"Huh? You didn't bring Michelle with you?"
A voice groaned within a large room colored by the setting sun.
The room contained long tables lined with chairs. It was a dining hall. The windows gave a view of the falling sun and of the city right outside of the building.
Someone kicked the table. It was nearing dinner time and there were few people here, so the sound of struck wood reverberated loudly across the room.
Not caring that the few people there were focused on him, a boy with red hair slammed his hand on the table..
"Screw this then, I'm leaving. Neither Yasuko-ane nor Michelle are here."
"Not my fault that she wanted to go with Minoru today, Sekai. Besides, the two of us had to do a favor for Tamakoma today, so we didn't have a chance to get her."
"Calm down," added Kuruma.
"Hah! This is so damn irritating. I wouldn't have gotten up if I'd known this was the case..."
"And that is why Denji is telling you to calm down, Sekai."
"Um, that was me."
Kuruma smiled and refused to complain as a different redhead sat in the seat over while carrying some naan and cheese. He wore a casual outfit that seemed to make for easy movements and he turned toward Kuruma.
"Oh, right. Kuruma-dono said it, not 'Denji'. My apologizes."
"It isn't a big deal."
"Ha ha ha. Tatsuya is so cute."
"You never change, do you, you idiot. And Ketsueki, why are you sitting around eating?"
"This is a dining hall."
"Keh," spat out Sekai, but he did relax his body.
"This place closes relatively soon and will be starting to clean, so do not go making a mess of things," Ketsueki said to him.
"Ketsueki, you should be more worried about other things."
"What am I supposed to do?" Ketsueki rubbed on a single bite's worth of cheese and looked Sekai in the eye. "I am terrible when it comes to rumors and am hardly ever here to confirm or deny any rumors floating around. What is more, Mikumo-kun had already assured everyone of what was happening and how it will be taken care of."
Ketsueki followed up on his response with something different.
"I had only asked a favor of you and Denji because I thought that it would be good to have some insurance in case anything went wrong. I will never ask how you two manage to get things done, but I trust in your abilities to do such things." He cut off a piece of the cheese with a knife. "But, well, I suppose that it was also nice to confirm that I can still speak with the two of you this freely."
"—"
"See here." He rested his elbow on the table and faced his two former teammates directly. "There is the unspoken agreement that we refrain from pointlessly bringing up the fact that we were once on a squad together. That had been brought up yesterday during Minoru and Denji's commentary. But only you three had been mentioned for that. I personally have no qualms about being referred to as your former teammate, but you both seem to be against it. So I try not to make it obvious."
"That's right. It would be too much of an irritation of it got out that our squad used to be a things. But at this point, that's spreading around as much as this Tamakoma rumor, and has more credit to it."
But...
"While you hate that this is the case, it it simply how things have turned out. Yasuko-san has no problems with it, but she is in a similar situation as me because of the two of you. I am a patient and understanding man, but the two of you tend to drive me up a wall whenever you refuse to tell us much of anything. Do you understand?"
.
Ketsueki thought their squad's disbandment and lack of unity when they were together were truly unfortunate.
...But I suppose we all do have different backgrounds.
Those like him had lived an average life, but Sekai and Denji had gone through thing that they refuse to speak about with most anybody else.
Meeting them had been a painful and awkward experience, so he had decided to ease everyone into it, but even if he had tried to seem welcoming, a relatively normal person like him needed to build his resolve and keep the proper distance when working with people who had been through more than him.
During that time, Yasuko had maintained a relaxed atmosphere around them without ruining her image as a mature woman and everyone else had been looking out for each other in the most basic of ways.
...None of them are bad people, really, but the difference between all of us was painfully clear by the end of it.
Sometimes they were short-tempered, but they were still reasonable enough when given enough time and push. He just wished they would use their types of minds in a more positive way, but...
"You two really are terrible people."
"What the hell do you mean by that?"
"Minoru has relaxed much more over time, but you two... You both seem to only get worse as time goes on and refuse to back down from your positions. The rest of us would like to know more about the both of you, but you tend to make excuses and say things that the rest of us know next to nothing about. ...There was someone else like that, but he seems to have settled things with himself and those around him. In that sense, he has grown much more than either one of you two, do you see?"
"Haaaah! That 'do you see' at the end really irritates me..."
He did not care. And if he was irritated by that, that was all the more reason to say it.
"You proved it to us with your failed attempt to win yesterday. Denji's words prove as much as well, but your display was even ore painful to watch than it was to hear him speak. The both of you ende dup losing to yourselves an giving away what we had no clue of."
"What good is bringing that up if I'm already trying to drink that memory away?"
