Author's Note's: Quick thing to note. I know that it's extremely rare to own guns in Japan but please just assume it's slightly more common in this world. I'm just saying this cuz I don't wanna be slammed for being 'Unrealistic'
BTW, I just read chapter 113, and I can't believe that Nagatoro might do what she's about to do.
"Oi! Senpai! Help me over here!" Nagatoro called out for Naoto, who was sorting the remaining food supplies.
It had been two days since Haru's death, and the group had still not recovered from it, especially Sakura, who was still sulking in a Corner. Ever since then, she hadn't said almost a single word, staring silently at the floor as she covered herself with a blanket. Naoto and the others decided to simply give her time, coming over to comfort her from time to time.
The loss of Haru wasn't hitting the others as hard, as they didn't know him that well. Despite that, they still mourned the loss of their fellow classmate.
Nagatoro was in the middle of 'fixing' the broken window, attempting to push a shelf in front of it. If a Zombie were to somehow climb it's way in, then they'd have a lot of trouble. Naoto pushed the shelf alongside her, trying to get it in front of the window.
As they pushed the shelf, Nagatoro's shoulder grazed against Naoto's, causing him to flinch slightly. "S-sorry" He mumbled. No matter what happened, his nervousness around her didn't seem to go away.
Naoto giggled seeing how he reacted to her shoulder rubbing against his. "Look at you, senpai. Acting so flustered over something like this. You creep." She smirked and smacked his head as they finally got the shelf in place.
Naoto adjusted the shelf against the window, making sure that it couldn't be pushed away, while Nagatoro stood next to him, waiting for him to finish.
Naoto caught his breath, sitting down on the floor and leaning on the shelf. "Phew. I'm exhausted." Nagatoro smiled and sat down next to him. "You never were good with sports, right? I'm surprised you've managed to even outrun the Zombies so often."
Naoto turned his head towards the wooden floor bellow him. It surprised him that every time he had a conversation with Nagatoro, the troubles of reality simply faded away. He had almost forgotten that he was in the middle of a Zombie apocalypse for second.
"Well, we should probably get up." Naoto asked, slowly standing up and wiping the dirt from the floor off his pants. "By the way, how is Sakura? Has she still not said anything."
"Not really. Most of the time, she simply sulks around the Supply room, either sleeping or covering herself with a blanket. None of us have been able to cheer her up." Nagatoro responded.
Naoto looked outside one of the windows, staring outside at the concrete floor. "I don't think it will ever be easy to cheer her up If she can see this everytime she walks by the window." Naoto said, his eyes focusing on a spot on the concrete that was splattered with blood and chunks of flesh. Despite it being almost impossible to tell, Naoto knew that those fleshy bits belonged to Haru. After the fall, the Zombies most likely picked apart what remained of him.
"Everytime I walk by the window, I feel like throwing up. Imagine how she feels." Naoto said, closing the window again. Nagatoro nodded. "I guess you're right. For now, only time can tell if she will get better."
Naoto and the others were sat around in a circle, each one holding a canned good in their hand. The group usually ate togheter, everyone choosing something random to eat from the supplies. Naoto had gotten the short end of the deal, as the canned chicken he liked most had just recently run out, leaving him with all the 'inferior' goods.
"I don't think I'll ever get used to not eating chicken every day." Naoto pouted in a jokingly upset tone. "If there's anything that could make this situation worse, it's this." Naoto was holding a can of beans which was cooked with their homemade campfire as he scooped a bite. It wouldn't replace his chicken, but it would at least keep him alive.
Yoshi, Sakura and Gamo were all competing for who could eat their can the fastest, not even bothering to use a spoon, simply shaking the can until it's contents slipped out into their mouths, with Nagatoro beating the others by a fraction.
While the rest of the group were having an above-average time, Sakura was sitting quietly amongst the group, slowly scooping her food, barely eating anything. She wasn't even able to finish a can by herself most of the time, to which it would end up being distributed amongst the others.
Hana sat next to Sakura, quietly chowing down on her food as well, trying to keep Sakura some company even if they wouldn't exchange a word. After the food, the group would remain there for a while longer, simply talking or sitting for a bit.
Naoto grabbed his axe, reaching for the door. "Are you sure you wanna go? I could take your shift." Gamo exclaimed. Naoto simply shook his head. "It's fine. Just keep the place safe while I come back." Naoto answered. After Haru died, Naoto and the others decided to try and keep themselves safer, taking daily shifts in scouting the inside and outside of the school for any supplies or weapons while the rest waited at home.
