Oretachi no Kizuna - Chapter 20 + Epilogue [COMPLETED]
Here it comes!! The END! Can you believe it? :D
I really hope everyone has enjoyed reading it as much as I've enjoyed writing it!
Chapter 20 : Our Bond
The night air felt crisp as it swept past Yuya Takaki, Kota Yabu, and Hikaru Yaotome as they walked along a bridge that final Monday night before the battle. As the three Class 3 members slowly meandered their way home, the cars whizzed past them on the bridge at what seemed to them to be at improbable speeds, their headlights creating a flickering lights show on the churning waters below. However, the Class 3 members were uninterested in the lights show at the moment. Their only thoughts were of being in each other’s company and enjoying it for as long as it lasted.
As the three boys reached the middle of the bridge, Kota felt his foot come into contact with something solid on the ground, and the motion sent the shining object spinning a short distance away. Bending down from his considerable height, the lanky Class 3 member picked up the shining object, only to find that it was a 100 yen coin. Sighing gently to himself, Kota straightened again and walked over to the railing of the bridge with the coin in hand. He placed his forearms on the railing and leaned on them, staring over at the waters below with a contemplative expression on his face. The other two Class 3 members looked at him questioningly, wondering why Kota had stopped so suddenly, but he refused to look back at them.
Finally, after a long silence, Kota spoke, his voice heavy with emotion, “Guys, about the battle tomorrow, you know that we might not all make it back alive?”
“Well,” Hikaru stated, “it’s a battle. There will be casualties, even in our class.”
Kota closed his eyes and sighed, saying, “That’s not what I meant! I meant that among the three of us, not all of us might be able to make it back.”
“What are you saying, Kota?” asked Yuya softly.
“I’m saying that we’re the three strongest fighters of the school,” replied Kota bitterly. “And because of that, it is more likely that they’re going to target the three of us specially.” He looked at his two best friends. “We may be good, but we’re not good enough to face down an entire school alone, if they throw their entire strength at us.”
The others looked back at him, silent, their faces roiling with unspoken thoughts. When neither of them made a move to respond, Kota drew back his arm and flung the coin as far as he could off the bridge, his face twisting into an expression of anguish and frustration.
“I just can’t do this!” shouted Kota, his voice filled with agony. “I can’t stand the thought of losing either of you! You two have been my best friends all this time.” He buried his face in his folded forearms, his voice barely above a mumble, “I can’t imagine what it’d be like if I couldn’t see you guys again after this is all over.”
Yuya walked over to Kota, leaning down to put his arm around his distraught friend’s shoulders. “Kota,” he murmured gently, “when we set this battle, we were all aware of the possible consequences. None of us walked away from that decision thinking that Showa would go easy on us or that we would all make our way through it safe and sound.
“I’m in no way saying that I’m okay with losing either of you or with seeing either of you seriously injured again.” Yuya looked pointedly at Hikaru, who returned his look with a steady gaze of his own. “However, I will say this. This is our very last year, here, at Heisei Gakuen. After this semester, we graduate and go on to live our lives in the real world, the world out there. Don’t you want to make this last year count?”
“Yes, but -”
“Don’t you want to go out with a bang? Leave a lasting impression?”
“Sure, but -”
“But, what?”
Kota whirled around, grabbing Yuya by the shoulders and shaking him while shouting, “But I would be able to say what I wanted to say if you would just let me!” He glared at Yuya, his expression ferocious, as the words spilled out of his mouth in a rush. Yuya looked back at him with a surprised look on his face, seemingly taken aback by Kota’s sudden outburst.
After a moment of stunned silence, the tension broke and both members of Class 3 erupted in uproarious laughter, their shoulders shaking in their mirth. Hikaru looked from one friend to the other confusedly, then shrugged and started laughing with them; the others’ exhilaration was just too contagious. The three boys were simply glad to be alive and in each other’s company, laughing away their cares.
As the three Class 3 members left the bridge, Kota grimaced as he realized that he had never properly conveyed what he had meant to say. However, as he looked over at his friends’ cheerful faces, he smiled inwardly. Nah, they don’t need to be bothered by that now, he thought. Not when they’ve temporarily forgotten all those troubles that had been weighing them down all this time.
