A few moment ago, Morita Shou's body language which at first seemed relaxed now changed drastically. Ken felt an unpleasant aura from the young man standing in front of him. His figure gave Ken an intimidating impression. His eagle eyes looking down to observe Ken's movement from head to toe.
Being stared at like that, Ken felt quite intimidated. At the same time, he did not accept to being intimidated. With his chin slightly raised and eyes looking down, Ken felt that the person in front of him was observing him with a boastful attitude. First, because he considers himself more senior than Ken. Second, and this is what irritates Ken the most, because he seems want to show that he is taller than Ken. Literally.
Ken hated to admit it, but he couldn't dismiss the fact that the person in front of him had a taller body than him. Ken couldn't look him straight in the eye unless he raised his head, about five degrees. When he manages to capture everything engraved on his interlocutor's face through his sense of sight, Ken doesn't necessarily feel pleasant.
That young man named Morita Shou looked completely unfriendly. His face tends to display an expression full of boredom and indifference. It's just that the pair of his eyes are sharp and full of alertness, just like the eyes of a predator when it is watching its prey and waiting for the right time to ambush.
"I don't wanna hear her scolding me for holding you back so long, so I just got to the point," Morita Shou said as he sigh and staring at Ken's yard. His lips pursed and clucked softly as if he were munching on a lemon candy that tasted sour. He then shifted his focus towards Ken before he continuing his word, "Be careful."
"What for?"
He shrugged his shoulders slightly. "The incident in the arena that happenned yesterday wasn't something that certain parties expected. There will be many eyes that start watching you. Most of them are the one who don't like your current status."
"You experienced it too?"
"Hah!" Ken was taken aback when Morita Shou suddenly raised his voice. The look on his face also turned angry as well as disgust. "It's been three years and nothing has changed! I'm still being chased by them."
Subconsciously, Ken stepped back to keep a distance from Morita Shou. However, this young man suddenly grabbed both of Ken's shoulders. The two hands that gripping his shoulders were not muscular. He only wins by his height. In fact, Morita Shou is no bigger than Kazuhiko. It's just that, what made Ken intimidated again, Morita Shou's grip on his shoulder was too strong that Ken couldn't break free.
"If only you weren't her brother, I wouldn't care about you," Morita Shou hissed towards Ken. The pair of sharp eyes stared at Ken intensely. "Listen to this carefully. For three years, counting until now, those people are still spying me and intending to harm me. In any way. Many times I almost died. To make matters worse, they also don't hesitate to 'touch' my family. All of them. Even my youngest brother who's that time didn't know anything."
Ken do nothing but silent. His eyes widened in disbelief. Vaguely, there was an anxious look on his face. His hands clenched into fists, seemed to tremble faintly.
"Dead?"
The young man in his black jacket nodded. He brushed his hair to the side when the wind deliberately played with it so as not to pierce his eyes.
"The chosen four of us are very undesirable people. They wanna kill us to prevent things from happening again." He clicked his tongue loudly. "They're f*cking bas*ards! Those brainless people hunt us as if we were a deadly virus. Even though we didn't do anything wrong."
Ken was skeptical of the last sentence he heard from Morita Shou, but he chose to remain silent.
Ken note the messages and advice he received from Morita Shou. He was lucky to get that information for free. Although he couldn't one hundred percent believe in everything he heard, for now Ken had to gather everything he could get. Ken didn't even know where the information he got was going to take him. Whether it's on something that brings it to the benefit, or just the opposite.
"And since the four of us have already been elected, don't be surprised if the 'disaster' already starts today ... or maybe tomorrow, I don't know. Those f*ckers start wandering around you, your family, friends, and even your acquaintance."
Suddenly, in Ken's head came one crucial question. "Is their goal just to kill the Chosen Elementors?"
Ken believes the answer to his question isn't just that. Such tactics are familiar. It's just, it feels too simple if the goal is just that.
And Morita Shou snorting loudly. He then chuckled. His hand reached into something from his pocket. Menthol flavored gum.
