Keppi, still balancing atop the crane, peered down into the chasm and noticed something. “Oh? He’s still alive, ribbit.”
A crane rose up from the abyss, carrying a single, tiny package.
“That’s Haruka’s box!”
The machine began carrying the box through the air, shuttling it away from them.
“Harukaaaa!”
This time he had to get his brother back. Kazuki swore to himself as he and the others dashed after the box. As the crane disappeared in the distance, their group ran up on three large ducts, with Kazuki at the front of their line. They kept silent as they each hopped into a different duct.
Scene 5
THE UNLIT DUCTS were slanted such that they just slipped along the sides on their way down. As he jetted through that darkness, unsure when it would end, Kazuki reflected back on the events of that afternoon.
When they first discovered that Haruka had been kidnapped, he’d received a message on his phone. One from his brother. It was the longest one he had ever received from Haruka before, and it began like this:
To Sara-chan,
This will be the last message I send to you.
Haruka had written it knowing full well that Kazuki would be the one reading it.
I enjoyed every single day that I was able to connect with you. So now that it’s at an end, can I tell you a secret I haven’t been able to share with anyone else?
The angle of the duct suddenly ended, planting him squarely on even ground with no light in sight. Kazuki rolled slightly as he landed but soon hopped to his feet, desperately throwing one leg in front of the other.
I did something really bad, you see. I really love my brother, but I hurt someone he really loves.
“No, Haruka, you’ve got it wrong!” Kappa-Kazuki choked out, speaking to his little brother even though his words would never reach him. He continued aimlessly sprinting forward. Meanwhile, as Haruka still lay fast asleep in his box, tears beaded at the corners of his closed eyes.
I chased after my brother back then because I was scared. Scared he was going to leave me behind. That day, I picked up something his real mother dropped.
It was the sakura fragrance bag. Haruka recognized the scent because he’d smelled it on Kazuki’s clothes when he’d come home.
“Oh, could you be Haruka-kun?” the woman had asked him.
He’d been so much younger then, and he’d frantically yelled at her, “Don’t take Kazu-chan from us! Go home! Don’t come here again!”
She just smiled and said, “It’s okay, don’t worry.” Her smile looked just like my brother’s. And ever since then, Kazu-chan stopped smiling and even threw away his friendship bracelet. I know it’s all my fault, but I just wanted him to stay with me, laugh with me.
Kazuki’s legs got tangled up, sending him skidding to the ground.
I’m so happy for everything my brother’s done for me.
He struggled back to his feet and started forward again, the friendship bracelet dancing around the base of his ankle as he moved.
That’s why I’m not going to give up. I believe that Kazu-chan will come back and smile at me again!
A dim light shone in front of him.
“There’s the exit!”
As he came sprinting out into the neighboring room, he found himself looking out over an enormous dump. When he glanced up, he saw the crane, Haruka’s box dangling from it as it soared through the air toward the center of the room. It was headed for a line of those strange taiko drums floating overhead, fastened together to form a strange structure.
“There he is—Haruka!”
“Kazukii!”
He looked down, following the sound of Enta’s voice. The other two boys had found their way here as well, though their exits led them to slightly different positions.
“We won’t be able to reach him from here!” exclaimed Enta. “What should we do?!” He looked back at Toi, who was standing on a platform further down below.
Toi glared up at the drums and crane overhead and snapped, “Are we gonna have to go back and find another way?!”
Suddenly, the drums roared to life. In the middle of them were sharp, gleaming blades, giving off an eerie, clanking whir as they spun around. Toi spotted a sparkling pile of dust on the floor immediately below them.
“It’s a shredder!”
They each felt a shiver run down their spines.
“Haruka’s going to be ground to dust…!” Kappa-Kazuki gasped, any composure he still had now lost.
Enta glanced around the area. “There’s gotta be something… Do you see anything?!”
“Anything? Like what?!” Kappa-Toi whipped his head around and spotted Keppi, who finally caught up to him.
After a brief moment of silence, Keppi suddenly transformed himself into a round ball. “Sometimes solutions require sacrifice, ribbit. I am sure it will pain you to have to do this, with how adorable and precious I am, but please throw—”
Gonk!
