Yamada opens the door and leaves Mishima's office.

"He wants to talk to you." Says Yamada to Akemi.

Akemi stares at Yamada as the cockroach walks away. Akemi purses his lips but knows, he ultimately can't do anything about it.

Akemi turns towards the door, and enters. Mishima is still writing his papers. "Akemi, how have you been?" He says in a monotone voice, still looking at his papers.

Akemi closes the door behind him. He bows to Mishima and says with a slight smile: "I'm doing great sir. How about you?"

"Fine. Brief me on this month's status report. Take a seat while you're at it."

Akemi sits down and puts his hand on his chin. "The usual," says Akemi. "Patrolling has been pretty easy. I'm the one with the highest amount of spirit executions- as usual," he says, with a slight proud tone.

Mishima doesn't look up.

"I think that's about it really. I haven't really been on reception duty but, that's all I can think of."

Mishima waves it off. "Don't worry about that." He pauses before continuing. "Say, Akemi. Do you love your country?"

"Absolutely," says Akemi with a smile. "I'm a little confused on those who're weird about that sort of thing but, that's on them ya know? I don't see what the issue is really."

"I'm glad you don't. There's nothing wrong with supporting the country, and you're a lot braver than most. There's a difference between doing your job, and doing what you love."

"Hehe, thanks. I'm just honored to do it."

"Say, what are your opinions of the United States?"

Akemi gives a confused look at Mishima. Mishima greets his look with a stern look. "Uhh..." starts Akemi. "They're pretty... you know?"

"I don't."

"Well, they're pretty different for one. They have some cool things though. I mean...burgers are pretty cool I guess. But aside from that...I don't know. I don't think too much about them. Why do you ask?"

Mishima stops writing and looks at Akemi. "You see, this is how they get us under their control."

Akemi shoots a confused glance. "What's that?"

"I'm sure you're aware of the Meiji restoration, correct?"

"Sort of...? I'm sorry but not really."

"To put it briefly, after the United States won the Mexican American War, they wanted to flex their strength. They saw what Great Britain was doing to China in the Opium wars. Seeing as how the western power won, the US took the same philosophy and sent the US commodore, Matthew Perry. He offered our nation two choices: trade privileges, or war. Seeing as how the nation was far inferior to the US Navy, we had to comply. Japan agreed to the treaty. And another one after that. And another after that. Much like China, Japan had to agree to predatory terms that abused the nation's economy and society. Businesses were lost. Society changed. Restless riots ensued. Overtime the shogunate government was overthrown, and was replaced by one that mimicked the western powers. Despite that, the damage had been done, and the nation sought to protect itself, and hate the oppressor. The rest is history."

Akemi blankly looks. "I...see. But that's all in the past. Aren't we in good terms with the United States?"

"To the open world, yes. And even then, that's a lie."

"How? They practically love our culture."

"And yet they still abuse our people. I'm sure you're aware of their military bases in our land, right?"

"Yes."

"I understand they are all doing their job," explains Mishima. "But please explain to me how assaulting a minor has anything to do with protecting a country."

"But that's only one case?"

"Incorrect. I understand that these cases are few and far between, and that the fault is put squarely on the individuals themselves. And even then, there's a reason Okinawa detests the military bases. And to be fair, with what the American society values, are you surprised?"

"I'm not sure. Whether I'm surprised, or rather, what they believe in to begin with."

Mishima puts his elbows on his table and leans in. "Violence. They crave violence. A society that rewards sin. If you compare our crime-rate, a murder here is national news. Over there, it happens plenty of times, every day."

"What? How is that possible?"

"Access to guns. And even besides that, confrontations are frequent. When more than half the country is poor, and the government does little to help, don't be surprised if people take it in their own hands to support themselves."

Akemi frowns, and looks down. "I didn't realize that."

"I don't expect you to. It's not like you've been there before. The only thing you'd know from there are the burgers and cowboys. And even then, that's far from the truth. That's why shaping the country is how we fix this problem."

"What...shaping the country?"

"Information, Akemi. By dictating the flow of information, we can control the opposition. Just like how we eventually adopted western customs, people will eventually adopt our social structure as well. Tell me Akemi, do you value a society where people blare their music in their cars for everyone around them to hear?"

