“DAMN IT, YOU HACHIMAN!”
A loud crash can be heard outside. Sakuta and Ichika exchange glances at each other before heading out to the balcony. Tears dribble in Ichika's eyes while Sakuta is utterly in disbelief.
Ichika yells, “ITSUKI!” Her voice echoes through the barren streets, enough to be heard by anyone. Hachiman, Itsuki, and Komachi hop out of the crashed van. They turn their heads around to where the source of the voice came from. Itsuki utters, “Ichika?” Sakuta then hurries out of the room as Ichika yells again, “JUST HOLD ON! SAKUTA IS GOING TO PICK YOU GUYS UP!”
Sakuta leads the three back to the room. The two sisters share each other hugs and weep for an hour. After their sentimental reunion, Ichika asks, “H-how are you guys alive?” Hachiman explains, “Before these things appeared, Komachi and I went out for dinner. Coincidentally, we met Itsuki in the same place. We then barricaded ourselves in the restaurant for God knows how long.”
Itsuki adds, “Later, we found a working van and drove across the city for help.” Sakuta asks, “Wait, you drive? So, you know where to equip more gas?” Itsuki nods, “We drove past several gas stations and found some supplies. We gathered enough to be carried in the van.”
Hachiman asks, “What about you two? What's your story?” Sakuta replies, “We've been stuck here for days on end.” Ichika adds, “Good thing you crashed in during this time of day. It could've been worse if it's during dark.” They begin to notice the younger one in deep silence.
Komachi is lowering her head, not uttering a single word. Ichika says, “Komachi-chan? Are you okay?” The younger one seems to be whispering something. Sakuta and Ichika furrow their eyebrows in confusion as they move over to hear her more clearly. She mumbles, “T-Tashi…”
Hachiman quickly embraces his younger sister to ease her up. Itsuki explains, “She saw one of her classmates named Taishi Kawasaki outside the restaurant—” Hachiman immediately glances at her, shaking his head as a way of signaling her not to continue. Itsuki didn't finish her sentence as she realized her mistake.
Sakuta and Ichika glance back at the younger one, who’s blankly staring at the floor, mumbling, “Th-they ate him…” As Hachiman tries to comfort his younger sister, Sakuta asks, “Have you tried reaching for the others?” Itsuki then pulls out a piece of paper, and spreads it open, revealing it to be the entire map of the city.
Itsuki says, “As I mentioned earlier, we've been driving across town. We found this map at one of the gas stations. These crosses are some places we've already explored. And these squares are the ones we have yet to explore.” Ichika asks, “So there's nothing?” Itsuki shakes her head in response and says, “Fortunately, we found you two back here. We could get the can fixed by tomorrow and start looking for others. Do we have enough stocks?” Sakuta replies, “We recently restocked.”
Itsuki sighs in relief. Sakuta chuckles, “Seeing you guys here makes me miss the others as well.” The youngest quintuplet glances at him in confusion. Sakuta adds, “It's good to have strong leadership such as yourself. I wonder how you do it.” Itsuki asks, “Do what?”
Sakuta says, “Remaining calm when everything is falling apart, making quick decisions even though you're under pressure, and still fighting even though we have no hope.” Itsuki smiles, “Someone has to be strong. That's what our mom reminds us when we're kids. Plus, who said there's no hope for us.” Both glance at Ichika and Hachiman who are comforting the traumatized Komachi.
Sakuta curls a smile and says, “You're right. At least, we have Hachiman to use a shield.”
===
“Futaba, are you okay?”
Kunimi quickly runs over to Futaba, who's forlornly following along. She gasps, “Don't worry about me, Kunimi. It’s just that… I haven't gotten any proper exercise before…” Without hesitation, Kunimi suddenly lifts her on his back and says, “We better get going. The sun is about to go down.” Futaba is taken aback by his sudden action, flustered. She accepts it anyway.
They eventually reach their barricaded shelter. Kunimi carefully puts Futaba down as he checks upon the barricades. After examining if everything is secured, he sees Futaba is already asleep on the makeshift bed. He creeps next to her and wraps her in a hug. He can feel her shivering from the cold as he tightens his grasp.
Futaba slightly opens her eyes and whispers, “K-kunimi, are we going to make it out of here alive?” He says with a reassuring tone, “Of course. By tomorrow, we'll look around for more food and our friends, too.”
Futaba snuggles a bit more, which surprises Kunimi. He smiles at her adorableness and kisses her on the forehead.
===
“All right! Try turning it on now!”
Hiratsuka starts the engine as the bus roars to life. Raiha cheers, “ANOTHER JOB WELL DONE, BIG BROTHER!” Fuutarou and Hiratsuka proudly smirk.
Fuutarou says, “Okay, we just have to cover everything with metal armor and get this thing running.” Hiratsuka pats him on the shoulder and smiles, “You did good, Uesugi-kun.” Fuutarou blushes, “W-well, it was all solid team effort.” Raiha suddenly brings themselves together and says, “YAY! SOLID TEAM EFFORT!” Fuutarou and Hiratsuka smile at the younger one's adorableness.
Raiha then asks, “So, big brother, where are we taking the bus? Are we going to find everyone?” Fuutarou replies, “Yeah. We have to make a couple of pit stops at some gas stations in search of others.” Hiratsuka sighs, “I could only hope they're doing fine.”
===
“MIKU! PLEASE WAKE UP!”
To be continued…
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Quintuplets of the Dead
FanfictionWhen an outbreak struck, our beloved Quints and MCs embarked on a journey of survival against all odds. Will they be able to make it alive with mere luck by their side?
