ASAKUSA - EVENING
The sun had set.
Darkness spread across Tokyo's streets.
Mitsuha and Kazuma had gone far into Asakusa—searching for the homeless boy.
But there was no sign.
No trail.
Nothing.
Kazuma stopped, hands on his knees, breathing heavily.
"Aah! We've come so far..." His voice was exhausted. Frustrated. "But there's still no trace of this homeless boy."
He looked at Mitsuha.
"Ooh! I'm tired, Mitsuha. I don't think we can find him like this."
Mitsuha took a long breath.
Her voice was cold. Clinical.
"Yeah. You're probably right."
She was checking her phone—mapping out areas they'd already covered.
"Trying seems pointless. The closer we get to him, the further he gets from us."
She pocketed her phone.
"I think we should go home."
ARGUMENT
Kazuma's voice suddenly rose.
"What!? Home!?"
He stood up straight, disbelief written across his face.
"Are you out of your mind? After coming this far—without even finding him—how can we just go home?"
His hands went up in a frustrated gesture.
"If we don't find him, forget about learning anything! About the yokai, about the curse—nothing!"
Mitsuha slowly turned toward him.
Her eyes narrowed.
"So what do you want?"
Her voice was dangerously quiet.
"Should we spend all night searching for someone who—"
She walked up to him. Close. Too close.
"—we don't even know where he is, and we don't even know if we'll find him?"
She grabbed his collar.
Tight.
Sharp gaze meeting his.
"It's late, Kazuma. Go home. Think with a cool head. We'll find another way."
Kazuma grabbed her hand angrily.
Removed it from his collar.
"Let go of my collar!"
A beat of silence.
Tension thick.
Then—
"...Fine. Alright."
Kazuma gave up.
Because there were no words left to say.
Because Mitsuha was right.
Because he was exhausted.
"Let's go home then."
SILENT WALK
They walked side by side.
But neither spoke.
"Hey, are you going to stop now? I'm walking, aren't I?"
Kazuma's voice was a bit softer. Reconciliatory.
"Hey Mitsuha! Why aren't you listening to me?"
Mitsuha didn't respond.
Just kept walking forward.
Finally, without looking at him—
"I made a mistake coming with you."
The words were sharp. Cold.
Kazuma's step momentarily hesitated.
"Yeah? Well I told you not to come!" His voice turned defensive. "Go to hell. Don't talk to me."
And the silence fell again.
Heavy.
Uncomfortable.
Angry.
SHINAGAWA RAILWAY STATION - 30 MINUTES LATER
The train platform was crowded.
Announcements echoed off metal walls.
Mitsuha and Kazuma sat in the train—opposite ends of the bench.
A bag placed between them.
Like it was a wall.
An invisible barrier.
Both were angry at each other.
Not even making eye contact.
Kazuma stared out the window.
Mitsuha at her phone.
No words.
No acknowledgment.
Just cold silence.
ASAKUSA STATION
The train announcement blared:
"The next station is Asakusa. Asakusa!"
The doors slid open.
Light snow had started falling outside.
White flakes glittering under the streetlights.
Both stood up.
Grabbed their bags.
And without a single word—
Walked in opposite directions.
Mitsuha left.
Kazuma right.
As if they were separating permanently.
Kazuma looked back once.
Mitsuha was already far away.
Disappearing into the snow.
He sighed.
And headed toward his apartment.
AKASAKA APARTMENT - 9:47 PM
Kazuma's footsteps echoed in the stairwell.
Slow.
Tired.
Defeated.
When he reached his floor—
His steps froze.
His apartment door.
Was open.
Slightly. But definitely open.
His face filled with shock and fear.
I locked it... I always lock it...
He began moving forward slowly.
Hand went to his pocket—for his phone.
Should I call the police?
But then he heard—
A sound.
From the kitchen.
Metallic. Soft.
Someone's inside.
Kazuma put his phone back.
Let me check first.
He moved quietly toward the door.
Pushed it open. Slowly.
The lights were off.
But a faint glow came from the kitchen.
Kazuma peeked inside—
KITCHEN
The refrigerator was open.
And in front of it—
A figure.
Thin. Ragged clothes. Messy hair.
He was touching the interior light.
Again and again.
As if he couldn't understand what it was.
Fascinated. Confused.
Like a caveman discovering fire.
Kazuma spotted the baseball bat near the wall.
Slowly—quietly—he picked it up.
