Chapter Four "A Tohsaka Visit"
"Shirou-niisan!" Kazuto and Suguha cheered at the sight of Shirou.
Suguha threw herself at Shirou and hugged him. "Shirou-oniisan, can you teach me too!" She asked with glowing eyes, imagining the effects of learning under Shirou after seeing what Kazuto had been able to do. "If you cannot, what about introducing me to the Tiger of Fuyuki? I heard rumors that you are good friends with her."
"Sorry, Sugu, but I cannot find the time to teach you right now. I am very busy with several things that have come up recently." Shirou replied as he shook his head and affectionately rubbed Suguha's head. "As for… Taiga… Good friends is a great understatement. Just as I am an older brother figure to you and Kazuto, Taiga Fujimura is the same to me. She is an older sister to me." Shirou chuckled. "If you are willing to tolerate the yakuza then I would be happy to introduce you to Fuji-nee."
"What does the yakuza have to do with the Tiger of Fuyuki?" Suguha asked as she frowned in confusion.
"Taiga Fujimura's nickname, the Tiger of Fuyuki, isn't just used to describe her reputation as a kendo practitioner, but also related to her reputation as a yakuza boss." Kazuto explained.
"No way! How can the Tiger of Fuyuki be involved with the yakuza!?" Suguha shouted in disbelief.
Shirou smiled in an awkward manner. "Kazuto isn't wrong about Fuji-nee being a yakuza boss. She is one of the very few female yakuza bosses. Although don't let the stereotypical image of the yakuza get to you. Fuji-nee and the yakuza group she leads are more like vigilantes, operating in the grey area of the law where the police may not want to be in or cannot enforce."
"Really?" Suguha eyed Shirou suspiciously then she sighed. "You would never lie, Shirou-oniisan. So I would love to meet the Tiger of Fuyuki when I get the chance!"
"I will let Fuji-nee know that you're interested in meeting her." Shirou replied with a smile. "By the way, don't ever use the word Tiger with her. It really triggers her…" He laughed nervously. "Anyway, Kazuto, I have someone I would like you to meet."
"Hello, Kazuto-san, my name is Sakura Tohsaka," A girl introduced herself as she entered the Kirigaya family dojo. "Shirou-senpai asked me to help regarding your situation."
"What situation is that?" Suguha chimed in, feeling as if there was something interesting going on and she was the one left out.
"Your brother, Kazuto-san, wants help with his school studies and preparation for the college exams and Shirou-senpai got me to help out." Sakura explained.
"Sakura here works as a scientific researcher at the University of Tokyo." Shirou added.
Suguha stared at Kazuto in disbelief as if he had transformed into a monster. "Onii-san wants help studying from someone working for the University of Tokyo?!" She shouted in shock.
"Is Kazuto-san wanting help studying that unbelievable?" Sakura asked curiously.
"Yea!" Suguha vigorously nodded her head. "He is a fanatic gamer and computer geek. Nothing else interests him."
"That isn't true. Don't over-exaggerate that I only like playing games and my passion for computers!" Kazuto complained. "Sugu, can I let you handle cleaning up the dojo by yourself? I would like to talk to Shirou-niisan and Tohsaka-san in my room."
"Sure~! No problem." Suguha chirped happily at the thought that her brother might transform into someone serious about his school studies. "Please take care of my brother, Tohsaka-san."
"Of course, it is a pleasure to help Kazuto-san." Sakura replied with a smile.
"Follow me," said Kazuto as he led the way.
It was not after that Kazuto was sitting in front of a table with Shirou and Sakura.
"So, Shirou-niisan, how could Tohsakasan help exactly?" Kazuto asked curiously as he eyed Sakura.
"My specialty in magecraft lies in three fields; intelligence gathering, fighting and making Mystic Codes. Sakura here is much more knowledgeable and capable than me in all disciplines of magecraft outside my specialty." Shirou replied.
