A castle made of sand

"Uhh… come on, think, think." I lightly tapped my mask as I stared at the ground below, at the corpses that roamed about the parking lot.

(Asami will see the cop corpse soon, nothing I can do about that. What matters now, is making sure she survives the day.)

I pull my handgun from my pocket and glance at it.

(The reason Shimada and Asami got killed boils down to that snotty brat, that, fun fact, survives.)

I then aim the gun at the corpses.

(If I get rid of him… then both Shimada and Asami won't die. While I don't really care what happens to the guy, I can't let Asami die, for Kohta's sake at least. Still, am I going to resort to killing people again?)

I lower the gun and look at the buildings in the distance, then shake my head and put the gun back in my pocket.

(Yea, for good or bad, I don't feel like mulling over that fact. I need to think of other methods to keep Asami alive. If all else fails, then I can just take Kohta's gun and shoot the brat before Asami charges to her death. Though that would be bad, very bad… for me, that is.)

I took a look at the street that leads to the Humvee, which by the way was a little 'blocked' off now. Yeah, that shot I fired to get my group's attention? It also caused the grouped up corpses to move between the field into the road, along with any surrounding corpses. Well, that's one way to clean part of the parking field. I wish they didn't block off the road I needed to take, though.

(The best and simplest way to solve this problem, of course, is to bring the Humvee here before the others have to walk through an army of corpses. Though, that does mean sneaking out the back door to get the Humvee, preferably alone, and well. For one, Saeko probably won't just accept leaving if she doesn't know where I'm at. I could take her with me, I don't see why a small team can't get to the car while the rest wait here. It might draw the attention of the other survivors but, hmm. It'll be much easier to convince my group too… Especially since this time around, the guns are all in the Humvee. Okay, that will be the first plan, the others would wait on the second floor while a group of two or three get the car. That should make sure that the big group wouldn't have to cross the parking lot.)

It was the sudden sound of the roof door closing behind me that almost caused me to jump out of my skin, before I hurriedly turned around. Thankfully, to my distracted mind, it was only the old couple.

I lifted my hand and waved at them. They did the same as they walked towards me. Though, with the old couple being here. It means that the window to act is already closing.

"You should be careful not to fall with the way you are sitting." The granny speaks up.

"Thanks for the concern, I'll be fine." I answer as I turn to look back towards the parking lot again.

"Why are you up here all by yourself? Is everything alright?" The old man asks right after.

"Yeah, just thinking…" I answer back.

A short silence passed between us until the old lady started speaking again.

"I heard that it was you that got trapped in the clinic because of me. I… I am really sorry that I've put you through needless danger." She apologizes as she bows.

"Don't be. Because of my trip to the clinic, I managed to find something that was very important to me. Actually, I think that I should be thanking you instead." I chuckle as I look at the granny, who lifted her head and smiled at me. After that, we didn't speak for a while, the silence allowing me to sink into my head once again.

(Again, the simplest course of action. Is still to just 'deal' with the brat before the rest leave. Though, if I were to go with that plan, then it's something I need to do right now. If the old couple is already here, then that means that shit is about to hit the fan.

There's also a way to save Asami, even if I allow the 'original' course of things to go, but it would actively antagonize Takashi. Boiling things down to the simplest facts, the reason Kohta had to shoot Asami comes down to Takashi's decision. He went 'leader' mode and ordered Kohta to not go after her. Though, I wonder if he would be so willing to do the same if it was Saeko or Rei instead of Asami that ran off. In either case, this time we're better prepared, and I'm here too. So, if it comes down to it, I can just ignore Takashi and help Asami directly. There's also a large chance that Kohta and Saeko will follow my lead if I try to help the cop. Yet, if Takashi takes this the wrong way I'm definitely going to end up on his bad side, and he already seemed to be somewhat butt-hurt because of what Saeko did in the clinic...

As for how to make sure that Asami survives. Hmm, she was next to two cars right before her death in the manga. So, if she shoots a window and hides in one of the cars, it should buy us enough time to get the Humvee and return, or draw the corpses away with gunfire. Though, that would get us surrounded and depending on where the big group of corpses is at, that could be a big fucking problem.

And well, there is the simplest plan of all. Stop her before she manages to get away. Simple, but she might start acting out because we stopped her from doing her 'duty'. And, as I'm the one that will have to stop her, because the rest failed miserably in the manga to do so, she will probably label me as a 'bad guy'. Plus, I can't know for sure if she won't just run away the moment I let her go, and I can't just drag her around…)

I move my head and hear my neck bones crack.

