"Did your sister arrive yet? I'm pretty sure that she is going to come here if you are here as well. Unless it was the opposite way."
It seem it was taking a lot longer for father to say his speech. Maybe it was just minor technological problems.
"It used to be that way. But if she is here, then I am 100% somewhere in the building. She had already arrived about 10 minutes ago."
While Yui was busy looking for Nee-san, I am trying my best to spot someone whose presence is unknown to everyone besides me, Nee-san, and Yui.
"Hey, if you were allowed to bring me to this fancy party, then who did your sister bring? You said you saw her, but who arrived with her? A friend?"
"She brought Hikigaya-kun."
"Oh..."
The space between me and Yui grew awkward just like it intended to happen. There was no point of hiding anything. Being honest is much better than lying. And I've learned that the hard way during high school.
"Did he dress fancy like those other guys."
"Yes, yes he did. I almost couldn't recognize him until I saw his eyes. I should've secretly taken a picture before he left so I could have shown you how unnatural he looked."
"He left? Where did he go?"
"Not sure. He probably left because he's trying to avoid us both."
I left an ungrateful tone when I said that sentence. And Yui knew everything as to why I did that.
"Yukinon.. Do you think Hikki has changed?"
"Of course he has, but in a way where nobody can adapt to it. Put it like he has changed for the worst."
"That's really rude to put it that way, Yukinon. Hikki had just gotten back from war. War is where a lot of young people like Hikki die. We should be fortunate that he lived through all that. And he still decided to live in Chiba instead of somewhere else."
"Where else is there for him to live in? I mean, I guess if he bought an apartment that I also rent, then I suppose he could live a sustainable life."
"You haven't done enough research, Yukinon! Hooray, I'm smarter than you for once! Veterans can live in military established homes and have no bills."
"I guess I haven't thought about that. Then that makes him a fool for wasting much money when he could live for free."
It was Yui's first time to facepalm when I said something stupid.
"You're missing the point, Yukinon. Hikki misses us, all of us, his family, me, and you. He's avoiding us so he doesn't hurt us. But it's hurting us anyway no matter what he does, unless he decides to open about his hidden feelings. But I don't know what his hidden feelings are so we will have to wait."
Indeed she did have a good point.
Hikigaya-kun loves to hide things that may or may not hurt us. But no matter what, it will affect us before we even notice it.
"Hikki? You came back?"
I too was a bit surprised he came back. I thought he left as soon as he had the opportunity to.
Earlier his expressions were blank, emotionless. But now they were filled with worry and anxiety.
"Yuigahama, you're here also? Dammit, listen you 2, we need to go now."
"What? Why do we all have to leave? Yukinon's dad is gonna be on live TV!"
Yui complained.
"Hikigaya-kun, there is no reason to force us to exit out of the building. And I believe that will never happen. Not unless you tell us why."
Was he nuts?
After everything that has happen, he suddenly wants to talk to us and rush us out of the building.
"If I explain it, it's gonna take too long for both of your minds to comprehend. We must hurry!"
His voice became more aggravated and he was definitely in a rush to get us both out of the building.
"We both will be staying here. It's extremely important to watch my father's speech, instead of following someone as suspicious as you. I'm sure even a friendly dog won't follow you where you want it to go."
I feel something grab my hands.
"Please do not make me force you both."
Hikigaya-kun grabbed both Yui and I's hands all of a sudden.
"H-Hikki! Don't grab my hand! This is too sudden for me to take it all in!"
"Sir, I'm gonna have to ask you to leave."
A new person showed up to the scene. A security guard whose job is to protect civilians inside and outside the building. He definitely looked intimidating with a loaded gun on his holster. Or maybe it was a taser that is supposed to look like a gun.
"Alright, I'm leaving. I did my best. You both are on your own."
He let go of both our hands.
And when that happened, I felt something encase me with an evil aura. And that evil aura overlapped mine, and I wouldn't be able to escape that evil aura anymore.
And my own aura will eventually collapse, due to the vast evil aura.
We both look at him as he leaves the building, his hands in his pockets.
It felt as if we were both leaving him for good.
"Hikki has definitely been kind of weird lately. Do you think we should ask Komachi to come and check him out?"
"That is a foolish choice. I believe there is no one that is able to help Hikigaya-kun at this point. Unless he chooses to do the right thing by opening up."
"Was that man bothering you? Or potentially sexually harassing you girls? You 2 are both beautiful girls and I won't be surprised if that was his intent."
The security guard asked.
