Chapter 13

When Shuu notices Hinata Ren standing next to Arilio Banks, he can't help but note that the Guide is wearing Koukichi's black jacket over his school uniform. Shuu would know, because he has seen Koukichi wear it around him many times. And those shoes he's wearing; they're the same kind Segawa Hide was modeling for on that billboard Shuu saw at the shopping center. Well, he probably bought them himself, but considering the circumstances, it is also possible he got them from Segawa Hide.

Which would not be weird, if he really is the Guide to Team Phoenix.

He watches as Banks, who is the team manager and adviser, is having a private banter with the Guide. The two are in the middle of a disagreement, with the latter seeming to protest Ari's latest arrangement for the both of them. Shuu sighs, so even now the Guide does not seem to want to have anything to do with him.

In the middle of talking with Banks, the Guide's eyes met Shuu's. There's something in his eyes. He seems... concerned.

"Welp, that does it! Ren-tan here knows what he's gotta do and what he's gotta watch out for, haha," Banks makes a shooting gun motion with his two hands and points them at Shuu, then he hooks one hand around Hinata Ren's elbow and takes them both closer. A large hand is landed onto Shuu's shoulder so now he and the Guide are standing facing each other, "So now you're good! Now you two can hit it off and be good friends! Right?"

The young aspiring Esper and the Guide gaze awkwardly at one another before both divert their eyes.

"You look better today, Shuu-kun," Hinata Ren says after a momentary silence.

"Y-yeah," Shuu answers, "Thank you. I probably won't be here if not for you". Shuu doesn't remember much of what happened when he was finally found inside Shun-En after going missing for 3 hours, but he has confirmed with numerous people that he was indeed saved by Hinata Ren.

But there's a lot more left unsaid to the Guide, such as his frustration from being treated like trash by Segawa Hide just for mentioning the Guide's name or the apology he should've said for saying something rude to the Guide in the Med Bay. There's also a little jealousy somewhere, because Shuu has to fight tooth and nail to score a spot in the team, yet someone without any discernible abilities like this Guide manages to stay in the team just fine. 

Hinata Ren does an awkward shift, "I was just doing what has to be done, so no need to thank me". So there it is; the Guide didn't even save Shuu because he wanted to. It's just something to be done.

"Look at this! You guys are friends already! Isn't this great? Well, then, I shall leave you two on your own accord!" Banks pats them both on the back as he say that with such exuberance that it leaves no space for them to argue. He then quickly leans closer to Shuu so he can whisper directly into Shuu's ear. "Just stick close to Ren and make sure not to leave his side. Keep your mask on at all times, do not show your face because you're not supposed to be there - Oh, and one more thing. Don't kiss Ren, could you please?"

"W-what?"

"Don't kiss him, you hear me?" Banks shows him one of his signature smiles while raising his eyebrows before slapping Shuu in the chest and then leaving them, "Beautiful! Now, I shall bid you my goodbye! Good luck with the mission!" The manager walks away with one thumb pointed to the sky, leaving both Shuu and Hinata Ren just awkwardly standing there.

"Uhh, so...," Hinata Ren starts, eyes avoiding Shuu's, "we'll wait for my, uh, driver to come".

"Okay," Shuu, too, diverts his gaze. 

"Okay". Amid their silence, Hinata pulls out his mask from the inner pocket of Koukichi's black jacket and puts it on. It's the same face mask they all have as a part of their uniform in YES; but once he puts it on, Shuu reckons that design is a little different to their mask.

"That's our ride!" Hinata Ren points towards a black Jeep moving slowly towards them. The car comes to a stop in front of them and a tall young man in his early twenties exits the vehicle. His thick eyebrows rise at the sight of Shuu.

"We've got an extra passenger today!" Hinata announces to the guy, who is half-skipping their way. 

"Isn't this Narukami Shuu?" The guy asks, looking very much surprised to find Shuu there.

"Yeah," Hinata Ren crosses his arms but smiles thinly, "He's coming with us to the portal". 

"Oh, wow. I thought he was ordered to rest?"

Hinata Ren sighs, "Yeah, about that," and then the two start having this private conversation that Shuu cannot hear. From the way these two's eyebrows crease, the exchange is quite heated. Still, Shuu is much more interested in another matter altogether.

