The week following the termination of Cloud Five is a cautious one. Even with Hoga returned to normal, you and your friends still spend the next couple days with your ears to the ground in case, for some reason, the Tokyo police still consider you persons of interest. However, after several days of following the news without seeing your face on a police sketch, you allow yourself to relax and focus on the next hurdle.
Although calling it a 'hurdle' feels like putting it lightly.
"Yuya Saito," Hayate says to himself as he hunches over your phone with the others, watching a video of one of Saito's presentations at a recent tech conference. "Still can't believe this is the guy." As you watch the man stride purposefully and confidently back and forth across the stage, you understand where Hayate's coming from.
He has a face that almost anyone in the country could name if put on the spot. With his strong, angular jaw, dark, slicked-back hair, and piercing eyes, he almost seems too intense for someone with a tech background. Undeniably handsome, too. You can see a lot of him in Souichiro-senpai, which certainly explains why so many of the girls at school are constantly fawning over him. The idea of a household name like him using a bunch of high school punks to terrorize your city is difficult to understand.
"Are we sure that Hoga's Shadow wasn't just…making stuff up? Using him as a scapegoat or something?" Koharu wonders aloud.
Mariko shuts down that line of thinking immediately. "I don't think that's likely. There are too many things that only make sense if Saito is the one behind the scenes. For starters, there's the Book of Avalon. The only way to get it on your phone is to go through the ads on G-Net."
"And that's without even talking about how sketchy they are. All you have to do is make one tap, and the thing installs itself. It doesn't ask for permissions, have you go through an app store – nothing. You'd think any respectable tech company would have wiped this shit out in minutes, but G-Net's let it hang around for months. Kinda tells you all you need to know," you add.
Yoko's face crinkles in puzzlement. "Yeah, all that speaks for itself. I'm just still trying to figure out what the Yatabuya have to do with this. Saito's a powerful guy, and we know he has yakuza connections. Why bother getting mixed up with a group of teenage punks? If the goal is to replace people with Shadows using the Book, why do you need anyone else at all?"
The room goes quiet save for the tinny sound of Saito's voice over your phone's speakers. Then, Shibutani speaks up.
"Perhaps they were meant to be a test, a proof of concept. My friends weren't the same after they began spending time with Taishi and Chikara. Looking back on it now, they were probably the first candidates to use the app. If you think about from Saito's perspective, it makes a lot of sense to start with troubled youth – not many people would pay much attention if something went wrong."
Koharu leans back in her chair, chewing doggedly on the straw of her coffee. "Okay, but then why keep going? If all he wanted to do was test the app, why not stop once he proved it worked? Why go through the trouble of building this…giant network of knuckle-draggers? They don't even do anything that would help his company! They just run around acting like regular old criminals!"
"I was going to get to that," Mariko says. "I'm with you – it's really the most confusing thing about this, unless you think about the bigger picture. Let's start from the beginning: what does Saito want people to do?"
"Use the Book of Avalon," Hayate answers.
"Right. And why do people use the Book?"
"Because they have problems they want to escape," says Shibutani, subdued.
"So you're saying that the Yatabuya are a means to that end," says Gin. "They harass the public, and as a result, the public becomes more likely to seek out the Book as an answer to their problems."
"Pretty much," says Mariko.
Gin frowns and fiddles with his tablet. "Okay, sure. Let's say that's what he's doing. It still begs the question why he wants to replace people with Shadows in the first place. That's really what it all boils down to, after all."
Hayate pushes his shades up his nose in a matter-of-fact way. "Well, he probably spends a lot of time on G-Net, and, y'know, people don't exactly filter their thoughts as much as they should on the Internet. Maybe he's one of those 'I'm fed up with humanity's bullshit' type guys," he says, dropping his voice as he tries to imitate Saito.
"Well, I'm sure that's something we'll find out once we track him down and finish this for good," you say, as you stop the video and close the app.
"About that - where do you figure we'll find his Cloud?" says Hayate, tipping the remains of a bag of chips into his mouth.
"The best places to start would probably be the G-Net offices, and his home. The first one should be easy enough to look up," you suggest.
Rin pulls out her phone and has an answer within a couple seconds.
"Shibuya, near Harajuku. Pretty busy street, so no one'll notice much if we poke around a little."
