Side Story - Kazuya and Shiori (3)

“Okay, today we’ll be practicing your conversation skill.” The English teacher stated at the start of her class. “Pair up and make a script, then practice conversing using the script you’ve created.”

My face lit up when I heard the teacher’s instruction. Finally! I’ve been waiting for this opportunity!

I quickly rose from my seat and headed toward Kazuya, ignoring my classmate’s confusion. They all knew that Kazuya was avoiding me, and since I’d stopped chasing after him with bloodcurdling fervor lately, they thought I’d given up on him.

Little did they know that I was simply waiting for the right moment to strike.

“Kazuya-kun.” I stopped next to his desk while smiling amicably. But the boy sitting next to him shuddered when he saw my smile. “Will you pair up with me for this assignment?”

For the first time in two weeks, Kazuya finally looked at me. Judging from his bewildered look, he must’ve thought the same as my classmates.

I held back a smirk at that. “You think you can get rid of me that easily? I’m more persistent than what you could ever think of.”

“I’m going to work with my seatmate…” Kazuya started answering, only to be cut off by the very same seatmate.

“I-I’m sorry, but I already promised someone else!”

“ “…” ”

Somehow, this conversation sounded like a love triangle scandal instead.

“Then, what about Kugisaki—?” Kazuya tried evading again.

“She’s already working with Kenshou-kun.” I cut off his escape route.

Kazuya let out an annoyed sigh. It was the first familiar response that I got after trying so hard these past two weeks.

“…fine.” Kazuya reluctantly nodded.

I happily dragged an empty chair to Kazuya’s side. Before sitting down, I stealthily checked the window to make sure it was firmly closed. It was highly unlikely that Kazuya would escape from a window during class, but I didn’t want to leave any possibility unchecked.

Once I was sure that I’d completely cornered Kazuya, I started my assault.

“So, Kazuya-kun…” I slammed my hand on the desk, obstructing him from working on our task. “Care to tell me why you’ve been avoiding me this past week?”

Kazuya let out another sigh, having expected that question. “We have limited time, so we should focus on our task, Kirigaya-san.”

My brow twitched at his overly formal way of talking. Irritation bubbled inside my chest, threatening to explode.

“Are you ever going to properly talk to me again? Or will you keep ignoring me for the rest of the semester?” My voice slowly rose in accordance to my rising anger.

“As I said, let’s leave this conversation for later—”

“If I did something wrong, then you should just straight up tell me about it instead of shutting me out!” I glared at him. “If you won’t tell me anything, how am I supposed to know what I did wrong?!”

Kazuya’s eyes widened at my words. He waved his hand frantically. “No, how did you arrive to that conclusion? You did nothing wrong, Shiori! I…”

“I did nothing wrong?! Then, why the hell are you ignoring me like this?!”

I yelled at him, completely forgetting that we were still in the middle of class.

“Did you know how worried I was when you suddenly disappeared for a week?! I was really, really glad when you finally came back, but then you started treating me coldly! How am I supposed to think of that?! If I made a mistake, if I did something wrong, then tell me! I’ll apologize or do whatever it takes to make amends! I don’t—I don’t want to lose my most precious friend!”

By the end of my rambling, tears started pouring out of my eyes. I wiped it furiously, but it was as if a dam had broken—my tears refused to stop falling. Eventually I started sobbing, unable to form any coherent sentence.

Kazuya panicked even more when he saw me crying. He looked around, as if looking for help, but all he received was cold glares from everyone else for making a girl cry.

“Kagura-san.” Finally the English teacher spoke up.

“Y-Yes?!” Kazuya looked at her, relieved for the aid.

“Please take Kirigaya-san and resolve your lovers quarrel outside. Don’t come back until you two have sorted it out. My class isn’t a place for your rom-com nonsense.” The teacher glared daggers at him, and I vaguely remembered her being unmarried despite almost being 35 this year.

“…yes.” Kazuya, unable to refute the teacher, meekly hung his head.

He stood up from his seat and offered me his hand. But I stubbornly remained in my seat. I wasn’t willing to move an inch until he promised to tell me everything.

Sensing my stubbornness, Kazuya sighed and suddenly swept me into his arms.

“Kya?!” I was so surprised that my tears stopped flowing.

