Chapter 7: Rooftop

“So, what is it you wanna talk about?” Shina asked, turning to him with a faint smile. “You came here to ask me something, didn’t you?”

“Well, you see… umm… how should I put this…” Tokio scratched the back of his head. “I’ve been meaning to ask you for a while, but I couldn’t…”

“You don’t have to be shy talking to me, you know,” she said, voice light. “You can say anything, actually…”

“Hell no, that’s not what I meant!” Tokio shot back, slightly flustered. “I couldn’t talk to you because you’re always missing! You show up out of nowhere, say mysterious stuff, and then vanish again…”

Shina let out a soft chuckle, clearly amused.

“And—seriously—even I don’t have your contact info,” Tokio added with a small bark of annoyance.

“You don’t have my contact?” Shina tilted her head, genuinely confused. “What are you saying… you—” she paused, then added, “Anyway, so what is it?”

Tokio took a deep breath. “Actually… since the first day we met, I thought you and the others were, uh… some weird cosplay addicts or something. Calling yourselves ‘The Phantoms,’ acting like heroes of justice… I seriously thought you were all part of some cringey performance group or delusional club.”

Shina raised an eyebrow, clearly amused.

“At first, I honestly found you guys kinda annoying,” Tokio continued, rubbing the back of his neck. “But… it was actually kinda fun having you all around. Still, I thought the whole ‘fighting terrorists’ thing was just a joke—until that mall incident happened. After that… I started thinking about you guys differently. And I guess… I should’ve apologized earlier. So… yeah.”

A moment passed.

“That’s it?” Shina asked, her expression unreadable.

“You’re… not mad?” Tokio blinked, surprised.

She turned around with a gentle smile. “Why should I be mad?”

“Huh?”

“I already knew all of that,” she said casually.

“…What?”

“You’re the kind of guy who thinks everything through logically, right?” Shina said, stepping a little closer. “So getting you to actually believe in us was a bit of a challenge. But… I didn’t think you’d come around so fast.”

“I see… so you’re not as dumb as I thought,” Tokio replied, smirking.

Shina blinked, then narrowed her eyes. “Excuse me… what did you just say?”

“Nothing,” Tokio quickly deflected, looking away innocently. “Anyway, the real thing I wanted to ask you about is…”

He paused for a second, his tone shifting slightly.

“…Why did you guys even recruit me in the first place? And what was that whole ‘mad scientist’ thing about? Come on, I didn’t even pass high school. Sure, I’m a science nerd but that doesn’t make me some kind of genius.”

Shina looked at him for a moment, then gave a small laugh.

“That’s exactly why,” she said.

“Huh?” Tokio raised an eyebrow. “What’s that supposed to mean? You’re weird, you know that?”

Shina doesn’t laugh. She looks at him—really looks—and for a moment, her composure cracks.

“Maybe,” she says softly. “But I’m not going to lose you again.”

The wind carries her words away. Tokio tilts his head. “What did you say?”

“Nothing.” She turns back to her tomato plants. “Just… don’t do anything stupid, okay?”

“Anyway, I’ll explain everything now. About us… and about the Abyss.” She turned to face him more seriously. “I avoided telling you before because I was waiting for the right time.”

She took a breath, then continued.

“Abyss is a secret terrorist organization responsible for most of the major and even minor terror attacks happening across the country. Even top-level intelligence agencies like the NSIA have been trying to catch their ringleader for years. But wiping them out isn’t that easy. They’re not just hiding in the shadows… they’ve become part of the system.”

“You mean…” Tokio’s eyes narrowed, “they’re connected to politicians and big shots?”

“Exactly,” she nodded. “Some powerful people actually hire Abyss to cause chaos—bombings, assassinations, murders—so they can manipulate the aftermath to their advantage. That’s what makes them so hard to track down.”

A heavy silence followed.

“That’s how the Phantoms were born,” she said softly. “Everyone in our team has been hurt badly by Abyss. Blade, Memeko, Eyepatch… me… even yo—”

She caught herself. “Never mind.”

Tokio didn’t press it.

“I see,” he finally said. “So that’s why you’re so obsessed. You probably recruited me because you thought I’d build weapons or gadgets to fight them, right?” He smirked. “Wanted a so-called ‘mad scientist’ on your side, huh?”

Shina met his gaze.

“I needed a mad scientist on our side.”

“Ugh, not this again. I’m not a ‘mad scientist.’ I’m just a guy who likes engineering, that’s all.”

She smirked. “Same thing.”

“And what was that whole ‘mad scientist’ label about anyway? I didn’t even pass high school.”

Shina just gave him a grin.

“Well, if that’s what you want from me…” Tokio said, now grinning too, “I guess you picked the right guy. I’ve been kind of bored lately. Looks like it’s finally time to fix some gears. But I am not a mad scientist.”

He paused, then added, “Actually… why do you guys even think I’m capable of something like this? Did you check out my profile or something? All I ever did was prototype gun models for VR games. Just for some extra pocket money. Sure, maybe I went a little overboard with the engineering, but it’s not like I was building real weapons or anything.”

He scratched his cheek.

“Although… there was that one time someone asked me to design a fancy sword.”

Shina blinked. “What? What are you even talking about?”

Tokio froze. Crap. What did I just say? That sounded way cooler in my head. Did I just cringe myself into another dimension?

Desperate for a topic switch, Tokio blurted, “By the way… looks like you’re into gardening, huh… are those Solanum plants?”

Shina glanced at the watering can in her hand, then at the plants. “You mean tomatoes? Yeah. I figured if they actually bear fruit, I could make some ketchup or something.”

Tokio raised an eyebrow. “Wait, you’re telling me you’re growing tomatoes… on a rooftop… to make ketchup?”

She smirked. “Why not? A rooftop ketchup empire sounds kinda cool, doesn’t it?”

Tokio chuckled. “Only if it comes with fries.”

Suddenly, Tokio’s phone buzzed. It was a call from Blade.

“Dude, you not home? I’m standing in front of your door…”

“What? What are you doing at this hour?”

“Came over for a break. Thought I could smash some buttons on your console…”

“Didn’t you tell the boss lady you had a huge load of homework and left work early?”

“That was obviously a lie. I just couldn’t wait to play ‘Blade Rangers Vol. 4’. Oh, and dude, keep this between us, alright? Don’t tell the boss lady.”

As he said that, a shadow loomed over the phone screen.

Shina’s expression darkened.

Tokio froze. Cold sweat. Inner panic. He couldn’t rat out Blade… but he also couldn’t let Blade know he was hanging out with Shina.

With the most awkward smile ever, Tokio ended the call in a hurry and mumbled, “Welp! Gotta… uh, go home! Urgent business! Tomatoes… exploding… or something.”

And he bolted down the rooftop stairs, somehow escaping Shina’s gaze of judgment.