"No, sir. He is our friend. And lately, he's been acting extreme weird and out of character."
Yui backs Hikigaya-kun up.
"Indeed, I'm sure he'll come to his senses later on."
And it was my turn to back Yui up.
"Alright. See ya."
The security guard leaves our field of view, never to be seen again.
'And we are live!'
The cameraman turns on his camera and video tapes my father.
There was a large screen that we all could look to see if it was working. It was working and broadcasting on all TV's in Japan.
My mother and father were both present on the screen. It was totally unnecessary for my mother to be there. But I guess she wanted to show that she was his wife?
'Good evening, my fellow citizens. I'm sure you may know me and I am sure you are intending to vote for me for Prime Minister of Japan. The votes will soon be counted. Let us all hope that you choose the right person. It may not be me, but I don't care about that. I care how you all vote for the right person for the right job. We don't go for the best politicians, we go for the right politicians.'
My father flips a script page.
Maybe he was in a hurry so he couldn't memorize his speech.
'It has come to my concern that Japan's population of young adults, young teenagers and young children has been slowly decreasing. While the elderly get older and older, as it increases. Japan needs it's citizens to make more kids. More kids means more future, more opportunities. All it takes is 1 person to change the whole world. Einstein, Steve Jobs, Founding Fathers, and most importantly, you. It is you who can change the world, if you chose to, and if you choose the right person. Let me show you a great example of having more kids, by showing you my beautiful youngest daughter, Yukinoshita Yukino.'
Everyone begin clapping for me to walk up to my father. My body moved. And my feet instantly walked towards him. I was now in front of millions of people who were watching this speech.
I wasn't prepared for this.
But I need to show a great example and make father proud.
He was talking about the benefits of having kids. So I'll just list the things I have done.
"Hello, my name is Yukinoshita Yukino. Right now, I'm currently under law school. I will eventually become a lawyer in Chiba. A lawyer's job is to protect it's customer from being guilty or accused of being guilty. And if I make the right decision, I can change a person's future. 1 person might not be enough, but do not forget that 1 person can live over 80 years. So I can do it a bunch of times, turning it into thousands of lives changed. All because of 1 person, that is me, and that is you."
'Yukinoshita, you are an extremely astonishing and beautiful woman. If it isn't too personal, do you think you will eventually have kids in the future? If kids are the key to our future, then you must find a future with your love one first. Who do you think will be the lucky one to marry you?'
That was a question I could not give a complete answer to.
Who would be the guy I would marry.
I'll become a lawyer in the future, but what else? My parents will eventually retire, and no one will help the Yukinoshita Company that my mom currently owns.
Having a kid is a different and too personal question. So I guess I'll answer the guy who could potentially become my husband.
Then my brain stopped.
Who was the guy? I hardly know any male besides....
"I do not know who will become my lover in the future. But I hope everything goes well-"
Bang! Bang! Bang!
My sentence was interrupted with 3 amounts of loud noises that sounded like fireworks being blown up into my face.
And I suddenly hear screaming, more fireworks being heard inside the building.
Father and mother suddenly disappeared as soon as I turned to look for their reactions. I see them both being escorted by father's security and into somewhere else.
I then see Yui running towards me.
"Y-Yukinon, we have to go!"
Bang! Bang! Bang!
After hearing those loud sounds a couple more times, it soon reminded me of the time I heard the same sound from Hikigaya-kun's speakers.
Bullets.
Gunfire.
Blood.
I saw 5 men with large guns, shooting at everyone they see.
And immediately, I grabbed Yui hands and looked for the nearest door or exit that I could find. We couldn't exit the building anymore because the 1st floor was taken by these men already.
We had to go upstairs.
I looked back one more time to see if the things I'm seeing are actually reality itself. There were piles of body laying around, and pools of blood on each of them. They were once filled with life, now it was lifeless like a stick broken from a branch.
I can still feel the evil aura encase me, and I have yet to escape it.
There was no conversation between me and Yui. Just pure silence.
We were both terribly terrified, our eyes about to stream with tears, our expressions were obviously written with fear.
Fear of dying.
Hikigaya-kun was right. He was right all along.
We were eventually left with no choice but to go to the top floor of the building.
We might last longer, or we might get out alive.
I looked to the window and see a bright yellow and orange glow from the first floor below.
There was a huge fire going on.
A huge fire, 5 men wanting to kill us. I don't know what was more terrifying.
Your healthy lungs eventually filled with smoke or the thought of seeing your best friend's lifeless body, and if Yui sees mine.
