Chapter CXX: Data Collection
As the noon sun changes its angle above the sky, Saturday afternoon slowly settles over the city. The excitement and emotional chaos brought by Kota and Akiko's return from Sendai has finally begun to calm, though not completely. The events of the previous days continue lingering inside the minds of everyone involved like stubborn storm clouds refusing to leave the horizon.
After saying their goodbyes at the café and discussing a few final details regarding Monday's return to school, Asahi, Enmei, Gin, and Natsuki separate and begin making their way toward their respective homes. The city feels unusually peaceful. Cars move along the streets. Pedestrians walk along sidewalks. Storefronts remain busy. Families enjoy their weekend. Yet beneath that ordinary atmosphere, all four boys know something unsettling.
Somewhere out there, Homura Aizawa and Eloise Murasaki are still moving freely and somewhere out there, somebody may still be watching.
At his home, Asahi arrives first. The familiar scent of Japanese Curry Rice greets him as he enters through the front door.
"I'm home."
His mother peeks from the kitchen.
"Ah, there you are."
Asahi removes his shoes.
"You sound surprised, Mom" (Asahi)
"I am, and you already know why, Mister" (Asahi's Mom)
She crosses her arms.
"You disappeared halfway across Japan this week without even telling or updating me." (Asahi's Mom)
"I told you where I was going." (Asahi)
"You only sent one text message." (Asahi's Mom)
"I sent two." (Asahi)
His mother stares. Asahi smiles nervously.
"Well, technically."
A wooden spoon immediately points toward him.
"Upstairs, Mister." (Asahi's Mom)
"Yes, ma'am." (Asahi)
While going upstairs to his room, Asahi thinks,
"Damn, I almost got the chancla. Glad I only got the spoon. Man, Mom almost had the vibe of that Papa Bear when someone stole his spaghetti."
Meanwhile, Enmei reaches his house. The moment he opens the door, he collapses dramatically onto the sofa.
"...and I'm dead."
His mom glances up from her phone.
"You're the one talking." (Enmei's Mom)
"I am not, I am a ghost." (Enmei)
"Go take a shower." (Enmei's Mom)
"The ghost refuses." (Enmei)
"C'mon, you smelled like your old Junior Highschool self" (Enmei's Mom)
A pillow immediately flies across the room and smacks him directly in the face.
"Ow! That didn't go through me." (Enmei)
"Shower." (Enmei's Mom)
"Fine." (Enmei)
Enmei drags himself upstairs while muttering about human rights violations.
Elsewhere, Gin arrives carrying enough convenience store snacks to survive an apocalypse. His grandmother raises an eyebrow.
"Are you feeding a family of six?" (Gin's Grandma)
"No." (Gin)
Gin proudly lifts three bags.
"Just me."
His grandmother slowly lowers her newspaper.
"That somehow concerns me more."
Natsuki's return home is considerably quieter as always. She enters, and her older brother looks up. She nods, and he nods back. Conversation successfully completed.
By early evening, all four boys have settled into their rooms. Laptops sit open, headsets rest nearby, internet connections are checked. Cameras are tested, and microphones are adjusted. The scheduled Zoom meeting begins in only a few minutes.
Unlike their previous casual online gatherings involving anime discussions, gaming sessions, and Enmei accidentally sharing his screen full of embarrassing memes, tonight's meeting carries a very different atmosphere. Tonight will involve evidences, suspects, suspicions, and answers to daring and mind-numbing questions of anticipation and worry.
One by one, participants begin appearing inside the virtual meeting room. Asahi joins first, while Gin follows, then Natsuki, and Enmei.
"Can everyone hear me?" Asahi asks.
"Loud and clear, red-haired Ed Sheeran!" (Gin)
"More like Red Sheesh-ran" (Natsuki)
"Rude." (Asahi)
"Deserved." (Enmei)
The familiar banter briefly lightens the mood. A few moments later, additional participants appear. They are Principal Fukushu, Mr. Amane, and Ms. Soumei.