(Ughh, my poor overworked brain… Why can't I just summon a flying fucking tank or something?...)

Just then, I heard the door slam again. Turning around, I see Asami running straight towards the roof's edge.

(Ohh, well time's up.)

I get up and go next to the old couple.

"Looks like your cop is having some problems." I say as I motion my head towards Asami.

The old couple turns to walk towards Asami. Who soon, also notices them.

"H,huh? Hey you two! It's dangerous over here!" She shouts at the old couple as she quickly walks up towards them.

While the three kept talking, I also walked up to her. And by the time she had finished talking to the old couple, I was next to her and we were staring at each other in silence. Or she was trying to at least, as she kept darting her eyes around.

"What did you do?" I ask flatly.

"Huh, what are you talking about? A, Asami is just fine." She replies with a meek smile, eyes still darting around.

"I'm wearing a mask, and you're still trying to avoid looking me in the eye. So, again, what did you do?" I ask again.

Asami stayed quiet for some time before lowering her head, then started speaking.

"I… I didn't mean to. But, I… did something horrible." She says in a low tone.

"And the correct decision to do after that was to go to the roof?" I ask again, tone dripping with sarcasm.

"But Kohta hates me now. I said, something very mean to him." Her voice started to break as she spoke.

"And now he hates you?" Asami just nodded at my question, not trusting herself to speak as she started to tear up.

"And you hate him." I added right after.

"No! I don't hate him! I… " She darts her head to look at me as she begins to speak, only to stop mid sentence and look back down.

"Did he say anything to you that proves that he hates you?" I ask.

"But, what I… "

"Yes or no officer, did he say anything that proves that he hates you." I ask again as I cut her off.

"No… " She answers with a meek tone.

"But you did. So, if you think that he hates you. He probably thinks you want him dead and gone from your life." I say as I fold my arms.

"So, should 'you' be running away from him right now?" I ask as I tilt my head.

"Asami!" Just then, and right on time, Kohta bursts through the door, and looks at the two of us.

"Well, lookie here. Looks like somebody is willing to give you a second chance. So don't waste it." I say as I turn around and start walking away towards the door that Kohta had just entered through.

"Oh, and one last thing, officer. Remember that your actions won't affect just you from now on." I say as I glance backwards at her before walking up to Kohta who was staring very 'intently' at me.

"I see you're dressed up for war. So, where did you hide our stuff?" I ask as I look at the bulletproof vest that Kohta was wearing.

"Oh, uhh, it's in the bra shop on the second floor. From the roof, once you get to the second floor, you need to keep going right, you'll eventually find a clothing store, it's in the section with the largest bras. And, it was Takashi's idea, not mine." He added quickly.

"Alright, well. I'm going before this place gets flooded with sugar now." I say with a grin as I pat Kohta on the shoulder. He just blinked stupidly at me as I walked past him.

(Kind of hypocritical of me, remembering what happened with Saeko. But, eh, whatever.)

And so, after that, I ran to the second floor as quickly as I could and headed to the store Kohta mentioned. Honestly, even if somebody saw the guns now, who cares, they will soon be running like headless chickens anyway...

The moment I reached the store, I went inside and straight to the giant bra section, then searched inside the pile until I found my bag and bokken. I guess even in this changed timeline where the group didn't bring their guns to the mall, a good hiding spot is still a good hiding spot.

"Did you guys miss me? I know I did." I say with a small snort to myself as I open the bag and dig through the medical bottles. Quickly grabbing the holster belt inside, I also picked the shotgun shells I had left inside and shoved them in my lower pants' pockets. I then wore the belt and put the handgun in its normal place.

(Finally, having the gun in my pocket was uncomfortable as fuck.)

The moment I strapped the bag on me and secured my shotgun and pistol, I turned to walk outside.

(Ok, now I should find Sae…)

Yet, before I could even finish that thought…

"Oh god! They are inside!" Somebody shouted. looking straight outside the shop, over the railings, I saw the chubby man from the other group on the other side of the mall's main room as he looked downstairs.

The group that was there then quickly began to barricade the stairs, as the corpses started to spread like wildfire on the lower floor. Coincidentally, also blocking my path to the group on the other side. I then looked under me, and well, under me was a shitload of corpses pouring through…

(Of fucking course they would get inside from a door that's right below me, what a fucking joke. So much for planning...)

