Ch 69 - New Acquaintances, Old Faces Pt. 6

"Dinner?" Shiro blinked twice.

"Yup! Don't worry, though. I know this one sushi restaurant. We can eat there and have a good time talking with nothing but silence around us."

"Oh really? Where?"

"It's around Minato City."

'I wonder if it's the sushi restaurant me and the boys went to…'

~~Misogynistic Hololiver~~

"Shiro-niichan, what's wrong?"

Shiina saw Shiro gazing everywhere. "You know, this is the same restaurant me and the Holostars went to yesterday."

"Eh? Really? Man, I wanted to surprise you!"

"Well, you surprised me with this, I'll give you that. But don't worry. I'm fine with this as well." Shiro said as he took off his mask.

Shiina widened her eyes and smiled.

"Wow! You just took it off like you didn't even care about it!"

"Well...I'm trying to slowly get used to going out without a mask. Though, I did say on stream that I have a scar on my mouth, so until this fades away, I'm gonna continue using a mask."

"Well...that's on you, Shiro-niichan." She blankly stared. "Anyway, I'mma go order. Make yourself comfortable!"

She stood up and walked towards the counter. After she came back, they chatted for a long while until their sushi finally came. Shiina picked up the tray and came back with it.

"I know you eat a lot, so consider this my treat to give you twice the normal amount." She smiled.

"Ooh, thanks. I'll repay you someday. Welp, let's get to praying."

They both put their hands together and said, "Thank you for the food!". On the first bite, Shiina let out a sound of bliss as she chewed on the sushi. "Man, it's been a while since I've eaten sushi! I love Otoro!"

"Well, I'm fine with Chuutoro, but I do like Akami more."

"Akami? You don't like fat?"

"It's tasty, don't get me wrong, but I prefer more meat...You do know Otoro has a lot of calories due to its fat, right?"

"Yeah…" Shiina pouted. "Is it wrong for me to eat a lot?"

"I didn't say that. Besides, I think you're really proportionate. You're not too thin, nor too fat. You got a good figure, you know? A lot of men would like you." Shiro kept eating his sushi.

Shiina blushed and looked away. "A-Ah, really? So you've been staring, Shiro-niichan, huh? Pervert.~" She said, holding her face.

"H-Huh? It's not like that. It's an observation." Shiro sweat dropped.

"Well, if you say it like that, does that mean you also like body types like mine?"

Shiro looked at her arms and her body, thinking back to Subaru and comparing it with hers. This resulted in him blushing slightly and looking away. "Yeah, you could say that."

Shiina blushed more and let out a little shriek. "E-Eh? Shiro-niichan, you sound a bit too honest tonight. I-I guess I do have a chance, after all…"

"C-Chance? Shiina, you're my sister, you know I can't do that." Shiro sweat dropped again.

"More specifically, I'm your stepsister, you know? I think it's fine."

"True, but we're half blood-related." Shiro chopped her head across the table with his left hand. "Calm your ass down."

"Ow!" She let go of her chopsticks and held her head. "...Shiro-niichan, you're mean."

"I'm just keeping you in check." Shiro blankly stared.

"I guess...Well, speaking of keeping someone in check, how did you feel during that incident?"

"The mall? What type of 'feel' do you mean? You mean angry, sad, or do you mean what my thoughts were during that time?"

"You can talk about both."

"Well...I guess you could say I was sorta excited. I don't support war at all, but beating bad guys up is something I've always found enjoyment in. Sounds sadistic, I know, but fighting is kinda fun when you have to do some tactical maneuvers and shiz. Though, after the whole fiesta, some past memories came back."

"Past memories?"

"Let's just leave it at that."

"Oh, I didn't mean to sound like I was being nosy about it." Shiina giggled nervously.

"Never thought you were. Don't worry."

"Well, the situation regarding Japan and Russia is sorta heavy, I won't lie. If it ever comes down to it, will you go back to doing military duty?"

"If it's necessary, yes. I mean, I'm not the one who decides if I'll get called back. It's the authorities who do."

"Then...if you get called back, would you do it for your loved ones, or would you do it because you want to kill the enemy?"

Shiro paused slightly midway as he tried to take another bite. Shiina's question surprised him as he didn't expect her to hit with such a thought-provoking question.

"What?"