"All right, then how about his home address? Senpai, do you know where Souichiro-senpai lives?"
Shibutani shakes his head. "No, but I'm certain I can find out. I'll tell one of the teachers that I borrowed some books from Souichiro-san over the summer, and see if they'll give me his address so I can return them."
Hayate flashes him a teasing grin. Once Shibutani told the others about his delinquent background, Hayate found the whole idea incredibly amusing.
"Senpai! That doesn't sound very honest of you, does it?"
Shibutani lumbers over to him. Pinching Hayate's collar between his thumb and index finger, he yanks him up to eye level.
"And?" he sneers.
"H-Hey, c'mon! It's a joke!" stammers Hayate as he writhes about pathetically in the larger student's grip.
"Let him down, senpai. It's not his fault he's too stupid to think before he speaks," grumbles Koharu, and Shibutani grudgingly lowers him to floor.
"Anyways," you cut in, "the new trimester starts next week, so we won't be able to get Saito's address until then. In the meantime, let's use this time to make sure we're ready for whatever comes next. If he's the one behind the Book of Avalon, then this is gonna be our toughest fight yet. I know he's a big target…but I'm sure we'll be able to take care of it."
You were afraid that you might have come off a bit cheesy, but to your relief, the others nod in agreement, their expressions confident and determined – except for Gin. Like always, he appears lost in his own thoughts as he continues to tap away at his tablet.
"Heeey, about school," Koharu begins tentatively. "Tell me I'm not the only one who's still working on summer homework," she says, scanning the room for someone else to commiserate with.
"I still have a few English exercises left, if you haven't finished those," offers Mariko.
"I'm still working on the last page of the calculus problem set," you add.
"I-I might still have a bit of my history essay left to finish," Nisekao chimes in.
Koharu breathes a sigh of relief.
"Oh thank God. I haven't started on any of that stuff."
"Any?!" you all exclaim.
"For crying out loud, you haven't even started?" says Hayate. "I guess some stuff never changes. I-I'm not even gonna ask what you were doin' instead."
He pops open the folding table you had leaning against the wall and plunks himself down on a box of Christmas decorations.
"Well, c'mon. We're all here, so we might as well get this stuff banged out. If you got homework, pull up a box."
Under Hayate and Shibutani's guidance, you spend the rest of the afternoon poring over textbooks, cross-referencing notes, and completing formulas. Although it effectively marks the end of your summer vacation, there's something comforting about such a mundane act, removed as it is from the looming task ahead. For a few hours, you have no obligation to be anything other than students, completing homework under the dim light in your garage, passing your phones back and forth as you take turns choosing music, and enjoying one another's company.
By the time evening rolls around, the deed is done, and everyone is awash in the glow of accomplishment (and relief). You order takeout so Dad doesn't feel obligated to make anything, and Yoko and Gin offer to go pick it up. After a while, you hear the sound of returning footsteps outside the garage, but they don't enter. Thinking that either they'd locked themselves out or needed help carrying things in, you slip out the side door to check. From around the corner of the garage, you can make out their voices, carrying on an agitated conversation in hushed tones.
"…doesn't matter. Nothing matters except for getting out. I can't pretend to care about this anymore. I'm at my limit, Yoko."
"That's exactly why you need to try. We've come so far already, and it's almost over. We know what the core of the problem is now, and if what the Doctor told us is true, then once we get rid of it, everything should be fine."
"Should. We still don't have any guarantees."
"Well, it's the best chance we've got. But no matter what, we've got to support them with everything we have. Even if it doesn't matter, just try to indulge him. We need him to be strong, too."
It sounds like they're wrapping up, so you open the door behind you and close it again loudly to make it sound like you've just stepped outside. Yoko and Gin come around the corner and stare at you like a couple of parents trying to hide an argument from their child.
"Hey, there you are," you say, trying to sound as natural as possible. "Need a hand bringing anything inside?" You point to the boxes of takeout stacked in their arms.
"Yeah, sure," says Gin awkwardly, handing you a few containers of piping hot lo mein.
The atmosphere lightens considerably once you rejoin the others, as you've all worked up a significant appetite, and the food smells delicious. But you find it somewhat difficult to enjoy your food when you're trying your hardest not to steal glances at Yoko and Gin.