"Shirou-senpai was originally going to ask my older sister, Rin Tohsaka, for help as she is the most knowledgeable and capable mage that he knows. In fact, she is one of the best mages in the world. Sadly, Nee-san is unavailable as she just took a new apprentice under her wing and is busy treating what is currently incurable with non-magical medicine." Sakura explained. "I will try to help to the best of my abilities. So can you explain everything to me from the start. Shirou-senpai did a good job in filling me in, but there might be things he didn't know or forgot to inform me."
"Understood, Tohsaka-san." Kazuto nodded and he started explaining everything from the start as requested by Sakura.
After several minutes of explaining, Sakura remained silent as she took in the information.
"Can you please hand me the NerveGear? The memory manipulation that you described is not possible to my knowledge without special gear being used on someone." Sakura responded.
"Give me a second," said Kazuto as he reached for the NerveGear. "Here it is."
"Thank you," Sakura nodded as she took the helmet.
"So what do you think? I have already checked out the NerveGear and didn't find anything unusual." Shirou asked as he saw Sakura investigate the NerveGear.
"You probably didn't notice it, Senpai, but the NerveGear is a Mystic Code. One that I have only heard about existing in theory and lots of precautions had been taken to hide its true nature." Sakura placed the helmet down on the table. "Senpai, what do you know about the Soul Translator or Fluctlight?"
"No, I haven't." Shirou shook his head. "What are they?"
Kazuto nodded too. He was really curious about what Sakura was about to say regarding the Soul Translator and Fluctlight. The magecraft world might be something he had just entered and had little knowledge of. Thus, he had an insatiable thirst for information.
"Well what I know was supposed to be only a theory," said Sakura as she glanced at the NerveGear, "but it seems that is no longer the case." She took a moment to recollect her thoughts before continuing. "Fluctlight is a light particle that acts as a quantum unit of the mind — exists within the microtubules of a nerve cell. Many theoretical mage researchers specializing in the brain hypothesis that it is the physical component, the very thing that anchors the human soul to the human body, of the human consciousness."
"Last time I checked the prevalent theory regarding the human consciousness or mind was that the brain was the hardware and soul was the software of the human mind/consciousness. Has that changed recently with this theory of the Fluctlight?" Shirou asked while frowning.
Sakura shook her head. "That commonly accepted view hasn't changed amongst the average mage, but the idea of Fluctlight has been gaining attention with mages specializing in the brain, mind and soul as of late."
"So, what about the Soul Translator?" Kazuto inquired.
"The Soul Translator was supposed to be a machine that interacts with an individual's Fluctlight. A very fine-tooled machine used for reading the signals of the brain and soul." Sakura continued explaining. "Given that you have told me about your player avatar's false memories, knowledge of magecraft that you never possessed before and gained through playing a video game, I believe the Soul Translator, in this case the Nerve Gear, is capable of memory manipulation."
Shirou took in the information and asked, "What makes the NerveGear so different from other Mystic Codes specializing in memory manipulation?"
"The Soul Translator is magnitudes times more powerful than the regular memory manipulation Mystic Code to have caused Kazuto's marked physical improvements that he had noticed during his sparring with Suguha. Only incredibly powerful memory manipulation Mystic Codes have been known to cause such a magical phenomenon." Sakura replied.
"So, should I be worried? I got the feeling that my NerveGear has the potential to do some serious harm." Kazuto asked nervously as he glanced at his NerveGear.
"The NerveGear can easily seriously injure or kill you if such a command was given." Sakura spoke in a nonchalant tone.
"What?!" Kazuto shouted with wide eyes. "If that is true, why are you so calm, Tohsaka-san!"
"That is due to Akihiko Kayaba's reputation." Shirou chimed in. "The man is powerful and smart, but what is most well known about him is his sincerity and thoughtfulness. His ruthlessness only appears when pushed into a situation where there are no other solutions, but force to uphold the laws and regulations of a Post-Mage Reformation world. I doubt he would ever use the NerveGear's destructive abilities unless forced into a dire circumstance such as to prevent magecraft from becoming common knowledge to non-mages."
