GLOSSARY
(For every kick, assume the leg that isn't being used to kick AKA the supporting/standing leg is pivoting in the direction of the kick in order to make the biomechanics work)
Sidekick - kick landed with the heel of a horizontal foot
Spinning sidekick - Imagine the above, but you spun fast before it. Force = mass x acceleration go figure
Push kick - AKA front kick/teep. Strike someone with the ball of a vertical foot
Bō - wooden staff, particularly used in martial arts demonstrations
Round kick/roundhouse kick - kick landed by throwing the instep of the foot or the shin at the target
Full guard - (Grappling) AKA closed guard. Person with back on the ground (on bottom; pls dont laugh now) is using their legs to try and control the person between their legs
A heart that's full up like a landfill
A job that slowly kills you
Bruises that won't heal
You look so tired, unhappy
Bring down the government
They don't, they don't speak for us
I'll take a quiet life
A handshake of carbon monoxide
And no alarms and no surprises
No alarms and no surprises
No alarms and no surprises
Silent, silent
20:48, February 12, 20XX, Amamiya Residence, Shimotaga, Atami City, Shizuoka Prefecture
-I-
'After all this time… I'm still not sure I understand the point of Jacob's story…'
*DING*
At the sound of the doorbell, Hachiouji Mio emerged from under her neighbor's kotatsu, training her eyes to remember which specific verse in the Book of Genesis she left.
When she opened the door to let the winter night's air in, Amamiya Junko's welcoming, steel eyes and shiny smile met her elderly friend's as her apartment door opened.
"Sorry for troubling you again, Mio-san-"
Mio frowned. "What did I say, Jun-chan?"
…
"Thank you, Mio-san. Has he been goo-"
*THUD*
The old lady giggled at the distant sound. "Mostly."
"Jeez." Junko shared her expression, trying to look over Mio's shoulder to find her five-year-old son as she tied her thick, shoulder-length hair into a bun. "Stay for dinner, won't you?"
The raven-haired young woman raised a bag of groceries, prompting Mio's gentle smile as the two walked in. Mio sat on the living room floor around a warm kotatsu, recently pulled out to tide them over the winter season, while Junko immediately made for the kitchen, separated from the living room by a counter.
Mio raised an eyebrow at her neighbor's usual behavior. "Jun-chan, you're doing it again."
Understanding immediately, Junko waved off the suggestion, which Mio expected, as she unpacked her grocery bag. "C'mon, Baa-chan; I've got energy to spare."
Noting her usual sass and hardheadedness, Mio just rolled her eyes and continued. "Come now, you go to him, and I can handle dinner."
Right on cue, the sound of another thud from another room distracted the two ladies. The elderly lady then corrected herself. "At least in a couple or so minutes. He's probably still swinging his staff around."
"No idea how he manages to practice his forms in such a tight space…" Junko giggled, thinking of her hyperactive son. Mio couldn't help but smile too, thinking that the way they smiled was so adorably similar. Mio patted the empty spot beside her, prompting Junko to hide her legs under the implement with relief.
Mio smiled, familiarly leaning her arms over the kotatsu. "Ain't that better? You're built like a twig in the summer; you have no reason to be standing in the cold for longer than you need to."
"I'm not that skinny…" Junko winced at the stinging observation but just shrugged her shoulders. "I'm just not a heavy eater."
"Neither are you a habitual one, Sometimes, I have to remind you to eat, dear."
Feeling herself getting slightly peeved, Junko held back her tongue. "He needs it more. It's a miracle Imahara-sensei's so generous with his fees."
"But you're not struggling anymore, are you? You can afford to spend a little more for yourself. What's the point of working for all the money if you can't even spend it?"
Mio backed off, sensing the mental wall being put up by the younger woman along with her mounting stress. "Sorry for lecturing you, Jun-chan."
"No." Junko smiled through her sigh. "Let's talk about the little one; what's he been up to?"
"I think… he mentioned wanting to be a kung-fu hero when he grows up."
The young mother smiled, thankful for her boy's childish dreams. Wistfully, or perhaps in relief, she pleasantly put the image of her son a little more grown up in her head; healthy, strong, responsible, happy most of all.
Junko lazily smiled.
"Yeah… Sounds like a plan…"
[12 Years Later…]
16:35, February 13, 20XX, Atami Municipal High School, Shizuoka Prefecture
"Hey!"
In the nearby park and playground, the delinquents' attention shifted to the disturbance, they scoffed, noting the standout features of a familiar girl; an oversized windbreaker of purple, black, and white over her white long-sleeve, white high-top shoes against black knee socks and a rolled-up skirt. "You, Ishige?"
Standing between the gang and their schoolgirl victim was the cold-looking Ishige Shion standing at 166 centimeters with short black hair in an asymmetric bob with tousled ends, and matte purple highlights, matching the color of her lazy-looking eyes. The shorter side of her hair revealed one ear full of piercings.
"Sakurai, Sawabe...Why do you keep bothering people who wanna be left alone?"
The lone girl of the posse, Sawabe, replied. "Are you sure you wanna be left alone? You sure don't dress like you wanna, especially with those black nails."
Shion rolled her eyes. "What in the pick-me girl does that mean?" She whispered to the girl whom she saved, still keeping her eyes forward, as she was taught when confronting people. "Hirose, we have to leave."