"I mean, some soldiers became soldiers to serve and protect their country, right? Some also do it because...you know…'that'? I know you're not that type of person, Shiro-niichan. You're very kind. You're strict with boundaries, very blunt, and can get angry if somebody is acting rude, but you're willing to do anything for your loved ones. But if you have to go back…"

Shiro put down the sushi on his plate. 'She's not wrong, though. Back before, I wanted to become a soldier because I idolized them a lot, and wanted to be a "hero". Well, reality struck me like lightning, but I still went on because I wanted to serve my country. When Adrik and the others came though, all I was just focused on was to finally kill him…'

'If ever, even if the chances are as slim as it can get, that Adrik wasn't actually dead, would I do it for my country and loved ones this time, or will I go back to letting bloodlust take over again?'

Shiro really didn't like war. Sure, he has experienced gunfights and such, killed terrorists and criminals and thoroughly enjoyed it, and he even admitted he gets excited over things like that, but it's different when it comes to war.

Not everybody goes to war because they want to kill the opposition. As far as they were concerned, they only did what they were told to do. Shiro wasn't any different. Back when he had to be deployed to Russia, to Iraq, to the Philippines, and wherever his missions would lead to, he did it because it was his duty. But somewhere in his heart, Shiro knew that a certain feeling would rise up everytime he would think of grabbing a knife and cutting someone's throat, or when he would aim for the head and take his shot, and it was not a humane one.

"Well, you don't have to answer it. I just...you know, I think the soldiers roaming around the city are sorta scaring me, if you get what I mean." Shiina looked away.

"Well, the Prime Minister did it because I think he wanted to take precaution, but the only thing we can do right now is just to sit back and observe. It's not like we can do anything else, and as far as I'm concerned, no war is going on."

"Yeah...you're right. Nothing good comes out from worrying about something outside of our control."

"Anyway, you should continue eating. You don't want that sushi going to waste, right?"

"Yup! Well, I guess that's enough talking about politics and stuff. Let's talk about something else to lighten up the mood!"

~~Misogynistic Hololiver~~

Shiro and Shiina were done eating, and decided to walk around the park where they met up earlier. Just to get some exercise and because Shiina wanted to chat more with him.

"I don't know if Yagoo told you this, or maybe I already told you, but Irys and I tried applying for Hololive."

"Really? What's your possible position or role?"

"Honestly, we don't know. The only thing that matters to us is that we'll get accepted."

Shiro smiled and patted her head, "I hope you two get in Hololive."

Shiina blushed a bit and smiled, "Jeez, you don't have to give headpats all the time."

"But you're my little sister. I gotta pamper ya, right?"

"Well...I do love it, after all." Shiina whispered to herself.

"Say, who's your oshi in Hololive? I don't know if they also asked you the same thing, but when I applied, I wasn't just dragged in like it was nepotism or some shit just because Old Man knew me. I had to be interviewed and go through the procedure, and one of the questions was who my oshi was. Do you like Suisei, or something?"

"Well...if I had to be honest, Shiro-niichan. It's you."

"Eh?"

"In actuality, though, my oshi is Sui-chan, so you're right on that. However, you're a special one! You're like an 'idol' type of oshi, if you get what I mean."

"Unfortunately...I don't get what you mean." Shiro sweat dropped.

"Well, I guess it does sound kinda confusing." Shiina sweated a bit.

"I mean, in Japan, 'idol' and 'oshi' are sorta used interchangeably. Not to mention, what do you mean I'm a special type of 'idol'? Like...I don't fit the standards of a Japanese idol, and act more like an artist?"

"Yup! That's what I mean!"

"Hmm...truth be told, Shiina, it's only been more than a month since I've debuted, but I don't think people actually see me as their oshi. Sure, they can see me as an idol, but I'm not 'their' idol. I'm just a guy who shines like one and is the best at doing what I do: rapping."

"I do."

Shiro looked her in the eyes, and she gave him her serious look like before. "You may not see it right now, but soon enough, there are going to be Vtubers who will see you as their oshi. Heck, I think some actually think of you as one."

"Really? I feel like...that ain't really the case."

"Even if it was, you don't really conform to Japan's standards. Your fanbase doesn't have a lot of gachikois, from what I know. You're very strict with the line regarding parasocial relationships, and you just...do you. Get on the mic, and start rapping. You're just an 'idol', to put it simply."

"Hmm...I sorta get what you mean, at the same time, I still don't." Shiro scratched his head. "Well, it's not like I care about it, though. What I care about is to just be recognized as one of the greatest V-rappers."

"Well, I guess you should focus on that instead, Shiro-niichan!" She said, clinging to his arm. "You don't need to worry about that too much."

Shiro chuckled. "I guess so." He patted her head as they kept walking around the park.

~April 13, 2021 1:58 PM~

"Yo, is the stream ready?" Shiro asked through Discord.

"Yup! It's up and running! You ready for it?" Roberu asked.

"Locked and loaded." Shiro chuckled.

