Sunbath

Takeuchi woke up, the scent of hay and old wood filling his nose.

Blinking, he realized he was back in the red barn.

Its weathered walls were bathed in the soft glow of the evening sun.

As he slowly stood up, he recognized the familiar stall he was in.

Before long, Takeuchi found himself reunited with all his classmates inside the barn.

He noticed Hatano, which reminded him of the Hatano he’d seen in his dream.

“Everyone… did you…?” asked Takeuchi.

“Yeah,” replied Yoshihama. “A group of cloaked figures came to our academy. Looks like they visited all of us.”

“Can you believe it? It felt like a scene straight out of an anime,” Tanimoto added.

“Well, at least it brought us all together again,” someone remarked.

“As if that’s a good thing! If I get the chance, I’m punching them in the face,” Uchimura said.

“So, what do you think they’re after?” Nagata asked.

“They mentioned a ‘new era’ coming,” Takeuchi said uncertainly.