The Lone Vigilante Issei – High School DxD
Hey everyone, it's me Hide Shinyama.
So, here we are at the latest chapter.
Last time, our heroes have investigated about the appearances of beings known as stray devils hin Nerima.
However, they could only do so much – until they came across a student named Ryuga Nabiki on their first day of school, claiming he had seen "monster".
What did he see? Will it lead the Perverted Quartet to the stray devils?
Find out in…
Chapter 26 – The Trail of Clues
17th September, Monday, 9:37 am – cafeteria, Furinkan Vocational School, Nerima
Issei, Matsuda and Motohama had just taken a seat at one of the cafeterias tables. In addition to them sat this traumatized and pale young man named Ryuga Nabiki. Just a few minutes ago, Ryuga had just revealed that he had seen what seemed to be stray devils. Issei wasn't one hundred percent sure if that was the case, but he had to ask him just to be sure. Thankfully, he was cooperative and was willing to tell the trio his story. Although, he had to ask something…
"So… are you guys new here?" Ryuga asked them.
"Yup," Matsuda answered with a nod. "I am Matsuda Hibi- I mean, Matsuda Hide! And these are my little brothers Motohama and Issei!" Matsuda quickly corrected himself, before then introducing the other two "brothers".
Motohama and Issei couldn't help but frown at how Matsuda introduced them along with the fact that he almost said his real name. And to think that he had told them earlier not to make any such mistakes…
Thankfully, Ryuga didn't seem to react to that and instead simply nodded in affirmation.
"Well, yeah… I'm Ryuga Nabiki. I'm fifteen years old and I practice martial arts. Pleased to meet you," Ryuga introduced himself once again.
The Hide "brothers" nodded back . All they wanted to do was just ask Ryuga here about what he had seen yesterday, only for there to be awkward small talk.
Clearing his throat, Issei took the initiative to get to the heart of the matter.
"So, Ryuga," Issei started, trying his best to put on his best getting-down-to-business face. "You said a few minutes ago that you ran into some monsters yesterday. The kind you said couldn't possibly exist. What happened exactly? Tell us from the beginning."
Ryuga couldn't help but wrinkle his eyebrows at Issei's behavior.
"Why do you guys even want to know? What's it in for you?" Ryuga asked them wearily.
"We… just do…" Issei replied hesitatingly, while looking away for a moment. But he turned his gaze back to Ryuga, the moment he came up with an appropriate response. "We kind of wanted to know what these monsters were you were talking about. That's all."
Ryuga dropped his frown. It appeared he was satisfied with Issei's answer. It was then that he began to speak.
"It all began when I chasing my rival Sanma Raotome when…" Ryuga said when Motohama interrupted him.
"Raotome? You mean that jerk with the pigtail?" Motohama asked.
Ryuga raised his eyebrows. "You know him?" he asked Motohama.
"Yeah! Jerk ran us over yesterday. He had all these people following us that almost trampled us to death," Motohama explained, while seething at the memory.
"Come to think about it, you were among them, too. Weren't you, Nabiki-san?" Issei said with a stern look at Ryuga, who withered back.
"I was? Oh, so that was you at that time? Sorry about that…" Ryuga apologized. "I was so pissed at Sanma for insulting Nakane because of her cooking that I couldn't see anyone else in front of me…"
The boys frown at Ryuga, but decided not to let that matter distract from the current topic. At the same time, Issei couldn't help but ask about something.
"Who is Nakane?" Issei wanted to know.
"Raotome's fiancée," Ryuga says with a frown. "Even though he has such a wonderful fiancée he just takes her for granted and insults her all the time. She is such a wonderful girl and I will never understand why anybody would do something like that to someone like her. Too bad she only hangs around him the whole time," Ryuga stated with a sigh.
The boys drop their frowns and nod in understanding. So, it was a love triangle. And he had an unrequited love. Interesting…
Flustered at how much he told them, Ryuga goes back to the original topic. "Anyway, back to it. I was chasing Sanma on a roof and was so close to getting him when I tripped and fell into a pool and… umm…"
Matsuda noticed Ryuga's hesitation. "And what?" Matsuda asked.
Ryuga shook his head strongly. "Never mind. It's not important. Anyway, I got out and by the time I did, I had completely lost him. I tried my best to find him, but couldn't."
"What about the crowd chasing Sanma? Did they find him?" Issei asked next.
Ryuga shook his head again. "Nope. And to be honest, I didn't even know where they were either – not that I cared anyway. Now where was I again…?"
"You were chasing Raotome," Matsuda helped him.
"Right! Ahem… Well, I looked and low for him all across Nerima but no Sanma anywhere. I was just about to give up and go home until I heard a suspicious sound," Ryuga elaborated.
"A suspicious sound? What kind of sound?" Motohama asked.
Ryuga tried to figure out how to describe it and came up with an explanation after a few seconds. "It sounded like… nibbling and squirting…" Ryuga explained, as he became visibly uncomfortable as his story went on.
