Chapter- 7 (stolen youth)
I took a deep breath, and turned back to look at the campus once again. After a few moments, I turned back and walked out of the gate, uncertain if I will ever walk back again.
The open field that was in between the two old buildings accommodate the students of Advanced Nurturing High School — the fortress I assumed to be impenetrable. However, it seems like that man made his move the moment I stepped out of the campus.
This faraway area from the school isn't heavily guarded as the main campus, so it was a natural course of action.
I walked out of the gate with the lady. The moonlight illuminated the grounds on which a total of six adults were standing. A black car was parked at a distance. It was a big one.
He was there, looking right at me. Except him, all the men wore what looked like night vision goggles. Two of them were guarding him while the other three were scattered.
[A/n: A is Ayanokouji L is the lady P is Papakoji and black circles are guards. Once again 'in the name of imagery put the image itself'.]
Silence flooded the place. There was no need for words, everyone knew what the plan was. For one last time, I scanned the area for any possible weapons, however, the only weapons I can use seem to be the taser gun his men are carrying.
The three men scattered around the place are carrying taser guns, while the two men guarding him are carrying pistols. Taser guns were to subdue me while the pistols were for emergency scenarios. The lady standing behind me didn't move a muscle. It didn't look like she was going to fight me, but I can never be sure.
A cold breeze of night wind passed by. The clouds slowly covered the moon and darkness loomed over the ground.
"Capture him alive."
I ran towards the bodyguard who was nearest to me. He was equipped with a taser gun and night vision, so I must take those into consideration.
Once I was within fifteen metres range from him, I stopped. This was the time he must need to move in order to subdue me or else the prongs of the taser won't reach me.
I heard footsteps of two more people approaching me. The time wasn't on my side. I must take a risk and settle it one on one with the target standing in front of me.
I swiftly approached him. Now that I was close enough I could see him, he didn't fire the taser gun. Rather waited for me to close in further.
"Very well."
In order to get a clean hit with a taser gun you must fire it in a way that both the prongs are attached to the target covering a decent area. However, that won't happen in my case unless he shot it at point blank range.
Even when shot by a taser gun, through sheer willpower one can rip off the prongs and render the gun useless.
Understanding these facts, he engaged in a hand to hand combat with me, in hopes of buying enough time for his two teammates who approached us at full speed.
Once they were here, he could just hold me off and they could fire two tasers at me, successfully taking me down.
A decent plan on paper.
I launched a swift jab in order to grasp his speed. He dodged it with perfect timing. I followed it up with a teep to his solar plexus using my right foot, but he blocked it using his hands.
I dropped my centre of gravity lower and rushed at him. In response, he tried to move out of the way but I caught his wrist. Pulling his hand towards me, I punched his chest like a battering ram.
The damage wasn't astounding but it was enough for the confusion I wanted to create.
I raised my right knee signalling another teep. Hastily, he responded by guarding his solar plexus, and that was when I turned my hips and redirected the kick to his face, thus executing the question mark kick.
It is a mainline feint, but if set up properly during a fight it can be lethal.
Once he received a blow to his head for a brief moment, his fist loosened up. I grabbed his ring finger and the realisation dawned upon him. It was already too late.
"N-No—"
*CRACK*
"Aarhg!"
When fighting, it is ill advised to ever open your mouth. Once your jaws are disconnected from each other, even a small hit to your lower jaw can dislocate it.
*BAAM*
I hit his lower jaw, breaking it cleanly with one strike.
Out of the two bodyguards that were approaching me, one of them was here. He aimed the taser gun at me.
I used the man incapacitated in front of me as a human shield. Even with his disfigured face he struggled a little in my arms as I put him up in front of the taser gun aimed at me.
While the fight was short, it still took them time to reach us. What bothers me is that the third man seems to be missing. I scanned the area but he was nowhere to be found. It seems he got away while I was busy fighting his teammate.
I took out the taser gun from the suit of my human shield. Now the tables had flipped. Both of us had guns but I had a shield too. In this situation, it was bound to be my victory.
That was the moment I felt something cold on my neck. Instinctively, I moved from my position.
"Haha, your instincts exceed the rumours." The man standing in front of me said.
I threw a brief glance at the building behind me. At the rooftop, there was a sniper taking his aim at my back. This sniper was none other than the third person who went missing midway.
If I moved to face the sniper then the one standing in front of me would shoot, and if I didn't then the sniper would shoot me. But what was he going to shoot me with?
Using a bullet on me would be prohibited.
"Now take this!" The person in front of me yelled, he grabbed my attention and closed the distance with me.
"AAAAAAAAAAaaaaaa" A distinct cry was heard from the direction of the sniper.
Both of us stopped for a second, and looked back to see the sniper lying dead on the ground. Someone had thrown him off the building.
Taking advantage of the situation, I shot the taser gun on the confused man aiming the taser at me. He squirmed in pain and passed out soon.
I turned back to look at the person standing at the top of the building, where the sniper was previously positioned. In the dark, it was hard to make out if it was an adult or a student.
[A/n: Alright now's your chance to place your bet folks.]
