Chapter 23: "Jungle Flower"

Chapter 23.1: "Absentee Regrets"

*? ?

[August 30th / 7:02 AM]

[Main menu]

[You have… ONE... new voice message. To play press—]

[... playing message now.]

[August 28th, 2PM]

"Hello? Hachiman?

It's uh… it's your father… then again you could probably tell from my voice…

A-anyway! Just calling in to check up on you. It's been quite awhile since we last saw you. Your mother's started worrying herself sick about how well you've been eating. Again.

So… I… uh…

…

…

Um. How's work going? Your Sensei had called a few nights ago, told us that you were on a major case. Just, uh, make sure to stay safe. Actually, do we still call her that? What's the proper…?

Uhhhhh… K-Komachi misses you… and I don't want her to be sad. Your mother and sister would feel a lot better if you stopped by Chiba, maybe stayed a night…

I guess I'll just… hang up…

…

…

Like… right now…

…

…

Ah, geez… what am I even doing?

…

…

You know more than most… that lots of things have happened…

Sometimes I can't even tell where it all started and where it all ended. If this is even the end.

Who knows?

It's all a mess and I…

…

…

I know… I know I wasn't always there for you.

Maybe if I was at home a little more.

Maybe if I talked to you a little more.

Now here I am. Having told you when you were a kid that 'to work is to lose' , and yet ironically, I'm glad that you have a job to keep you busy. It's a basis I'm thankful for.

Which is a horrible thing, I'm sitting here being useless while you're dealing with all that alone.

I can't believe I'm happy that a job gives you more stability than a family could…

I…

…

...

Maybe things could have been different if I stayed around. You grew up so fast, I thought you were fine. I probably hoped you were fine. When you told me what you wanted to do after high school, I thought you were fine.

W-why didn't I just… I didn't even say anything….

I can't believe I just let it happen. Things were okay… And then when things weren't, I wondered where all that time went…

…

I…

…

I know I didn't say this enough… and I know I still don't say this enough… But I'm proud of you, son. I'm just sorry that I couldn't do anything to make you proud of me…

I'll be stopping by Tokyo soon.

[...]

[End of final message.]

[To DELETE message press 7. To—]

…

[Message saved to archive.]

Chapter 23.2: "Strung Along to Shun"

*Morimi Emiko
*Kasumigaseki, Chiyoda Ward
[August 30th / 4:55 PM]

What am I doing?

I often asked myself that question. My mother always said it was because I was young, dumb, and aimless. I don't exactly know what she meant, but I'm assuming it's something along the lines of 'not knowing what I want, so I'm never completely satisfied.'

I can't really disagree with this. I had no goal in life to work towards. There was nothing to look forward to nor struggle for. I was a ship without a sail; an explorer without a compass. That was how I felt. Something just there but with nothing in my hands.

And I became even more lost when Hikigaya came up to me a few days ago. His glasses were nowhere to be seen on his face, and his signature unkempt hair made a comeback. A tie had been sloppily thrown around his neck and his face looked like it shrunk. Hikigaya was more like a wild animal than a detective, with eyes focused and intensely exuding an aura of gravitas and instability. But I recognized this Hikigaya. This was the one I had met and had seen work for years on end. Rather than feral beast, the detective felt more like a large hound dog.

What should have been the usual interaction (even more usual maybe) was prevented as soon as he opened his mouth and asked for the strangest request.

"If anyone other than some TMPD personnel asks for me, tell them I'm not here. And I mean, anyone."

"What? Why?"

"I'm… busy with a case. I need time… and no distractions. No roadblocks. No chains. Nothing."

The way he bitterly said those words stirred the melting pot of emotions within me.

"O-okay." I assented.

The old him was coming back with a vengeance, and I hated how relieved I felt. He had become an entirely different person these past few weeks and months. That was a Hikigaya I barely knew at all.

The stories that Haruno-san had told me made me realize that he had a rich life filled with people, events, and memories I couldn't even begin to imagine. And everybody knows that if you don't know a person's past, how can you say that you understand them?

But he left that behind, didn't he?

I only knew Detective Hikigaya. Hikigaya Hachiman, on the other hand, was always an enigma, but that didn't scare me for some reason. The two were inseparable in my mind. I mean, the way he worked made it seem like his job was his life. Anyone with a brain could tell that this was only going to end badly for both of us if I kept at it. So I threw away the feelings I had for him.

I mean, that was him THEN.

This is who he is NOW.

They are different and may as well be two separate people!

At least I thought I did, anyway. But probably, deep inside, I still hoped there was a chance. Which is why I questioned myself now, at this very moment, because she had come back today.

And by she, I mean the younger sister of Haruno-san.

Her entrance into the foyer of the building was like something straight out of a movie. She pushed the door open and stepped inside with the poise of a ballroom dancer. The summer heat didn't seem to have affected her at all. While us normal humans were slick with sweat and huffing due to the scorching temperatures and thick air, she was unfettered. Crisp grey suit and skirt with low heels combined with her beautiful appearance made for a flawless example of the human species.

I normally would be irritated at the sight, since it was objectively unfair that she could be that perfect in the looks department in seemingly any and all circumstances. But instead, a sense of dread crawled up the back of my throat.