As I groan under my breath, I see my group appear on the other side of the mall. The chubby guy, who was freaking out with his head locked towards the lower floor, crashed into Shizuka's chest, which was then quickly followed by Saeko shaking the life out of him. Shortly after that, Takashi started looking around the room with the binoculars.

(Why does he need binoculars? You can see the whole place just fine without them…)

Meanwhile, I silently walked by the railing as I watched the corpses walk up the stairs that had not been barricaded yet. Which means, they were closing in towards me.

(Well, there goes every path to my group.)

As I kept walking, I saw a couple of corpses that had gotten up the stairs and had essentially blocked the path ahead of me, though they were still pretty far. I pass the bokken back into its 'sheath' and turn to look on the lower floor.

(...Too many corpses right below me. And most of them are beelining to the stairs. What ch…)

"Naier!?" And my thoughts then got interrupted by a sudden shout. I lifted my head to see that the whole group on the other side was now looking at me. Shortly after, some of the people from the other group turned to look away and began building the barricades again. Pretty much admitting that they decided that was a lost cause for them. I mean, yeah, my situation looked pretty bad. I was by myself, corpses had blocked off my way to them and nothing was barricaded on my side. Business as usual now that I think about it…

I lift my hand as I point my index finger on the ceiling and shout to the group that Kohta is on the rooftop. Before returning to looking at the lower floor as I walked by the railing. At least until a new shout attracted my attention.

"Saeko?! What are you doing?! Don't go up there!" I hear a male shout, and as I dart my head up, I see Saeko standing over the makeshift barricade, looking straight at me.

(Oh shit, that crazy woman! Okay, Naier, now or never, before she does something stupid. That's 'my' specialty.)

All the time I spent looking at the first floor was finally rewarded as I spotted a 'clear' path that led to a nearby closed emergency exit. I just had to get to the lower floor which was filled with corpses, land without breaking anything, and hope that the path I spotted would not disappear before I was through it.

(God I must be retarded…)

I vault over without letting go of the railing, to end up on the other side of the railing. I then crouch down to the lowest degree I could get while still holding on with one hand. Just before, letting go.

(This must be my stupidest idea so far… Which is saying something.)

Also, I think I heard somebody scream? Actually, maybe it was just the wind...

Second later I crash land into a corpse, that thankfully was one in the front lines or so to speak. In other words, my front was clear-ish, and the path to the door was in sight.

The moment the corpse I landed on struck the ground, I rolled forward, and the moment my boots touched the ground and stood back up, I broke into a sprint.

Straight and to the right, that was where the closed emergency door was at, and between me and the door, uhh, yeah, lot's of Black Friday customers...

I start running straight and swerve to the left, avoiding a pair of hands that reach out for me. Then as I went straight ahead, I grabbed an arm that was to my right, and using my momentum I spun around, dragging the corpse along with me before tossing it on a couple of corpses that were straight ahead of me. Well ok, I didn't exactly 'toss' the corpse, it was more like it lunged forward after I let it go and crashed into the other corpses. I then used the opening I created to keep moving straight.

So, right now, the biggest problem I could see? A line of corpses by the stairs to my left and ahead of me, which essentially blocked the other side of the mall.

(Oh for fucks sake! When did they manage to congregate like that?!)

It was like these things were hellbent on getting to the upper floor. As they flocked around every staircase that led upstairs.

(So, now what? I'm completely surrounded. Forward exit is blocked by the corpse line. Behind me is also a group of corpses that have definitely heard me by now. I really didn't think this through, did I?)

I was surrounded, so Hell knows why I found myself chuckling as I ran straight towards the corpse 'lineup' in front of me...

(Scratch that, this is my stupidest idea… yet.)

I kept running straight ahead, towards a pair of benches. And the moment I reached them, I let go of the shotgun, and using the benches as steps. I stepped up and jump, straight over the corpse line…

"WHOSE STUPID IDEA WAS THIS AGAIN?!" I shouted out of the top of my lungs as I leaped overhead the corpses. As I reach the top of my leap, I grab the shotgun that hanged on my side with one hand as I tried to calculate the place I would land and, the thing is…

(Too, far.)

No matter how I saw it, I was falling too fast, I was past the 'middle' of the line, but the way it was going, I would still end up landing inside the group of corpses...