Kota shook his head slightly, put his thoughts behind him, and walked on with Yuya and Hikaru, content that it had been a Monday night well-spent with his two best friends.
* * *
The day of the final battle dawned bright and early for Yuto Nakajima. He had woken with a start an hour before his alarm, his limbs jittery from nerves. Today was the day that would really count. Today, Heisei Gakuen’s future would be decided.
Fumbling with his navy blue uniform, Yuto dressed himself carelessly while one hand tried to wipe the sleep from his eyes. As he staggered from one end of his room to the other, gathering the materials he needed for the day’s lessons, his mind was abuzz with thoughts of the upcoming conflict. Would they be ultimately successful? He hoped that they would.
Yuto came to an abrupt stop as he crossed in front of a mirror hanging in his room. Staring intently at his reflection, he saw a boy, tall, with frank-looking features and his short, black hair in a mess, one hand still clutching his school bag with an iron grip. Yuto laughed wryly to himself. So, this was the leader of Heisei Gakuen’s Class 2. Not very impressive, is he? he thought as he ran his fingers through his hair in an effort to make it orderly. Yuto dropped his school bag on the floor next to him and straightened the suit jacket of his Heisei uniform. Now, that’s more like it.
When Yuto arrived at school, the day seemed to be stuck on fast forward. He could barely remember telling the class to stand and bow for Mr. Yamamoto before the last bell rang, signaling the end of class. As the students gathered their belongings, shooting furtive glances of anxious excitement for what was to come, Yuto could barely keep himself under control. The whole thing just felt so surreal, like it wasn’t even really happening.
He felt a hand rest on his shoulder, and Yuto looked up to see a grim-looking Daiki staring back at him. “Are you ready for this?” asked his friend, his tone the most serious Yuto had yet heard him.
Yuto laughed with more confidence than he actually felt. “Of course I am! I was born ready!” he exclaimed, his declaration earning scattered cheers from his classmates. However, Daiki’s look of worry did not seem alleviated in the slightest.
Kei stood up from his seat, his school bag already flung over his shoulder. “Well, that makes one of us,” he said, his expression inscrutable.
As Kei walked away to join the students filing their way out of the classroom, Keito joined Yuto and Daiki, his face wary. “So, it’s finally happening, isn’t it?” he asked, his voice low.
“Yeah,” answered Yuto, “though I can hardly believe it.”
Daiki gestured at Kei’s retreating back. “Guys, we probably should go now. Everyone’s leaving to gather in the school yard. We’ll probably leave Heisei Gakuen with the other classes soon,” he said urgently. Yuto and Keito nodded and followed Daiki, who joined Kei at the back of the line.
When Kei noticed Daiki’s presence, he smiled softly and slung his arm around Daiki’s shoulders, glad of the companionship. Yuto felt a bittersweet smile of his own steal across his face as he watched his two normally quarrelling friends support each other during such troubling times. Then again, it’s probably this conflict itself that’s brought them together, he thought wistfully.
When Class 2 arrived at the school yard, Yuto was unsurprised to see that the other two classes had already assembled in a massive group facing the Heisei flag at the center. Yuya was standing directly under the flag with Ryosuke at his side. Once he noticed Yuto’s arrival, the Class 3 leader nodded curtly to him, and Yuto moved to stand on his other side.
The atmosphere at the school yard was intense. All of the students were milling around restlessly as if they were unsure if they wanted to stay or go. Some of the students were engrossed in awkward conversation, while others kept stolidly silent. However, it was to Yuto’s satisfaction when he realized that the students no longer kept to class boundaries. Instead, the members of each class were interacting with each other for the most part, seemingly uninterested in possible age differences or friend groupings. They’ve realized that we’re all in this together, thought Yuto admiringly.
Daiki looked to his side and was surprised to find himself standing next to Yuri Chinen. The cute Class 1 boy looked up at him and smiled brightly, his face betraying no signs of nervousness. Seeing this, the Class 2 boy remarked, “You sure are cheery, Yuri. Are you always this happy?”
