. Once they were out, he led them outside onto the Kura rooftop.
"There is a small helicopter base over there," the Chief said, pointing towards the edge of the rooftop with some marks on the ground, "It's only used for emergencies, but exceptions will be made for any medical issues that may occur."
Akihito and Momoki walked around the rooftop and looked out towards the smaller buildings around them. The building really seemed taller than it looked from the distance. The people at the bottom seemed like grasshoppers below them.
"After this, I'll show you one more room before break, then we have one last room to go through," the Chief said as he led them back inside, "I know that you two are curious about what your new jobs will be, but it will be a surprise in the end."
They went back into the elevator, and Momoki noticed that the Chief pressed the button towards the 7th floor. This time, the floor seemed airier and more open as compared to the 5th floor's lack of décor. The hallways seemed wider and there were more people going in and out of the building. He led Akihito and Momoki towards the middle of a busy hallway, filled with people double checking their documents and papers and being led by others toward different areas of the floor.
The Chief then led them towards a larger door, which had a larger handle. He slowly opened the door to reveal another room.
"This is the Wellside Room. This is where the Kura main staff operates the Mizuhanome."
Akihito and Momoki were in awe at the size of the room. Covering two floors, the room had natural light flowing in from the slightly opaque rooftop above them. There were transparent screens all over the room, giving a very futuristic vibe to the place. In the center of the room, there seemed to be some 3-D like model floating around.
Not far from them, there were a few people still inside the room, and they seemed to be arguing over something. One of them seemed to be munching on some food.
"Come on, Wakashika-san, it's almost lunch break. The Chief said that he would let us go soon. Don't eat inside the room," said a young man, who had spiky hair and dark brown eyes. He seemed to be lecturing the other man on discipline and following the rules.
"It's fine if other people don't notice it," replied the other man, who had his hair pulled back by a hairband, "Habutae-san, give me a break once in a while."
They kept talking until they noticed Akihito and Momoki watching them from afar, looking surprised. Not too far from them, the Chief was looking at them from a distance.
"The Chief is right there!" the spiky haired man exclaimed towards the man with the hairband, "Hide it now before you get in trouble!"
He quickly turned his back from the other man while looking calm and professional in front of Momoki and Akihito. They seemed to be the newcomers to the Kura sector as well.
"I'm sorry for making a very first bad impression," the spiky haired man said, looking at Momoki and Akihito, "We'll get out of the room as soon as possible…"
"Wait, what are your names?" Akihito asked, "You two seem to be close already."
"If you insist," the man muttered under his breath, "My name is Masamune Habutae. This man here that was trying to hide eating some food is named Kazuo Wakashika…"
"Hey! You didn't need to call me out like that!" Wakashika answered back, a bit annoyed.
"Pardon us, it's already lunch break," Habutae said, pulling Wakashika out of the room with his arms, "You are welcome to look around the Wellside Room. Sorry for the trouble."
Pieces of onigiri fell out of Wakashika's pants, leaving a small trail of rice. Akihito and Momoki looked at the two of them in dismay while Habutae dragged Wakashika outside of the room.
"Don't mind them, Narihisago-san and Momoki-san. They are newcomers as well. They got their briefings done already. If you have any more questions, just ask me," the Chief said, "Habutae-san and Wakashika-san already seem like they're becoming fast friends. That's nice."
After the awkward encounter, Akihito and Momoki went to inspect the Wellside Room. the 3-D model floating figure kept catching their eye, so they asked what it was.
"This virtual model creates a 3-D version of the Mizuhanome well. It lets the main staff find clues and help the pilot in real time."
"What kind of clues?" Akihito asked.
"Clues that cannot possibly be found in physical searches, but they give us insight on their memories and their weaknesses."
After Akihito and Momoki looked around the room and climbed up to the 2nd floor, the Chief called them back down for lunch break. Wakashika and Habutae had already mentioned a lunch break not too long ago.
"'I'll show you two the last important room after lunch," the Chief said, leading them out of the room, "If you remembered where the other two men went, they went to the cafeteria."
"Where's the cafeteria?" Momoki asked, "Is it on this floor?"