Before I could protest, Kazuya had already left the classroom behind.

“W-Wait, let me down! I can walk on my own!” I struggled in his arms, but Kazuya refused to budge.

“It’s fine, you’re not that heavy.” Kazuya calmly refuted as he kept carrying me.

“That’s not the problem…!” I covered my blushing face as we walked past a bunch of students from other class.

“Besides, didn’t you say that you want to talk?”

That sentence stripped away my last resistance. I quietly settled myself in his arms, secretly fascinated by his firm chest and reliable arms around me. My cheeks started heating up for a different reason now, so I quickly averted my eyes before he picked on my embarrassment.

Suddenly Kazuya stopped to open a door, and I belatedly realized that we were entering the school infirmary. My face was dyed red as I imagined what exactly Kazuya was planning by taking me here.

The infirmary was deserted, since the school nurse was out buying more supplies, or so was written on the note. Kazuya gently put me down on a nearby bed before sitting next to me.

I furtively scooted away from him, only for Kazuya to start unbuttoning his uniform.

“K-Ka-Kazuya-kun…!” I shrieked in panic. “W-What are you doing…?!”

“Huh?” Kazuya looked at me with confusion. “Didn’t you tell me that you want to talk? Why else would I bring you here…”

Then the implication of his words hit him, and Kazuya’s face turned as red as mine.

“N-No! Wait! I-I didn’t mean anything like that! I…” Kazuya turned his back at me and ran his fingers through his hair, trying to calm himself down. “I-It’s just…that there’s something I need to show you, that’s why I brought you here. It’s definitely not for d-doing anything like that, you understand?” He stuttered as he explained himself.

“I-I see…alright then…” I hung my head, wondering what exactly was I agreeing here.

I heard the sound of rustling clothes before Kazuya finally turned at me again. But what I saw drained the blood from my face.

On his otherwise smooth stomach was an ugly stab wound. It seemed to be quite deep, but it shouldn’t be life-threatening, seeing that Kazuya was able to attend school again in a week. The wound itself had been neatly sutured, but the edges of the wound was turning greenish purple.

“Kazuya-kun, are you alright?!” I reached out to touch it, but I stopped myself. I was worried that it might cause him pain if I touched the wound.

“I’m fine—the dagger didn’t hit any organs and the poison has been neutralized. My father scolded the hell out of me, though.” Kazuya chuckled dryly, as if he found this situation amusing. “I thought he’d never let it slide.”

“What in the world happened…?” I asked with trembling voice, even though I already had a guess.

“It’s nothing big.” Kazuya shook his head. “I simply made a mistake during my mission, and I had to pay the price. This is the reason why I was absent for a week.”

I swallowed the lump in my throat. After knowing the reason, I felt terribly selfish for being angry at his disappearance. If I knew he was being hospitalized, I wouldn’t curse him for not telling anyone.

“Then, is this also the reason why you’re avoiding me?” I looked at him.

This time, Kazuya didn’t meet my gaze. He kept his eyes lowered as he answered, “No…not exactly. It’s just that…this mission made me realize a lot of things.”

He started buttoning his white shirt, covering the stab wound.

“I…” Kazuya spoke, sounding unsure of how he should start. “I’ve…killed a lot of people. I never thought much about it until now, because it’s something that I’ve done for a long time. But after spending time with you, Kugisaki, and Hagiwara…I realized just how much blood had stained my hands.”

Kazuya lifted his hands. They were rough and scarred, but otherwise seemed clean to me. However, in Kazuya’s eyes, they were probably stained with deep red that would never go away.

“Despite my thoughts, I won’t stop doing what I’m doing right now, because I’m the heir to Kagura Family. This is what I’m meant to do. And that means I can’t stay with you.”

Kazuya finally looked at me. He smiled at me bitterly, as if he was resigned to his fate.

“It’s better for you not to be involved with me, Shiori. My hands are stained with more blood that you can imagine. If you knew what I’d done…I don’t think I’ll be able to live with myself when you come to hate me.”

I shook my head furiously. “That’s not true! There’s no way I’ll come to hate you, Kazuya-kun! Even if you’ve killed people—!”

“Did you know that my last victim had a daughter?” Kazuya suddenly changed the subject. “He wasn’t a good man, but he loved his daughter enough to give her a poisoned knife and teach her how to use it. The daughter walked in when I killed her father, and I saw in her eyes what I really am.”

