Chapter 175: Anon Chihaya: Take Me to Your House (Patreon)

"Toki no namima de kizuna ga hodokete mo (Even if our bonds come undone with the passing of time)

Nando demo musubi naoseba ii sa (We can tie them back together as many times as it takes)

Atashi no senaka o shinjite tsuite kite (Believe in my back and follow close behind me)

Tomo ni itai to negau riyuu o idaite (Holding the reason that makes us wish to stay together)"

On the stage of the RiNG small hall, five girls in mismatched yet oddly harmonious outfits were lost in a fierce performance.

"Tsunagu, Soramoyou (Bound to the Colors of the Sky)."

The vocalist's voice pierced through the speakers and carried the song's emotion to its peak.

Anon Chihaya stood not far from the stage, eyes closed in rapture, the dazzling stage lights dancing across her hair.

"This is what real music is…"

"After a song like that, I feel so much clearer somehow."

She sighed softly, slowly opened her eyes, and fixed them on the black-haired, red-streaked vocalist singing her heart out with a guitar in her arms.

Then Anon Chihaya turned to Uchiha Ayato beside her and leaned in a little. She raised her voice over the noise of the music, a faint blush rising on her cheeks.

"Compared to a band that really shines on stage like this…"

"That band I scraped together in middle school for the culture festival, just to confess to you, wasn't even half-baked."

Thinking back on how she'd marched onto that stage on nothing but hot blood and bravado made her want to dig a hole in the ground and crawl in.

Uchiha Ayato turned his head and saw her faintly embarrassed look. The corners of his mouth lifted.

"Don't say that."

He moved close to her ear, his voice low and gentle, just loud enough to cut through the heavy bass.

"As far as I'm concerned, Anon's performance at that culture festival was the best one ever."

"No show has ever come close."

The breath of his words brushed her ear, and Anon Chihaya flinched on reflex.

Once his words sank in, she immediately turned her face away to dodge his faintly smiling gaze.

"Y-you're going off on your own again…"

She grumbled in mock reproach and fiddled with the long hair hanging over her chest.

"Well… that was a performance I'd planned for ages, prepared for you and you alone."

"It's only natural you'd think that, right?"

"But still…"

She turned back, her expression turning serious, and looked straight into Uchiha Ayato's eyes.

"When I stepped onto that stage that day, I really did resolve to bet everything on it."

Her skills had been a complete mess next to a real pro's, and afterwards the guitar had been tossed into a corner to gather dust…

But it was still the bravest moment of her girlhood.

And setting aside the cheating-scumbag business that came afterward, the guy in front of her had, back then, properly caught that resolve.

Thinking this, Anon Chihaya let out a quiet sigh.

She turned back to the stage, watching the keyboardist and the drummer trade a smile and a knowing look. Longing and admiration crept into her eyes.

"Speaking of which, the Afterglow seniors are so in sync, aren't they?"

Anon murmured, her fingers tapping out the beat at her side.

"One glance, and they pick up each other's rhythm perfectly…"

"It's like their hearts are connected."

Uchiha Ayato followed her gaze to the five figures on stage and explained offhandedly.

"Well, they're childhood sweethearts who grew up together."

"The reason they formed this band wasn't some grand goal, really."

"They just wanted the five of them to stay together and never be separated."

Hearing that, Anon Chihaya's eyes went wide with surprise.

"That's the reason? Something so simple?"

She blinked, as if she could hardly believe it.

"I figured a band as good as theirs must have started out with a shared dream of music, or a bigger stage, or something like that."

"That's so nice…"

"I finally get to see a normal band relationship."

Anon Chihaya let out a long breath, a radiant smile breaking across her face.

"Just like Ayarin said before, playing in a band is supposed to be something you do with a smile, right?"

"Heavy bands like CRYCHIC are the exception, aren't they?"

Remembering the CRYCHIC stories Uchiha Ayato had told her, the girl couldn't help shuddering.

A keyboardist who quit resolutely because of a family upheaval. A bassist stuck in an obsession she couldn't shake. A guitarist with multiple personalities. A gravity-well vocalist who said "for a lifetime" the moment she opened her mouth…

Uchiha Ayato: "?"

Hearing Anon Chihaya's remark, Uchiha Ayato's whole body gave a violent jolt.

He raised his head, swept his gaze across the stage, then glanced at the pink-haired girl beside him.

"…I-is that so?"

He gave a vague answer, his eyes drifting sideways without his permission.

"I couldn't say."

Heavy bands are the exception?

Uchiha Ayato sighed helplessly inside.