The moment I crashed into the corpses below me, the world around me went dark. Or more like, I was so completely surrounded to the point that the light was completely blocked off. I felt time stop to a crawl as every single of the corpses began turning around to look at me. And, I could not hear shouting anymore…

With the shotgun in my hand, I pointed it straight ahead and pulled the trigger, followed by a vault forward the moment I felt the gun's recoil.

And I found myself rolling onto a corpse that got blasted back, and thankfully, out of the hole I just dug myself into. Using the momentum of my roll, I lift myself up and turn to face the corpse line that had now completely turned to face me because of the shotgun blast, and so, uhh..

"AND FUCK YOU TOO!" I flip the corpses off before turning around, running straight towards the emergency exit as I pumped a new round into the shotgun.

The moment I reach the door, I open it, with a kick. The door impacted something behind it. And as it slowly then opened, I saw a corpse on the floor behind it.

I turned back, and looked at the group on the second floor. That was now gawking at me.

"I'll wait outside!" I shouted to the group as I turned and exited the mall, jumping over the corpse that was on the floor.

(The others don't need to know that we have a car…)

Once I was outside, I took a glance around the parking lot before turning my sight towards the way to the Humvee.

(The road I need to take is to my left, and just my luck, a large group of corpses is there too. Shit, I'll have to bait them away… a gunshot should do the trick.)

I nod to my self and run up a little deeper into the parking lot.

Yet, before I could move towards my targeted destination, an annoyance decided to rear its head.

"Help me! Please, please help me! Don't leave me here!" I turn in the opposite direction of the corpse group to see the brat that started all this on a van, looking straight at me with a pleading expression.

(Huh… Well, look at that. I could leave his sorry ass there to rot. But him being there puts Asami in danger. I'm going to help him, but I'm not taking his sorry ass to the Humvee with me.)

I sigh and run towards the wailing teenager, and the moment I got near the van, I pointed my shotgun at the corpses that were clawing on its front side.

"Help me! Help me! I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!" The kid wailed as it sat on all fours on the van's roof.

"Stop screaming, you're getting more of them around the car." I say as I pull the trigger.

The corpses on the front part of the van crashed against the windshield before collapsing.

"Now, get down from there." I say as I pump a new round.

"What, no! There are still more of those things around!" He shouts.

(Oh, for fuck's sake...)

I ran up to the car's front and climbed up the van until I could reach the teenager. As he stared at me like a deer in front of headlights, I grabbed him by the collar and yanked him towards me as I jumped back down.

"What are you doiiiiii!" He ended up falling spectacularly face-first to the ground.

"There, I just saved you. You're welcome, now you're on your own." I say to the snooty teenager as I turn around and start walking away.

"Ahhh! Where are you going! You can't just leave me here, I am unarmed, and there are still those things around! Please help me! I'm sorry!" The teenager quickly gets up and starts stumbling towards me.

"You are NOT coming with me brat. Now, beat it before I do something that you'll regret." I warned as I glanced at him before turning to look at the corpse group ahead.

(Let's see… If I shoot at the ones on the left, I can… Huh? Wait a sec.)

The corpses were moving towards me?

(Uhh, why? Oh shit, of course. I just used the shotgun. Great, if saving the kid led me to getting nom'ed on, I'm going to be so pissed.)

"I am really sorry! I didn't know what I was thinking, please, I don't have a weapon, I'm going to die if you don't help me, please help me!" The kid almost runs into me as I turn around and point the shotgun to his face.

"One more step and I'm blowing your face to bits. If you make me turn around a third time, I WILL shoot you. Now fucking scram already, I'm not your friend." I narrowed my eyes as I stared at him, before turning around again.

(Ok, if they are coming towards me, I can just walk past them from the sides… Hmm, yeah, that could…)

"I said I was sorry! I don't know what to do! Help me! You have to help me!" I felt my eye twitch as I once again heard wailing shouting behind me.

I quickly pull my handgun out of its holster, turn around, and aim straight at the teenager's head.

"I'm not letting you anywhere near my group. You brought this to yourself…. "

The teenager opened his mouth to start shouting again, yet instead. A gunshot echoed, and the teenager jerked his head backward as he fell on his back, and stayed there.

I took a deep breath as I put the gun back into its holster.

(Fucking hell, why didn't he just fucking leave?)

With a sigh, I turned to walk towards the corpses that blocked my way to the Humvee…

Once I got near the large group, I started running as I swerved slightly to the right, ending with the corpses to my left, a couple of meters away from me. And soon, I saw an opening between the corpses and the road I needed to take.