"That seems very disruptive..."

"Precisely. They're a selfish society after all. But over time, we will win."

Akemi's heart thumps. "Win what?"

"There is a war, Akemi. We are the capital of sorcery in the world. Yet, we have suspicions that several other branches in the world are trying to take that throne. The United States CIA is only one of those oppositions. Though we are in good standing between the country officially, we must protect our nation from whatever their government tries throw at us. I know this seems like a lot, but for now, we only need to stay vigilant."

Akemi looks blankly at Mishima. "Besides the whole CIA thing, what are you trying to say? To not save Americans? Does this include tourists?"

Mishima gives a confused look. "I'm not saying don't save tourists. It's still your job to do so. Save everyone that you can."

Akemi sighs out of relief. "Ah alright, nice."

"Just make sure to keep an out for who you save. You can read minds for a reason, after all."

Akemi looks up. "What are you trying to say?"

Mishima stares at Akemi. "I'm not trying to say anything. You have a good head on your shoulders after all so, I trust your judgement. Just do what you can. That is all."

Akemi looks at Mishima with worried expression. "Is there anything else you need, sir?"

"That should be all. Also, don't tell anyone else. This is classified information, and I'm only telling you this because I'm your sponsor."

"Not even to the teachers?"

"Not even to the teachers."

"I...I see," says Akemi. Akemi stands up and bows. "Thank you for the time, sir."

"Don't mention it."

As Akemi opens the door, Mishima calls him out: "Hey Akemi?"

Akemi turns around. "Yeah?"

"Keep up the good work." Mishima gently smiles.

Akemi's face slowly turns into a soft smile. "I will, don't worry."

Akemi closes the door.

The moment the door closes, Mishima's smile evaporates back to a tired expression.

.

.

.

Out in the fields of the academy, Naoki and Yamada are sitting down on the grass. Naoki meditates, sitting down in a crossed leg position. Yamada awkwardly sits down, leaning forward, with his legs also sitting as close as possible to cross-legged.

"Say Yamada," starts Naoki. "After you turn back into a human, what are you going to do?"

Yamada ponders for a bit. "There was this person I used to like. I wish I had the confidence to tell her how I feel but, I think its far too late for that... In all honesty, I'm not sure. I just want to get out of this disgusting body and from there, restart my life anew. I wish for things to be normal again. No offense."

"None taken, its understandable."

They sit there, quietly. As Naoki's mind sits blankly, his body pays attention to the matter surrounding it. The wind blowing by. The trees rustling softly. The ant crawling eight inches away from his right foot. And even the composition of carbon upon his fingertips.

Yamada on the other hand patiently sits. Unaccustomed to meditating, he simply breathes in and out. Yet, the main point of the exercise passes him. "Naoki?" Asks Yamada.

"Yeah what's up?"

"Why did you save me? I understand you said you want to do the right thing, but that's vague. I'm grateful, I truly am. And I know its a nice thing to do but...But I don't get it."

Naoki chuckles lightly. "In simple terms, its just the cool thing to do. I know I can't save or change the world. Hell, even a majority of my friends wouldn't do what I did. But as long as I can save those who are close to me, and lend a hand out to a complete stranger, knowing that it'll cause a good impact..." Naoki shrugs. "Then all is good with the world. That's a bodhisattva's job, you know?"

A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

Yamada's mandibles perk up. "That's very kind."

"Heh, yeah, I know," says Naoki with a cheesy smirk. "But with me helping others out, I hope that'll spread some good, ya know? I mean come on, who would waste their life chasing selfish dreams. I think that's a little weak, ya know?"

Yamada looks at the ground. His mandibles tighten. "But what if you're wrong?" asks Yamada.

"What do you mean?"

"You say you want to help others but, there's no guarantee that anyone will take your advice. The world is cruel, and I know that you know this. But... what if its all wasted effort?"

Naoki laughs. "Naota taught me to say 'just keep on pressing on.' I know it'd be weak of me to give up. But the thought hasn't escaped me. If anything, we're lucky the stunt we pulled off even worked in the first place. But I don't know, if all my efforts were all for naught, I think I would do what the average person would do."

"And what's that?"

