Chapter 8: A Stubborn Shiranui
At 3:30 PM, Naruhata Municipal High School's final bell rang.
"I can't believe he did it again!" Miyu slammed her shoe locker shut, her cheeks reddened with indignation. "That's the fifth time this month Keiji-sensei's thrown a pop quiz on us!"
"Sounds annoying," Takumi replied with casual indifference.
"It is! It's like he's purposefully trying to bring down our class' grade!" She ground her teeth, clearly needing a moment to compose herself.
"I doubt that. Your grades reflect on him as a teacher after all, why would he purposefully try to make himself look incompetent?" He attempted to offer her some perspective. "Are the pop-quizes on the same subject? Or are they different each time?"
Miyu exhaled. "No, they're all math quizzes."
"Then that probably means your class struggles with that subject, the quizzes are just to make sure you actually remember what you need to know for your finals."
His co-worker paused for a moment, tilting her head upward and tapping her chin in thought.
"Nope! He definitely has an agenda! I can feel it in my bones!" She crossed her arms and nodded to herself.
'At least I tried.'
Side by side with Miyu, Takumi walked out the school's front door.
'Hm?'
For some reason, there seemed to be a buzz in the air among the students gathered around the front gate, friends huddled up next to one another as hushed whispers left their mouths.
'Unusual social behaviour pattern detected. 30-40 lines of sight directed towards front gate. Common language detected: 'expensive car', 'woman', 'waiting for someone?'.'
"What's going on?" Miyu queried, looking around with intrigue.
"It seems there's a stranger at our schoo—"
"Four-eyes! Over here!"
Takumi froze. His eye twitching in annoyance as an all-too-familiar, boisterous womanly voice called out to him from the school's forefront. A voice that immediately managed to make him the sole center of attention amongst the couple dozen students gathered around.
'I should've killed her when I had the chance.'
Parked on the roadside adjacent to the institution was an all-chrome, sleek, perfectly-maintained Mercedes-Benz E-Class. An elegant ride that gave off an air of authority one would expect from a corporate executive. The owner of which was a white-haired woman wearing a tailored charcoal blazer over a light silk blouse, paired with slim slacks and low-heeled leather shoes.
Takumi took a deep, much-needed calming breath for the sake of not turning his school's front into a murder scene. His palm covering the top half of his face as he leaned back and let out a groan of exasperation that'd have even an overworked salaryman kneeling in awe.
Reika Shiranui was at his school.
His place of learning.
His temple of education.
His foundation for his eventual entrance into university, supported by the institution he was currently attending's principal.
"T-Takumi!" Miyu's jaw dropped as she did a cartoonish double take, needing a second glance to confirm that the woman's attention was truly directed at her lusterless co-worker. "W-Who is that woman?! Is that your mother?!"
"No." His tone was harder than concrete.
With immense reluctance, he started to pace towards Reika. His quirk performing an immediate analysis to determine whether or not anyone recognized her as the Shiranui-kai's leader.
If that happened, his educational prospects were basically over. What principal would sabotage their own reputation by endorsing a yakuza-affiliated student? No matter how brilliant they were?
'Total individuals within immediate vicinity: 43. Directly observing Reika: 34. Casual glances (≤ 1 second): 5. No visual interest: 4. Micro-expression analysis among 34 observers. Curiosity indicators: 19. Admiration or interest: 8. Neutral observation: 7. Recognition indicators: 0.'
'Initial recognition probability: 8.4%.'
Takumi clicked his tongue in irritation. The fact that Reika wasn't in her yakuza get-up was bound to help, but it was impossible to truly relax unless the possibility fell to 0%.
For now, the best course of action was to shoo Reika away as quickly as possible. The less people could stare, the lower the chance of them recognizing her would be.
Face-to-face with Reika, a rare glint of anger flickered in Takumi's metallic eyes.
"If you have business with me, no matter the reason. You will conduct it in private." His words weren't a suggestion, they were a demand backed by his proven ability to best her in combat if needed.
"Sheesh, someone's grumpy today. Did ya' get your head shoved in a locker or what?" She snickered, peeking over Takumi's shoulder at the flabbergasted Miyu. "Or did you have a fight with your girlfriend over there? Not that I blame you, teenagers can be a real pain in the ass, right?"
"..."
Takumi replied with silence. The value of threatening her quickly diminishing in his quirk's eyes in favour of physical action, a path that was countered only by the presence of his peers.
"Fine, fine. There's no need to look at me so coldly." Her posture softened. "As promised, I've got the identification papers you wanted for the little charity case you're housing."
"Then give them." He reached his hand out exceptantly.
"They're in my car."
Takumi's lack of amusement couldn't be any louder. "And?"
"And, you should probably get in my car if you want them." She said with a sinister smile. "Oh, and now that I recall, the girl's also at my headquarters getting her picture taken for an ID card. She'd probably like it if you came to pick her up, wouldn't she?"
