File: keiichi closeup.jpg (68 KB, 1280x720)

68 KB JPG

>Current task: Resolve the gang violence in Shibuya.

>>Continue to be Airi Hirayama.

It’s seven at night when the phone rings. Dinner had finished and you were sitting on the couch, watching the news. Your brother, on the other hand, was attacking dirty dishes in the kitchen with the same ferocity he uses to fire his guns. There’s a rule in the Hirayama household: those who do not cook must wash up afterwards. It was something your brother only started adhering halfway through his fourteenth year, when Akasha-Alea had entered his life and pounded a sense of discipline into him.

You hear the shrill chime and immediately stand up.

“I’ll get it, onii-chan!” You call out. As you do so, the news program cuts to commercial. A jingle for perfume starts up. The timing is perfect, almost as if the phone was waiting for the break. Before you can make another step, your brother beats you to the punch.

“I’m right here, Airi, stay put.” You see your brother wrench his hands out of the sink and quickly wipe them with a nearby dishcloth. He then grabs the vibrating phone from its charger and puts it to his ears. “Hello? Hirayama residence speaking. This is Keiichi.”

He goes quiet as the person on the other end makes a greeting. His expression at first is one of neutrality and careful listening. It then morphs downwards as the words float into his ear and register with his brain. You watch as the amusement vanishes from his face and becomes replaced with a sort of mild, disappointed resignation. It’s quite like watching an animation reel, slowed down. You’ve seen similar expressions on him back home, usually whenever someone tried to present an argument about why the government should try to ban guns.

“Oh,” He says, his voice noticeably reduced in energy and humor, “It’s you.”

You’re several feet away from him. The voice from the other end is a compressed, tinny squeak to your ears. Nevertheless, you can imagine a woman’s laugh, tickled, pleased and rich. Your brother’s mouth twists awkwardly, as if resisting the muscle memory to scowl.

“Can we make this quick? I’ve got things to do.”

It really doesn’t take a master detective to figure out who your brother is talking to. Honestly, onii-chan, you think to yourself, she’s not that bad. You don’t have to sound so resigned, like you’re about to swallow a bag of sour sweets or something. Just admit that you’re okay with talking to her.

“What am I doing right now? I’m washing the dishes. Say, have you ever done that before?” Your brother says, pulling up a seat at the kitchen table. He then scrunches up his mouth in confusion, “Tuna casserole? No, we don’t eat that for dinner. No, not everybody is as rich as you. Hey, what did you call us for again?”

File: airi finger point.jpg (130 KB, 1280x720)

130 KB JPG

Another pause. This time, your brother sits up, his back now straight. He’s alert. “...about the gang in Shinjuku? Your reasons? Hold on, give a second, okay?”

He lifts the phone from his ear. “How’s Florence?” you ask, entering the kitchen.

“Same as usual.” He says, exhaling deeply. He looks at you, “She wants to talk to both of us, by the way.”

You nod. “I heard. Maybe it’s to do with what happened earlier today?”

“Probably up to something devious as usual. It’s hard to get a read on that girl…” Your brother says, rolling his eyes, “Anyway, putting on the speaker phone.”

Your brother presses a button the phone’s body. He then places it down on the kitchen table, facing up. The two of you crowd around it.

“Hello?” You say, a little uncertain. You’ve rarely ever used the speaker phone, even back in the countryside.

“This is Florence Rutherford, though I believe you already know.” A soft, feminine and familiar voice responds, the words like folds of delicate velvet in a ballroom dress, “A good night to you, Airi Hirayama.”

“Hi Florence!” You greet, breaking out in a smile. “It’s great to hear from you.”

“The same for you, Airi.”

“Say, what did onii-chan say to you? He didn’t say anything too rude, I hope…”

“Oh no, you needn’t worry. Believe me, your brother was as charming as ever. We only engaged in some standard conversation about dinner.” Florence says, producing a small giggle. You can imagine her delicate fingers brushing against the bottom of her chin. In her background, all is quiet. If you remember correctly, Florence resides in one of the very upper-class student dorms in Shinjuku. She must be there now. Back in your apartment, your brother shoots you a perturbed, slightly betrayed look.

“That’s great.” You say, “Listen, if he does say something too nasty, tell me okay? I’ll be sure to give him a good smack on the head.”

A light chuckle. “I’ll keep that in mind. Though, contrary to his beliefs, tuna casserole is delicious.”

“Did he knock something without trying it? Oh, he always does that…”

“I will have to keep that quality of his in mind, then.”

“Could you two girls stop talking as if I’m not here?” Your brother grouses, rolling his eyes. He stares at the screen of the phone, his eyebrow raised. “Hey Florence, get to the point. Tell us why you’re calling.”

“Must I?” Florence replies, somehow managing to convey a pout through sound alone, “I was having a lovely conversation with your sister and I wish to continue it. Do you feel left out? You are welcome to join if you want.”

“It’s more like you girls go on and on and never ever stop.” He grunts, his hands in his pockets of his tracksuit pants. “If you two are going to start talking about shopping, I’m turning this phone off.”

>“That was rude, onii-chan!”
>“I guess we can get too carried away…”
>“I don’t think Florence is like that.”
>“The same can be said for you!”
>“Shall I tell Michiko that?”
>“If you don’t want to come next time, say something!”
>Custom option.

>>771673
>>“That was rude, onii-chan!”
>“The same can be said for you!”
>“Shall I tell Michiko that?”

>>771673
>“That was rude, onii-chan!”
>“The same can be said for you!”
>“Shall I tell Michiko that?”

>>771673
>“That was rude, onii-chan!”

>>771673
>“That was rude, onii-chan!”
>“The same can be said for you!”
>“Shall I tell Michiko that?”

It's good to be back. Writing now...

>>771785
Good to have you back.

File: rrrghhh.jpg (72 KB, 1280x720)

72 KB JPG

“Onii-chan!” You scold, glaring at him. “That was rude!”

“And accurate.” He replies, scowling, “There’s a limit to which a man can listen to girls talk about clothes before it starts to drive him completely insane.”

“Well, the same can be said for you!” You glower at him. He gives you that same, half-bored stare. “I think your guns are boring, too!”

“It’s not my fault you can never remember the names.” Your brother says. “Besides, guns are useful, unlike clothes shopping.”

“Look at that shirt you’re wearing.” You exclaim, tugging on the nylon fabric. It’s pitch black with a simple white logo. “You like it, don’t you? We bought it on that same shopping trip last year. So don’t stand there and tell me that clothes shopping isn’t useful.”

“Yeah, it’s kinda cool.” He admits, shrugging his shoulders, “But the benefits of it are outweighed by that shopping trip being one of the most mind-numbing experiences I’ve ever had.”

His remarks set a flame under your blood. You can feel your cheeks steaming up. Michiko can be right sometimes; he’s such a blockhead. His method of shopping is like one of his bullets: in and out without any time to pause. In other words, he’s seriously missing the point!

“Shall I tell Michiko that?” You say, your eyes narrowed. She was the one who picked out the design.

He thinks about that for a moment. “Do it after we finish this conversation with Florence.” He says. “I still have dishes to do and I have spirit training with my mentor. If I don’t show up on time she’s going to do all sorts of horrible things to me.”

“I’ll have words for you later, onii-chan.” You mutter.

“You’re the one who dragged us into this.” He retorts. “So, Florence…”

“Oh, don’t mind me.” Florence says, “Do continue with your little spat. I’ll just be here, attempting to stifle my laughter.”

He sighs, “Can you get on with it?”

The line goes quiet as Florence thinks, “I believe there is a certain word that is missing from the end of your sentence.”

“You must be remembering things wrong.” Your brother growls.

“We’re sorry we took so long.” You apologize. It may be the time to steady yourself and calm down. You can fling your irritation and your brother later. “Please, continue Florence.”

“I suppose I can appreciate siblings who like to keep things straightforward.” Florence says, faking a sigh. You can hear the confident smirk behind the voice, “Very well then. I will explain my meeting with the leader of the Brave Ravens, Doppo. I left unscathed, but the outcome was less than satisfactory.”

File: megumi.jpg (137 KB, 800x1364)

137 KB JPG

“That’s good to hear.” You begin, then quickly correct yourself. “You being unharmed, I mean.”

You brother breathes in and out, but otherwise remains silent. You can probably guess what he’s thinking. Something like ‘Geez sis, you were worried about Florence? You know she can take care of herself!’ If that’s what’s running through his mind, then it’s rich coming from a boy who dropped everything to help Florence last year…twice!

Florence takes your collective silence as a sign to continue. “I may as well ask you two now. Have you heard a girl named Megumi Ito? Round-faced, warm-cheeked, a brunette with a ponytail hairstyle and a timid disposition?”

“I’m sorry, I haven’t.” You reply, “Is she someone you are looking for?”

“Doesn’t ring a bell.” Your brother grunts. “Dunno why you’re asking us, of all people, Rutherford. You probably already know more than we do.”

“It doesn’t hurt to check, since you two tend to get caught up in all sorts of unique situations. The result was one I expected.” Florence says, sounding a little disappointed, “To elaborate, Megumi Ito is the younger sister of Doppo Ito. She is a student of Stonewolf High, one year younger than I, and a member of the academy’s orchestra, like me. We both play the violin. Recently, she has been acting strangely and I was asked to investigate.”

“Would this be the responsibility of her parents?” You ask.

“They are away from home They do monitor her progress, which is how they found out about her strange behavior.”

“Oh…” Yes, that would make sense. Being one of the most privileged academies in the countries, Stonewolf High is renowned as a hotspot for the sons and daughters of Japan’s white collar upper-class. Children like that tend to not have as much contact with their parents. It’s unfortunate, but different strokes for different types of people, you guess.

“I didn’t know you started running a detective agency.” Your brother says, raising an eyebrow.

“It sounded challenging, and thus interesting.”

“Knew it.” He grumbles.

A pause. “Furthermore, Megumi and I are no strangers; we have played duets together before. Her skills are genuine. As her upperclassman, I have responsibility to, at the very least, ensure her well-being.”

When Florence speaks those words, your brother has his mouth half-open, snarky words balanced on the edge of his tongue. Then he halts and closes it, a frown now in its place. You sense it too. For that hint of concern, even as well concealed as it is, to reside in the words of the oft-confident and smirking Florence Rutherford, she must be worried indeed.

If you saw the girl right now, would she be forcing her smile? Or would there be a flat line instead? The answer to that question is the former. Florence isn’t the type of girl to show her weakness, not in the world she comes from.

“How has she been acting strangely, Florence?” You ask, trying to sound sympathetic.

File: 2aef4b8ff863b2c240b65c2c9(...).jpg (202 KB, 645x911)

202 KB JPG

“In multiple ways,” she responds, then launches into an explanation for several minutes. It’s full of detailed observations of this Megumi’s girl behavior. Context is provided for most of them. What the stories basically boil down to is a combination of classic high school behavior and anti-socialness: missing classes, arriving late to orchestra practice, avoiding questions, leaving school without speaking much, being jumpy and moody. Once, Megumi didn’t return home for an entire day, though it was a weekend. Your brother gets his own glass of water halfway through.

“She’s hiding something.” Your brother observes. “Either that or she’s trying to act like a rich kid’s impression of a delinquent.”

“That is the conclusion I reached, as well.” Florence says.

“Not that it wasn’t particularly hard for you…” Your brother begins, “So you approached this Doppo guy to find out the source behind Megumi’s behavior.”

“Correct. I must confess, I found the sentry outside their hideout much more pleasant to converse with. I know delinquents are not the most well-behaved individuals in the world, but Doppo was particularly uncouth.” Florence laments. “For a leader, he simply could not sit still. Every third word he used was a form of profanity. I would explain his sense of fashion, but would not want to give either of you nightmares.”

“You’re so generous.” Your brother remarks, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

“I do try.” Florence must be smiling on her end, “I will say that I was not harmed in anyway when led to his ‘throne’. He was also surprisingly co-operative upon hearing news of his sister.”

“What did you find out?”

“Nothing much. Apparently leading a delinquent gang is more important than keeping track of one’s own family.” Florence says. There’s a hint of venom in her voice, bitter like poison, “Though, the man became noticeably more alert when I brought the topic up. Stressed, perhaps even panicked, though he did his best to hide it. His words at the end of my discussion seemed to imply he would keep a closer eye on Megumi, though I’m not expecting any great results. I left him with a way to contact me and departed. It seems I will have to find the source of Megumi’s ills in my own way.”

“That’s nice and all, but what’s it got to do with us?” Your brother asks. Oh, you recognize that stance. He’s fully alert now. His eyes are focused dots, like those of a hawk’s. His mentor has taught him well.

“For a very simple reason, Keiichi. I believe this information pertains to your current situation. The three of us may be able to co-operate together.”

“What situation?” He grouses, staring at the phone’s monitor. “Weren’t you listening to Airi? We asked about the gangs because we want our friends to stay away from them.”

File: ab2b8dc9139b681263986fdfa(...).png (917 KB, 769x1136)

917 KB PNG

“Come now,” Florence says, her tone still friendly and warm, “You and I both know there are ulterior motives behind your questions.”

Your brother shifts in his spot. “Tell us, then.” He retorts, his voice hard.

“Your friends are some of True Hearts’ best. There is little chance of them being harassed by mere delinquents. You two are not the most sociable of students in your own academy, thus there would be little need for you to watch out for the less capable ones.” The smugness in Florence’s words is palpable. You can almost see her refined and self-satisfied grin in the air in front of you, as if she had just checkmated her opponent. “No, I believe your intentions with the gangs are somewhat more suspect. Something about quieting the violence between the gangs on behalf of the Japanese government, perhaps?”

“How do you know that?” Your brother asks, his growl betraying his surprise. He spares a glance at you, his gaze full of questioning. You don’t have an answer to that.

“Simple. I called Makoto Kushikawa and asked him to explain it to me.” Florence answers. Short, sweet and straight to the point. It’s like summarizing the daily weather.

“That dumbass…” Your brother snarls, clenching a fist.

“I thought that was supposed to be a secret!” You exclaim.

“I did explain to him I would find out anyway, using my connections. He was rather forthcoming in his explanations.” Florence explains, “He said that he would be delighted if someone else would help the two of you. It would lighten the burden on your backs, so he said.”

“That’s…nice of him?” You mumble.

Your brother, in contrast to you, slams his palm onto his face and scrunches up his nose, his usual scowl now apparent more than ever. “How the hell did you think of asking him?”

“He is the student council president. If anyone is aware of the antics of the infamous SwordxGun siblings, it’s him.”

Your brother has his finger raised, about to make a point. He hears, falters and lowers it. Then he grits his teeth and groans. “Great, this is just what we need. Rutherford shenanigans in our already bullshit shenanigans…”

“Don’t worry, I won’t interfere with your work after this.” Florence’s chuckles, an elegant and high series of notes. “Rather, I’ll be eagerly awaiting the tales that will sprout from your results.”

“I don’t know what else I expected.” Your brother mutters, “So, you understand the situation, then? Why are you offering to cooperate with us?”

“Because the two of you are my dear acquaintances, of course.”

“Okay, and what’s the actual reason?” Your brother says.

A dramatic sigh comes out from the speakers. “How cruel, Keiichi Hirayama. You have made me pout. I may even shed a tear. Are you implying I cannot do things out of the goodness of my heart?”

“You just said you find us interesting to observe, so no.” Your brother bites back.

