"Man, I'm so full!"
Itoshi grunted, pressing both palms against his belly.
Ryujin: That was actually really good.
Kara: Thank god you enjoyed it!
Kirashi: It's been a while since I ate with people.
Ayro patted Kirashi's back without hesitation. Kirashi scoffs—but then glances at his hand.
"Don't flinch. The ones who offer their hands first are either fools or friends. Either way, you'll know which fast enough."
His master's voice echoed in his head.
Kirashi sighs. And he thought to himself.
"Every time someone does that, I think of that old man..."
Kirashi: How many times are you gonna do that?
Ayro: Every time you say something depressing.
Kirashi gave him a strange look while the others snickered.
then all of a sudden.. a complain.
"Man, why is it so hot inside the café but freezing cold outside? Can't wind get in here?"
Itoshi muttered as he sat on the wooden chair, rocking it up and down.
He turned to Ayro with a cheeky tone.
"Ayrooo..."
Ayro raised a brow, tea in hand.
"Hmm?"
With a smile, Itoshi asked.
"Can I sit next to Kirashi?"
Ayro looked confused at first.
"How would that even—oh."
Then he realized.
"Wow."
Kara grunted, as he faced her stupid big brother right next to her.
"That was a horrible joke."
"You're a flame user, Itoshi. Deal with it."
Ayro shot back.
Utterly defeated, Itoshi stopped rocking his chair. All that he could do and say was,
"Bruh."
Ayro smirked while the Kirashi and Kara burst into laughter.
Once lunch was finished, the four boys stepped outside while Kara collected the disposable dishes.
Kirashi: Damn, Kara's really kind, isn't she?
Curious, Itoshi turned to Kirashi.
"What makes you say that?"
With arms on his waist, Kirashi spoke.
"Ryujin offered to help clean up, but she insisted on doing it alone."
Itoshi then replied as he faced ahead. Brow furrowed and slightly annoyed.
"That's just how she is. She loves helping people—even if she gets nothing back."
"That's not really a bad thing though, right?"
Itoshi hesitated before he answered.
"I don't know..."
Then from behind, Ayro joined them as they stood in the front door.
"Yo, Ryujin—Kirashi's joining us now, right?"
Without looking back, Ryujin responded.
"Yeah?"
Ayro: Hmm... five people. Good enough for a squad on the mainland.
Ryujin snickered.
"Absolutely."
Ayro stood in line with the other three boys, nodding at Ryujin's response before giving an answer to Kirashi and Itoshi's conversation.
"On the mainland... too much kindness gets you exploited. Even when you want to help someone, sometimes you just can't."
Surprised, Kirashi stepped ahead of them. Face filled with enthusiasm as he turned to them.
"You guys have been to the mainland?"
To which, Ryujin quickly responded.
"Me and Ayro, yeah. Not sure about Itoshi though."
"Nah. I've never been."
Ryujin then took a deep breath.
"The mainland... it feels suffocating. Figuratively and literally. Tokyo's population exploded—so they started building up. Like, way up. Skyscrapers stacked like toothpicks."
Ayro then pointed to the sky, across the sea on where they stood.
"See that light over there?"
He pointed to the glowing red hue on the horizon.
Itoshi scratched the back of his head, pondering.
"I've always wondered what that is."
Ayro added.
"That's the tallest building in Tokyo."
Ryujin: Tokyo's around 1,500 kilometers from here.
Itoshi slightly jolted back, shocked with the incredible distance he could see its light,
"Jeez. That light's visible from here? Just how tall is it?"
"Last I saw? About five kilometers tall."
Ayro replied.
Kirashi got even more excited after hearing the estimated height of the tower.
"Five?!"
Ayro: Could be taller.
Just then, Kara joined them outside, holding an old stuffed toy.
"Oh! What are you guys talking about?"
Ryujin nods to the red glow.
"That red glow."
Curious, Kara turned to the direction Ryujin was referring to, And she quickly picked up.
"Ah! The Tokyo Skydancer?"
Itoshi: How the hell do you know its name?
Face deadpan, Kara turned to Itoshi.
"Maybe try listening in class for once?"
"Seriously, how does that thing even stay standing?"
Ryujin: No one knows. The building's blueprints were never released to the public.
With a smirk on his face, Ayro added.
"If you think that's huge, wait 'til you see the Chronos."
Kirashi: Chronos?
To which, Ayro bluntly replied.
"Just another tower. Even taller."
Itoshi gripped the side of his head, as he crouched down, Complaining.
"Arghhh! You guys are boring me with all this tower talk! Can't we do something to kill time?"
Ayro raised a brow.
"Like what?"
Itoshi reacted like his soul just left his body.
"You mean you guys just sit around waiting for commissions or orders?"
Ryujin shrugged.
"Pretty much."
Kara paused to ponder, giving it a bit of thought. Then she clasped her fist into her palm — an idea struck. She leaned forward and suggested.
"Hmm... What if we check out where Kirashi used to live?"
Kirashi, unbothered he asked.
"My house? There's nothing interesting there."
"Still... it's bugged me. How did you even manage to live alone for nine years?"
Ryujin added.
Filled with enthusiasm, Itoshi agreed to come.