Issei noticed this. "You all right? You're getting pale again…" he said with concern.
"I'm fine… though when it comes to this part, I'd rather not talk about it…" Ryuga said, while shifting uncomfortably.
"Ok, then-" Issei wanted to offer a solution, but Ryuga cut him off.
"But I still want to do this! I came this far, so now I am going through with it. What kind of man would I be if I wasn't even able to speak of my fears, let alone face them?" he stated with passion and boldness.
Matsuda, Issei and Motohama stayed silent. It seemed like Ryuga here had some kind of manly pride in him that drove him to continue. Issei motioned Ryuga to go on.
"Well, I heard this suspicious sound and approached it. I didn't know who or what was making that voice. Part of me was thinking it was a rat or several rats eating from the dumpster. Another part was thinking it was Sanma, even though I wasn't sure why I thought it was him in the first place. Whatever the case, I snuck to the place where the noise came from and was just around… the corner…" Ryuga told them.
"And what did you see?" Matsuda asked with clear interest. It seemed like this is where it was getting interesting.
Ryuga gulped as he continued. "I looked… and I saw… two women… eating something…" he said uneasily.
Issei looked confused. "Two women eating something?" he asked, unsure as to why that should be frightening to anybody.
"How did they look like?" Motohama wanted to know.
Ryuga tried to think back, before answering. "They… had long red hair and were wearing trench coats. I guess they were in their twenties or thirties by their appearances. However, they didn't behave like normal people. I thought, 'Wait a minute. Why on earth are these chicks eating in a back alley like this? Surely there were plenty of places where you could eat – without being in the immediate vicinity of a trash can'. But then I saw… what they were eating. That was when I realized something… was wrong…" he said as his face paled even more.
This piqued Issei's, Matsuda's and Motohama's interest.
"What was it?" Matsuda asked urgently.
"Yeah, and what were they eating?" Motohama asked as well.
Ryuga gulped again and tried his best to muster his courage. "They were… eating… rats… hair, head, tail and all…
"WHAT!? EATING RATS!?" Issei bellowed out loudly, causing the entire cafeteria to look at him and everyone at the table.
Realizing the attention his outburst caused, Issei just looked away from the multitude flustered.
"Dude! Don't shout. You're causing a scene," Matsuda put a finger in front of his lips.
"Yeah. Keep it down," Motohama said with a frown.
"Sorry…" Issei answered sheepishly. Thankfully, most of the students turned their attention to their own business, though some of them were still whispering about Issei behind their back.
"So anyway, you said they are rats, right? And that was what made you conclude they were monsters or something, right?" Matsuda asked Ryuga.
Ryuga nodded. "Yeah! It was the creepiest thing. But to make matters worse, they discovered me and I had to run for my life like a coward. Normally, I wouldn't do that, but given the circumstances I was in, I didn't have much of a choice! The way they looked at me… the way they called me food with their inhuman voices… it really terrified me… Luckily, I lost those two monster women by hiding in a trash bin in an alleyway. I can still smell the scent on me… ugh… As if being frightened to your bones wasn't bad enough… But make sure you guys don't tell anyone else about it. Clear?" Ryuga added with a threatening undertone.
"No problem, man! Your secret is safe with us!" Motohama assured him.
"Yeah. You can count on us," Matsuda added in.
Ryuga snorted. "Good!"
"And? Was that it?" Issei asked Ryuga.
Not quite," Ryuga said, while shaking his head. "Those two women eventually came to the place where I was hiding. Thankfully, they never bothered to check the bins, so they never found me. Downside is, they stayed there for quite a long time. I had to sit in that stinking trash can for what seemed like ages until someone else came."
"Someone else?" Matsuda asked this time.
"Yeah. Some guy with a trench coat just like those two women. He also had white-scales for skin and long gray hair. He kind of looked like a human-reptile mutant. Really creepy… Oh, and he also had wings like that of a bat. He even came flying in. That's when I realized that he was the same as those monster women. So I stayed as quiet as possible and made sure not to move a muscle – not that wasn't doing that from the start anyway…" Ryuga explained.
Upon hearing Ryuga's description of the third person that joined in, they all came to the same conclusion.
"It's him. No doubt about it," Motohama whispered to Issei and Matsuda.
"Yeah, it is," Issei whispered back. "The description fits him perfectly.
"Umm… What are you guys talking about?" Ryuga asked the trio, suspicious at being left out.
"Never mind… we were just… discussing theories. That's all. So anyway… What happened then?" Matsuda asked Ryuga.
Ryuga wrapped his arms in front of his chest and tried to remember.
"Let me see… the male monster seemed to be angry for some reason. Said something about someone killing someone named Kao… the three of them got angry and talked about killing every human they could find… then the guy told them to wait until night and then go hunting… Oh, yeah! They also said something about killing 'Sacred Gear Users' if I remember right. I don't what these 'Sacred Gear Users' were but whatever the case, it gave me the creeps…" Ryuga shuddered.
