"Well, a lot of things happened, and we joined up with Kawada." "I see." Hiroki nodded, then said, "So you haven't seen Kotohiki?" "Kotohiki?" Shuya repeated. Kayoko Kotohiki? Girls number eight? The one who despite being into tea ceremonies is more playful than demure?
"No," Shuya said, shaking his head. "I haven't seen her." He turned to Kawada, who also shook his head.
"I haven't seen her either."
Kayoko Kotohiki was certainly somewhere on the island. And since Sakamochi hadn't read her name in any of the announcements, she should still be alive—as long as she hadn't died after six p.m.
This reminded Shuya that his plan meant turning a blind eye to his classmates' deaths, and his mood soured.
Noriko asked, "What about Kayoko?"
Hiroki shook his head. "Ah, it's no big deal. Thanks. Sorry, but I have to go."
Hiroki gave Kawada a parting glance, then turned.
Shuya called out to stop him. "Wait, Sugimura! Where are you going? Didn't I tell you we can save you?"
Hiroki looked over his shoulder at Shuya. There was sadness in his eyes but also the glimmer of his familiar dark humor. Perhaps it was a twinkle common to all of Shuya's friends, including, of course, Yoshitoki Kuninobu [but he's dead now, damn it), and Shinji Mimura.
Hiroki said, "I have to see Kotohiki about something. So I'm going."
Something. What could be so important to go around risking your life for?
Putting his curiosity aside, Shuya said, "Hold on. If you're going, you need a real weapon. It's dangerous out there. Besides, how are you going to look for her?"
Hiroki curled in his lower lip. But then he pulled out a device that looked like a PDA and showed it to Shuya. "This is the 'weapon' that was in my daypack. Professor Kawada over there seems to know what it is. This guy can somehow tell where anyone with one of these is located." With the hand holding the device, he pointed at his own neck, where he wore the same shiny silver collar that was around Shuya, Noriko, and Kawada's necks. "I have to get really close first. They appear on the screen—though it doesn't give me any names."
Shuya finally had his answers as to how Hiroki had known there were three of them inside and how he had constantly cut off their movements. Just like those computers in the school, the gadget could pinpoint the collars' locations, even if, as Hiroki had said, it didn't reveal who the wearers were.
Hiroki put the device back into his pocket. "Okay, see you," he said, and was about to leave when he stopped. "Oh yeah, watch out for Mitsuko Souma." He gave a stern look to Shuya and then Kawada. "She's playing for keeps. I don't know about any of the others, but at least I'm sure about her."
Kawada asked, "Did you run into her?"
"No." Hiroki shook his head. "No, I didn't, but Takako—Takako Chigusa told me, before she died. Souma killed her."
When Sakamochi reported Takako Chigusa's death in his six o'clock announcement, Shuya had worried how Hiroki would take it. But in the joy of seeing his friend's face, Shuya had completely forgotten about her death and only now remembered it.
Hiroki and Takako Chigusa had been incredibly close—enough so that for a time, Shuya had mistakenly believed the two were dating. But when Shuya casually asked him about it, he laughed and said, "I'm not nearly good enough for her. We've been friends since we were little—you know, playing hide-and-seek, that kind of thing. And when we had fights, I'd be the one who ended up crying."
True, Takako Chigusa possessed an exceptional athlete's instinct for a girl and was strong willed too, but next to Hiroki, a black belt standing over a hundred eighty centimeters tall (the one time Shuya had gone to his house to play, he'd convinced a reluctant Hiroki to show him how he could split a thick wooden board with nothing but the palm of his hand), something about the mental image of her making him cry seemed hilarious.
But now the strong-willed Takako Chigusa was dead. And from the way Hiroki talked, he had watched her die.
Softly, Noriko asked, "Were you with her?"
Hiroki shook his head. "Only at the end. When—when I was sent out, I hid in front of the school and waited for her. But I was distracted when Akamatsu came back, and I lost sight of her. And when I went off searching for her, I missed my chance to meet up with you and Mimura."
Shuya nodded several times. So Hiroki had been in front of the school when Yoshio Akamatsu came back—probably hiding in the woods. He had taken a risk doing so. But that only showed how important Takako was to him.