Moved toward the kitchen softly.
The stranger was still exploring the fridge.
Completely absorbed.
Kazuma raised the bat.
One shot. Clean.
And swung.
SMASH!!!
IMPACT
The sound was brutal.
Wood meeting skull.
The stranger crumpled.
Collapsed onto the floor.
Motionless.
The refrigerator light fell across his face.
And when Kazuma saw—
The bat slipped from his hands.
CLATTER.
"Oh shit. Oh shit oh SHIT!"
His voice was panicked. Shaking.
"This... this... this is him!"
The homeless boy.
"WHAT HAVE I DONE!?"
PANIC
Kazuma fumbled and pulled out his phone.
His hands were shaking.
Called Mitsuha.
Ring.
Ring.
Ring.
CALL DECLINED
"What!?"
Dialed again.
Ring.
Ring.
CALL DECLINED
"Mitsuha! Pick up, please!"
Desperately, he clicked a photo of the homeless boy.
Sent it to Mitsuha.
Typing—
KAZUMA: Mitsuha listen to me
Dots appeared.
MITSUHA: Fuck you. Stop messaging me.
KAZUMA: This isn't a joke. The homeless boy is at my house.
Three dots.
Longer this time.
Then—
INCOMING CALL: MITSUHA
Kazuma answered instantly.
"Mitsuha—"
"Are you serious right now, Kazuma?"
Her voice was sharp. Dangerous.
"If this is a lie, you won't survive."
"I'm serious! He's here! In the kitchen! Unconscious! I—I accidentally hit him and—"
"I'm coming. Thirty minutes."
Call ended.
Kazuma stared at his phone.
Then at the homeless boy.
"I'm... I'm so fucked."
[28 MINUTES LATER]
The doorbell rang.
Kazuma rushed to the door.
Opened it.
Mitsuha.
Still in her uniform. Hair disheveled from running.
Breathing elevated but controlled.
Her first words:
"Where is he?"
Not "are you okay."
Not "what happened."
Just—
"Where is he? Tell me quickly!"
"Ah... inside. In the kitchen. He's unconscious."
KITCHEN - INTERROGATION PREP
Both rushed into the kitchen.
When they saw the homeless boy—now tied to a chair with extension cords and duct tape—
An expression came across their faces.
Like they'd found buried gold after years.
Kazuma's soft voice came.
"Ah... he's still unconscious."
Mitsuha yelled like fire.
"THEN WAKE HIM UP!"
She went to the kitchen counter. Pulled a knife from her bag.
"And tie his hands. Tight. So he can't escape."
AWAKENING
A few minutes later—
The homeless boy's hands were securely tied.
Kazuma took a glass of water.
Threw it on his face.
SPLASH!
The boy's eyes slowly opened.
Everything was blurry at first.
Then it cleared.
Two strangers. Staring at him.
One with a knife.
Panic flooded his face.
"AAAAAHHH!"
He started struggling. Fighting against the ropes.
"WHO ARE YOU PEOPLE!? WHY ARE MY HANDS TIED!?"
"HELP! SOMEONE HELP—"
The sound was so loud it could burst eardrums.
Mitsuha couldn't take it.
She stood up angrily.
Grabbed a paper towel.
And shoved it directly into his mouth.
"Mmmmph! Mmmm!"
INTERROGATION
Mitsuha leaned in close.
Voice ice-cold.
"Stop screaming."
The knife came into his line of sight.
The blade glinted in the light.
"Be grateful I didn't take your kidneys."
The boy's eyes went wide.
Terrified.
"Now. We'll ask questions. You'll answer."
She pulled the paper towel out slightly.
"Go on. Speak."
The boy was breathing heavily.
"And if you scream again—"
Mitsuha moved the knife near his cheek.
"—this knife will be in your cheek. Understand, homeless boy?"
"M-my name... is Ren..." His voice was shaking. "Ren Kurosawa..."
"Tell me. Who are you?"
Ren looked at Kazuma with fear. Then at Mitsuha.
"First... first you tell me who you are!"
His voice was defensive despite the fear.
"I came looking for Kazuma. I thought this was his house. So untie my hands and let me go!"
He glared at Mitsuha.
"And who is this 'homeless boy'? My name is Ren Kurosawa. Got it!?"
RECOGNITION
Kazuma stepped forward.
"I'm Kazuma."
Ren's eyes widened.
Stared.
Squinted.
Recognition slowly dawned.
