Hagakure Sakura Does Not Lament

Translated by LyraDhani

Edited by LyraDhani

Tsugumi, who had contacted Inaba, sat still in his chair with his hands folded in prayer and his eyes closed.

Azalea, on the other hand, was looking at the signboard spell with interest, and the girl in the room with them was asleep on the sofa, tired of crying.

The movie theater was currently closed by the police, and only staff and people related to the case were allowed to enter. The authority to investigate had already been transferred to the government, but the police were supposed to manage the place until the government personnel arrived.

…The police were very sarcastic about the fact that Tsugumi had contacted the government without permission, but when he showed them the pattern on the signboard, they agreed with him.

The police officer who saw the sign seemed to have no tolerance for such things, especially for witchcraft and looked very displeased. Apparently, just looking at it was enough to harm an ordinary person.

–Now that the government had acted, there was nothing more Tsugumi could do. The search for the kidnappers and the rescue of the captives would be well done by Magical Girls who specialized in that. …He had to believe so.

But still, how curious. –How could Azalea know at first glance that the pattern was from witchcraft?

After that, he looked as if he had just had an epiphany and smiled vaguely, saying, “Actually, I have a sixth sense,” as if to make up for it.

–This was purely speculation, but Tsugumi couldn’t help but think that Azalea had a secret. He had said that the purpose of his study abroad was to study, but he didn’t even know if that was true.

…However, Tsugumi believed that Azalea had nothing to do with this, at least in regard to this case. Azalea’s visit to this movie theater was coincidental, and it was hard to imagine that he was in cahoots with the kidnappers.

If Azalea was in cahoots with the kidnappers, he wouldn’t have gone to the trouble of mentioning the pattern, as he had done earlier, which would have aroused suspicion.

–Azalea might be more suspicious of Tsugumi, who was the one that quickly detected the signs of witchcraft on the billboard and had connections to the government. He supposed they were both in the same boat when it came to secrets.

“…Hmm?”

Tsugumi, who had been quietly waiting, looked up when he sensed a strange presence.

“…I’m going to go get some air.”

Tsugumi, who was about to go outside to check, said this, and Azalea stood up to follow.

“Oh, I’ll go with you.”

“Hm? Well, I don’t mind.”

Saying so, Tsugumi headed for the entrance and exit of the movie theater. The police officer who was preserving the scene stopped them on the way out, but they managed to get out, insisting that they needed some fresh air, as it was depressing to be indoors all the time. At that moment, the cool air was instantly replaced by a hot and humid day.

As he looked around, fed up with the heat, he saw a shadow on the ground approaching him with great speed. With a bad feeling, Tsugumi looked up at the sky and saw a red object moving as if it were weaving through the gaps between the buildings.

“…What’s that?”

–A red motorcycle was running in the sky. To be precise, it was running along the wall of a building, but that movement, which seemed to ignore the earth’s gravity, could already be described as flying.

The bike gradually lowered its altitude and eventually landed gently in front of Tsugumi. There were two people on the bike–both of them appeared to be women.

As Tsugumi watches the duo with a wary look, the woman behind the wheel suddenly removed her helmet. Her long crimson hair fell over her shoulders.

“It seems this is the movie theater. –Oh my, are you the child who called the police?”

Saying so, the most beautiful woman, Toono Sumire, smiled at Tsugumi.

◆ ◆ ◆

“Yes. This is the spell. –It’s very elaborate.”

Toono dismounted her bike and walked briskly into the movie theater, and as soon as she entered the staff room, she immediately stepped toward the signboard.

As Tsugumi followed as prompted, he looked at the person clinging to him – Suzushiro – while Toono examined the signboard on the side.

“Really, I can’t do it anymore. I’m going to die if I fall in that thing. It’s fast, it’s windy, and Sumire-chan won’t listen to me. …I’m sorry, Tsugumi-kun is the one who’s having a hard time, but I keep saying all these things.”

“It’s fine. –I’m a little relieved to know that Jukka is working on it.”

With a half-crying expression on her face, Suzushiro held the hem of Tsugumi’s clothes. …It was just after Toono got off the bike that Suzushiro got into this state.

Another person on the flying bike. That person wobbled off the bike and hugged Tsugumi with her helmet on.

“Wha, eh? Um, wait a minute.”

Not being able to push her away because he was with a woman, not to mention he was a man, Tsugumi gave Toono a troubled look with his hands wandering aimlessly. Then, Toono squinted her eyes as if she were looking at something amusing, and said something unexpected.

“Oh? Suzushiro-san, you are very passionate.”

“Su-Suzushiro? And why is Toono-san from Jukka in a place like this…?”

When Tsugumi said that, flustered, Toono opened her mouth with a smile.

“That’s because we’re part of a rescue team sent by the government. –Look, we don’t have time to stand around here and talk. Can you take me to the signboard?”

“Ah, yes. …Suzushiro, look, I don’t know what’s going on, but let’s go inside. It’s a little conspicuous here. Really.”

Even though the police had blocked off the street in front of the movie theater, it was not entirely deserted. People were starting to gather in front of the off-limits fence just because someone shouted that Toono was there, and if the world found out that a man was being held by Suzushiro, one of the Jukka, even though her face was hidden by her helmet, it would be a huge commotion.

Tsugumi, while guiding Suzushiro who was pushing her helmet against his face, walked into the movie theater. Then he turned to Azalea, who hadn’t moved at all since a few minutes ago, and raised a questioning voice.