Yuri’s smile faded by a couple degrees. “No, not always,” he replied softly. “However, sometimes, it’s better to let others believe that I am.” The smaller boy placed a hand on Daiki’s arm as if he was confiding a secret in him.
“Oh, so it’s like a morale-type thing,” mused Daiki.
Yuri’s face became thoughtful. “Well, I suppose so,” he said slowly. Then, his expression changed to one of outright deviousness. “Though, usually, I like to trick people into thinking I’m some cute, harmless little boy before I STRIKE!” He laughed, and Daiki could only compare it to a laugh that was somewhere between absolute adorableness and pure evil. “It just makes things so much more fun!”
Daiki joined in his laughter awkwardly as he tried not to show how freaked out he really was by the small Class 1 boy’s mischievous side. But thankfully, Daiki was saved from more possible awkwardness because it was at this moment that Yuya decided to make a speech.
“Heisei Gakuen!” Yuya shouted, his deep voice easily carrying through the entire school yard. “Today is the day where all our fates will be decided! In a moment, we will go on to fight Showa Gakuen for a final peace between our two schools. Although it might seem contradictory to fight for peace, this final battle is absolutely necessary. If we don’t stand up for ourselves now, we will be forever subservient to the whims of Showa’s bullying and harassment! So far, they have cruelly injured many of your classmates and vandalized our school! They have spit on the honorable name that is Heisei! And for what? For a trivial flag that we have rightfully given back to them with our full apologies!
“A better school would have understood the circumstances under which the flag stealing occurred and accepted our apology. A better school would not have stooped so low as to ambush our students with numbers many, many times greater than those attacked.
“But -” At this, Yuya smirked, which snickers arose from the crowd of Heisei students. “-this is Showa that we’re talking about here. Rather than sinking to their level, we must use this opportunity to show Showa that we are the better school. We don’t need to resort to those types of base acts to prove our strength. Instead, we are taking them head on with honor and dignity by our side!
“That’s why we can proceed fearlessly. Our determination gives us our drive and our bonds give us our strength! As long as we stick together until the end and are prepared to give ourselves completely to our greater cause, we can’t lose! Our very act of coming together to save our school is a victory in itself!
“And ultimately, we are able to do this because we are HEISEI GAKUEN! LET’S GO!”
With this last yell, Yuya surged forward, only looking back to signal to Yuto with his eyes to grab the Heisei flag. The other students gave a battle roar and followed behind the Class 3 leader, pumped up by Yuya’s speech. Yuto ran to the flagpole and lowered the flag, quickly removing it from its fastenings before the wind could carry it away. As he turned to head out with the others, Yuto caught Keito’s eye. The leader of Class 2 rushed over to where Keito was and held out the hand holding the flag.
“Keito,” Yuto said, “I feel that it really should be you holding this.” When Keito looked back at him in shock, Yuto continued, “For our school.”
Keito accepted the flag reverently, holding it as if it might suddenly break or slip through his fingers. It seemed that not so long ago, he had held quite a different flag in his hands. This time, things will be different, Keito thought as his hands closed around the fabric firmly.
With a look of purpose on his face, Keito brought the Heisei flag up in the air above his head, letting the flag stream proudly behind him in the wind. He gave a battle cry of his own and ran with the others, Yuto, Daiki, and Kei following closely behind him.
It was not long after that when the Heisei students reached the designated battleground, a large field located at the outskirts of their town. The leaders of Heisei and Akihiro Kuroda had decided on waging the final battle at this field because it was surrounded by rolling hills on two sides, and so the fighting would be contained and shaded from the sight of the town’s other inhabitants and its police.
As the Heisei students started to form ranks behind each class’s leader on top of one of the hills, Keito, still holding the Heisei flag high in the air, looked across the expanse and saw Showa also start to gather. He shivered a little as the wind swept past him. The Showa students were so far away that Keito couldn’t make out each individual face. Instead, each person seemed featureless and all the same. We must seem the same to them, Keito thought uneasily. We’ve become a large, faceless monster for them to vanquish. Because that’s what war does - it dehumanizes people.
Keito looked to his right and was instantly comforted by a warm smile from Yuto. His class leader put a hand on Keito’s shoulder, and said, “No regrets, now. I’m glad that you transferred to Heisei.”
