Unneeded

by TheAnimeTrain

The B-Rank Wars have finished and Border's members begin to settle back into their routines however they can. Along with this comes the appearance of new faces along with old ones. Unseen by them all, those who remain unneeded continue to move around.

6. Preparation

The first thing Senshi noticed after their collective shout was that both Yuki and Ninomiya were in a state where neither one of them knew how to react to the Shitokei parents.

Ninomiya made sense with the way he was as a person, but seeing Yuki freeze up and blush at their words had been something he never saw before. It was refreshing to see that kind of thing from the both of them.

I think it means things are going well.

He found it hard to understand these sorts of things when other people felt them, but he had the knowledge of what it felt like for himself. Using that information, he thought he knew what the two of them were feeling right now.

It must have been different for them since they were being told they had become part of a family, but he figured that just meant they were experiencing something greater than he had.

770: "My 'SenSen is being adorable' senses went off. What's going on?"

Taicchi: "Oh, I was feeling the same thing! Is SenSen-san having fun somewhere!?"

Yes: "What kind of senses are those? It's weird to know the two of you have these things when it comes to a single person."

Inu: "I have Shiro senses."

Decoy: "Hanzaki and I can tell when something's up with Daigo, if that counts for anything."

Black Wolf: "I have 'idiot senses' whenever Yuki is doing something stupid."

Rampage Dress: "The same applies to me."

White Fox: "Hey! I might do anything to Mei, but I'll sure as hell beat the crap out of you, Kō!"

Honest Sister: "Heh heh. Thank you all for this honestly great material."

Some people shuddered while others grinned at their phones. Senshi himself couldn't properly understand their reactions, but he understood that the situation had just gotten dangerous for certain people.

The ones least concerned about the situation were the ones on offense as well as...

"Here, here! Try some of this, Michelle-chan! It's something we got while over in Spain!"

"It's called a churro and is very sweet! The dough is knotted here, so you can even twist it around so see what happens!"

"We did it before and it had more cinnamon in it! Isn't that great! There are so many things to learn about these sorts of things!"

Michelle could only nod with her hands on either side of her face. Her cheeks were filled as a smile played on her lips, more focused on eating the treat than anything going on around her.

Senshi looked at the stick of dough in the Shitokei mother's hand and saw that drops of cinnamon were coming off of it as she waved it in the air. The amount that was there felt like it was a bit excessive, but there had always been people who enjoyed those sorts of things.

He heard a hum and looked over to see Kurauchi with his eyebrow raised.

"Is something wrong, Kazuki?"

"Not really. I was only wondering what they made that out of. It looks like it has too much cinnamon on it."

So even he had noticed that too.

A sense of pride welled up inside when he realized that he and Kurauchi had thought the same thing about the foreign treat.

But there was someone there who could manage to explain it well enough.

"That might just be how they made it, wherever they got it from. Not always do they have covered like that," Seiji said.

Senshi and Kurauchi looked over to see him smiling at the sight before them.

"Oh? So you know about those treats too?"

"That's right, I do. Because of filming in different locations, and for different situations, I actually got to travel a bit myself. I mean, I'm not originally from Mikado City to begin with."

They had known he was from outside the city, but no one ever really questioned it.

But now...

"Don't worry. I'm from Inagi."

At least they knew that much now.

"But I have had these sorts of treats before." He gestured towards the churros that the Shitokei mother was holding. She may have seen it as him asking for some since she handed him one, getting a thanks in return. "Churros can be either thin or knotted, so adding anything else really depends on how they make the dough. They can even be long and thick. ...Hitomi-san, please put your pen down. They can be eaten for breakfast dipped in champurrado, hot chocolate, dulce de leche or café con leche. All of which relate to chocolate or milk in some way. Cinnamon sugar is usually added on, but like I said: it really depends on where you end up getting it from. The way to make them isn't too hard, but I feel like telling anyone here would cause a mess. So why don't you all just send me a direct message to let me know."

At least half of the people there were quick to begin typing.

Hitomi could be seen writing something down, but they ignored her for the time being.

"To think that Seiji-kun would be the one to know these things. I full expected someone like Akashi to go on about this."

"If it doesn't involve history, I don't care too much. Oh, but it does give me an idea for my next volume."

"Do you have the current one done for ImMoral yet?"

"Life truly does bring all sorts of issues..."

Hitomi waved him off to talk to Kgami, but he was quick to leap into a dogeza for her help. The sight was something to see, even for him.

His attention was brought back to the two parents who were feeding the small girl that was there.

With Ninomiya currently out of the picture it left one other person to speak up about the situation.

"Um... Please try not to give her too much of that. She can be a bit if a sweets fiend."

It was Minoru.

.

"Aw~ But look at her, Minoru-kun! Isn't she just the cutest little girl you've ever seen!"

"Are you telling me that you don't let her have sweets when she's asks for them!? No, no... Minoru isn't like that. Then that means it's Masataka who holds out! To think, he treats your guys' child like this!"

Hearing those words again, Ninomiya felt himself start up once more. The initial shock of meeting the Shitokei parents had caused him to shut down for a moment, completely ignoring the situation going on around him.

That was a bad decision when he knew the kinds of people he was around.

"Huh? Are you okay, Ninomiya-san?"

"Don't worry, Oshiro. He might just have come to an important realization."

Okay, they weren't all bad. Tsuji and Hogo had actually looked worried about him, even with the sleeping Taiyōko brother between them.

Maybe that one won't be an annoyance.

The faker seemed to still be in shock, so there was no reason to throw his words in that direction.

Instead, he decided to focus on what else was going on.

"Michelle isn't really our child. And her actual parents had already said that she can't have too many sweets after her last dentist appointment."

Everything had been fine enough, but that had been when Michelle was still in Germany with her parents. They were around again, but she was currently under his and Minoru's care.

"Oh, what's the harm? As long as she brushes her teeth well tonight, she should be allowed to eat as much as she wants. Isn't that right, Michelle-chan?"

"Mmhmm!"

"See, she understands. Now have some more! These ones are thinner, so we brought some chocolate to go with them!"

He had wanted to get involved at that one, but there was a level of distance he wanted to keep while he was still getting used to both parents.

To the side he could see the nudist slowly creep over and wondered what would happen.

Maybe I should fire on him?

That would take care of the problem, but it would also start a new one that he didn't think he was ready for.

"Can I get one of those, Shitokei Maman?"

"Of course! We did bring enough for everyone, so feel free to take some of them!"

Even after having Michelle a good amount of them, they still had enough to share with others in the room.

...Just how craz-...intense are these parents?

"Would you like one as well, Masataka-kun? You can enjoy it with your daughter."

"I am fine, thank you. And Michelle is not my daughter."

"But she gives off the same feeling as you do."

What kind of feeling would that be?

Before he could question it, he heard Inukai whisper to the person closest to him. In this case it had been Kitazoe.

"It's probably that they both have the same tendencies."

"So Nino-san acts like a child?"

"I guess you can say that. Look at the way he fights with Yuki."

Kitazoe gave an "o" expression as he took a bit of his churro.

"Inukai, come outside with me for a moment."

He saw Inukai freeze up at his words. The proper response.

"Don't worry, Sumiharu. I will make sure to save one for when you come back! It seems like Ninomiya-san has something important to speak about."

"Shiro, I love you. So why would you do this to me!?"

"H-huh? Oh, um...I-I love you too..."

Was this what others saw when they looked at his relationship with Minoru?

...No. We aren't like that at all. Those two are very much a special case.

Regardless, he had something to do.

Standing up, he moved over to start dragging a lovestruck Inukai out of the room.

.

"Anyways..."

Everyone chose to ignore the duo that had just walked out.

As for Yuki...

"Hah. I guess there's no helping it..."

"Helping what?" Murakami asked, moving closer to him.

Yuki waved his hand, but said nothing more about it.

He looked around the room and his eyes landed on Mukuro for a moment. The position he had taken to sleep had been a cross between laying on Oshiro and stretching on Tsuji. It was kind of funny.

But more than that, it showed him something.

This technically counts as sleeping near me.

That had been something he never got to witness when they were children.

If he was able to do so right now then there was no reason to wake him up.

Instead, he turned his attention towards Mei's parents as they fed Michelle.

"Since I heard it, I'm curious. Minoru, where even are Michelle's parents? I know they came to Mikado City, so I can't really imagine that they wouldn't want her there with them."