One of the boys approached, placing his right hand on the Shion's left shoulder. The purple-haired girl's minimal training instincts took over, clamping the boy's wrist with her left hand and slamming the face with the other; sweeping her right leg from the outside in, completing a modified osoto guruma; launching his legs into the air and dropping her body weight onto him, absolutely knocking the wind out of him, signified by his breathless exhale.
'That worked too well…' She froze up and looked up to meet the equally shocked faces of everyone else. She was still outnumbered, and while she managed to blitz one, there were still five left who had remembered they could fight. She stood back up-
"EWWWW IT'S WET IT'S WET!"
The sound of high-pressure spray bottles came in and broke up the huddled hoodlums.
The group began coughing, spitting, rubbing their eyes, and retching at the pungent odor that now clung to their winter clothing. Whatever was in that mixture was clearly nothing to be trifled with.
Shion and Hirose both covered their noses. As Sakurai turned around to check the commotion, they escaped to the side and ran behind where their foes were, and there they met with a familiar face.
A tall, messy-haired boy with rolled-up sleeves on his black zip-up hoodie, and a mischievous, almost childish look on his face as he dual-wielded spray bottles akimbo with black rubber gloves, laying waste to his foes with smelly abandon. The contents of the bottle were quickly emptied as he paid special attention to blasting the main girl's phone with extreme prejudice, but also was careful to avoid spraying his fitted slacks, his long-sleeve school shirt, loose black necktie, or his white sneakers.
"Hi!" He exclaimed to the two girls with a wave. "Did I make you wait?"
"No." Shion smiled, glancing off to the side for a moment before gladly taking his smug look in. "I just got here, dork."
Sakurai made his way to the front of his disheveled (and thoroughly disgusted) gang of friends. "Amamiya…"
'These guys never learn…' Ren dropped his bottles and discarded his gloves to allow him to brush the hair away from his face to the right, following his natural parting. "Sorry, man. Didn't bring enough."
"Dumbass-"
"Though I don't think I could carry enough to cover your big-ass forehead."
Sakurai raised his hands, not even bothering to give Ren the satisfaction of showing his irritated face. This happened too many times; in his head, this encounter would mark the first win.
"Ren!" Shion's voice was followed by a flying tree branch which was immediately caught by the prankster.
"Where the hell did you get this absolute- shit!" He immediately sighted and evaded Sakurai's haymaker, ducking out to the left, and folding the bully with a thrusting sidekick to the ribs, knocking him to the ground.
Repositioning in front of his foes, Ren held the branch out, creating a buffer. While none of the forms he practiced for the bō were for harming others, he'd seen enough movies to guess how a large wooden stick could hurt. While Shion escaped with the victim, Ren shuffled like a cocky boxer, effortlessly flourishing the stick in both hands all while maintaining eye contact.
"Aren't you gonna- woah!" Ren swiped at Sakurai's shin, tripping the thug backward in stinging pain. One brave buddy attempted to hoist him up but was greeted with smashed knuckles. And a thrust straight in his gut, pushing him off his feet.
A swift whoosh of air signaled Ren's final attack; a sideways jump to reach his foe's back and a slap across the entire surface of it; full throttle, snapping his weapon into splinters but reducing the enemy to a writhing mess.
"Buncha masochists, huh?"
"Goddammit!" Sakurai once again got his friends, pulling two by the collar while a few others followed.
If growing up on movies like Police Story 2 was any indication, Ren had a couple of ideas for fighting multiple people in a playground.
The boy ran up a metal slide attached to a playground deck to attain the high ground. One boy followed him up, Ren merely flicked his foot upward, instantly crushing the foe's groin, and immediately jumped his other leg into a push kick to the chest, sending the bully tumbling down the slide.
From below, two people tried grabbing Ren's ankles both behind and in front of him, which he evaded, crisscrossing his feet almost as if dancing, stomping on their hands when he had the chance all while laughing, further frustrating the foes.
Sakurai snuck up behind Ren on the slide's apex while the boy reacted late, turning around in time to meet a tackle that sent both of them through the slide. With a minor struggle, Ren gripped his foe's shirt lapels, and placed his feet on Sakurai's abdomen, pulling his upper body towards him and pushing his stomach out to fling him over in an improvised tomoe nage throw, forcing Sakurai to crash on his lower back, and allowing Ren to roll out and land directly on top of the bully's diaphragm; unintentional blow but good for energy preservation.
Ren sprinted over to the swingset, connected to a jungle gym. Someone came up behind him and punched, Ren slipped it, throwing a rising left jab to the face, and a sneaky right straight to the body, forcing the air out of his diaphragm.
The boy turned his head, deftly jumping through the swing's empty space, and fired a flying side kick to the opposing foe's chest on exit, knocking him off his feet. Sensing the other one coming back up, Ren kicked the swing behind him, flinging it up just in time to smack the bully's nose.
'Whoops… not the face. Oh, well.' Seeing four people grouping up on him, Ren jumped and grabbed the swingset's frame, pulling himself up in one motion to stand. The bullies attempted to shake the swing, almost uprooting the structure. He hurriedly walked his way to the connecting jungle gym and sat at the top square frame.
"C'mon, guys!"
As they scrambled from the bottom, Ren dropped through the top hole, catching a bar with two hands as he propelled himself forward with two legs, ramming a kick to the climbing bully's chest, taking him out. He fell into the next empty space in front of another boy, Ren bobbed and weaved before firing back with a swift hook-uppercut-superman punch combo all to the diaphragm as he used the last hit to exit the gym.
*POW*
A haymaker struck Ren's face while arms took his back in a body lock. Ren now stared at three people in front of him, cracking their knuckles. Sawabe took out someone else's phone and tried videoing.