Anon, you're still too young.

Bushiroad seemed to have discovered that putting together bands of oddballs was a great way to rake in clout and rice, and had completely abandoned the ancestral ways of Kira Kira Doki Doki.

And the bands that came after…

Whether it was Mugendai Mewtype or millsage, they all seemed pretty wild.

Luckily, Uncle Ayato had met his first death and started the server-transfer process before he got to see the full picture, so he'd dodged a bullet.

The fall of the Bang starts with the chickens and dogs!

To cover his guilty conscience, Uchiha Ayato simply turned to look over the small hall.

Then he frowned slightly.

On an ordinary day, whenever a fairly well-known resident band like Afterglow played, the RiNG small hall was packed to the rafters.

Forget the front rows; even the very back corners were hard to squeeze into.

But today the place felt empty.

The crowd wasn't small, exactly, but nobody was shoulder to shoulder. People could stand a good distance apart.

Even if you wanted to go wild and throw rock-show punches like at a music festival, you'd have to walk several steps to hit anyone.

Afterglow is washed up! (sob)

Haha, just kidding.

The reason wasn't hard to guess.

On the surface, Tokyo was still running, but in truth it had entered a state of emergency.

The oppression and fear hanging over the city couldn't be faked.

Facing unrest and unknown dangers that could erupt at any moment, any normal person would put survival first. Who'd be in the mood to go to a live show?

In other words, anyone still standing here watching a performance was a die-hard band fanatic of the first order.

The song ended.

The stage lights gradually dimmed. The vocalist, panting, said "thank you" into the mic, and the audience burst into dense, passionate applause and cheers.

Anon Chihaya clapped hard along with them, her eyes sparkling.

"That was amazing!"

She tugged excitedly at Uchiha Ayato's sleeve.

"Ayarin, I've been captured by Afterglow. I'm officially a fan!"

"Ahh, I really want to meet them."

"If only I could get the seniors' autographs…"

She pressed her palms together over her chest, her eyes full of anticipation.

"Is that all?"

Uchiha Ayato chuckled, his tone easy.

"After the live ends, I'll take you backstage to get them."

Anon Chihaya: "!"

The girl's eyes lit up instantly.

"Really? We can do that?!"

But a second later, the joy on her face froze, and her expression turned strange.

She took half a step back, her eyes full of suspicion and wariness, and looked Uchiha Ayato up and down.

"Wait a minute…"

Anon Chihaya narrowed her eyes, a dangerous edge creeping into her voice.

"Ayarin… you know people from Afterglow too?"

Alarm bells were ringing in Anon Chihaya's head.

She'd thought of that CD.

The CD signed by the two members of Sumimi, with a personal message written on it.

When she'd received that gift from Uchiha Ayato, she'd been so happy she could have floated away.

She'd even displayed that CD in the most prominent spot in her room like a sacred relic, and looked at it every morning before leaving the country.

And the result?

Mana and Uika, those two idols with zero professional ethics, had gone and cuckolded her, a fan!

Since coming back, every time she saw that CD, it felt like each and every word on it was mocking her to her face.

If she'd known the price of Sumimi's autographs was getting NTR'd…

Anon Chihaya had a bit of PTSD now.

Would it turn out like that again this time?

She couldn't have the cursed luck where whoever she became a fan of ended up cuckolding her, could she?

"Ayarin…"

The more she thought, the more her heart pounded, and she spoke with a reproachful look.

"You don't have any impure relationships with the Afterglow seniors, do you?"

Watching her jump at every shadow, Uchiha Ayato smiled helplessly.

"What are you imagining?"

He raised a hand and flicked Anon Chihaya's forehead.

"Ow!"

Anon clutched her forehead and shot him an irritated glare.

"What's that for? What's that for? Feeling guilty, are you?"

"It's not like you've never gone to a live with me before."

Uchiha Ayato explained unhurriedly.

"You know I used to hang around places like CiRCLE and SPACE all the time."

"If you stay in a place long enough, getting familiar with the staff and the resident bands is hardly strange, is it?"

Anon Chihaya rubbed her forehead, looking at him half-convinced.

If you went to the same ramen shop every day, you really might end up friends with the owner.

But a live show is a completely different thing, isn't it?

With that many people in the audience, how did you alone get noticed?

At the same time, Uchiha Ayato brought out another, more persuasive reason.

"Besides that, it's also because of Rana, the little kitten."

"You remember, right? Rana's grandmother owns the livehouse, and everyone adores her."

"Rana and I get along well, so naturally I had more chances to interact with them than ordinary audience members."