"They had said they would be meeting someone from Border and would be out for a while."

"Them being there would make sense. I had thought they were on vacation, so I actually didn't look into it any further than that."

"Why were you even looking into it in the first place?" Arafune asked with a raised brow.

He was looking over from next to Tōma, so it gave Yuki two good targets if they tried to harass Mistuteru through text. For now, he just looked at Arafune with his own brows furrowed.

"Why wouldn't I? Keeping track of these sorts of things is the job for-"

He stopped.

Murakami looked up at him with worry, but he waved him off.

His next words had been meant to express himself as someone unneeded. But that was no longer an issue.

Arafune sighed from his spot.

"I didn't mean the question to be deep. I was just wondering why you were moving so much when your body isn't at its best."

That was what he meant.

"Oh... You don't have to worry about that. I've been feeling better recently."

"Then why are you still in a trion body?"

Yuki clicked his tongue. Of course Arafune would be the one to call him out so casually. The others may have noticed it too, but he was the one who decided to not hold back here.

"And here's another question... When was the last time you were in your real body?"

"Alright, alright. You don't need to lay into me that much, Tetsuji. ...Hah. I'd say it's be around...3 days since I was in my real body. But that's because it's still recovering from when I had to run from everyone."

"That was awhile ago. Why would you still need to heal that? And wouldn't it be better to let it heal while in it?"

"Well, you see..."

"...It's because of your ribs, isn't it?"

Yuki looked away from Minoru.

No, that isn't what I should be doing here.

It may have been too much to deal with, but he made sure to face Minoru properly.

They could now speak freely with each other like this.

"This time it really was my fault," he said. "I had used what I knew about you to escape that time. You ended up hitting me in the ribs."

"So you're want to escape ended up getting you hurt. What an idiot."

"I don't recall you doing much that day, Tetsuji."

"Helping an idiot out isn't in the job description. Regardless of what this nudist is doing."

"Be niiiice, Arafune! I'm just a lonely nudist with no pants to call his own!"

That may have been because he tossed them aside, but Yuki wasn't about to step on that landmine.

Arafune scoffed at the both of them. He lowered his upper body and turned until he was laying on his side, his back facing Yuki.

Hokari moved forward to pat Yuki's shoulder, getting his attention.

"Messing things up for you by getting involved worried him. Trusting you to get things done was all he could do."

"Dammit, Hokari!"

The nudist used this chance to quickly behind Arafune and grope his chest.

Everyone stopped and watched as it happened.

A moment later, they all spoke up.

"Yeah, that seems about right."

.

Ninomiya sighed while walking back into the room. Inukai was directly behind him, but...

"...I am going to pretend that I see none of this."

The nudist was groping Arafune, the faker was watching it with half-lidded eyes, and the Shitokei parents were still feeding Michelle sweets. That part was nice, but they really should limit how much she was being given. Anything more and her parents might have something to say about it.

He took another look around and noticed something. His eye narrowed once they landed back on the faker. No. Sadly, he isn't a faker anymore. He's just your above average idiot. But there was still something different about him from usual.

There's a lot less tension in his body. The usual about for his Side Effect is there, but that's all there is.

All of the tension that normally stuck to him had vanished. Walking into the house, he had been unable to see any of that. Now that the setting was more casual and he was getting relaxed, it became more apparent that he was letting himself go in front of everyone.

It was not just his age group and Shitokei. He was letting himself relax around his brother, Tsuji, and even Ninomiya himself. To do that meant he had no intention of even trying to start a fight here.

"Stop standing there, you idiot airhead. And quit looking at me like that. It's creeping me out."

"Hm. I suppose an idiot would feel that way when he doesn't even realize something about himself."

Instead of continuing their argument, like he had thought, the idiot only rolled his eyes and turned to see Arafune kick the nudist off of him. The next sound was solid, but the nudist seemed fine.

Not wanting to be near that madness, he took a seat next to Minoru. Their hands intertwined before being given a light squeeze.

He looked over to see Minoru's expression lower than before. He was going to question it but was stopped by someone letting out a sigh.

It was the Hogo Squad Operator.

She looked from her captain to the idiot.

"Turn off the Trigger. I want to see how much you screwed yourself over."

"...That isn't really necessary, Kimura."

"Should I be asking your girlfriend for help then?"

The way Shitokei was cracking her knuckles made Ninomiya shudder. He was well aware just how much power was in that small girl's body.

The idiot slowly moved away, but Arafune was quick to hold him in place.

From what he understood of the idiot, he would say that it was nothing worth bothering themselves over. Looking at what he had done to himself had seemed pointless in his eyes and not something others should think about. The only ones who had been able to see such times to their fullest had been Ninomiya, Inukai, Shitokei, and Murakami. And each time...

Hm. Looks like he really has changed.

He would go about it in different ways.

But now it was different. Only a sigh came as a response as he turned off his Trigger.

The idiot's body was swapped out for his real one in an instant. The transfer had been quick and unnoticeable for anyone not used to it. But once it was done, there was a clear difference between the two bodies that made Ninomiya give a deep frown.

.

Kimura saw what she had expected once Yuki turned off his Trigger. The usually youthful, yet sickly face they had always seen looked much more sunken down. Bags could be seen under his eyes with his eyes themselves seeming to be looking at something else. They returned to focus on her as he gave a bitter smile.

"You look like crap," Kageura said from the other side of the room.

"Thanks for the input, you asshole," Yuki said back.

The two flipped each other off and laughed about it a moment later.

Is that just how guys connect?

It must have been special to their group since her captain and Tsuji only tilted their heads.

"Anyways... This is how I am at the moment. My ribs are doing better, but my general illness is still bad."

"Wait, what's going on here?"

Yuki froze for a third time tonight. She couldn't blame him since none of them had expected that response.

"Father, Yuki's body is slowly deteriorating from an incident in the past."

They all understood this was something that happened without them knowing. The delinquent boy he had used to be was in better health, but at some point he had lost that and became who he was now.

Ninomiya and Inukai had turned away, so she figured it had something to do with them. The only other person who might know was Murakami, but she couldn't ask him about it right now.

"...Kiyo-nii has aaaaalways had a weak constitution."

"Oh, you're awake now, Mukuro?"

The younger Taiyōko brother looked at Yuki with tired, but solemn eyes. His head was resting in her captain's lap while his legs were stretched out onto Tsuji's lap. The sight would have probably gotten some of the more cannibalistic ones to say something, but they were all focused on what he had said.

Giving another yawn, the younger Taiyōko brother looked towards the ground before looking back up at his brother.

"From whaaaaat I got before, Kiyo-nii has aaaalways been pretty weak to illnesses aaaand had a hard time fighting against even a simple cooold."

"Unlike my siblings, my body wasn't made to withstand anything too harsh. I didn't need medications, and I was still better off than Nasu, but going overboard always resulted in a trip to the hospital at worst. ...I really was the worst person for them."

"But our paaarents weren't great, so you're fiiine."

Yuki must not have expected that response from the way his eyes widened a bit.

After a moment, he lowered them down into a smile.

"Well, disregarding what kind of parents they were, the fact remains that my body was weak from the start. What happened only made it worse, so it's pretty hard to stay what kind of chance I have right now. That's why I'm pretty glad to end up in this position. ...Even if it took me this long to realize I can get here at all."

"Were your parents bad, Kiyoshi?" Mei's mother asked. "And who exactly is that boy?"

"Oh, right. That's my younger brother. Taiyōko Mukuro."

The way Mei's parents lit up at that told her everything she needed to know.

They managed to suppress their excitement to focus on the conversation they were having.

"And about our parents... They were...very respected by the people of Japan. They were great soldiers and fought for the people they were protecting. That may have been due to where they came from."

But...

"They weren't good parents. That soldier mindset was the only thing they had to go off of, so it reflected in how they raised us. Both our older sister and I bore the brunt of it, but that caused issues for Mukuro and our younger sister. Now...I need to make up for that."

There may not be a need for that, but he would see it that way.

Mukuro looked at his brother with fondness in his eyes, but not the same following look that she had seen once before.

Things had changed for them.

This is proof of that, she thought.

If things had remained the same then the younger brother wouldn't have come or stayed here. He would follow Yuki, yes, but that's all there would be to it.

They had moved on to where they could be their own people while still being related to each other.

