THE WORLD OF RUINS

CHAPTER IV

A few hours later... Yuseke limped beside Kenji through the ruined entry tunnel of the Outcast safehouse. His shirt was ripped down the middle, smeared in dirt and blood and his face looked like he'd gone head-to-head with a freight train and lost. Kenji didn't look much better. One eye was swollen shut, his knuckles were torn and his Beast Mode had left him drained to the bone.

"Yeah." Yuseke muttered, clutching his ribs. "First mission... and I got a serious ass-whooping."

Kenji coughed out a broken chuckle, holding his side. "Welcome to the Outcasts."

The security gate hissed open. They stepped into the briefing hall where the rest of the squad was lounging... Kokoro leaned on the back of a chair flipping through a book, Yumi was fiddling with some miniature drones, and Taiga was asleep with a protein bar in his mouth.

All eyes snapped to the two bruised figures and one with none staggering in.

"What the hell happened to you two?" Yumi's voice cut through first, rising in alarm.

Kenji dropped into a chair with a grunt, dragging his leg. "Got turned into crash test dummies."

Yuseke flopped down next to him, still catching his breath.

"Wait..." Yumi stood, furrowing her brows. "Did the dealer have security? Were you ambushed or...?"

Kokoro raised an eyebrow and leaned forward, scanning their injuries like a medic sizing up a terminal case.

"Judging by their limps." he said, "their swelling... and the way their souls look like they got stepped on... I'm guessing you didn't get him?"

"Yes." Yuseke answered, more firmly than anyone expected. His chest puffed a little, as if proud of it. "Sakura missed her shot and we hand to fight they guy and he was crazy."

Kokoro whistled softly. "Alright. It was nice knowing you guys."

That's when the doors slammed open. The atmosphere changed.

Taichiro walked in like a walking execution. His cloak fluttered behind him as if wind trailed his fury. His scarred face twisted in quiet rage as his eyes scanned the room and then locked on Sakura, Kenji and Yuseke.

"You three." His voice dropped low. "What did I say would happen to you if you failed this mission?"

The entire room straightened.

Yuseke stiffened. Kenji swallowed hard and Sakura just stared.

Taichiro stepped forward, each footstep echoing like a ticking bomb. He was going to blow and they could feel it. The pressure of his Essence alone felt heavier than any mountain.

Then...

The door behind him opened and the entire room shifted again. Everything stopped. Even Taichiro paused mid-step.

She walked in like a shadow wrapped in silk. Her posture was relaxed. Her aura? Anything but calm, coldand precise. She wore a dark tactical cloak, the collar lined with red silk. Her silver-white hair framed her face perfectly her eyes a soft violet, like lavender dusk but behind them… a storm.

Yuseke felt it immediately. He didn't know if it was her Essence, her presence or something deeper but it felt like standing in front of something the world itself respected. And yet, somehow… her beauty made you forget all of it. Her lips curved softly. Her walk smooth. Her body, hourglass-cut with the poise of a model and the deadliness of a killer.

She looked at the two wounded boys without judgment.

Then at the others. "You see your teammates injured..." she said, voice calm but razor-sharp, "and not one of you helps them?"

Yuseke's heart thumped.

Even Taichiro stepped back. Not in fear but respect.

Akira turned her gaze to Kokoro.

"Take Kenji and the new recruit to the medics." she said.

Kokoro didn't argue, he moved immediately, helping Kenji first, then offering Yuseke a shoulder.

As they passed Akira, Yuseke dared to glance up at her. And for a moment her eyes met his. She smiled faintly, and he couldn't tell if it was kindness or warning.

"Welcome to the Outcasts." she said softly.

Yuseke nodded, blood still dripping from his chin. "Glad to be here... I think."

They exited toward the medbay, silence trailing behind them.

The next morning, light in the Outcasts' facility bled softly through the arched windows of the war room. It was quiet for a group of Wielders, usually someone would be sparring, tinkering or arguing. But today, the mission team was on edge, waiting for one person.

Kenji stood against the wall, arms crossed, his ribs freshly wrapped. Yuseke sat in one of the briefing chairs, tapping his fingers nervously against his thigh. The bruises across his cheek had already begun to yellow and his body still screamed with pain from the beating he took the night before.

Sakura was leaning against a pillar beside the door, chewing gum like nothing had happened.

Captain Akira entered the room in a form-fitting black coat, her white-silver hair tied into a low braid that barely swayed. She walked with elegance but held presence like a blade unsheathed. As she crossed the room, the air turned heavier like gravity had remembered its job.

Yuseke's stomach twisted as she walked straight toward him.

"You." she said, voice soft, melodic, but commanding. "You're Yuseke, right?"