To his surprise Issei, Matsuda and Motohama were the ones whose faces became pale this time. They stared to the floor with some kind of horrifying realization.
Ryuga couldn't help but snap his fingers to get their attention. "Umm… guys? You there?" Ryuga asked the boys.
The boys snapped back to attention.
"Sorry… Nabiki-San. We just had to process what you just said…" Motohama explained, as he wiped the sweat from his brow.
"Are you guys OK?" Ryuga asked them in concern (there was an irony in this, considering his and the trio's roles have switched here).
"Yeah, yeah… no problem… We… uh… just had to take it all in. That's all…" Issei told Ryuga.
"Yeah, no problematic all. Anyway, what happened then?" Matsuda wanted to know.
Ryuga frowned at their behavior. To him it seemed like they were hiding something, but he wasn't one hundred percent sure. Nevertheless, Ryuga resumed his narration.
"Well, after that. They decided to wait out the time and have sex with each other. It wasn't… easy to look at and it was all the more disturbing when I saw them transform into these wolf-like beasts with snakes for tails and then have sex again in those forms. Man… was that bad… I still have nightmares about that…" Ryuga shuddered.
The trio simply looked at each other with uncertainty, before facing Ryuga again, while he resumed his narration.
"Eventually after an hour or two they flew off to who knows where. I heard them say they needed to get back to 'their hideout'. That was when I finally get out of that filthy bin and head home. I took a bath and washed myself thoroughly because of the smell. Even after all that, I think I can still smell it, along with the memories of that day…" Ryuga said, finishing his tale.
The boys said nothing for the moment. They were deep in thought at what Ryuga said. But one thing was for sure.
That was definitely the male stray devil they had seen on the Chopping Board Type 2's footage. And to make matters worse, not only was he out for revenge for the death of his companion, he also had two more stray devil companions just like the one Issei had killed.
This wasn't good… one was bad enough. But three… What if there were more than that? The three of them (plus Ddraig) had to be prepared.
Oh, well. First things first. At least they had a trail…
That was when Issei had an idea. Ryuga could…
"Hey, Ryuga," Issei addressed the bandana boy.
"Huh?" Ryuga said.
"Can you show us where you met them?" Issei requested.
"Huh!?" Ryuga voiced incredulously with his eyes bulging out in shock.
"You heard me. Can you show us where you saw those stray devils?" Issei repeated himself.
Ryuga shook his head. "No way! After my near-death escape I don't want to go anywhere near that place. Are you out of your mind!? Besides, they probably flew off to their hideout or wherever it is they normally hide. So, there's nothing to see in that dirty alleyway anyway," Ruga argued earnestly. It was clear that he was still shaken up by his experiences there.
"You know, I think he's right," Motohama agreed. "Hate to say this, but for all we know these devils could be anywhere."
"Then what? We should just sit here and wait for them to strike at innocent people?" Issei argued back with an undertone of anger.
"Nothing like that, man," Matsuda spoke up in a bid to calm Issei down.
"Then what should we do?" Issei asked Matsuda and Motohama seriously. "We can't just sit here and do nothing. We've got to do something about those stray devils. More so, if they're looking for us. Someone has to do something. If we won't, then… then…"
Issei's rant was cut short by the memories of his parents' deaths. He breathed heavily and angrily at the prospect of someone like his parents dying.
Matsuda and Motohama widened their eyes at Issei's behavior in surprise. Ryuga was likewise surprised and froze in place.
Nobody said a word because of how tense the atmosphere had become. Until…
"Man, the local news has become quite crazy," one of the many students in their immediate vicinity said to his companion.
"No kidding. First, they report about a frozen wasteland on the banks of the Arakawa River near Wako. And now they're talking about a corpse with only bones and pieces of flesh remaining. They say the victim was eaten by – get a load of this – wolves! I mean, come on! Wolves in the middle of the city?" his companion scoffed at how seemingly unrealistic the newspaper in his hands reported.
All four boys immediately whirled around upon hearing this. Did they just…?
"I know their sales aren't particularly good, but really? They really have to resort to fake news?" the first student asked his companion.
"Totally. As though we don't have enough of that," the second student agreed, before crumpling the newspaper into a ball and tossing it into the nearest dustbin.
After the students had gone their way, Issei went to the bin and took it out. Matsuda, Motohama and Ryuga approached Issei from behind. The three of them peered over Issei's shoulders as Issei opened up the crumpled newspaper to read its contents.
And that was when they saw the article they were looking for.