"I mean think about it... All that negativity; all that hatred. I would explode. Hopefully into a ball of fucking flames. Misery after misery. Failure after failure. Could you imagine if all the things you were taught were denied? Universal truths? Spreading goodwill? Come on now. So much for all that preaching. You've felt it too, haven't you? I know you have. If a person were to say they haven't, they're lying. I would do what comes naturally. And so would you." Naoki stares at the ground.

Yamada turns his head. His mandibles slightly open; his antenna quiver.

Naoki eventually meets his gaze. Forcing a laugh, Naoki responds: "hehe, I'm joking. But that doesn't matter. For now, we just gotta focus on getting you on the school's good side. And that starts with doing some missions."

Yamada tightens his mandibles and gives a concerned look. "Uhh...yeah."

.

.

.

Out in a beach, Taberu lays down on a beach bed. The water splashes endlessly. The air is cool, and the sun is warm. No civilians are around. The seagulls chirp casually. An umbrella casts a comfortable shade above Taberu. He's sipping on a pina colada. All is well.

"Hey," speaks out a voice.

Interrupting his summer relaxation, Taberu sits up and looks to his left. It's Makoto.

"Oh, hey you! About time you showed up."

Makoto keeps a stern voice. "Do we really have to meet up in the most random situations possible?"

"Yup."

Taberu looks at his pupils' face. His smile drops. "Hey what's with the face. Did I do something?"

Makoto responds: "you did, actually. Why weren't you at the trial?"

"...The trial?"

"The one with Naoki and the cockroach."

Taberu blankly blinks. "Because I don't give a shit...?"

Makoto's eye twitches.

Taberu rolls his eyes. "Oh come on, its not that deep. Why should I waste my time on someone who I'm not close to, and a stranger. It's just like- no. You know?"

"Yeah well, as much as I agree on the stranger part, I care about Naoki. If you don't want to support him, that's fine. But I want to support him. And if you won't at least show up for my sake, then-"

Taberu stands up. "Then what. Huh? What are you going to do about it?"

Makoto glares at Taberu. "Then our sponsorship is over."

Taberu purses his lips. He rolls his eyes and sits down. "Fine, fine. I'll support the little freak next time."

Makoto sighs. "Thanks. It means a lot." She then sits down on the sand and stares at the ocean. She then starts again: "So what did you call me over here for? Besides meeting the quota."

"We're training right now," explains Taberu.

"Ah. Riveting," comments Makoto.

They both stare at the sea for a long while. Silence.

Taberu eventually starts. "Makoto."

"Yeah?"

"Are you happy?"

She shrugs. "I'm content. Kinda." She pauses again, before starting up. "I realized... I don't think we're ever going to live a normal life. Like with what we have to do as our jobs, yeah- no shit. And that's fine. I think I made peace with that a long time ago. But anytime I see a cute guy whenever I'm patrolling or whenever I'm incognito at the mall, I just kinda feel. Eh. There's no point in dreaming of that sort of life."

"There's plenty of guys at your school."

Makoto looks at him. "When all of the students grow up together, first of all- ew. Second of all, hanging out with girls and dating guys and looking at what the typical civilian does is kinda fruitless. Again, I'm over it now."

"So what are you feeling now?"

"I would say content. But I never expected 'content' to feel this empty. Bored. Just bored. Is this really all that life has to offer? I have the power of deities and yet, I'm doing the equivalent of flipping burgers for the government. And now I'm just waiting for me and my friends to die. I have a feeling that there's a higher calling for me out there. But at this point, I just don't see it."

Taberu absorbs the explanation, and responds. "Do you think that Naoki's way of thinking is perhaps a sort of answer to your purpose in li-"

"No. God no."

Taberu gives a surprised look at Makoto.

"I love him," explains Makoto. "I really do. And yet, he's just...He's just so-" She clenches her fist and pounds the ground. "He's so STUPID. Why? Why would he do that? He thinks he's a high and mighty savior all of a sudden, even though he's dragging everyone into deeper shit."

Taberu smiles. "See? You get it."

"Shut up." Barks Makoto. "He's just a kid. He's naïve. And I really wish that he could see it my way. I wished he could understand how fucked everything is sooner, so that way he'll actually grow up and accept the truth of the matter. But, if this is the way he wants to live his life... Then that's on him."