"My point is proven further by that. Stop being so idiotic with your choices and simply come out to the open. Now that they have seen you in such a state, I highly doubt anyone will truly view you as how you wished to be viewed before. And Denji, your words impact other so much that no one will be ignoring what you have said."
Saying that reminded Ketsueki of something.
...Oh, so that is it.
That was what Yuki had been doing. He had done it when he refused to be cooperative two days ago and he had done it when he decided to take on the responsibility of everyone else. He had been prepared to give his all to a pointless endeavor that others would stop him from doing.
...So that is it...
Ketsueki realized that Sekai had a very selfish-like mentality.
He would be so selfless that it turned into a selfish want for others, but...
"Hmm..."
He groaned to himself while thinking Sekai might be more honest with himself if Yasuko or Michelle was here.
He could have trouble when it came to handling his emotions.
So he made sure to say it.
"Besides, I see no problem with others realizing the kind of danger you pose on the battlefield, so try not to do much against yourself and you may end up finding yourself being very free without even noticing it happening. ...But Denji, you are similar, so try not to hold yourself back too much. And if you find it all becoming a hassle, come to one of us. ...Just do not think you must be on your own here."
But...
"That is only according to what I know. Interpretations can deal with that. You will not like it from someone like me, Sekai and Denji, but will you hold back when you face others?"
"...No."
"Then there is your answer. You are both the same there."
And...
"Sekai and Denji, you do not have time to be worrying about others, do you?"
.
A short silence followed that question.
But Sekai spoke up as if to drive it out as an irritation.
"Hah. What do you mean?"
Do not act like you do not know, thought Ketsueki with a nasal breath. Then he opened his phone he had pulled out. It displayed things from the past.
"Well, if you insist. Sekai, can you look at this objectively?"
The battle of previous matches were shown, but they had to focus on the more immediate problem.
...I have a short-term viewpoint, as well.
Ketsueki manipulated the display with that in mind.
"This is the record of your squad's standing."
The record began to slowly shift into the current rankings. That showed where his squad currently was.
"This is how you have been doing as a squad. Before lowering down in rank, you would have had no issue with staying at the top with Masataka-dono and Kageura-kun. Sekai, you are deliberately stopping yourself from doing better, are you not?"
"That's right," confirmed Denji. "It pisses me off, and it was painful to watch, but this guy was holding back so much that he took hits that he shouldn't have. The reason they had gotten demoted wasn't because of him and he's still trying to act like it was. It sucks, but..."
But...
"Sekai, you can only say that when it matters and you've done something about it in the first place. It isn't like anyone won't be happy even if you end up back in A-Rank."
"I know that. Shut up."
"Yeah, yeah. As long as you get it."
Ketsueki nodded and looked straight at Sekai, ignoring how Denji seemed to be helpful right now instead of antagonizing.
"Now, about you."
Listen.
"Since you have decided to not do anything for yourself, Sekai, you can at least do something for your teammates. The B-Rank Wars are ending sooner than usual, so there is not too much left for your time on those battlefields."
"Hah. That's right."
Sekai reached out and manipulated his phone.
It displayed the fights for the next round, meaning his squad's next match.
"All that's left is getting through this next match and seeing where everyone else ends up. Hah. The last match ended relatively quickly because I got involved, so I'm hoping these people understand to leave me alone. I might even let them take me out right away. The only thing would be that I need to make sure Yasuko-ane and/or Michelle aren't there to watch me so I don't have any reason to be active again. It was an irritation doing so much then feeling like crap right after. I'd rather feel like crap throughout it all." He turned a sharp gaze Ketsueki's way from his spot. "So you better not go doing anything. Same goes for you, Denji. I don't want either one of you assholes doing anything like that or I'll kick your ass myself. ...Hah. So what's any of that matter? Hmm?"
"What kind of idiot tries to intimidate someone who already knows them?"
"That was kind of much," agreed Kuruma.
"Shut up. It's a bad habit."
"Everyone enjoys that you at least have an actual explanation, Sekai."
Sekai walked angrily around the table to reach Denji, but Denji crouched down and crab-walked around the table to keep his distance.
After a full rotation, Sekai came to a stop.
"What are you trying to say with all this, Ketsueki?"
"I kind of understand why you are worried about people knowing what you can do."
That being...
"You wish to remain in a place where others can be happy with you in order to not be left behind. And since you have already done so much, you are afraid of what might happen if they see that you are much more capable than what you seem. ...You will be placed higher than most."
.
You are so off the mark, thought Denji.
No, you have a small clue, but that's all, he added.
