Where a Building Once Stood / Where a Tree Still Stands
Preamble: The full title was too long for the site, oh well. While Ends of the Earth pieces are mostly standalone, Where a Building Once Stood/Where a Tree Still Stands will not make as much sense without having read stories 8 (A Billion Stars and One Portal Jump) and 9 (High Places).
Kazuki frowned. There was some kid milling about in the courtyard.
Well, he assumed it was a kid, but who could say for sure? It had nothing to do with his vision. His eyesight was excellent, and he'd never had to wear glasses, contacts or consider corrective surgery a day in his life. The intruder did look relatively young, about the age of one of Kazuki's own daughters, but there was a bit of that nebulous appearance of youth, like an actor in their late 20's or early 30's who could still convincingly tackle teenaged roles. And of course it was hard to tell with all the spirits and demons living (existing), working, and vacationing in the Human World nowadays. Every so often there were hilarious - and, for someone, surely embarrassing - stories in the news resulting from mistaken assumptions.
But the sleeveless, gaudy neon-coloured shirt with the words "HIT ME WITH A CAR" splashed across it, the giant sunglasses obscuring the eyes, and the carelessly sideswept short hairstyle all created an overall impression that made a strong case for "kid".
Or maybe just visually-impaired.
In any case, whatever the stranger's age or visual acuity, he shouldn't have been there. Ordinary people - and ordinary spirits and demons - couldn't possibly get past the security measures of the site. The company's technology and wards were top of the line.
But nothing had been set off.
Mildly perturbed, but still confident in the personal protective equipment supplied by his employer, Kazuki strode over.
The stranger was crouched down by the recently finished water feature and poking at it curiously. There was no power hooked up so it wasn't running yet, but it had a clear engagement interface. The structure was a work of art, a feat of sophisticated modern design and engineering, and Kazuki couldn't help but mentally contrast that against the intruder's appearance.
"Sir," he said, on the off-chance it wasn't some kid. "This site is under construction and off-limits to the public. What are you doing here?"
The young-looking man - Kazuki settled on this description for now - looked up at him nonchalantly, then reached down and pulled up a badge dangling from the end of a lanyard.
"Summer intern, Minamino Enterprises," the young-looking man replied cheerfully, as if that explained everything. Then he paused. He seemed to blank - not that Kazuki could be sure, since the stranger was still wearing those ridiculous sunglasses - and looked down at his badge. Suddenly the stranger stood up, dusted himself off, and removed the sunglasses from his face, setting them on top of his head. He removed the lanyard from around his neck and reached both arms out, one proffering the ID for inspection and the other extended in greeting.
"Shinjo Yohei," said the young-looking man. "Just takin' a look around." His gaze was direct and unwavering, his smile open and confident.
Kazuki did not shake the other man's hand. Shinjo Yohei didn't look anything like anyone he would associate with the Minamino company brand. But his voice and his face did seem vaguely familiar; Kazuki couldn't quite put his finger on it. For a moment, he wondered if he had seen him on the news, or perhaps that he bore a resemblance to someone else he had encountered in the past.
Kazuki reached over to take the ID badge, and dubiously examined it. It actually did read Shinjo Yohei, Summer Intern, Minamino Enterprises, followed by the standard division information and dates of validity. It felt and looked exactly as the head office IDs did, emblazoned with every modern security feature known to the Three Worlds. A photo of the young-looking man standing in front of him stared back, wearing a perfectly neutral expression.
Kazuki reached into his shirt pocket and pulled out his phone, activating the scanner and running it over the badge. The scanner beeped positively. Well, what do you know. "Valid. Identify confirmed," the device chirped. "Shinjo Yohei, Summer Intern, Minamino Enterprises. Full site access."
He looked at the young-looking man who languidly returned his gaze. Yohei's body language was completely relaxed, calm, inoffensive. At the same time, Kazuki had the strangest sense that their roles were, in reality, reversed; that the man was engaging with him as if he were a child, that he was being humoured in his laughable attempts at playing an authority figure.
"Alright, Mr. Shinjo," Kazuki said, feeling a bit out of sorts in this interaction. "Just one more thing." It all appeared legitimate, but he never took anything at face value. He was primarily a rational, practical man, but he also trusted his gut, and if he felt off about something, he questioned it. That was why he was good at his job. He called head office.
