Editing Mushi Uta:Volume 10 Chapter 3 (section)

== 3.01 Shiika Part 1 ==

Inside the forest, there was the smell of clear water.

Inhaling the cold morning air into her lungs, she raised her chin to feel the sunlight. Mixed with the cries of birds, she heard footsteps approaching her.

“Namie’s group returned.”

Being called out, Anmoto Shiika opened her eyes. She stood up from the tree stump she was sitting on and turned around.

Having come there to get her, Shirotani Reiji stood between the tall trees.

“Several people were injured, so Chafer’s healing them.”

“Injured?”

Shiika rushed toward Reiji. She walked through the trampled animal trail in the grass next to the boy.

“It’s fine. But they’ve apparently fought with Kasuou. If Namie wasn’t there, it would have ended much worse.”

“I see… I’m glad.”

“What were you doing here, Shiika?”

Reiji asked. As he always took a natural stance, even if he walked in a place with bad footing, he never lost his balance. He stuck both hands into his pocket and his sleepy eyes peeking from under the headband he wore low on his head gazed at Shiika.

“Um… I just wanted to breathe to forest’s air for a bit.”

While stepping over a dead tree, she spoke vaguely. The cardigan she wore over her camisole slipped, revealing her thin shoulders. Since she looked so young, the wireless for emergency use attached to her waist like a gun belt or the outdoor boots she was wearing did not suit her to an embarrassing degree.

“Are you feeling bad?”

“I just woke up, so I tried shaking off my sleep, that’s all.”

As Shiika smiled back to him, Reiji looked at her with eyes that were hard to read. He was the type to not put any emotion into his expression or tone, but she knew he was worrying for her.

“Ah, w-wait a moment.”

When they saw the entrance to the forest, Shiika stopped in place. Using both hands to massage and loosen her cheeks, she swept the hair stuck to her face from moistness and tucked it behind her right ear with her fingers.

“…I don’t think there’s any need of you to put up a front like that.”

“I decided to, so I have to do this properly.”

She knew well that this new hairstyle that only consisted of putting her hair behind her right ear and the guerilla warrior-like equipment did not fit her in the least.

However, Shiika decided on carrying this through.

To that end, she needed to show at least this much resolve.

She couldn’t lose focus.

“…If you’re tired, just say it. You’re not Rina.”

“Thank you very much.”

Grinning at him, Shiika resumed walking. She exited the thick and luxurious forest.

Their campsite was there.

The mountainous land was flattened and cottages were built on it, but as if saying it wasn’t enough there were also tents. Boys and girl in casual clothes passed one another as they cut firewood or carried boxes full of daily necessities. At a distant empty area, she could see several people sparring in mock battles.

This campsite served as the main base of the Mushitsuki resistance organization, Mushibane.

“Good morning.”

Wearing the face of Mushibane’s leader Snow Fly, Shiika called to the members. Several turned to look at her, returning her greetings.

As she kept walking, she saw a crowd of people. Familiar people were gathered in the square that could even host a large barbecue party.

“Namie-san! Are you fine?”

Shiika raised her voice, rushing toward a woman sitting on a folding chair.

“Oh, Fuyuhotaru. No problem.”

Turning toward her was a tall woman who looked to be in her twenties. Namie originally belonged to the SEPB, but then joined Mushibane to protect Shiika. Her hand thrust to the front had lacerations on it, and her cut clothes were dyed in fresh blood.

“This much you can just leave be and it’ll heal right up. Man, what a bother.”

A tall boy was mumbling complaints while he grabbed Namie’s arm. This person, called Chafer inside Mushibane, had a glow the same color as the piercing on one of his ears enveloping both of his hands. He was a Mushitsuki with the rare healing ability, so as he moved his hands, Namie’s wounds began slowly closing up.

The two girls nearby shrugged.

“Who was it that went on and on about healing her until we came back?”

“Because she was injured while covering for him. So slow. So uncool. So weak.”

The girl with glossy, black hair was Halensis. And the girl with frilly fashionable clothing and makeup completely unfitting the place was the girl called Lucifera. Both were central figures in Mushibane.

“Ah, I’m not gonna apologize! I told you I don’t want to be dispatched for battle!”

“Wow, you’re so dishonest, such a tsundere, not moe at all.”