"Got your good angle, asshole!"
One boy approached and threw a punch, Ren slipped his head to the left just in time, and the restrainer took the punch in his stead. Ren spat at the bully's eye, blinding him while he tossed the bully behind him over his shoulder and onto the blinded one. The last foe tried to tackle him, but Ren flowed with the movement and hooked his arms under the bully's to shake him off, stumbling him while Ren spun and launched his turning sidekick to the gut.
With everyone groaning in pain, it was Sakurai again who was left.
"Alright…" Ren inhaled and exhaled deeply. His years of conditioning held up. "I hope Sawabe's got your good angle, big boy."
Sakurai charged in thoughtlessly with a big looping punch, almost throwing his face to the ground. Ren dodged to the side, slapping the boy's ass while circling out.
Seeing the bully's enraged expression, Ren snickered. "No good? I'll go softer for a good boy like you, Saku-chan~"
"Tch, you kiss your slut mother with that mouth- GUH!"
Ren's lightning-fast roundhouse kick immediately found its way to Sakurai's gut, doubling him over. The boy bent down, lightly slapping the bully's cheek repeatedly. "You were saying?"
The boy slapped him again, this time standing over him with his collar tight in his hand. "Talking to you, man. What were you saying?"
"H-Hey man!" The bully panicked, terrified by the cold tinge in Ren's smile. What did he do to go this far? "I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"
Sawabe ran in to help, but right as her hand was about to reach out, she dropped the phone. Or rather, someone slapped it out of her hands. The girl looked up. "Ishige-"
Shion pushed the delinquent back, coincidentally allowing Sawabe's heel to crush the phone. The purple-haired girl chuckled. "Whoops."
Ren scoffed, shoving Sakurai over. Shion grabbed him by the wrist and started walking off. "Got a teacher coming!"
Surely enough, a small crowd of local students was turning the far corner into this dead end of a park.
Ren thought to the girl whom Shion escorted. "How's Hirose?"
"Safe…" She huffed between strides. "Thanks."
Ren commandeered his bike, letting Shion ride behind him while he put the pedal to the metal. As they turned corners across their town, Ren could not help but giggle, speaking a bit louder to compensate for the rush of air in their seaside town. "I forgot how much hair gets in the way of throwing hands… Join me in the next scrap, yeah?"
"What, you need a bard for your party?"
"More like John Wick. You even went with the bitch slap osoto guruma. Like I taught you."
The two chuckled softly. Shion wrapped her arms tightly around Ren, prompting him to flinch and wobble his balance on the bike.
"Woah, careful!" He exclaimed, thankful his blush was out of sight. "So touchy~"
She smiled smugly. "So what, pretty boy?"
"Nothing…"
"Nothing sounds a lot like something, huh?"
A contented sigh escaped her lips. Ren couldn't help but picture that. He wouldn't mind doing more than looking once he had free hands.
"By the way." Shion brushed her hair from her face. "What were the spray bottles for?"
"Just a little surprise in their lockers."
"Uhuh…"
"And desks…"
"Very mature. What'd you spray them with?"
…
"You don't wanna know…"
13:11, February 14, 20XX, Faculty Conference Room, Atami Municipal High School
"What more do you want me to say, Ishi-sen? I have nothing to do with that. Not a single widdle finger touched Sakurai or his little posse."
"Right…" Ren's favorite teacher, Ishikawa Nana, doubtfully said. She lazily bunched her brown hair into a bun as she held the scrunchie in her mouth. "...And the little smell in the student council room?"
"Nuh uh."
"Uhuh. Thought so."
The boy laughed, probably a lot louder than he should. "So may I go? I'm gonna brag about my exam results to Kaa-chan now."
"There haven't been any problems involving you for the last semester, so why now?"
"Should I just let them do what they want-"
"Stop."
Ishikawa's firm tone killed the flow, stopping the conversation while she unbuttoned the front of her gray blazer and folded the sleeves to her elbows. "You know I'm not saying that."
Ren followed her tired eyes to the lukewarm coffee and three thick folders under her arm and grimaced. "I've said it a million times. I'm never the one starting it. I'm not gonna let them step all over me or others. If they just left well enough alone, and if the school could actually enforce consequences, this wouldn't be a problem."
…
"Uh, allegedly, be a problem."
"I'm not a prosecutor…" Ishikawa sighed, pocketing her phone into her black pants. "I know you hate it, so I won't give you my sympathy. I'll just… I'm always in your corner."
"You always-"
Ishikawa raised a finger to his face, silencing the boy. Ren decided he would just roll his eyes and chuckle, earning a small smile from his teacher. "You're a bad teacher."
"You're a worse student." Ishikawa stood up, taking her folders and coffee before gesturing for her student to get to the door. "Open the door and I won't mark your record."
"You never do."
He reached but he was interrupted by the small trinket bag dangling in front of his face. "Drop that off at Ishige's place. Try not getting into trouble on your way there."
"You of little faith…"
13:54, Ishige Residence
"Now," The girl in purple playfully placed her hands on her hips. "What brings you to my second-story window?"
"Nothing serious." Ren said sheepishly, checking the tight suburban streets for any traces of trouble.
Following Ren's escape from a couple of totally not instigated confrontations, Shion's me-time in her dim, purple LED-lit room would have to be cut short. "So it's freeloading today, huh?"
"Meanie." Ren pulled out the trinket from his teacher. "From Ishi-sen, by the way."