"You know me?" He asks the new guy. The two stop their discussion in an instant. "Yeah, I mean," the new guy points his thumb to Hinata, "This guy won't stop talking about you, so -"

"N-no I didn't!" Pink spreads to Hinata Ren's cheeks all the way to the bridge of his nose, "A-Anyway, I have to fetch some equipment from the deployment unit. Please wait here". The guide technically runs from the conversation, which leaves Shuu blushing in front of a guy he barely knows.

"Does he, really?" Shuu voices finally.

"Yeah, watches your training and stuff, gushes over you. You've got a fanboy right there".

Shuu can feel the heat coming from his face. He has heard people telling him that they watch him train, but he is never aware of their presence during training. The ceiling of the studios on Level 4 is made from glass, allowing people on the second story of the level to watch you from above; however, the people under that ceiling cannot do the same to their viewers. It's a little unexpected to find that Guide Hinata is among those viewers.

"Sorry, I didn't catch your name. You are?" Shuu asks the young man. He appears tall and athletically built, with clean-cut hair and broad shoulders. He's wearing their light gray hoodie, but Shuu does not see any badge. Seeing his age though, he should be a part of Garuda or Falcon. 

"Oh. I'm Morita. Morita Ken," He extends a hand towards Shuu, which the latter welcomes in a handshake. "I'm Ren's bodyguard".

"... I thought you were the driver".

"Yeah, because I'm the bodyguard. I drive him around - though the Phoenixes often try to steal that part of my job".

Shuu feels something dropping to the pit of his stomach. He should've known. This was a fluke.

***

"It is now 8.00 pm in Ogasawara Park and we are watching more and more visitors getting evacuated out of the park. As you can see right behind me, teams from The National Legion of Espers and the newly formed Young Esper Society are leaving and entering the park on wheeled vehicles carrying various tools and weapons. As confirmed by the Ministry of National Security and Esper Conduct, the public is now strictly prohibited from visiting the area since a portal has been reported to open within the National Park -"

Shuu listens from afar as the reporter speaks in front of the camera, about 1 km away from the entrance to the national park. As per their standard practice, they close the area surrounding the portal and divide it into 3 zones to ensure the least amount of damage done to civilians. Today is not an exception. Now, everything in the radius of 5 km from the gates of the National Park is labeled Zone 3 and evacuation has been done to everyone in the area.

Ogasawara Park itself is already a large park, known for its winding hiking track, beautiful view, and natural waterfall, and is only a 1.5-hour drive from Shintokyo. Considering the size of the zone, it is reasonable to assume that the infestation of the portal is quite serious in Zone 1 and 2. Shuu has been counting more and more Ambulances coming and leaving to pick up survivors they have saved from Zone 1 and 2, and the number is extremely concerning.

Everyone from Team Phoenix is inside that park; fighting mutants and saving people. 

Meanwhile, Shuu is here in Zone 3, tailing a Guide and playing the role of a bodyguard which said Guide doesn't really need. Of course, Hinata Ren does not need Shuu as a bodyguard. He already has one. One that opens the door for him and echoes his every step. One that carries his stuff and drives him around.

Shuu is never needed as a bodyguard. Banks knows that, which is why he gave Shuu the task. 

That's how Shuu is stuck watching Hinata Ren and his bodyguard walking ahead of him as they checked themselves to a checkpoint in Zone 3. Shuu's attention, however, is on the two Falcon members walking behind them.

"This is why I hate working with the other Bureaus. They look at us and think we're a bunch of kids. They never take us seriously, man! Could you believe that a Legion member asked me to step back and carry tools? I'm a front-liner in Falcon, man! I don't just 'carry tools'!"

"They look down on us just because we're younger, but wait until we graduate from YES. The moment we graduate, these Bureaus would swarm around to recruit us. Oh, did you see Hitoshi-san? He's a commander in The Legion's A-team".

"Are you for real? He just joined them a month ago! Not long ago he's just another Falcon like us".

"Exactly! Once you graduate, you're a high-value asset to the other Bureaus. YES Graduates are highly sought after and you'd get fast-tracked into a higher position in their organization".

"Heck yeah! By the way where's Hitoshi-san, man? If he's here, he would treat us better compared to these other guys".

"He's sent into Zone 2, unfortunately. Oh, but I heard Trinity is joining the containment. Isn't Isono-san also part of the elite team there? We might have her with us here".

"Holyshit, they have Isono too! This is cool - you think she'll treat us to free dinner or something?"