After the meal, everyone says their goodbyes and heads home for the night. Everyone except Shibutani, who lingers a little bit longer to help you clean up. But once the trash has been taken out and the boxes have been put back on the shelves, he turns to you with a request.
"Tetsuo, when we return to school…I think we ought to tell Souichiro-san about his father."
"I-I'm sorry, huh?" You're not sure you heard that correctly.
"I don't mean that we tell him everything, but I do think he has a right to know that things may…change for him soon. Think of it like this – it's very likely that the only reason Yuya Saito's business took off was due to the influence of his Shadow. Defeating him may very well put him and his family back into poverty, and I have too much respect for Souichiro-san to do that to him without saying anything."
"I see what you mean. That would be pretty messed up," you agree, but then another thought crosses your mind.
"Wait. When we terminate a Cloud, people don't remember what things were like when the Shadow was around. No one remembers Hayate being cool, or you being…the way that you were. Would Souichiro-senpai even remember being wealthy?"
"I don't believe that's the point, Tetsuo. Whether he remembers or not, it's the principle of the thing that's important to me. I want to make sure I do this properly, so I can confront our enemy with a clear head. As someone who has also worked with Souichiro-san, I thought that you might feel similarly. That's why I waited until the others left before I approached you – I don't think they would have understood or approved of the idea."
"It's okay, I get it. And you're right – I think we should tell him. We'll have to be careful about what we say so that he doesn't end up warning his dad, but…I'll come with you. And who knows, maybe we'll learn something useful in the process. I mean, there aren't too many other people who are that close to Saito, right?"
Shibutani gives you a warm, relieved smile. "Indeed. Again, you have my thanks. I feel somewhat better knowing that I won't be doing this on my own."
• • • • •
Although you try to make the most of it by spending as much time as you can hanging out with your friends, the last week of summer practically evaporates before your eyes. Approaching the gate to Toshima High feels like a rude awakening, and in more ways than one, an inconvenience. But there's work to be done, and little time for brooding.
As you get closer, snippets of conversation from the other students drift past your ears, and the subject matter only heightens your anxiety.
"How was your summer?"
"Not bad…the folks are fighting again, though."
"Still? Why not ask Avalon to get 'em to stop? Keitaro from 3-A was telling me about how it helped him get that scholarship…"
"No kidding? Honestly, at this point, that might be the only thing that'll work. It's every day now…"
You find Hayate waiting for you just outside the gate, and when he sees you, he waves you over excitedly.
"Hey," he whispers, pointing over his shoulder. "Check it out."
Following his finger, you notice a police officer standing next to the entrance, greeting students as his eyes rove about the grounds. At the far end of the yard, two sullen-looking students watch the officer with poisonous glares. Judging from their loose adherence to the dress code and the bandanas conspicuously tied around their necks, they must be Yatabuya.
"Never thought I'd be this glad to see a cop again," you say.
"It's a good thing, though, right? Now we won't have to worry about those guys breathing down our necks while we're at school anymore."
"At least for a little while. Remember what Hoga's Shadow said – Saito's gonna figure out what happened to her eventually. And when he does, I doubt he'll leave us alone."
Hayate regards you wearily. "Man, you're just a real ball of joy lately, aren't you? Something up?"
"I guess I'm just having a hard time relaxing. C'mon, let's get going. Last thing I need is Otomuji on my case already."
• • • • •
Once classes let out for the afternoon, you dodge your friends by pretending to deliver some workbooks to the teacher's lounge, and head to the Student Council room to meet up with Shibutani. As expected, he's already there waiting. The two of you share a nod before entering.
Inside, Souichiro is already in conversation with a couple other Student Council members, so the two of you stand awkwardly off to the side until they finish up and leave.
"Sorry for the wait. Seems like everyone wants my attention today," he says, cracking a dry smile and leaning back in his seat. "N-Not that I mind, really – especially given the recent turn of events."
He leans forward.
"Have you heard? Seems like the police are finally taking our reports seriously. Three Yatabuya arrests just this morning, and the local police department has agreed to a continued presence on campus through the end of year. Needless to say, it's a huge load off my shoulders. Although, I guess the relief is nothing compared to what you two must be feeling, right?"
"It certainly is a most welcome development…" says Shibutani, although his tone doesn't match his words.
