At S.O.N.G.....
It's the beginning of the school year. Classes are in full swing, and the school is ever so lively. All the students have moved up a class.
In a separate classroom, rarely visited or known about, Sakura is with three other boys as they discuss.
"What? No way! Hahaha!" one of the boys shouts.
"But then that makes you, like, super rich now," another boy says.
"Haha, no, no. You small-minded creatures."
Sakura looks up with pride in his eyes.
"I was always super rich. I just made a few extra billion bucks, that's it."
"Well, that's nice and all, but... Sakura, what about the—"
"Don't be so tight-up. I remember, as clear as day. You are one of my minions, after all."
He turns and snaps his fingers.
"Minato."
A boy is standing at the window using his phone. He presses it a few times before raising it.
"Yeah. All done."
"You see? All done, and at the snap of my finger. If you work for me, then I'll provide for you."
With a smug look on his face, Sakura gets up.
"Thank you, Sakura. You're like the best."
"Haha. Like? I am."
He walks out as they follow.
"I couldn't agree more."
The room becomes silent, dim, and still.
Minato, who stayed behind, speaks up.
"Hey, aren't you going to get up?"
He is looking at his phone before looking at someone who is bent down on both knees and hands.
It is Akira.
He had been used as a chair by Sakura before Sakura left.
"Aren't you going to leave?"
"Ah, good point."
Akira is ready to leave when Minato drops a chocolate milk drink with melon pan.
"We have P.E. next, and you definitely didn't go for lunch being a chair. Just don't faint on the track."
He walks out.
Sakura is left alone.
The bell rings, and the scene changes to Akira running on the track.
P.E class.....
"Come on, lazy people! Two more laps!"
The P.E. teacher shouts.
Everyone is trying their best to finish the final lap as Sakura runs.
"Sakura, get over here!"
"Yes!"
He walks over to the P.E. teacher.
"You don't have to run if you don't want to."
"It's fine. I don't mind running."
"Nonsense. Sit this one out. You're the most valuable person in S.O.N.G. Consider this as a favour for your dad's sponsorship to the school."
Sakura has a slight grin that the teacher doesn't notice. He looks up and smiles.
"Why, thank you. If you're offering so kindly, who am I to refuse?"
A devilish grin creeps across his face, unseen by the P.E. teacher.
"Oh, but..."
The teacher becomes reluctant.
"What is it?"
"I overheard Akira saying how he thinks you're overly annoying and wishes you'd just quit. Even if he is my friend, I just could not let him get away with it, as I respect you dearly."
He becomes furious upon hearing this.
"Thank you for telling me, Sakura. You don't have to worry. I'll take care of it."
"Yes, sir. Oh, but do try to go easy on him."
He's eyes walks away and sits to watch it all unfold.
With a face of pleasure, he grins.
"Tanaka!!!!"
Almost like an alarm, the whole field is slightly startled.
"Well, aren't you generous! Listen up, people. You all can rest because Tanaka is going to complete your last lap!"
"Hell yeah!"
"Really? Thanks, dude!"
"I'm saved!"
They all walk over to sit, leaving only Akira on the track.
"You better get to it, Tanaka. That's ten more laps for you."
Akira starts to run.
Sakura sits and watches with his legs crossed, observing closely with evident entertainment.
"Wonderful."
After P.E.
Everyone is allowed to use the school's bath to clean up.
Akira is the last to finish, so there is no one there.
He enters the shower.
Water pours down as he stands there with his head lowered.
Eventually, he raises his face and brushes his hair back.
His expression is empty.
His eyes look dead, with no sign of colour in his life.
As if his pain has slowly been nurtured for years, a slight crack appears in his patience.
Afterward, he walks out of the bath and finds that his clothes have been switched.
"Sigh. It can't be helped, I guess."
He says it without expression.
In Class 2-CAkira's new class.....
Fate had it that he was in the same class as Sakura for another year.
"Hey, do you think he'll actually do it?" one student asks Sakura.
"If he didn't, he'd have to come out naked. Patience."
As if on queue, the halls erupt into laughter.
Sakura grins.
"I told you."
Akira walks down the hall wearing a skirt that reached him just above he's knee.
He can hear the laughter but couldn't care less about them.
After all, to him, the people around him are unrecognized faces.
He erased all their faces from reality a long time ago.
He walks into class as the room fills with laughter.
"Yo, Tanaka! I didn't know you swing that way. Hahaha! Man, you're killing me!"
"Do you need your nails done? I know a good place. Pft, hahaha..."
