Work Text:
=== 1 ===
'I'm glad they managed to resolve their dispute.' Seiya thought to himself as he left his client's house. It was another case of poor communication leading to a shaky relationship. Thankfully, it only took a few talks with both parties to sort everything out.
The time was 5:49pm. Seiya was walking towards the train station when he bumped into a man wearing a white coat. "Ah! Sorry about that!" He quickly apologised.
"I'd advise you to avoid the main street." The man cryptically said before walking away. Logically, Seiya should have ignored his advice. But his voice carried a sense of urgency that suggested otherwise. So, Seiya decided to trust his words.
That night, he came across a news story. An electrical fire resulting in an explosion… along the exact same main street he would've walked along. He looked at the incident time, 5:53pm. If he had continued his usual route, he would've been caught in it.
Seiya thought back to the stranger and his accurate warning. How did he know that was going to happen? Was him informing Seiya a lucky guess or a deliberate attempt at protecting him?
If he saw the man again, he'd ask.
=== 2 ===
If there was one thing Naoto made known to others, it was that no one messed with his colleagues. Else, they would get it from him.
And clearly, whoever these ruffians were, did not get that message.
"Oi, you lot." he hollered, voice echoing throughout the alleyway. The group of ruffians turned to face him, grumbling. "Who gave you permission to harass all my colleagues?"
"And? Are you going to be the judge of that?" their leader taunted. Naoto cracked his knuckles, picking up a nearby metal pipe. Surely management wouldn't notice if one of their spare pipes disappeared.
He had gotten through about half of them when a shout of pain caught his attention. One of the first two goons was pinned to the ground, a man donning a white and gold coat putting him in an arm lock, a knife tossed to the side.
"Hah, trying to play hero aren't ya?" Naoto laughed, elbowing the next goon in the stomach. "Just don't get in my way, ok?"
The new guy clicked his tongue in irritation. "You do you."
Naoto charged forward. When he was out of earshot, the man shook his head, sighing, "Always trying to protect everyone…"
=== 3 ===
It had been another tiring day of training. That, paired with her already long school day, made Midoriko want to collapse onto the rough asphalt and pass out.
'Soon.' She reminded herself. 'Next week is the tournament. Another two weeks and examination season is over.'
Her body absentmindedly trudged its way through the route home, her mind far more focused on simulating matches, her hand mimicking the parries and lunges she was executing.
'No.' She shook her head after another unsatisfactory simulation, 'that's not consistent enough. I need to watch more of her matches.'
She took a step onto the road. 'I need to underst—!'
The next thing Midoriko knew, someone had pulled her backwards. She landed on the pavement with a groan, a car speeding by moments later.
"Watch where you're walking kid." a voice whispered as someone patted her head.
The moment Midoriko recovered from the shock of her close shave with death, she turned around to look for her saviour. There was only one person, a figure in a white and gold coat, walking away from her.
She clutched the gold crystal around her neck — her lucky charm. Whoever that stranger was, she owed it to them.
=== 4 ===
Misaki was rarely paranoid. But when the same man — dressed in the same white coat — seemed to follow her everywhere, she had the right to be.
The weirdest part of it all was how he never seemed to get close to her. He was always positioned blocks away or (somehow) on a rooftop.
She also had no idea how he was getting to the places she saw him at. The rooftops could be explained by a fire escape or roof access. But the forest? He’s never followed her there, that she’s sure of, yet somehow he knows the spots she frequents when checking on the insect population.
The best solution would be to talk to him... If he didn’t disappear moments after he realises Misaki spotted him.
Misaki sighed. This man? Stalker? was causing her far too much distress. She looked up, spotting him on the building across from hers. He seems to have noticed her and it feels like they lock eyes for a bit. Though it takes longer, he eventually disappears into thin air.
The following day, Misaki found a note reading “I’m sorry for stressing you.” on her desk. From then, she never saw the man again.
=== +1 ===
When he had seen the first, of many, reincarnations of his first team, Mashiro promised himself two things: Never interfere with their new lives and protect them at all costs. Seiya, Naoto, Misaki, even Midoriko (who didn't die but was nonetheless a part of that ragtag group of theirs), none of them were dying (unnaturally) under his watch.
It made him happy, watching them live out their lives, no need to think about the battle royale or deal with the Calamity.
Yet, there was always this persistent pain in his heart. Physically and name-wise, they were the same people. But they weren't the people he lived with, caring for the kids in the orphanage. They—
He shook his head, snapping himself out of his thoughts, not the time. Right now, he had people to watch over.
This time, all four of them had crossed paths, forming a tight bond instantly. They were heading to a restaurant, Mashiro observing them from a distance. He smiled, walking past to look for their table. They were seated close to the window, happily chatting away. He wanted to be there too.
But, these versions of them would never fill that hole in his heart.