Shion opened the little baggie and found a couple of acrylic stands of beloved characters from her favorite gacha game, earning a wide smile and a giggle from her. "I'll be sure to say thanks."
Ren made himself comfortable, laying down horizontally across the width of her bed while the musician went back to her bass, sitting near the headboard. His eyes fell on Shion's open music production program on her computer, and his ears picked up a barely audible backing track coming from a MIDI keyboard that Shion hadn't completely silenced. "Now, what's the wannabe Nujabes who hasn't changed out of her uniform been working on?"
"Nuh-uh." Shion held out her palm as if asking for money. "Behind-the-scenes footage is locked behind a subscription."
"Don't you make enough?" Without missing a beat, Ren planted a swift peck on her cheek, flustering her momentarily to which Ren replied smugly. " Damn YouTuber… Payment given."
"Jeez…" The musician rolled her eyes, but the red on her cheeks spoke louder.
She looped a tight, funky drum beat from her MIDI keyboard, and added some chords from her synth, mixing in the tone of organs, and clavinet as a springboard to inspire her fingers as she maintained the skeleton of a song reminiscent of Masayoshi Takanaka or a funky, unreleased Prince session.
Shion picked up her polar white Jazz Bass and laid down funky bass motifs. As the bars repeated, creativity and flow deepened. Ren could've sworn she shone like the brightest light in the dark for that moment as she swayed, tastefully playing in and around her initial melody and transitioning to a solo, putting a heavy emphasis on the spacing and rhythm of her notes; speeding up and slowing down, recontextualizing the backing instruments every time she varied the passage before excitedly hyping herself up to finish her run with a satisfying resolution.
Before he knew it, Ren sat straight up as Shion's excited giggles and laughter tickled his ears while she silenced her instruments. "Damn… so you really aren't just a pretty face."
"Mhmm." Shion fell beside Ren, now staring at the same ceiling as Ren was with infectious glee. "I dunno if it was something about coming back to my roots, so to speak, but I feel like I can approach music a bit differently than I did before. Like I can finally find a way out when I'm stumped. Or at least not feel like a failure when I am in a rut."
"Artsy people are a moody bunch, huh…"
The girl gestured to her dyed locks, prompting a giggle out of both of them. Ren continued his train of thought. "Reminds me of how you talked about making melodies. What was it: No matter how far you seem to deviate from the origin, there's always a way back, or a new place to end up. As long as you know how to get there."
"So you do listen?" She continued, huddling up to Ren as her next words still needed to exit from her hesitation. "Umm… I think it's because of you that I can feel this way now."
"What?"
"I'm serious." She smiled, her eyes averse to his on account of her rosy hue. Even in the relative darkness, it felt odd. "I'm grateful to you."
…
She turned to face him, still lying down. Tentatively, Ren tried to face her too. "Even after I go back home, I'll always think that."
"Mmm." Ren mumbled, smiling with his eyes hidden in the dark. "Yeah."
…
"Killed the mood. Sorry." She muttered. "But I had to get that off my chest."
In the dark, Ren observed a passing thought that found its way out of his lips. "Maybe I should follow you."
Shion stuttered at the suddenness. "W-What?"
"I think my English is good enough for that. Besides you… there's nothing left here for me or Kaa-chan."
"I mean… that'd be something."
She knew it was just a meaningless wish, but it couldn't hurt to entertain it for a second. Instead, Shion let out a borderline offensive pfft. "As if a Mama's boy could ever stand the thought of leaving home."
Mildly offended, Ren playfully reached over and started tickling her, prompting her to squeal as her waist was invaded by the boy's fast hands. Between the playful sounds of 'Stop!', increasingly suggestive laughs, and Ren's growing grin, the two found themselves losing to the mood of the moment.
Trapped under his weight, and with her wrists pinned over her head, Shion's face began to flush as her eyes drifted naturally to the boy's shoulders.
'Have they gotten wider?' She thought, biting her lip slightly. Her eyes moved up, carefully reading Ren's eager expression. "I don't suppose… you have something you wanna say too? It is Valentine's Day, now that I think about it."
"Maybe…" Ren considered his options, still distracted. "…Not."
"So unfair…" Unconvinced, the girl underneath frowned. "It's always me embarrassing myself in front of you."
Ren pouted. "That's a you problem~"
Showing that she was adamant that Ren had to show his honesty, she gave him an expectant look, one that wasn't exactly what either wanted to wait for, but Ren found it hard to say no to her. "Be honest, RenRen."
"I'm always honest-"
Ishige wrapped her legs around Ren's torso and yanked him in closer, forcing their faces to an intimate absence of space, mixing in the warm rhythms of breath. Ren had half the mind to joke about the strength of her full guard, but the sensual look he observed took any unimportant thoughts out of his intentions.
Now, all that was in his mind was just her and her growing heat.
She grabbed his hands, placing them on the buttons of her shirt as she leaned into his ear. "Liar."
19:31, Shimotaga
Ren snapped a discreet selfie as he exited the konbini, directing the camera toward the mark on his collarbone.
[RenRen: tsk tsk…]
[RenRen: anyway, I got the hotpot stuff]
[RenRen: among other things
[RenRen: in case ur still thirsty]
…
*Bzzzt Bzzzzt*
Excitedly, he looked at the contact name and his smile left him.
[Kaa-chan]
Woops...
"Hi-"
"RenRen~ Did you fall into a ditch and die or something? You're out late and I didn't hear about it."