I run straight to the end of the parking field, vault over the railing and keep going straight towards the road that….

Ok this street will always be empty with how many times Saeko went full nuts mode on it...

I ran past the first intersection and kept going straight down the next road, until I reached the tree cluster, then, straight towards the Humvee. The moment I reach it, I quickly take the net off, fold it, go to the driver's seat and unlock the car, then open the door and toss the net on the back seat as I get inside.

I put the keys in the ignition and started the engine, then hit the reverse and exited the tree clusters before switching the gear and stepping on the pedal again to drive straight towards the mall.

The moment the parking lot came into view, I could see my group to my right, along with, Shimada?

I steer slightly to the left and keep driving straight. And the moment I entered the parking lot, I pressed on the brakes and made a sharp turn to the right in order to avoid the large group of corpses. Then, I went straight to my group before stopping the car right next to them, I climbed through the hatch and turned to look at them.

"Time we get out of here no?!" I shouted.

The rest of the group then quickly entered the car, and the moment everybody was in, I got back inside, ending up on the passenger's seat as Shizuka took the wheel.

And as we sped off, I glanced towards through my window towards the only real 'corpse' in the field. All the while the group kept excitedly chatting, or uhh, shouting. I mean, they did just escape with their lives after all.

(Ugh, in the end, I ended up shooting the brat. Why couldn't that idiot just walk away?)

"…aier?"

(This is the third person I killed, the third normal person. Uhh, I remember Saeko saying something in the manga right before they left the mall. What was it again? An honorable man follows a code of chivalry? Or something like that. Heh, wonder what she would think of me if she found out how 'chivalrous' I am.)

"Hey, Naier." And I felt something shaking me, I turned around to see Kohta with his hand on my arm. He was sitting behind me, like, literally behind me, as he was on the car's floor again, while Rei and Takashi were sitting next to him while Asami was pretty much sitting on Kohta. Saeko, Saya, and Shimada were sitting on the back seats, with Shimada on the left corner, Saya on the center and Saeko to the right..

"Uhh, yeah, I'm fine. No bites," I say as I make a thumbs-up before turning around to glance at the street ahead before turning to look at the group again.

"Maybe Saya is right, maybe we do need to tie you up to a chair, you scared us to death with your stunt." Saeko says right after.

"I had it all under control." I shrug as I look at her.

"Oh, really? Like when you ended up jumping inside a horde?" Saya asks right after, with her arms folded under her chest.

"It was, part of the plan?" I retort as I darted my eyes around, while Saya just kept staring at me with a frown.

"Look, it's…"

"Was killing that normal kid also part of your plan?" Shimada cuts me off and, well, that definitely made the chatter stop.

I didn't reply, I just stared at him…

(Well, this is going to be 'fun'.)

"I saw you doing it, the others were not out of the building yet, but I saw you." He added shortly after.

"You mean the 'kid' that let the corpses inside the mall? I warned him to walk away, he didn't listen, thrice. I got no sympathy for the ones that would let others rot, yet would turn and beg for help the moment they are pushed to a corner." I answered plainly, while the group just kept staring.

"You shot a kid!" Shimada shouts as he glares at me.

"A kid whose actions killed a number of survivors inside the mall," I answer back.

"He didn't know what he was doing! The kid might have been an idiot and caused the mall to get overrun, but he didn't actively try to kill anybody!" He shouts back.

(I am pretty sure he stabbed somebody in the manga.)

And you know, maybe I was a bit out of it. I mean, I didn't realize what Shimada was trying to do with one arm behind his back and towards the trunk. Until he actually pointed my Scar-H to my face...

"Care to ask the relatives of the dead mall residents if they feel the same?" I ask as I stare at the gun's barrel.

The rest of the group froze as the stand-off continued. And Shizuka, who was driving mind you, glanced my way, before turning to look back at the street. She then turned her head to me a second time in a flash with a short yelp, pressing on the brakes until the car stopped moving.

"Wha… what's going on here?!" She yelled as her eyes went wide.

(She seriously did not hear a thing?)

"That man is dangerous, he shot a kid in cold blood," Shimada says shortly after.

"What? There is no way… "

"He already admitted it!" Shimada cuts her off.

"Shimada. Lower that gun." Saeko said calmly as she kept glancing between me and Shimada.