Haruno-san's sister walked up to the information desk briskly and spoke in a clear tone.

"Is Detective Hikigaya Hachiman in?" She spoke with a voice that was pleasing to the ears. Like a dainty bell or a smooth melody played on the koto. [1]

My breath hitched.

He was.

Hikigaya hadn't left the office to go home the night before. He had gone out earlier this morning, but had returned with Shiba in tow just thirty minutes ago. The two were probably at their department office on the third floor right now. A single call from the phone that sat to the right of my hand was all it would take to reach Hikigaya or get to someone who could.

Breathing didn't get any easier. Hikigaya seemed happier of late, and it was due in part to her. Or at least due to her appearing before him again after so long. His regression from that was alarming, and unhealthy. The right thing to do would be to ignore his request and just get her over to him.

So why did I hesitate?

"I'm sorry." I said slowly serving a smile that physically hurt my cheeks and agonized my soul. "He's not in right now. It is past normal working hours so he may have gone home. Do you want to leave a message for when he returns?"

You knew him THEN. You don't know who he is NOW. But I do. I've watched him toil and suffer for something that meant more to him than his own happiness. I know the Hikigaya of the NOW better than you ever could.

Were you here to see Hikigaya take pedicide case after pedicide case? Did you know that he couldn't look any young girl in the face, even of the ones he saved that came to thank him? Did you and everyone else from his past ever ask why he would mash his food with a fork? Did they know it was because he had trouble chewing?

Did they know how he would sometimes punch out of work so Shiba would punch out too? Or sometimes he would punch out and still keep working so that the Chief wouldn't get into trouble with payroll? Did they know that he would never keep his eyes straight, and always would be straining to get a look at everything? Did they know that he would never take credit for a case if someone else was on it first?

If you all did know, why would you leave him like this?

All of what you don't know makes up who Hikigaya is now. You don't—

Against all preconceptions, the impossible happened. This woman, who was honestly more a doll than anything else, cracked. It was slight, but the observant could see it. The way her eyes grew wet and lost a bit of luster. Her small pink lips bent slightly and I could hear her take a quiet, but sharp intake of air.

"That won't be necessary. I'm sorry for disturbing you. Thank you, and have a good evening."

Like a robot, she gave pleasantries as if they were pre-recorded. She turned on her heel, her waist long hair fluttering as a singular mass. I watched her leave in stark shock and numbness.

What have I done?

Well… it was obvious. Mom said it herself, and now I have something I want. Even if I lie to myself, that fact won't change.

I looked at the floor and kneaded my fingers.

I didn't want Hikigaya to change. I wanted him to stay as the Hikigaya I knew. That way, there would be something I could do that they couldn't. That way I had a reason to continue being near him.

But… what would that mean for him?

What am I doing?

I buried my face into my hands like a child.

"I'm so stupid."

Chapter 23.3: "Jungle Flower"

*Hikigaya Hachiman
*Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department, Chiyoda Ward
[August 30th / 5:16 PM]

Perhaps I was born a skeptic? Or maybe born with whatever genes made me more prone to being a skeptic. I wasn't sure when I first had the realization, but at some point in my (already too long) life I had grown wary of fortuitousness. After all, nothing in life came easily and I didn't have enough money to simply erase any sort of consequences my actions may cause. If things were too good to be true, they usually were. If things were too easy, they usually were.

The morning began as I expected, with absolutely nothing happening. And the lack of anything to worry or consider left me uneasy.

…

This, of course, was ignoring the electric atmosphere that crackled throughout the entire office. Every single person was high-strung as if they waited for Damocles' sword to come swinging down in a beheading arc. Thankfully, the intensity wasn't too long lived. As I predicted, a text-message had come to the phone we had discovered beneath the false bottom of the drawer that was within the Minato apartment. The contents of the message were simple: a single line of characters with an address. The Chief had gathered up a small contingency and left almost immediately, but not before making it explicitly clear that he did not want me along.

"Senpai?"

Being the type of person and partner that he was, Shiba stuck around.

"Eh?" I grunted, lifting my head from the comfortable nest my arms made upon the table. "What?"

"Are… you okay?" Shiba asked, appraising me cautiously. "I know you want to get to the bottom of the case and all…"

I let out a deep sigh and sat up straight, stretching my arms high into the air. The spinning blades of the ceiling fans rotated slowly, and I had the sudden thought that this was a sight I wouldn't see for a while as the weather got colder.

"I'm fine."

"You've been saying that a lot."

"I'm aware."

"... it almost sounds like you're trying to convince yourself."

"... won't deny that."

A somber silence fell between us. Trying to keep up appearances was tiring, and Shiba could see past those anyway.

"In the past… you would have left after the Chief anyway," Shiba said slowly. "You were never one to care about orders or rules."

I turned to look at him and met his eyes. How long had it been since we started working together like this? Those early days were rough, Shiba didn't know how to work with me and I didn't know how to work around him. We clashed frequently, and I'm not above admitting that I had taken advantage of his politeness and dragged us into some less-than-optimal situations. But we survived and closed cases. I could trust Shiba.

"I didn't go because I think they're wrong."