Taberu purses his lips. "I see. But what about you? What is life to you?"

Makoto takes a deep long pause. After three seconds, she responds. "I don't know."

Taberu sighs. "Do you even know who you are? You're a magic specialist so I'd be very disappointed if you said no."

Makoto scoffs. "Of course I do. Well...I have a basic idea of who I am."

"Basic idea? Yeah that's probably why your magic sucks to begin with."

A vein shows up on her forehead. She furrows her brow. "That's bogus as hell but alright. Are you going anywhere with this?"

"I am, actually." Taberu stands up and walks towards Makoto. Her eyes meet with Taberu's cold black sunglasses. She stares back at her own reflection.

The sounds of the waves crashing become quieter.

Taberu asks a simple question: "How would you react if you died right now?"

"Is this a threat?"

"Just answer the question."

"I'd be pretty annoyed. A little pissed, even."

"Why."

"Because... I don't want to die?"

The seagulls' chirps instantly mute.

"Have you ever thought about killing yourself?"

Makoto ponders. "Sometimes. Not really out of depression or anything, its just one of those things that pop up in my mind. But that's more of an idea towards dying, rather than outright suicide."

Taberu stares at his pupil. "I see. Do you care about life?"

"At the moment, not really."

Makoto's heart beats slightly faster.

"One last thing. Do you want to find an answer? Or would you rather wallow around aimlessly for the rest of your life?"

She glares at her sponsor, before answering.

"Show me."

Taberu gets out of Makoto's face. The sounds go back to normal. "Alright Makoto. Ask and you shall receive."

Makoto looks around. "...What was that all about?"

Taberu looks up at the sun. "I wouldn't worry about it if I were you. However," he adjusts himself to be a couple feet away from Makoto. "At this moment, I would be saying your prayers or... moments of contemplation or whatever."

"What are you talking about?"

"Sink or swim.

Fall or fly.

Whether you want to live or die,

is all up to you now."

Taberu then plants his foot onto Makoto's stomach and spartan kicks her. Unbeknownst to Makoto, a portal had been set behind her. As she falls down, she sees the frame of the portal, and Taberu looking down at her. Outside the portal, are clouds, and the blue sky greeting her.

"YOU FUCKING BASTAAAAAAARD," screams Makoto.

Yet her frustration fell to deaf ears, as the portal closed.

Falling, Makoto struggles to turn her body around, before using mind manipulation to aid her.

"Ho....Holy-"

She then realizes where she's at.

image [https://i.postimg.cc/4xbbrLD2/image-2024-07-23-202412141.png]

"HHHH-H--H-HOLY"

Her teeth chatter. She instinctively hugs herself. Her ears instantly pop, causing a severe migraine.

"(F-F-FUCK.)" She thinks to herself. "(WHAT DO I DO...WHAT DO I DO?)"

Calculating how small everything is, on top of the fact that she's in the sky, she estimates that she's falling a generous fifty or so meters per second, and she has less than a minute before she meets her fate.

She frantically thinks of how to counter the situation. The wind around her is too thin to grasp. The speed she's going at is too fast to handle. Only one spell out of her entire arsenal is viable in this situation. For the first time in peril, her mind goes blank.

She breathes in the freezing air, and breathes out. She looks at the sun to right of her. She never realized how powerless she really was. She never realized how beautiful the sun is. Her heart beats faster and faster, and it eclipses to a resounding halt.

"What if I just let go."

No more stress. No more pain. The fear of death already passed. To meet one's fate doesn't sound so bad. If there's no reason for me to live, then why not take this opportunity. There is nothing for me here.

Perhaps, the other side is better after all.

She closes her eyes, and curls up in a fetal position. Twirling midair, her stomach feels light. She can't feel her body anymore. For once, she feels at ease. Not worrying about the situation at hand. She breathes in, then out, and takes a look at what awaits her on the other side.

image [https://i.postimg.cc/T1ptxVVL/black.png]

She gasps aloud.

She wakes up and realizes.

"THERE'S NOTHING THERE. OH MY GOD. THERE'S NOTHING THERE."

This is it.

28 seconds remaining.

The land below her gets bigger and bigger.

27.

"We only have one life."

26.

