Welcome to my new structured project. For the first time in a while I'm going to try a traditional story layout and give it a shot. I'm hoping it won't be too long but I wanted to do something new during lock down and see how much I can get through. This is a little bit out of my comfort zone so hopefully this turns out ok. Because of this my other stories will be on the back burner for a bit while I get this done. I won't make any promised about when this will get done but I'm hoping it's this side of this year.

I'll be taking a break from Seta-Gane Shorts and Pillow talk for the time being. Anyway I hope you enjoy the show.

Day One: Defragmentation

The silence unbearable, even in the city's bright light, the lack of sound messed with his senses as for every answer for the question he asked in his head, another two popped up. It wasn't too sure why it was this way but it seemed like this situation was never ending. He ran through the streets of Akihabara, his footsteps making no sound as he looked on for anything, any sign of life. The cars were still, even the ones on the road were unmanned and unmoving like the world stood still. At this point he could get all the way to Ueno if this kept up. He wasn't sure how long he'd been trying to find an exit for but he was starting to grow weary of the dead ends and the locked doors. He just wanted home and he wondered how much longer he needed to go on to find it. Briefly checking his phone the dreaded 'No Signal' played out on the phone, with a shake of the head kept going. He kept charging ahead hoping his tired legs will eventually find the answer he wanted, the one to go home.

"Ahhhh!" Startled awake from her slumber Inaba's resident detective shot up out of bed at a sudden dream. She held her hand to her head as a pain shot through her. Cringing at the now forming thumping headache she had gotten she climbed out of bed heading to the bathroom. Turning the light to the dimmest setting to not make the banging in her brain worse she looked herself in the mirror. Nothing seemed to be out of place then she realised, her top was damp.

She was sweating.

"What the hell? Am I ill?" She blinked slowly raising her hand to her forehead yet again and noticing it wasn't hot. The dream she had was weird, was it linked with that?

"Maybe I should change what books I read before going to bed..." Giving herself one more look over she took out a pack of aspirin from under the sink cabinet and poured herself some water before taking the medication. Hopefully this could help her sleep because she went to bed early for a reason. Walking back into her room, she took off her sleep shirt and threw it into the clothes hamper before rummaging through her dresser for a new one. Picking a suitable one, she slipped in on and climbed back into bed. Giving a small smile as she felt the painkillers already start to take effect, she looked at the framed picture of her and her Senpai cuddling on the bed side table which reminded her to check her phone. 'No new messages' showed up on her conversation. She'd set a reminder to herself to message him when she's up and awake in the morning. The last thing he needed was to take him up in the middle of the night. Not soon after the arms of sleep took her in again.

...

...

It was the morning in Junes where Yosuke was mounting boxes into a pile with the latest stock of DVDs that have just come in, ready to be tagged. Luckily for him his shift was almost over so he wouldn't have to deal with the fall out of dealing with them. Grinning as he looked at the time, he saw that he would off shift. Hopefully he would time to change before the rest of the gang got here and he wouldn't be caught in his-.

"Hey Yosuke-kun!"

...Never mind.

Turning to one of his good friends and the martial artist in the group he put the best cheerful face he could muster.

"Hey what's going on, you're early?"

All she did was grin, happy that she was earlier than on time for once. "Yes you say that but the rest of the group is already here so I just came to check when you are finished. You still finish work in a minute right?"

"Yeah that hasn't changed."

"Good, also Naoto-kun brought Nanako-chan with her as well." Yosuke's face lit up brightly like a Christmas tree. It wasn't very often they saw Nanako-chan since Souji left Inaba so this was reason for a celebration.

"Alright, I'm gonna go change and be on the court in a sec. Just don't start the party until I'm there."

"I can't make any promises."

Back at the table Chie walked back to the group who was already sitting amongst themselves talking. Seemed that Rise, Kanji and Naoto were discussing things to do with class and end of year assignments. Since they will be next on the graduating list by the end of the year. A lot of the three's time has been taken up by them as they made sure they got good enough grades to get where they needed to be. When it came down to it, it was mostly Naoto tutoring both Rise and Kanji for the most part as she'd already got her acceptance letter from Tokyo University.

"Do you still plan on going on to University Rise-chan?" She nodded with a bright smile.

"Yeah I want to do a remote course though because I plan to be on the idol business when I graduate. I probably won't have time to do a full time course so it's probably going to be part time for now. What about you Kanji-kun."

"I plan to help Ma when I graduate. College ain't for me at all."