"Ishikawa-sensei had me drop something off for a senpai."
"Oh~?" She said. Ren could've sworn he heard her smirk. "Whatever could you be dropping off this late at night?"
"Hardcore drugs."
"Are you sure it isn't a Valentine's chu~?"
"Never say that again, please…"
Junko's voice went up in pitch in a faux cutesy manner, prompting a groan from the teenager. "You didn't do anything that Old Lady Mio wouldn't approve of, right?"
"We prayed the rosary together. With Granny in heaven, she's always watching now."
"M'kay!" Junko enthusiastically followed their ongoing joke. "You can stay out tonight, by the way."
"I can come home if you want to eat together."
"Did you really just imply that you'd spend Valentine's Day with your mom instead of a girlfriend?"
Ren's mouth opened, but the moment that statement left Junko's mouth, he facepalmed and his mother laughed heartily. "Live it up, RenRen! It's fine. Anyway, I heard about those final exam results. We oughta hit up that unagi place to celebrate."
"Deal. Tomorrow?"
"Sure, sure."
…
"By the way, Ren. Are you hurt? I heard about what happened yesterday."
"Ugh…" Ren sighed. He pinched the bridge of his nose. "It's not a problem. I'm fine. Imahara's best, remember?"
"I know… I just can't help but worry for my son. Is that so wrong?"
…
"I'm proud of your effort; any mother would be. But I just worry about the people who try to get up in your business, and what you're doing in return."
"Just delinquents, Kaa-chan; they don't have a good reason to be douchebags. They like picking on me and others because they're petty and mean-spirited."
Ren expressed his sarcasm with a theatrical gesture for no one. "Kaa-chan?"
"Yeah… fine."
…
The conversation turned more mundane as the hard subjects passed; something about Junko getting her hands on a new streaming service. Ren turned a corner in the suburb and tuned his ears to a light commotion going on at the end of the road.
"...in the car!"
Ren thought he heard the muffled cries of a woman, shooting his alert levels higher.
"STOP IT!"
The silhouette became clear to him; a handsy, bald drunkard was getting all up in a young woman's space; attempting to push her into a car while sneaking in the odd gropes as the lady clearly resisted with anguish.
"G-Get off of me!"
Ren didn't hear what else his mother was talking about. Because his legs had taken over his body as he rushed in.
"Damn brat… I'll sue!" The bald man turned to the woman as he scratched his forehead. "Here's your script: This kid suddenly attacked me. Got it?"
Ren's pulse quickened. His eyes strained while his fists remained clenched. The woman said nothing. In response, the boy kept talking, phone held in landscape. "You do know you're being recorded, right? I got your scummy ass on display if you keep this up."
No reply. The man continued speaking. "You do know what'll happen if you speak up, right?"
"Nee-san!" Ren shouted. "Come on! Don't let him get to you! I've got this dirtbag on video!"
The drunk put his attention to Ren. "And as for you. You'll find out what happens when you cross me. Whether anyone likes it or not, I'm going to steer this country where I want it to go, and I'm gonna get what I deserve along the way!"
"The hell are you going on about…?"
Finally, two police officers walked up. "Oh, sir. It's you. What's the matter here?"
Ren's legs stiffened. These policemen knew the drunkard. The officers put their attention solely on him now.
"Thank you." The fraudulent man turned to the woman as she flinched in response.
She sheepishly spoke up. "T-That young man… attacked him."
Ren's heart dropped. His stomach constricted into a disgusting knot. His arms froze up, held up by the mere memory of pre-applied tension. "...What?"
"He pushed this man to the ground."
She looked down, unable to meet the boy's panicking eyes. Ren turned back to the officers, holding his phone out to play the video. "We got proof! I got the video evidence right here-"
The officers bound both of his arms, silencing Ren. He looked at the woman.
Finally, she looked straight at him, regret immediately washing over her eyes. "...I'm sorry."
Struggle, shout, and speak as he might, Ren ended up in the backseat of a police cruiser with a pair of cuffs on his wrists. The blue and red lights flashed over the dark corner of this neighborhood. A scene now complicit in the injustice against this teenager and a young woman.
Ren saw the man talking to the officers with the woman meekly beside him. If she tried to hide herself any further, she'd actually disappear.
Memories of Ren's seventeen years filed through his mind as if being flicked through like a photo album.
His knuckles strained white. His nails threatened to draw blood as they dug into his tensed palms.
The sheer powerlessness he felt.
The injustice.
The audacity.
The cops entered their cruiser, fastening their seat belts and lighting cigarettes before the driver put the car in motion.
On the curb, Ren spotted his phone. His screen flashed open, along with a black symbol dyed in blood red.
His vision flashed red. A thick haze threatened to overcome his vision along with an eerie, warped sound unfamiliar to him.
An ethereal blue flame.
A black-winged devil. Crimson red body. A sinister, fiery smile.
The last thing he saw of this god-forsaken street.
April 9, 20XX, 09:02, Atami Station, Shizuoka Prefecture
[Serves you right you try hard clown lmao]
On his phone appeared images of his old desk vandalized with all sorts of cruel language and stuffed on the underside with trash, and his overflown shoe locker.
[Always knew you were gonna fuck with the wrong people lol dumbass punk]
[Can't study out of juvie dipshit go die]
[How much to fuck your milf mommy]
[Imagine being related to you fucking trash]
[No wonder your mother is alone lmao she's probably just like you bitch and a dirty whore on top of that]
…
He yawned noncommittally. No insult was off the table; childish jabs, death threats, filial insults, ad spamming, doxxing threats, and requests to jump off a building, drown himself, or tie a noose around his neck.
