~~~March 22, 2169~~~
[Koren Household]
Itoshi stood in front of a house. It was the home of the late Hishiki Koren, the only friend he'd had for years. Holding a single flower and looking down on a cloudy day, he rang the doorbell twice.
A woman opened the door. Without hesitation, Itoshi quickly bowed and handed the flower to her, his voice straining as he shouted,
"Sorry!"
"Itoshi! Are you okay?"
Miss Koren asked, her voice soft with surprise.
"I'm so sorry, Ma'am!"
The lady smiled softly at Itoshi, her hands clasped against her chest.
"It's okay... It's not your fault. Nobody expected things like that to happen."
Tears welled up in Itoshi's eyes as sorrow finally took over his face, breaking his usual stoic mask.
"I'm sorry I failed to protect Hishiki... I'm sorry I couldn't do anything!"
"It's okay..."
Miss Koren whispered.
Itoshi looked up and saw her face—tear-streaked, yet smiling. His eyes widened, and his lips remained shut as he processed the lack of resentment in her gaze.
"Itoshi... You're a kind person, aren't you? Thank you for the flowers. And thank you for being with Hishiki all these years."
She forced the words out, her voice cracking apart as the weight of her grief surfaced.
She paused to wipe her tears, never letting the smile leave her face.
"Why don't you come inside? Hishiki left something for you."
Itoshi simply nodded in agreement and followed her. He sat in the living room, his head down as he stared at the floorboards. Miss Koren joined him, sitting across the table.
"Have some tea."
As Itoshi took a small, shaky sip, Miss Koren brought an item out from a nearby room.
"Hishiki wanted you to have this."
She handed him a small jewelry box. Itoshi took it slowly, his movements filled with reverence. Opening it, he found two earrings—one red and one green.
"He wanted to give you one of these. I think it was the red one. He said he'd give it to you on April 1st? I'm not sure why..."
Itoshi gasped, and fresh tears ran down his cheeks.
"April First... That's the day we first met. He's such a dummy, isn't he..."
Miss Koren chuckled as she watched Itoshi's reaction.
"I want you to have them both."
Startled, Itoshi blinked. Receiving both wasn't what he had expected. He hesitated for a moment, then reached out and took them.
"O-Okay, ma'am—"
Miss Koren stood up slowly. With her eyes closed, she walked to his side and hugged him tightly, anchoring him.
"Itoshi... you're truly a kind kid. I'll never stop thanking you for everything you've done for my boy."
She clung to him as they wept together in the quiet house.
"Wherever life takes you... always hold your head high. Never forget the reason you keep moving forward. Never forget the people who helped you get to where you are."
She paused, the emotions temporarily overwhelming her.
"Always look forward, Itoshi."
She took his hand and gently placed a ring into his palm. Itoshi recognized it instantly—Hishiki's ring. The one he always wore. The sight of it broke him, and he cried out loud, the sound raw and unfiltered.
"Yes, ma'am! I will! Thank you so much!"
Miss Koren raised her head to look Itoshi in the eye. She was still smiling, even through the tears.
"I'll never stop being thankful for what you've done... Itoshi-kun."
Itoshi forced his voice out, making his final promise.
"Yes, ma'am!"
~~~April 1, 2159~~~
It was a bright, sunny day. Five-year-old Itoshi was playing outside the Kiyagari household with his toy Supra, zooming it around with childish glee. Hidden in the branches of a nearby tree, a mischievous young boy named Hishiki watched him with a smirk.
"Psst!"
"!"
"Psst!"
Itoshi's grip on his toy tightened. He was home alone—Mr. and Mrs. Kiyagari, along with Kara, had gone to the market for groceries. Hearing an unseen voice unsettled him.
"Wh-Who's there?!"
Hishiki giggled silently to himself, then put on a spooky mask.
"Psst!"
Itoshi looked around, trying to find where the source of the sound was as he spoke to himself.
"It's... It's coming from that tree..."
Clutching a stick, Itoshi crept toward the tree.