He stood up too fast and winced as his leg locked. "Uh... yes. Ma'am... uh, Captain."

She extended her hand. "Good job on surviving your first mission."

Yuseke stared at her hand for a moment. Felt that same aura that made it feel like the world was holding its breath. He reached out, took her hand and goosebumps shot through his entire body.

His legs wobbled slightly and he barely resisted the urge to shiver.

Sakura, without even looking up, muttered under her breath, "Dumbass…"

Akira raised a subtle brow at Yuseke, then let go of his hand with the hint of a smirk. "You have potential but don't let Essence cloud your hormones."

Yuseke's ears went red instantly. Kenji covered his mouth to muffle a laugh.

"Alright." Akira said, turning serious. "Let's talk about the target."

Sakura clicked open her rifle case and pulled out the long matte-black barrel of the sniper she'd used.

"I was using this... 'Tempest.' Infused with my technique on level 3 output."

Kokoro, who had entered quietly behind Akira, raised an eyebrow. "You used Level 3?"

Sakura nodded. "Yeah but..."

Kenji picked up. "The guy dodged it."

Akira's face didn't change but her violet eyes narrowed just slightly. "How long did the bullet take to travel?"

"Three seconds." Sakura answered.

"He reacted mid-flight?"

"Yes ma'am." Sakura said. "Just an exact side-step... two inches to the left."

"That's the weirdest part." Yuseke added, eyes still on Akira. "Like, how the hell do you move faster than a sniper round?"

Kokoro scratched his head. "Let alone a bullet fired with Sakura's technique on the last level... most people wouldn't even see it coming. That kind of speed would be hard even for Akira to dodge."

Yuseke blinked, suddenly curious. "Wait... so you mean… her bullets could pierce through even Akira?"

Sakura's eye twitched."Captain, you dumbass." she said flatly. "And no, she could obviously stop them with her bare hands."

Akira turned her head slowly, lips curling in amusement.

Yuseke blinked. "Whoa. You just gave me goosebumps."

Akira let the moment hang before returning to the topic. "So, the target wasn't just a black market dealer. We now consider him a high-threat unknown Wielder, possibly Class-S."

"And if he shows up again." she said again without hesitation, "Yumi, Kokoro, or Taichiro are the only ones authorized to engage, understood?"

Everyone nodded.

"Alright, you're all dismissed."

Everyone stood up and left.

Yuseke waited until the halls of the Outcasts' base fell silent. Most of the others were training or resting. He slipped into Kokoro's room quietly, not to snoop but because he needed something.

There it was, gleaming softly under a pile of tech scraps: the watch, rumored to suppress the signature of Essence. He didn't know how Kokoro built half the stuff he made but right now he didn't care.

He clasped it around his wrist, adjusted the leather strap and whispered. "Just going out for a bit. I'll be back before anyone notices."

With his Essence quieted, he slipped through the gates of the Outcast's hidden lair, headed into the city and walked the familiar streets. The buildings looked a little smaller than he remembered. Maybe it was just that everything felt a little bigger after the mission, after the failure.

Yuseke reached the coffee shop. The windows glowed amber in the afternoon light, casting warm silhouettes against the glass. People laughed, sipped drinks, lived ordinary lives but he didn't walk in.

Instead, he stood across the street, watching quietly as Shinji is doing his work, for a second he smiled cause he's friend looked like he was doing okay.

Just then...

"Oh no... ow... my glasses! Where...?!"

A girl was on the ground in front of him, crawling and flailing blindly. Before he could speak, her head rammed into his stomach. "Ugh!"

"Are you headbutting me now?!" Yuseke groaned.

"I'm sorry... I can't see!"

Yuseke knelt down, picking up her glasses just a few inches away. He extended his hand to help her up. "Here."

She fumbled up, still squinting and he gently helped her slide the glasses back onto her face.

She blinked a few times, then locked eyes with him. "...Oh."

"What?"

"When I bumped into you, your feet were facing the same direction as the window." she said, adjusting her glasses. "...Were you stalking someone, creep?"

Yuseke's jaw dropped. "Wait, what?! I just helped you find your glasses and you call me a creep?!"

She blinked, clearly flustered. "I-I'm sorry! I meant... uh... thank you." She bowed her head. "Really, thank you."

Yuseke huffed but waved it off. "It's fine. And I wasn't stalking anyone, alright? I just came to check on a friend, I haven't seen him in a while and didn't know what to expect."

They started walking slowly down the street together.

"How long's it been?" she asked, hands in her cardigan pockets.

"Four days." Yuseke replied, glancing sideways.

She stopped mid-step, then burst into laughter... high-pitched and uncontrolled.

"Four days?! Are you serious?! What is he, your boyfriend?"