"... who?"

"The Chief and the rest of them. I don't think that's the right address."

"But didn't you say that Aoi would text us?"

"Yeah, I know." I grumbled, absentmindedly spinning a pen around my thumb. There was just… something wrong with this. Finding the words to describe this sensation was difficult. "Something inside me is saying that we're missing something."

Shiba made a contemplative hum, and I knew he too was going into 'detective-mode.' "Do you know what has got you thinking like this?"

"It just seems… too easy. Too straightforward."

"It's also equally likely that we're overthinking things."

"Valid point." Shiba was right, finding patterns where there were none was a common pitfall. But this wasn't that. No, it was more than that. "It's not that I'm finding threads here, it's that we're finding none that's getting to me."

A man like Aoi was intelligent. No, a single word doesn't describe it well. He was smart, a man becoming a doctor who had to have developed a great awareness of action and reaction. He must have understood all of his options and I refuse to believe that he didn't consider the consequences of hypotheticals and the responses of those it could affect. The medical student accounted for all those with the clues he gave and the artifacts he left behind. Well thought out.

This couldn't be the end… could it?

I shook my head. "What if we weren't the ones to find the phone? Would Aoi risk just giving us a plain message?"

"He made it abundantly clear that he wanted the police to find it. What's there to doubt?"

"But why go through all this effort? Why couldn't he have used a more direct way to get the address to us? Why are there so many steps in between?"

"... did you come up with a profile for Aoi already, Senpai?"

"Somewhat."

Methodical. Careful. Wary. Intelligent. Meticulous. Clever. Disciplined. These were all things I imagined the man named Aoi Kaito to be. And none of these were consistent with how we were just given the information that Aoi implied would be the key to everything on a silver platter.

"I see… I can understand now, it does seem out of character."

I craned my head at him. "We're moving forward under the assumption that my profile is accurate? For all we know, I could be completely off." That was the source of all my doubt, did I truly grasp Aoi? Or was I just out of my mind? From a purely intellectual standpoint, the latter was far more likely than the former.

Shiba shook his head. "Senpai is never wrong when it comes to people."

"I honestly wish I was at times…" I sighed and laid my face back into my arm pillow.

"It's a valuable skill, Senpai. You've saved a lot of people."

"'Saved' is a strong word, Shiba. A very strong word. Detectives get to the bottom of conundrums, but we're not saviors."

"Others don't see it that way. Didn't Aoi refer to detectives as 'Solomon'?"

"The masses get us inflated all the time. And wouldn't it be great if we really were 'Solomon'? Asking a higher power for answers sounds hell of a lot easier than…"

Solomon… Solomon… seeker of knowledge… detectives...

Like lightning, an idea struck me. I quickly raised my head. "Shiba… hypotheticalIy speaking, if I referred to someone as 'Solomon' what would be your impressions of that person?"

"Have I met this person before? Or is it just from what you said?"

"Just from that. You never met this person, or saw them, or heard them, nothing. Just from my words alone."

"Hmm… I guess I would think they were probably smart."

"What about expectations? What would you assume to be their level of intelligence?"

"Well, if someone calls you 'Solomon' then clearly you demonstrate above average intellect. I would expect them to be able to have good deduction and observational skills as well as generally high knowledge in a lot of areas… Senpai?"

Shiba's words trailed off as he noticed that my mouth hung open. It clicked. Aoi's choice of words. The references. His personality. His intentions. His expectations.

"He didn't want this information going to the wrong sources. He wanted the police to get it… but not just the police. He was looking for… us."

"'Us'? Aoi intentionally wanted to reach us?"

"No, not you or me, but intelligent people. Think about it, the convoluted methods of delivering information and clues. It wasn't just to throw undesirables off, he was testing us."

I stood up suddenly, surprising Shiba. Things were too easy. He got us to the end, so why would he just give us the answers so plainly? We had been tested, and the very fact that we had made it this far meant we passed. He called us 'Solomon.' He had expectations for us now. We proved that we can solve the last puzzle if we got to this stage. But… we didn't get any sort of message.

All we got was an address. No, we had more than just that. Like any good riddle, I have to consider everything. There had to be a common line, or something that we had overlooked. It all began with the missing persons report where it seemed as if Aoi had just vanished on his way to school. Missing books, his bag, and his coat along with a half eaten breakfast raised little in the way of red flags. No clues could be seen besides obviously placed bags of drugs that were almost begging to be found. Now in retrospect, this was likely Aoi's work as well, his way of communicating his involvement.

Finding him dead in another apartment far away from his legal residence that his parents were aware of confirmed the theory that he was on the run from someone. Conclusion from Forensics had it as suicide by overdosing, by definition meaning it was voluntary. I couldn't glean anything else. The only other thing that was there was a message written on the wall and the second phone being found beneath the false bottom of a drawer.

How could I forget about the first phone being delivered to HQ via mail? All with preset text messages at specific times to communicate from us from the grave. This was the only reason why Aoi would let himself die; no one would know who he gave this information to. Aoi had all the cards and he made sure it was going to hell with him. The ultimate way to keep a secret.

… secret?

Yeah, a secret.

