10 going home

"If you pull the trigger, I will die," Nishi stated, staring straight into Kei's eyes. 

Kei wasn't strong enough to kill a human being... yet. So he positioned his gun towards Nishi's arm. "T-then how about this? You'll lose an arm," 

"I still have a lot of questions I want to ask you," Kei stated. 

"I thought so," Nishi smirked. 

"Earlier, you said we were alive. But I clearly remember dying. Also, when we were outside, people passed by us like nothing happened. It's like we're invisible to them." 

"And?" Nishi prompted, urging Kei to get to the point. 

"So... what's going on? Are we really alive or not?" 

Kato and Kishimoto perked their ears up, their curiosity piqued. Kato, with things to live for and a little brother waiting back home for him, didn't want to die yet. Kishimoto, who had committed suicide because of family problems, now felt like it wasn't worth it to die anymore. She glanced at me before bringing her attention back to Nishi and Kei. 

"...we're alive," Nishi gritted his teeth, his uncertainty evident even to himself. 

"Wait, are you telling the truth this time?" Kei caught on and questioned Nishi. 

"You are saved right before you die and brought here. That's what you'd think, right?" 

"But that's not the case," Nishi crazily looked at Kei. 

"My guess is that our bodies, the original ones, died." 

"What?" Kei's voice reflected his shock. 

"Huh?" Kishimoto in disbelief . 

Nishi couldn't help but revel in their reactions. 

"You don't look surprised," Nishi remarked, turning his attention to me, who had been standing quietly at the back. Throughout the conversation, I maintained a neutral expression. 

"You haven't said anything since we started. Usually people would be more lively," Nishi remarked, suspicion evident in his tone. Togawa had already killed two people without showing any emotion from the beginning. 

"I've already accepted that I died, and you're just clarifying that point," I explained casually 

"Hey, I am not done with you yet. What do you mean our original body died? Then what are we?" Kei confronted Nishi, his tone demanding answers. 

"Your copies," Nishi replied, producing a controller that controlled the Gantz. 

"Copies?" 

"Yes. The people that come here... are documents sent like a fax," Nishi explained, slowly starting to disappear as he activated the suit's ability to turn invisible. 

"He's gone!" Kato, who was closest to Nishi, shouted, startled by his sudden disappearance. Nishi had just turned invisible with the Gantz suit, but the group doesn't know this. 

"Now i will kill one of you," Nishi threatened. Kato and Kei started scanning around the room in worry. 

"Hahaha, you all got freaked out. Also, when you go home, don't bother telling anyone about this." 

"Your heads will explode," Nishi playfully warned them. 

His steps became more distanced. 

"Is he gone?" 

Kei and Kato walked towards the front door and saw that it was open. 

"We can finally go home," Kato said happily. You could only get out of the room once you completed the mission. 

I didn't follow them and headed towards a different door. "If I'm right, this should be where the Gantz swords and bike are." 

When Gantz opened itself, it unlocked a side room with two vehicles and a pile of swords. None of the current Tokyo Gantz team members knew of this until Dinosaur mission. Izumi was the third person I didn't like, a crazy person with an inferiority complex. The true battle maniac was all I could describe him as. 

I opened the door and saw bladeless sword hilts scattered on the ground. The Gantz blades weren't the strongest weapons, but they were the most useful for me. They had retractable blades that could reach 30 feet in the blink of an eye. They were also extremely durable and sharp, and if combined with the power of the Gantz suits, they had the potential to cut through buildings. 

I picked up a sword. "So, this is Izumi's main weapon." 

"It's light," I said as I tested out the blade and swung it a few times before leaving the room to catch up with the group. The sword had the ability to go invisible along with the suits and wasn't as destructive. I still remember the epic scene where Izumi fought off numerous vampires and vampire leaders and managed to win but would die of blood loss minutes later. 

It was the only time I respected Izumi as he had taken the last hit to protect someone. It was only on his deathbed that he started caring about other people. 

"This will be a weapon for self-protection," I thought as I gripped the sword tightly. 

— 

"Where were you?" Kishimoto asked. 

"Went to put on my clothes," i replied. He wore his clothes over the Gantz suit. 

"Ah, it's locked!" Kato said, noticing the closed door after i had left the room. 

"Whatever, at least we could go home now," Kei said, expressing relief. 

—- 

"Hey, stop!" the group screamed at the passing taxi. 

"They still can't see us?" Kei wondered, but then the taxi stopped. "Whew, I was scared for a moment." 

"Well, we do look pretty weird," Kato responded. 

Kato, Kei, and Kishimoto ran towards the taxi and got in. 

"You're not coming?" Kato noticed that I stayed outside. 

"No, I'm homeless right now," I admitted, feeling a pang of shame. 

The group looked shocked. 

"And my school is close by, so I'll just find a bench to sleep on tonight." 

"Do you need any help? I could—" Kishimoto looked worried but was determined to pay me back. 

"No, it's okay. I don't want to trouble you." 

"But—" 

"I've already made plans to get off the streets. Thank you for the offer." 

"If... you say so," Kishimoto reluctantly gave in. 

"Um… will we meet again?" Kishimoto's voice was barely audible. 

I thought about the next missions Gantz would give out. If nothing happens, I don't see why we wouldn't be able to see each other again. 

"Definitely," I said, and Kishimoto smiled happily at the answer. 

"Can we go already?" Kei had enough. He felt the two were in their own world.