Bullet 6: Shino Sasaki Part 2

　At the end of school, Akari was not asked by Aria to help her at all, and she did not have the money to go out and have fun, and so she instead left the classroom with no particular plans to do anything.

　Then,

“– Thank you Akari for your hard work today, let’s walk home together.”

　With a voice as gentle as the sound of wind chimes in a slight breeze, Shino called out to Akari with a bright smile.

　Shino appeared to be just passing through the hallway on her way from the bathroom, but in reality she was ambushing Akari as she was leaving the classroom.

　But Akari, who naturally is not a cautious girl, does not notice this…

“Sure!”

　Akari nods with an innocent smile, just like a little girl.

　And so Akari walks around, chatting with Shino until they get to the school gate…

　The whole time, Akari’s conversation centred on her proud War Sister, Aria.

　Akari, who had no idea that the topic of their conversation was creating a black cloud in Shino’s mind kept talking about Aria, while Shino kept her smile firmly in place. But to Shino though, Akari innocently talking about Aria like this was tantamount to flirting.

“Aria-senpai is out right now because she is busy.”

　Akari sighed as she was updating Shino on everything related to Aria…

　Shino on the inside had an elated expression as she thought “This is a Godsend!”.

“In that case why don’t you come over to my house? I can treat you to dinner.”

　Shino proposed this to Akari.

　And Akari,

“–Are you sure? Yay Yay! It is my first time going to Shino-chan’s house, I am so excited!”

　Akari answered without any doubt.

　Akari was so happy and excited that…

　She almost collided with a butei who resembled a pessimistic office worker.

　In the paper bag held by the boy, the contents now on the ground after he dropped the bag, were some games, “White and Black”, “The Tale of White Clover”, and “My Goth!”, which appeared to be some bishojo games.

　The boy put everything back into the bag as if them being seen was embarrassing, and he quickly fled the place.

　　§　　　§

　Akari went to the Sasaki household in Shirokanedai, Minato-Ku, in Tokyo, and…

“A-, Amazing…! It is just like a castle!”

　”Woooooooah”, Akari said, her mouth open wide.

　Akari was so unbelievably excited to visit a white-walled castle mansion like one might see in a shojo manga that all she could say was “Amazing! Amazing!” as she jumped around like a kangaroo.

　That gesture…

(Cu-, Cute…! I should have brought my digital camera!)

　Shino moans and secretly begins taking pictures with her cellphone of Akari jumping around excitedly.

　Shino took Akari’s hand and walked together into the entrance hall.

“Welcome home.”

　As usual, Shino’s twin maids greeted her.

“wooooah, there is a maid.”

　It was the first time that Akari has seen a real maid, and she was surprised.

“!”

“!”

　And the maids were equally surprised to see Akari.

　The maids look at Shino, and then Akari, and then Shino, and then…

“– The young master has a friend!”

“– The young master has never brought a friend over before!”

　The maids are obviously happy, as they are looking at each other, crackings jokes, and whispering to each other as they do sometimes.

　Shino, not wanting Akari to learn about this, coughed once, which silenced the maid.

“Akari-chan, I know you are not home right now, but please leave your gun with the maids while you are here.”

　First, Shino told this to Akari with a calm expression on her face.

　Akari, still in awe at the glamorous hall, had no idea that this was the first stage of Shino’s plan.

“Okay!”

　She handed over her micro UZI as requested.

　Akari’s bare thighs, now even more visible with the leg holster removed.

“…”

　Shino smiled wryly and stole a sideways glance.

　Even while she was in the dining room, Akari’s eyes sparkle at all the gold and silver ornaments. To Shino, who has been accustomed to seeing such things since her childhood, it is mere furniture, but to Akari, it was a pirates treasure. Akari’s reaction was mesmerizing to Shino.

　The girls took their seats at the table, and soon the maids were bringing them their dinner on brass trolleys.

　The main dish was filet steak with herbs. Shino, though, was worried about whether it would suit Akari’s palate though…

“Yummy-…!”

　Shino put her hand on her chest and sighed in relief as Akari ate it with great delight.

“Shino, you can eat these leaves too, right?”

　Apparently not used to seeing herbs in her meals, Akari picked up a thin yellow-green leaf, confused.

“Yes. Young caraway leaves take the smell out of meat. They are part of the parsley family, so they are safe to eat.”

　Akari, in response to shino had to explain something so obvious,

“Really?”

　Akari was impressed.

　(Akari is so cute that she seems so much younger than me, even though we are the same age…) Pleased by her cute reaction, Shino also points to a small leaf on the ice cream that was served for dessert.

“Lemon balm has a calming and cardiotonic properties. Chew one before a battle to unleash your full strength.”

“–Shino, you know so much! There’s always one girl in every group of girls who knows a lot about herbs and stuff, and it is you!”

　Akari is in a good mood and praising Shino for the feast that was unlike anything she has seen before.

　(I am so happy.)

　(Now Akari is not talking about Aria, but she is talking about me.)

　(She is praising me. Akari is praising me, not Aria.)