"Oh, it's not here. It's on the 2nd floor. You two are welcome to walk around the building and ask the other people around here for directions. I'll see you two again after lunch."
The Chief waved back at them, and left Akihito and Momoki right in front of the Wellside Room, confused and surprised at their new boss. After asking for directions from the other people rushing towards their lunch break, they managed to find the Kura cafeteria, which had been filled by a couple people eating at several tables already.
"Are you hungry, Narihisago?" Momoki asked, "We can try to look for those two who we saw inside the Wellside Room and ask about the other staff members and what they do."
"Good idea, Momoki," Akihito muttered back, feeling a bit tired from walking all over the building, "I could use some food right now. It's still strange that we haven't been given our job roles yet."
"The Chief probably is really busy right now. Hope he didn't forget about us."
"I don't think he would forget us so easily when he personally came to greet us at the front entrance, Momoki."
After they got their lunch, they saw Wakashika and Habutae not too far from them. They were at another table and chatting with some unfamiliar faces. One of them looked like he was wearing glasses and had long black hair that was tied into a ponytail. His tall figure seemed to tower over the other two even while sitting down.
"Hello, my name is Akihito Narihisago," Akihito said, trying to introduce himself as he approached their table, "Momoki and I haven't been given our job roles yet so we don't know what we should be doing right now…"
Wakashika and Habutae turned back and were surprised to find them there. The tall man sitting with them was drinking his tea and ignoring their surprised reactions.
"So, who are these two new people?" asked the tall man.
"Shiratake-san, these were the people I was talking about," Wakashika said, leaning on the table, "They saw me get caught!"
"Be quiet, Wakashika-san," Habutae muttered back, eating his udon, "It just happened to be bad timing. The Kura sector is still new and getting new members every day. Don't be surprised when we get more."
The tall man then turned to face Akihito and Momoki, looking them in the eye. He tapped his glasses before making his statement:
"Welcome to Kura. My name is Sennosuke Shiratake. My job is being a crime scene analyst inside the Wellside Room. I look over the locations of wells to pinpoint their place. You two are welcome to sit at our table."
Akihito and Momoki gracefully obliged to his offer and both sat down at their table. He looked back sternly at Wakashika and Habutae, as if he were judging them.
"You didn't tell them your jobs? Is this how you treat the newcomers?"
"Come on, Shiratake-san! They had the Chief with them! And I was uh…. don't need to be reminded of that…" Wakashika exclaimed back at Shiratake before looking back at Akihito and Momoki.
"The Chief was with them?" Shiratake said, now suddenly curious, "That's new. Normally, newcomers don't get a briefing from the Chief himself."
"Chief Hayaseura?" Momoki asked back, before introducing himself this time, "My name is Funetaro Momoki and I am new to the Kura sector as well. Is there anything special about being briefed by the Chief personally?"
"The Chief only personally briefs people that he knows he will contact the most. That means that you two will fill some particularly important positions."
Meanwhile, Wakashika was counting with his fingers on how many times the Chief had briefed with others. There weren't that many from the looks of it.
"There's been me…Habutae-san…Shiratake-san…Togo-san…Kokufu-san…"
Momoki suddenly looked shocked. As if by someone's name.
"Togo-san? Is her name Sarina Togo?"
"Wow. How did you know her full name? Have you met her before, Momoki-san?" Wakashika remarked, sounding a bit surprised.
"Well, it's a long story…" Momoki said as he covered his face. Togo had not told him about her sudden transfer. He had thought that she had just rejected and ghosted him. He would inevitably have to meet her this time, in Kura.
After a moment of silence for Momoki, Wakashika and Habutae began to properly introduce themselves and tell Akihito and Momoki about their jobs.
"My name is Kazuo Wakashika and my job is being an interpreter in the Wellside Room."
"Interpreter?" Akihito asked, while eating some curry rice, "Is it like another detective job? Would you have to compete with the pilot for clues inside the wells?"
"You could put it that way. It is kind of like a detective job, because you have to interpret the same way as a detective does, but you're outside the well and using the clues you could find as well as those that were brought up by everyone else."