"Yukinon... we should have..."
"I know what you are going to say.. I know that we both made a huge mistake. But right now is not the time to think about that. We need to think of a plan to escape or else we both might lose our lives."
They say when a person's life is at risk, they are at a whole different level with strength, thinking, and strong will.
I don't know which one I had but I'm glad to have it. It could potentially save my life if I make the right choice.
"There should be a ladder on the roof of this building. The ladder connects to the ground and we need to make it there as quick as possible."
She quickly nods a bunch of times out of nervousness.
"Okay, follow my lead.."
I open the door of the room we were hiding in to hide our identity from the attackers.
Eventually, we met one of them who was unknown of our presence. We were behind him, slowly walking back to our room.
Then I felt something grab onto my mouth, and Yui's mouth was also grabbed.
We were both pulled into another room and couldn't identify who was putting their hands on both our mouths.
Was this it?
Am I going to die? Is this how Hikigaya-kun felt everyday when he was doing his time?
[ Hachiman's POV ]
"Sssshh!!"
I put my index finger to my mouth, silencing both the girls.
Their look of shock and relief were displayed simultaneously.
"If you guys want to live to see another day, you both need to follow my commands. Do not speak, do not scream. And do not make one wrong move, you might forfeit your life. Do you both understand?"
I wasn't speaking to them as a friend.
I was speaking to them as a soldier, a marine whose mission is to always protect and rescue the hostages, while fighting off the enemy fighters.
I didn't choose to shoot them on the alleyway because I only had my G19 with me.
Trying to deliver fire superiority with a pistol is like throwing rocks at a huge hornet nest. I'll be dead before I see a muzzle pointed right at me.
More gunshots followed as I knew more innocents were being killed from the bottom floors.
"We have to go downstairs. They destroyed the ladders on the roof that connects to the ground. Follow my lead.."
I grab my G19 from my holster and open the door I took both Yukinoshita and Yuigahama in. A pistol was all I got to try to suppress the Taliban terrorists.
I identified them as Taliban as soon as I heard their language. They use multiple languages but I heard the most common one, hence why I was able to identify them quickly.
We were on the 6th floor, moving down onto the 5th.
"Ignore the bodies."
We passed through piles of corpses that were victims of the shooting.
They just be close.
4th floor, was smooth and we had no close calls.
But as we tried to go through the 3rd floor, the door was locked.
"Dammit, it's lock. Hold my pistol for me, Yukinoshita."
I hand her my G19, if there was any shooters nearby, I hope to god she is prepared to kill them.
Luckily, I grabbed a crowbar from the trunk of my car. I used the chiseled edge of the crowbar to try to force the door to open.
CRASHHH!!
The door suddenly opened and one of the Taliban terrorists surprises me with a tackle to the wall.
Yukinoshtia and Yuigahama flinched from the sudden entrance and held their mouths with their hands.
Using the wall on my back to my advantage, I put both of my feet up against the wall and pushed my legs to overpower the shooter.
CRACK!
His back was now against the wall.
I used my elbow to hit him in the face, stunning the shooter temporarily into a state of shock and possibly fracturing his jaw bone.
The crowbar I had previously used to get the door to open, was now used to wound this attacker.
STAB!
Using the claw of the crowbar, I stabbed it between his neck and shoulders.
SLAM!!
I pull him down and slam him onto the floor with my crowbar that as currently inside his neck and shoulders.
"Fuck off."
I sent him a message before he would bleed out to death.
I give both Yukinoshita and Yuigahama a good glance to see if they were okay. Needless to say, they were more shocked of what I had just done then being startled by the tackling entrance.
She silently gives me back my G19.
I put it in my holster because I was going to take the shooter's weapon.
He had an AK-47 with a few more magazines. I checked the magazine inside it and it seemed to be full of ammo. Looks like he didn't kill anyone yet.
"Let's go."
Both of the female hostages followed my lead.
As we get down to the 3rd floor and 2nd floor. They were about to get more intense.
I knew they were nearby, so I had to check every room just incase. I do not want to be flanked from behind by the,.
"Cover your ears if you want to."
I warned them both of what is about to come.
I checked and inspected every room of the 3rd and 2nd floor.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
I shot the corners of every room I entered. The corners are where they usually tend to hide to try to counter our house raids.
[ Third Person POV ]
Mr. Yukinoshita and Ms. Yukinoshtia were successfully escorted into a secret and secured room.
"Where is my daughter? Where are both of my daughters?"