Seeing their exchange, Shiika giggled.

Several months passed since Shiika decided to become the leader of Mushibane. During that time, she slowly gathered more allies, even managing to divide their roles into those who head out to fight, those who take care of the secured Mushitsuki, those who support their livelihood, et cetera.

They would protect Mushitsuki from the SEPB without ever fighting back—

It was a lofty ideal and had yet to come true, but they could all walk this path together.

So she began to think.

“And the result?”

Aijisupa asked in his usual detached tone of voice.

Namie used her healthy hand to raise a thumb, grinning. Then she pointed it behind her.

“We were quite cornered by the SEPB, but somehow managed to secure her.”

A girl of about 12 or 13 years old wearing dirty clothes stood nearby. She was wrapped in a blanket by Mushibane members, shivering.

“I see… that’s good.”

Shiika headed to the girl. She leaned and spoke to her.

“Hello.”

The girl’s shoulders shook. Her fearful eyes reflected Shiika’s smile. She was a girl with possibly natural curly hair that suited her and a round face.

“It was scary, right? But you’re alright now.”

“…”

“Are you hurt? It’s amazing how you didn’t get caught by the SEPB until we found you.”

“…”

“I got captured many times before, you know.”

Shiika spoke while smiling. She could see her past self in the trembling girl.

When she was alone and ran away without anywhere to go, she was probably just like this girl now. She had no idea who was a friend and who was an enemy. And so, being afraid and shrinking was the only way to protect herself.

Shiika caressed the silent girl’s head. The girl shivered again, but didn’t reject her.

A few speechless minutes passed. The girl then mumbled.

“…Will you help me?”

“Yup, we will.”

“…I wanna go home.”

“Sorry, but you can’t right now.”

The girl turned with a start. With a face like she could begin crying at any moment, tears welled up in her eyes.

Smiling, Shiika hugged the girl.

She couldn’t lie to her. She couldn’t promise her lies.

When Shiika nearly gave up upon becoming Mushitsuki, the things that saved her were always real promises.

''—One day, recall your dream.

''—Let’s meet up at next year’s Christmas.

Because that was the truth.

Because she could believe in true promises, she was able to think of getting stronger.

“Everyone here’s the same. They all want help, and they want to go back home. But right now we can’t go back.”

“…”

“So we need to help each other. We help and we get helped in turn. Doing that, we grow stronger by the day.”

Letting go of the girl, she grabbed her arms and looked in her eyes.

“I will help you. So one day… when you become stronger than you are now, perhaps the time will come for you to help others.”

The girl was silent. She tightened her lips and held back her tears.

“Become stronger and then go back home with everyone, alright?”

Shiika smiled at her.

The girl cast down her gaze for a while as if holding back something, and then slightly nodded.

Perhaps she couldn’t understand what Shiika was telling her right now. Perhaps she just nodded because she didn’t want to be scared.

But she would definitely remember this.

When she was really pained or sad, she would recall her promise with Shiika.

And—feeling the same emotions, she should gain the courage to take just one more step ahead. Because she was like that, Shiika could believe in Mushitsuki like her.

“You’re probably tired, right? Rest for now.”

“I’ll take you. There’s an empty bed in that cottage.”

Halensis took a blanket from one of their comrades and hugged the girl’s shoulders. The curly-haired girl nodded, looking at that cottage—

“Eh? Wai…!”

The girl and Halensis’s body suddenly scattered to small particles, vanishing. The faces of the girl and the confused Halensis glanced at Shiika and then vanished as well.

After they were gone, only gas-like particles remained. These danced in air, vanishing into the cottage that Halensis pointed at.

Shiika left her mouth open.

“W-what was… eh…?”

“I guess she’s a Special Type Mushitsuki with the ability to gasify and reconstruct organic matter, huh. By the time we caught up to her—other than Kasuou, all other Mushi were in pieces and the SEPB members became Fallen.”

“I-I see.”

These last few months, after receiving habitual trainings, there were some Mushitsuki whose talents bloomed. Among these saved Mushitsuki, some powerful ones became their allies. That round-faced girl looked likely to be another one.

After that, Shiika and the rest heard the detailed battle report from Namie and performed a simple strategy meeting, then parted. The Mushitsuki gathered in the square all scattered.

