Seed Planted

Someone knocks on Juusaki’s door immediately after the two girls left. And a scanning sound followed by the unlocking of the door is heard, and Juusaki straightens his posture and his feet parallel.

“Good evening, agent,” an old man walks over to him while looking around the room. “How are you doing?”

“Optimal condition, sir. I am battl—”

“That’s not what I asked for.”

“Excuse me, sir?”

“How are you feeling after someone else took care of you?”

“I felt at unease, sir.”

“Tsk, tsk, that's a wrong answer,” the man says as he stands intimidatingly in front of Juusaki. “Isn’t it nice to be taken care of, for at least a day? You’ve never had that experience again for a long time.”

A moment of silence passes.

“You have nothing else to say?”

“Sir, I apologize for my shortcomings.”

“I didn’t ask for an apology, Agent 18. Or should I call you, Juusaki?”

“Agent 18 is fine, sir.”

“Nah, I like Juusaki more. Makes me feel that I’m talking to a human— no, I don’t feel like that at all! I feel like I’m talking to a brick wall!”

“Sir, I beg your pardon, but you haven’t specified when I am allowed to talk.”

“Oh! Stop with the formalities, you are now human. Not an agent.”

“I don’t understand, sir.”

“You will. You don’t have to know it now.” The man pulls out something from his black duffel bag. “Here, a Body Correction Machine. Replace it with your cast, and your broken arm will be fixed in five hours while you sleep.” The man places it on the table, “Use it.”

“Yes, sir.”

“And here,” the man brings out another object from the bag, “Use this.”

“Sir, but that’s another—”

“I know, but it isn’t real. Use this as a weapon. There are reports of an impending assassination on the target. Protect the target at all costs.”

“Understood, sir.”

“See ya tomorrow.”

A black limousine rolls up along the sidewalk to a doorway. Inside the vehicle, the driver speaks to their passenger. “Is the cast doing alright, agent?”

“Yes, sir.” A 16-year-old boy dressed in finely-sewn school uniform nods while looking at the mirror.

“Alright,” Juusaki’s driver opens the door for him and Juusaki leaves the car. “To another day. Same objective plus the annexed mission.”

“Understood, sir,” Juusaki takes a deep breath of fresh air and looks around, and notices that many of the students are staring and glancing at him while they whisper to each other. “Isn’t that the same person in this video?”

“Yeah, it’s that guy. He was with Denji in the Ferris wheel.”

“I can’t believe they survived that.”

“I heard from Misaki who was with them that he saved Denji by covering his head thus sacrificing his arm in the process.”

“Really? Then he is a hero!”

Students swarm at him with questions thrown at him, but Denji cuts through them and accompanies Juusaki away from them. “That’s enough! Questions for another day, everyone!” He says respectfully.

Meanwhile, Misaki and Nana wait outside Juusaki’s room.

“Oh, you are here again?” Nana says.

“So are you. Have you rang the bell?”

“Yes, but no one is answering the intercom.”

“Then, where is he?”

Denji and Juusaki get in class while the students steal glances at them. “It’s him!”

“The hero of Denji! Isn’t he cool?”

“Well, not as cool as Denji. But if he saved Denji, then he is at least cool!”

“If I don’t get Denji, then I will settle for Juusaki.”

Suddenly a fan club for Juusaki is created that day.

“What are you doing here today, Juusaki?” Denji asks.

“I’m here to attend school.”

“But with that arm?” Denji points at Juusaki’s left arm cast.

“I can use my right arm.”

“Right, like what I heard from Nana, but you didn’t have to attend until you are fully recovered. Besides, a fracture takes six weeks to heal! You should be at home at those times.”

“Six weeks are pretty long, isn’t it?”

“Well, yeah.”

“Better not waste them.”

“I see.” Denji pulls out his phone and calls Nana, “Nana, Juusaki went to school.”

“What!?” Nana’s voice leaks to the other end of the line that Denji had to put some distance between the phone and his ear.

“What did you have to shout for?” Misaki asks Nana.

“Misaki! He is at school!”

“What!?” Misaki echoes Nana’s shout and quickly pulls out her phone and texts Denji. “Why are you at school!? Didn’t I tell you to rest? Fine, if this is the case, you are obligated to meet me at lunch break! Do you know how much time I sacrificed for you!? Don’t take this the wrong way or anything!”

