Here I am with a new translated chapter!
Now we start with this second arc. There will be a big breakthrough from now on, so I hope you enjoy the few chapters left until Z-day arrives.
With nothing more to add, it's time to begin.
Enjoy!
The sound of crashing wood echoed over the park. Quickened footsteps came and went as their two spectators watched sitting on the green grass from the shade of a tree.
The final clash between the wooden katanas was louder, forcing Takashi to take several steps back to regain his stance. Meanwhile, Saeko watched him carefully, her analytical gaze indicating that she wasn't taking this as a simple game, though she quietly could.
Takashi wiped the sweat from his brow, being accompanied by a sigh to regulate his breathing. That small moment of rest allowed him to give a smile to his mistress, who responded in a rather particular way when she raised the katana over her face, indicating that she was ready to continue.
The two engaged in their little spar once again as Saya and Hirano looked on.
"It's amazing that he has improved so much. Even he can already withstand Saeko-san's level." Hirano commented, then turning his gaze back to the book he was reading.
"Saeko isn't even taking it seriously. But it's true, he's improved a lot." Saya nodded in agreement with the chubby boy. "And if you're so idle, you could use that time to read something useful." Saya commented with slight distaste as she saw how Hirano was deep in his rifle book. "I wish you paid that much attention to classes..." She commented under her breath, earning a confused look from Hirano, who hadn't heard her because he was so focused.
"Hagg!"
They were both distracted when they heard the shout, but they weren't surprised.
It was no surprise to them to see Takashi had his butt on the ground.
"Do you give up?" Saeko asked as she placed the katana over Takashi's head.
"One more try." Replied the young man as he stood up, receiving a slight nod from Saeko, who smiled sweetly at him as she noticed his great conviction.
Takashi answered her with his typical competitive smile. Saya and Hirano watched the silent interaction of the two without saying a word, until they resumed their sparring.
"They don't even need to talk to each other to understand anymore. How envious." Hirano thought aloud, causing Saya to frown slightly.
"You're right. When they first met they were so close, I thought they couldn't get any closer. But I was so wrong. I don't know how to describe it, but..."
"They're like soul mates." Hirano shut down Saya's idea, receiving a nod from her.
Hirano watched her without drawing her attention, noticing how the young woman looked a bit frustrated at the relationship Takashi and Saeko had built. He knew perfectly well what that look meant, so he only managed to focus back on the book so as not to disturb her.
"Love triangles are complicated." Thought the chubby boy as he rubbed his cheek.
"I just wonder when those two will realize..." Saya whispered, only to start coughing.
"Are you okay?" Hirano lowered his book a little as he noticed his friend's slight discomfort.
"It's just a little cough, I'm fine." She commented, downplaying it.
"Well, I hope you're right..." Hirano commented as he bowed his shoulders. "The autumn event is tomorrow and it would be a shame if you can't attend."
"Come on, it's just a little..." Saya couldn't close her sentence as she coughed again.
Hirano looked at her with slight concern.
"Hugg!"
Though that concern faded as he watched Takashi fall back to the ground.
_ BEGINNING OF ARC-CHAPTER 6: THE AUTUMN EVENT! _
80 days to the fall of Japan.
All the students were in the courtyard of the Academy, where they were divided by the different courses they belonged to, as well as their divisions. Everyone paid attention when the teachers came out from the main door, forming a small horizontal line in front of all the students.
"This year we are here to celebrate the 45th anniversary since the construction of our beloved institution. It just happens to coincide with the first day of autumn, so we decided to call this date 'the autumn event'." A red-haired teacher who was in front of the other teachers commented, she was reading a small paper to give her speech. "I will explain how this event works one last time for the first years, who never practiced it..." She commented, lifting her gaze from the paper. "We have assigned the third years as the seekers. They have hidden the fugitive papers in designated areas where they will have to search for them, find them, and hide until the search time is over. Initially each search party will be assigned their own fugitives. As you know, groups can consist of a maximum of three members. Seekers will be able to reassign themselves to another allied team if they manage to catch the designated fugitive groups." The teacher returned her gaze to the paper. "Like every game of hide-and-seek, there is one pointed rule: time. All fugitives will have a one-hour head start to reach their respective paper locations. Another very important rule is that they must not take off the camera we give them, let alone turn them off." That comment caused the vast majority to look at the small cameras that were mounted on their academy suit. "These will show us your tour and let us know if you followed the other rules correctly. Those rules are that you are not allowed to use any type of vehicles or hide in them, just as it is forbidden to enter homes, markets, other schools or academies, among other institutions." The woman finished recounting the rules, so it didn't take long for her to raise her gaze. "Do you have any questions?" The teacher folded her arms, watching as someone raised their hand.