"We can say they were bad parents, but we can't blame them for how their children are born. If they had done something during the time the mother was pregnant with Yuki, then maybe, but we just don't know about that. His weak constitution is just a product of his birth."

Hearing Mei speak up again had gained everyone's attention.

She looked over at Yuki with something Kimura could not recognize.

.

"Fuji-chan, the way you say that..."

"I only say it so casually because I have accepted it and plan to do something about it."

That one had caught everyone off guard.

Mei looked from her father to Yuki, an expression of determination etched onto her face. This was something all of them had never seen before.

"Mei, there isn't much-"

"I will find something. ...I will figure something out. Even if I need to speak with annoying people or make compromises...I will find some way to help you."

"You don't need to go that far for me..."

"If I didn't then I wouldn't be able to stay by your side. We wouldn't be equal."

Everyone went quiet at that. Even the dogs had slowed down and Michelle stopped eating.

This was something that needed to come out and they all knew it. After all...

"I won't say I need to repay you for helping me. That doesn't make us parallel or equal. So I will say that I am going to make this selfish choice to help you here. You just realized that we all want you here, so I won't let you go that easily. Beyond selfishness, I am going to be possessive and agitating at times. I refuse to lose you or give you up to anyone else. So I will figure something out in order to have you remain with us - with me."

And.

"I won't give you a choice here."

.

That's right... This isn't the same as before.

Minoru smiled at his cousin. The same one who had only recently been able to express herself to others.

Yuki had been the one who first helped her look past her calculations. There was a special place for him in her heart, one that no one else could replace or even contend with. Even someone like him or ones like her parents couldn't reach that place anymore.

...That's fine.

There wasn't a reason for them to reach that place anymore.

I had always worried about needing to be there - be in the place where she could fully rely on me. I know that the rest of us felt like we needed to be there as well, as her family. Her parents...me and my siblings...mom and dad... We saw it as something we had to do.

But now it felt like there was no reason to be there.

That place had been taken up by Yuki without them noticing and she refused to let him leave it. Even if he were to ask about it, she would likely give him a hard to understand response while thinking about him.

Holding him there might have been too much for others, but he had taken to it. This was not something Mei had decided on by herself or with her calculations. Yuki had remained there himself so that he could stay equal with her.

Like her, Yuki also had a spot meant just for her. An irreplaceable space that he refused to let go of.

The both of them had other people around, but the spots saved for each other would remain no matter what happened during their time together.

Oh, now that I think about it, there's something I've been wondering about.

"Yuki. Isn't there something that come up from this?"

"Huh? What are you talking about?"

Minoru mimicked his expression but continued.

"'Tell me what's going on'? Isn't that something you should be saying?"

The way Yuki froze went oddly well with the way Murakami turned his head to the side.

Hearing some laughter to the side, he turned his head to see Seiji laughing while while petting an upside-down Taka's stomach. His dog seemed to be enjoying himself so there was no reason to stop that.

"Kimura. Takato-san. The boys from your former squad sure do enjoy coming up with things for themselves, don't they?"

"They really do. I don't know if it's a guy thing or what," Kimura said, glancing back into the house.

Minoru titled his head and looked back to see that Yuki's face had gone slightly red.

Seiji gave another laugh and faced him directly.

"Like how Yukicchi loves the saying 'Tell me what's going on, my friend," Teru-kun seems to have taken to 'I don't want to hear any empty words or promises'. Both of them find their own value in those two sayings and the rest of us are meant to figure out what they mean by it. In all honesty, Teru-kun's is simple enough, but Yukicchi's is pretty hard, even for people who know him. Isn't that right, Kō-kun?"

Murakami's shoulder jumped as he slowly turned back to them.

"Um... I mean, I understood it right away...but that's probably because I've had to deal with him longer than most of you."

"That's fine. It just means you have had to put up with his troublesome side more than us."

"That's true..."

"Don't just look away like you can't do anything about it, Kō!"

The plain expressions everyone was giving him was enough to know they all felt bad for Murakami and his situation here.

"But still," Seiji said. "Some of us have managed to figure out what he means by that. Mino-kun, even if you had just made up, there are still some things you need to learn about him."

"I know that. In the same vein, there are still things I need to figure out for myself."

"Good. As long as you know that, we shouldn't have any trouble here."

.

Isa: "I'm curious here, though. Murakami makes sense, of course, but who else actually knows what he means by that saying?"

2Truths1Lie: "I am aware of it."

TetsuG: "I don't want to admit it, but I know it pretty well."

Shōgi Boy: "Same here."

SenSen: "We had talked about it before, so I guess that includes me."

Inu: "I'm starting to understand it the more it comes up. And it seems to be coming up quite a bit lately."

Zoe: "I know it too. And there's someone else who does, but I don't think he's going to be okay saying it."

Competent One: "We can see you from here, Ōji."

.

That's right, Ōji has a longer connection with Yuki than even I do.

So did Mizukami, but that was something that had happened before even coming to Mikado City.

Murakami knew that there were others here who had managed to get to know Yuki before he did, but it still felt strange to know that he knew more about Yuki than they did.

That may have been the reason for Ōji's current expression.

...He doesn't want to remember those times.

It was clear to all of them that he was keeping to himself on the topic.

"Ah. I guess you would still be mad at me, wouldn't you?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about. The person I'm thinking of is nothing like you, so just enjoy yourself here."

"Hah. I won't start anything here, but I would like to talk with you more later, Kazuaki."

"...There isn't anything to talk about. Just enjoy yourself here."

He had repeated himself to change the subject again.

Everyone else seemed to understand that this wasn't something for them to get involved with.

Demon Child: "We can still make something from this. Kagami, Kon, are the two of you fine with going a bit longer tonight for this?"

Artist: "As long as this isn't for ImMoral, I am fine with it."

Mi-Kon: "That's fine with me, too. The one with Kō-kun last time was good since he and Yuki-kun are as close as they are. Having this turn into a tsundere situation from Ōji-kun could throw readers for a loop, but not in a bad way."

Kuni: "I'll read it through as you're making it~ Getting outside input should be good~"

Demon Child: "Thanks. Anyone else have something they want here?"

Manager: "I don't plan on reading it, so I don't have anything."

Rampage Dress: "If I could get a copy, that would be nice."

The trio already getting to work gave Mei thumbs up that she returned in full. It was a bit shocking to know how well she fit in with them all.

Once everyone had come to an understanding they all went back to relaxing, some only thinking about the conversations that had come up. Most of them had found themselves in small groups while others tried to mess around with anyone they could reach.

Something he took special note of was the way the dogs were keeping close to certain people while avoiding others.

"So this is your dog, Michelle-chan?"

"Uh-huh! Her name is Sturm, and she watches me!"

"'Watches out for me', Michelle."

The little girl giggled into her hand, taking Ninomiya's words and clearly trying her best to remember them.

The atmosphere around them all had gone back to one they could all relax in.

It's good to just have this time here. Everyone can relax and enjoy themselves without worrying about what will come later.

They had graduated and the B-Rank Wars had just ended. Their teacher wanted to give them a test after all of that, but he had allowed them to take some time before that.

Feeling a weight around his wrist, he looked down to see a black bracelet there. It fit perfectly around his wrist and the multi-colored lines running along it made it a nice sight to look at. The weight of it was not heavy, actually much lighter than it looked, but the meaning behind why he had it held firm in his mind.

...This is to see just how much we have advanced.

The black bracelet was a borrowed item that his teacher had decided to lend him for the exam. It could be broken up into three separate parts and used individually, but he had been given all three parts to use himself.

Why would Sensei let me use all of Shikifuku instead of giving out the three different pieces?

It would make sense to pass out the three parts for the ones who could use it best. Someone like him would be able to use each part, but it restricted the formations they could make due to only one person having it.

He could give them to others if he wanted, there were no restrictions on that, but it felt as if he was betraying his teacher like that.

"What a choice to make..."

"Don't use that kind of tone when the girls are busy working, Kō."

Yuki shook his head at him while standing up. The way he flinched while doing so was enough for him to get up to help.

He was waved off with a bitter smile.

"I'm just going out for some air. And just to get away from the airhead. If I stay around him any longer I don't doubt that a fight will break out."

"You two could just not fight," Tsuji said to the side.

"No, no, no," everyone else said with a wave of their hands.

Murakami looked back to see Yuki narrowing his eyes at Tsuji, but not saying anything. Next to him, he could see Mukuro start to move before stopping himself and relaxing on Oshiro and Tsuji.