The appearance of the faculty members immediately causes everyone to straighten their posture, especially Enmei, who have practiced imitating and doing impressions of both Mr. Amane and Principal Fukushu. Asahi clears his throat.
"Good evening, everyone."
The teachers greet him warmly.
"As the representative of our little student group," Asahi continues, "I'd like to thank all of you for taking time out of your Saturday evening for this meeting."
Principal Fukushu smiles.
"Asahi."
"Sir?"
"Thank you."
The young man blinks.
"For what, Sir?"
The principal folds his hands.
"For bringing Kota and Akiko home safely from Sendai. We owe you all, a lot"
The atmosphere softens. Mr. Amane nods.
"You boys did something remarkable."
Gin scratches the back of his head.
"We mostly bought train tickets, almost from the infinity train from My Sister is a Demon"
Natsuki adds calmly.
"And food that tasted like Avenge of the Titan"
Enmei raises a finger.
"I contributed emotional support."
"You slept through half the trip, especially when we going back, Dimwit" (Gin)
"Exactly. Emotional support." (Enmei)
Several people laugh, even Ms. Soumei allows herself a small smile. However, the humor fades as the meeting officially begins. Before anyone can start presenting, Ms. Soumei raises a concern. Her expression becomes serious.
"Before we proceed."
Everyone looks toward her.
"I need to ask something."
The room grows quiet.
"How secure is this meeting?"
Several students exchange glances. Ms. Soumei continues.
"We are discussing criminal suspects."
Her tone remains measured.
"We are discussing attempted murder."
Another pause.
"We are discussing people who have already demonstrated stalking behavior."
The seriousness settles heavily over everyone.
"What if someone is tracking us right now?"
Nobody immediately answers. The concern is legitimate yet Mr. Amane eventually leans forward.
"Expect the unexpected but I expected that question."
He clicks something. A digital security diagram appears on screen. Several layers of encrypted systems appear. These are firewalls, network protections, authentication protocols. security monitoring systems, and government infrastructure. The entire screen becomes a nightmare for anyone who dislikes technology. Enmei stares at it.
"I understood exactly none of that." (Enmei)
"Dude, have you forgotten our e-commerce class already?" (Asahi)
"Oh, yeah. No I actually didn't record it" (Enmei)
Asahi slaps his right palm to his face. Mr. Amane nods.
"Excellent."
"What?" (Gin)
"It means you're normal.", Mr. Amane tells Enmei.
Several chuckles spread through the meeting. Mr. Amane continues.
"This meeting is protected by state-of-the-art digital firewalls developed through partnerships with the City Government."
He points toward several sections.
"Multiple layers of encryption."
Another section.
"Secure routing."
Then unto another.
"Continuous monitoring."
He folds his arms.
"If somebody attempts to intercept this meeting, we'll know."
The students visibly relax. Ms. Soumei nods.
"Good."
She clicks her remote. The first presentation appears. Immediately, an image fills the screen which is the dark, silent, and weathered by age, Old Administration Building, that is still standing at the edge of campus like a forgotten relic. The image alone makes the students uncomfortable. Ms. Soumei begins.
"This is where our investigation started."
Several photographs appear such as hallways, storage rooms, dust-covered offices, broken furniture, and old classrooms. Then another photograph appears and that of which is the staircase going to the third floor landing. Ms. Soumei zooms in.
"There."
The students lean closer. Resting upon the railing is a very small black hoodie. It's far too small for both Kota and Akiko. Asahi narrows his eyes.
"So somebody else was there."
"Exactly." (Ms. Soumei)
The next slide appears and it's an old classroom, with dust filling every corner. Sunlight filters through cracked windows. Rows of abandoned desks sit motionless beneath years of neglect. At the front of the room hangs a massive sheet of paper, covering the chalkboard entirely.
"We approached it cautiously," Ms. Soumei explains.
"Then we removed the paper."