He tugged at his turtleneck and blazer, feeling all sorts of strange as he kept looking down at his new school uniform, the pattern of the pants, in particular, being his gripe.
Has it already been a month and a half since then? Not a year? Not a lifetime since all those officers shouted in his ears until they rang? Since that absolute circus of a trial with an attorney who couldn't be bothered to at least exhale in his favor?
Through all the ridicule of his neighbors, the rampant threads of vitriolic online payback spewed from names he knew smearing him, dragging it through dirt, grime, and gravel while beating it further than that bald drunkard ever did.
Worst of all, it touched the few people who were ever close to him. Those same people stood by his side as he anticipated the allotted time, amidst the background noise of the rolling metal of trains hitting the tracks, and the clamor of a sea of strangers.
He faced them with a smile. Or at least the idea of one. "No tearful farewells, I hope. Especially not from you, Sensei."
"You're really gonna go with this as your farewell greeting, huh?"
"Why would I praise a bad teacher?"
"Your kid's too much, Junko-san…"
Ishikawa facepalmed, motioning to the youthful, effeminate lookalike of her student, Amamiya Junko, as she shook her head, showing a smile like her son's. "Tell me about it."
Amamiya Junko stood about a head shorter than her son, and shared most of his features, enough for strangers to confuse them for siblings. Most of all, it seemed she was the source of his piercing steel eyes and his generous head of hair, the latter of which she was better at styling and maintaining.
At the sight of his mother's face, Ren closed his eyes and looked elsewhere, trying his best to avoid the fresh red mark across her cheek. She parted her shoulder-length hair over to that side of her face, spilling widely across the shoulders of her maroon sweater tucked into high-waisted jeans.
Junko crossed her arms conspiratorially. "I should've decked that pearl-clutching auntie."
"And her son too. Stupid hairline! I couldn't tell if he was her son or husband!"
Everyone laughed. Shion clutched both arms around her stomach and Ishikawa put her hands on her hips as she held back chuckles.
Ren shook his head and paused for a moment. "You could deck that auntie and go on probation along with me."
"Jeez, can't you say something normal?"
"I'll be back before you know it. Don't be upset."
Junko embraced her only son tightly, trying to manifest her son's words into reality. In turn, Ren cherished the remnants of that warmth as she let go.
"You did the right thing, Ren."
…
"Yeah."
The mother let go of her son and set her eyes on Shion, the girl clutching her long cardigan over her ripped jeans and boots uncomfortably as if to soothe herself.
Junko smiled widely and placed her hands on the backs of already compliant Ishikawa.
"Let's not look, m'kay?"
"Waaaay ahead of you."
As they faced each other, the girl's arms froze in front of her chest. "I don't know what more we can say."
…
"So let me hold you."
Her forehead fell into place in his chest as Ren's hand nuzzled it deeper. No tears threatened to spill, no boiling emotions, just a presence. Fleeting, impermanent. Warm.
"The train's coming. Do you feel the tracks buckling?"
"Mhmm."
"And you're still stuck to me."
"And you aren't?"
The rumbles of brief, chuckling joy reverberated gently between them.
"Don't be a stranger, Ren."
"Yeah."
"And… don't shut yourself out, okay?"
They reluctantly relinquished themselves from each other, their hands grazing their fingertips; struggling to relieve themselves of that touch for good.
Junko approached Ren, placing a pair of thick-framed glasses on his face, the idea being it'd disguise how fierce his gaze appeared.
"I'm off."
They waved in unison. For a moment he didn't want to move his legs. But the twitch in his eye forced him to. He turned around. He didn't dare look back.
Ren held his breath until he beeped the turnstile, fading away from their sight.
…
After holding a seemingly eternal breath, Junko let out a shaky sigh, drawing concern from Ishikawa who looked at her sympathetically.
"I-I know he'll be just fine…"
…
"Yeah…"
12:34, Shujin Academy, Aoyama-Itchome
The first words Ren received upon meeting his Tokyo guardian were as follows:
'Let's check you into school now. I'm not spending a Sunday on you.'
So that was nice.
The introduction with Principal Kobayakawa and his perpetually exhaling homeroom teacher, Kawakami, was already passing through his ear and out the next. Ren only responded as necessary, trying desperately to withhold himself.
Sojiro was cold enough to him as it was, he didn't feel like getting hostile so soon. His mother made this arrangement, after all; he didn't want to waste her efforts more than he already did. If she trusted Sojiro enough to contact him for something this serious, then maybe it would all work out.
Sojiro and Kawakami eagerly left the principal's office. Ren lazily exited, coinciding with the sound of footsteps encroaching his position. He quickly adjusted his speed to exit the room and prevent a jam at the door.
He turned the corner, and his thoughts and the external world slowed for a moment as another student entered his path, letting out a significant sigh. A slim girl wearing a sleeveless vest over the Shujin sweater with dim crimson eyes and short brown hair passed beside him with simultaneous, practiced grace and an unsatisfied look. Something about her seemed restrained to Ren.
She too caught the same stare; an unfamiliar student within these halls. A tall boy with a mass of hair covering his face; wide shoulders hiding under his thick uniform, and an air of cold distance, and gray eyes that held the key to his history. For some reason, she could discern a little smirk would fit perfectly on his face.
They'd never seen each other before that moment, yet something about each other piqued their interest.
