61 - 14 students remaining

PART THREE

FINAL STAGE

17 students remaining

52

In the bushes with her blanket over her shoulders, Noriko hugged her knees and stared at the ground. It was still very dark and insects were humming the way a fluorescent light sputters out before it dies.

Sakamochi's midnight announcement came on right after they reached this area. He announced the death of Hirono Shimizu (Female Student No. 10), who had—although Noriko herself didn't see it—killed Kaori Minami and fled from Shuya, followed by the addition of three forbidden zones. At 1 a.m. F=7, at 3 a.m. G=3, and at 5 a.m. E=4. Noriko and Shogo's sector, C=3, was still safe. Shuya's name wasn't mentioned, but…

Ten to twenty minutes later, there was distant gunfire again and then the sound of that machine gun.

Noriko's heart froze. The sound continued.

She couldn't forget it. It was unmistakable—the sound of Kazuo Kiriyama's machine gun. Unless someone else had the same gun. Regardless, the sound was enough to make her wonder whether Kazuo had finally caught up to Shuya.

Before Noriko could mention this to Shogo though, there was an incredible explosion. The hand grenade they encountered when they were fighting Kiriyama was nothing compared to this. And then there was the faint sound of the machine gun, once or twice. After that the island returned to silence.

Even Shogo seemed surprised by the sound. He was carving an arrow-like object with his knife when he suddenly stopped and said, "I'm going to go have a look. Don't move," and walked out of the bushes. He came back immediately and told her, "A building's on fire on the east side."

Noriko started to ask, "Could it be?…" but Shogo shook his head and said, "It's quite a ways south from where Kiriyama was. Shuya escaped into the mountainside, so it can't be him. Let's wait for him here."

Noriko felt relieved for the time being. But nearly an entire hour had passed since then. Shuya still hadn't returned.

Noriko held her wrist under the coin-sized moonlight coming through the branches and checked her watch. It was 1:12 a.m. She'd been repeating this gesture as if it were a magical ritual.

Then she buried her head between her knees.

A horrible image flashed by in her thoughts. Shuya's face. His mouth half-open and eyes looking off into the distance, the way he looked singing a song called "Imagine" (Shuya said it was a rock standard) during one of their breaks in the music room, out of the teacher's sight. But this face had a large, black dot similar to one worn by a Hindu worshipper. Without warning, red liquid came oozing out of the dot.

The large dot was in fact a very dark and deep hole. The blood poured out from his brain, covering his face…like cracks running through a piece of glass__

Noriko shivered and shook her head, dismissing the thought. She looked up at Shogo, who was leaning against a tree trunk, smoking a cigarette. There was a handmade bow next to him and several arrows stuck in the ground.

"Shogo."

He looked like a silhouette in the dark. He removed the cigarette from his mouth and rested his right wrist on his upright knee.

"What is it?"

"Shuya should be here by now."

He put his cigarette in his mouth again. Its tip reddened, faintly lighting up his calm face. Noriko felt impatient. His face darkened again and smoke drifted out of his mouth.

"Yeah."

His calm tone also irritated her. But then she reminded herself how he'd saved her and Shuya several times over, so she restrained herself.

"Something must have…happened."

"Probably."

"What do you mean, 'probably'?"

His silhouette raised its arms. The lit cigarette moved. "Calm down. That was definitely Kazuo's machine gun. Unless they supplied an identical machine gun to someone else. And given how the explosion occurred over there, it means that Kazuo was fighting someone besides Shuya. Shuya escaped from Kazuo. I know that much."

"But then why isn't he—"

He interrupted, "He's probably hiding somewhere. Or he might have gotten lost."

She shook her head. "He might be hurt. Or even worse…"

She felt a chill run down her spine. She couldn't continue. The image of Shuya with the red spider-web face and half-open mouth flashed by again. Shuya might have escaped from Kazuo, but he might have been severely wounded, he might be dying right now. Even if that wasn't the case, what if he was attacked by someone while he was running through the mountains… or what if he fell unconscious somewhere, and what if that was in a forbidden zone, then Shuya would end up dead. That's right…Shuya might have run into the base of the northern mountain which was in sector F=7, directly north of the school, sector F=7 which was a forbidden zone as of 1 a.m. And now it was past 1 a.m.

Which meant…

She shook her head again. That couldn't be. Shuya couldn't die. Because…Shuya was like a holy man with a guitar. He was always kind to everyone, he was always so sympathetic to the sorrows of others, but he would never lose that powerful smile, he was so upright and transparent and innocent but also tough. He's like my guardian angel. How could someone like that die? There's no way he could…but still…

Shogo quietly said, "He might be, he might not be."

She turned her wrist and nervously checked her watch again. She moved her leg painfully and sidled up to Shogo. She squeezed Shogo's left hand, which was on his knees, with both hands.

"Please. Can't we go…can't we go look for him? Will you come with me? I can't do this on my own.

Please."

Shogo said nothing. He only lifted his left hand slowly, returning Noriko's hands to her thighs, and tapped them lightly. "We can't. Even if you insist on going alone, I won't let you. Shuya wanted me to look after you. He took a big risk making us leave before him. I don't want to jeopardize all he did for us."

She bit her lower lip and stared at him.

"Don't give me that look. You're making this hard on me." Shogo scratched his head with his hand holding his cigarette and said, "You care about Shuya, right?"

She nodded. She didn't hesitate.

He nodded back and said, "Then let's respect his wishes."

She bit her lip again, but then looked down and nodded. "All right. We can only wait, right?"

"That's right." He nodded.

They were silent for a while but then he asked, "Do you believe in sixth sense?"

The topic was so unexpected Noriko widened her eyes. Was he trying to distract her?

"Well…a little. I don't really know though," she responded. "Do you?"

He crushed his cigarette into the ground. Then he said, "Absolutely not…well, I don't think it matters either way. All that stuff about ghosts, the afterlife, cosmic power, sixth sense, fortune telling, psychic powers, that's just the talk of fools who can only deal with reality by avoiding it. I'm sorry. You said you believed a little. That's just my opinion. But..."

She looked at his eyes. "But?"

"But sometimes without any apparent reason I'm certain about things I can't know for sure. And for some reason I've never been wrong when this happens."

She remained silent and stared at him.

He said, "Shuya's still alive. He'll be back. I know it."

Her face suddenly relaxed. He might have been making this up on the spot, but even so she was touched he made the effort.

"Thanks," she said, "You're kind, Shogo."

He shrugged. "I'm just telling you how I feel." Then he said, "Shuya's a lucky guy."

She looked over at him. "Hm?"

"Lucky that someone loves him this much."

She smiled just a little. "You got it wrong."

"What?"

"It's unrequited. Shuya likes someone else. I'm nothing compared to her."

"…really?"

She looked down and nodded. "She's really awesome. I don't know how to describe her. She's so strong and beautiful. I'm jealous, but I can understand why he's attracted to her."

He tilted his head and said, "I don't know." He flicked his lighter several times and lit another cigarette and added, "I think Shuya cares about you now."

She shook her head. "Oh no."

"When he comes back," he smiled, "you should let him have it, call him a jerk for making you worry like this."

She smiled a little again.

He blew out smoke. "Now lie down. You haven't fully recovered yet. Once you're drowsy, get some sleep. I'll stay up all night. If Shuya shows up, I'll tell him to wake the princess with a kiss."

"Uh huh." She smiled and nodded. "Thanks."

She still sat up another ten minutes. Then she wrapped herself in the blanket and lay down.

She still couldn't sleep though.

17 students remaining

53

Hiroki Sugimura was getting exhausted. He'd been walking without stopping ever since the game began, so it was only natural. But every time he heard Sakamochi's announcement, his level of exhaustion rose as if he were climbing a staircase. Now only twenty were left…no, as far as Hiroki knew, the number was down to seventeen. It was hard to believe, but Shinji Mimura was dead, along with Yutaka Seto and Keita Iijima.

After he left Shuya's group at the clinic, Hiroki headed towards the island's northwest shore, which he'd never checked out. Then a little past 11 p.m. he heard heavy gunfire and moved back east of the island's central area in pursuit of the sound. But the noise stopped before he got there, so he couldn't find anything. Then the midnight announcement came, and the additional forbidden zones were announced.

Hiroki decided to comb through each of those zones. As he was entering the north side of the school, sector F=7, which would be forbidden at 1 a.m., he heard a gunshot and then…that machine gun sound.

Because he was in the mountain, looking over the flat area, Hiroki saw a repeating flash, what seemed like a muzzle flashing in the farm immediately west of the housing area. As he descended the slope he heard an ear-shattering explosion. The night sky above the trees lit up. Then he heard the rattling sound again.

As he left the foot of the mountain, he saw a building on fire where the light had been flashing. Hiroki thought the assailant with the machine gun might still be there, but as he'd done with Megumi Eto, he had to find out what happened. He cautiously wove his way through the farm, approaching the area where…

…he found the body of Shinji Mimura. The area was flickering with flames. The warehouse building—that must have been what exploded—was blown apart. Large and small debris were scattered all over what appeared to be a parking lot. Shinji was lying face down in front of a station wagon in the lot. His body was riddled with bullets. Later Hiroki found the bodies of Yutaka Seto and Keita Iijima in the debris.

There was no trace of the assailant with the machine gun, but Hiroki thought it was likely someone who was "playing the game" would show up soon, so he quickly left the area.

It was only after he'd crossed the island's latitudinal road and entered the base of the southern mountain that he thought about Shinji, the death of the Shinji Mimura. There was something unbelievable about it, since Hiroki knew him pretty well. It sounded offensive now, but he'd always thought Shinji was immortal. Hiroki went to the town martial arts school and learned martial arts, but that in the end was just a matter of technique. It was nothing against Shinji's inborn athletic prowess. Even if they'd fought according to martial arts rules, and even though Hiroki was ten centimeters taller, Shinji would have easily defeated him in a match. Besides, Shinji was much smarter than him. Even if Shinji couldn't escape the game (although it was likely he'd considered it), Hiroki firmly believed no one else would be able to kill Shinji. And yet the machine gun shooter somehow managed to do just that.

He couldn't afford to mourn over Shinji, though. What mattered now was finding Kayoko Kotohiki. He had to find her soon—if the machine gun shooter found her, someone like Kotohiki would get instantly killed.

Since sector G=3, forbidden at 3 a.m., was on the northern side of the southern mountain peak, Hiroki decided to head over there.

He'd already entered this mountain several times now. Takako Chigusa's body was still lying in sector H=4 in the region right before sector G=3. He couldn't even bury her body. He'd only managed to close her eyes and cross her arms over her chest. Her body was still outside the forbidden zone.

As he cautiously moved forward through the darkness, Hiroki thought, I'm so awful. He wasn't even able to stay by his closest childhood friend. He'd probably be walking by her as he headed towards sector G=3.

I'm so sorry, Takako. I still need to take care of something. Right now I just have to see Kayoko Kotohiki. Please forgive me…

Then something else occurred to him. It concerned Yutaka Seto.

Yutaka's seating number immediately followed his, so Yutaka had exited right after Hiroki. But Hiroki was still in the middle of checking out the premises, frantically searching for a hiding place that gave him a clear look at the school exit, so Yutaka was gone by the time he could afford to look back. Hiroki decided Takako would be his priority, and so he let Haruka Tanizawa (Female Student No. 12) and Yuichiro Takiguchi (Male Student No. 13) pass by. (But in spite of his extreme caution, Yoshio Akamatsu's surprise appearance had made him panic enough to lose Takako.) Yutaka had managed to join up with his friends Shinji Mimura and Keita Iijima. But Yutaka was now dead along with Shinji.

I have to hurry, he thought. I can't let Kotohiki die.

He stopped by a bare tree and checked the radar in his left hand again. With the moon providing the only source of light, the unlit liquid crystal display was difficult to read, but by squinting his eyes he found he could make out faint traces of the crystal particles.

Nothing changed on the screen, though. There was only the star mark indicating his position. Hiroki sighed.

Maybe he should just shout for Kotohiki. Hiroki had considered doing this several times, but then decided against it. When he found Takako, it had been too late. He didn't want that to happen again.

No. It wouldn't work. He couldn't. First of all, Kotohiki wouldn't necessarily respond to his call. In fact, she might run away. Furthermore, although he didn't care about someone coming after him once he called for her, if Kotohiki were to come at the same time she might end up getting attacked.

In the end, he could only rely on the government-supplied radar. And without this equipment, he would have been even worse off. He absolutely despised the government for throwing them into this stupid game, but he had to admit he benefited from his equipment. What's this called? A stroke of luck in hard times? Or more like, a light in a tunnel of fury?

He went up and down a low cliff covered in bushes and came out onto a gentle slope scattered with trees. He knew he was entering sector H=4, where Takako was resting in peace. Hiroki raised the radar, moving it slightly to catch the moonlight on the crystal display.

He saw a blurred double image of the star mark indicating his position at the center of the display. Oh no, I'm getting tired. Even my vision's going now.

Hiroki was still looking down when he realized he was wrong. At the same time, he turned around and swung his stick in his right hand. Following the martial arts technique he had learned so thoroughly, his elegant swing traced a graceful arc.

The stick impressively landed on the arm of the figure standing behind him. The person groaned and dropped the object, a gun, in their hand. Someone had snuck up behind him when his guard was down for that brief moment.

The figure made a dash for the gun on the ground. Hiroki thrust the stick out in front of him. The figure froze and then staggered back—

Hiroki saw it. First, it was only the sailor suit. Then the beautiful face, brightly lit by the moon—angelic—it was unmistakably hers. It was right after he left the school, when he still hadn't managed to find a hiding place___Hiroki had been lurking in the corner of the athletic field when he saw the face of Mitsuko Souma (Female Student No. 11) as she emerged from the school building after him.

Mitsuko lifted both of her hands and stepped back. "Please don't kill me! Please don't kill me!" she shouted. She staggered and fell on her behind, revealing her white legs up beyond her thighs under her pleated skirt. She continued coquettishly to move back in the pale blue moonlight.

"Please! I was just trying to talk to you! I wouldn't think of killing anyone! Please help me! Help me!"

Hiroki looked down at her without saying a word.

Maybe she'd taken his silence to be a sign he meant no harm. Mitsuko slowly lowered her hands. Her eyes had the intimidated look of a terrified mouse, and tears were gleaming in them.

"You believe me, don't you?" she said. A ray of moonlight fell on her tearstained face. Her eyes were faintly smiling. Of course, it wasn't the proud victorious smile of deception, but a smile brimming with relief that she felt deep in her heart.