“That… that is too much to say…”

　Happy. Shino is so happy that her face is quickly turning red.

　Shino had to face slightly down towards the floor so as to not be noticed, and began gripping the knife to put away her uncontrollably feelings for Akari…

　Carefully cut the meat alone a straight line.

(… oooooh, I like her, no I really like her, ahhhhh I love her…!)

　Continue cutting until the the steak has been cut into such thin slices that you can see right through it.

　After dinner, Akari and Shino were walking in the English Garden style garden at the back of the mansion.

　There are almost no tall buildings around the Sasaki residence, giving it a spacious and open feeling.

　The garden, now completely dark, is illuminated beautifully by an electric light that was modelled after the old-fashioned gas lamp.

　Shino walked beside Akari under the light.

“Sorry for making you walk with me at night. I really waned to take a little walk after dinner…”

　(I will just make up the reason I lured you out here as I go along.)

“It is amazing that you have a garden big enough that you can walk in it!”

　Akari, however, does not seem suspicious and ir instead rather pleased.

　With a face that clearly conveyed how glad she was to be here, she looked at the illuminated, well-maintained rose garden.

(…)

　When Shino checked her watch, the time was just a little before 7:45.

　(It is about time.)

　Perhaps in response to Shino’s thought, a cold wind blew into the garden.

“Ah… it is getting a little cold. Shall we go back?”

　While rubbing her arms, Akari chuckles and grabs the know of the garden gate that leads back into the mansion.

　But… gacha.

“Huh?”

　The door will not open.

“Shino-chan. The gate is locked…”

　(exactly.)

“…”

　(Naturally the door is locked. I have the key.)

“… Shino-chan?”

　Shino doesn’t answer as Akari looks at her, confused.

Instead, Shino turned her back to Akari and reached for the herbs growing in the garden.

　(Lemon balm, chewing one will let me use my all.)

“Akari, have you ever heard of the Three-Day Dissolution Rule?”

　Shino asks this, as she tears off one of the lemon balm leaves.

　(Of course she won’t know.)

　(This is a supplementary provision of the Amica system.)

　It was a clause that Shino found in the corner of the very detailed Amica contract, and the clause itself is not well known.

　Tilting her head, Akari had a “?” face that clearly conveyed she does not know what Shino is talking about.

“The rules of the contract between two sisters states that if the younger sister loses a fight within 72 hours of signing the contract, the contract will be terminated. This is because the older sister could not protect their younger sister. Also, if this happens, the sisters cannot re-sign the contract.”

　Shino informs Akari about this clause while sucking on a lemon balm leaf.

　… this statement was kind of a preamble to a unilateral declaration of war.

“heeeh…. I did not know that there was such a clause. Let’s see, the contract was approved by Masters three nights ago at 8:00 p.m., and it is right now 7:45 p.m. now, so… only 15 minutes to go.”

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　Akari looks at the clock in the garden.

　The time is still, albeit just barely, within the time frame of the “Three-Day Dissolution Rule” that Shino was talking about.

“Yes… you don’t want to cancel the contract as you want to be a War Sister with Aria-senpai, right? Twenty girls have already been turned down by Aria, and the school rules do not allow them to reapply, so you don’t have to worry about being attacked by someone who wants to be Aria-senpai’s War Sister… right?”

　Perhaps trying to reassure the worried Akari, Shino smiled at her.

　Shino turned her back on that lovely face…

“Not everyone is aiming to be Aria-senpai’s Amica.”

　Shino muttered a few words.

　And then…

“… Akari-chan, your bladeproof uniform isn’t loose, is it?”

　This time, the question came from a voice clearly audible, despite being partially hidden by the hedge from the rose garden…

　With a rustle, Shino pulled out what she had previously hidden there.

　–Saber.

　However, only the exterior of the sword is a Western-style sword, while the blade is a Japanese sword made by a sword smith in Seki. It is a military sword unique to Japan.

　Its blade is not a cast blade like most swords in the world, but a forged one.

　There is no blade that can match its unbreaking, unbending strength, or in other words, its raw killing power.

　(First, I need to check over Akari’s entire body… the sailor uniform of Butei High is not just bullet proof but blade proof too.”

　(But if the uniform is loose, an accident could happen.)

“Shino… chan?”

　In front of Akari’s perplexed eyes, Shino is…

　She pulled out the metal scabbard decorated with engravings and dumped the sheath under her feet.

　A white blade gleams in the electric light in the garden.

　And…

“… Akari-chan. Leave Aria.”

　While looking Akai squarely in the eye, Shino declared war.

　Shino’s black hair sways in the spring night breeze against the roses and the moon.

　And…

“…..!?”

　Without a word, the tip of the sabre was pointed at the terribly surprised Akari.

　　§　　　§

　Apartment 202 at Heights Kachidoki…

　Nonoka was waiting for a text message from her sister.

(I can’t believe you haven’t responded to my dinner email…)

　Nonoka received a text message in the evening that Akari was going to have dinner at a friends, Shino’s, house… but for a petite girl, Akari had a huge appetite, and was able to eat as much as she wants to in a day, so she was sure to eat a meal that Nonoka had prepared earlier that day.

