----- I8
There was a little bakery near the port, where old Mrs. Yamaiwa sold various produce to earn herself a living. Freshly baked bread could always be smelt in the small yet busy shop where the locals would come for their next supply of home baked wonder. Mrs. Yamaiwa was truly an amazing cook.
But footsteps outside was the only activity the bakery had heard for a long time. Shadows cast through the dirty windows was the only change the dusty floor had seen. And when the door was kicked in, landing with a thud on the floor, the first customers since the evacuation were met with an empty shop. A dead shop.
"There's nothing here..." Yumiko said in desperation. She was getting more and more annoyed with this. Shogo still hadn't found a shop with anything useful in. Of course, the only obvious place to go for what they wanted was the clinic, and that was already out of bounds.
"Just look." Shogo ordered. "There might be something."
Yumiko stared around. There were some shelves, but the only things on them were empty glass jars. The display cabinets were empty, and even the till was broken open and desolate. There was another door, probably leading to a back entrance rather than another room, and even if it did, Yumiko doubted there'd be anything there. "This is beginning to feel like a dead end, Shogo. If we don't get anywhere soon then I need to find Yukiko."
"You two arn't together are you?"
Yumiko's head snapped up. "Have you always been this charming?" she asked bitterly.
Shogo smiled. "Some things never change."
Yumiko was about to say something back when she realised Shogo had frozen. "What?" she asked.
He shook his head and raised a finger to his lips to signal silence. Yumiko nodded that she understood uncertainly.
And then she heard it. A gunshot. Close.
-----
Thankfully for Tatsumichi, he was good enough at track to be able to keep a good distance between himself and Hirono. Unfortunately, she had two guns, and he didn't.
No fair! No fair! Gang up on the new kid!
Tatsumichi wasn't the kind of guy who got scared. When something bad happened, you just got over it and got the #$ on with it. Life won't live itself, that's what Tatsumichi had always believed. But there was something about being chased by someone shooting at you that was enough to make anyone scared shitless.
Tatsumichi was nearing a corner of a street. As he flew around the corner, a bullet exploded onto the brick wall beside him. Hirono was close behind, and the bitch was getting better aim all the time!
Now he wasn't just scared. He was pissed off too. How the #$ dare she? If I had a gun too, I'd #$ show her!
He had to find somewhere to hide soon. Hirono wasn't showing any signs of giving up! Damn, she's faster than she looks!
-----
Shogo whirled around, and as he did so, something fell out of his pocket. He didn't notice as he raced to the door with his shotgun.
Yumiko stooped down to pick up the crumpled piece of paper on the floor. She unfolded it, and gasped. The first thing she noticed was the corner.
One of the corners had a picture of a butterfly on it.
"I hope you like it!" Yukiko said eagerly.
Yumiko smiled. "I'm sure I will!"
She undid the neatly tied ribbon and pulled away the wrapping paper. Inside was a cute little desk set. A pad of paper, a pencil and pen, pencil sharpener and eraser. All of them had a picture of a butterfly on it.
"I wasn't sure what to get, sorry!" Yukiko explained bashfully. "But I saw it... and it was so pretty. So elegant and practical too! It reminded me of you."
Yumiko smiled, her eyes wide. "Thank you Yukiko, it's wonderful!"
"Shogo?" Yumiko said, her voice at normal volume, yet extremely forceful.
"Shh!" Shogo replied.
"Shogo!" Yumiko cried.
He swung around. "Quiet! If they hear you, they'll come here next! Do you want to die?"
"Do you?" she replied with gritted teeth, holding up the sheet of paper.
Shogo seemed unable to respond for a moment. "I had to" he replied.
"No you didn't..." Yumiko shrieked. "You bastard!"
"OK, but I need to leave them a note. In case they come back to look for me." Yumiko said.
"Fine" Shogo said. "But try make sure it won't give away where we're going to anyone who stumbles across it."
"I'll try." Yumiko replied. She didn't know how she could write it so only Yukiko and Yoji would understand it, but she was the type of person who wouldn't give up just because something looked difficult.
"Y and Y,
Leave the shrine where Hardcore came in and keep going that direction. We've gone shopping.
Y"
It sounded really stupid, and she would have felt better if she'd made it more obvious, but it would have to do.
She wandered out of the shrine in the direction Shogo had gone. He was standing on the stairs that Souma had chased them up only the night before.
"You done?" he asked.
She nodded. "Yeah, left it with our kit bags."
Shogo nodded. "I need to take a leek. I'll be back in a min."
And with that, he walked towards a group of bushes to one side of the shrine. Yumiko quickly looked around. They were alone. All she could do was wait for Shogo to finish...
