Chapter 107 Heading to Yokohama.
Ouma Shokichi probably doesn't know Ayatsuji Yukito... right?
Tsukino and Chiya were puzzled. Because he originally... and still believes that way now.
On that day, the day after everyone had just finished dealing with the incident at the old school building, that is, the morning of the day when no one expected that everything related to the supernatural would come to such an abrupt end.
Tsukino and Chiya recalled their conversation with Hinata Hajime from that time.
After exchanging information about Aurora and Junko Enoshima, they briefly discussed their future plans. Then, after finishing their immediate business, Hinata Hajime, returning to a casual, friendly chat, casually uttered something extraordinary—
"Actually... I've seen you in my memories from the future."
Upon hearing this, Tsukino and Chiya's first reaction wasn't to follow up with Hinata Hajime asking about the details of their future encounter, but rather...
"Then...did you not see the person 'Ouma Kokichi' in the memories you gained yesterday?"
After asking that question, Tsukino and Chiya felt the air seem to freeze for a moment, and a suffocating and heavy silence seemed to be slowly spreading between them.
But this might just be a kind of illusion that only Tsukino and Chiya could vaguely perceive because they were too concerned about the answer to the question.
On the other hand, Hinata Hajime remained unfazed after hearing Tsukino and Chiya's question, as if he had already anticipated it... Of course, for Hinata Hajime now, it's probably hard for anything to surprise him.
Hyuga Hajime did not answer, but Tsukino and Chiya could see him slowly nod, which was a confirmation of their guess.
Tsukino and Chiya whispered, "As expected..."
After receiving a positive response from Hyuga Hajime, Tsukino and Chiya found themselves much calmer than they had imagined.
After all, that absurd conjecture had appeared in his mind one day, gradually taking root, sprouting, and growing freely. And given Tsukino and Chiya's habits, they would never allow themselves to ignore their own conjecture.
Even if it's incredibly strange.
That's right, because—
Tsukino and Chiya suspect that Ouma Kokichi does not belong "here".
Tsukino and Chiya initially suspected that Ohma Kokichi was a pitiful person with a similar fate to the Black Goat from a certain calamity world. Perhaps, like that Black Goat, he had lived a life of isolation from the world in some sense, which is why he was in a state of "having no identity," "having left no trace in this world," and "showing unfamiliarity with many things in this world" when Chiya found him.
However, later, through Ouma Kokichi's unusual attitude towards the "Ultimate High School Class," and in the Sarayashiki incident, Tsukino and Chiya saw some of the things the purple-haired boy said through the skull's eyes... this made Tsukino and Chiya's speculations even bolder.
Wang Ma Xiaoji's "isolation from the world" may be even more isolated than he imagined.
Then, that same evening, during a conversation with Ouma Kokichi, Tsukino and Chiya's guesses were completely confirmed.
So now—
"Do you know Ayatsuji Yukito?"
At this moment, Tsukino and Chiya, whose tone and expression seemed unchanged, asked in surprise.
"That can't be right."
Ouma Kokichi was an outsider who arrived in this world a little over a year ago. At that time, Ayatsuji Yukito, who was considered a dangerous individual in some respects, had already been placed under the surveillance of official forces.
Although Tsukino and Chiya didn't know much about Ayatsuji Yukito, they knew that it was highly unlikely that they would know about Ayatsuji Yukito, who was under strict surveillance, within a year or so after Ohma Kokichi arrived in this world.
But... it's not entirely impossible, is it?
Tsukino and Chiya recalled Ouma Shokichi's talent as the "Ultimate High School Level Leader".
Although Tsukino and Chiya almost mistook the purple-haired boy's talent for "Ultimate Prank Master" during their time with Ouma Kokichi, since Ouma Kokichi's talent was recognized by Hope's Peak, he must indeed have real skills.
Considering the extent to which Nagito Komaeda, as the "Ultimate Lucky One," can achieve this, then Kokichi Ohma, as the "Ultimate Leader," can indeed do so through his own talents.
A reasonable deduction. Tsukino and Chiya thought to themselves, but why did they still feel that something was amiss?
"Huh? What does 'shouldn't be' mean?" Wang Ma Xiaoji's eyes widened in shock, his face full of disbelief.
The purple-haired boy's voice carried a hint of grievance as he complained, "What? Kozuki Kazuha thinks I can't do it? Isn't that underestimating me? And he said it so confidently—isn't that blatantly belittling me? How is that any different from a student improving their exam ranking through hard work only to be accused of cheating by the teacher?!"
"I'm so sad..." He pursed his lips, then burst into tears, "Waaaaaah!! How could Tsukino Kazumi question me like that!!"
"So," Tsukino and Chiya looked at the wailing Ohma Kokichi with a sense of normalcy, "how did you meet him?"
"Huh? What are you and Kozuki talking about? You seem to have misunderstood."
