Nagi's arms visibly trembled, though it was unclear at this point if it was from fear or anger. To the keen ears though, his warbling voice couldn't be masked by his terrifying face of a delinquent leader.
"Y-You! Takeshita Akira, back again after you escaped before, why!? D-Don't tell me you know…!!"
"A-Aniki! Don't strain yourself!" Giro cried.
Nagi stopped and looked to Giro. "Huh? B-But I'm fine."
"No, you're shaking again! Remember what you said about your high blood pressure from all the stress of the Kunodanshi! Remember, after you got those death threats from that mysterious messenger?"
His brow broke a sweat. "A-Ah, yeah I remember…"
Giro thrust out his finger dramatically. "Exactly, so watch your health! We need our leader ready to kick ass when those omega come back to start another fight!"
Nagi's brow lowered amd he glared at Tamura. "But… seriously Takeuchi, what's the deal? Don't you know who this is?"
Tamura softly laughed, a small tinkling chuckle like a bell that felt out of place in the tense atmosphere.
"Hahaha! Well a little, but you said you could use some help from an omega, and he's looking for someplace in the school that not even I've heard of! It must be one of those passages you know about, right? But if I knew you two had history…! Well can't you work something out anyway?"
Nagi looked away, muttering a little but still loud enough to hear. "I… guess if you're with him - if you can help me," He took a long moment, sitting there to think.
"...yeah. This is fine actually," Nagi let out a long awaited sigh. "Its water under the bridge between me and Takeshita now. That is as long as he helps me and doesn't go and snitch."
"Me… help you?" Ren finally spoke up, confusion stark in his eyes and frozen on the spot this entire time, still wondering how he got into this mess. But looking around, he began to accept it, feeling like he didn't have much of a choice in things anyway. And so he asked.
"W-What do you want me to do?"
Nagi leaned forward, "I want you, to bring me that Kunodanshi. The omega's head Ninja. If you can do that… then I'll help you get where you want to go. I know every corner of this school."
For a moment Ren stood there staring at Nagi in utter shock.
"....eh, you want me to kidnap someone? Yeeaaah, that's a big no. You're the one with experience so just get him yourself."
"W-Why you little…!" Nagi began to grow angry but his arms didn't at all shake anymore. "You punk omegas, thinking you can boss the boss of the delinquents around? If I knew who the kunodanshi's identity was I wouldn't be asking for an insider's help!"
Tamura took a step forward. For a moment, Ren thought he was coming to defend him from Nagi's rage.
Instead he stuck a finger into his ear and sighed. "If this isn't working…" He glanced down at him with disappointment.
Ren quickly panicked.
"I didn't say that! But. how am I supposed to find a masked person?" Ren asked Nagi.
"Use your omega intuition or something," Nagi grunted. "All I know is that he for sure has very yellow eyes. Like gold… and he's a lot less tiny than most of you."
'Most people here are bigger than me… Yellow eyes? I guess that's a start. But should I really do this just to get some help? But, if I turn this down…'
With a pout, Ren turned his head away irritatedly. "Fine I'll think about it! But don't think I'll ever forgive you after everything! I remember that you still kidnapped me!"
Nagi rolled his eyes. "I remember, and with that jackass punk that clocked me. But I'll get them back for it some day, or I'm not the delinquent leader of wakai saisho!"
'Then you'll love to hear that might be happening really soon.' Ren thought to himself about Teru's ominous plan.
Tamura spoke. "So, can we go now? I only did this as a favor for that one time so if you could finish this up so I can walk him back out of here, since I still have my council duties to attend to and I can't leave him here either, so..." Tamura laughed again, sharper than before.
'Ugh,' Ren suddenly felt a ringing in his ears. 'This guy's mouth moves a little fast. Maybe he just doesn't know how to slow down.'
Leaving the old gym building, Ren was left with little to no clue how to give him what he wanted. How was he going to sniff out someone who didn't want to be found? It seemed impossible.
And Ren didn't want to actually give anyone up to Nagi. That same Kunodanshi had saved him back during sports day after all.
Instead, he could honestly use the Kunodashi help. If Teru's troubles were anything to go by, he was losing support from even his closest men, so either this ninja boy was included, or he was slacking on his job.
So Ren began composing a plan. He hoped that could get the Kunodanshi to help keep things in line for the Guard if he brought up that the Alpha leader of the delinquent was out for his blood. If he was reminded of why he hated Alphas enough to join Teru's guard, he might strengthen Teru's leadership, and even his planned army.
