After Shuya and Noriko returned to the thicket where they'd settled last night and picked up their bags, Shogo remarked their view was no good here. Shuya thought he'd been thorough choosing this location, but Shogo seemed abnormally adept in this environment, so they did as he said and moved towards the mountain. The dirty cat was gone.
"Hold on. I'm going to find Kyoichi's and Tatsumichi's bags."
Shogo left them in the nearby shrubs. Noriko sat down to rest, and Shuya sat next to her. He was holding the revolver (Smith & Wesson .38 Chief's Special) Shogo had given him after retrieving it from Kyoichi's body. It made him feel uncomfortable, and he didn't want to carry it— he'd seen that grotesque one-man baton hand off—but he managed to hold it.
"Shuya, here."
She held out a pink band-aid. She must have found it in the day pack Tatsumichi Oki's hatchet had torn through. Shuya touched his right ear with his left hand. The bleeding seemed to have stopped, but he felt a stinging pain.
"Hold still." Noriko drew near him and opened the band-aid seal. As she carefully wrapped it around his earlobe, she said, "I wonder why so many of us came here. Five students, if we include Shogo and us."
Shuya looked back at Noriko. The thought didn't even occur to him thanks to all those action scenes, but she was right.
He shook his head.
"I don't know. We came here to get as far away as possible, right? We avoided climbing the hill and avoided the shore, where there's too much visibility. Maybe we were all thinking the same thing and ended up at the same place, thinking we'd be safe here, including the representative— and Tatsumichi." The moment he mentioned Tatsumichi, he felt a nauseous pain in his stomach again. His face split down the middle, left and right out of alignment like a peanut. And this corpse was lying right nearby. Ladies and gentlemen, the magnificent Peanut Man....
Along with the nausea, Shuya's thoughts which had been numbed by the adrenaline rush of fighting finally grew clearer and the sensation of numbness finally subsided. He was coming back to his senses.
"Shuya. You're pale. Are you okay?" Noriko asked, but Shuya couldn't respond. A shiver ran through his body, and he began to tremble. His body shook as if it were vibrating. His teeth chattered uncontrollably as if dancing a crazy tap dance.
"What's wrong?" Noriko put her hand on his shoulder.
Shuya answered, his teeth still chattering, "I'm scared."
Shuya twisted his neck to the left and looked at Noriko. She glanced back at him with a look of concern.
"I'm scared. I'm scared shitless. I just killed someone."
Noriko looked into Shuya's eyes for a while, then she cautiously moved her injured right leg and sat diagonally in front of Shuya with her knees bent. Then she gently opened her arms and wrapped them around Shuya's shoulders. Her cheek touched his trembling cheeks. He felt her warmth, and his nostrils which had been overwhelmed with the smell of blood could detect a slight whiff of something like cologne or shampoo.
Shuya was surprised, but he was grateful for the comforting warmth and smell and sat still, hugging his knees.
It reminded him of the time his mother hugged him as a child before she died. As he looked at the collar of Noriko's sailor suit, he had a fleeting image of his mother. She spoke clearly, always so full of energy. Even as a child he thought she was a stylish mother. Her face, oh man, looked a lot like Kazumi Shintani's. She was always exchanging smiles with his father who, with his mustache, didn't seem like your typical salaryman. (Wrapped in her arms, he would hear her say, "Your father works in law and helps people in trouble. It's a very important job in this country.") Some day I'm going to marry someone like my mom and then I'll be smiling all the time the way Mom and Dad are. Their smiles made him feel that way.
The trembling gradually subsided and disappeared.
"Are you all right?" Noriko asked.
"I think so. Thanks."
Noriko slowly let him go.
After a while, Shuya said, "You smell nice."
Noriko smiled bashfully. "Oh God, I didn't take a bath yesterday."
"No, you really do smell nice."
A smile flashed across Noriko's face again, when the bushes rustled. Shuya shielded her with his left arm and held the Smith & Wesson.
"Don't shoot. It's me."
Parting the thick bushes, Shogo entered. Shuya lowered the gun.
Shogo carried two day packs along with the shotgun slung over his shoulder on a sling. He took out a small cardboard box and tossed it over to Shuya.
He caught it in mid-air and opened it. The golden bottoms of bullets in neat rows. Five bullets were missing like cavities.
"Bullets for your gun. Load it," Shogo said, then put his shotgun by his side and pulled at some worn out fishing wire. He pulled at one end tightly and Shuya saw how the wire went straight into the deep end of the bushes. Shogo then took out a small knife from his pocket and snapped the blade out of its handle. Shogo's supplied weapon was a shotgun, so, Shuya figured, the knife he must have brought on his own. Shogo made a notch with the knife into a nearby tree trunk no thicker than a can of Coke. Then he fit the taught wire snugly into the notch and cut off the excess. He tied the remaining wire around the tree trunk in the same manner.
