Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

The beeping of the heart rate monitor rang through the room. It was loud, annoying… and letting everyone know he was still alive, for however long that was.

Haruto kept talking. He talked about school, the new club he joined, and all the friends he had made. 

Haruka kept him up to date on Morning Glory. They had a new group come in, more children having to go through life while dealing with parental loss.

Yuta sat behind them, quiet, but a constant figure. He had grown well into the role of husband and father, to Haruka and Haruto. He kept the business end of Morning Glory running, the paperwork nothing more than a distraction most days, but he kept up with it.

Ichiban told him of more ex-yakuza he had managed to help, finding new ways to help them adjust to society. The Five Year Clause was still an obstacle, but he kept going, determined to finish the work he had started, all those years ago.

…no one mentioned the elephant in the room. They didn’t need to. It had simply progressed too much now.

The treatments helped, and when he had regained his will to live, it had bought him another year. One more year, spent reconnecting with everyone.

But it only delayed the inevitable. His lungs grew weaker, each breath more difficult as time went on.

Eventually, the doctors got to work contacting his family and friends. And through them, everyone important in his life.

Yuta. Kazuki and Yuya. Kaoru. Nakajima. Matsugana. Tagashira. Seonhee. Nanba. Saeko. Zhao. Komaki. Tomizawa. Chitose. Joongi Han. Adachi. Ichiban. Akiyama. Kashiwagi. Saejima. Majima. Daigo. Taichi. Ayako. Koji. Eri. Mitsuo. Riona. Shiro. Izumi. Haruto.

…Haruka.

He moved his eyes, his vision steadily getting blurry as she walked forward, gently holding his hand. No one spoke a word. They all knew this was a moment between father and daughter.

“Uncle Kaz…” she whispered, her voice rough as she fought back the sobs. The tears streamed down her eyes as she looked at him, and for a moment, he saw her at nine years old again, having lost her mother, Yumi, that fateful Christmas in 2005.

“Haru…ka… I’m sorry, for everything…” he managed to get out. It was getting harder to breathe, the precious air in his lungs barely enough for him to speak.

She shook her head however, gulping as she continued. “It’s okay Uncle Kaz. You did everything you could, for all of us. You don’t need to keep fighting anymore. You deserve a chance to rest”

Rest… that sounds lovely actually. He is so tired… his eyelids are becoming heavier as his breath gets short. 

Still, with what little strength he had left, he squeezed Haruka’s hand, his final chance of assurance. “I’ll… be waiting… Yumi and I… we’ll always watch…” That was all he could manage, no longer able to spare the breath to talk. The monitor was beeping slower, signifying the end.

With what little strength he could manage, he turned his head to look at everyone, one final time. There wasn’t a single dry eye among them as they waited. Saejima, the big tiger of a man, was openly sobbing, while Majima remained silent. But he knew the man well enough to know what he was really feeling.

Ichiban walked up, his red suit a splash of color. “It’s okay Kiryu-san. We can handle things from here. We’ll make sure the future of the yakuza is secure.”

That… was reassuring. Ichiban had his head in the clouds, but he knew how to handle life with the appropriate seriousness.

He looked back to Haruka, wanting her face to be the last thing he saw. But, to his surprise, a set of hands wrapped themselves around his hand, still clutched in Haruka’s hands. When he looked, he almost expected to see Yumi.

Instead, it was a young woman, a teenager if he guessed right. Her hair was long, and blue on the outside. Inside, however, it was a shade of pink. And above her head… a halo?

No one reacted to her sudden presence. It was like she wasn’t even there. If that was the case, then was she…?

Kiryu was never the most religious sort, but even he knew that what he had done in life left him a spot in hell. It seems that this… angel… thought otherwise.

His eyes began to close, and the last thing he saw were the faces of Haruka and the angel. With a sigh, he let himself rest, after so many years spent fighting.

…

…

…

“As of 17 of July, 2025, Kazuma Kiryu has passed due to lung cancer. Time of death, 6:42 pm”

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…

…

We thirst for the seven wailings

We bear the koan of Jericho

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…

…

A tower with a pillar of light.

A city.

Haloes in the night sky.

A rooftop.

An empty desert at night.

An overpass in a city.

An empty office.

What… is this…?

“It was all my fault.”

Who… a girl…?

(OST: Aoharu-Blue Archive)

“My decisions, and everything they led to.”

A woman, aiming right at him.

A destroyed tablet.

What are these… where am I…?

“It had to come to this for me to realize that you were right all along”

A flash of white. When it cleared, he found himself in a train car.

A train… who is speaking… Yumi…?

Something compelled him to turn his head. There, he saw her. A girl in a white uniform, blue hair hiding her facial features. And… blood, staining the left side of her uniform, dripping to the floor.

Hey… you’re bleeding… you need medical attention…

“...I know this is very shameless of me, but I must ask for your help… Kazuma-Sensei.”

Sensei… is she talking about me… wait… she was that angel, there with Haruka… is this heaven… no… this girl would not be wounded…

He tried to move his body, his arms, his hands, anything to get to the girl. She’s wounded, and she needs help. But no matter what he tried, his body refused to move more than his head. It was only them in the train car, no one else could help her. Not even him. Why can’t he…

That’s right… I’m dead… I died there with everyone I loved… There’s nothing I can do but listen… I can’t even speak to her…

The girl kept talking, not noticing his struggles to help, to staunch the bleeding. “You’ll forget these words, but it won’t matter. Even without your memories, you’ll probably make the same decision under the same circumstances…”

Then, she turned her head to him. Blood marked her face, and yet… she was smiling, as if nothing was wrong with her. “Which is why… what matters are the choices we make, not our past experiences. There are choices only you can make.”

More images flashed in his mind, groups of girls, all happily smiling, living life to the fullest, without a care in the world. Such innocence… it felt strange, but he wanted to make sure their smiles are safe, to let them live life like the children they are.

“I’ve spoken of responsibility before. I didn’t truly understand it then, but I do now. Adulthood, responsibility, obligation… and the choices you make that extend beyond those ideals. Even the meaning behind them”

Of course… it falls on the previous generation to guide the new one… to guide and help them… is that what she’s asking of me… what can I do here…when I’m dead…

“Sensei. You’re the one that I trust. Only you can free us from this twisted, distorted fate…”

She raised her hand, bloodied, and placed it on his chest. A soft green lift emanated from the point of contact. A sharp pain shot through his chest, and something he couldn’t describe went through his body.

“...and find the choices that will lead us to a new reality”

His fingers twitched. His muscles spasmed. Then, she pushed him.

The train car around them shot forward, leaving him behind as he felt the sensation of flying back.

Air filled his lungs as he gasped, and he almost missed her final words as everything went black.

“So, Kazuma Kiryu-Sensei, please…”

…

…

…

“...sei”

“...Sensei, wake up”

“Kiryu-Sensei!”

Kiryu gasped awake as his eyes flew open, before he forced them closed again with a grimace. 

So bright…

Tentatively, he opened his eyes, letting them adjust to the light as he began moving. He was on a couch, not a hospital bed. Strange, why was he in a place like this?

As his eyes got used to the light, he found himself in an office, the far wall being nothing more than a collection of windows overlooking outside.

Ah… that’s what blinded me…

“You must have been exhausted. I didn’t expect you to fall asleep while waiting-let alone having trouble waking up. You must have been having a dream”

Turning his head, he found himself face to face with a woman. Black hair reaching past her legs to the floor, blue eyes behind a pair of glasses. Her uniform was crisp white, not a detail out of place.

Then he focused on her head- specifically, her pointed ears. But that was secondary to the halo floating above her head, a thin light blue with three points on the left side. An elf…angel… what is she?

“Who…?” Kiryu’s voice cracked, disused. How long had it been since he last spoke?

Reaching out, the woman presented a bottle of water to him. Stiffly, he reached out to it, his arms straining slightly from the effort. His joints loosened as he took slow sips, the cool water scratching his throat as he worked the kinks from his body.

“Let me explain,” the woman started, having waited until Kiryu lowered the bottle, “My name is Nanagami Rin, an officer of the General Student Council in the Academy City of Kivotos. And you’re the teacher that we have summoned here… or so it would seem.”

“Summoned?”  his voice came out again, stronger now. “What do you mean? And teacher? I’m afraid I don’t understand.”

Rin nodded at his words, almost as if she had expected them. “Neither do I. This situation isn’t… exactly normal. All we had to go on was a single message left for us. ‘Wait for the Silver Dragon. He can help you all’”

“Dragon…” Kiryu looked to the floor, unable to look Rin in the eye. “I haven’t used that title in a long time now, not since…” Since he had been hospitalized. Once his body finally gave out in that fateful duel with Ebina, the Dragon of Dojima became a dead title, nothing more than a legend in the underworld.

After a beat of silence, Rin cleared her throat. “I understand this must be very confusing for you.” Then she bowed her head, as if she had offended him in some way. “My apologies, but I would like for you to follow me for now. There’s something I need you to do”

Reaching out with her hand, Rin looked at Kiryu in an expectant way. Part of him almost wanted him to decline, tell her that he was done with everything, that he should rest.

But… a part of him that he couldn’t identify didn’t let him. He wanted to reach out, to take her hand and let her lead him away.

…heh, he had thought he had grown out of those gut instincts. Looks like he was wrong on that part.

Reaching out, Kiryu took her hand, and let himself be pulled to his feet. He prepared for the shortness of breath, the cancer in his lungs preventing him from breathing like he had just a few years prior.

Instead, he felt… nothing. If anything, he was able to take a deep breath like he hadn’t in such a long time… Actually, he shouldn’t even be able to stand, not with his weakening muscles…

Blinking, Kiryu looked to Rin, her eyes looking right at him. “Excuse me, but… do you happen to have a mirror of some kind?” Even his voice was strong again, without any strain. “I need to check something real quick”

Confused, she nodded and pulled out a small make-up case from her pocket, handing it to him. “What is it Kiryu-Sensei? Is everything alright?”

He opened the mirror first before he answered her, but his words died in his throat. Now that he was able to take a look at himself, he was shocked by the face he could see. “What…?”

His face… it was the same that he had back when he was in Hawaii, with Kasuga. It was full again, not sunken like when he started taking his treatments. His eyes were still filled with a familiar heat, strong like before. His hair was grey with flecks of black, hanging loosely outside of his old haircut.

Then he looked down, gasping slightly at his clothes. Gone was the hospital gown that had been his default. Now, he had on his steel grey pants, with black leather shoes and belt, and the black longsleeved shirt he wore while using his fake name.

He took another deep breath, feeling his lungs expand, unhindered, for the first time in a long time. He held it for a few seconds before releasing it, returning the mirror to Rin. Except for his lungs, he was dressed as if he was still a Daidoji agent, helping investigate the Seiryu Clan and Palekana.

“Sorry, I just had to check something.” He pushed it aside for now. He can figure out this mystery later. For now, Kiryu focused on Rin. She needed his help with something, and now that he was certain he wasn’t going to keel over, at least for now, he can spare the energy for her. “What did you need help with?”

“Let’s just say… it’s a grave matter that could determine the very fate of the Academy City.” She walked off, and Kiryu followed after her past the office doors to an elevator. Once they stepped inside, he stopped and looked outside.

“What…?” He walked closer to the window, placing a hand against the glass as the elevator began to descend. For a second, he thought he was back in Tokyo. The skyline certainly reminded him of such.

But that was where the similarities ended. In the distance, he saw a tower, a pillar of light shooting into the sky. And the sky itself… it also had several haloes, all various sizes as they stretched across the sky.

He heard footsteps next to him, and Rin stepped into view, gesturing to the city. “Welcome to Kivotos, Sensei. Kivotos is a massive city, home to thousands of different academies. This is where you’ll be working from now on.”

“I imagine it’s very different from what you’re used to. You might find it difficult to get acclimated at first… but something tells me you’ll be just fine.”

Kiryu turned to her, his voice quiet. “I’m used to cities, but you’re not wrong on this being different. I’ve never seen anything like this before. How can you be certain I’ll manage?”

At that, Rin gave him a soft smile. “Because you were chosen by the General Student Council President.”

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…

Once the elevator doors opened up at the ground floor, Kiryu and Rin were almost immediately accosted by another girl.

“There you are, Acting President!. We’ve been waiting! Get the real president in here already!” She did a double take on noticing Kiryu, speaking again before he could have a chance to react. “Huh? Who’s that adult next to you?”

Before he could answer, another girl stepped up. Whatever words Kiryu wanted to say died in his throat as he noticed the rather large, black wings protruding from her back. “I’ve been waiting to see you, Chief Officer.”

“I’m here to meet with the General Student Council President. The Head Prefect is demanding answers.” A third girl stated. Much like Rin next to him, she had pointed ears as well.