When Sekai had become unneeded long ago, he had been fairly active, but it had been after looking at everyone and being a part of their squad that he had decided to show nothing while doing everything to make sure everyone was happy.
But that "everyone" did not include him. The only one who was not allowed to be happy.
None of them had ever thought about what came next. They had just assumed the important people above them would support and guide them.
But history marched ever onward. A lot of it could be resolved through interpretations, but things generally worked once people put in the work for it. That was especially true of people who had the skills to back up anything they had done and everything others would do.
Sekai understood that intellectually and had lived accordingly, but...
...Our role ends once everyone is fine without us.
Thanks to what happened two days ago, they saw that their jobs could end early. The third person they thought would never change and fade away had resolved himself and found something new to hold on to.
At the time, Denji had realized he would never speak so freely with that boy again.
"..."
Sekai had likely learned there that he was with some people he would never speak freely with again and that he would soon be someone who would never change.
...And it's happening for him pretty soon since even the former #3 managed to find happiness while I can never hate anything.
So...
"Sekai, your last battle will be against me. Since we're telling you to stop being lazy about things, I should also tell you to do your best against me."
"Hah. Yeah, you really do love getting hate."
"That's right," replied Denji. "We knew up front what we would lose, but I still want to avoid losing it if I can."
"You sound too hopeful," said Sekai as he sat down.
Similarly, everyone else in the dining hall breathed a sigh of relief. That was partially due to their fear of Sekai, but...
...They must also be worried for something they don't know about.
Meanwhile, Sekai crossed his arms behind his head and spoke.
"All my focus on things I've lost had already been used on the past. Hah. I might lose some other things, but none of them can mean more than that, so they don't matter. But..."
But...
"Hah. If it looks like we're gonna lose something, I end up pushing myself to make sure that everyone else remains happy by the end of it all. ...That's all."
"...Sekai."
"I said that's all, asshole. ...What's that look for, Denji?"
"Well, Sekai, that's just not fair at all."
A bitter laugh escaped Denji and something else suddenly came to mind.
"But...what about everyone else?"
"Most people can be hopeless. They can be too careless and lack any tension at all. ...Hah. We're talking about how we know people that can do comedy routines on the battlefield or feel free to speak during a fight."
"But we've both lost to those kinds of people before."
"We backed down," corrected Sekai.
...Come to think of it, that's right.
With a mental "most likely", he decided everyone must be enjoying themselves no matter the situation.
The two of them were enjoying themselves too, but everyone else lacked something they had.
...A focus on self-destruction and an atmosphere steeped in impatience and anger.
.
When you find yourself unneeded by the world itself and everyone around you can't see that, you definitely feel impatience and anger, thought Denji. He found himself already losing to Sekai in that sense.
But Yūko was there for times like those. She was one of those people who seemed to pass from incident to incident alongside everyone else. She had found both happiness and hatred in her time living with others, but...
...She still manages to stay by my side while also being with everyone else and not giving an inch.
That had to be too much on her.
That meant she was just like everyone else. Unlike the idiot from two days ago, he would not hold back from telling her as much and giving her all of the hate that he was not allowed to have. This had likely become a habit for them, and more importantly...
"There isn't anyone for you to watch over. At least, not someone who I know of."
The idiot from two days ago had Kō and he had Yūko, but neither one of them knew much of who Sekai had at his side. There were ideas passed around by them, but neither one knew.
To put it another way, there was no one who could validate Sekai's existence or what he was doing.
No one was around to tell him their thoughts on certain matters or correct him when he decided on something.
They would have originally been looking into it or forcing someone on him, but that gradually shifted toward focusing on themselves, which led to the current situation and resolutions.
Since they had no future, Denji and Sekai had to use everything they could and leave everything else behind at some point.
To put it another way...
Gambler: "Since there isn't much for us to do anymore we need to make use of our best efforts, so don't think you can be so carefree about everything. Make sure you burn through everything and never take a break."
That would be how they go out.
It did not mean they were not serious, It just meant the two of them did not have to focus on others too much. And...
Gambler: "Since we need to put in our all, we need to be fine with smiling, losing, and putting on an act of strength when loss is inevitable."
...What a twisted lifestyle.
But that was the pride of someone without a future. Even if they lost everything when they lost, they could be satisfied because they had taken it seriously and they could say they hadn't really lost because they weren't needed in the first place.
And when that happened, they could figure out how to fix everything while doing what they could for everyone around them.
...Is this...?
Denji heard of a similar ideology before. Ketsueki would have as well.
It was...
"—"
.
"Hah. What is it, Denji?"
Sekai spoke to his colleague who had suddenly fallen silent and looked down.
After a pause, Denji responded.