"Well then!—should we go?"
In which, the rest agreed.
"Sure."
Kirashi blinked in disbelief.
"You guys serious?"
Kirashi thought to himself.
"What do I show with these people.."
~~~Somewhere in the Forested area of Cape Hedo~~~
The five went into the dense, forested area of Hedo, heading toward the place Kirashi called home.
"Here we go, guys."
It was a small hut made of rocks and vines, with a straw roof barely holding together.
"Here it is. This was my nine years."
Eyes shining, The blue haired siblings looked around with a shine in their eyes.
"Oouhhhhh."
As he stepped through the straw-roofed entryway, Kirashi glanced over his shoulder at the others.
Years ago, his master had told him: "Look at their eyes. The ones worth trusting won't flinch at the sight of simplicity." None of them hesitated. Not even Ryujin, who looked like he came from a world built from steel and tech. Kirashi gave a slight nod. This was okay.
He gave them a small tour of the hut.
"This is where I ate."
He pointed to two chairs stacked to make a makeshift table.
"I just basically sat on the floor."
Arms crossed but still curious and undoubting, Ryujin asked.
"How about food?"
Kirashi paused, hesitant to answer.
"If you climb that lookout up in the tree, you can see my food source."
Without even trying, Ayro knew what Kirashi was pointing out.
"The fish harbor?"
Kirashi nods, breaking eye contact.
"Indeed. I took fish from there and cooked it here. Had to hide the smoke to avoid unwanted attention, though."
Still curious, and filled with enthusiasm Itoshi asked.
"How did you do that?"
Kirashi once again looked at the squad as he replied.
"I cooked it underground."
"What?"
Kirashi led them to a hidden cooking pit embedded behind the hut.
"See? It doesn't hide all the smoke, but enough that it won't be noticed from far off."
Kara spotted a small well nearby.
"Does this well have water in it?"
Kirashi replied as Kara leaned into the well.
"Yep. Fresh water. That's where I drank. Gotta boil it first, though. Oh—and these are my clothes. All torn now."
He rubbed the back of his neck, half-embarrassed. Ryujin tossed something to Kirashi.
"Take this."
Kirashi caught it.
"A small cube?"
"It's a uniform, like mine. It's yours now."
Kirashi opened it his eyes glowed—and in a pop of compressed space, a sharp pair of clothes and pants unfolded.
"Whoa. This is really mine?"
"Yeah."
"Thanks!"
There was a hitch of silence, before Ryujin finally asked.
"Why'd you stay here all these years?"
But, Kirashi didn't hesitate to answer.
"Like I said, my master told me to protect this place the best I could. Seeles always came here. I had to guard something special for him."
"Wait... so you can't come with us?"
Itoshi asked.
Face down, Kirashi replied. Genuinely feeling bad.
"I'd love to see the world. But yeah... I can't... Not yet."
The five stayed in Kirashi's hut until nightfall. That's when Ryujin finally revealed their mission: to completely flush out the seeles still roaming around Kunigami.
Itoshi: So we're staying here tonight?
Ayro: Probably another all-nighter. Be prepared.
Ryujin: You gonna be okay, Kara? You can rest inside.
Kara shook her head with a smile.
"Not at all! I want to see how you guys fight."
"Alright."
Ryujin responded as he nods.
The sun was setting, turning the rising tide orange. From a small lookout Kirashi had built into a tree, Itoshi watched the sunset.
"April 1, huh... that's in a few hours. Where are you now, Hishiki?"
Itoshi closed his eyes, suddenly, a memory of them and Hishiki played on his mind.
Kara climbed up and joined him quietly.
Meanwhile, Ryujin walked around the area while Ayro and Kirashi sat on the roof.
Itoshi: Hey y'all!
Ayro: Hmm?
Itoshi: Is it okay to leave our stuff at the café?
Ayro: There's no reason for seeles to go there. You're not there.
Itoshi: What about bandits? Pirates?
Ayro: Unlikely.
Itoshi: Okay!!
Ayro muttered.
"I left a shadow of mine there just in case, anyway."
Kirashi glanced at Ayro.
"Ayro?"
"Hmm?"
"When you said to Itoshi, "There's no reason for seele's to go there, you're not there," what did you mean?"
Ayro took a breath. Slightly hesistant.
"He's possibly the rarest flame user—UWDS has been chasing the blue flame for centuries."
Kirashi turned his head to the sunset.
"You can't control him, though."
Ayro closed his eyes as he argued.
"We don't want to control him. We just don't want him falling into the wrong hands."
Suddenly, Kirashi was reminded of his master's wise words.
"Hmm.. Right now he's your greatest ally—or your biggest regret. My master once said, 'Some powers choose their wielder... but it's the people around them who decide if they stay sane.'"
Ayro and Kirashi looked up toward the lookout where Itoshi and Kara were talking.
"Oh well. His sister is cute though."
Kirashi muttered as Ayro quickly turned his head to Kirashi.
Kirashi watched as Kara quietly leaned on the railing beside her brother. She didn't talk much—just listened.
"The ones who don't fight for attention? Keep them close."
He blinked. His master's voice echoed again. Kirashi looked away and smiled faintly.
To be Continued