Today was Naoto's turn, choosing to explore the east hall of the first floor of the school, which they hadn't touched ever since the beginning of the infection. From what little they saw of the place, it looked to be full of Zombies, but that probably meant that nothing there had been taken yet.
Sakura was mumbling quietly to herself as she saw Naoto approached the door. Everytime someone left trough the door, she'd start mumbling to herself. From time to time, Naoto and the others could make out words like "Don't go." or "Don't open the door, please." From what Naoto could tell, she simply associated that door opening with the time she wasn't able to stop Haru from leaving.
Despite all of this, Naoto opened up the door, quietly leaving the room and closing it again as Hana sat next to Sakura again. Once outside, Naoto headed left, before taking the staircase downwards. Since last time, Naoto had learned to wander around the School more efficiently, keeping his footsteps as quiet as possible, as well as taking down Zombies without making almost any sound.
Naoto took the staircase all the way to the bottom floor, before heading east. The halls were always filled with Zombies, so the group never walked trough there. Naoto took out a small rock from his backpack, tossing it behind him as he hid inside a classroom next to him as the noise drove them away from the hallway.
With the path finally being cleared, Naoto snuck his way deeper into the hallway. All the rooms seemed to be clear of Zombies, as he quietly entered each room one by one, searching the lockers and tables for any food or supplies.
After draining almost all the rooms of what little they had, Naoto was confronted by a door that was slightly bigger than the others, this one being the entrance to the teachers room.
"There shouldn't be much here, but anything is better than nothing." Naoto pushed the door quietly as he walked inside. Just like the other rooms, it was completely empty over any soul. And just like any other room, it reeked of blood and whatever else was lying on the floor.
Naoto had already gotten used to this sight, simply choosing to ignore the overwhelming smell as he looked trough the drawers. Most of them were empty, containing nothing but sheets of paper, and some of them containing tests that were in the middle of being corrected. Naoto could even eye his very own test on the table, noticing that he had a 93. "I was always curious if I did good on that test or no-...huh?"
Naoto opened one of the drawers, reaching his hand inside and pulling out what seemed to be a handgun. "A... gun? What the hell is this doing in the drawer of a teacher?"
Naoto checked for the papers, hoping to find our who the gun belonged to. Sadly, he came out empty-handed as to the identity behind the owner. He looked back at the drawer, noticing that whoever owned this gun must've really liked to shoot stuff, as there were at least four unused clips inside the drawer.
Naoto didn't even hesitate to take them all and stuff them inside his bag. In such a circumstance, it'd be an idiotic move to not take the weapon. Naoto stuffed it in his pocket, luckily remembering to turn on the safety, before pushing the door.
"SQUEAK"
The sound of the door squeaking against the floor caused Naoto to flinch in shock, before realizing what this meant. Every single Zombie in this floor could probably hear that sound, and they were probably on their way already.
Naoto didn't even bother to come up with a plan, quickly leaving the hallway and heading for the stairs before any Zombie could notice him. The loud footsteps he was making did attract a small number of Zombies, but they were quickly cut down by his axe.
Naoto was lucky enough to make it back to the third floor quickly, jumping inside and shutting the door. "Every-huff-one. I'm back." Naoto said between bated breaths.
The group welcomed him back. They were all sitting in a circle in the middle of the room, except for Sakura, who was off in the corner again.
"What's going on?" Naoto asked the group while he took out all the supplies, including the gun and the clips, which he quietly put in one of the shelves. He was definitely planning on telling them about it, but not when they seemed busy.
Nagatoro patted the floor besides herself, implying he should sit besides her. "He adjusted his glasses as his face went even redder, both from running so much and from Nagatoro's straightforwardness, before sitting down next to her.
In front of him was a small box. He could instantly tell what it was on first sight. From the old man to the monocle, to the green houses in the background of the picture on top. This was with no doubt 'Monopoly'.
"Look, Paisen! We found this game in one of the shelves. Looks like someone brought it in here and forgot to bring it back home! Care for a round?" Gamo said, with Yoshi sitting besides her as she repeated her words.
Naoto looked at the box. It had definitely been an exhausting time for everyone, and they all deserved a break.
"Sure. Why not?"