Prologue

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“Onii-chan, come back and play again, okay?”

“Hello Nao-kun, I am your grandmother and this is your grandfather. You will be staying with us for awhile.”

“Naoki-kun, come have some tea. Haha, you don't like the taste, do you? Put some sugar in and maybe some milk.”

“Hm? Do you like that katana? It's been in our family for over four hundred years. It has survived numerous sword hunts. It was said a river god gave its blessing turning the blade blue and rustproof. It will be yours one day.”

“Nao-kun, would you like to help me with a project? I make this all the time. Start by putting the some straw then wood ash in the bucket. Good, that bucket has holes beneath it, now place it over this bucket, no not inside. Right, use the stand to keep it above. Now pour water and let it drain.”

“Good, now we let the liquid dry and we will clean the crystals. Don't touch it though, it is very corrosive.”

“There, you've just made your first bar of soap. Just leave it on the shelf to cure for a few weeks.”

“How was school, did you make any new friends?”

“Nao-kun, come and help me make dinner.”

“Nao-kun, would you like to grow something in the garden?”

“Happy Birthday! Make a wish and blow out the candles.”

“Oh, that's right, there's a festival coming up soon. Naoki-kun, have you ever been to one before? No? Well, we should go to this one.”

“Kuroba-kun, good evening~!”

“Oho, Naoki-kun, who's this cute girl? Is she your girlfriend?”

“Ehehe, no I'm Kuroba-kun's classmate.”

“Why don't the two of you go play some of the booth games, here here's some money. Go have fun.”

“Yay~! Let's play the shooting game, Kuroba-kun.”

“Wow, you're good at shooting! Let's go catch some goldfish, oh oh and buy some candy!”

“That was fun, good night Kuroba-kun~.”

“Did you have fun Nao-kun? Oh, did you catch some fish? I think we have an old fish tank in the storehouse, let's go fetch it.”

“What nice looking goldfish. Naoki-kun there's a stream nearby, why don't you go find some river rocks and plants to fancy up the tank.”

“The fish tank looks wonderful, you have quite the artistic side don't you.”

“Oho, the garden is looking nice, thank you Nao-kun. We'll soon have lots of fruits and vegetables to eat.”

“Tea leaves, coffee grounds, old newspapers, leaves, twigs, old vegetables, weeds and eggshells can go into the compost pile. Make sure to mix it well so it all breaks down together.”

“Cut the potatoes and carrots into small pieces. Cook the onions until they are nice and brown. Then mix the roux-. Little Nao-kun is going to be a chef when he grows up, isn't he.”

“Let's see, yep, the soap bars are fully cured. Why don't you give it a test. Amazing isn't it? Help me wrap and deliver them to the neighbors, they've been waiting for this for weeks.”

“Nao-kun, the neighbors want to know if you want to help out with the rice paddies, you'll learn where the rice we eat comes from.”

“The gold fish seem to be getting larger, maybe we can build a pond near the garden. I say we, but I really mean you Naoki-kun. Haha, I'm getting a bit too old to dig.”

“It's been a year and your parents haven't returned. I'm sorry Naoki-kun, but it looks like you will have to stay with us a bit longer.”

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“Are you all packed up? The van will be here soon to take us to the lake, so don't forget anything.”

“Nao-chan, we've arrived!”

“Are you excited about going to the lake? I love going to the lake! Swimming is fun~!”

“Papa and uncle said they are going to catch lots of fish to eat, I can't wait~!”

“We've made it, alright let's unload and set up camp.”

“Be careful, there might be sharks in the water that like to eat little kids, hehe.”

“Ooh, we've caught a lot of fish, let's get started. Honoka, Naoki, come over and help us make dinner!”

“Naoki, want to help me prepare the fish?”

“How was dinner? I hope everyone saved room for cake!”

“Happy birthday Nao-kun!”

“”Happy birthday!””

“Alright, it's our last day of camping, go on and have as much fun as you can.”

“Nao-kun! Someone, someone save my grandson!”

“We've got you, don't worry, we've got you!”

“What happened?!”

“I-I don't know, w-we were swimming and then, and then Nao-chan, he was splashing and waving his arms.”

“He's still breathing!”

“I'm so glad you're alive.”

“Hurry, let's get him to the hospital.”

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“The rice is ready to be harvested, we can make some mochi.”

“So you have finished the pond? It looks wonderful. Oh, is that a turtle? I wonder when it got here. Good work Nao-kun.”