 All three girls had halos as well, all different designs.

He also noticed all three girls were carrying firearms. A submachine gun for the first girl, a sniper rifle for the black winged girl, and a pistol for the third girl that vaguely looked German.

What the hell is going on here? Why are they armed? What mess did I step into?

Rin, for her part, sighed and rubbed her head, very clearly already tired. “Rather inconvenient timing, all things considered.” She cleared her throat, and stood straight. “Hello, guests that represent neighboring academies’ student councils, disciplinary boards, and those who otherwise have too much time on their hands.”

Students? They were all students? Kiryu is feeling even more confused now. What type of schools allow their students to walk around blatantly armed? Even the dark jokes he heard of American schools didn’t exactly go this far when it came to firearms.

“I am well aware why you idle wanderers-I mean, important representatives-have come here today. You’re here to hold us responsible for the fuss happening in the Academy City. Are you not?”

The first girl spoke up again. By the look of it, she had the top of a business suit, covered slightly by a white jacket that hangs off her sleeves. “If you’re well aware, then do something! You represent the General Student Council! Thousands of academy districts are in panic! Not to mention, our academy’s wind generators shut down a few days ago!”

The pointed eared girl spoke up next. Her uniform more closely resembled one he’d see in a school, but the red military style band around her arm looked out of place. The red leggings underneath her skirt made him think she had a preference for the color red, matching the string tie on her collar. “We also received intel that a few suspended students escaped the Federal Corrections Bureau’s custody”

The sound of footsteps reached Kiryu’s ears as a fourth girl ran up to them. The first immediate thing he saw was the single wing coming through her silver hair, matching in color to her uniform, which had some differences to a school uniform to stand out. “There has been a sharp increase in the number of thugs attacking our students on the way to school. Public safety is not being properly enforced”

The black winged girl spoke up. Her uniform was almost completely black with red trim, being similar in appearance to a sailor fuku. For some reason, she was giving a side eye to the pointed ear girl, but still focused on Rin and Kiryu. “Illegal distribution of tanks, helicopters, and and other unknown weapons have increased by over 2000 percent.” The sheer number left Kiryu’s head spinning, but he forced himself to focus. “At this rate, ordinary school life in Kivotos will become a thing of the past”

As the four girls explained the situation to them, Kiryu felt a headache growing. What type of mess did he step into, and how did he even end up here? What type of academies even do this?

Rin, for her part, was still silent, listening to the gripes of each girl as they revealed bad news after bad news. Not even an hour and he was starting to understand how stressful her job was.

“And what’s the General Student Council President doing during such a sorry state of affairs? I demand to see her right this instant!”

“...the President is not here at the moment. To be frank, she has gone missing.” Rin finally answered. This bit of news shocked the four girls.

“What?!” shouted the girl who demanded to see the President just seconds ago.

The black winged girl narrowed her eyes. “So the rumors were true…”

Rin nodded as she continued speaking. “Allow me to cut to the chase. The General Student Council has no authority because the top administrator of Sanctum Tower has gone missing. We’ve been searching for a way to bypass verification, all to no avail… until now.”

“You mean you found a way, Chief Officer?” the black winged girl asked.

Rin nodded again. “That is correct.” Then she gestured to Kiryu. “Sensei here is the answer to our problems.”

Wait, what?

His confusion was shared with the girls, all of whom are now properly taking a look at him. He didn’t blame them. How was he supposed to fix a situation he knew nothing about?

“Hold up. Who is this ‘Sensei’ you’re talking about? What is he doing here in the first place?” The girl with the submachine gun asked, looking between him and Rin.

“He doesn’t seem to be from Kivotos…” The black winged girl muttered, “A teacher would make sense.”

“This is Kiryu-Sensei,” Rin spoke, taking control of the conversation, “Not only is he going to be teaching in Kivotos, but he’s also been personally selected by the General Student Council President”

“Chosen by the missing President…? Things are making less and less sense,” muttered the submachine gun girl.

Well, may as well try and salvage this introduction. Turning to the girls, he bowed at the waist. “Kazuma Kiryu, at your service. It’s a pleasure to meet you all”

“R-right. Nice to meet you, Sensei. I’m Millennium Science School’s…” She did a double take and shook her head, getting up from the bow she was doing. “W-wait, forget introductions…!”

Rin cleared her throat. “Feel free to ignore that annoying girl. Moving on-”

“Who are you calling annoying?! I-I’m Hayase Yuuka! Make sure you remember that name, Sensei!”

Yuuka. At least he finally had a name for her. “It’s nice to meet you too, Yuuka.”

The black winged girl spoke up next. “I’m Hanekawa Hasumi, Vice President of Trinity General School’s Justice Task Force.

The winged head girl spoke next. “Morizuki Suzumi, from Trinity’s Vigilante Crew.’

The pointed eared girl was the last to speak. “Hinomiya Chinatsu, medical officer of Gehenna Academy’s Prefect Team”

Kiryu nodded as he bowed to them. “It’s a pleasure to meet you all. I hope to measure up well in your eyes.”

Once they had finished, Rin continued. “Anyway, Kiryu-Sensei, you’re here to serve as the advisor of a club that was formed by the General Student Council President before her disappearance. The Federal Investigation Club, Schale”

“Schale…” Kiryu tasted the word on his lips. “I’m not too used with how clubs operate. I wasn’t really interested in them when I was younger.”

“In fairness, Sensei, this isn’t your average club-more like a type of extrajudicial organization. Since it’s a federal club, you’ll be allowed to register students from any academies in Kivotos.”

“Any academy?” Kiryu interrupted. “That sounds rather overwhelming for one organization to handle. How many academies are in Kivotos?”

Rin brushed a lock of hair behind her ear. “Thousands, but that won’t be a problem.” She didn’t notice the slight flinch in his posture. “I don’t know the specifics, but to apply, a student can either submit a formal application with certain criteria, or you can bypass all of that and register a student directly. Not only that, a certain amount of students would be able to apply a day. The President said something about ten, which I assume is the daily limit.”

“Right… at least that makes choosing much easier than having to deal with constant applications.” Kiryu noted, nodding at Rin. “Sorry, continue.”

Rin nodded as she kept speaking. “Amongst the various duties you’ll have to manage, you’re also permitted to conduct battle activities in each academy district without restriction.”

That was… concerning. Considering the children before him are all carrying firearms, it quickly becomes clear that fights are a different breed here than what he’s used to.

Not only that… he looked to the four representatives, They shouldn’t even be doing this. What type of place allows these children to kill? Just how bad are things here where they need to walk around armed?

Despite these thoughts, one look in their eyes made him more confused than anything. They’re still bright, full of life. Not clouded by bloodshed or death.

Perhaps… they are using airsoft guns, or paintball?

He discarded the paintball idea almost immediately. There would be paint stains on their clothes, especially in the case of Yuuka, Chinatsu and Suzumi. Their uniforms are clean, with not a mark on them.

Airsoft then… it can still hurt in the wrong spot, but it would make the most sense

Rin didn’t notice his internal debate, continuing with her explanation. “However, I don’t know why the President would create an organization with this much power.”

“Perhaps it has to do with getting past red tape,” Kiryu offered. “In my experience, sometimes you might need a group to perform a surgical strike rather than engage in a protracted battle. That’s what I assume anyway.”

She nodded at his words. “That would make the most sense. We’ll figure it out when we arrive at the Schale Club Room, about 30 kilometers away from here. The building is currently empty, but we had to put something in the basement at the President’s request.” Rin looked him in the eyes with conviction. “And it’s my job to take you there”

After a beat, Kiryu nodded in affirmation. “I’ll do what I can, but don’t expect miracles.”

Rin nodded at his words, and pulled out a small orb about the size of her palm. Pressing the button at the top, it glowed blue, and began floating in front of the group, to Kiryu’s surprise. The surprise then turned into shock when a hologram image was formed, showing a pink haired girl sitting in a chair with… a bag of potato chips?

“Momoka,” Rin started, getting right to the point, “I need a helicopter to take us to the Schale club room.”

Momoka simply looked back at Rin, taking another bite of her chips. “The Schale club room?” she was confused for a moment, before recognition flashed in her eyes. “...Oh. The one in the outskirts? Things are kinda crazy over there right now.”

This caused the group to tense up. Not a good sign. “What do you mean, ‘crazy’?” Rin asked.

“A suspended student escaped from the Corrections Bureau and is wrecking havoc. It’s a battlefield over there right now.” Momoka followed that sentence with another chip.

Why is she so casual about this?

Rin, for her part, rubbed her temple in exasperation. “Momoka, stop eating your chips for a second and explain what you mean.”

Momoka shrugged, and tiled her head back with the bag, catching the chip dusted at the bottom of the bag in her mouth. Behind him, Kiryu could hear the muttered confusion of the representatives at Momoka’s behavior. “Long story short, they rallied nearly every thug in the area, and are currently causing havoc in the district they’re in. Judging by the reports, we have looting, vandalism, illegal use of fireworks, and at least three billboards were defaced with signs saying how much the GSC sucks.”

Kiryu felt his eye twitch at her words. Was defacing public property really on the same level as the rest of that list?

“It’s a lot worse over at the Schale club room. Judging by reports from a few Valkyrie students, they’re stealing everything that isn’t nailed down and occupying the place. The only reason why they haven’t tried to stop them is cause there’s a Crusader tank parked in front of the building. Valkyrie doesn’t have the firepower to destroy that thing, so they’ve been forced to keep their distance.”

A tank? What in the world was going on here…?

“Ah well.” Momoka crumpled up the empty bag and tossed it away, the trash disappearing from the hologram’s range. “The city’s already a dump anyway, so I don’t think it’ll make that much of a difference-” Whatever words she had were interrupted by the sound of a doorbell. “Oh, that’s my lunch. Later Rin.” With that, she got up from her chair and walked off. After that, the hologram projector shut off, and Rin caught it before it fell. After a beat, Kiryu noticed she was gripping it tightly in her hand.

“Deep breaths Rin. You need to keep a clear head.” Kiryu said, doing his best to help her. After a few breaths, Rin looked back at them, specifically focusing on the representatives.

“...Why are you looking at us that way?” Yuuka asked, dreading the oncoming answer.

“How fortunate of us that we have four trustworthy candidates here with us.” Rin spoke, still tense after the call.

Yuuka, Chinatsu, Hasumi and Suzumi looked back at Rin in shock, not prepared for her words. “Us?” Yuuka asked.

Rin simply nodded stiffly, before she walked off. Kiryu followed after her, followed by the four girls. “As of this moment, the four of you are unofficial members of Schale. Welcome and congratulations.”

“Where are we going exactly?” Hasumi asked, trailing behind the group.

“The garage. I’m not having you all walk those thirty kilometers. I believe there’s still a helicopter we can use. It’ll serve our purposes well.”

A helicopter, a tank. Kiryu was feeling less certain of his airsoft hypothesis. Something is going on here, and he wasn’t sure what he would do if it turned out it was all real.

What did I get myself into…?

…

…

…

The helicopter touched down roughly a kilometer away from the Schale Club Room. Carefully, Kiryu stepped out, followed by the representatives. “Kiryu-Sensei, you’ll have to walk from here. We can’t risk going any farther.” Rin called from the passenger seat. “I’ll give status updates whenever possible. Be careful, all of you.” With that, the helicopter lifted off, the wind buffeting the group as it climbed into the air.

“Kiryu-Sensei,” Yuuka stepped up, gun in hand. At some point, he didn’t know when, but she ended up taking the role of second in command of the group. “I estimate it would take us roughly 44 minutes and 12 seconds to reach the building, and that’s if we encounter resistance along the way. We might need to consider any other distractions along the way.”

“Sounds good.” Kiryu nodded. “Let’s get going then. We’re burning daylight the longer we wait.” With that, the group began jogging. 

Privately, Kiryu wondered at yet another amazement of his body. Once, he got out of breath just getting out of bed. Now, it feels like he could run the miles he used to back in Kamurocho in the late 80’s. Yet another mystery he’ll need to figure out once there’s time.

“Kiryu-Sensei,” Chinatsu called, bracing her bag against her side as they ran, “I have to ask, do you have experience in leading?”

At her words, he smiled to himself. “Some. I was a foreman for a construction company my friend led, and a few years later, I managed both a baseball team and a vigilante group. I can adjust those experiences to now.”

“A vigilante group?” Suzumi asked, assault rifle in hand. “Were there problems back where you were from?”

“Some. There’s always a group of thugs with ambitions uniting them. They were taken care of.”

“That’s good,” Yuuka stated, her breath coming in a little heavy. Looks like she wasn’t completely used to something this high energy. “Any leadership experience would be helpful in-”

Whatever words she would have spoken as Kiryu heard the crack of a sniper rifle. Almost immediately, Yuuka’s head flew back.