I quickly made a beeline to the metal file cabinet located near the wall and pulled the middle drawer with more force than necessary. Shiba yelled in surprise at the sound of metal scraping against metal. My fingers flipped through the various rows of folders and separations until I found the one I was looking for. Rushing back to my table, I used an arm to sweep aside whatever loose papers and other stationeries in my way and emptied out the contents of the envelope on the now bare surface. With nothing distracting around, my mind began honing itself on the compilation of evidence before me.

Shiba's photos of Aoi's Roppongi apartment littered the corner to my top right. A copy of the first text message he had sent to the phone that had been mailed to HQ. Photos of the crime scene in Minato with his dead body on the floor were accompanied with the haunting picture of the charcoal message he scrawled on the wall, complete with Shiba's handwritten note that stated the Bible citation (first Book of Kings, chapter 5, verses 11 and 12). Finally, a blown up transcription of the address Aoi had sent in his latest, and likely last, text message.

"We've overlooked something. Missing something he hid for us here." I whispered to myself, and brought a hand to cover my mouth as I tried to find something.

"Is there anything left to get?" Asked Shiba. "It may be consistent with our interpretation of Aoi, but we barely have any interactions to draw any more conclusions from."

Shiba was right. We barely had any clues. In fact, the most direct message we had from Aoi was what he wrote on the wall with a piece of charcoal. Even his text messages had no implied subject he was talking to. As my eyes drew over the pieces of paper I noticed something strange with the way the latest address had been formatted. It was different from the first address… could this be?

"Shiba." I called out. "Can you text me your address?"

"Sure?" Shiba responded, bewildered. From the corner of my eye I saw him pull his phone out of his pocket. Within moments my own phone buzzed and I checked the text I received. I waved my partner over, placing down my phone screen next to the address the Chief had gone to.

"You see anything peculiar here?" I ask.

"I… don't think so?"

"The lines. The formatting. You sent it to me as a single line, Aoi didn't. He has line breaks, like it's a postal code."

The Japanese postal code system had a standardized format: the first line had the postal symbol that preceded the postal code, which was a series of seven numbers separated by a hyphen. The next line had the prefecture name, name of the ward, subarea name. It ended with three fields of numbers that represented the subarea number, block number, and house number. The final line was the name of the sender, which was Aoi Kaito in this case.

This was tedious to write, even more so to type. As a result, no one in a casual setting would do so, as proved by how even the tight collared Shiba sent me an abridged version. This was intentional. It had to be.

"First book of Kings… chapter 6… verses 11 and 12..." I thought aloud.

A direct message with both numbers and letters. Could this be…? I would have laughed off my idea, but seeing as how we found something beneath a false bottom of a drawer, it was as likely to be the case.

I grabbed a pen and some paper. "We have 5 fields with numbers in the postal code. The first and second are in the postal code. The third, fourth, and fifth are each of the numbers between the hyphens standing for subarea, block, and house."

With a flourish of the pen I wrote down the numbers vertically. "Count the postal code as a single number, ignore the dash. We have 5 numbers. Now… this is a stretch, but Aoi gave us another 5 numbers as well."

"I… don't follow?"

"I don't either honestly, but let's just roll with this. The message on the wall was a Bible quote, right? From the first Book of Kings, chapter 6, verses 11 and 12. Those are 5 numbers as well. The first Book of Kings was the 12th book of the Old Testament, so 12. Chapter 6 is 6. Verses 11 and 12 are numbers 11 and 12. They line up… so say we add all of them to their respective fields and also subtract…"

I did the simple arithmetic, from the address Aoi had sent we now had two new sets of addresses.

"When we subtract, we get negative numbers. This address can't be real." I crossed out one of the new hypothetical locations. "Double check this address for me."

Shiba recited back the address before taking the slip of paper from my hand and opening a browser window on his computer. A quick search on an internet map revealed the information they were looking for. "It leads to an apartment complex in Chuo—"

I was already up and grabbing my blazer before he could even finish his sentence. "We have to go. Now."

"Y-yes!"

I remembered something, and pulled at my drawer and quickly sifted through the documents before finding what I wanted. I slipped it into the inner pocket of my blazer.

"Senpai?" Shiba called from the doorway of the office, ready to go.

"Here." I walked up to his side and we briskly made our way down the corridors. "We're taking my car."

"We have a patrol car that—"

"It's too slow."

Δ▼Δ

*Hikigaya Hachiman
*Apartment Complex, Chuo
[August 30th / 6:10 PM ]

Unlike the previous multi-story, multi-flat behemoth buildings we visited, this apartment complex was far more tame in comparison. It lacked the characteristics of hyper-modernity that I had grown accustomed to, with no expanses of glass, thin lines of steel, or columns at its foyer.

This building was made of old-fashioned brick and mortar. While it was reserved, it didn't lack any opulence however. The eave brackets that lined the bottom of every window was obviously carved by an artisan, as was the set of lions that greeted visitors. Carefully chiseled quoins told of attention to detail. The entire place oozed an old-time luxurious feel, fully complete with patterned carpets and Impressionist paintings in the lobby.

At least they had good taste.

"How may I help you officers?"

