The first thing Sekai noticed once he got to his sister's house was that the noise from the ongoing test had finally stopped.
Well, it's her former house now, he thought bitterly.
It had been his idea to send his family away from Mikado City. They wouldn't have to deal with the Neighbor attacks and his niece being in constant danger.
But there had been a recent incident that made him doubt his own choice.
...I may have been the most dangerous thing to her.
He shook his head to clear his mind of those thoughts.
The talk he had with his former squad and with his niece a few hours earlier had helped him come to an understanding of where he stood as a person.
The process had now turned into accepting it, but he had been trying to make sure that his old mindset would not come back to him.
That was hard when he thought about his own mistakes.
But I need to show up with a more happy expression. This was my choice, so I need to see it through to the end.
It would be hard to look some of the people there in the eye, and he knew that his sister would likely scold him for everything he had done, but that was all the result of his own actions. If he had not gotten to this point, he was sure that he would have been long gone.
The idea of never being able to see so many people again filled him with a sense of dread.
That alone felt foreign to him.
...I wish things could be easy. Instead, they're just irritating.
He let out a sigh into the open air.
"Are you really going to sigh like that right now?"
.
Sekai looked up to see the entirety of Nasu Squad standing by his sister's car. Next to them were the Tamakoma Branch's canon and her friend. As for the people by the car, he knew them well.
"Sis-..."
"Nope. Not right now. I can scold you over the phone later. Right now, you need to enjoy this remaining time with everyone."
That shut him up immediately.
Sekai looked over and saw Akane waving at him.
With an awkward look, he waved back.
As soon as he did, something hit his back.
"Man up! After the trouble you and Denji put us through, the least you can do is straighten up and face us all properly!"
Kumagai had walked up to him and slapped her hand on his back.
From next to the car, Sekai's sister rolled her eyes and gave him a familiar look.
Knowing that he was in a losing battle, Sekai did as he was told and straightened his back. Once he did so, he looked directly at Akane.
He could feel himself falter a bit.
Taking pity on him, his sister looked past him and at the girls standing behind him.
"Sorry about my brother and things being so hectic."
"Not at all," Nasu said. It seemed that she was not holding their fight over him. "We had a proper goodbye party yesterday."
"This kinda sucks, huh? You make friends with another Sniper girl, and she has to leave."
Sekai shrank down a bit more after hearing that.
It had been because of him that these girls had spent so little time together.
"I wish Narasaka could've been here."
"He wanted to give Sayo-chan a break."
"Huh? No way."
Maybe he could make up for his mistake by letting Narasaka meet up with Akane before she left. It would be irritating and difficult, but he could probably manage it.
How much would that make up?
"At the Sniper gathering two days ago, I got a chance to thank Narasaka-senpai for everything. He said to reach out to him anytime for whatever."
"Yeah, but Misaki-senpai really refused to let you go, didn't she?"
"Oh? I can imagine it, but how bad was it?"
Sekai found himself curious about that as well.
The older Misaki daughter was known for being eccentric, especially with the people she had taken a liking to. There was no doubt that she had decided to view Akane as a younger sister, so it must have been rough to pull the two of them apart.
But Akane only laughed.
"She kept saying that I could stay with her and her family while hugging me tightly. It made me realize how difficult... upper body strength can be.
"Don't worry, you'll grow into your body."
Sekai stopped at his own words.
Everyone else stopped for a moment to look at him.
A moment later...
"Haaaaaaaaah!"
.
Kumagai covered her mouth to stifle the oncoming laugh.
To see someone on a much higher level than her make such a blunder was already something. The fact that it was someone who had always seemed to be in control of himself and knew what to do or say only made her want to laugh right in his face.
From the corner of her eye, she could see Rei smiling behind her hand while Akane's mother started pulling on Sekai's ear.
"Don't just say that! Even if she is your niece, saying that kind of thing in front of a group of girls is just wrong!"
"R-right... I'm sorry. Can you let go of my ear, Sis?"
"Hah. You never change... Honestly, now. Stop being so uptight about this already."
Seeing Sekai get scolded by someone like the Schneider Wife was one thing, but seeing him get scolded by his own sister made her finally realize something about him.