"Sarayashiki Kumo Properties, a division of Minamino Enterprises," said the pleasant female voice on the other end. "Good afternoon, Mr. Takenaka. How may I assist you?"
"I have an individual here," said Kazuki, never taking his eyes off of the other man. Yohei casually clasped both hands behind his back. "A summer intern with Minamino Enterprises. Name's Shinjo Yohei. He has company ID and permissions for full site access. I didn't hear anything about it, so I'd just like to make sure it all checks out."
"Of course, sir." A pause. "Yes, I can confirm we do have two employees dispatched and expected in your area, Mr. Shinjo Yohei and senior consultant Mr. Ito Rokurou, with full access to the site." Before he even had a chance to ask why, she continued: "It's a last-minute favour for some of the private sector backers of the development project. I am so sorry we were unable to notify you in advance. It must have been a bit of a shock for you to run into them. I'll speak to our team about making sure this doesn't happen again."
That's why he liked working for this company. So considerate and professional. "That's alright," Kazuki said understandingly. "I imagine they probably weren't expecting me to be here either. I normally would have left for the day already, so there wouldn't have been a need to notify me."
"We appreciate that so much, Mr. Takenaka. Please don't overwork yourself. Oh, one other thing to note - Mr. Shinjo and Mr. Ito unfortunately aren't permitted to discuss much of their work. They may have some requests that seem odd. Private backers can be so eccentric, you know? Anyways, they're all pre-approved by head office so if it isn't too inconvenient for you, it would be wonderful if you happen to be able to assist in any way. But you're completely not obligated to; there's no need to go out of your way and we fully understand if it's not feasible. Is there anything else I can do for you?"
"No, thank you. That was very helpful."
"I'm glad to hear that. Sorry again about the trouble. Don't hesitate to contact us if you have any other questions. Have a lovely evening, Mr. Takenaka."
He hung up. "Sorry about that, Mr. Shinjo," he said, putting his phone back in his pocket. "I had to double check with head office. Let me know if there's anything I can help you with."
"Mm-hmm," Yohei replied, in the absent-minded tone of one who was only half-listening. While Kazuki had been speaking with the operator, Yohei had wandered away and was now inspecting the courtyard centrepiece, the tree. It was a massive mulberry that had been there for generations. The development had instructions to build carefully around it, the architect's design respectfully integrating it into the new facility and showcasing its natural beauty and resilience.
"Man, this takes me back." Yohei placed his hand against the trunk, slowly ran his palm along the bark. "Can't believe it's still here. Keiko and I walked this route every day. I used to kick Kuwabara's ass under it all the time. Those were the days."
He turned his head and his eyes met Kazuki's. "I have a lot of fond memories of this tree," Yohei said, and grinned. The smile was bright and disarming.
Kazuki recalled sunny afternoons spent with his grandfather, his mother, the woman who would become his wife, and his own daughters in the mulberry's shade. I do too, Kazuki realized, and he appreciated that his company was so progressive and thoughtful to do this, to safeguard this living landmark for future generations.
Yohei reached his hand out again. "Didn't get your name earlier...?"
"Takenaka Kazuki, site manager," Kazuki said, taking the proffered hand this time and shaking it. "Here, this is yours," he added, returning the ID. Yohei's status was confirmed, but Kazuki was still not entirely sure what to make of the other man.
Yohei gave him a peculiar look before taking the lanyard and pulling it back over his head. "Any relation to Takenaka, junior high teacher?"
Kazuki wasn't sure he'd heard correctly. "Who?"
"This place used to be Sarayashiki Junior High, right?"
That's right. Kazuki had almost completely forgotten. Actually, most people, even those born in the area, didn't know this site used to be a school. Decades before he was born, districts had consolidated, one had been merged with another, the land had eventually been sold to developers. That was ages ago, and now it was being transformed yet again. He remembered, when his daughters were younger, a time when he and his wife struggled to answer their questions about what and why things were in their neighbourhood. There was so much development going on in Sarayashiki these days, it was easy to forget what certain areas used to look like, what they used to be.
"Yes," Kazuki said. "That was well before my time. It's been quite a few things since then. The world changes so fast nowadays, eh?"
"It's so different," murmured Yohei.
He wasn't looking at Kazuki anymore. His words, for some reason, didn't seem to be part of the flow of their conversation so much as part of something else Kazuki couldn't discern.
Kazuki hesitated before he continued, compelled by something to share - to share - to share what, he wasn't quite sure. But something in him pushed ahead.
