Chapter 88
[119]
“It still feels unreal.” Ren said as he and Dr. Maruki placed streamers along the gym’s walls. “After all of this time, all of your hard work, BARF actually worked! You can help so many people with this!”
BARF, the Biological Accelerated Regeneration Formula, was the culmination of Dr. Maruki’s years of research. With it, countless people who had suffered the loss of arms, legs, and possibly even organs could be helped and allowed to live a normal life once more.
“Don’t sell yourself short Ren. I would’ve never accomplished this without you and Haru by my side. You should both be proud of yourselves, and you can bet I’ll be including your names on the project as well.” Maruki said with a smile as he pinned up another streamer, accidentally pricking his finger in the process. “Ow!.”
“You okay Doc?” Ren asked, holding the ladder Maruki was standing on.
“Yeah.” He finished putting up the decoration before coming down. “Just a little clumsy with the new hand. It’s not exactly like riding a bike, I need to relearn how to use this arm from scratch. But that’s a considerably small price to pay, don’t you think?” He smiled, scratching his forearm.
“Yeah...” Ren replied, noticing a bit of dead skin flaking off of the arm as he scratched. “Doc, you’re positive this formula is safe right? I mean, you’re sure you didn’t jump the gun with human trials this early?”
“Huh?” Dr. Maruki raised an eyebrow. “What happened to that optimism from a minute ago? Of course it’s safe.” When he followed Ren’s gaze to where he was scratching, he noticed the dead skin falling out. “What, this? It’s just a side effect. The skin on this arm is newly grown, so it’s more sensitive to the elements, that’s all. It’ll adjust given time.” Noticing that his assistant still looked skeptical, he reassured him. “Don’t worry Ren, the project was a resounding success! Now’s the time to celebrate!”
“Right…” Ren replied. He wasn’t exactly in a celebratory mood at the moment.
“Hey guys!” The cheerful voice of Professor Yamagishi called out, holding a stack of boxes much too big for her. “How’s it going over he-Whoa!” The small woman tripped and began to tumble forward, dropping the contents of the top container.
Reacting quickly, Ren’s arms shot out to grab each item as it fell, catching all of them before they could hit the ground.
“Wow, nice reflexes.” Maruki commented, assisting Fuuka with setting the boxes down.
“It’s uh, easier than it looks.” Ren replied sheepishly. “What is this stuff anyway?”
“Well,” Fuuka clapped the dust off of her hands. “You wouldn’t believe what I found down in the school’s basement. Check out this old projector!” She pulled free a large metallic device from one of the boxes. “Doesn’t it seem like one of those creepy items that’s like, haunted or something? I was thinking we could use this to play some classic horror movies while the dance is going on.”
“Great idea Fuuka!” Maruki said with a smile, examining the projector. “I’m sure if we found some old film reels, it would really add to the spooky atmosphere!”
“Way ahead of you.” Fuuka said excitedly, reaching in to pull another item from the box. As she attempted to pull a film reel out, she didn’t notice Maruki walking up behind her to observe. When she finally did pull the object free, it unintentionally smacked the doctor across the face, sending his glasses flying across the room.
“Oh no!” She cried, turning to the injured Maruki who had blood seeping from a cut on the bridge of his nose. “Are you alright? I’m so sorry!”
“I’m fine.” He replied, closing his eyes and holding his nose. “Don’t worry about me.”
“I’ll run and get you a bandage!” She said panickedly before running off. “Doctor Takemi!”
“Let me get your glasses for you.” Ren said as he walked over to grab the frames off of the gymnasium floor. Picking them up and making sure they weren’t broken, he returned the item to its owner.
“Thank you Ren.” Maruki released his nose and accepted the eyewear.
“Uh Doc?” Ren looked at the scientist’s face, puzzled.
“What is it?” Maruki asked curiously, wiping the lenses clean.
“Weren’t you bleeding a second ago? The scratch, it’s gone.”
“It is?” Maruki touched where the cut had been only a moment ago, noting that it no longer stung either. “That’s odd. Must not have been a very deep cut. Anyways, I’ll go assure Ms. Yamagishi that I’m okay. You can head home for the night, I think we’ve worked you and your friends hard enough today.” He said with a smile.
“If you say so.” Ren replied. While he still found the situation strange, he didn’t get the sense that the doctor was hiding anything from him. He was just his usual, cheerful self. Plus, he didn’t have the energy for that kind of thinking right now. When he got home he would try to get some rest again, maybe tonight he could actually sleep.
It was the late afternoon by the time he reached the door to Leblanc. He was about to step in, ready to rest for the evening, when he felt his phone buzz with a text. Sighing as he went to check it, he was surprised to find that it was from Naoto. Were they speaking again now? Sure he’d gone to her for information a few days earlier, but he wasn’t even sure if the detective remembered that happening.
‘Hey. I’m sorry to ask you this, but can you come down to the station? We need your help identifying a body. We think it’s your uncle.’
An hour and a half later, Ren found himself in the police station morgue. As the mortician pulled open the drawer containing Uncle Minato’s corpse, he silently nodded that it was indeed him as tears formed in the corners of his eyes once more. The gaping hole in his chest had been sewn shut, and his skin was now pale and lifeless, but that was undoubtedly his uncle. Ren felt the wound in his side flare up as memories of his failure came rushing back.
“Ren…” Naoto appeared at his side, putting her hand on the teenager’s shoulder. “Can we talk? In private?” She turned to the mortician who nodded before leaving.
“What is it?” Ren asked, wiping the tears from his eyes.