"I know you're behind that tree! I have this.. Uh... H-Holy stick! You—You can't hurt me!"
When he got close enough—
"RRAAAGHH!!"
"WAAAAAAHH!!!"
Itoshi screamed and sprinted back toward the house.
"Mo-Monster!!!"
Laughing, Hishiki pulled off his mask.
"April Fools!"
"Wha—?"
The young boy laughed hysterically after scaring the young Itoshi, flailing in the grass as he did.
"HAHAHAHAHAHA!"
With slight tears in his eyes from fear, Itoshi went cool mode.
"Grr! Who are you? How did you get here?!"
The boy paused, eyes locked into Itoshi before smiling.
"My name's Hishiki Koren! That face you made was funny as heck!"
"You did all that just to scare me?!"
Itoshi asked, annoyed.
Hishiki mischeivously answered.
"Nope!"
He paused.
"Ah!.. I always see you alone.. Do you have any friends?"
Itoshi jolted, he hesitated before answering.
"I—I have thou—hundreds of them!"
Hishiki smugged.
"Oh yeah? Where are they?"
Itoshi looked to his side, sweating as he hid his palms behind his back.
"Sle—Sleeping. Somewhere..."
To which Hishiki simply replied, as he chuckled.
"I see. Oh well!"
Suddenly, Hishiki grabbed one of Itoshi's toy cars and bolted toward the fence.
"Oi! That's mine!"
Without thinking, Itoshi dashed after him.
They ran into the street, Hishiki just ahead, laughing.
"Oh wow, he's actually coming! Let's see how good of a runner you are!"
"OI.. Wait!!"
Itoshi roared.
They ran down roads and across corners, the chase continuing all the way until sunset.
"Tha—That's mine... Bri—Bring it back..."
Hishiki stood atop a hill, looking down with a grin.
"Come on, then! Take it!"
Itoshi struggled up the hill. At the top, Hishiki pointed at the sunset.
"Look at that!"
Itoshi turned, his eyes going wide with awe.
"Pre—Pretty..."
Hishiki turned to Itoshi, with a big smile etched on his face.
"I know, right?!"
Then he pointed at Itoshi.
"You're crazy for chasing me this far. You're interesting and... Quite stupid! HAHAHA!"
Itoshi paused, remembering the whole reason he chased Hishiki all the way up.
"Give me my car back!"
"Oh yeah, here it is!"
Hishiki handed the toy car back to Itoshi.
"You don't go out much, do you?"
Itoshi hesitated before he answered, Toy car clutched onto his body.
"I—I can't..."
Hishiki blinked, curious.
"Why not?"
"Dad says... no one can protect me outside."
Itoshi barely muttered.
Hishiki pondered.
"Hmm..."
Then.. A Declaration,
"I can protect you! We can play outside a lot!"
Itoshi's eyes lit up.
"Really...?"
Itoshi then took a deep breath before he continued.
"Um... I lied earlier. I don't have any friends."
Hishiki then chuckled.
"I see. Okay then! I'll be your friend. Sounds good, right?"
"Ye—Yeah!..."
Hishiki walked closed towards Itoshi.
"I'll protect you, and you'll protect me."
"Su—Sure!"
Hishiki held out his hand. Itoshi hesitated, then took it and shook it.
"Now let's get you home before your parents get back. Hehehe!"
"Ri—Right!"
Those memories.. Played onto Itoshi's mind over and over again.
[Itoshi's POV]
I thought I'd never see him again after that day... Until he suddenly knocked on my front door.
"Itoshi! Someone's looking for you!"
Mum called out..
I was shocked—it was him. Honestly, I still don't know why he chose me as his only friend... But from that day onward, we started seeing each other again. Just playing, laughing, and having a great time like nothing had changed. Even after my parents passed away... he was there for me.
A few days later, I noticed a ring he was wearing. It was black—simple, but striking.
"What's that ring? Where'd you get it?"
I asked him.
"Oh! I bought it. Wanna take a look?"
He answered.
Hishiki held out his hand. The black ring shimmered slightly in the sunlight.