"I…I…" she said but then pulled on her skirt with her left hand as if she'd finally realized her thighs were exposed. "I thought I could trust you…so…I've been so scared…all alone…this is so awful…I'm just so terrified…"

Without saying a word, Hiroki picked up the gun Mitsuko had dropped. He saw it was cocked, so he uncocked the hammer with one hand and walked over to Mitsuko. He offered her the handle of the gun.

"Th-thankyou…" Mitsuko reached out.

But the gun froze.

Hiroki flipped it around with his hand. Now the muzzle was pointed right between her brows.

"Wh-what are you doing, Hiroki?"

Mitsuko's face was twisted with dismay and horror—at the very least it looked contorted. She was priceless. It wouldn't matter how many sordid rumors you heard about Mitsuko Souma, most people (particularly guys) would have to believe her once this angelic face of hers pleaded for mercy. No, even if you didn't believe her, you'd still end up doing anything you could for her. By no means was Hiroki an exception. Still, he had special circumstances.

"Forget it, Mitsuko," Hiroki said. He held the gun and stood upright. "I saw Takako right before she died."

"Oh…"

She looked up at him, her perfectly shaped eyes trembling. Even if inside she was regretting not having finished Takako off, she gave no indication whatsoever of any regret. She just maintained that terrified look…a look seeking understanding and protection.

"N-no! That was an accident. Sure, I saw some of the others. But…when I encountered Takako…it was her… she… she tried to kill me… that gun's really Takako's…so…so I…"

Hiroki recocked the Colt .45 with a click. Mitsuko's eyes squinted.

"I know Takako. Takako would never try to kill someone, nor would she ever panic and go on a shooting spree. Even in this stupid game," Hiroki said.

Mitsuko tucked in her chin. She looked up at Hiroki and formed a smile. While it sent chills down his spine, it was precisely then that Mitsuko looked even more beautiful.

Ha, she faintly laughed. "I thought she died instantly," she said.

Hiroki didn't respond and kept pointing the gun at her.

Still sitting, Mitsuko pinched the edge of her skirt with her left thumb and index finger, pulling it back slowly, once again revealing those enticing legs.

Hiroki looked up.

"How about it? If you help me, you can do what you like with me. I'm not bad, you know."

Hiroki remained frozen, holding the gun. He examined her face.

"I guess not," Mitsuko said. She said lightly, "Of course not. I mean I'd kill you the moment you let down your guard. Besides, how could you sleep with the girl who killed your girlfriend—"

"She's not my girlfriend."

Mitsuko looked at Hiroki.

Hiroki continued, "But she was my best friend."

"Oh really?" Mitsuko raised her brow. Then she asked, "Why won't you shoot me then? Is it because you're some kind of feminist? Can't shoot women?"

Her supremely confident face was still beautiful. It was totally different from Takako's, who, that's right, had the graceful beauty of a war goddess in Greek or Roman myth. Here we had a teenage sorceress.

She's charming, innocent, angelic, yet completely frigid. Under the moonlight, her eyes were like gleaming ice. Hiroki felt dizzy.

"How…" He could tell his voice was hoarse. "How could you kill someone so easily?"

"You fool," Mitsuko said. She sounded as if she could care less about the gun pointed at her forehead.

"Those are the rules."

Hiroki squinted and shook his head. "Not everyone's playing by them."

Mitsuko tilted her head again. Then she said, still smiling warmly, "Hiroki." It sounded so plain and friendly, the way a girl who ended up sitting next to her crush would call him, looking for some topic to bring up before homeroom began.

"You're probably a good person, Hiroki," she said.

Hiroki didn't understand and knit his brows. His mouth might have been open.

Mitsuko continued, lightly, as she were singing, "Good people are good. In some respects. But even those good people can turn bad. Or maybe they end up being good their entire lives. Maybe you're one of those people."

Mitsuko looked away from Hiroki and then shook her head.

"No, that's beside the point. I just decided to take instead of being taken. It's not a question of good or bad, wrong or right. It's just what I want to do."

Hiroki's lips trembled. They were twitching uncontrollably.

"…why though?"

Mitsuko smiled again. "I don't know. But if I have to come up with some explanation. Well, for starters…" She looked into Hiroki's eyes and then said, "I was raped when I was nine years old. Three guys taking turns, three times each, oh, wait, one of them might have done it four times. One of you did it.

Although they were middle-aged men. I was just a skinny kid back then, my chest was flat, and my legs were like sticks, but that's what they wanted. And when I started screaming that only excited them more.

So even now when I'm with perverted men like that I still pretend to cry."

Hiroki stood frozen as he stared at Mitsuko who'd just revealed so much but continued wearing her pleasant smile. He was shocked by this devastating story.

It was—

Hiroki might have been on the verge of saying something. But before he could, a silver light flashed out of Mitsuko's hands. Hiroki realized Mitsuko had managed to reach behind her back with her right hand, but by then the double-bladed diver's knife (this used to be Megumi Eto's weapon) was already planted in his right shoulder. Hiroki let out a groan, and although he still held the gun, he staggered back in pain.

Mitsuko instantly got up, ran past Hiroki, and into the woods behind him.

Hiroki quickly looked back and caught a glimpse of her…as she vanished into the dark.

He knew if he didn't kill Mitsuko Souma now then Kayoko Kotohiki might be the next one to fall into her trap. But Hiroki couldn't bring himself to do it. Instead, he pressed his left hand against his right shoulder where the blood from the knife wound began to soak through his school coat. He stared into the dark where Mitsuko had disappeared.

Of course…Mitsuko might have made up that story to stall him. But Hiroki couldn't buy that. Mitsuko told him the truth. And he'd only heard…part of it. Hiroki had been puzzled over how a third-year junior high school girl his age could be so merciless. It turned out she had acquired the psyche of a grown adult a long time ago. A twisted adult's, no, maybe it was more accurate to say a twisted child's psyche?

The blood oozed down his sleeve then down the Colt .45 and began dripping from the tip in a thin line, landing onto a pile of moldy leaves by his feet without a sound.

17 students remaining

54

Slightly past 3:30 a.m., Toshinori Oda (Male Student No. 4) left the house he was hiding in. Immediately after he hid there, he surmised it was inside sector E=4. Sakamochi had announced the sector would be forbidden at 5 a.m.

Before he opened the back door to leave, he glanced over at Hirono Shimizu's body, which he'd dragged into the corner. All he did was glance at the body lying face down. He didn't feel particularly sorry for her. After all this was a serious competition. You get what you deserve. Hirono Shimizu didn't even think twice about shooting him the moment she saw him. Of course, he'd been the one who snuck up behind Hirono to choke her.

Although he wasn't sure where his next resting spot should be, Toshinori finally decided to move east towards the residential area. The area on the map was approximately two hundred square meters.

According to the map, the narrow flat land extending outward from the residential area turned into farm fields spotted with houses. Once he was well beyond this zone then all he had to do was hide in one of these houses. After all, he came from a privileged family and lived in what was probably the nicest house in the prefecture (Kazuo Kiriyama's house was probably the nicest, but Toshinori would never admit this). Hiding in bushes was beneath him. Entering a house was dangerous, given how someone might already be hiding there, but he wasn't worried. Now he not only had a bulletproof vest (with a certificate of high quality) but the revolver he'd taken from Hirono. Furthermore…

…he was now wearing a full-face motorcycle helmet he'd found inside the house.

A thin cloud appeared in the sky. Its tip was already slowly beginning to cross the low full moon. After checking the chin guard of his superdeluxe helmet, he crossed the yard and made his way down the edge of the narrow field next to it.

He could see the flat land continuing down to the eastern shore. It wasn't completely flat, though. It went up and down. Most of the area was covered with farms visible by their various moonlit shades. On the left, a hundred meters away, was a house by the base of the northern mountain. There was another house another hundred meters to its right. Further left were two more houses. There were no other houses in the vicinity. Three to four hundred meters away were farms spotted with houses. He couldn't see very well because his view was blocked by a hill and the woods, but this geography seemed to continue out to the residential area on the island's east side. The flames from the intense explosion that came immediately after Sakamochi's midnight announcement were located immediately to the right of the hill. But the flames must have gone out, because now the area sank back into darkness.

On the south side, to his right, were two adjacent houses.

But this was—if you assumed the blue dots indicated residential houses—on the borderline between sectors E=4 and F=4. Behind him the northern and southern mountains were connected—or to be more accurate, the base of the northern mountain stretched out like a cliff along the western shore without any houses in sight. According to the map though, there were supposed to be a couple houses up in the mountain.

Unless he'd misread the map, he'd be outside the forbidden zone if he got to the third or fourth house to the east. But if he found out they were dumps, then he might have to consider moving further on. First of all, he couldn't stand dirty houses, and second of all, he was certain a vulgar place would only attract vulgar people.

Toshinori decided to move over there.

He crouched down and walked cautiously along the field ridge of the farm. But he was appalled at the sensation of dirty soil. The dull pain he felt from Hirono Shimizu's shot in the stomach area of his bulletproof vest only infuriated him more. Why did he have to be thrown into this coarse game and writhe around on the ground with the "vulgar masses"? (This was an expression his father, who ran the largest food company in the eastern part of the prefecture, often used at home, but it was a favorite phrase Toshinori himself used to express his scorn for the "vulgar masses." Of course, he was well bred, so he could never say it out loud.)

Whether he had a right to claim it or not, it was true he possessed a unique gift, unique even among his talented classmates who ranged from being star players of their teams and clubs to being leading delinquents, or even being queer (this one was dead now, he was a very vulgar queer too). In fact, it was unique to the entire school.

He'd started private violin lessons when he was four years old, and now he was one of the leading junior high school players in the entire prefecture. He wasn't a genius, but he wasn't mediocre either.

Arrangements were made for him to enter a highly distinguished high school in Tokyo that had its own music department. As for his future career, he thought he'd at the very least become the prefectural government symphony conductor.

This gave him—so he believed—all the more reason not to die. He would attain the status of conductor, marry a beautiful, refined woman, and mingle with rich, elegant people. (His older brother Tadanori was going to inherit the company. Of course, the thought of making a lot of money as president was attractive, but I don't need to deal with food products, yuck. I'll let my vulgar brother deal with that.) He was different from his loser classmates. Their deaths wouldn't mean a thing, but he was gifted. He was precious. And even in biological terms, the superior species was destined to survive, right?

At first he only had this bulletproof vest, oddly supplied as a weapon, so all he could do was sneak away and hide, but now he had a gun. He was going to be merciless. What's this about the noble soul of a music lover? That's totally naive! It was true he was only fifteen, and he hadn't seen much of the world, but he knew what the music world was like. For those who weren't geniuses it was all about money and connections. It was all about crushing other competitors to survive.

Whether this was objectively true or not, this was what Toshinori Oda believed.

Of course, he had no close friends in Third Year Class B that was filled with the vulgar masses. In fact, he despised his vulgar classmates. Especially Shuya Nanahara.

Toshinori did not take part in the Shiroiwa Junior High Music Club, which was filled with vulgar masses who were especially vulgar. All those losers played was popular music (apparently the club office was cluttered with music sheets of illegal foreign music). That's right. Especially Shuya Nanahara.

Toshinori was vastly superior to him in term of music ability, given his ear training and understanding of music theory. And yet, in spite of that, the vulgar bitches in his class would scream out indecently at the sound of Shuya Nanahara plucking out kindergarten-level chords on his guitar (I mean come on those bitches who listen to Shuya Nanahara playing during the short break before music class, they might as well have printed on their foreheads in thick Gothic font: "Oh, Shuya, do me now, right here"). In contrast, they'd only politely applaud when Toshinori finished playing an elegant passage from an opera at the music teacher's request.

For one thing, those loser bitches could never appreciate classical music, and for another, it was only because Shuya Nanahara was good-looking (although Toshinori would never admit it, deep down inside he couldn't stand his own ugly face).

Fine. That's what women are like anyway. They're just a different species. Just a tool to produce children (and of course to provide pleasure for men when they need it), and if they were good-looking then they were just ornaments to place beside successful men. Yes, it all came down to…money and connections.

And my talent is worth the investment of money and connections. Therefore…

…1 deserve to be the survivor.

He heard gunfire at times throughout the night, and there was that amazing explosion to top it all off, but now the island was immersed in darkness and silence. Toshinori quickly circled the first house, passed it, and approached the second one. He could tell it was pretty old even though he could only make out its silhouette. The house was surrounded by a circle of trees, and on the west side in front was an extremely large broadleaf tree, its branches spread out. Its circumference was four to five meters, and it was seven to eight meters tall.

There shouldn't be anyone…here.

Toshinori gripped his gun and slowly moved forward, cautiously checking the house as well as the tree.

Of course he didn't forget to stop and look in all directions. You never knew where the vulgar masses might show up. Just like cockroaches.

After spending a full five minutes passing by the side of the house, he looked over his shoulder and checked the house, which was surrounded by trees of various sizes. There were no suspicious movements that he could see through his open helmet's square window.

All right.

He could see the third house, the one he wanted, nearby.

Toshinori turned around one more time.

He thought something round and black stirred near the ground between the trees surrounding the house.

It was…

…someone's head, he realized, but by then he was aiming his gun over there. But this one was wandering in an area that would become a forbidden zone soon. Who could it possibly be?…

It didn't matter.

He pulled the trigger. Holding the Smith & Wesson Military & Police's wooden grip, he felt a sudden jerk in the palm of his hand. The gun popped with an orange flash, sending a sting down Toshinori's spine. Although he despised the ignorant, vulgar masses, he had a hobby that wasn't so refined, much less refined than playing the violin. He still had his model gun collection. His father owned several hunting rifles, but he was never allowed to handle them, so this was the first time he'd ever pulled the trigger of a real gun. It was real. Damn, I'm shooting a real gun!

Toshinori shot twice and his opponent crouched down, unable to move, it seemed. The person didn't shoot back either. Of course not, if he had a gun he would have shot me from behind. That's what let me pull the trigger in the first place.

Toshinori slowly approached the figure. It shouted, "Stop!"

He could tell from his voice it was Hiroki Sugimura (Male Student No. 11). That tall guy (Toshinori by the way hated tall guys too. His height was only 162 centimeters and next to Yutaka Seto he was the shortest guy in their class. He couldn't stand: [a] good looking guys, [b] tall guys, and [c] all-around vulgar guys) who practiced that vulgar karate-like sport. He was supposedly going out with Takako Chigusa who tastelessly dyed her hair and wore all that gaudy jewelry—oh, that's right, she was also dead now. She wasn't bad looking though.

Hiroki continued, "I'm not fighting this game! Who are you? Yuichiro?"