The next slide appears and silence immediately follows. A crudely drawn map stretches across the board of school buildings, rail lines, classrooms, hallways, routes, arrows, notes, and annotations. And at the very top, it says, "Operation: Kouhai"
Nobody says a word. The phrase hangs over the meeting like a dark cloud. Ms. Soumei advances to the next slide. A collective chill spreads through the group. Beside the map are photographs of Kota and Akiko, both images have enormous red X marks drawn across their faces.
Gin clenches his jaw. Asahi's expression darkens. Even Natsuki visibly frowns. The implications are impossible to ignore. For a very long time, someone had been planning against them.
At that exact moment, another participant joins, Mr. Nashi.
"Sorry for the delay, everyone"
"No problem," Principal Fukushu replies.
Mr. Nashi quickly catches up with the presentation before speaking.
"Allow me to continue."
The screen changes and a battered notebook appears. The cover is torn, several pages are missing, and corners are damaged. The entire thing looks like it survived a small war.
"We found this inside one of the lockers."
He opens scanned pages. Immediately, everyone becomes concerned. The notebook displays morse code, symbols, names, routes, schedules, strategies, and contingency plans. Notes covering nearly every available space. Page after page after page. The notebook resembles the planning journal of somebody obsessed. Then one page appears making the room falls silent. Drawn across two pages is a gigantic machine floating above Shinomiya High School.
A massive weapon, an enormous beam cannon hovering above the campus. The label reads, "The doom of Sinomiya Highschool"
Enmei slowly raises his hand.
"What."
Nobody answers. Gin blinks twice.
"What."
Still nobody answers. Natsuki leans closer.
"Why does it have wings?"
No answer, even Mr. Nashi looks exhausted. The students begin imagining absurd scenarios. Massive lasers, explosions, school evacuation drills, principals fighting floating battle stations. Fortunately, Principal Fukushu intervenes. The principal adjusts his glasses.
"As long as I remain principal of Shinomiya High School..."
Everyone looks toward him.
"...there will be no giant death rays above my campus."
The declaration is delivered with such confidence that everyone immediately laughs. Relief spreads across the meeting, even Ms. Soumei smiles. The atmosphere relaxes, and the presentation changes.
Now it is Mr. Amane's turn. A CCTV video appears. The timestamp indicates several nights earlier. The location is at Amanaguchi Zone, on Claris Street, near the convenience store. The footage begins. Streetlights illuminate the area, and in the clip, two blonde individuals enter the frame, a boy and a girl. Both are wearing black hoodies and carrying bottles of water. The footage is grainy but clear enough to observe their movements. They stand near the convenience store, waiting and watching.
Several minutes pass, then a white van arrives with no visible license plate. The side door opens, and the two immediately enter. The vehicle begins moving away. Enmei raises his hand.
"Sirs."
"Yes?" Mr. Amane asks.
"Do we have an employee who really loves driving vans?"
Both Principal Fukushu and Mr. Amane thinks. Several seconds pass, finally—
"No."
"Not that we know of."
The footage continues. Then Natsuki suddenly leans forward.
"Pause."
Everyone turns. Mr. Amane freezes the video.
"What did you see?"
Natsuki points toward the windshield.
"The dashboard."
The image zooms and a nearby floodlight reflects off the glass. At the same moment, the dashboard screen illuminates. The glow briefly lights the driver's face. Everyone leans closer. Mr. Amane narrows his eyes. Principal Fukushu does the same. Both immediately react.
"...That face."
"It looks familiar."
The image remains blurry. The driver is wearing sunglasses at night, for absolutely no reasonable explanation. Still, something about the facial structure feels recognizable. Neither man can identify the individual with certainty. But the possibility is enough to concern them. Ms. Soumei resumes speaking.
"There's more."
She reveals additional photographs.
"While examining the third-floor classroom, Mr. Nashi and I utilized ultraviolet light."
New images appear, and the floor glows faintly beneath UV illumination. Then everyone sees it. There are many footprints scattered throughout the room, going in different directions, locations, and sizes. Mr. Nashi points toward them.
"Two distinct sizes."
He highlights them, one smaller and one larger.
"Which confirms the presence of two suspects."