He turned to her in horror, stomach dropping at the mere idea of her death. No… these are real

His horror turned into shock as Yuuka regained her balance, before she moved behind a street generator. “Contact!” Hasumi shouted as everyone took cover. Kiryu joined them, and the street was filled with the sound of gunfire. Bullets flew past them, and Yuuka and Suzumi began firing back, taking cover as the thugs fired at them.

Belatedly, Kiryu looked at the ground where Yuuka was shot, noticing the deformed bullet on the ground. Quickly, he grabbed it, and looked it over. 

This is an actual bullet. And she just shrugged it off like a punch to the face

Looking past the concrete barrier he’s hiding behind, he noticed Suzumi stumble back, having been shot in the shoulder, before she got back into cover to return fire.

“That’s it!” Yuuka shouted, firing at a thug in a burst of fire, a second submachine gun in her hand as she emptied both guns into a thug, who collapsed. The halo that was above her head (And isn’t that a shock to see, everyone having haloes. He’s still confused on Rin having one. A fashion statement?) winked out, and she collapsed to the ground. Next to her, another thug immediately pulled her into cover, taking her out of the firing line. “Next meeting at Millennium, I’m making hollow point ammo illegal!”

“Worry about that later! We need to keep Kiryu-Sensei out of the firing line! He doesn’t have the same protection we do!” Hasumi shouted, sniping at the rear.

So it is related to their halos

It’s rather shocking that as soon as he knew they weren’t lethal, his worry subsided. These girls had experience in shooting, but at the same time, they were staying behind cover, not moving up to advance.

Can’t stay like this. We need to keep moving forward

“Sensei, ideas?” Chinatsu asked, taking cover next to Kiryu. 

Looking back out, Kiryu began inspecting the battlefield, noticing what he could use. “Any ideas? I'm open to suggestions!"

“Sensei!” Suzumi shouted, holding a grenade in hand. “I have flash grenades we can use.”

“And I can make a shield around myself,” Yuuka added, taking a chance to reload.

Shield, grenades, and three guns. A plan began forming in his head. “Alright. Suzumi, when I give the word, toss one. Yuuka, once the grenade detonates, activate your shield and get their attention. When they’re distracted, Hasumi will aim for that motorcycle gas tank." He pointed to said motorcycle, parked to the side, its owner long gone. "Are we clear?”

“Yes Sensei!” All three girls shouted, readying themselves. Next to him, Chinatsu readied her pistol, nodding at him.

“Schale, execute!” Kiryu shouted.

Chapter Text

“Schale, execute!”

Pulling the pin, Suzumi threw the flash grenade, aimed right in the center of the largest cluster of thugs.

“Grenade! Move!” The thugs immediately began running, but the grenade detonated, a large flash of light and a deafening boom disorienting the thugs. To Kiryu’s surprise, it also released more concussive force than a normal flash grenade. A few of the thugs were knocked out outright, while those at the edge rubbed their eyes, trying to get rid of the spots in their eyes.

Seizing her chance, Yuuka began fiddling with a calculator. Whatever questions Kiryu had disappeared when, after finishing a calculation, a shield formed around her, flashing with each bullet impact. Yuuka then left cover, and began firing at the thugs. What she lacked in accuracy, she more than made up for in volume of fire as she used both of her submachine guns to liberally spray the area.

The thugs shifted their focus from Suzumi to Yuuka, trying to take the shielded girl down. Instead of simply standing in place, Yuuka began moving, dodging the fire as she kept the attention right at her.

None of the thugs noticed Hasumi. When they were distracted by Yuuka, she waited for the thugs to get into position near the motorcycle.

Her rifle rang, and the bike gas tank sparked, before it exploded in a flash of fire. This knocked down more thugs, leaving only a handful of thugs. They were taken down in quick order, not standing a chance against the representatives.

“Clear!” Suzumi shouted when the last thug fell, waiting a few seconds to make sure no one else jumped out at them. Leaving cover, Kiryu nodded.

“Good work, the three of you. Any injuries?” He asked, as the girls walked over to him and Chinatsu.

“My shoulder, but it’s not serious enough for medical attention,” Suzumi stated, rolling the shoulder. It was stiff, but otherwise maintained full rotation.

“I’m fine too Kiryu-Sensei. Just stings a little bit,” Yuuka added, rubbing her forehead. There was no mark on the point of impact, so it was probably done out of instinct.

“Good. Now, let’s keep going. Others might come to investigate the noise, and we don’t want to be here when they do,” Kiryu said, receiving nods from the group. They began walking forward, walking past the unconscious thugs. Part of him wanted to check on them, make sure they were okay, but they had other priorities in mind.

“That battle was easier than I expected it to be,” Suzumi said, taking a quiet moment to reload.

“Yeah, you’re right,” Yuuka agreed, putting her second submachine gun away.

Hasumi walked beside Kiryu, the least tired of all of them. “We were able to fight much more efficiently under Sensei’s guidance.”

“This must be why the General Student Council President holds Sensei in high regard. She must have had her reasons for choosing him,” Yuuka stated, stepping over a thug.

Hasumi then turned to Kiryu with a small smile. “I wouldn’t mind sharing the battlefield with you again sometime.”

Before Kiryu could answer, a thug suddenly appeared beside them, popping out of cover, pistol aimed right at Kiryu. ‘D-don’t move!”

Kiryu’s instincts took over. Before the other girls could react, he grabbed the thug’s hand, and yanked her forward. The pistol discharged into the air, but Kiryu kept a firm grip on the slide, preventing the shell from ejecting.

Sweeping his foot, he knocked the thug off her feet, keeping a grip on her arm to prevent her from hitting the pavement. The impact was still jarring enough for her grip to loosen, letting Kiryu yank the gun out of her hand.

By the time he was finished, the representatives all took aim at the girl, who suddenly wanted to be anywhere but there. “W-w-wait, hold on. Can’t we-” she flinched when Kiryu stepped forward.

Pointing right at her, he spoke with the firmest voice he could do. “You’re going to sit there, and think about what you did. Then, when Valkyrie comes, you’ll submit to them. Are we clear?”

Shaking, the girl nodded, and she immediately took the seiza pose, eyes planted firmly on the ground.

“Answer me with your voice. Are we clear?” Kiryu repeated, his voice becoming colder.

“Y-yes, Sensei. I-I’ll wait here,” she whispered, but Kiryu was able to hear her.

Nodding, he looked over the pistol in his hand. A Browning Hi-Power, decent gun, good for self defense. That’s all he might need.

He’ll never fire on the girls, but it would be best to have something in reserve.

Pulling the slide, the empty casing came out, and he released it with a click, getting the attention of the representatives. “Come on, we need to keep moving.” He began walking before they could answer, and they hurried after him.

“That was… unexpected. Do you have experience with guns, Sensei?” Chinatsu asked, looking over his hand briefly to check for any damage.

“Mostly. I was trained some years back in disarming weapons from troublesome people. The method I was taught used far more force, but I wouldn’t have done so against her,” Kiryu said, keeping his pistol pointed at the ground. “Besides, she was scared. I didn’t need to do much to get her to surrender.”

“She still aimed right for you though. She must have known you wouldn’t have the same strength as us,” Yuuka stated, looking back to glare at the thug.

“That’s probably why then,” Suzuki said. “She probably expected Sensei to surrender when he had a gun aimed to his head, so she was probably unprepared for what he did.”

Her words caused Kiryu to snort. “If all it took was a gun pointed to my head to make me give up, I would have died over thirty years ago.”

He walked a few more steps before he realized the representatives stopped. Turning back, he was met with shocked and horrified expressions.

“S-sensei, what does that mean?” Hasumi asked, staring at him with wide eyes.

It took Kiryu a moment to realize why. That’s right. Because bullets bounce off of them, and they stop when the enemy is unconscious, they’re not used to death.

After another beat, he shook his head. “I’ll tell you some other time, I promise. We need to keep moving.”

Hesitantly, the representatives walked up to him, joining him on their walk. As they did, he noticed they stayed closer to him than before, prepared to shield him with their bodies if they had to.

It was… different than what he was used to. He isn’t scared of being shot, god knows it was a slow day if someone didn’t aim a gun at him at least once.

But seeing these girls, these teenagers, putting themselves in the way to protect him with their bulletproof bodies… it’s new.

When the next group of thugs caught them and they engaged in battle again, it came as almost a relief to the girls. A welcome distraction from a suddenly morbid topic was just what they needed as they retaliated. Chinatsu herself all but dragged Kiryu into cover next to her with surprising strength for a girl her frame. “Keep your head down Sensei!” she ordered as she hid behind a trash can next to a konbini.

“I’m not dumb enough to poke my head out as a target Chinatsu! I’ll be fine!” Peeking out past the side of the konbini wall, Kiryu noted the thugs were using cars as cover. One even seemed to use a looted riot shield to grab attention onto her. The design on the shield showed it belonged to a Valkyrie Police Academy.

An idea struck him, and he activated his ear piece. “Rin, can you hear me?”

“Loud and clear Kiryu-Sensei. Do you need something?”

Looking up, he spotted the helicopter Rin was using to observe. “Rin, do you know if there are any Valkyrie forces in the area? With just the four of us, it’ll take longer than it should to reach the Schale club room.”

After a few seconds of silence on her end, and Kiryu moving his head back from the corner, Rin responded. “We have a four woman squad in your general vicinity ahead of you. I’ll have them double back, and hopefully get the thugs cut down from behind. You’ll be looking for Nakatsukasa Kirino as the squad leader. White hair with two braids, can’t miss her. That’s all I can find.”

“It’ll work, thank you Rin. I’ll keep an eye out.” Kiryu peeked past the corner again, watching as Yuuka, Suzumi and Hasumi fought back against the thugs. Five of the thugs have already gone down, but the other twelve kept behind cover. One of them had gotten smart and used a bucket to counteract Suzumi’s flash grenades. The concussive blast sent the girl responsible flying, and open for Hasumi to shoot, but it achieved the purpose of wasting Suzumi’s grenade stock.

“Girls! We have reinforcements coming! Just hold on a moment longer!” Kiryu shouted.

“Did they say when they were coming? I don’t know how much longer we can handle this!” Yuuka shouted, her shield flashing with each impact against it.

“It’s going to get worse! Another wave of thugs incoming!” Hasumi warned, firing at the shield thug. A contrail seemed to follow the bullet as it pierced through the shield, hitting the thug in the head and knocking her out.

“Sensei, we might need to fall back! We can’t take them on like this!” Yuuka dived back into cover as her shield broke. Another group of thugs, ten in number, joined the previous group. With the overwhelming fire and numbers against them, the girls are forced to stay behind cover, not able to fire back.

Kiryu gritted his teeth as a chunk of concrete was blasted off next to his head. As much as he disliked retreating, he knew it was best to swallow his pride and give the order. It wasn’t worth being overwhelmed by firepower just to earn a few feet of territory.

Yet, the incoming Valkyrie reinforcements Rin promised made him hesitate. If they left now, then the girls would face the full fury of the small army of thugs in front of them.

“Just give up already! We promise we’ll treat you all well for the first hour! Two hours if you apologize real nice!” One of the thugs shouted, evidently the leader of the group.

“Kiryu-Sensei! We can’t stay here!” Chinatsu shouted, taking cover behind him, ready to take his arm.

At her words, Kiryu decided. “We hold our ground! Valkyrie reinforcements are coming! If we leave, they’ll be overwhelmed!”

“What?!” Yuuka asked, ducking back as a shotgun blast shredded the cover near her head. “Sensei, we can’t stay here any longer! We need to-”

“Do you trust me?” Kiryu turned, facing Yuuka, Suzumi and Hasumi. Behind him, Chinatsu looked up at him in shock, wondering why he was even considering staying.

“S-sensei, what type of question is-” Suzumi started.

“Do you trust me?” Kiryu asked again, looking into their eyes.

When his eyes met with each girl, all four saw the same thing. A powerful determination, a fiery heat the likes of which they’ve never seen before. It then occurred to them all. He has very clearly faced death before, judging by his comment of a gun pointed to his head.

And if he was in a previous profession where the young died early…

Chinatsu was the first to nod. “I do trust you Sensei. But this might be a little much.”

Hasumi was next to agree. “Sensei, I know I'd gladly follow your lead. But are you sure this is wise?”

“Probably not. But it’s the best we can do. We hold our ground,” Kiryu responded, the thugs holding fire as everyone was suppressed, taking a moment to reload.

“Come on already! Just throw your guns down and surrender! Ammo is expensive!” The thug leader shouted again. “Do you know how hard it is for us to get the money for it?”