“Oh, Halensis-san. Umm… is everything alright?”

“If you’re talking about the kid, she fell asleep almost instantly. …If you’re talking about me, my hands and feet are still attached.”

Halensis came back from the cottage and everyone started preparing for mealtime.

However, Shiika then found a figure loitering around the camp.

“Oh? Nanana?”

The petite girl wearing an expensive dress and spinning around a walking stick that looked like an upside-down letter J approached Shiika.

“A good day to all of you dirt-poor people of Mushibane.”

She looked drunk again. With her cheeks flushed, Akasegawa Nanana greeted everyone with her abusive language as always. —Nanana was the chairman of the large conglomerate called Akasegawa Group, as well as Mushibane’s sponsor.

Shiika tilted her head. She couldn’t see Nanana’s usual secretary anywhere.

“You came here alone?”

“Nyahahaha, is there a problem? If you’re thinking about the secretary, she finally married that teddy bear of hers, so right about now she might be on her honey moon, sightseeing in the Pisa Tower or something.”

It was hard to judge whether it was a joke or not, taking everything into account the secretary and Nanana’s bad personality.

“I feel peckish. How about lunch? I came here to eat.”

“Will you help us prepare it?”

“Why would I, stupid? I’m the one giving you money, so I’m the one being served.”

Everyone knew Nanana had a sharp tongue. With others taking their distance quickly and avoiding her, Nanana brought Shiika’s face closer.

“…By the way, has Alpha not woken up yet?”

''Oh,'' Shiika understood.

The First Mushitsuki, Alpha.

He was a mysterious Mushitsuki they’d saved by working together with Nanana. He was supposed to hold some hints regarding the origin of Mushi, but was currently in a coma.

It seemed that Nanana’s true goal wasn’t a barbecue, but coming to check on Alpha.

“No, apparently not yet. We even thought to get Chafer to heal him, but it’s not like an injury or something like that…”

“What are you doing, you dunderhead. I even prepared a new hiding place for him and everything.”

“S-sorry.”

“By the way, you assigned a Mushitsuki as a guardian, right? What kinda person is it?”

“A very strong person. Right, they all come swarming… it’s very wow.”

“What the heck, do we even speak the same language?! Geez, why’d I have to be stuck with guard work again…”

“Eh?”

As Nanana put her hand around Shiika’s shoulder and tried caressing her face, Shiika looked back at her.

“Didn’t you tell us, Nanana? It’s an important person so we have to guard him… and you were also the one who told me to do it since I’m the leader.”

“Oh, was that really so? Yahahaha. —Hey, you there! What are you slacking off for, you peasants!”

Nanana averted her face from Shiika. Namie, Aijisupa, Halensis, Lucifera, and their logistical manager—the boy called Chouya Nihei—stuck out their heads and conversed. Nihei looked back.

“Oh, what great timing, Nanana-chan’s there. —Wait, sorry for being poor, I guess!”

“What happened?”

“There’s something strange.”

As Shiika came closer, Halensis said.

“…The number of our comrades is decreasing.”

Namie said in a low voice.

Shiika’s expression clouded over. Although the number of full Mushibane members was larger than it used to be, some people appeared to just disappear.

It wasn’t like they were lost or that the SEPB did something to them.

“Didn’t they just run away again? You really are unpopular, Snow Fly-chan!”

Making a snide remark, Nanana kept patting Shiika’s head.

One reason for their comrades to decrease was, just as she said—desertion.

There were countless people who vanished from the campsite or the shelter because they were unable to accept Shiika as their leader.

“I thought so too, but… it’s way over that level for this month.”

“Is that so? How many people are gone?”

“…Thirty-two.”

Everyone including Shiika gasped at Halensis’s words.

That was too much. Never did this many comrades run away during the space of a month.

Shiika had a bad feeling.

While she stayed silent, she looked at Lucifera who was just fiddling with her cellphone. She was Mushibane’s tactician.

“What do you think, Lucy-san?”

“That’s obviously pretty bad. One or two people is fine, but if so many run away, we can’t tell who’s going to hand over our information to anyone. And it’s not just leaking the location of our bases, but even the situation of our forces would become clear.”

“I wonder why this is happening…”

“Who knows.”

