Shibuya on October 31st was already packed with crowds before 7 PM, totally overflowing with people.
Neon signs lit up one after another above the sea of heads, and the massive screen at Shibuya Scramble Square was looping a Halloween-themed animation. Over at the pedestrian crossing signal, that cartoon figure waving a little flag had been Photoshopped with a pumpkin head—every time it flashed, it got a burst of laughter from folks nearby.
A guy in a black cloak squeezed past holding cotton candy, and when the hem of his cloak brushed his ankles, you could smell that cheap pumpkin spice scent.
Three girls wearing devil horns were tugging at each other's lace skirt hems, their glow sticks tracing bright yellow lines through the crowd—their giggles were even sharper than the shouts from the nearby izakaya.
Someone had their face painted like a zombie and was deliberately bumping into couples; when a girl laughed and shoved them away, they dramatically waggled their fake severed hand. That's Shibuya Halloween for you—chaotic and full of life, with the air buzzing with this restless, sweet vibe.
When Gaio got shoved against the railing at the crosswalk, he glanced down at the person in his arms. Kitagawa Marin was tugging on his sleeve, standing on her tiptoes to peer around, her little devil tail swishing lightly across the back of his hand with the movement.
Her hair was dyed a wine-red today, and she was rocking a black off-shoulder crop top with white lace trim at the neckline. Paired with tight leather pants that perfectly showed off the beautiful curves of her legs.
"Hey, there's a stand selling candy apples over there!" She suddenly pointed at the street corner and bounced up, her little devil horns nearly poking the guy in a wizard robe next to her. "I missed out on the strawberry sauce one last year—I'm definitely grabbing one this time!"
Gaio smoothly grabbed her wrist, his fingertips brushing the bells on her bracelet—that was a little decoration she'd added on purpose, jingling with every step. "Don't bounce around. Three more steps forward and we're there," he said, tilting his head. His white messy hair swept across her cheek, making her instinctively shrink her neck a bit.
Suddenly, whistles broke out around them. A few guys in knight armor were grinning over this way, one of them snapping a photo with his phone and yelling, "You two look perfect together!" Kitagawa's ears turned bright red in an instant, but she leaned even closer into Gaio's chest on purpose, hooking her arm around his neck. "They're just saying I have great taste." Right as she said it, the signal light changed.
The packed crowd surged forward like someone hit the start button, all rushing across the street.
Gaio pulled Kitagawa closer into his arms, using his elbow to block a pumpkin-headed costume from nearly bumping into her. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of a Devil May Cry concert promo poster flashing on the big screen by the street—from his performance last week. The silhouette of his white messy hair and electric guitar stood out sharply under the neon lights.
"Look over there!" Kitagawa followed his gaze, then suddenly tiptoed up and pecked him on the chin. "Next concert, no more shirtless performances." Before Gaio could even respond, she was dragging him right into the flow of the crowd.
Just past 7 PM, the streets of Shibuya were getting even livelier. Kitagawa held up a skewer of oden, spearing a soft, tender chunk of daikon and offering it to Gaio's mouth with a big smile. "Ahh—open up." He played along and took a bite, then fed her a fish cake dripping with broth in return.
The crowd kept surging around them, with people in wild outfits squeezing by now and then, letting out bursts of cheerful laughter and chatter.
Suddenly, it was like Gaio got zapped by electricity—his movements froze, and the smile vanished from his face in a flash.
He lifted his head slightly, his gaze locking straight onto the sky.
Kitagawa noticed something off and asked, surprised, "Gaio, what's up?" She followed his line of sight, but all she saw were the flickering neon lights and the jumping Halloween animation on the massive screen. The crowd was still lost in the party vibe, with no hint of anything weird.
But in Gaio's eyes, that sky had completely changed. Countless thick, black sludge appeared out of nowhere, like it was being dumped from another dimension.
At first, it was just scattered spots, but in a blink, it spread like a flood bursting a dam, expanding in every direction by the second, as if it was about to swallow and blanket all of Shibuya.
The creepy part? Everyone around was still laughing and messing around, scrambling for candy apples, totally oblivious to the horror show overhead.
The guy in the black cloak was still holding his cotton candy, the three girls with devil horns were tugging at skirts, the izakaya shouts mixing with the crowd's noise—it all clashed hard with the black sludge spreading across the sky.
Gaio's brows furrowed tight; the uncomfortable feeling from that sludge was getting sharper—like countless cold tentacles crawling up his spine. He stared at the sky, muttering to himself: What the heck is this stuff? Just looking at it gives me the chills.
"Gaio?" Kitagawa's fingertip poked his cheek gently, still warm from the oden. "You've been acting weird since earlier. What's up there, anyway?"
Gaio snapped back to reality, grabbing her wrist in return. He could feel the bells on her bracelet under his palm. "Nothing," he said with a smile, rubbing his thumb over the back of her hand. "Probably just the lights playing tricks on my eyes."
As he spoke, he quickly looked up again—that black sludge had fully spread out now. The neon lights' rainbow colors looked like they'd been soaked in ink, all dull and gray in his vision.
Even the massive screen on the building seemed covered in dust, the Halloween animation's colors fading like they were about to vanish.