“Nao-chan, I've come to play~. Wow, the goldfish are huge… is that a turtle?”

“Honoka-chan, are you staying for dinner? You can spend the night if you'd like.”

“Yay~.”

“I'm sure Naoki-kun would like that.” *wink*

“Ehehe.”

“I'll give your parents a call to let them know.”

“It's been two years, I have no idea where your parents are. I can not contact my daughter at all. Naoki-kun do you remember your aunt and uncle's contact info?”

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“Miyuki, what's wrong?”

“I-I'm not feeling so we-”

“Miyuki!?”

“I'll get you to the hospital.”

“Nao-kun... is still in school.”

“I'll handle it, let's go!”

“Naoki, Honoka.”

“Papa?”

“Naoki, your grandmother is in the hospital, I'll take you there.”

“Goodbye Nao-kun. I'm so sorry.”

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“She had been sick for some time, since before you came to us. You've done nothing wrong, in fact, in fact your grandma had a lot of fun since we've met you. She loved having a child at home and raising you had made her feel so lively. She wished she could watch you grow up.”

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“Nao-chan, papa got a new job in the city. We have to move.”

“I'm sorry. Goodbye.”

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“Naoki-kun, I'm making preparations for you. You have to prepare yourself for when I am gone. You know how to cook, how to clean, even how to fix things around the house. You can take care of yourself. You will be fine.”

“You won't be placed in an orphanage, I have a friend that will take you in. He will be able to watch over you. He's a headmaster at a prestigious private school. Don't worry Naoki-kun, you'll like it there.”

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“So you are Naoki, I wish we had met under better circumstances. I've known your grandfather a long time, he was a good man. He had already prepared everything for you. We can leave as soon as you are all packed up.”

“This is the school you will be attending, it is one of eight international schools in multiple countries. Students live in the dormitory which have a private bathroom with a communal kitchen on the first floor and a cafeteria a few buildings over if you don't want to cook. The classrooms and courses offered-”

“Kuroba huh? Like clover? Yea, someone just got a nickname. I'm Rich by the way-”

“Bragger!”

“Haha I know right? Anyway, let's be friends. You play any video games?”

“What, you don't?! Well that needs to change. There isn't much to do on campus or in town, so yea.”

“Heh~, you're not very good at first person shooters, but you're a beast at strategy games.”

“So you like learning about how things are made? A lot of the students' families own factories and what not, let's go see if we can get a tour.”

“Heh~, so soy sauce can be made from making miso? That's pretty interesting.”

“That's is right, wine-making has been historically significant for almost as long as beer brewing is. Beer came first as a method of preserving excess grain usually barley or emmer, a type of wheat. Wine was discovered by using the same fermentation process with fruits as they did with grains. Wine became so favored by the Romans that where ever they settled became a wine-producing region.

“The Romans would actually dilute their wine and even let it turn sour. Some even used herbs and spices to enhance the aroma and taste. Other types of wine include one made of honey called mead and another with rice called sake. Now, obviously I can't give you a sample to drink, but I can let you smell the aroma of different types of wine we produce here.”

“Hey Clover, have you ever played airsoft? There's a bunch of military guys using the nearby forest as a playing field. They said we can play if we want.”

“Damn kid, you're pretty good at sniping, but you should use your sidearm for close range fights. Also, change your position often so you can keep surprising the enemy.”

“You guys going to stay here awhile? It was pretty fun playing this, we'd like to play some more.”

“Yea you bet, we're out here for training and using this place for games when we get downtime. We'll be here for about six months.”

“You here that Clover? You'll be able to get better at first person shooters now!”

“Greetings Kuroba-san, what seems to be troubling you? Hm, back pain and neck pain is it? We'll run some tests to find out what's wrong.”

“So when you make tofu you only use the milk part? What do you use the meal for? Animal feed and soy flour, huh?”

“You sure it's alright to bring these kids here? We could get arrested you know.”

“Stop making it sound like we're doing weird stuff, it's just a makeshift shooting range. No one knows about it.”

“We don't have a sniper rifle, but we have other kinds. Also side arms too.”

“Oh, hell no, we are not letting you use the .50 cal!”

“Yeah, our six months are up. We'll be seeing ya kid.”

“Aw yes, the school year's finally done! You have any plans Clover?”

“The results came back. I’m sorry to say it tested positive.”

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“Since it's summer vacation, why don't you come over to my house? Better than staying on campus for three weeks doing nothing.”