Playing with her hair, Lucifera stopped using her cellphone. Seeing her act as if this wasn’t her problem at all, Namie clenched her fist.

“I’m against violence. Got it, I’m thinking, wait a minute. …Right, I know.”

Looking at the cellphone she operated, Lucifera spoke.

“There might be some kinda—kind of agitator.”

“What’s an agitator?”

“I mean a person who was working to extract people from Mushibane. I’ll be clear enough so that even your childish mind can understand it: someone who’s going like ‘Hey, that place is much better, come here’ to instigate people to leave.”

Aijisupa glared at Lucifera.

“Meaning it’s someone inside Mushibane who drew out our members?”

“Isn’t that obvious? If everyone decided to leave by themselves, there wouldn’t be so many people at once. And since we have thirty-two people, it means they were either invited by sweet words or a powerful ability; it’s obviously something very organized.”

“No way… is it the SEPB?!”

Namie’s expression changed, but Lucifera soon denied it.

“Probably not. Judging from the damage they did to us, you can probably assume that they already have some information about Mushibane. The SEPB would’ve already struck us long ago. Since our enemy doesn’t do this, it means that they don’t feel ready to face us yet despite gathering some people, or perhaps gathering people is their goal…”

“As usual, your brain is the only thing good about you.”

Lucifera ignored Halensis’s teasing.

Shiika intertwined her fingers, fidgeting.

“Umm… I don’t really understand what you’re talking about, but…”

“Wow, so I just explained this all for nothing, how sad.”

“What should we do, then?”

Shiika looked directly at Lucifera. The girl who looked dumbfounded glanced at her and smiled.

“The culprit will probably soon be revealed.”

“Eh?”

“I don’t know who they are, but they’re not afraid of being discovered by us. It feels like they don’t care what would happen to them as long as they got out as many people as possible. I believe that we’ll be able to find some clues if we search among our allies.”

“…Namie-san?”

Shiika noticed that Namie was furrowing her brows as if she recalled something.

“A rumor… I’ve heard about something strange.”

“Eh?”

“Well… they say that there’s a god who can save Mushitsuki.”

Silence befell the square.

Namie wore a serious face, but everyone including Shiika turned worried eyes at her.

“A god…?”

“She probably just hit her head during the fight.”

“Hey, call Chafer.”

“I’m right fucking here. Unfortunately, this woman’s a lost cause…”

“Nanana-san, can you sell us psychiatric drugs real cheap?”

“Sorry, Namie-san, you must be crying inside. Come here for a headpat, good girl.”

“W-wait, everyone! I just heard about this…! Don’t pat my head!”

“What’re you doing? Oh well, there’s no way around it, I’ll help you with looking for the culprit as well.”

Looking at the upset Mushitsuki, Nanana shrugged with exaggerated movements.

“Shouldn’t we check other bases as well? Give me your lists.”

“Eh?”

Nihei, who was touching all sorts of places on Namie in the confusion while pretending to stop her rampage, turned back.

“Don’t you know them already, Nanana-chan? Most of them are places you received from Munakata-san to help us.”

“As if I can remember all that… I left those to the secretary. C’mon, Halensis probably has the list, right? I’m busy, do it already.”

“Is that fine? Snow?”

Halensis turned to look at Shiika. She tilted her head.

“Is the secretary gone?”

“I told you, she’s on her honeymoon. C’mon, oh great leader, bring out the order.”

While spinning her stick, Nanana cackled. Her behavior that looked as if she was drunk was the same as always.

However, Shiika felt something—was out of place.

What was this small ill feeling that took hold in her chest?

“What’s wrong, Fuyuhotaru?”

As Namie asked her this, she realized.

Right, Namie always called her like this. Not Snow Fly.

“Say, Nanana?”

“Yeah?”

“We’re friends, right?”

“Right, of course. What about it?”

Nanana’s calm answer made everyone other than Shiika to look at her in shock.

“Ha? What are you all looking so surprised about? Me and Snow Fly are friends, right?”

“Yes, right. —This is the first time I’ve seen you admit this, however.”

Aijisupa said. The others also exchanged glances.

“Say, Nanana. Do you know my name?”

Shiika asked, smiling.

Nanana smiled too.

“Snow Fly.”

“Yeah.”

“Fuyuhotaru.”

“Yeah.”

“…”

“Is that it?”