"And how do we know that the third years complied with the rules and hid the papers?"
"Each group was escorted by a teacher, so we prevented cheating." Commented the teacher. "Seeing as there are no more questions, I'll go to the final part of the explanation." She stated, bringing her gaze to the paper one last time. "The prize is all the voluntary fees collected the previous month from each student who has chosen to participate. If the searchers manage to find all the runaways, they will divide the one and a half million yen among each winning student."
The mammoth figure made more than one gasp.
"I did research on this event, and it's the first time I've heard of such a high figure." One of the many students commented, getting Takashi and Hirano to look at each other, who clearly looked equally shocked at what they discovered.
"It's over ten thousand fucking dollars!" Hirano over-excited and let go a bad word, earning several nods from Takashi.
"If indeed any group of escapees manages to stay hidden until the deadline, then the prize will be divided among the winners." The teacher commented, raising her gaze once again. "The deadline has changed because of the recent dangerous groups seen at night, so it will now be until 10 p.m. and not 12." She concluded, looking at her watch. "The game will start once it is 10 am. There are still ten minutes to go, so I'd like to take this time for the seeker group to turn in the clues." With that said, the different third-year groups approached their juniors, handing them different notes.
"It's a pity that Saya got sick just today. She would be a great help." Takashi commented with some regret for his friend as he watched Saeko was handing out some maps along with two women.
"Don't mention it..." Hirano commented, a bit dejected as he noticed that they might be at a disadvantage.
"Hey, guys!" The two were pulled out of their small talk when Yuki appeared in front of them with a note.
At that precise instant knew they were screwed.
"Oh, thanks..." Takashi commented awkwardly as he took the paper, or so he tried to, as Yuki was gripping it too tightly.
"Now I'll be able to get revenge for what they did to Eiji-kun." The woman's sweet tone was overshadowed by how her face distorted as she looked at Takashi with a sickening smile that indicated she wanted to make him suffer.
She kept looking at him like that for a few seconds that were really long for Takashi, until the woman returned to her usual "adorable" expression.
Once Takashi had the clue in his hands he wiped his sweat as he watched the woman walk away, something Hirano noticed.
"Look at this." Takashi's tense expression faded as he noticed the area on the map that was marked.
"That's Saya's neighborhood." Hirano commented with some excitement at the thought of seeing what his friend's house looked like.
"Wait, how do you know that's where she lives?" Takashi asked with great confusion, noticing that rather important point.
"I know thanks to her mother." The chubby boy's answer only made Takashi look at him even more strangely.
"Do you have any idea how bad that sounds?" The protagonist's question made Hirano frown with uncertainty, as he didn't really understand.
"Back to the main topic, I'm sure that woman made our job impossible..." Hirano commented, watching as Yuki talked to the twins in the distance, and his face turned a little pale as he noticed how the three of them looked at him with a creepy smile.
"Don't worry, we'll find it." Takashi commented, his gaze was much more focused on Saeko, who seemed to be searching for him with her eyes.
Once their eyes met, the beautiful teenager gave him a cute smile. She moved her lips slowly so Takashi could understand what she was saying.
"Good luck."
Takashi just smiled as he understood the silent words, handing a slight nod to his best friend, who just widened the smile in response.
"Only 30 seconds left." The teacher's words made everyone tense up.
The moment they prepared to run off, both Takashi and Hirano felt all eyes focused on them.
That made them start sweating after noticing that they were the main target of the third-years. Especially from the men.
"Here's another disadvantage of being friends with Saeko." They both thought at the same time, feeling the pale glares try to pierce them from behind.
"10"
"9"
"8"
All the students were strengthening their postures as if they were about to start a marathon.