“But, Yuto, I caused all this trouble!” protested Keito, the shame still apparent on his face.
Yuto shook his head, still smiling warmly. “No, Keito. You’ve brought us all together. We couldn’t have done it without you.”
Keito felt an overwhelmingly feeling of happiness spreading through his chest. No longer did he feel like the one pulling the rest of Heisei down. In fact, he might have even been proven useful! The guilt had been lifted at long last. He looked behind him in the Class 2 ranks and saw Daiki and Kei standing not so far away. Daiki flashed him a grin of encouragement, while Kei gave him a thumbs up.
Just as Kei was about to let his arm drop to his side again, he heard a voice say, “He’s come a long way, hasn’t he?”
Kei whirled around to see Kota standing beside him. “K-Kota Yabu?” he stuttered in his astonishment, much to his embarrassment.
“Yeah, it’s me. Surprised?” asked the tall Class 3 member, his eyes twinkling jokingly.
Kei looked back towards the front, trying to both hide his flushed face and to seem nonchalant at the same time. “Yeah, kind of. You don’t usually speak to me voluntarily, Kota.”
“Well, I didn’t used to associate with second years before,” replied Kota simply.
“Then,” said Kei quietly, “I guess Keito’s not the only one to have come a long way.” He looked back at the Class 3 member with a wry smile on his face. “Wouldn’t you agree?”
Kota laughed openly. “Yeah, I guess, when you put it that way!” He held out a hand towards Kei. “Ready for a good fight, Mr. Smarty pants?”
Kei took the other’s warm hand in his and shook it. “More than you would know,” he answered spiritedly.
As Kei and Kota shook hands, they looked out across the field just in time to see the Showa flag bearer wave a signal. Yuya saw the signal, turned back toward his schoolmates, and shouted, “Okay! You all know what that means!” He looked toward Keito, who nodded and repeated the signal with the Heisei flag.
“For all the classes of Heisei! LET’S GO!”
With Yuya’s last cry, the ranks of Heisei students charged forward toward the middle of the battlefield, their feet pounding loudly against the now packed earth. Across the field, the Showa mob was doing the same. As both forces drew closer and closer together with the leaders at the forefront, Keito noticed that the opposition’s faces slowly came into focus. But, by that time, Keito was past the point of caring. Only the battle fervor drove him on. Without looking to either side for his friends - for surely, they were right there with him - Keito drew back his fist.
As body clashed against body, only determination and the strength of their bonds could tell who would be left standing at the end.
Epilogue : The Era of Heisei
Three years later…
A boy, young and impressionable, walks down the street that runs past Heisei Gakuen. His hair is black and in a boyish cut, his cheeks still retaining some remnants of baby fat that sometimes makes his face look like it belonged on a cute animal rather than on a human boy. Shivering in the breeze that was a little too strong for April, he pulled the school bag that he had flung over his shoulder closer to his body.
As he made his way toward the gateway of Heisei Gakuen on that first day of school, the boy couldn’t help but gaze upon the school’s brass nameplate reverently.
Heisei Gakuen.
This was where it had all started, where three contentious classes had finally put aside their differences and banded together, forming bonds of everlasting friendship. This was where the three classes’ struggles culminated into an almighty battle, defeating their rival school and putting a long-standing enmity to rest. This was where the giants walked.
And what giants they were, the leaders of Heisei Gakuen from three years past. Those names still resonated within the halls through the peace they had forged with their enduring spirit long after their graduation: Yuya Takaki, Kota Yabu, Hikaru Yaotome, Yuto Nakajima, Daiki Arioka, Kei Inoo, Keito Okamoto, Ryosuke Yamada, Yuri Chinen, and Ryutaro Morimoto, each as important to the cause as the other.
At the mention of the last name in the series, the boy smiled to himself, anticipation shining in his eyes. Today would be the day when he would follow in his brother’s footsteps and walk through those famed halls. Today, he would officially become a student of Heisei Gakuen.
As Shintaro Morimoto strode through the gates, pushing open the main doors to Heisei Gakuen and stepping onto the premises, he straightened the suit jacket of his navy school uniform.