Naoto looked on curiously at her friends as her eyes drifted to Nanako who was sitting on the opposite side of the table. Dojima contacted her this morning because Nanako really wanted to spend time with the group which wasn't unusual but apparently she was quite pushy about it which was a first of Naoto hearing she could be like that. I think she misses her Big Bro more than anything else is what Naoto summed up.

"How about you Nanako-chan, you been ok? How's school been?" Yukiko quizzed with Teddie sitting next to her, enthusiastic for a response. That's when Naoto saw it, there was a flash of sadness as she masked incredibly quickly before talking to her friends with a bright and cheerful expression. Her eyes narrowed suspiciously as she focused on the younger Dojima. Scanning her features seeing if anything was out of the ordinary, was something going on at school so she just wanted to spend time here? This was something she should ask her when they got time alone.

"Naoto-kun!"

"H-huh?" She turned to both Kanji and Rise, both sporting a set of concerned looks.

"Oh I asked you if you have your assignments done cause I know you are way ahead of the game? Is something bothering you?" Blinking just to get her mind back on track.

"Oh yes. I have all of my assignments done so I've been working on the logistics to move to Tokyo. I still haven't had a chance to complete all of it however. There are a few things I need to sort out which I'll get round too."

Rise's smile was cheeky. "Oh... Looking forward to moving in with Senpai huh?"

A spark went off in her mind as flashes of last night's dream burst into her mind. And just as quickly it was gone...

What the hell is happening?

For some reason in her mind she couldn't quite work out. She turned to Nanako to only have her do the same and make eye contact. She saw her eyes widen for just a second before turning back to talk to Yukiko.

Reality hit her quickly as she processed Rise's words and blushed as she scoffed to hide her embarrassment. By extension Kanji blushed too.

"Come Rise-chan don't bully Naoto-kun like that. She and Senpai have been looking forward to moving in with each other for a while. I can only imagine how hard it is to go long distance? Am I right?"

Naoto nodded, smiling sweetly for his understanding. "Yes, especially since it being my first relationship, it can be taxing but us going to University together will be helpful. Remember he did say he was coming to Inaba to help me pack and move so we'll see him soon."

To Naoto's surprise both Rise and Kanji sounded shocked by the news.

"Wait he's coming down? Why didn't you say?"

"Wait really?"

"Yeah, We would celebrate if we knew Sensei was coming!"

Naoto's expression turned from surprised to bemused. they had this conversation two weeks ago and they brought it up last week. Unless she'd remember the past differently but she was sure her memory wasn't bad at all. Everyone pegged the dates in the calendar because it was so important. The team getting back together and everything.

"Oh yeah Big Bro was coming back soon, I remember everyone speaking to my Dad about it."

"Really?" Naoto's face whipped to Yukiko which showed the same shocked expression as her other two friends. The Sleuth's eyes narrowed suspiciously on Nanako, now she was sure something was up. This was bizarre. It was like there has been two different sets of the past..

"Guys food is here! Teddie a little help here man." Yosuke announced with him and Chie carrying multiple trays to the table with food they took interest in earlier. Teddie shot up to help them carry the rest of them to the table. "Savour this one because it's on the house. My Dad decided to take pity on us since we are such loyal customers."

Everyone smiled and laughed at the new appearance of food except for Naoto who felt completely off about what was going on. She'd have to contact Senpai later on to make sure if he'd notice something strange going on. Yukiko turned to both Chie and Yosuke.

"Did you know that Souji-kun is planning on coming back to help Naoto move?" Yosuke and Chie's look of surprise mirrored the one Rise and Kanji made earlier.

"What? No way!" Yosuke turned to Naoto and gave her a wink and a thumbs up. "If there was one person that could bring him back it was you. Good stuff. I think we could all agree we miss him."

The collective nod around the room affirmed that. Naoto was about to comment but thought better of it. Whatever was going on, it was something she needed to look into. There was a feeling her gut now that was ringing alarm bells and while the rational part of her mind was telling her not to worry about and focus on the time he was coming, something was very, very wrong about this but maybe she could speak to Nanako at the end of the day to put her mind at ease.

"You gonna eat Naoto-kun?"

Kanji's voice snapped her back into reality again as her two best friends looked on in concern again. "You've been spacing out all afternoon. Somethin' up?" Shaking her head quickly and dismissing his worry for nothing. Instead she shifted the topic, taking a bullet to make everything seem normal.