After Wakashika's proper introduction, it was Habutae's turn. He cleared up his throat before making his statement:
"My name is Masamune Habutae and my job is being a people analyst in the Wellside Room. I use information and data about human behavior to help predict a killer's next actions inside a well, based on the clues there. Sometimes, there could be victim's faces inside some of their wells that can pinpoint to their murder or hiding location."
It seemed like the new people that Akihito and Momoki had met were part of the main Kura staff that helped operate the Mizuhanome. But they hadn't mentioned the other members' roles and if there were any pilots or testing going on so far.
"S-So, where's Togo-san?" Momoki asked, sounding a bit embarrassed. His curiosity got the best of him, but he wanted to know what Togo had been doing these past couple months before he got ghosted by her.
"Togo-san?" Wakashika answered back, "She's just helping Kokufu-san with his duties. She is working as a general analyst right now but seems like Kura has been waiting for some people to fill in some director positions lately."
"Yeah, there are still some missing positions right now, such as a full-fledged Director and a Pilot," Habutae muttered back, drinking a box of an energy juice drink, "It's possible that you two could be filling these positions."
Momoki immediately thought about the slightly worn-down seat of the Mizuhanome cockpit. Didn't these people know that the machine had already been used?
"Wait, there hasn't been a Mizuhanome Pilot yet? But hasn't the seat already seemed a bit use- "
But before Momoki could finish saying his question, Habutae quickly covered his mouth. There were people watching them now. They didn't want them to reveal anything classified.
"Watch what you're saying, Momoki-san," Habutae whispered after he removed his hand off Momoki's mouth, "This sector can get more secretive than they let on."
Afterwards, there was an announcement that the lunch break was over. Many people began to clean up their plates and take them to the cleaning section of the cafeteria. Akihito and Momoki thanked the other members for talking with them and told them that they still had the rest of the tour to finish.
"Have fun with the rest of the tour, Narihisago-san and Momoki-san," Shiratake said as he showed them the way back towards the Wellside Room, "You two will probably get your newfound roles once the tour is over. The Chief must really like you two to brief you both so personally."
As the two of them were waiting by the Wellside Room, the Chief came back from his lunch break. He saw Akihito and Momoki leaning by the door waiting for him. He waved his hands at them to get a response from the two of them waiting by the corridor.
"Ah, Narihisago-san and Momoki-san. Thank you for waiting for me. Did you two enjoy your lunch at the cafeteria?" the Chief asked cheerfully, before leading them straight down another unfamiliar hallway.
"Yes, Chief Hayaseura. We managed to talk with some of the main Kura staff about their roles and was wondering what kind of job we will get…" Akihito replied, scratching his head.
Meanwhile, Momoki was still thinking about the used Mizuhanome cockpit and what it meant for the pilot, so he didn't say anything. They would have to finish the tour first and get their job positions, then he could ask more information about Kura.
This time, the Chief led them to the ground floor, which was near the area where they had first entered at the front entrance of the building. He opened another door, which showed a few people looking at many different monitors inside the room.
"This is the security room. Just in case you two were skeptic about this sector's security. Don't worry about it," said the Chief, "We have state of the art security cameras all over the buildings so that no one can easily break in and take our secrets from here."
Akihito then noticed that the real camera footage seemed to have no sound.
"Chief Hayaseura, why doesn't the security camera footage have sound?"
"Good question, Narihisago-san. It is due to privacy reasons, but the cameras do have a feature of recording it if there is an exceptional reason for it."
As the Chief and Akihito were discussing the security camera footage, Momoki was looking between the camera room and the dimly lit hallway of the ground floor. After they finished inspecting the security room, the Chief led them back to the Wellside Room.
This time, he seemed to slow down his pace as if he wanted more time with them.
"Are you two wondering why you saw the Mizuhanome cockpit first? It is related to your new job positions," the Chief muttered slowly, "I will tell you two your new job titles, but not until you answer a few more questions."
A few more questions. But Akihito and Momoki were finally getting briefed on their new job now. They just needed to answer a few more questions.