"7"
"6"
"5"
"Wait a minute! Saya's neighborhood is at the other end of town!" Hirano exclaimed in great fear.
"4"
"3"
"So what's up with that?!" Shouted Takashi.
"I'm not that fast!" Shouted the chubby guy with comical tears coming out of his eyes.
"2"
"1"
"Fuck it!" Shouted Takashi as he grabbed Hirano's shoulders without warning.
"RUN, SEARCH AND HIDE!"
The teacher shouted, and then used a whistle that resounded over the entire academy.
All the groups of students began to run as fast as possible under the watchful eyes of the teachers and the third year students. Though they were all quickly speechless as they saw how a rather unique group was beginning to overtake everyone by their sheer speed.
"UUUUUUUAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!"
"FOUR BLOCKS STRAIGHT AND THEN TURN LEFT! THAT TEN THOUSAND DOLLARS WILL BE OURS!"
Everyone watched completely dumbfounded as Takashi was the first one out of the gate at a great speed while he had Hirano riding on his back with the map in his hands.
Saeko was the first to become desaturated at such a scene, who was barely able to bear to laugh at what she witnessed.
_ LINE JUMPING _
Tokonosu City
An hour later...
"Feeling better, Saya-chan?" The young woman's mother commented, earning an exhausted look from her daughter.
The woman possessed long purple hair and eyes of the same color. She boasts a slender figure and features an aristocratic style dress consisting of a thin red dress and a white cloth wrapped around her arms. And sure enough, it was very easy to notice where Saya had inherited her large breasts from.
"It's just a simple cold, Yuriko." Saya commented disdainfully as she spat out the thermometer.
"Will you ever call me mother again? Since you've come into your day, you've become too cold." Yuriko commented with a mock tear.
"Mom! *Cof! Cof! Cof!*" A faint smile emerged on the mother's face as she noticed how she had achieved her goal.
"There, there..." Yuriko placed a hand on her daughter's head to reassure her. "You mustn't shout in that condition, my dear..."
"Hello? Yuriko-san?"
Mother and daughter's talk was interrupted when Yuriko's cell phone suddenly turned on.
"Is someone at the gate? I wasn't expecting visitors." The woman commented with slight intrigue as she turned on the cell phone.
Her face lit up as she saw who it was.
"Is something wrong?" Saya watched her mother with great intrigue as she saw her expression change.
"Your friends came to visit you!" The woman exclaimed excitedly as she showed the cell phone to her daughter, watching as Hirano and Takashi waited outside the large mansion.
"What are those two idiots doing here? Do they even know that breaking into someone's house is direct disqualification?" Saya commented with a frown.
"Come on, don't be like that, they probably came here to give you a quick greeting!" Yuriko exclaimed with a faint pout. "I'm going to greet them right now!" Her expression changed to a much more relaxed and formal one as she spoke into the microphone at the gate, receiving a nod from the two young men.
"Now will you tell me for what reason you know Saya's mother?" Takashi asked, breaking that slight silence that had settled between them.
"It's a long story. I can tell it to you when we've already earned the ten thousand dollars." Hirano commented, causing Takashi to raise an eyebrow.
"You know this is all extremely suspicious?"
"What?" Hirano looked at him blankly, though the look on Takashi's face was more than enough for him to begin to understand what he was thinking, so it didn't take him long to get defensive. "Wow, wow, wow! I know Saya's mother from the internship to America! I don't know what the hell you're imagining, but it's definitely nothing like that! Remember that her husband is the great Souichiro!"
"Yes, he was definitely a great special agent, just like her. But I can't say he's the best husband and father." Takashi's comment caught Hirano's attention.
"Now you're the one saying weird things." Hirano commented with narrowed eyes.
"I'm not saying anything weird. Saya told me that her father neglected her terribly and that in all his missions he was always sleeping with women." Takashi stated as he bowed his shoulders.
"Isn't that part of what you need to complete the mission? Gaining the trust of a secondary target to complete the primary objective is very important. Especially if there's information involved." Hirano commented, as if that was the most normal thing in the world.
"Do you think it's necessary to do it every time and even with women who have nothing to do with the mission?" On this occasion the fatty was silent, as there was no way to defend him.