That isn't good. But it could be entertaining.

He left it at that and began walking out of the room with Yuki.

"I didn't say you had to come along with me."

"I know. But things tend to happen when you're left alone. Besides, I also want to get some fresh air."

Yuki only rolled his eyes and left the room, Murakami following behind.

---

"Pah! That felt so nice!"

"It really did. And the noise filling the city seems to have left, for the time being."

Yoshito and Daigo nodded in silence.

"Bubbles looks like he enjoyed it too. Oh, you're much smoother than before. Isn't that nice?"

Trochískos chuckled behind his Black Trigger Book.

The trio of children were walking in front of him while he took leisure strides behind them. There was no urgency as they left the bathhouse behind with the Unmatched Valkyrie he had fought.

They had all taken another soak to let themselves relax after the fierce match he had. In that time, he had gotten to speak more with the three boys in front of him.

"I can't believe you brought that thing with you."

"I would not have expected Hanzaki to get jealous of a slime. I guess it just goes to show how petty he actually is."

"I'm not jealous of that thing. If anything, I feel like we need to kill it for some exp."

"Wouldn't it only give a small amount?"

"Better than nothing."

"I expected it from Hanzaki, but not you, Daigo! Leave him alone!"

Hisato closed his hands together and turned his body away from the other two at his side. Whatever had been there was small enough to fit into the makeshift ball using his hands.

Yoshito shook his head from his position between Hisato and Daigo while Daigo looked over Yoshito to see Hisato.

The way they made sure each other were fine, even with their teasing, make his smile widen more behind his Black Trigger Book.

"I suppose what Misaki-san and Kikuchihara-san said about him getting quickly attached was true."

"We saw that already. He's been taking care of it and he's been having us take care of it when he's busy with defense duty. Even then, sometimes he just has it loiter in Suwa Squad's operating room."

"Kasei seems to enjoy having it around. I also don't have anything against it."

Hisato's shoulders lowered at Daigo's words, looking to see him nod. Hanzaki shook his head, but Trochískos imagined that he also rolled his eyes.

Looking into the the sky, Trochískos saw the small twinkling lights hanging over them. They were beautiful to see, even while drowned out by the streetlights that paved the way for them.

I wonder what they look like when there are no artificial lights blocking the view.

The sight of that night sky reminded him of his own home. The nighttime lights were beautiful there as well, both back then and currently, but it felt different here. Miden's nighttime lights felt as if they were more free, uncaring about who was watching them and shining brightly for everyone else.

In a way, it was a bit insulting that people would create lights to block out those twinkling lights.

That is not something to hate, though. It is the natural course for any civilization to continue building until they have reached that sort of end result.

It meant Miden had gotten to the point where they could choose if they wanted to see that beautiful night sky or not.

The three boys in front of him did not seem to notice the sky at all, more focused on each other than that beauty.

But...

That is also fine.

They were still children who were growing up and enjoying themselves here. A place where they had been born, grown up, and strived to protect.

Even while being less advanced in trion technology, Miden had gone down a different path and advanced in the only way they could. The humans of Miden had reached a point where trion was not a necessity and was instead a way to combat against anyone wanting to attack them from beyond the Gates. At that point, he only had praise for the way they went about it all.

"Caster-san? Is something wrong?"

"Can the two of you really not pronounce his name that well?"

"Why go through that trouble when we have permission to just call him 'Caster'? It makes things so much easier."

"'Trochískos' really is not too hard, Hanzaki."

Yoshito waved off Daigo, but it was clear that he took his words into consideration.

Like always, the three of them were on equal footing with each other and saw each other as equals.

It was because of this that they were able to speak so freely with each other.

"The three of you have really grown since I was last here."

"I would say that Daigo and I did, but Hanzaki..."

"Continue that sentence and see where it gets you."

"Will you actually do something?"

"I can get Yuki-san and his group on you."

"They would go after you before me, you know that, right?"

The way Yoshito gave an aggravated sigh meant that he did.

Trochískos was interested in what group they were speaking of, but they might have been a bad group to be around if the three boys looked away from each other at mentioning them. They all shook their heads and pretended that they had not spoken about it in the first place.

"Well, from my perspective," he said. "The three of you are different from when I had first met you. I remember a boy who was still trying to figure out what to do with himself, a boy who had been figuring out his own limits, and a boy who could not bring himself to do much once he realized what his limits were. You three still have a lot of growing to do, but you are on the right path now, so I view it as growing up far more than most I have seen before."

And that was saying something since he was a long lived who had seen many generations all over the place.

The three boys each had different reactions with Daigo giving him a nod of gratitude, Hisato smiling with pride, and Yoshito looking away with some pink on his cheeks.

They were three people he never minded watching.

"Um, thank you...Trochískos-san."

"Oh?"

His own expression went up at that one.

Both Hisato and Yoshito had refrained from calling him by that name, both saying that it was difficult to pronounce. But he was able to see the reason behind it now.

They are unsure if they are actually allowed to do so.

Daigo was a simple boy who took what was before him at face value, so he had been fine with calling him by that name. But it was good to know that Hisato and Yoshito had their reasons behind calling him by the Miden title he had told them.

"It is no problem at all, Hisato. And Yoshito, Daigo?"

The two of them turned to look at him while continuing to walk forward.

"The two of you need to make sure to both keep up and slow down with Hisato. Understood?"

"Of course."

"Understood."

"Good," he nodded.

Trochískos smiled at the three of them, looking at each of them.

It had been no exaggeration for him to think that they were people to look out for. Compared to others he had seen on Miden they were not much, but that had been what made them worth watching. Average to above average, that was what he had seen in the begging and what he saw from them right now. Only proving themselves more when placed with others who could compliment their abilities or with others who could have their abilities complimented by them.

That was how Miden was as a whole.

They all looked out from each other, worked together, strived for something they could all achieve, and continue from there. It was a never ending cycle of building themselves up along with those around them.

It means that any of us from the other side of the Gates have no right to judge their worth or value. Doing so will result in only failure on multiple fronts.

It had happened to both Aftokrator and Galopoula. Even the supporting Mouri had seen what Miden was capable of when losing a large amount of their fighting forces to only a few fighters.

The Wanderers had seemed to have realized that themselves. Their approach to this had led to them making a connection with Miden and leaving behind their former leader and a broken off piece of their famed Pyrínas System.

He had seen firsthand just what Miden's fighters were capable of on more than one occasion. Each time had created a memory in him that would not be replaced by anything else. Even as a long lived, he still found some thrill in watching how Miden went about dealing with everything thrown at them. His own world had decided to leave behind their own connection to Miden via Border.

Yes, Miden is able to overturn what others think of them and either push aside adversity or create bonds that will hold strong. It all depends on the situation, but they have shown themselves to be more than capable. So then, that brings up the question...

"Hisato, why do you have that with you?"

.

Hanzaki looked over to see Hisato tilting his head, slime on his shoulder. The antennas on it were moving a bit as it released a bubble from its mouth.

The strange creature had made its appearance during the preparations for one of Mikado City's festivals. Some of his classmates had been there to assist in the preparation work and had witness its arrival on the scene.

He had only heard about what happened, but he understood the gist of it.

Hisato accidentally fell for Suzume's bait and got stuck with the slime. But he screwed up by giving it a name and getting attached to it.

The end result had been kind of amazing, but it still made him sigh when he thought about it. It was something he would not have expected from Hisato.

Now they had been in this position with the slime remaining close to Hisato the entire time. Daigo and his brother had taken a bit of a liking to it. Some of the others who had seen it for themselves had their own thoughts on it, but Hanzaki continued with his own thoughts over their's.

It's weird.

It had yet to do anything against them, even enjoying itself when dancing with Suzume, but there had been no proper explanation for its existence within Mikado City. Border had not asked about it and no one had brought it up with them.

It was in a safe area due to being an unknown.

That was why Trochískos's question had quickly caught his attention.

Does Caster-san know what that thing is?

He understood that the man was a long lived person, so it only felt right that he would know about this, but it was still a bit hard to think about such a person existing. That had overlapped with the slime, creating something that made Hanzaki too tired to think about.

Regardless, he wanted to hear this conversation for himself.

"Well, it's a bit or a weird story. In short, he appeared when I was helping with festival preparations. We didn't know what to do with him besides kill it, so I ended up becoming his owner."