He really is just a normal person.
Everything he had done made him seem like someone far beyond what normal people could understand. The way he went about things, how he planned everything out, it all felt so surreal to Kumagai that she found it difficult to understand him.
But seeing him here, interacting with his sister and niece, she could finally see that he had always been like this. Someone who had only been trying to look out for the people he cared for deeply.
Denji is the same. I'm sure of it.
The two of them were very similar, so she had no doubt that this was the truth.
"You know, seeing you all interact like this, it makes me feel kinda weird here."
Kumagai looked over to Natsume, who had spoken up while rubbing her head.
She and Amatori had become friends with Akane, so they had come to see her off as well.
"Don't be like that! I was hoping you would come!"
"Besides," Kumagai said. "It's really no big deal. The idiot uncle aside, Akane's only moving a two-hour train ride away."
Sekai might have forgotten because of the way he was looking at his sister and niece.
There would certainly be time later to fully let him know that.
When she thought about it, there was a high chance he would go to visit her more often than he likely should.
Maybe I should keep an eye on him...
Rei must have been thinking the same thing from the way she giggled at the way Sekai slowly shuffled by the two of them.
"Still, we are going to really miss having you around," she said with a soft expression.
It had been Rei who worked with Yuki to make sure there was a chance for Akane to speak with her uncle a few hours ago. She must have wanted to continue that by making sure both of them were okay now.
Akane smiled at the kindness and moved over.
Kumagai followed her motions, noting that they were much better than before.
They felt more free now.
"On that note, I've been thinking about the future of Nasu Squad without me. And well..." She bounced over, moving closer to one of the two girls. "I think that Izuho-chan should take up my spot."
.
Nasu Squad blinked in surprise.
Akane had said something pretty interesting.
But the one most surprised by that was...
"Huh!?"
Izuho herself.
Akane gave her no time to respond, only continuing to speak.
"Tōma-san said she would get a lot stronger, and I think he's right. Whether it's for defense duty or Rank Wars, I think she could be really helpful."
"No way, no way!"
Izuho shook her head, but it seemed no one was focused on her rejection.
"I appreciate the thought, but that's nuts! I'm just a C-Rank!"
"Oh? Then what do you think, Chika-chan?"
Chika smiled at the two of them, also pushing aside Izuho's rejection.
"I think Izuho-chan can definitely do it."
The rest of Nasu Squad could only agree.
"We wouldn't have to change up our squad formation. That would be good."
"And sane Sniper girls are rare."
But if she needed more motivation, then there was one final hit to make.
"Uncle, what do you think?"
Sekai only shrugged, unsure of what to really say.
Everyone there looked at him for a moment. The stares finally made him cave, forcing him to sigh and give a proper answer.
"I can't really say much after yesterday and last night. But I guess... Hah. Yeah, whatever strength you have now doesn't really matter. I got beat pretty badly by a completely average guy yesterday, so you just have to work at your own pace."
"As long as you work well with everyone, it should work out. So what do you say?"
Izuho stayed quiet to take in the words and consider them.
No one said anything more.
Until...
"How about I come back to it when I make it to B-Rank?"
"That works," Nasu said happily. "We'll be waiting!"
.
After a few minutes of getting everything else in the car and getting settled in, everyone watched as the Hiura family drove away.
Akane waved from the window, giving her final goodbyes along with everyone else.
Once they were clearly out of sight, Sekai gave a heavy sigh.
Looks like I'm going to be staying by myself here.
It had been his choice to bring it up, so he chose not to regret it.
What does it mean to live without regrets, huh...?
I guess I should start trying to find the answer to that question.
Ketsueki had posed that question to him twice, but he had not been able to answer it either time.
So instead of trying to make up an answer, he would look for it while in the city he had tried to mess with.
It had all been a mistake on his part. Now he would need to make up for that mistake any way he could.
That would start now.
There was a clear chance for him.
"Hey, you all."
From the corner of his eye, he could see Shiki jump and move behind Kumagai, but he figured that would just be her natural action.
That was proven true by the way Kumagai waved off his worries.
