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Today was a very busy day in the Kanade residence. It was time for the yearly FanGo Fest, a day where players from all over the world gather at one of three big cities to take part in special events and possibly capture exclusive and new creatures. But unlike previous years, today was going to be a little...different. Why, you may ask? Well this time, they had a new guest in the form of a little boy with short, scruffy black hair and light brown eyes.
One who was currently squirming as gentle hands applied sunscreen to his face.
“Hold still, Toshi," Shoka sighed.
"No way!" the younger Kanade shouted. "You're covering me in weird gross stuff!"
"It's called sunscreen," Shoka explained. "It will prevent your skin from getting burnt by the intense sun." She smirked. "Unless you want to end up with pink skin by the end of today."
"Fine," Toshi pouted as he finally stopped squirming. "Why are you even dragging me to the park?"
"Because this is something your father and I do every year," Shoka answered. "We've been attending these events for a long time. It's why we drop you off at Uncle Fret's house once a year."
"So why's this time so special?" Toshi wondered.
That was Rindo's cue to enter. "Because someone's too busy with a certain singer," he complained, trying to hide how annoyed he really was deep down.
Allow me to clarify the context. Ever since Rindo and Shoka first met, they have attended the yearly FanGo Fest for special giveaways and exclusive captures. But once Toshi was born, they had to drop him off at Fret's place out of concern for their little boy not handling the intense summer heat all that well. Yet between the former brunette's model career taking off and the rumors surrounding him and trendy streamer Eiru, he was unavailable to watch Toshi for the day. So left with no other option, the married Kanade duo had to suck it up and hope their son could handle a few hours walking around with them.
Luckily thanks to having a star beauty influencer in the family, the Kanades were able to stay trendy even during the most intense summer days. Rindo had finally ditched his usual professional author attire and gone back to his original style, sporting an orange Nutkin t-shirt, a lightweight black and white plaid jacket, light blue jeans, and black and white sneakers. Shoka's outfit was loosely inspired by Water Elementals, consisting of a light blue sleeveless casual dress, a pale blue shawl, and a white sunhat. As much as she wanted to wear her glittery sapphire sandals, she knew they wouldn't work for today, so she bought a pair of light blue sneakers. As for her hairstyle of choice, she settled for a single braid hanging down her back, with light blue ribbons woven in. As for little Toshi, he wore a simple white t-shirt, black jeans, and white sneakers, since he wasn't really interested in FanGo like his parents.
"No fair!" Toshi pouted. "I like visiting Uncle Fret."
"Sorry, Toshi," Rindo sheepishly apologized. "Sometimes we have to make unexpected changes if something doesn't go as planned." He smiled. "Besides, FanGo Fest usually has activities set up for the kids. Maybe you can join in on the fun."
But as usual, Toshi didn't look all that happy. "Tell you what," Shoka said, gently resting her hand on the younger boy's face. "If you come with us to FanGo Fest and you're on your best behavior, we'll let you do whatever you want next weekend."
"...Anything?" Toshi checked in awe.
"Anything," Shoka replied with a small nod.
That got Toshi to smile. "Okay!" he finally agreed.
Without wasting another second, Rindo and Shoka went over to Miyashita Park with a less reluctant Toshi. Much like every other year, the park was crowded with numerous FanGo players. Some were locals, while others were visiting from other towns/countries. Everyone was trying their hardest to capture any new and exclusive creatures, especially those of alternate colors. But for any outsider, it just looked like a bunch of people tapping on their phones.
While Rindo was registering himself and Shoka for the event, the dark-haired girl had already got her selfie stick ready and was live-streaming herself to her blog. "Hey there, kittens," she greeted. "Today I'm taking part in FanGo Fest right here in Miyashita Park. Feel free to drop by and say hi if you want."
Toshi looked up in confusion. "Mama, what are you doing?" he asked.
Luckily Shoka wasn't too heartless to ignore her curious son in favor of blog updates. "Just letting all my followers know about my whereabouts," she answered, adjusting her camera so Toshi was visible. "This blog's my big passion, so I gotta stream these special events."
Before Toshi could ask further questions, Rindo walked over to the two, carrying a bag full of goodies. "I just finished signing us up," he said as he took out two rubber wristbands. "The event's missions should be up on our phones after registration." He gave one of the wristbands to Shoka. "I also made sure we got the right team item."
Shoka accepted the wristband and checked the marked emblem. "Yep. That's the emblem for Team Chime," she confirmed. Then both she and Rindo put on their wristbands. "So what's the special creature for the event?"
