~Two Hours And Forty Minutes Later~
A train slowly came to a halt on the tracks as you could easily notice it was packed to the brim from the outside, bystanders patiently waited to get on it. The door slid open as people quickly got off the train while a young boy managed to squeeze his way into the front and made way for the people exiting the train. Reiki let out a long exhale, he thought. I hate the trains here… They charged me fifteen thousand yen to stuff me inside like a pack of sardines… One of the few things I miss about having all the money in the world…
Reiki made his way toward the exit as the crowd was rushing inside the train, he continued his train of thought. I need to find a tool shop and an electronic store. With the money I stole from Uragiru and what Onee-chan gave me, I have one point three million on me… Minus the ten thousand, I fed him. He saw the pay fare zone as people were using cards to pay for the ride, Reiki took out a card from his pocket and thought. Thirty thousand yen for the round trip.
He got in line for the pay fare zone and placed his card against the scanner as the gate in front of him opened. Reiki pocketed the card and thought. I should’ve just used Kiru’s card instead… That or stole one from somebody. While making his way to the exit from the corner of his eye he saw a man sitting behind a glass pane by the counter giving him a furrowed brow stare. Reiki walked faster, he thought. Time to go. He squeezed between the stream of people constantly going in or out of the station.
Reiki turned his head sideways as he gave the man wearing a suit an apologetic look and said. “I’m sorry.” The man looked at him once and started walking down the street while Reiki made his way toward the nearest stoplight. He thought. … Or I can just visit Akihabara’s biggest electronic store. The stoplight turned green as the people around Reiki started crossing, he walked along with them while looking around. Reiki’s gaze stopped at a woman, she wore a stylish jacket, pants, and under her jacket was a striped shirt.
She was on her smartphone while leaning on a wall and noticed Reiki walking toward her. The woman gave him an odd look and said. “... Can I help you?...” Reiki gave her a nod, he said. “Nee-san, can you point me toward Yodobashi Akiba?” The woman had a hint of confusion on her face, she said. “Yodobashi?... What’s a kid like you going to an electronic store for?” Reiki took out a flip phone from his pocket and showed it to her, he said. “I need a new charger for my phone, the power connector is slightly fried.”
The woman stared at the flip phone Reiki was holding as her eyes widened slightly, she thought. People still use that? She pocketed her phone in her jacket and said. “Can I see that for a moment?” Reiki passed the flip phone to her while the woman opened it to see if it was working, the phone shined as she stared at the pixelated screen. She thought. How old is this thing? The woman threw the phone at him as Reiki caught it in mid-air, she pointed at the station and said. “You went the wrong way, Yodobashi is on the other side.”
Reiki stared at the crowd constantly at the gate, he thought. I’d rather take the long way. She took her phone from the pocket of her jacket while the woman continued. “Walk down that street then take a right. When you reach an intersection, take another right. You can’t miss it.” Reiki pocketed the flip phone as he gave her a nod and said. “Thanks for the help, nee-san.” He made his way down the street and thought. It was that close. The woman glanced at him from the corner of her eye while using her thumbs to tap on the screen of her smartphone, she thought. He needs to carry a comb with him.
Reiki reached a stoplight as he came to a halt, he noticed all the side-eye glances from the people around him and thought. What should I bring back home… I need to bring enough for everyone too… The stoplight turned green as he walked across the street while walking down the road Reiki stared at all the bright signs on all the buildings, he thought. I’ll go with a safe option and bring sweets as souvenirs. He walked past a few stores displaying goods, laptops, wires, and a small section of game cartridges.
Reiki glanced at the game cartridges and thought. Maybe I should stop by a game store and steal a few collectibles. He reached an intersection that had a red light and took a right turn to see a short crosswalk, Reiki thought. … Seriously?... He turned his head to the right as a single car drove its way up the road while he heard the sound of multiple footprints behind him, Reiki continued his train of thought. If I was alone I would’ve crossed this. After waiting for a couple more minutes a man walked past the crosswalk as Reiki followed suit.