"Give us a three-sixty, will ya? Hahaha!"
"Love the skirt. It really brings out your eyes. Hahaha..."
He starts rolling on the ground laughing.
Akira pays no mind to it and simply sits down while everyone around him makes fun of him.
The girl who switched clothes with Akira is sitting beside him.
She looks sad, but more than anything, she feels pity for Akira.
"I'm sorry. I really didn't mean to. I..."
She stops when she sees his face.
He looks drained.
Dead, even.
She knows nothing will get through.
Akira does not remember people's faces or their names.
Only those he considers worth the trouble will have their faces remembered.
And Sakura is one of them.
Soon after, on queue, the bell rings.
Students begin leaving, but not without leaving remarks.
"Bye, Tanaka. Next time, green should be better. Haha..."
"OMG, bye, princess! You were fire today, girl. Don't go too hard on the blush, haha..."
"Disgusting. I don't know why S.O.N.G. let you in in the first place..."
"Um, so... never mind."
The girl who had the skirt tries to speak, but when she sees his face, she stops.
Soon, no one is left.
It's just Akira and Sakura.
"You know... It's not too late to leave S.O.N.G. I mean, it's not like you got anything ahead of you. So just—"
"Why?"
Akira's question makes Sakura pause.
"What was that? I didn't hear you."
"Why do you hate me so much?"
"Hate you? Hahaha..."
He laughs for what seems like hours.
"Huhh. Good one, oh my dear trash. I don't hate you. Hahaha."
He comes closer to Akira and grabs his hair, his expression annoyed.
"I detest people like you. People that think life is all sunshine and rainbows. People that think they can be happy having little. People that don't try to aim higher. People that remind me of my past self and how I used to once be like them."
His expression hardens.
"But I detest you the most because you fake to be all the things I hate. So don't get cocky. I don't hate you. I detest you."
"All this time and you still don't remember."
Akira says, almost with a sad look in he's eyes.
Sakura lets go of Akira.
He then sanitizes his hand and walks away, not without saying one last remark.
"This was fun, but try not to break on me, will ya? I'm having... so... much... fun."
He walks out.
The BroadcastAfter the drama, everything seemed to go black.
Then every TV, phone, and billboard in Tokyo was tuned to the same channel.
A man appeared.
It was the Deputy Prime Minister, Mr. Sakamoto.
"Ah. Yes. Is this thing on? Oh, it appears so."
He clears his throat.
"Mhm, mhm. Good evening, everyone! This is your DPM speaking. Well, I guess you already know, since I'm on the screen. Hahaha. Wow, tough crowd, am I right?"
He pauses.
"Anyways, let's dive straight to business. I bet you're dying to know why I'm here. So..."
He claps his hands.
"Long story short. We all know which year this is. It's 2065, the year of evaluation."
The world watches in confusion.
"The world is at its peak now. Agriculture... new power supply... blah, blah, blah. You know what I mean."
People begin looking at each other in confusion.
"What's happening?"
"Is this for real?"
** " i knew he was at the deeps end, he decided to jump"**
The broadcast continues across the world.
Not just Japan.
The entire world receives the broadcast in over a million languages.
Akira listens to the news with attention, unfazed.
"Now for the sad part. Because we have created everything we needed, humans now live way too long. But that has caused overpopulation and an imbalance in the universe's world count."
He pauses.
"Which, in other words, means that if we don't do something about it fast, Earth will have to be erased from the galaxies."
He smiles.
"But don't worry. We—the presidents of every state and country—have gathered and made a decision..."
He leaves everything in suspense.
Fifteen seconds pass.
It feels like an eternity.
Then he speaks.
"We kill ourselves."
He laughs.
"Hahaha... Doesn't that sound fun?"
"But don't worry. We can't just be killing ourselves like mindless animals from the Stone Age. I've made it fun."
He explains the updated chip installed in every human from birth.
"It is now a gaming simulation."
He continues explaining the reward system.
"Let's say you kill a person, and that person has one million. Then that million automatically becomes yours. Fun, right?"
He laughs.
"And now, let's say that person had a girlfriend. Bam! Just like that, she's yours."
He laughs again.
"So what I'm trying to say is... anything that person left behind is yours now. All you've gotta do is kill them."
He spreads his arms.
"So get ready, my democratic people. You are all now in the universe's game."
He smiles.
"The Survivor's Game: Kill or Be Killed. That is your only right now."
He pauses.
"But of course, every game has a starting point. Be sure to grab your tools, because after today, it's an all-out massacre through tomorrow, starting at twelve P.M. on the dot."