"You went back and took it!" Yumiko cries through tears of anger. "This whole time you've been bullshitting me!"
Shogo shook his head defiantly. "Think about it! I couldn't afford people following us! You might trust them but I don't! Too many of us would be inconspicuous! We'd never be able to escape!"
"You don't know!" Yumiko shrieked. "You never tried!"
"It was in your best interests!" he shouted back.
"How can I believe that? How can I believe anything you say? You betrayed my trust Shogo! You were probably going to wait to the end and kill me then!"
"Think this through Yumiko!"
"Shogo!"
There was something about the tone of Yumiko's voice, and the look in her eyes that had been different as she screamed his name. She didn't sound angry, or confused. She sounded scared. She was warning him...
Shogo realised too late.
There was a horrible feeling of intense jabbing pain in his right shoulder. He faltered and dropped the shotgun as Tatsumichi leaped past and into the shop.
Tatsumichi knew he had to disable everyone who was there quickly before he could finish them off. He had to get a gun. Shoot the bitch! Shoot the bitch! Shoot all the fuckers before they shoot you! Life won't live itself!
There was a girl. Tatsumichi darted forward, and then stopped dead in his tracks.
Yumiko had shrunk into a corner of the stop, her hands raised defensively and her face alive with fear.
Tatsumichi gaped. "You?"
Yumiko looked shocked. Of course, that was hardly the reaction she'd been expecting. "What?"
Tatsumichi looked panicked now. Almost like he wasn't sure what to do, whereas before, the malicious look on his face had been intense.
Yumiko glanced over at Shogo in panic, hoping he wasn't badly hurt.
On the contrary, he had already raised up the shotgun in his left hand, and was about to fire.
Yumiko knew that Tatsumichi had attacked them to kill. She'd seen the same look in Mitsuko's eyes as she ascended those stone stairs after them. Some people had to die, for the good of others. That's what she was being led to believe. Mitsuko had to be killed. Tatsumichi too.
Or was that the program? That's exactly what they wanted people to think! That wasn't justice! That was just an excuse for people to win! People like Shogo Kawada, the back stabbing liar!
What was it Yukiko had said? i>"None of us should have to kill!" /i> She had been right. There's always a choice! Always!
Enough!
"Down!" she screeched, reaching out and pulling Tatsumichi towards her. They fell on top of each other on the floor as the shotgun bullet fired into a shelf above them, an empty glass jar exploding and showering the shop floor in glass.
"Yumiko!" Shogo cried in alarm. "What the hell are you doing!"
"Stop!" Yumiko shouted back. "No more killing!"
Tatsumichi couldn't see the machete. He had no idea where it had gone when he'd been pulled to the ground by Yumiko. Saved my life... she saved my life...
All in all, he was now in a state of utter confusion. He didn't know what to do, what to say, or anything! Everyone was taking pot shots at him except Yumiko. Her and Shogo seemed to be enemies, so what were they doing together? And where the hell was...
Yumiko screamed.
Hirono had appeared, walking calmly past the shop window towards the door, two guns raised in her hands and a sickening look on her face. Almost like enjoyment.
"Shoot her!" Tatsumichi cried out to Shogo.
"No!" Yumiko cried. "No killing!"
Angrily, she jumped forward, pulling the shotgun from Shogo's hand. Though he was stronger than her, he was wounded, and she could use both hands. "Yumiko, don't be crazy!"
Hirono was already in the doorway.
Yumiko wasn't sure what the hell to do. She didn't know if she could fire a shotgun. Her hand wasn't even on the trigger! There was no time.
Yumiko closed her eyes and screamed as a gun fired.
She gasped as the shotgun recoiled in her grasp. Looking up to the doorway, she saw Shogo crouching, trying to get the grenades from his bag. There was blood, more blood, and she couldn't see Hirono.
Next, she turned to look down at the shotgun itself. Her hands were still clasped around the barrel. But there was another hand. Tatsumichi's arm was around her waist, his hand on the trigger. Hirono was no where to be seen. There was blood...
"What happened?" Yumiko shouted at him.
"She's wounded, she pulled back." he replied quickly.
Yumiko nodded, and stood up shakily, running for the door she had originally assumed would lead to a back entrance. Tatsumichi got up too, following after her like a lost puppy as she pulled the door open and ran through.
It lead to an alley way at the back of the shop. With the shotgun in hand, Yumiko sprinted for one end. Tatsumich ran after her. "What about Shogo?"
"He can take care of himself!" Yumiko shouted angrily, the tears of anger once again flowing down her cheeks.