He let out a soft sigh and thought. Is that another intersection?... Reiki stood beside the man who walked in front of him and continued his train of thought. And I see another one across the street… I’m buying every countryside of Japan. Reiki stared at the stoplight as cars were driving down the road while a few of them took a turn. The stoplight changed from red, orange, to green as everyone started walking as Reiki saw a man wearing a red polo shirt and black pants handing out fliers.
He stopped by the man wearing a uniform as he gave the boy an odd look, Reiki held out his hand and said. “Mister, do you deliver to Osaka?” The man put on his best business smile, he said. “We do have a branch there.” He handed him a flier as Reiki took it off his hands, he gave the man a nod and said. “Thank you.” Reiki went back to walking down the street while he inspected the menu on the flier and thought. Oh, it’s this restaurant… He folded the flier twice and pocketed it, Reiki reached the intersection as he saw a large building on the right.
The cars slowly came to a halt as the stoplight turned orange to green as Reiki crossed the street. He made his way to the large building as he stared at the sign on the front, Reiki thought. Yodobashi Akiba… We went from being the leader in tech to using a fax machine when every country had already started using online for everything… He made his way inside as a burst of cold air hit him, Reiki let out a long exhale and started looking around, he thought. Prepaid sim cards and a couple of burner phones.
He walked around the first floor and saw a store selling phones, Reiki made his way to the store as the man standing behind the cashier said. “Welcome.” Reiki nodded at him as he glanced around the store from the corner of his eyes, he thought. Two cameras at the entrance… He made his way deeper into the store as he saw a row being made out entirely of sim cards. Reiki took out a tattered pouch from his pocket and slightly opened it, he glanced around the store and thought. … Now.
In one swift motion, Reiki grabbed two ten thousand yen prepaid sim cards and placed them inside his pouch. He quickly pocketed the pouch and used his left hand to take a prepaid sim card with a thousand yen in it. Reiki walked around the room as the man behind the cashier saw him holding onto a prepaid sim card while looking around the store. Reiki pretended to be lost as he turned his head to look for something, he went to the cash register and said. “Mister, do you have a different brand of sim cards?”
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Reiki placed the tiny box on the counter while the man shook his head sideways and gave him a wry smile. He said. “My apologies, I just recently stocked the shelves and there are only more of these in the back.” Reiki had a look of disappointment on his face as he looked down on the floor, he said. “... Oh…” The cashier had a hint of panic on his face, he spoke in a slightly rushed tone and said. “I-Is there anything else I can do for you?” Reiki took out a flip phone from his pocket and said. “Do you have a charger for this model?”
The cashier placed the box of the sim card on the counter and picked up the flip phone, he thought. This… Is old… Very old… I’m not even sure we have a charger for this one. The man placed the flip phone on the counter, he said. “Let me check the back, are you okay with me borrowing your phone to see if we have one in the storage?” Reiki looked up to him and said. “I don’t mind.” The man picked up the flip phone, he said. “In that case, give me a few minutes.” He made his way to the door behind him leaving Reiki standing by the counter.
Reiki turned around and leaned on the counter, he looked outside the store to see the people walking by. He thought. I need some gloves so that I don’t leave any fingerprints on the phones. The door behind the cash register opened as Reiki stood up straight, turned, and saw a man carrying a flip phone along with a charger. The man placed the charger and carefully put the flip phone on the counter, he said. “I found one at the very end of the storage.”
Reiki took the phone from the counter and placed it inside his pocket, he said. “Mister, does this store also sell flip phones?” The man pointed at the edge of the room and said. “We have a section at the corner.” Reiki made his way to the direction the man pointed while the man stared at the flip phone and prepaid sim card on the counter. He heard footsteps coming closer as the cashier had a hint of surprise on his face, he said. “Did you find anything that caught your interest?”