Sakura nodded in agreement. This placed Kazuto at ease. He had been concerned about Akihiko triggering the NerveGear's destructive potential. Still, he didn't feel completely at ease yet.
"Can you modify the NerveGear so no one can harm me with it?" Kazuto asked nervously, fearing that it would not be possible without compromising the NerveGear's functions.
"I could try, but this is outside my field. My specialty as a Mystic Code maker is making older and traditional Mystic Codes. Simple electronic-based Mystic Codes are something I can work with, but not the Nerve Gear. It is a very complex and delicate machine. I would likely damage the NerveGear's components and compromise its functions." Shirou replied. "Do you still want me to try?"
Kazuto was conflicted inside for a moment. The NerveGear was a very expensive machine that had cost him quite a bit, but money wasn't the largest issue. It was the fact that there was an incredible limited supply of NerveGears that no amount of money could buy without connections, which Kazuto didn't possess.
"If the NerveGear gets damaged then we can easily replace it. Shirou-senpai's connections are not involved with NerveGear, but I am sure my connections do." Sakura added as if reading Kazuto's mind.
"Not, your connections but those of your sister's." Shirou corrected Sakura. "Though, Sakura is right. The Tohsaka family connections are involved in many industries and getting a new NerveGear wouldn't be a problem for them."
"That's good to hear." Kazuto sighed. "What about the software? It is good to disable the NerveGear components that could be used to hurt me, but what if we miss a component."
"That is why Sakura is here. She is a rather skilled hacker and went by pseudonym, BB, during her rebellious teenage years." Shirou said in a teasing tone as he glanced at Sakura.
"Senpai! Please don't remind me of those embarrassing years of my life!" Sakura complained loudly as she blushed and she playfully hammered Shirou with her fists before calming down. "Ahem…" She coughed. "I should be able to disable any programs in the NerveGear's software to prevent anyone from harming you through the NerveGear."
The two older adults then got to work modifying the NerveGear so that no one could harm Kazuto when he was using it. Shirou placed his hand on the physical shell of the NerveGear as he began his modification while Sakura closed her eyes as her consciousness dived into the NerveGear's programming.
While Kazuto was a fledgling mage in the real world, he knew enough to guess what Shirou was doing. If he was right Shirou should be using the magic spells, Alteration and Reinforcement. The effects of the two magic spells were evident in their name so Kazuto could mentally imagine the sight of the NerveGear's component's physically altering on a microscopic level.
What Sakura was doing was a bit more difficult for Kazuto to understand. His little knowledge of magecraft he knew was more suited to the fantasy-setting of Magecraft Online or the days before real life magecraft had been like before the invention of electronics. Although, he could imagine that instead of a computer it was Sakura's mind connected to the NerveGear and altering its software like a programmer would on a computer.
For the next several minutes, Kazuto watched in fascination as he tried to learn what Shirou and Sakura were doing through his magical senses. Sadly, there wasn't a lot he could learn as his knowledge of magecraft was too shallow to understand everything the two adults were doing.
"So how was it? Did everything go smoothly?" Kazuto asked as Shirou and Sakura finished their work nearly at the same time.
"It went without a hitch. Although it took much longer than I would have with any other Mystic Code of similar complexity as I have never modified such a complex and delicate electronic-based Mystic Code." Shirou replied.
Sakura;s eyes gleamed as she responded. "The NerveGear's firewall and antivirus program was the most difficult thing I have ever tried to hack. My skills as a Spirit Hacker might be rusty, but no ordinary hacker or software-specialized mage get past the NerveGear's electronic defenses."
"So were you able to modify the NerveGear's software?" Kazuto asked in a slightly anxious tone.
"I felt the urge to quit several times, but I was able to delete any programs that could turn the NerveGear into a weapon." Sakura smiled triumphantly. "So, you don't have to worry about anyone ever harming you through the NerveGear."