Time to step into a new era. The era of Heisei.
I really hope everyone has enjoyed reading it as much as I've enjoyed writing it!
Chapter 20 : Our Bond
The night air felt crisp as it swept past Yuya Takaki, Kota Yabu, and Hikaru Yaotome as they walked along a bridge that final Monday night before the battle. As the three Class 3 members slowly meandered their way home, the cars whizzed past them on the bridge at what seemed to them to be at improbable speeds, their headlights creating a flickering lights show on the churning waters below. However, the Class 3 members were uninterested in the lights show at the moment. Their only thoughts were of being in each other’s company and enjoying it for as long as it lasted.
As the three boys reached the middle of the bridge, Kota felt his foot come into contact with something solid on the ground, and the motion sent the shining object spinning a short distance away. Bending down from his considerable height, the lanky Class 3 member picked up the shining object, only to find that it was a 100 yen coin. Sighing gently to himself, Kota straightened again and walked over to the railing of the bridge with the coin in hand. He placed his forearms on the railing and leaned on them, staring over at the waters below with a contemplative expression on his face. The other two Class 3 members looked at him questioningly, wondering why Kota had stopped so suddenly, but he refused to look back at them.
Finally, after a long silence, Kota spoke, his voice heavy with emotion, “Guys, about the battle tomorrow, you know that we might not all make it back alive?”
“Well,” Hikaru stated, “it’s a battle. There will be casualties, even in our class.”
Kota closed his eyes and sighed, saying, “That’s not what I meant! I meant that among the three of us, not all of us might be able to make it back.”
“What are you saying, Kota?” asked Yuya softly.
“I’m saying that we’re the three strongest fighters of the school,” replied Kota bitterly. “And because of that, it is more likely that they’re going to target the three of us specially.” He looked at his two best friends. “We may be good, but we’re not good enough to face down an entire school alone, if they throw their entire strength at us.”
The others looked back at him, silent, their faces roiling with unspoken thoughts. When neither of them made a move to respond, Kota drew back his arm and flung the coin as far as he could off the bridge, his face twisting into an expression of anguish and frustration.
“I just can’t do this!” shouted Kota, his voice filled with agony. “I can’t stand the thought of losing either of you! You two have been my best friends all this time.” He buried his face in his folded forearms, his voice barely above a mumble, “I can’t imagine what it’d be like if I couldn’t see you guys again after this is all over.”
Yuya walked over to Kota, leaning down to put his arm around his distraught friend’s shoulders. “Kota,” he murmured gently, “when we set this battle, we were all aware of the possible consequences. None of us walked away from that decision thinking that Showa would go easy on us or that we would all make our way through it safe and sound.
“I’m in no way saying that I’m okay with losing either of you or with seeing either of you seriously injured again.” Yuya looked pointedly at Hikaru, who returned his look with a steady gaze of his own. “However, I will say this. This is our very last year, here, at Heisei Gakuen. After this semester, we graduate and go on to live our lives in the real world, the world out there. Don’t you want to make this last year count?”
“Yes, but -”
“Don’t you want to go out with a bang? Leave a lasting impression?”
“Sure, but -”
“But, what?”
Kota whirled around, grabbing Yuya by the shoulders and shaking him while shouting, “But I would be able to say what I wanted to say if you would just let me!” He glared at Yuya, his expression ferocious, as the words spilled out of his mouth in a rush. Yuya looked back at him with a surprised look on his face, seemingly taken aback by Kota’s sudden outburst.
After a moment of stunned silence, the tension broke and both members of Class 3 erupted in uproarious laughter, their shoulders shaking in their mirth. Hikaru looked from one friend to the other confusedly, then shrugged and started laughing with them; the others’ exhilaration was just too contagious. The three boys were simply glad to be alive and in each other’s company, laughing away their cares.
As the three Class 3 members left the bridge, Kota grimaced as he realized that he had never properly conveyed what he had meant to say. However, as he looked over at his friends’ cheerful faces, he smiled inwardly. Nah, they don’t need to be bothered by that now, he thought. Not when they’ve temporarily forgotten all those troubles that had been weighing them down all this time.