"Alright...in a few minutes, we're gonna be live! Let's go!" Roberu shouted.

~~Misogynistic Hololiver~~

Shiro heaved a sigh of relief after the stream and stood up while stretching.

"Man, that was a nice zatsudan (chat stream)! I've left my mark on Bar Robel, so I've more or less solidified my place in the Holostars field!" Shiro plopped down on his bed on his back.

Looking up on the ceiling, his mind wandered off. 'You know, now that I think about it, it was as if that incident never happened, since everybody's slowly going back to normal. That's good.'

Although the issue between Russia and Japan was still ongoing, with the news updating everybody around the clock, the citizens quickly adapted to the whole situation, and treated it like it's a normal Tuesday. At least, majority of them.

"I guess...I'll just do some freestyle rap practice." Shiro said, instantly standing up.

"Alright, what beat should I rap over for this?"

~~Rewind to April 11, 2021~~

Ryo, Ryuu, Sakura, and Kichi went back to the barracks in Camp Narashino in Funabashi, Chiba. They looked for the door that had the name plate of the officer they were to report to. That officer was General Kurome.

"Hey, General Kurome. We're back from the mall and brought home some groceries." Ryo said.

"Oh? Great, you got there in time. What's the update?" Kurome looked at them.

"Well, first things first, civilians were there, but they were at the most upper floor, which was the third. They weren't harmed, fortunately."

"Oh? That's good...at least nobody got hurt. Why exactly were they not harmed though?"

"That's what I was gonna say. It's connected to the second thing I wanted to report, which was...erm…" Ryo looked at the three and they were sweating just as much as he did. "Well…"

"C'mon, spill the beans, Ryo. I need to know everything."

"...You see, the reason why the civilians weren't hurt or targeted was because they intended to hurt one person only. That person was Shiro."

Kurome's eyes switched from a normal stare to a stare that befitted a void, emanating an aura of wrath that could make anyone tremble. Her bloodlust could be smelled through the air.

"Oh...Did those terrorists die, at least?"

"Y-Yeah. Shiro and us have taken care of the threat, and they're currently being' taken care of by the police."

"Well, they better be. I can't believe they would stoop that low to target a soldier's child. Then again, it's Adrik, so he'd do anything for his goals, even finding Shiro." Kurome sighed and relaxed a bit. Though, there was still a bit of tone lingering in her voice.

"He wasn't hurt or anything, right?"

"He's literally the grim reaper. I mean, he just escaped that tight situation when we gave him an opening, and he killed quite a lot of them from just one guy's gun." Sakura giggled.

Kurome smiled, "I'm glad to know my son didn't get a single wound. I trained him well enough that he can even defend himself despite getting rusty."

She took off her glasses and stretched, "Well, I'm assuming that's all?"

"That's about it, really. At least, the important points." Ryo said.

"Well, I gotta report this to the Chief of Ground Staff now. If Adrik decided to do something like this, we need more men and more weapons in our arsenal. Who knows whatever they got up their sleeve?"

"Yeah...Honestly speakin', this fuckfest we call 'tensions' between Russia and Japan is quite a hassle. In my perspective, it looks like a distraction from what Adrik's really planning."

"Oh? You were thinking the same thing, huh?" Ryuu replied.

"Eh? You thought about it too?"

"Well, here's what I think. I think Adrik's going on the offense, and did that to find out Shiro's location. I know, it's a very absurd idea, since the only way that could've happened is if Adrik's men were spread throughout the country like putting butter on toast. But think about it, why else would they be targeting Shiro only? If that was the case, they would've just split into two, with one taking care of Shiro and the other taking care of the other civilians. It's odd, you know?" Ryuu said.

"Hmm...you're not wrong on that." Ryo said.

"He was solely targeted, huh? That means...he was targeted for a reason, and not just on a whim or plain stupidity, or even just a rookie mistake of not following SOPs...Alright, I think I know what to do next." Kurome said after nodding to herself for approval.

"I think I got an idea. Hide will be taking care of finding out the culprits' faces. I assume they're on TV?"

"Not that I know of. Hey, Sakura! Turn the TV on, please!" Ryo said.

"Yeah, yeah." Sakura got the TV's remote.

It showed exactly what Kurome wanted to know. Since a couple minutes have passed since the incident, the reporting was still quite fresh. "So they are on TV. This is going to plan already."

"You all can go home. I'll call you back if I ever need help. Right now, Hide is the crux of this part of the operation."

"Sweet! Well then, guess we can relax, boys! Will any one of you be treating a beautiful maiden to some canned coffee?~" Sakura said.

"Who the hell is that? It surely isn't you." Kichi blankly stared.

