by Косюн Таками
The garbage bag floated upward. It rose until the wire was taut to the point where it almost seemed to lift the reel—but it stopped right at Shinji and Yutaka's heads.
"See?" Shinji said out loud. Yutaka had probably realized what was going on while Shinji was working on the canister. He'd already nodded several times.
Shinji tied another piece of wire from another reel to the wire stretching under the balloon. Just to be sure, he secured this to the balloon with tape. With the pair of wires in both of his hands, he moved the balloon as if it were walking on a pair of legs. Then he pointed to a nearby tree. He moved the string. Yes, in other words, these were the legs of the giant. They were too frail to crush a city and right now they're shorter than me, but...
Yutaka seemed to understand completely. He gave two huge nods. Then he moved his lips without saying anything. It looked like he was saying, "Awesome, Shinji." Or maybe it was, "Enough already." Whatever, it didn't matter.
Shinji took the memo pad and wrote, We make one or two more balloons and attach them to each other. But I still don't know how far up the wire can be stretched. There's also the wind. Let's just go for it.
Yutaka read this and nodded.
Shinji glanced up at the sky. The bags were black, so even under the moon, Sakamochi and his men wouldn't see them. Right now there wasn't much wind either. But he had no idea what it was like further up there in the sky. Then he said, "Let's hurry."
Shinji signaled Yutaka to hold onto the first balloon and proceeded to pull out another garbage bag.
20 students remaining
48
Shogo rose a little after 10 p.m.
Shuya had been looking after Noriko, who remained resting in bed. Shuya groped through the nearly pitch black room and entered the waiting room.
"I'll make some coffee," Shogo said as he looked up at Shuya. Then he walked down the hall. He seemed to have good night vision.
Shuya returned to the beds, where he found Noriko up without her blanket.
"You should rest a little more," Shuya said.
Noriko nodded, "Uh huh..." Then she mumbled, "Could you ask Shogo...if he's going to boil some more water if I can get an extra cup?" Noriko was sitting on the edge of the bed with her hands by her thighs. Moonlight spilled in over the curtain from the window. She kept her chin tucked in as she looked over to her side.
"Sure...but what for?"
Noriko hesitated and then answered, "I sweated so much...I just wanted to wipe my body...maybe it's too much to ask for."
"Oh no," Shuya replied and quickly nodded. "No prob. I'll go tell him." He left the room.
Shogo was boiling water in the dark kitchen. The tip of the cigarette between his mouth glowed red, and the charcoal flame under the pot resembled a strange firefly stirring to life.
"Shogo," Shuya said. Shogo turned around. The afterimage of his cigarette traced a thick line before vanishing. "Noriko was wondering if she could have some hot water. She said one cup was enough—"
"Ah." Shogo didn't let him continue. He removed his cigarette from his mouth. Shuya could see Shogo was smiling in the dim moonlight coming through the window. "Sure. A cup or an entire bucket, fine with me."
As he moved he scooped up water with the bowl from the bucket and added it to the pot. He repeated this five times. He kept a low charcoal flame going to keep the water in the pot boiling. Shuya felt some steam drift by. "She's a girl," Shogo said.
It turned out Shogo wasn't as slow as Shuya was. He knew why Noriko asked for hot water.
Shuya was silent and Shogo unexpectedly continued on his own.
"She wants to stay pretty cause she's with you." Then he exhaled some smoke.
Shuya remained quiet, but then asked, "Can I help you?"
"No." Shogo seemed to be shaking his head. Squinting his eyes, Shuya could see three cups and a coffee dripper already loaded with a filter on the table. There was also a tea bag for Noriko.
"Hey," Shogo called him.
Shuya lifted his brow, "What is it? All of a sudden you're so chatty."
Shogo chuckled. Then he continued, "I understand how you feel about Yoshitoki, but don't forget about Noriko's feelings."
Shuya fell silent again. The he spoke. For some reason, there was a hint of dissatisfaction in his tone of voice. "I know."
"You have a girlfriend?" Shogo proceeded to ask.
Shuya shrugged. "Nope."
"Then what's the problem?"
Shogo continued to look at the window, smoking his cigarette. "It's not a bad thing to be loved."