File: 1459524431058.png (339 KB, 811x720)

339 KB PNG

>>771949
Oh. So this is how you broke up your essay.

File: particularly starry sky.jpg (212 KB, 1280x720)

212 KB JPG

“You must be very entertaining at parties. Consider it like thus, then. Doppo is clearly under a great deal of stress and he is obviously channeling it into his gang violence. Finding Megumi will obviously calm him down. By working together, I ensure that my underclassman is unharmed and you make progress in your endeavor.”

“That makes sense.” You comment.

“The two gangs clearly have beef with each other and finding one leader’s little sister isn’t going to resolve everything.” Your brother points out, “You gonna just jump ship once we find Megumi?”

“Oh no, quite the opposite. If you agree, I intend to see this endeavor through.”

“Why?”

“Imagine this. The delinquents of Shinjuku have been harassing the innocent students of Stonewolf High for years. Their plight reaches the ears of one of the academy’s stop students, who takes the initiative to dissolve the gang and stop the harassment. The news then spreads to the rest of the students.” A pause, as Florence presumably smiles and maybe intertwines and flexes her fingers. “Can you imagine the wonders this would do to the reputation of this mysterious top student?”

That is…impressive. And disgusting, if your brother’s shocked look is anything to go by.

Florence giggles. “Like I said, it’s only a hypothetical scenario. I suppose delinquents would make good target practice for a new form of my magic art, too. Now, Hirayama siblings, will you accept my offer or not?”

The room falls into silence. The tap above the kitchen sink drips and you are barely aware of it. This question requires some thought. While you’ve run into her a couple of times in the past, you haven’t really interacted much with Florence. That’s always been left up to your brother. It’s not exactly the most peaceful of relationships. From a surface view, the two of them get along like water and oil. Every time they meet, words like daggers fly back and forth, usually starting from Florence’s end. Yet, it’s never anything serious. Your brother hasn’t ripped Florence’s psyche a new one and she hasn’t crushed him beneath the might of her influence either. It’s as if they are deliberately restraining themselves.

That aside, Florence isn’t unfriendly. Clever, intelligent, devious and with a penchant for acting like she is the center of the world, but not hostile. You like to think the two of you had a good conversation earlier today. In terms of her strength, you’ve seen videos of her fighting online. Her title as one of Stonewolf’s top students is not undeserved.

It may be prudent to have her allied with you. Then again, she is notorious for manipulating others…

>“We’d be glad to have you on board.”
>“Sorry, I think we should act separately.”
>“Please do not try to bend us to your will.”
>“Try not to argue too much…”
>Custom option.

>>772016

>“We’d be glad to have you on board.”
>“Please do not try to bend us to your will.”
>“Try not to argue too much…”


Ten bucks Megumi is dating the other gang leader

>>772016
>“We’d be glad to have you on board.”
>“Please do not try to bend us to your will.”
>“Try not to argue too much…”

>>772016
>“We’d be glad to have you on board.”
>"Please try to get along with my brother."

>>772007
On retrospect that may not have been a good idea.

Writing now...

You weren't kidding when you said the opening post was long

>>771958
>If that’s what’s running through his mind, then it’s rich coming from a boy who dropped everything to help Florence last year…twice!
Sasuga onii-chan

File: dark couches.jpg (126 KB, 1280x720)

126 KB JPG

The task you have been assigned to do is far from easy. Ending the violence between two gangs, both of which are rumored to have over fifty members? That’s not something you can do alone. You need all the help you can get. You know this. Your brother understands it, even if he does put on a show and dance of being reluctant and exasperation.

“Ugh, seems like we don’t have a choice.” He sighs. “You better not try any stupid business, got it?”

“We’d be glad to have you on board.” You say to the phone. “Please try to get along my brother. Don’t argue too much.”

“Then it is agreed.” Florence smiles, “I look forward to our mutual co-operation. I’ll send you the photo of Megumi now.”

“What?” Your brother asks. Any other question is silenced by the simultaneous beeping of your mobiles. You take yours out—a slightly-scratched Orange model from last generation—and inspect it. There’s a message from an unknown person, no prize to whomever figures out the answer. A photo is attached to it. You open it to see a photo of the Megumi girl in a school uniform. Given how formal the girl’s posture is and the plain nature of the background behind her, this must be a school-taken photo.

“How the hell did you these numbers?” Your brother asks, gripping his phone in a claw-like hand.

“It’s amazing what one can find on the Internet these days.” Comes Florence’s swift reply.

“Oh, for the love of—”

And that is how the Hirayama siblings and Florence Rutherford formed their alliance. Florence leaves you after that, giving her phone number and reminding you to update her if any new developments occur. Your brother goes back to wash the dishes in a disgruntled fashion, then spends the rest of the night being lectured by a short girl in a funeral dress. You go back to watching the television and do some homework. It’s rather comfortable.

Before bed, you bring up the argument about clothes shopping. He snarls at you. You point fingers at his clothes. He tries to shut his bedroom door before you can come in and find examples in his wardrobe. Predictably, it all goes nowhere.

File: the sound of bells and an(...).jpg (169 KB, 1280x720)

169 KB JPG

>>Be Airi Hirayama the next morning.

You are Airi Hirayama, a fact that hasn’t changed, and you are eating breakfast with your brother. Tea, rice, eggs and last night’s leftover chicken. You cooked some tofu and spinach for some good measure. Practically all the foods you eat are rich in iron. If they aren’t, Shesmur gets irritable.

It’s another sunny day. You hear the chirps of birds and the rumbles of traffic from the open kitchen window.

“Hey sis…” Your brother begins, swallowing a bite of boiled egg immersed with soy sauce.

“What is it, onii-chan?”

“What do you want to do now?”

“Are you talking about the task we’ve been assigned to do?” You ask.

“What else would I be talking about?” He sounds a little annoyed.

“You could be talking about what to do on the weekend. Or life in general.”

“Good point.” He nods, “But yeah, I want to talk about what we should do.”

“Have you thought of anything?”

“Yeah, but I want to know your opinions as well.”

You think. To recap, your task is to quell the violence between two delinquent biker gangs, the Red Skull Rockers of Shibuya and the Brave Ravens of Shinjuku. According to Takiji, the second-in-command of the Red Skulls, the Brave Ravens have been harassing the Red Skulls—infringing on their ‘property’, making graffiti, beating up their guys—for quite some time. However, Abe, a lieutenant in the Brave Ravens, said that the Red Skulls were doing the same things to them. They even purposefully attacked some Brave Ravens in Shibuya.

There’s an obvious contradiction here! Which side is lying? Is it all a huge coincidence? Did the two gangs somehow manage to offend each other at the same time, knocking down the proverbial first domino and setting off this huge, tangled chain of events? Or is this is the work of a higher, malicious third party?

It’s muddling your brain. Perhaps you need to investigate the situation a bit more? Florence has given her assistance, after all.

“Oh, by the way, Kushikawa called and said the police can’t help us. He hung up before I got a definite answer, the bastard.”

“That sounds strange…”

“You’ve only realized that just now?” Your brother grumbles. “Maybe it’s got something to do with how the gangs aren’t technically breaking any laws, or they don’t have enough evidence to nail them.”

“That sounds pretty reasonable.”

“The fact that I’m attempting to find logic in this is scary, sis. Anyway, what’s your answer?”

>“Let’s sneak into the Red Skulls’ hideout.”
>“Let’s sneak into the Brave Ravens’ hideout.”
>“Maybe we should wait and see how this situation plays out.”
>“We should try and find this Megumi girl.”
>“We should investigate Takiji.”
>“We should investigate this Abe guy.”
>“Maybe we need to try and look at other sources…”
>“Let’s just wipe them all out…”
>Custom option.

>>772333
>“We should try and find this Megumi girl.”
>“We should investigate Takiji.”
>“We should investigate this Abe guy.”

>>772333
>“We should try and find this Megumi girl.”

>>772333
Can we go back to being K1?
>“We should try and find this Megumi girl.”
>“We should investigate Takiji.”
>“Let’s sneak into the Red Skulls’ hideout.”

>>772333
>>“We should try and find this Megumi girl.”
>>“We should investigate Takiji.”
>>“We should investigate this Abe guy.”

File: blindingly bright day.jpg (272 KB, 1280x720)

272 KB JPG

“Mmm…we should try and find this Megumi girl.” You state, “We did promise Florence that we would.”

“Sure.” Your brother says, “I think we should take a look at those Takiji and Abe guys. They look kinda suspicious to me.”

“Won’t that be dangerous, though?”

“Eh, if we stay out of their sight, it should be fine.”

“Let’s be careful then.”

“Yeah.”

“Maybe this Megumi girl knows something?”

“Eh, given that she’s from a private school like us, I doubt it.”

It’s another ordinary morning the Hirayama household. In the city, that is. Back home, your parents are having a debate over the types of rice that go into the cooker.

[Choose your perspective]
>Keiichi Hirayama.
>Airi Hirayama.

>>772532
>>Keiichi Hirayama.

>>772532
>>Keiichi Hirayama.

>>772532
>Keiichi Hirayama.

File: 1476583105693.png (189 KB, 298x356)

189 KB PNG

>>Be Keiichi Hirayama.

You decide to stop being the girl and be a boy again. You are now Keiichi Hirayama. Your job, at present, is to find this missing Megumi girl. To that end, you call up one of your friends and beg them for help. The conversation goes something like this:

“Hey Michiko, can you do us a favour?”

“There’s already an alarm going off in my head but sure, what is it, Keiichi?”

“Hold on, I’m sending you a photo. And…there. Did you get it?”

“This is a picture of a girl? Her hair looks nice and those shoes…aren’t they the ones only found in Parco? Wow, I think those are the super-expensive type too. She’s a Stonewolf High student too.”

“I guess you haven’t seen her before.”

“Nope, never before in my life. What, is she a friend of yours?”

“Her name is Megumi and we sort of need to track her down. It’s important to the stuff we’ve been told to do by the government.”

“Wait, this girl is related to that? Aren’t you guys trying to end the gang violence in the city?”

“It’s complicated. If you want to know how I got this photo, it was a present from Rutherford.”

“Florence Rutherford, the queen of Stonewolf? Um, okay…?”

“Try not to think too much about it. Your brain will hurt less. Can you spread the word around your friends and help us find this girl?”

“Wait, are you trying to use me as your personal spy network?”

“Well, you do have a lot of acquaintances. You practically know every fashion shop worker in the city.”

“That’s a huge overstatement! You’re not falling for the rumors they say about me, are you?”

“You have more contacts than me or Airi. Look Michiko, if you do this I’ll treat you to that sushi in that place you like. You can order whatever you like and I won’t give you crap about it. I’ll even explain this whole situation to you.”

“…geez, Keiichi, you sure know how to push a girl’s buttons.”

“Is that a yes?”

“I’m already in the process of doing it. You don’t have to go that far, either. Just buy me some tea and tell me about it.”

“…no, I think I want to eat sushi now.”

“…huh?”

“Let’s go and eat sushi anyway, Michiko.”

“Hang on, I said you didn’t need to.”

“No, this is entirely my decision. You like sushi and I think it’s good too, so let’s eat some together! What date is the best for you?”

“This is sudden of you...”

“Who cares? Sushi is fucking awesome. Now choose a date already.”

“Um, weekend lunches and nights…I guess…”

“Great. I’ll invite my sister along too.”

“I’m not opposed to this or anything, but if you wanted to eat sushi why didn’t you say so at the start?”

“Because I thought up the idea ten seconds ago. How does in two days’ time sound?”

“Sounds good?”

“Cool. See you soon.”

“I feel like I’ve missed some sort of point here...like you’re somehow forcing me to do something.”

“Michiko, it’s not forcing if you like it!”

“Hey, what the heck is that supposed to mean?” she splutters.

>>772679
K1 is a master of confusion fu

>>772679
>“Michiko, it’s not forcing if you like it!”
That's the reasoning behind 90% of hentai sex scenes.

File: summer time city.jpg (136 KB, 1280x720)

136 KB JPG

And that was the end of that. On the arranged date, you and your sister would eat at a nice little sushi place in the 109 department store. Michiko would bring up the shirt issue. You would vehemently deny it by stuffing your mouth with salmon and seaweed.

It’s Tuesday today. Then, it’s Friday. Three days have passed without much happening. You and Airi go to school, hang out with your mates and try to look into the Megumi issue. Your efforts are fruitless for the most part. Shibuya is a maze of buildings and chrome and finding any person there is like trying to pinpoint a single speck of gunpowder in the world’s largest armory.

“I could do that.” Akasha-Alea whispered in your head, “It would only require 24-hours.”

You told her to shut up, because you were researching the gang violence online. You scoured the web on your banged-up laptop, your eyes skimming the surface of the screen. You did this every night, in between maths homework, training in Akasha’s domain and exercising.

>Juvenile gangs in Shinjuku growing more violent…
>Graffiti found on the doors of local convenience store…
>Reports of joyriding from angry apartment residents in Shibuya…
>Man robbed and beaten outside train station…
>House vandalized by unknown assailants, owner claims local gang Red Skull Rockers is to blame…

All you found were a bunch of headlines from months back, warbling about how the gangs were violent thugs and that the police should do something about them. You agreed with the overall sentiment, but the articles didn’t really explain why the gangs had ended up the way they did. Maybe it’s because the gang members came from troubled family, you had thought. You then imagined yourself dressing up as a counsellor and breaking up the gangs through the power of comforting words and firm handshakes. It was a stupid idea; you closed your laptop and did some push-ups to forget about it.

On Thursday, Florence called with news. “Megumi did not go to school today. Her excuse was that she is sick.”

“Is she actually sick?” You asked.

“I called her residence. An answerphone responded, saying that she was sick. It was in her own voice.”

"That sounds shady as hell. What, did the teachers over at your end not take notice? Do they allow kids to call sick without their parents' permission at Stonewolf?"

"Apparently the teachers received word from Megumi's parents. There's not much I can do, if that's the case."

“Then, did you get Megumi's house?”

“I did. There was no answer when I rang the doorbell.”

“So she’s skipping school for some reason.”

“That is my assumption, yes. Perhaps I should pay someone to monitor her house for 24 hours…”

“Don’t do that, that sounds creepy as hell.”

>>772942
>“I could do that.”
Cheeky cunt. Best girl has made herself clear.

>>773002
>it’s rich coming from a boy who dropped everything to help Florence last year…twice!

It seems Keiichi has already made up his mind over who is best grill

>>772942
>Perhaps I should pay someone to monitor her house for 24 hours…
Annoying paparazzi boy would do it for free if you told him there was some good dirt to be dug up.

File: insert sharp noise here.jpg (123 KB, 1280x720)

123 KB JPG

On Wednesday, you went to Hideki for help. He agreed (“No problem, leave it to me, buddy!”), but not before begging you for a drink. You got the two of them canned coffee. If he’s asking, then you’re choosing. The guy winked and rushed off after school to do his work. It was only until Friday morning he got back to you with results.

“Hey, guess what? I think I saw the girl you were looking for last afternoon, around five. She was hanging out near a café in Harujuku, a paper bag in hand. That’s actually close to our school, isn’t it? Why don’t you check the place out?”

“You didn’t go up to her?”

“Sorry man, I was on the bus to Shinjuku. When I got back, she was gone. She did look like she was waiting for someone.”

“Alright, thanks for the tip.”

It’s an admittedly weak lead, but it’s the only one you’re got.