The screens go blank.
Everything goes back to normal.
The Next Day — S.O.N.G.Things seem to go on as usual.
Nothing appears out of the ordinary.
Everyone attends class.
No one seems fazed by the broadcast from the previous night.
It is 11:54 A.M.
Sakura and his goons begin their usual routine.
"Sup, princess."
"I took some pics of your beauty statement yesterday. Who wants it?"
"LOL, no way. Pass it to me!"
"Same here!"
"Alright, coming right up!"
Sakura turns to Akira.
"I made you famous. Be happy."
Akira is not his usual self.
He seems more composed.
Less dead.
Sakura looks at him, confused about why he is acting differently.
The teacher walks in.
"Everyone, settle down. Akira, get over here."
"Yes, sir."
"You got a zero on your test. Are you even trying?"
...
"I'm talking to you."
"Sir, cut princess some slack. He's not worth it."
"What could you expect from a being like him?"
It is unusual, but Akira is not in the same mindset as always.
"Why don't we kill him by twelve? I mean, you saw the news. He's taking up space."
The clock ticks.
Akira hears it clearly.
One minute remains before twelve.
Sakura continues.
"We don't need to. I bet his parents are already on it. I mean, I would be ashamed to have something like that."
Akira finally snaps.
The whole class is laughing.
The clock finally hits 12:00.
A system appears in front of everyone, visible only to them.
But they're all too busy laughing to notice.
Akira calmly walks over to Sakura and stands before him.
"And what do you want?"
"You."
"Me? Hahaha. I'm flattered, but I don't swing that way. And even if I did, I definitely wouldn't choose you."
The room erupts into laughter.
"So run off and—"
In an instant, Sakura realizes something is terribly wrong.
He looks down, stunned.
"Is this blood...?"
He clutches himself in pain.
"Ahhh! It hurts! It hurts!"
Time seems to stop.
Everyone is too shocked to comprehend what is happening.
Akira looks at him.
"Hahaha. It hurts? It hurts? Hahahaha..."
His grin grows.
"That was funny. Do you know how funny you sound?"
He looks around the room.
"I could get used to that."
He turns toward Sakura's friends.
One after another, they fall.
Only Minato remains.
Akira returns to Sakura, who is desperately trying to escape through the door.
Akira stops him.
"It hurts... It hurts..."
Akira pulls him back and sits down beside him.
"Come on. Don't be like that. I thought me and you were friends."
"No... no... no. I don't want..."
"Well, it's too late for that now, BESTIE."
He grins.
"You had your fun. Now it's my turn, BESTIE."
Sakura struggles.
Akira looks down at him.
"Hahaha. You know... Sakura, right? I don't remember anyone's faces but yours."
He smiles.
"Hahaha. I remember it as clear as day."
Sakura stares at him.
Akira's expression changes.
"And you know what? I thought about what you said yesterday. And I came to a conclusion that you were right."
He pauses.
"I was pretending."
His expression becomes strangely calm.
"But not because I wanted to. It was the only way I found to stop myself from turning into what I hate the most."
He looks at Sakura.
"And yet, oh, Sakura... Sakura. You brought it out."
A faint smile appears.
"The part I wanted to hide from you. From myself."
He takes a breath.
"And yesterday was the last straw. I mean, we've been through a lot."
He looks around.
"But you know, since the world is in danger and whatever... what kind of best friend would I be if I left you in this world to suffer with me?"
His expression softens.
"Don't worry. I know you were just trying to get my attention all this while, so don't be sad."
He smiles.
"Because I know you more than you know yourself."
He pauses.
"And no need to say sorry. We have a strong bond. I can hear your thoughts, so it's all good."
He taps Sakura to see if he's awake.
He isn't.
A notification appears in front of him.
^ NOTICE ^
{You are the first human to make a kill. You have acquired the skill: Born Assassin.}
{You acquired the skill: Jack of All Traits.}
{You have acquired the skill: Perception.}
{Your first skill will come easy. No level-up required. Would you like to choose a skill?}
Akira stands up.
Tears roll down his face.
"Maybe in another universe, we would be better friends to each other."
^ NOTICE ^
{Would you like to select the skill: Soul Collector?}
{It allows you to bring back a person after collecting one million souls.}
{Would you like to put the individual up for rebirth in the Sloth?}
Akira's eyes widen.
"So this means I can bring Sakura back?"
He smiles happily.
"Yes! Yes! Activate skill!"
......
^ NOTICE ^
{Skill activated.}
To be continued...