JULY 2 (POV - YOSHIDA)
The entire day at the City K surveillance station had felt endless, and I was ready to leave. Outside, it was pouring rain; I'd always loved the rain at this time of year. The sound against the asphalt. Against the shop windows. Against the metal roof. It was almost hypnotic.
The television was still on, as always. Always tuned to the news channel, though it was ironic that we were supposed to be watching the city while someone else informed us about what was happening. "Heavy rain is expected," the news anchor announced. "Umbrellas and ponchos are recommended."
It was finally 8:00 p.m., because, in case you didn't know, I had a date with a pretty girl I met at the supermarket. And for the first time in ages... I was nervous about something other than work.
The boss's office door opened, making me stop reading the newspaper and turn to look. "Who is it?"
I barely peeked my head in. "I'm Yoshida, sir. May I come in?"
His expression softened. "Ah, it's you. Come in."
I entered and stood at attention respectfully. "Good evening, Mr. Watanabi."
"Relax, Yoshida. I know why you're here. You can leave early."
Hearing that made me incredibly excited, but out of respect, I had to control myself.
The stationmaster—whom we secretly nicknamed "Watanabi Soul"—was a tall man with completely white hair and an equally thick mustache. Despite his age, he maintained a commanding presence. He was the one who gave me the job. I owed him a great deal.
He stood up and walked to the window to watch the rain fall with a serene expression, and then, with his usual composure, addressed me. "Times change, Yoshida."
However, I hadn't been paying attention; I was looking at my watch. "Did he say something, sir?"
"People don't trust the police anymore. Or the army." He turned slowly. "Now they talk about heroes. Associations. Guys with powers who promise to protect the cities."
He threw the newspaper onto the desk; the headline covered the entire front page.
"Apparently, a new group of so-called heroes has formed in recent weeks and they are patrolling the cities."
I didn't understand what he meant until I picked up the newspaper and read the headline: "Illegal Heroes Protect the City." Apparently, what it meant was that they were protecting the cities by helping people, just like the heroes of the association, but since they weren't part of it, they were considered criminals. "They're playing at being heroes," I muttered.
Watanabi sat down and looked at me. "If groups like this keep appearing," he said calmly, "in a few years, no one will remember neighborhood watch groups. Or the police. Or the army."
I hesitated before saying something foolish. "If they're illegal... then they have no authority." I looked up. "If we cooperate with the police and catch one of them, people will trust us again."
Watanabi looked at me, smiling. "Didn't you have an appointment?"
"Ah... right." I stood up immediately. "Have a good night." And without another word, I quickly left the station.
From the window, Watanabi watched me leave. "She's certainly very enthusiastic."
My appointment was in City A, and I had to catch the train, but first I stopped at a flower shop. "Excuse me, how much is a bouquet of roses?"
An elderly woman came out of the small stall carrying a rain poncho. Her smile was, without a doubt, the kindest thing I had seen all day. "Two thousand yen, sir."
"Okay, give me one, please."
As soon as I bought the bouquet, I headed to the station as quickly as possible. The rain didn't worry me; I was wearing a poncho that I always carry with me, and the elderly woman wrapped it carefully, protecting it from the water with several layers of decorative paper.
I finally arrived; just two more blocks. As I turned the corner, I bumped into a young woman, maybe twenty years old; she didn't have time to apologize and kept running. I didn't understand why until I looked ahead again and saw several people start running in terror. And then, a second later, there was a noise.
A demon-level Kaijin, the size of a building, was rampaging through the street, and apparently, some Class A heroes were attacking it from different angles, but they weren't doing any damage. But I couldn't get distracted; my bouquet was a few meters away. The paper was stained, but the roses were still intact. I tried to get closer, and then I saw it. A huge piece of rubble broke off from the building and was heading straight for me; it was bigger than me. I looked around; no heroes were coming. It was the end for me. I was going to die without ever having known what it was like to have a girlfriend, so I closed my eyes and accepted my fate.