"According to the website, today marks the debut of shiny Hellraiser," Rindo recalled as he took out his cell phone. "And if we complete all six event tasks, we can get a special edition Skull Eater. There's also the special raids for Chimera Brain and how every hour starts the mass outbreaks of Blind Wolfs."
"That sounds like a lot," Shoka remarked. "But I think we can handle it."
"'Course we will," Rindo happily agreed. Then he and Shoka embraced in a quick kiss before taking part in today's events.
And thus, the FanGo Festival began. Starting off in the north section of the park, Rindo and Shoka began their pursuit for special creatures. But for Toshi, he was super bored. All he could see were their parents tapping away on their phones and getting excited for unexplained reasons.
But then, something unexplainable happened. While visiting a section that was called 'Mushroom Forest', Toshi could have sworn he saw some kind of odd creature among the giant plastic mushrooms. A gray wolf with a blue tail and front legs, to be exact. Was this one of the 'blind wolves' his parents had talked about earlier today?
Without hesitation, Toshi headed deeper into the makeshift forest. He had to capture this wolf. If he did, maybe his parents would be happy and praise him. He was a good kid, after all. And good kids did what their parents say.
"Wait up, mister blind wolf!" Toshi called out. But the wolf seemed to be unaware of his presence and just continued to run. And thus, he kept on chasing after it, fueled with a desire to help his parents with their odd creature hunt.
Meanwhile, both Rindo and Shoka were finishing up a Chimera Brain raid, ready to catch the creature. But just as Shoka was about to use her first capture orb, she suddenly realized a certain someone was absent, prompting her to temporarily turn off her streaming camera.
"Toshi?" Shoka asked. Her expression quickly turned to panic. "Toshi?!"
Rindo looked up from his phone as well. "Where did he go?!" he shouted.
"He shouldn't be that far off," Shoka hoped, looking around Mushroom Forest. "Toshi, where did you go?!"
"I'm right here, mama!" Toshi called out. "I found one of those wolves! Hurry up and catch it!"
Although feeling a bit confused, Rindo and Shoka hurried after their only child. Thankfully he didn't stray too far and he was still catch zone. Sure enough, he was standing next to a pair of plastic mushrooms. But it was just him and no one else. Not even a supposed wolf he was excited about.
"There it is!" Toshi exclaimed as he pointed. "There's the wolf! I found one just for you!"
Despite the toddler boy's eagerness, neither of his parents could see a wolf. However, they were a bit concerned that he saw a wolf of all things. They looked at one another and silently agreed they had to check if it was similar to the wolves they faced off years ago.
"What does this wolf look like?" Rindo asked.
"You can't tell?" Toshi asked. "It's got these big blue paws and a scribble for a tail." He leaned back so only his heels were touching the ground. "Now go on and catch it already!"
Big paws? A scribble tail? There was no doubt about it. Somehow Toshi could see Noise. It wasn't the first time something this strange happened among the group. According to Neku and Shiki, little Tsugumi Sakuraba was prone to having unusual nightmares about the UG, making her think Shibuya was under attack. But it wasn't like the parents could tell their respected kids the truth. They all agreed they would tell the kids about the Reapers Game on their 13th birthdays. And with Toshi only being four years old, while Tsugumi, Katsumi, and Masayoshi were slightly older than him, it was way too soon. So left with no other option, the Kanade parents had to hide the truth for now.
"I told you to stay hydrated," Shoka warned, taking out a water bottle. "The heat must have played tricks on you."
"Huh?" Toshi muttered. "But I thought-"
"Your mom is right,“ Rindo interrupted. "This is why we always dropped you off with Uncle Fret. The hot weather is no good for a growing boy your age."
Shoka walked over to Toshi and held out the water bottle. "Come on, dear," she encouraged. "Let's go find a place to cool off. Then we can resume creature hunting together. Does that sound like fun?"
"...Okay," Toshi reluctantly agreed. He took the water bottle and started sipping on it.
"And if you're good for the rest of the day, we'll stop by the little store to get a new plushie for you," Rindo encouraged.
That got Toshi's attention. "Any plushie?" he hoped.
"Yep," Rindo reinforced. "Any plushie you want."
"I want a new plushie!" Toshi eagerly cheered. "One of those squishy Devilfish!"
Shoka couldn't help but giggle slightly. "Someone's enthuciastic," she said. Then she gently held Toshi's tiny hand. "Now come on. Let's go cool off at the mini pool."