Hiroki had guessed it was Yuichiro Takiguchi (Male Student No. 13), who was the next shortest guy to Toshinori. Yes, since Hiroshi Kuronaga had died a while ago, the only ones left alive who were his height were Yuichiro and Yutaka. In any case, Toshinori wondered for a moment, what's this about not fighting? Impossible. Not playing this game would be tantamount to committing suicide. Is he trying to fool me? Even if he was, as long as he doesn't have a gun…

Toshinori changed his course of action. He lowered his gun.

With his left hand he pulled down on the chin guard of the helmet and said, "It's Toshinori." Then he thought, oh, I should probably stutter a little. "S-sorry I did that. A-are you hurt?"

Hiroki Sugimura slowly got up, revealing his large frame.

Like Toshinori he had his day pack on his right shoulder. His right hand held a stick. His right sleeve was missing, maybe it was torn or maybe he'd torn it off. His shirt was missing underneath and his right arm was bare. A white cloth was wrapped around the shoulder. With his bare right arm holding the stick he resembled a naked primitive tribesman. A vulgar naked tribe.

"I'm all right." Then he asked, looking at Toshinori's head, "Is that a helmet?"

"U-uh yes." As he answered, Toshinori came forward, stepping onto the farm soil. All right, three more steps.

"I-I've been so scaaaared." Before he finished saying "scared" Toshinori raised his right hand. Five meters away, he couldn't miss.

Hiroki's eyes opened wide. Too late, too late, you vulgar karate bastard. You're going to die a vulgar death, end up in a vulgar grave, and I'll offer you the most vulgar flowers I can find.

But Hiroki wasn't there at the end of the muzzle of the exploding Smith & Wesson. A split second before the shot, Hiroki had unexpectedly ducked to his left—Toshinori's right. Toshinori of course had no idea Hiroki had used a martial arts move, but in any case…he was incredibly fast.

From this crouched position, Hiroki held up, instead of the stick in his left hand, a gun in his left hand (Toshinori also had no way of knowing that—although, in contrast to Shinji Mimura, he had "fixed"

it—Hiroki was originally in fact left-handed). So he already had a gun…then why didn't the fool use it in the first place? Before this thought barely crossed his mind a small flame exploded.

The gun was suddenly gone from his right hand. The next moment he felt a searing pain and his right ring finger exploded. Toshinori shrieked. He fell on both his knees and held the painful stump with his left hand…and realized his ring finger was gone. Blood spurted out. He might have been wearing a bulletproof vest and a helmet, but his fingers were unprotected.

Argh…that bastard…my finger…my right finger that elegantly guides the violin bow is!…that can't be…in the movies fingers never get blown away in gun fights!

Hiroki approached him, gun in hand. Toshinori held his right hand and gazed at it, his eyes inside his helmet terrified and delirious. His face was getting clammy from the sweat breaking out under his helmet.

Hiroki said, "So you're totally up for this. I don't want to shoot…but I have no choice. I have to."

Toshinori had no idea what Hiroki meant at all, and although he was in terrible pain, he still felt confident.

Because…the gun was pointed at his chest. Of course, it would be. He wore the helmet not so much because it was bulletproof but because it would force his enemy to aim at his body instead. And under his school coat he was wearing the bulletproof vest. As long as his vest stopped the bullet, then all he would have to do is wait for a chance to retrieve his gun and then—since his index finger was still working— he could pull the trigger and win.

His gun was by his feet.

With Toshinori glaring at him, Hiroki Sugimura still paused a few moments…but Hiroki pursed his lips tightly and calmly squeezed the trigger. Toshinori recalled his fight against Hirono Shimizu and considered how he should play "dead."

But it ended much more than abruptly than he'd expected. Hiroki's gun only made a small metallic click.

Hiroki looked confused. He nervously cocked the gun and pulled the trigger. Again, click.

Toshinori's lips twisted into a smile hidden under the helmet. Karate bastard. That was a dud. With that automatic you'll have to pull the breechblock and reload the chamber.

Toshinori went for his gun by his feet. Hiroki immediately responded with the stick in his right hand but instead—maybe he thought it was too far—he turned around and ran toward the mountain beyond the house.

Toshinori picked up the gun. His crippled hand ached, but he still managed to hold it. He fired. Because his hold on the grip wasn't tight he couldn't fix his aim on Hiroki, but he could tell he hit him in the thigh, right near his butt. Did it only scrape him? In any case, Hiroki suddenly tottered, but he didn't fall. He continued tunning. Toshinori also started running and fired another shot. This time he missed. The recoil of the gun so pleasurable only moments ago now sent a sharp pain through his injured hand which infuriated Toshinori. He shot again. He missed again. In spite of being shot in the leg, Hiroki was faster than him.

Hiroki disappeared into the woods at the foot of the mountain.

Damn it!

Toshinori deliberated whether he should chase him—and decided not to. His opponent was injured but so was he. The gun grip was slippery from the blood pouring from the stump of his former ring finger.

Besides, if he entered the mountains now, Hiroki would reload his gun and shoot back. In that situation, it'd be too dangerous to expose himself like that with nothing to hide behind. He nervously crouched down.

He had to get to the first house—the house he'd decided to enter. And he had to make sure Hiroki wouldn't see him enter it.

Toshinori clutched his right hand, which was still holding the gun, and staggered over there, enduring the pain. As he traveled down the footpath the pain became more and more excruciating. He felt dizzy. First thing was his hand. He had to treat it. He had to come up with a different strategy. Oh, but, damn, even if he were able to play the violin after rehabilitation this crippled hand would stick out during a performance, especially if they televise it and zoom in. So now I'm going to be joining that lame group—the disabled. What a nice melody, how he's overcome his disability. How lame!

He was approaching the house. Toshinori looked over his shoulder again. He looked closely, but didn't see any sign of Hiroki. He was safe now. Hiroki wasn't coming after him.

Toshinori looked back at the house.

He saw a guy standing on the farm field six to seven meters away, right in front of the house he wanted.

The guy had appeared suddenly out of nowhere. He had slicked-back hair that reached a little too far behind his neck and cold, gleaming eyes.

By the time he realized it was Kazuo Kiriyama (Male Student No. 6) (another guy he couldn't stand, category [a] good looking), a heavy burst of fire came out of his hands along with a rattling sound, slamming against Toshinori's torso. Toshinori was blown back and fell backward. Because his grip on the gun had loosened from the pain he'd been feeling in his right hand, he dropped it and heard it knock against something. His back scraped against the dirt. His head wearing the helmet hit the ground.

The echoing gunfire faded into the night air. All was quiet once again.

But of course Toshinori Oda wasn't dead. He held his breath and lay down, frozen, trying his best to restrain his urge to snicker. Now that he was overwhelmed by this wicked pleasure, the agonizing pain from his right hand, not to mention his anger at letting Hiroki Sugimura escape, or his anger at being suddenly attacked by a guy in category (a), his emotional faculties were a complete mess, but his body (with the exception of his right ring finger), just as it had been with Hirono Shimizu, was completely intact.

So he was right to wear the helmet. Kazuo had aimed at Toshinori's torso, which was protected by the bulletproof vest. Just as Hiroki had done, Kazuo probably assumed Toshinori was dead.

His eyelids nearly shut, his field of vision resembled a widescreen movie. He could see at the far end of his field of vision the S&W flash faintly against the moonlight. And now he could feel the stiff shape of the kitchen knife (which he found in the house where he'd killed Hirono Shimizu) he had tucked in back. It would take less than a second to unwrap the cloth around it.

As he continued to sweat, which was the one thing he couldn't hold back, Toshinori thought, all right, now pick up that gun lying over there. Then I'll slash that vulgar windpipe of yours. Or will you turn around and leave? Then I'll pick up the gun and dig a nice tunnel through that vulgar skull of yours. Come on. Make your choice. Just hurry up and choose.

But for some reason, instead of approaching the gun, Kazuo came straight at Toshinori.

He was coming straight at him. Staring at him with those cold eyes.

Why? Toshinori wondered. I'm supposed to be dead. Look how good I am at playing dead.

Kazuo didn't stop. He kept on approaching. One step, two…

But I'm supposed to be dead! Why!?

The faint sound of his steps on the soil became louder and his field of vision was now filled with the figure of Kazuo.

!…

Suddenly overcome with panic and fear, Toshinori frantically opened his eyes.

Kazuo's Ingram once again let out a burst of fire into Toshinori's shielded head. Some of the point-blank shots turned into colorful sparks from scraping against the reinforced plastic shell of the helmet while others, after exiting Toshinori's skull, ricocheted inside his helmet, rattling Toshinori's head along with the helmet (his body was dancing a strange boogie. Toshinori himself would have been irritated by this kind of vulgar dancing). And of course by the time it was all over…Toshinori's head was crushed inside his helmet.

Toshinori no longer played dead. He remained frozen. Blood dripped out from under the helmet, which resembled a bowl of sauce.

And so this boy who despised the ignorant, vulgar masses, foolish Toshinori Oda, had overestimated the value of his bulletproof vest and underestimated Kazuo Kiriyama's calm actions. As a result he died easily. If he'd thought about how Yumiko Kusaka and Yukiko Kitano had died yesterday morning, he would have realized that his assailant would have followed up on his enemy to deliver a coup de grace, but he wasn't so perceptive. Furthermore—it was quite irrelevant now—he had no idea his killer, Kazuo Kiriyama, had, in his mansion that was much larger than Toshinori's home in Shiroiwa-cho, mastered the violin at a level far superior to Toshinori's a long time ago (and then tossed his violin into the trash).

16 students remaining

55

Some chatting. The sound of someone moving. She'd even settle for the faint sound of someone desperately trying to hold his or her breath. Instead, Mitsuko Souma (Female Student No. 11) ended up hearing the sound of liquid running through grass. She could tell it was someone pissing in the grove nearby (unless there was a dog on the island). Dawn was approaching. She glanced up and saw a faint blue beginning emerge in the dark sky.

After encountering Hiroki and somehow managing to escape him, Mitsuko first decided she needed a gun. She'd accidentally come across Megumi Eto and, upon hearing Yoshimi Yahagi and Yoji Kuramoto in the middle of their fight, she'd killed them and managed to get her hands on a gun (if she'd had a gun in the first place she would have gone back to the school and killed off everyone that came out one by one).

Once she had a gun she could confidently move around the island, so it was easy to kill Takako Chigusa, who'd just finished fighting Kazushi Nüda. (She should have finished her off though. She'd have to be more careful next time.)

But now she was unarmed. She had used Megumi Eto's knife, and the only thing in her hand now was her original sickle from the beginning of the game. She had to get a gun because she wasn't the only one who chose to play this game. There was the machine gun shooter who killed Yumiko Kusaka and Yukiko Kitano. She had just heard it go off again only thirty minutes ago.

Of course, thanks to the shooter, she didn't have to kill off as many of her classmates. She could just let the assailant take care of that. She'd only kill when it came easy. In fact, after midnight, when she heard the machine gun's rapid gunfire along with the explosion afterwards, she decided it was best to avoid that area. A handgun against a machine gun, she'd be outmatched. So she decided to move somewhere she could view the area from a distance, and that was how she ended up finding and following Hiroki Sugimura. And that was supposed to be an easy kill but…

It was highly likely she'd end up having to take on this machine gun shooter. Not having a gun would be a major disadvantage. Forget about gun against machine gun, it'd be hopeless with a sickle against a machine gun.

Of course, she could have pursued Hiroki, but she thought it'd be too much trouble to get the gun back from him. His background in martial arts or whatever it was was no joke. Her right hand still stung from his blow. And this time, if he saw her, he'd be merciless and shoot her.

So Mitsuko moved west along the longitudinal road and then entered the northern mountain, trying to find someone else. Approximately three hours had passed.

And now she finally heard someone making noise.

Mitsuko made her way through the thicket and moved forward, cautiously though. She mustn't be heard.

The thicket ended. There was a small, open, mat-sized space in the middle of the bushes. The grove continued on and beyond her right. And to the left as well—in the corner of the space, a boy in his school coat had his back toward her. He nervously looked to his right and left as the dripping sound against the leaves continued.

He was probably scared he might be attacked by someone. She could tell it was Tadakatsu Hatagami (Male Student No. 18). He was on the baseball team. Nothing exceptional, just an average guy. He was tall and well-built, and his face was average. His hobbies were…actually she had no idea, and besides there was no point asking now.

The crucial thing was that, as Tadakatsu was attending to his business, Mitsuko realized he held something tightly in his right hand.

It was a gun. It was a fairly large model, a revolver. She once again broke into that fallen angel's grin.

Tadakatsu still wasn't done. He might have been holding it in for quite a while. He continued to look left and right while he emptied his bladder.

Mitsuko quietly but quickly took out her sickle with her right hand. Tadakatsu would have to use both of his hands to zip up his pants. Even if he tried using one hand, he'd be vulnerable.

It looks like this'll be the end of you. Didn't someone in a detective show get killed this way?

The drips became sporadic. It stopped…and then another drip, and then it stopped completely.

Tadakatsu once again looked around and then quickly moved his hands to the front.

By then Mitsuko had already snuck up behind him. The back of his head, with short spiked hair, was right in front of her. She raised the sickle.

She heard someone from behind say, "Whoa," and Tadakatsu suddenly turned around, along with Mitsuko. She (of course) put the sickle down and looked back at the speaker behind her.

It was Yuichiro Takiguchi (Male Student No. 13). He was shorter than Tadakatsu and had a cute, boyish face. He held what appeared to be his weapon, an aluminum bat, in his right hand and stared at Mitsuko, his mouth agape.

Tadakatsu saw Mitsuko and also said, "Whoa," and then muttered, "Damn," and pointed the gun at her.

Seeing how Yuichiro's appearance didn't surprise him, Mitsuko realized they were together. Mitsuko cursed herself. Tadakatsu had left Yuichiro just to take a piss. How stupid could I have been not to check! Come on, you're both boys, can't you just pee next to each other!?

This wasn't the time or place to lecture them. Tadakatsu's revolver (which, although it hardly mattered, was a Smith & Wesson M19 .357 Magnum) was pointed directly at Mitsuko's chest.

"Tadakatsu! Stop it!" Yuichiro said, his voice trembling, probably from her sudden appearance and his fear of seeing someone get killed in front of his very own eyes. Tadakatsu looked like he was ready to pull the trigger at any moment, but his finger on the trigger stopped a fraction of a millimeter before the hammer fell.

His gun still pointed at Mitsuko, Tadakatsu looked over at Yuichiro.

"Why!? She just tried to kill me! Look! A sickle! She's holding a sickle!"

"N-no." Mitsuko croaked as if her words were stuck in her throat. She made sure her voice was high-pitched and trembling, and of course, she didn't forget to flinch her body back. Once again, the star actress had a chance to show off her talents. Watch me now.

"I-I…"

She thought of dropping the sickle, but decided not to, since it would look more natural holding it.

