Chapter 108

“We—We need to stop this,” Konoha said to the man he was facing. “It’s gonna take more than a pistol to kill me…and I’m pretty sure I can beat you in an instant.” I knew Konoha’s body was blessed with incredible physical and regenerative skills. According to what Kido told me, he had a huge hole blown in his stomach and was just fine afterward. That guy must’ve known that. It was obvious he had no chance. “Ah, Konoha. Yeah, you’ve got a pretty sturdy body there. This one wouldn’t stand a chance against you.” He sounded like he was ready to surrender. But his easy smile remained on his face, his finger still on the trigger. “So…how ’bout this, then?” He turned his gun. I thought it’d be on me, but it kept turning…until it was pointed straight at his own head. “Ah…!” I couldn’t help but shout out. “What’re you doing?!” “Hmm? What…? Isn’t it plain as day? I’m gonna blow your father’s brains out.” The sight made me recall the disgusting words I heard not long ago. There, on the roof that evening, he said, “I’m the one allowing both you and your family to stay alive.” Oh. So that’s what he had meant. I thought he was talking about us—the kids. But he had meant he had our father’s life in his hands. “So, now what’re you gonna do, you little brat? It’s all your lives, or this guy’s. Who’s gonna win out?” He was talking to Shintaro, standing stock-still behind the flustered Konoha. Asking him to decide who lives or dies…Nobody could ever do that. Especially someone with Shintaro’s outlook on life. “Hey, now,” the gunman continued, twisted smile on his face, “don’t keep me waiting. Hurry it up, or else I…” “…I thought I told you. It’s over.” The declaration from Shintaro made his smile crumble just a little. “Uhh? What do you think you’re saying?” “Oh, you don’t get it?” Shintaro said, his voice unwavering. “Well, lemme make it clear, then…” Oh great. I was trying to hold it back, but now even I was grinning. Shintaro’s such a hoot. I love him. “Blindfold complete.” Suddenly, the room began to waver, a purple hood twirling in the air before us. The white-haired girl who followed immediately after caught our mortal enemy in her sights. Without another word, he froze in place, returning the room to an uncanny quiet. “…You mind not stealing my lines, Shintaro?” accused a nonplussed Kido. “Oh, what’s a little fun gonna hurt? I kinda needed to say something to round things out just now!” Marie arched her brows at this. “It…I don’t think it sounded that cool.” “Uh? But…nnnhhh…” He brought both hands to his face and fell to his knees. Aw, don’t get so torn up over it, Shintaro. I thought it was kinda neat, myself. Not that I was gonna say it. Not around her. “…Right.” Konoha poked at my dad’s body a bit, then turned around. “Looks like he’s immobile for a while.” Kido let out a sigh of relief. “…Man. That was one risky operation…but I guess it turned out all right. I thought we were dead once Marie ran out of breath on us…” “Y-you guys all run too fast!” a puffy-cheeked Marie protested. “I tried calling for Kano, but he just left me behind…!” “What do you want from us? We couldn’t see you. We had no way of knowing. That’s how the operation worked.” “Yeah,” Shintaro interjected as he stood up and smiled. “But we all still had to be here, or else we couldn’t have caught that guy off guard. But what’s done is done, right? I was kinda scared when he brandished that gun, but…” He was so calm and dignified just a moment ago, when he was talking down our nemesis. Now, there was no sign of it. Ah, well. I kind of liked this Shintaro more, anyway. The operation came as a major surprise when I first heard about it, but I had to admit, Shintaro solved everything for us. Along those lines, I just kinda sat there, stewing in my own juices…Never really did anything at all, in the end. “When he took Dad hostage like that,” I began, “I mean…Man, what a surprise. Like, wow, just like you said he would, Shintaro.” “Ah, it was just an estimated guess on my part,” he replied modestly. “One way or another, I was planning to neutralize him with Marie’s power, anyway.” “Yeah, but…I really owe you one. We could’ve just had Konoha restrain him or something, but you came up with a way to save Dad without hurting him…I dunno how to thank you.” “Ah, geez, quit it,” Shintaro protested, blushing. “That’s not like you at all.” Something about his act was familiar. I don’t think Ayano ever noticed, but Shintaro always smiled at her in a different way from all of us. I never really dug that much. That’s why I was always so cold to him when I started posing as her in school. Now I felt bad about being so mean to him in her form. I’m hopeless. But despite all that, Shintaro let it slide. And now he was smiling at me…just like that. Ahhh, I can’t win against him. He’s invincible. “…So, what now?” Kido said, pointing at our frozen father. “We gotta do something before Marie’s power wears off, don’t we?” “Oh, right. Konoha, did you bring it with you?” “Uh, yeah. You mean this?” Konoha took out a spool of metal wire. “We’re gonna tie him up with this and take him out of the hideout,” Shintaro explained. “Kido can use her ability to keep anyone from noticing us…and that oughta be it, really.” “Yeah,” Kido added, eyes sparkling. “Whatever abilities he has, he won’t be able to use them if he doesn’t have a free body. After that, we can just put ’im through the wringer at our hideout until he coughs up some info on the Kagerou Daze…” “Um, lemme remind you,” I protested, “he is our father, so…” “Oh, I know, I know. You ready, Konoha?” At her command, Konoha began to wrap the wire around my father’s body. I never imagined in a million years we could actually stop him. Or that any one of us actually had a future. If things kept going this well, maybe we really could get my sister out of the Kagerou Daze. Maybe even our mother. I’d never thought about that. Not even once. What would I even say if I ran into them again? There was so much to talk about, I wouldn’t know where to begin. But I knew they’d be smiling for me. Smiling, laughing, talking about all kinds of stuff… …Like an idiot, I was imagining that impossible future right up to the moment that Konoha fell before my eyes.