Hiroki continued, "I found her. Only I was too late."
Hiroki's eyes dropped. His head swung left and right. He didn't have to say the rest; Shuya understood that when he found her, she was already dying, having been taken out by Mitsuko Souma.
Shuya considered telling him that Yoshio Akamatsu had killed Mayumi Tendo and had nearly killed Shuya himself, but it didn't matter much now. Yoshio Akamatsu was dead.
Noriko said, "I don't know if it helps, but you have my condolences."
Hiroki gave her a slight smile and nodded. "Thanks."
"Anyway," Shuya said. "Come in. Let's talk it over. You'll still have—"
Time, he was about to say, but the word caught in his throat. If Hiroki wanted to meet Kayoko Kotohiki while they both yet lived, time was what he didn't have. Shuya understood why Hiroki had searched for Takako, but why he was looking for Kayoko Kotohiki was a mystery. In any case, while they were talking here, she could be fighting someone, only moments from death.
Hiroki gave another small smile. Maybe he'd read Shuya's thoughts.
Shuya licked his lips. He shot Kawada a glance, then said, "If you insist on going—" He looked at Hiroki. "—we'll come help you find her."
But Hiroki shook his head dismissively. He pointed to Noriko with his chin. "Nakagawa's injured. It would be too dangerous. I could never ask that of you."
Shuya couldn't accept this. "But we can save you. If we separate now, how can we meet again?"
Suddenly, Kawada said, "Sugimura." He still held the shotgun, but his finger had left the trigger.
Hiroki turned his head, and Kawada took a small object from his pocket. He put it to his mouth, held the metal end between his teeth, then twisted the rest of it with his fingers.
Chi-ch-ch-chirp-chirp. It was a bird's cry—a brilliant, loud, and playful twitter, like a thrush or a chickadee.
Kawada lowered his hand, and Shuya got a look at the object—A birdcall? Why would Kawada have something like that?
Kawada said, "Whether you find Kotohiki or not, if you want to meet up with us again, build a fire and put fresh wood on it to make smoke. Build two fires. Of course you'll want to get away fast, because you'll only attract attention. And make sure to build them in a way you won't start a wildfire. Once we see the smoke, I'll sound this call for . . . fifteen seconds, every fifteen minutes exactly. Follow the call to find us."
He held out the birdcall for Hiroki to see. "This little noisemaker is your ticket out of here. Hop on our train whenever you like."
Hiroki nodded. "Okay. I'll do that, thanks."
"One more thing," Kawada said. He took his map from his pocket, unfolded it, and handed it to Hiroki along with a pencil. "I'm sorry to take some of your time, but could you write down where Chigusa died? And do the same for anyone else you might have run into/'
Hiroki raised his eyebrows a little, set the map down in the moonlight on top of the shoe rack, and took the pencil in hand.
Kawada added, "Give me your map. I'll mark the locations of the bodies we've found."
Hiroki stopped writing and handed over his map. The two stood side by side and began marking the maps.
Noriko said, "I'll bring some coffee," and left Shuya's arm. Holding onto the wall for support, she limped down the hall.
As Kawada wrote, he asked, "Did Chigusa say if Souma had a machine gun?"
"No," Hiroki replied without looking up. "She didn't say anything about that. She'd been shot several times in the back, though—not just once."
"
Okay."
Standing beside the two as they worked, Shuya explained what had happened with Yoshio Akamatsu, and Tatsumichi Oki and Kyoichi Motobuchi. Hiroki nodded along as he wrote.
When Kawada finished, he showed the map to Hiroki and explained, "Minami was killed here. Nanahara saw Shimizu running away. It might have been self-defense, but either way, watch out for Shimizu."
Hiroki nodded. Then, unlikely as it was, he said, "I saw Kaori too," and pointed on the map. "Just before noon. She shot at me without warning. But I think she was in a panic."
Kawada nodded and exchanged maps with Hiroki.
Noriko appeared from the hallway carrying a cup. With her legs still unsteady, Shuya met her halfway and relayed the coffee to Hiroki, who took in the aroma, made a quiet whistle, then took the cup. He thanked Noriko and took a sip.
In almost no time at all, he set the cup down at the edge of the waiting room's raised floor. It was still mostly full.