"You can think of this however you want... Be it as payment for taking care of Akane all this time, or as just a whim, but I just wanted to let you girls know that you can...ask for my help...if you ever need it. Be it training or scaring off some creeps... That also goes for you, Amatori, and Natsume."
The more he spoke, the more he came to realize that he really had no idea how to speak to others.
Every time he had spoken to others, it had been as a professional or as someone above them in skill or rank. The only ones saved from that were people who knew him well enough that he felt he could be more rude than anything else.
But with normal people like these girls?
...I have no idea what to do.
Was he coming off as some weirdo? Maybe they were viewing him as someone trying too hard for the sake of his niece.
Well, there was one thing for sure.
"You're being way too conscious of things, even for you! Lighten up already!"
Kumagai slapped his back again, making Shiki have to move over to Nasu.
She faced all the other girls while making sure he stayed in place.
"I'll take that offer readily! But listen, Amatori and Natsume, this guy isn't a bad guy, so feel free to do the same. He's just a bit awkward after being too uptight this whole time."
What she was saying was true, but he still felt irritated by it.
"In that case, can I ask you for something?" Natsume asked with a raised hand. That was a bit unexpected. "Could you tell me who that person who beat you was? You said they were average, so I figure I could meet them."
"Oh? But I'm sure Tōma-san or even Hikigane-san here would be fine to help you train."
"Yeah, I was thinking that too. Even Yuzuru would probably be really good. But they are all pretty high-level, so they are also pretty crazy, right? Well, maybe not Yuzuru. But everyone else..."
The fact that she managed to nail down how Border worked by just watching others said more than enough about her.
Sekai figured that it would be enough to praise her a bit for that.
"So I thought that asking an average person would be a good idea."
"I see. But I think there's a problem with that," Nasu said. Sekai had come to the same realization as her. "Well, I can't really seem to remember who beat Hikigane-san yesterday, so I'm assuming the same applies to him."
"That's right," he nodded. "I know that I lost, and I know almost everyone who was involved, but I can't remember who exactly was in charge of that fight. They were the one who can count it as a victory against me."
.
Wow, those two are weirdly in sync today...
Kumagai watched as Rei and Sekai shrugged and shook their heads.
But it's pretty strange that neither one of them can remember who it was.
Sekai had been the one to fight that person, but Rei had been partially involved since she had been at the Yagura Branch at the time.
"If that's the case, just let her know if you two ever figure out who it was. Until then, why don't you just keep this guy's offer in mind?"
"Will do!"
"I will do the same," Amatori said with a nod.
Kumagai returned it with a nod of her own.
These two girls were good, so she was sure that they would get along well with Sekai.
But that's only one of the two idiots from yesterday.
The one she was most familiar with was someone who would be more annoying to deal with. It was a good thing that it was Sekai who was offering his services.
Kumagai gave her own sigh when she really thought about it.
Just how is that guy doing right now?
Denji had expected a lot of things when going back to his squad's operating room.
One of the things he had not expected was for an entire shelf's worth of books to be thrown directly at him.
"You stupid idiot!"
The shout was followed by a flurry of books flying through the air.
Dodging them all would have been easy for him, but he knew that doing so would only make things worse.
So he took the attack in full.
The first hit was to his face, but the next three were to his chest and arms.
The next five books accurately slammed into his torso, waist, and legs.
The rest that followed hit every part of his body until he was thrown to the ground. At that point, there was a pile of books on top of his body.
This is to be expected.
He had seen a message the day before that someone would do something like this to him. At the time, he had thought nothing of it, expecting to not be in the city anymore.
This was the end result of his idiocy.
While he lay under the pile of books, he could see the fluorescent lights above him.
Ah. That might actually start hurting my eyes.
As soon as he closed his eyes, he was forced up the pile of books.
He opened his eyes to meet his own face. His face shone in the reflection of the glasses in front of him.
"So you're wearing those kinds of glasses today? What's the occasion?"
A fist was raised high into the air.
Denji fully expected the hit and stopped himself from responding to it.
But the moment he thought he would get hit, something else happened.
"...You..."