Yuuka sighed as she leaned her head back against a mailbox. “This is a bad idea. Are we really doing this?”

“Just reload, and wait for my cue. Trust me. And Suzumi, prepare another grenade. But don't try and aim for the main group”

Suzumi looked up at him, grenade in hand. “Sensei? What do you mean?”

“Just toss it in the air as high as you can above the thugs.” Pulling out the Browning Hi-Power, he checked the magazine. Eleven bullets, not counting the one in the chamber. “The flash is still strong, right?”

Suzumi nodded at his question. “It’s got more flash than most flash grenades. Bigger visual impact. But at the height you’re asking me to throw, the concussive wave won’t hurt them.”

“I don’t need it to.” Kiryu reinserted the magazine. “I just need them blinded long enough for retaliation.” He looked back at them. “I’d never hurt a woman, but sometimes, the rules need exceptions. If that means bending the rules enough to allow loopholes, so be it.”

“Sensei…” Yuuka said, before she composed herself. “What about Hasumi and I? What do you want us to do?”

“Lay down suppressive fire once you have a window. Once the Valkyrie reinforcements come in, the thugs will be distracted. Half of them hopefully. It’ll be your job to get the rest”

“We’re coming over there at the count of three!” The thug leader shouted, having lost her patience. “If your guns aren’t on the ground by then, we’re going hard on the violence!”

“Get ready, all of you.”

“One!”

Suzumi primed her grenade, ready to toss.

“Two!”

Hasumi and Yuuka readied their respective weapons.

“Three!”

Gunfire erupted from behind the thugs, and a few of them collapsed.

“Valkyrie behind us!” Someone shouted. The resultant chaos left the thugs reeling as they turned to face the new threat. However, a few remembered their original targets and turned back around to face the representatives.

This moment was all Suzumi needed as she tossed her grenade, aimed high above the heads of the thugs. Pistol in hand, Kiryu leaned out of cover as he took aim, lining up a shot right to the grenade.

For a brief moment, it felt as if everything had slowed down for him, sound almost echoing as he aimed for the flash grenade. Then, just before he fired, he adjusted his aim slightly ahead. “Gotcha.”

Pulling the trigger, he could almost see the shot making its way to the grenade. For a brief moment, he was reminded of that weird zombie dream he had back in Okinawa.

Then, the grenade sparked as the bullet impacted. Kiryu had just enough time to shut his eyes before it detonated. He couldn’t do anything about the boom, but when he opened his eyes, he saw the thugs reeling, blinded and deafened, while the thugs facing Valkyrie are disoriented, deafened by the blast.

“Take the shot!” He shouted. Yuuka, Suzumi and Hasumi poked their heads out of cover and opened fire, taking out the thugs that were blinded. The group of thugs became disorganized, the pincer assault and the flash grenade sowing confusion amongst them as they tried to pick a target to shoot.

But it was too late. In the span of minutes, the large group of thugs have gone down, left draped on the ground or cars around them.

“That’s all of them,” Yuuka said. The group left their cover and jogged forward, meeting with the Valkyrie patrol ahead of them. Kiryu did indeed spot Nakatsukasa Kirino, her braided pigtails streaming behind her as she ran up to him.

“Officer Kirino of the Public Safety Bureau, reporting!” She saluted, one that Kiryu awkwardly mimicked.

“Erm, at ease. Thank you for coming to help us, but we still need you.” Looking at the group Kirino brought with her, Kiryu inspected them.

Two of the girls had riot shields equipped, scored with various markings from bullets. In their hands were compact submachine guns, but he wasn’t sure of the models.

And the fourth girl… was eating a donut with casual indifference. She waved at Kiryu when his eyes went to her, then returned to her donut.

Kirino noticed where his gaze went, and she simply sighed. “We… We were helping move civilians out of the way when we got the call, Sensei. I’m sorry if you were expecting more from us.”

“It’s all right.” Kiryu stated, raising his hand to stop her. “Your help should be enough to even the odds against us. We’ll be able to recapture the Schale Club Room in no time.”

“Probably not,” said the donut eating girl. “We found out who’s leading the thugs in the area. The Fox of Calamity, Kosaka Wakamo.”

“The Fox of Calamity?” Hasumi turned to the girl, shocked. “She’s the one leading here? I had thought she preferred being a lone wolf”

At that, the donut girl shrugged. “Your guess is as good as mine. Either way, she’s making her way to the Schale club room as we speak, probably to blow it up.”

“We won’t let her,” Kiryu said. “Officer Kirino, will you be willing to transfer control of your squad to me?”

“Er… well…” Kirino started, but the donut girl beat her to the punch.

“We’re not actually a squad. We just got the call together when you asked for reinforcements.”

“...” Kiryu looked blankly at her. “I… don’t think I’ve caught your name.”

“Nemugaki Fubuki. Nice to meetcha Sensei,” she waved, her donut finished. “You’re a little older than I thought. I thought you’d be younger.”

“Wouldn’t that be nice,” Kiryu muttered, before raising his voice. “Don’t discount me because of my age. I’ve more experience than you’ve been alive. Trust me when I say I can help lead us through this, but we need your help to do so. Can you provide it?”

“Yes Sensei!” Kirino shouted, saluting again. The two other girls saluted as well, while Fubuki shrugs, causing one of the girls to nudge her with her elbow. Fubuki then gives a half hearted salute.

“Come on, not much farther by the look of things.” Looking above the group, he noticed the plumes of smoke rising into the air. “That still leaves the tank. Do you know what it is?”

“It’s a Crusader model tank,” Kirino answered. “It’s got less armor than most other tank models, but it’s a lot faster in return. And the armor is still too thick for us to punch through with small arms fire.” She gestured to her police pistol, then her friends' guns. “It would take too long just shooting it.”

“Maybe I can help with that,” Hasumi stepped up, rifle in hand. “If I can hit the right spot, I can disable it for reinforcements proper to eliminate.”

“We have our plan then,” Kiryu stated, turning to the officers. “Until this battle is over, and the club room is in our control, consider yourselves part of Schale. Will that be fine with you?”

“Not like we have much of a choice,” Fubuki said, lazily readying her rifle. “We go where you go, and all that.”

Kirino sighed, then nodded. “Not the words I would have used, but yes. We’ll follow your lead, Sensei.”

“Let’s move. We need to reach the club room.” With that, Kiryu led his group, now eight strong, further down the street. As they ran, they passed by many signs of struggles, from destroyed shops, unconscious bodies of thugs and cops, and one of the defaced billboards Momoka mentioned.

One of the bodies made him stop. Immediately, he noticed that it was an automaton, rather than a human. “The hell?”

Yuuka spotted it as well, and sighed. “Not a good sign. Looks like a few automatons decided to join in the chaos. This might be a little harder from here on out.”

“Are they that bad to deal with?” Kiryu asked, resuming his run.

“Not really. But they’re as durable as students, so they won’t go down easily. Add to that they usually have heavy weapons too, and they can cause a lot of damage.”

“There’s also the fact that they don’t get demoralized like students would. They’ll keep going to complete their objective, whatever that is,” Suzumi continued, catching up with Kiryu and Yuuka.

“Mm.” Kiryu grunted, but his thoughts went in a different direction.

With all that he had discovered of his body, from the lack of shortness of breath to his restored endurance, one last question remained. Was his strength restored as well?

He didn’t have a good point of reference from disarming the girl earlier. He towered over her, and was an adult compared to her being a kid. But an automaton? He would be able to tell then.

“The Schale club room is ahead of us!” Yuuka shouted, dragging Kiryu out of his thoughts. They had made it already?

His earpiece crackled as Rin contacted him. “Kiryu-Sensei, be careful. Wakamo is waiting for you, along with another group of thugs. Don’t let your guards down.”

Kiryu spotted her almost immediately. Her black uniform contrasted greatly against the white concrete of the building, along with her Arisaka patterned rifle. 

Then he noticed her mask, and involuntarily shuddered. Another creepy mask. And I thought Hannya Man was offputting.

Getting behind cover, he noted Yuuka being joined by the two cops with riot shields, Suzumi being joined by Kirino and Fubuki, and Hasumi staying behind. Chinatsu, once again, stood by his side. “Ready on your go, Sensei,” Chinatsu said, pistol at the ready.

At her words, Kiryu nodded. “Girls, don’t try to rush anything. Keep your heads down, and wait for your chance to strike. The Fox will likely focus on the biggest targets, so stay on the move. Hasumi, do you think you can get her?”

“I can try. But I’ll need to be quick about it.”

Kiryu nodded, then raised his voice. “Schale, to battle!”

At his command, the girls left cover, and began firing at the thugs. By the time the thugs scrambled themselves enough to retaliate, five of their number had gone down.

As the group laid suppressive fire on the thugs, Kiryu could see Wakamo taking cover, dodging past shots aimed for her. This made him grimace. He knew she wouldn’t go down easily, but he had hoped to wear her down slightly. “Kirino, do you have any special equipment with you?”

Kirino went back behind cover, before flinching as the Fox fired at her, punching a hole next to her head. “I’ve got smoke grenades. They’re a specialty order, designed to give a little extra concussive force when they detonate.”

“Alright.” He then turned to Fubuki. “Fubuki, what do you…”

Kiryu could only stare blankly as Fubuki picked herself off the ground, apparently having laid down when the fighting began. Whatever reprimand he had prepared died when she got an unexpected red glow around her, and she began firing at the thugs.

Whatever that glow was, somehow it appeared to make her gun stronger, taking down thugs much quicker than everyone else combined.

…Kiryu is not going to try and make sense of that. For the past hour, he’s gone with the flow far too easily, and it’s too late to start now.

Shaking his head, he turned to the group. “Suzumi, toss a flash grenade at the Fox. Draw her out of cover. Yuuka, you and the other two-“ he got cut off when Wakamo fired again, and one of the shield cops was sent flying back, her shield shattered and the girl unconscious. “…draw fire from the thugs. Hasumi, once you get a shot at Wakamo, take it. If we can at least drive her off, it should make dealing with the tank easier, wherever it is.”

His orders got affirmations in response, then he looked at the unconscious girl. “Chinatsu, think you can bring her behind cover once we reach her?”

“Of course, Sensei,” she said, already preparing her kit. “Be careful Sensei, the Fox is a dangerous opponent.”

“I know. But thank you for warning me regardless.” Looking out, Kiryu nodded. “Move!”

Suzumi, at his command, tossed the grenade. Wakamo, however, spotted it early, and fired, detonating the grenade at its apex.

Before Kiryu could say anything, Kirino pulled out a smoke grenade, and pulled the pin. However, it slipped out of her hand, and she fumbled for a second, before kicking the grenade away, right in front of Wakamo.

Right on cue, Yuuka and the remaining officer leapt out, their defenses ready as they began drawing the attention of the remaining thugs. Behind the cloud of smoke, Wakamo stumbled out, visibly coughing as she tried to get fresh air… wholly unprepared for Hasumi’s shot, knocking her to the ground.

However, Wakamo, unlike the other thugs, shot to her feet. Rather than continue the fight, however, she looked off to the side, before falling back from the assault.

Then they heard an engine rumbling, as the Crusader tank drove into the courtyard ahead of them, machine gun firing, and forcing everyone to take cover again.

“That’s a Crusader Type-1! How did they even get this much heavy equipment?” Hasumi wondered, ducking as a torrent of rounds went over her head.

“It must be stolen! Those thugs must have swiped one meant for the PMC!” Yuuka reloaded as she prepared her shield again. “It’s not going to help them! I’m going in!”

Yuuka leapt out of cover, guns at the ready, before a rocket exploded in front of her, sending her back next to Kirino.

“Yuuka-chan!” Kirino exclaimed as she pulled Yuuka into cover. “Are you alright?”

Yuuka took a second to cough out the smoke before responding. “I’m fine. What was that?”

“A rocket launcher! But it didn’t come from the thugs!” Suzumi shouted, before ducking from a tank shell.

Fubuki looked around, then pointed. “Southeast side of the courtyard! There's an automaton causing havoc alongside-woah!” She ducked as another rocket exploded above her, raining debris over her and Kirino.

Hasumi peeked over her cover to aim, but she ducked back again. “I can’t get a clear shot from here! There’s too much debris he’s hiding behind!”

Treating the fallen officer, Chinatsu looked to Kiryu. “Sensei, what should we do?”

Kiryu didn’t answer her, instead taking a moment to inspect the courtyard, noting the cover and open areas. A plan began forming in his head. “Yuuka, once you recover, you and the other officer grab everyone’s attention. Kirino, throw another smoke grenade, in front of the tank. Hasumi, since you seem to know about the tank, take it out once you get a clear shot. Everyone else, provide cover fire against the thugs.”