"Possible Wolf Scourge in Nerima?" Issei read the article out loud. "Warning – Graphic description: Police report that just this morning that a corpse of a man has been found with only his head and most of his flesh torn off. The victim's clothes were found scattered within the immediate vicinity of the dead victim. Autopsy results indicate that the man has been killed by perpetrators with canine teeth – possibly wolves. This has been compounded by the presence of bloody paw prints left behind at the scene. According to reports, there has been no trail, as the prints only exist near the victim's remains. The victim himself has been identified as Hitoshi Kamiya, a sales man, aged 35 and unmarried. The police has described this as a messy and gruesome killing, one in which even hardened law enforcement had a hard time working on. 'We don't know where these wolves came from – if they are wolves that is – or where they could be hiding. But one thing is for sure. We will be vigilant and we will make sure that this never happens again,' says a Nerima Ward Police spokesman to the press this morning. More to follow soon…"
Once Issei finished reading the newspaper article, the four boys were unsettled by what they had read and remained silent. That silence would be broken by Motohama.
"Pretty descriptive, but it's definitely them. What do we do next?" Motohama asked Issei and Matsuda.
"I think that's obvious. We check it out after school. We're heading there as soon as we can," Matsuda answered. He then headed out to the hallway with Motohama following him.
"I'll take this along…" Issei said, while making the newspaper into a roll and following his buddies.
As they reached the hallway, Ryuga suddenly caught up with them and blocked their way.
"Wait a minute. Hold on! Why are you so interested in these monsters? What's your game? You think you're detectives or crime fighters or something?" Ryuga demanded from the trio.
This caught the three boys of guard. They looked at each other nervously. Come to think about it, their questioning of a student they just met did seem kind of suspicious to any rational person – more so when it came to the topic of supernatural beings.
This was bad.
All they wanted from Ryuga were answers. They didn't want to drag him, an outsider with no involvement to the supernatural, into this mess. What should they do? They needed to say something…
That was when Issei stepped forward and laid a shoulder on Ryuga.
"Let me put it this way: Supernatural occurrences are our hobby," Issei simply told him, before moving past him.
Matsuda and Motohama quickly passed by, leaving Ryuga just standing there. He only turned to look at them, but didn't follow them. It seemed as if he was trying to make sense of Issei's answer.
Matsuda and Motohama sighed out relieved. However, they did have one issue with what Issei said.
"Dude! What's up with that? What kind of answer was that?" Motohama demanded.
"Yeah, it sounded so cheesy, like these one-liners you see in movies!" Matsuda critiqued.
"Hey, I had to think of something. Didn't I? What would you have said in my place?" Issei challenged them.
Matsuda and Motohama said nothing and just walked in silence with Issei.
Matsuda glanced at a clock. It was 9:49 am.
"Dang it!" Matsuda cursed to himself.
"What is it now?" Issei asked, while facing behind him.
"The break is almost over! We couldn't even find a good peeping spot!" Matsuda answered vexed.
Motohama slapped his forehead. "Oh yeah! I forgot about it!" he said in realization. "We were so caught up in this stray devil business that we forgot about our passion!"
"Well, there's still next break. We'll work on it right away. After that we'll deal with whatever planning we need for the stray devils. So, come on. We should head to class…" Issei told Matsuda and Motohama, They headed upstairs with a number of other students to their next class.
17th September, Monday, 3:16 pm – on the way to the crime scene, Nerima
Their first school day had ended. They had to say, it wasn't too bad.
The classes they had that day after Japanese were English, Geography and Civics. The lessons weren't too hard to follow, but the material they were learning was quite different from what they had learned in Kuoh and Sakabasu. Their teacher made sure that the trio was brought up to speed.
Speaking of which, what was most interesting was that all the subjects on Monday were taught by Asumi-sensei. They found out that in addition to being their class teacher, she was also responsible for teaching them all the non-vocational academic subjects, in this case: Japanese, English, Geography, Civics, History and PE.
They had to admit, Asumi-sensei was the best thing about the school so far. It was great to have a hot teacher in their class all day. She really had a nice rack at size D… sexy clothes with a skirt and nice long legs with leggings and low-heeled mary-janes… Matsuda couldn't help but lustily wondering whether she could do the splits. She taught PE, so why not?
The downside to it all was that there were more boys than girls in this class, something quite different from Kuoh Academy, a former all-girls school. This meant that there were a lot fewer girls to ogle at or to get as girlfriends. To make matters worse, if any of the gossip they heard going around in class was any indicator, it did not make their popularity any better. Maybe they should have just left out their porn hobbies when they introduced themselves…
Speaking of their hobbies, unfortunately they could not find a place to peep. No holes and no way to enter the gym hall premises (because the doors are locked). All they could do was just stare through the glass door and sigh and come with another plan later.
And because of that, Issei, Matsuda and Motohama had to deal with the stray devil killings and how to go on from there. After much discussion and arguing, they decided… to just go the scene where the dead victim was found and see what else to do. They could not agree on anything else.
