Hajime stood near the fountain, arms crossed tightly over his chest as he stared down at the sparkling droplets of water. It had taken everything in him to decline it, but in the end, he had done it. The words were out there now, but they still echoed in his skull, laced with fear.
“I don’t want to join the Izuru Kamukura Project.”
He had been so excited when the offer had first been offered to him. A way to be able to finally have not one, but multiple Talents? It sounded like a dream coming true!
He had quickly told Chiaki about it, wanting to share his excitement with her, but to his disappointment, she had only grimaced and frowned. She seemed even more alarmed when Hajime told her how he had to sign a contract so they could perform an experimental surgery on him. She had told him to wait for a few days, even though he had been desperate to sign the contract already.
And now, he was thankful he had waited.
Chiaki had told Fuyuhiko, the Ultimate Yakuza Heir, to hack the computers of the lab of the Reserve Course building so they could really discover what all those experiments really were about. Hajime had talked to him once or twice before and even though he was way smaller than him, he honored his Talent with his intimidating aura and piercing eyes. It had taken a bit of convincing, but eventually, Fuyuhiko had pulled some strings along his men to be able to get the information.
However, things weren’t so easy. Even though they had been able to get some of the information involving the general idea of the experiments, there were still some details that they hadn’t been able to get. So, they had also enlisted the help of Gundham so that one of the Devas could run into the room with a hard drive and extract the information more easily that way. He had outright refused to help at first, but it only took a few compliments from Hajime and the acceptance of the Four Dark Devas of Destruction to agree to help them.
It had taken more time than they wanted to, but once they got the information, they felt sick.
Needles into the brain, erasure of memories and feelings so there’d be more space for the Talents, complete loss of identity and painful and intrusive surgeries that wouldn’t stop until they got their Ultimate Hope.
And so, Hajime’s conviction of signing the contract completely broke.
He went straight to the board to reject the project as soon as possible, and so, there he was now, his mind still swirling as he stood under the afternoon sunlight.
”Oi,” a voice called out to him and when he turned around, he saw Fuyuhiko along with Gundham approaching him. “How did it go?”
Hajime sighed and turned around so he could face them. “It went… okay, I guess?” He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. “They had a weird look on their faces when I rejected them, but other than that, they let me go pretty easily.”
“It looks like the knights of the void didn’t put much resistance to your refusal.” Gundham hummed.
Hajime nodded before looking around. “By the way, where’s Chiaki?”
”She had to stay after class. Was talking with the teach about something when we left.” Fuyuhiko shrugged.
Hajime nodded before sighing. “I was so excited about the project when they told me I was the ‘ideal candidate’. But…“ He shook his head. “I never expected for them to go that far…”
”You’re not a damn experiment, that’s for sure.” Fuyuhiko tsked while Gundham nodded in agreement.
”Indeed. You should be proud, young warrior. You defied the mechanical overlords, cast aside the promise of unnatural evolution and spat in the face of their false gods. Not only that, you also came out unscathed from it. A feature not many people are able to achieve.” He said with an approving voice.
Hajime glanced down, cheeks flushed slightly, but whether from embarrassment or something else, he didn’t know.
A sudden click of boots against the ground made the three of them turn. Two men in black suits approached them, their expressions cold and unreadable beneath tinted security glasses. They stopped just a few feet away.
”Hajime Hinata?” One of them asked flatly.
Hajime frowned in confusion. “Yeah?”
”You need to come with us. Now.”
That ominous sentence only served to make him nervous. Fuyuhiko and Gundham frowned, their bodies bracing for whatever would happen next.
”W-What? But why? If it’s because of the cleaning duty, it’s not my turn today, it’s—“
“That’s not why you have to come with us.” One of the men interrupted him.
Hajime blinked bewilderly. “Then why?”
The men looked at each other, looking almost bored before looking back at him.
“You’ve been summoned regarding your role in the Izuru Kamukura Project. You need to come with us.” They said at the same time, which okay, was kinda creepy.
Hajime felt a cold chill down his spine and he took a step back. “T-There must have been some kind of miscommunication.” He argued. “I just got out of a meeting with the board today and told them I don’t want to join the project! And when they first told me about this project, they said I could always refuse if I wanted to!”
One of them shook his head. “That was before they discovered how much of an ideal type your body is. You match perfectly with the procedures so we can get the Ultimate Hope.”
”Even so, he said he’s not interested.” Fuyuhiko growled, startling Hajime slightly. He had almost forgotten Fuyuhiko and Gundham were still there. “You deaf or something, old man?”
