Stealing Your Offerings!

[Energy +50,000]

"Pfft~"

"What are you laughing about?"

In the car heading to the cabinet meeting, Makima looked quizzically at Shoko, who had suddenly burst out laughing. "Did something happen?"

"No, nothing really~" Shoko chuckled. "Just imagining Denji and Aki being tormented by Power right now."

"...You don't need to worry about them so much." Makima said seriously. "They can take care of themselves."

Those three troublesome individuals, stuck in hospital beds, still causing her headaches… and after two whole days, she'd finally managed to carve out some alone time with Shoko.

"Well, they are family. It's normal to worry." Shoko smiled, gazing at the rapidly passing scenery outside the window.

This was why checking the forums was so important.

Before, she would have been clueless about the source of this sudden energy influx. But a quick browse, and she'd easily pinpointed the source.

Aki saw the future, huh… the future where she takes Denji's heart… interesting.

Looks like it's time to initiate the final phase of my plan~

"Say, is something wrong with Aki lately?"

At Aki's apartment, Power surreptitiously observed Aki, who was staring out the window, lost in thought. She turned to Denji, voicing her concerns. "He's been moping around lately..."

"Well, maybe he's not used to having time off after being on the front lines constantly?" Denji scratched his head. "He won't tell me what's wrong."

"Not that this Great Power cares about him or anything, but he did cook for us every day. I wouldn't mind helping him out if he's got problems~"

"Looks like Power's becoming considerate."

Shoko emerged from the kitchen, placing the dishes before them. "But Aki's arm hasn't fully healed, so you'll have to make do with my cooking for now, okay?"

If her cooking was too good, she risked permanently taking over Aki's kitchen duties. So, for the sake of her free time, Shoko deliberately kept her culinary skills a notch below Aki's.

"Doesn't matter. This Great Power will eat anything!" Power seemed unconcerned about the quality of the food.

"Actually, Shoko's cooking is better!" Denji chimed in happily.

This was understandable. Both Power and Denji had a talent for… culinary disasters. Like that time Aki returned from the hospital, and they'd decided to surprise him with a home-cooked meal. The result: Aki throwing up. Thankfully, her Future Foresight had activated that day, allowing her to escape under the pretense of buying drinks.

"Still, it's not good for Aki to keep moping around like this."

Shoko tilted her head in thought, then smiled. "How about we all go to Hokkaido?"

"Hokkaido...?" Denji paused, then exclaimed excitedly, "A trip?!"

"Yeah, it's Aki's hometown." Shoko knocked on Aki's door, then peeked inside. "What do you think, Aki? We could all visit your family's grave together."

"..." Having overheard their entire conversation, Aki turned around with a sigh. "It's just visiting a grave. We don't need so many people."

"This Great Power wants to go on a trip!" Power jumped up, ecstatic. "Hokkaido!"

Denji and Shoko immediately joined in, chanting, "Hokkaido! Hokkaido!"

"Seriously, you guys..."

Aki sighed. "What about the cat?"

All eyes turned to the innocent cat at Power's feet.

"A trip?"

Makima stared blankly at the cat Shoko had thrust into her arms, then at Shoko, Denji, Power, and Aki, all packed and ready to dash for the train. "Hokkaido?"

"Yeah, we'll be gone for two days, so Meowy's all yours~" Shoko cheerfully waved, then, without waiting for a response, whisked the others away. "Make sure the dogs don't bully him!"

Shoko and her team moved with the speed and decisiveness of a SWAT team. Makima hadn't even processed the situation before they vanished, leaving her holding the cat, both staring at each other in silence.

Makima: "..."

Meowy: "...Meow?"

Having lost his entire family in the Gun Devil incident, Aki visited their graves in Hokkaido every year.

Usually, he went alone. It made sense. Everyone he could have visited with was already in the ground. But this year was different. He had company. Though a bit too much company.

Is this really necessary?!

Shoko: "Is it, though?"

Denji: "I don't think so."

Power: "All the boxed lunches are mine!"

Himeno: "Isn't this the usual crowd?"

Makima: "Kishibe's looking after the dogs and the cat, so it's fine."

Aki: "This isn't a crowd?!"

Aside from Makima, who was leaning silently against Shoko, everyone else was incredibly noisy. They were on a bullet train, but it felt like a bustling marketplace.

Thankfully, they had the entire car to themselves. Otherwise, Aki wouldn't know what to do.

This was a mistake. A huge mistake. He should have come alone.

Taking a deep breath, Aki tried to console himself. They were probably just excited about the trip. They'd calm down eventually.

However…

"Aki, look! I caught a huge fish!"

"Put that shark back in the ocean!" On the cruise ship deck, surrounded by horrified onlookers, Aki yelled at Power, who was proudly displaying a shark impaled on her blood-tipped harpoon.

"And you're supposed to use a fishing rod!"

"And you, stop turning into Chainsaw Man to fish with your chains!"

"Don't be such a killjoy, Aki. Let kids be kids. It's good for their development." Shoko offered some sage advice.

"You're scaring the other passengers! They'll call the police!"

"But we are the police." Himeno chuckled, sipping her drink.

"We'll still get complaints..."

"Don't worry!" Shoko grinned, hugging Makima tightly. "We've got our boss right here~"

"We're just eliminating a suspected Shark Devil." Makima stated seriously. "Official business."

Aki: "..."

Surely, they wouldn't be this unruly at the cemetery, laughing while Power and Denji stole the offerings… right?