"When I was a kid," Kazuki mused, "my grandfather used to take me on walks around the neighbourhood, point out little bits of local history. Now I'm in the line of tearing it all up. People get nostalgic for the past, and we call them sentimental, but it makes me wonder sometimes. Would it be better if it were still a small junior high, and Sarayashiki still a sleepy little suburb?"
Yohei snorted. "Hell if I know, I was barely in school and when I was, I was bored out of my mind for most of it." He put his hands in his pockets, leaned on one leg, and smiled a half-smile. "But I guess… I guess I am feeling kinda nostalgic. But not really about this place. Or what this place used to be. Or that it was better back in the 'good ol' days' or whatever."
"What's it about, then?"
Yohei shrugged. "I dunno. About... time, I guess. About things that were... whatever they were, back then, and how they won't be that way ever again. And how easy it is to forget that in every moment."
The young-looking man turned his head to look past the tree, beyond the tree. He seemed to be staring at something that wasn't there - or not there anymore, in any case.
An image flashed, suddenly, in Kazuki's mind: a drawing his grandfather had made for him when he was a child, a diagram of the school's layout. He had been fascinated by it, this simple two-dimensional depiction of another world; perhaps that was where his passion and appreciation for blueprints had come from. He never saw the building or the actual school grounds for himself, not the way they were, since it had long since been torn down by the time he was born. But from the memory of that drawing, and his family's photos, the orientation was roughly where the school gate might have stood.
Yohei yawned exaggeratedly, breaking Kazuki out of his reverie. "Yeah, I know I'm not making much sense," said the other man.
"You were asking about Takenaka the schoolteacher, before?" said Kazuki.
"Yeah?" said Yohei.
"Takenaka was an ancestor of mine," said Kazuki. "I believe he lived a good, long life. He was very much respected and beloved by his family and his community."
Yohei's eyes lit up. He looked pleased. "That's cool. He was an old fart but a good guy." The words were warm and affectionate.
"You knew him?" Despite his question, Kazuki didn't feel the least bit surprised. It was as if he had subconsciously been expecting it all along. He wondered how old this young-looking man really was.
Yohei was looking at the invisible school gate again. "He couldn't get through to me back then, but it wasn't his fault. I was probably the biggest pain in his backside. Then again," Yohei chuckled, "I was probably the biggest pain in everybody's backsides. Looking back, I feel kinda bad about it. He cared so much and he tried so hard. When I got my ramen stand, he became a regular... Came to the wedding… I think he was just relieved I had a job and was living some semblance of adulthood and not lying in a hole somewhere. He was a good guy. A good teacher. Best I ever had."
Yohei paused, then grinned again. This time, the expression had a private, reflective quality to it. "Best normal teacher I ever had. He would've gotten along nicely with the old hag. I'm sure they're probably bitching about my dimwitted lazy ass in eternity somewhere."
Kazuki found himself furrowing his brow; his mind had inexplicably caught on the mention of the ramen stand. He had a faint impression, a feeling, of something like this: barely peeking over the edge of a counter from the height of a stool, below a dusty overpass with a train rumbling deeply overhead, surrounded by the warm buzz of conversation and the noise of patrons slurping noodles, his grandfather's comfortable presence, and a man - a young-looking man in a white tee and hachimaki - deftly chopping ingredients with a skill that was magical.
It might have been a dream. But it was almost like a memory.
Who are you? The thought entered his mind to ask. Part of him wanted to. But the other part felt, perhaps, it didn't seem right to barge into another person's world. That it wasn't really his place, or his story.
"Excuse me," said a new voice. Kazuki turned to see another man standing behind him. His appearance was older than Yohei's. "Ito Rokurou, senior consultant," said the man. "Apologies for the intrusion. We meant to call earlier, but-"
"No apology necessary," Kazuki said. Though Rokurou's clothing was more casual than would typically be expected, his bearing and manner were precisely what Kazuki would have expected of a Minamino Enterprises senior employee. For a split second Kazuki wondered how long the man had been standing there, and how he had gotten there without any sound at all - and the thoughts rose, then fell away. It didn't seem important.
"Takenaka Kazuki, site manager," Kazuki said. They shook hands. "Head office told me about both of you already. I know you folks need to take a look around, and if there's any questions I can answer or anything I can help you out with, just let me know."