"That explains why it seems like it is your child here."

"Ch-child!?"

"Don't worry, Hisato. I will make sure to provide for you and the child."

"What about Hanzaki?"

"...What about him?"

Hanzaki took a quick swipe that Daigo dodged. Even with his reflexes it seemed like he was hardly trying.

It would have been nice of him to let Hanzaki's attack hit but he was not expecting that much from him.

"Do you know what that is, Caster-san?"

"Hm. I do, yes. But telling you three might not be the best choice here."

"Why is that?"

The way Trochískos looked around for a moment before lifting his Black Trigger was worrying.

He had noticed the way Hanzaki was looking at him and smiled in return, lowering his Black Trigger and patting him on the head.

This was his way of telling them not to worry.

"I have my reasons.

That was all he needed to say.

"But I do recommend that you do take care of it, in this case. You will never know when unexpected help will be needed."

"That sure does sound cryptic..."

"Doesn't it?" the other two said with nods.

Moving around Daigo, Hisato moved so that Hanzaki would be the one in the middle. The action was surprisingly smooth for him, so Hanzaki let him be for now.

With Hisato's right side to him he could now get a full view of the slime creature in his hands. The size of it was incredibly small, but the way it opened its mouth before letting out a bubble was something even he had to admit was cute to see.

As if knowing his thoughts, Daigo patted his shoulder with a sigh.

This is what pisses me off about him!

But...

"Hisato, I thought that thing would be leaving slime all over the place."

"Right? I think he can choose when he leaves it behind or not."

"So every time it leaves slime on my clothes it's because it wants to?"

"To be fair, I am sure all three of us have accidentally left 'slime' on your clothes before, Hanzaki."

Hanzaki felt himself freeze along with Hisato. They could heard a quiet chuckle from behind, but turning around could lead to a worse situation.

Both of them looked over to see Daigo turned to them, waiting for a response.

Hisato was the first to answer him, face starting to go red.

"U-um... Daigo. Did you learn that from Jinsei-senpai?"

"Yes. I never would have thought I would have a chance to say something like that, though. Oh, and I completely understand the meaning behind it, so do not worry."

"Do you really?" Hanzaki asked without hesitation.

There was no time to think about his own responses.

"That's not... M-maybe don't say that out loud? Oh, but I'll make sure to let Kumokawa-san know about you being taught these things."

.

Hisato and Hanzaki sighed from their spots to the left of Daigo. Between their shoulders, the slime creature tilted its entire body to the side.

Daigo turned his head back, but Trochískos waved his hand from behind his Black Trigger Book. A few chuckles had come from him after that, leaving Daigo a bit more confused by the situation.

"I had figured you three were close, but to know that is your situation... Well, you three have my full support on the matter."

The reactions we instantaneous.

"Wha-!" Hisato yelled while tripping.

"That's-!" Hanzaki yelled before coughing violently.

"Thank you for the support," Daigo said while catching Hisato by the arm and lightly patting Hanzaki's back.

"Not at all," Trochískos said with a close-eyed smile.

Daigo gave a nod while making sure both Hisato and Hanzaki were fine. After a moment, they both stood up straight and turned to him.

The slime creature on Hisato's shoulder blew a bubble.

"Please do be more careful. I will gladly help whenever, but I won't always be around."

"This is your fault to begin with!"

"That was completely unfair!"

Daigo tilted his head.

"Eh? But Hanzaki, weren't it you two who had helped me from the start? Then it would be on the two of you 'to begin with'. And Hisato, both of you have used very unfair tactics before. If anything, I have done nothing unfair when compared to those."

"Dammit! Why does his argument have to have backing!?"

"That wasn't what I meant when I said 'unfair'! Not at all!"

By this point there was no stopping Daigo as both Hisato and Hanzaki continued to redden with each sentence uttered.

The slime creature blew out bubbles as it jumped up and down on Hisato's shoulder. The squeaking noise coming from it was heard around even as Hisato turned away to his embarrassment.

Trochískos nodded along with it as the bubbles floated by him, never touching his body.

"Yes, I agree. This really is enjoyable."

"Trochískos-san, can you understand him?"

"It is less of knowing what it is saying and more understanding that it enjoys being around you three. I feel the same way, so we are alike in that way."

"I see. While I would like to point out that I understand liking being around Hisato and Hanzaki, I can't say the same for me. ...Well, I would want to say that, but then I would be offending everyone who has been on my side. These two especially."

"So you really have changed."

"I am doing my best," he said, grabbing Hisato and Hanzaki's jackets.

The two of them looked away or faced him with a smile.

Trochískos didn't bother to hide his chuckling this time. The Black Trigger Book was at his side and his smile was shown to the three of them.

This had an immediate effect.

"Uwaaaaaaaah~ Caster-san's smile!"

"Ooooooohhhh~ Caster-san, looking good."

"Hmmmmmm~ Trochískos-san, so cool."

.

Trochískos blinked at the three staring at him.

Each one of them had a look of awe on their face as the slime creature blew out more bubbles. They weren't in the way or dangerous, so he let them be for now. But the three standing there confused him for a moment.

"Is something the matter?"

"You like to hide your expressions when happy, so it's nice to see you smile," Hanzaki said with a shrug.

He blinked again.

Is that what this is?

It had always been a habit for him to hide his own expressions so as to not let other too close. As a long lived, he understood why that was. Hiding his face during those times meant less for people to see and more for them to figure out.

It was a habit formed after many years.

Yes... Even with my wife, I did this. I remember hiding my expression into her hair...when she was available.

But that had also been a long time ago.

Right now...

"I see. So that is how I see things."

It was their turn to be confused.

Without lifting his Black Trigger Book, he widened his smile at them.

"You three."

Yes. All three of them.

"Not speaking as a Neighbor, or a Black Trigger user, you three are people I find comfort in. The three of you - Daigo, Hisato, and Yoshito - really are a nice example of what the future can hold. There may be others in this city who can show that better, but you three are more than enough for me to continue seeing the real value of Miden.

No. That wasn't it.

"...Miden's value can't be determined by someone from the other side. Only humans can determine their own value."

Even so...

"Speaking as an individual... You three have my full support. As both meanings of 'Trochískos', you can rely on me."

.

Hisato stared with wide eyes as Bubbles continued to make his namesake.

Caster had said something amazing to them, leaving all three of them in shock.

How are we supposed to react to something like that!?

The Tamakoma Branch was the branch known for being pro-Neighbors, but none of them were in that branch. They had their own thoughts on feelings on Neighbors, but none of those seemed to truly apply when speaking to the long lived man in front of them.

And that long lived man had just said something that overturned those thoughts for just a moment. For this single person, they would overlook their own thoughts to accept him and his support.

But he had missed his chance to speak up about it. Instead, it had been someone else.

"Caster-san... I didn't think you would be the most unfair one out of the four of us."

"Yes, well, illusionists need to keep others on their toes. Do not mind it too much."

"How can we not mind it...?"

The way Hanzaki muttered while turning his head again was enough for Hisato to understand that he felt the same way about this.

As for Daigo...

"If I may?"

"Go ahead."

Daigo nodded and continued.

"May I ask if that extends to others?"

"Are you speaking of your brother?"

Another nod.

That's right, Hisato thought.

There was more than just them. Other Border members were one thing, but their families had no other affiliation besides them. They would be protected in that sense, but they all knew that there would be times when that was not enough.

Sometimes unexpected events occurred and they would be unable to do much about it.

So what would happen then?

"Heh heh. What a good boy. But do not worry. It does extend to them as well. However..."

"Yeah, we understand."

This was what he could say for them.

"You won't be here all the time. Actually, I'd think you would leave within the next day or two, so it really won't last too long, right?"

"That is right."

"Right." This time he nodded his head, Bubbles moving his body to mimic him. "So we can know that you will support us, but that doesn't mean we should rely on you. It's still on us to figure things out that concern us. Having an easy way out of something doesn't mean it needs to be used."

He had learned that things were just this way.

Months ago, he had been the type of person to fall for petty taunts and pathetic words directed towards him or the people he cared for. It had been due to that and his own inexperience that things had gone the way they had during the large-scale invasion. The end result had been enough, but it had shown him his own powerlessness.

Once the B-Rank Wars had begun and he fought against others who knew him well enough, he had gotten a better hold on how one should act on the battlefield. With a calm mind he had managed to fend off other agents alongside his teammates while improving himself the entire time.