Which brings you to where you are now. You are sitting in a small café, the Dog Lane coffee shop, drinking a latte and watching the crowds of this little corner of Harujuku. You gulp down bitter brew and scan over the crowd. A lot of girls in trendy fashions, but none like the target that you seek. You try to order a cake from the menu and Akasha reprimands you in a way that reminds you of suppressed machine gun fire. A pathetic little cup of yogurt is what results from the exchange.

“I wonder if there’s anywhere better I could spot her from…” You mumble to yourself.

“That roof over there would be adequate. You could snipe any number of targets from there.” Your mentor states, “Alternatively, you could position multiple hidden cameras in various places and review the footage later.”

“…yeah, I don’t think that’s possible for me right now.” For one, you don’t have a sniper rifle. Your old bolt-action one was destroyed in the accident that put you and your sister in the hospital. According to the material you’ve read, sniping is a whole new ballfield in the deep and immersive world of firearms, unlike most of what you have learned already. When you brought this up to Akasha, she contemplated and mentioned that if you dropped absolutely everything right now, she could train you into a competent sniper in less than a year. You’re not sure if you want to find out.

The café you’re in is straight across from a bakery. There’s apparently a sale right now for special melon bread. You mix yogurt with blueberry sauce and spoon it into your mouth and watch as the crowd around it gathers. Then your eyes widen.

“Ah, your target. What now, boy?”

A brown-haired girl is pawing at the counter, mumbling out her orders to the bakers. Her clothes are considerably more casual and she’s pulled a hoodie up, but that face is unmistakable. It’s Megumi.

You tense. The girl is busy receiving her bread, but soon she’ll be gone. What should you do?

>Go up and pretend to buy some bread.
>Stay out sight and follow her.
>Go up and attempt to make conversation.
>Call Florence.
>Call Airi.
>Use your pistol for coercion.
>Custom option.

>>773158
>>Call Airi.
>Stay out sight and follow her.
Airi could always call Florence if she wants.

>>773158
>>Stay out sight and follow her.
>Call Florence.
>Call Airi.

>>773158
>Call Florence.
>Stay out sight and follow her.

Going to take a lunch break for thirty minutes. Feel free to discuss shit when I'm gone.

Seems like Sundays are rather quiet around here...

>>773158
>Call Airi.
>Stay out sight and follow her.

>>773158
>>Stay out sight and follow her.
It's better to not call Florence since the girl will recognize her

>>773158
>Call Airi.
>Stay out sight and follow her.

Back and writing...

File: checking the shopping list.jpg (95 KB, 1280x720)

95 KB JPG

>>Keiichi: Call Airi.

“Onii-chan?”

“Hey, Airi. I’ve found Megumi. She’s over in Harujuku.”

“Oh, that’s great! What are you going to do now? Do you want me to run over?”

You glance back towards the bakery, tense. Megumi has finished paying and is grabbing her paper bag full of bread. She’s walking away now, a smile on her face and a spring in her step. The crowd of Shibuya reaches out to swallow her. You slam down some cash, not bothering with the change and exit the café.

“Nah, I’ll be following her. I’ll update you as I go.”

“Should I call Florence?”

“Maybe not yet, since this Megumi girl looks like she’s hiding something. If Florence appears, she might scarper.” You hurry along the sidewalk, ducking and weaving between pedestrians. Megumi’s brown hair is a dark guiding light in your vision. You focus on it and keep up the pace. “Look, I’ll catch you later. I have to move.”

“Okay, then. Good luck!”

You put your phone in your pocket and walk forwards. Out of the two of you, your sister is probably the one who is more suited to tailing. It goes with the blood kunoichi path her spirit partner seems intent on guiding her along. You’ve seen her scale the sides of buildings and dash over rooftops, using her chain as support. The only person in the class who would outmatch her is Hideki.

On the other hand, you have keen observation skills, honed by years of staring down sights and hitting metal targets with bullets.

“There will be enemies you can only defeat while their guard is down.” Akasha-Alea states in your head, “You will need to shadow them until you can find the right moment to strike. This scenario, while of considerably lighter difficulty, should provide ample experience to you.”

“Do you have to make a training exercise out of everything?” You grumble back.

“You will tail this girl until she reaches her destination. Blend in the crowd as much as possible, but do not lose your guard. If you fail, there will be extra training.”

Typical. Well, there’s nothing to do but to get down to it.

>Roll d30 to follow Megumi without being spotted.
>Best out of three.

Rolled 13 (1d30)

>>773465
d30? Ok.

Rolled 8 (1d30)

>>773465
Here goes nothing.

Rolled 12 (1d20)

>>773465
D30?

Rolled 3 (1d30)

>>773465
welp

Subtle we aren't.

File: tg decision making skills.png (13 KB, 841x210)

13 KB PNG

>>773549
Time to go full retard?

File: no way.jpg (71 KB, 1280x720)

71 KB JPG

“See how her steps hurry? She has spotted you out of the corner of her vision.”

“It can’t be that bad.”

“You should pick up your pace. Otherwise, you will lose her. Actually, never mind.”

“Say what?”

“Because that girl has just gone over to a nearby police officer.”

“What?”

>>Keiichi: Inspect the scenario.

Your spirit mentor is correct. As usual. God damn it.

“By the way, that counts as failing. There will be extra training tonight, I will come and pick you up. I think a review of semi-automatic rifles will do. Do try and not get arrested.”

>Pull out your firearm.
>Try to explain the situation as best as you can.
>Run away in the opposite direction.
>Call Airi.
>Call Florence.
>Duck into a near shop and pretend to be busy.
>Custom option.

>>773581
>>Duck into a near shop and pretend to be busy.

>>773581
>Duck into a near shop and pretend to be busy.

>>773581
>>Duck into a near shop and pretend to be busy.
>Call Airi.

>>773581
>>Pull out your firearm.
This is the time to brute force it right?

>>773581
>Run away in the opposite direction.
>Call Airi.
>Call Florence.
I need an adult!

>>773581
>Call Airi, check your surroundings, pass it off like you were trying to find your way around, and simply used her as sort of guide to get somewhere else, and when they ask why didn't you just ask, state that you didn't really want to bother her. Don't make yourself look suspicious, make yourself look awkward.

File: keiichi OH SHIT.jpg (160 KB, 1280x720)

160 KB JPG

>>Keiichi: Duck into a nearby shop and pretend to be busy.

Yeah, this sounds like a good idea, considering there’s a six-foot tall cop in a suit stomping through the crowd towards you this instant. You look sideways. Oh, wow, there’s a flower shop over there. How very interesting! Since the majority of your friends are girls (for some reason), it would be prudent to check it out in preparation for a certain day—the last iteration of which was around two months ago. Also, you better call your sister, because she’s feminine and feminine people know about flowers.

“Hello, onii-chan?”

“Airi, I think I might be arrested soon.”

“W-what?” she exclaims.

“Megumi caught me tailing her and there’s a policeman marching towards me.” Whoa, aren’t these the flowers Takai likes? You only know this because Airi brought some over to her pigsty of a room and Takai commented about how they were ‘okay’. Your city childhood friend can be so weird. “I’m near Parco at the moment.”

You feel a hand clamp down on your shoulder. You fall silent.

“Onii-chan?” Airi calls.

Slowly, you turn your head around. You gaze into a policeman’s face, the creases on which are likes the ridges and grooves in a weathered boulder. His mustache is practically a small animal. Megumi is hovering behind him, hands together and sweating with nervousness.

“Excuse me, young man, may I have a moment?” the policeman rumbles.

You raise your mobile to your ear. “Call you back soon, sis,” You say, then hang up amidst her protests. You swallow and direct your attention to the cop. He looks far from happy. Those arms of his are like tree trunks. You get the impression that unloading the entire magazine of your Howa into this man wouldn’t slow him down for an instant. His circuits are probably buzzing with mana.

“This young lady said that you have been stalking her for the past half hour.” The policeman states. Behind him, Megumi gulps. Resisting the urge to back away is getting harder by the second. “What do you have to say about that?”

A small crowd of around half a dozen is gathering around you. The store clerk is looking your way, presumably because this is the most exciting thing to happen to her all day. Well, in a such a situation you better calm your quavering heart, think carefully and then respond with rationality and—

“If you wish to incapacitate him, boy.” Akasha-Alea speaks up, “Remember that you possess metal bullets.”

Not helping, dammit…

>“Hey, aren’t you the girl Rutherford was looking for?”
>“I think she must be imagining things.”
>“I’m actually lost and I thought I could use her as a guide.”
>“No, I’ve been looking for this flower shop the entire time.”
>“I know a friend of hers.”
>“Don’t you have anything better to do?”
>Custom option.

>>773756
>>“I think she must be imagining things.”
>“No, I’ve been looking for this flower shop the entire time.”
What could possibly go wrong?

>>773756
>“I think she must be imagining things.”
>“No, I’ve been looking for this flower shop the entire time.”
>Girlfriend and I had a bad argument, was calling my sister for flower advice. Hey you wouldn't happen to know flower etiquette would you? She's big into that crap.

>>773756
Supporting >>773793

>>773756
>“No, I’ve been looking for this flower shop the entire time.”
Definitely just nervous because we're trying to surprise someone but don't know how. Definitely nothing to do with a secret fear of handcuffs. Nope.

File: flower.jpg (115 KB, 1280x720)

115 KB JPG

“I think she must be imaging things.” You say, looking at Megumi. She makes a small ‘eep’ sound and ducks behind the policeman, like a cub bear retreating behind its big strong mother. “You see, I’ve been looking for this flower shop the entire time.”

“Oh?” The policeman says, unconvinced.

“Yeah, because this shop is pretty famous…” It is at that point you realize the flower shop is half-empty, “…and I like the atmosphere here?”

“Really? Because when I saw you outside, you didn’t seem like you were heading into this shop.”

“I was deep in thought!” You protest, trying your hardest to sound as put-upon and annoyed as possible. Akasha-Alea isn’t giving you any advice. You wonder if she’s laughing at you. Well, given her nature, the best she’d be able to do is a quiet snicker. “Because my girlfriend and I had a nasty spat and I was debating on what gift to get her. I called my sister because she’s good at flower symbolism and etiquette, that kind of stuff. Say, would you know anything about that crap?”

“Uh-huh…”

The faces of all the girls you know flash into your mind’s eye. You really have no idea what you’re saying. Maybe you should just drop everything and leg it.

“Well son,” The policeman begins, folding his powerful arms, “Next time, don’t do anything that would cause a young lady to panic.”

“I get you, I get you. I’ll be careful next time. Now, if you excuse me…” You move over to the flower stands and make a show and dance of browsing through them. The labels are as foreign to you as the names of the guns in Akasha-Alea’s armory during your first visit there. You glance over your shoulder to see that the policeman is still behind you, staring at your back. Megumi is fidgeting at the entrance.

Wait, does he expect you to actually buy the flowers? Is he checking that your story is genuine? Hey, these are expensive, you know! You only have enough money to buy one set of flowers...

[Make your selection]
>Flowers that symbolize cheerfulness, for the one you offended and then reconciled with.
>Flowers that symbolize friendship, for the one lurking in your past.
>Flowers that symbolize glory, for the one you clash and enjoy with.
>Flowers that symbolize gratitude, for the one who accepted you and whom you accepted back.
>Flowers that symbolize elegance, for the one who observed and searched for you.
>Do you really have to buy anything?
>Call Airi for help.
>Call Florence and tell that Megumi is here.
>Run away.
>Custom option.

>>774016
>>Call Florence and tell that Megumi is here.
"You know that thing that you wanted? Found it right here."

>>774016
>>Flowers that symbolize cheerfulness, for the one you offended and then reconciled with.
>Call Airi for help.

>>774016
>>Flowers that symbolize cheerfulness, for the one you offended and then reconciled with.
>>Call Airi for help

>>774016
>Flowers that symbolize cheerfulness, for the one you offended and then reconciled with.
Now if you will excuse me I am off to that one famous chocolate shop right over ... that direction.

Out of curiosity, who do you guys think the flowers that symbolize cheerfulness are for? You don't have to answer this.

Writing now...

>>774016
>Flowers that symbolize cheerfulness, for the one you offended and then reconciled with.

>>774075
Michiko. Offend her on the first day, gun her down easy, then make it up to her.

>>774016
>>Flowers that symbolize elegance, for the one who observed and searched for you.

>>774075
Michiko, most likely.

File: when he sees it.jpg (61 KB, 1280x720)

61 KB JPG

Flowers that symbolize cheerfulness? How does anybody get that from a green stick with leaves and petals on top? This label doesn’t mean anything! Whatever, you might as well pretend to take it. If you do end up buying this for whatever reason, you can just pawn it off to Michiko. Girls like her enjoy receiving flowers, right?

>>Keiichi: Call Airi for the third time today.

“Airi, do we have enough money back home?”

“What’s going on now?” She asks, a little exasperated.

“I’m being coerced by the biggest policeman on earth to buy some flowers.”

“I don’t understand you at all, onii-chan.” You think Airi might be shaking her head. “You’re in the flower shop near Parco, correct?”

“What about it?”

“Is the Megumi girl there?”

“Yeah, she’s still standing around the entrance of the shop, for some reason.”

“Okay, I have a confession to make. I’m standing outside the shop.”

“You what?’

“Also, Florence is with me.”

Oh, now that certainly changes things. A chime rings from behind and you turn around. Two girls are entering the shop: your sister and Rutherford. Airi looks a little apologetic whereas Florence has that expression sadistic hunters possess when they have successfully cornered their prey. Megumi shakes on her spot, the bag of bread threatening to slip from her hands.

“F-florence…” She stutters, trembling.

“Hello, Megumi.” Florence says, smiling like a predator, “Fancy seeing you here in Shibuya.”

“T-that’s…”

“Your parents are awfully worried about you. They have asked me to investigate you. May we have a private talk together?”

“I…”

“Now hold on a moment.” The policeman steps up, his footsteps thumping against the hard plastic ground. “You two better not be intimidating this poor girl. She’s been through enough—” he stops upon getting a closer look at Florence’s uniform. When he speaks again, it’s with uncertainty. “Are you from Stonewolf?”

“Why, yes I am. This girl here happens to be underclassman. I am responsible for caring her. I do thank you for your assistance, good sir.” Her words are honeyed and sickly sweet. “If it weren’t for you, all manner of ruffians might have snatched her up. We will be taking our leave now. So please, if you will excuse us…”

In a motion so smooth it could have impressed a stage critic, Florence ushers the Megumi out of the flower store and into the warm afternoon sunlight. Airi follows, nodding at you. The policeman seems a little bewildered. You put the flowers back in the stand and hurry up after them.

File: 1466694604606.jpg (143 KB, 810x1000)

143 KB JPG

Minutes later, the four of you have crashed at yet another café, a wide one with those large puffy sofas that give off an air of privacy. If you had 100 yen for every eatery place in Shibuya…well, at the very least you could pay off the electric and gas bills for a long time. Airi orders green tea for everyone. Florence sits down next to Megumi, in the exact position to cut off means of physical safe. The poor girl looks like she’d rather take her final exams than be here.

Florence smiles. Or maybe it’s a smirk, as Megumi squeaks and shrinks back. The aged waitress comes by with the green tea and is oblivious to her plight. Perhaps she has seen it all and no longer cares.