If his emotions weren't so restricted, Takumi would be biting his lower lip bloody out of sheer frustration right about now.
"I hope the Stendhal finds you." He grumbled as he got into her Mercedes' passenger seat. If he wanted Reika out of here, he had no choice but to follow her childishly annoying whims.
"He's welcome to try me if he wants." Reika grinned, stepping on the pedal and initiating her car's buttery-smooth launch. "Here," she reached into her glove compartment and handed Takumi a stack of papers.
Upon reviewing them, Takumi was shocked to see J-LIS' (Japanese Agency for Local Authority Information Systems) official seal on the top right of the document, his quirk running the necessary calculations to see if it was the real thing or a mere forgery.
'Structural Examination. Seal geometry: consistent. Emblem proportions: within expected tolerance. Text spacing: uniform. Circular symmetry deviation: 0.6%. Irregularities detected: none.'
'Structural authenticity probability: 89.2%.'
He pressed his lips, still not entirely convinced as he continued to listen to his quirk's analysis.
'Ink Transgression Assessment. Ink distribution: natural pressure variation detected. Edge saturation: slight fade consistent with manual stamping. Ink absorption into paper fibers: confirmed. Digital printing artifacts: not detected.'
'Updated authenticity probability: 93.7%.'
His quirk didn't end there. It went on to verify the placement of the seal, carry out a procedural logic check, and forgery risk assessment.
'Final determination. Authenticity probability: 97.3%. Confidence classification: High. Operational assessment: Stamp likely genuine. Recommended action: no further verification required.'
"You got her real identification?" He asked with a clear undertone of suspicion.
"Duh. In this day and age a fake ID would be outed in a heartbeat." She sounded almost offended that he even asked. "I have a few friends in the Local Municipal Office, and they have a few friends at J-LIS. It's not hard to get what you want if you know the right people and make the right connections."
Takumi chuckled under his breath, the sound dripping with mockery.
"Like you?"
"Yes, like me." She side-eyed him with a coy smile. "Ya' know, I've been thinking about your rejection yesterday…"
He rolled his eyes. "Is this something I want to hear?"
"Probably," she sounded resolute. "All those universities you were applying to, you were considering them because they were the ones most likely to give you a full-ride scholarship, yes?"
Takumi leaned to his side, propping his fist up against his cheek.
"Yes, that's what I said."
"But if you applied to a better university, like Tokyo or Kyoto, you'd still get in, wouldn't you? You just wouldn't be able to afford the tuition."
He let out a sharp scoff. "Seriously? You're trying to sugar-mommy me over to your side?"
"You're free to look at it that way if you like," she replied without a hint of denial. "Though I'm not sure why you're saying it like it's such a bad thing. All I'm doing is offering you a way to maximize your educational potential, which you seem to value quite a bit."
"Uh-huh, and there wouldn't happen to be some kind of price I'd have to give in exchange for letting you fatten me up with dirty money, would there?" He knew exactly why Reika was pushing so hard to lull him closer to her. The tigerness gave off an impression that it was personal in some manner, but his quirk knew it was because she saw him as a potential 'asset' to the Shiranui-kai.
Her inner battle-junkie wasn't a facade, but it wasn't the whole truth either. Underneath the woman's fiery exterior was the soul of a ruthless businesswoman, the same one that had built up her organization's influence from scratch.
If she was all brawn and no brains, there's no chance she'd possess the wealth she did. Carrying out organized crime in the modern age required one to be adaptable, at least if they wanted their empire to last for any meaningful amount of time.
"I'm not about to ask you to join the Shiranui-kai, if that's what you're thinking." She flicked her brows. "Well… I am, but not in the way you think I am."
He breathed a tired exhale. "Go on."
"I want you to become a consultant, not for my organization, but me specifically." Reika began her proposal. "Your fighting ability's obvious, but it's also starting to become apparent to me that you've got quite the head on your shoulders. If you'd lend me it every now and then, I'd happily finance whichever institution you choose to attend."
Reika's intentions for him were clear as day.
She was thinking about expansion, she wanted to spread the Shiranui-kai's influence even further and break past the title of 'minor yakuza organization'. To her, Takumi's prowess was perfect towards aiding her in that mission.
'How laughable.'
Upon hearing her offer, he couldn't be more grateful to his past self for not explaining his quirk's true nature to her. If she knew, she'd fight to bring him to her side with a hundred times her current tenacity.
After all, in the entire nation of Japan, the only person with an intelligence quirk on par with Takumi's was a certain high school principal situated on the other side of Tokyo.
Although, that had yet to be mentioned in Takumi's file since his quirk registry hadn't been updated since he first got one at four years of age, a time where his quirk possessed only 18% of its natural strength, and his brain lacked complex probability modeling, advanced logical chains, multi-variable prediction, emotional filtering and impulse control.