"I was a very big fan of him..." Hirano commented very disappointed to find out what kind of man he is, or, rather, was one of his heroes.
"And what did you do in the United States? You never told me anything about that." Takashi commented, changing the subject of the conversation.
"It's not a very entertaining story. In fact, it was very monotonous and boring years for someone who is not fond of weapons and military training." Hirano commented without giving it much thought, as he didn't expect his friend to be interested in something like that.
"Military training?" Showing that he was confused, Takashi showed quite a bit of interest in his story.
"If you're so eager to listen, it all starts when..."
"Boys!" Hirano was interrupted as Yuriko went running to the gate as it was manually opened.
Once she was in front of them, the woman looked them over from head to toe, as if there was something really interesting about them.
"It's been a long time since I've seen you, Takashi. Try to stop by my home more often. You know you're welcome." The woman commented with a smile, earning a slight nod from Takashi.
"It's been a while, Miss Takagi." Hirano struck a military pose, causing Yuriko to look at him with a chuckle.
"When we met at that time I was already retired, and even after a year of not seeing each other you still show unnecessary respect." The woman commented as she rubbed her chin, as she was watching him very deeply. "You haven't changed a bit." She concluded with a smile.
"Neither have you, you're still as beautiful and radiant as ever!" Hirano found himself having to reinforce his stance, earning a faint blush from the woman as she tried to cover her laughter.
"Really, you haven't changed a bit..." Yuriko moved closer until she crouched down in front of him just inches from his face, making the chubby boy a little nervous. "I hope you stay the same when you become a man and join the army." She concluded as she grabbed his shoulder with a sweet smile.
"How is Saya doing?" Takashi asked, gaining the attention of the two present.
"She's a little sick and can't go out. That's why I came all the way here with this." Yuriko showed her cell phone, revealing that Saya was on the other side of the screen thanks to a video call.
"Did you guys get assigned this place? Did you find the note yet?" The teenager commented with her ever frown.
"It's good to see you too, Saya." Takashi commented as he raised his hand as a gesture of greeting. "And regarding your question, we've barely arrived. We already searched many places, and although your neighborhood practically only consists of your large mansion, we found nothing on the outside."
"And if that wasn't enough, Yuki was the one we were assigned to." Hirano shut down the idea, noticing himself a bit dejected at that piece of information.
"That idiot? Her brain is no bigger than the ninth leg of a spider." Saya commented dismissively.
"But a spider only has eight legs..." Takashi commented without understanding the point.
"That's the point." Saya commented, causing both men to rub their hair as they didn't understand their friend's obvious innuendo. "Listen..." Saya placed a hand to her chin as she frowned even more. "If you're a brainless idiot who wants to make two people suffer who treats them like trash, where would you hide that paper?"
"Oh, I guess that young lady is spoiled if she thinks of you two as trash." Saya's mother commented with a frown after hearing the whole conversation.
"Wait! Say that again!" Takashi looked at her with widened eyes.
"Spoiled brat?"
"No, the other thing!"
"Trash?"
"Exactly, the dumpster!" Takashi exclaimed as he pointed at the trash can, causing Hirano to bump his fist with his hand at the revelation.
"How did I not think of that before?!" The chubby boy exclaimed as he walked over to the container, not even having to rummage around to pull out a piece of paper with stickers and glitter.
Takashi reached over to read what the note said, and they both read at the same time:
"I don't even know why I'm writing this, due to the fat idiot and the skinny useless guy not being able to put two and two together. But in the very rare extreme case that you have found it, congratulations! Now wait until I get there to catch you and make fun of you!"
Hirano and Takashi looked at each other in silence after finishing reading the note.
"Now where do they plan to hide? She and her group are already on route." Saya commented, knowing that there was nowhere nearby suitable as a place to hide.
At that moment, Takashi lowered his gaze to a particular spot. Hirano followed his gaze, and it didn't take more than a second to know what he was thinking.
"I had thought about it on our way here..." Takashi commented as he walked to the middle of the street, being followed by Hirano and a curious Yuriko.
"Are we thinking the same thing?" Hirano asked as he crouched down in front of the manhole cover.
"Definitely." Takashi replied as he crouched down in front of it.