"You wish. All I want is to end the night without having to feel like crap. Last time we worked with The Legion, they made me feel so small. Do you notice how they look at us? It's like we're not worth their time at all!"

"Shuu-kun?"

Shuu almost crashes against Morita, who has stopped to address him. "Y-yeah? Sorry, I wasn't paying attention".

Morita chuckles. He comes off as someone with a gentle and patient disposition despite sporting quite a mass of muscle. "I know, it's pretty boring, huh? Anyway, please remember to always keep your mask on. There are a lot of Government officials here and we don't want them to catch any sightings of you here. Remember, on this very day, you are resting in your room under the strict order of the Ministry of National Security and Esper Conduct. You are not here".

Shuu lifts his thumb, "Okay".

"Haha, good".

They're okayed to enter the deeper part of Zone 3; the area directly bordering with Zone 2. Here, there are a lot more tents built; each containing numerous personnel and machinery. There are fewer cameras and reporters here, thankfully; but there is more sense of urgency in the air. You'd see more Espers walking with a quickened pace, more shoutings, and more heavily injured survivors taken out of the gate to the park.

The Espers consist of two groups. One is from YES, easily identified by their light gray hoodie and track pants clothing. The other is the complete opposite. The National Legion of Espers, often going by The Legion, is a Government-funded Esper Bureau consisting of Espers aged 23 and up. They are notable for their business-like attire consisting of a black dress shirt and matching dress pants along with a harness belt over their top. Sometimes they even wear a suit jacket over their getup and even a tie, looking like they're going for a meeting at a fancy restaurant and not to fight mutants.

Shuu heard Sora designed YES' uniform in the opposite direction to The Legion's public image so YES could separate itself from The Legion in the eyes of the public. The clashing style is more so obvious when they work hand in hand.

It makes sense that they are not taken more seriously. How does a group of well-dressed adults see a group of kids in hoodies and consider them an equal?

Shuu is a little nervous to see these older Espers and senses the disapproval in their seizing glance, yet still dares himself to check out a small crowd of Espers dressed in all black. One of them does notice them. At first, she seems disinterested. But then, her expression morphs to that of recognition before she turns to her colleagues and they all turn to see them.

No, it's not them they are noticing. It's Hinata.

All the while, Hinata is busy speaking to his bodyguard, sometimes moving his hands to stress his words as Morita listens, leaving Shuu the only one to notice the details from their surroundings.

"It's the Guide," Shuu hears the Legion Esper tell her friends as they walk past.

"Who?"

"Sora's Guide".

"That kid?"

He can't hear what else they're saying as they walk farther into the area in the direction of a large tent in the signature color of The Green Circle; a Government-funded organization for public Espers formed directly under the Esper Protection Council. But before Shuu realizes it, the two walking in front of him have been joined by three Legion-affiliated Staff; and all of them are looking like they're deep in a serious conversation that Shuu is not a part of.

"We cannot find him. In fact, we don't know how it started or how it's -," The first Legion Esper animatedly waves his paper around as he explains to Hinata.

"No. We do have a time frame of when we lost contact with him; and we do have an approximate coordinate of his whereabouts - so we do know what's going o-," the second one disrupts, sounding stern.

"This is troublesome. We can't lose control of that child. It can jeopardize the whole containment. Next thing we know, he's going after," says the third.

Shuu has zero idea what they are talking about, but the way these three ramble tells Shuu that something is wrong. And somehow it is important for them to inform the young Guide.

They stop in front of the Green Circle's tent where a couple more people, all dressed in full Esper regalia and looking quite experienced, join the circle around Hinata. The tent itself is one of the largest tents in the vicinity, with benches spread on the front and a lot of people walking about; most of them are dressed in white button-ups matched with a dark skirt or pants. They, Shuu assumes, are public Guides, hired to service any Espers in need of guiding while on the field. One of them approaches Hinata with a piece of documents, which the younger Guide soon reads under the LED lights erected around the tents, as his bodyguard bends so he too can read the same paper.

Shuu, however, is left slightly behind and he uses that opportunity to observe his surroundings.

It is his first time visiting a very active portal just hours after its apparition. He sees people in his getup running around with weapons in hands, and others shouting orders. As he stands there, he sees 2 Legion Espers carrying an injured colleague who is bleeding from the leg.

"We've got an injured A-Class!" One of the uninjured Espers screams, "We've got an injured A-Class!"

