The current her doesn't have the strength to start over and fall in love with another person. She already tried the whole 'trying to fall in love with another person to forget Yuhi, with Nagawa Sano. But, that relationship ended up badly.' No, it probably made her worse.
Recently she is starting to think that having a good relationship is beyond someone like her, let alone falling in love. Only an entire month has passed since the break-up, so it's normal for her to still feel some remorse.
Sano was good to her at the start. She wondered when did their relationship change? Was it something that she did? Is that why he felt the need to cheat on her?
Right now, her heart still hurts. Why is it so difficult to love another person sincerely?
At those words, Sumire stepped on his foot and let out a large yelp.
"You're so harsh on me, lady. When will you start behaving sweetly?"
"Never, anyway, I heard that there is a bomb somewhere here. Help me search for it."
Masaru sighed. "Alright, I'll accompany you till you're satisfied. But report to Aki."
She reluctantly agreed to this and sent a quick message. But no sooner did she do so did she hear the sound of her phone.
"Hey Riri, where are you?"
"Didn't you read my message?"
"I did. Are you crazy? How can you go to that type of place after what happened to Masaru."
"It's okay. I already dealt with the culprit. Though I do think somebody else gave her a hand in this."
What was it that Luna wrote on that sheet of paper? Asahi must have taken it away, but if she recalled correctly.
"Katakura Luna mentioned a boss. He must be the ringleader to all of this; if he managed to hurt Masaru, he is strong."
"Riri, stay right there. I'll go to you."
Sumire raised her eyebrows at those words. But before she could reply, Aki had already hung up. She stared at her phone blankly for a few minutes; what was that all about? It is rare for him to make a move, though. Normally he is so lazy for Aki to take action- there must be something about this case than simply a few bombs being planted.
First of all, she ought to find the bombs.
"Did you call him?"
"Ah-huh, he said he is coming here for some reason." Sumire trailed off. "I don't think there is any need, though. I will find the bomb quickly. The problem is-" Her gaze fell on her surroundings.
The students in the auditorium were still fighting each other with the large number of students fighting. It's not uncommon for people to get knocked out. That's why nobody paid attention to the confrontation between Luna and her.
It seems like she came here at bad timing; these students seem to be battling each other to decide some leadership role.
Nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary at a glance. But for there to be a bomb during this time where all the students are gathered in one place. It seemed like the enemy planned a mass killing this time.
Since earlier, Sumire noticed how tense Masaru seemed, so she offered a solution. "If we show them our badges. We can get them to start an evacuation."
Masaru shook his head. "Do you think the delinquents here would evacuate if you say something dangerous is going on?"
Her sweat fell at those words. Indeed that's true. Considering how they seem to be having a battle for the top position, she doubts anybody would listen.
"Then I'll find the bomb, find a way to move them." Sumire didn't wait for a reply and scanned the area.
A place where they could hide a bomb. Honestly, this building looks like it is already on the verge of collapse.
They shouldn't be able to hide something so large without anybody noticing unless her gaze fell on an upright piano on top of the stage. There is a piano like that in this place?
It was almost like she was drawn in, but she was heading up the steps before long. Sure enough, after she examined the piano, it didn't take her long before she found the bomb.
Unfortunately, she was way too naive. The counter that read thirty minutes quickly changed to one and then zero in seconds.
She knew she didn't have time to escape, so she quickly shielded her body with her arms. Almost like it was planned, the bomb exploded right after she did that,.
All around her, she could hear the sound of people screaming and pained cries. Although she made a quick attempt to shield herself, there was no doubt that she suffered damage.
Her entire body hurts, and she felt fresh blood fall from her forehead. Sumire weakly opened her eyes, but the scene before her was chaotic; there was smoke everywhere, so it was difficult to see.
Did Masaru get to safety? Masaru is already injured; if he suffers any more injuries, his life will be in danger.
Sumire coughed, and she felt her vision getting blurrier. This is bad; she knew even without looking that she suffered more than a head wound. She is having a hard time moving her legs.