"I was just trying to call you. Then I-I realized you were peeing, so I…" Mitsuko looked down and made her face blush. "So…"

Tadakatsu didn't lower the gun. "You're lying! You were trying to kill me!" His hand holding the gun was trembling. He'd restrained himself from shooting her because he'd never shot someone. The moment he saw her he probably would have fired reflexively, but now that Yuichiro had intervened he had time to think and hesitate. And that meant…

…he would lose.

"Stop it, Tadakatsu," Yuichiro pleaded with him, "Didn't I already say how we have to join up with others—"

"You got to be kidding." Tadakatsu shook his head. "There's no way I can be with this bitch. Don't you know who we're dealing with? She might have been the one…who killed Yumiko and Yukiko."

"N-no…I would never…" Mitsuko made her eyes brim with tears.

Yuichiro said frantically, "Mitsuko isn't carrying a machine gun. She doesn't even have a gun."

"We can't know for sure! She might have tossed them once she ran out of bullets!!"

Yuichiro fell silent for a while, but then said, "Tadakatsu, you shouldn't raise your voice." His voice sounded different from before. It was calm and kind. Tadakatsu opened his mouth slightly as if he'd been caught off guard.

Mitsuko was also a bit surprised. Yuichiro Takiguchi was into anime. He was the otaku of their class, but now he sounded quite dignified.

Yuichiro shook his head. "You shouldn't be so indiscriminately suspicious," he continued as if admonishing Tadakatsu. "Think about it. Mitsuko might have sought you out because she really trusted you."

"But then…" Tadakatsu knit his brows. His gun was still pointed at Mitsuko, but the tension of his fingers on the trigger seemed to wane. "Then what do you suggest we do?"

"If you insist she can't be trusted, then we can take turns keeping an eye on her. I mean, even if we were to tell her to leave, you'd still be worried she might attack you later when she has the chance."

Well, I'll say, I'm impressed. He's sharp and articulate. I mean, putting aside whether he's making a good call (which in fact would be to shoot me now).

Tadakatsu then licked his lips a little.

"Come on. We need more people on our side. And then we have to figure out a way to get out of here.

Once we spend some time with her we'll see whether we can trust her, right?" Yuichiro insisted and finally Tadakatsu nodded, still eyeing her suspiciously. He said in a tired voice, "Well, all right."

Making herself look relieved, she let her body unwind. She rubbed her left hand against her eyes deliberately filled with tears. Yuichiro let out a sigh of relief too.

"Get rid of that sickle," Tadakatsu said, and Mitsuko immediately tossed it to the ground. Then she nervously alternated glances at Tadakatsu and Yuichiro.

Tadakatsu said, "Search her, Yuichiro." Mitsuko looked back at Tadakatsu, her eyes opened wide as if she didn't understand. Then she looked at Yuichiro who stood still in astonishment. Tadakatsu repeated himself. He aimed the gun at her. "Hurry up. Don't be so bashful. This is a matter of life and death. You know that."

"Okay…all right." Yuichiro put his bat down and reluctantly came forward. He stood right beside Mitsuko.

"Hurry," Tadakatsu insisted.

"Uh huh."

His dignified manner was gone now. He'd gone back to being his usual weak otaku self.

"But—"

"Hurry!"

Yuichiro said, "U-uh, Mitsuko, I'm really sorry. I really don't want to do this, but I have to," and he ran his hands lightly over her body. Even in the dim light at dawn, she could tell his face had turned bright red.

How cute. Of course, she didn't forget to act all embarrassed too.

After he was done searching, he lifted his hands. Tadakatsu said, "Look under her skirt too."

"Tadakatsu—" Yuichiro protested, but Tadakatsu shook his head.

"I'm not trying to get my rocks off. I just don't want to die."

So Yuichiro blushed even more and said, "U-uh, I was wondering, could you lift your skirt up a little?"

Oh my, let's not have a heart attack here, little boy.

But Mitsuko only answered in a meek voice, "O-okay," and lifted her skirt bashfully again up to where her underwear was nearly visible. Geez, this was turning into one of those adult videos titled Fetish Special! Starring Real Junior High School Girls!

I've actually been in them.

After making sure Mitsuko had nothing to hide, Yuichiro said, "I-I'm done."

Tadakatsu nodded and said, "All right. Yuichiro, I want you to tie up her hands with your belt."

Yuichiro gave Tadakatsu another reluctant look, but Tadakatsu refused to give in, aiming his gun at her.

"Those are my conditions. If you can't accept them, then I'll shoot her now."

Yuichiro looked at Mitsuko, then at Tadakatsu, and licked his lips. Then Mitsuko said to Yuichiro,

"Yuichiro, go ahead. It's all right."

Yuichiro looked at Mitsuko, but then nodded, pulled out his belt, and held Mitsuko's hands. "I'm sorry, Mitsuko," he said.

Tadakatsu still pointed his gun at her, and said, "You don't have to be so polite with her," but Yuichiro seemed to ignore his warning as he gently wrapped the belt around her wrists without saying another word.

As she innocently offered her hands, Mitsuko was thinking how lucky, in spite of the situation, she was to have been discovered right before lifting her sickle. (She had also wiped the blood off the sickle earlier.

Now that's luck.)

Now then, what's my next move?

16 students remaining

56

"So that's how I thought we had to seek other classmates," Yuichiro said and stopped, glancing at Mitsuko. Dawn had already broken, and she could see how his face was grimy with dirt.

They were sitting next to each other in the shrubs. Of course, Mitsuko's hands were tied up with the belt, and her sickle was tucked in the back of Yuichiro's pants. Tadakatsu Hatagami was in a deep sleep. He still held onto his gun which he had in fact tied to his hand with a handkerchief.

After she ended up with this duo, Tadakatsu was the one who insisted on taking turns sleeping.

"I agree we have to find others, but let's get some sleep. We've been up all this time. We'll lose our ability to make sound judgments." Once Yuichiro agreed Tadakatsu said, "First, it's going to be Yuichiro or me.

Then Mitsuko can sleep after us," and Yuichiro responded, "I can sleep later," so the order was decided.

Holding his gun (which should have been handed over to Yuichiro who was keeping watch, but Tadakatsu didn't even mention it, nor did Yuichiro protest), Tadakatsu lay down and fell asleep within a matter of seconds.

Mitsuko had an idea how they hooked up. Tadakatsu hadn't slept at all until he met Yuichiro, and he probably couldn't sleep after joining him. Why? Because he was probably afraid Yuichiro might attack him by surprise. And even though Mitsuko might be much more threatening than Yuichiro, now that she was with them, even if Tadakatsu slept, Mitsuko and Yuichiro would have to keep an eye on each other so long as he held onto his gun and remained cautious. He could still get some sleep. (Of course, Mitsuko hadn't slept at all either, but it was nothing to her. She was much tougher than your average wimpy junior high school kid.)

Yuichiro and Mitsuko remained silent for a while, but then Yuichiro told her how he'd ended up joining Tadakatsu.

It turned out that Yuichiro also didn't move at all during the day, but then assuming he was safer at night (of course, Mitsuko thought, it could go either way. You could escape detection at night, but that also meant it was hard to detect your opponent too. But of course, if you were in a tight spot and had to run away, night was better), he cautiously began to move and encountered Tadakatsu only two hours before Mitsuko encountered them. The two tried to concoct an escape plan but came up with nothing…and so Tadakatsu stepped out to pee, but because he was taking so long Yuichiro got worried and checked on him. And that was how he found Mitsuko.

"I was so scared at first, I thought I couldn't trust anybody. But then I realized most of us probably just want to escape."

Yuichiro stopped and glanced at Mitsuko. The otaku of Class B, Yuichiro Takiguchi avoided direct eye contact in his conversations. He always looked down. Still, from the way he talked to her, Yuichiro didn't seem to be all that cautious towards her. For some reason.

And so Mitsuko pretended to look somewhat relieved and asked him, "So Tadakatsu had that gun."

Yuichiro nodded. "That's right."

"Weren't you scared of Tadakatsu?" Okay, now act even more relaxed and a little more intimate. "No, I mean even now. He won't let go of it."

Tadakatsu grinned. "Well, first of all, Tadakatsu didn't shoot at me or anything. He did point his gun at me. I was classmates with him in elementary school. So I know him pretty well."

"But…" Mitsuko made her face look slightly pale. "You saw how Yumiko…Yumiko Kusaka and Yukiko Kitano died. Some of us are playing this game. How can you be sure Tadakatsu isn't one of them?" She nodded and then said, "…he even suspects me."

Yuichiro tightened his lips and nodded several times. "That's true. But if we just sit still we'll end up dying.

It's best to try. I can't be like Yumiko and Yukiko, but I was thinking how we could get others to join us gradually."

He glanced into Mitsuko's eyes for a moment and then looked down. He seemed even more withdrawn than usual, maybe because he wasn't used to looking at a girl's face so close up. (She was probably right on the mark, and on top of that, he was dealing with the most beautiful girl in the class.)

"You can't blame Tadakatsu for holding onto that gun. He's scared out of his wits."

Mitsuko tilted her head and forced a smile. "You're so good."

Yuichiro glanced at her out of the corner of his eye.

Still wearing her smile, Mitsuko continued, "You have to be brave to be like that, to be able to empathize with others like that."

Yuichiro looked down bashfully again and nervously ran his right hand through his messy hair and said, "I don't think so." Then without looking at her, he said, "So…could you cut him some slack for suspecting you? I think he's really scared. He trusts no one."

Trust no one. The phrase really tickled her and she grinned.

Then she said as if sighing, "I guess he can't help it. I have a reputation. You probably don't trust me either."

Yuichiro paused and then turned to Mitsuko. This time he looked at her a little longer. Then he said,

"No." He looked down at the ground after saying this, and continued, "Well, I mean, I'm even suspicious of Tadakatsu when it comes down to it. I mean…" He pulled out some grass by his feet. Then he tore the grass that was moist with morning dew into small strands. "I mean, yeah, I haven't heard great things about you. But that's so irrelevant in this situation. I mean, sometimes it's the respectable ones who end up breaking up under stress." He tossed the torn grass by his feet. Then he looked up at Mitsuko. "I don't think you're such a bad person."

Mitsuko tilted her head. "Why?"

Maybe it was because she was staring at her, Yuichiro nervously looked away again. Then he said,

"Well…it's your eyes."

"Eyes?"

Still looking down, Yuichiro began tearing out more grass. "You always had a scary look in your eyes."

Mitsuko forced a smile. She tried to shrug her shoulders, but it didn't work because of the belt around her wrists. "I guess."

"But…" The grass was torn into quarters, then eighths. "But sometimes your eyes look really sad and kind."

Mitsuko stared at the side of his face and listened without responding.

"So," he tossed the grass again and continued, "I've always thought you weren't as bad as everyone said you were. Even if you'd done bad things, I was pretty sure you did them because you couldn't help it, because there was some reason behind it that wasn't your fault."

He was stuttering, his voice incredibly shy and tense as if he were confessing his love to a girl. Then he added, "I just don't want to be so foolish I couldn't understand that reason."

Mitsuko sighed inside. Of course, she was thinking, boy, you are naive, Yuichiro. But then…

…she smiled and said warmly, "Thank you." Even she was surprised by the kindness in her voice. Of course, it was deliberate, but maybe the reason it sounded too real to be an act was that there was a little bit of true feeling in her words.

But…that's all it was.

Yuichiro then asked, "What about you, Mitsuko? What were you doing till now?"

Mitsuko replied, "Well…" She moved a little and felt the morning dew on the grass soaking through her skirt. "I've been running away. You know, away from the gunfire. That's why…that's why when I saw Tadakatsu I was so scared…but I was also so tired and scared of being alone and I thought of calling out to him…I thought maybe he'd understand…but I just couldn't tell whether it was the right thing to do or not…I just didn't know…"

Yuichiro nodded again. He glanced at her again and looked down. "I think you did the right thing."

Mitsuko smiled and said, "I think so too." Their eyes met and they smiled at each other.

"That's right," Yuichiro said, "I'm sorry. I forgot. You must be thirsty. You lost your bag, right? You probably haven't had any water in a while."

She had left her day pack behind when she fought Hiroki Sugimura. She was actually pretty thirsty. She nodded. "Could I…could I have some water?"

Looking away from her, Yuichiro nodded back, reached out for the day pack and picked it up. He pulled out two water bottles and after comparing them he chose the sealed bottle and tucked away the other one. He broke the seal off the new bottle.

Mitsuko put up her belt-bound hands. Yuichiro was about to hand over the bottle to her…but then stopped. He glanced over at Tadakatsu who still seemed sound sleep, then looked down at the plastic bottle in his hand.

Then he put the bottle down by his leg.

Hey there, aren't you going to let me have a drink? You decided not to spoil the prisoner because that might upset tough Sergeant Hatagami?

Yuichiro took her hands without a word instead, had her raise them, and fingered the belt around her wrists. He began to unfasten it.

"Yuichiro…" Mitsuko said as if surprised (which in fact she was), "…are you sure this is okay?

Tadakatsu will be really mad."

Concentrating on her wrists, Yuichiro answered, "It's all right. I have your weapon. Besides, how can you drink with your hands bound like that?" Yuichiro glanced up at Mitsuko again.

She smiled warmly and said, "Thank you," making her cheeks blush as she looked down.

The belt came loose. Mitsuko rubbed each of her wrists. Because the belt wasn't tight they were fine.

Yuichiro offered his bottle to Mitsuko. Mitsuko grabbed it and took two brief, delicate sips. She returned the bottle.

"That's all?" he asked and stopped wrapping his belt around his waist. "You can drink more. If we run out, we can always get more from some house with a well."

Mitsuko shook her head. "Oh no, I'm fine."

"Okay."

Yuichiro took the bottle. After he stuffed it into his day pack, he buckled his belt around his waist.

Mitsuko said to Yuichiro, "Yuichiro." He looked up.

Mitsuko quickly reached out her free hands and gently held his right hand. Yuichiro appeared to tense up, not because he suspected her of some ulterior motive, but more simply because a girl was holding his hand.

"Wh-what?"

Mitsuko smiled warmly. She opened her nicely shaped lips and gently spoke, "I'm so glad I'm with someone like you. I was so scared I've been shaking all this time…but now I'm safe."

Yuichiro seemed to break into a grin. His tense mouth quivered and he finally managed to blurt out,

"You're safe." It seemed like he wanted to take his right hand back, but Mitsuko refused to let go, clutching onto it. Yuichiro had a hard time speaking and his voice sounded nervous, but then he managed to utter, "I'll protect you, Mitsuko."