"We choose what we do with it."

25.

"Even if it takes a while,"

24.

"I refuse to waste it."

23.

"No."

22.

"NO."

21.

"Me. ME?"

20.

"Dead?"

19.

"TO HELL WITH YOU."

18.

"I REFUSE."

17.

Makoto then flashes a string of mudras.

16.

With frantic breathe and frenzied, teary eyes, she mutters a declaration.

15.

"CONVICTION FOUND; CONVICTION MADE.

DENIED EGO DEATH.

SOUL RESURRECTION.

STRENGTH RENEWED.

I.

AM.

ME."

14.

With one last mutter, she flashes a mudra and proposes one last proposal: "I sacrifice all of my magic to be used for the next 10 seconds."

13.

Staring at the air, she sees the makings of the air. Each individual molecule. Nitrogen. Oxygen. Carbon Dioxide, and so forth. Commanding the flow of the air, she denies gravity by controlling the vertices of the air, smoothly slowing her descent down.

12.

But that's not enough.

11.

Gritting her teeth, she concentrates on the pattern of the air around her.

10.

"Come on...COME ON."

9.

From a wide blanket, the two waves of air beneath her slowly turn clockwise.

8.

The blanket morphs into a drill.

7.

From drill, to spiral.

6.

Underneath her is a vacant beach.

5.

Yet even at this speed, the sand will turn her into paste.

4.

The area becomes wider. The spiral frantically spins out of control.

3.

"GGGGRRRRYYYYYAAAAAAAAAAAAAH"

2.

The sand gets absorbed by the walls of the air.

1.

"YOU CAN'T KILL ME."

0.

.

.

.

Taberu, a mile away, watches the giant dust devil form through binoculars. "Yeah, that's not good.... wait what am I using these for?"

Casually jogging, Taberu walks up to the eye of dying down tornado.

Waving the air away from his face, he coughs. "You're still alive, right?"

Silence.

...

...

...

POP.

A hand bursts out of the ground. A Makoto is underneath that hand. "I'M GONNA KICK YOUR FUCKING ASS," yells the creature.

"Oh great, she's alive."

"Help me out of here god damn it," she grumbles.

Taberu pulls her out of the sand. "You couldn't crawl out yourself?"

Spitting out a cup of sand, she explains: "Well for starters, my Ki is dogshit. So that would explain the broken legs right now."

Taberu looks down. He senses the two hidden legs, mangled into calcified dust. The strings of meat still containing the bone could be considered an act of miracle. "Well if I had working eyes, I'd say you're kinda cooked."

"Yeah, you think?" Comments Makoto. "Not only that, I kind of sacrificed all of my soul to pull that stunt so, that's out of the question too."

Taberu grunts. "So that's what the tornadoes all about. Gotcha. Well, at least you're alive now, right?"

"You're an asshole, you know that?"

"Yeah. But...Ok, sure- yeah, I'll give you that. Counterpoint: did you at least find out something about yourself?"

Makoto chuckles. With a newfound spirit, she smiles. "I did, actually."

"And that is?"

She grabs onto the sand and grits her teeth. "I'm going to become the strongest. I declare it. People will know who I am. I exist in this world, and with that, my strength will be more than enough evidence to show that I was here."

Taberu's smile morphs into a neutral state. "That's a bit...much. But, more power to you." He ponders a bit. "(Hmm...no...no. This won't blow up in my face.)" "Alright Makoto. I trust that you and your batshit egotistical plan will go far so, I'll support you."

"Thanks. By the way, you don't mind if you carry me right?"

"Yeah no worries. Besides, we need to get out of here. I can sense the cops and reporters coming soon. By the way how are you not screaming?"

"Oh trust me, the epinephrine running through my body is the only thing preventing me from screaming. It's running thin though so yeah, take me to Professor Gretchen as quick as possible."

"Yup, on it."

Taberu picks up his student, make a portal, and walks straight though towards Gretchen's office.

.

.

.

Meanwhile, at the Kyoto townhall, five tank-topped clad men of various shapes and sizes, all sit in the same row.

"Are you ready boss?" Asks the biggest and burliest of the group.

The one wearing a bandana smiles. "Patience my friend. Kyoto will see their next mayor, very soon."