"I was just thinking about Senpai that's all." She said with a mild bloom of the cheeks which made Rise squeal and Kanji grin in embarrassment.

...

Walking through the market stalls of Ueno, all that illuminated his path was the lights of the buildings, life unmoving. The voiceless murmurs of the city streets his only company. The hope of being able to leave started to look thin as his hope for communication. His mind rattled from the lack of senses. The world was silent, his sense of touch void of any feeling and the lack of food meant that he didn't even know if his taste buds even worked. His sight, clouded by hazy veil miasma that clung heavily in the air. He couldn't say for sure but the feeling of being chased was a shadow in his mind. It's why he kept running, never stopping. Soon he would be coming to Okachimachi, where streets were tighter, thinner a maze to anyone not familiar to the area. He needed to take that chance or he wouldn't be able to survive depending on how long he could survive. Thoughts of his friends and family his only drive to leave this horror show.

...

"Ah it's been fun hanging around with you Nanako-chan" Chie said cheerfully as they played games with the youngest in the group with the rest of the team floating around her like satellites orbiting a planet. However Naoto sat on the side with her face in her phone as she took various messages. She remembered to look over and shoot a smile once and a while to reduce the suspicion that her mind was completely elsewhere. Quickly she shot Souji a message asking how he's been and waited for it to go through. It hung on Line which was rare for him but she chalked it up to him being on the Tokyo Subway.

"Ah I wish my Big Bro was here." Nanako said whimsically as she continued to chase around Kanji and Teddie around the park with Rise in tow. It wasn't loud but it was enough to cause another sharp pang in Naoto's head very similar to this morning. There was a pattern here that was getting to her. Whenever she said his name it just 'resonated' with her. Was she doing it on purpose? How could she do something like that, it makes no sense.

"I see you're getting faster Nanako-chan!" Kanji called out as the little girl giggled as she followed around a set of benches with Rise and Chie watching on.

"What's on your mind Naoto-kun?"

Smiling as cheerfully as she could, she waved her hand away dismissing their question.

"I'm fine, I'm just grabbing some details for a case that Grandpa just sent through." Yosuke only just sighed with Yukiko giggling next to him.

"You are always working, you should come have some fun with us." Yukiko mentioned. Naoto was about to dismiss it and say things were fine but that would only make things worse. Whatever was happening to the others for the most part it didn't include herself which is worrying and strange. Either that or she was the one going mad, couldn't rule out that possibility.

"Sure I'm coming, Sorry about my distance today. I've just had a lot come in. It's really bizarre." The worker from Junes laughed.

"It's sod's law really. The one day you plan for times like this the other things keep popping up. While I don't have your style of work I can guarantee it's something that happens with everyone." The Innkeeper agreed.

"There have been so many times where I work on a day off because the Inn is overrun with guests. It's so strange but I can sympathise." A short nod came from the Sleuth as she hopped off the bench table.

"Yes exactly, I've just asked my Grandpa to wait until I'm home for more of the details so I shouldn't need my phone as much." The grin from Yosuke only got wider.

"Great! Anyway we don't have all day with Nanako so we might as well make the most of it."

"Mmm Let's,"

By the time they were done with the activities it was sunset already, the amber tint in the spring day brought an end to the fun and games. Just for the next couple of hours Naoto managed to forget about the on-going flux in her mind and relax looking after the younger Dojima. It felt normal, natural even to spend this amount of time with someone just relaxing and having fun. Having Nanako there was a stark reminder that the love of her life wasn't around at the moment and there was something odd about looking after Nanako without his smile accompanying her. Back at Junes they all parted ways and said goodbye and promised to meet up just before the final exams to cheer on the three who are about to take the big leap into the wider world. Naoto held back reminding the group that Souji would be back soon, she wanted to test a theory first and needed some time before she drew an accurate conclusion.

Her last task of the evening however was taking Nanako Dojima home back to her father. This in her mind was perfect due to Nanako being the only person other than herself that acted strangely compared to everyone else. It seemed that they were on the same wavelength about something, she just needed to pry into what it was.

"So did you enjoy today Nanako-chan?" She looked up at the Sleuth with a small smile and nodded lightly.

"Yeah, everyone just reminds me of Big Bro though..." The subdued tone and a voice of longing was something Naoto could relate too. She knew how that felt especially soon after Souji left.

"I understand, I want nothing more than to see him again." Catching the glance that Nanako shot her was one of general surprise.

"Really?"

The sound of confirmation was confusing. She knew that she dated Souji herself and they have spoken at length about missing him. It's a common bond they shared together. Why would it change now?

