It started with silence. Show the Sakuragi High School.
Ryuji sat alone on the rooftop of the school, staring at the skyline. The chaos of the past few days hadn't touched his expression—but the weight behind his eyes had deepened.
He heard footsteps.
He didn't turn, but he knew it was her.
Aika stepped forward, arms crossed. "You don't show up to class, disappear after school, and somehow still manage to piss off half the city. You're really good at making people talk."
"You already know who I am, right?"
He said nothing.
She sat beside him, surprisingly close.
"I talked to my father," she said.
That got his attention.
Ryuji turned, gaze sharp. "And?"
"He already knows everything about you and is watching you closely."
He said nothing for a long moment. Then: "And?"
There was a pause.
Then she asked, quieter, "What happened to your family, Ryuji?"
The question hung in the air like fog. He didn't answer. He couldn't—not yet.
Instead, Ryuji stood slowly, his shadow stretching long across the rooftop.
"When the time comes," he said quietly, "you'll understand everything."
Aika looked up at him, unsure if it was a promise or a warning.
He walked to the edge, eyes fixed on the horizon. The wind tugged at his jacket, and for a moment, he looked like someone standing between two worlds—one of blood, and one of dreams he could never have.
---
Closing Scene
Ryuji walked home alone, aware of every pair of eyes in the shadows.
He didn't flinch when a voice called out from an alley.
"You walk like someone who doesn't expect to die."
Ryuji stopped. Turned.
A boy—around his age—stepped out. Tall and blond. Confident. Dressed in black, with a silver chain around his wrist bearing an old crest.
"Name's Kaito," the stranger said. "I've got a message for the Black Vow."
Ryuji's eyes narrowed.
Kaito smiled. "They're coming for you. From the inside."