Shuya shrugged again. Then he asked, "Don't you have someone?"
His cigarette glowed brightly. He didn't say anything. The smoke drifted slowly through the dark.
"A secret, huh?"
"No..." Shogo began to speak, but then he removed the cigarette from his mouth and tossed it into the bucket of water. "Get down, Shuya," he whispered and crouched down.
Shuya nervously obeyed him. Was someone going to attack? He grew tense.
"Get Noriko. Be quiet though," Shogo whispered again. Shuya was already on his way to the examination room, where Noriko was.
Noriko was still sitting in a daze on the edge of the bed. Shuya signaled her to duck down. She must have immediately understood because she got off the bed, holding her breath. Shuya offered her his hand for support as they moved to the kitchen. He looked over to the entrance on the way there, but there was no one beyond the glass door.
Shogo had already gathered their day packs which he'd packed with refilled water bottles and other items, and now he was on his knees by the back door, holding his shotgun.
"What is it?" Shuya asked in a hushed voice. Shogo lifted his left hand to silence him. Shuya didn't say another word.
"Someone's outside," Shogo whispered. "We'll exit through whichever door they don't enter."
The only thing visible in the dark was the bright charcoal flame under the pot. Given the location of the sink, it couldn't be seen from outside.
Shuya heard a tapping sound. It came from the entrance. The door wouldn't open because of the stick jamming it. The glass was broken, so the person outside must have realized that someone had entered the building and that it was probably still occupied.
There was a clacking sound, but then it stopped. It sounded like the person had given up.
Shogo groaned. "Damn, we'll be in trouble if this one tries to set this place on fire."
They remained quiet, but there was still no sound. Then Shogo signaled for them to move towards the entrance. He might have heard a slight sound.
They were nearly crawling down the hall.
As they made their way, Shogo, behind the other two, reached out to Shuya who was leading. They stopped. Shuya turned around and looked over his shoulder at Shogo.
"He's circling back to the front." He waved his hand to the back. "Let's go out the back."
So they went towards the kitchen down the hall.
Shogo stopped again before they entered the kitchen.
"Damn, why?" he muttered.
...the person outside was now coming round to the back door again.
The silence continued. Shogo held onto his shotgun. With Noriko between him and Shogo, Shuya also gripped the SIG-Sauer that had once belonged to Kaori Minami. (He'd given the Smith & Wesson to Shogo. Shuya decided to hold onto the gun that had more bullets.)
But the silence was suddenly broken. A voice called from outside the kitchen window. "It's Hiroki," he said. "I'm not fighting. Respond, you three. Who are you?"
It was undoubtedly the voice of Hiroki Sugimura (Male Student No. 11), who along with Shinji Mimura was one of the few classmates Shuya could trust.
"What the?.. " Shuya moaned. "That's incredible ".
It was a stroke of luck. He never thought they'd see Hiroki. Shuya and Noriko looked at each other. Noriko looked relieved.
Shogo stopped Shuya as he tried to get up.
"What?"
"Shh. Don't rai
se your voice."
Shuya stared at Shogo's serious expression and then responded with an exaggerated shrug and smiled. "Don't worry. I'll vouch for him. We can totally trust him."
Shogo shook his head and said, "How did he know there were three of us?"
That thought hadn't occurred to Shuya. He thought it over while looking at Shogo. But he had no idea. That didn't matter though. The important thing was that Hiroki was here. He just wanted to see Hiroki's face now.
"Maybe he saw us go in here, from far away. That's why he didn't know who we were."
"What took him so long to get here then?" Shuya thought again. "He probably deliberated over whether he should find out who was here or not... In any case, we can trust Hiroki. I'll vouch for him."
Shuya ignored Shogo, who looked like he wasn't satisfied. He raised his voice and directed it beyond the window. "It's Shuya, Hiroki. I'm with Shogo Kawada and Noriko Nakagawa."
"Shuya!.." a relieved voice replied. "Let me in. Where should I come in?"
Before Shuya could answer, Shogo raised his voice, "This is Shogo. Go to the front entrance. Keep your hands behind your head and do not move. Got that?"
