9 nishi

Gantz is advanced technology given to humans by mysterious aliens known as the God Aliens. We don't know much about them, except that they're powerful and have cool weapons. They sent a secret message to a rich German guy's daughter, giving her the blueprint for making Gantz stuff. So, the rich guy made a bunch of Gantz gear and spread it around the world. 

The reason behind this alien gift became clear when rumors started flying about another group of aliens, the Giant Aliens, who were planning to invade Earth. These Giant Aliens are super strong and love conquering other planets. They've destroyed a lot of civilizations. But, some aliens managed to escape to Earth to get away from them. 

Some rich and powerful folks got hold of Gantz and turned it into a messed-up game. They pick random people who've died and force them to use Gantz to hunt down the aliens hiding on Earth. It's like a twisted form of entertainment for them, but for us, it's a fight for survival against some seriously scary foes. 

I felt a heavy weight settle on my shoulders as I processed the grim reality of the situation. Half of the Gantz program seemed geared towards training for an invasion, while the other half served as sick entertainment for the wealthy elite. It disgusted me to think that lives were being toyed with for the amusement of the privileged few. 

And now, to add to my troubles, I had a new enemy to worry about: the Vampires. They had struck an alliance with the aliens and dubbed us Gantz players as "hunters." These weren't your typical vampires from folklore; they were highly skilled adversaries who had studied and developed counters against our Gantz suits. Underestimating them was a fatal mistake, as many skilled players had tragically discovered. 

"As long as they don't find out my identity, then I'll be fine," I muttered to myself, clinging to the hope that anonymity would be my shield against the Vampires. After all, Gantz chose its players at random, keeping our identities hidden from our enemies. 

My knowledge of the Vampires was limited, gained from the scattered details I'd picked up from the manga. I had no idea of the extent of their society or the location of their base. And frankly, I preferred it that way because i would rather not mess with them. Vampires were not to be trifled with; their sadistic nature matched their strength. 

"These vampires are troublesome," I grumbled inwardly. Their unpredictability meant they wouldn't just come after me but could target my loved ones too. The mere thought of it sent a shiver down my spine. 

As I contemplated my uncertain future, a sudden jolt rocked my stomach. Instantly, I found myself back in the room, my gaze falling upon Kishimoto, her eyes brimming with tears. 

"Calm down," I reassured her, reaching out to gently ruffle her deep red hair. "I told you I would be alright." 

She took a step back, her expression subdued. I felt a twinge of gratitude that she cared enough to worry about me. Unlike some of the others, I felt like I could trust Kishi- 

"Kato! You're alive!" I exclaimed as my eyes landed on Kato among the survivors. 

"Uh… yes," he replied, his surprise evident. 

"Damn it! How many people survived this time?" Nishi grumbled. "You're lucky, Kato. Any second later and you would've been eliminated." 

"What do you mean? I was sure I was going to die. And my wounds, they're all gone," Kato exclaimed, disbelief coloring his voice as he examined his body. 

"When you complete a mission, no matter how messed up your body is, and as long as you're still alive, Gantz will transport you back looking brand new," Nishi explained. 

Surprise registered on the faces of everyone in the room except me and the nameless dog who survived. Having known all the functions of Gantz from my previous life, this revelation didn't faze me. 

"Good, everyone who is meant to survive in the canon is alive," I thought, feeling a little relieved as I glanced at Kei, Kato, Kishimoto, Nishi, and the dog. 

Suddenly, a song rang out from Gantz. 

"Gantz is going to start handing out the points," Nishi informed the group. 

"Huh? Gantz?" Kei questioned. 

"The ball," Nishi clarified. 

"That's the ball's name? Did you name it that?" Kei asked. 

"No, it's always been called that," Nishi replied. 

"By..." Kei started, but Nishi interrupted. 

"I don't know... someone else," he admitted. 

The dog walked up in front of Gantz and sat down. 

"0 points, no skills, too much tail wagging," Gantz's assessment made the dog walk away a little dejected. 

Gantz moved to the next person, Titz. 

"That's me!?" Kishimoto yelled. 

Too much titty, too much wandering without panties. 

"Hahaha..." Kei's laughter echoed through the room as he read the assessment out loud. 

"What the heck?! And I got zero points…" Kishimoto's voice carried a mix of embarrassment and frustration as she expressed her disbelief. Her scrunched-up face only made her look cuter, but I refrained from commenting aloud. 