"No kidding. It's nice to get some good news for once. Although, judging from your expressions, it doesn't look like you have any for me," says Souichiro as he crosses his arms and turns suddenly serious. It's unnerving how quickly his demeanor shifts.
"I'm afraid not, Souichiro-san. It's…a bit of a delicate subject, actually."
"Oh? Don't tell me you're quitting the Council?"
"N-No! That's not it!"
It's bizarre to see Shibutani so fidgety and uncomfortable as he fumbles about for the best way to introduce the topic. That's probably why he wanted you here, so you decide to take over for him.
"It's about…your family, senpai," you tell him.
Souichiro's eyebrows lift in curiosity, encouraging you to go on.
"We heard some rumors over the summer that we thought you ought to know about sooner rather than later. They're about your dad."
"Mmhmm. I'm not trying to be dismissive, but that's hardly news to me. He's the kind of person that attracts a lot of attention, good and bad. I wouldn't put much stock in the kind of things you hear when you're out and about."
"I know that, Souichiro-san," says Shibutani, his courage returning to him. "And you know that I'm not the sort of person to do that lightly. That's why you should trust us when we say these rumors are credible. I'm worried that this may end up affecting you as well."
Swallowing hard, Souichiro rises from his chair and turns to face the window at the back of the room.
"…So what are they about?"
"They're saying that your dad's involved with some…" Your mind works furiously to find a way to talk around the specifics. "…some shady stuff at G-Net. Stuff involving people's personal information. And…I don't think he's going to be able to avoid the consequences."
With his back turned to you, it's difficult to gage Souichiro's reaction.
"They. Who's 'they'?"
"The police," Shibutani replies. "We-" he begins, but falters once he realizes he's said something difficult to explain.
"-we were at the station to make a report on the Yatabuya ourselves," you cut in. "We thought maybe it would make a difference if we went in person. That's when we heard some of the officers talking."
The Student Council president turns back around and rivets his eyes on yours - those intense eyes are so similar to his father's that it feels as though the man himself is searching your heart for a glimmer of truth.
And then the moment passes, and Souichiro collapses back into his seat with his head in his hand.
"Go figure. I guess I always knew it would come to this eventually."
"We're truly sorry to have to tell you this, Souichiro-san. But we thought it would be best if the news didn't catch you by surprise," says Shibutani.
"Sorry?" Souichiro lifts his head. His expression is surprisingly impassive for someone who's just been told what he has. "Don't be sorry. This might sound cold, but if my father's done anything wrong, he deserves what's coming to him."
"Senpai?" It's difficult to keep the confusion from your voice. You've never seen Souichiro behave like this before.
"He goes through a lot of trouble to keep the public from knowing it, but trust me when I say that he's an awful man. After all that he's put our family through, I can't think of anyone less deserving of his success. Can I show you something?"
At this point, the question's purely rhetorical. Both of you nod wordlessly. Souichiro lifts his shirt, revealing a stomach and back canvassed by scars and discolored blotches of skin. It's a sight that feels too private and horrific for you to see, yet you can't look away.
"As far as I'm concerned, this is the only legacy my father is fit to leave," he says, tucking his shirt back into his waistband. "So I can only hope that what you're telling me is true."
Souichiro takes a deep breath to steady himself, and just like that, his usual sunny attitude is back.
"Well! All things considered, it seems like you had good news for me after all! Of course, I can rely on you to keep all this just between us, right?"
"Of course."
"No problem, senpai."
"Wonderful! I'm sorry if that was a bit much, but it does feel good to get that sort of thing off of my chest. To be honest, I consider you some of the most trustworthy people I know. I hope I can count on your committee to continue to help keep everyone safe."
"We'll do our best, senpai," you say, starting to feel the weight of your mild dishonesty in response to his praise. You'd like to have been more honest with him, but this really is the best you can do right now.
"We appreciate you taking the time to hear us out. No matter what happens, we wish you the best, Souichiro-san," says Shibutani.
Once outside and out of earshot, Shibutani asks, "That was the right thing to do, wasn't it?"
"No doubt," you answer. "At least this time, we know we can do this with no regrets."
Thou art I...
And I am thou...
Thou hast established a new bond...
It shall grant you the strength to open thine eyes...
Thou shalt be blessed under the sign of the Emperor Arcana…