"Damn, you're hot."
He turned Ketsueki's phone toward himself.
"Hey." He placed a hand on his cheek and relaxed on the table. "I've heard this had been asked before, so I'll ask you the same thing now. ...What do you think it means to live without regret?"
"Hah. That's a question for someone who can properly answer."
Where is he going with this? We both have too many regrets that the question is meaningless for us, wondered Sekai.
"Everyone else enjoys every single day and lives their lives to the fullest."
Denji would normally have said "Yeah, they do" in response.
But he did not. He instead turned the phone toward Sekai.
"...Let's see."
He got up from his seat and sat at the foot of the table next to Sekai. Ketsueki and Kuruma gave the two of them a look, but said nothing.
Then he spoke quietly.
"I know exactly where Michelle is going tonight, and with who. ...I want to ask our final member at some point, too."
They could see a change on the screen.
And Denji looked like he was trying to figure out what exactly he wanted to show.
"We have resolve, but we might lack acceptance."
The sun had sunken over the horizon and the lights within the city came to life.
Noise could still be heard as shops were filled with people and others were walking around, enjoying the nightlife of Mikado City. It was a sweet din that covered the area in a peaceful way.
Within this peaceful setting was a restaurant. Said restaurant had a group of six within it, making their way towards their table. Two of which were holding hands while three of them remained in the front, speaking as they walked.
"Uwaaaah~ It sucks that Shiro couldn't come with us~! I really wanted to feed him!"
"He gets embarrassed when you do that in public, Inukai-senpai. At least keep that in a private space."
"But his expressions are always great whenever he gets embarrassed!"
"That may be true, but he tends to tell us how you also start cooing when it happens."
"Oh? Is Tsuji-chan trying to steal Shiro from me?"
Tsuji began to open his mouth to protest, but he stopped when Hiyami began to speak up.
"He is busy trying to get to know Taiyōko-kun," she said. Turning her head, she finished while muttering, "Although, I wish Lukas could have come along as well... Too bad he had to focus on his deadline."
Inukai grinned at hearing the quiet words, but held back from saying anything about them. There was something that seemed more entertaining that came before them.
"So you're getting along with Mukkun? Do his siblings know about that?"
"...I don't see how that's something that matter. And did you really need to tell him that, Hiyami-san?"
"I felt it was necessary."
Whether it was true or not, Inukai still took the chance where he saw it.
He pulled out his phone and began typing. It quickly got Tsuji and Hiyami's attention, but it was too late.
Inu: "Hey, hey, Yuki~"
White Fox: "What do you want?"
Inu: "So mean! But I thought I'd tell you that Tsuji-chan's been real nice to your brother lately, so make sure to give him some points for it, okay?"
White Fox: "Huh? Since when have those two even known each other? ...No, wait, I think I heard about it before. Yeah. Mukuro was complaining about Tsuji before. Doesn't that mean I should deal with Tsuji instead of giving him points?"
Inu: "Doesn't Mukkun like to complain about anyone who aren't his siblings?"
White Fox: "That's true. Try and get some info out of Tsuji so I can decide on if I want to hit him or give him some points."
Inu: "What about me?"
White Fox: "Just be happy that I don't get on your for being with Shiro still."
That's unfair, but it's not like I can change his mind, Inukai thought mournfully.
It was good for him to know that Yuki was able to speak about his brother freely now, so that counted as a win. Bringing up Mukuro would not be a problem anymore and asking about him would only get him the usual stink eye or cautious tone.
The same went for Hoshi as well, but that was to be expected at this point.
"(Who is 'Mukuro'? And what about stars?)"
Inukai paused for a moment at the voice.
He had forgotten that there was someone with them who was able to read minds.
And it was the small girl holding Minoru's hand who was already moving to sit down.
"Ah, well-"
As he was about to answer the question, new voices began moving closer.
"Don't go ordering anything expensive on me!"
"Noted. ...Oh?"
"Huh?"
Then he saw them.
"What a coincidence."
Members from the Tamakoma Branch.
.
The first ones to react to the sudden meeting had been Konami, Usami, and...
"Oh! It's Tsuji-chan!"
"Tsuji-kun's here!"
"Oh, um... Hi. Nice to...see you all..."
"Tsuji-kun!"
"Come here, Tsuji-chan!"
"No messing with our Tsuji-kun," said Hiyami, standing between the two girls and Tsuji.
Minoru watched with a smile. He was directing Michelle to sit between him and Masataka at the other end of the table.
Masataka was helping her take off her coat while putting own coat away for them to eat.
"Tsuji-senpai isn't really good with women?"
"He really doesn't seem the type, does he?"