Mr. Yukinoshita asks.
"We couldn't escort them, sir."
"What the hell?! You dimwits didn't choose the wiser decision to save both of my daughters?! Idiots!"
The room they were in was a security guard rooms.
"Quick, use the cameras so we are able to locate Yukino and Haruno."
Mr. Yukinoshita orders his bodyguards.
"Found your youngest daughter, sir!"
"Where?l"
Everyone in the room sees Yukinoshita and Yuigahama, following a man with an AK-47.
"Is he one of the shooters?"
Ms. Yukinoshita asks, fearing that their youngest daughter may have been taken hostage.
"No, he's Japanese. He's... He's risking his life for my youngest daughter..."
Mr. Yukinoshita couldn't identify who the savior of their youngest daughter was... but he had a plan... a promise.
"I don't know who this guy is but I'm gonna make that guy marry my daughter! That's a guarantee promise!"
[ Hachiman's POV ]
"Secured."
3rd floor was secured and there were no Taliban fighters spotted.
"Go go, we're almost there."
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The sound of bullets were entirely different due to being in a room, instead of being outside. But after practicing and doing so much raids in Afghanistan and Iraq, I could obviously distinguish the both sounds.
"Just run down to the 1st floor! I'll provide some cover!"
I ordered both Yukinoshita and Yuigahama to head down to the 1st floor,
Bang! Bang! Bang!
I begin to spray the AK-47 rounds in order to suppress and keep their heads down.
They were saying something that I couldn't exactly translate. But I'm sure I heard the word 'Marine' from the sentences. They too had some war experience with US soldiers it seems.
I barely escaped the 2nd floor, almost being shot at in the head. This is why we always wear helmets.
As soon as I enter the 1st floor, both the girls were waiting for me it seems. I was about to call them idiots for not escaping.
But I realize why they didn't escape.
The whole 1st floor was engulfed into flames. We were practically trapped in the circle of fire. There was no escape.
I could hear multiple footsteps coming down the stairs as they were getting closer to our position. I needed to find some cover and fast.
Thankfully, there was a metal table that could easily shield us from AK rounds.
"Over here."
I flipped the table for it to cover our bodies.
I duck both of their heads down so they wouldn't get shot.
Bang! Bang Bang!
Bullets passing by us.
I was getting very excited for some reason. Did I miss this? Did I enjoy firefights? But I was also getting pissed off at the same time.
"Fuck these motherfuckers!"
I had only 2 mags left.
I needed to make a plan on how to escort both of these girls out of the building that is going into flames.
"Look for possible exits out of the building. And once you do, I'll provide more cover and keep their heads down as you both run."
They nod quickly and did their job.
Ratatatatatatatata!!
I sprayed the whole mag to keep their heads down.
CRACK!
"Ow! Fuck!"
I fell to the ground, on my back.
"Hikki!"
"Hikigaya-kun!"
Both the girls rushed to my aid to see where I was hit.
"Don't worry about me! Keep looking for a way to escape! I only took a shrapnel to the face."
One of the bullets cracked and the shrapnel got me on my face. Thankfully it wasn't on my head or else I would've been dead.
Large amounts of blood poured onto my hands and slowly dripped on my face. Their faces filled with shock and worry once again.
I didn't care for the blood I was losing, it wasn't fatal so I grabbed the AK-47 I dropped and used the last mag.
"I found it."
Yukinoshtia informs me.
"Okay, good! Now run!"
Having a small piece of hot metal was extremely painful, I could hardly talk, yet even see as well.
Seeing the 2 hostages rescued and successfully escaping out of the building, my mission was complete.
Ratatatatatatatatata!
I suppress them once more so they wouldn't be able to fire at Yukinoshita and Yuigahama.
Now I'm all out of ammunition.
Guess this is how it's going to end.
I once again grab my G19 from my holster, turning the safety off.
Ka-click!
'As fellow marines, it is our duty to protect, defend, and rescue hostages, innocents, and children. It is also our duty to kill those who threaten us or threaten the innocents. You will have to kill, or be killed.'
I could hear my Drill Instructor say something important to all of us as we graduate to become marines.
'Now there may be times where you are at in the worst situation and the worst position possible.'
I shoot multiple rounds with my G19 towards the Taliban position, knowing it won't hit anything. I duck once more to evade their incoming rounds.
'But do not forget one last important thing.'
I use up all the rounds of my G19. More like I only had one magazine to begin with.
'Marines fight bravely until they die.'
"Marines fight bravely until they die."