Or at least, the Kunodanshi could help him find who was responsible for the incidents at the omega dorm once. If he did that, then Teru would have to throw him a bone and help him!
Ren smiled as he looked up and noticed Tamura was staring at him. Tamura smiled.
'Huh? For a moment he was making a weird face…'
Tamura made another weirdly pinched smile like he was getting embarrassed.
"You… umh. I hope it wasn't too weird to bring you there. The gym's been pretty sparsely populated lately and it's just Nabe-Senpai and a few of his cronies. I know they're not the most trustworthy but they really are harmless."
Ren's eyes rolled. 'Yeah, harmless kidnappers, but I see his point. Their leader got scared by a single video potentially being leaked.'
"...um, it's fine. Thanks for thinking of me though." Ren replied. "Can we go back now?"
Tamura's smile pinched back even further. "But we're already back?"
"Huh?"
Ren looked around and realized Tamura had walked him back to the school building.
Tamura pulled the door open. "So, I'm gonna go now? Hope it works out for you." He said, turning them to leave.
"Wait!" Ren grabbed his arm, remembering something important.
"Tamura-kun, is it possible you could, um, tell me more about your student council duties?"
Ren still needed to get rid of that signature. He had no idea HOW he would, but he had already begun to imagine the various ways to destroy a book while making it look like an accident.
Tamura shook his arm off.
"... Hey, just a question? Do you uh, normally just start talking to people by their first names? I'm not sure you even properly introduced yourself to me even once."
Ren jolted and he let go. "AAh?" Flustered, he pulled at his growing hair behind his neck and laughed. "It's just, I see all of you a little like kids, so…!"
He frowned. "Um. So you're not in the same year as me?"
"Well I am! But I… just…"
Tamura laughed again, covering it up with his fist.
He smiled wide. "It's fine, I like it actually! Some people just move too slow in life. Anyway I'll see you later."
"Ah, but…" Ren had nothing to say and just watched him leave.
'He seems polite. Well, I guess it's fine for now? If he's not with the school, and he's likely just gonna keep working on it until he turns it in, yeah?'
Ren had his new goal to focus on anyway. If he was going to actually help the leader of the delinquents in catching that ninja boy.
...
Masanori met Chihei at his club room. A room covered in stars. They dangled from the ceiling, the walls covered in a dark plaster with white diamond for stars scattered across. A planetary system hung from the ceiling.
"So this is the astronomy club."
"Senpai, hello." Chihei greeted him very politely.
Masanori looked around, and spoke his mind. "Do you just look out the window all day in here?"
Chihei's face suddenly looked less accommodating. "Do you just sit at a desk all day?"
"I suppose so… I have to ask you some more questions about Takeshita Akira."
"Yeah, fine. But over by the window. My Senpai here doesn't like distractions."
Chihei opened the window and outside the school's garden could be seen very clearly. Chihei angled the telescope upwards, towards the mountains.
"Well. I wanted to know, what happened exactly on sports day." Masanori continued.
He shrugged. "I don't know either."
Masanori sighed. "I had hoped… then im sorry to have bothered you." He turned to leave.
Chihei waved his hand up. "Hold on. You actually seem to care about this. Well, truth is… I kinda worry about him too. I hang out with him a bit and I think sometimes there's something just a bit screwy with his head."
Masanori's eye twitched. 'You have no idea.'
Clearing his throat, Masanori went on. "So…?"
"So, he's easy to pick on. Everyone talks about him behind his back, like they don't have anything better to do. Who knows why he hasn't been bullied directly yet with the fuckheads that run around here. Well whatever it is, I hope the shit stain that made him cry like that would come back so I can give him a piece of my mind."
His eyes widened. "Cry? When did Takeshita cry?"
"On sports day. He's definitely not the weepy type, but you could see it in his eyes. Something really shook him to his core during the scavenger hunt."
"I… Thank you."
"Don't mention it," Chihei nodded. "Really, don't. I don't like to associate with Alphas. Even ones like you."
Masanori took a step back to leave, but he looked around a little more. "This place feels like an anomaly. I never hear about it. It's like it was forgotten about…"
"I like it that way," Chihei said, adjusting his lenses. "Did you know? You can still see the stars even during the day. It's just how you point the telescope at the stars, in order to negate the glare of the sun. Just like us, the stars aren't gone from the sky just because something brighter takes up all the attention."
"That so… How does this place remain under Ruota's reign? His polices…"
"We also give weather reports, and occasionally spy on other students," Chihei finally answered. "Is that all?"
Masanori nodded. "That's all."