"No..."
Sumiharu had been saying as much, but he held his phone up to take a picture of the situation. Minoru wanted to worry about what he would do with it, but it was likely that he would only be sending it to Oshiro and Hisoka.
Once he was done with that, he put his phone way and pointed to himself.
"I'm here too, Konami-chan."
"Urg... You don't have the same innocent feeling. Besides, don't you have Hogo-chan already?"
"Shiro's the only one for me, but he lets me have my fun."
"Don't you see Tsuji-kun during school already?"
"Yeah, but he always has his guard up there. Plus, he usually has Kobayashi-chan and Hogo-kun with him to hide behind."
The amount of times they had seen Tsuji hide behind his two friends outnumbered the times he had properly spoken with a girl. But there were still those times where he had only heard of incidents concerning the issue with girls.
Even with this being an issue in the first place, both Hisoka and Oshiro had been doing their best at helping Tsuji better deal with girls. It had varying results with the biggest being a third girl that he was able to talk speak with.
Feeling a tug at his hand, he looked down to see Michelle smiling at him.
"(You are really happy, aren't you?)"
"(Yeah, I am. Now let's figure out what you want to eat.)"
They weren't the only ones doing so as he could hear Usami asking Mikumo and Amatori what they wanted while Sumiharu had been trying to get Konami to order something expensive.
It was a nice atmosphere between the two tables.
.
It had not taken long for everyone to place their orders and wait for them to arrive.
In the meantime, to fill in the space, Usami spoke up, looking over at Minoru.
"Oh yeah, I caught the commentary from the match yesterday with you in it, Minoru-kun! Is it really true that you had been on a team with Bakuto-san and Hikigane-san?"
"Hey, don't just ask that here!"
"Then do you know the answer to that?"
"Of course I do! But still! Even I can tell that it isn't something to just ask outright!"
Inukai looked over to see Minoru's reaction to the new conversation.
It was what he expected.
Minoru's wore a smile as he looked down.
"..."
But there were two others who wore matching expressions at the other table.
Both Mikumo and Amatori looked towards Minoru with knowing, but curious expressions.
"You two know, don't you?" he asked, looking at the both of them.
Mikumo responded by nodding for the both of them.
"Kagerei-san had been telling us a story and let it slip that they had been on the same squad."
"Eh!? Ketsu-san was with them!?"
"Ah... Maybe I should have been more careful with that."
He had already known that much at this point, but having the answer without bringing in their other member seemed off.
So everything was out in the open now.
"Yes, we were on the same squad. Although, it's not like we really worked as a single unit. We were pretty bad as a squad, in all honesty."
"What do you mean?"
"Our squad consisted of myself, Ketsueki, Sekai, and Denji as Combatants. Do you really think the four of us would be able to work well together and function as a squad?"
"I guess that makes sense... But wait, who was your Operator?"
"That would be this little one's mother," Minoru said, patting Michelles head lightly. The girl smiled, able to keep up with the conversation enough to know what was going on.
Ninomiya was the next to speak up, surprising Inukai and the rest of them. He spoke lightly, but with certainty.
"Michelle's mother - Yasuko-san - isn't someone to mess with."
"Oh? That's coming from Ninomiya-san. She must really be something."
"She was able to tame a squad that had both Hikigane and Bakuto in it. Also, as you know, Kagerei has that bad habit of just leaving for random trips. There really is no other way to describe her after knowing that."
It was true that she had been someone Inukai instantly knew not to mess with.
Unlike the other women he knew not to mess with, she was different. While ones like Kushikage and Mogami were dangerous due to what they would do without reservation, Yasuko had been someone who had managed to do things without viewing it as something needing to be done. It had always been something that came naturally to her and without any sort of malice.
After all, why would she show malice to the boys she had been watching over during that time?
Knowing everything he did, Inukai could agree that she was a kind women who should not be messed with. She has a lot of backing from some pretty scary people. But she also had a nice feeling to her that made it hard to do things against her.
"There's someone else you're forgetting, Ninomiya-san."
"I wasn't forgetting her. I figure that it goes without speaking that Michelle is also able to keep them in line."
Inukai grinned and gave a thumbs up towards the smiling girl. She returned it in full.
He could hear cooing sounds from Konami and Usami, letting him know that they had seen her response.
.
Once the food finally came, everyone began their dinner in earnest. Meat was placed on the table and rice was placed in bowls to eat.
"Here, salted tongue."
"This piece is mine, got it? I'm making it well-done."
"Isn't well-done what you say for steak?"
Tsuji looked over from his food at hearing the conversation going on next to his squad's table.
He had trouble speaking with women for so long, meanwhile...