"Shogo..." Shuya was about to protest, but Hiroki immediately responded, "Got it." What looked like the upper body of Hiroki crossed the frosted glass window.
Shogo bent down to look out of the cracks in the glass. Holding onto his shotgun, he yanked out the obstructing stick and opened the door.
Hiroki Sugimura was standing with his hands behind his neck. He was slightly taller than Shogo, but more slender. His hair, wavy like Shuya's, went down the middle of his forehead. His day pack was by his feet and for some reason there was a 1.5-meter stick on the ground.
It was true. Shuya shifted his eyes, as if it were a miracle. Shuya's face made Hiroki grin.
"I have to do a body check."
"Shogo, come on..."
Shogo paid no attention to Shuya's protest and moved forward, holding onto his shotgun. He went behind Hiroki and first checked his hands behind his neck. Then he rubbed his left hand over Hiroki's school coat.
His hand stopped at a pocket.
"What the hell's this?"
"Go ahead and pull it out," Hiroki said with his hands held together. "But give it back to me."
Shogo pulled it out. It was the size and shape of a thick notepad, but it was made of plastic or steel. The cover panel reflected the moonlight. After fiddling around with it, Shogo said, "Ah ha." He moved his body with the object in his hands and then looked down at the cover panel against the moonlight. He nodded and returned it to Hiroki's pocket. Then he thoroughly searched Hiroki down to his pant cuffs. He also checked his day pack and finally announced, "Okay. Sorry about that. You can put your hands down."
Hiroki unlocked his hands and picked up his day pack and stick. The stick appeared to be his weapon.
"Hiroki." Shuya broke into a smile. "Come on in. We have coffee. You want some?"
Hiroki nodded somewhat hesitantly as he went through the entrance. Shogo looked outside and then shut the door.
Hiroki stood still. With his back to the shoe cabinet that was filled with slippers, Shogo stared at Hiroki. The Remington muzzle was pointed down, but Shuya noticed Shogo's finger still on the trigger and felt slightly annoyed. He did his best not to let it get to him, though.
Hiroki looked at Shuya and Noriko again, and then glanced over at Shogo. That was when Shuya realized that Hiroki was troubled not so much by him and Noriko as he was by them hooking up with Shogo.
Shogo addressed the issue. "Shuya, Hiroki seems to want to ask whether it's all right for you guys to be with me."
Hiroki smiled slightly and looked over at Shogo, and said, "No...I just thought it was an odd combination." Still smiling, he continued, "Shuya would never be with you if you were hostile. Shuya can be pretty stupid when it comes to certain things, but he's not that stupid."
Shogo responded with a grin. He still kept his finger on the trigger though. In any case, for now Hiroki and Shogo were finished introducing themselves.
"Ah, come on, Hiroki," Shuya gave him a smile.
Then Noriko said, "Come on in. It's not our house, so I can't apologize for its messiness."
Then Hiroki smiled, but he stayed at the entrance. Shuya supported Noriko with his left hand and then pointed at the hall.
"Come on in. We'll have to get going soon, but we have a little time. We'll throw you a welcoming party."
But Hiroki stood still there. Shuya realized how he'd forgotten to share an important detail. Hiroki might have been appalled Shuya was using the word "party" in this situation.
"Hiroki, we can get out of here. Shogo is going to help us."
Hiroki's eyes widened a little. "Really?"
Shuya nodded. But then Hiroki looked down. Then he looked up again.
"Thing is...," he said and shook his head, "there's something I have to take care of."
"Something?" Shuya knit his brows. "Why don't you first come on in—"
Instead of taking Shuya up on his invitation, he asked, "Have you three been together all this time?"
Shuya thought it over and then shook his head. "No...me and Noriko were. And then..."
Then he remembered what happened this morning. It'd been a while since the image of Tatsumichi Oki's skull split open assaulted him, and once again he felt a chill run down his spine.
"...yeah. A lot of stuff happened, and we ended up joining Shogo."
"I see." Hiroki nodded and then said. "Hey, have you guys seen Kotohiki?"
"Kotohiki?" Shuya repeated. Kayoko Kotohiki (Female Student No. 8)? The one who, in spite of being into tea ceremony, seemed more playful than elegant?