"Wow~ Our bookworm Shooter actually held himself back from going in for the kill. I say you should do it."
"Now, now, don't be like that. If he did, then I am sure he would probably regret it later. After all, our Shooter likes to make things harder on himself than most."
The two girls speaking were never ones to hold their tongues when it came to biting others. Their way of speaking was different, but the meaning behind their words was always the same. Nothing was held back, and everything was thrown as an attack.
In a way, he was glad that they would remain that way. It meant that something would stay the same, even if he decided to change.
The real problem was directly above him.
"You sure have some nerve..."
.
The atmosphere was tense from the moment the door opened.
Bakuto Squad had always been a team filled with degenerates and people who filled their lives with selfishness. So when one of them openly showed their anger, there was no real reason to pay attention to it.
"You go off and do something so stupid like that! You know, we can get demoted because of that. Our reputation will also take a hit! I have every right to fill you full of holes right now!"
"Oh? I didn't know that our 'fearless' vice captain cared so much about demotions and reputations."
"Hey now, don't go talking like that. If we get demoted, then I'm leaving this team. No way am I going back to B-Rank. There are too many idiots and weaklings there. I can deal with the reputation loss, though. And if anyone has something to say, I'll make sure to throw them into sewage water."
The short-haired girl and the elegant girl sitting to the side looked uncaring about the situation.
Their words were the truth about their feelings, but neither Denji nor Yorushi said anything about them.
All of them were free to speak as they liked.
"Besides, it was our stupid captain's fault for coming up with petty excuses for doing what he did. To make matters worse, he lost twice. And to the same person."
"Now, now, you must remember that it was against a wild beast, Akagami-san. Both times had been due to Murakami-san being present, and we have seen how he is."
"I guess that's true. That guy's been doing some crazy things lately with those cannibals, so I guess it's no wonder our stupid captain lost to him. He's way too spiteful to think through any of his fights enough to beat an animal like that."
The short-haired girl shrugged in time with the elegant girl's silent sigh.
Yorushi turned his head to look at the two of them.
It was nothing new to hear the two of them tear into people. Their normal way of speaking always led them to act like this.
But something had been different about it.
"Are the two of you...really holding it in that much?"
The response was instant.
"Huuuuuuh!? What the hell would I be holding in!? That idiot of a captain made his choice, so I'm just deciding on my own! I should just quit this stupid squad for that reason alone! I mean, what kind of guy goes out like that, loses twice, then comes crawling back like nothing happened!? If anything, shouldn't you be more pissed, stupid megane!? You're the one most affected by all of this! So go on, punch the shit out of him! Do it 'til he's black and blue! Those books were nothing! Slam them right into that asshole's face!"
"Calm down for a moment, Akagami-san. You must remain calm in order to get your thoughts across properly. Yes, what our captain did was idiotic and pointless. So much so that I am also contemplating leaving this squad. Staying here would mean continuing to deal with this sort of problem. It would only be right for me to leave. But I will need some more time to think about it. Although I do agree that our vice captain does indeed have his own right to disfigure our captain in any way he would like."
The words they spoke came out with complete bitterness and resentment.
Yorushi loosened his grip on Denji upon hearing them, but that did nothing to stop them.
"What a pathetic loser he is. Can't even win a single fight by himself. What, you can't win without your idiot Shooter backing you up? If that's the case, fine. Take that guy with you. Now that I'm saying it, leaving really does sound good."
"Oh, but where would we go? Neither one of us wishes to deal with the hassle of captaincy duties, so we cannot just go and make our own squad. There is also the matter of who would need members like us or who could handle members like us."
"Fine, fine. Hey, stupid megane, we're bringing you along! Idiotic captain, you're on your own now! That's what you wanted, riiiiight!? Yeah, we're taking that vice captain and turning him into a captain."
"That does work out well. Everyone involved gets what they want. At worst, it would mean that Bakuto-san would get demoted. So he would be able to go with that other foolish captain he decided to side with."
Akagami and Seiza nodded at each other. Their agreement had been made without any word from Denji or Yorushi.
Even so, they did nothing to move towards the two of them. Instead, they only glared at Denji from where he sat in the pile of books.