Things being as they are, however, that marginal interest didn't matter, and they passed each other by.
The guardian sighed as he stroked his beard. "They really don't want you here, do they?"
"You got something in common with them, gramps."
Sojiro clicked his tongue. "Tch… Hardass."
"Not gonna kick me out? Does going soft come with age?"
"I oughta charge you rent every time you open your damn mouth."
The older gentleman's phone began ringing. Upon looking at the caller, he huffed silently and looked for a secluded spot. "Lemme take this first. Try not to get expelled while I'm gone."
"I'll wait to do it 'til you come back."
Not one to sit still, Ren explored, coming upon a bulletin board that he went up to for no particular reason. One thing that immediately filled his vision was plasterings of the same tacky poster:
{Volleyball Rally! Olympic Gold Medalist and Shujin Volleyball Team Coach Kamoshida Suguru starts the new semester off right!}
Other unimportant flyers such as recruitments for other clubs, various notices, and other events decorated the board. In a farther corner, one such poster read out loud with a third-year student's smiling face on it:
{Congratulations on your election to Student Council President, Niijima Makoto!}
12:41, Principal's Office
"Sir, you went through the trouble of enrolling him in our school knowing his history, and yet you still wish to have me learn more?"
He looked at her disappointedly and with a little exasperation. What couldn't she understand; simple directions, simple results.
"Do I have to remind you what's at stake? What would your sister-"
"I-I apologize. I'll look into it."
"Good, and regarding Kamoshida-sensei's requests for the rally, might I assume that you've already contacted any interested parties?"
"…Yes we have; one of the students in the Newspaper Club has already scheduled an interview on the day of the rally. I'm currently in contact with her."
Kobayakawa absent-mindedly stacked some other innocuous documents, filing them in drawers while trying to give off the impression that he was listening.
Slightly discouraged by the sight, the student council president continued anyway. "The script has been produced by the interviewer. Kamoshida-sensei just has to approve it."
"Good."
…
"Sir, could I talk to you about the budget proposal for clubs?"
With fleeting interest, he waved his hand, and Makoto's waning confidence took another blow. "The cultural club representatives so far haven't voiced their desires in regards to budgets. Though the sports clubs have, and since the kendō, basketball, and track team disbanded within the two semesters, we were considering distributing these spare funds to other endeavors."
She frowned once more, averting eye contact briefly before coming back to face him. "Though once we submitted it, our proposal was denied by you, sir."
He signed one paper. "Of course. None of the other sports club presidents seemed to want more money."
"Huh?" Makoto's eyes widened slightly. She took a single step forward. "I-I'm sorry, but we consulted with them right as the semester started three days ago, and sat down with us for their thoughts on the matter. They were complaining about the cuts they received last semester. We have to appease them somehow."
"Well, I was informed by the Auditor that they declined this."
Clearly shocked, Makoto hid her indignation. "...When did he inform you of this?"
"Two days ago."
13:58, Student Council Room
As the oddly nervous Auditor Akiyama had explained, the other sports club representatives had suddenly told only him that they had reconsidered their needs and didn't feel that their budget requests were necessary anymore. The other members seemed to corroborate that information, yet no one informed Makoto.
Their meeting ended after they proceeded to go over other proposals for future school events, but not before finishing their terse budget discussion.
"Secretary Aoki, what is next on today's agenda?"
"…The jūdō club was hoping to stage a demonstration sometime next week-"
Vice President Shiina nervously raised her hand."Uh, I doubt we'd be able to do that. Next week? I-It's too close to Kamoshida-sensei's rally. Wouldn't they be competing for each other's attention?"
Makoto thoughtfully curled her finger in front of her mouth. "We could allow them to use the gym next Saturday for that purpose; it should put enough time between the rally."
Vice President Shiina bit her lip tentatively. "Err…"
"Is something wrong, Shiina-san?"
"I-It's nothing, but I think this should be something we should bring up with Kamoshida-sensei before we approve this…"
Makoto frowned. She couldn't do anything about it, obviously; he was an adult and a teacher. Plain and simple. She had to relent, as she was used to. Having to hear from Kobayakawa about interfering with Kamoshida-sensei's efforts for the school was not the move today.
"I see. Then I'll meet with him once we finish."
14:11, Gymnasium
The volleyball team's practice had just ended. A bit earlier than usual, as some of the team members passing by Makoto were saying.
Why would Kamoshida be so against the jūdō club's demonstration? Why were the other Student Council members so sure of his refusal? She would soon find out, that Kamoshida had just finished ordering some of the boys to stow away the balls and nets used. Makoto approached the big man.
"Kamoshida-sensei, may I have a word with you if you are not occupied?"
The coach looked at her. His eyes took her in from head to toe, analyzing. Immediately, something in Makoto's gut twisted; it felt off. As if she was entering a space that was becoming increasingly constricting within his gaze. In her judgment, she tried to ignore it. This was their first time talking one-on-one, after all.
"Niijima, right? Go ahead."
"Kamoshida-sensei, it's come to my attention that the jūdō club would like to hold a demonstration sometime next week. I was thinking we would lend them the gym next Saturday so as to make space in between your volleyball rally and them."
…
"Alright."
It was that simple? Why were they so concerned about me asking him?
"Don't worry about it, President! You look so worried; come on, I don't bite."
Kamoshida leaned forward, his face encroaching on Makoto's space like a parasite. Everything in her instincts was telling her he should never have come this close. "Unless you want me to."