Juusaki’s phone vibrates and he pulls out his phone and sees the notification that isn’t big enough to contain the entire message.

“That’s a long message you got there!” Denji peeks at Juusaki’s phone screen. “Do you know who is it from?” Denji’s face tenses up.

“No, I can’t see the sender due to the long message. It’s glitched.”

“Haha, the sender is quite mad, isn’t she?” Denji weakly laughs.

“She?”

“Wasn’t the sender Nana?”

Juusaki unlocks the phone straight to the message and revealing the sender in turn, “No, it’s Itou.”

“Oh,” Denji sighs in odd relief and looks down to the ground. “That’s good…” He says while he looks at his phone.

The lunch bell rings, and several classmates invited him for lunch.

“I’m sorry, but I already have someone to have lunch with,” Juusaki replies as he quickly escapes from the classroom.

Juusaki arrives at the grounds beside the school. He sees Misaki seating on a bench nearby waiting for him.

“Oh, you are finally here. What took you so long?”

“People suddenly swarmed around me. It took me time to get through them.”

“Wow! You now have a fan club going on huh?”

“I don’t think so. They more or less wanted to ask questions of what happened two days ago.” “Oho, really?” Misaki stands up from the bench and approaches Juusaki. “Can you explain the bunch of stalkers behind you?” Misaki points behind Juuusaki’s shoulder.

Juusaki looks behind to see a bunch of girls holding up their phones, but once they realized they were spotted, they quickly retreat.

“Don’t tell me they will take up your time with me now, Juusaki,” Misaki pouts.

“Surely not,” Juusaki says calmly.

“How are you so nonchalant about girls literally fawning on you?”

“I believe they are not cats.”

“Then, dogs then!”

“They don’t yap.”

“Shut up, idiot. You don’t get what I mean, do you? Or how…”

“How?”

“Just stop. We have a business to discuss.”

“Pray to tell.”

“Let’s sit.”

The two settle down on the bench with their unopened lunch boxes on their lap. “Let us eat first,” Misaki says, and they both finish their lunch.

After their lunch eating, Misaki faces Juusaki with a stare. Juusaki only returns a glance but still looks blankly in front of him.

“Do you know how weird you look?”

“I don’t.”

“Do you know how strange you look?”

“I don’t”

“Do you know how creepy you look?”

“I don’t.”

Misaki sighs. “I don’t get you. How could you answer that with no reaction at all?”

“I don’t understand what you are getting at.”

“What I mean is, face me.”

Juusaki obeys and faces her.

“I hate you,” Misaki says.

“I’m sorry to hear that. How do I fix that?”

“See? I don’t get why that is your responsibility at all! I don’t get what you are thinking at all! You never complain, react, let alone talk! You feel like a robot in human form! Or could it be that you are?”

“I am human. But if you find my responses weird, I’m sorry for the inconvenience.”

“Inconvenience, my butt,” Misaki snatches Juusaki’s hand with hers. “Do you need help learning to be a natural human?”

“This is the most natural I could be.”

Misaki shakes her head. “No, I know the true Juusaki is in there,” Misaki pokes Juusaki’s chest. “It’s okay to open up your mind to your friends, you know?”

Juusaki doesn’t respond, but his eyes widen. “Friend?”

“Yes, aren’t we friends? Me, Denji, Nana, and their friends?”

“F—friends,” Juusaki looks away, “we are.”

“Oh! You stuttered?”

Juusaki immediately looks at Misaki with a stern face, “No, I didn’t.”

“Well, that quirk makes you a bit more human.”

“I have no quirks, and that isn’t a quirk.”

Misaki puts her finger on Juusaki’s lips, “Just shut up for now. I’m enjoying this.” Misaki’s face shows a faint shade of pink.

“About the busine—”

Misaki interrupts Juusaki, “Thank you for being there with me. I’m one step closer to Denji now, thanks to you, but that one step that I have to take needs help from you.”

“I see. I’ll be listening.”

Nearby the bench, Kyou Satsuki spies with jealous eyes. His fists clench and he walks away with his head bowed. “So… she is already with him…”