Yuseke narrowed his eyes, then swiftly reached for her glasses and snatched them. "Try laughing now, blindy."

"Hey!"

She kicked his foot enough to sting.

"Ow!" Yuseke flinched, handing them back. "Alright, alright, take them!"

She fixed them back on, smirking. "You deserved it."

Then, she stopped in front of a pastel-colored ice cream truck parked near the curb. Her eyes lit up.

"Ooh! Come on!" she said, grabbing his wrist and pulling him along. "Let's get ice cream!"

"Wait... what...?"

But he didn't resist, a minute later they both sat on a nearby park bench, the sun casting long gold streaks through the trees. She had a cone of rainbow swirl, he had vanilla with crushed nuts.

"You're not from this city, are you?" Yuseke asked, licking his cone. "Your face... you don't look like someone from around here."

She raised an eyebrow. "Why? Do I look weird?"

"No, I didn't mean it like that." Yuseke said quickly. "You just... look like a pretty nerd girl lost in the wrong part of town."

She laughed. "Fair enough."

"What's your name?"

She hesitated for a split second, then said, "Yui. And yeah, I'm not from around here, I moved here recently."

"Why this city?" Yuseke asked.

She shrugged, smiling softly. "Despite all the things about this evil Wielders... it's an amazing place."

Yuseke chuckled, but it didn't reach his eyes. "Yeah... I couldn't agree more."

The moment drifted between them like the soft wind rustling through the trees.

Yui checked the time on her phone. "Sun's setting soon... I better get going before my mom kicks me out for being late."

That hit Yuseke like a flick to the chest.

"Wait... you're really gonna leave without even asking my name?"

"Nope." She spun on her heel with a grin. "I'll call you Toseki."

Yuseke gawked. "What?! I'm not a stalker! You can't just...!"

"Whatever, Toseki," she called over her shoulder. "See you later."

He stood there, ice cream half-melted in his hand, watching her walk away with her cardigan flapping slightly in the wind. After a few minutes he also left.

The quiet hum of the elevator echoed through the underground shaft as it descended slowly back toward the base.

Yuseke exhaled, trying to ignore the cold sweat on his brow. His heart thumped a little too loud like it knew he was guilty. He pressed his back to the wall near the entrance corridor, eyes darting.

Almost there. Just turn right and...

"Welcome back..."

Yuseke froze.

He didn't even need to look. That sharp, mocking tone? It could only be Sakura. He turned slowly and there she was leaning against the wall, arms crossed, one brow arched and lollipop stick dangling lazily from her lips.

"I was just..." he started.

"Out 'checking on a friend'? Yeah, I figured." she cut in. "You really thought you could sneak in wearing Kokoro's tech and not get caught?"

As if summoned by his name, another voice echoed down the hallway.

"You stole my watch, Yuseke."

Yuseke turned to see Kokoro, arms also crossed, tapping his foot. His usual chill expression was gone. Now he just looked disappointed and annoyed.

"I didn't steal it..." Yuseke muttered. "I borrowed it."

"Without my permission?" Kokoro's voice was flat. "That's considered as stealing."

"I was going to bring it back."

Sakura pushed off the wall and walked toward him, her expression unreadable now. "You're lucky Taichiro didn't catch you. Or worse... Akira."

Yuseke rubbed the back of his neck. "Look, I just wanted to see my friend. It's been long since I've seen him, I needed to know if he was okay."

Sakura rolled her eyes. "And the best idea you came up with was sneaking into a city full of Saints using stolen tech from Kokoro?"

"You should've just asked." Kokoro muttered.

"I didn't think you'd let me."

"Well... probably not." Kokoro admitted. "But you still should've asked."

Sakura shook her head, letting the silence stretch.

"Where'd you go?" she asked finally.

"A coffee shop Shinji works in." Yuseke muttered.

Sakura stared at him for a second longer, then muttered something under her breath he couldn't quite hear.

"What?"

"Nothing." she said, brushing past him."You're really lucky we caught you instead of Taichiro, you'd be scrubbing blood off the roof right now."

Yuseke frowned. "So what happens now, you gonna tell him?"

Kokoro exchanged a look with Sakura.

"No." Sakura said finally. "Not unless you do something even dumber tomorrow, consider this your one free pass."

"But the next time you want to sneak out..." Kokoro leaned closer, holding up the now-disabled watch, "...don't use my stuff to do it."

Yuseke nodded quickly. "Got it, thanks, guys."

Sakura walked ahead, then glanced back over her shoulder.

"And also?" she said, flashing a small grin.

"Yeah?"

"You still smell like ice cream."

Yuseke's face went red. "Damn it."

"Go and rest, tomorrow you've got training with me." Kokoro said.