He left and the feeling in his gut hardened into determination. He needed those files.
Finally, he texted the number.
- How do I get the footage?
Soon they answered.
- Check your mailbox tomorrow.
…
Ren felt like he had become like Teru, stalking the omega students around. Then again he used to stalk the Alpha students, but that was for good reason.
'Think, if I were a traitor… where would I be to cause more mischief?'
Ren went to the dorm's bath for some strategic gossip eavesdropping.
"Did you know Eida-san just broke up with Sato?"
"There's been a few of those lately…"
Ren groaned and sunk into the bath. 'Ugh. It's more boring than usual…'
Plip!
Ren was surprised to see Hajime drop in.
"Good to see you here." He smiled kindly, eyes gentle and full of sweetness.
"Is it good to… see me bathing?" Ren asked slowly.
He softly laughed. "You're a funny guy," He leaned over and whispered. "Are you eavesdropping?"
"H-How did you figure me out?!" Ren hissed back.
"You don't look like you're doing anything else. Don't worry, it's not that uncommon. How else are you going to stay informed around here?"
"Huh. Hey, Hajime-chan… do you know anyone that hates Teru-kun a lot?" Ren suddenly asked.
It made sense: if someone would ever want to destroy the omega dorm from within, it had to be someone who would dislike Teru. To destroy all the work he put into keeping the dorm safe, however he did that exactly, needed a lot of anger.
Hajime tapped the side of the bath. "That's a loaded question… everyone has some mixed feelings about him. I think he's doing what he can, but others think he only entices more problems by being so brash about his feelings towards the Alphas as of late. I want things to work out well…" He sighed a little.
'So, Teru's plan to unite the dorm against the Alphas is going to just split the omegas into a civil war instead,' Ren jumped to pretty quickly. 'Maybe that's end goal for whoever is messing with Teru-kun. If we're ripped in two we'd be way easier to control.'
Hajime hummed as he still considered Ren's question.
"I would say, if it had to be anyone that hated Teru the most here, it would have to be Hiruhei. He always talks about how dramatic Teru is about the despicableness of Alphas. He's in Dorm 8-B."
And just like that Ren was out of the bath with as little as a splash of water against the rim.
He quickly came back though to thank Hajime properly before hurriedly heading out again.
After knocking the door opened to a sleepy student, their hair filled with rollers and what looked like some kind of paste to Ren on his cheeks.
"Ugh, another one… if you wanna see Hiruhei-kun, he moved already. Damn relief too."
Ren was quick to ask why.
"Have you seen the dorm lately? And everyone is busy studying…he took up photography."
After getting direction, when Ren arrived to the room, he hesitated outside the door.
'Is this going to work… I can't just accuse him of a bunch of crimes. And if he's not, how would he know the culprit…'
Rem shook his head and dismissed his own worries. Like that attitude would help him now!
The moment Ren opened the door to said photography club he was hit with a wall of a thick scent. Ren saw a student sitting on a couch in the center of the room. He was wearing a thick coat over his school uniform. In his hand was a long incense stick and the sight of incenses covered the room. The only notion this was a room for photography was the walls covered in pictures.
As Ren was getting his bearings then, a flash of light. Blinded for a moment he stumbled back.
W-What-?!"
His eyes adjusted. The student who snapped him lowered their camera. He then held out their hand. "Hm. That'll be 1000 yen."
Ren blanched. "Huh?!"
"1000 or get out."
'Suddenly I'm being coerced into paying money!? I don't have any kind of cash!! No, why am I paying for a picture! I didn't ask for?!'
Ren began to fume and was about to speak his mind. That's when the student in the center of the room spoke up. "Mikou-kun. Who is paying for your current club activities after the student council abandoned you?"
The camera student looked back with stress. "Y-You. But a little more wouldn't hurt, senpai…"
They motioned with their arms to the side, and the student stepped back to let Ren in fully.
"You're not a face I ever expected to see," Hiruhei said. "Takeshita Akira, right? What could you need me for?"
Holding a long inscense stick in one hand and their phone in another, they looked at Ren with an air of complete confidence. He was wearing the same uniform as them, but he made them look like silk robes. Ren suddenly felt like a peasant before a king on a throne. Compared to Nagi, who was more like a baker's boy sitting on a soap box.
Ren swallowed. 'What's with this guy's aura…is anyone normal at this school?'
He was getting nervous after his last encounter got him involved with the delinquent leader Nagi. But a lead was a lead.
"I'm… here to ask. Do you hate Teru-kun?"
They flicked the incense in their hand. "Is there a reason to ask?"
