"Oh no." Yamagishi gulped. "This is bad! Takemitchi was kidnapped by Mikey!"

"Seriously?!" Makoto was looking at Yamagishi with equally wide eyes and panic seeping in him.

Mikey, Draken, and Takemitchi were gaining attention by just being there. A few of girls were gushing on how attractive Mikey and Draken were (and some of those girls' boyfriends were honestly jealous) while most of the guys were wondering the same thing; "How in the hell does Hanagaki Takemitchi know them?"

And if Takemitchi was going to answer that question... he'd probably say that he didn't know why.

"He's going to get murdered!" Makoto continued. "Quick! Let's get Akkun and Takuya!"

"Dumbass!" Yamagishi slapped his shoulder. "They're in Class Four, remember?! We can't get them all the time! Plus, their teacher hates us!"

Makoto slapped his forehead. "Agh! We have to do something! If we don't our best friend's going to get murdered!"

"Is that true?"

They both turned to see Hinata standing right behind them. She wasn't giving any expression, but it was evident that she wasn't happy. "I asked a question; Is that true?"

"Uh..." Makoto and Yamagishi looked at each other before back at Hinata, smiling nervously.

Hinata just glared this time. "If you aren't doing anything, then I will!" She starts to walk towards the three and Makoto and Yamagishi move out of the way, obviously scared out of their wits end.

On Takemitchi's end, he felt like that being close to them would mean that he'd be able to make sure that Mikey and Kisaki wouldn't have to meet! Or at least, he could try. Not to mention he didn't know what Kisaki even looked like...

"Hold it right there!"

Takemitchi looked up at hearing the voice. "Ah, Hina!"

Mikey and Draken looked at each other before turning back to Hinata. "Who are you?" 

Hinata was just staring, before she started to walk towards the three. Hinata was looking at Mikey directly in the eyes before deciding to slap his face. "Why are you taking Takemitchi?" She asks him. When she got no response, she just says, "He's not going with you." She turns to Takemitchi now. "Let's go." She says before grabbing his hand and they start walking away. "You don't have to let people like them dictate you."

"Hina, this is-"

"It's fine." Hinata cuts him off, not looking at him. "I promised that I'd protect you, too."

Takemitchi looks down at their hands. 'She's trembling...' 

"Come on, let's go already!" An older boy that was lurking around the convenient store managed to get to Hinata was looking at her in a way that... well, means something else entirely. Hinata was already uncomfortable with this, and it didn't help that she was cornered. "I can't," She mumbled.

He let out a scoff. "I'm not asking. I'm tellin' you to come with me!" He hissed, grabbing her arm.

"H-Hey!" Hinata was pulling back. "I said no!"

"And I'm tellin' you--!"

"ENOUGH!" Hinata and the older boy turned around to see Takemitchi. "Hands off my girlfriend!"

The older boy let out a laugh. "Hah! You? I swear, some people can just do--"

Takemitchi had punched the older boy with a right hook, making him let go of Hinata's arm. "Hina, let's go!" He grabbed her arm and they both started running away, with the older boy yelling once he managed to regain composure.

Takemitchi could feel Hinata's trembling hand in his own.

"Hey," Draken had grabbed Hinata's arm, glaring down at her and Takemitchi. "You think you can just slap someone and walk away? Are you joking with me?"

"I'm dead serious. Coming to others' school and then taking someone by force... It's something a friend would do!" Hinata looked back at Draken, her expression unfazed. "Takemitchi has been getting nothing but injuries lately. If that was because of you guys, then I won't forgive you!"

Draken felt a hand on his shoulder, and he looks to see that it was Takemitchi's. "Let go of her."

"Huh? Can't hear you, speak up."

"Hina's shaking," Takemitchi grips onto Draken's shoulder tighter. "So let her go, dumbass."

Draken was giving him an amused smirk, while Mikey was still staring at the interaction that was happening. "You're shaking, too."

Takemitchi was shaking, but not out of fear. It was something more... determined. "So what?" He looks at Mikey now. "I promised Hina that I'd protect her! I won't give up on her a second time!"

