Extract from interview conducted with Jin Kirigiri in his offices at Hope's Peak Academy, Towa City, April 16th 2019, 11:03am.
In Attendance: Detective Shizuka Onoe and Ichiro Takiyama (attorney)
S.O.: I am interested to know why you selected Class 78-B to be in charge of your Reiwa Era celebrations, if indeed you selected them.
J.K.: Yes, we did choose them, after some deliberation, but they were not the only class in charge, far from it, the two 77 classes were also in charge of the procedures-they still are, and now they're taking up the slack for 78-B, which I might add is causing delays.
S.O.: I would have imagined that the safety of your students was of more concern-
J.K.: I-I never said it wasn't (coughs)
S.O: But in any case, that does not answer my question-why did you select them?
J.K.: Well my colleagues, and Tengan-sama and some of my other trusted advisors who have been working with this school for a long time took a long look at the make-up of the different classes and what they bought to the table.
(pause)
S.O.: And what did Class 78-B bring to the table?
J.K.: Um, I don't understand why you are asking this.
I.T.: Yes, Detective, I fail to see the relevance of the questioning.
S.O.: At this stage, we are just building a bigger picture of the missing students.
J.K.: Oh…..?
S.O.: Is there a problem, Kirigiri-san?
J.K.: Well….you're already classifying them as missing?
S.O.: It has been three days since they were due to return, and some of their loved ones have not heard from them in a week. I'm sure that some of them must have contacted the school directly about this and that you are aware of some concerns.
I.T.: (clears throat) Detective, please ask a question.
S.O.: Very well, I'll return to my earlier question-why Class 78-B?
J.K.: Oh, well, erm…..well, they're a very performance/publically oriented bunch, talent wise. We have the Yosakoi Dancer and the Chinese Ribbon Dancer, the two photographer twins, and the Comedian, to say nothing of the likes of the Director, the Choreographer, the Museum Tour Guide and the Agent. The skills that come with all those Talents lend themselves well to public events, and indeed having them means we can have many spectacular performance events too. On top of that, I am sure you know that apart from having a Chinese national, we have four half foreign students in Class 78-B, one of them who was raised in Brazil.
S.O.: Just to confirm, that would be Sarah Mai Hashiri, the SHSL Yosakoi Dancer?
J.K.: Yes, though I believe she has a nickname she goes by. But yes, her. In any case, with an Interpreter amongst them, we can really say that the class are a representation of what modern Japan is-a country that is truly part of the world, but still deeply committed to traditional family values, what with there being three sets of siblings.
S.O.: And naturally, you've explicitly stated these things in your publicity.
J.K.: Well, of course. Why wouldn't we?
…
Extract from article 'Mixed Feelings about Re-Opening', written by Otsuka Jihara for the Towa Times, dated July 15th 2039:
…GP Tetsuji Kamiya, who used to be a forensic pathologist with the Towa Police, based at Towa Central station and the father of Moeka, one of the victims of the Hope's Peak tragedy, has expressed concerns both about the school re-opening and the investigations, stating that while it was 'about time' that the investigation was reopened, that he had some doubts about whether it was appropriate to be opening the school while the investigation was still ongoing. "This is basically giving Hope's Peak the chance to, once again, duck out of any responsibilities they might have had for Moeka's safety." He said.
On the other hand, many people have been speaking out positively about the reopening of the school, including many people who were connected to the old one, including Kazutaka Oomori, current head of Oomori Technology and the grandson of Kazunari Oomori, who was a close friend of formers Hope's Peak Principal Kazuo Tengan and Jin Kirigiri. Specifically, Oomori expressed joy that "Once again, Towa City has the opportunity to be put on the map for nurturing the cream of the crop of our youth"….
…
Witness statement dated 5th June, 2019, 13:10pm:
Name: Shigeru Sakamoto
Date of Birth: 07/12/1978
Occupation: Head of Jitsunori Home Supplies, Kurashiki
Statement taken by: Officer Juro Arisato
"Earlier in the year, 'round January time or so, we had a large order for about 20 shower units and some toilets, just like the ones in the pictures your lady detective showed me. It was for a rich geezer, one of those ones that does charity works-I can't remember his name but I did say to your lady detective that I would be going through my records to find the order details. But anyway, he paid up and my boys prepared the orders for delivery. But the evening before they were due to be shipped out, there was a massive break-in, and that delivery as well a bunch of other items in our warehouse were stolen. We did contact the police in Kurashiki but they weren't able to work out who did it. It was a nuisance but one of our regulars who happens to also be a rich geezer gave us some cash to tide us over while we replaced the items and the orders. Oh, and so did the guy who'd ordered the twenty sets, actually. So it all worked out in the end. But still, I would not be able to tell you how they ended up in a high school in the middle of nowhere. I hope you find out though-those poor kids.