>“Calm down. None of us are going to hurt you.”
>“Why is a Shinjuku student here in Shibuya, alone?”
>“Do you know anything about your brother’s activities?”
>“Give her some space, Florence.”
>“Who are you looking for?”
>“Where are you living right now?”
>Custom option.

>>774234
>>“Do you know anything about your brother’s activities

>>774234
>>“Calm down. None of us are going to hurt you.”

>>774234
>>“Why is a Shinjuku student here in Shibuya, alone?”

>>774234
>>“Calm down. None of us are going to hurt you.”
>“Who are you looking for?”
>“Where are you living right now?”
>You haven't shacked up with a guy in a rival gang have you?

>>774234

>“Give her some space, Florence." After she does so: "Now, please calm down. None of us are going to hurt you. Exact opposite, in fact. We're just trying to make sure you're safe. People are worried."

Then:
>"So, why the sudden change of attitude and vanishing act? Something's wrong, and we'd like to know what."

File: take a seat and you will (...).jpg (176 KB, 1280x720)

176 KB JPG

“Oi, Florence. Give the girl some space. She looks terrified.” You speak up. Florence obeys, by which she means she edges to the right a little, retaining her confident looks. Megumi relaxes a little. It’s like the difference between a grain of a sand and a slightly bigger grain of sand.

“Megumi was it?” Airi begins, her tone warm and comforting, “It’s nice to meet you. I’m Airi Hirayama. This is my brother Keiichi Hirayama. We’re pleased to meet you.”

“I’ve heard about you two,” Megumi says in a weak voice, “They say you’re both True Hearts’ top students and completely mad.”

“That’s…quite far from the truth.” Airi says, trying to give a reassuring smile. “You needn’t be afraid of us. We aren’t going to hurt you.”

“The exact opposite, in fact.” You say, “We’re just trying to make sure you’re safe. You’ve pulled a vanishing act and quite a few people are worried about you.”

“I’ve never met you two before this.” Megumi points out, still retreating into herself, “W-why would you concern yourselves about me.”

“Well, it’s a long story, but the two of us and Florence have teamed up. Besides, a student from Shinjuku coming to Shibuya in a disguise is clearly suspicious.” You say. “Knowing our luck, we’d probably have run across you sooner or later.”

“Please do not get the wrong idea, Megumi.” Florence says, brushing her hand against’ Megumi’s own, “Your parents are concerned about you and I was asked to help. Nothing more, nothing less.”

“Well you know that I’m fine, so you can go…” Megumi mutters.

“I’m afraid I can’t do that. I must know why you haven’t returned home and why you have been avoiding others at school.”

“T-that’s none of your business!”

“When it concerns an underclassman of mine, it does.”

“You might as well tell her, because Florence is persistent as hell.” You say. “Look, you can say anything you want here. We won’t judge you. If Florence does, we’ll tell her to shut up.”

“So don’t be afraid.” Airi smiles, “You are among friends here.”

Megumi doesn’t respond at first. She stares at the table top in silence. You glance over at Airi, whose smile is faltering. Did her words not work? In the distance, an antique clock ticks and customers enter and exit. Megumi then sits up straight, grabs the tea and downs half of it in one go. She then turns to face you and the others, a fragile determination within her.

“I-I’ve got a boyfriend in Shibuya.” She whispers, “I’ve been visiting him.”

“I see.” Florence nods in acknowledgement. “Is there any reason you didn’t share this with anybody else?”

Megumi looks down, “I thought the others wouldn’t approve of him.”

“So you’ve been visiting him in secret.” You say, “Who is he?”

It’s clearly hard for her to spit it out. Her face goes all red. She manages it in the end. “He’s a delinquent.”

>>774449
Anon called it

>>774449
...
...
...
...Okay.

I mean, kinda figured that one. Soooooo...yeah.

...I'm gonna be honest, I'm so completely nonplussed/whatever about this I'm having a hard time coming up with a response/reaction. I mean...I guess just stop acting so weird about it?

File: i guess it can't be helped.jpg (114 KB, 1280x720)

114 KB JPG

You aren’t surprised by this. At all. In your life, such a conclusion is more or less and inevitability. It was obvious in retrospect and it’s the same now. You demonstrate this with an unchanging expression and by tapping your finger on the side of the counter. All you have to do now is figure out how this could possibly benefit you.

“Is that so…” Florence’s eyes narrow in what is clear displeasure. You shoot her a warning look, as if to say ‘don’t do anything stupid, you idiot’. To her credit, she takes the hint. She slips on a mask of cool professionalism and questions further.

“Is there no reason why you can’t see him once school ends?” she asks.

“He’s the one who suggested we should spend our days together. Because, you know, he’s the type of guy who skips school and stuff. I rejected it at first, but he persuaded me to do it and once I actually did it,” Her cheeks redden with a love-struck blush, “It was nice, so we started spending more and more time in our apartment. Since my parents were away, I thought it was the perfect opportunity.”

You contemplate this. “Is he in the Red Skull Rockers?”

“He is.” Megumi says, shocked, “How did you know that?”

“There’s only one real delinquent biker gang around here, miss.” You reply. “It’s pretty damn obvious.”

“Could we meet with him?” Airi asks.

Megumi looks at your sister suspiciously. “Why?”

“Well…”

File: black_scene.jpg (94 KB, 1280x720)

94 KB JPG

>>Be someone somewhere else.

That sounds like a good idea. You can’t be Keiichi Hirayama forever, even though most of the incidents in Shibuya’s youth are caused by him and his sister. Anyway, who would you like to be?

[Input your selection]
>Takiji, second-in-command of the Red Skull Rockers
>Takiji, second-in-command of the Red Skull Rockers
>Takiji, second-in-command of the Red Skull Rockers
>Takiji, second-in-command of the Red Skull Rockers
>Takiji, second-in-command of the Red Skull Rockers
>Custom option (>Takiji, second-in-command of the Red Skull Rockers)

Wow, it sure is stuffy in here. Also, the place seems to have constricted itself into a hallway, with darkness at the behindand light at the front. Guess you better get going, then?

>>Be Takiji, second-in-command of the Red Skull Rockers.

File: takiji.jpg (28 KB, 225x350)

28 KB JPG

“Goddamnit, what’s taking her so long?”

It’s understandable that you are pissed. Anyone would be if their girlfriend promised to pop out for fifteen minutes, then didn’t come back for thrice that length. Megumi, what the hell are you doing? Does melon bread take that long to buy? Next time, you are coming with her, no matter how many customers you frighten with your ugly mug.

You slump on your messy bed in your one bedroom apartment, clenching your teeth and feeling your muscles constrict in irritation. You roll over to the side. It, predictably, does nothing for your mood. What are you doing here, you think to yourself. Your girlfriend—sweet, precious, adorable Megumi Ito, who happens to be sister of the leader of your worst enemy’s gang and the woman who made you feel like the world isn't so shitty after all—is missing. She could be being mugged this very moment and here you are, sitting in your shitty apartment and doing absolutely fucking nothing. The mere thought causes your blood to boil like magma in a volcano.

Seriously, what the hell are you doing? Get moving already, you dumbass!

With a snarl befitting a beast, you swing yourself off your bed. You grab your jacket and gloves from the closet. This is a bad idea, part of you whispers. If you go out, there’s a risk that you might be spotted by fellow gang member. They might tell Kata—your best goddamn bro in the entire world whom you would never ever betray—and then…ugh, you don’t want to think about it. You’ve had nightmares over that kind of stuff.

But you’ve also had nightmares over losing Megumi and you’d never, ever forgive yourself if you let her get hurt. Your knuckles whiten and your jaw clenches. Yeah, this is good. Your body is pumping with energy. It’s time to get out there and bust some heads of whomever is harassing your girlfriend.

Your hands are wrapped around your bike keys when the doorbell rings.

“Oh fucking hell, who is it now?”

You stomp over to the door, anger rumbling through every footstep, undo the chain and yank the door open.

“Whoever the hell you are, you better get out of my face or I’ll—”

Your speech screeches to as a halt as your brain catches up with your rage and makes you comprehend who is exactly outside the door. It’s Megumi, those two weird siblings from earlier and a posh looking girl wearing the same type of uniform Megumi has.

“Takiji, I take it?” The girl says, wearing a smirk that you hate on sight, “I am Florence Rutherford, your girlfriend’s upperclassman. It is a…pleasure to finally meet you.”

"Hey," The other guy, the one who you think has all those guns, greets, "Nice to see you again."

“Hi, Takiji.” Megumi says, in a quiet voice, “Um, can you let these guys in? They have something they want to discuss with us?”

You get the impression that things are about to get real complicated.

And that'll be it for the day. Let's continue tomorrow, shall we? 9:00 pm UTC start as usual.

Previous Threads: http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive.html?tags=Academy%20Tournament%20Organization%20Quest
Ask fm: http://ask.fm/TwilightThorn441
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TwilightThorn

>>774657
Thanks for running Thorn! See you then.

>>774657
Looking forward to it.

>>774657
Cool! Same thread? so far it's pretty good. Wonder where Yellingbird is though.

>>774657
damn things will certainly be complicated next time. Thanks for running, Thorn!

>>774657
Thanks for runnign.

File: contemplating.jpg (188 KB, 1280x720)

188 KB JPG

>>Stop being Takiji, second-in-command of the Red Skull Rockers and go back being Keiichi Hirayama.

“How did things come to this?”

This is a question you have asked yourself multiple times during your enrollment at True Hearts. Without exception, it has been with no small volume of frustration and impatience. You asked it when, on your first day, you groped the soft breasts of one of the more popular girls at school. You contemplated it when events had somehow collapsed into you driving a van down the city at midnight, despite having no legal right to do so. You groaned it out aloud when you were behind cover, firing real bullets at heavily armed terrorists.

When your sister blew up the Tokyo Dome during last year’s Festival of Magic, you felt like banging your head against a wall and muttering it. You moaned it out aloud when Akasha-Alea introduced you to your Ultimate Skill, a process that stretched the mana-infused circuits in your soul to breaking point. Every time you get caught up Florence Rutherford’s shenanigans, this question never failed pops into your mind. The accident occurred, and you awoke to find yourself wrapped head to toe in bandages like a makeshift mummy. You lacked the capability to speak, so you angrily thought the words at nearby doctors.

Is this complaining? It might be. But you have been through too much shit, so shut up!

At present, you are thinking the question. Given that you are seated a cheap plastic table with your blood-seeking sister, the heiress to a mighty business conglomerate, the heiress’s meek underclasswoman and the underclasswoman’s boyfriend—the second-in-command of a biker gang…it would be hard not to. Did you mention that you are the student of the only spirit of firearms, a position that many soldiers across the world would kill for?

“Here…”

At least things are relatively peaceful. Megumi is handling out mugs of steaming lemon tea. It’s the cheap kind, coming in teabags. The mugs themselves have seen better days. With an arm resting on the dented white table surface, you take the opportunity to survey Takiji’s apartment. It’s like the demented half-breed between a men’s locker room and a woman’s touch. The area is tidy, with the floor swept and objects placed neatly inside wardrobes and cupboards. On the other hand, there’s no getting rid of the peeling wallpaper, the dim light bulbs and the stink of testosterone—although an effort has been made for the last one, judging from the bottle of air freshener on the kitchen counter.

To the right is the entrance to the lone bedroom. The bed is undone. There’s a futon lying to the next bed, which probably clears up one worry Florence must have.

File: it's getting dark soon.jpg (57 KB, 1280x720)

57 KB JPG

Speaking of Florence, she takes a sip of tea. Her nose wrinkles slightly and she frowns, both in disgust. She tries to hide it by turning her head slightly. It doesn’t escape your perception. Well, it’s not like it matters. If she is too refined and hoity-toity to enjoy the pleasures of convenience store teabags, that’s her own damn problem.

“Um, so where should we begin?” Megumi says the opening line. Her boyfriend slams his fist on the table and glares at you, your sister and Florence.

“First of all, I’d like to know why the hell you three are here. Especially those siblings.” He snarls. You point your finger to yourself. For some reason, this irritates him. You can tell because his breath has gone all rapid.

You shrug your shoulders. It’s not as if your reasons will take a long time to explain. Florence goes first.

“I was investigating Megumi on the behalf of her parents, who had noticed her strange behavior at school.”

“Oh…” Megumi looks down, sad, “I hope I haven’t disappointed them.”

“Tch, they’re probably worried. Big news to me.” Takiji grunts, “Never thought of them as the caring type…”

It’s your turn. “Basically, my sister and I have been asked by the Japanese government to put an end to the gang violence in Shibuya.”

“…are you shitting me?” Takiji growls after he and his girlfriend take in your words.

“I wish I was.” You grunt back, “If we don’t do this, we’ll be banned for every educational institute in the country. Which means we’ll never get jobs.”

“The two of us are acquainted with Florence.” Your sister continues, “She asked to help us to find Megumi in exchange for her co-operation in our task. We then started looking for you over Shibuya and you know the rest.”

“Oi, you better not have hurt Megumi here!” Takiji’s expression is frozen in a scowl. Megumi is quick to placate him, her hand resting on his.

“It’s okay, they didn’t do anything to hurt me. They’re not bad people, actually…”

Takiji doesn’t look fully convinced, but lets it go.

“As for why finding Megumi could help us, well we thought that if we presented news of her safety to Doppo, it would calm him down and quell some of the violence in the streets.”

File: messy dining room.jpg (127 KB, 1280x720)

127 KB JPG

“As for why finding Megumi could help us, well we thought that if we presented news of her safety to Doppo, it would calm him down and quell some of the violence in the streets.”

“That…might not work.” Megumi admits.

“Why?”

“Because she and her brother aren’t close.” Takiji scoffs. “He’s rarely around her home.”

Is his remark a bit biased? Nah, Megumi is nodding, albeit reluctantly.

“He does care. I know it. He sent me a present for my birthday and it was really nice. But, my big brother is hardly ever around. He’s always doing his own thing with the gang…”

Maybe he’s bad at communication or embarrassed to show his affection? Some spirits can be like that. “Still, if he finds out how you two are in a relationship, he’s bound to listen, right?”

The two of them flinch. They look away. Ah, you might have hit the crux of the matter here.

“Yeah, that ain’t happening.” Takiji says.

“And why not?”” Florence asks.

“Because if we do that, we’re screwed!” Takiji makes a sweeping motion with his arm, almost knocking over his mug with his meaty fist. “How do you think Megumi’s bro gonna react if he finds out she’s with her family. That’s not even countin’ what my own bro will say about me!”

>“Doesn’t change the fact that we need you guys to do this.”
>“Somebody is going to find out eventually.”
>“If you don’t tell, we will.”
>“Don’t worry, we’ll help you guys as much as we can.”
>“You’re betraying the ones around you by keeping this secret.”
>“Will they really be that pissed?”
>Custom option.

>>776164
>“Somebody is going to find out eventually.”
>“Don’t worry, we’ll help you guys as much as we can.”

>>776164
>“Doesn’t change the fact that we need you guys to do this.”
>“Somebody is going to find out eventually.”

File: 1477924401987.gif (1.87 MB, 500x281)

1.87 MB GIF

>>776164
>“Somebody is going to find out eventually.”
If you don't try to control what happens, someone else will.
>“Don’t worry, we’ll help you guys as much as we can.”
Welcome to the special SPOOKY edition of Academy Tournament Organization Quest!

Writing now...

File: messy llounge.jpg (119 KB, 1280x720)

119 KB JPG

“Doesn’t change the fact that we need you guys to do this.” You say.