“That leaves the automaton. What about him, Sensei?” Kirino asked, smoke grenade clutched in her hand.

“I’ll handle him.” He raised his hand when they began to protest. “Trust me, I’m not one to risk my life, but that launcher needs to go down, one way or the other.”

“Sensei, you’ll be shot!” Yuuka shouted. “You don’t have the same defenses as us!”

At that, Kiryu looks to Yuuka, nodding, “I’m aware. Kirino, once you get the chance, throw the smoke grenade!”

“Sensei, wait-!“ Suzumi shouted, but Kiryu was already moving, using the debris and sandbags as cover.

He had the speed, and the lung capacity of when he was younger. All that was left was one final question. What of his strength? Did that return as well?

He knows that he’s likely to be reprimanded for this, but he needed to know, needed to find out.

Gunfire erupted behind him as both factions began firing, trying to get one over the other. Then, he saw the automaton, taking aim with the launcher.

The design of the mech reminded him of that Yappi-Kun robot and Tetsu Amon back in Sotenbori, except colored black. Its face was a screen, with only a single red light near its temple. Aside from those details, it looked like it didn’t have anything up its metaphorical sleeves.

With a grunt, he jumps from a destroyed car, and kicked the automaton, knocking it down, and sending its launcher clattering against the ground.

However, it got back to its feet, before turning to glare at him. “You’re dead old man!”

Kiryu didn’t respond immediately, instead going through the familiar, old motions. Fists clenched, right fist raised, left fist lowered. Balanced on his feet, then he takes a breath, feeling the old, familiar heat coursing through his veins. “You sound exactly like every two-bit thug who thought they were hot shit. If you think you have what it takes, then bring it on!”

Chapter Text

Gunfire rang out behind him as the mech charged him, fist reared back. Kiryu saw the punch coming a mile away, and shifted to the side. Grabbing the arm, he held on tight as the automaton stopped, but before he could pull away, Kiryu slammed his elbow into its face, knocking it to the ground.

As it got back up from the sudden counter, Kiryu rubbed his elbow, wincing in pain. Right, robot .

Stepping back, Kiryu threw a left straight, and a right cross, preparing himself for the shock of skin hitting metal. This time, while it still rattled his arms, he adjusted quickly to the sensation. Then, sweeping his foot, he knocks it to the ground, followed by another kick to its head, sending it skidding back.

As Kiryu waited for the automaton to get back up, he noted his condition. Although already feeling the oncoming adrenaline that once coursed through his veins, he took a deep breath, feeling it fill his lungs. Feels like my stamina is back up. Not where it was before, but enough for this little scrap .

The automaton growled, and shot to its feet. “It’s going to take more than that to stop me, old man!” It then launched a flurry of punches, mixing in hooks and crosses, meant to knock Kiryu to the ground.

But he didn’t rise to the bait. Dodging each punch, it almost felt as if the robot was moving slowly compared to him. Sloppy. Bigger wind up leaves bigger windows. Just another street brawler .

The automaton leaned back, and prepared another punch, fist reared back. “Take this!” It swung forward, intending to cave Kiryu’s head in.

At the apex of its swing, Kiryu suddenly shot forward, ducking under the wild punch, rearing his fist back. He shot it forward, using his strength and the automaton’s momentum to deliver the devastating Komaki Tiger Drop, sending the automaton flying back, its chassis cracked from the force.

Shaking his fist, he noted the split skin on his knuckles, cutting right through his old scars. “I’ll give you credit, this is the first time in over forty years that my knuckles bled from a punch.” He then leveled a glare at the rising bot. “I’m being polite here. Stand down, or I’m ending this my way.”

The automaton coughed out a laugh, holding its cracked chassis as it glared back at Kiryu. “No way, old man. I know your type. You have to end fights quickly, otherwise your stamina peters out, and you’re left open. Look at you!” It pointed at Kiryu. “It’s already happening! You’re getting exhausted!”

“Did you miss the part where my breath is even?” Kiryu shook his head, amazed that moronic thugs existed even here. “Last chance. Surrender, or I stop holding back.”

The automaton ignored him, instead charging again for another attack. Kiryu shook his head in annoyance, and waited.

Right when the automaton reached him, Kiryu suddenly snapped forward, bringing a double hammer fist down on its back, while his knee flew into its chest, striking both areas with the Komaki Parry. While he wasn’t expecting it to have its breath knocked out, he theorized that it would still feel the pain of the painful counter.

A theory proven correct when it stumbled back, leaving itself completely open. Rushing forward, Kiryu grabbed its right arm, yanking it forward into the brutal right backfist he prepared. When it stumbled, he grabbed its head with both hands, before driving it down into his awaiting knee. It collapsed on its knees, face screen cracked, before Kiryu raised his arms to deliver a double hammer fist on its head, watching its head bounce off the ground from the sheer force. Briefly, it tried to push itself up, but the damage was great. With a groan, it became limp on the ground, the red light on its temple shutting off.

Panting slightly, Kiryu kept his gaze on the automaton, waiting for it to suddenly attack. After a minute of silence, he lowered his fists and straightened up. “That answers that then.” Looking back down at his knuckles, he notes the flecks of blood on his knuckles and the ache in his bones. “I'm going to need to learn how to punch robots if they end up being regular here.” Rubbing his knuckles, he made his way back to the representatives.

Already, the gunfire is greatly reduced than when he left. With a crack of Hasumi’s rifle, the Crusader tank’s engine explodes, disabling it. The thugs inside immediately climbed out, stumbling to the ground as they tripped on their way out. The Valkyrie girls immediately got to work on handcuffing them to a nearby bike rack, taking their weapons away from them. Whatever thugs are left immediately run, having been routed in the battle while he was occupied.

“Sensei!” He heard Yuuka shout as she bounded towards him. “Sensei, what were you thinking! That was incredibly reckless!”

Chinatsu was right behind her, immediately spotting Kiryu’s knuckles. “Your hands! What happened up there?” Reaching him, she immediately got to work with the first aid kit, cleaning and dressing his cuts.

He didn’t wince when Chinatsu dabbed at his cuts with her kit, having long since faced far worse pains. “The automaton was causing trouble. I removed it from the equation.”

“That isn’t the point!” Yuuka continued, before she stopped, and took a deep breath. “Sensei, you don’t have the same protection as us. If something had happened…” She trailed off, unable to finish the sentence.

Kiryu was silent for a moment, before reaching out to pat Yuuka on the head, who blinked in surprise. “I’m sorry Yuuka. Perhaps I should have discussed things more with the rest of you, but we were low on time, and we were going to be overwhelmed. I chose the option that would give the rest of you the chance to turn things around.”

Yuuka didn’t respond at first, the only sound between them being Chinatsu putting away her kit, before she responded. “Just… please warn us next time if you’re doing something reckless like that again.”

Kiryu nodded at her words, before looking around. “So, status update. Do we have control of the Schale Club room?”

“We do, Kiryu-Sensei,” Chinatsu said, standing proudly at attention. “The thugs have been driven off, those unconscious have been restrained, and the tank is disabled. Word will spread soon about what we’ve done, and hopefully, everything will calm down after this.”

“Good.” Kiryu nodded, before contacting Rin. “Rin, we’ve completed our objective.”

He heard a sigh of relief first before Rin responded. “Thank you for everything, Kiryu-Sensei. This has been a long day, but it’s good that it’s finally ending. Make your way inside, I'll join you shortly once I help settle things in the streets. Head to the basement level, the stairs are next to the elevator.”

“Got it.” Turning to Chinatsu and Yuuka, he continued, “I’ll return shortly. If anyone asks, tell them I’m inside.”

“Of course Sensei.” Both girls bowed. “If we see Chief Officer Rin, we’ll let her know where you are.”

Nodding, Kiryu makes his way to the building, noting just how high the skyscraper was. “Hope the elevators work. That’s too many flights of stairs.”

Pushing the doors open, he’s met with the reception hall. Almost immediately, he saw signs of destruction everywhere. Spray painted walls, smashed desks, and food wrappers everywhere. Off near the back, he spotted what looked like a convenience store called Angel 24, which appears to have been ransacked by the look of it.

Further to the side, he also saw another door that led to another part of the building. The sign above said it was a cafe of some sort, but one peek through the door shows him the utter destruction inside. “They really didn’t hold back, did they?”

Continuing his walk, he made his way to the stairs, pushing the door open, and started making his way down. As he did, he saw what looked like a light shining through the stairwell, getting brighter as he got closer.

Finally, he reached the basement, and the first thing he saw was a floating stone piece, roughly around his height. In front of it was a desk with a pair of computer monitors. A research lab perhaps?

“What is this place?” Kiryu asked himself as he walked to the stone, noting the strange material it was made of. He doesn’t remember seeing anything like it back in Japan, or even Hawaii. Synthetic, perhaps?

He looked above the stone, frowning to himself. “Can’t see any wires either.” Reaching down, he moves his hand in the open space above the stone, seeing the lack of reaction. “It’s actually just floating there, like one of those science fiction books Taichi liked to read.”

He heard a noise behind him, and he whipped his head. “Rin?”

Kiryu froze, noticing the intruder just past the darkness. “Kosaka,” he said, watching the Fox of Calamity on the other end of the room. Her rifle was slung on her back, and she carried a bag of what looked like plastic explosives, one brick already in her hand.

She remained where she was, brick in hand, as she kept her gaze right on Kiryu, inspecting him.

Kiryu quietly swore under his breath. Wakamo is very different from the delinquents up above, judging by what little he’s been told and seen of her. He’s going to have to navigate this situation very carefully.

“Hey,” he started, raising his hands to keep them in her view, “you don’t need to go this far. Whatever you have against the General Student Council, it shouldn’t be bad enough for you to resort to terrorism like this.”

She didn’t react to his words, her gaze entirely focused on him.

That mask is making this hard. I can’t tell if what I’m saying is working if I can’t see her face. “Listen, just put the weapons aside, and we can talk this over. This doesn’t need to end in a fight.”

Silence from Wakamo continued, the only sign of movement coming from her ears twitching at his words.

…Kiryu blinked, and moved his eyes up slightly. Those are actual fox ears. And… that’s an actual tail behind her. What the hell is this place?

Kiryu took a step forward, moving slowly so as to not startle her. Her masked face shifted as he took a step, but otherwise kept still. “Kosaka… Wakamo, correct? Look, we can talk about this. There’s been enough fighting today, wouldn’t you agree?”

As the silence stretched on, a bead of sweat dripped down his cheek. The longer this went on, the more likely she was going to attack.

“I…” Wakamo whispered, her voice barely carrying towards him.

“Yes?” Kiryu asked, keeping his hands raised towards her. 

“I… I was just leaving!” She shouted, bolting away from Kiryu as she bounded up the stairs, leaving the room in a matter of seconds.

Kiryu blinked at the sudden events, confused by her actions. “What the hell was that?” He looked up at the stairs, trying to decipher her actions. “She wasn’t scared of me, was she?”

After a few minutes, he heard footsteps coming back from the stairs, and he spotted Rin coming down. “Sorry to keep you waiting. I’m here now.” Taking a look around the room, she noticed that it was only Kiryu inside. “Did I miss something?”

Kiryu shook his head, moving past the strange event with Wakamo. “Nothing in particular. Is what we’re looking for down here somewhere?”

At his words, Rin nodded. “Yes. The General Student Council President left something behind for you.” Walking to the desk, she pulled a drawer open, and pulled out a tablet. Taking a moment to inspect it, she nods in relief. “Fortunately, there isn’t a scratch on it.”

She held the tablet out to Kiryu, who took it from her. “A smart tablet?” he asked, noting its appearance. A bright white, it certainly looked brand new, like it came fresh out of the box it came in.

“It’s not just any smart tablet. The President referred to it as the Shittim Chest,” Rin started, clasping her hands behind her back. “I can’t tell you anything more than that. It wasn’t manufactured by any company in Kivotos, its OS is unknown, the system structure is a mystery, and the components are a guessing game all on their own.”

“That’s… rather concerning. Is there anything you do know about the tablet?” Kiryu asked.

At that, Rin nodded. “Only that, according to the General Student Council President, that it’s fully capable of controlling the tower.”

Kiryu looked up in shock. “What? This little thing is fully capable of that?”

Rin nodded again. “Our best programmers weren’t able to activate it, and a team of hackers we hired from Millenium were completely stumped. It’s password protected, but nothing we tried works.” She hesitated for a moment, then adjusts her glasses. “According to the General Student Council President, you’d know the password the moment you saw it.”

Kiryu looked at Rin in confusion, then back to the tablet. “What password? I don’t know any password.”