…
Extract from the Wikipedia page for 'Shirohata High School' last updated February 25th 2032, 21:36pm
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This section needs to be updated. Please update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information
The Shirohata High School consisted of a single, three-storey building built in a square shape surrounding a courtyard. The courtyard used to consist of a carefully maintained waterfall and impressive gardens tended by the students [3] but this fell into disrepair since the school was officially closed in 1987. However, the entrance for students and teachers was the same, though there was a back door as well that led out into the school's sports grounds, long overgrown with wildlife by the time of the Class 78-B murders. [3][5]The shoebox area in the hallway was standard for high schools, though when Class 78-B were found, it was discovered that the shoeboxes had been taken away and substituted for two storage cupboards[6] .
Likewise, the school administration area-off to the left of the hallway, as well as the four classrooms situated behind it, were all demolished in order to make the dorm rooms the Class 78-B students presumably slept and washed in during their captivity, as well as a small empty room whose purpose was never established[6], . The assembly hall, gym area, home economics room, canteen (and accompanying kitchen), infirmary, school toilets and two other classrooms on this floor, were left intact, as were the corridors, though they were extensively redecorated, as were the other[6] . On the middle and top floor, there were six classrooms each-an indicator of the initial size of the school, though the school had been three form entry for 14 years before its closure [2][3] .
However, on the middle floor two were repurposed into storage cupboards and on the top floor one was. The middle floor also contained a library, a dance studio, a number of club rooms, and a music room-all apparently restocked and refurbished for the purposes of the abduction[3][6] , as were the broadcasting room, club rooms, science labs, computer room, principal's office, staff room and art studios on the top floor, though it is important to note these rooms went through several renovations during the school's running as part of the efforts to keep it running [3]. Even with this caveat, the school building had been in some disrepair before it became the venue for the Class 78-B murders.
Though the school was known to take advantage of its forest setting by including large windows that let in light, all of these were barricaded in such a way that the school relied solely on artificial light and clocks to show the passing of time. Indeed, upon their rescue, it was reported that a few of the survivors were disoriented when they were first released[6] .
…
Extract from interview conducted with Sarah 'Sadie' Mai Hashiri and Friede 'Heiwa' Benbow at Towa Central Station, Towa City, June 7th 2019, 18:45pm
In attendance: Nobuyuki Kurosawa (forensic psychologist), Akari Benbow (mother of Friede-acting as appropriate adult)
NK: Don't you worry, we'll just take this slowly. How about we step back a little bit from that, and see if you can cast your minds a little further back.
FHB: When you say far back…
NK: What about when you arrived at Shirohata-that's the name of the school you were in, by the way? What happened when you got there.
SMH: Well, we didn't really arrive there, I don't really remember, I….
(pause)
FHB: Mhm, it is more that we woke up there. All of us, in different places. I was in the canteen, whereas Sadie, I think was in a classroom?
SMH: That's right. We were all on the one floor, but in different parts.
NK: Oh, okay then. What did you do once you woke up? Did you look for your classmates?
FHB: I did.
SMH: Well, I think I felt a little foggy at first, so I just sort of sat up and, do you know how it is when you have first woken up and you aren't really aware?
NK: Sure, sure.
SMH: And I….I was feeling a little bruised, so I think I checked myself over, oh, and my ear.
NK: Your ear?
SMH: Y-yeah (nod), it felt kinda sore. Especially when I touched it, like here (indicates spot on the top of her ear) kind of like a bug bite, it felt like. But it wasn't serious. Free, you didn't think so, did you?
FHB: No, I didn't. When I looked I couldn't see much except it was a little red, and besides, we were bruised up too. But yeah, once I was awake, I left the canteen, and then I bumped into the Amai twins.
NK: I see, I see. And, Sadie-chan, once you were awake, what did you do?
SMH: I called out for my friends-Azami-chan and Akari-chan, and Free too. But they….they weren't there. I…I was on my own.
(voice becomes choked and SMH attempts to choke down tears)
NK: Hey, hey, you're doing great. Take a deep breath now, and let's see if we can keep going for a little while longer.
I'm sure you agree that these glimpses of as-yet unintroduced living characters do not count as proper introductions, hence me choosing not to list them here as such. When will they be introduced? I do not know yet, but hopefully there won't be too many chapters before that occurs.
But anyway, I wonder what you think of this selection of extracts. Does it help any theories you have, or give you any other ideas? Or are you even more confused than before. Whatever you feel, I hope you enjoyed the chapter as always!