“Then do it some other damn way!” Takiji yells.

“Look, if you guys don’t spill the beans, somebody else will find out and tell.”

“And how do you figure that?”

Florence’s smile widens. Hook, line, sinker. “Because we are already here,” Florence answers, arrogance and self-satisfaction in her tone. The gears in Takiji’s brain spin, click and reach a conclusion. Everyone else in the room does the same. He opens his mouth to speak. He doesn’t get the chance. “Don’t worry, none of us will blackmail you. We simply aren’t that type of people. Though, I can’t say for others.”

…she’s speaking for you. She always does that.

“How long have you two been dating?” Airi asks.

“Three months…” comes Megumi’s response.

“That’s longer than I expected.” You remark, “Maybe someone’s already seen you two in that time.”

The two flinch again. Takiji scowls and looks away. You’ve definitely hit a weak spot there. They don’t want to admit it, but the truth is staring at them in the face. Megumi is in the denial stage, while her boyfriend has already progressed to anger.

“It’ll be fine.” Takiji says, “We’ll just keep our heads down and stay out of sight.”

“That might be hard to do, though.” Airi says, “Aren’t the gangs getting more and more violent?”

“If this Doppo truly does care about Megumi, then I’d imagine he would demand his younger sister to come home, out of fear of her getting hurt. He might even question her whereabouts.”

“Yeah, things might erupt into a gang war and Takiji might be sent by his boss to fight against the Brave Ravens. When he meets Megumi’s brother there’s probably going to be a lot of awkward questions.” You mutter. Stab, shot, weak point damaged. Takiji is a lot less sure of himself. Megumi is starting to look dangerously close to tipping off an edge.

“…we’ll be fine.” Nah, she dosen’t sound confident in herself. It goes with the type of girl she is, but this time her lack of confidence is deeper than before.

“Is it really that scary, confessing to your friends about this?” You ask.

“Yes!” They both exclaim. You raise your hands. Okay, maybe that was too sudden. You should have expected something like this.

“You needn’t worry.” Airi smiles. “We’ll be helping out as much as we can. But we don’t really know much about you two, so why don’t you tell us about yourselves?”

“Their tale is an ordinary one.”

“You listened to them explain how they fell in love and that is your response?”

“You imply that you found it interesting.”

“I did. I mean, I thought it was nice how Takiji rescued Megumi from five thugs who wanted to feel her up. How he got injured in the process, bleeding from a bunch of stab wounds. And how she took him to the hospital and came to visit during his stay. And how they started seeing each other more and more while trying to hide it from the people around them.”

“I have read many similar tales in the books stored in my territory.”

“No-one here is as old as you.”

“It does not excuse the fact that it is something that many have seen before.”

“Well I haven’t seen it before, so there.”

“Expand your selection of literature.”

“The last time I tried that you gave me this thick-ass novel written entirely in Russian. No thanks. Anyway, I think Airi is finding the stories of their dates cute. Florence looks like she isn’t having a good time. So they’ve been together for three months, huh? That’s longer than I expected.”

“It is a good thing that I disagree with your sister.”

“Meh, I find it kinda adorable. Part of it is cool. But uh…”

“They have stopped using that tone. How very relieving.”

“Yeah, I agree with you on that one. Is that how lovestruck couples talk to each other? It’s diabetes-inducing.”

“Correction. It is irritating. Boy, when you find a suitable mate, do not use that tone when I am in the vicinity.”

“You’re always in my vicinity, Akasha.”

“I am glad you understand.”

“Please be joking about it.”

“I assure you, I am not.”


…

…

…

“I cannot say that their fears are unfounded.”

“Megumi’s afraid of retribution by her brother? Eh, I guess she’s the type who used to look up to him. Did he really stand up to her in the past? I looked him up online and wow, the guy’s actually been in juvenile.”

“Your azure-haired compatriot does not seem like the woman who let abuse to her underclasswoman slide.”

“No, as scummy and tricky as Florence can be, she really wouldn’t.”

“The male is afraid of being forced out of his gang.”

“If his brother is really as nice to him as he says, Takiji wouldn’t have any reason to fear. Then again…”

“…it may strain tensions between the lower-ranking gang members, some of which may riot against him?”

“You didn’t have to finish my sentence.”

“At least you are thinking carefully about this.”

“You know Akasha, you’re surprisingly talkative about this. Did you have a similar experience in your past?”

“That is for me to know and for you to speculate.”

"No, then?"

>>776329
Spirit best girl. Does she browse /k/ in her free time?

File: go and have a safe trip.jpg (220 KB, 1280x720)

220 KB JPG

“We’ll be behind you all the way.”

“Kata seems like an understanding guy, if he’s been with you since childhood. If he doesn’t accept your relationship, that’s his fault.”

“Which is more important to you, your love with Megumi or your brotherhood with the Red Skull Rockers? Wouldn’t you like both? It may be possible.”

“I know it sounds terrifying at first, but you need to have courage!”

“Sis is right. If you keep running, you’ll end up nowhere.”

“You both seem stressed. I don’t think it’s very good for your relationship. You might even break up because of it.”

“Ugh, did you have to say that, Florence? Though, the gist is correct. You’ll probably enjoy yourselves more if you were more open about it.”

“Yeah! You’ll be able to do whatever you want without fear of being hurt.”

“If anyone tries to get in your way, we’ll beat them down. Florence, included.”

“Oh my, are you accusing me or something, Keiichi?”

“We all know what you’re thinking. You only know as much as we do, so keep it to yourself.”

“It’ll be fine, trust us! My brother and I have a reputation of doing crazy things, but we’ve managed to pull them off…”

You, your sister and Florence all throw these arguments at the couple. Bit by bit, word by word, you chip away at the barriers they have put up and let the arguments sink into their minds. You can’t help but feel sorry for the two. Having this sudden twist in their lives must be a harrowing ordeal. Even so, you and your sister have your own agenda to fulfil and you can’t let this opportunity to slip by.

The room falls quiet. Megumi looks like she doesn’t know what to do. The tea mugs rest on the table, the contents growing cold. You wait for Takiji to respond.

“One week.” He grits out, his fists curled, his body shaking. “Gimme a week, and we’ll be prepared. Gotta think of something good to say, first…”

>“It’s not good to postpone things.”
>“Okay, don’t rush yourself.”
>“Four days.”
>“Take as much time as you want.”
>Custom option.

>>776397
>>“Four days.”

>>776397
>>“Four days.”

>>776397
>“Okay, don’t rush yourself.”

>>776397
>>“Four days.”

>>776397
>“Four days.”

File: that looks a little inter(...).jpg (69 KB, 1280x720)

69 KB JPG

“Four days.”

“That’s way too short!”

“No, it’s enough time. I think you guys can do that.” Also you don’t have to extend this task since there’s only two and a half months left and who knows how long the other tasks will take…but you refrain from saying that. There’s a bit more banter, but Takiji and Megumi agree in the end. The discussion is over, everyone is as satisfied as they possibly can and it’s about to get dark which means it’s time to go home. You wonder if you can eat out tonight without your spirit mentor going to a rant.

“The weekend is coming up…” Airi remarks, “Onii-chan, I’ll try and help these two. Is that okay with you?”

“Sure. What about you, Florence?”

“Explaining the situation to Megumi’s parents and the school. I suppose I’ll assist Airi, if I have time. What will you do, then?”

>“I want to investigate that Abe guy.”
>“Maybe I should help out Takiji and Megumi too…”
>“I wonder if the Internet has anything.”
>“I think we should take a closer look at the Brave Ravens…”
>“Hey Takiji, can we sneak into your gang’s base?”
>Custom option.

>>776527
>>“I want to investigate that Abe guy.”

>>776527
>“I want to investigate that Abe guy.”

>>776527
>“I want to investigate that Abe guy.”

>>776527
>“I think we should take a closer look at the Brave Ravens…”

File: da7c7b9153.jpg (69 KB, 800x600)

69 KB JPG

>>Keiichi: Decide to investigate the Abe fellow.

That’s what you do. Airi agrees to join you, when she isn’t busy helping Megumi and Takiji think of lines that won’t cause the two gangs to go into a berserker panic that is. You cannot believe this task has turned into a Romeo and Juliet situation. When boiled down to a couple of the words, this whole situation suddenly seems a lot simpler than it was at first glance. It’s practically manageable now.

“I read that play. It was well-written, but did it not end in suicide?”

That’s not comforting, Akasha. Why does the spirit of firearms have to be so morbid? Guns don’t kill, humans do. Then again, guns are a human concept and all concepts will manifest as spirits in the spirit realm…

“Though, the two families at the end reconciled with each other out of mutual grief.”

Yeah, but the two families in the play were (somewhat) rational grownups. If something like what your mentor described happened in real life, the two gangs would be tearing at each other’s’ throats. Which could be one way to resolve the violence. If the two gangs take each other out, there would be no more gangs and everything would become peaceful.

Then again, that’s like saying the genocide of humanity is the easiest way to achieve world peace. Besides, Airi would never forgive herself if a bloodbath occurred in the streets and there was a way to stop it. You’d be less likely to care, but certain things might keep you awake at night.

"That method may work in small, confined areas."

What the hell, Akasha? Can you stop lecturing for five seconds?

Your path is already set. Now it’s time to tie up one loose end: the lieutenant of the Brave Ravens you met, one mister Abe. He was cordial to you and your sister, but there’s something off about him you can’t quite describe. Takiji seems to agree.

“Abe, huh? I met that guy before, a while back when the Brave Ravens weren’t such pieces of shit. I don’t like him. Guys like that always have a mask and you can never tell what they’re thinking. They’re slimy bastards, every one of them. They’ll smile prettily at you and then shank you in the neck when you’re not looking. Watch your back, Keiichi, or you’re fucked…”

What a gentle reminder. It’s so nice to know that a blonde gorilla of a man cares about you. It’s even nicer to be back in your apartment, sipping orange juice and calling your friends.

>>776684
lol blow it out your ass and fuck off

Reminder this is a law board

File: 1473816660555.png (1000 KB, 818x1157)

1000 KB PNG

“Hey Michiko, I’ve got another favour I need to ask.”

“Don’t tell me, you need me to find someone?”

“Bingo. Here, I’ll send you the photo.”

“Huh, it’s a guy this time. What’s with the torn jeans? And that hat…does he think it looks cool? All it does is make him look pretentious.”

“He’s Abe. He’s a lieutenant in the Brave Ravens delinquent gang.”

“Brave Ravens…oh, I think an acquaintance of mine was complaining about them on chat last night. Aren’t they located in Shinjuku?”

“Yup.”

“I hardly know anybody from Shinjuku. Why are you asking me?”

“Just tell me if he’s even been to Shibuya. My sister and I think he’s suspicious. We’ve sort of made a breakthrough on the case we’re working on and we don’t this guy ruining it.”

“Do you have any evidence that he’s suspicious?”

“We met him. Also, a rival gang member thinks he’s a slimy bastard.”

“That’s definitely going to be biased.”

“Yeah, I know. Better safe than sorry, though.”

“…alright, I’ll take care of it. Buy me some cake next time.”

“If you eat too much sweets it’s not going to be good for you.”

“You’re one to talk! You ate my chocolates, didn’t you?”

File: 1455164384550.png (26 KB, 438x469)

26 KB PNG

>>776735
>Implying alignments exist

>>776736
>"I never ate your chocolates, blow it out your ass."

>>776736
Wonder when we'll have our rematch with her. Bound to happen sooner or later.

File: computer board.jpg (188 KB, 1280x720)

188 KB JPG

You also ask Hideki for help. “Leave it to me!” he says, “I’ll have things done in a jiffy!” He swears to have information on the Brave Raven’s lieutenant within days. You wonder if you’ll be visiting him in hospital any time soon. It won’t be from falling off a roof, because one of the power Hideki received from his contract with his spirit mentor is the ability to resist plummeting damage or something.

While he’s working, you decide to look stuff up on the Internet. It’s full of garbage, as usual. But with any heap of garbage there’s a few diamonds in the rough scattered within. They’re covered in filth, but they’re valuables nonetheless.

>Sorry guys, I think I need to vent for a moment. You know the Brave Ravens? The gang in Shinjuku? I’m glad this is anonymous because I think the gang is going downhill.
>fuck off
>tell us more anon
>are there any cute girls in your gang

>I don’t really know the specifics. It feels like the gang is being, I dunno, segmented? Is that the word? I was never good at spelling. We’re supposed to be this huge united gang, but lately it feels like some members are splitting up and doing their own thing. There’s a lot of tension. Guess that’s why the punch up with the Red Skull Rockers happened.
>maybe they’re growing up and realizing that being in a delinquent gang is a huge waste of fucking time and money
>this
>this x2 combo

>Man, I feel the same. I’m in a delinquent gang too and things haven’t been looking good either for us. We’ve got a really cool second-in-command, best buds with the boss. Lately though he’s been spending less time in the hideout. Jumps up and belts out whenever we ask him questions. Looks like he’s about to snap at any given moment. He’s an okay dude, but he’s just being so unresponsive and finicky.
>most likely he hates talking to absolute retards like you and the other guy
>ever heard of privacy bud?
>delinquents are stupid as fuck so no

>My condolences, brother. These are some dark times, huh?
>Thanks. It’s nice to know there are some understanding people here.
>gay
>samefag
>I think I just threw up

>If we met on the street, I would buy you a drink.
>Aye, it was good to talk to you.

>2010+6, underage drinking
>there's not a single reaction pic in my folder to express how disappointed i am with this board and its mods
>get out
>not your blog, faggots
>[THREAD CLOSED]

File: eb6ab7f82a48117b4629358c8(...).png (632 KB, 629x797)

632 KB PNG

On Saturday, Hideki returns with news.

“Check this photo out, Keiichi. It’s that Abe guy you were looking for. He’s in an alleyway negotiating with some shady looking guys over some parcel. Didn’t get close enough to get a proper look, but it must be something illegal. Like drugs or explosive materials, maybe?”

“Did you follow him?”

“Nah, he vanished pretty quickly. It was getting real late too. So, what are you going to do about this?”

>“Let’s go up and ask him to his face.”
>“We should look into this a bit more.”
>“I don’t think it has anything to do with the task we’re on.”
>“I wonder who those dealers are…”
>“If we break into the Brave Ravens’ hideout, maybe we’ll find something.”
>Custom option.

>>776828
>>“We should look into this a bit more.”
>“I wonder who those dealers are…”

>>776828
>>“We should look into this a bit more.”
>“I wonder who those dealers are…”

>>776828
>>“We should look into this a bit more.”
>“I wonder who those dealers are…”

>>776828
>>“We should look into this a bit more.”

>>776825
>>are there any cute girls in your gang
These guys know what's up, asking the important questions.

>those last few lines
This is totally /a/.

File: 4a48639555b5d62ff93a21080(...).jpg (457 KB, 680x1000)

457 KB JPG

“I wonder who those dealers are…”

“They’re criminals, no doubt about it.”

“For all we know, this Abe guy could be embarrassed about something and he’s trying to get it in secret.”

“Nah, Keiichi. This whole thing reeks of crime. My mentor agrees. Plus, I grew up watching all kinds of news. Whatever this Abe guy is doing, it’s not legal in the slightest.”

“So, what do you want to do now?”

“You’re the one hiring me, bud.”

“Hiring? When did I start paying you?”