Kitagawa stared at his tense profile for a moment, then leaned in close to his ear, her breath warm on his earlobe. "If you keep zoning out..." Her voice was low, the end dragging with a teasing itch. "My new succubus outfit? I'll just have to enjoy it all by myself."
Gaio's fingers paused, and when he turned, he caught sight of her flushed earlobe. The girls with devil horns nearby were still laughing, the pumpkin-head signal started flashing again, but suddenly he caught a faint fishy smell in his nose—not from the street food, more like it was seeping from that black sludge.
"Got it." He squeezed her hand tighter and nudged them toward the edge of the crowd. "Let's grab those candy apples first. Didn't you want the one with strawberry sauce?" Kitagawa's eyes lit up, and she grinned, nodding eagerly. "Yeah, yeah!" She promptly wrapped her arms around his, holding on tight.
Her devil horns swayed lightly with her steps, carrying a bit of the cool evening breeze.
The two of them slowly moved along with the crowd. Gaio parted the way for a blocking pumpkin-head costume, and she offered him a half-eaten candy apple. Nearby, guys in wizard robes were wrestling over cotton candy, a girl in zombie makeup was snapping glow-stick selfies—the noise wrapped in the scent of roasted chestnuts actually helped Gaio push that eerie black sky to the back of his mind for a bit.
By the time their shopping bag was stuffed full of Halloween snacks and street eats, the clock had quietly slipped past 8:30.
Gaio carried the bag in one hand, the other gripped tight by Kitagawa—her fingertips brushing the bells on her bracelet, which had gotten knocked askew in the crowd and now jingled softly with every shake.
"Time to head home?" Kitagawa looked up at him. "Any later and we won't squeeze onto the subway."
Gaio looked down, his white messy hair falling over his forehead, hiding a fleeting odd glint in his eyes.
He'd just murmured "Yeah" when his feet suddenly rooted to the spot.
The neon sign for Shibuya ShinQs building was glaringly bright. A girl in a maid outfit just dashed out the entrance, her pumpkin lantern nearly clipping him.
But Gaio's eyes weren't on her at all—in that split second, a white shadow streaked right past him. It was fast as lightning, white hair leaving an afterimage in the night, the profile's outline pale under the streetlights. He could clearly make out the black eyepatch covering the eyes.
Gaio's fingers clenched hard, crumpling the shopping bag's handle. He could even feel Kitagawa's warmth against him, but his nerves went taut in an instant. "What's wrong?"
Kitagawa followed his gaze, seeing only the crowd's reflection in the building's glass walls. "You tired or something?"
Gaio didn't answer, his stare fixed on where the white shadow had vanished.
Under that black-sludge-covered sky, Shibuya's neons still flickered, but the wind stirred by that figure carried a weird energy.
Right then, the big screen's Halloween animation was still playing cheerfully, colorful lights flashing, the crowd's laughter and cheers nonstop.
He knew that figure—super familiar. Back before he crossed over, he'd griped about it countless times.
But he didn't get it. Wasn't this world supposed to be like a lighthearted manga? Why was that guy here too?
Kitagawa clearly felt Gaio's arm tense up; the sharp, unfamiliar look in his eyes as he stared ahead made her heart skip.
"G-Ga... Gaio?" Her voice trembled a little as she shook his arm hard. "What's going on with you? You were staring at the sky earlier, and now..."
She leaned in closer, trying to see what was reflected in his eyes, but it was just the chaotic neon glow of Shibuya.
Gaio's senses snapped back at her anxious voice.
He looked down, meeting her upturned face full of worry.
Yeah, in front of her, he was always that laid-back, carefree guy—like even if the sky fell, it wouldn't matter as long as she was by his side.
His sudden tension and seriousness had scared her.
His nerves eased a bit, and the corner of his mouth quirked up in that habitual lazy smile. He reached out to ruffle her wine-red hair, the cute little devil horns feeling cool to the touch between the strands.
"It's nothing," his voice back to its usual drawl, soothing. "Just thinking..."
He paused on purpose, drawing out the moment under her puzzled, wide-eyed stare, then drawled, "...we can't take the subway home anymore."
"Huh?!" Kitagawa blinked in surprise, then burst out laughing in her usual carefree way, like the worry from before was all in her head. "Why not? How are we getting back then? Walk? Our place is super far from Shibuya!"
She gestured dramatically, her little devil horns bobbing with the motion, the bells on her bracelet jingling crisply.
The crowd around them was still buzzing, young people in wild costumes laughing as they brushed past.
Gaio looked at her carefree grin, his own smile deepening with a touch of warmth.
He leaned down a bit, murmuring close to her ear in a low, mysterious tone. "Subway's too slow. And..."
He paused deliberately, his gaze sweeping over the partying crowd oblivious to the weird black sludge in the sky, and the direction where the white-haired figure had disappeared. "...sticking to the streets right now isn't safe either."
Kitagawa blinked, totally lost. "So what do we do?"
Gaio straightened up, his smirk one she knew well—like the one he flashed on stage, bold and cocky. The neon lights danced across his face, just like that idol called "Nero."
He looked right into her eyes and said, word by word:
"I'll show you a secret."