"Of course Nanako-chan. Why would I think otherwise? I think the only person that misses him more than me is you." The next sentence surprised Naoto even more.

"Oh that's good. When speaking to my Dad about it he tends to forget that he is even coming over soon. I've had issues where he's forgotten about things I've mentioned about Big Bro after a day. It's starting to worry me." Her solemn look was heartbreaking if not for the titbit of information that she just released.

"He's been forgetting Souji-kun?" Nanako nodded grimly. This gave her theory some sort of basis but she needed a better confirmation.

"Yes, it's really weird and has me worried. I thought it was me but today didn't feel right." A raised eyebrow from the Sleuth told her to continue. "You felt it too right?"

This situation suddenly felt like it was bigger than the both of them to Naoto with now her thoughts on what the hell was going on. She couldn't lie to Nanako, for making her feel like nothing is wrong and reassure that everything will be fine. It didn't feel like that sort of scenario. She sighed and took a gamble.

"Yeah, I was feeling the same too. Like they forgot that Souji-kun was coming in a couple weeks." Nanako nodded her head quickly, agreeing in earnest.

"Exactly like that, didn't you find that strange?" The Detective nodded slowly.

"Very much so, it's concerning actually..."

"I felt bad for thinking I should tell off others forgetting. They are supposed to be his best friends. Yet they were forgetting about him visiting them. It seems really cruel but they were so nice to me I couldn't say anything. It seems like they didn't mean it..."

"Almost like it wasn't their fault..."

"Yeah..."

They walked back to the Dojima residence in relative silence as the both of them mulled over their conversation wondering how it got this way. When they got to her house Nanako used her key to get in, and pushed the door open. Before going in she turned to Naoto.

"Would you mind waiting here, I need to give you something." Naoto almost recoiled at the request but nodded anyway. "Dad I'm home, I'm just getting something for Big Sis."

"Oh I'm glad you're back and not too late..." Dojima came to the door and opened it slightly more ajar. "Hello there Shirogane-kun, how was Nanako today?"

A small smile pulled at her lips. "She was delightful. Hopefully she had fun."

Grunting in response he nodded. "I'm sure she did, she really wanted to come see you, I think she's been upset about something recently."

Odd...

Time to test a theory. "Have you heard from Souji-kun recently?"

He paused, like he was racking his brain for what she was referring too... "Souji... Ah yes my sister's kid. I haven't seen him in a while no? How come you bring him up?"

Ok now all the alarm bells were ringing in Naoto's head at once. "Nothing, forget I said anything."

He left her with a strange look as Nanako slipped past her father with a small bag in hand. She turned to her Dad.

"I'm just going to the vending machine, I'll be back." Nanako's free hand took hers as she pulled him away from the door with it closing behind her. The walk was only 15 seconds to the vending machine around the corner but it seemed to be the opening that Nanako needed.

"Here," Giving a small purse with coins in it. Naoto opened it up seemingly filled from just the vague count of a week's lunch money in it. The Sleuth's expression looks on wondering why she was given this, bemusement played on her face.

"Why are you giving me this Nanako-chan?"

"You are a detective right?" This wasn't helping.

"Y-Yes of course I am, why does that matter?"

"Big Bro told me you work on big cases and your family is famous. This is all I have but I want you to find my Big Bro."

Shell shocked, Naoto steps back. "Find him?"

She looked like she was on the verge of tears, like she didn't know where else to go. "I have a bad feeling I won't see him again, I can't get through to him and people are forgetting about him. I'm scared something has happened to him. I think he's missing."

"I... How can that..."

Then that familiar pain from today hit her again.

...

The vibrant glow of Okachimachi was something that is adored by anyone visiting but for him, the threat of his own shade drawing near keeps him on his toes. Not knowing what one tight corner has compared to another was starting to play tricks with his mind. The miasma became more potent, his brain starting to become away as it was growing thicker, hazier, dulling his senses even more so than before. Running his hand along the window, he noticed that the surface felt no different to him other than paper. The exact same texture as the brick he pressed up against earlier to catch his breath. Suddenly sensing that presence, he moved quicker, thankful his steps made no sound, to him anyway, as he used his knowledge to find somewhere to hide so he could recover. It feels endless and the only thing he's wished for is a way to defend himself.

He wanted to get back, he wanted to live but he wasn't sure how much his form will keep up before this place erodes him away or the shadows and silhouettes consume him for good.