He added, "We have Tadakatsu too. He's pretty worked up right now, but once he calms down, he'll see you couldn't possibly be our enemy. Then the three of us can work on finding the rest of the class. Then we'll come up with some way of escaping."

Mitsuko gave a warm smile. "Thank you. I'm so relieved."

She squeezed her grip on Yuichiro's hand. Yuichiro blushed even more and glanced away again. He said,

"U-uh, Mitsuko. Y-you know, you're really p-pretty."

Mitsuko raised her brow. "No…really?"

Yuichiro nodded repeatedly. Rather than nodding, he seemed to be trembling from the unbearable tension. This made Mitsuko smile and she realized this smile had no ulterior motive.

Well, almost none.

16 students remaining

57

Sakamochi's 6 a.m. announcement woke up Tadakatsu. He hadn't even slept two hours, but insisted it was enough and untied the handkerchief from his wrist to get a good grip on the gun. Then he sat by Mitsuko and Yuichiro. Yuichiro insisted on her sleeping before him, but Mitsuko abstained, so Yuichiro ended up lying down. (By this time, they had learned that four students—Keita Iijima, Toshinori Oda, Yutaka Seto, and Shinji Mimura—had recently died. The new forbidden zones were not in their vicinity.) Tadakatsu was dismayed to find out the belt on Mitsuko's wrists had been unfastened, but Yuichiro managed to convince him it would be okay. Of course, even if Yuichiro hadn't unfastened the belt, Mitsuko had plans to have it unfastened anyway…using Tadakatsu.

Now then.

She couldn't really afford to take her time. If Hiroki Sugimura showed up he'd completely blow her cover. (She wondered, what is he doing wandering around like that anyway? Is he, like Yuichiro and Tadakatsu, trying to find others to hook up with?) And there was…that machine gun shooter.

Although Yuichiro had said to Mitsuko with a smile, "I might not be able to sleep," he went out like a light in five minutes. Given how he was an otaku boy, he couldn't have much stamina. He must be tired. Unlike Tadakatsu who snored, Yuichiro fell into the hushed deep sleep of a little baby.

Tadakatsu kept a good distance of three meters on her left, sitting against a tree. He had short, cropped hair and light acne above his cheekbones. And the eyes above them…were cautiously watching Mitsuko.

The revolver in his right hand was no longer pointed at her, but his finger was definitely on the trigger, as if to indicate he could shoot her at any moment.

Mitsuko waited another half hour…and then after making sure Yuichiro, whose back faced them, was still asleep, she turned to Tadakatsu and quietly said, "You don't have to look at me like that. I'm harmless."

Tadakatsu grimaced. "You never know."

As if responding to Tadakatsu's retort, Yuichiro's body stirred a little. For a while Mitsuko and Tadakatsu looked at Yuichiro's back. His deep breathing resumed, though.

Without looking over at Tadakatsu, Mitsuko took a deep breath to indicate her fatigue. Then she moved her legs, putting her right knee down on the ground and bringing her left knee up.

Her pleated skirt smoothly slid down, revealing most of her white thighs, but Mitsuko just looked around, pretending not to notice.

She could tell Tadakatsu had tensed up. Ha. Maybe you can see my panties? They're hot pink silk.

Mitsuko stayed in this position. Then she slowly looked over at Tadakatsu.

Tadakatsu nervously looked up. Of course…until then his eyes had been glued to her thighs.

But Mitsuko still acted as if she were clueless and said, "Hey, Tadakatsu."

"What?"

Tadakatsu seemed to be doing his best to maintain his intimidating stance, but now there was a slight tremble in his voice.

"I am so scared."

She thought Tadakatsu would say something nasty again, but he didn't respond and only stared at her.

"Aren't you scared?"

Tadakatsu's brow moved a little, but then he said, "Of course, I am. That's why I'm being so careful with you."

Mitsuko looked sadly away from Tadakatsu. "So you still won't trust me."

"Don't hold it against me," Tadakatsu said, but his tone of voice wasn't even half as hostile as it had been.

"I know I'm repeating myself, but I just don't want to die."

Mitsuko quickly looked back at Tadakatsu. She said a little emphatically, "I'm in the same boat too. I don't want to die. But if you don't trust me, then we'll never be able to cooperate and find a way to save ourselves."

"Uh, well…" Tadakatsu nodded as if relenting. "Well…I know that but…"

Mitsuko smiled warmly. She looked into her opponent's eyes and her well-formed, red lips smiled___It was different from the one she wore during her somewhat idyllic conversation with Yuichiro. This one was Mitsuko Souma's special fallen angel's smile. Tadakatsu's eyes were glazed, seduced.

"Hey, Tadakatsu," she continued as she returned to her terrified-girl face. This constant switch between expressions, the virgin and the whore, day and night. Wow. Sounds like a movie title.

"Wh-what?"

"I know I keep on saying this, but I'm just so scared."

"U-uh huh."

"So…" She looked at him directly again.

"So?"

Any trace of antagonism and suspicion was now gone from Tadakatsu's voice and face.

Mitsuko tilted her head slightly and asked, "Can we talk a little?"

"…talk?" He knit his brows. "Aren't we doing that right now?…"

Mitsuko hissed, "Don't be stupid. Do I have to spell it out?" Her eyes glued on Tadakatsu, she pointed her chin at Yuichiro. "Not here, okay? I want to talk to you, but not with Yuichiro here."

His mouth slightly open, Tadakatsu gazed over at Yuichiro…and then looked back at Mitsuko.

"Okay?" Mitsuko said. She got up, looked around, and decided the thicket behind Tadakatsu would be best. She walked over to Tadakatsu, tilted her head slightly, and then proceeded forward. She wasn't sure whether he would take the bait…but then after a while she could tell he was nibbling.

Mitsuko stopped approximately twenty meters away from where Yuichiro slept. Just like the previous area, it was a small opening surrounded by bushes.

When she turned around, Tadakatsu appeared, wading through the thicket. His eyes were glazed. But maybe it was subconscious___He still kept a tight grip on his gun.

Mitsuko immediately pulled down the side zipper of her skirt. Her pleated skirt fell to the ground, exposing her thighs in the dull morning light. She could tell he was holding his breath.

Then she removed her scarf and undressed. Unlike the other girls she'd never be so square as to wear an undershirt, so she only had her underwear on now. Oh right, she had to take off her shoes. After she took them off, she stared at Tadakatsu with her fallen angel's smile.

"M-Mitsuko…" Tadakatsu barely managed to utter.

Mitsuko decided to make sure. "I'm so scared, Tadakatsu. So…"

Tadakatsu awkwardly approached Mitsuko.

Mitsuko looked down at his right hand, pretending to suddenly notice the gun, and said, "Put that thing somewhere else."

Tadakatsu lifted his hand, as if he suddenly became aware of its existence, and gazed at it. Then he put it down, away from them.

He approached her again.

Mitsuko gave a nice smile, spread out her arms, and wrapped her hands around his neck. His body trembled but the moment Mitsuko offered her lips, he immediately began sucking on them. Mitsuko received him by breathing heavily.

After a while their lips separated.

Mitsuko looked up at Tadakatsu's eyes and said, "This is your first time, huh?"

"So what?" Tadakatsu said, his voice trembling.

They fell down on the grass, Mitsuko underneath.

Tadakatsu immediately went for her breasts.

You idiot, you're supposed to make out for a while before you do that, Mitsuko thought. Instead she moaned, "Ahh…" Tadakatsu's rough hands slipped off her bra and clutched at her well-endowed breasts, now exposed. Then his face went down there.

"Ahh…ahh…"

She continued pretending to be turned on (in exaggerated porn-video style), but meanwhile her right hand was reaching down to her panties....

Her fingertips touched a hard, thin object.

Gang girls probably didn't use such cheap, clunky weapons anymore. But it'd been Mitsuko's weapon of choice for a long time now. The most useful weapon right now for her was in fact something she could hide in her panties.

Tadakatsu was preoccupied with kissing Mitsuko's breasts. His left hand reached between her legs.

Mitsuko then let out a moan…but Tadakatsu's eyes were concentrating on her breasts. His scalp was exposed.

Mitsuko slowly moved her right hand near his neck.

Sorry, Tadakatsu. But at least you get to go out with a nice memory, so you can forgive me, right? Too bad we won't go all the way, though.

Mitsuko's right ring finger gently touched Tadakatsu's neck. The object was between her index and middle finger.

Kaw kaw, a bird cried, unfortunately, to her right.

Tadakatsu raised his head reflexively and glanced over in that direction.

It was only the sound of a bird crying. What really made Tadakatsu's eyes open wide was of course…

…the razor blade in Mitsuko's hand right in front of his face.

Damn it!

How bad can my timing be, the thought sort of crossed her mind, but Mitsuko didn't care as she automatically swung the blade.

He groaned and pulled away from Mitsuko. The blade skimmed his neck, but the cut was way too shallow to be fatal. My oh my, good reflexes. That's right, you're a baseball jock.

Tadakatsu stood up, his eyes open wide, staring down at Mitsuko, her body half raised. He appeared to be on the verge of saying something but seemed at a loss for words.

She could care less about Tadakatsu's state. She leaped up and made a dash for the revolver immediately to her right.

But Tadakatsu's body flew in front of her in a head-first slide. He scooped the gun from the ground, rolled over, and got up on his knees. Ever since elementary school Tadakatsu played the shortstop position formerly occupied by Shuya Nanahara (even though she and Shuya went to different schools Shuya's reputation as a star player in Little League was so widespread even Mitsuko had heard of him), so the Shiroiwa Junior High School baseball team is in good hands, huh? Well, at least you didn't take off your pants. You would have looked pretty pathetic naked.

That was besides the point, though. Once Mitsuko realized Tadakatsu would get the gun before she did, she changed course. She heard gunshots behind her, but they missed as she ran into the thicket.

She could hear Tadakatsu chasing her. He would catch up. That was for sure.

She got out of the thicket. There was Yuichiro Takiguchi. He looked like he'd heard the gunfire, got up, and then realizing Mitsuko and Tadakatsu were gone, was looking around, but the moment his eyes found her, they opened wide. (Of course. She was half naked. What a bonus! Mitsuko Souma's One Night Show. Oh wait, but it's morning.)

"Yuichiro!" Mitsuko raised her voice and ran towards Yuichiro. She didn't forget to crumple up her face.

"Wh-what happened, Mitsuko?"

By the time Tadakatsu Hatagami made his way through the bushes, Mitsuko was behind Yuichiro's back.

Because Yuichiro was only four or five centimeters taller than her, she couldn't really hide behind him, but oh well.

"Yuichiro!" Tadakatsu stopped and held his gun, groaning. "Get out of my way!"

"H-hold on." His face still drowsy, Yuichiro spoke quickly perhaps because he didn't fully grasp the situation. Mitsuko grabbed his shoulders from behind and pressed her half naked body against his back.

Yuichiro said, "What is wrong with you?"

"Mitsuko tried to kill me! I told you, man!"

Still hiding behind Yuichiro, Mitsuko said in a feeble voice, "Th-that's not true. Tadakatsu tried to force me to…he threatened me with that gun. Please, help me, Yuichiro!"

Tadakatsu's face contorted in dismay. "I-it's not true, Yuichiro! Th-that's right. Look!" Tadakatsu pointed at his neck with the fingers of his empty left hand. The narrow cut had a slight blood stain. "She went at me with a razor blade!"

Yuichiro turned around and looked at Mitsuko out of the corner of his eye. Mitsuko shook her head (as cutely as possible, as if terrified, now she was playing the virgin).

"I was so desperate…I had to use my nails on him. Then…Tadakatsu got mad…and tried to shoot me…"

She had already gotten rid of the razor blade in the shrubs. Even if she were forced to take off all her clothes (she was nearly naked anyway now) for a body search, they'd find no evidence.

Now Tadakatsu's face flushed red with anger.

"Move, Yuichiro!" he shouted. "I'm shooting her!"

"Hold on," Yuichiro said, trying his best to sound calm, "I…that's right…I can't tell who's telling the truth."

"What!?" Tadakatsu raised his voice, but Yuichiro wasn't intimidated. He reached out his right hand to Tadakatsu.

"Give me your gun. Then we'll see who's telling the truth."

Tadakatsu's face contorted as if he were on the verge of crying out of misery. And wearing this face he screamed at Yuichiro, "We can't afford to take our time here! You're going to get killed too if we don't get rid of her now!"

Mitsuko cried out, "That's awful. I would never do that. Help me, Yuichiro." She squeezed his shoulders tightly.

Yuichiro patiently extended his hand. "Give it to me, Tadakatsu if you're telling the truth."

Tadakatsu grimaced again.

But eventually, after taking a long, deep breath, letting his shoulders down, he exhaled and lowered his gun. He put his finger on the trigger guard, flipped the gun grip forward, and offered it to Yuichiro as if he had no choice.

Of course she still wore her weepy face… but there was a faint glimmer in her eyes. The key moment would be when the gun was in Yuichiro's hands. It should be easy to take away from him. The question was how.

Yuichiro nodded and came forward.

But then…

It was a move that was almost identical to the one Hiroki Sugimura had made with the Colt Government against her. Like a magic trick, the gun flipped over in his hand. Simultaneously, Tadakatsu got down on his right knee and leaned sideways. The gun was pointed directly at Mitsuko, its line of fire passing right by Yuichiro's left shoulder. Now that she wasn't clinging to Yuichiro's back Mitsuko was completely exposed.

Yuichiro followed the gun's target and quickly looked back at Mitsuko.

Mitsuko's eyes opened wide.

I'm dead now—

Without hesitating, Tadakatsu pulled the trigger.

Gunfire. Two shots.

Yuichiro's body fell down slowly as if in slow motion right in front of her.

Beyond it was the frightened face of Tadakatsu.

By then Mitsuko had picked up the sickle Yuichiro had beside him when he went to sleep.

She threw it. It spun through the air. Its banana-shaped blade lodged into Tadakatsu's right shoulder. He groaned and dropped his gun.

Mitsuko didn't waste a single moment. She picked up the bat and dashed forward. She leapt over Yuichiro, who was lying face down, ran towards Tadakatsu, and with this forward momentum took a full swing at his head as he staggered, clutching his right shoulder.

Hey there. Here's something familiar, a bat. Hope you like it.

Thud. The end of the bat landed in the center of his face. She'd crushed in his nose cartilage and cheekbones, tearing out several of his teeth.

Tadakatsu fainted. Mitsuko swung at his forehead. KRAK! His forehead caved in. His eyes bulged out and his hands balled up into fists. One more swing, this time she aimed at the bridge of his nose. Mitsuko Souma's Special Training for One Thousand Catches. Come on, come on, this next one's going into center field.

Blood burst out of Tadakatsu's nostrils with this blow.