I stopped my admiration of a reproduction of Monet's Water Lilies to get a look at the newcomer. Shiba was at my side in an instant. We had talked to the doorman as soon as we had arrived, and were barely able to show our badges before the man freaked and asked us to wait as he phoned his manager.

"Detectives, actually." I informed, stepping before Shiba and subtly holding him back with my elbow. "We have reason to suspect that your building could have been used for something related to a crime."

The manager's face paled. "C-crime!?"

Ah, I see. Not good under pressure. Didn't like problems? No, he didn't encounter problems in his day to day work. Cushy job, with a lot of responsibilities, but the ship had been righted far before he took the position. Family connections got him here, not any sort of merit.

"Yes, a crime." I sighed, pulling out my badge to show him. Shiba followed my actions. "I'm Detective Hikigaya, this is Detective Shiba. We'd like to talk to you."

"I-I-I…" The manager stammered, sweat forming on his forehead. "Y-yes, of course! How can w-we…?"

"Relax." I assured, probably to little benefit. "We're not going to bring a fleet of police vehicles to your front door, it's just us two. Your inhabitants won't even know we're here."

My words visibly calmed him down, no doubt he was worried how the presence of law enforcement on his watch would affect his standing within management. Honestly… such a simple man.

"A-alright." The manager removed his cap and wiped his brow with a handkerchief. "What do you need, D-detective?"

Just the title? Clearly, he forgot my name and Shiba's name. This man no doubt greeted tons of wealthy people, people whose egos would be bruised if you forgot the smallest of honorifics. Good, this plays to my advantage.

"I have a search warrant here. We need your full compliance, it shouldn't be anything too complicated. We simply want to search through your list of inhabitants, especially recent ones. And any security camera footage from certain days."

I pulled out a slip of paper from my inner pocket and showed it to him, from beside me Shiba inhaled a sharp breath and stiffened. The manager looked at it nervously, he quickly agreed and led us to the superintendent's office in the basement. On the way down, Shiba grabbed my arm.

"Senpai! What are you doing?" My partner hissed at me in a low voice, with anger that I hadn't seen in a while.

"I have no idea what you're talking about." I responded loftily, and was rewarded with Shiba grinding his teeth. A moment of SSR rarity [2].

"That search warrant was for Aoi's apartment in Roppongi, the one we went to weeks ago! This is completely—"

"Arbitrary? Yes. Highly-illegal? Also, yes. Effective? Most definitely."

"You could go to jail! This is a federal offense!"

"I'll deal with that when the time comes. There are more important things to worry about."

Shiba looked at me part way concerned and disbelieving.

"I won't throw you under the bus Shiba. I'll take all the responsibility."

"That's not what the problem is here!"

We reached the bottom of the stairwell and were met with a dark basement. The only source of light came from an open doorway that made it far more appealing than the sprawling blackness from the various service corridors. I stepped inside leisurely, with Shiba still sputtering as he followed me, trying to find the words to speak whatever was on his mind. It was a quaint little office with a wooden work desk covered with tools in the corner and a bay of monitors at the other end. A middle-aged man with a somewhat large stomach sat in an office chair and gave us a small smile when the manager introduced him as the superintendent before scurrying away.

The superintendent rose slowly from his chair and offered a handshake. I took it graciously and felt calloused hands, so the subsequent rough accent didn't surprise me. "Detectives! What can I do for ya?"

Oh shit. With the question suddenly made before me, I realized that I didn't have any reference images of Aoi. My panic attack was short lived as the ever reliable Shiba sighed and stepped forward while reaching into his blazer's inner pocket.

"We're currently looking for any information about the whereabouts of a missing person." Shiba gave a printed picture of Aoi to the superintendent with both hands. "Have you seen anyone like this recently?"

"Hmm, this face does look familiar." The super scratched his head. "Looks like the kid who rented out an apartment on AirBnB a bit ago. Can't be sure, don't really have the ability to control who stays in that particular apartment."

"Why is that?" I asked, confused.

"It's a condominium. The owner can choose to temporarily rent it out themselves, since they own it. Even being the super doesn't let me have a say in it or not. AirBnB has been a popular choice lately."

"There must be some sort of record then?" Shiba inquired.

"'fraid not. The only record would be with AirBnB themselves. We don't get info like that on our end. Like I said, it's owned by someone else. They can do whatever they want with it, almost."

Is that right? I looked around the room, noticing the array of monitors that were playing black and white footage live from the floors above. "This building has CCTV's?" [3]

"We do. Footage is stored onsite. In this room actually."

"Can we take a look at them?"

"Sure."

The security footage was organized by time and date. I had Shiba fast forward the footage to the day Aoi had gone missing. Our search was instantly validated when we saw a blurry Aoi Kaito walk into the apartment building. He had a black book bag on his back, and a white coat within a plastic cover slung over his shoulder. He was seen going into the elevator. We continued to fast forward through that day, albeit at a slower speed. It was not until evening that he came back downstairs. An hour later the camera caught Aoi returning with a little girl in a white shirt in tow. Shiba and I traded looks.

I turned to the superintendent. "I need to see that apartment."