"Impressive, Mikumo-kun. Dinning and speaking with three girls, huh?"
"Oh, you're right," Mikumo answered while turning to face him.
"Being around girls doesn't bother you, does it?"
"It's because he has a beautiful mom," Konami said to Inukai.
"I don't think my mother is a part of that. But now that you mention it, I've never met a woman who had as much pressure as her."
From across the table he could hear Minoru say something under his breath that sounded something like "There are a lot of powerful women around" before being patted by Michelle. It was nice to see that, but Tsuji could only agree with the statement.
There were a lot of intense or powerful women in Mikado City at the moment and he couldn't even handle the normal ones.
...I hope I don't come in contact with them.
But that was bound to happen regardless of his wants. The older sister of Mukuro came to mind, reminding him that it would be impossible to not face her at some point.
He hoped that he would have at least some help during that time.
"So it really does depend on how you were raised."
"You don't need to worry about that, Tsuji-kun. If you stick around Taiyōko-kun so much, I'm sure he will let you use him as a shield too."
"...Hiyami-san. Did I do something to you recently?"
"Hm? No. Why do you ask?"
He glanced around the table to see if anyone else was reacting similar to him.
The ones from the table next to their own only looked focused, but their table told him enough. Inukai and Minoru were giving knowing looks while Ninomiya was wiping some food off of Michelle's mouth.
Ninomiya-san really looks like a father when he does that.
But that was to be expected at this point.
Hiyami was still looking for an answer, so he responded.
"You have been bringing up Taiyōko a lot tonight."
"I wonder why."
The way Hiyami's eyes lingered beyond him was a bit concerning. She looked passed him and lightly shook her head a bit.
Three small noises were heard in front of him and across from him. Each of them sounded like an understanding had been reached. Besides them, he could see and head Minoru trying to his amusement.
Then it clicked.
There were three girls here who were a part of the infamous Shipping Squad.
If he was any less of a man, he would have tried to counter her words by bringing up her own relationship. But he knew it would only end badly for him. After all, Hiyami's boyfriend is king of the King and Queen duo who made doujinshi on a regular basis.
It was terrifying to think about.
And now both Konami and Usami knew that he had been around Mukuro a good amount of time.
All he could do was lower his head and return to his food.
.
"How's the abomasum? Tasty?"
"It's tough to chew."
"You seem to be fine speaking with Hiyami-senpai," Mikumo said, looking back over at Tsuji.
Even with the cow's stomach in his mouth, Tsuji turned back to answer.
"Because I've known Hiyami-san forever."
"The only girls Tsuji-chan can talk to are Hiyami-chan, Kobayashi-chan, Nikko-chan, and Hatohara-chan so far. And by some miracle, he can speak pretty freely with Yasuko-san." Rolling his eyes for a moment, he added, "Oh, and I mean Mirai when I say 'Hatohara-chan'."
Minoru froze for a moment. It was a small action that continued into him eating more, but it had been there.
The only one to notice had been Ninomiya.
"Hatohara-senpai was nice from the start. And it's because of the combined efforts from Oshiro and Hisoka-san that I can talk to the latter."
"Heh heh~ My Shiro tried to help Tsuji-chan the instant he found out about the issue." Inukai turned toward Mikumo with an idiotic grin on his face. Konami groaned at seeing it. "He didn't let up and got Hisoka-chan involved when it was clear that she needed some social help. He's super cute like that. I can send some pictures over later on."
"I really don't get how Hogo-chan can put up with that lovesick talk for as long as he does! You talk like he's some kind of god!"
"He might as well be for this guy."
Mikumo and Usami looked over at Hiyami. She looked prepared to answer, as if she had gone through this routine multiple times.
Neither one of them doubted that she had.
"If you give him an inch, he'll start talking about Hogo-kun nonstop. Tsuji-kun is the best one to handle it since he's best friends with Hogo-kun as it is. And speaking of which..."
She made a leisure turn to look over at Tsuji, who was still trying to chew his food.
"You were implying I wasn't nice at first."
"You had a wall up at first."
"And now?"
"You're nice."
"Good."
Inukai gave a slight laugh as he watched Hiyami place a piece of meat onto Tsuji's plate.
His eyes lowered as he spoke up.
"You know, that might be why Mittsun-kun wasn't afraid of her, like he was the others."
"Ariake was?"
He nodded towards Usami's question and continued.
"That's right. When Yuki had asked the Snipers if they could help his teammate, most had agreed without problem. Some of them asked for compensations and others just didn't want to do it. In the end, he managed to get all of the 18s' Snipers - at the time 17s - to agree to mentor Mittsun-kun, even if just a bit. Most of the ones passed out age he was fine with, but our age group gave him a lot of trouble. He ended up with a fearful respect for them."