"Don't worry, Kichi. She didn't eat lunch yet, so it'd make sense for her to have delusions." Ryo patted his shoulder.

"Hey! I'll let you know I am, in fact, beautiful!"

"Oh, not only skipping lunch, but she's also malnourished. Good thing she isn't fat though!" Ryuu added.

"I'M MEATY, YOU DUMBASS!" Sakura shouted as she punched him in the head.

"OW!"

Ryo and Kichi laughed as Sakura kept throwing her tantrums against Ryuu.

"Well, since they're out of my office, I can call Hide now." Kurome said as she got her work phone and dialed her number.

"...Hide? Yeah, sorry to call you around this time, but this is quite important...Of course it's related to Adrik...Okay, so about the details, I want you to search up the identities of the Russians that were killed in the mall that's currently on the news...Oh, you happened to watch it too? That'll make this convenient. Please report back ASAP. Thanks." Kurome hung up the call.

"Now, we just need to get ahead of Adrik. Whatever he's planning, this is a good chance to get closer to finding out everything he's planning, and strike when the iron's hot."

~~Misogynistic Hololiver~~

"Boss, we found him!"

"Oh? What the hell was that?" The man pressed the button on his two-way radio. "Found who?"

"That white-haired guy you told us to look for! Erm...I think his name was Shigo, or something!"

"...Ah, Ishijin Shiro, codename: White Bird? Where?"

"In Tokyo, boss!"

"Dispatch immediately. Only your squad. Leave the others out of it."

"Got it, boss!"

"Ishijin Shiro, huh? Can't believe that brat is still alive. Well, I can't go too fast. At least I confirmed he's around Tokyo as of now, and that he's still alive." He smirked.

'Shiro...I can't wait to see the look on his face when he goes, "Adrik? You survived?!"'

He switched the signal to the other squads he ordered in Japan. "We found him. Fall back now. Lay low. We can't risk getting caught."

'Since the squad also happened to be huge undercover businessmen in Russia, once they find out their identities, that could lead to tensions between Japan and Russia, and while they're busy with that, I can just wait out and watch the chaos unfold as I buy more time for the missiles. How fortunate that my plan is all coming together!''

"I should also pull my own weight and get back to work." He chuckled and smirked.

~~Back to Present Time~~

"Here's what I have found, General Kurome." Hide yawned and gave a folder to her.

Kurome widened her eyes at what Hide listed as the Russians' main objective. "S-Shiro was their goal all along?"

"Yup. I was working my ass off to find out some information of what they could possibly be working on, but after doing some deduction, that was where everything led to."

Kurome glared at the paper slightly before looking back at Hide. "Mind explaining details?"

"Well, as you can see on the front page, the Russians were identified to be some bigwigs from their respective companies, except for one who was a direct subordinate of one of them. Anyway, I was able to find, although only one piece of evidence, that they worked under Adrik. Ryuu was kind enough to give me one of their walkie talkies."

"The most important point is that they're affiliated with him. What else do I need details on?"

"Well, the paper just talked about information regarding their position, and their connection with Adrik. I wasn't able to get much since it's quite hard to trace whatever they did prior to the incident. What I do know is that, even though I have no idea what the reason behind Shiro being targeted was, he was the main objective. What's more is that this was planned a couple days before that happened."

"What? It was premeditated?"

"Yeah. Like, it sounds really absurd, but when I tried to look into the logs of recent flights, most of the seats that were booked were from Russians, which I also found to be affiliated with Adrik. They went home right after the incident, which was very good timing, seeing as the military is all around Japan right now. That meant that they all did what they had to do. It was quite a hassle to find that, I gotta tell you, and I hope the PSIA didn't mind it."

"Well, I know you're thorough, so most likely, you were off the radar. Thank you, Hide, but I think you're gonna have to go back to work for this again right now." Kurome giggled nervously.

"Don't fret about it. This is our job, after all." She smiled and laughed a bit.

"I want you, Suzuki, Saburo, and Yoshito to go into reconnaissance once more and get intel on Adrik. This time, I want to know further details regarding his agenda, if any, who else and what countries exactly he's targeting, and what is his main goal or his desired result after all this."

"Got it, General Kurome! Should I tell them?"

"You can dress up. I'll contact them instead."

"Yay! I get to laugh in the face of death once more!" She joked as she went out the door and hummed to herself.

Kurome kept silent for a while before scanning the paper once more.

"If there is one thing you're not allowed to do…" Her eyes went back to that pitch-black void of wrath. "...it's that you cannot just simply fuck with this country, and especially my son. I will keep his peaceful life going while you all suffer in torment."

'Mark my words. You will wish you were dead that day, Adrik.'