The superintendent nodded and walked over to a metal locker panel and unlocked it to open the door that revealed a rack of keys, each neatly labeled. He took a set of keys from the hook below the '15J' label.

"The condo is on the 15th floor, but the elevators are getting fixed right now. So we gotta take it up to the 13th floor and then I'll open up the emergency stairwell so we can go the rest."

"Thank you for your cooperation." Thanked Shiba politely. I stayed silent and simply followed the two as we were led to the service elevator that was at the end of one of the dark concrete halls. We packed into the metal casket awkwardly. Any sense of trepidation from this man was nonexistent, for as soon as the doors closed he immediately tried to make small talk.

"You know, my nephew was a cop."

"Really?" Responded Shiba, throwing the superintendent a bone. "Where did he work?"

"He was part of the SAT," the older man said with a hint of pride. And he should be, the Special Assault Team was the tactical assault force for the police system in Japan. They were elite among elites, albeit recently coming into some controversy as they weren't able to respond to the embassy terrorist situation fast enough, which had necessitated SFG intervention. The top brass at HQ were not pleased at being shown up on their own turf. "So I'm familiar with how the police operate, but not really the detectives."

"We're not really frontline combatants, like your nephew." Shiba explained. "We interview witnesses, interrogate criminals, and collect evidence so we can narrow down the suspects and find the perpetrator."

"Think you can investigate a smell? Some of the residents are starting to raise a fuss, but I can't find it anywhere." The superintendent joked to us.

Shiba laughed it off and awkwardly answered. "We'll see about that."

We got off at the 13th floor and were escorted into the emergency stairwell. As we walked up the two flights of stairs I noticed a lack of security cameras.

"There aren't any cameras in the emergency stairwell?" I asked the super.

"The owner is planning on retrofitting them to comply with those new housing regulations, but we won't be seeing that for a year or two."

"I see." Then Aoi and that girl could have easily escaped through here if they knew about this oversight. And he probably did.

We arrived at the 15th floor, and the super had to use his keys to allow us re-entry into the apartment complex from the emergency stairwell. We stepped out into a hallway where the walls were painted a light beige and the floor was covered in a brown patterned carpet. There was a large window located at the far end that blasted sunlight down the hall.

"15J is a bit secluded, it's further down and around the corner."

With the super's directions, we began our trek. The sound of our muffled footsteps upon the carpet reverberated eerily around us. As we turned the corner, the low setting sun flashed a beam through the nearby window. I winced and shut my eyes.

Under normal circumstances I probably would have never detected the smell that I did, as it was so faint. But as I was blinded, my body naturally focused on the senses that weren't compromised. A particular scent wafted across my nose, slightly masked by the air freshener used in the building. Underlying, but distinct enough if you were looking for it. It smelled of poison with a hint of sweetness, reminiscent of flowers in damp jungles yet with an earthiness of mud pits after a rainfall.

"Hey, Sarge?"

"What is it?"

A squadmate of mine looked at me in apprehension, his fingers alternating between gripping and letting go of the grip on his rifle, veins along the back of his hand popping at the force. His eyes looked at the thing behind us.

My blood ran cold as my eyes followed the odor's invisible trail. My breath hitched.

I stopped walking, causing my two companions to also halt.

"What happened?"

"Is something wrong, Senpai?"

"Shiba." I addressed my puzzled partner. "Make sure you two stay here. No matter what, do not come into the apartment."

"Wait a moment! Wha—."

"Stay. Here." I cut him off, trying to inject as much severity into my voice as I could. Probably in a vain hope that it would cover the trembling of my larynx. "Under no circumstances, should you enter the apartment until I tell you to."

"Senpai, I don't—."

"Do you understand me?" I pushed.

"I—."

"Do. You. Understand?" I pushed harder.

"Y-yes… I'll stay here."

I nodded at him and made my way down the hall.

The lingering smell got stronger as I came closer to the door. It caused my head to throb and blur my vision. Labeled with the phrase '15J' upon a brass plate, the wooden portal seemed to shimmer as I inhaled more of that aroma.

It has a strong acrid body, akin to sulfur. Rancid and disgusting, but a part of me relished the sugary undertone. To think that I had once gagged at the very slightest whiff of it. I worried if I was starting to get used to it. Like how beer tasted awful at first, but then you adjusted to its bitterness by exposure. It scared me to think of it like that.

"What do we… do about that?"

"Hm? I was thinking we just move on. I got all the info I could have. Can't really extract more from that."

"No I meant, what do we do with that, as it is now?"

I knocked on the door twice. No response.

I rapped on the door three times now, loudly. Again, no response. There was no going back now.

I used the keys the super had provided and unlocked the door with a haunting click. My hand twisted and pushed the door open inwards and my face was immediately scorched. The super-heated air seemed to amplify the scent, swallowing my senses whole. I could almost taste the rotten flesh.

"You have anything in mind?"

I could see him weighing the options in his mind, wondering if it was worth saying aloud. I respected that, but was also annoyed. I valued their opinion. Especially since none of us were used to dealing with this lug of a thing.

"We should bury it before we move."