Issei originally wanted Ryuga to lead them to where he had last seen the stray devils. But Ryuga was still traumatized and frightened by the whole incident that he refused Issei's request again. He could not even tell them where the encounter took place because of his bad sense of direction.
And thus, the trio were on their way of the crime scene, about 150 meters away from where they lived.
It was not too far away from the Neko Neko Restaurant by the way, which is known for its Chinese delicacies. Besides the Neko Neko Restaurant there were a whole bunch of other restaurants there. They really wanted to visit these places and try out their food. For now, however, they decided to just but some take-away okonomiyaki at a stall nearby.
They approached the stand and the girl tending it looked at them and asked, "Can I get your order?"
"Yeah, umm… three normal take-away okonomiyaki please," Matsuda spoke on their behalf.
"All right, coming right up!" The girl said as she turned to her grill and started cooking.
While the boys waited for their okonomiyaki, they conversed on issues related to their "hobby", as Issei put it to Ryuga earlier.
"So, we get to the crime scene and then what? There's no way the cops are gonna let us check the scene of the crime. We're not qualified detectives or anything," Matsuda pointed out.
"I know," Issei admitted with a frown. "But what else are we supposed to do? Ryuga won't help us. Heck, he can't even tell us where he met those stray devils. So, the only thing we can do for now is to check the scene of the crime."
"But then how are we to find these stray devils?" Motohama asked Issei.
"I don't know. We just got to figure it out when we get there," Issei answered.
"That doesn't sound like much of a plan," Matsuda commented with a deadpan expression.
"Hey, you come up with a better idea!" Issei retorted.
Matsuda did not change his expression, but decided not to continue this conversation and look away, just hoping to get his okonomiyaki. Issei did the same, while Motohama looked up into the sky and closed his eyes in order to clear his mind.
He focused and focused… before he gave up. The smell of cooked okonomiyaki distracted his concentration. Sheesh! His hunger just disturbed his concentration. If only he could block out the smell! The smell was so strong, he could probably smell it from far away!
Wait a minute…
Smell it from far away?
"That's it!" Motohama exclaimed loudly, much to Issei's, Matsuda's and the okonomiyaki girl's surprise. They looked at him startled and bewildered, much to Motohama's embarrassment.
"Ummm… sorry… uh… please carry on…" Motohama said to the okonomiyaki girl, who simply resumed her grilling.
"Dude, what the heck was that all about?" Matsuda demanded from Motohama.
"Yeah! You scared the living crap out of us! Something on your mind?" Issei asked with a stern look.
"Well, yeah… I just figured out a way to find these stray devils," Motohama told them.
This got him surprised looks from Issei and Matsuda.
"Y-you do?" Issei asked surprised.
"Yup. And we don't even have to bother the investigators," Motohama smiled smugly.
"Like how?" Matsuda asked Motohama.
"Why by using Issei's dragonized nose. It can smell and tell apart different supernatural creatures apart, right?" Motohama asked Issei.
Seeing where he was going, Issei nodded, though he had an objection. "Yeah, but I have no idea how stray devils smell like."
"That's no problem," Motohama stated with confidence. "All we have to do is go to the crime scene and have you sniff out the stray devil's scent and then use it to track them down."
Issei and Motohama let out an "Ahhhh!".
Just then the okonomiyaki girl finished her grilling and said, "Here are your okonomiyaki. That would be ¥2.400."
Issei fished out his pocket and gave her the money. In return, the three boys took their okonomiyaki and went on their way.
"This is great! We're going to find these devils in no time. Great job by the way," Issei complimented Motohama.
"No problem. Ehehehe…" Motohama said as he rubbed the back of his head shyly.
However, that was when the Boosted Gear showed up on Issei's arm with Ddraig having some words to say about the matter.
[People. While Motohama's idea is not a bad one, there is one problem with this approach] Ddraig told everyone.
"There is?" Issei asked, while scratching his head.
[Indeed. And that is the ability to find their scent over great distances. They could be hiding anywhere in this huge city. They might not even be in this city at all. For all we know, they could live in the outskirts or even in the Underworld and come out to this world from time to time. There are many possibilities] Ddraig pointed out to them.
At this, everybody's mood became downcast and mumbled in despair.
"It can't be…" Issei said in shock.
"Ah, man… I should have known it was too true to be good…" Matsuda sighed.
"Why didn't I think of that…?" Motohama mumbled defeated.
[People! It's not the end of the world! That will come when Trihexa arrives and not until then. And even that can be prevented with enough effort] Ddraig talked about things the trio had no idea of.
The three teens looked at the Boosted Gear in confusion because of what Ddraig said.
[What I'm trying to say is that it's not over and until it is, we still have hope. While, I did say that it will be very difficult to find their scent in this huge city, it is better to have a small lead than nothing at all. So therefore I suggest we go to the scene of the crime, before the scent disappears. Understand?] Ddraig asked them sternly.
