Chapter 63 - The Visitor

Gin quickly turns around to the direction of the front door and quickly dashes towards it. Before he can leave the house through it, *thunk* he bumps into something hard.

To his horror, he sees in front of him, the same man who was standing on top of the tree just two or three seconds ago.

Before he can even have the chance to be stunned at the speed of the man, "Hello, little kitty.", he is already scooped up by his abdomen by the man, and is cradled like a pet without resistance.

No matter how much he struggles, he cannot get out of the man's embrace.

He notices however that the hold on him is not too tight, and does not hurt as long as he does not struggle. So, he stops struggling and can only be let himself carried by the man to backyard.

"You two, take a break. We have a guest." Red orders Kotone and Fumio.

"Welcome back." The two greet Red.

"Oh? You got yourself a pet? Cute!" Kotone almost squeals looking at the cute cat in Red's arms.

"Can I pet it?" She asks.

"Nope. He's feisty." Red refuses.

"…" Fumio meanwhile is taken aback, seeing a sign of intelligence in the cat's eyes.

He also notices that the cat is made not out of fur and flesh, despite how well the material it is made of makes it appear so.

'A superioris…' He furrows his brows in suspicion.

"Let's go in. Who'll make the tea?" Red leads the way in.

"I will!" Kotone volunteers.

A few minutes later, three humans and a cat are at the dining table.

While Kotone is pouring tea, she pauses.

"Kichirou-san. Tea for the cat? Really?" She asks, noticing the extra cup on the table.

"Uhuh…" Red simply nods, still embracing the cat in his arms, while caressing its prickly wooden fur.

"…" Fumio on the other hand, has all but confirmed his suspicions that the cat is a superioris.

His apprehension towards it earlier has changed to pity. He can see the discomfort in the eyes of the cat. He even saw it give him or Kotone a few pleading looks, as if asking to be rescued.

"So, boss. How long will you keep this act up?" Fumio can no longer take the looks the cat is giving him.

"Hm? What act?" Kotone asks as she sits down beside Red, and across Fumio.

"Have some tea." Red then tosses the cat to the sitting pillow across the dining table, and the cat lands on the sitting pillow beside Fumio. 

Kotone is about to make a weird face, when suddenly, the cat slowly morphs into a slightly good-looking man who looks to be in his mid-30s, wearing a set of plain black pajamas.

This stuns Kotone and Fumio. Even though Fumio already knew, he still cannot believe that the small cat is this man beside him.

"Well, hello there. Nice to meet you." Red is the first one to speak to the stranger.

"Likewise…" Gin tries to hide the nervousness he is feeling.

"Good lord. You reek." Fumio's nose twitches catching a whiff of the man's sour odor.

Since he started to strengthen his body with the help of spiritual energy, his senses have also improved. So, Gin's body odor, despite not smelling that bad to more ordinary people, is potent to Fumio.

"Yeah. Sorry. I only got to shower once every three days." Gin apologizes.

"Who are you, mister?" Kotone is feeling a bit betrayed that the cute cat she wanted to pet, is not a real cat, but a grown man at least ten years her senior.

"My name's Souta." Gin makes up a name on the spot.

"So, Souta-san. Why are you trespassing on my property, and spying on my students?" Red asks.

Kotone and Fumio's glare at Gin, making Gin shudder. After all, he has an idea of how formidable the two are.

"I was just looking for old Chouko when I happened to see their training. It was just interesting to watch. I didn't mean to spy." He explains himself.

" 'Old Chouko'?Are you related to her?" Red asks.

"No, sir. She is a friend I made here. When I was passing by earlier and saw the way to here, she crossed my mind. And I haven't seen her in years, so I decided to drop by. She said I was always welcome, and I was hoping that's still the case." Gin aside from his purpose of visit, is honest about his history with the place.

"I see. Well, unfortunately, Chouko-san moved away two years ago to the city to live under her son's care. And she passed away peacefully last year." Red breaks the news to him.

Gin is stunned by the news and he does not know what to say. While it has been 10 years since he last saw Chouko, the old lady still made a great impression to him.

"Well… That's good. She seemed really lonely then. I'm glad to hear she didn't die living by herself." He sighs after recovering.

"So. What are you really doing here? You're not here just to visit." Red asks, already seeing through Gin's ruse.

After all, he has seen the man's face before.

"Wait a minute … I've seen you before…" Kotone looks more closely at Gin's face. 

"Mister. You said you only got to shower once every three days… That means you were in some institution or something. A mental? A prison?" Fumio asks.

"I-I…" Gin, not expecting to be assaulted by three questions doubting the identity he presented, does not know how to answer, or which question to answer first.

"You two, do you remember when we were having lunch in Chofu? We were watching TV then." Red asks his two students, to try to remind them.

"We were." "So?" Kotone and Fumio raise their brows at the unrelated topic.

"We were watching a news channel. Then there was a news report about that serial killer. This guy's the one reporting it from Nikko." Red recounts.

As the two try to remember, "Isn't that right, Morimoto Gin?" Red turns his attention back to Gin.

"Errr… Yes." Gin has no choice but to admit it. After all, the man clearly recognizes him.

"Whoah… You still remember that? That was…  a month ago? I'm not even sure when that was, much more what we've seen on TV during that day." Kotone looks at Red in amazement.

Fumio on the other hand, is less impressed as he attributes the feat to Red's use of spiritual energy. After all, he himself already feels the effects of spiritual energy on his memory and thinking speed. Instead of being impressed, he is instead interested on the connection between Red's question about Gin's real purpose of coming, why Gin is wearing pajamas, and why Gin is only allowed to shower every three days. 