Suddenly, I felt a hand tugging at my poncho, and when I opened my eyes, the ground had vanished beneath my feet. All I managed to shout was, "My bouquet!" The woman holding me made a sudden movement in the air and landed on the roof of a nearby building. As soon as we touched the ground, she let go, and I tumbled across the wet cement before coming to a stop.
I looked up quickly; I was still dizzy. I had never in my life made so many movements in quick succession. My vision was still blurry. Perhaps it was the rain, but I could only make out a black military tunic with three gold buttons on the chest. That was all I saw, because just as my vision began to clear, the kaijin's enormous hand descended toward where the woman and I stood. I tried to get up, but my legs wouldn't respond. The woman also saw the giant hand approaching, but she only smiled and drew the sword that was strapped to her waist, positioned diagonally across her lower back. In less than a second, the sword was back in its sheath. I couldn't tell if it was fear or confusion, but when the girl turned her face slightly toward me, the kaijin's arm disintegrated into tiny fragments, scattering flesh and blood everywhere.
Then she put her hand to her ear; she had a communicator, because after that movement, she began giving orders.
"Joseph, there's a bouquet lying in the street where I walked. Would you be so kind as to pick it up?"
"Why would I? It's just one bouquet. You can buy another."
The woman smiled calmly, and then suddenly her demeanor changed. "Listen to me. I give the orders here. You will go get the bouquet."
"Or what?"
There was a second of silence. "You will buy a new one... and one for me too."
"WHAT ARE YOU SAYING?!"
"What you heard. If you don't bring it back..."
"Yes, yes, here it is, Miss Nitta." A hooded young man appeared behind her, holding the bouquet. Nitta took it and carefully brushed off the dirt, then walked over to me, knelt down, and held out her hand. "Are you alright?"
"Yes," I said, taking her hand. It was soft… but firm. Looking at her more closely, I realized she was a young woman with short, blonde hair. She wore a fitted black military uniform with a red belt that accentuated her figure, pristine white gloves, and a tunic that draped elegantly over her shoulders. "Thank you very much."
"I don't know why you waste your time with idiots," the hooded figure muttered.
Nitta barely turned her head toward him, a slight smile playing on her lips. "Jealous?"
"Fool."
I brushed the water off my clothes and looked at her again. "Thank you very much… but excuse me, I don't know your name."
The woman smiled, a smile that could charm anyone. "My name is Nitta. And that grumpy fellow over there is Joseph."
I nodded. "Thank you very much, Miss Nitta. I don't know how to thank you enough."
He tilted his head slightly. Thank me? Why would you do that? It's our job.
I looked down, a little embarrassed.
"Is something wrong?" he asked, studying me more closely.
"I had a date in City A…" I murmured. "But I don't think I'll make it in time. I won't be able to confess my feelings to him."
Nitta's smile softened slightly as she turned to the hooded figure. "Joseph, I have a new mission for you." She approached him, and they began to whisper. I couldn't hear anything, but from the way they looked at each other... it seemed they shared more than just orders. No. I shouldn't think such things.
The hooded figure moved closer and, without a word, grabbed the hood of my poncho and began to pull me along as I started to move. The woman who had saved me with her eyes closed and a kind smile waved goodbye before leaping toward the Kaijin's position.
As we moved from building to building, the city illuminated by streetlights and neon signs reflecting on the wet pavement, I was finally able to relax a little; I was riding on the hooded figure's back, so I wasn't afraid of falling.
"We're almost at City A," she said, still moving. "Do you know where your date is?"
I tried to remember. So much had happened in such a short time that my mind was overwhelmed, until I understood. —In a coffee shop... I think it's called "Sweets and Delights".
The hooded figure landed on a rooftop and looked down at the street to get his bearings. Suddenly, he turned to me. "One question. Do you really like that girl that much?"
I didn't hesitate. "Yes, she's a great childhood friend, and I've always been very fond of her."
"Childhood friend?" He made a slight gesture with his lips. "What a cliché."
After a moment, he looked at me again, his face flushed with excitement. "And do you have a picture of her?"
I froze. Why did he want to see it? Did he plan to leave it with me? But he had helped me get here… so I would have to take the risk. I reached into my pocket for my phone. My phone? Where was it? It wasn't there. "Don't tell me I've lost it…" I huddled in a corner of the rooftop. "Everything is lost… the loss is gone."