Having said that, he spread his hands at Anon Chihaya.

"So chatting with them a bit and asking for an autograph is just a small favor between friends."

"There's absolutely none of the messy relationships you're cooking up in your head."

Listening to this string of explanations, most of the suspicion in Anon Chihaya's heart finally cleared.

"So that's how it is…"

But she still pursed her lips, not entirely at ease.

"Then…"

"Swear it. That you're really just ordinary friends!"

Hearing this, Uchiha Ayato promptly raised his right hand beside his ear and said calmly:

"I swear, we're really just ordinary friends."

"You know me, Anon. I like being passive."

If I'm lying, Uncle Ayato will take a whole night of Saki's feet tonight and leave her unable to train her legs tomorrow, okay?

Anon Chihaya stared at him for a moment, then patted her chest and let out a long breath.

"That's more like it."

"If another alley cat sneaking a taste shows up like those two from Sumimi, I'm seriously going to throw a tantrum."

…

After the show, Uchiha Ayato waved to Anon Chihaya.

"Let's go. First I'll take you to see Sis Matsugi and say hello before we head backstage."

Anon Chihaya immediately followed with light steps, and the two walked out of the hall together.

Past the corner of the corridor, Matsugi Ririko, in her work uniform, was standing at the front desk sorting the performance booking sheets.

Hearing footsteps, the blonde manager looked up.

When she saw it was Uchiha Ayato, a warm, friendly smile spread across her face.

"Uchiha-kun? You finally have time to come by today?"

She put down her ballpoint pen, and her gaze naturally fell on the pink-haired girl peeking around beside Uchiha Ayato.

"Sis Matsugi, my girlfriend and I would like to visit Ran Mitake and the others backstage."

Uchiha Ayato stopped in front of the counter, his tone familiar and polite.

"It's her first time hearing Afterglow live, and she was captivated by their playing. She'd like to ask for an autograph in person."

"Taking a new friend backstage is no problem at all, Uchiha-kun. You're being far too formal."

Matsugi Ririko came out from behind the counter, her voice full of warm approval.

"You've been supporting them since the SPACE days, an old friend of the band. And now you bring a new little fan. Everyone in Afterglow will be happy to see you both, for sure."

Partway through, Matsugi Ririko slowed her words, a teasing note creeping in.

"Still, it's a surprise. Uchiha-kun has found himself such a cute girlfriend."

"Ah, to be young."

"Come to think of it, I've actually witnessed a page of Uchiha-kun's youth with my own eyes, haven't I?"

Matsugi Ririko pressed her palms together over her chest and sighed theatrically.

Uchiha Ayato…

Uchiha Ayato felt a little awkward.

Poor Ms. Matsugi. She'd lost out to timing and information gaps on this one. She'd never happened to run into him when he came with Wakaba Mutsumi, Soyo Nagasaki and the others.

Otherwise, she probably wouldn't be saying this.

"Speaking of which…"

Matsugi Ririko seemed to remember something. She dropped the teasing look and sighed softly.

"You haven't shown your face much lately. Rana looked a little lonely."

"There's been a lot going on outside, so I really couldn't get away."

Uchiha Ayato smiled wryly and glanced around, following the topic.

"I haven't seen Rana in the café or the hall. Did she go to the countryside with her family to take shelter?"

"Not quite evacuating. She's still in Tokyo."

Matsugi Ririko shook her head, a trace of worry between her brows.

"It's just that, with the situation outside right now…"

"The owner can't bear to let Rana wander around on her own like before."

"She's arranged for someone to pick Rana up and drop her off every day. She has to go straight home the moment school ends."

"Even if she wants to come play at RiNG, she has to ride over in the owner's car."

"So she's being kept under strict watch."

Uchiha Ayato nodded thoughtfully.

"That's for the best. Tokyo really isn't safe right now."

"Right, safety first."

Matsugi Ririko smiled and pointed to the door of the inner passage.

"All right, I won't keep you from your business. The Afterglow girls should have just finished changing into their regular clothes, so go ahead and knock."

"Thanks, Sis Matsugi."

After saying goodbye to Matsugi Ririko, Uchiha Ayato led Anon Chihaya toward the dressing room at the end of the corridor.

Halfway there, the phone in Uchiha Ayato's pocket suddenly began to vibrate.

He took it out and checked the caller ID. It was a long string of unsaved digits.

He stopped, answered, and held the phone to his ear.

"Lord Uchiha, we sincerely apologize for disturbing you."

An aged voice, shaky with fear, came from the other end. It belonged to one of the senior members of the Higher-Ups.