Ren stumbled back a little too quickly fro. Sheer intimidation. 'He knows! How'd he figured it out so quickly!?'
He fidgeted uneasily. "N…No I just, I'm looking for some leads…"
Hiruhei placed the insxense in a stand before raising his hand up. "It's simple. Me and Teru are just too different. He hates Alphas to his core, as if spending your life running from them will solve anything. The key to success in this life is how you handle the nature of the Alphas around you…"
Ren perked up. "What do you mean?"
"Teru is weak. As omegas we're the ones that ultimately control the Alphas in life. Play your charms right and they'll be at your feet begging for even a whiff of you. Just like Alphas, only the strongest have a real chance in this world to truly topple above all others."
Ren's eyes opened wide. Suddenly enamored, he moved closer. This was enlightenment! The truth! Omegas were stronger than Alphas!! He had to find out how, and how to use it to topple his enemies!!
"How!? How do I make Alphas topple before me!?" Ren screamed out.
Hiruhei turned his nose at him.
"...aren't you dating half of the student council by now? What kind of advice could I give someone like you?"
Ren's face fractured.
"What? W- WHAAAAAAAAATT!!?!"
Hiruhei loudly sighed. "Oh, so it's just a rumor? Those Alphas are elusive to get a hold off, I thought it may be that way…"
They smiled and leaned their head back. "But you've got an interesting posistion… what say you? Shall I teach you how to tame an Alpha?"
Ren exploded with excitement. "Yes!!"
With a charming grin they stood. "Alright. Well first, we need to show off your boyish charms… big eyes, flush skin, great body… now you just need the right face."
Ren's eyes drooped. "Huh? What's so wrong with my face if its not those things?"
"Your expression is very important. Take those eyes and pout. Like in these pictures here." Hiruhei held up some photos and displayed them for Ren.
He stared at them bafflingly.
'…I don't understand. Looking like this is supposed help me control them, how? If I made these faces at anyone in my college life I would be beat and kicked out on the street. But maybe that's why no other omega really utilizes their skills. It's too embarrassing for teenagers and their fragile egos to do.'
Ren gulped, then he tried to mimic the picture.
Hiruhei narrowed his eyes at him.
"..... Hm. Try that, but with your cheeks a bit more puffed and you've got it."
Ren's eyes fluttered from surprise. "I've got it? A-Already?"
"Yeah. But there's little you can do to make yourself less cute really. I'm kinda jealous."
Ren stared judgingly. 'What's he mean? Who said anything about being cute? This is a war strategy.'
"Anything else you need? You aren't just here to ask me about Teru right?" asked Hiruhei.
Ren's head nodded. He nearly forgot.
"Yeah, I'm looking for who might be sabotaging Teru-kun. Is it… you? I'm not entirely against you but if it's you then I have another question…"
But he just laughed at that. "Not at all. What business do I have getting my hands involved? Anyone smart would use someone else to do their dirty work."
"Oh. But do you maybe know who the Kunodanshi is?"
He shrugged. "Who knows? Another reason that guard is full of trouble. Too many secrets... if that's all, goodbye now. And keep staying interesting for the council. Watching the dogs chase their own tails is quite entertaining."
And so, Ren left a little wiser, but no closer to his goal.
'Yeah, it should be a member of his guard. As secretive as Teru is, the only way anyone would know anything is if it came from an insider. If I just look through who's involved with him, I can try to do a process of elimination. Golden eyes… I'm just looking for golden eyes.'
The following day after classes and to the omega dorm, Ren was ready.
He cleared his throat.
"Masaru kun… can you do me a favor?"
…
All mail that came into the school was meant for students was put through a process of investigation, followed by sorting. It was then delivered to the individual dorms, usually by the dorm leader's, as it was one of the duties given to them, collaborating together to organize all the shipments to their proper place.
For this reason Masanori waited properly for whatever should arrive, rather than to bother the mailroom asking impatient questions and stirring up suspicion.
Masanori didn't usually get packages, at least not any he cared much for. Too many scent infused love letters for his liking, he just preferred all things digital. Ironic, because he had so desperately sent Takeshita a hundred letters back in April.
So it felt foreign to him to enter the mailroom and twist open the combination.
Inside was a thickly wadded package, and inside. A cd.
'I think I have something that plays discs…'
Masanori returned to the student disciplinary's office within the school. So, he watched the cd from the laptop at his desk.
Footage of sports day, within the school…
His answer was found. What happened between Fujiwara and Takeshita.