"Not that I care, but it kinda pisses me off," Kishimoto huffed, her irritation evident. 

Gantz moved on to the next person. 

Kato-Cha, godam Kato-Cha (lol), why are you always dying?. 0 points 

Gantz attempted to make a joke, but it fell flat, no laughter from anyone in the room. 

With the failed attempt at humor quickly forgotten, Gantz proceeded to display the stats of the next person. 

Ntr'ed 

"Not bad for a newbie. 3 points," Gantz announced, displaying the stats of the next person. 

The group turned their attention to me. 

"Ntr'd? What does that mean?" Kishimoto's innocent question caught me off guard, and I felt a cold sweat forming. How could Gantz know something like that? 

"No clue," I replied, trying to mask my internal panic. 

In the corner of my eye, I caught Kei giving me a complicated look, almost as if he pitied me. A tick mark formed on my head in frustration. 

The next set of stats appeared on the screen. 

"Mr. Nishi, total points 90. Do better next time. 0 points," Gantz announced. 

Nishi clicked his tongue in irritation 

The last set of stats appeared on the screen, leaving us all curious about who would be next in line. 

"Kei. Too many boners from staring at titz. Zero points," Gantz declared. 

"Huh!?" Kei's embarrassment was palpable as he realized he'd been called out. 

Nishi couldn't contain his laughter, while Kei struggled to explain himself to Kishimoto, who moved away from him with a wary expression. 

As the Gantz screen returned to normal, Kato spoke up, breaking the tension. "Is it over?" 

Nishi turned around and began to walk away. "Where are you going?" Kei called after him. 

"The doors are open now. I'm going home," Nishi replied curtly. 

"Wait a minute, I have a lot of questions," Kei persisted. 

"Yeah, you seem to know a lot," Kato added. 

"Okay, as long as it's something I know," Nishi agreed. 

"Don't lie to us," Kei warned, his tone serious. 

".....we'll see," Nishi smirked and leaned against the door frame. 

Kei began with a vague question, earning an annoyed look from Nishi. "Like… what is happening to us? Why are we doing this?" 

"Dunno… beats the shit out of me," Nishi replied, deliberately keeping his knowledge to himself. 

He then explained that he only knew some specifics and that their question was too abstract. "We'll need to ask him a more detailed question," Kato suggested to Kei. 

"Who should start?" Kato asked the group. 

"I'll go," Kei raised his hand and pointed it at Nishi. "Who are you and why do you know so much?" 

"Me..?" Nishi grinned. "I am… an alien." 

The group was shocked by the revelation. "Huh?!" 

"An alien...?" 

"You're kidding." 

"Hahaha, yep. I'm kidding." 

"You little punk!" Kei raised his fist. 

 "I'm a normal middle schooler, but... I've been coming here for an entire year," Nishi said with a serious face. 

"What... do you mean?" 

"It'll keep repeating itself over and over again just like tonight," Nishi went on a crazy rant about all the deaths he witnessed and survived to the end. The group looked appalled by his actions. 

Nishi walked up to Gantz and twisted his finger in the ear of the man inside the Gantz ball. Pictures of all the dead players showed up. 

"Why didn't you tell them?" Kato's face contorted with rage. "If you had said this in the beginning, more of us would survive. Why did you lie and say nothing?" 

I watched from the sidelines as things started getting heated between the second protagonist and Nishi. 

Nishi started sweating from the confrontation but didn't back down against Kato. 

"When players die, the alien starts to let its guard down," Nishi started to talk down on the people who died, showing that he didn't care for the lives of others. 

Kato lifted him by the collar. "Look at the tears in your eyes, what a damn loser, c'mon you're older than me," Nishi provoked. 

"Kato, just do it, hit him!" 

"Yeah!" 

Kei and Kishimoto encouraged Kato. 

"You pathetic fools, you don't understand a thing," Nishi asserted, utilizing the power of the suit to grip Kato's arm. Kato groaned in pain. 

"I'm the strongest person here out of all of us," Nishi boasted. 

Kei aimed the x-gun at Nishi's head. "Let go of his arm." 

Nishi started sweating again. 

I remained silent, observing the tense situation unfold. 'Wow, this is refreshing. It's like I'm watching anime, but in real life,' I thought.