Then the attack on the base had come.

"Hm? Is something the matter, Hisato?"

"He probably just get over what Caster-san is saying."

Of course Hanzaki would be the one to notice his thoughts and cover for him.

Both of them are like that.

Hanzaki managed to stabilize him and Daigo outside of battles and had the ability to support them during battles. He had come down with some of the other snipers during the attack on the base, but there had been little he could do to support them. So after they had dealt with the problem...

He was the first one to start complaining about not being able to do much for us. Daigo had teased him a bit, but he really did seem down about it.

They had settled the issues immediately, but knowing he felt that way had been enough for him and Daigo.

Then there's the guy himself...

The one who had been the finishing touches on his connection with Hanzaki to begin with.

They had helped him together and the three of them had used that to strengthen their connection with each other. He had been the one who needed help and they had been the ones to help him out.

If Hanzaki was the one to stabilize them, Daigo was the one who held their connection together in an intertwined fashion.

So then what was he?

Where do I fit in here?

He didn't think too deeply on that. There was just no reason to do so.

If I don't know for myself, the two of them are sure to know and answer that for me.

But it felt like it didn't matter at this point.

"You look like you completely understand, Hisato."

"I do."

He smiled and nodded. There were things he couldn't do and things he couldn't change, but there were at least two other people he could rely on for that.

Caster must have understood that and gave away his true intentions here.

"What are you talking about?"

"That is not a question for me to answer, now is it?"

"You can leave it to me. But for now..."

Moving himself so that he was now between Hanzaki and Daigo, Hisato slid his arms under their's, pulled them closer, and grinned to the two of them. Bubbles floated up between the three of them, so it seemed like Bubbles was having fun as well.

"Let's just enjoy ourselves."

That was how they would show that they appreciated Caster's words, but would not rely on them completely.

.

Trochískos nodded at the trio in front of him, arms linked and ready to continue enjoying themselves here.

After taking a few more steps, he spoke up once more.

"Oh, yes. If I could ask one of you for some help here. I was supposed to meet up with someone, so I would like to inform them of my current situation."

"I'm guessing it's someone from Border then."

"Correct. It is a man by the name of Akasora Chishi."

"That would be the Yagura Branch Director. An important person for sure."

Hanzaki nodded at Daigo's words while pulling out his phone.

After typing a few things, he showed the screen to Trochískos. The angle was odd due to Hisato holding his right arm, but he managed fine enough.

"I went ahead and asked Suzaku-san if we could use our lines to get you involved. This was his response."

Umi: "Huh? Sure, I guess that isn't too much of a problem. As long as his voice come through clearly on one of your phones, he should appear. I get not wanting to have a guest account or a temporary one, so I'll even loosen the settings a bit."

Yoshi: "Thanks. I really appreciate it."

Umi: "Oh, that's right. Arafune, Pokari, and Kagami are here. You want me to tell them anything for you?"

Yoshi: "I would rather make sure they don't know I even messaged you."

Umi: "Oh..."

Yoshi: "Crap."

The rest of the messages had been teasing or harassment from the rest of Arafune Squad that had Hisato and Daigo giving pitying smiles and Trochískos to openly laugh.

Hanzaki clicked his tongue and motioned for the other two to get their phones out.

"My arms are kinda busy and I don't want to let either one of you go. My voice should come through on your phone."

"Look who's being unfair now..."

Hisato only smiled and slightly shook Hanzaki's arm.

"So my voice will be picked up while leaving me anonymous?"

"That's the gist of it, yeah. Even if you give your name, it won't pick it up or keep it on any records."

"Good, good. Then thank you for that."

It wasn't a big enough deal for Hanzaki to return the gratitude.

"Right, then. I'm going to give the Yagura boss a message then."

---

Akasora let out a sigh from his spot on the Tamakoma Branch's main room sofa. His legs were spread out on the backrest and the floor while his hand repeatedly tapped on the floor.

Other sounds of something hitting the ground could be heard. Off to the side a collective of voices rang out, all muffled by the walls of the building.

"You're here again? Don't you have your own branch to take care of?"

Turning his head to the side allowed him to see the small boy standing next to him. The capybara that was normally around him was off to the side, sleeping quietly.

"To hear that from a kid..."

"You're taking up space when we're already full of people."

"What's that idiot Takumi teaching you here?"

The way Yōtarō shrugged was worrying, but letting him know that would only bring on troubles.

Comparing his branch to this one, he understood that their levels of lunacy were not too different. The main difference had to be the way they went about it, but they would usually reach the same point if not further beyond that.

The worst part is that Takumi can control his subordinates. Meanwhile, I'm stuck with those troublesome siblings and the way they go about things. Mei's also been pretty cannibalistic lately. And then there's the way Futoyuki and Nakagami go about things...

Thinking more about it, he may have gotten the short end of the stick here.

But...

I have more freedom than he does.

While the Tamakoma Branch was restricted due to how they functioned as pro-Neighbors and already had a reputation within Mikado City, the Yagura Branch only had the restriction of being a part of Border. They had been turned into a true neutral branch that picked which side they would take when they thought that side would be the one in the right.

In that sense, they were also more free to add people like Futoyuki into their branch due to no one really keeping an eye on them. The general public viewed them as a new branch while other agents would focus more on the people they already knew from the branch.

More than that, they had the protection of their strongest member.

We complain about Kushikage, but she being in the branch actually gives up a high amount of protection from others. Disregarding her fighting ability, nobody really wants to look too deep when they know she is involved. They run the risk of having to deal with her, and to a lesser extent her brothers.

All of this accumulated into a branch that was free to do as they pleased, to an extent.

It made most people hard pressed to do anything rash against them or accuse them of anything like they could the Tamakoma Branch.

"But having connections with the other branches is also nice..."

"Yeah. You should be grateful that we let your branch be friends with ours!"

"Yes, yes. Thanks for all the help."

He reached out to pat Yōtarō's head, but he moved back three steps before he could land.

Akasora gave a chuckle as Yōtarō narrowed his eyes.

I guess we still doesn't want to accept me here.

It was a pity, but at this point there was little he could do about it.

"By the way, weren't you going to have someone over today? I heard the news and wanted to see who they were."

The way Yōtarō deflated before coming back with even more energy made him feel older than he was. The energy it took to do that left him more drained than he thought he would be.

That was annoying.

"Stepney was supposed to come today, but he didn't! It's because of his parents, I know it!"

"Oh, you're talking about Toby's brother, aren't you?"

"He is. But maybe you should consider how you say it."

Looking over the side of the sofa, he saw Takumi grinning down at him while leaning over the backrest.

.

With a swat of his hand, Rindō threw his leg back over the backrest and onto the sofa proper. He groaned at the sudden loss.

"It's about time. Where have you been?"

"Running my branch. Something you should try at times."

"Keep that up and see if I don't throw Kushikage your way."

"As if you can control her."

That wasn't what he had planned, but he felt like the surprise would be better left unsaid.

So with a sigh, Akasora lifted his body into a sitting position.

"But really now, why are you here?"

"I was supposed to have a meeting with someone but haven't heard from them yet. It makes it difficult because of who they are."

"You need to stop trying to have meetings at other people's branch offices. It's getting annoying."

"And so are you, but we keep you around for some reason."

With another swat of his hand, Rindō hit the back of Akasora's head while passing by.

Moving around the sofa, he moved to sit across from Akasora and took off his jacket.

"Before we get to this meeting you wanted to have, I thought you should know that Jin and Futoyuki plan on meeting with Yoshiko-san soon."

"I heard. Futoyuki told me about it. They had planned on going tonight, but I guess something had come up. Now it's bee changed to tomorrow morning."

"...Are you curious as to how that will turn out?"

Akasora clicked his tongue and looked to the side.

The answer was too obvious for the two of them.

"I just hope those two aren't idiots when they go there. That woman can be particular about things and a real trickster at worst."

"I don't know about Futoyuki, but Jin should be fine. He's dealt with Yuki enough to know how fox-type people are."

"That guy's the one I'm worried about the most."

Rindō raised a brow as Yōtarō moved to sit next to him.

"Why's that?" he asked.

"Because he's the one who views things different from the rest of us. Futoyuki is an idiot, so he can enjoy himself whenever and get serious whenever. Jin's personality is one that might clash with Yoshiko-san, but Futoyuki's is one that would allow her to speak more freely than usual."

