"My name is Naru Narusegawa. A good amount of time has passed, twenty three months to be exact. Twenty three months since my life has taken a different turn. Alot has happened since then, both good and bad. Not long after we lost of manager, his younger sister Kanako Urashima moved in as the new landlord. We didn't get along. Be that as it may, we've come to an understanding, and the dorms have once again been turned into an inn. Kanako wasn't our only resident to move in. Another student name Mutsumi Otohime moved in, along with her strange flying turtle Tama. She was sweet enough...a little simple-minded and naïve, but sweet. I do admire her for trying to Tokyo U as well. It feels good to have someone to study with. The last new resident that moved in was Sarah McDougal. She's a bit of a troublemaker, but she's a wonderful playmate for Su. Sarah is also the daughter of my long time crush, Seta Noriyasu. He's a good man, and a dear friend. I had to give up these feelings for him when he married Haruka Urashima. I guess you could call her our authority of Hinata Sou. It was a bit sad for me, but I was happy for the both of them. The ceremony in the Toudai ruins was so beautiful, I couldn't help but shed some tears that day. It was an exciting day for us all, but nothing exciting has really happened since. Even today, is kinda boring. At the moment I'm just here all alone, studying for the Tokyo U exams. Yes, I'm still studying for the test. Why I'm not a Tokyo U student yet is no one's concern but my own!"
As Naru scribbles furiously on a sheet of paper, her pencil suddenly breaks. The girl reaches over for another pencil, but realizes all of them have been worn down to a point of being unusable. The thought of opening another box of pencils crossed Naru's mind, but after some searching she found that none were within her room.
"I could have sworn that I had another box of pencils. Where else could I get some," Naru questioned out loud. "Maybe Shinobu or Haruka has some."
Deciding that Shinobu's room was closer, the brunette walked to the smaller tenant's room. As she knocked, there was no response from Shinobu. Without even thinking of intrusion issues, Naru decided to enter and have a look around herself. The room was neatly decorated, with some stuffed animals, shelves of books, cooking utensils, and boxes of who knows what. The boxes however could be an important key to Naru's quest. The Narusegawa girl searched through the contents of the cardboard and plastic cubes, until she accidentally knocked down a medium-sized metal box. The item landed with a loud thud as it spilled the contents on the floor. Luckily it was nothing that would stain the floor, of beak into little pieces; it turned out to be mere papers and envelopes. Seeing that they were not pencils, Naru began tossing the papers in the box before she was discovered. As she knelt on the ground to re-box the papers, one blue envelope caught her eye. The words read "To Shinobu", which was nothing out of the ordinary. However, the writing seemed somewhat familiar. Naru looked in all directions before opening the envelope out of nothing but pure curiosity. The familiar words danced in her mind as well as on the paper as she read the writing of someone all too familiar.
"Dear Shinobu, Keitaro here. I just wanted to let you know that I'm ok. Work is still demanding as ever, it's been taking a real toll on my body. Luckily we get a few days off once our mission is over. You know the drill, I can't tell where I am, or what we're doing. Just know that I'm ok. I'm staying cool in the heat, warm in the cold, I'm keeping dry when it's wet out, and I'm eating fairly well. I really need some more sleep, but I'll catch up soon enough. I hope you're doing well. Remember don't get too far behind in your studies, it can be really hard to get back. Maybe I'll see you soon, I'd really enjoy a warm plate of your wonderful cooking. Take care of Hinata Sou, take care of my auntie, and most importantly take care of yourself. I'll write again soon. Your friend, Keitaro."
It felt like there was a sudden clot in the vessels around Naru's heart. Every word read on the simple sheet of paper, seemed to leave an echo of Keitaro's voice. Naru resealed the letter back in the envelope to cover her tracks. Her first thought was to put the box back and pretend like she found nothing. Yet, there posed the curiosity, the need to know about Keitaro's safety, and all of the many questions in her mind. "Where was Keitaro? Is he okay? What kind of job does he have now? Did he get into Tokyo U? Is he ever coming back? How long has he been writing Shinobu? Why hasn't he written tto he rest of us? Why hasn't he written to me? Did he write to the others too? IS he still mad at me? Why, just why, am I concerned about this? Is it because I might still like him? Do I still like him? Does he still like me? Do I dare try to find out?"
Madness eventually took over, and Naru began to rapidly rummage through the box of letters. There wasn't just one or two letters, but dozens of them. Each envelope read "To Shinobu" on them. It pained Naru to not see a single letter to any of the other tenants, or even her for the matter. As she continued to investigate the metal container, a small squeaky voice behind her asked, "What are you doing Naru?" The over curious girl turned. Around to see Shinobu. Immediately, both sets of eyes widened in shock as their minds screamed" Oh-No!
"Aaawwww, Naru what are you doing in my room? What are doing with my stuff?"
Naru was at loss for words as Shinobu flailed her arms in confusion. What could Naru say at this point? There was the idea to defend herself, or lie to Shinobu. Yet, there was something else that Naru desperately needed to know.
"Shin-Shinobu, Naru's mouth tripped on her own words. "Where is Keitaro?
"Huh? Wh-what do you mean Naru Sempai?"
"I know now that you've been talking to him for a while."
Naru knew Shinobu was playing dumb with her. Still, the girl didn't want to upset her younger friend.
"So, I need to know", Naru pleaded, "where is Keitaro?"