No, she cannot allow herself to lay down here. Sumire struggled but managed to stand up. Where is Masaru? She needs to make sure he is okay. If Asahi went to see the principal, she shouldn't be in this building, so she ought to be safe.
The moment she got up, she heard the sounds of gunshots, and right before her, she watched as a student got killed.
Several men were wearing black hooded cloaks, killing of the students. Sumire watched as one stood before Katakura Luna's lifeless body. The girl was still alive, but just barely. She managed to stop herself from killing the girl.
Sumire watched as one of the men pointed their gun toward her. "It's a shame; this one was a beauty. But orders are orders; the boss said we should dispose of her before people find out about that."
She has no sympathy left for this girl, even more so after she plotted to harm her friends. But, before she knew it, Sumire pulled her gun out and aimed it toward the person. The gun slipped out of his fingers, and she mustered the strength to rush over to Luna.
"Stop, nobody can touch this girl."
"Why you bit- Ibuki Sumire." The men quickly changed their attitudes as they all looked at one another. "Listen, we have orders to make sure your alive, so don't try to fight us."
"Oh?"
Masaru mentioned this too about the guy he fought having an unusual interest in her. But, to think he even ordered his men not to kill her. Can she take advantage of this?
No, there is no use bargaining with such people. Ru told her that before. Even if they received orders not to kill her if she overdoes her requests, they would not hesitate to harm her even if they left her half dead. These people are far weaker than her; she can tell that at a glance. They must think the same; otherwise, they would have attacked by now.
But, she suffered more damage from the bomb than she thought. Her entire body is in pain; it's taking all her strength to just stand up. She musn't let the enemy see, however.
If they notice this situation will become more difficult.
Her thoughts broke off when she felt something grab hold of her sleeves. It belonged to Luna.
"Y-you, you're doing this again. I told you before that your superficial kindness is-"
"I know, I understand. You'd hate it more than everything if I saved you now. You would rather die than be saved by me again."
"T-then-"
"But, why do I have to listen to what you say? We are not friends. Back then, you could have swayed me a little with your words. But you do not have the power to do so now."
"I really don't understand you. I am always going to hate you."
"The feeling is mutual."
"However, I cannot die here today. After this, you tell me everything."
Sumire's eyes widened when she saw the girl stand up and then barely slump her back against hers.
"We can barely move; the first one to fall loses?"
Sumire's lips curve to a smile. "I see you have resigned to your fate already."
The cloaked men did not bother with words anymore. It seemed like they understood after overhearing their conversation. After all, they all belong to the underworld; it's easy to understand. Rather than use words, it's best to use their fists.
It did not take long before everyone is throwing punches and kicks. Each move she made, she felt like she would fall, but every time she thought she would, she would feel Luna's back supporting her.
Yes, this is how it was before. Even if this girl was using her, there was a time she trusted her to have her back. It is rare for her to trust in general, so to entrust her back like this. Even if the relationship was superficial, even if she noticed, she tried to ignore it because she did not want their relationship to fall apart.
If she could just cling to this friendship, even if it was just a little while, it didn't matter whether it was fake.
Sumire clearly recalled Aki's words.
'How foolish can you be. You knew she was using you, and yet you allowed her. I understand that you are new to having friends but look what has happened. This is the consequence of your bad decisions.'
What shocked her the most that day was not that the girl double-crossed her. Sometime before that job happened, she overheard Luna speaking with some others in the base. She already heard loud and clear.
The main reason why there were so many rumors about her then, Luna was the main source.
'I knew all about it, but let her get away with it.' Ah, didn't something like that happen recently too? She knew that Sano was cheating on her, but she still continued their relationship. In the end, he was the one who broke up with her.
Sumire sighed deeply. This is pathetic; no matter how many people she gets involved with, all the relationships end up twisted, and they all end up breaking.
Even if her friendship with Luna was fake, it was better than being alone. However, she could handle missions on her own and didn't necessarily need a partner. It was still nice to have somebody watching her back; that's why she clung to it.
It was the same with Sano; she could use him to forget her longing for Yuhi.