Rin sighed. “I figured as much. She was vague about it. We’re going to have to trust her on this. And I’m sure you can do it, Kiryu-Sensei.” Bowing her head, Rin stepped away. “I’ll be back shortly. I still need to help with everything upstairs.”

Watching Rin ascend the steps, Kiryu turned back to the Shittim Chest, confusion still evident on his face. “Well… may as well turn it on. See what I have to work with.” Finding the power button, the screen lights up with a white and blue background, seemingly made of various triangles, and a stylized S front and center. Words then appeared.

Connecting to the Shittim Chest

Please enter the system password

And here it is, the password that nobody can guess. Looking at the provided keyboard on the screen, Kiryu racked his brain for whatever hinted at the password. Nothing he could think of could help him out.

If I’m supposed to know it on sight, then the password should be instinctual, right? It’s not the best theory he had, but he had no other ideas.

Looking down at the keyboard, he decided to tap away, to see what password came out.

We thirst for the seven wailings

We bear the koan of Jericho

Kiryu blinked at the phrase that came out. Something about it was… oddly familiar. Did he read it somewhere in a book?

I guessed the password, and this came out. Maybe… pressing enter, the password winked green, before it was replaced by a new screen.

Password accepted

User identified as Kazuma Kiryu. Confirmed

Kiryu was taken aback by this. I never gave this thing my name. How did it…?

Welcome to the Shittim Chest, Kazuma-Sensei

Converting to operating system ARONA for biological authentication and generation of a verification certificate

The screen winked black, leaving Kiryu to stare at his reflection, before the screen activated again. This time, instead of the white and blue background, he was greeted with a classroom, surrounded by water, and with a piece of the wall missing, showing the horizon.

In the center of the screen was a girl, in a blue and white uniform, and blue hair that looked almost pink inside.

Kiryu winced as his head started throbbing at the sight of her, flashes of… something, going through his head. Brief flashes of blue then appear, before leaving just as fast, his sudden headache disappearing.

“Mmm… castella cake… is better with banana milk… than strawberry milk…” the little girl sleepily muttered, diverting Kiryu’s attention from his headache. “Heehee… there’s so much…” she giggled to herself, shifting slightly, giving Kiryu a clear view of her sleeping face.

Kiryu stood there awkwardly, unsure of how to wake her up. Of all the things he could have expected, a little girl in the tablet wasn’t one such thing. Was this a recording or something?

…doubtful. This place was still a mystery to him, but he was pretty sure there wasn’t any place that had a flooded, ruined classroom. A video then?

Walking over to the office chair in front of the computers, he sat down, feeling the stress in his body as the events of the day washed over him. As he did, the tablet shook in his hand, and the girl on the screen shifted.

“Mmm…” she shifted, lazily waving her hand in front of her as if she was getting rid of a bug. “Five more minutes…”

Kiryu blinked at the reaction. That was… not what he expected. His theory on it being a video started losing traction. If she seemingly reacted to him shaking the Shittim Chest… he gave it another shake as an experiment.

“Mm…” slowly, the girl started to sit up, eyes opening blearily as she looked around. Then her eyes focused as she noticed Kiryu. “H-huh?!”

She disappeared in a flash of triangles, before suddenly appearing much closer, almost taking over the screen. “S-sensei?!” she asked as she shook herself away. “If you’re here, th-th-that must mean you’re Kazuma-Sensei!”

Kiryu nodded, still unsure how his name was on the Shittim Chest. “That’s me. And you are…?” he trailed off, unsure if the girl even had a name. This is a very advanced AI

“Wh-whoa, so I was right? Has it been that long already?” She whispered to herself, before slapping her cheeks before Kiryu could respond. “A-anyway, my name is Arona! I’m the system manager that lives inside the Shittim Chest, serving as its main OS. Just think of me as your trusty secretary, Kazuma-Sensei!”

“Well met, Arona. I’ll… be glad to work with you,” Kiryu said, some of the tension easing away at Arona’s energy. Re minds me a little of Haruka when she was younger

“Likewise Sensei! I’m so glad to finally meet you! I’ve been waiting for you all this time!” Arona exclaimed, bouncing on her heels.

“Weren’t you asleep, waiting for me to come?” And wasn’t that a whole different set of questions. He knew that computers could technically sleep, but Arona was asleep just like a regular person would be.

At his question, Arona nervously laughed and scratched her cheek. “Well… I-I guess I did doze off a little waiting for you. B-but still, I promise to do my best for you!” She began to mutter, making it difficult for Kiryu to catch what she said. “Even if my physical form and voice could use an upgrade.”

“Hm?” That was a rather curious sentence. Was she aware of such things then?

“N-nothing! Just know that I still promise to be a great assistant to you!” Before she said anything else, her eyes widened. “Oh, right! This is just a formality, but we need to complete the biological authentication.”

Raising her finger, she raised it up to the screen with a smile. “Okay, now press your fingertip against mine.”

Kiryu may not have had a normal childhood, but he recognized the gesture. With a smile, he pressed his finger against the screen, right on Arona’s finger. As soon as contact was made, he felt a slight buzzing right on the tip of his finger.

“Heehee… it’s like we’re making a promise or something, isn’t it?” Arona giggled out, closing her eyes in a smile.

“Indeed. And if that’s the case, I promise to be the best Sensei I can be. With your help too Arona,” Kiryu replied. The past hour was still a shock to him, but it wouldn’t be the first time he was in a weird situation. It certainly wasn’t a retirement from the yakuza life he was expecting, but at least he had experience with teenagers. Maybe there’s still stuff I can do to help here

At his words, Arona beamed as she pulled her finger away. “I’ll hold you to that promise, Kazuma-Sensei! Now, I just need to confirm everything. Give me a moment please.”

Moving his finger away from the screen, Kiryu nodded. “I’ll be right here once you’re done. How long would it take?”

“Hmmm, not long. I just need a moment.” After that, Arona fell silent as she processed the verification. As she did, Kiryu sat idly on the chair, reclining slightly as he waited.

After almost a minute, he heard Arona hum to herself, before speaking up. “All done Sensei!”

Kiryu raised an eyebrow. “I might not be the best with technology, but I’m almost certain that took longer than it should compared to most fingerprint scanners.”

At his words, Arona pouted. “I-I don’t need those kinds of features! My eyes work just fine!”

“If you’re certain, then I’ll trust you on that Arona.”

“Good!” After a beat, she dropped her pout. “So… can you explain what’s been going on lately? I know I’ve been out of the loop, so it’d be nice to catch up on things.”

“Well, how do I start…” Kiryu spent the next several minutes explaining what had happened, from his awakening in Rin’s office, to the Shittim Chest being handed to him.

Maybe because it was being let out in the open, but Kiryu felt like he was starting to truly understand what role he had taken after waking up. But while a part of him is still uncertain, another part kept him from considering walking away. I promised them. I’m not going to break that promise just because I got cold feet

“…Got it,” Arona said, having listened to Kiryu’s explanation. “The General Student Council President went missing, and there’s no way to control the tower in Kivotos now…”

“Do you know anything about the General Student Council President?” Kiryu asked, curious. She’s the one thing about this situation he doesn’t know anything about, and any details would help.

Arona shaking her head, however, told him everything he needed to hear. “I’m sorry Kazuma-Sensei, but no. I have lots of data on Kivotos, but I don’t know anything about the General Student Council President, who she is, or why she left. There’s a gap in my memory banks, so the information was there at some point, but it’s gone, and I don’t know how it happened. I’m sorry I’m not of any more help regarding her.” She then bowed her head in apology.

“It’s okay Arona,” Kiryu said, already moving to comfort her. “You did the best you could with what you have. I’m not blaming you for this.”

Arona nodded, before her eyes lit up. “I could still help you with the Sanctum Tower though. That, I could do at least.”

Kiryu nodded. “Please do, Arona. The city really needs the help.”

“Yes, Sensei!” Arona closed her eyes as she began working. After a few seconds, the lights started flickering, before they turned on. At the same time, he could swear he heard the hum of power through the rest of the building as everything was restored. “Done! Sanctum Tower admin authorization aqcuired.” Arona opened her eyes with a smile. “We’ve successfully restored access to the Sanctum Tower, Sensei! The tower is now fully under my control!”

Kiryu smiled as Arona updated him, but her next words made him stiffen slightly. “That means all of Kivotos is in the palm of your hand!”

“It… is?” Kiryu swallowed slightly at the full implications of Arona’s words. Just like after everything with Nishiki, Yumi, and the ten billion yen, absolute authority was pushed back towards him again.

After a moment, he shook his head. This was a different situation than when he was Fourth Chairman briefly. Unlike before, when he wanted to live a normal life, here, he knew he’d give the power to someone else because, in the end, he was still new to Kivotos. It wouldn't make sense for a newcomer like him to suddenly take control. At least with this Sensei job, it was prepared specifically for him. “Arona, transfer control to the General Student Council. They should be the ones in control.”

“I’ll do it Sensei, but are you sure you don’t want it? You’d be giving absolute control to the General Student Council.”

Kiryu nodded at her words. “I’m sure. Authorize the transfer, please.”

“Alright! Control of the Sanctum Tower will now be transferred to the General Student Council!”

After that, Arona fell silent. A few minutes later, Rin came back downstairs.

“I just received word, Kiryu-Sensei. Control of the Sanctum Tower is ours now.” She then bowed towards him, visibly relaxing. “Thank you for everything you’ve done for us, Sensei. We can get back to managing the city as if the General Student Council President was still here.”

Getting up from the chair, Kiryu bowed to her. “I’m happy to have helped, Rin. What of the delinquents who escaped?”

“They’ll be found in due time. Now that we can coordinate things again, we can handle things from here. You don’t need to worry about them, Sensei.” After a moment, Rin gestured to the stairs. “Come, there’s one more thing I have to show you.”

Following after Rin, Kiryu went back upstairs to the ground floor lobby. As they reached the elevator, Rin stopped as she stared at the destruction around them. “It’ll be a while before things are normal here again. Angel 24 will be first, but it’ll be some time before the cafe opens again.”

“I’ve been meaning to ask, what exactly is the cafe for?” Kiryu asked, looking past the destroyed entrance, watching the workers inside clean up the mess inside.

“It’s meant as a way to generate revenue for Schale. You get a stipend for personal needs, but the cafe is meant for the club itself. It’s open to the public, so anyone can enter. But as it is right now, it’ll be a while before then.” Rin sighs as she opens the elevator door. “Not to mention finding workers after this. There’ll be security, but that might not be enough to bring people in.”

Stepping in with her, Kiryu watches as Rin pressed the topmost button. “I can try to help with that. I’ve run a few businesses before. Although, granted, two of them were hostess clubs.”

Rin gave him a weird look before responding. “I’ll… trust you on that. Any experience is good experience in this case.” the elevator dinged, and Rin stepped through the opening doors.

Kiryu was met with a reception office, the long wooden table having several monitors on display. The wall behind it was white with blue accents, and a pair of doors were off to the side. One, judging by the sign, was for custodial purposes. The other, Rin walked towards. “This way leads to your office, and, by extension, your quarters. Essentially, the entire floor belongs to you to use how you see fit.” Rin turned to him and adjusted her glasses. “I know this is an unnecessary statement, but do keep in mind how you behave. As Sensei, you have an image to project.”

“I can be formal when needed, Rin. I’ll be careful,” Kiryu answered, looking around the reception hall.

Rin nodded at his words, and opened the door. “This way. There’s just a few more things the General Student Council President left for you, said it would make your job easier to transition into.”

Inside the room, Kiryu was met with a window that stretched from floor to ceiling, wall to wall. Beyond it, the city below stretched out before him. Once again, he was reminded of the Tokyo skyline, from both the Millenium Tower and Kamurocho Hills. The more things change indeed…

Looking around the room, he noted the main desk, which, if he guessed correctly, was where the majority of his work would be done. A bookcase, already filled, sat at the far end of the room. He also spotted a weapons rack next to the table, which currently sat empty. And on the other wall, with a view of the windows it was next to, was a comfortable looking couch, still clean and unblemished by the chaos downstairs.

Turning to one of the side doors, he spotted Rin coming out with a garment bag, wrapped around a clothes hanger. She also had a small box in her other hand, which she handed over first. “Here’s a phone with the latest upgrades, a wallet, and some spending money to help you out. The General Student Council President said that she left instructions for you to use on some apps on this phone.”

Opening the box, Kiryu indeed spotted the described items. Taking the phone out, he looked it over as it turned on, seeing the faded blue background and current time. Pocketing it, he pulled out the wallet and money. Surprisingly, the bills greatly resembled that of the yen, down to using the same symbol. Opening the wallet, he spotted a white credit card.

Kiryu blinked as he pulled it out. The back was nothing special, but the front… he was met with the Oryu, the white dragon that lay across his back. Down to the smallest detail, it matched his irezumi perfectly. “This is…” he started, before being unable to finish the sentence.