"Really? I can get some of them, but even ones like Pokari and Suzaku? I wouldn't think they would be too bad."
"Yeah, even them," Inukai answered. He looked over to see Minoru's reaction to this and frowned when he saw a slightly distant look in his friend's eyes. But he continued his explanation. "I'll put it into perspective. At the time, the Snipers who he had asked from our age group were Tōma, Umi, Pokari, and Hatohara-chan. Arafune was still an Attacker at the time, but he was asked to help out when he did make the shift. Now, when you see it like that, and know how we are when grouped up or messing with people, how do you think it would look for them to be mentoring Mittsun-kun?"
All of the ones a year younger than him and Minoru shuddered heavily in their seats.
Michelle looked around at them all with curiosity evident on her face.
Ninomiya got her attention away from them while still keeping an eye on Minoru.
"Exactly. So," he began again. "Hatohara-chan was the only one who didn't harass him or was harsh on him. He started coming around more often to see her because of that, and she was the only one he really felt comfortable around."
"Wait, does that mean it's all those guys' fault for the way he's harassing people lately?"
"Oh? I didn't know you even kept up with his squad, Konami-chan."
"I don't. I actually forget he exists most of the time, but Shigeko told me about how he's been doing things lately."
They all chose to ignore the way she was able to speak of the intense girl of Meishō Squad as if it was nothing. Bad things could probably come from that if they went on that track.
So seeing the problem right away, Inukai changed the topic back so that they ran no risks. He did so by turning to Mikumo.
"Have you heard about Hatohara-chan? Our Sniper who ran off over there." Seeing Mikumo nod, Inukai shifted his gaze towards his captain, who was still focusing on the unfocused Minoru. "You went to consult Tamakoma about it, too?"
Without turning his gaze away from the two on his other side, Ninomiya replied,
"Yeah, but I haven't told Usami or Konami."
A sudden sound came from the end of the table.
It was Minoru.
Inukai instantly knew where he had gone wrong.
.
"I need to...use the restroom for a moment. ...Excuse me."
Without another word he began his walk away from the table.
He could hear some talk behind him and questions coming from the Tamakoma people, but he left that to everyone else.
He had something else on his mind.
...I shouldn't have walked out like that.
Opening the door to the restroom, he instantly moved towards the mirror and turned the water on.
He splashed some water on his face and took a breath before looking into the mirror. His own reflection was looking back at him, but his expression was clearly much more dull than it had been at the start of the night.
...They can talk about her so freely, and I thought I would be fine with it, but I guess I still can't fully take it.
There was still a lingering feeling with knowing that Mirai had left, not telling them anything. She had gone with civilians and left them behind to wonder why she had done such a thing in the first place.
When it had happened, Mei had been using her calculations to figure out the reason for Mirai leaving. But it only be for him. She used her calculations to find an answer for him and not for herself. The way he had been feeling had thrown her into those calculations, sending her into a spiral for the answer he wanted.
But the answer he wanted never came.
She had only reached conclusions that he refused to hear.
His sister had left and he had caused his cousin to dive into her own mind.
It hurt to think of that time.
He was at fault for it all.
That was the conclusion he had come to.
And yet...
"..."
Minoru's thoughts stopped for a moment as a buzzing noise was heard and felt in in his pocket.
Slowly lowering his hand into his pocket, he pulled out his phone to see a message on his screen.
It was from Mei.
He opened his phone to see what it was about.
Rampage Dress: "Miiiiiiinoru. Yes, hello. There's something I need to tell you."
He gave a light smile at the message.
...She has changed in such a short amount of time.
It hurt to know that he could do nothing to help her after everything. The thing keeping him grounded from that thought was remembering the talk the two of them had two days ago.
She was free to do as she wanted now and he was allowed to support her no matter what form it took. Everything he did was something she viewed as support and it was something she never wanted to let go of.
That much made him happy.
Deer Prince: "Yeah, what is it?"
Rampage Dress: "Are you done with dinner already? I had wanted to make sure you ate before bringing this up."
Deer Prince: "...Something had come up. I'm still at the restaurant, but you can tell me what's going on."
Rampage Dress: "Is everything alright? I can go over and punch whoever is causing a problem, if you want."
There was no doubt that she could make it in record time to do just that.
When did she get so violent, though? he wondered with a bitter chuckle. ...It's probably from being around him for so long.
The one who she had confessed her love for, and had confessed to her in return. That boy had decided to finally be himself, so that likely meant all of his violent tendencies had returned. Even so, Mei enjoyed being around him.