My hand reached for the light switch to my right. As the lights came, so did the sound of a Jungle I thought I had left years ago. My ears were flooded with the sounds of chirping cicadas and cawing birds within the rustling trees. The crashing of a river that was our vital source of water made for a bassline. The monkeys called each other with howls and screeches. And how could I forget the sound of awkward footsteps from boot-wearing humans as they crunched across dead leaves and branches?

"I'm not sure we have the time." I responded with furrowed brows. "Why? Something bothering you?"

"It's just that... in this heat it'll decompose faster, won't it? It'll smell even more and attract predators and stuff. And that'll attract the enemy too. We should bury it or burn it."

"I see.…"

Blood.

There was blood everywhere.

Not fresh, red blood, but dark, brown, and thick. Like sludge. The streaks and pools were festering with maggots, despite the blood having coagulated completely in the heat of the room.

My vision settled on the single object that stood at the center of the room. There was a rope tied to a hook embedded to the ceiling. Dangling from it was a crude plywood cross. And upon that cross lay a small body with frazzled black hair. Its neck twisted and held in a painful position. Limbs were tied into place with white plastic zip ties.

My eyes become more cognizant as I stepped closer, every footfall trepid and frightened. I knew she was dead, but something deep and primal inside me hoped she was alive. I didn't want this to be another death.

Another one I couldn't save in time.

I was near the body now, close enough to see the color of the little girl's eyes. They were a pretty blue, or as pretty as the eyes of a carcass could be. Lifeless and dull, I could only imagine their splendor when she was alive. She wore no clothing, revealing a gaping stomach and sliced flesh along her thighs and arms. The air was completely still and unbearable, not even a breeze to move the strands of her hair. Nails and lips were cracked, with an open mouth that served as a tunnel for flies. The skin was grey and stiff, all blood having either finally dripped out or coagulated within her. A grotesque Roman statue, it was like her relief was sculpted out of marble.

And then it hit me: she died.

She was dead.

I had let another one die.

The metropolitan apartment around me disappeared at the realization. The heat of the room was replaced by the humid fever of that God-forsaken Jungle. I could feel the sun beaming down rays of discomfort onto my back.

This was the prison cell that followed me to this day, even in my dreams.

The sounds of that world were like white noise now. I had learned to filter it, but I hated its presence. I had adapted. I had changed. I had given in to the pressures of the environment around me. And I hated it.

I didn't want to get used to this sound. I didn't want to get familiar with that smell. I didn't want death to be so common to my eyes.

I looked down at my hands, now covered with blood. I may have screamed. I may have cried. Who knows? My mind certainly didn't. I brought my fingers together, testing the viscosity of the liquid. It was thin, like water. As if I had dipped my hands into a beating heart just moments earlier.

Another one to answer for.

But my debts are already so large.

And my excuses are dead, alongside my innocence.

My eyes shifted to my front. The crucified child was gone, replaced with a new figure. A much familiar one.

A small girl with tan skin and long black hair that was childishly braided. It looked like my handiwork. A blue dress was over her, but it was filled with countless crimson holes that passed through her body. I could see right through her, like she was some sort of flesh-linked fence.

The first one to answer for.

How many more did I have to let die before I finally got my act together?

What was the point in leaving that God forsaken rain-forest, if this was all I was capable of?

Why bother continuing to exist? To just suffer and in turn, inflict suffering?

"Mr. Soldier? When will I see you again?"

Soon, very soon.

Her mouth moved like a marionette's. Her lifeblood spilled from between her lips with every syllable. She closed her mouth slowly, stopping the flow, and I watched her lips twist into a smile. She raised a limp arm to give me a tiny wave.

"You'll remember us, right? You'll come back, right?"

Soon, very soon.

"Senpai? Are you alright? You've been gone for an awful long time."

My lungs filled itself with that putrid air, as if I had just resurfaced from a literal Dead Sea. The Jungle faded away like a fog, taking the tiny girl in a blue dress with it. I blinked once and turned around, once again having returned to the apartment within a bustling city.

"You idiot!" I shouted. "Didn't I say to stay away!?"

"You've been gone for almost an hour, I was getting worried." Shiba's voice was just outside the doorway. "What's wr—."

The words never made it out of his mouth as he rounded the corner.

"Alright, we'll bury the body. Strip him of any identification. Dog tags, patches, insignias, everything. In case they dig him up."

My team got to work, pulling out their shovels.

I looked at my muddied boots, feeling an acidic burn coming from the pit of my stomach to the back of my throat.

I could see my old self in Shiba. The way his eyes widened and his face paled at the horrific scene before us. I used to do that. The way his nose twitched once as he suddenly became aware of the smell. I used to not know this scent either. The way he quickly buckled and kneeled over. How nostalgic, I used to do that too. The way he coughed violently and began to vomit. Yeah, I used to be able to do that.

"This is why I told you to stay away! Come on, we need to get you out of here." I walked forward with uneasy steps. I grabbed his collar and pulled him out into the fresher air of the hallway.

As I left the room, I left the body.

I probably left a bit of myself behind too.

Which was fine.

After all, this was another one I had to answer for. And my soul was all I had left to pay with.

