Chapter six (segment nine), 2017, spring break

The last Sunday of their spring break Yukio was supposed to meet Ryu, who wanted to tell him something strange that happened.

The last Sunday of their spring break Yukio sat together with Kyoko, listening to a Sato-sensei livid with rage.

Two older men he had never seen before listened to her yelling, together with Principal Nakagawa; former Principal Nakagawa. He was retired now.

From time to time Principal Nakagawa spiced Sato-sensei's yelling with a few choice curses of his own. They were both very much in agreement.

As for Yukio, he stared at the display in bewilderment, and by his side Kyoko sat looking scared. As scared as he was himself.

A minute earlier her father had stormed out of the room screaming obscenities that would have had him expelled had he been a student at Himekaizen. Yukio agreed with all of them, every single curse accentuated exactly what he felt.

“… don't care what you think you fucking whore-sons! They're getting an escort, and that's final!”

“Please Sato-san...”

“Please Lieutenant Colonel Sato! Shut the hell up and do as you're ordered! They gave me this rank just because I'd outrank you.”

Kyoko covered her ears.

“Ma'am!” Both men came to attention.

“It's just the...” one of them tried.

“Just the what?”

“The arms. Why an armed escort?”

Sato-sensei stared at the man with thunder in her eyes. “Because they were assaulted by a gun-toting maniac, one who shot and killed a police! Were you two born morons, or did you need some special education to lower your intelligence that way?”

Yukio noted how Principal Nakagawa grinned wildly at the assessment. One of them looked at him for help.

“No no,” he said. “I wouldn't use her language, but none of you two fill the requirements to be accepted to Himekaizen.”

Which was just about the same as using Sato-sensei's language.

One of the men reddened and tried to rise, only to be dragged back down by his colleague.

“Ma'am, we need solid evidence first.”

“Are you trying to tell me Kareyoshi managed to hide even one of the tracks leading back to him? Her bloody father fucking managed to dig him up!” Sato-sensei pointed at Kyoko who still sat with her hands over he ears.

'Her father' hadn't, not really. After he started making questions Yukio made a digital excursion of his own, and with Kyoko's father watching over his back the screen soon filled with an intricate net of information all pointing back at their English teacher. Now Yukio understood what Urufu meant when he said Kareyoshi needed a dictionary to find the meaning of the word discreet, and that he'd still fail understanding it.

“Ma'am, is that armed escort an order?” The protests had gone out of his voice.

“Finally! Yes, with that murderer taking the helm I'm not risking anything.”

And so it was decided. As soon as they could muster the men Yukio and Kyoko would go to school and leave school with an armed bodyguard. Yukio wasn't so certain the reason was their safety, more likely that Sato-sensei wanted Kareyoshi to know that the other side knew about everything he had done.

Looks like a fun second year, Yukio thought glumly. Well, as long as he had Kyoko he could face anything.

They left the nondescript building that had served as Kyoko's private hospital a couple of months earlier. The surgical facility was still inside, somewhere. He didn't have a lot of good memories from the place and tried his best at forgetting.

“Urufu, heard anything?” Sato-sensei asked when she drove them home.

Yukio shook his head. He guessed Kyoko did the same from the back seat. He didn't have Urufu's technical skills when it came to digging up a presence on the net. His skills lay in his understanding of dozens of communities, and the contacts he made on them. While some of his otaku contacts were bat shit crazy they were still very good at sniffing out stuff online.

“Sorry, Sato-sensei,” Yukio said in case she hadn't understood his gesture. “He's gone, but he can take care of himself.”

She looked at him when they stopped at a red-light. “You trust him that much?”

“We both do,” Kyoko said. “You know, this is the first time I've seen him hurt. He just needs some time to think things over.”

Think things over. Yeah, man, that's what you usually do. But it was fine mess Urufu put himself into this time. I just hope you're right, Kyoko.

Sato-sensei must have seen his hesitation. “But you're still worried, aren't you?”

“Yes, yes we are. I wonder where he is.”

When Sato-sensei didn't say anything, Yukio took his phone and sent Ryu a message. Maybe they could still meet, even if it meant being a little late.

By the time they reached Kyoko's home Ryu still hadn't answered. He still hadn't when Yukio unlocked his own door. That was reason enough to call him, but now Ryu's phone was out of service, just like Urufu's.

Well, they'd meet tomorrow. If it wasn't important enough for Ryu to keep his phone on, Yukio guessed whatever it was Ryu wanted to talk about could wait another day.

Yukio announced his arrival, but the flat was dark. His mother was probably out shopping. With the flat for himself he drew a bath and prepared to wait for her. At least he had someone to wait for.

Urufu, damn it! What the hell are you doing? Where are you?