　With that in mind, Nonoka had emailed the menu to Akari but… she still had not received a email back.

　Nonoka’s anxiety only grew at the absence of a reply from Akari, who was quick to respond to anything regarding food.

(Could it be…)

　… a painful memory from two years ago comes to mind.

　A town was on fire.

　It was a hell filled with death.

　If disaster had befallen Akari now as it did back then…

　(No, nothing like that should ever happen again. I am sure of it.)

　(It wont ever happen again because we are all living apart, in secret.)

　But still. Fear was eating at Nonoka’s heart.

(Big sis…)

　　§　　　§

　Shino’s mood has changed drastically…

“Shino… what are you talking about…?”

　Akari didn’t understand.

　No, Akari did understand. Shino declared it loudly, “Leave Aria”, there was only one way to interpret it.

　Shino…

　(Shino doesn’t like that I am a Amica…)

　(Ever since me and Aria became Amica’s…)

　(I don’t know why, but she is trying to break us up…)

　(I know one thing for sure though.)

　(I don’t want to fight Shino, she is my friend.)

　(But…)

“To force the dissolution of a War Sisters agreement, one of them must be defeated in a private fight with 72 hours… That is a school rule!”

　As soon as she finishes saying that, Da!, Shino rapidly closed all the remaining distance at once.

“…!”

　Akari ducked from Shino by rolling out of the way, with Shino’s sabre cleaving the space where her upper body used to be, swinging fast enough to make a sound.

　The sword sliced through the rose hedge like it was paper, petals sent flying into the air.

　As crimson petals flew on the wind between the two girls…

“…yaaa!”

　The sword continued to be swung at Akari.

　The second swing, which drew a V-shape like a swallow changing direction…

　Akari avoided it with nimble movements.

　Akari backsteps out of the blades killing zone and back rolled to keep her distance from Shino.

(….!)

　Akari quickly dodged on the spur of the moment, using moves that her mother taught her as a child that she hid from ever doing in public.

　(I have to escape from here!)

　Because, right now, Akari is not prepared to fight.

　She does not want to fight, to kill Shino.

　Akari does not know why Shino wants to dissolve the contract between herself and Aria, nor does she know what Shino’s true intentions are.

　If Akari fights in a unsure state, she wont be able to fight to the best of her abilities. Her sealed abilities will be even weaker. Her fighting abilities will be weaker than what Shino already thinks it is, and if that is true… even though Shino does not plan on killing her, the risk is that much higher.

　Akari landed on the ground as if she was crouching down in her blade-proof uniform…

“…!”

　Her tie fastener came off with a snap.

　Shino’s blade had managed to hit Akari’s uniform, even though Akari ducked.

　There are two types of sailor uniforms at Butei High: The older type, in which the collar and tie are integrated, and the newer type, such as the one that Akari is wearing, in which the two pieces are seperate.

　The fabric itself used in the new uniform is bulletproof and stab-proof, but the threads and the hooks used to put it all together is not.

　Shino had just precisely targeted that hook, using the tip of her sabre.

　The double layered parts though, such as the collar and tie of this sailor suit, are particularly protected though.

　(Shino probably intends to attack the threads and hooks to limit the protective potential of the uniform.)

　As if to prove Akari’s thoughts,

“I’m sorry. Even if you are wearing a stab-proof uniform, I might end up breaking a few bones… but I will be thre to nurse you back to health, okay?”

　Muttering this, Shino turned around, sabre still in hand.

　Her face…

　She was laughing, with a strange passion in her voice, her smile saying “I will get you”.

(Shino… something is wrong with her…!)

　(Shino’s mind, which had been incomprehensible to me for a while now, has only become more incomprehensible since I came here…)

　Akari pulled out her Uzi Heavy Defender from her blouse, with fear evident on her face.

　Akari grabbed it, not to attack Shino with but to defend herself, and ran towards the centre of the garden, where the fountain was located.

　But Shino, who naturally knew the garden paths better than Akari,

“Akari, you moved so quickly just now. You were like a swallow.”

　She walked towards Akari with ease and appeared from the front with the sabre still in her hand.

“… but I can kill even a swallow.”

　That being said though, Shino was 5m away from Akari…

　She twisted her body and slid her sword in tandem with it.

　… she is ready.

　Her stance was easily recognizable, even to an amateur. It was an iai stance.

　But… this is different from the iai posture that Akari saw in the assault department’s instruction book.

　Shino’s body is in front of Shino and to the right, and her sabre is held lower left, but behind her back.

　Just before her stance, Shino had discarded her sheath.

　Iai was originally a sword drawing technique. The first blow is usually made from the state of natto.

　What makes this different from a regular iai is the distance.

　By all account, the distance between Shino and Akari is not within the range of attack by the sword.

　However.

　In an actual battlefield, someone who is “poised” means they are “ready to attack”, regardless of the distance.

(… this is dangerous!)

　An alarming sense of impending doom is running down Akari’s spine…!

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