“I’m sorry about what happened to your uncle. From what I gathered in the reports, near the end, the two of you fought Scorpion side by side. It’s good to know that he was there for you, that he still cared for you even after all of that time in prison.”
“Yeah...” Ren responded solemnly.
“And that makes this next part more difficult.” Naoto stated sadly. “I want you to know that I was against this, but I didn’t have any say in the matter.”
“Huh?”
“Ryker’s...They want to keep this quiet. If word got out that two of their most dangerous prisoners escaped under their watch, they would lose a lot of their financial backing. So instead, they want to claim it was someone else in the suit, a copycat trying to take Prowler’s name.”
“What does this have to do with me?” Ren questioned, confused.
Naoto sighed, turning away from the boy. “There can’t be a funeral. Or a gravestone. As far as the public is concerned, Minato Arisato is still locked up in solitary confinement for the remainder of his days. They want you to be silent on the matter as well.”
“You mean I’m not even allowed to mourn my relative? I’m not allowed to tell my father that his brother is dead?” Ren was angry now. “What kind of fucked up system is that!? I have to pretend like my uncle never existed so that a bunch of corporate bigwigs don’t lose their shareholders!?” He yelled, his voice beginning to crack as he finished.
Without a word, Naoto wrapped her arms around him, embracing him tightly as she began to cry as well. Lacking the strength to put up any more of a fight, he accepted the hug, embracing her back. The two of them stood silently like that for a minute.
“I’m sorry Ren. For all of this.” Naoto finally spoke. “Everything you’ve gone through, if I hadn’t gotten you involved then maybe-”
“No.” He interrupted. “I would’ve gone down this path even if you hadn’t encouraged me.”
“Still,” Naoto countered. “I...I used you as a surrogate. I tried to use you to fill the hole Yu Narukami left behind, for the public and myself. And because of that...you’ve suffered so much, in ways I couldn’t have imagined. I’m so sorry.”
“...It means a lot to hear you say that Naoto. But I assure you, I don’t blame you for any of this. My uncle...h-he made his choice, and because of him, I’m still here today.” Ren reassured himself more than her. “It’s thanks to both of you that I’m alive now.”
“They’re going to be cremating his body this afternoon. Would you like to say goodbye?”
“Yeah.” Ren replied, turning back to face his uncle’s corpse.
Lying there on his back with his eyes closed, the man looked peaceful for the first time in his life. Even when he’d been with Ren, the boy could always sense conflict within the man. But now, finally at rest, his conflict was over and he was left with no regrets having seen the boy he raised become a hero to the people of Tokyo. That was something to be proud of.
“Goodbye Uncle Minato.” Ren said, placing his hand next to the man’s body. As he walked away from the corpse, he turned to Naoto with sad eyes. “Y’know, one of the last things he said to me was that he was proud that I’d found something to fight for.” He smiled to himself. “But that I should live in the world that I was fighting for. I’m not quite sure what he meant by that.”
Naoto held her hand to Ren’s cheek. “I think your uncle wanted you to move on. To enjoy your life without being weighed down by guilt. That’s what I think at least…” She said, gazing into Ren’s eyes.
“Hmm.” Ren hummed as he stared back at her, taking her words to heart.
The two stared at one another for a long while, neither one of them speaking. Just as Ren thought he saw Naoto leaning forward, the mortician returned, interrupting them.
“Um Ma’am? I’m sorry but I need the room…” He saw the position he’d caught them in. “...Sorry.”
“No, it’s not a problem.” Naoto replied and the two quickly separated, averting their gazes from one another.
Neither of them spoke as Naoto drove Ren back to Leblanc. Neither was sure what to say to the other. Things were simply too awkward at the moment. Ren in particular had a lot on his mind as he stared out of the car window. Memories of his uncle still flashed in his mind, only now they were of the good times. Their talks on the steps, being shown Ben and May’s ice cream shop, their late night conversation at Leblanc...His smile as he passed on.
Minato wasn’t gone, he was a part of Ren now. And he would make sure they lived on together, making the most of the life his uncle had saved.
“We’re here.” Naoto announced as she parked in front of the cafe.
“Thanks.” Ren replied, turning to her with a smile. “...Wanna come in for some coffee?”
“Sorry, I need to get back to the office. Maybe next time.” She smiled back at him.
“Next time then.” And with that, Naoto drove off, leaving Ren alone in front of Leblanc...Or at least he thought he was. As he watched Naoto drive off in her car, he was surprised when he heard a meow from next to him.
“What the-” He spun around, only to find a black and white cat standing on a crate next to him. Recognizing it immediately, he checked the collar to confirm that it was, in fact, Maurice the cat. Sure enough, the collar proved it, yet there wasn’t a phone number or an address written on it to help find the owner.
“Did-Did you follow me here?” He asked the cat, only to receive another meow in response. “I guess you recognized me by scent but still, you crossed half of the city to find me? What about your owner?” As if to answer that question, the cat rubbed against his side and began to purr softly. “Um...alright then...I guess I can at least feed you.”
As the two entered the cafe, Ren was unsure how to explain his new pet, but it seemed he wouldn’t need to as there were other matters at hand. Namely his entire friend group sitting around the counter apparently waiting for him.
“Ren!” The group cheered as he entered.
“You’ve...got a cat?” Sojiro asked, raising an eyebrow.
“Umm...Yeah?”
“...”
“...”
“You name it yet?”
“It’s Maurice...Why is everybody here?” Ren asked, setting down his backpack.
“Put on your dancing shoes cowboy!” Ryuji put an arm around his friend.
“We’re going clubbing!”