"Not long ago, Special Grade Sorcerer Yuta Okkotsu accepted the Higher-Ups' execution assignment."

"We shouldn't trouble you over such a small matter, but…"

"Before carrying out the assignment, he asked to see you first."

"The Higher-Ups mean no offense whatsoever. We are merely relaying the request."

"If it's inconvenient for you, we'll refuse him at once."

The old man kept his voice very low, terrified that one wrong word would anger the calamity on the other end.

"So, what would you…"

"Let him come."

Uchiha Ayato cut him off, his tone flat.

"I'll send the location later."

"Let him find his own way here. I won't wait past the time."

"Yes! Thank you for your great generosity. We'll tell Okkotsu right away!"

Before the voice on the line could say anything more, Uchiha Ayato pressed the end-call button.

"Ayarin…"

Anon Chihaya, standing beside him, dropped her earlier bubbly look and eyed him with some worry.

"Is there something really important and urgent you have to deal with?"

She didn't know what had been said on the other end, but she knew very well how much weight Uchiha Ayato carried now.

The whole of Tokyo's 23 wards and 26 cities rested on Uncle Ayato's shoulders alone, and she worried that she might be delaying matters affecting the livelihoods of millions because of herself.

"If it's important work…"

"It's not important at all."

Uchiha Ayato put the phone away and ruffled her hair lightly on his way.

"Someone just wants to meet me. It won't take much time."

He pushed open the backstage dressing-room door and stepped toward the lively chatter and laughter inside.

"Let's go in first. We shouldn't keep the seniors waiting."

…

Twenty minutes later.

The streets of Ikebukuro had fully darkened.

Anon Chihaya walked beside Uchiha Ayato, hugging the autograph book filled with the names of all five Afterglow members, a smile she couldn't hide plastered across her face.

"The seniors were all so warm… Moca-senpai even gave me two pieces of bread…"

Savoring the conversation in the dressing room, she sighed contentedly.

"But still, I'd thought Mitake-san was the leader. Turns out it's Himari-senpai, the one who looks easiest to tease?"

"That's kind of an adorable contrast."

"You can't judge people by appearances. There are plenty of things in this world you'd never expect."

Uchiha Ayato smiled and agreed, then glanced up at the electronic clock on a nearby building's outer wall.

"It's about dinnertime."

"What do you feel like eating tonight? Any plans after that?"

At that, Anon Chihaya's eyes darted around, and her gaze swept over the busy Ikebukuro streets toward a certain direction.

That was where the old Great Aya Estate had stood.

"Um…"

Anon Chihaya drew out her words, a sly glint crossing her eyes.

"It just occurred to me, from here, Ayarin's old home isn't far, right?"

She hopped a small step forward, blocked Uchiha Ayato's path, and tilted her head up at him.

"I've only been to that old house once. You moved to a new place, and I've never been there even once."

"At this hour…"

"Togawa-san and Wakaba-san and the others should be starting on dinner by now, right?"

Anon Chihaya put her hands behind her back and leaned in, her eyes glittering with eagerness.

"Why don't we just go home and eat there?"

"Let me properly taste what Ayarin's home is serving tonight, and see for myself what kind of blissful life you lead every day."

Anon Chihaya: Tremble, tremble, tremble!

What do you mean the new home I've never even visited has already been nested in by you lot?

Alley cats sneaking a taste, today Anon Chihaya is going to see how you face the original wife when you're caught completely off guard!

Uchiha Ayato: "?"

Go back and eat?

Would Uncle Ayato actually get a hot meal today?

"Ahem, Anon, Saki and the others' schedules…"

Just as Uchiha Ayato was about to find some excuse to fob off this dangerous idea, he suddenly sensed something.

He wiped the expression from his face, and his cold gaze passed through the thin mist rising at the street corner and landed on the middle of the sidewalk, ten meters ahead.

Anon Chihaya noticed that something was off too. She turned around, puzzled, and followed his line of sight.

The bustling crowd had thinned out at some point, as if an invisible force had silently pushed all the ordinary people away.

A slender, black-haired boy stood quietly in the road.

He wore a eye-catching pure white jacket, a long black sword bag slung diagonally across his back. His face looked a little pale, with dark circles clearly visible under his eyes.

Yet around that lean, tired-looking body, an enormous, heavy pressure churned, as if something were curled up in the shadows behind him.

Noticing Uchiha Ayato's gaze, the black-haired boy bowed slightly.

"Nice to meet you."

"I'm Yuta Okkotsu."