DAY ONE ; 9:27 A.M.

Chihiro Fujisaki sat on the hill overlooking the school, legs pulled to his chest, just watching.

It was a miracle he hadn't been killed yet. He wasn't too stupid to know that, if he was found by anyone, he would be dead before he could even tell who it was that had killed him. He'd gotten a knife for a weapon. Useful, sure, but if he wanted to survive, he would have been better off with a gun.

He knew that he'd never be able to kill anyone, though, so maybe he was better off with the knife.

Something rustled behind him and he jumped, turning to try and figure out who it was. It was broad daylight now, and he was sitting in plain view on a hill – but there were trees grouped everywhere, and though that did have the advantage of blocking him from view from people not on the hill, it had the disadvantage of him not being able to see anyone who was coming.

"Fujisaki-kun."

He let out a sigh of relief as he realized who it was – Kyouko Kirigiri, holding some sort of gun in one hand, a laptop in the other.

"Where did you get that?" Chihiro asked, reaching out for it automatically. Kirigiri handed it to him, crouching down beside him as he opened it up. he pressed the power button, crossing his fingers for at least a little bit of battery.

No luck. The power light was flashing red. He couldn't help but let out a disappointed sigh.

"I found a power cord, too," Kirigiri said. "I want you to hack into the school and end this."

"Wh-what?" Chihiro asked. He stood up, tucking the laptop under his arm and slinging his back over his shoulder. "Do you really think that we can?"

"I know that you can," Kirigiri said. She fingered her collar and grimaced. "Come on. If you need power, we'll need to find a source. I know a place where there will probably be some."

She opened up her map and Chihiro, who was completely blown away by how brilliant she was, glanced down at it, following her finger to E9. A tourist association, it said. If there was power anywhere, it would probably be in there. He nodded slowly.

"What's your weapon?" Kyouko asked.

"A knife."

Kyouko nodded, though she didn't look very pleased.

"I'm sorry," Chihiro said. She nodded again, almost absentmindedly, and then paused. Chihiro glanced around, immediately nervous, and took a step closer to her. She was so strong and so smart, and as much as he didn't want to have to be protected by her, she definitely could.

The next noise was so loud that even Chihiro could hear it – the snap of sticks beneath someone's shoes, someone coming closer. A buzzed blond haircut –

"Run!" Kyouko hissed, firing a few shots into the trees. There was a shout, but then Kyouko had grabbed his hand and was pulling him along, skirting the edges of the zone the school was in, pulling him to run faster than he really thought that he could. They ran until they hit the coast – about half a mile, he'd say, probably a little bit more – and then collapsed together on the sand, breathing hard.

"Fuyuhiko Kuzuryuu," Kirigiri said. "It was him."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm completely sure," Kirigiri said. "His hair… his posture… and knowing him, he would have hit us if we would've stayed."

"He's prepared," Chihiro said, shivering a little at the thought of encountering him again. Kirigiri opened up her map worked at pinpointing their location while Chihiro stored the laptop safely away his bag.

"Ready?" Kirigiri asked after she'd figured out where they were and what route they'd have to take to get to their destination. Chihiro nodded, taking a deep breath and slinging his bag over his shoulder. "Then let's get going."

29 STUDENTS REMANING