Kota shook his head slightly, put his thoughts behind him, and walked on with Yuya and Hikaru, content that it had been a Monday night well-spent with his two best friends.
* * *
The day of the final battle dawned bright and early for Yuto Nakajima. He had woken with a start an hour before his alarm, his limbs jittery from nerves. Today was the day that would really count. Today, Heisei Gakuen’s future would be decided.
Fumbling with his navy blue uniform, Yuto dressed himself carelessly while one hand tried to wipe the sleep from his eyes. As he staggered from one end of his room to the other, gathering the materials he needed for the day’s lessons, his mind was abuzz with thoughts of the upcoming conflict. Would they be ultimately successful? He hoped that they would.
Yuto came to an abrupt stop as he crossed in front of a mirror hanging in his room. Staring intently at his reflection, he saw a boy, tall, with frank-looking features and his short, black hair in a mess, one hand still clutching his school bag with an iron grip. Yuto laughed wryly to himself. So, this was the leader of Heisei Gakuen’s Class 2. Not very impressive, is he? he thought as he ran his fingers through his hair in an effort to make it orderly. Yuto dropped his school bag on the floor next to him and straightened the suit jacket of his Heisei uniform. Now, that’s more like it.
When Yuto arrived at school, the day seemed to be stuck on fast forward. He could barely remember telling the class to stand and bow for Mr. Yamamoto before the last bell rang, signaling the end of class. As the students gathered their belongings, shooting furtive glances of anxious excitement for what was to come, Yuto could barely keep himself under control. The whole thing just felt so surreal, like it wasn’t even really happening.
He felt a hand rest on his shoulder, and Yuto looked up to see a grim-looking Daiki staring back at him. “Are you ready for this?” asked his friend, his tone the most serious Yuto had yet heard him.
Yuto laughed with more confidence than he actually felt. “Of course I am! I was born ready!” he exclaimed, his declaration earning scattered cheers from his classmates. However, Daiki’s look of worry did not seem alleviated in the slightest.
Kei stood up from his seat, his school bag already flung over his shoulder. “Well, that makes one of us,” he said, his expression inscrutable.
As Kei walked away to join the students filing their way out of the classroom, Keito joined Yuto and Daiki, his face wary. “So, it’s finally happening, isn’t it?” he asked, his voice low.
“Yeah,” answered Yuto, “though I can hardly believe it.”
Daiki gestured at Kei’s retreating back. “Guys, we probably should go now. Everyone’s leaving to gather in the school yard. We’ll probably leave Heisei Gakuen with the other classes soon,” he said urgently. Yuto and Keito nodded and followed Daiki, who joined Kei at the back of the line.
When Kei noticed Daiki’s presence, he smiled softly and slung his arm around Daiki’s shoulders, glad of the companionship. Yuto felt a bittersweet smile of his own steal across his face as he watched his two normally quarrelling friends support each other during such troubling times. Then again, it’s probably this conflict itself that’s brought them together, he thought wistfully.
When Class 2 arrived at the school yard, Yuto was unsurprised to see that the other two classes had already assembled in a massive group facing the Heisei flag at the center. Yuya was standing directly under the flag with Ryosuke at his side. Once he noticed Yuto’s arrival, the Class 3 leader nodded curtly to him, and Yuto moved to stand on his other side.
The atmosphere at the school yard was intense. All of the students were milling around restlessly as if they were unsure if they wanted to stay or go. Some of the students were engrossed in awkward conversation, while others kept stolidly silent. However, it was to Yuto’s satisfaction when he realized that the students no longer kept to class boundaries. Instead, the members of each class were interacting with each other for the most part, seemingly uninterested in possible age differences or friend groupings. They’ve realized that we’re all in this together, thought Yuto admiringly.
Daiki looked to his side and was surprised to find himself standing next to Yuri Chinen. The cute Class 1 boy looked up at him and smiled brightly, his face betraying no signs of nervousness. Seeing this, the Class 2 boy remarked, “You sure are cheery, Yuri. Are you always this happy?”
Yuri’s smile faded by a couple degrees. “No, not always,” he replied softly. “However, sometimes, it’s better to let others believe that I am.” The smaller boy placed a hand on Daiki’s arm as if he was confiding a secret in him.