She'd been used. He'd wanted her around just so he could win it himself, and she'd been letting him do it. She wasn't too thrilled about Tatsumichi following her, but at least he seemed to have lost his weapon.
Yumiko liked to think of herself as a nice person, but as she left the alley, and continued down another road, running as fast as she could, she didn't feel even the slightest amount of guilt for leaving Shogo. He'd taken her away from Yukiko, and now it was up to her to find her again.
-----
Shogo had seen Yumiko and the other kid run through the door. It was probably inevitable. Yumiko had fought him every inch of the way, and a little misunderstanding and she was ready to run. Give herself back to the game. He had obviously over estimated her. He was better off without her. She'd only have got him killed.
And that other kid following her. He wasn't sorry to see him go either. He didn't think Yumiko would survive long. If you were willing to ally with people who were trying to kill you, that was generally a bad sign. Shogo knew what it was like to play. He knew what it felt like, and Yumiko didn't.
She'd get no where without his experience! She'd regret it later!
"Damn it" Shogo muttered as he pulled the pin of the grenade out with his teeth. His right arm was completely immobile. No matter. He could still aim well enough with his left.
And there she was again, the spiky haired girl, coming back for more. She'd probably just ducked around the corner to regain her strength after that wound. Shot in the lower left arm or something. Not that it mattered to him. Shogo would soon take her out.
He raised his left hand.
She saw too soon for him. Quickly, she raised her guns and fired at Shogo's left arm. Shogo cried out in pain as the bone smashed and muscles ripped. It fell flimsily to his side, totally useless just like his right.
The grenade fell neatly into his lap. He stared down at it, already knowing that the spiky haired girl would have run for it.
So it came down to this? How pathetic. Shogo thought he could do better than that. He'd won before, and this time he had experience. He should have gotten to the end at least, if not won again. He was supposed to beat the system! Supposed to make someone escape!
That would be the ultimate revenge for Keiko. She wouldn't have wanted him blowing up government buildings or assassinating the leaders. She hated the violence. No, he would bring the program through granting someone else the ability to survive it. The program would have been beaten. Keiko would have been avenged.
Not anymore. Now it was over. Just like that...
Keiko... I'm sorry...
Hirono was far away enough by now to stop running. As soon as she did, almost as if on cue, she heard the grenade explode somewhere behind her. She didn't know where the ugly new kid or the Kusaka dyke had got to, but she had more important worries than them now.
It was just a scrape. Sure, she'd love to believe that, but it was a little large to be a scratch. Quite a bit of skin and tissue were gone from her lower left arm. She supposed she should be thankful it had missed the bone. She had no doubt shotguns could do a lot of damage, especially at that range.
Sure, she was so lucky. That didn't make it any less crap.
There was a lot of blood... it probably looked worse than it was. The clinic was nearby but in a danger zone. It was possible someone had got supplies from the clinic and moved on elsewhere. It would take too long to search the residential area, so Hirono decided to go and check the sightseeing association. It was worth the chance.
"This just isn't turning out to be a good day." she mumbled as she glanced at her watch. Huh, nearly time for the report.
BOYS
#1 Yoshio Akamatsu
#2 Keita Iijima
#3 Tatsumichi Ooki
#4 Toshinori Oda
#5 Shogo Kawada
#6 Kazuo Kiriyama
#7 Yoshitoki Kuninobu
#8 Yoji Kuramoto
#9 Hiroshi Kuronaga
#10 Ryuhei Sasagawa
#11 Hiroki Sugimura
#12 Yutaka Seto
#13 Yuichiro Takiguchi
#14 Shou Tsukioka
#15 Shuuya Nanahara
#16 Kazushi Niida
#17 Mitsuru Numai
#18 Tadakatsu Hatagami
#19 Shinji Mimura
#20 Kyouichi Motobuchi
#21 Kazuhiko Yamamoto
GIRLS
#1 Mizuho Inada
#2 Yukie Utsumi
#3 Megumi Etou
#4 Sakura Ogawa
#5 Izumi Kanai
#6 Yukiko Kitano
#7 Yumiko Kusaka
#8 Kayoko Kotohiki
#9 Yuko Sakaki
#10 Hirono Shimizu
#11 Mitsuko Souma
#12 Haruka Tanizawa
#13 Takako Chigusa
#14 Mayumi Tendou
#15 Noriko Nakagawa
#16 Yuka Nakagawa
#17 Satomi Noda
#18 Fumiyo Fujiyoshi
#19 Chisato Matsui
#20 Kaori Minami
#21 Yoshimi Yahagi
31 to go