"What are you doing?" Shuya asked.
"This?" Shogo put away his knife and answered, "You might call it a primitive alarm system. We're at the center. The wire runs around us in a circle with a twenty meter radius. The wire's doubled. The moment it catches someone, this will be pulled and fall from the tree. Don't worry, the intruder won't even notice. It'll provide us with a warning."
"Where did you find that wire?"
Shogo tilted his head slightly.
"There was a little general supply store. I wanted to get my hands on some things, so that was my first destination. That's where I found it."
Shuya looked astonished. Of course. No matter how small this island was there had to be at least one supply store. But the thought never even crossed his mind. Of course it wouldn't have been possible for him to wander around given how he had to look after Noriko.
Shogo sat down where he could face both Shuya and Noriko. He began sorting through a day pack that belonged either to Tatsumichi or Kyoichi. Taking out a bottle of water and some bread rolls, he said,
"How about some breakfast?"
Still hugging his knees, Shuya shook his head. He had no appetite whatsoever.
"What's wrong? You feel nauseous from killing Tatsumichi?"
Shogo examined Shuya's face and said casually, "Don't let it get to you. Let's say each person kills one person. The game's like a tournament. It's forty-two, no, forty students, so if you kill five or six, then you'll be the winner. Four or five more, that's all you'll need."
Shuya knew he was joking, but no, it was all the more offensive because he was joking. He glared at Shogo.
Sensing Shuya's anger, Shogo drew back.
"Sorry man, I was just kidding."
Shuya asked in a hostile tone, "So you don't feel nauseous? Or did you already kill someone before Kyoichi?"
Shogo merely shrugged.
"Well, this time, it was my first."
It was a strange way to put it, Shuya thought, but he had no idea what was so odd about it. He felt confused. If Shogo was the rumored delinquent he was said to be then he might be bold in a way Shuya could never be.
Shuya shook his head and changed the subject. "You know, there's something I don't get." Shogo raised his brow. The ugly scar above his left brow moved with it. "What's that?"
"The representative… Kyoichi…"
"Hey." Shogo pointed his chin up at him to cut him off. "I thought you understood. I didn't have any choice. Are you saying I should have let him kill me? I'm not Jesus Christ, okay? Besides, I can't be resurrected, although I've never tried it out...."
"No, that's not what I meant."
As Shuya continued, he wondered whether Shogo was kidding again. Was Shogo Kawada the joking type?
"I think the reason Kyoichi tried to shoot me was that he saw me kill…Tatsumichi up close. I killed Tatsumichi. And that was because he attacked me—"
Shogo gave a light nod.
"So it was only natural that Kyoichi would try to kill me."
"That's true. Maybe. But even so I—"
"No," Shuya interrupted Shogo. "Forget about that. What I mean is that Tatsumichi…Tatsumichi came after me even though I didn't do a thing. And besides, I was with Noriko. Why did he have to attack us?" Shogo shrugged and put his water bottle and bread by his feet.
"Tatsumichi was up for it. That's all. What's to understand?"
"No, well…theoretically, yes, but…I just don't get it. How Tatsumichi could—" Shogo cut off Shuya's hesitant words, "There's no need to understand."
"Huh?"
Shogo's lips twisted slightly as if grinning, then he went on, "I'm only a transfer student, so I don't know much about you and your classmates. But what do you know about Tatsumichi? Maybe there's someone really ill in his family, so he felt he had to survive. Or maybe he was just being selfish. Or maybe he went insane from fear and lost his capacity for reason. Or there's even this possibility: you were with her. He might have thought you teamed up with her. How can he tell whether he's invited? You and her might have decided he's a threat. Or if you were actually playing the game, then you could use this same excuse to kill him. Hey, did you provoke him at all?"
"No…" Shuya stopped, recalling how he'd reflexively touched his knife when he faced Tatsumichi. Shuya himself had also been afraid. He'd been afraid of Tatsumichi.
"Was there something?"
"I touched my knife." He looked at Shogo. "But that's not enough to—" Shogo shook his head. "Oh yeah it is, Shuya. Tatsumichi might have thought, I have to beat you, since you're holding a weapon. Everyone's fuse in this game is pretty short." He said, as if to conclude the topic, "But in the end Tatsumichi was up for it. That's the best way to understand it. Look, there's no need to understand. What it comes down to is this. Once your opponent attacks you with a weapon, you don't hesitate. Otherwise you'll die. You can't afford to think about it. The first thing you do is anticipate your opponent. You shouldn't trust people too much in this game." Shuya took a deep breath. Did Tatsumichi really want to kill me? Then again, as Shogo said, it might be pointless to think too much about it.