The boys nodded their heads quickly and headed to the scene. They ate their okonomiyaki on the way, which had cooled down after some time. It was delicious. They really ought to come by every now and then. But the search for those terrifying killers weighed more on their mind right now.
17th September, Monday, 3:42 pm – at the crime scene, Nerima
They got there and it seemed like the investigators were wrapping up their investigations. The police officers were dismantling their equipment and were packing them up. Even the evidence was being taken for safekeeping. The trio could see the clean-up crew do their job.
Also, the scene of the crime…
There were bloody footprints and a dried-out pool of blood all around an area that was marked with white color, indicating the victim's body position. Just like the newspaper indicated, there were no footprints of the wolves anywhere else. Only the footprints of the victim existed outside the area of his death.
Must have been a horrible grisly death… and the gray clouds and breezy wind eight now did not make this less ominous.
But no matter. All they had to do was have Issei smell the scent of the stray devils and leave.
"Ugh…" Issei wrinkled his nose in disgust. "I can still feel the scent of rotten decaying corpses – just like back then when we found those corpses at Sakabasu!"
"Yeah… but can you at least get the stray devil's scent?" Matsuda asked of Issei.
[Stray devils are usually covered in blood and reek of death. You will most likely find them based off this scent, provided they haven't erased their scent with water] Ddraig stated.
"Well, yeah… Anyway let's go…" Issei told the others and was ready to leave this disgusting place and start the search.
Suddenly, the wind blew and that was when Motohama saw something.
"What's that?" Motohama pointed with his finger. Issei and Motohama turned around and saw what he was looking at. At one of the places where the bloody pool and footprints were, something was sticking on the ground and about to fly off because of the wind.
It flew off and flew directly into Motohama's body, but didn't hurt him because of how small and paper-like it was.
"What was that?" Issei asked Motohama, the former trying to see what the small object in question was.
Motohama grasped it and saw what it was.
A leaf.
"It's just a leaf," Matsuda shrugged disinterested, just as Issei's Boosted Gear appeared in a flash.
[Yes, but it came from the crime scene and it's covered in blood. And it probably came from underneath the paw prints of the stray devils, meaning this leaf got stuck here with the blood. This could be a useful clue for finding these stray devils] Ddraig explained.
"Ddraig, watch it! There are people nearby!" Issei reprimanded Ddraig for appearing in the open with people nearby.
[Pardon me, Partner. I tend to forget] Ddraig apologized.
Thankfully, none of the officers noticed and were just about to leave.
"This thing could be a clue?" Matsuda asked skeptically.
"Good thing the police haven't found it yet then," Issei said. "Now, let me check out this leaf. Maybe we can find out more about it…"
Issei activated his watch and summoned his special glasses.
[Those glasses again?] Ddraig sighed.
"Are you jealous again?" Issei frowned.
[Not at all…] Ddraig lied, not wanting to squabble with Issei about it again.
And so, Issei started his analysis and checked the leaf's properties.
There was an analyzing function that Issei had found the other day that allowed Issei to find out the names of objects and animals of all kinds. Pretty cool… these glasses were really the best!
"Scanner, tell me about the object you see in my hand," Issei commanded the glasses.
{The object in question is a leaf of the Prunus Serrulata, also known as the Japanese cherry tree. These kind of trees are quite common in Japan. Do you wish to know more?} The male A.I. voice asked Issei.
"Nope. That's good enough. Thanks," Issei answered, before turning his face to the others. "So there we have it. Another clue. Though I don't know if this will help much…"
"Yeah, unfortunately there way too many Sakura trees around this country…" Matsuda sighed.
"Like sand on the sea shore…" Motohama commented dryly.
[I would not give up hope too soon… I think our job has been made a lot easier…] Ddraig told them all.
"Huh?" Motohama looked at the Boosted Gear confused.
"What are you talking about?" Matsuda asked Ddraig.
[I am speaking of the fact that there are specific places where we can find those devils.] Ddraig clarified to them.
"Uh… Haven't you been paying attention? We just said that there are too many Sakura trees across Japan. So what do you mean when you say 'specific places'?" Issei asked Ddraig.
[I know that, but there are only so many places in this huge city that have Sakura trees and in which you can find shelter in without being discovered] Ddraig answered.
"Wait… Places where you can shelter in without being discovered?" Motohama asked.
"And with Sakura trees, too?" Issei added.
[I'm speaking of parks] Ddraig revealed to them. […or some wide area with greenery.]
"I see… that theory makes sense…" Matsuda stated with an understanding nod.
"Yeah, but Ddraig," Issei interjected. "You yourself have said that they could be hiding anywhere in Tokyo or not in Tokyo at all. Are we really going to have to search every park in Tokyo or even outside the city?"
[For some reason I doubt that, considering where the stray devils have attacked and where they have been spotted] Ddraig elaborated.
"""Huh?""" all three of them voiced dumbfounded and confused.