The Chief first turned towards Akihito and started patting his shoulder. Then he began to ask his question:
"Narihisago-san, do you wish to protect your loved ones?"
The answer seemed obvious.
"Of course, I do. I would do anything to protect my family."
"Anything?"
"Yes."
Then the Chief turned towards Momoki and touched his shoulder as well, this time holding unto it firmly instead of patting his shoulder like he did with Akihito.
"Momoki-san, do you wish to lead?"
Did the Chief anticipate anything from him? It sounded like something Matsuoka would say. Momoki felt perplexed by the question.
"Lead what, Chief Hayaseura?"
"Lead a team, Momoki-san. Your skills and leadership potential are exceptional. Guide everybody to your vision. To become a leader."
It sure sounded like a typical generic motivation phrase that any company would spout at their employees. Momoki thought for a moment before answering. Maybe it was best just to go along with it.
"Yes, Chief Hayaseura."
The Chief smiled back and hugged the two of them.
"Congratulations, Narihisago-san and Momoki-san. You two are chosen as the Mizuhanome Pilot and the Director of Kura."
A few weeks later, the Kura sector had begun testing again. The Chief then selected some field analysts so that the main Kura staff could communicate with other organizations and sectors from the outside. Momoki was waiting by the Wellside Room, hoping that Akihito was fine being chosen as the Mizuhanome Pilot.
Since the revelation, the main Kura staff members had reacted enthusiastically to their promotion and their new job positions and were trying to help them get the hang of their work as well. Togo had arrived later and was surprised to see Momoki there too. Everything seemed new and refreshing, especially with a full main team now for Kura.
Momoki looked up to see someone walking closer towards him. His face looked familiar.
"Congratulations on becoming the Director of Kura, Momoki-san."
He turned around to see Matsuoka and someone shorter that was close to him. It was Hondomachi. Their small team of field analysts had been briefed by the Chief after Akihito and Momoki had their job positions announced.
Momoki shook his head from Matsuoka's response and turned away from them.
"Why are you being so gloomy, Momoki-san?" Matsuoka muttered, "Isn't this good news? You're finally getting a leadership role for once."
"I-It's okay, Matsuoka-san," Momoki replied back, with his arms crossed, "I'm more concerned about Narihisago being chosen as the Mizuhanome Pilot. He hasn't been tested yet and we haven't seen any other candidates show up either."
"Well, isn't he being tested now, Momoki-san? The Mizuhanome is still in its testing stages before we officially get offered a case after all. Just give Narihisago-san some time to adjust."
Then, Hondomachi waved her hands at Momoki. She had wanted to see Akihito after so long but had gotten scolded and punished by Matsuoka for her actions at the Face Lifter case. The two of them immediately stopped talking once they realized that Hondomachi wanted to say something.
So Hondomachi tried to speak.
"Momoki-san, I'm sure it will be fine. Narihisago-san has accepted his role as a Mizuhanome Pilot, but we would still have to observe him in case he had any side effects…"
"NARIHISAGO ISN'T A GUINEA PIG!"
"Calm down, Momoki-san. They probably already have the basics tested already. Narihisago-san will be fine," Matsuoka said, holding his arms up in defense, "There must be a reason why he was chosen compared to all the other detective candidates out there."
Momoki sighed and felt regret for getting angry with Matsuoka and Hondomachi. It wasn't their fault nor cause for concern. He was now the leader of a different sector, and it was not like a usual police job. He had to be secretive with what he was doing and what he was showing to the public.
Then an announcement suddenly turned on.
"CALLING FOR DIRECTOR MOMOKI TO GO INTO THE WELLSIDE ROOM ON THE 7TH FLOOR. PLEASE COME IN FOR THE TESTING OF PILOT NARIHISAGO."
"It seems to be calling for you, Momoki-san," Hondomachi muttered, "Matsuoka-san and I will be on the 2nd floor of the Wellside Room looking over everything."
Momoki waved at Matsuoka and Hondomachi as they left the Wellside Room and went towards a different floor so that they could observe from a different room. He caught his breath and slowly walked into the Wellside Room.
The room that he would spend most of his time testing with this new machine.