“Oh, so it’s like a morale-type thing,” mused Daiki.
Yuri’s face became thoughtful. “Well, I suppose so,” he said slowly. Then, his expression changed to one of outright deviousness. “Though, usually, I like to trick people into thinking I’m some cute, harmless little boy before I STRIKE!” He laughed, and Daiki could only compare it to a laugh that was somewhere between absolute adorableness and pure evil. “It just makes things so much more fun!”
Daiki joined in his laughter awkwardly as he tried not to show how freaked out he really was by the small Class 1 boy’s mischievous side. But thankfully, Daiki was saved from more possible awkwardness because it was at this moment that Yuya decided to make a speech.
“Heisei Gakuen!” Yuya shouted, his deep voice easily carrying through the entire school yard. “Today is the day where all our fates will be decided! In a moment, we will go on to fight Showa Gakuen for a final peace between our two schools. Although it might seem contradictory to fight for peace, this final battle is absolutely necessary. If we don’t stand up for ourselves now, we will be forever subservient to the whims of Showa’s bullying and harassment! So far, they have cruelly injured many of your classmates and vandalized our school! They have spit on the honorable name that is Heisei! And for what? For a trivial flag that we have rightfully given back to them with our full apologies!
“A better school would have understood the circumstances under which the flag stealing occurred and accepted our apology. A better school would not have stooped so low as to ambush our students with numbers many, many times greater than those attacked.
“But -” At this, Yuya smirked, which snickers arose from the crowd of Heisei students. “-this is Showa that we’re talking about here. Rather than sinking to their level, we must use this opportunity to show Showa that we are the better school. We don’t need to resort to those types of base acts to prove our strength. Instead, we are taking them head on with honor and dignity by our side!
“That’s why we can proceed fearlessly. Our determination gives us our drive and our bonds give us our strength! As long as we stick together until the end and are prepared to give ourselves completely to our greater cause, we can’t lose! Our very act of coming together to save our school is a victory in itself!
“And ultimately, we are able to do this because we are HEISEI GAKUEN! LET’S GO!”
With this last yell, Yuya surged forward, only looking back to signal to Yuto with his eyes to grab the Heisei flag. The other students gave a battle roar and followed behind the Class 3 leader, pumped up by Yuya’s speech. Yuto ran to the flagpole and lowered the flag, quickly removing it from its fastenings before the wind could carry it away. As he turned to head out with the others, Yuto caught Keito’s eye. The leader of Class 2 rushed over to where Keito was and held out the hand holding the flag.
“Keito,” Yuto said, “I feel that it really should be you holding this.” When Keito looked back at him in shock, Yuto continued, “For our school.”
Keito accepted the flag reverently, holding it as if it might suddenly break or slip through his fingers. It seemed that not so long ago, he had held quite a different flag in his hands. This time, things will be different, Keito thought as his hands closed around the fabric firmly.
With a look of purpose on his face, Keito brought the Heisei flag up in the air above his head, letting the flag stream proudly behind him in the wind. He gave a battle cry of his own and ran with the others, Yuto, Daiki, and Kei following closely behind him.
It was not long after that when the Heisei students reached the designated battleground, a large field located at the outskirts of their town. The leaders of Heisei and Akihiro Kuroda had decided on waging the final battle at this field because it was surrounded by rolling hills on two sides, and so the fighting would be contained and shaded from the sight of the town’s other inhabitants and its police.
As the Heisei students started to form ranks behind each class’s leader on top of one of the hills, Keito, still holding the Heisei flag high in the air, looked across the expanse and saw Showa also start to gather. He shivered a little as the wind swept past him. The Showa students were so far away that Keito couldn’t make out each individual face. Instead, each person seemed featureless and all the same. We must seem the same to them, Keito thought uneasily. We’ve become a large, faceless monster for them to vanquish. Because that’s what war does - it dehumanizes people.
Keito looked to his right and was instantly comforted by a warm smile from Yuto. His class leader put a hand on Keito’s shoulder, and said, “No regrets, now. I’m glad that you transferred to Heisei.”