"What!? You... you're Kazuma!?"
He looked closely.
"Wait a minute... I've seen you somewhere..."
Eyes widened.
"Ooo! You're the one from that day in the garden! And... and you gave me—"
"Yes." Kazuma cut him off. "I gave you ¥500."
Breath.
"And you told me a secret. That... that yokai thing."
Kazuma's voice grew harder. Desperate.
"What you said—it's all happening to me!"
He moved closer to Ren.
Grabbed his collar with both hands.
Eyes intense. Almost wild.
"My life is being destroyed! I can't die, I can't live!"
Gripped the collar tighter.
"Tell me! How do you know this? HOW!?"
Voice rising with each word.
"Tell me how to be free! How to kill that yokai!"
He almost shook Ren.
"OR I'LL TAKE YOUR LIFE!"
REN'S QUESTION
Ren nervously looked at Mitsuha.
With a suspicious gaze.
"Hey... Kazuma..."
Hesitation.
"Is... is she your girlfriend?"
Both Kazuma and Mitsuha's faces showed silly expressions.
Simultaneously—
"WHAT!?"
"ABSOLUTELY NOT!!"
Their voices echoed in unison.
Ren blinked.
"Or did you... accept her 'I love you'? Meaning you two are dating? Or... something like that?"
Kazuma quickly stepped forward.
"Look, it's nothing like that. Our meeting was just an accident. Our thoughts are completely different."
Pause.
"But yes. There's one thing."
Kazuma's voice became serious.
"When I die and come back alive—for people, the time before my death... it doesn't even exist."
He gestured toward Mitsuha.
"But Mitsuha... she remembers everything."
MITSUHA'S MEMORY
Mitsuha spoke in her voice. Calm. Clinical.
"I remember when that spike went through me. In the graveyard. The pain. Death. Darkness. Everything."
She looked at Kazuma.
"And when time reset—I woke up on the bench again. Alive. But memories intact."
Ren's face went completely white.
SHOCK
"What!? How!?"
Ren was in shock. Genuinely terrified.
"This... this is impossible! How can this happen!?"
His voice was shaking.
"Yokai never make women their prey! Never!"
He looked sharply at Kazuma.
"Kazuma! Tell me the truth!"
Desperately.
"Whose proposal did you accept!?"
"No one!" Kazuma said firmly.
MITSUHA'S INPUT
Mitsuha cut in.
Voice cold. Almost mocking.
"This idiot was going to kill himself in grief over his friend's death."
She gave Kazuma a side-eye.
"How could someone like this fall in love?"
REN'S OUTBURST
Ren got angry.
He spoke like raging fire.
"WHAT NONSENSE IS THIS!?"
His voice was frustrated. Confused.
"You're saying everything that happens when someone accepts a yokai's proposal is happening to you!"
Breathing hard.
"But you're also saying you never accepted any proposal!"
Pause.
"THEN HOW CAN THIS BE HAPPENING TO YOU!?"
Kazuma said helplessly.
"How would I know? You're supposed to tell me!"
REN'S CONFESSION
Ren started getting nervous.
Sweat appeared on his face.
"No..."
Voice shaking.
"I don't know anything about this."
Breath.
"In all these years—200 years—this has never happened."
He looked at both of them.
"You two are the first..."
Swallow.
"...who have a yokai's shadow without any yokai. And your memories don't fade."
Pause.
"I came here because I found out—you're not alone in being hunted by yokai."
Ren's voice became grim.
"Many yokai have come to Tokyo. Preying on young men here."
He looked at Kazuma.
"But with you... something different is happening."
THE QUESTION
Kazuma stopped him.
Desperate.
"So what's happening to me!?"
Voice rising.
"WHO IS THE YOKAI!?"
Silence.
Ren took a long breath.
"I... I can't say for certain..."
Hesitation.
"But maybe... it's possible..."
Words slow. Careful.
"...that she... all these female yokai... she might be... their queen."
Breath.
"The Queen Yokai."
REVELATION
Kazuma and Mitsuha's mouths dropped open in shock.
Shocked silence.
Then—simultaneously—
"WHAAT!?"
"QUEEN YOKAI!?"
Their voices echoed through the small apartment.
Ren nodded seriously.
Face grim. Terrified.
Kazuma stumbled back.
Mitsuha stood frozen.
Both processing.
The Queen Yokai.
Not just any yokai.
The Queen.
[CHAPTER 15 — END]