[Sigh… Do I really have to do all the thinking for you? Don't you want to become a detective someday, Partner?] Ddraig asked of Issei with a sigh.
"Yeah… but-" Issei said, but Ddraig cut him off.
[Then think. Where did we see them and where have they attacked so far] Ddraig asked Issei.
Issei stopped and thought for a moment. He mumbled to himself until he answered in this manner.
"Let me see… the first stray devil we met, we met it on the way home from shopping last Sunday… then we found out that one of them was on the roof near the scene during that time… then Ryuga discovered two of them… not sure where, but I guess still in Nerima… and finally this killing here…" Issei listed every stray devil incident so far.
Matsuda and Motohama tried to follow along. What was Ddraig trying to say?
Issei mumbled some more. "Why is he talking about 'where' this while time? What have they all have in common?" Why I'd say that…" it was then that Issei drifted off and became silent.
Matsuda and Motohama noticed this.
"Issei? Have you figured out something?" Motohama asked hopefully.
"Yeah… it's…" Issei started, speaking slowly. "…All the stray devils appearances and killings took place in Nerima… and that means… what Ddraig is trying to say is that…"
Issei turned his face to the Boosted Gear. "You're trying to tell me that those stray devils are hiding in some park in or near Nerima, aren't you?" Issei asked Ddraig.
[That is correct] Ddraig simply answered.
Motohama and Matsuda widened their eyes.
"So that is why you were talking like finding them was a piece of cake…" Motohama realized.
"But… where should we look first? Also, how many parks are there in Nerima?" Matsuda asked Issei and Ddraig.
"I'm not sure… but I guess Phoebe can help, right?" Issei winked at Matsuda.
At this Matsuda nodded with a devious smile. "Oh yeah… and find all the Sakura trees as well…"
Matsuda summoned the Chopping Board Type 2 and told Phoebe: "Go find all the parks in Nerima and its vicinity with Sakura trees."
{Understood, Captain. Searching now} Phoebe said, as the miniature chopper lifted to the skies for its mission.
As the Chopping Board Type 2 became nothing more than a speck in the sky, Motohama looked at the others.
"What do we do in the meantime?" he asked.
"First, we get out of here. It reeks of blood and death and as you know, my nose is sensitive…" Issei said, as he quickly made his way out.
Matsuda and Motohama followed him, leaving behind the crime scene to the cleaners, who were to wash off the blood and all that bore witness to the tragedy of an innocent life snuffed out.
17th September, Monday, 5:49 pm – Johoku Chuo Park, Nerima
After leaving the crime scene, they received several locations, as to where they could find parks nearby with Sakura trees. One of which was the park they were currently at – namely Johoku Chuo Park which straddled Itabashi and Nerima.
Finding the place wasn't easy. The first park they checked was Hikarigaoka Park, but with no success.
They searched high and low for the stray devils, but could not find them there, which is strange, considering it was such a big park and the largest one on Nerima Ward, too.
They had to admit it had a beautiful scenery with all the trees having autumn yellow leaves. However, they weren't there for sightseeing but to hunt down the stray devils and prevent them from killing anyone ever again.
Had someone from Kuoh seen them do what they were doing, they would have realized that this was out of the character for them. After all, the only thing they cared for was perving around, right?
But while they may have been perverts, they also knew what they had to do. And their mission to eliminate the stray devils was their duty – more so considering that they were the only ones with the power to stop them.
That was the only reason why they didn't give up and decided to search at Johoku Chuo Park after being told of it by Phoebe.
Admittedly, they did take their time getting there because of how tired they were, which was why they took a break to eat at another stall (they had burgers this time). Only then did they reach their desired destination.
Currently, they were standing in front of the main entrance gate and were looking deep into the park and its tree filled entrance path, along with the treeless baseball field.
The weather was cloudy, even a bit windy, but by no means rainy or cold. It just felt lukewarm, just like their feelings about fighting those wolf-like stray devils.
"Ddraig?" Issei simply spoke with his buddies standing right in front of the entrance, as though it was a boss chamber in a video game.
[Yes, Partner?] Ddraig asked after the Boosted Gear manifested on his arm.
Issei said nothing, instead he looked to the left at Matsuda, who looked at Issei with a serious face and nodded.
He looked to the right to where Motohama was and he had the same look. He nodded as well.
Turning all their faces back forward, Issei simply said this: "Let's go."
[Right, Partner] Ddraig answered.
And that was when they marched forward.
They remained vigilant. Even though, they did not find any stray devils in the last park, they tried their best to be prepared. Ddraig had warned them that stray devils could be hiding anywhere. It could be in the bushes, on the ground, behind building structures, on tree tops and even in rivers.
They could even teleport to the boys' position in a second had they wanted, so they had to he careful.
Moreover, if they could sense Issei's Boosted Gear that meant even more trouble should they be in this park. Issei would have huge target on his back and Issei did not like this at all.