"Whoa!... Cool!"
I hushed excitingly.
Hishiki smiled at him, that same mischievous-yet-warm grin. Itoshi looked at the ring in Hishiki's hand, his young eyes filled with curiosity—Unaware of how something so small could one day mean so much.
~~~March 30, 2169~~~
Itoshi sat quietly, his thumb tracing the smooth surface of the black ring in his palm—the one Hishiki used to wear—as the rhythmic thrum of the helicopter blades filled the cabin, grounding him in the present.
"Oh! What's that?"
Kara asked, leaning in to see.
"It's Hishiki's old ring,"
He replied, his voice thick with a mix of grief and resolve. He slipped it onto his finger, the metal cool against his skin.
"Thought I'd keep it with me."
Itoshi looked up, shaking off the heavy silence.
"Say, Ryujin... Where are we heading?"
Ryujin turned toward him, his posture calm and commanding, the mark of a true leader.
"We're going to the northern point of Okinawa. There's a commission there."
"I see... And how does this whole thing work, anyway?"
"Basically, we get missions from the Head of U.W.D.S.,"
Ryujin explained.
"Oh—and we've got a license exam coming up. Once we pass, we'll be an official squad. The exam location changes every month. Though, I don't know where the next one is yet."
"Got it."
"Um... What exactly do we do in U.W.D.S.?"
Kara asked softly, her eyes wide as she took in the tactical gear around them.
"Simple. We neutralize Seele. The better we do, the more performance points we earn. Climb enough ranks, and we get access to more privileges, better equipment, and high-value missions,"
Ryujin stated.
Ayro leaned back in his seat, his gaze lazy but observant.
"Not everyone needs to fight head-on. If you can't fight directly, you can support from the rear."
"I see..."
Kara whispered, seemingly comforted by the idea.
"Can you tell us more about the organization itself?"
Itoshi pressed.
Ryujin's expression tightened.
"Not here. Even the helicopter pilots don't know how things work behind the curtain. It's all highly classified—only squad leaders and members get access. For some reason..."
An awkward silence settled over the group, the only sound the mechanical whine of the engine.
Itoshi finally broke it, the question that had been gnawing at him since the beach finally surfacing.
"By the way..."
"Hmm?"
"Back at the last fight... why didn't your attack work on that Seele? It worked fine before."
Ryujin chuckled, meeting Itoshi's eyes with a riddle of his own.
"You ever try fighting water... with water?"
Itoshi blinked, his face going deadpan.
"What?"
Ayro added another clue, shifting lazily in his seat.
"Didn't you notice something about the Seele's appearance?"
Itoshi gave it a long thought, visualizing the creatures they had faced.
"They... had different colors?"
"Exactly. Those colors indicate their elemental type,"
Ayro explained.
"The ones we fought yesterday were water types. That huge one Ryujin fought three weeks ago? Flame type."
Itoshi smacked his fist into his palm, the pieces finally clicking together.
"Ahh, that makes more sense now."
"The one that attacked Yomitan... it was green,"
Kara added, remembering the emerald glow of the monster.
"Wind type. And Itoshi took it down, right?"
Ryujin noted.
"Yeah..."
"Wind's weakness is flame,"
Ryujin continued.
"Here's the basic cycle: Flame beats Wind, Wind beats Earth, Earth beats Water, and Water beats Flame."
Ryujin paused, taking a breath as he looked out the window.
"And there are sub-elements too. Like sand—it's a sub-element of Earth. Strangely, main Earth users are pretty rare... there could be others out there. We just haven't encountered them yet."
The radio hissed and crackled, cutting off the lecture. The pilot's voice came through the static.
"We're here."
Ryujin's tone shifted, becoming sharp and authoritative.
"Alright! Get ready, people."
The helicopter descended slowly, its skids touching down on the rugged terrain of the northern tip of Okinawa Island.
The sun had just dipped below the horizon, bleeding deep orange and purple hues across the sky. In front of them, isolated and quiet, stood a small, humble cafe.
~~~To be Continued~~~