Morning came quietly, like it always did.
The same thin light slipped through the window. The same dust floated in the air. The same silence filled the house.
But this time…
Jinzu was awake before it.
He sat at the edge of his bed, small legs hanging off the side, his hands resting on his knees. His fingers twitched slightly—just once—before going still again.
Today felt different.
Not in a good way.
Just… different.
From the hallway, his aunt's voice cut through the silence.
"Get ready."
No warmth. No explanation.
Just instructions.
Jinzu slid off the bed slowly, his bare feet touching the cold floor. He didn't rush. He never did. Every movement felt careful, like he was trying not to disturb something invisible around him.
He got dressed in silence. A simple shirt. Dark pants. Shoes that felt slightly too tight.
School.
He didn't fully understand what it meant—but he knew one thing:
It meant being around people.
The walk there felt longer than it should have been.
Cars passed. People talked. Somewhere in the distance, a dog barked.
Normal sounds.
Normal life.
But Jinzu's eyes didn't stay on any of that for long.
They drifted.
To corners.
To spaces between things.
To places that didn't quite make sense.
At one point, he stopped walking.
His aunt kept going for two steps before noticing.
"…Jinzu."
He wasn't looking at her.
He was staring at the ground.
No—through it.
Like something beneath it had his attention.
"…Move," she said, sharper this time.
He blinked.
And just like that, it was gone.
He kept walking.
The school was loud.
Too loud.
Voices bounced off the walls. Kids laughed, shouted, ran past each other without thinking. Chairs scraped. Papers shuffled.
Jinzu stood near the entrance, frozen.
His chest felt tight.
Not from fear exactly.
But from pressure.
Like something inside him didn't like this place.
"Go," his aunt said, already turning away.
And just like that—
He was alone.
The classroom felt smaller than the outside world.
Desks in rows. A board at the front. A teacher speaking in a calm voice that didn't reach him.
Jinzu sat down.
Quiet.
Still.
Watching.
The other kids looked at him sometimes. Whispered. Laughed. Moved on.
He didn't react.
Didn't speak.
Didn't try to fit in.
Because something else had his attention.
That feeling again.
Faint.
But there.
Like a low hum under everything.
Recess came.
The noise moved outside.
The air felt easier to breathe—but not by much.
Jinzu walked slowly across the playground, not joining any games, not calling out to anyone. Just moving.
Observing.
That's when he saw him.
A boy sitting alone near the far fence.
Not playing.
Not talking.
Just sitting.
Watching.
Jinzu stopped.
The boy looked up.
Their eyes met.
And something… clicked.
Not friendship.
Not comfort.
Recognition.
The boy stood up slowly and walked toward him.
No hesitation.
No fear.
"You feel it too, don't you?" he said.
His voice was calm. Certain.
Jinzu didn't answer.
The boy stopped a few steps away.
"You don't remember," he continued. "That's why you look like that."
Jinzu's fingers twitched again.
"…What?" he said quietly.
The boy tilted his head slightly.
"When it happens," he said, "you go away."
Jinzu froze.
"You black out," the boy added.
Silence.
The noise of the playground faded into the background.
"How do you know that?" Jinzu asked.
The boy didn't smile.
"Because," he said, "you're not losing control."
A pause.
Then—
"You're overflowing."
Jinzu's chest tightened.
Those words didn't make sense.
But they felt…
Close.
Like they touched something just out of reach in his mind.
"I don't…" Jinzu started, then stopped.
The boy stepped closer.
"You think it's random," he said. "Like it just happens."
Another step.
"But it's not."
Jinzu didn't move.
"You have too much power," the boy said quietly. "And your body can't hold it."
A small breeze passed between them.
"You disappear," he continued, "because something else takes over."
For a moment—
Jinzu felt it again.
Stronger this time.
That pressure.
That weight.
His vision flickered slightly.
"…Stop," he muttered.
The boy's eyes sharpened.
"See?" he said. "It's happening right now—"
Black.
The sound of screaming.
Not clear.
Not focused.
Just noise.
Movement.
Something breaking.
Something tearing.
A presence—
Heavy.
Cold.
Watching.
Then—
Silence.
Jinzu opened his eyes.
He was on the ground.
The playground looked… wrong.
Too still.
Too quiet.
No one was near him.
Not close.
Everyone else stood far back.
Staring.
Frozen.
Afraid.
Jinzu slowly pushed himself up.
His hands touched the ground.
And there it was again.
Green.
But this time…
More.
Dripping slightly between his fingers.
His breathing got uneven.
"What… happened…?" he whispered.
No one answered.
Then—
Footsteps.
Slow.
Calm.
The boy.
He walked toward Jinzu like nothing was wrong.
Like this was expected.
He stopped in front of him.
Looked down at the green on his hands.
Then back at his eyes.
"I told you," he said.
A pause.
"You're not normal."
Jinzu's chest tightened again.
The boy turned slightly, glancing at the others watching from a distance.
"They're scared of you now," he said.
Then looked back.
"But I'm not."
A small silence passed between them.
Then the boy spoke again.
"My name is Senju."