“I suddenly realize that I’ve received zero cash and now demand all the valuables in your house. Just kiddin’. In the future, if you say that people are gonna realize so be careful.”

“Thanks for the advice, smartass. So, if I told you to look further into this matter, would you do it?”

“Yeah. My mentor thinks it’s good training for me and I get a good story. I wouldn’t mind if you paid for a couple lunches at school.”

“I can do that. Be careful out there, Hideki.”

“You’re not coming?”

“I tried to follow a girl yesterday and a policeman found me. I don’t think stealth is my strong suit.”

“Indeed. I will have to add stealth practise to your future training regime. How else will you become a proficient sniper?”

“Shut up, Akasha!”

“Man, that’s a shame. Wait, does that mean Airi-chan is available? I know she’s good at sneaking around.”

“She’s busy with other stuff, so don’t even think about it, Hideki.”

“Sorry, that’s a secret.”

“A good decision. Your blonde friend is adequate at sealing his lips, but he has nothing to do with your sister's job.”

>>776916
>I know crime is going down because I grew up watching all kinds of news!

File: it's time to shop.jpg (259 KB, 1280x720)

259 KB JPG

On a cloudy Sunday afternoon, an ordinary high school girl is being tutored by an unordinary high school girl, whose scarf is alive and possesses five times as much blood as normal. They sit in the living room of a small apartment. The ordinary girl nervously paws over her notes, whereas the unordinary one merely smiles and gives her words of encouragement.

Is honesty really the best way, the ordinary girl asks. What if they reject us?

The unordinary girl reassures her that honesty is the best policy. For all their violence and vices, the delinquents in Shibuya and Shinjuku are at least straightforward men, who will appreciate if the words are told to them at face value. The ordinary girl calms down and goes back over her notes. The unordinary girl is warm and comforting, she thinks, not unlike Florence, who seems to put a measure of distance between them, even after all the time they spent in the orchestra together.

Have you heard anything about your brother’s activities, the unordinary girl asks the other. The ordinary girl bites her lips and confesses that she doesn’t know much. But she does know that she once saw one of her brother’s lieutenants, the man in the top hat and torn jeans, in another part of Tokyo during an outing with her friends. The lieutenant had recognized her, nodded and went on his way. But there had been other men with him, men that she did not recognize as members of the Brave Ravens.

Granted, she is not knowledgeable in her brother’s gang activity, but there was something off about those men. They were wearing hood and dressed in dark colors. The way they moved was not that of dignified men. They lacked the patch of her brother's gang. Plus, the gruesome smirk the lieutenant gave her as he left didn’t help.

>>776995
>whose scarf is alive and possesses five times as much blood as normal
5×0=0
Scarves usually don't contain any blood.

File: 1455306485725.jpg (1.52 MB, 2000x2000)

1.52 MB JPG

“Good day to you, mister Takiji. This is Florence Rutherford, your girlfriend’s fellow orchestra member.”

“What the hell do you want?”

“I merely wish to confirm something with you. Once that is done, I’ll be out of your hair.”

“What, then?”

“Have there been any suspicious sightings around your little corner of Shibuya?”

“Why are you poking your nose into our business?”

“I thought you already knew. Or have you forgotten?” A dramatic, faked weary sigh, “Remember what the Hirayama siblings said. Their job was to quell the violence in Shibuya. To that end, they began investigating the Red Skulls and the Brave Ravens. Now, please answer my question.”

He feels as if he’s being made fun off. His guess is not off the mark. “Tch, fine. On Friday, when I returned to the gang, some of the guys outside said they caught a guy in black lurking around. Bastard ran off before anybody could catch him. That answer your question.”

“I see. Yes, that does match up.”

“With what?”

“A particularly adventurous friend of a female friend of Keiichi said that she sighted suspicious men in the more run-down streets of Shibuya. It seems that those men are targeting your gang.”

“Son of a bitch…”

“Similar reports have been sighted around Shinjuku, according to my investigations and another of Keiichi’s friends. I believe one even followed Megumi as she walked to school.”

“The fuck? Where is that asshole? I’ll rip him to shreds.”

“No need. He has disappeared. Since that is the end of what I have to discuss, goodbye.”

“Wait, I’m not finished talking, you—”

A click, then three beeps.

“Bitch…”

Gonna take a break for thirty minutes. Sorry for the lack of choices so far, but one's coming up soon. Hope my writing hasn't been too shitty.

>>777110
Heading to bed then. Thanks for running.

File: endless lamps in the midnight.jpg (203 KB, 1280x720)

203 KB JPG

Sunday night. A blonde boy lies in an alleyway, gasping and moaning from his pain. He was careless and now he is paying the price. Shadowy figures hover at the corner of his vision, each one holding makeshift weapons. Baseball bats with nails, tire irons, chains and the lot. The boy curses his luck. Man, if only he was born a cool combat type. Then he could bust out some super cool move and fling all his assailants away.

Alas, he is of the support type. Great parkour and observation skills, but little in terms of actual fighting.

He hears them discuss. He tries to listen, but one of them stamps their boot on his head, grinding his forehead into the pavement. It hurts. His mentor tells him to be brave. He’s the one having his skin scraped against concrete.

They reach a conclusion. One of the assailants lifts his tire iron like a sledgehammer. The boy’s mentor reassures him it won’t hurt. He’s right. Nobody can feel anything when they’re unconscious.

...

Same Sunday night. A blonde girl with silver hairclips walks through the Shibuya streets. Her friends have departed and she is alone. Her parents send her a message, warning her to be careful. She laughs it off and says that she’ll the okay. Then the phone is ripped from her hands as numerous hands drags her into a nearby alleyway.

Her first instinct is the correct one: self-defense. The magic in her soul flares to life and she summons her microphone stand. She drives the butt of it into the chest of one of her attackers. It causes to stumble. She brings the microphone to her lips and sings. C, D, E F, and G. The wind twists and slams the man over and over again, knocking him down. She grins. Then something wraps around her mouth.

Her attackers have done their homework. They have figured out the greatest weakness behind her magic art: the fact that she needs to use her mouth. The blonde girl’s eyes widen as a pungent chemical worms its way into her body. Then her eyelids dilate, her vision turns blurry and the city goes black.

They inspect her body, and find that it is not wanting. Orders are orders, so they drag her away into the back of a van.

File: hand on face.jpg (124 KB, 1280x720)

124 KB JPG

Monday morning, seven o clock. You, Keiichi Hirayama, are in the middle of morning exercises when you receive a phone call.

“You should turn your mobile phone off during these times.”

“We talked about this, Akasha.” Huh, it’s from Michiko. You wonder what she wants now. The two of you normally chat when walking to school together. It must be something urgent.

Michiko’s voice does not come out of the speakers. “Keiichi Hirayama, huh?” a gravelly, hoarse and male voice sounds. The complete antithesis to Michiko’s bright cheerfulness. Whoever this person is, his lungs are full of cigarette smoke. Your body tenses up.

“Who is this?” You demand.

“Someone who has that pretty lady friend of yours. Oh, and that blonde-haired rat, too.” The man says. He sounds pleased with himself. Too much to your liking. “Have I got your attention now?”

>“You’re making a big mistake.”
>“Gee, I wonder what the police will think about this.”
>“You kidnapped Michiko? Do you have a suicide wish?”
>“What are your demands?”
>“Who’s paying you?”
>Custom option.

>>777280
>“You’re making a big mistake.”
>"Release them now and I'll only break half the bones in your body."

File: death glare.gif (2.34 MB, 275x200)

2.34 MB GIF

>>777280
>>Custom option.
>"Yep."
>Start plotting their immediate demise.

>>777280
>>“You kidnapped Michiko? Do you have a suicide wish?”

>>777280
>“You’re making a big mistake.”

>>777280
>“You kidnapped Michiko? Do you have a suicide wish?”
>"Wow, alright I'll humor you, what are your demands."

File: action hero powers.gif (1011 KB, 276x250)

1011 KB GIF

>>777280
>>“You kidnapped Michiko? Do you have a suicide wish?”
Time to murder!

>>777280
>>“You’re making a big mistake.”
>“You kidnapped Michiko? Do you have a suicide wish?”
>"Yep."
>Start plotting their immediate demise.

File: dd30ecd3fd.png (748 KB, 1024x768)

748 KB PNG

“You kidnapped Michiko.” You remark, “Hey, do you have a suicide wish?”

“Ooh, is that a threat I hear?” the mystery man laughs, a booming croak. “You’re mad, aren’t you? Itching to get those guns of yours out, eh?”

“Yeah, I think you’re making a big mistake.”

“Fun fact, kid. Your little friends are tied and gagged and we’re standing around them with knives and bats. So if you don’t their faces to be slashed up, you better shut the fuck up and listen to what I say.”

“…”

“Good! Let’s get down to business. There’s a warehouse in Chiyoda. This is the address.” Something beeps on your phone. It’s a text message. “You and your little sister will come here unarmed with nobody else. If there’s any sign of a weapon on you, your friends are on a one-way trip to their personal hell. Same goes if you bring any friends along. If you call the police, then your friends are really in trouble. Got it?”

“Who the hell are you people? What do you want?”

“To both, it’s frankly none of your fucking business. Get here by around ten. Otherwise, who knows what might happen.”

The line goes dead. You are left standing in your bedroom, your phone clenched in a single clammy hand. Gently, you rest it on the cupboard next to your bed. The air still. You breathe in, then out. You turn your head. Next to your clothes cupboard rests two oblong metal cases. You know what’s inside those cases. Beretta 92FS handgun, Remington 870 shotgun, Howa Type 89 automatic rifle and FN 303 grenade launcher. Your instincts are begging for you to retrieve them and run out the door.

You hear Akasha-Alea’s voice, controlled and steady. “Boy.”

“Yeah?”

“Do you remember what I taught you about concealed carrying?”

“Yeah.”

“Then, you understand that it will allow you to carry all four firearms on your person at once?”

“Will that be useful? They said I shouldn’t bring a weapon along.”

“If you conceal it well enough, they won’t notice. You do not have to walk through the front entrance, either. Remember that your grenades have tear gas. Bring your gas mask if you wish to use them.”

“Thanks.”

“I will pray for your success. Best of luck, boy.”

And then she’s gone.

>Call Florence.
>Call Takiji and Megumi.
>Call the police anyway.
>Wake up Airi and head out the door.
>Bring all four of your firearms along.
>Custom option.

>>777454
>>Call Florence.
>>Bring all four of your firearms along.
>>Wake up Airi and head out the door.

>>777454
>Wake up Airi and head out the door.
>Bring two firearms along.
pistol and shotgun

>>777454
>Call Florence.
>Bring all four of your firearms along.
>Wake up Airi and head out the door.

>>777454
>>Call Florence.
>Wake up Airi and head out the door.
>Bring all four of your firearms along.

>>777454
>Wake up Airi and head out the door.
>Bring all four of your firearms along.

>>777454
>>Wake up Airi and head out the door.
>Bring all four of your firearms along.
They can't detect our magical backpack.

File: dusty rooftops.jpg (158 KB, 1280x720)

158 KB JPG

>>Keiichi: Bring all four of your firearms along.

Akasha-Alea once told you that your hyperspace was undetectable by anything except for those with the highest magical capabilities. Storing your shotgun, rifle and grenade launcher should be no problem. You slip your handgun in a pouch and store it inside your tracksuit. You check a mirror. Yeah, that looks concealed from a distance. At the very least, you should be able to get on the train without any pedestrians noticing.

The problem is Airi’s magic art. Her blood weapons work best when her spirit partner is around. The trouble is, the spirit takes the form of Airi’s scarf and the kidnappers may have already realized this. It’s possible they’ll demand your sister to leave her scarf, rendering her defenseless. Maybe she can summon Shesmur and have the creature hide somewhere?

…there’s no time to waste. You’ll have to think of something along the way.

>>Keiichi: Wake up Airi.

You barge into her room, screaming, “Airi, get your ass up! We’ve got a situation!”

She rises from beneath her covers, still in her pajamas. “Fweh? What is it onii-chan? What’s with all the screaming…”

When you finish explaining what happened, she’s instantly awake. She dresses quickly, grabs her scarf from her dresser and the two of you are out the door. A proper breakfast can wait. You’ll grab something along the way.

>>Keiichi: Call Florence.

“I see. I hoped this wouldn’t happen so soon, but I suppose it was inevitable.”

“Do you know how to get there?”

“I will arrange someone to drop me off close by and then I shall regroup with you on foot. This is quite the ample opportunity. It seems that I will have some live subjects for the newest iteration of my magic art. That is to say, you and your sister aren’t thinking of surrendering to these ruffians?”

You scoff. “Who do you think we are, Florence?”

“My apologies. Well then, I shall see you in a bit. Take care now.”

She hangs up.

>>Time: Pass.

You, your sister and Florence have arrived at the arranged warehouse. It’s big, rectangular and grey and it’s covered in rust. It lies in a deserted section of industrial area with no other humans around in sight. The time is nine-thirty—thirty minutes before the meeting time. A ruined carpark lies in front, all the doors are shut and some of the windows are cracked. The roof doesn’t seem to be in a good condition, either.

Are Michiko and Hideki really in here? Their assailants could have dragged them to a different building, then used this one as bait to trap you and your sister. But this is your only lead, so what other option do you have?

The three of you lurk in the shadows. You should plan how you move ahead.

>Climb up to the roof and see if you can peek in.
>Try to spy through a broken window.
>Cause an accident outside to try and divert the people in the warehouse outside.
>Go through the front door, guns blazing.
>Fire tear gas through the windows.
>Call the police.
>Custom option.

>>777586
>>Climb up to the roof and see if you can peek in.

>>777586
>>Climb up to the roof and see if you can peek in.

>>777586
>Climb up to the roof and see if you can peek in.

>>777586
>Climb up to the roof and see if you can peek in.

File: 1476136846541.jpg (287 KB, 900x1170)

287 KB JPG

>>Airi: Climb up to the roof and see if you can peek in.

Your sister peeks her head out of the darkness, turning left and right to check for anybody. Her brown hair sways from side to side. There’s nobody about, but you do detect a ghastly burp coming from inside the warehouse. Somebody must be drinking. Depending on the type of magus, this could weaken them or make them the most aggressive fighter on the planet.

Airi leaps from the shadows and dashes to the side of the warehouse. She finds footholds in pipes and a broken air-condition. She’s a blur of navy and red that scales to the top of the building within seconds. You watch her, a small ball in the distance, and see her press a head to the side of the roof.

You then receive a text.

>Can’t see Michiko or Hideki.
>Heard somebody say that they’re in the same building because they want to parade them about
>Both are unconscious they say.

>Any entrances?

…is what you reply.

>There’s a hole here, big enough to fit a person.
>Shesmur’s senses detects eight people down there. Some of them are magi.
>There might be more.
>Somebody could go through the broken windows as well.
>These guys seem very sure of themselves.
>They probably expect us to bow to their demands.
>I don’t think they’re expecting Florence to be here.
>They don't seem all that smart either.

You reply with a ‘good work’. You then look at Florence. She’s gazing at the warehouse with a predatory grin. Her adrenaline must be bubbling way. Lots of magi are like that; give them battle and they will treat it as the most exciting thing for the next hour.

The air around her plummets in temperature. Frost gathers on nearby glass panels. The stench of her mana wafts through your nostrils. Her ice magic art is strong indeed. So strong, that last year you only beat her at the very second. If you fought her now, you would lose and you would do so hard. You won’t admit this to her, but right now you’re glad she’s on your side.