Kazuya’s scarlet eyes locked gaze with mine. There was pain and self-depreciation in his eyes as he spoke.

“…a murderer.”

“That’s not true,” I wanted to tell him, but my voice wouldn’t come out.

It was a fact that Kazuya had taken countless lives, and my simple words couldn’t wash away the blood that stained his hands.

“Don’t you see, Shiori? We came from different worlds.” Kazuya extended his hand toward me, but he stopped midway, as if there was something invisible that blocked him. “You, who stand under the sun, and me, who stand in the shadow. We can’t be together. The longer you stay with me, the more you’ll be exposed to danger. That’s why…”

Kazuya retracted his outreached hand and looked away.

“…you should stay away before you get hurt.”

Without any hesitation, I reached out and grabbed his hand, prompting Kazuya to look at me in surprise.

“No, we might come from different worlds, but we’re both here now, right?” I said strongly. “Right now I can touch you like this, and you can feel my warmth. So what if you’ve killed people? It doesn’t change the fact that you’re still the same Kazuya that I know.”

“Shiori…” Kazuya murmured as he squinted his eyes, as if he was seeing something so dazzling.

“Your past doesn’t scare me, Kazuya-kun.” I assured him. “I’m more scared of the future where I can’t be with you anymore.”

I paused for a moment, belatedly realizing that my words could be interpreted as a love confession. Would Kazuya also notice the same thing?

“…thank you, Shiori.” He smiled softly at me, and my heart skipped a beat. “I really appreciate your feelings, but…”

My heart sunk when the word ‘but’ appeared. Before Kazuya could finish his sentence, I quickly covered his mouth.

“W-Wait, Kazuya-kun! I-I didn’t mean it in that way! I’m j-just concerned with you as a friend! Right, a very close friend! It’s definitely not in a romantic way or anything, okay?!”

As I rambled on to block his incoming rejection, Kazuya’s eyes widened to the size of a saucer. Then his cheeks turned red, as if he finally noticed what I was talking about.

“Umm…” Kazuya spoke in muffled voice, since I still blocked his mouth.

“Oh, sorry!” I quickly retracted my hand and scooted away from him.

“I…uh…certainly didn’t think of that.” He mumbled with embarrassed face that made me want to die from shame instead. “But, uh, as a friend as well, I’m worried that being together with me will expose you to danger.”

Kazuya didn’t elaborate on what kind of danger, but I could already imagine several scenarios.

I smiled instead and declared proudly, “I’m not afraid. Let them come if they want. After all, you’ll protect me, right? Just like how you protected me back in the library, I know you’ll save me again when I’m in danger.”

Kazuya was taken aback by my bold words. Then he burst out in laughter.

“Very well. It’s a promise, Shiori.” He held out his pinky finger.

“Yes!” I beamed as I linked my finger with his.

Thus, we went back to the classroom while chatting amicably like nothing ever happened, which sent the whole class into shock.

*****

Having come to a compromise and made up with Shiori, I went home in great mood. However, I was forced to break my promise to her sooner than I ever expected.

Slam!

I flinched as a stack of documents suddenly hit me squarely in the face. One of the papers cut my cheeks and drew blood, but I kept myself as still as a doll. My father hated pawns who moved on their own, especially when that pawn was his carefully-raised killing machine.

“Do you have anything to say for yourself?!” Kazami shouted at me. His body was trembling with anger as he glared daggers toward me.

I lowered my head. “My deepest apologies, Otou-sama.”

It was already a conditioned reflex at this point to apologize without knowing what exactly I was apologizing for. If I dared to ask what my mistake was, he’d beat me to an inch of my life.

I stole the chance to glance at the documents strewn on the floor. It was the papers that Kazami threw at me when I entered the room, having been summoned by him. My eyes widened when I saw the papers detailing my interaction with my classmates, especially Shiori. They’d been investigating her quite thoroughly.

“I didn’t raise you to be such a failure! How many years have I been training you to be the perfect heir, and to think that a mere little girl is enough to sway you?! Is she also the reason why you failed your last mission?! You’re such a disgrace to the family!” Kazami hurled out harsh words one after another without any pause.