Momoki looked up to see all the main Kura staff in their seated positions. They had done most of their training, but still hadn't had a chance to test the Mizuhanome with a pilot before. Seemed like they were just as new to the technology as he was.
"Is everyone in position?" Momoki said as he looked up and around himself. Togo was next to him, inspecting the 3-D model of the well that Akihito was going to go into. Just a simple testing well to see how he would function.
"YES." Said everyone in unison.
"I'm sorry to repeat this again, but can everyone say their roles again? I still need to take time to remember everyone's names and job titles…"
Funetaro Momoki, the Director of Kura.
Sarina Togo, the General Analyst and Assistant Director of Kura.
Kazuo Wakashika, the Interpreter of Kura.
Masamune Habutae, the Human Resources/People Analyst of Kura.
Sennosuke Shiratake, the Crime Scene/Location Analyst of Kura.
Shirou Kokufu, the assistant to the Assistant Director of Kura.
And finally, …
Akihito Narihisago, the Chosen Mizuhanome Pilot of Kura.
Suddenly, a speaker from inside the Wellside Room turned on. After a couple of noises and volume adjustments, the Chief came up from the speaker to talk to Momoki and Akihito from their different locations.
"Momoki-san and Narihisago-san, today we will be testing the two of you officially in this testing well. I hope that everything will go well for you, so take your time adjusting to the new sector…"
"I have been doing fine, Chief Hayaseura," Momoki responded, "I have been working with others on making sure the Mizuhanome will be safe to use on Narihisago…"
Then, another muffled voice came up from the speaker. It seemed to be from Akihito's communication system from inside the Mizuhanome cockpit room.
"Momoki, I'm here," Akihito said back, "Chief Hayaseura had mentioned that I would forget who I am when I dive into a well, so I'm not sure how it will go…"
"You forget who you are? Who do you become then?"
"From what I have read from the Kura documents, it seems like I would become a different person. I would take on a persona…"
"A-Are you fine with this, Narihisago?"
Momoki then heard more muffling again before Akihito tried to respond back. After a few crackling noises, he went up online again.
"There seems to be some sort of person I'll have to meet when I dive in as well. Think the name was Kaeru. I'm not sure if it will be an actual frog, because they already seem too small to see even in real life…"
After a few more chitchats between Momoki and Akihito through the speakers and communication systems, it was time for the testing. Everyone got their positions ready and made sure that Akihito was connected properly through the Mizuhanome cockpit from a different floor.
Now it was time for the Mizuhanome dive.
Momoki closed his eyes, praying that Akihito would be fine and come out unscathed by this new technology. He would have to do more research on Kura and the Mizuhanome so that he could keep his friend safe.
"INJECTING PILOT NARIHISAGO NOW."
.
..
…
…..
In an instant, Momoki saw something lit up on the 3-D virtual map inside the well. It seemed to be a figure of a person waking up from slumber. He called for everyone to inspect the speculated location of the well and the mysterious person inside the well. Habutae went up and showed Momoki the person that they were seeing.
The man looked just like Akihito, with his spiky pink hair sticking out and his green eyes glittering off from the reflection of the well's interior. He wore a long brown trench coat, wearing a lighter shirt and a black undershirt. He wore large flared black shorts, followed by black leggings and trainers. But the most noticeable feature of this person was his very visible yellow scarf that was wrapped around his neck.
"He really does look like Narihisago…" Momoki muttered to himself.
"We're getting a read on his speech patterns, Momoki-san," said Wakashika, "Do you want to hear it?"
"Show it, Wakashika-san."
The speech played out like a detective game, as if to solve a mystery. The man with Akihito's face walked all over the well and seemed to be looking for something. Then in an instant, he stopped in his tracks once he spotted something.
It looked like a little girl, who seemed to be dead for some time. Her body was covered with her own blood.
"Kaeru-chan. I don't know her, but I know my own name now. My name is Sakaido. I don't have a last name, but no matter. My name is Sakaido and I am here to solve the mystery of Kaeru-chan's death."
But Momoki spotted something even more familiar.
"A-Asukai-san?"
Kaeru looked just like Kiki.