Wang Ma Xiaoji instantly wiped away his tears, his purple eyes looking back at him innocently and obediently, as if the wailing and howling just now was merely a figment of Qianye's imagination.
"I don't know Ayatsuji Yukito."
Tsukino and Qianye: "..." Okay.
Tsukino and Chiya accepted Ohma Kokichi's changed expression in less than a second, and swallowed back the comforting words they had prepared, "I didn't mean to question you, I was just amazed that you could do this much," and pretended that nothing had happened.
"Then why did you blurt out 'Yokohama' when you heard this name?"
Before Tsukino and Chiya could ask the same question, Ohma Kokichi volunteered to take on the role of 'mouth substitute'.
"I know, Kozuki and I are looking for this, right?"
The purple-haired boy seemed quite pleased with his achievement of having momentarily stunned Tsukino and Chiya with his short performance. He squinted his eyes slightly with amusement and thoughtfully conducted a self-questioning and answering exercise: "Of course, it's because I'm the 'Ultimate Mastermind'!"
"There's nothing in this world I can't do! Kozue, I'll tell you something in secret—"
Wang Ma Xiaoji's tone was full of confidence. Some of the bright midday sun fell on him, and under the clear blue sky, the purple-haired boy looked dazzling and flamboyant.
"That means never underestimate the abilities of an evil leader."
“Hmm…” Tsukino and Chiya hesitated for two seconds, then pointed out the problem with a blank expression, “So you still haven’t said how you knew I was planning to go to Yokohama during the holidays.”
Especially considering that Ayatsuji Yukito himself is not actually in Yokohama right now.
Ayatsuji Yukito is a very dangerous ability user, and this definition is mainly based on his abilities.
That kind of causal-like supernatural ability always arouses both fear and irresistible covetousness. According to the results carefully investigated by Tsukino and Chiya, this detective Ayatsuji is currently under the control of the official agency that manages cases related to supernatural abilities, and occasionally accepts requests from the government.
He appears to be in another city at the moment, but according to the investigation... during the student holidays, the detective would travel to Yokohama for a few days due to some official arrangements.
This gave Tsukino and Chiya the opportunity to come into contact with him.
"Hehe, this is the secret of the evil mastermind~ Do you want to know, Kozuki? I might as well tell you, okay?"
"Then forget it. I have a feeling that I'll have to pay a price that I can't afford."
"Hey~ As expected of Kazuki Kozuki, you really know me so well! But actually, I was just about to give you a special perk just for Kazuki Kozuki—ta-da, that is, to answer Kazuki Kozuki's questions for free!"
"Such a good thing? I'd like to know."
"That won't do. There's only one chance; once it's gone, it's gone forever. And all of this is because of Kozuki and my own lack of resolve; we didn't seize the opportunity!"
"Is that so? Well, it seems I need to reflect on myself."
Despite saying this, Tsukino and Chiya showed no sign of reflecting on their actions. He looked up at the sky, but as if blinded by the increasingly glaring sunlight, he finally looked away and focused his gaze on the face of the person beside him.
"By the way, Ohma," Tsukino asked Chiya as if it were a trivial matter, "would you like to come to Yokohama with me during the holidays?"
"Well..." Wangma Xiaoji asked with a smile, "Then, will Kozuki and I want to go with you?"
*******
The black-haired boy set foot on the land of Yokohama.
Tsukino, Chiya, and Ohma Kokichi all heard about the future from Hinata Hajime. And among the future he described was the practical skills exam for undergraduates.
According to Hinata Hajime, a number of... not-so-unexpected accidents occurred during that exam. Due to various reasons, Komaeda Nagito successfully interfered with the exam's progress through his miraculous luck, and even caused three future members of the Future Organization to drop out of school.
Well... as expected of you, Komaeda Nagito.
However, with Hinata Hajime's spoiler this time, the original story trajectory has clearly changed. Tsukino and Chiya don't know exactly what Hinata Hajime and Komaeda Nagito discussed, but they know that the exam proceeded smoothly.
Tsukino and Chiya looked at the unfamiliar city street scene before them.
Then came the holidays that students love, and just as he had planned with Ouma Kokichi, he successfully arrived in Yokohama.
After all, no unexpected events occurred along the way that forced him to interrupt his original plan.
In Tsukino and Chiya's view, the bustling city was filled with the usual sights—blue skies, white clouds, pedestrians, and vehicles. In the days since the incident at the old school building, just like the lingering, unresponsive mark, the illusions that would have appeared before Chiya to disturb him as the situation worsened had also vanished.
However, Tsukino and Chiya were not relieved by this.
The black-haired boy reached out and gently pressed the back of his neck.
He felt that all of this was merely the calm before the storm. Beneath this calm, perhaps, lay something far more terrifying than what they had experienced before.
But before the real storm arrives...
Let's do what we should do first.
Tsukino and Chiya had their destination in mind, but before they could actually take a step away from where they were standing, something suddenly caught their attention.
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