"Of course not, Fool! You think killing people like us can be as easy as killing ants?"
Morita Shou still chuckled when he said that. Sarcasm is clearly heard in every word. However, Ken knew that it was not to him that the satire was directed. Morita Shou's loud voice sound is heard on the sidelines of his activities chewing gum.
"The purposes is to get our information, from A 'till Z. Our weakness. And also our routine activities," murmured Morita Shou. His eyes turned to a quiet straight alley from the left side of his position. "They seriously branded us as a criminals."
Ken was silent. He tried to keep that information in his head. Unconsciously, his mouth lifted and muttered softly, "... Why?"
Morita Shou who heard it vaguely and didn't understand what he meant couldn't help but frown. The pair of his eyebrows that originally stretched horizontally over the pair of his eagle eyes is now curved down. Wonder.
"What's the matter?"
Ken blinked. Just realized the question that he just wanted to be kept in his head was shot out. Since the young man in front of him seemes to be demanding an answer, Ken felt he being forced to reveal his point.
"Why do you care about me?"
Ken knew and was fully aware that Morita Shou was a little older than him. It's just, Ken didn't feel the need to respect him by addressing him 'senpai'.
Fortunately, Morita Shou also had no problem with that at all and responded to Ken's question casually. He shrugged his shoulder while rolling his eyes in the other direction. "You need to know what's going to happen next."
Nonsense. Ken knew his answer was just a cover. However, Ken couldn't immediately deduce what Morita Shou was actually covering from that guise.
"If so, it could be that later I'll turn to attack you."
"That's up to you. I did it just because you're Imai."
Ken didn't expect that answer. Without saying anything again, he turned around and walked away from Ken. His steps were relaxed but wide so that he quickly disappeared behind the intersection of road.
Ken stared at his back until he completely disappeared from his sight. His eyes immediately glanced towards the yard of his house. A moment later, he rushed into the house.
"If only he know that Suzume's type is a softy man with a warm look."
***
Three days passed quickly. During that time, Ken only spent his time at home. Eating, sleeping, playing games, or practicing to control the energy in his body.
Since Ketteibi, Ken felt his blood flow quickly and his heart beat irregularly. He also felt that he had never been felt cold since then even though he only wore a shirts and shorts at the height of winter. Ken knew it all had something to do with the flow of energy in him that had only been exposed a few days ago. To Ken's bewilderment, he didn't know where to start to at least control the flow of energy in his body so that he would no longer feel unfamiliar to his own body.
"Whoah!!! Ken!!!"
Suzume's startled exclamation made the dreamy Ken instantly come to his senses and turn his head towards her. His older sister was actually pointing at him with excitement mixed with panic.
Ken looking down. He just realized that the bean in the chopsticks he was holding were now enveloped by a tiny flames that coming from nowhere. Although it small, the fire seemed to devour the bean that Ken was pinching and successfully made Suzume and their parents panic.
"Sorry!"
Ken panicked and accidentally dropped the chopsticks in his hands on the table. The three pairs of eyes that saw Ken's actions were even more panicked when they saw the bean also plunging freely into their dining table made of wood. However, when the bean finally landed on the table, nothing happened. The flame that had previously burned the bean simply disappeared like its sudden appearance. The four of them stared at the blackish-green bean in confusion. They stared at each other.
Suzume took the initiative to pick up Ken's chopsticks that he had placed on his rice bowl. Nothing happened when Suzume held the chopsticks tightly, and then put them down again to the bowl.
"Ken." The head of Imai family who had been silent and could only observe the situation finally opened his mouth. The youngest turned his head while finishing the drink in his glass, absentmindedly. "How about we go to Grandpa's dojo tomorrow?"
Ken's face suddenly changed. He pout his lips. Suzume glanced to the side and gave an amused grin, holding back her laughter.
Still with a sullen face, Ken asked. He's not trying to hide his annoyance at all. "Why so suddenly?"
His father did not answer. He just smiled slightly as he taking a sip of his drink.