"K-Keitaro is..."
"You know where Keitaro is?"
Both girls looked towards the corner of the room as a piece of the wooden floor suddenly lifted up. From underneath the floor emerged Su Kaolla and Sarah McDougal.
"Is Keitaro coming home", Sarah asked excitedly.
"That dork is finally coming back?"
"Well I'll be...Keitaro is finally comin around again", a slightly drunk voice came from outside.
To Shinobu and Naru's luck, it just so happened that both Kitsune and Motoko were passing by in the hallway.
"What evidence do you have that says Keitaro is coming back, Motoko demanded with a hint of concern.
"Shinobu has a bunch of letters from Keitaro", Suu blurted out.
Everyone began to crowd around Shinobu as she began to place the letters back in the box. The girls began to struggle and fight Shinobu for the box as she tried her best to defend her personal treasure chest. As the struggle went on, Naru noticed an escaped letter under Shinobu's desk. Without anyone noticing, Naru pocketed the small letter. The struggle between the Hinata Sou continued until a small black cat knocked the box clean out of everyone's hands. The box dynamically sailed through the air before landing ever so gracefully in Kanako's hands.
"These are letters from my brother, are they not? Therefore, they rightfully belong to me", Kanako stated. "Afterall, I have a closer relationship with him than any of you."
The Urashima sister attempted to open the box of written words, only to discover a small lock embedded within the box.
"Where is the key", Kanako said immediately.
All eyes darted straight back to Shinobu. The smaller girl felt very intimidated by everyone else's gaze. A small sparkle emerged from a small item used. The item was none other than the key that opened the box. Shinobu grabbed the precious piece of metal tightly as her body trembled in fear.
"Get the key", Kitsune shouted.
Shinobu ran for what could be her life dependence. The others chased her through the inn left and right, up and down. It was only when Shinobu was cornered on the roof did things take a turn for the worse. Before any reasoning or negotiating could be done, Su just had to use a Tama droid. Along with destroying most of the roof, the key broke from the string around Shinobu's neck, and landed somewhere within Hinata Sou's hot springs.
"Oh no", Shinobu whispered to herself in a trembling voice.
The next few hours were spent trying to search for the missing key. Not only was it a key to open a box, it was the key to the answers concerning Keitaro. Everyone had their own reasons for finding the key. The main ones who wanted the key more than anything were Naru, Shinobu, and Kanako. Kanako was naturally concerned for her brother. Her feelings for him hadn't changed since they were young. On top of it all, he had little contact with her most of the time. Shinobu's feelings for Keitaro were still the same as before. She felt a little more confidence in herself since he kept in contact with only her. Naru on the other hand, didn't know why she wanted the key. Sure it would answer some question, but she still didn't have an answer as to why she wanted the key so the day continued to drag on everyone began to desert the objective of finding the key. Why no one bothered to pick the lock, or simply destroy the box, no one ever really figured out. Before very long the sun had set. Each dorm rooms were filled with their own respective resident. Every room that is, except for Shinobu's. Down below in the hot springs, Shinobu continued to search for the key.
"Where could it be", Shinobu said in exhaustion.
Despite her clothes being perfused from the evaporating water, ignoring the fact that she felt woozy from being in warm temperatures for so long, and being well aware that it was close to three thirty in the morning; the girl known as Shinobu Maehara pressed onto the journey for her key. After all her efforts, and time, they were greatly rewarded with her finding of the key. Shinobu completely ignored the fact that it was covered with dirt and grime as she kissed her found treasure. The day was now loss due to a lack of time, but it was deeply rewarded in the end. The small black haired girl fell backwards into the warm water. The victorious young woman simply drifted around staring into the night sky as she clutched the small key.
Around the same time Shinobu found the key, Naru was about to find things out for herself. Looking like a child hiding from from their parents after being tucked in, Naru hid under her blankets while trying to handle her squirrel plushie, a flashlight, and Keitaro's letter. Now the girl was about to see if staying up so late was worth it in the end. Naru gently separated the envelope from it's contents before reading to her heart's desire.
Dear Shinobu, It's me Keitaro. I hope my last few letters got to you ok. I apologize for writing you only once a week, but I've had little spare time to call my own. I finished up my training with my sensei yesterday. It feels kinda strange not having to go to those classes again. It was tough, but I'm gonna miss them. I've also been promoted at work. They say my skills are advancing beyond their expectations. I can officially go on C rank missions by myself now. My pets are doing fine. They're a handful, but trainable. I've really missed talking to you and helping you with your algebra homework. I hope Hinata Sou is still standing, hopefully nothing bad has happpened. I have to get going for a jog with my coach. I'll write to you soon. Take care, be safe, and keep smiling. Your friend, Keitaro.
Reading the letter didn't answer any questions, it only raised more. However, knowing that Keitaro was still a little concerned about Hinata Sou did raise her hopes. After placing the letter and flashlight into a special cabinet, Naru hid herself under her covers hugging the squirrel as tightly as she could.
"Please, please come back Keitaro."
It was the only thing she ever asked for before going to bed. Since the day he left, there was only one thing she wanted; and that was for the return of someone she had wonderful memories with. Thoughts of Keitaro raced through her mind, as well as memories of the night that ended it all. Feeling of sadness and pain struck at her brain and heart cells. The worse feeling of all, was one no one could ever deal with very lightly...the feeling of regret.