Chapter 23.4: "Love is Fury"

*Hikigaya Hachiman
*Residential district, Shibuya
[August 30th / 10:04 PM ]

A familiar house greeted me as I drove up the street. With careful turns of the steering wheel, I parked the Aston along the curb. The leather seats of the sports car seemed especially inviting tonight, as if it was doing all it could to stop me from getting out. At some point I finally managed to exit the car out into the world. The night's humid air filled my lungs as I inhaled, smelling of grass and ozone.

I walked towards the Tsurumi household and noted the silent evening. There was rain on the way, and the cicadas were nowhere to be seen… or rather heard. As I edged closer to my destination, the first sign of abnormality was Rumi sitting on the front steps with a worried look on her face.

"Rumi?"

Her head snapped up. "Hachiman!?" She exclaimed and ran up to me, wrapping her arms around my waist and burying her head into my chest.

"What's the matter?" I asked softly while stroking her hair slowly. She rubbed her face further into my shirt and shuddered. If she was this upset, something must be very wrong.

"It's Shizuka and Uncle Kenji… they're…" she said, her muffled voice vibrated my chest.

After carefully extracting myself from Rumi's embrace, I exchanged a brief look of concern with the teenager who nodded to let me know she was okay. I walked up to the door of the house I was so familiar with and turned the door knob. Like usual, it was unlocked and gave way without resistance. But tonight was not like every other night. And the screaming was evidence of this.

"YOU PROMISED ME! YOU PROMISED ME, KENJI!" Shrieked Shizuka, with uncharacteristic mania.

"Honey please, calm down!" The Chief responded, his voice strained with worry.

"Calm down!?" Her voice lowered by an octave, but the rage became even more evident. "You promised me he wouldn't see things like that! But he shoots a drug addict in a fucking bookstore and then he sees that!?"

"Honey, I know. I know!" The Chief tried to explain himself desperately. "I moved him from Homicides for that reason. We all agreed to this. I swear, I didn't know this would—."

"What if he breaks again!? Can you handle watching that!?"

"I—."

"He's been through so much… he shouldn't… why is this so…."

"..."

"He's trying so hard! He's trying his best, I thought... with her here, that things—!" I heard a horrible sob emanate from the woman who I always considered unbreakable.

"Honey…"

"You brought him into this!" She roared, the accusatory tone laced with betrayal and hurt. "You and your brother! Hachiman isn't… he isn't…" Shizuka's voice broke near the end, followed by the sound of someone stomping away.

"Honey, wait! Honey! Shizuka! Shizuka, please!" The Chief called out after his wife as I heard footsteps coming towards me.

Like a deer caught in the headlights, I'm face-to-face with Shizuka in a heartbeat. Her face was red, as were her eyes. The light of the entrance reflected off of tear stains that ran down her cheeks. Her breath hitched audibly when she looked at me. Before I could say anything she hugged me tightly and painfully, squeezing my arms against the sides of my body.

Shizuka let me go a second later and placed a hand to my cheek, I couldn't help but flinch at the touch. Everything seemed to electrocute me, and my body just became more numb. A walking corpse.

"Hachiman… Hachiman please… don't bottle it in!" She pleaded. "Tell me if you need help! Tell me if you're not okay... please just don't hide anything…"

"I-I-I'm fine…" I said hesitantly. "I-I think…"

Could you really say that you have emotions to be demolished if you were not human? After all, only humans could have thoughts and feelings like that. And you couldn't be a human if you had anything less than a full soul. After all my dues were settled, I had a little less than half.

In hindsight, nearly two years later, did I see that Jameson's calculus wasn't that far off.

Arc 1: "Detective Hikigaya Hachiman"

References:

[1] Koto is a traditional Japanese string instrument with 13 strings and 13 movable bridges, and allows for an enormous number of possible sounds that produce characteristically "Asian" music.

[2] SSR is a common gacha term that indicates the top-tier echelon of rarity, commonly a word synonymous with "5 Stars." Many times, the chances of getting an SSR item/character/etc is less than 1%.

[3] CCTV stands for closed-circuit television. A system of video surveillance where cameras send footage to a single location locally. This is quite secure, and the only way to tamper is to physically change the actual wires and cameras, which is difficult or easily seen.

Author's Note:

Sorry for the delay. The original plan was to edit chapters 1 to 22 and then finish up the rest of Arc 1 before I begin publishing again. Unfortunately, dealing with health problems (as usual) and a lack of motivation to write. The previous chapters have all been fixed so please feel free to reread.

And so, here we are: Chapter 23

Hachiman's hurt and trauma are far from over. The case takes a dark twist, and Aoi's final hidden message is harrowing for all involved, especially for our hero. This chapter was hard to write simply because of all the emotions I wanted to convey.

The first section was one of regret that a parent has for their child: regretting not doing something when the time was right. The second was jealousy and insecurity, as seems to be the common theme with Secretary Morimi. The final section was to throw Hachiman further down the hole of madness.

I hope you all enjoyed the chapter, there's more to come, and I'm not through breaking characters just yet. Special thanks to my team who did a fantastic job helping me through the process and having infinite patience while I dealt with personal life issues. Also want to give a shoutout to yahallo for editing this chapter.

-SouBU

(Editors: Lord of Admirals; Xynovitch; thatguy8801)