As soon as he says that, the three drop to the ground out of exhaustion. The other uninjured Esper, at least, visibly uninjured, screams too, "We need 3 B-Class Guides! Please! Help us!"

Three Guides run towards the group of Espers and help carry the injured Esper into the tent. Four more come behind them to pick up the two other Espers. Shuu then witnesses as the injured Esper is situated on a bench where he is quickly engulfed in a group hug by the three Guides who are helping him, while his injured leg is tended to by a healer. To most, it looks like a typical guiding session, but Shuu flinches when he senses the thick red smoke surrounding the injured Esper. Normally he senses energy in the form of a blue or purple puff of energy. But red is something else.

"He's on the verge of rampaging," Shuu whispers to himself in horror.

Rampage. Every person is susceptible to overexerting the usage of their abilities, but it is even more so for one working as an Esper, and especially for a high-ranked Esper. For most people, overexertion could mean fluctuating emotions, lack of concentration, and, oftentimes, losing control over your abilities. Rampage is the same, but ten times worse. Shuu has only ever heard of A-Class and, especially, S-Class Espers falling victim to rampage which is usually the result of overexerting themselves too much without any guiding. The problem is, the higher the rank, the harder it is for an Esper to have a good matching rate with a guide; hence a Rampage is best controlled with routine guidings and sufficient rest.

Inside the tent, there are a lot more Espers in similar situations, each hooked to a Guide by hands, some are engulfed in a hug with their Guide. It is chaotic - and it is the first time Shuu has ever seen something like it.

"Yo, what are you doing there just standing? Have you received your guiding?"

Shuu turns his head in confusion only to see Takao with his hoodie on but his mask off. "Uhh, yeah?" Shuu answers absently, not knowing what else to say. He is told not to expose his identity to anyone after all.

"Then get moving!! Haven't you heard? It's Code 325, man! Get to your position!!"

He should say, no, he hasn't heard anything, because his communicator is not connected to any channel thanks to the simple fact that he is not supposed to be there to join the fight. The one he's wearing, connected to his mask, is there as a mere accessory. He should tell Takao all of that, and yet Shuu spatters into incoherent mumbles instead when his wrist is captured into a strong grip and he is dragged along by Takao. "Who are you with? The elementals?"

"Um, y-yeah".

"Then walk faster! We've got no time!"

"U-um," but he doesn't even know what Code 325 is!!

They're tracing back the path he just walked with Hinata and Morita, somewhere closer to the checkpoint. The lady who was reporting the news before is now running with her cameraman to leave the area. Not only that, he notices all the Espers in the vicinity are facing towards the gate, eyes looking up and posture ready, like they are expecting an attack from something - something that Shuu would know nothing about because he is not part of this containment.

"Takao!! What the hell are you wandering around for!? Get the fuck over here quick, idiot!!" Exclaims an older Falcon at the front of a few lines of Falcon. They hasten their steps, and soon Shuu finds himself among the Falcons, right next to Takao; facing up, waiting - for what, he doesn't know.

"On position!!" Commands the leader of the platoon, "Here comes the first horde! In 3, 2..."

"...1"

It starts with a shrill screech, and then suddenly, from the shadows of the tall trees within the park, appears a group of birds. From where they are stationed, they seem like thin lines one makes to mimic the shape of a bird in the distance. But soon, as the birds fly closer, these lines grow into large birds with menacing green eyes. At first, one might mistake them for normal large birds; but it won't take long to notice these are not birds.

These are mutants.

"Attack!!"

The order is thrown just when the first bird is lunging at them. In an instant, various elements from the hands of the Espers around Shuu rain towards the sky. Water, air, fire, wood, there are even mud and laser beams; all coming from multiple directions towards the birds. The first few hits trigger a loud cry from the birds; some fall to the ground and are quickly executed by other Espers. However, a couple of hits from these Espers are not enough to kill it. They all have to take quick initiatives without knowing the next step the other Esper is going to take.

Some Espers with forcefield abilities build an invisible dome in the sky above them to prohibit the birds from leaving the area and possibly entering civilian areas. While they do so, some other Espers with the ability of bindings summon an invisible bind around fleeing birds and pull them back closer to their zone, before an elemental Esper sends a shot of laser towards the bound bird and kills it. Meanwhile, Shuu is also watching Takao in awe. The Falcon summons a ball of almost lava-like fireballs in his two hands before throwing them at a bird that is swinging past, sending the bird to a downward trajectory towards the neighboring team of Esper, who quickly handle the bird with their own ability. But, without a pause, Takao charges up, engulfing his upper torso in flame before he sends a wave of fire to the ground where a different bird has just fallen, burning the bird in the blink of an eye. 