The clouds revealed the moon once more and the moonlight disclosed the identity of the person standing on the rooftop.
"Kouenji....." Out of all people, for him to see all of this. Such a mess.
Adapting to the situation, the two bodyguards who were guarding that man left their positions and rushed towards me.
From their movements, I can say they are far stronger than the three that were eliminated.
"This is an emergency announcement. For tonight, there will be a curfew in the campus. Students aren't allowed to leave their rooms, and in case any of them are out they must return to their rooms immediately without fail." An announcement echoed from the two buildings as two cars stopped by.
A man in his forties walked out with a few of his men. They stood behind me as the man walked ahead.
The two bodyguards who were approaching me pointed the gun at the man who just walked out of his car while the other one rushed back to guard his employer.
"It is an unexpected surprise to see you here, Ayanokouji-sensei." The man said to him.
It seems they are acquainted. From the bodyguard I had just tasered earlier, I took out the taser gun from his hand.
If all these men team up on me then escape won't be an option anymore.
"Sakayanagi. It has been seven or eight years... you're the Chairman of this school now."
Sakayanagi?
If the Chairman himself is on his side then this all would be over for me.
"Yes, that was the time I had succeeded my father," he said with a grim expression.
"Now that you're here, things are easier, I am here to take back the boy."
"I am afraid that Kiyotaka-kun doesn't want the same."
Sakayanagi said without a hint of cowardice even though the bodyguards of that man had a pistol aimed at him.
The men Sakayanagi had brought with him were armed with guns as well, but I doubt if they would be able to defeat the two bodyguards that man had with him.
"......" The air around us got heavier as the Chairman didn't show any signs of complying.
"Why did you accept this kid into your school?" That man asked Sakayanagi.
"What do you mean, Sensei? Kiyotaka had passed the written exams and interview successfully, I had no reason to reject his admission—"
"Absolute lies." Sakayanagi was interrupted between his explanations.
"Do you think I don't know about your agents scouting the whole of Japan for students? You only take in students that are recommended by them. A sound method to pick up the cream of the crop, but you betrayed your own methods by accepting this child without any recommendation."
On hearing that, the Chairman's surprise was visible on his face.
"Sensei, even after retirement you are as ferocious as ever. It is true that Ayanokouji wasn't recommended to us, but I accepted his proposal because—"
Sakayanagi went on explaining the policies of his school and what it has to offer me. But amidst all this, I noticed that man making brief eye contacts with one of Sakayanagi's men.
"Highschool isn't considered necessary education and fees are covered by the government–"
Twice
"Our students' autonomy is our top priority–"
Thrice
"You have changed, Sakayanagi. Where did the old agreeable you go?"
The man standing behind Sakayanagi pulled a gun from his pocket.
I silently closed the distance between me and Sakayanagi.
I tasered Sakayanagi's bodyguard who I deduced to be a renegade of Sakayanagi's faction.
"What are you doing?!" On witnessing the sudden reaction, the guards rushed to Sakayanagi's side to protect him from me.
"He wasn't one of your men; he was on his side." I pointed at that man.
Sakayanagi looked at me with a stunned expression. It appears he trusted his men a lot.
"How do you know?" He asked me with a slightly deranged voice.
Without answering, I walked to the person I had just tasered, and took out the pistol from his jacket.
"He was going to hijack you as hostage or possibly shoot you."
I pointed the pistol at the two bodyguards that guarded that man.
Now the tables have turned. They weren't allowed to shoot me. However, I subscribed to no such policies.
I made sure not to point the gun at that man, or else the bodyguards would shoot me without hesitation. Even in a law abiding country, this man would execute me without thinking twice and get away with it.
It is a stalemate now. None of us were going to shoot. I wasn't sure if Sakayanagi would let me enter back to his school if he saw me murdering people on his land.
Sakayanagi, who had just tasted betrayal from one of his closest men, was in a state of confusion. Right now, if I think from the perspective of my opponent then the only way to break this stalemate would be....
"Sakayanagi...." That man said as he started walking towards us. His bodyguards walked with him.
"Your father was a wise person. He found this school and passed down his legacy to you. You had an intelligent wife too. In front of her, your existence was that of a fool. Yet, you loved her regardless and you thought she did too."
"Soon you realised that there wasn't a shred of love for you in her. She was just doing all this to climb up in society. She didn't care a thing about you or your child that she was carrying with her. Even after your protests, she never quit drinking during her pregnancy. Ultimately, the child was born as a cripple."
Sakayanagi's eyes widened on hearing that. He calculated in his head how the man standing in front of him obtained such information.
"You realised you were worthless when she left behind you and your child alone after a few years of giving birth. Till date, you two aren't divorced but what was the last time you saw her? Seven years ago? Eight years ago?"
The man kept on berating Sakayanagi further, but he isn't that foolish to take such a tactless approach.
At this point, it was getting unbearable for Sakayanagi. Even the men guarding Sakayanagi had lost their focus when faced by the words that man spoke.
"H-How do you know about this?"
"I know this because that is what the society wants you to believe, that is the illusion you were allowed to live in. That you are trash who never deserved a lady like your wife, she was far superior, and so and so."