"Okay, see ya," he said.
"Wait," Shuya said. He pulled the SIG-Sauer from his belt. He offered it to Hiroki, grip-first. With his other hand, he took the spare magazine from his pocket.
"Here, take this, if you still insist on going, okay? We've got a shotgun and another pistol."
The Smith Si Wesson, which had originally belonged to Kyoichi before Shuya had taken it, was down the front of Kawada's belt. Shuya handing over the SIG-Sauer would certainly lessen their team's fighting capability, but Kawada didn't comment.
But Hiroki shook his head. "You need that, Nanahara. Protect Nakagawa. That's something I can't take from you. I couldn't make myself use it." Then, with a slight tilt of his head, he looked at Shuya and Noriko, smiled faintly, and added, "I always wondered why you two weren't going out."
With that, he gave them each a nod in turn and noiselessly slid open the front door.
"Sugimura," Noriko said. Her voice was quiet. "Be careful."
"I will. Thanks. And good luck to you guys too."
Shuya was starting to get choked up, but he managed to say, "Sugimura. We'll meet again. That's a promise."
Hiroki nodded, then left. Shuya helped Noriko down to the entryway, where they watched Hiroki depart. He went straight off to the right, up toward the mountain, and out of sight.
Kawada ushered them back inside without a word and closed the door.
Shuya sighed and looked over his shoulder into the clinic. He saw the faint wisp of steam rising from the cup abandoned at the edge of the floor.
20 STUDENTS REMAIN.
The moon hung high in the center of the sky with not a single cloud. The white light of the nearly full moon cast a thin film across the sky that obscured the stars.
In front, Kawada stopped, and Shuya and Noriko, leaning on him, both stopped too.
Shuya asked, "Noriko, are you okay?"
She nodded. "I'm fine." But from the way she felt on his arm, Shuya could tell that her body remained unsteady.
Shuya looked at his watch. It was past eleven o'clock now, but they had already left the now-forbidden zone, G-9. Next up was to find another place where they could settle in.
For now, they'd been retracing their previous path through the sparse groupings of trees, back up to the base of the northern mountain. A little farther, and they'd come out onto the farm where Kaori Minami had died. Off to their left, a narrow fan-shaped patch of flat farmland dotted with houses began at the eastern village and tapered off to the west. The main road passed through what would be the fan's hinge and cut through the island toward the western shore.
Kawada turned to them and asked, "Well, what now?" He'd rolled up a blanket for Noriko and tied it to the daypacks hanging from his shoulder.
Shuya said, "You don't suppose we could hole up in another house?"
"A house..." Kawada looked away and narrowed his eyes. "In general, that's not a good idea. As more of the island gets closed off, there'll be fewer houses to choose from. Anytime anyone needs something, like food, or whatever, they'll go looking inside the houses."
"Hey," Noriko said. "If you're worried about me, I'm fine now. I'll be all right outdoors."
Kawada smirked, then silently looked over the flat land. Maybe he was mentally lining it up with the notes Hiroki left on his map.
Hiroki had written not only who he'd found dead, but also detailed descriptions of how they'd died. Kazushi Niida's corpse was right near Takako Chigusa's. Not only had his eyes been gouged out (Wow!), his throat had been stabbed with something. And Megumi Eto had died inside the village, now a forbidden zone. Her throat had been slit. (Now that Noriko had told him Megumi had a crush on him, hearing how she died gave Shuya a pang.) Then, between the eastern village and the southern mountain were Yoji Kuramoto and Yoshimi Yahagi. Yoji had been stabbed in the head, and Yoshimi had been shot. And on the southern coast, Izumi Kanai, Hiroshi Kuronaga, Ryuhei Sasagawa, and Mitsuru Numai had all died. Mitsuru Numai had been shot four or five times, and the other three's throats had all been slashed. Sho Tsukioka aside, who had been caught in a forbidden zone, Kiriyama's lackeys had all died together.
"Kawada," Shuya said. Kawada looked back at him. "Do you think Souma killed Kitano and Kusaka?"
As he asked the question, Shuya was again struck by how unreal this all felt. He didn't doubt what Hiroki Sugimura had told him, but it contradicted his inexplicable belief—almost a conviction—that girls would never commit a wrong.