"You don't understand, he's dangerous. How do you guys know that he won't turn against you the moment the situation does not suit him? He's willing to shoot a defenseless kid, who knows what more he's capable of!" He responds.

"You are blinded by rage, we've known Naier far longer than you, he wouldn't just go mindlessly killing people. So, again, lower, that gun." Saeko responds again as she tries to lean closer to Shinoda, not that she could do much with Saya in the middle..

"What are you going to do to him? Don't hurt him, he's a good person." Shizuka starts talking after Saeko as she looks between me and Shinoda.

"A good person?! No 'good' person would be fine with killing a kid! If you really believe that he is good, then he has you all fooled!" Shimada shouts.

"Oh please, are 'you' giving 'me' a lesson on morality? Sir rapes-alot?" I groan as I narrow my eyes, Causing Tsunoda's eye to twitch as an angry scowl slowly crept on his face.

(I know you must not kick a hornet's nest, but, I couldn't resist…)

"You, get out of the car. I'm not traveling around with a murderer. But I'm not going to kill you." He points towards my door with his head as he speaks.

"Unlike you, I'm not a killer," He adds right after...

"Lower the gun, right now. I don't know who you think you are, but you won't be the one who gets to decide what happens here..." Saya then spoke up with a low hissing tone as she pressed her Luger's muzzle against Shimada's sides. The look on the idiot's face was almost comical.

(...Please don't fire off by accident…)

"The hell's wrong with you people! I am trying to help you! He is… "

"Dangerous?! Don't give me that shit! Everybody is dangerous now!" Saya shouts back, before continuing with a lower tone.

"And even so… If, if it wasn't for him… I, my parents… " Her eyes getting blurry as she spoke.

"Naier is the only reason that my home didn't get overrun! He nearly got himself killed protecting it! Protecting my parents! If he did all that just to fool me, then he has me fooled! Because I definitely trust him more than I trust you!" Saya kept on shouting, and, uh, honestly? It was kinda overwhelming. I mean, she was actually using my name?

Shimada turns his head towards Saya as she keeps pressing the gun against his sides. And, using the chance, I bolted forward, grabbed the gun's barrel and aimed it towards the hatch. Then, after flipping the safety on, I pull it towards me. And the moment the gun's butt came in front of Shimada's face, I brought it straight down to his face.

Which was enough to make him let go of the gun to grab his nose.

"Now you get out of the car." Saya glares at Shimada as she speaks.

"Now!" She shouts and pushes Shimada with the gun before he could even open his mouth.

Kohta, who was now also aiming the Ar-10 at him, opens the doors and exits the car along with Rei and Takashi, closely followed by Shimada. With the 'good guy' out of the Humvee, Kohta and the other two then enter the car and close the door.

"Go." Kohta said to Shizuka the moment he entered the car.

Shizuka then drove a couple of meters…

"Uhh, stop the car… " Everybody in the group then turned to look at me again as I took Shimada's bat and exited the car. I then took off my bag and grabbed a bottle of painkillers.

(I'm helping a guy that almost raped Shizuka, and almost shot me. I must be wrong in the head…)

"I don't intend to forgive you for what you tried to do to Shizuka. But, I do believe that you wanted to help them now. Even if it was by getting rid of me. For that, you can have these… Now, don't make me regret this kindness." I say as I leave the bat and box of painkillers on the ground, Shimada is just staring at me like an idiot with his hand on his nose. I then talked a little bit quieter, so the rest of the group would not hear me.

"You might think I am a danger, and you might be right, I'm not going to tell you to think otherwise. But..." I glance back at the Humvee.

"If you really want to help, then don't hold this against them. They don't need any more enemies, their plates are already full enough as it is. And maybe, someday, they might need your help. I don't want to be the reason that caused you to turn your back on them." I turn around after I finish speaking.

"Oh, and one last thing," I say, I turn around again.

"If you want to find an evacuation center, look for a police station, they might have information on the locations you can go." I finished speaking before turning around again and walking back to the car.

The moment I enter it, Kohta speaks up.

"He pointed a gun at your face, and you are giving him painkillers and a bat?" He asks as he frowns.

"If he's really trying to help, even if that is by tossing me out, then it's better to show him that we are willing to work with him if he's not going to be a total dick. Or, I guess I just might be stupid after all." I say with a shrug.

And with that, the car started moving again.