Already deranged, Sakayanagi was confused even more after hearing what came next.
"Scratch all that and listen to me," he said and paused, emphasising on the word 'me'. The long pause he took was to indicate the importance of the matter he was going to address now.
"I expect you're well acquainted with the term Eugenics." In reply to his words, Sakayanagi nodded slightly.
"The movement to promote the genetically superior race to develop humanity to its perfect form, discarding any and every defect that the race carried."
Eugenics is a set of beliefs and practises that aim to improve the genetic quality of a human population, historically, by excluding people and groups judged to be inferior or promoting those judged to be superior.
At one point in history, Eugenics was considered to be an academic practice in various parts of America. Its history went on as the movement gradually died out after the Nazis Eugenics.
Its downfall was basically caused by negative Eugenics, which was a practice to sterilise people who were considered defective in order to ensure the genetic progress of humanity.
"What about it? That is an ancient relic?" Sakayanagi's voice was filled with fear. Deep down, the reality was slowly dawning upon him but he didn't want to accept it.
"An ancient relic? It is still going strong, progressing even as we speak. The leaders of the eugenic movement never ceased their experiments. With their power in society, they would pick up the finest individuals humanity could offer to breed them further."
On hearing those words, Sakayanagi could no longer ignore the screams of his instinct.
"Your wife..." Just like the never stopping flow of time, the man kept on narrating mercilessly.
"She was the finest specimen Japan had to offer—"
"But she wasn't an easy one to obtain. At first, she had married you to seek protection from the people hunting her down. I have known a few people of that kind. They would give up any and everything at their disposal to protect themselves. As long as they have the means to protect themselves, they will do it."
"With your help, she was able to evade the agents who pursued her, ready to sacrifice you and your empire if needed to protect herself."
"But her plan went downhill when she actually fell in love with you. The shelter you provided her gave her the room to feel the emotions her heart was yearning for, to live the life she had been longing for—"
"Ever since she crossed her adolescent years, men had been sent by the association attempting to seduce her. Always on guard, her youth only had one happy memory. That was you, and now in order to protect what she loved, she was ready to sacrifice herself."
W-Wait no way..." Sakayanagi, gaping with an unfocused gaze, was having a hard time digesting the words he heard. A pain in his heart was relieved, leaving him with an unsteady gait and hands shivering ever so minutely. Nevertheless, another burden was introduced to it simultaneously.
"She understood as long as she would be with you, you will never find peace. It didn't only end at that. She had predicted that her own child would be targeted one day by the monsters who haunted her, thus she made sure that the child would be born as a cripple. Your daughter won't be targeted by the Eugenics association as long as she had a congenital defect."
Sakayanagi Arisu, the daughter of Chairman, had a congenital heart disease that inhibited the physical growth of her body. Her body won't be able to handle pregnancy, thus she wasn't a desired target for the Eugenics association. In this, her mother had assured her a peaceful life even if it meant to cripple her own daughter and sacrifice herself.
"What you inferred to be a curse to your daughter given by your wife, was actually the last blessing she could give you all. Once her daughter came of age, her time was up."
The cold hearted woman who had planned on using Sakayanagi and his position to protect herself ended up sacrificing herself for him. I can only wonder what she felt that led to her own sacrifice.
"Where is she now?!" Sakayanagi's cry beat at the night air.
The woman he loved with all his heart had never reciprocated his love. Even then with his broken heart, he persevered through life.
However, now that he has realised that what he saw was an illusion. That his wife had immense feelings for him, which never made it to him. The man standing in front of him broke that illusion. After the dawn of realisation, Sakayanagi was bound to act recklessly, latching on to the nearest person who could help him reach his goal.
And that would be....
"She longs to meet you as well. I myself have met her in the facility they have been keeping her."
"You have met her?!"
"Yes, I have other business to attend in the facility she is held captive in. She is in a pitiful state and her spirit is slowly breaking away, but it is your memories that keeps her together,"
The Eugenics Association and White Room might pursue ideals that are polar opposite to each other. However, they didn't hinder each other's progress. They were rivals in trade but not sworn enemies. The final showdown between them was still to come.
"Akiyo. . . Why. . . why is it that she needs to go through all this?" Sakayanagi was questioning himself. His body shifted, unsure of whether to loosen or collapse.
"You don't have even the slightest hint of her suffering. She had requested me personally not to let you find out any of this. To this day, she endures all of it silently for your family, but I can tell from looking at her. Deep down, she wants to be freed of the misery she is going through. It won't be late until she...."
Until she ends it herself.
Sakayanagi walked out of the circle of bodyguards. With a pained stare and curled shoulders, he surrendered himself in front of that man as his trembling lips choking, parted to push out the words. "Please! Sensei! I beg you to help me get to her!"
The corners of the man's mouth curved slightly upward in a despicable grin, as he looked down at Sakayanagi with a sense of victory.
This day has been full of unexpected developments.
The devil standing in front of Sakayanagi extended his arm.
"Help me get this brat out of here, and I will use everything at my disposal to snatch your wife out the hands of those monsters."