"That's most gracious of them, and of you." Rokurou nodded at Yohei. "Shinjo. Did you get what you needed?"
The other man said nothing. "Shinjo?" repeated Rokurou.
"Wha?" The younger-looking man squinted at the older-looking man. "Oh- Oh! Right, me. Yeah. I'm done here."
"Are you sure? We're not in a rush - we do have other stops you wanted to make, but we can stay longer."
"Sure I'm sure, houhhhhh I don't remember what your name is. But sure."
Mild exasperation crossed Rokurou's face, but he only shrugged at this apparent slight. "Okay."
"Guess we'll be going now," Yohei replied. He looked back at Kazuki. "Good talking to you." He paused. "...I dunno, I feel like I should be giving you a blessing or something." He raised an arm, aiming a closed fist at Kazuki. "May you live a kickass life with people you love, do shit that makes you happy, get lucky sometimes, all that good stuff." He opened his hand, flicking his fingers as though he were flinging invisible fairy dust. "Poof. Hope that worked."
"Thank you," said Kazuki, not sure what else to say. As odd as it was, he did find himself holding a certain reverence for the moment. For something much older and bigger than him, than his one ordinary human life, crossing a wide span of time and space that he couldn't begin to imagine.
"Thank you for your hospitality," said Rokurou, bowing politely.
"My pleasure." Kazuki bowed in return at both of them. "Is there anything else you need?" he asked.
"All good," Yohei said, giving him a cheerful thumbs-up.
"Yes, we can show ourselves out," said Rokurou.
"Say," Kazuki heard Yohei remark as the two men left, "When we met, didn't you kick my ass at the base of a tree?"
"What brought that to mind?" the other man answered. Yohei said something in reply, but they were facing away, too far, and Kazuki couldn't make out their conversation anymore.
Kazuki took his time locking up that evening before heading home. He found he felt no need to rush as he submitted his day-end report, cleaned and organized his desk for the next morning, made sure all systems were running properly.
Before he shut the gate behind him, he looked over his shoulder at the site that was, and had been, his workplace every day for the last few years, and for the next few years to come. The view was equal parts dust of the past, chaos of limbo, and emerging, gleaming shoots of the future. He realized that the sight was suddenly extremely familiar and incredibly alien at the same time. He thought about how this place was changing, and would continue to change in ways he couldn't even begin to fathom. He thought about his childhood, his parents, his wife and children, his ancestors, his descendants, and whatever people came before, or would come long after they were all gone.
Above the stillness of the empty site and the muted hum of equipment, the feeling came to him, a sense quiet yet overwhelming: it will never be this way again, the way it is right now, at this very moment.
For some reason, he felt OK with that.
Kazuki headed home. Along the way the thought entered his head that he ought to take his family out for some good, old-fashioned ramen. It seemed fitting, but why, he couldn't say.
Author's notes: Shinjo Yohei is the name of the actor who plays Urameshi Yusuke, according to Togashi's post-series doujinshi Yoshirin de Pon!
Ito Rokurou is a silly pun. Ito/Itou/Itoh (伊藤) is a common Japanese surname, as is Ito (糸) which means thread. Rokurou (六郎) follows the standard of common male names ending in -rou (generally meaning "_ son", in this case, sixth son), and rokurokubi (ろくろ首/轆轤首) is the type of youkai most people have categorized Hokushin as due to his powers.
Kazuki is another common Japanese name for which the kanji can literally be "one tree".
Hachimaki is a headband worn as a symbol of effort and perseverance in a variety of situations, including by students and chefs.
A human generation averages around 22 to 32 years (thank you Wikipedia). There are about 6-7 generations being covered in the "approximately 200 years" future of the Ends of the Earth. Therefore, Takenaka would be Kazuki's great-great-great-great-grandfather. I apologize in general for the fact that I spent little to no effort imagining future technology in these stories…
The tone of this piece changed quite a bit since the original idea, but the theme remains the same. In my original notes, I had written: "Recently I was on a drive that passed through my old neighbourhood and elementary school, places I literally hadn't set foot in for at least a decade. It was interesting - some places had changed a great deal, others looked almost exactly the same as I remembered, but very different, as if I were looking at them from a completely different perspective. Some things felt off in terms of scale, and overall I felt a sense of distance, as if it was only something I "knew" theoretically but had never put into practice. I can only imagine what it must feel like to see something hundreds of years later."