But...
...It's still bad between the two of us.
The two of them also needed to have a talk at some point. It had gone well with Mei, but there was no telling how everything would go with that boy. They had been friends before, but that friendship had become extremely strained as of late and neither one could find it in them to be in each others' presence anymore.
"I guess that should be for later... What did she want to tell me?"
He asked her as much in a message.
Rampage Dress: "I got a message from my parents recently. They said that they would be coming back soon, so make sure to stop by when they do. I'll let you know when they get here."
Deer Prince: "Ah. I didn't know Auntie and Uncle would be back. Thanks for letting me know."
Rampage Dress: "It's no problem. ...Now then."
She didn't give him any time to think everything over.
Rampage Dress: "What's wrong? You are with Ninomiya Squad and Michelle, aren't you? I can figure out what caused the problem, but I would prefer to have you tell me instead of me having to figure it out."
There it was. The real change between them.
Mei would not automatically go to her calculations to get to or solve a problem anymore. She was waiting for him to openly tell her what was wrong so that they could go from there.
He felt some pride well up for her.
Now came the hard part for him.
...She will probably be fine if I just put it off or just don't tell her.
But...
There's a high chance that she will be feeling something now, unlike before.
She had been focused on her calculations before, but she had gotten passed those calculations two days ago.
Deer Prince: "I... Mirai was brought up and I wasn't as fine with it as I thought I was..."
Rampage Dress: "Ah, that makes sense."
He let out a sigh.
Mei still couldn't find it in her to think beyond what she already knew.
That's fine...
Rampage Dress: "I haven't been in a situation where she was really brought up. Now that you say that, though, I can only imagine how you must feel about it."
"Huh?"
That was not what he was expecting.
Rampage Dress: "Having more time to think about it might do me some good, but that's only as her cousin. As her brother, it probably hurts that much more."
Deer Prince: "We really care for you too, you know."
Rampage Dress: "I do. And I love the both of you for that. But don't neglect the other people you can say that to."
Deer Prince: "...What do you mean?"
Rampage Dress: "You have your feelings on the matter, so let them know. Walking away from the conversation probably has them worried, but that just means you have others who can worry about you. Even if it's hard, and even if something comes up, just try to get anything out and I don't doubt that someone will notice. I will do what I can as well, but there are others who are more in tune with their emotions than I currently am. So trust them."
It was a roundabout way of saying what she wanted, but that only meant that she was to the point where she could do something like that.
And she had a point.
The others could speak of Mirai with no problem while he still felt something when she was brought up. If that was the case, he only needed to make some sort of move to show that was how he felt. They would understand.
He knew it was not so simple with his own mental problems. Nothing may come out and he might lose focus if it was anything worse. It was not fine if that happened, but there was at least one person who knew of that and would take immediate action.
So he had to trust in that person and all the others who knew.
"I guess I should go now..."
Ninomiya had heard it all while he was eating. The way Inukai was getting information from the Tamakoma people, the way they responded to his words, and everything else that came along with it.
Once the conversation had reached the point of speaking about Mirai he knew to be wary with the way Minoru reacted. Something clearly been on his mind, and the way Michelle looked up to him only further went to prove his own thoughts correct.
"We're leaving."
"(What about Minoru?)"
"(I'll go get him right now.)"
The look Inukai gave him while he passed Michelle toward Hiyami was enough for him to know how bad he felt about the situation. Moving to such a topic was to be expect, so there had been nothing to feel bad about.
He just didn't say as much.
"No need. Sorry for the wait. I ended up in a conversation with Meimei."
"Minoru, look-"
"It's all fine, Haru. Some of the blame goes to me for not saying anything from the start."
A slight hum could be heard behind them, but it was probably one of the Tamakoma people figuring out what they meant. Not that it mattered to them.
Ninomiya gave his own hum while moving closer to hand Minoru his jacket back that he had picked up. Alongside him, Michelle moved forward, looking up at Minoru with pleading eyes and arms slightly raised.
Minoru didn't deny her request and so picked her up after putting his jacket back on.
She leaned against him once in his arms and spoke.
"Thoughts are clear..."
"Ha ha. Yeah. I bet they cleared up a bit. Sorry for worrying you like that."
She only leaned further into him.
Ninomiya took a final look at the Tamakoma people. He saw Mikumo looking ready to say something before stopping himself. The reason was obvious, He read the situation and knew not to say anything careless.
None of the Tamakoma people meant any harm, but they likely thought it best to leave the them alone after what had happened.
So with that settled, he moved next to Minoru and lightly leaned towards him while walking away.