It could still make complex analyses, but how was a four year old supposed to make sense of any of them? To the Takumi thirteen years ago, it just felt like painful gibberish was being forced into his underdeveloped brain. All he could really understand were phrases like 'step there', 'dodge now', 'counter here'.
It was seen as a pre-set algorithm, there was no signs that the quirk could actually grow even further through experiencing active combat scenarios.
On his official record, Takumi's quirk was just fairly good at analyzing opponents in battle. All the intricacies and endless smaller details that made it truly terrifying had yet to be recorded. No medical analysis had been conducted on the now seventeen year old that now lived with around 78% his quirk's efficiency.
It was a 'High B-Tier Intelligence Quirk', a classification designated for such quirks that possessed 'specialized intelligence'. Which in Takumi's case, was judged to be solely for battle. As long as Takumi didn't go around blabbing his mouth and voicing his every inner thought and prediction, there was an infinitesimal chance that'd ever change.
Which was a good thing for him, the kind of attention an S-Tier Intelligence Quirk designation would bring Takumi would only cause him more harm than it would good.
Sure, he had shown Miyu a sliver of its true nature. But she lacked the level of comprehension needed to even begin to grasp what his quirk was capable of.
"Mm." Takumi let out a short hum. His natural expression making it impossible for Reika to guess his response. "Yeah, my answer's still the same as before. I'm not interested, no matter the title you choose to slap on me, the fact that being involved with you would make me a yakuza-affiliate won't change."
It was brief, but he noticed Reika's grip on her steering wheel tighten.
"Takumi," her mood soured. "I'd advise you to think it over a while longer."
"I don't think that's necessary." He persisted, casually reading over Power's newly-issued identification documents. "Naruhata's bad enough as it is, there's no need for any of the existing yakuza organizations to get stronger. I'd rather the deadlock that exists between your Shiranui-kai, the other organizations, the police, and the pro heroes remain the way it is instead of helping it escalate."
Even if were to perform a slight nudge here or there, he'd do so in favour of law enforcement. At least that way the chances of the coming changes being positive were higher.
A little bit of governmental financial support could bring the ward a long way.
Reika exhaled deeply, looking at her own scornful reflection in her car's mirror.
"You have a stronger moral compass than I expected, Takumi Kisaragi." Her eyes narrowed with faint hints of contempt. "It's a shame really, I was considering putting that girl through school as well. A diploma's bound to help her out quite a bit, don't you think?"
"That's fine. I plan on home-schooling her, and after my graduation or when the opportunity arises, I'll take responsibility for handling her employment or enrollment." Takumi looked at her with a content, self-assured smile. "I'm grateful that you decided to help her with her identification, but for both our sakes, I believe it's best that our involvement with one another ends there."
Momentarily, Reika fell silent, eventually muttering something under her breath.
"That's not for you to decide."
The car-ride continued in awkward silence. The vehicle's atmosphere contaminated by a mix of Reika's silent umbrage and Takumi's open indifference. The latter's sole interest being the J-LIS issued documents in his hand depicting Power's 'real' identity.
"Fujino Kisaragi?" Takumi muttered aloud.
"According to the national family registry, that girl's your little sister." The tigerness couldn't even be bothered to pretend like she was content with Takumi's decision. "Congratulations," her voice was drier than the Sahara Desert.
He paused for a moment, contemplating. He was a little miffed that Reika decided to slap the Kisaragi name on Power without asking him first, but in hindsight, it'd be a lot easier to explain the girl's living circumstances if she was marked down as a direct relative.
'I can work with this.'
After a ten-minute drive from Takumi's high school, they arrived at Kurogane, parking right beside the faux urban renewal building. Hurried footsteps bolting towards him the moment he stepped inside the building.
"Creepy human!" Power's cheerful voice spread through the concrete walls, her hyperactive nature firing on all cylinders as per usual. "Behold and witness my greatness! For I have successfully infiltrated the ranks of your inferior species!"
Her nose metaphorically grew a few inches as she stretched an ID card outwards, flashing it at Takumi as if she had just received her PhD.
"Well done," his tone was completely void of enthusiasm. "Now come on, we need to pay a visit to the supermarket to get your Meowy her supplies before we go home."
"Very well, I shall grant you the honor of accompanying me as we embark to acquire my squire's rations." She started to follow behind Takumi as he checked his phone, scrolling through the local supermarket's websites to see if there were any good coupons or deals he could nab.
Reika pressed her lips together as she watched Takumi's back fade into the distance, her mind racing to see if there was anything she could tell him at the last minute.
But nothing came to mind. Takumi's shell of indifference seemed harder than tungsten, she couldn't even begin to comprehend the wit it'd take to crack someone so freakishly stone-faced.
"Boss?" The subordinate she had assigned to watch over Power took notice of her lingering gaze.
"It's nothing," she took a deep breath. "Get back to work."
///
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