Watching the events unfold before him from the off angle old camera feed, Masanori didn't feel as angry as he thought he would. Instead he felt, oddly empty. Anger was gone and he only felt lost.
Confused, why Yukihiro didn't tell him. Instead having to learn this from a mysterious messenger. He wanted to believe it was Yuki in disguise, playing some kind of prank. But truth was often stranger than fiction, and the simplest answer was usually, the right one.
He held the cd in his hand, resisting the urge to smash it into pieces. 'Why keep this from me Yuki… I wouldn't have gotten angry. You're smarter than this… aren't you?'
Several theories ran through his head and the first one he dismissed right away. Ren and Ryusei have been dating this entire time and Yuji had been lying to spare his feelings. But Yuki wouldn't spare his feelings. He was always going on about how he had to be more Alpha, to toughen up.
Then maybe he just thought he wasn't tough enough to handle it? Was he somehow seen as too volatile now, too potentially hazardous to handle one kiss?
'Can't be…'
There was a third idea, but that felt more irrational than the rest, one born of his own growing anger and obsession.
Masanori got up. He had to ask him himself.
…
Masaru greeted Ren like usual.
"Hm, Akira-kun? What's on your mind?"
Ren fidgeted on the spot. "I… I talked to Teru earlier and I forgot something in his office…"
Ren was hoping Teru had some list of his members for him to sort through. He seemed to type to keep obsessive notes of everyone around him (takes one to know one).
"You talked to him, when?"
"Um…"
"What did you lose? I can bring it for you."
'T-The plan is backfiring…!'
But then Masaru chuckled.
"Just kidding. I've been meaning to return the favor for how you helped me before. I'll let you in just this once since Teru is busy planning his big meeting later."
"Huh? A Big meeting?"
He nodded. "Yeah. I dunno what it's about since he told me to stay here as a 'line of defense'... Sounds like his usual commands so I can't complain."
Ren internally gasp. 'His big war meeting! Everyone will be there! I need to be in that room to look at every member of Teru's guard!'
To do that he needed access to his meeting room instead of his office.
"A-Also! T-Teru-kun told me to relay this message…!" Ren thought up on the fly. "He uh, wants you to check on the broken table, to make sure no one's tampered with it since!"
"Oh, did he ask you for that before? I didn't know you two were close. But you do have a lot of similarities…"
'Eh, what about me is at all similar to that guy? He must be seeing things.'
Ren and Masaru entered the meeting room. As Masaru went to inspect the table, Ren looked around.
'Quick! Where do I hide?'
Masaru scratched his head. "Akira-kun? Its weird he would leave in a hurry like that… He really is a lot like Teru."
As Masaru left the room, Ren peeked out from an old trunk in the corner. And so, Ren snuck in on a meeting as the guard was doing their battle plans.
As they came in, Ren could only barely sneak a peek through the keyhole of the trunk.
'This is it! I'll find that Kunodanshi today!'
But as the room was filling up with more and more people, Ren was filled with disappointment.
'No one. No one here has yellow eyes like that… this must be all of their members, right?'
Ren saw Idoru at the back wall. His eyes looked a plain brown, or was it just the lighting. But it definitely wasn't golden.
Ren could only sit back and wait for the meeting to adjourn and for everyone to leave, wondering what to do next. As the meeting came to a close he still had nothing.
'Will I have to ask Masanori-kun? It might be the only way… Huh? Wh-Why are they coming over here? Uh oh...'
The trunk Ren was in was lifted up. Turns out while he has tuned out the rest of the meeting in his despair, he had missed the reason why. There was a small guess though, as Teru made one last call as they marched out the door.
"This ends today! There won't be room for error! The Alpha's reign will be no more!"
And just like that, Ren was carried along to wherever the Guard had envisioned for their grand attack.
…
Masanori knocked on Yukihiro's door.
Nemura Piko opened as usual, bowing per usual.
"Imada-sama! I-I didn't expect you to show up, I would have prepared tea ahead of time!"
Masanori entered past him. "You can't keep hanging out here all the time… get out of here."
"R-Right!" He did another quick bow then rushed off.
Yukihiro sat on the couch on his laptop and looked annoyed to see him.
"Come on, he was just helping me clean. He's all about that weird stuff."
"I have to talk to you. It's important…"
BOOM!
Yukihiro sat up straight as a distant boom sounded, along with a loud thud that could be felt against the building.
They rush over to the hall and to the closest window to the source of the sound.
"What the…" Masanori gaped.
Yukihiro snorted, barely holding back a laugh.
"I can't believe it… The omega students are attacking the dorm like this?!"