"Thank you for your hard work, Shirou-niisan and Tohsaka-san," said Kazuto gratefully as he bowed to them. "I don't have to worry about being harmed through the NerveGear anymore."
"If you don't mind, can you ask your parents if I can stay over for a while. I wish to monitor you and document the effects of playing Magecraft Online has on you. Before you ask why, I could stay at Shirou-senpai's home, but that would mean I would be further away from you to help if there is any emergency." Sakura spoke in a gentle tone.
"That seems appropriate with the excuse we came up with to justify Sakura's visit. I think it would be easy to convince your parents about letting Sakura stay." Shirou added.
Kazuto nodded, finding no problem with Sakura's request. "I will let my parents know right away."
- O -
"Kirito, what are you doing? You can't stay holed up in your room studying or experimenting forever if you want to save Alice!" Eugeo shouted as he slammed his fist repeatedly into the door leading to Kirito's room.
A groan escaped Kirito's mouth as he was bombarded with the false memories of his player avatar and the loud noises that Eugeo created. If it had been someone else, Kirito would have opened the door, screamed and slammed the door in the individual's face. The problem was that Eugeo wasn't an acquaintance or stranger that he could angrily dismiss.
Thanks to the false memories, Kirito couldn't muster the will to senselessly anger Eugeo for no good reason. Eugeo was one of the very few people that could be trusted and friends according to the false memories. Their ties went back to when they ran away from their village in search of Alice Zuberg, who had been kidnapped, and their life goal of becoming strong enough to rescue Alice from the mage that had kidnapped her.
If Kirito mustered the conviction to ignore the influence of the false memories, he still wouldn't anger Eugeo as fostering a similar relationship with another NPC was something that would take time a great deal of time and effort to create.
Kirito messaged his head as he took in the false memories of what his avatar had been doing in autonomous mode while he had been logged off while making his way to the door.
"Yo, Eugeo." Kirito greeted as he opened the door. "What happened to cause you to smash your fist against my door?"
"Did you forget our original goal!? We are here to save Alice! The more time passes the larger the difference in our power compared to the mage that kidnapped Alice." Eugeo shouted as his eyes became bloodshot. "Look at the other new apprentices that have just started. Especially Asuna and Argo."
There was a moment of confusion as Kirito failed to remember the names that Eugeo had called out. When Kirito recalled the referred names, it finally clicked as they were the names two girls that Kirito suspected were players like him given their sudden increase in strength, which had been remarkable similar to his own after he had upgraded his Stats.
"Has there been any rumors about me going around? Anything explosive?" Kirito asked while wondering if anyone had been watching him whilst he hunted monsters.
"No. You haven't appeared in the latest rumors." Eugeo replied. He looked around as if to make sure no one was around and wriggled his brows while asking, "Why do you ask? Is it because you did something that might?"
Kirito wondered how he should proceed. If the false memories were a good indication of Eugeo's personality then the boy would never do anything that would be harmful to him. He continued to think for a couple seconds before coming to a decision.
"Come in," said Kirito as he opened the door into his room. "I have something to show you."
"NO WAY!?" Eugeo shouted in disbelief with wide eyes as he stared at neatly arranged collections of what Eugeo recognized came from many of the local monsters. "You couldn't have killed these many monsters, right? I do know you're stronger than most beginner apprentices, but not to this extent that you can do this." He said as he pointed at the dissected monster parts.
"Well, I did. That was why I asked you if there had been any rumors floating around about me." Kirito replied as he smiled. "I don't want to bring any attention to myself, so can you help me sell these parts under your name?"
"I don't why you want to hide your strength, but okay. How can I not help a friend with such a simple task?" Eugeo nodded. "So how do you want to do this? I presume we are not selling everything in one go or that would attract attention that you are trying to avoid."
"Here is what I want to do, and can you act as an intermediary for me to approach Asuna or Argo? I have something that I want from them…"
Was this good, bad or meh? Please tell me what you think. I accept all criticism as long as it is no flaming.