Reiki let out a forced chuckle, he said. “They’re a bit out of my budget.” He faked a cough and continued. “How much do I owe you for the sim card and charger?” The man picked up the small box on the counter and scanned the price tag on the side. He said. “One item, nine hundred twenty yen.” Reiki had a hint of confusion on his face, he said. “I also want the charger.” The man smiled at him and said. “The charger is on the house.”
Reiki had a hint of surprise on his face, he said. “Why?” The cashier said. “The manager told me to start cleaning the storage and anything that won’t sell gets recycled.” He opened a drawer that was filled with plastic bags that had the logo of the store on it while Reiki raised a brow at him and said. “You can recycle charges?” The cashier placed the charger and the small box into the plastic, he said. “Kinda, they strip all the aluminum and copper wires inside.”
He placed the plastic bag on the counter while Reiki pretended to rummage through his pockets as he took out a single ten thousand yen bill that had a crease in the middle. The man said. “Would you like a receipt?” He typed the amount on the cashier while Reiki tiptoed to see what was happening behind the counter. Reiki said. “Yes, please.” The cashier printed out a receipt as he placed it inside the bag and opened the drawer of the cashier. The man behind the counter was about to reach for a five thousand yen bill.
The cashier stopped when he heard Reiki speak, he said. “Can I have my change in one thousand yen bills?” The cashier stared at him while Reiki continued. “This is my allowance for the entire month.” The man behind the counter gave him a nod as he took out a handful of one thousand yen bills, he thought. Two, four, six, eight, nine. He placed the nine bills onto the counter and the rest back into the drawer. Reiki reached for the money on the counter while the cashier took out some coins from the drawer and placed down a fifty yen coin along with three ten yen coins.
The cashier said. “Your change is nine thousand eighty.” Reiki pocketed the bills and quickly grabbed the coins on the counter and the plastic bag with his right hand. He said. “Mister, I have a few questions.” He placed the coins in his other pocket while the man behind the counter said. “What is it?” Reiki looked up to him and said. “I need to buy some tools, do you know a store that sells some?” The man gave him an odd look, he said. “... What do you need tools for?...” Reiki's mouth formed into a slight smile.
He said. “... My birthday is coming up and my dad decided to get me a dog. The tools are for making a dog house.” The odd look on the man’s face turned into confusion, he said. “... Aren’t presents usually a secret?” Reiki nodded at him and said. “They’re supposed to be, dad told mom. Mom told my older sister and my sister told me… Now I’m helping out with building the dog house.” The man had a look of understanding on his face, he said. “In that case, starting from the entrance go south down the road, take the second right, and keep going until you see a convenience store. It’s the closest one from here.”
Reiki moved his gaze to the ground, he spoke in a soft tone and said. “Go south, second right, and look for a convenience store…” He looked up to the man behind the counter, Reiki said. “Last two questions, do you also happen to know the nearest equipment store? And does this place sell food?” The cashier let out a chuckle and said. “On the eighth floor, there’s a food court and I’m going to need a map because the nearest equipment store is a thirty-minute walk.” He started to rummage through the drawers behind the counter.
While looking for a man the man said. “What are you going to buy at an equipment store?” Reiki had a hint of excitement on his face, he said. “Me and my friends are going to play baseball. I’m going to buy a couple of bats to practice.” The man behind the counter opened the cabinet on the farthest right, he thought. Not this one. He closed the cabinet and said. “In that case, the ninth floor has a batting cage. You can practice there.” Reiki had a wry look on his face, he said. “I’ll think about it when I’ve seen the prices.”