"You've got to be kidding me..." Saya held her nose involuntarily as she witnessed her friends' obvious plan.
"Technically this doesn't count as an institution, store, or whatever. So we're not breaking the rules, right?" Takashi commented as he grabbed the lid and pulled it with Hirano's help.
"I wish I had come up with this same idea back in my student days." Yuriko commented with widened eyes.
"Are you crazy?" Saya ranting with her eyes rolling.
"See you when we win the prize, Saya." Takashi commented with a half smile as he started down the stairs along with Hirano.
At that moment, Saya patted her face as a sickening chill adorned her body. Then, only one thought dominated her mind:
"Good thing I got sick today..."
_LINE JUMP_
Sewers
A few minutes later...
Having climbed down and appreciated Yuriko's help when she closed the lid, Takashi and Hirano were walking around the smelly place aimlessly with their cell phone flashlights.
"I highly doubt they'll find us around here. Especially since I don't think anyone would think of or dare to come down here." Hirano remarked, observing the dark place, his ears were replete from that constant water being transported at his side.
"I think I'm getting a little used to the smell now." Takashi commented. "Did you bring enough supplies? We won't be going out for quite a while." He concluded, looking at the rather full backpack on Hirano's back.
"I'd say yes, but let's not overdo it." Replied the chubby boy as he continued the walk alongside his friend.
A few seconds of soothing silence settled on both of them, until finally Takashi resumed the conversation:
"Will you still tell me your story in America?"
"I thought you had already forgotten about it." Hirano commented with a nervous smile, which soon turned into a somewhat nostalgic look. "I went there when I was 12 years old. I wasn't alone, a large group was assigned as new cadets just like me, we were all volunteers. They were men and women who were around about 16 to 21 years old."
"That is to say you were the youngest by far." Takashi commented, earning a smile from Hirano.
"That's what happens when you're obsessed with guns from a young age. I wanted to enlist for training when I was only ten, but I was told to wait two more years at least."
"And where did the stint take place?"
"It was in a forest. It was several cabins, I remember it was bone-chilling cold."
"How did they do in winter? I understand that snow is a very regular thing there."
"We would huddle with my general in front of the fireplace while she told me stories and we laughed."
"Just the two of you? What happened to the others?"
"They left camp in the first month when the supplies came in. Remember, it was a choice thing, so no one was forced to stay."
"You describe it to me like it was Hell on earth."
"It was. The weather was extremely hostile, the loneliness of the forest was also a powerful thing and the high demands and grumpiness my master had in the first couple of months made the stay a complete nightmare."
"I guess your dream is much stronger than any kind of nightmare."
"You're right. That's what helped me stay strong. Besides, I was already aware of this. I knew that when you're trained to be a military man you have to get used to being looked down on and receiving very severe punishment for every stupid thing you do. After all, they are preparing you for war. What you have to strengthen the most is your mentality. But it's not easy, and that's why everyone ended up leaving the camp."
"It definitely sounds like a real nightmare."
"Luckily mentality is the first thing you gain in that place. From that point on my master started being a lot nicer to me, though that didn't take away from the fact that the trainings were the very representation of Hell on earth, just like you said."
Hirano chuckled at the memories, something Takashi joined him in. That proposed a small break in the great pleasant talk the two had built up.
"What about your master?" Takashi asked, resuming the conversation.
"Once I finished my camp at 16, I never heard from her again. What I can tell you is that she was an amazing woman. I had never met anyone before who had such superb marksmanship as I did, until I met her. Besides, she was a 24-year-old beauty when I barely knew her." Hirano closed his thoughts with a somewhat goofy smile on his face.
"Huh? I guess that was the other reason why you stayed." Takashi decided to tease his friend a bit, making Hirano a bit uncomfortable.
"I'd be lying to you if I said no. Besides, she was really good to me during those four years. And I guess we had no choice but to get along, since it was just the two of us and Yuriko, who brought supplies every so often and only stayed for a few days."
"That's where you know Saya's mother from." Takashi commented, receiving a slight nod from Hirano.
"In general, that's the story. To delve into more details might be a bit boring and too long." Hirano concluded the story, earning a nod from Takashi.