Mitsuko put the bat down. Tadakatsu's entire face was immersed in blood. He was dead by now. Thick streams of blood came dripping out of his ears and his deformed nose.

Mitsuko tossed the bat and picked up the pistol lying to her left.

Then she walked over to Yuichiro who was lying down on his face.

The blood stain spread all over the grass underneath.

He had shielded Mitsuko. That one instant.

Mitsuko slowly knelt down by Yuichiro. She could tell he was still breathing as she bent over.

After some consideration, Mitsuko moved over to block Yuichiro's view of Tadakatsu's corpse. Then she grabbed his shoulder to turn him over.

Yuichiro moaned, "Urgh," and opened his eyes in a daze. His school coat had two holes, one in the left chest and the other in his side. Blood came pouring out, absorbed by the black fabric. Mitsuko held Yuichiro up.

His eyes wandered around for a while. Then he looked at Mitsuko. His short breaths came intermittently, matching his heartbeat. "M-Mitsuko…" he said, "wh-what about Tadakatsu?"

Mitsuko shook her head. "He panicked after he shot you and just ran away."

Tadakatsu had tried to kill Mitsuko so this explanation didn't make much sense. But…maybe he couldn't think much anymore. Yuichiro seemed to nod slightly.

"R-really…" His eyes seemed out of focus. He might only have a partial image of Mitsuko now. "Y-you didn't get hurt, I hope?"

"I'm fine." She nodded. And then said, "You saved me."

Yuichiro seemed to form a slight grin. "I-I'm so sorry. I-I don't think I can protect you anymore. I-I can't m-m-move…"

Foams of blood came bursting out the sides of his mouth. His lungs must have been punctured.

"I know." She leaned over and gently hugged his body.

Mitsuko's long black hair fell onto his chest, its ends stained by the blood pouring out of his wounds.

Before she pressed her lips against his, Yuichiro's eyes moved slightly but then they shut.

This kiss was different from the whore's kiss she gave to Tadakatsu moments ago. It was soft, warm, and kind even though it might have been mixed with the taste of blood.

Their lips parted. Yuichiro opened his eyes again in a semi-daze.

"I-I'm sorry…" he said, "it looks like…"

Mitsuko smiled. "I know."

BLAM! BLAM! BLAM! With these dull gunshots Yuichiro's eyes opened wide.

Staring up at Mitsuko's face, and probably having no idea what had just happened, Yuichiro Takiguchi was now dead.

Mitsuko slowly removed the smoking revolver from Yuichiro's stomach and held Yuichiro's body again.

She looked into his now vacant eyes.

"You were pretty cool. You even made me a little happy. I won't forget you."

She closed her eyes. Almost remorsefully, she once again gently pressed her lips against Yuichiro's. His lips were still warm.

The sunlight was finally shining on the western slope of the northern mountain. Under Mitsuko's head, blocking this light, Yuichiro's pupils dilated rapidly.

14 students remaining

58

Shuya Nanahara (Male Student No. 15) suddenly woke up. He saw the blue sky framed by brilliant green grass.

He got up. Beyond the grass surrounding him, there was the familiar sight of Shiroiwa Junior High School in the pleasant sunlight.

Several students were on the school field in their gym gear. Maybe they were playing Softball for gym class. He could hear their cheering.

He was in the garden at the edge of the courtyard. He saw the large leaves of the phoenix tree looming above him. This was where he took a nap sometimes, either during lunch or when he cut class.

He stood up and checked his body.

He had no wounds at all. Flakes of grass were stuck to his coat. He brushed them off.

A dream…

Shuya shook his head, still in a daze. Then he knew for certain.

It was all a dream. All of it.

He wiped his neck with his hand. It was moist with sweat. He was drenched in sweat as if he'd had a nightmare.

What…what a horrible dream! Killing game? We were selected for that "Program"!

Then he realized. The ones in the field…gym class?

He checked his watch. Afternoon classes had started. He'd overslept!

He quickly left the garden and trotted over to the school building. Today…today was…he checked his watch while running and saw it was Thursday.

The first Thursday afternoon period was literature. He felt relieved. He liked literature, and he did pretty well in that class. Plus his teacher, Kazuko Okazaki, liked him. So all he'd have to do is bow apologetically.

Literature. Favorite subject. Grades. Ms. Okazaki.

These words passing through his mind triggered a nostalgic feeling.

Shuya really did like literature. Even if the stories and essays in the textbooks were inundated with slogans in praise of the Republic or some silly "ideology," Shuya managed to discover words he liked.

Words were just as important to him as music. Because rock couldn't do without lyrics.

Speaking of words… the top student in literature, Noriko Nakagawa, wrote beautiful poetry. Compared to the song lyrics he struggled to come up with, her words were so much more concise and brilliant…they could be open and gentle on the one hand and harsh and strong on the other…he thought they represented the nature of girls in general. Sure, Yoshitoki Kuninobu had a crush on Noriko, but what really struck Shuya was this part of her.

Which made Shuya realize, oh, that means Yoshitoki is alive. Realizing how silly the whole ordeal was, he was about to cry from relief as he trotted over. How silly. I can't believe I could dream of Yoshitoki dying.

And how did I end up with Noriko?…Hey wait, since when did I stop calling her "Noriko-san"? How presumptuous…in that stupid dream, he thought. They were linked together in the dream…so does that mean I have some feelings for her beyond admiring her poetry? Uh oh, that means I'll end up fighting with Yoshitoki. That's trouble.

Still, this idle thought made him grin.

Shuya entered the school building, now hushed because classes were in session. He ran up the stairs.

Third Year Class B was on the third floor. He skipped every other step.

He reached the third floor and turned right into the hall. The second classroom was Class B.

Shuya stopped by the door for a moment, trying to come up with an excuse for Ms. Okazaki. He was feeling sick…no, he had a dizzy spell. So he had to lie down and rest. Would she believe him, given how he was always in perfect health? Yoshitoki would give an exaggerated shrug, and someone like Yutaka Seto would say something like, "I bet you were sleeping," Shinji Mimura would snicker, and Hiroki Sugimura, his arms folded, would look mildly amused. Noriko would smile at Shuya as he scratched his head. All right, that's what I'll go with. So what if it's embarrassing.

Shuya put his hand on the door, made himself look as apologetic as possible, and gently slid it open.

Right before he looked up from the formal posture he assumed, a stench assaulted him.

He looked up. He slid the door open with all his might.

The first thing he saw was someone lying by the lectern.

Ms. Okazaki…

It wasn't Ms. Okazaki. It was their head instructor, Masao Hayashida. And…

His head was missing. There was a puddle where it was supposed to be. Only half of his eyeglass frames were lying beside him.

Shuya tore his eyes off of Mr. Hayashida's corpse and examined the rest of the class.

There were desks and chairs lined up as usual.

The strange thing was that his familiar classmates were all sprawled over their desks. And…

The floor was covered with blood. An intense stench wafted up.

After standing still for a moment, he quickly reached out for Mayumi Tendo—and realized that an antenna-like silver arrow was planted in her back. Its tip was poking out of her stomach while blood dripped down and off her skirt onto the floor.

Shuya moved forward. He shook Kazushi Nüda's body. Kazushi's body tilted with a jerk, revealing its face.

Shuya felt a chill run up his spine. Kazushi's eyes were now two dark-red holes. Blood and a slimy egg-white-like substance oozed out of them. Then… there was a gimlet-like object with a thick handle stabbed into his mouth.

Shuya screamed and ran to Yoshitoki Kuninobu's seat. There were three holes in his back, each one blooming with flowers of blood. As he held him up, Yoshitoki's head slumped over onto his shoulder. His bulging eyes gazed up at the ceiling.

Yoshitoki!…

Shuya raised his voice. Then he looked around frantically.

Everyone was either slouched back in their chairs or lying on the floor.

Megumi Eto's throat was slashed like sliced watermelon. A sickle was planted in Yoji Kuramoto's head.

Sakura Ogawa's head was split open like an overripe fruit. Only half of Yoshimi Yahagi's head existed.

An axe was planted in Tatsumichi Oki's head, his face cracked down the middle, left and right out of alignment like a split peanut. Kyoichi Motobuchi's stomach looked like a sausage-factory trash bin.

Tadakatsu Hatagami's face was completely crushed and covered in blood. Hirono Shimizu's face was swollen black, and her sea-slug-sized tongue dangled out from the side of her wide open mouth. The body of The Third Man, Shinji Mimura, was covered with bullets.

Basically, everyone…was dead.

Something caught Shuya's eye. Shogo Kawada—that standoffish transfer student with the bad reputation—had deep stab wounds all over his chest. His eyes were half-open and looking down at the floor…they were out of focus.

Shuya took a deep breath and looked over at Noriko Nakagawa's seat. It was right behind Yoshitoki's, so he could have noticed earlier. For some reason though, it felt as if his classmates' seats were swirling around with the corpses. He finally managed to locate Noriko.

She was still sprawled on top of her desk.

Shuya ran to her and held her up.

THUD. Her head fell off. Leaving behind her body, it landed with a thud on the floor and rolled around in a pool of blood…and then looked up at Shuya. With eyes full of resentment. I thought you said you would save me, Shuya. But I ended up dying. I really loved you, too. I really did.

His eyes glued to Noriko's face, Shuya held his head and opened his mouth. He felt he was going crazy.

He could tell a scream was welling up inside.

Suddenly, he saw something white.

As he became physically aware that his body was in fact horizontal, his vision came into focus, and Shuya finally realized it was the ceiling. On the left side he saw a fluorescent light.

Someone gently touched his chest.

He realized how heavy he was breathing. His eyes followed the hand up to the arm, the arm up to the shoulder, and finally discerned a sailor-suit figure with braided hair— female class representative Yukie Utsumi (Female Student No. 2), smiling warmly.

"Looks like you're up. What a relief," she said.

14 students remaining

59

Shuya tried getting up, but the pain all over his body immediately assaulted him, and he fell back. He realized then he was lying on a soft bed with fresh sheets.

Yukie gently touched Shuya's chest again, then lifted the puffy blanket up to his neck. "Don't exert yourself. You're injured pretty badly…You seemed to be having a bad nightmare. Do you feel okay?"

Shuya wasn't able to respond coherently. Instead he surveyed the room. It was small. There was cheap fabric wallpaper on the left wall, and on the right behind Yukie was another bed, but besides that there wasn't much else. There was a door near the foot of the bed, but it was closed. The wooden frame gave it an old look. There seemed to be a window above his head letting in a dull light which illuminated the room. Given how dull the light was it seemed cloudy outside. But…where was he?

"I don't get it," Shuya said. He realized he could speak now. "I don't remember checking into a hotel with the student representative."

He was still in a half daze, but Yukie gave a sigh of relief. Then her full lips erupted into a soft chuckle.

"You would say that, wouldn't you? I'm so relieved you're all right though." Looking at Shuya, she added,

"You were out for quite some time. Let see…it's been," she looked down at her watch on her left wrist,

"about thirteen hours."

Thirteen hours? Thirteen hours. Thirteen hours ago I was—

Shuya's eyes opened wide. His memory and the present locked in. He was fully awake now.

There was something he needed to find out. Right away.

"What about Noriko, Noriko Nakagawa? And Shogo Kawada?"

Shuya said this and took a deep breath. Were they still alive?

Yukie gave him a funny look and then said, "I think Noriko…and Shogo are still alive. We just heard the afternoon announcement but their names weren't announced."

Shuya let out a deep breath. Noriko and Shogo had managed to escape. Kazuo had chased after him and ended up losing Noriko and Shogo. Kazuo was—

Shuya then looked up at Yukie.

"Kazuo. It's Kazuo!" His voice was half panicking. "Where are we? Are you alone here? We have to be careful!"

Yukie gently touched Shuya's right hand, which was sticking out from under his blanket. "Calm down."

Then she asked, "Did Kazuo do this to you?"

Shuya nodded. "He's the one who's been attacking us. He's totally up for this."

"Really…" Yukie nodded and continued, "We're safe here. They're six of us here, not including you.

Everyone else is keeping watch, so don't worry. They're all close friends of mine."

Shuya raised his brow. Six?

"Who?"

"Yuka Nakagawa," Yukie mentioned the cheery girl who had the same last name as Noriko. Then she continued, "Satomi Noda and Chisato Matsui. Haruka Tanizawa. And Yuko Sakaki."

Shuya licked his lips. Yukie saw the expression on his face and asked, "What? You can't trust them?

Which one? Everyone?"

"No…" Shuya shook his head. "If they're your friends I trust them."

But how did six girls, all good friends with each other, manage to get together?

Yukie smiled and squeezed his hand. "Good. I'm glad to hear that from you, Shuya."

Shuya smiled too. But his smile receded almost instantly. There were other things he had to know. He'd already missed three—the midnight, 6 a.m., and noon announcements.

"Who…died?" he asked. "I-I mean, at midnight, 6 a.m., and noon, there were three announcements, right? Did anyone else…die?"

Yukie's mouth stiffened. She took some paper from the small side table right beside them. It was a map and student list. The folds and mud stains looked familiar. He realized it was the one he'd kept in his school coat pocket.

Yukie looked over the list and said, "Hirono Shimizu. And then Keita Iijima, Toshinori Oda, Yutaka Seto, Yuichiro Takiguchi, Tadakatsu Hatagami, and Shinji Mimura."

Shuya's mouth hung open. Of course the game had proceeded, but he was shocked it now left only little more than a dozen students. Plus he'd been teammates with Tadakatsu Hatagami in Little League, but what really took him by surprise was…

"Shinji's…"

The Third Man, Shinji Mimura, had died. It was hard to believe. He thought if anyone could survive it would have been Shinji.

Yukie nodded silently.

At the same time Shuya was struck by how he wasn't all that shaken up. He'd gotten used to it. That must have been it. Still, he remembered Shinji's special grin. Then he recalled that serious expression Shinji wore as he sent him a signal, warning him to calm down when they were back in the school building.

So we're never going to see the awesome play of The Third Man, Shiroiwa Junior High's star shooting guard, again, he thought, and felt a pang of sorrow.

"When was Shinji's name announced?"

"In the morning," Yukie answered. "Keita Iijima and Yutaka Seto were also in the morning. They might have been together. They were such good friends."

"I see…"

Shinji had still been alive at midnight. And as Yukie said, he might have been with Yutaka Seto and Keita Iijima.

Yukie added, "There was an incredible explosion last night. And a lot of gunfire. That's where it might have come from."

"Explosion?"

Shuya recalled the hand grenade Kazuo threw at them. "That was…Kazuo actually used a hand grenade.

Maybe that's what you heard."