The man opened another cabinet and saw a neatly folded map, he took it out of the cabinet and placed it on the counter. He said. “I found it.” The cashier started to unfold the map revealing its large size, Reiki thought. Where’s that cab app when I need it… The man placed his index finger on the map as he started looking for his location, he said. “Let me find the station first…”
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Break Room
Ketsueki was browsing on her phone while both her feet on the table as she balanced the chair she was sitting on with the back legs. Sachi was reading another fashion magazine as she flipped to the next page while Namida was in the middle of surfing the net on her laptop. Ketsueki was constantly swiping down on her phone, she said. “Why are we still here when all the other teams took every mission available?” Namida’s eyes were glued to one of the pages of a woman wearing an elegant white one-piece dress paired with a handbag and a sundress hat.
She said. “Because they have a rule, that teams who didn’t manage to get a mission need to be on standby in case something happens.” Namida was scrolling down a website using the touchpad of the laptop, she glanced at her friends and said. “In other words, we know you people have a limited amount of time to be alive. So we’re going to waste every single second while you’re under our employ.” Sachi glanced at Ketsueki who was softly humming a tone to herself as the corner of her lips was curled into a smile. Sachi said. “That happy leader doesn’t make money today?”
Ketsueki placed her smartphone onto her stomach, she spoke in a slightly sarcastic tone and said. “Are you saying, that I’m enjoying the fact that our commander. Which you three very well know I hate to the very core, isn’t going to get her commission?” Namida had a hint of confusion on her face as she leaned on the backrest of the chair she was sitting on, she said. “Doesn’t the captain have a monthly salary?” Sachi shook her head sideways and flipped to the next page of the magazine, she said. “No, during one of the after parties the leader once told us she also gets paid per mission.”
Ketsueki picked up her phone that was lying on her stomach as she started scrolling down a website as Sachi flipped to the next page and said. “Ketsueki, when are we going to shop for clothes again?” Namida tapped on the touchpad of the laptop a couple of times and started typing on the keyboard, she said. “That depends, are you going to glare at her every time she wears the same clothes you did but looked better in them?” Sachi placed the magazine onto the table, she spoke in a slightly cold tone and said. “She didn’t make the clothes look good.”
She pointed at Ketsueki’s large chest and continued. “These did, the clothes were loose on me but her big fat chest made it look a size too small.” Namida had a smug smile on her face as she kept typing while glancing at her friend from the corner of her eye. Sachi picked up the magazine on the table and started searching for the page she was last on, she said. “... I’m never shopping with cow tits ever again.” Ketsueki kept her eyes on the screen of her phone, she said. “So, sometime next week?”
Sachi flipped to the next page and said. “Sounds good, anything to have an excuse to tell those two leeches who call themselves my parents.” Ketsueki slightly leaned back causing the chair she was sitting on to balance on the two back legs on its own as she placed both her feet on the ground. She said. “Namida?” Namida used her right hand to tap enter, she said. “Can’t, my family is having our annual meeting and I need to attend.” Ketsueki placed her phone on the table and said. “How many branches does your family have again?”
Namida slowly ran her index finger on the touchpad of the laptop, she said. “There used to be nine, before they allied with each other and tried to take over the Igarashi household. My grandmother ended up killing six entire branches.” She moved her gaze back onto the screen of the laptop and noticed the odd looks her friends were giving her. Namida said. “What?” Ketsueki and Sachi exchanged glances as Sachi placed her magazine on the table without closing it.
Ketsueki said. “And you don’t have anything to say about that?” Namida shrugged her shoulders and said. “I wasn’t born when that happened and do you honestly think they would’ve spared my family if they decided to surrender peacefully?” Sachi was stealing glances at the magazine she placed on the table, she flipped to the next page and said. “She has a point.” Ketsueki nodded in agreement as the girls went silent for a moment, she said. “You two want to call it an early break and head to a cafe to order some sweets?”
Ketsueki grabbed her phone from the table and placed it in her pocket, Sachi nodded in agreement and said. “I’m in.” She snapped her fingers as the magazine on the table vanished while Namida closed her laptop and said. “Sounds good.” She swiped her arm above the laptop as it disappeared from the table.