“Azalea? What’s wrong?”

When Tsugumi called out to him, Azalea’s shoulders shook with a startled look.

“Nanase-kun, don’t you feel anything?”

“No, feeling what? It’s true that Toono-san is a messed up beauty, but come on, that’s not the point right now.”

–As he had thought at the Jukka gathering, Toono’s beauty was outstanding. The glossy red hair and fascinating appearance. In addition, even her body shape was proportioned as if she were the embodiment of a man’s ideal.

In Tsugumi’s case, it was almost like admiring an exquisite work of art, but he couldn’t help but admire it nonetheless.

The moment he said that, the hands around his waist tightened even more, but he’d leave that aside for now.

When Tsugumi said that, Azalea spat out with a pained look on his face.

“I see. That’s how she looks to Nanase… To me, she looked like a lump of flame in human form. It is so strong that it can consume everything. ….Sorry. That was a strange thing to say. I’ll be waiting in the lobby, so please go ahead of me, Nanase-kun. I need to cool down a little.”

“Ah, yeah. …It’s kind of tough being sensitive.”

Toono’s ability was certainly biased toward flames. The essence of this ability must have been seen by Azalea as the flame itself.

Although it was not clear to Tsugumi, Azalea, like Suzune, might have special abilities. He heard that there wasn’t much understanding of such abilities in other countries, and if that was the case, it made some sense why Azalea chose Japan as his study abroad destination.

With Azalea’s haggard appearance pulling back, Tsugumi took Suzushiro into the movie theater. They went straight to the staff room, accompanied by Toono, who was waiting at the entrance.

–And now.

Suzushiro, who had taken off her helmet, let out a sniff and revealed her fearful experience. …Indeed, clinging to the back of a bike as it traversed the wall might be a moderately hard experience for a girl.

As for Tsugumi, he felt a little bit romantic about the flying bike, but alas, he would probably never ride it. As long as Hagakure Sakura had the ability to transport, there was no need for a tool to get around. The government would not give him permission to use it just because he wanted to ride it.

“I see. I understand it now. The effect of this is to get rid of people and attract the right kind of people. Moreover, it probably used the caster’s blood. –This will get the job done quickly.”

Toono, who had been staring at the signboard, looked up and said something like that. Then, she placed the sign on the desk and gently held out her right hand above it.

The air in the room tensed up, and Tsugumi gulped from nervousness. He rubbed his arms, which were covered in goose bumps, and stared at Toono in awe.

–This is Amaterasu’s miko.

For Toono, her beautiful face and her strength as a Magical girl were nothing more than accessories. To her, being a miko of God was the most valuable thing.

“Circle, circle, the dragon’s truth. Trace, trace, trace the root’s edge. Now, let us bring down the sanctions on the fools who have trampled on this land.”

As Toono said this, the signboard shook by itself, and a black mist-like object appeared from the center of it. Toono gripped the black haze tightly and quietly opened her mouth.

“–Burn.”

With those words, a pillar of fire shot up from the sign. Tsugumi looked at Toono impatiently, but she put her hand into the flames with a nonchalant expression. Apparently, she didn’t feel the heat.

When the flames eventually subsided, Toono smiled calmly and turned to Tsugumi.

“The caster who was interfering with the search should no longer be able to move. The government must have located the kidnappers by now. Come on, Suzushiro-san, let’s get going.”

“Ugh, I understand.”

When Toono said so admonishingly, Suzushiro regretfully let go of Tsugumi’s clothes. …Apparently, she was going to ride that bike back home, too.

“But still, I wonder what that girl’s – Chidori-san’s contract God – is doing. It seems even the government can’t get in touch with him.”

Toono said with a melancholy sigh.

“Chidori said that God was out on an errand. He hasn’t been seen since this morning.”

When Tsugumi replied, Toono’s beautiful eyebrows furrowed and she opened her mouth with a disgusted look on her face.

“Is that so? …Really, he’s so useless at the critical moment.”

“Eh?”

“Ah, it’s fine. Don’t worry about it.”

With that said, Toono headed for the exit of the movie theater with Suzushiro in tow. In the middle of this, Toono said to Tsugumi as she remembered.

“Come to think of it, you and that foreign boy. I’d like you to take a cab to the government afterward with the girl who was sleeping in her room, and. Maybe within a few hours, we will be able to protect the victims, and then they will feel safer with their friends and family with them. The family of the other victim has been notified, and I would like you to follow the instructions when you get to the government.”

“Yes, I understand. I’ll let them know as well.”

When Tsugumi nodded, Suzushiro, who had been staring at him, ran up to him and squeezed his hand tightly. She looked at him with serious eyes and opened her mouth.

“Sumire-chan and I will definitely save Chidori-chan. Don’t worry.”

“Yeah. –Thank you.”

With a small smile in response to Suzushiro’s concern, Tsugumi thanked her.

–If these two moved, he was sure Chidori’s rescue would go well. Still, the uneasiness that lingered in the back of his mind would not go away, but he could endure it.

Watching Suzushiro leave with a wave of his hand, Tsugumi let out a small sigh. Now he had to wake up the sleeping girl and take Azalea to the government. It would take about an hour by car from here, but if the rescue was completed by then, he would get a call on his cell phone.

“…Chidori. Please be safe.”

Tsugumi muttered quietly and began to walk toward the lobby where Azalea was.