“—me?!”
Kappa-Toi slammed his foot down on the Keppi-ball. Then he bounced the ball up into the air, promptly slamming a kick into it, which sent it rocketing upward. “Jinnai, catch!”
Keppi groaned as he flew through the air. “Geeeugh!”
“Whoa!” The pass connected perfectly as Enta caught the sphere square in his hands.
“Now pass it up to Yasaka! Have him use that ball to stop the crane!”
Enta hesitated. “But Kazuki won’t…”
“Enta!” a voice called from above. When he lifted his head, he saw Kazuki gazing down at him, his expression solemn. “Enta, please pass me the ball!”
“Okay, Kazuki, I’m leaving this one to you!” His deepest wish—the Golden Duo pass—was finally coming true. “Here you…gooooo!”
“Owwwww!”
The Keppi-ball went hurtling through the air straight toward Kazuki.
The crane carrying Haruka’s box finally came to a stop just above the shredder.
Kazu-chan’s a bit stubborn, but he’s also straightforward—always heading straight toward the goal.
“Great job, Enta!” Kazuki got himself a running start before leaping into the air.
Ka-chink! The crane’s arms opened, sending the box plummeting downward. Toi and Enta kept their eyes on Kazuki, praying.
He can be difficult to read, but he’s very kind and warm. I know that well.
“Haruka, I’m never going to give up on you again!” His overhead kick landed hard on the ball, blasting it through the air.
His aim proved to be perfect, and the ball slammed right into Haruka’s box. The recoil, however, sent Haruka’s body tumbling out of the box and straight down toward the jaws of the shredder.
“Ribbit!”
A roar tore through the air as the blades ripped into the box. Its remnants crumbled to the floor in front of Toi, landing neatly on the pile that was already there. Haruka and Keppi were nowhere to be seen.
“Haruka!” Kappa-Kazuki called out weakly, praying as he stared into the air.
From out of the shadow of the shredder, Keppi appeared in parachute form, gliding gently downward. Haruka, still fast asleep, was cradled safely in his long arms.
I’m not the only one who wants to see Kazu-chan’s smile, either.
“Haruka!”
He’s at the center of a great big circle.
Kazuki caught his unconscious brother safely in his arms. Kazuki almost couldn’t believe he was real; but the weight of Haruka’s body and the heat of his skin were proof that he was really here, that Kazuki had regained something precious. Joy rippled up through his body.
“We did it!” the three called out gleefully, their voices rising through that large dumpsite with the word “Love” written over it.
“Sarazanmai!”
That night, the three of them went to the Desire Field that hung over the Azuma Bridge. There, they performed their best “sarazanmai” yet.
“Dishing it out!”
Until now, the three of them had always moved slightly disjointedly, but now they were perfectly in sync. They didn’t hesitate when transferring the shirikodama to each other. None of them cared if their secrets leaked. There was something between them that couldn’t be seen, couldn’t be touched or verified in any way. Something ambiguous. But it was definitely there, linking them together—something shared between their entwined consciousnesses.
Scene 6
“THIS FEELS so much better!”
“Agreed.”
Back at the Kappa Plaza, Enta and Toi had returned to their human forms and were speaking to each other normally.
“I don’t know how to put this, but, um…” Enta started. “Sorry.”
“Nah. It didn’t bother me.” Toi looked away as he answered.
Having finally learned to trust each other, the two turned their gaze to the third member of their group. Kazuki stood with his back to them. He’d been quiet since they regained their human forms, patting his hands over his body as if to confirm he’d really changed back.
“Would you have rather stayed a kappa, ribbit?” asked Keppi, who was badly battered after being kicked around repeatedly.
Kazuki touched the skin of his face as he replied, “It feels weird. I know I’m the same person I was yesterday, but it feels like I’m a whole new human being.”
Enta and Toi watched quietly.
“But…this is really me,” he said, finally looking back at them.
“Kazuki…”
“Hmph. ”
Kazuki gave them a goofy, clumsy smile, as if his muscles were making this expression for the first time. Then he said something that he’d never said before: “Thank you. I’m glad the two of you are with me!”