Makoto recoiled, she cleared the distance instantly with a large step backward and her arms slightly outstretched in front of her in a practiced motion. Kamoshida laughed. "Hah! Don't worry! I'm just joking."
He smirked at her and walked away. She felt gross. Like she needed to wear another layer of clothing in front of the man.
But at least the encounter was over. She stepped out into the hallway-
"President!"
And right into the fire. A boy in a hakama came up to her, his eyes telling of something troublesome.
"President… may I speak with you for a bit?"
"Kawasaki-kun, may I help you?"
He looked around and settled his indoor voice in, remembering he was still in the hallway.
"May I know if our proposal made it through?"
"Your propos-"
Wait…
"I'm sorry, it seems like there's been a misunderstanding. I was told that the issue was resolved; you rescinded the proposal, didn't you?"
"What-" Suddenly, his tone was a lot ruder. "Who told you that?"
Makoto almost looked incredulous, but she tried her best to keep that face back. "The other council members-"
"Hey, Prez, what the hell?!"
Another voice came pacing rapidly down the hall, another tall boy came down, his sneakers skidding on the floors.
"I'm sorry…" Makoto bowed to Kawasaki curtly before turning to the source of the intrusion, already aware of the voice. "Tateyama-kun-"
"You lied to me!"
He saw a similarly disappointed expression on the kyūdō rep's face. The pieces clicked together.
"And to us! What went wrong?!
"C-Calm down, pleas-"
"Calm down? What part of what we asked wasn't clear to ya?! Don't tell me you also forgot about our demonstration! I know student councils are useless and all, but are you competing for the top spot?!"
…
Her eyebrow scrunched slightly. "Tateyama-kun… please calm down."
"The hell do you mean calm down?!"
Makoto thought his face looked exceptionally punchable right now. She exhaled tensely.
Her end-of-day workout couldn't come soon enough. Especially the part where she gets to hit something.
16:40, Leblanc, Yongen-Jaya
Ren completed one more muscle-up and dropped from the wooden beams attached to the ceiling of his new home, sweat falling off his brows. His phone rang; a call. Ren checked it, thinking it'd be another prank:
[Kaa-chan]
…
He picked up. "Hey, Kaa-chan."
"Ren… How's Tokyo been treating you?"
"It's… fine so far. Kinda big; but like, that's par for the course, huh? People move fast over here."
"You bet; have you ridden the trains yet?"
"Not yet. I've heard the war stories though, which would make me an unfortunate refugee."
…
"…yeah."
Ren grimaced and ran a hand through his hair with a tired smile. "C'mon, I can hear you sighing; we can all joke about it."
…
"Bad joke, sorry. How's Ishi-sen? Shion?"
"They're still with me, actually. We're in a cafe in the city."
"Girls' night on the town, eh?"
"Wanna talk to them?"
…
"It's a bit too soon to be homesick, y'think?"
"Ren-"
"Trust me, Kaa-chan. No worries."
…
"Then tell me about the school, Ren."
For a brief moment, he pictured the smile of Amamiya Junko on the other side, pouring out from one of her chuckles. The image helped him smile a bit more as he droned on about his observations.
If he closed his eyes, he could remember the fresher air of Atami. The dumb pranks, the fights. Catching Ishikawa-sensei dozing off in the faculty office, Shion in her room tinkering with instruments or audio samples, his mother laughing and retaliating as he practiced another move on her.
And if he looked even further back; Granny Mio tossing a wok, stir-frying dishes in a massive fire before he plated and served it. Imahara-sensei teaching him a new striking set-up or a new tricking kick.
He made the mistake of blinking, opening his eyes to see the beams of the attic; a foreign place.
…
'I wish I could hit something.'
-I-
(WE MILKING THE P5 FRANCHISE WITH THIS ONE)
Hi! It's me, someone whose greatest achievement in life is having their fanfic recommended on TV Tropes.
Someone out there wanted another P5R novelization, that someone is me, and I am answering that demand with a supply. Every chapter will be a song title or a line of lyrics that may have something to do with whatever's going on; just a fun exercise. If you don't know the references, just think of them like stand names in JoJo; fun either way.
No, I haven't formally trained in martial arts; it's something I watch braver people than I do from the comfort of my home. Sometimes I'll pretend I'm a world-class fighter in my room and kick the air (I have a mean round kick).
Why is a seventeen-year-old not in his 3rd year of high school? It's not because of getting sued by a bald man, pls keep that in mind. Also isn't it cute how Makoto and Ren share similar anger issues?
HUGE shoutout to Kupow on AO3 for Persona 5: Going the Distance AU; massive inspiration in structure and motivation for me to write this story. I will say right off the bat that the idea of this Ren + prologue + Kamoshida arc + a teensy bit of the Madarame arc shares plenty of similarities. In my defense, this story shares a lot of similarities with a game that Atlus released known as Persona 5 Royal. That being said, after rereading his Kamoshida arc, I believe our styles provide different things. Do check his work out if you have the time. His writing is certainly more expressive.
UPLOAD SCHED: I've got the Kamoshida Arc locked and loaded; 5 chapters (+ this one) each having at least 10k words or more, so good luck reading that. From the point I post this, I will post the next few chapters once a week at this time; that's the entire Kamoshida arc and then I will take a break until I finish the Madarame arc, then post those weekly, etc.
The time will be at my Saturday midnights, 00:00 GMT+8. I'm really bad at understanding timezones so please bear with that.
Now excuse me while I watch tiktok compilations on youtube.