(Killing. Should be a last-ditch effort, Shimada never got enough screen time for me to really understand if he is a good or bad person. Though, the fact that we had to nearly choke his ass to stop him from raping Shizuka makes him loses a lot of points for sure. But, I can't read minds, maybe he really believed that I'm a danger and wanted to help. Maybe he wanted me gone because I was the only one who threatened him after we immobilized him back at the mall. Whatever the case, you should never close a door unless you are absolutely sure that it needs to be closed, like with Shido.

And the kid… In the manga, other than the fact that he stabbed somebody, it clearly showed that he was unstable. What if he ended up in our group and then went crazy again?

But you know? I'm glad I was actually able to deal with Shimada somewhat peacefully. Might end up being a stupid decision in the long run, but at least it proves that I can still try to solve problems without shooting everything in the close vicinity.)

"Are we going to leave Shimada back there?" Shizuka asks.

"He brought this on himself," Saya answers shortly after.

"Well, yeah… but," Shizuka trails off before she can finish her sentence.

"The guy almost raped you, and you are worried about him?" Rei asks with a frown.

"But, he didn't seem like a bad person…" She replies softly.

"He tried to rape and you, and he tried to shoot Naier? That's not really something I like to call good traits." Kohta says right after.

"I know, and that was horrible… But, he said he wanted to help, maybe he just…"

"You trust people way too easily Shizuka" Saya cuts her off and Shizuka just lowered her head slightly and kept her mouth closed.

(Holy crabs, how kindhearted can you get?)

The group then kept on chatting with one another for some time until the ProtagonistTM opened his mouth.

"Naier… " Takashi, who had kept quiet so far, speaks up. I turn around to see him staring at me. With Shimada gone, he was now sitting on the backseat, between Saeko and Saya… Lucky bastard.

"Are you hiding anything else from us?" He asks. Well, that's a 1 on the Charisma roll…

"Takashi!" Saya yells as she darts her head towards him.

"If it was not for Shimada, we would have never learned of any of this!" He shouts back.

(Aaand, of course, something must go to shit… Out of the pan and into the fire, can I ever have a break?)

"I am the leader of this group, I have to make sure that nobody is a danger. I don't want to have somebody inside that is keeping secrets from us, even more so if that secret is going around behind our backs and killing people!" He shouts as he turns to Saya, who just kept glaring at him.

"Takashi, stop, Naier is not our enemy, he helped us more times than I can count. Saya and I wouldn't have even made it out of the school if it was not for him." Kohta speaks up in my defense as he looks at Takashi, Asami next to him, hugging his arm as she darts her head around.

"And remember that when you went to save Alice, he shielded both of you from that flash bang," Saeko adds right after.

"A flash bang that Kohta used after Naier's order." He answers back.

I stayed quiet as Takashi kept 'talking' with the group.

(You know what boss boy? You're starting to tick me off, I want to see what you will really do when the whole group is against your actions, yet you are too stubborn to back down.)

"I killed Shido and Tsunoda" I answered casually, causing the whole group to turn towards me.

"After they got expelled from the Takagi Estate, I followed them and found out that they were going to return to the Estate and try to open the barricades as revenge. That was also the reason I was late after Saya's father returned to the estate." I add up right after. The rest of the group stayed quiet digesting my 'confession'. And after a short silence, the intrepid leader shoved his feet up his mouth again.

"… what else?" Takashi asks as he keeps looking at me.

"Nothing else" I answer back.

"And how do I know that you're telling the truth?" He narrows his eyes as he speaks.

Yet, before I could answer back with some witty sarcasm, I felt the car abruptly stop.

"Enough! I can't take this anymore!" Shizuka shouts as she turns her head to us.

She keeps staring between me and Takashi, her eyes slightly red.

"We can't just… !"

"I don't care! Just stop it!" She shouts, and Takashi closes his mouth. She then turns to look at the street as she grips the steering wheel.

"We need to find a place to stay before it gets dark… " She said with a cracked voice as she kept looking down the street.

I let out a silent sigh as I turned to sit normally at my seat, then put my hand in my pocket and took out the keys to the house me and Saeko stayed. I then lifted my hand between the two front seats.

"Saeko, would you please tell them how they can get to the house we found? For some reason I don't feel like talking." I say as I keep looking at the street ahead.

"I will… " Somebody takes the keys as I hear the answer, and shortly after Saeko instructs Shizuka to turn the car around and head towards the mall, as we were going in the opposite direction from the clinic.

(On the other hand, sometimes I feel like it would be better if I just whacked everybody in the head and be done with it…)