"No..." Shuya shook his head. "We haven't but..." He thought of Shogo and looked over at him, but he also shook his head, saying, "I haven't seen her either."
Of course Kayoko Kotohiki had to be on this island. As long as her name wasn't announced yet in Sakamochi's announcements, she had to be alive. That's right—unless she was killed after 6 p.m.
Once again he realized how he was letting most of his classmates die and felt awful.
"What about Kotohiki?" Noriko asked.
"Oh..." Hiroki shook his head. "It's no big deal. Thanks. Sorry, but I have to get going." He gave Shuya a parting glance and turned to go.
"Hold on, Hiroki!" Shuya stopped him. "Where are you going? I told you we're safe with us, didn't I?"
Hiroki looked back at Shuya. There was a sad look in his eyes, but they still gave away that humorous trace of irony. It might have been a look all his close friends shared. Yoshitoki Kuninobu (deceased, damn), and of course Shinji Mimura, and—now it seemed—Shogo Kawada.
"I have to see Kayoko Kotohiki about something. So I have to go."
Something. What could that possibly be in this situation where moving around would only increase your chances of dying? Finally Shuya said, "Hold on. You can't go...not with any real weapons. It's too risky. And how are you going to find her?"
Hiroki bit his lower lip. Then he pulled out that object resembling a mobile data terminal from his pocket and showed it to Shuya. "This is the 'weapon' I got in my day pack. Professor Kawada over there could explain." He pointed at his neck while his hand held the device. The silver collars around the necks of Shuya, Noriko, and Shogo were all shining. "Looks like this device detects anyone wearing these collars. Once someone's in the vicinity, they show up on the screen. But you can't tell whose collar it is."
Shuya finally figured out the answer to Shogo's questions. It was thanks to this device Hiroki had been able to announce there were three of them and detect their movements. Like the computer at the school monitoring their positions, it could detect the position of anyone wearing a collar, even if, as Hiroki said, you couldn't tell who it was.
Hiroki put the device back into the pocket. "See you—" He was ready to go when he suddenly stopped, "That's right...beware of Mitsuko Souma," he added. He gave Shuya and then Shogo a s
tern look. "She's playing the game. I don't know about the others, but I know for sure she is."
"Did you fight her?" Shogo asked.
Hiroki shook his head. "No. I didn't, but Takako...Takako Chigusa said so before she died. Mitsuko killed Takako."
Shuya suddenly recalled how Takako was already dead. After hearing Sakamochi announce her death, he'd been concerned about its effect on Hiroki, but he was so happy to see him he'd forgotten this dreadful fact.
That's right, Hiroki and Takako Chigusa were close. For a while, Shuya actually thought they were going out. But when he'd casually asked him about it, Hiroki chuckled and said, "She's in a different class. We've known each other since we were kids. You know hide-and-seek, that kind of thing. When we used to fight, I'd be the one crying." That sounded (of course Takako Chigusa was an amazing athlete, and pretty aggressive, but her taking on Hiroki, who was now over 180 centimeters tall and ranked in martial arts—a while back, that's right, the only time he visited his house, Hiroki reluctantly showed him how he could split a piece of pine wood with the palm of his hand) preposterously funny.
But now Takako Chigusa was dead. And...given the way Hiroki had just described it, he was there when she died.
"So you were with her?" Noriko asked quietly.
Hiroki shook his head. "Just the very end. I...when we left, I hid in front of the school, waiting for her...but then Yoshio came back, and I got too distracted, so I lost Takako...then...as I looked for Takako I ended up losing my chance to join you, Shuya, and Shinji."
Shuya nodded several times. So Hiroki was in front of the school until Yoshio Akamatsu returned. He probably hid in the woods. It was dangerous, of course. But that only showed how important Takako was to Hiroki.
"But...," Hiroki continued, "I found Takako...Iwas...too late though." Saying this much, Hiroki looked down. He shook his head several times. Without being told, Shuya understood that by the time Hiroki had found Takako she was dying from being attacked by Mitsuko.
Shuya thought of telling him how Yoshio Akamatsu had killed Mayumi Tendo, and how he had almost killed Shuya as well, but...it was irrelevant now. Yoshio Akamatsu was dead now too.