"How dramatic." The young man reached into his pocket and pulled out my cell phone. "Next time, be more careful."
He tossed it to me. I caught it and hugged him almost desperately. "Yes... thank you." I turned on my phone and sighed with relief when I saw I had no missed calls. "Do you still want to see her? But don't fall in love."
The hooded figure chuckled and sat on the edge of the building. He turned to me. "You should treasure that," he said.
While I was searching for a recent photo of her, I blurted out, "When I was a kid, she told me she wanted to work for the Hero Association." I turned to look at him. "And you know what?... she did." The hooded figure watched me silently. I felt awkward. "Hey, sorry... I didn't mean to bore you..."
I couldn't finish the sentence. He started laughing. "Is something wrong?" He calmed down and looked up at the night sky. "You're like me when I used to talk about my favorite things. I couldn't stop for hours... I guess that's why I drifted away from my friends. Maybe I was too much of a bore."
I felt like he was telling me something very personal; maybe... I had found a new friend. After a while, I found the photo. "Look, this is her."
The young man smiled at the photograph, but the smile vanished a second later. "Hey, don't insult her." The young man was surprised. "No, no, it's just that she reminded me of someone." He looked at him, surprised. "Oh, really? Who?" He simply turned his head. "An actress, by the way. You didn't tell me she was a redhead." I was surprised; I'd forgotten. "I forgot to mention it."
"And what's her name?"
"Yamada Akao"
"I see... nice name."
The silence was peaceful; you could hear cars moving back and forth, people walking on the sidewalk, until the young man broke it. "The night is beautiful, don't you think?"
I turned to look at him and realized he was gazing at the moon. "Yes, it is."
"Hey, I want to ask you something."
"Sure."
"Is there a Peru here?"
"What's that?"
The man just lay down. "Never mind, never mind."
I lay down too. For a moment, I had someone to talk to about guy stuff before my date. "We're lucky, you know?"
"Oh, really? Why?"
I turned to him with a triumphant smile. "If everything goes well, I'll have a beautiful woman with me, and who knows..." I raised my arms as if I'd already won. "If everything goes well, I'll propose!"
The hooded figure watched my gestures, expressionless. "And you're lucky too."
"Me?"
"Of course. You have a beautiful and strong woman. I must admit... when I first saw her, she even scared me."
The young man sat up abruptly. "Wait. Are you referring to the person I think you're talking about?"
I looked at him, puzzled; his expression wasn't one of happiness, but of discomfort. "What? Isn't the short-haired blonde your girlfriend?"
He just looked incredulous, as if everything I'd said was nonsense. "Of course not. She only cooks for her sister. And believe me… she's terrifying." "Now I understand everything, well, almost." "Ah… so she doesn't mean anything to you." He let out a sigh that sounded too quick to be natural. "Have you ever asked her if you feel the same way?"
"What for? Miss Nitta is always busy. She lives at the office."
And suddenly he started talking more than usual.
"Besides, she's a real pain. I have to keep an eye on her. 'Do this,' 'do that,' 'come shopping with me'… she's so boring."
Who's boring?
The voice came from above; we both looked up. Nitta was standing on the edge of the building, watching us. The hooded figure stood up abruptly, and I froze.
"Nitta," the hooded figure said emotionlessly; I didn't know what to say. Just a few minutes ago she'd been fighting a gigantic kaijin... and now she stood before us, immaculate, without a single blemish.
Nitta gave me a small smile before turning back to him. "You did a good job. I knew you could handle the mission." Then she walked to the edge of the building. "So... where's your date?" I reacted instantly, and I don't understand why my body was still trembling just having her near us, maybe because of what she might be or because she was a woman. "Oh, let's see, it's called 'Sweets and Delights.'" Nitta stopped and turned around quickly. "'Sweets and Delights'? Isn't that the café you took me to, Jo...?"
The hooded figure tensed. "SHUT UP!!!" —The scream cut through the air and I froze again, but Nitta looked at him silently and also gave a soft, mocking laugh.