Rin looked over, and nodded. “That was part of the cryptic reason why she referred to waiting for the dragon to appear. But it means more than a title, doesn’t it?”

Kiryu nodded as he put the card away. “I’ll… explain another time.” Putting the wallet away, he gestured to the bag. “And is that my official uniform for work?”

Rin shook her head as she passed it. “She didn’t say, only that it was meant for you. I thought the dimensions were ridiculous for a human body, but it seems she saw that coming too. Even went and made sure it was fitted with silicon-carbide disks, making it bullet resistant. I thought she was paranoid, but from what I heard what you did…” she trailed off, noticing that Kiryu froze at the sight of the bag’s contents. “Kiryu-Sensei? What is it?”

After a beat, Kiryu zipped the bag closed again. “It’s nothing. Just… it’s another replica I wasn’t prepared to see.”

Rin blinked at his words, before nodding. “Very well then… That was the last of the items left for you by the General Student Council President. If there’s nothing else, then we can end the tour here.”

Kiryu set the bag aside, before nodding. “I do have one question. Does the building have a medical facility somewhere?”

Perplexed, Rin responded. “It does. Combining cutting edge Millenium tech with knowledge from Trinity’s Remedial Knights and Gehenna’s Medical Emergency Department, Schale has access to a localized infirmary. What takes days, weeks or months for most, tends to be completed in hours or days.” Rin looked him over in concern. “You’re… not wounded, right?”

Kiryu shook his head. “Nothing like that. I’ll explain more once you’re done.”

After a beat, Rin continued. “Anyway, what makes Schale different from other academies is the near lack of red tape that hampers most other clubs. And due to not being tied down to a specific academy, you’re fully capable of registering any student from any academy in Kivotos.” Rin adjusted her glasses again as she spoke. “Theoretically, that includes delinquents and other notorious trouble makers, up to and including the Fox of Calamity, though I really hope you don’t recruit such students.”

“Never say never Rin,” Kiryu said, crossing his arms. “Even in the underworld, there’s knowledge you can’t find anywhere else. If anyone is willing to help, I won’t turn them away.”

At his words, Rin sighed. “I’ll leave the judgment to you then. If there’s nothing else, then maybe you can explain why you need the infirmary if you haven’t been wounded.”

“I need help with the infirmary to check on my lung cancer.”

“...Your WHAT?!”

Chapter Text

In retrospect, flat out telling Rin he had cancer wasn’t one of his brightest decisions.

The very instant she recovered, she all but pushed Kiryu to the elevator, taking them down to the infirmary level. As they rode their way down, she alternated between calling Chinatsu on her phone, to reprimanding Kiryu for keeping something like that a secret from them. “I would never have pushed you so hard if I knew!” was one of the sentences shouted at him.

For his part, Kiryu let himself be led by Rin. He doesn’t blame her for reacting the way she is right now. If anything, it reminded him somewhat of Ichiban and Tomizawa, and how they reacted when he told them back in Hawaii.

One more difference between then and now. Back then, he had resigned himself to his diagnosis, to simply letting death claim him without any effort in fighting back.

Now, with all the evidence he had seen so far, perhaps things are indeed different. But a CT scan would confirm things, especially if Rin was right about how advanced everything here was.

Once they reached the infirmary, Kiryu was quickly ushered inside, Chinatsu already waiting for them. “Kiryu-Sensei! Why didn’t you say anything? We need to get started right away!” Rushing over to a side room, she began prepping the CT scanner, working the computer beside the large machine. “You’ll need to remove your shirt, Sensei. I wasn’t able to find scrubs for you to use, considering how rushed it kind of is right now.”

Kiryu didn’t say a word as he sat on the CT table, unbuttoning his shirt as Chinatsu entered a separate room, joined by Rin. Placing his shirt aside, he moved to lay down, before noticing both girls were focused on his chest.

One look down told him why. His torso was a patchwork of cuts and bullet wounds, taken by all the fighting he had done for the past thirty five years. From when he was just a no-name grunt, to the underworld legend he had become.

“Kiryu-Sensei, what… what kind of life did you have…?” Chinatsu asked, as if she was afraid of his answer.

“A bad one,” he simply answered, laying down on the table. “That’s all I’m going to say about that for now. I’m ready to begin.”

After a beat of hesitation, Chinatsu began the procedure. Kiryu didn’t move as the table retracted into the scanner. Despite the apparent advancements the infirmary had, some things still stayed the same. 

Breathe in, hold, breathe out. Repeat , he thought to himself, following Chinatsu’s instructions as she performed the scan. Despite her young age, she knew the steps to a CT scan down to the very second. Still, sooner than he expected, the scan was finished, and the table began to leave the scanner. The moment it stopped, Kiryu sat up, and reached for his shirt. As he did, he kept an eye on Rin and Chinatsu watching them as they focused on the computer screen in front of them.

Idly, he turned his head, and nodded to himself as his irezumi was hidden from them. That… was a conversation he wasn’t prepared to have.

The moment he finished putting on his shirt, and standing up from the table, the computer beeped. Fast indeed… whatever tech they used for it, it definitely worked in a speedy response.

Chinatsu blinked as she studied the results. “That can’t be right…” She pressed something on the keyboard, and studied the screen again. Another beep, and Chinatsu removed her glasses to clean them.

“I think it is, actually. The maintenance was done before the General Student Council President left, and everything is up to date. This… this is accurate,” Rin said as she rubbed her eyes.

“Is everything okay over there?” Kiryu asked as he walked to the door. “What do the results say?”

Chinatsu turned to him as he entered the room, putting her glasses back on. “Well, the good news is that you don’t have cancer. Your lungs are fine, if a bit on the tarred side. Were you a heavy smoker before, Kiryu-Sensei?”

Kiryu nodded as he crossed his arms. “I was. I quit a few years back, for rather obvious reasons.” He uncrossed his arms as he looked between both women. “What’s the bad news?”

“Well…” Rin started, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear, “I don’t think it could even be considered bad news, honestly.” She nodded to the screen, focusing on the chest area. “There’s definitely clear evidence that you had something , but… it’s not there anymore.”

Kiryu blinked as he heard the news. “Do you mean that my cancer underwent remission?”

Chinatsu shook her head as she looked back at the screen. “No. What Rin means is that it’s literally not there anymore.” She pointed at the scan, tracing the spot where the cancer was supposed to be. “There’s evidence that it was there, but it’s like… all traces of it are gone. And considering you’re not confined to a bed, it wasn’t removed through chemotherapy. It’s like… like it was deleted out of your body.” She leaned back into her chair with a sigh. “I’m still going to have you undergo more x-ray’s and blood tests to be absolutely sure, but by all evidence we have… you’re clear.”

Kiryu nodded, but inwardly, he breathed a sigh of relief. Thank goodness. “So what happens now?”

Rin stepped up towards him. “Well, we keep this under wraps for now. It’s good that you don’t have cancer anymore, but it’s still not something that should be made public, at least until we’re absolutely sure that you won’t suffer a recurrence.”

Chinatsu got up from the computer. “Sensei, I’ll be on call to check up on you every now and then, at least until we’re absolutely sure.”

Kiryu nodded at her words. “Of course. If you’re going to be coming here regularly, then it would make sense for you to join Schale then, right?”

After a beat, she nods. “That would be best, Sensei. My duties would normally keep me busy, but if it means keeping up with your health, I’ll make do.”

Kiryu turned to Rin. “May as well gather the rest of the representatives as well. After all the help they had given to retaking this building, it’s only fair that they’re rewarded.”

“It is. I’ll go to them, let them know you’ll be approving any applications they send.” Rin adjusted her glasses, then looked to Chinatsu. “Thank you again for helping with this. At the very least, it’s good to know our Sensei won’t be… well, dying on us anytime soon.” Bowing to both Chinatsu and Kiryu, Rin leaves the room. “We’ll be down in the lobby when you’re ready, Sensei.”

Watching her leave, Kiryu turned to Chinatsu. “You weren’t kidding about being the chief medical officer of your Prefect Team, were you?”

She shook her head at his words. “I wouldn’t make such a joke lightly, Kiryu-Sensei. I had plenty of experience prior to joining the Prefect Team, and I wished to apply such experience to assisting others as best as I can. Being in the Prefect Team allows me those extra opportunities, along with having the pull necessary for medical reforms in Gehenna. Such events haven’t been needed, fortunately, but it’s there when I need to.”

“In that regard, I’m glad you had the knowledge necessary to perform a CT scan.”

“…Kiryu-Sensei?” Chinatsu asked. “What happened to you prior to your arrival here? Half the scars I noticed on your chest would have killed you. A few of those half definitely should’ve. And… Why were you hiding your back? Are there scars there as well?”

Ah… there’s one of the questions he was dreading. How could he even begin to explain their origins when they already unsettled the civilian doctors he met before?

Chinatsu seemed to pick up on his nervousness. “I won’t say a word to anyone outside of here without your consent. This would strictly be doctor/patient confidentiality.”

With a sigh, Kiryu responded. “Chinatsu, I’m fifty-seven years old. I spent at least twenty-seven of those years fighting. What happened here in Kivotos, with those delinquents? That’s sanitized to me. I’ve seen and faced the worst out on the streets back where I’m from. From criminals, to corrupt authority figures, I’ve fought against men who set out to kill me, for a variety of reasons.”

Chinatsu’s breath hitched at his words. “You… is that why…?”

Kiryu nodded. “On at least four separate occasions, I was at death's door. It was pure stubbornness and determination that kept me alive those times.” He reached up and placed a hand on his chest. “My cancer… it was the fifth, and final time. When I had first discovered it, it was too late to do anything about it. For a time, I just gave up, and decided to let it run its course.”

“If it was for a time, then… that means something changed, didn’t it?” Chinatsu asked. “You started fighting back, in a sense?”

“I did. It took a lot of convincing from some friends, and organizing a bucket list, but I set out to tie up as many loose ends as I could. In that time, I started finding reasons to keep fighting, until I simply couldn’t anymore. Then, once I was bedridden, I kept fighting, kept living. I extended my death by another year, until ultimately I couldn’t fight anymore.” Kiryu closed his eyes, finding himself back in the hospital room, surrounded by his loved ones. “I did die, I know for sure. But then, I found myself here. I might be an old man, but I have a new lease on life. And I intend to use that chance to help however I can, even if this was a life I never imagined for myself.”

He turned to Chinatsu, who remained silent the entire time. “Take my words as truth, Chinatsu. I’m going to use my second chance to help Kivotos. I’ll pace myself, but I’m going to help however I can. I promise you that.”

After a minute of silence, with the only sounds being their breathing, Chinatsu walked up to him, and hugged him. Kiryu was surprised, but he rested his hand on her head, gently rubbing it.

“Thank you Sensei. Your words mean a lot, and I’m going to help you with your second chance, even if it includes dragging you to a hospital bed.”

At her words, Kiryu scoffed out a laugh. “Don’t phrase it like that, Chinatsu. You’re making me sound old.”

Chinatsu let out a soft laugh, before pulling away, wiping at her eyes. “Of course, Sensei. My apologies.” Taking a moment to compose herself, Chinatsu continued speaking. “Anyway, I do believe I had a second question that you haven’t answered. Why did you try to hide your back from us?”

“Only if you promise to keep it a secret for now. I know it’s something I can’t hide forever, but I’d prefer if the other students didn’t know.”

“Sensei, you’re speaking as if we haven’t done anything embarrassing in our lives before. I promise I won’t judge.”

Kiryu winced slightly, before turning out and presenting his back to Chinatsu, unbuttoning his shirt. “It’s not so much embarrassing, as it is a truth about me. Your perspective of me will change once you see it.”

“Perspective?” Chinatsu was curious, but kept silent as Kiryu lowered his shirt. Once she saw what was underneath, her eyes widened. “That’s…!”

Kiryu nodded, but kept silent, giving Chinatsu the chance to absorb the information she was given.

After a beat, she spoke again, voice lowered. “This… explains a few things. I had figured you had done something dangerous before, when you mentioned having faced death multiple times. But… I never thought you would be a yakuza.”

“Former yakuza,” he responded, turning his head to her. “I haven’t been one for thirty years now.”

“Right…” Chinatsu nodded, still focused on his back. “If… I remember correctly, if a yakuza has a dragon on their back, doesn’t that signify a high status?”

“In a sense. Just having a dragon alone isn’t enough. You’d have to prove yourself worthy of it. Otherwise, it’d be considered arrogance, and a waste of ink.”