They completely ignored him and advanced more towards Hajime. His nervousness started turning into fear as he stepped away even more. Gundham’s presence was like a shadow beside him, unyielding. Without thinking, he stepped back, then back again until he found himself hiding behind Gundham’s broad form. Fuyuhiko soon stepped aside to be next to Gundham and Hajime clutched part of his jacked lightly, as though he could shield himself from what was coming.
”You don’t understand,” Hajime said, trying to make his voice as firm as possible. “I don’t want to go through this procedure…”
”It’s not about what you want. You’ve been chosen. End of the discussion.”
”You dare approach this sanctuary of souls with your invasive machinations?” Gundham growled, arms spreading as though preparing to cast a protective spell. “Begone, agents of corruption!”
The guards exchanged yet another glance, but didn’t move any closer.
”This is official academy business,” one warned. “Stand aside.”
”Ha! My companions and I care not for your hollow decrees,” Gundham declared, one hand lightly resting on the hamster pouch of his scarf. “If you wish to tear him away, then come— face the wrath of the Tanaka Kingdom!”
”You heard him, creeps,” Fuyuhiko growled, his body tense as he glared at them. “Back off.”
And even though they both wore sunglasses, Hajime somehow knew that they were rolling their eyes at them.
”This doesn’t concern you. Leave.” One of them said.
Fuyuhiko’s eyes narrowed. “That so?”
”I don’t want to do this,” Hajime said, his heart starting to pound with panic. “Please—I don’t want to be part of your damn experiment!”
One of the guards reached for something in his coat.
“Don’t even fucking try it.”
The sudden sound of a gun being cocked froze the moment in time. Fuyuhiko’s pistol gleamed in the fading sunlight, pointed straight at the first guard’s leg. His hands were steady, his gaze ice-cold.
”I don’t give a damn if you’re with the school or some top-secret committee,” he snarled. “You lay a hand on him, I’ll put a bullet through your leg. The next one goes somewhere worse.”
The guards went still, looking unsure for the first time since they had approached them. One of them shifted slightly, hand twitching near his own holster.
”Try me. I dare you,” Fuyuhiko said flatly, not blinking. “It’ll be the last thing you do.” His thumb clicked the safety off, getting it ready to shoot.
The Four Dark Devas of Destruction got on top of Gundham’s shoulders, chittering angrily and snarling at the men. Gundham raised an arm up and a nearby falcon landed on it, getting ready to attack if they were to take another step towards them.
Behind them, Hajime stared in stunned silence. He’d never seen Gundham and Fuyuhiko like this—utterly fearless, radiating raw, dangerous resolve. Like nothing in the world could touch them. Like they’d go to war over Hajime’s right to say no.
”…We’ll report this,” one of the guards finally said. “But this conversation isn’t over.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Fuyuhiko muttered but he didn’t lower the gun. “Better run.”
”Just go away, you malevolent agents of misery, before I curse both you and your offsprings!” Gundham exclaimed theatrically. The hawk on his arm cawed loudly, finally startling the men and making them go away.
Once they were gone, Fuyuhiko pulled his gun into his pocket and Gundham let the falcon go with a few words of gratitude. They then turned towards Hajime, who was still pretty freaked out from what had just happened.
“If you ever see those creeps near you, you can come to us for help.” Fuyuhiko crossed his arms as he spoke. “Peko and I are pretty good at keeping bastards like those guys away. You okay?”
”Yeah, yeah… j-just give me a minute.” He said as he closed his eyes and rubbed his hair harshly. A sudden chirp made him open his eyes and he saw Cham-P and Maga-Z looking at him from Gundham’s shoulder. Without any warning, Maga-Z jumped, reaching Hajime’s shoulders and he quickly raised one of his hands to help support the small rodent. The hamster settled in Hajime’s hand and nuzzled his head against Hajime’s thumb, making him smile as he started petting the little creature.
”Ah, it appears Maga-Z and Cham-P have sensed your inner turmoil.” Gundham said with a solemn look in his eyes. “Perhaps it would be best if we escorted you back to your chambers.”
Hajime let out a shaky sigh as he finally felt his heart starting to slow down. He pet the animal on his hand one more time and smiled, giving it back to Gundham.
”Yeah… that’d be appreciated. Thank you both.”
And so, they all started walking towards the Reserve Course dorms, keeping a careful eye out in case anyone tried to take Hajime away again. Not that they would be able to when having a Dark Lord and a Yakuza heir by his side.