“But, Yuto, I caused all this trouble!” protested Keito, the shame still apparent on his face.
Yuto shook his head, still smiling warmly. “No, Keito. You’ve brought us all together. We couldn’t have done it without you.”
Keito felt an overwhelmingly feeling of happiness spreading through his chest. No longer did he feel like the one pulling the rest of Heisei down. In fact, he might have even been proven useful! The guilt had been lifted at long last. He looked behind him in the Class 2 ranks and saw Daiki and Kei standing not so far away. Daiki flashed him a grin of encouragement, while Kei gave him a thumbs up.
Just as Kei was about to let his arm drop to his side again, he heard a voice say, “He’s come a long way, hasn’t he?”
Kei whirled around to see Kota standing beside him. “K-Kota Yabu?” he stuttered in his astonishment, much to his embarrassment.
“Yeah, it’s me. Surprised?” asked the tall Class 3 member, his eyes twinkling jokingly.
Kei looked back towards the front, trying to both hide his flushed face and to seem nonchalant at the same time. “Yeah, kind of. You don’t usually speak to me voluntarily, Kota.”
“Well, I didn’t used to associate with second years before,” replied Kota simply.
“Then,” said Kei quietly, “I guess Keito’s not the only one to have come a long way.” He looked back at the Class 3 member with a wry smile on his face. “Wouldn’t you agree?”
Kota laughed openly. “Yeah, I guess, when you put it that way!” He held out a hand towards Kei. “Ready for a good fight, Mr. Smarty pants?”
Kei took the other’s warm hand in his and shook it. “More than you would know,” he answered spiritedly.
As Kei and Kota shook hands, they looked out across the field just in time to see the Showa flag bearer wave a signal. Yuya saw the signal, turned back toward his schoolmates, and shouted, “Okay! You all know what that means!” He looked toward Keito, who nodded and repeated the signal with the Heisei flag.
“For all the classes of Heisei! LET’S GO!”
With Yuya’s last cry, the ranks of Heisei students charged forward toward the middle of the battlefield, their feet pounding loudly against the now packed earth. Across the field, the Showa mob was doing the same. As both forces drew closer and closer together with the leaders at the forefront, Keito noticed that the opposition’s faces slowly came into focus. But, by that time, Keito was past the point of caring. Only the battle fervor drove him on. Without looking to either side for his friends - for surely, they were right there with him - Keito drew back his fist.
As body clashed against body, only determination and the strength of their bonds could tell who would be left standing at the end.
Epilogue : The Era of Heisei
Three years later…
A boy, young and impressionable, walks down the street that runs past Heisei Gakuen. His hair is black and in a boyish cut, his cheeks still retaining some remnants of baby fat that sometimes makes his face look like it belonged on a cute animal rather than on a human boy. Shivering in the breeze that was a little too strong for April, he pulled the school bag that he had flung over his shoulder closer to his body.
As he made his way toward the gateway of Heisei Gakuen on that first day of school, the boy couldn’t help but gaze upon the school’s brass nameplate reverently.
Heisei Gakuen.
This was where it had all started, where three contentious classes had finally put aside their differences and banded together, forming bonds of everlasting friendship. This was where the three classes’ struggles culminated into an almighty battle, defeating their rival school and putting a long-standing enmity to rest. This was where the giants walked.
And what giants they were, the leaders of Heisei Gakuen from three years past. Those names still resonated within the halls through the peace they had forged with their enduring spirit long after their graduation: Yuya Takaki, Kota Yabu, Hikaru Yaotome, Yuto Nakajima, Daiki Arioka, Kei Inoo, Keito Okamoto, Ryosuke Yamada, Yuri Chinen, and Ryutaro Morimoto, each as important to the cause as the other.
At the mention of the last name in the series, the boy smiled to himself, anticipation shining in his eyes. Today would be the day when he would follow in his brother’s footsteps and walk through those famed halls. Today, he would officially become a student of Heisei Gakuen.
As Shintaro Morimoto strode through the gates, pushing open the main doors to Heisei Gakuen and stepping onto the premises, he straightened the suit jacket of his navy school uniform.
Time to step into a new era. The era of Heisei.