"I'm gonna make it easier for you, Morimoto-san. You were supposed to ask Chouko-san if you can seek refuge here, weren't you?" Red rephrases his question.

Gin does not know why but he feels like he can trust the man.

"Yes." He admits.

"Huh. Never met her, but I doubt she would have taken you in." Kotone scoffs, finding such request to an old woman a bit too much.

"Maybe, maybe not. It's worth a try. After all, she used to make this house some sort of a bed and breakfast for hikers. I thought she still does, and I would have offered my services for free in exchange for food and a space in a closet for me to sleep in." Gin says in defense, feeling that Kotone thinks that he is entitled.

"Well. Too bad. Our rooms are full. And as you can see, we're the types to seclude ourselves, so even sharing our closets is burdensome." Red says.

"We also don't know why you're on a run. We can't involve ourselves." Fumio adds.

"I…" Gin has no words.

He knows that he is technically trespassing, and he is thankful that the three even served him tea, although he has not touched it yet.

But he is desperate.

While escaping the Kumagai Clan offered him a few hours of relief, his mind is still chaotic. He does not know how much influence the Kumagai Clan have on other places, or in Tokyo, but he is starting to become paranoid, cautiously watching over his shoulders at every moment.

Only after reaching Hinohara, and especially Old Chuoko's former property, did he finally find a place that makes him feel safe. And he needs that feeling of safety to finally relax without worry. He desperately needs to refresh his spirit even for just one night.

"Can I just stay for the night?" He can only swallow his pride, and ask straightforwardly to the strangers.

"I just want to sleep somewhere where I don't have to think about people looking for me. This place is walled off, so it's perfect. I can just sleep on the lawn. And I promise, before sunrise, I'll be gone, and won't come back again." He promises to take the bare minimum he figures he can ask strangers, hoping that they'll feel his sincerity.

He then notices that aside from the two men, the young lady is the only one who is showing pity with the way she is looking at him.

The next moment is something that he will remember for a long time. *rumble* His stomach protests and wants to be filled. The three strangers also look at his gut, before looking at each other.

The embarrassed Gin also caresses his stomach.

"B-Boss… I mean… if we're not letting him stay, can I at least give him a few bucks so he can go eat something warm?" Kotone feels bad for Gin's plight.

Before Gin can have the chance to process the gratitude brewing inside him, "No… wait a minute." Fumio shakes his head and interrupts.

"What's your name again, mister?" He asks Gin as he takes out his phone.

Gin looks at him in worry.

"Don't worry. I'm not calling the cops on you." Fumio promises.

With Gin still hesitant, Red answers on his behalf. "Morimoto Gin. Gin is written as 'silver' if I remember it right."

Gin almost panics at this.

Fumio meanwhile, after a few taps, and a few scrolls with his phone. Done checking Gin's background, he passes his phone to Kotone for Kotone to read. 

He then looks at Gin, before looking at Red.

"Boss… I'll offer him my room for the night if he can tell us why a reporter like him, who seems to have a bit of reputation in his field, and has a bit of a niche following in social media, has disappeared for a few weeks, and is now here, seeking refuge." He proposes.

His interest is piqued.

"Oh that's right. I also want to hear about the serial killer." Kotone, looking at the online articles referencing Gin's reports, also gets interested.

"Alright… It's been a boring week. We need some entertainment." Red's interest is already piqued from Fumio's proposal.

"Entertainment…" Gin's face twitches that his experiences in the past few weeks is only considered entertainment by who he suspects is a very powerful superioris.

He swallows his offense however, as the feeling of gratitude overwhelms it.

"Thank you. You have no idea how much I needed this." He says.

"Yeah. Yeah. So? What happened to you?" Fumio is excited.

"Okay. It all started in May 10th. A date I'll never forget. I was walking…" And so Gin starts his tale. 

A few minutes later. 

"… But isn't the captain right, though? Are you really sure that it is that Hideki Hasegawa…" Kotone steals a glance at Fumio before, "…that you saw? It's not possible to have an entirely new ability, especially after his powers were crippled.", concluding her question.

"Yes. I know it's hard to believe. I know you might also think I'm lying, and think that I'm making things up after weeks of frustration of not finding anything, but I stand by it. I know what I saw. I clearly remember the face of the man who almost killed me." Gin insists.

"Hmmm~…" The two's discourse is interrupted by Red's melodic grunting.

"How about you, boss? Do you believe him?" Kotone asks.

"Well, I believe him. Or at least I can see that he genuinely has told us what he thinks he has seen and experienced." Red shrugs.

"However, I'm not sure if what you, Morimoto-san, really seen and felt the things you claim, lik how they really happened." He then addresses Gin.

"A-at least you think I'm not lying." Gin is relieved. 

"Well. This is indeed interesting. You can have my bed tonight, Gin-san." Fumio then stands up.

"If you would all excuse me, I have to continue my training." And fixes his training gi.

Kotone, hearing a slight break in Fumio's voice, gets worried.

"Hey, don't train alone. Let me come with you." Kotone also stands up.

"It's fine. I'll train alone." Fumio says almost dismissively before leaving the house.

"Boss." Kotone then looks at Red.

"Let him. He needs it." Red simply shrugs.

"Okay…" Kotone can only give up.

"Wow… That kid must really hate serial killers huh?" Gin noticed the strange reaction of Fumio, but does not know what caused it.

He can only guess.