~Memories from the Beginning~

❓Chapter 72❓

"That should do it. I can't wait. Imagine how happy that brat's going to be when he finds out he's getting such a grand party in honor of his new-found freedom." Y/n said, setting something on a table and walking to one end of it.

It would be cute, I guess, with the balloons and streamers that hung around and the desserts that were sitting on the table. Again, it would be cute if it weren't for the fact that he stood in an abandoned building that has definitely seen better days, judging by the smudged walls and broken glass around.

"Y/n, you said you found out whos behind Arahabaki. Is that true? Or did you lie to torment Chuuya?" Randou spoke from the other side of the table as a shadow covered most of his figure.

"Both, of course. I said what I did in front of him so he'd take on the bet, but it's also true that I know who's behind it." Y/n replied.

"Oh? Who is it?" Randou looked at him, slightly rising his head.

"You, Mr.Randou." Y/n answered.

The man stared at him, blinking slowly.

"You impersonated the former boss and spread rumors about Arahabaki. Do you have anything to say?" Y/n asked, noting the man's silence.

"What's your reasoning?" Randou asked.

"You've made a mistake. A very basic mistake." Y/n said.

"And what mistake is that?" Randou questioned, intrigued by the boy's reasoning.

Y/n slowly looked up at him and slightly straightened his shoulders.

"The sea." He said as Randou's eyes slowly widened.

"You said this. When you saw Arahabaki and the black flames..."Just the sea, in the distance, basking gently in the moonlight. That alone is vivid in my memory." Y/n recited.

"I did say that. Because that's what I saw. What about it?" Randou questioned.

"Are you sure you want me to spoil it for you?" Y/n asked.

"Tell me." Randou said.

"It happened close to the center of Suribachi City, and Suribachi City is a hemispherical basin valley that was carved out by the explosion." Y/n said.

Randou's eyes widened even more as a wide grin appeared on his face.

"I see!" He said.

"Exactly. There's no way you would have seen the sea. If you were inside a giant depression roughly two kilometers wide, the sea would never be within sight, no matter how tall you stood. Why, then, did you say you saw the sea? You described Arahabaki with persuasiveness that was almost truthful. So how? It's because you did indeed see the sea. That's why you made the mistake. You could have only seen the sea from Suribachi City before it was made. Before the giant explosion eight years ago, at the end of the conflict." Y/n explained.

"You had a bet with Chuuya, didn't you? Have you won that bet then? You've beaten him to the man behind it all." Randou said.

Y/n let out a sigh as he heard a yell grow louder as if it were nearing them. As the two males looked at the windows on the ceiling, a familiar ginger broke through and knocked Randou into the other room with a kick.

"And now I've won the bet with the suicidal maniac. It was your doing, Randou. You aren't fooling me. I knew all along that you were lying." Chuuya said as the wind roughly blew around him.

"Okay, stop!" Y/n said, entering the room as Chuuya turned to him with a displeased expression.

"You! Why are you here?" The ginger exclaimed.