Yukie raised her brow. "So…that's what that was. That was a little past eleven, right? No, the one I'm talking about actually happened after we brought you here. It was past midnight. It was much worse than the one we heard around eleven. The one who kept watch said the entire center of the island just lit up."

Shuya pursed his lips, but then he realized he still hadn't managed to find out exactly where they were.

Before he could ask though, Yukie handed him the map and student list. "This is yours. I marked off the map too."

As he took it, Shuya realized, yes, there were more forbidden zones. He spread the map out.

"The place where we talked about rock."

That place, sector C=3, near the western shore, was crossed out with a pencil along with several other sectors. The small writing, "23rd, 11 a.m." meant that it was forbidden as of this morning at eleven, while Shuya had been asleep.

Shuya pursed his lips. Noriko and Shogo weren't there anymore—his thoughts were finally getting clearer—if they haven't died between noon and now. Of course they were alive…but then he recalled how he'd seen Shogo and Noriko dead along with Yoshitoki and Shinji in his dream. He felt a chill run down his spine.

But in any case they should be alive. All he could do was believe they were all right. But how in the world would he find them?

Shuya put the map down on his chest. He couldn't afford to waste any time deliberating, under these circumstances. The first thing was information.

And since he wasn't alone there might be a way.

He looked up at Yukie. "Where are we anyway? How did I end up in this bed?"

Yukie looked up at the window and said, "This is a lighthouse."

"Lighthouse?"

"That's right. On the northeast end of the island. It's marked on the map. We've been staying here ever since the game started."

Shuya looked at his map again. Just as Yukie said, the lighthouse was located in sector C=10, jutting out from the northeast side of the island. The area was practically devoid of forbidden zones.

"So Shuya, about last night. The front of this lighthouse is a cliff, and that's where you fell. The person keeping watch found you…and took you in. You were injured pretty badly. Covered with blood. I thought you were going to die."

Shuya finally realized his torso was naked and that his throbbing left shoulder was bandaged. (Given how it felt, he deduced the bullet shattered his shoulder blade and was now lodged in there.) The right side of his neck—he felt a burning sensation right below his collar where there was another bandage (but this bullet wound must have been a minor scrape). And then on top of his left elbow. (It felt heavy. The bullet had most likely exited, but perhaps because the bone or tendon was torn off, it felt paralyzed.) Also his left side. (The bullet had pierced it, but it seemed to have missed his vital organs.) Shuya awkwardly moved his unscathed right arm and lifted his blanket, confirming he was indeed covered with bandages.

He returned the blanket and asked, "So you treated me."

"Yes," Yukie nodded. "We found an emergency first-aid kit in the lighthouse. We stitched your wounds a little. Not a great job, since we didn't know what we were doing and we could only use the string and needle from a sewing set. It looks like the bullet in your shoulder…is lodged in there. We couldn't do much. I thought what you really needed was a blood transfusion. You were bleeding so badly."

"Thanks a lot."

"Oh no," Yukie smiled kindly. "I can't believe I got to touch a guy's body! I even got to take off your clothes."

Shuya chuckled. While she was both very smart and considerate, she could also say bold stuff like that.

That's right, she'd been like that ever since he got to know her on a rainy day in the elementary school gym, negotiating the space allocated for Little League practice and girls' volleyball. And that's right, at the time he'd said to Yoshitoki, "Then there's Utsumi, who's on the volleyball team. She's pretty cool. That's my type. You know, real outgoing."

Of course right now he wasn't supposed to be indulging in idle emotions. But when Yukie said, "Oh, yeah, here," and offered him a cup of water, Shuya couldn't resist whistling. He was in fact really thirsty.

The cup was already there, on the side table beyond his field of vision.

He thought, how impressive, Representative. You'll be a wonderful wife some day, no, a wonderful woman. No, you might in fact be a wonderful woman now. I've actually thought that for a while.

He took the cup, raised his head, and drank. His neck wound hurt as he swallowed and grimaced. But he drank it all.

"I might be asking for too much," he said, returning the cup, "but I think I should drink a lot more. And also…do you have any kind of painkiller? Anything. It'll help me."

Yukie nodded. "Sure. I'll go get some."

Shuya wiped his lips and then said, "It's amazing your friends accepted me. I mean, I could be an enemy."

Yukie shook her head. "We couldn't just let someone die. Besides…" She stared into Shuya's eyes and smiled playfully. "It was you, Shuya. I'm leading this group, so I forced everyone to agree."

Did that mean that…she also thought there was something special about them ever since that time at the elementary school gym?

Shuya probed further. "Which means…that some of them were reluctant. I knew it."

"Well, come on. Given the circumstances." Yukie looked down. "Don't take it the wrong way.

Everyone's very agitated."

"Yeah." Shuya nodded. "I know."

"But I convinced them." She looked up and smiled again. "So you should be thankful."

Shuya was nodding when he noticed Yukie, who'd just been smiling, was now for some reason suddenly on the verge of tears.

She stared at him and said, "I was worried sick. I thought you might die, Shuya."

Shuya was taken by surprise and looked at her.

Yukie continued, "I just wouldn't know what to do if you died."

Her voice was now sobbing.

"…do you understand what I'm saying? Do you see why I had to save you, no matter what?"

Shuya stared at Yukie's tearful eyes and slowly nodded. Then he thought, geez, I can't believe how popular I am.

Of course…this might have been a psychological result of their confinement. Under these circumstances, they were probably going to die soon (no, according to the rules, they were definitely going to die. He'd never heard of someone else besides the winner surviving the hellish Program), and now that the survivors were becoming fewer and fewer, maybe a boy that you liked "a little" ever since having an exchange in the corner of an elementary school gym might turn into somebody you'd "die for."

No, that probably wasn't the case. She couldn't have opposed her friends unless she really cared for him.

Besides, how else could she have trusted him?

"I understand. Thanks," he said.

Yukie wiped her tears with the lower palm of her right hand. Then she said, "Tell me. You asked about Noriko and Shogo. You said, 'we.' Does that mean you were with them?"

Shuya nodded.

Yukie knit her brows. "I get Noriko…but don't tell me you were really with Shogo."

Shuya knew what she was getting at. "Shogo's not a bad guy," he said. "He saved me. Noriko and me survived thanks to him. I'm sure Shogo's protecting Noriko right now…That's right. There's something more urgent," he continued enthusiastically. "I forgot. We can be saved, Yukie."

"Saved?"

Shuya nodded emphatically. "Shogo's going to save us. He knows a way out of here."

Yukie opened her eyes wide. "Really? Really? What is it?"

Shuya stopped suddenly. Shogo had told him, I can't tell you till the end.

Come to think of it…Shuya had nothing to support it. He trusted Shogo, but he wasn't so sure his explanation would persuade Yukie, who hadn't been with Shogo. As Shogo himself constantly reminded him, she might suspect Shogo was using Shuya and the others.

Shuya decided though to explain everything from the beginning.

He told her how he'd been attacked by Yoshio Akamatsu from the very beginning, how he'd been with Noriko ever since then, how he'd fought Tatsumichi Oki, and how, while Kyoichi Motobuchi was shooting at him, Shogo had saved him and how the three were together ever since. He told her about the escape plan, how Shogo was a survivot of the Program last year, how Noriko had a fever, and how they went over to the clinic. That's right, and then about Hiroki Sugimura. How Hiroki told them that Mitsuko Souma was dangerous. And then how they were attacked by Kazuo Kiriyama while they were on the move.

"So Tatsumichi…" After he was done she brought up Tatsumichi Old first for some reason, "…that was an accident?"

"That's right. Just as I described it," he replied and knit his brows, looking at her. "What about it?"

Yukie shook her head. She said, "It's nothing," and changed the subject, "I'm sorry for being so blunt, but I can't just all of a sudden trust Shogo. I mean, that there's a way out of here."

Shuya still didn't understand why Yukie had asked him about Tatsumichi, but he figured it couldn't be all that important so he let it pass and accepted Yukie's skepticism.

"I don't blame you. But I think we can trust Shogo. It's hard to explain, but he's good," he impatiently waved his uninjured right hand by his face. "You'd understand if you were with him."

Yukie pressed her right fingers against her lips and said, "All right. It sounds like we should at least hear him out. I mean it's not like we have any other option."

Shuya looked at her. "What were you planning on doing?"

Yukie shrugged. "I thought it was hopeless. We were just discussing whether we were better off trying to escape or staying here a little longer. But we haven't made any decisions."

Shuya then realized he'd forgotten to ask something else he'd forgotten. "How did you guys get together?

All six of you?"

"Oh," Yukie nodded. "I went back to the school, and I called on everyone."

Shuya was surprised. "When?"

"That would have to be right after you and Noriko ran away. Actually, I saw Kazushi Nüda run…I really wanted to get back in time to contact you, but anyway, that's how I saw…those two dead right in front of the school entrance."

Shuya raised his brow. "Yoshio was only unconscious, right?"

Yukie shook her head. "I wasn't able to get a close look…but he looked dead at that point. There was an arrow…stuck in his neck."

"Then Kazushi—"

Yukie nodded. "I think so."

Shuya then asked, "Weren't you scared there'd be others like Yoshio?"

"Of course the thought occurred to me…but I just couldn't come up with any other option other than forming a group. So I went to the woods in front. I figured if I hid there I wouldn't be seen. And if I was, then that was just too bad."

Shuya was deeply moved. He had to look after Noriko, who was injured, but still, he'd passed on the others and ran away. Hiroki Sugimura said he'd waited for Takako Chigusa, but he was a guy, and he also practiced martial arts.

"Wow. I'm amazed, Representative."

Yukie smiled.

"You call Noriko by her name, but with me it's 'Representative,' huh?"

Shuya didn't know what to say. "Oh well—"

"Don't worry, it's all right."

A smile flashed across her face. Then she continued a little sadly, "Then Yuka Nakagawa came out…and I called her."

"Were you able to convince her right away? Don't get me wrong—I think you have a good reputation."

"Oh, well." Yukie nodded. "I didn't come back alone. I was really shaken up at first, but I just had to come back, and on the way back, I totally lucked out, I found Haruka. You know how Haruka and I are best friends.

Shuya nodded. Haruka Tanizawa and Yukie were both on the volleyball team.

"I talked to Haruka. When I told her we should go back she resisted at first, but we had weapons. I had a pistol in my pack. When Yuka heard the two of us call she managed to trust us."

After some consideration, Shuya mentioned that "rule": "But…you can't necessarily trust someone who's paired up in this game."

Yukie nodded. "Yes, that turned out to be true."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, we decided not to have boys…sorry…we discussed it and decided boys could mean trouble. So we let them go, and then there was Fumiyo—" Yukie stopped. Fumiyo Fujiyoshi (Female Student No.

18) had died before their departure. "After her came Chisato. So there were five of us. We also called on Kaori Minami but…"

Shuya filled in the rest, "She ran away."

"Yes, she did."

Shuya realized he hadn't told her that he'd seen her die. He thought of telling her—but decided not to.

Now that Kaori's killer Hirono Shimizu was also dead, it didn't seem relevant and besides, it wasn't a pleasant memory. Also, as awful as it sounded, he couldn't afford to waste any more time talking about the dead.

"So Yoshimi reacted the same way as Kaori?" Shuya uttered the name of the last female student seat number, Yoshimi Yahagi, along with Kaori's and suddenly felt a chill run down his spine. Names of the dead. Both of them. Both… of…them. Jesus. The smiling face of the man in the black suit made a sudden appearance in Shuya's mind. It'd been a while. Hey there, Shuya. So you're still alive? You're a tough one.

"Well…" Yukie looked away from Shuya and pursed her lips. She squinted. "That was different."

"How so?"

Yukie took a deep breath. "I said we should call on her. But some of the girls protested. You know Yoshimi was friends with Mitsuko. They couldn't trust her."

Shuya fell silent.

Yukie said looking away. "So she's dead. We let her die."

Shuya said, "No, you're wrong."

Yukie looked back at Shuya.

"It was beyond your control. It's no one's fault."

He knew it didn't sound very convincing, but that's all he could say .

Yukie grinned wryly and sighed. "You're kind. You've always been so nice."

They nearly fell silent, but then Shuya had to say something, "You should have called on Shinji." Yukie's group could have at least called on Shinji Mimura, who was at the tail end of the student list. "He could have been trusted."

Yukie sighed again. "I thought so too…but Shinji didn't have a very good reputation…among the girls.

You know, he was kind of a playboy. And his intelligence was kind of intimidating. You know how he intervened when Noriko was injured? One of the girls said that might have been calculated."

It was the same explanation Shogo gave when he mentioned he'd seen Shinji.

"Before we could decide, Shinji was gone." Yukie shrugged. "In any case, we'd decided against boys. So we didn't call on Kazuhiko either."

That's right. Kazuhiko Yamamoto, who went out with Sakura Ogawa, who despite his good looks was kind and unpretentious, and therefore must have been popular with the girls. Yukie's group decided against contacting him too, though. And given this policy, it was only to be expected there'd be some friction over taking in Shuya here.

Shuya realized Yukie only accounted for five of them. She hadn't mentioned Yuko Sakaki (Female Student No. 9).

"What about Yuko? You haven't mentioned her."

Yukie nodded and looked back at Shuya. "That was luck too. We came here yesterday morning…Nice fortress huh? Last night, I think it was around 8 p.m., Yuko just stumbled by here. She was totally terrified."

Yukie stopped as if she had something else to say. Shuya was about to ask her what was wrong, but Yukie continued, "…in any case, everyone knows Yuko. So it wasn't a problem."

That summed up her account. Shuya thought of asking more about Yuko Sakaki but decided not to. If she'd been alone until last night then she might have encountered something horrible. Did she survive someone's attack, or did she see students killings each other, or did she come across a corpse torn up from fighting?…

Shuya nodded slightly several times. "I get it now."

"There's one thing I don't get," Yukie said. "It's not a big deal but…Hiroki was saying he needed to see Kayoko Kotohiki, right? And that was why he didn't join your group."

Shuya was worried about him ever since he summarized his situation to Yukie. Hiroki was still alive and so was Kayoko Kotohiki. Did he manage to find her?

"He had to see her. I wonder why."

Shuya shook his head. "We didn't ask. He was in a hurry. We were wondering too—"

As he spoke Shuya couldn't help but wonder, did Hiroki manage to find Kayoko Kotohiki? If he did then—

Shogo's voice suddenly returned: "This sound is your ticket out of here. If you're up for it, you can come aboard our train."

Shuya opened his eyes wide and exclaimed, "The bird call."

"What?"

Shuya looked over at Yukie. "I know a way we can join Noriko and Shogo."

"Really?"

Shuya nodded. Then he struggled to move his body. He could explain later. "I have to contact him now. I have to get going."

"Hold on," Yukie stopped him. "You need to rest."