As for Yorushi...
"The both of you need to hold your tongue! Now!"
.
They have always been rather rough, but they are crossing a line that I won't stand for!
Akagami was one thing, but Seiza had always been quiet enough to not cause a commotion.
Now the two of them were attacking Denji relentlessly.
But there was something he was more surprised by.
Denji isn't saying anything.
Normally, Denji would have countered their words readily. Each time they spoke, he would fire back on them and put them in their place.
He remained silent this time.
Actually, he has only said one thing since coming back here. And it was something so trivial that it feels off, even for him.
Maybe there really had been something that changed him.
Yorushi wanted to believe that Denji had learned something from all of this, but it felt more like he was disconnected from it all.
It made him worry.
"You can get away from him now, you know. Actually, just go ahead and throw him out of here already."
"Yes. We will make sure to also throw away any of his leftover belongings. So feel free to toss him outside now, Yamamoto-san."
Yorushi turned back around to yell at them again.
If Akagami and Seiza were going to continue this, it would be up to him to put them in their place. Regardless of what was done, they should still show respect for the man who had taken them into his squad. Especially with their terrible personalities!
Akagami had always been a rough girl. There was no doubting that, especially when seeing her fight. But Seiza appeared to be the type to get along with someone like Maki Risa, which Yorushi couldn't understand.
The two of them are very similar, but they refuse to even look at each other.
So to say that they would have trouble on another squad was an understatement. It was likely that they would never be able to find another squad that could deal with them.
Denji knew this as well.
And yet...
"..."
He refused to bite back.
Denji, why won't you—
Yorushi felt himself stop.
Something had grabbed his wrist.
Looking down, he saw that it was a hand.
Continuing up from there, he saw an arm. Then a shoulder. A neck soon finally, a head.
An angry expression could be seen as well.
Then...
"You two are pathetic."
.
Akagami and Seiza halted all motion. Their expressions were wide at the anger filled voice that reached them.
It had come from Denji, but it was in a tone they were not used to hearing.
All they could do was listen.
"The two of you are more than pathetic, actually. Leaving like that, even though you know no one else will take you in."
Denji began building up strength in his body as he stood up.
While still holding Yorushi's wrist, he drew the glasses man in.
"I know a pathetic girl who took on explosions made by anger. She knew she was a loser, someone who was so pathetic that she needed a lot of help. Even so, he moved forward with sword in hand. And once she got to where she wanted to be, she slapped some sense into a man who was so pathetic that he needed that from her."
Wrapping his free arm around Yorushi, he glared at Akagami and Seiza.
From within his grasp, Yorushi tried to figure out what was happening.
"So if that pathetic girl lasted that long, it makes the two of you even more pathetic for leaving like that." He shrugged, still glaring at them. "But fine, go ahead and leave. If I get demoted, fine. I really don't give a damn at all. It'll be annoying, and I'll be pissed about it, but I'll know I deserved it. From there, I'll claw my way back up to A-Rank, dragging along anyone I think could be useful. And even if they're also pathetic, I'll remember that they at least stayed until the end. And to that point..."
He tightened his hold on Yorushi.
The anger that was so foreign to them all came bursting out.
"You can leave, but you aren't taking this idiot away from me! One of the few people who refused to abandon me, no matter how stupid I was! You got that!?"
.
The room went silent.
No one spoke a word.
This continued until...
"Then don't go off and do something stupid without us!"
Both Akagami and Seiza shouted in unison.
"You asshole! You can't just say we're leaving you after you left all of us behind like that! It hurt to know that our stupid captain was doing something without letting us know anything about it!"
"That is right! Bakuto-san, what you did was idiotic, but we would have followed you through it! Even if it meant demotion, a ruined reputation, or even having to leave Border, it would have been fine! We would have taken that on as a team! Instead, you chose to go off and fight on your own! Then you went off with that man again, leaving us behind for someone who had only been your former teammate!"
"Yeah! We are your current team! Leaving us out like that while going off with that lazy man tells us that we aren't ever going to be enough for you to rely on! You said that we could only join if we hated you, but it always feels like you're the one hating on us! Not once have you thought that we were good enough to bring us along anywhere! We are only ever allowed to be involved when we can actually keep up with you!"
