The man smiled.
**Man:** *"Long time no see, Tohito."*
---
**June 7, 2015**
He slung his bag over his shoulder, walking slowly through the school's white-and-red hallways, scuffed and faded with scratches, heading toward the classroom. The other students began whispering as they saw him.
**Student 1:** *"Look, it's that guy who talks to himself like a lunatic."*
**Student 2:** *"With those creepy eyes of his."*
The boy paused mid-stride, his bright blue eyes twinkling as he winked at the students.
**Boy:** *"Heh heh, what pretty girls. Wanna come to the school's second lab after class? Maybe I'll show you my collection of faces peeled from people's skin. Hmm? Tempting offer, right?"*
The girls screamed and ran away.
The boy smirked and muttered under his breath.
**Boy:** *"People just can't take a joke. Why would anyone even have a face collection?"*
He ran his hands through his blond hair.
**Boy:** *"Well, guess it's time to go back."*
Unlike the others, Tohito was content with his life. He didn't care if people ignored him, if he was alone, or if they called him weird. He just enjoyed living.
Tohito yawned.
**Tohito:** *"Since when does my life have a narrator? Bill, get out."*
A man emerged from the walls, looking at Tohito with mild respect.
**Man:** *"Oh? So your brain isn't as weak as I thought. You noticed my time-space trap."*
Tohito smirked.
**Tohito:** *"Well, the walls in my school had peeling paint, and since I hated that color, I didn't include it in my mental image. You drew the walls without the yellow."*
The man smiled.
**Man:** *"My color blindness screwed me over. Lucky guess, kid."*
A small shadowy orb, like a condensed energy source, formed in Tohito's hand. The man stared at it, fascinated.
**Man:** *"I doubt you're strong enough to defeat me in my own domain."*
Tohito replied with a cold smile.
**Tohito:** *"You're right. In your domain, I'd lose... So I'll just—"*
With all his strength, Tohito slammed the shadow orb into the ground. The fabricated space began crumbling apart. He whispered under his breath.
**Tohito:** *"Shadow Orb: Atomic Annihilation."*
In an instant, the entire space dissolved into darkness. Tohito's right eye began glowing.
**Tohito:** *"Welcome to... the Void."*
A wicked grin spread across his face. The man's expression darkened with a matching smile.
**Man:** *"I'm gonna enjoy this one."*
Moving faster than light, the man appeared behind Tohito and punched him in the face, sending him flying like a piece of meat. Tohito created a shadow wall to cushion his impact, but it shattered on contact.
The man laughed loudly.
**Man:** *"What happened to all that confidence?"*
Tohito struggled to stand, wiping blood from his mouth with his sleeve.
**Tohito's thoughts:** *(How is he still this strong? This is my domain—I should have the advantage... How is he doing this?... Guess I'll have to try harder.)*
Clenching his fist, a katana made of shadow—like frozen gas—materialized in his hand. Tohito grinned playfully.
**Tohito:** *"Let's go... This might be the first fight where I actually die."*
The man pointed a finger at Tohito's chest and fired a red bullet. Tohito's eyes widened as he sensed death approaching.
**Tohito's thoughts:** *(Too fast... No time to think—!)*
He swung his katana to block the bullet, but it shattered instantly, as if a pebble had been thrown through glass at light speed.
The man prepared a second shot.
**Man:** *"Why are you even fighting?"*
Tohito formed another shadow orb and aimed it at the man.
**Tohito:** *"What do you mean?"*
The man kept his gun trained on Tohito.
**Man:** *"I don't sense any real purpose in your fighting. It's like you're being forced to do this."*
Tohito: *"To save my fri—"*
**Man:** *"Don't lie. Your friends aren't in danger right now. The one who might die here is you. So let me ask you... What's your goal?"*
He fired the red bullet. Tohito shot his shadow orb in response.
**Tohito:** *"My goal... is to survive. To win."*
The collision of the two attacks unleashed a massive explosion, sending Tohito flying.
**Tohito's thoughts:** *(I'm... losing? So I couldn't keep my promise after all?... Was everyone right? Will I never be strong enough?...)*
His body bled profusely. Raising a trembling hand, he whispered:
**Tohito:** *"Shadow Orb: Atomic Annihilation... Concentrated."*
The orb struck the explosion, erasing it as if it had never existed.
The man smiled in admiration.
**Man:** *"Not bad at all."*
Tohito, covered in blood and tattered clothes, gasped for breath.
**Tohito:** *"I'm still... standing."*
**Man:** *"No... You can't win."*
Tohito coughed up blood.
**Tohito:** *"I... will win... I'll... get stronger..."*
The man yawned.
**Man:** *"Willpower alone isn't enough. You'd need to be far stronger to defeat me."*
**Tohito:** *"If Zamfio were here—"*
**Man:** *"But he's not. So just give up."*
**Tohito:** *"One question... What's your goal?"*
The man raised an eyebrow.
**Man:** *"My goal? I want him to return."*
**Tohito:** *"Him... Who...?"*
The man formed another bullet and fired it at Tohito.
**Man:** *"I doubt you'll live long enough to find out."*
Tohito stared at the bullet in horror, his mind screaming that he was about to die—but his body moved on instinct to block it.
**Tohito:** *"Then at least let me die without surrendering."*
His eyes began to close, but a familiar energy made him open them again.
**???:*** *"You did well, kid."*
A shadowy, familiar figure—seemingly made of smoke and darkness—stood before him, catching the bullet with its left hand. Before losing consciousness, Tohito muttered one word:
**Tohito:** *"...Zamfio..."*
He collapsed into Zamfio's arms.
**Zamfio:** *"Leave the rest to me."*
The man glared at Zamfio with a dark tone.
**Man:** *"And what are you supposed to be?"*
Zamfio whispered ominously.
**Zamfio:** *"Massive Shadow: Bloody Detonation."*
Enormous shadows engulfed the man, who screamed in agony as his body began to rot.
**Zamfio:** *"You'll die in torment."*
Turning to the unconscious Tohito, Zamfio spoke gently.
**Zamfio:** *"Did you really think you could get rid of me that easily? I didn't live a thousand years for nothing."*