She might not be willing to climb up through the roof, though.

What will you do?

>Have Florence stride in through the front door, blasting away.
>Stride in the front door yourself, firing your guns.
>Drop yourself and Airi through the hole in the roof.
>Drop Airi through the hole in the roof.
>Drop yourself through the role in the roof.
>Fire tear gas through the hole in the roof.
>Fire tear gas through a broken window, then enter.
>Have Florence lower of temperature inside the warehouse.
>Have Airi throw one of her explosives through the roof.
>Have Airi throw one of her explosives through the window.
>Charge through, guns blazing.
>Custom option.

>>777664
>>Drop Airi through the hole in the roof.
>Fire tear gas through a broken window, then enter.
>Have Florence stride in through the front door, blasting away.

>>777664
>>Drop Airi through the hole in the roof.
>>Have Florence lower of temperature inside the warehouse.
>>Stride in the front door yourself, firing your guns.

>>777664
>Fire tear gas through a broken window, then enter.
>Drop Airi through the hole in the roof.
>Have Florence stride in through the front door, blasting away.

>>777664
>Drop Airi through the hole in the roof.
>Have Florence lower of temperature inside the warehouse.
>Stride in the front door yourself, firing your guns.

File: blood1.jpg (542 KB, 1280x720)

542 KB JPG

In the warehouse, a thug grumbles to another thug.

“Ergh, what the hell is taking those brats so long?”

“Calm yer tits, there’s still fifteen minutes. What I wanna know is why we can’t get a piece of that blonde girl. Did you see the size of those melons on her?’

“Yeah, too bad the boss prohibited it. Maybe when he’s not looking we can go and take a look.”

“Heh, sounds like a plan. Say, is there any more beer?”

“Sure, lemme get it…huh?” The thug stops as he sees two round, metal objects rushing towards him. They collide with a nearby table, smashing it to splinters. A second passes as the sight passes through their meaty brains. Then the tear gas canisters burst open and fire and acid in gas form envelops the area.

There is the sound of multiple people screaming. “My eyes!”, “It burns!”, “An attack!” and so on. The two thugs grope their way towards the exit, only to find that someone is already standing there. A girl, slender of build and holding a rapier.

“Good day to you, gentlemen. May I ask you to stand still?”

The two thugs find themselves bewildered by the statement. They are shocked by the girl’s beauty. Then they notice the coldness in the air and look down to see a layer of ice creeping up their legs.

Elsewhere in the warehouse, a number of other men are roused from their idleness by the chaos outside. They run towards the front. Their footsteps make ample cover for a lone figure leaping from a hole in the roof, a curved blade drawn. One thug hears the sound and turns around. He falls victim to a slash that cuts through his T-shirt and rips the skin from his flesh. Blood sprays and is devoured by the sword. His friend sees and charges with a tire iron. Two daggers slam into his chest, bowling up over. The tags attached explode with a bang, sending him flying in an arch through a plume of crimson smoke. He crashes to a halt against a rusting cabinet.

A paint can falls on his head. There’s a meaty thunk and he goes still.

Back outside, you reload your grenade launcher and slip on your gas mask. The scent of military-grade rubber fills your nostrils. Right, the front entrance is miniature blizzard, Airi is presumably slicing with her blade and absorbing blood and the whole room is in chaos from the tear gas. What will you do now?

>Fire your guns at some filthy kidnappers to clear the area.
>Take down the boss. He’s the one with the voice like a gravel dumpster.
>Find Michiko and Hideki as quickly as possible. That’s your main priority.
>More tear gas, please!
>Search the place for valuables.
>Custom option.

>>777757
>>Find Michiko and Hideki as quickly as possible. That’s your main priority.
>Fire your guns at some filthy kidnappers to clear the area.

>>777757
>>Find Michiko and Hideki as quickly as possible. That’s your main priority.
Always secure the hostages first

>>777757
>Find Michiko and Hideki as quickly as possible. That’s your main priority.

>>777757
>>Find Michiko and Hideki as quickly as possible. That’s your main priority.

>>777777
>>777777
>>777777
>>777777
>>777777

congrats on the gets

>>777757
>Find Michiko and Hideki as quickly as possible. That’s your main priority.
>>777777
Nice, luck is with you.

File: dissection.jpg (469 KB, 1280x720)

469 KB JPG

>>Keiichi: Secure the hostages.

You vault through the broken window, careful not to cut yourself on the jagged glass. The thugs inside the warehouse are flailing about, their skin burning and blistering. Tears are streaking down their cheeks. They rub their eyes and it only makes things worse. Come on, it’s only a bit of tear gas. Akasha-Alea emptied the entire chamber when she was making you acclimatize to the spiciness.

“Who the hell are you?”

“He’s the one who fired the gas! Get him, boys!”

Maybe you should have put your grenade launcher away. You quickly do that in exchange for your shotgun. There are three very pissed thugs running towards you with weapons held in their hands. You should shoot them before one of them beans your skull.

>Roll 1d30 to shoot your targets.
>Best out of three.

Rolled 5 (1d30)

>>777812
Headshot!

Rolled 7 (1d30)

>>777812

Rolled 28 (1d30)

>>777812

File: fingergun.png (264 KB, 510x486)

264 KB PNG

>>777826
Thank you anon

>>777832
No problem

File: please wait patiently.jpg (189 KB, 1280x720)

189 KB JPG

You open fire with your Remington. Rubber slugs blast forward and stagger the three thugs. They go down, clutching their wounded chests. You step over their bodies and charge forward. In the distance, you hear the crinkling of rapid forming ice and metal crashing against other metal.

There’s a door right in front of you. It’s locked. It’s also wooden. You remedy this obstacle by drawing your handgun and blasting the lock open. Shards of metal fly everywhere. Your gas mask protects your eyes, but some cut your skin. It matters little.

You kick the door open. It slams against the wall with a bang. You see two figures lying on the floor, hands behind their backs, legs strung with wire and their mouths covered in duct tape. Michiko and Hideki. Their cheeks are pale. Their clothes are covered in dust and assorted bruises and lumps lie on their faces and limbs. Their eyes widen at the sight of you, then relax with relief. You crouch down next to them and rip the duct tape off.

“Took you long enough,” Michiko rasps in a hoarse tone that begs for water.

“I knew you would come, buddy!” Hideki cries, smiling wide.

>“I’m really sorry for dragging you guys into this.”
>“You guys want to fight, too?”
>“Stay here. It’s not safe outside.”
>“Come with me. We’ll get you guys out of here.”
>“Who took you guys here?”
>Custom option.

>>777881
>>“Come with me. We’ll get you guys out of here.”

>>777881
>>“Come with me. We’ll get you guys out of here.”

>>777881
>>“Come with me. We’ll get you guys out of here.”

>>777881
>“I’m really sorry for dragging you guys into this.”
>“Come with me. We’ll get you guys out of here.”

>>777881

>“I’m really sorry for dragging you guys into this.”
>“Come with me. We’ll get you guys out of here.”

File: turn around please.jpg (126 KB, 1280x720)

126 KB JPG

“I’m really sorry for dragging you guys into this.” You undo their handcuffs, slice through the wire binding their legs with a piece of jagged metal lying around. They stand up, wobbly at first. Michiko summons her microphone to gain her balance. She coughs. Her usually smooth and maintained blonde hair is now a tangled mop of yellow dumped on her head. Her silver hair clips are missing, too. She’s dressed a casual dress with a white top and a pink skirt. Hideki, for comparison, is in dark clothes, blacks and greys.

“Not your fault.” She says, wheezing, “My parents must be freaking out right now…”

“I was careless.” Hideki grins, winking tiredly, “That’ll teach me to ignore my surroundings. Sorry!”

“Are Airi and Florence Rutherford here?” Michiko asks, pointing to the door, “I can detect their magic.”

“Yeah. Can you guys walk?” You ask. Both your friends nod. The fighting seems to have calmed down outside. Airi’s and Florence’s mana signatures are going strong, so you guess they’ve won. The weeping and screaming seems to be more evidence of that. The tear gas is also clearing, having flowed out of open doors, windows and the hole in the roof. At any rate, the entrance seems to be clear of the gas.

“C’mon, we’ll get you guys out of here. Follow me.”

With your guidance, Michiko and Hideki regain their senses and limp out the door. You then abruptly find yourself in another situation.

“Don’t move! I’m telling ya!”

You see your sister and Florence surrounding a thug. He’s decently built, but there’s more flab than muscle. His overall look reminds you of a fat weasel on two legs. His shirt is also covered in tomato sauce for some reason. That’s not important. What your eyes are focused on is the knife he’s holding and the neck he’s placed the it at. Namely, the neck of one of his own comrades.

“You kids don’t want me to kill someone, huh?” The thug shouts. Hey, you recognize that voice. It’s the asshole who threatened you over the phone. “Then back away! Back out of this building and don’t come back!”

He stamps the ground. There’s a tiny puddle of fresh blood there. His boots splash against it.

“Oh god, please don’t do this.” His hostage whimpers. “I thought we were mates!”

“Are you listening to me, you fuckers?” He screams, full of desperation, ignoring his hostage outright. “Get the hell out of here!”

You reach for your handgun. Airi sees the motion and gives you the look. It’s one with determination and clarity. Is she telling you that she’s got a plan? Next to her, Florence is looking at the sight coolly, her hand having not moved from the grip on her rapier.

>“My god, you are scum.”
>Fire your handgun.
>Let Airi handle it.
>Let Florence handle it.
>Let Michiko handle it.
>“Let that guy go and we won’t call the cops.”
>“Let that guy go and we won’t break all the bones in your body.”
>Custom option.

>>777946
>>Let Florence handle it
I want to see what she does.

>>777946
>Let Airi handle it.

>>777946
>>Let Airi handle it.

File: 9598ae52b5cc731275878fdd3(...).jpg (432 KB, 1500x933)

432 KB JPG

“Now now, my good man. Won’t you please calm down.” Florence strides forward, her smile never faltering for an inch, “It isn’t as bad as you think.”

“Get back, bitch!” The man screams, “Another step and I’ll cut this guy’s throat!”

“If you do cut his throat, you’ll be charged with murder. But if you let go now, the worst you’ll get is simple assault and kidnapping. Which one sounds less punishing to you? The latter I believe, since there won’t be any blood on your hands.” She slides her rapier into its scabbard, then places her right arm by her side. You notice her fingers flex. The distance between her and the thug is closing meter by meter.

“I’m warning you!” For all his bawling and shouting, the man and his hostage are retreating towards a wall. His eyes bug out like pods of their sockets at Florence’s continued advance. The undersides of his boots are still dripping blood, now drying. “Why aren’t you listening?’

“You might be thrown in jail. That’s the fate of all kidnappers, I’m afraid. But at least you won’t have suffered the fate of killing your own comrade. I’ve read stories about what happens to people like those in prison. The details were quite graphical and interesting.”

His back thumps against the wall. There are tears gathering in his eyes. “Back off!” he barks, the knife wavering. A jolt of pain then runs at him. He winces and looks down. “Wha—” He doesn’t get to finish that sentence, but presumably he was about to say, ‘Why is my arm covered in ice.’

Behind Florence, Airi clenches her fist. “Detonate!” she whispers.

The blood beneath the man’s feet promptly explodes. It’s a small explosion, pathetic compared to the blast of the grenade. Ah, you realize. The two girls were working in tandem. This is Airi’s final magic art ability at work. By exploding her own blood on the boots, the man is sent stumbling off balance, dropping the knife and releasing the hostage. Florence then reaches forward with her hand and touches the air.

A wave of frost swarms across the man’s body, covering his limbs in seas of white. He falls forward, his teeth chattering and all the feeling vanishing from his body like storm water swirling down a drain. Florence draws her rapier and slams it on the ground, mere centimeters from the man’s narrow-shaped nose. You hear a whimper of fright.

“See?” She says, leaning forward, “It wasn’t so bad. In fact, it was quite advantageous for us. We have a lot of questions we would like answers to, so please provide them, if you will…”

Damn, that was long. Thanks for playing, everyone! Academy Tournament Quest will resume this Friday, the 4th of November. 9:00pm UTC as usual.

There will most likely be one or two snippets I'll post soon.

Archived Thread: http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive/771652
Previous Threads: http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive.html?tags=Academy%20Tournament%20Organization%20Quest
Ask fm: http://ask.fm/TwilightThorn441
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TwilightThorn

>>778022
Thanks for running Thorn!

>>778022
Good stuff. Thanks for running, TT.

>>778012
She was just as cool as I expected her to be, if we didn't have a QT spirit inside us she'd be best girl. Thanks for running Thorn. Pretty rare for me to catch the ending of the thread, feels nice.

>>778022
Thanks thorn

>>778012
Florence is really starting to grow on me.

File: kata.jpg (36 KB, 350x484)

36 KB JPG

There’s a king in Shibuya. His throne is tiny; the populace is scorned by the general public and the extent of his kingdom ranges from dirty backstreets to a used warehouse with a single garage. But he’s content, standing beneath the emblem of a fiery red skull as his minions prowl the streets for cash and excitement.

Kata, as they call him, has been compared to a bear. It is not an inaccurate statement. He’s big, he’s imposing and he’s quiet. Chill, as his underlings refer him. He’d choose sitting back and relaxing over going out and conquering new territory. He’s a man who is satisfied with what he has.

When his underlings asked him about conquering Shinjuku, he responded as thus:

“Think about it, boys. We’ve got our hands full with Shibuya. Shinjuku is a pretty damn big place, you know? We try to go in and claim it; we spread ourselves too thin. Then we’ll be easy picks for whatever group of meatheads is lurking around the corner.”

“I’m already feeling pretty comfortable here. What about you guys?”

And like a bear, he’s a force to be reckoned with when angered. His many rival and opponents in the past can attest. They will do so from their body casts in their hospital rooms.

Monday morning, nine-thirty. Kata is resting in his little hide-out in the gang warehouse, a radio blaring the sports next to him and a can of beer in his lips. He notices someone come into the room. A smile graces his sharp features and he raises a hand in greeting.

“Yo, brother.” He says through a row of sharp teeth.

“Hey Kata.” Takiji, his childhood friend from all the way back in 2006, responds. His hands are in his pockets, giving him a mild hunched appearance that doesn’t suit his muscular physique. “Listenin’ to the game?”

“Yeah.” Kata has always loved baseball. In his opinion, the American leagues are the best, “Wanna join?”

“Uh, y’see Kata…” Takiji begins, swallowing. Kata’s smile fades a little and see sits up a little straighter. It’s rare that his best friend is this quiet. “I’ve got something I wanna talk to you about.”

“What, man?” Kata asks, “You seem nervous about it.”

Takiji glances downwards. “Yeah, no shit.”

Huh. What could his best friend be embarrassed about? Did he screw up in something again? Nah, he’d be in a rage. Did he eat the last pudding in the fridge? No, Takiji doesn’t even like that stuff. Did he crash his bike? Yeah, no. That would never happen in a million years. Kata would never admit it, but Takiji was better at going fast on bikes than he was.

File: old playground 2.jpg (98 KB, 1280x720)

98 KB JPG

An invisible lightbulb flashes above Kata’s head. He gives Takiji a knowing grin. It isn’t reciprocated. “Did you find a girl?” he asks.