Their true feelings were able to finally come out.
Denji's anger had always been kept in check, but he had not been the only one who managed their emotions.
He was the only one who could never bring himself to admit that he was keeping them hidden.
The same could not be said for Akagami and Seiza.
Everything was finally released.
"If this makes us pathetic, then fine! We can accept that! But don't you dare say you're going to keep Yorushi when you've been acting like this! If anything, he's had it the worst! You refuse to take any of us, then you say you want to keep him for yourself, just because he never left you!? That stupid!"
"You cannot simply do as you like anymore! We will not allow you to ruin Yamamoto-san just because you can no longer go back to that man! He has worked the hardest to stay by your side, so you will not be allowed to push all of that aside by saying that you will not let him go! Do you understand!?"
"The two of you need to shut up now! If things were that simple, I wouldn't have had to keep you away! You were always pathetic, so getting you involved here would only mean getting you involved in something you couldn't handle! And Yorushi... There's no way... I'll refuse to give him up, no matter how I've been!"
It had turned into a shouting match.
Akagami and Seiza were shouting at Denji.
Denji was shouting at Akagami and Seiza.
And Yorushi?
He had made a different decision during all of this.
"All of you can just calm down!"
He slammed a book down on Denji's head.
Moving over to Akagamai and Seiza, he did the same thing to them.
"Now, let me speak for once! The three of you will remain quiet while I explain what will be happening from now on! Understood!?"
.
It had been unlike him recently to shout like that.
Yorushi could remember a time when he used to shout like that, with his hair slicked back and a scowl ever present on his face.
But that had been in the past.
Now, he shouted for a different reason.
"Alright, look. I am not an object you can possess, so none of you will make a choice for me. If I say or if I leave, it will all be up to me."
If they argued back, then he would hit them with a book again.
That was just how it was.
"But on the matter of our squad as a whole... Denji, I have no idea what you actually went through last night, but it's clear that it affected you in some way. You would normally never react like this. So, with that being said, I will be staying by your side. I want to see what exactly happened. But this will only be on the condition that you never hide things, understand? I will still try to keep up with you, but you must keep me in mind when moving forward."
It was selfish of him to ask this of Denji, but there was no other way.
Denji could be difficult, so he had to be just as difficult.
Then his attention turned to Akagami and Seiza.
"As for you two." They jolted for a moment before settling down. "You are free to leave. But. If you choose to stay, I will make sure that Denji abides by these conditions with the two of you as well. I won't let him leave us in the dark again. ...Not when he needs someone who isn't one of his usual go-to people. That being said, it will be up to the three of us to make sure that he never feels the need to do so again. We will be his anchor, the ones who ground him in reality when he decides to go to some faraway place."
This was now their decision.
He knew what he would do. It was something he had decided on the moment he had been beaten down by a gambler.
There would be no choice for him when he knew what he wanted to do.
All that was left was to know what they wanted.
How would they all respond?
If I had to guess, Akagami and Seiza will decide to leave. The trouble this has caused may be too much for them to want to stay.
As for Denji, I think it will be difficult, but I can manage on my own. I will make sure that Kumagai will not have to deal with him alone.
So...
I should prepare for the wor-...
"Fine..." was their unison response.
Yorushi blinked a few times.
.
"Huh?"
Denji, Akagami, and Seiza raised their brows at Yorushi's response.
"What? We agreed to these terms," said Denji.
"Yeah. We can't really do anything when our stupid megane decides to get serious." Akagami was looking at her nails, so it was hard to take her seriously.
Seiza only sighed into the air and moved to begin cleaning the books off the ground.
"That is our vice captain for you. Far too responsible for his own good. I had hoped to get more out of all of this, but it seems that we were soundly beaten here."
"Ain't that the truth?" Denji and Akagami both sighed.
Yorushi could only continue to blink.
After a moment, he huffed and began helping Seiza.
"Oh, honestly. You three make me wish I went with Shor Squad to the Suzunari Branch."
They all rolled their eyes.
"You can shut up now!"