Shuya looked up at Shogo again.
"That's right."
"What?"
"That's what I forgot to ask."
"So what is it? Come on."
Shuya continued, "Why are you here with us?"
Shogo raised his eyebrows. He licked his lips.
"Good point. I might be against you too."
"That's not what I mean." Shuya shook his head. "You saved me. No, you also risked your life trying to stop Kyoichi. I'm not suspecting you."
"Well, you got it wrong, Shuya. You don't seem to understand this game yet."
"…what do you mean?"
Shogo continued, "In order to survive, being in a group gives you an advantage this game." Shuya considered this, then nodded. He was right. You could take turns being on the lookout, and you were stronger in case of an attack.
"So?"
"Think about it." Shogo nudged the shotgun resting on his knees with his hand. "Do you think I was risking much to stop Kyoichi? Do you think ordering him to stop would have actually stopped him?
Maybe I was already planning on killing Kyoichi. Did I really have to kill him? Kyoichi never struck me as the type who'd attract a group, but maybe I ordered him to stop just to put on an act for you guys to join me. Wouldn't it be in my best interests to join you guys and then kill you off later?" Shuya stared at Shogo's face, surprised by this series of clear and logical explanations. It was true Shogo was a year older than them. But he talked like an adult—a wise, mature adult. In this sense he resembled Shinji Mimura.
Shuya shook his head.
"There'll be no end to it if I start getting suspicious. You're not against us." He glanced over at Noriko
"That's what I think."
"Me too." Noriko nodded. "If we can't trust anyone we'll lose."
"That's a noble thought, girl," Shogo nodded. "If that's the way you want it. I'm just telling you that you got to be careful in this game." Then he asked, "So what is it?" Shuya all of a sudden remembered he was the one with the questions. "That's right. You. Why do you trust us? Teaming up with you doesn't necessarily rule out that one or both of us is against you. You said so yourself. You have no reason to trust us."
"I see," Shogo responded, as if amused. "An applied question. You're getting the hang of it, Shuya."
"Come on, I want an answer."
Shuya waved his hand still holding the revolver. Shogo drew back as if to warn him it was dangerous.
"Well?" Shuya insisted. Shogo raised his brow again. Then he revealed that faint smile on his face. He looked up at the branches looming above them and then looked back at Shuya and Noriko. He looked serious.
"First of all—"
Shuya saw something intense run across Shogo's calm eyes. He didn't know what it meant but it was intense.
"I have my reasons. I have a problem with the rules. No, the game itself." Shogo stopped for a moment and then continued, "You're absolutely right, but…you see, I'm embarrassed to admit this, but I've always based my decisions on my conscience. So—" Shogo grabbed the barrel of his shotgun standing between his knees as if it were a cane and looked at them. A bird was chirping deep in the woods. Shogo looked solemn. Shuya listened nervously.
"You two make a nice couple. That's what I thought when I saw you this morning, and I still think so now."
Shuya stared at him, his mouth agape.
Couple?
Noriko spoke first. Her cheeks were bright red. "You have it all wrong. We're not. I'm not—" Shogo looked at Shuya and Noriko and grinned. Then he broke out laughing. It was an unexpected, friendly laugh. He continued chuckling.
"That's why I trust you. Besides, you just said so yourselves. There's no end once you start getting suspicious. Isn't that enough?"
Shuya finally grinned. Then he said sincerely, "Thanks. I'm so glad you trust us." Shogo continued smiling, "Oh no, the honor's mine."
"I knew you were an individualist the day you transferred to our school."
"Easy with the fancy terminology. Sorry but I was born with these looks. I can't help it if I don't look friendly."
Noriko gave him a warm smile and said, "I'm so glad. Now we have one more on our side." Responding to Noriko, Shogo rubbed his finger against the stubble under his nose and made an unexpected gesture. He turned to Shuya and offered his right hand. "I'm glad too…now that I'm not alone."
Shuya squeezed his hand. Shogo's palms were thick. In keeping with his appearance, it felt like the hand of a fully mature man.
Shogo stretched, passed Shuya, and offered his hand to Noriko. "You too." Noriko squeezed his hand.
Then he looked down at Noriko's leg wrapped in bandannas and remarked, "I'd forgotten about this. Show me your leg wound first, then we'll talk about our plans."
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