“…my apologies, Otou-sama.” I repeated woodenly, unable to think of anything else to say.

Stab!

Suddenly, a dagger whistled through the air and stabbed the floor in front of me. I stared blankly at the dagger, not comprehending what it meant.

“Despite your disgraceful conduct recently, I’m still willing to give you one last chance.” Kazami stated coldly. “If you want to remain as the Kagura Family’s heir, then prove your worth to me. Take that dagger and finish that wicked girl with your own hands.”

*****

I watched my only son’s reaction carefully after issuing my order. I was confident that he’d accept it, albeit begrudgingly. After all, I had raised him all by myself for 16 years. I’d watched over him and understood him more than anyone else in this world, even more than his own mother.

Yet, when Kazuya raised his face, there wasn’t a shred of obedience that he always displayed in front of me. His face was pale with horror as he looked pleadingly toward me.

“Wait…” He spoke haltingly, clearly too shaken to speak properly. “Please wait, Otou-sama! Shiori…she has done nothing wrong! She’s just an ordinary, powerless girl! How does killing her prove my merit?!” He argued.

I narrowed my eyes in displeasure. The second thing I hated the most was my order being questioned, and I’ve made sure that Kazuya also knew that. Despite so, he still intentionally raised his objection.

“That so-called ordinary little girl managed to wrap you around her little finger. How can I be assured of your loyalty to this family if you can’t even bring yourself to harm her?” As much as I hated to explain myself, I knew that I couldn’t make Kazuya move without making him see my way.

“That’s…” Kazuya was taken aback.

He fell silent for a moment, clearly trying to organize his mind to refute me. At this point, I could tell that I wouldn’t be able to move him according to my wishes.

“It might be like that for you, Otou-sama, but what would the other family members think if I were to strike down a powerless girl and call it a feat?” Kazuya chose his words carefully. “If you simply wish for me to prove my competence and loyalty, then I ask you to assign me the most dangerous and arduous mission instead. That way, everyone will be able to see what I’m capable of.”

I fell silent for a long moment, acting as if I was deliberating over his words. Then I let out a deep sigh. Kazuya didn’t seem to catch the disappointment contained within my sigh.

“…very well, if that’s what you decided. I’ll assign you the most difficult mission, as you wanted.” I took a document from my desk and threw it to Kazuya’s feet. “The rival group that I crushed two weeks ago apparently had marriage ties with a different group—Shiromiya Family.”

In this modern era, with stricter regulations and supervisions from the government, it was getting harder to raise a yakuza group. Among the many small, less renowned groups, there were only a handful of bigshots.

One of them was Kagura Family, who ruled the Kanto region. The other was Shiromiya Family, the ruler of Tohoku region.

We each had our own turf, but that didn’t mean that we’d quietly coexist. Small and big skirmishes happened at the border, where we were nipping at each other’s territory. Unlike Kagura Family, Shiromiya Family had many children born to the family head, but they were all males. If I had a daughter, we might forge an alliance using marriage, but I wasn’t interested enough to try that.

“In crushing that group, it gives Shiromiya Family the justification to declare war on us.” I continued speaking. “They’ve infiltrated Tokyo as we speak, preparing a large-scale war on our turf. What I want you to do is simple—slaughter all of them. Leave no survivor behind. If you can prevent the war all by yourself, then there will be no greater accomplishment.”

Kazuya bowed his head, but not before I glimpsed a hint of relief on his face. He said solemnly, “I understand. I will finish this mission flawlessly and make you proud, Otou-sama.”

I nodded slightly. “Good. You’re dismissed.”

I waited until the sound of Kazuya’s footsteps had faded into the distance before making my next move.

“Kikuchi.”

“Yes, Ani-ue?” My younger brother, who excelled at moving in the shadows, popped up behind me when I called out.

“Once Kazuya has left for his mission, kill the girl.” I ordered coldly.

Kikuchi paused for a moment, seemingly taken aback by the ruthless decision. But when I glared at him, he quickly bowed to me.

“I understand. I shall get it done without any trouble.” Kikuchi promised.

“Good. Make sure she dies a horrible, painful death.” I spat out resentfully. “It’s a fitting end to the wicked woman who led my flawless tool astray.”

Kikuchi trembled, but he still acquiesced to my order. “…yes, sir.”