Walking closer, Chinatsu lightly reached for the dragon, before suddenly pulling away, a light red dusting on her cheeks. “Right,” she said, watching Kiryu pull his shirt back on. Clearing her throat, she calmed herself down. “Well, considering what you’ve shown of your skills in terms of leadership ability, I’d say it would be an honor working with you as our Sensei.”

Turning around to face her, Kiryu nodded. “I’ll do my best to be worthy of everyone’s expectations.” He then gestured to the door. “Come on, let’s go meet Rin in the lobby. This has been a long enough day as it is.”

“It has, hasn’t it?” Chinatsu led the both of them through the door, walking down the hallway to the elevator. “I’m not exactly thrilled at the amount of paperwork I’ll have to address on my return, but at least it comes with the assurance of stability in Kivotos.”

Entering the elevator, they made their way down to the ground floor in silence. When the doors opened, they were greeted with the sight of a much cleaner lobby. Much of the trash had been collected, and glass from the broken windows was being sweeped.

Now that he wasn’t being shot at, Kiryu took a moment to look at the workers, eyebrows furrowing at the sight of every single one being a girl. Where are the men? The closest one I saw was that robot I fought. Is Kivotos a matriarchal society?

Rin, standing just outside the doors with the representatives, turned to see Kiryu and Chinatsu as they stepped through the lobby and out the door. “Kiryu-Sensei, there you are. We’ve finished gathering every delinquent we could find, but the Fox of Calamity is unaccounted for. We believe she had escaped during the confusion.”

Hasumi stepped forward, slinging her rifle behind her shoulder. “It’s possible she had fled to the student district. Director Ogata Kanna is preparing a manhunt to find her, but she doesn’t promise any results.”

“Director Ogata Kanna? Is she part of Valkyrie, I assume?” Kiryu asked, looking around the courtyard for her.

Hasumi nodded. “She is. Specifically, she’s Director of the Public Peace Bureau.” She turned and pointed towards her, a blonde woman with what looked like dog ears on her head. “She told us to pass along her thanks for bringing communications back online. It’ll make her job much easier, according to her.”

“Good to hear.” Kiryu turned to the rest of the representatives. “I wanted to give you all my thanks as well for trusting me to lead you all in this crisis.” The girls straightened at his words, smiling at Kiryu. “It was a collaborative effort between all of us. You make your academies proud for this.”

“Thank you, Kiryu-Sensei.” Yuuka said. “You weren’t too shabby yourself. I’ll admit, I still think you were reckless in charging that automaton alone, but your actions ultimately gave us the chance needed to retake Schale. I’m almost certain everyone in Kivotos will hear about this.”

Kiryu sighed lightly at her words. “I’m going to have to deal with social media then? I might need some help in that regard. Speaking of, that does relate to what I’m about to ask of you.” The representatives looked amongst themselves, curious at his words.

“You four started off as representatives who were volunteered for this, and not exactly by choice.” Rin coughed at his words, but otherwise stayed silent. “But you all had pulled through, and, working together, you had managed to fight back against the delinquents and restored order to Kivotos.” He looked the four girls in the eyes, idly noting Kirino and Fubuki weren’t among them. He’ll find them later. “So I’d like to make it official. Would the four of you like to join Schale as the first four students in the newly minted club?”

The four girls blinked owlishly at his words, before Hasumi broke the silence first. “It would be an honor, Sensei. I’d be more than happy to join Schale.”

“Likewise.” Suzumi added, stepping forward. “Working together like this, it was an experience I’d like to repeat again.”

“I’d like to agree as well, Kiryu-Sensei,” Yuuka said, bowing her head. “It would help in repaying you for helping us all in our time of need.”

Chinatsu looked up at him, a smile gracing her features. “You already know my answer, Sensei. I formally accept your invitation to Schale.”

Kiryu nodded at the representatives, before turning to Rin. “Looks like we’ll be fine where we are, Rin.”

Rin bowed her head to Kiryu. “I’ll send the necessary paperwork to you once the clean up is finished. For now, I think we all deserve a chance to rest after today.”

“Rest…” Kiryu chuckled to himself, “That sounds lovely actually. I certainly need it.” Turning back to the representatives, he bowed his head. “I’ll wait for your applications. Thank you all, and let your journey home be safe.”

Hasumi and Suzumi bowed to Kiryu, before Hasumi spoke. “This is goodbye for now, but I hope you visit us at Trinity General School soon, Sensei.” With that, both girls made to leave, walking in step together.

Chinatsu stepped forward next. “I’ll be reporting what happened here to our head prefect. Don’t forget to visit us if you ever make it to Gehenna Academy.”

Yuuka was the last, stepping aside to let Chinatsu pass her by. “Who knows, we might cross paths again if you visit Millennium Science School. Bye, Sensei!” With that, she turned and walked away, leaving Kiryu alone with Rin.

“I need to be going as well, Sensei. If there’s anything else you need, you know where I work.” Rin began walking down the stairs, making her way to the helicopter still in the courtyard.

As she walked, an idea struck Kiryu. He’s already committed to this, so why not go a little further. “Rin, before you go, I have a request.”

Rin turned to meet his eyes, curious. “Of course, Sensei. What is it?”

“It’s a little impromptu, but is it possible to set up a video message? I want to make a proper first impression to everyone in Kivotos, and I’d rather not let social media color how people see me beforehand.”

Rin blinked in surprise, before nodding. “I’ll get the Kronos School of Journalism to send a crew. I’ll need a few hours, but I can make it happen.”

“Thank you, Rin. I’ll leave you to it.” Kiryu watched as Rin entered the helicopter, before turning back to enter the building.

Wakamo watched as Kiryu-Sensei spoke with those loathsome girls. A part of her felt angry, having been denied her chance to destroy the office. It had gone so well too. Bullying those sukeban girls into getting her enough plastic explosives to level the block was easy, but the delay in actually getting them from Valkyrie trucks gave the representatives the time to capture the building.

By the time she had received the bombs, it was too late. So she settled on leveling the basement. There were plenty of important looking items inside, so it would’ve still given the GSC a massive nosebleed.

Then… she saw him.

Kiryu Kazuma, the Sensei of Schale

His voice. His build. His decision to talk to her rather than fight…

They were those of a gentleman, yet she could sense within him a wild, untamed dragon.

A perfect match for the Fox of Calamity.

She shifted slightly, the gravel on the roof of the skyscraper she was on digging into her legs, but she ignored it, focusing entirely on Kiryu-Sensei.

She… she wanted to see more of him. To be with him. To hear his voice speak her name with the same gentle tone as before.

She wanted him to be hers.

Her Sensei.

Her beloved…

“Kiryu-chan…”

Kiryu flinched as a sudden chill ran down his back. “Kiryu-chan.” Whipping around, he immediately began looking outside, trying to find where that voice came from. It can’t be… Majima?

He shook his head, dispelling the thought almost immediately. It was impossible to begin with, Majima wasn’t here. He was still back in Kamurocho, getting Majima Construction back up and running.

It was a woman’s voice… but who…?

After a moment, he walked back to the elevator, releasing a breath he didn’t know he was holding. Damn it Majima… Twenty years and you’re still haunting me somehow.

Pulling the Shittim Chest from his pocket, he turned it on. “Arona?”

“I’m here, Kazuma-Sensei!” Her face popped up on screen, still in the ruined classroom. Does she like it like that? “Haha… things got a little hectic, didn’t they? But you managed it, like I knew you would.”

“I couldn’t have done it without you, Arona. You did great as well.”

Arona beamed at his words. “Thanks! But this is only the beginning.” Her face turned slightly serious, but hints of her energy remained. “You’ll have to help solve all the problems the students in Kivotos are going through! It may seem simple, but it won't be easy… it’s a really important task either way!” Her smile returned as her voice lightened. “Kivotos and Schale will be counting on you, Kazuma-Sensei.”

On a whimsical thought, Kiryu reached with his finger, and rubbed Arona’s head, who didn't try to stop him. If anything, her smile got wider as she let it happen. “l’ll be counting on you as well, Arona. I’d greatly appreciate any help you offer.”

Soon, he stopped rubbing Arona’s head, and she mussed her hair back in place. “Now, I’ll handle the recruiting when the representatives send them in. That just leaves you to prepare for the video message. Good luck, Sensei!”

The screen winked off, and Kiryu entered the office, taking a moment to look around, before heading to one of the side doors. Inside, he noted the living quarters within, from the bed, to the door that led to the bathroom. Nodding to himself, he grabbed a set of clothes that matched the ones he wore, before entering the bathroom.

Hours Later

The sun was starting to set in the D.U. as life had returned to normal. The citizens who had hid during the chaos had returned, shopkeepers were assessing the damages to the store, and students helped wherever they could.

In the main square of the town, large billboards that usually flashed with advertisements of various kinds flickered as a broadcast came in. Cars and citizens stopped as they looked to the screen, being met with the sight of Kiryu Kazuma, the new Sensei of the Federal Investigation Club, Schale.

Many have heard of his actions early in the day, but now, it seems as if they’ll have a proper first look at Kiryu.

“Before we begin, I’d like to start off by saying that it is a pleasure to meet you all. My arrival here wasn’t exactly the best, but I hope to earn everyone’s trust in the coming days.”

Abydos High School

A pink haired girl, shotgun strapped to her back, looked at the sandy screen as the message played. Normally, she’d have kept up her old man act, but the mere sight of him made her reassess how old she was. 

“When I found myself here, I’ll admit, I wasn’t sure what to expect. Guns weren’t a common sight where I’m from. But that doesn’t change what I’m about to say next. With the assistance of Schale, and the students of Kivotos, I hope to help you all in your time of need.”

The girl scoffed to herself, before walking away. “Where have I heard that before…”

Millennium Science School

A pair of twins, pink and green, watched their tv as the message played.

“Whether it’s an emergency, or if you simply need advice, I promise to do what I can to help. I want to help, if you’ll let me help.”

“Midori, maybe we can ask him!” the pink twin shouted, turning to her sister.

“Maybe…” Midori pondered. “But it still kinda depends on him agreeing though.”

Trinity General School

A brunette girl, her cartoonish chicken backpack at her side, watched from the table she and a friend of hers shared, her teacup forgotten on its plate as they watched.

“I don’t want to be a stranger to you all. And I hope you’ll accept me as one of your own in the coming times.”

The girl didn’t say anything, but she stayed focused on Kiryu-Sensei. On the other end of the table, her friend quietly sipped from her cup, watching their new Sensei speak.

Gehenna Academy

A white haired girl kept silent as she watched the message, her paperwork long forgotten.

“Trust, after all, works both ways. I trust you all in helping me navigate the academies, and I hope that you’ll trust me to give me that chance to help.”

“Trust…” she whispered to herself, looking back down at the report Chinatsu gave her about Kiryu-Sensei.

Arius Satellite School

A navy blue haired girl, wrapped in her white lab coat, listened to the radio broadcast, the old thing scratchy at times, but clear enough to be understandable.

“Schale’s doors will be open to you all, should you need it. If you want to help, you’ll be welcomed with open arms.”

She scoffed as she began maintenance on her gun. “How naive of him…”

Kousagi Park

A white haired girl, rabbit ear accessories on her head, watched the screen overlooking the park. Around her, her fellow squad members had stopped with setting up camp, joining her in watching the new Sensei speak.

“I hope to develop a proper student-teacher relationship with you all. I promise that as an adult, I’ll do what I can to help, always.”

“Then where were you when we lost it all…?” she whispered to herself.

Schale Club Room

“Thank you for listening to me speak. This is Kiryu Kazuma, Sensei of Schale, and I truly hope to meet you all.”

Sitting on the couch, watching the television, Kiryu leaned back as the message ended, the regular programs returning. “That was different from what I’m used to…”

“I think you did well, Kazuma-Sensei!” Arona chirped from the tablet. “It might be a little unrealistic to meet with everyone, but at least they now know you’re there with an open ear.”

Kiryu nodded, before getting up from the couch. Walking to the window, he looked outside to the city streets below, watching everyone down below return to their normal lives.

This was his responsibility now, one he chose himself. This time, he isn’t going to run from the responsibility, like he did with the Tojo Clan. This time, he’ll see it through to the end.

“Are you proud, Kazama-San?” He whispered to himself, to the complicated man he saw as a father. “I’ve chosen a new path, one dedicated to helping others. Would you have done this as well?”

Silence was the only answer to his question. After a few minutes, Kiryu shook his head, smiling to himself. “You’d probably just be happy I’m helping the next generation, using everything I learned to help them.”

Stepping away from the window, Kiryu walked to the desk, his desk, and sat down. Already, he was seeing messages from those around the students in Kivotos. Looking towards the Shittim Chest, Arona notified him of the first ten students who had sent an application to join Schale.

Turning back to the computer, Kiryu began sifting through the messages. There was work to be done.