"No." Kawada shook his head. "I don't think so. When Kusaka and Kitano died, the sound of that machine gun was followed by two single shots. That was the killer finishing them off. But after Chigusa was shot, she lived long enough to see Sugimura. Her killer was not as thorough. Though it's certainly possible whoever did it recognized she was a goner and left her to die. But considering the times and locations, I think Souma and the machine-gunner must be two different people."
Shuya recalled the sound of that machine-gun fire he'd heard before nine in the morning. Whoever that had been was still roaming the island. And then, a little later, there were those other, distant gunshots. Had that been Mitsuko Souma?
"Whoever it was ..." Kawada said. His lips twisted into a smile, and he shook his head. "... we'll meet him or her sooner or later, I'm sure. Then we'll know."
Shuya thought of something else that had been bothering him. "That gadget of Sugimura's made me think. Sakamochi must know that we three are together—and where we are."
Looking out at the flat land, Kawada said, "That's right."
Shuya shifted his shoulders to redistribute Noriko's weight. "That's not gonna interfere with our escape?"
His back still turned, Kawada chuckled, then said, "No, it won't. Not in the least. Just leave it to me." He again looked down at the open land below and said, "Let's go back to where we were."
He continued, "A common strategy taken by the ones who decide to play this game is to show up anywhere they hear action. If it weren't for that twenty-four-hour time limit, they wouldn't have to go to such lengths. But because of that deadline, they have to kill when they can. Plus, if someone is going around killing everyone, that means they're on their own, so they won't have much opportunity to sleep. Another reason to keep the match short. If they hear something happening near them, they go there, and if the fight has already kicked off, they can sit back and watch, and then finish off any survivors. That's why we're better off where we can avoid confrontations. If we get mixed up with someone who's lost it out here, one of the star players is bound to show up. Back where we were hiding before, it'd have been unlikely for anyone to run into us. After all, the guys who were hiding there before, Oki and Motobuchi— they're gone now. Plus, there are hardly any houses in the area at all."
"But Shimizu ran off in that direction," Shuya said.
"No, she wouldn't have gone as far as we're going. She didn't have a reason to."
Kawada pointed toward the flat land. "But we'll avoid the mountainside, where she might still be. We'll take another route."
Shuya rai
sed his eyebrows. "Is it safe for us to move through the open?"
Kawada grinned and shook his head. "No matter how bright the moon is, it's nothing like daylight. Actually, it'll be safer than going through the wooded mountains."
Shuya nodded. Kawada took the lead and began descending the gentle slope. Shuya gripped the SIG-Sauer tightly and, supporting Noriko, followed.
The trees opened into a grassland. The first field they crossed grew with some kind of squash. The next was a wheat field. With an island this small, the crops might have been for commercial sale. The Republic of Greater East Asia incessantly issued edicts to increase the domestic food supply. Small fields like these could be for contributing to the effort. As they walked along the edge of the farm, the ground beneath Shuya's sneakers felt a little dry, maybe because the island had been uninhabited for the past few days. But Shuya was struck by the lush, pleasant scent of wheat drifting in the air of this near-summer evening.
It was a nice smell—especially after growing accustomed to the stench of blood.
Ahead of them and to the left, a tractor had been left sitting. Just beyond it was a house.
It was an ordinary two-story, if fairly new. It looked like one of those cheap, mass-produced numbers made by BanaHome or Wirbel House, all ticky-tacky and glue. Despite its location in the middle of the farm, the home was enclosed by the requisite concrete block wall.
Shuya returned his gaze to Kawada's back.
Something tugged at his mind.
He looked over his shoulder. Noriko was leaning on his left arm as she walked. His eyes caught something high in the sky above her head. It sparkled in the moonlight. And it was flying in a parabolic arc straight toward them.
20 STUDENTS REMAIN.
What had made Shuya the team MVP in his Little League days was nothing other than his superior ability to detect objects in motion. Even in this dim light, he could tell that the object hurtling toward them was some kind of can. And here in the serene Seto Inland Sea, this was no act of a tornado, and empty cans didn't just fall from the sky. Whatever this object was, it wasn't an empty can.
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