The two were walking in silence for several seconds, until Takashi decided to ask one last question:
"And, um... what was your master's name?"
"Her name was Rika, Rika Minami." Hirano commented with a smile as he remembered his master.
"I see..." Takashi commented, keeping a somewhat awkward silence.
They were like that for several seconds, until...
"And, well...You know..."
"Know what?"
"You were alone for four years. I don't think I've only been your master in all that time."
"What?! Takashi, I was 12 years old!"
"I know, but you left when you were 16, I just thought that..."
"Hell no!"
"It's okay, don't get so nervous either. It was just a question..."
_LINE JUMP_
Sewers
A few hours later...
"I'm tired of walking already." Takashi commented with an expression of complete boredom on his face.
"It won't be long before the time is up." Hirano commented as he looked at his cell phone, which read 18 o'clock. "By the way, how much battery does your cell phone have?"
"It's about to die." Commented the protagonist.
"Okay, that could be a problem..." Hirano commented with slight nervousness knowing that they were going to be completely in the dark in a very short time.
"Do you want to eat something? Let's take the opportunity to turn off the cell phones and save some battery. Besides, I've been starving for a while now." Takashi commented as he sat down on the damp ground.
"That's a good idea." Hirano sat down next to his friend as he opened his backpack, looking for different snacks and drinks.
"Bon appetit!" They both clinked juice boxes together before turning off their cell phones.
But just as they did, it didn't take long for both of them to find out something really strange.
"What the hell is that?" Takashi pointed to the spot in the distance.
"Is that light? Why is there light in the sewers?" Hirano asked with some fear.
"Would someone have had the same idea as us?" Takashi asked, trying to find the logical side of it.
"It's highly unlikely." Hirano stood up, wolfing down another potato chip. "Shall we check it out?"
Takashi bowed his shoulders, indicating that the idea didn't bother him. But just as he was about to turn on his flashlight, Hirano stopped him with his hand. The protagonist looked at him, watching as he slowly shook his head.
That was more than enough to know what he was up to, so they both gathered their things and started walking towards the light.
The walk was much longer than they had thought. The constant noise of falling drops and other strange sounds made Hirano start to cringe because of the strange phenomenon that was becoming more and more present.
It was something normal.
I mean, who wouldn't be afraid of walking in completely dark sewers while following a light with no apparent explanation?
Even Takashi began to feel uncomfortable, so their walk turned into a sort of covert mission as the light got brighter and brighter, so it wasn't long before they were squatting down.
They both stopped just around a corner, and immediately knew it wasn't something supernatural. What did really confuse them both was something else.
"I don't think this is the structure of a sewer." Takashi whispered at such a drastic change in direction, coupled with the fact that the stone walls were now made of steel and other much denser components.
They both peeked their faces out as covertly as possible, and their eyes widened beyond belief at what they saw.
They were boxes.
Dozens and dozens of sealed wooden boxes with unknown contents. And what was weirder, there was no one guarding them.
"Hey, Takashi! Takashi!" Hirano whispered nervously as he watched Takashi stand up and approach the boxes.
"What's all this?" the young man wondered as he rested a hand on the surface of one of the boxes.
"It's not just that." Hirano moved to his side, then pointed to a particular spot. "Look."
Takashi was completely silent as he saw different tables and stretchers, there were also many doors leading to unknown places.
"This is..." Takashi commented.
"A laboratory. A military lab." Hirano shut down his friend's idea, looking at the huge logo of the Japanese military above the ceiling.
"And they definitely don't have to be here."
Both Hirano's and Takashi's skin bristled after hearing a voice behind their backs.
_ END OF CHAPTER! _
I hope you enjoyed it!
Unlike the other chapters, this one was a bit deeper and heavier. First narrating Hirano's story, and now with this unexpected ending.
I'll try to move fast with the updates so this cliffhanger won't last too long.
One last thing: remember to follow me on Patre-on to be aware of all the new chapters or important announcements I make about my stories, among other things. There will be no other place where you'll be kept more informed. You can also become a member if you wish, and it would not only be a monetary help, since you can also order a double chapter of the stories that are currently in development for the price of a dollar. All you have to do is look for me as "Jyanzein".
Now, I'll say goodbye.
Thank you very much for reading!