"I can't. The more I lie around—"

"I said hold on. You might want to listen to the girl who's in love with you." She managed to say this as she blushed a little with a playful smile. "We took you in here because even if you woke up you wouldn't be able to move. Your sudden burst of energy might terrify some of the girls."

Shuya's eyes opened wide. But then again it made sense. That was probably why the other girls let Yukie stay with him alone here.

Yukie continued, "In any case, just stay put for a while. I'll tell them everything you told me. I'll insist you and Shogo can be trusted and convince them. As for contacting him and Noriko, I can't let you do that alone. That's just too dangerous. I'll discuss that with them too. So you just stay here." Then she asked him, "Can you eat?"

"Yeah."

In fact he was famished. He was worried about Noriko and Shogo, but he thought he should eat first. It would help his immune system fight against his gunshot wounds.

"If you have any food to spare I'd really appreciate it. I do feel pretty weak."

Yukie smiled. "We're preparing lunch right now. I'll bring you some. I think it's something like stew. Is that all right?"

"Stew?"

"Yeah, this place is loaded with food even though it's all just preserved canned food and retort food. But we found water and solid fuel, so we were able to cook it."

"Awesome. That's great."

Yukie's hand left the edge of the bed. She walked over to the door and said, "I'm really sorry but I'm going to have to lock the door."

"Huh?"

"I'm sorry. There's someone who's terrified. So please, just wait," Yukie said. She smiled kindly as she opened the door and went out. Her two braids of hair swung like some mysterious animal's tail, and he caught a glimpse of a gun stuck in the back of her skirt.

There was a clacking sound from beyond the door. It might have been bolted shut. Was that how they locked him up?

Shuya managed to raise his upper body with his right elbow and looked up at the window above his head. The window was sealed with wooden planks and light leaked in through the gaps. This was done to keep intruders out—but right now it also served as an ideal place to lock him up.

The fingers of his near paralyzed left arm reflexively formed guitar chords under the blanket. The chords from that hit tune sung by the rock star the middle-aged man, the one who gave him his guitar, worshipped, "Jailhouse Rock."

Shuya took a deep breath and lay down on his bed. The slight movement was enough to send sharp pain through the wound in his side.

14 students remaining

60

The Okishima Island lighthouse was old but durable. It faced north with a tower seventeen meters high, and the living quarters, a single-story brick building, had been built as an annex to the tower on its south side. The dining-kitchen-living room was immediately south of the tower, and further south was the storage room and bathroom. Further down were two bedrooms, one large, the other small, along with another storage room right near the front entrance. The hall running on the west side of the building connected these rooms. (Shuya was resting in the small bedroom by the entrance.) In the corner of the kitchen-living room, which was at least as large as a classroom, was a small table that looked out of place. Yuko Sakaki (Female Student No. 9) was sitting on one of the stools around the table, slumped over the white tabletop as if she were dozing off. Unlike the other five girls, she had wandered around the island for hours on end, so a single night here had hardly alleviated her fatigue. No wonder. She had a reason for not sleeping at all last night.

Yukie Utsumi's team used this room as their living quarters and slept here too. Someone had to keep watch at the top of the tower, but otherwise Yukie decided that everyone should stick together.

Right behind Yuko, Haruka Tanizawa (Female Student No. 12) and Chisato Matsui (Female Student No. 19) were busily preparing the preserved food in front of the stove, where solid fuel was lit up in place of the shut-off gas. At 172 centimeters tall, Haruka was an attacker on the volleyball team. She and Yukie, who was a setter, formed a great duo. She had short hair, so next to the long-haired, petit Chisato they almost looked like a couple. The meal was a retort stew mixed with canned vegetables. Above them were planks of wood they found in the storage room and hastily hammered into the frosted glass window, which let in the dull light of the cloudy sky. The planks were there to keep intruders out. As soon as they had arrived Yukie and the girls immediately sealed off every entrance and exit from the inside of the building. (The front entrance was designated as their primary entrance-exit, which was where they took Yuko in, but now it was barricaded with desks and lockers.) Yuko had a clear view of the other side of the room where there was a writing desk with a fax machine and computer. To the left of it, Satomi Noda (Female Student No. 17) was sitting on a sofa placed against the wall, while the table that had been in front of it was now used to barricade the front entrance.

Along with Yukie, Satomi was a model student, and although she always seemed a little frigid, now she looked pretty exhausted as she raised her wire-rimmed glasses and drowsily rubbed her eyes.

To the left of the sofa, the kitchen's side door connected to the hall that led to the front entrance. On Yuko's right, the far door on the other side led to the bottom of the tower, and the first several steel stairs leading up to the lantern room were visible. Yuka Nakagawa (Female Student No. 16) was up there, supposedly keeping watch. Yuko hadn't kept watch yet, but Yukie had told her that since the lighthouse faced the ocean, and since there was only one narrow path from the harbor behind the building, the rest of the area surrounded by mountains, it wasn't very difficult to keep watch. Yukie was now in the room right by the entrance where they'd kept Shuya Nanahara.

Shuya Nanahara.

Yuko felt the tremor of fear returning. Along with it the image that was burnt into her memory. The cracked head. The bloody axe removed from it. And the boy who held this axe.

It was a chilling memory. And this boy—Shuya Nanahara—was now in the lighthouse, the same building she was in. That was—

No, it's all right. It's all right.

Trying to keep herself from trembling, she stared at the white tabletop and reminded herself, that's right, he's dying, he can't possibly wake up after so many injuries and so much bleeding.

Someone tapped her on the shoulder and she looked up.

As Haruka Tanizawa sat down next to her, she stared at Yuko and asked, "Did you get any sleep?" She was taking a break from cooking. Chisato Matsui seemed to be checking the cooking instructions, examining the package of preserved food. (Chisato had in fact been quietly weeping this morning.

Haruka Tanizawa had whispered to her it was because of the 6 a.m. announcement of Shinji Mimura's death. Until then Yuko hardly knew Chisato had a crush on Shinji Mimura. Her eyes were still red.) Yuko forced a smile and answered, "Yeah, a little." It was all right. As long as she was with these other five friends she was all right. She was safe here. Even if that safety would expire when their time ran out.

Still—

Haruka brought up the matter. "What you said about yesterday."

"Oh…" Yuko smiled. "It's all right now."

That's right. It was fine now. She didn't even want to think about it. Just the memory sent chills down her spine. But…in any case…

Shuya Nanahara wasn't going to wake up again. Then it was all right. Just fine.

Haruka smiled ambivalently. "Well then, okay."

That's right…When Shuya Nanahara was discovered unconscious in front of the lighthouse yesterday, Yuko had vehemently opposed taking him in. She had explained (she was shouting rather than explaining) what she'd seen, Tatsumichi Oki's split-open skull, how Shuya Nanahara had removed the axe, how dangerous he was, and how he would try to kill them if they let him live.

Yuko and Yukie were on the verge of fighting, but then Haruka and the others insisted they couldn't just let someone die, so they brought Shuya in. Yuko looked on, face ashen, keeping her distance, while the others carried the blood-drenched Shuya. It was as if they were welcoming a strange, scary monster that haunted you in your childhood dreams into your house. No, that's exactly what it was like.

But…as time passed Yuko convinced herself Shuya was dying. After all, he couldn't possibly survive those wounds. Knowing he would die of course was unappealing, but in any case she managed to hold herself back. The one condition she insisted on, though, was that his room be locked.

Haruka continued. It was the same question they had asked several times yesterday. "You say you saw Shuya kill Tatsumichi, but it might have been in self-defense, right?"

That was true. She'd been hiding in the bushes when she heard the thudding sound. By the time she looked, the only part she really witnessed was Shuya removing the axe from Tatsumichi Oki's head. Then she immediately ran away.

In other words, as Haruka said (which was based on Yuko's own description), Yuko had only seen the aftermath. It was possible he had done it in self-defense. However…

…no matter how many times Haruka and Yukie said this to her, Yuko just couldn't see it that way. No, she simply rejected the idea.

What do you mean, "possible"? I saw that cracked skull. I saw Shuya Nanahara holding that axe. The bloody axe. The dripping blood.

Her thoughts revolved around this scene now. Yuko couldn't be rational about Shuya Nanahara anymore. It was like a natural disaster, like a flood or tornado. The moment Yuko began thinking about Shuya, that scene and her fear would just wash it all away. The only thing left was an axiom that was nearly visceral— that Shuya Nanahara was dangerous.

Yuko had her reasons. She abhorred violence. She couldn't stand it. Hearing a friend talk about a splatter film in Class B (was it Yuka Nakagawa? "Of course, it was funny, but, it wasn't a big deal, it should have more gory, ha ha ha") she felt sick enough to be taken to the school nurse.

It was probably related to her memory of her father. Even though he wasn't a stepfather—he was her real father—he drank heavily and abused her mother, her older brother, and Yuko herself. She was too young back then…so Yuko didn't understand why. She was never able to ask her mother why he was like that. She didn't even want to remember it. Well, maybe there were no reasons at all. She didn't know. In any case, when her father was stabbed to death by a yakuza over some gambling dispute—Yuko was still in first grade—she felt more relieved than bereaved. Ever since then she, her mother, and brother led a peaceful life. They could invite friends over. They finally felt safe with the disappearance of their father.

But she still sometimes had dreams about him. Her bleeding mother being beaten with a golf club (even though they were poor, this was the one expensive item in their home). Her brother being beaten with an ashtray, nearly losing his sight. And…herself, suffering cigarette burns, paralyzed with fear (her mother who tried to intervene would then be beaten again).

Maybe all of that was related, maybe not. In any case, Yuko was absolutely convinced Shuya Nanahara was dangerous.

"Right?" She heard Haruka say that emphatically, but her words didn't register. A chill ran through her body, accompanied by a vision. Everyone including herself, the six of them lying on the floor, their skulls cracked open, and Shuya Nanahara grinning with an axe in his hand…

No, no. It's going to be over. Shuya Nanahara won't be around for long.

"Yes." She looked up and nodded. In fact, she had no idea what Haruka was talking about. But in any case as long as Shuya couldn't recover there was no reason to throw the team off balance. Haruka seemed to be seeking some indication she was convinced.

"Y-yes. It was just me. I was so tired too."

This seemed to put Haruka at ease. She said, "Shuya's a good guy. They're aren't too many around like him."

Yuko looked at Haruka as if she were a mummy exhibited in a museum. She had thought so too, until recently. Shuya seemed strange, but all in all there was something very likable about him. In fact, she'd even thought he was kind of cool.

But any memory of this feeling had completely fallen by the wayside now. Maybe it was more accurate to say the cracked-skull scene had smothered out all her other memories.

What? What are you saying, Haruka? That he's good? What are you talking about?

Haruka looked into Yuko's eyes dubiously, but added, "So even if he gets up, don't provoke him, okay?"

Yuko was horrified. There was no way he was going to wake up. If…if that ever happened…

But a portion of her rational faculties were still intact enough for her to nod and say, "I'm fine. No problem."

"Good. I feel much better."

Haruka nodded back, turned towards Chisato without getting up, and said, "Smells good."

Along with the steam, the smell of the stew came drifting from the stove pot.

Chisato turned her head around and said in her quiet, thin voice, "Yes, it looks pretty good. It might be better than yesterday's soup."

She had been crying over Shinji Mimura for a long time, but she seemed all right for the time being. Even Yuko could see that.

Right then, the door to the hall opened up. It was Yukie Utsumi. As usual she maintained her perfect posture and walked forward confidently. After Yuko's arrival, Yukie still did a good job leading the group, but she seemed a little tired. Ever since they took in Shuya she looked even more distressed. (It was in fact because she was on the one hand happy to see Shuya, but on the other worried his wounds might prove to be fatal, but this was beyond the scope of Yuko's perception.) Yuko felt like it'd been a while since she last saw Yukie so energetic, but now her face was beaming.

Yuko felt as if a caterpillar was crawling up her spine. She had a bad feeling about this.

Yukie stopped, put her hands on her waists, and looked around at everyone. Then she comically cupped her hands against her mouth in the shape of a megaphone.

Then she said, "Shuya Nanahara has arisen."

Haruka and Chisato cried out with joy while Satomi got up from her sofa, but next to her…

…Yuko turned pale.

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"Really? Can he speak?" Haruka asked.

"Uh huh. He says he's hungry too." Yukie nodded and then looked over at Yuko and said, "It's all right. I locked the door to his room so you wouldn't have to worry."

She wasn't being sarcastic. It sounded more like she was doing what she should do as the leader.

But that wasn't the point, Yuko thought. No, actually she had considered it over and over last night.

While she was certain he would never recover, what if he did? Then how would she deal with it?

And…then the odor drifted by.

What timing. They were about to eat. Besides…it wouldn't be that odd for a guy in critical condition to die suddenly, would it?

Yuko forced a smile (indeed, it was impeccable) and shook her head. "I'm not worried," she continued,

"I'm sorry. I was all screwed up yesterday. I won't hold anything against Shuya anymore."

This seemed to relieve Yukie. She took a deep breath.

"Well then, I guess I didn't need to lock the door." She smiled at Yuko and added, "What happened with Tatsumichi Oki was an accident. That's what Shuya said."

Hearing Tatsumichi's name, Yuko had a flashback of that scene which sent another chill down her spine, but she managed to keep her smile and nodded. An accident. Well, I suppose it was quite an accident for Tatsumichi Oki.

Yukie then said to Haruka, "Hey, Haruka, can you go get Yuka? There's something I need to discuss."

Haruka asked back, "Shouldn't she be keeping watch?"

"It's all right," Yukie nodded. "The building is sealed, so we're fine. It'll be brief."

Haruka nodded and entered the room leading up to the lantern room. You could hear footsteps clang up the steel stairs.

While Satomi and Chisato asked in succession, "How is he?" and "Can he eat the same stuff we're eating?" Yuko quietly stood up from her chair and walked over to the sink.

There was a stack of several deep dishes right beside the steaming stew pot. Chisato and Haruka had taken them out of the dish cabinet.

Yuko dug her hand into her skirt pocket and touched the object inside. The weapon she found in her day pack was a telescoping spring baton, but what she now held was this item labeled "special bonus," the item she had thought was useless. Even after she was welcomed here she didn't think there was much point in mentioning it. But when Shuya Nanahara showed up she came up with this idea, so she kept it a secret.

In the past…her father's violence, his terrorization of the rest of her family, ended unexpectedly. That was how her family finally attained peace.

Now there was another threat. She had to put a stop to it. Once she did…she would be safe again. She wouldn't have to be terrified anymore.

She felt no hesitation. Oddly enough, she was calm.

She removed the cork lid of the tiny bottle inside her pocket with one hand.