The room becomes silent. Everything is slowly connecting. The hoodies, the notebook, the map, the CCTV footage, the footprints, and the threats. Gin finally speaks.
"Kota and Akiko knew these people."
Everyone turns toward him.
"They were scared."
His expression remains serious.
"They received threats."
He pauses.
"They were afraid to tell anyone because they thought the suspects would hurt them."
Nobody interrupts. The weight of that statement settles heavily. Asahi finally exhales, then he says the names.
"IceBurgh."
Everyone listens.
"...is Homura Aizawa."
The room grows still.
"And MapleSyrup..."
His voice hardens.
"...is Eloise Murasaki."
Silence protrudes, and Principal Fukushu immediately opens student records. Mr. Amane does the same. The sound of keyboards fills the meeting. Minutes pass then answers begin appearing. Mr. Amane reads first.
"Eloise Murasaki."
He frowns.
"Has long Multiple absences."
Another pause.
"Long-term nonattendance."
Principal Fukushu checks another file.
"Homura Aizawa."
He scrolls, and his eyes narrow.
"Not a Shinomiya High School student."
The room becomes even more serious. The evidence is beginning to align. Nobody celebrates nor declares victory. There is still too much uncertainty. Principal Fukushu folds his hands.
"We proceed carefully."
Everyone nods. Mr. Amane agrees.
"If they realize we are investigating them..."
He pauses.
"...the threats may escalate."
Nobody argues. The risk is obvious. Eventually, all participants bow their heads slightly toward one another. A silent agreement. They will continue carefully, quietly, and patiently. Mr. Amane finally speaks.
"With this new information, I will contact city officials."
Everyone looks toward him.
"The lookout will remain discreet."
He adjusts his reading glasses.
"They won't know they're being watched."
For the first time during the meeting, hope begins to emerge. The meeting eventually concludes. One by one, participants disconnect. The screens disappear, and the houses return to silence.
Yet elsewhere, two other screens remain active. It's Kota and Akiko, video calling once again. For the first time in days, neither discusses danger. Neither discusses conspiracies nor discusses suspects. Instead, it's about the memes. In fact, lots of memes.
Akiko laughs so hard she nearly falls off her chair after seeing a cat wearing sunglasses edited onto a tank. Kota nearly chokes laughing at a poorly edited image of Principal Fukushu riding a dinosaur.
"I can't believe somebody made that." (Kota)
"It has thirty thousand likes." (Akiko)
"Why?" (Kota)
"I don't know." (Akiko)
Eventually, the conversation shifts toward anime. Akiko's eyes brighten immediately.
"Kota."
"Oh no." (Kota)
"We should watch Horse Girls: Pretty Gallops." (Akiko)
Kota blinks.
"You mean the racing horse girls based on real Japanese racing horses?"
"Yup, that's the one!" (Akiko)
Kota folds his arms.
"I am skeptical."
Akiko gasps dramatically.
"You dare doubt Peak Fiction?"
"I'm cautious." (Kota)
"Says the hero in the over ridiculous Over-cautious Hero" (Akiko)
Kota pauses.
"What?"
Akiko immediately becomes excited. She begins listing examples.
"I'll name the horse girls I will point"
Akiko points and name one by one.
"There's Marvelous Weekend, Unique Week, Gold Galleon, Red Daiwa, Parallel Cross, Mommy Creek, Agnes Particle, and at the last racer is Grass Blunder."
Kota listens carefully.
"They're all based on real race horses?"
"Loosely inspired." (Akiko)
"That's actually cool." (Kota)
"I told you." (Akiko)
Akiko grins triumphantly. Within minutes, she is enthusiastically explaining racing histories, famous rivalries, dramatic championship finishes, and emotional comeback stories.
Kota finds himself unexpectedly fascinated. The more she explains, the more interested he becomes.
Outside their windows, night slowly settles over the city. The investigation continues, the suspects remain hidden, and the danger is not gone. But for now, Kota and Akiko laugh. They watch anime, share memes, and for the first time in a very long time, life feels normal again.
ns216.73.216.37da2
and then Add to home screen.