"Ahh," Mikey closes his eyes and manages a smile. "And here I thought that we could be buddies. Too bad." He faces Takemitchi now, his expression changing into something more serious, like he was going to threaten him. "Now then, how do you want to die?"

Takemitchi shuddered at this, but he wasn't going to give up. Not this time. "You can hurt me, but promise me that you won't lay a hand on Hina!"

Mikey let out an amused laugh before raising his fist. "Says who?" 

Takemitchi saw Mikey's fist about to hit his face, and he closed his eyes so the pain would lessen. But he didn't... feel anything hit his face?

"Faked you out!" Mikey instead flicked his forehead, making Takemitchi let out a wince of pain as he held his forehead. "Takemitchy, you dummy. There's no way I'd lay a hand on a girl."

Takemitchi was obviously confused. Wasn't this guy literally threatening him a couple of seconds ago? Though, his own thoughts were snapped out when he felt Draken's arm around his shoulder. "Who says that over a girl nowadays? 'I won't give her up!' You're an old school kind of guy, are you?" He asks Takemitchi, his expression turning into something more... fond, like he was talking to a friend.

Mikey snickered. "You ask him that but you've said something similar yourself."

Draken pretended not to hear that comment, though Takemitchi could see that a light pink tinge appeared on his cheeks. Hmm, maybe he'll take note of that.

(July 07, 2017)

Sano Shinichiro, or most known by his nicknamed called Kokuō, has been in a vegetative state for fourteen years. He was brought to the hospital in 2003, and the doctor tending to him at the time was Ishida Ryūken. Normally, Shinichiro would've been dead by now but somehow he was still alive. Some of the doctors considered it a miracle, while others only saw this as someone suffering despite being able to live.

And the doctors couldn't keep him like this for long. Even with the amount of money being paid, they knew that they had to do something about this plant of a patient.

Wakasa was watching him from the window this time. Fuyuka had been kind enough to let him in after Hitomiko and Takeomi left, but he knew that the visit was brief. He couldn't stay for long.

"I swear, Shin..." Wakasa places his hand on the glass. "Ryūken said that you'll be normal, even if you're gonna be strapped to a wheelchair or be on crutches..." He lets out a bitter laugh. "You moved, didn't you?"

Shinichiro was just sitting lifelessly on the wheelchair.

Just like he always had twelve years ago.

It was a miracle that he even survived cardiac arrest because of blunt trauma to the head. 

"I can see that he's still breathing," Wakasa looked over to see Ryūken standing next to him. He didn't know when the doctor came in and he didn't even notice. But it was better than no one. 

Ryūken had his own hospital in Karakura Town. Originally, Shinichiro was going to be transferred to Yokohama by 2008. But by then... Toman had gone rogue. It was actually Kisaki that "requested" for Shinichiro to be transferred to the Inazuma General Hospital. Wakasa could remember Takeomi begging for Kisaki to cancel the transfer because Karakura General Hospital had offered more resources.

Kisaki declined on it.

"He has a month," Wakasa tells Ryūken. "He responded, so there's a chance..."

Ryūken let out a hum. "I'm honestly surprised that he lived this long."

Wakasa let out a sigh, removing his hand from the glass. "...I know." He turns to Ryūken now. "I better get going. It was nice seeing you here... speaking of, what are you doing here?"

"I visit my former patients sometimes." Ryūken says to him. "Only on my days off."

Wakasa just nodded, and he bows before leaving.

Ryūken let out a sigh as he faces the security camera that was just in the corner. With a snap of his fingers, all that he could hear was static. "Ah, that was honestly tiring... I'm asking Memory to teach me how to use these."

He takes off his glasses, and his true form as Reaper shows. "I'm surprised that you're surviving the curse, boy." Reaper says bluntly. "And to think that your fate is being determined by someone just as pitiful as you." He shakes his head and he turns to leave. Though, he couldn't help but feel.. slightly bad for the poor man.

Only slightly.

As Reaper walks away, he only smirks. "For now, the only color I see in this world is red."