"Ah, I get it. Their responsibilities and priorities end up being different, in the end, and the way they go about things can determine how that meeting will go. What's more, where they come from are very different places."

Rindō lifted his finger towards the rooms behind Akasora. Furrowing his brows, Akasora turned around, but there was nothing there for him to look at.

He turned back around to see Rindō with a bitter smile.

"Jin has been with us. Meanwhile, Futoyuki has been with Hyuse before leaving with the Wanderers. That gap, as well as who they had lost, will also play a part in that meeting."

"Exactly," Akasora said with a sigh. He scratched his head, but the words continued to come out. "Then there's the issue of the Black Triggers. I'm sure Jin came up with something concerning Fujin. But I haven't heard of Futoyuki contacting the Wanderers about getting Prosforá back, even for a limited time."

"That would probably worry the others too much."

"But it isn't like they don't know how to get around those sorts of things."

"That's true. ...I suppose we will just have to see what happens."

The two branch directors let out their own sighs into the air.

At the same time, something reached them.

A nosie.

"That's weird... I didn't expect a message to come in from someone like him."

The two looked down at Akasora's phone.

The source of the noise had been the phone laying on the table there. The two of them had leaned over to see who had been the one to send the message.

But...

"Isn't that Arafune Squad's Hanzaki?"

---

Yoshi: "Akasora-san, I have someone here who wants to speak with you."

Red Sky: "I didn't expect to hear from you. Who's this person?"

?: "I am the one who you had a prior arrangement with. My apologizes, but I had gotten sidetracked without even knowing. It is just that Mikado City is a great place for these sorts of things."

Red Sky: "I see. Well, I'll thank you on behalf of Mikado City's citizens. And don't worry about it. Kushikage told me she was having fun with something earlier, so I'm going to assume that was you playing with her."

?: "So she is one of your subordinates? She was a good test to see what Border has. It was a good experience."

Red Sky: "...Huh? Eh? Oh, hold on... Wait, we're talking about the same person here, right? Taiyōko Kushikage? Red hair. Has an irritating expression. Is full of herself. A complete lunatic. That one, right?"

?: "Yes. That does seem about right."

Red Sky: "..."

Decoy: "U-um! Akasora-san, this is Sasamori! We understand how you feel, but she really wasn't doing too much damage! She only destroyed a table and some balls!"

Red Sky: "She destroyed someone's balls with a table!? Let me know who it was so I can drag her over to them!"

Simple Boy: "There is nothing to worry about, Akasora-san. She had only used her Trigger and a racket to destroy the balls. The table was destroyed because she got too excited and tried to pound the balls too hard. It had crashed into the table and into the wall. It was actually something to see, so I think it was worth the watch."

Red Sky: "What the hell happened!? Hey, can someone explain it to me properly!?"

Megane Director: "Hello, hello? Yes, hello. This is Tamakoma Branch Director Rindō Takumi. Chi-chan is currently losing his mind again. Please hold on for him to regain what little senses he had left. Thank you for cooperating."

---

"What...is this?"

Yuki furrowed his brows as he leaned against the fence in the front of the Shitokei residence. To his left was the mailbox he had landed on and to his right was...

"Kō, what am I looking at right now?"

"I wouldn't know since I'm not in that chat."

"Then that means Umi set up a private one. Why did he toss me in here?"

"You said it involved Sensei, so I'm guessing he wants you to make sure things are fine."

That did make sense, even if it was annoying to keep track of.

Their teacher could handle himself in most situations, but the one presented here was enough for him to understand that things were weird at the moment.

"I guess paying attention is better than getting involved here. Although, seeing that Hisato, Yoshi, and Daigo were here, maybe it wouldn't be bad to interrupted at times."

Murakami's shrug let him know that he was fine with either option.

That was good.

Red Sky: "Alright... I think I'm fine enough now."

So...

Red Sky: "Was there something else you wanted to say?"

?: "I wanted to know if it would be fine to hold our meeting like this."

Red Sky: "I guess that's fine."

That meant this was an informal meeting that had been set up with someone else in mind.

Yuki felt his shoulders relax at that knowledge and kept his eyes on his screen. Even without being Unneeded anymore he wanted to keep up some old habits here.

Maintaining information like this was one of those things.

?: "Thank you for being cooperative on this."

Red Sky: "Think nothing of it."

Now then.

Red Sky: "I was the one asking for this meeting, so I'll start us off. Is that fine?"

?: "There is no problem with that. Please, continue."

Red Sky: "Then let me begin by asking you something. How well do you know the situation over here?"

?: "I got the gist of it from my time here today. I had been able to even see a beetle today that had caught my attention. But I suppose that is not much since it seemed to fit right in with the rest of the city. Besides that, I understand that everyone is continuing to enjoy themselves to the fullest. ...Even people who might not be the type to do so."

Red Sky: "Glad you were able to see something like that then."

Yuki understood them and nodded along with their words.

Besides the two he had been following earlier in the day, there were others moving around the city. It's pretty likely that those other people were involved with the attack on Kanzaki. It was something he wanted to look into when given the chance.

For now, he would see where this conversation went.

Red Sky: "Would you say that there is any need for the people to calm down?"

?: "Maybe realizing how energetic they are being would be good, but I see no reason anything major to do something about it. Reliability is what is important and I believe that there are a lot of reliable people around as well."

"This person seems like they would get along with Sensei," Murakami said from his right.

"They're being careful with their words since that trio is there," Yuki responded.

Murakami nodded and looked up into the sky.

"I'm glad nothing happened to them like it did us. Girikage had a high aptitude for it, didn't he?"

"He did. That's why I'm glad to know that it's possible to get out of it now."

He saw Murakami smile into the sky.

He felt like it should have been a bitter smile, but he was likely happy that this was the end result they had come to here.

I'm also glad. It means there's a chance for Denji and Sekai-san.

But that would need to come later.

Red Sky: "I'm glad to hear that. It makes this entire situation a whole lot easier. We can call this a meeting, but I really just wanted to make sure of some things. With that being said, do you plan on doing anything particular while you're here?"

?: "I am currently enjoying my time with the three here with me."

Red Sky: "Then feel free to keep that up. Keep on enjoying yourself with everyone you meet and know here. We'll make sure you can do so without feeling you need to do anything."

?: "That sounds like a good time."

Red Sky: "Hey Yuki, you're here, aren't you?"

.

"Looks like Umi didn't bother hiding that."

Yuki huffed at Murkami's chuckling and smile into his phone.

White Fox: "Yes, Sensei?"

?: "A student?"

White Fox: "Kō is next to me, too."

Red Sky: "I figured as much. Hey, tell Suzaku to allow that kid on here too."

Suzaku may have been watching the chat since no time was wasted on bringing Murakami in.

Yuki and Murakami looked to each other before looking down at Yuki's phone.

Black Wolf: "Umi really doesn't waste any time..."

White Fox: "Seriously..."

?: "A white fox and a black wolf, huh? That is interesting."

Simple Boy: "The two of them are very involved with each other, so you can expect these sorts of things from them. Don't mind it too much and you will get used to it."

?: "Is that so?"

Red Sky: "Those two are my students. They're pretty much idiots and terrible people, but they're reliable to a fault. I wouldn't have them here if they weren't at least that much."

The insult and the compliment balanced enough for the two of them to just shrug it off.

They could get back at him for it later.

Red Sky: "I'm going to need you two to make up for any lacking areas, got it? Yuki, I'm sure you've already gotten information on the current situation that we couldn't, so go ahead and do your thing with that. Use my name if you have to."

Black Wolf: "Sensei, we've been making sure he actually sits still for a bit. He's been holding out the entire time, so we wanted him to at least get some sleep."

Red Sky: "Then I'm leaving him up to you, Kō. Make sure that idiot takes care of himself and help him out when he needs it."

Black Wolf: "Understood. We will start tomorrow then."

As he said that, Yuki rolled his eyes and punched Murakami on the shoulder.

White Fox: "Things came up tonight, Sensei. Nothing much will change when it comes to my job, but don't be surprised if I do things a bit differently."

Decoy: "Oh, so someone had finally smacked some sense into you, Paisen?"

White Fox: "Something like that. But did you really have to say it like that?"

Yoshi: "He was just saying what we were all thinking."

Red Sky: "It's about time."

By this point, Murakami's chuckling had turned into full laughter.