Issei, Matsuda and Motohama stayed close together. They didn't want to be separated from each other. Everybody was watching each other's back as much as possible.
The view in the park was beautiful. Just like Hikarigaoka Park, Johoku Chuo had Sakura trees in bright yellow color. However, there were much fewer Ginko trees here, which is in contrast to Johoku Chuo, which was known for its plentiful Ginko trees. Also, this park also had a baseball field, which is where the boys approached. It just felt safer that way because of its apparent lack of ambush hideouts.
Issei had his Boosted Gear ready and was trying to smell out the stray devils. Motohama had his gloves out ready to launch glue cubes into his foes. Matsuda had his miniature helicopter flying around in the air, ready to alert them if it had detected their opponents.
So far so good… they had been looking around for their enemies for five minutes now.. and there was no sign of them… In fact, it seemed like nobody else was around here either…
Good. Now they did not have to risk innocent bystanders getting hurt or witnessing their powers.
All they had to do was find the stray devils…
"KYAAAHHHH!" a scream from the distance broke the silence.
The boys turned their attention to that and ran to the direction of the scream.
They came near a river which flowed through the park and saw the cause of the scream.
Within the trees and bushes, they saw a huge monstrous gray wolf with multiple snake-like tails cornering a brown-haired woman with a dirty yellow coat all wet and frightened. She must have fallen into the river or something.
As for the monster before them, they knew it was a stray devil just like the other one.
"Guys! It's them! They're here!" Matsuda cried out.
"What do we do!?" Issei asked panicked, unsure on what to do with the situation at hand.
"I've got it!" Motohama told them and threw his glue cube at the stray-devil wolf.
[Plop!]
The cube impacted and covered the body of the wolf with gluey mass, distracted the wolf from its meal. The stray devil growled and slowly turned its face to our heroes.
The woman used this opportunity to carefully back away and the run as fast as she could.
The stray devil didn't bother following after her. Instead, it focused its sight on the three boys in front of it.
The boys flinched at its gaze, but said nothing and prepared for the fight that lay ahead.
[Boost!] The Boosted Gear rang and doubled Issei's power.
The stray devil snarled at them and got ready to attack, even as it tried to ignore the black goo dripping down its fur.
Issei readied to fire a Dragon Shot, but then…
"Ehehe…" the stray devil chuckled all of the sudden. This caught the boys of guard. Did it just…?
"THEY'RE HERE! KAO! AKO! KILL THEM!" the stray devil called out.
"Kao…? Ako…?" Issei voiced out confused, but then he saw something appear from the trees.
"HOOOOWLLL!" "HOOOWWWL!"
Above them, two similar-looking stray devil wolves pounced on Issei and Matsuda.
"Oof!" "Argh!" Issei and Matsuda cried out, as they fell on their backs with a thud, the wolves on top of them. They tried to struggle, but the wolves were too heavy.
'Those stray devils… it's a trap! They knew we were coming…' Issei realized angrily.
"GUYS!" Motohama cried out, who threw a glue cube into the face of the one on Matsuda, it jerked its head to the side, but remained where it was otherwise.
The gray wolf snarled at Motohama. He wanted to rip him apart right then and there, but realized that Issei's Sacred Gear was quite powerful. Having him here with all of his mates and himself was dangerous. So he had a plan…
"AKO, KAO! Keep the three of these humans apart! By themselves they are weak, so carry them as far away as possible and then eat them!" the ringleader told his mates.
The two stray devils turned back to their humanoid forms, spread their wings and carried Issei and Matsuda off in different directions.
"ISSEI! MATSUDA!" Matsuda cried out in despair.
He was about to throw a glue cube after them, but a growl from the stray devil leader stopped him from doing that.
"Now, that everybody has their share…" the obviously male stray devil said menacingly with its teeth being bared. Motohama stepped back in fear, but wasn't confident of outrunning his opponent.
"…let's… KILL!" the abomination of a wolf attacked.
And that was chapter 26 of the Lone Vigilante Issei.
Sorry to leave it on a cliffhanger, but I don't want to take too long on one chapter.
Now, about this chapter…
Obviously, I am describing real places in Nerima in this story. Please note that I have never been to Japan and have never seen these places myself. So, I hope I don't get anything wrong about these places.
Also, when it comes to these Ranma-like characters and the school setting, I have some interesting ideas on what I can do with these characters. Ryuga is just one example. I have more in store for him, though, so stay tuned…
Also, I put in two Ranma-like characters into this chapter that haven't been named yet. Can you guess who they might be? One is fairly obvious and the other not so much.
As for the stray devils… Yes, they outwitted our heroes. But fear not! They won't die this easy. Why? Because I won't let them. Yet I won't interfere. You'll have to see next time how they get out in the next chapter soon…
How did you like this chapter.
Please read and review. I would like to hear from you.
And as always, I hope to see you next time.
Until then.
Hide Shinyama