Shiika and Nanana looked at each other.

Anmoto Shiika. —Only few people within Mushibane knew her true name. But Nanana was supposed to know it. She always called her like this.

Shiika.

Being told that someone with Nanana’s face didn’t know Shiika’s name—was sad.

“Yahahahahahahahahaha!”

Suddenly, Nanana roared with laughter. Aijisupa and Namie and the rest took quick action, protecting Shiika.

“Oh boy, looks like I’m getting suspected! You’re the worst, suspecting your own sponsor! I’ll give you no more money! You’ll all stay here and starve to death!”

Nanana shouted in a voice loud enough to spread throughout the entire campsite. All of the members around turned to look at Shiika and the rest, wondering what happened.

“If you have no money, Mushibane will be finished! Scatter! Begone!”

Shouting loudly, Nanana began to run. She was trying to escape.

“Wha…!”

Since this was so sudden, their reaction was slow.

“Are you all fine being here?! There’s a much better place!”

A clamor rose through the camp. The expressions of those seeing Nanana claim to stop her support were permeated in anxiety.

“Don’t listen to her! She’s not Akasegawa! She’s an impostor!”

While chasing Nanana, Namie yelled.

Aijisupa readied himself.

“I’m going to attack.”

“Stop!”

Shiika suddenly grabbed Aijisupa’s arm.

“She might just be controlled by someone…!”

“I’ll make sure. Where’s Akasegawa Nanana-san right now?”

While running, Lucifera operated her cellphone.

“Yahahaha! Hey, do all of you know? There’s a divine child who saves Mushitsuki! You should all go there!”

“Eh?”

A strange voice came from Shiika’s mouth.

“We’re no longer afraid of Mushi! Because we have the power of God! If you fear Mushi, go seek that child’s help! If you believe, you will all be saved!”

While running, Nanana kept uttering the word “God”. She ran around the camp as if preaching to them.

“You’ve got mail!” a voice was heard from the side, and then Lucifera shouted.

“This is from Nanana’s cellphone! ‘What do you want, I’m in a boring meeting at Akasegawa HQ right now’! My ability can’t lie! That one over there is a fake Akasegawa Nanana!”

“Alright!”

Aijisupa and Namie prepared for combat.

As Nanana tried running into the forest, a Common Albatross butterfly wrapped in white flames and a steam explosion assaulted her.

“Ahahahaha!”

“Wha—”

Seeing the giant object coming out of the explosion, Shiika and the rest were speechless.

Leaping off the entrance to the forest was a large Mushi with a red body and seven black spots.

And, standing calmly on its head—

“Should I have used this form in the first place?”

Tachibana Rina.

This girl was once Mushibane’s leader, and was not supposed to exist in this world anymore.

“If you all seek salvation, we’ll welcome you as well. Goodbye now!”

The mysterious Mushitsuki smiled with Rina’s face. Along with the Seven-Spotted Ladybug, she rose to the sky.

Seeing Rina’s face, everyone there clearly had their attention taken. By the time they were ready for a counterattack, the Seven-Spotted Ladybug was already far in the sky.

“W-who on earth was that…?”

Mumbled the shocked Shiika.

That wasn’t Nanana or Rina. Probably a Mushitsuki with shapeshifting abilities.

That much even Shiika understood. However—

“A God…? What’s their goal?”

[[File:Mushi Uta 10 p181.jpg|thumb]]

Even Aijisupa looked confused for a change. Seeing the face of his past friend, he probably lost his calm.

“She probably fulfilled her goal already. This might be an especially bad situation.”

At Lucifera’s words, Shiika and the rest looked back to the camp.

The Mushitsuki members were all clearly agitated. Those who heard Akasegawa Nanana say she wasn’t going to support them anymore, as well as the sweet invitation to save Mushitsuki, all looked anxiously at each other’s faces.

It was a lie—

If Shiika said this, would everyone really agree?

She didn’t know who it was, but the lie told by the Mushitsuki just now was what they feared the most—what they desired the most.

Just a lie.

However, all Mushitsuki wished for that, and so—

“A God… who saves Mushitsuki.”

Shiika mumbled.

They were neither the SEPB nor Mushibane.

It was something completely different—an organization never seen before was being born.

This bad premonition filled her chest.