This was proof. Proof that is was more than just their group who had thought about Yuki and his position.

Red Sky: "Alright then. If the two of you understand what to do, I'm leaving it to you. Also, I'm going to send the two of you the message that came in earlier from Pyrínas."

.

"From him?" Murakami asked with a raised brow.

It wasn't unheard of for him to tell someone from the Yagura Branch something, but those things usually involved the children or how the city as a whole was doing. For him to say something that would involve them meant that it was likely a general situation instead of one involving those children.

Murakami himself knew that Pyrínas was a trustworthy person, so he didn't waste any time in looking at Yuki's phone.

Yuki moved his finger along the screen to change what was shown and once he did...

"Ah. That's a really strange request," Yuki said with a flat tone.

RB07: "...If it wouldn't be too much trouble, can I ask for some clothes to be brought somewhere? ...If it's necessary, I will bring the reason for it myself, but I would prefer if that was not the case."

To ask for something like that meant he was with someone else.

"The measurements aren't for children or himself. If he's with someone else, it's someone who we don't know about. Maybe even two with the way they are scaled."

"It's someone pretty short and another one of average male height. ...I want to ask him what he needs them for, but I would rather just get it done and figure it out later. That's probably the better option."

"I've been needing to get some new clothes, so it should be fine enough for an excuse."

Yuki nodded and began typing out his response.

It was an excuse, but one that would probably bring trouble if the others found out about it. They would likely want to tag along with them and cause a commotion wherever they went.

But I guess that's what makes things fun, he thought with a smile.

That was how they would live their lives, free of the thoughts concerning their job and what would come later.

For now, they only needed to focus on what was in front of them and what was ahead of them as a whole.

"Right," Yuki said, locking his screen with a small click. "I told Sensei that we would get it done and meet up with Pyrínas later. With that going on, Futo going over to Mogami, and wanting to speak with Denji and Sekai-san...tomorrow's going to be eventful. There's also the situation in the city to consider."

"I heard how Suzume was able to do something about that."

"That's right. It was only in her immediate surroundings, but she fixed whatever was happening there for a moment."

It was concerning, but...

"It means that there is a definite answer to all of this. Since that's the case, we just need to make sure we find the solution to it with everyone else."

"Yeah... I can do something like that now."

Being too used to this by now, Murakami tilted his body until his shoulder bumped into Yuki's. With a small nudge, the two of them were tilted to the left.

It wasn't meant to comfort him or let him know that he would be there. Things like that never needed to be expressed when it had just been the two of them.

No, this was something much more basic.

"I'm going to need to be reminded at times."

"I know that. I'm sure the others do to."

There wasn't any set of words that could explain it. The best way to describe it was an understanding between two people. Something that didn't need to and couldn't be said.

.

"Oh, that's right. There's Yūko and Jinsei to think about here."

"Wait... Minoru had said that Denji told him Sekai-san didn't have one, right? Kumagai is there for Denji, but then what about Jinsei? He knows about the situation, but this means he isn't here for Sekai-san. ...So then how does he know?"

Yuki turned his head and pointed to Murakami.

In turn, Murakami gave a sigh and threw his head onto Yuki's shoulder.

"Tomorrow really is going to be busy, isn't it?"

---

"Ah, looks like we'll have to wait until tomorrow to do much of anything."

Kigisa tapped her finger against the destroyed wall while watching as Misó slammed his foot down on another person's head. The cracking sound she heard was not rhythmic at all, making her scrunch her nose in distaste.

He kicked the body to the side, ignoring how it crashed into another nearby one.

"I thought you would have a better time while everyone was asleep. Waking up to something going on would cause panic and throw everything is disarray."

"What's the point in that? If they're still waking up and don't know what's going on, there isn't any way to see them stain themselves to the limit. The pain I want to see from everyone has to be in clear daylight and while they know exactly what is happening. That's why I decided to do this myself instead of waiting for us to come back into rotation."

"What a foul way of thinking about it... The best performance is one that people don't expect."

Misó shrugged as he held a cube of trion in his hand.

"And about that... You really decided to keep that with you?"

"I defeated it, so I felt like I should keep it for some fun. It did make things more fun when attacking that bitch. But I did feel a bit nice and left it with a bit of sense. ...At least enough to still feel pain, and with the memories it had so it will always know how badly it failed."

He tossed the cube of trion towards the corner of the room, not even looking over to see a hand reach out to devour it whole. With his other hand, he held a white object with three horn-like objects protruding from it and red lines running along the body. Three blue orbs stared back at her, but she knew that they were not looking at anything anymore.

Misó had made sure to be thorough when dealing with the duo.

"This thing even decided to be cheeky and toss me back through. It was a nice and pathetic attempt. I'm no expert on these sorts of things, but even I know how to reprogram simple things like these. Still, it was fun to see the two of them think they would be able to take on someone from Afto. Yeah, it was fun to see that even Earth is way better than them. Pathetic pieces of shit that never seem to understand..."

"Does the memory bring painful thoughts?"

"If only," he said with a shrug.

Without a care about where he stepped, he walked towards her while making the people on the ground groan in pain.

He reveled in it and continued to make his steps harder with each one.

And the only reason they are still alive is because it means he could come back and hurt them again...

The building had been out of the way and not within the bigger part of the city. Since that was the case, it meant they didn't have to worry about others arriving before they left.

With nothing more to do, he moved passed her and to the outside of the building.

The moonlight illuminated him and made her instinctively gulp at seeing the blood that had been sprayed onto him because of this.

"I really didn't think anyone from the Galo group would actually tag along. You seemed like the most willing to go against them, so I had only sent the message to you. Now that we've come this far, I'm really glad I did."

"I don't even want to know why..."

"Even if you don't want to know, I'll tell you anyway."

That was just how he was. Doing the things others didn't want him to do.

"It's because you're just as useless as I am to your home. I mean, your home is pretty useless overall, but that just means you're one of the most pathetic there. I was able to leave like this because none of them feel like I need to be there at all. The only thing I needed to do was leave Págos behind and find my own way out of there. Meanwhile, you left without even letting them know you were leaving. They probably know you left by now, but nothing's come form that yet. But I wonder...did you leave your Trigger on purpose?"

"...They would have noticed if I had Kallitéchnis with me, so I didn't bring it."

"So you planned on being useless to me too then."

It had been because that Trigger was large and hard to move around, but she decided to keep that fact from him. Finding out meant that he would question why she didn't bring it when those were the only drawbacks.

But...

Without Kallitéchnis, my energy level really goes down.

It had been why she was able to see just how twisted this person was.

"Eh. I guess it's fine either way. Because of these two, we got some treasures that can be used later on. I might even find a way for you to use this piece of shit to do another performance here."

"You already made me sing once. I hate doing that when people demand it from me."

"Like I care."

He knew she couldn't go against his words here. There was nothing stopping him from attacking her like he had the other two times.

Letting out a sigh, Kigisa began walking a few meters behind Misó. The nighttime had begun, but he was leaving everything to the daytime. This was her own chance for some rest.

But her mind couldn't help the thoughts that told her she was betraying her true comrades here by being here.

I guess it's better that it was me than someone like Shi or Reghi. Wen would lose her mind and the others would worry.

But she was just a performer who was already destined to be lost. Someone who had her fate in decline due to historical records pertaining to her.

Misó knew that, so he used her.

All she could do was be used. After all...

...To Galopoula, I'm just unneeded.

---

The nighttime of Mikado City continued on in different areas. Some had chosen to spend the night enjoying themselves, others wanted to stay to themselves, and many others were preparing for the next day.

At one of Border's branch offices there were two friends speaking the night away while a child lay close by.

A house in the residential area was filled with noise. The entire street was able to hear the shouts coming from the house, but no one dared to get close when they understood what was inside.

By the next morning, everything had calmed down to where someone could go outside and view the rising sun. Birds flew under the sky, but most would be busy either preparing for the day to move around to get to their jobs.

Cars were moving around with a foreign emblem on the sides of them and morning people watched as Gates opened in the distance. The Forbidden Zone had been active once more, but no one thought much of it, being far too used to these sorts of things by now.

But even with all of that happening, there was still something there, moving throughout the city. A noise filled the entirety of the city - a song. With it's lyrics coming through, people began moving in an odd fashion while still going about their day like it was something normal. It was hard for most people to notice such a thing, though.

And so they all moved to start the new day.