“Naoki welcome! Please make yourself at home. Rich speaks about you often.”

“There's going to be a festival nearby next week, we should go check it out.”

“Hey Clover, I got us some dates for the festival, they're super cute too!”

“I had a lot of fun tonight, thanks for winning me all those stuffed animals. You're really good at the shooting games.” *chu*

“What'd I tell you, great night right?”

“Naoki, happy birthday! Here, you can have a little wine to drink, but not too much now.”

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“Hey Clover, want to beta test some tech? The first one is a high end laptop with a new type of high density solid state drive and the second is a smartphone with similar tech inside. It also has a high magnification camera so we can totally check out the girls dorm!”

“Naoki you shouldn't have kept this a secret from me. Your grandparents wouldn't be happy that you chose to go untreated.”

“Huh? Clover, why'd you quit doing kendo? What's wrong?”

“Naoki, I've contacted someone that might help. A clinical study that has been approved for human trials. It shouldn't affect you the way other methods would, so I want you to consider it.”

“What?! Treatment for… oh no, Clover.”

“Naoki, Rich told us about what happened. We've already spoken to your guardian about helping out. No, don't consider it a handout. You're Rich's best friend, take every advantage you can and fight this.”

“Clover, I’m going to hook you up with some stuff, if you're going to spend lots of time in the hospital then you'll get bored fast. I’ll transfer it to your laptop.”

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“Hello Naoki, it has been a year and I have some good news. The malignant tissues have shrunk beyond our expectations and we want to get the surgery started immediately. There's a specialist in America that will perform the surgery.”

“I know that area well, I own an apartment there from when I worked at the nearby academy. Naoki, go ahead and stay there. I've already pushed your transfer documents for when the school year starts.”

“Clover, take care okay? Everything will be fine. When you get better let's meet up and go find cute girls to date again.”

“I could take some time off and help you get settled in. Are you sure? Okay, well if you're sure. I see. Naoki has become quite independent. Be strong and call me when you get there.”

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“Mister Kuroba? Welcome sir, I’ll take your luggage.”

“Greetings Naoki, we took the liberty to have the apartment fixed up for you. Let us know when you get better and we can send Rich over to visit. By the way, we sent you a little present we thought you might like. It's a bottle of our finest.”

“Naoki? Now way! What are you doing here? School huh? Yeah I got stationed here less than a year ago. Hey, want to go to the shooting range like old times?”

“I swear your aim has gotten better, if you join the military you might be able to get into the Rangers or Force Recon or something. What? You want a handgun of your own, huh? I don't know kid, I could get into a lot of trouble if it's found out. Okay, okay, if you can keep it hush hush I know a guy that can hook you up. Yeah yeah, happy birthday kid.”

“Naoki get in, we'll go meet my guy. You brought money right?”

“Hey man, this the kid? Yeah, he told me all about what you wanted. Pretty good taste. The red dot sight is already attached, you just need to fine tune it for your preference. The mounted light is a high lumen output with strobe and a green laser. The suppressor isn't like in the movies that go 'pew pew', it's a lot louder. Go ahead and give it a try.”

“Alright, payment received. You take care and remember, we never met. I wasn't here. Take care kid.”

“Hide it here, it's a secret compartment in the rucksack. It'll fit the ammo boxes as well. Ready to head home?”

“See ya Naoki, let's hit up an airsoft field when we get some time off.”

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“Mister Kuroba? How are you feeling? No, it's normal to feel nervous, but the surgeon here is one of the best. You'll be fine.”

“Oh you're awake. The surgery was a success and it only took eleven hours. How are you feeling? That's good, if you feel any pain just push this button. And this one is the call button if you need us. We'll do scans tomorrow then work on your recovery. So go back to sleep and heal up.”

“It seems the scans show that there were some small growths that the surgeons were unable to remove without risk of serious damage to the spine. You'll need to continue with the drug trials. We will contact your guardian shortly to notify him of the news.”

“Your two months are up, ready to go home? Sorry, it's mandatory to use a wheelchair to escort you out of the hospital. Here's all your belongings, we'll see you in a month for a followup. Take care.”

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“Alright everyone listen up, we have a new transfer student joining us. Sorry boys, he's a dude. Okay, come on in and introduce yourself.”

I walked into the classroom and stood before the students, my homeroom classmates.

“Naoki Kuroba desu, yoroshiku.”

“...Onii-chan?”