Takiji’s face goes red. Bam, right on the target. Kata stands up and slaps his brother on the back. “Wow man, and here we were thinking you didn’t like girls…” he begins.

“Shaddup!” Takiji splutters, “It ain’t like that!”

“So who’s the lucky girl? Hey, bring her over so I can meet her, yeah?”

“Goddamnit Kata, this isn’t what I’m here for at all!” Takiji shouts, “Look, I just…we’re gonna schedule a meeting together, the two of us.”

“The two of us? What?” Kata asks.

“Yeah, ‘cause this is private and shit.” Takiji says, huffing. “You’re…you’re the only guy I can trust with this.”

“…so it ain’t a girl?” Kata says with a cheeky grin.

Takiji slams his palm into his face. “You know the Super Seven café in Ginza? Let’s go there. Tomorrow, at four. Yeah?”

“Sure.” Kata says, “Hey, you sure you don’t wanna tell me now? Nobody else is here.”

“No, sorry man. I gotta prepare myself.”

“Sounds heavy, whatever is.” Kata says and smiles, “Well, don’t worry. Take your time. And you know you can tell me anything. We’re best friends.”

“Yeah, Kata, we sure are…” Takiji replies, quiet again.

File: doppo.png (94 KB, 599x332)

94 KB PNG

If Kata is a bear, then Doppo, the leader of the Shinjuku’s Brave Ravens, is a wolf hopped up on steroids. He’s constantly sniffing around for threats. He asserts his dominance in the loudest, most ruthless way possible. He finds challengers and attacks them before he can strike. Impatience is secondary to rational thought. His vocabulary is half profanity, half words no less than five syllables. They say, behind his back, that caffeine runs through his veins instead of blood.

They also say that Doppo has been in jail. It is true—juvenile, though. An accident in there caused the burn scar on his face. When he got out, he boasted how he got into a fight with three guys and won. He wore the mark with pride. His parents saw it and shook their heads in disgust. As opposed to his underlings, who gained the respect that can only be born from fear.

“Fucking hell…”

There’s a throne room in the center of the Brave Raven’s base. It is, in Doppo’s word, ‘a hella fucking cool-looking chair’. A real aristocrat (a certain heiress springs to mind) would scoff at it. Doppo will only care in the sense that he despises being insulted.

His nails dig into his palms. Clenched fists tend to do that. He grits his teeth. Beneath his shades, his eyes are bloodshot.

He tosses his phone onto the ground. A chip of plastic flies. “Goddammit, isn’t there anyone fucking smart in this gang?” he screams.

“What’s up, boss?”

Abe, one of the gang’s lieutenants, comes out of a hallway, dressed in his usual top hat and torn jeans, a concerned look present. “Something wrong?”

“You fucking think?” Doppo snarls, “I tell the guys to do one thing and they fuck it up!”

“What did you tell them to do?” Abe asks.

“Find out who started the fight in Shibuya.”

“You’re still looking into that? It’s been weeks.” Abe laughs. “Come on boss, it was probably an accident. You know the guys can get. They see red and fists fly.”

“I’m not an idiot, Abe!” Doppo snaps, “Something is up and I fucking know it. Shibuya was peaceful that day and there’s no way one of our boys would’ve started it, not when I specifically told them to hold their shit in. No, someone definitely kicked it off for them. I’m gonna find out who it is if it’s the last thing I do.”

Abe shrugs. “Whatever you say. Let me know if you need the help. By the way, what happened to that blue-haired chick? Did she ever call you back or anything?”

“Why do you ask?” Doppo narrows his eyes.

“Just checkin’.”

“Haven’t heard a single shitting word from her.” Doppo snorts, “Guess she hasn’t found anything 'bout Megumi either.”

File: abe.jpg (129 KB, 600x787)

129 KB JPG

“So you’re concerned about her, eh?”

“The hell I am.” Doppo huffs, turning away, “That girl can take care of herself. Seen it done lots of times already.”

“I see…”

“She don’t need to get involved in our business. Better to just stay in that gold cage and live out a normal life. It’s what the shitty old man wants anyway—”

His rant is cut off by a sudden shrill noise. He silently glares at Abe’s pocket. Abe excuses himself goes to the side and picks up the phone.

“Hey, it’s me. What happened? Uh-huh…right. So that’s how it is. Let’s meet up somewhere. How does the area near the usual Texas Fried Chicken sound to you? Got it? Good. See you then!”

He hangs up. Doppo gives him an eye. “Who the hell was that?”

“Just a friend, boss.” Abe laughs, pocketing his phone. He flashes a charming smile at the scowling, scarved figure, “So what was that about your sister again?”

File: some time ago.jpg (64 KB, 1280x720)

64 KB JPG

“Hey, Abe, who the hell was outside that door?”

“You mean other than that Rutherford girl?”

“Yeah. You ain’t responding. What, you hiding something from me?”

“Course not, boss.”

“Then tell me, dammit."

“It was just a bunch of private school kids. You shouldn’t worry about them.”

>>778228
Well, fuck you too Abe.

>>778232
So good ol' notsohonest Abe is working with the third party to spark some fights? Guess we really should look into this guy some more.

File: in the rain.png (382 KB, 700x494)

382 KB PNG

“…oh, and there’s another thing that must be mentioned.”

Your name is Keiichi Hirayama and you are fourteen years old. You are seated in the living room of your little country home with your family—your younger sister Airi, your mother and your father. You can’t stop shaking and you don’t know if it’s out of fright or sheer anticipation.

There’s a guest in your home today, one that you invited. It’s a girl with long black hair, violet eyes have searched the depths of your soul and clothed in a dark funeral dress embroidered with silk. She’s sitting in the seat next to you. Her hair smells of burnt metal instead of conditioner and her presence is far from human.

She is Akasha-Alea, a spirit representing the concept of firearms. Given what she did before you invited here, you are inclined to believe her. She is discussing something incredible important with your parents—a spirit contract for you alone. Even a boy as naïve and useless as you recognizes this as a one in a lifetime opportunity.

“If you are to contract with me, boy,” Akasha-Alea speaks to your unconvinced parents and your wary younger sister and the tense you. “Then you must keep my identity a secret.”

“How come?” You ask.

“Bear in mind that this is the first time I have revealed myself to humanity. No other humans are aware of my existence. Now, consider how consider how ubiquitous firearms are in modern human warfare. Understand the theories humans have devised about the potential spirit of firearms, in the same vein as the head spirit of blades or tanks. Know that certain sects of humanity revere and worship firearms. These humans pray to imaginary deities and visualize firearms in human form. I have collected their faith and they wish for me to embrace them with my presence.” Akasha-Alea explains, folding my arms, “Now think about what would happen if I revealed myself to be contracted to a mere child instead of them.”

File: goddess_picture.jpg (244 KB, 1280x720)

244 KB JPG

There is silence around the table. “They would come for him.” Your mother whispers, horrified. Former battle mage, over thirty years of age. When Akasha-Alea appeared, your mother immediately stood on guard, firing up her long-unused magic circuits. “They would kidnap Keiichi and demand him to tell them about you.”

“At the very least, there would be a lot of people coming here to ask questions.” Your father, a grocery store owner, murmurs.

Akasha-Alea nods. “Precisely. By law of the Spirit World, spirit mentors are forbidden from directly interacting with their mentees, including rescuing them from abduction. Therefore, you must keep my existence a secret.”

“How will he explain it to the government? They keep track of the spirit mentors contracted to children.”

“Easy.” Akasha-Alea says, “You will feign my identity as a spirit of minor space manipulation.”

“Will that work?” You ask, unconvinced.

“It is not entirely a falsehood, given what I can bestow upon you.”

“What’s that?”

“Sign the contract and you’ll find out.”

“Oh…” You pause and think. “Will there ever be a chance to reveal yourself?”

“Do you want to?” Akasha-Alea asks, looking at you.

“No, I’m just curious.”

“If there ever is, it will be when you are older and stronger. Now then, onto the next topic of this discussion…”

File: blood2.jpg (342 KB, 1280x720)

342 KB JPG

2:

When your agreement has been given, your parents have no more misgivings and your sister has stopped latching onto your side, Akasha draws a knife. You baulk at the sight of the steel blade, thinking for a moment that she’s going to slice off one of your fingers like a yakuza. Instead, the spirit girl takes out a piece of golden parchment and places it on the table.

“Everything we have discussed is summarized here.” She points to the contract. “Read it, boy.”

You do so, because you’ve heard that malevolent spirits enjoy exploiting loopholes. Akasha-Alea isn’t a toxic spirit, so you guess this must be her first lesson to you. When you’re done, she speaks again.

“Give me your hand.”

You do so with hesitation. She takes the blade and cuts the skin on your palm. It stings and you cringe, squeezing teardrops from the corners of squinting eyes. She does the same to her own and doesn’t even flinch as steel cuts flesh and precious redness flows down her delicate-seeming hand.

Together, your blood mingles on the parchment, lighting it with an unearthly, ethereal glow that matches her eyes. It creates a wind that surrounds you and her, blowing your hair and scattering dust and cutlery. Something squeezes hard inside you and you feel the urge to scream. You probably do. Exhilaration, nausea and aggression have been rolled up into a big ball and forced its way down your throat. You cannot hear the shouts of your distressed parents, nor the tearful cries of Airi. You clutch yourself as your soul fragments and reassembles itself in a manner of seconds.

File: 4e70d50f0d7afda4.jpg (421 KB, 728x1000)

421 KB JPG

You smell, feel and taste ash and spice, metal and carbon, acid and plastic. You quaver and can’t but smirk. Ah, this sensation! The feeling of violence and protection, precision and madness, metallurgy and bloodshed, death and existence and so much more mixing and swirling, setting fire and bringing forth energy to pathways in your soul that have remained dormant since the very beginning…

A hand is placed on your shoulder. It’s Akasha-Alea. You feel her grip tighten. Calm washes over you. The turbulence within your soul begins to relax. You feel your breath grow steadier and steadier until it all returns to normal.

Furniture is everywhere. Your family is gaping in shock. Guess they hadn’t expected your awakening to be so violent; Airi’s didn’t even come close to this. Akasha-Alea rolls up the contract and stores it inside her dress, a motion so casual it is as if nothing had occurred. She extends a pale hand, the arm wrapped in elegant cloth and invisible ash. She stares at you and you realize a second late that you are supposed to do the same. You follow with haste.

“The contract is sealed. I am Akasha-Alea, the spirit of firearms, and from this day forth I shall be your mentor.”

Still reeling from shock, you nod dumbly. “I’m Keiichi Hirayama, your new spirit mentee. Um, nice to meet you, Akasha-Alea. Let’s get along.”

“I will not go easy on you. I will expect nothing but your very best. Do you understand, boy?” Her words are cold, rigid and commanding, much like the weapons she represents. They do not seem like they should be coming from the mouth of a girl who is only a bit taller than you. Yet, their effect rings true. You gulp, because you feel as if you have plunged into a sea so much deeper than you initially believed.

There’s only one path. “I understand.” You say, and Akasha-Alea nods, so it must be satisfactory.

File: into the distance you go.jpg (66 KB, 1280x720)

66 KB JPG

3:

Your new spirit mentor is not kidding. Your training begins on the same day as the contract. As soon as the living room is cleaned up, she takes you to your room and makes you sit down. She stands above you, lecturing.

“This is how you will spend your days.”

She draws up a plan. It has diagrams. Detailed instructions on your diet, sleeping times, exercise and rest are all there. The changes are to be made immediately, no questions asked about it. A sinking feeling makes itself known inside your stomach.

“You need to be fit.”

She makes you wake up an hour before usual. Running shoes on, out the door and into the cold. At her behest, you jog across country roads, open fields and through dense forests. Your legs and ankles burn and scream for mercy. She makes you rest, then orders you to do some more. Begging is useless, your body decides to toughen itself up.

“Firearms are heavy, so you need to be strong.”

Your father has a makeshift exercise section in your backyard. Some dumbbells, a metal bar for pullups and a stretch of concrete for push-ups and other exercises. From the day of the signing, it becomes yours. You didn’t realize your body could be so heavy until you faced the harsh reality of fifteen consecutive pull-ups. You go to bed with the complaints of multiple sore muscles.

“Do not eat this.”

You try and eat chocolate. She snatches it for herself, then replaces it with a muesli bar. It doesn't taste as good.

“I will not let you harm yourself.”

She doesn’t teach you how to fire a gun right off the bat. Instead, she asks you about what a gun is. Straightforward, no stepping around it. Your answer does not please her, so she informs you. Definitions, cartridge versus bullet. Primer, casing, gunpowder and bullet. Firing pins, hammers, bolts, breeches and more. The difference between clips and magazines. She teaches you the four important rules of gun safety and gives you an unloaded pistol to practice them on. When you slip up, irritation flashes across her face like a comet, and you groan and prepare for a lecture.

“Remember what I have taught you.”

Your first gun from her is a familiar revolver, a six-shot .38 from Smith and Wesson. The four rules repeat themselves in your head. Your mother works at a firing range part time and that is where she takes you. It’s a hot day, with the sun shining down hard through a cloudless sky. She reserves a metal target and tells you to fire at it.

You promptly miss all your shots. More practice is needed.

File: go forwards.jpg (159 KB, 1280x720)

159 KB JPG

“This is my blessing unto you.”

It takes the shape of an invisible space that latches onto your back. Your magic has just awakened, so its powers are weak. You can only contain a single firearm, the revolver. Its weight presses down on you like a miniature troll. She makes you carry it everywhere, even at school and during relaxation at home. It’s not heavy, but the presence of a life-taking tool is disconcerting. You grow paranoid that someone will discover it, despite her constant reminders that the space can only be detected by high-level magic, and arrest you for being a school shooter.

Sleep is the only time she grants release, and even then you still have to keep the cartridges.

“Are you listening to me?”

Most spirit mentors divide their attention among many students. She is different. She only has you and thus her voice is always in your head. It’s a pest, at first. You ask her why she can’t materialize herself in the real world. It’s because she has business to do in the spirit world, she replies.

Don’t forget your training. You can run more. You can lift more. Eat slowly, otherwise you will get sick. Recite the lessons. Aim your shots correctly. Steady the hands. Practice your breathing. A swarm, that’s what it is. Sometimes, you wish you could silence her once and for good.

It doesn't happen, because she claims to know what’s best for you. Deep down in your juvenile heart, you roll your eyes and agree.

File: Spoiler Image (535 KB, 809x823)

535 KB PNG

Despite the hardship, you endure it all, because you signed yourself up for this and it’s your responsibility to see it through and you don’t want to let your parents down. You don’t want to let this opportunity to slip through these fingers. You don’t want to let her down, as weird as it sounds. You think guns are cool and it might become a talent you can be proud of. You want to do something with your life.

But most of all you cannot stand the idea of being left behind.

File: Spoiler Image (114 KB, 599x849)

114 KB PNG

Weeks pass since the beginning. One day, you manage to land all six shots on the practice target with your revolver. When the last of the gunshots echo away and your breathing drops to normal, you look to the side where she is standing and give her a tired grin.

“Adequate,” She answers your unsaid question with the usual poker face. But there’s a hint of genuine pride and warmth in her tone and you don’t fail to miss it.

Akasha-Alea best girl.

File: discomfort.png (276 KB, 540x375)

276 KB PNG

So is Akasha-Alea ALWAYS watching Keiichi? Even when he needs some alone time with Rosie Palm?

>>784397
Obviously. He just has to learn to live with the shameful faps.