It's chaotic yet, at the same time, everything moves in harmony. It is beautiful.

And in the center of this, Shuu stands there watching with both hands in his pockets. He's entranced by the show.

"Here comes a large one!!" Shuu hears the commander screaming. No one is listening, of course. Everyone is too busy doing their respective fights. Only Shuu is listening. "It's coming!! It's here!!"

There is no sound this time. What is there is a large head of a bird, peeking from behind the tall trees. The glowing green eyes blink from behind the shadow before it straightens up its head to stand to its full height, far taller than the trees. You cannot see its full body yet, but from the head alone, you'd imagine the span of both its wings could cover the roofs of three medium-sized houses.

Next to him, Shuu feels Takao stopping his barrage of attacks. "Holyshit!" He hears the older Falcon say, "Holysh - How the - What are we going to do with that!?" You'd know from his raspy voice how out of breath the Falcon is. And perhaps, the same can be said about everyone in Zone 3 at the moment.

A lot of them haven't realized the giant menace coming their way.

But Shuu does...

So he pulls his hands out of the pocket of his hoodie.

***

"What are we going to do with that!?" Takao grimaces as he wipes the layer of sweat forming on top of his eyebrows. He does not know how much longer he can fight this intensely. The previous horde was a huge mass, and that should be enough to drain almost the whole team in Zone 3.

And yet here, beyond them, is an even larger bird, just waiting.

"Fuck - Commander!!!" Takao calls over the heads of his fellow Falcons. The Commander, an older Falcon only 2 years his senior, is standing still only a few meters away. He's frozen like a statue. The Commander is in shock. "Fuck!" Takao cusses loudly.

Strangely enough, in the middle of this, he's feeling a light tug on his hair. Takao turns around, just to check if there is an enemy; but it isn't even that. His hair strands are floating in the direction of his right; in the direction of the person beside him. It's the guy he collected from The Green Circle tent.

Even crazier, it's not just the hair on his head. He can feel the hairs on his arms rising too. "What the -," Takao looks down at his arms, although he cannot see the hairs under the sleeves of his hoodie, "Dude, what are you -?" He turns to see the person, only to see sparks of electricity around the person next to him.

"Bro, what ability do you wi -," Takao is about to ask before the person sends one foot and one arm back. In a split second, a lightning spear - no, a thunderbolt - forms under the guy's hand. Before Takao gets to process what is happening, the guy throws the bolt into the sky.

The force of the throw is enough to almost send Takao whirling. The bolt soars straight to the head of the giant bird. The ear-piercing screech that follows echoes through the vicinity, turning heads and stunning all bystanders as they finally come to realize the presence of the giant mutant; perhaps confused as to why this new enemy appears with a large electric spear piercing through its head, sending jolts of electricity through its whole entire being until it drops dead behind the tall trees, haunting them with sounds of trees snapping behind the gate to the National Park. The LED lamp posts they have built around Zone 3 blink madly on and off as it all happened, only stabilizing once the bird's large head disappears from view. After that, their team is blanketed by a long tense silence.

From his head comm, Takao hears a man's voice voicing his thoughts, or maybe a question. It is probably one of The Legion's leaders. Then Mirai, the Garuda commander who led Takao's team in the rescue mission of Narukami Shuu at Shun-En last week, answers the man. "Yes, Sir, let me address my team for a moment".

Takao hears a soft bleep that signals the switch to a YES Team-only channel. Mirai sighs heavily to the comms, saying, "Okay, I don't want to jinx myself, but I know every one of you and your abilities; and I know none of you useless lot does electricity. Now just," another sigh, "Just tell me, does any of you happen to see a kid, right here, right now, who is not supposed to be here today and is related to a legendary Esper who wields that exact same thunderbolt in his prime?"

Takao swallows thickly at the question as his eyes stay on the figure he dragged from The Green Circle tent. Takao taps on a button close to his ear, "Yeah, he's here right next to me," Takao answers to the comm. As he says that, the guy in front of him loosens up his mask to let out a long exhale as though he had just done an honest day's work. The handsome face behind that mask confirms Takao's suspicion. "It's him," Takao repeats, "Narukami Shuu is here".

***

To be Continued.