Battle Royale

by Koushun Takami

  Yukie sighed again. "I thought so too…but Shinji didn't have a very good reputation…among the girls. You know, he was kind of a playboy. And his intelligence was kind of intimidating. You know how he intervened when Noriko was injured? One of the girls said that might have been calculated." It was the same explanation Shogo gave when he mentioned he'd seen Shinji.

  "Before we could decide, Shinji was gone." Yukie shrugged. "In any case, we'd decided against boys. So we didn't call on Kazuhiko either."

  That's right. Kazuhiko Yamamoto, who went out with Sakura Ogawa, who despite his good looks was kind and unpretentious, and therefore must have been popular with the girls. Yukie's group decided against contacting him too, though. And given this policy, it was only to be expected there'd be some friction over taking in Shuya here.

  Shuya realized Yukie only accounted for five of them. She hadn't mentioned Yuko Sakaki (Female Student No. 9).

  "What about Yuko? You haven't mentioned her."

  Yukie nodded and looked back at Shuya. "That was luck too. We came here yesterday morning…Nice fortress huh? Last night, I think it was around 8 p.m., Yuko just stumbled by here. She was totally terrified."

  Yukie stopped as if she had something else to say. Shuya was about to ask her what was wrong, but Yukie continued, "…in any case, everyone knows Yuko. So it wasn't a problem." That summed up her account. Shuya thought of asking more about Yuko Sakaki but decided not to. If she'd been alone until last night then she might have encountered something horrible. Did she survive someone's attack, or did she see students killings each other, or did she come across a corpse torn up from fighting?…

  Shuya nodded slightly several times. "I get it now."

  "There's one thing I don't get," Yukie said. "It's not a big deal but…Hiroki was saying he needed to see Kayoko Kotohiki, right? And that was why he didn't join your group." Shuya was worried about him ever since he summarized his situation to Yukie. Hiroki was still alive and so was Kayoko Kotohiki. Did he manage to find her?

  "He had to see her. I wonder why."

  Shuya shook his head. "We didn't ask. He was in a hurry. We were wondering too—" As he spoke Shuya couldn't help but wonder, did Hiroki manage to find Kayoko Kotohiki? If he did then—

  Shogo's voice suddenly returned: "This sound is your ticket out of here. If you're up for it, you can come aboard our train."

  Shuya opened his eyes wide and exclaimed, "The bird call."

  "What?"

  Shuya looked over at Yukie. "I know a way we can join Noriko and Shogo."

  "Really?"

  Shuya nodded. Then he struggled to move his body. He could explain later. "I have to contact him now. I have to get going."

  "Hold on," Yukie stopped him. "You need to rest."

  "I can't. The more I lie around—"

  "I said hold on. You might want to listen to the girl who's in love with you." She managed to say this as she blushed a little with a playful smile. "We took you in here because even if you woke up you wouldn't be able to move. Your sudden burst of energy might terrify some of the girls." Shuya's eyes opened wide. But then again it made sense. That was probably why the other girls let Yukie stay with him alone here.

  Yukie continued, "In any case, just stay put for a while. I'll tell them everything you told me. I'll insist you and Shogo can be trusted and convince them. As for contacting him and Noriko, I can't let you do that alone. That's just too dangerous. I'll discuss that with them too. So you just stay here." Then she asked him, "Can you eat?"

  "Yeah."

  In fact he was famished. He was worried about Noriko and Shogo, but he thought he should eat first. It would help his immune system fight against his gunshot wounds.

  "If you have any food to spare I'd really appreciate it. I do feel pretty weak." Yukie smiled. "We're preparing lunch right now. I'll bring you some. I think it's something like stew. Is that all right?"

  "Stew?"

  "Yeah, this place is loaded with food even though it's all just preserved canned food and retort food. But we found water and solid fuel, so we were able to cook it."

  "Awesome. That's great."

  Yukie's hand left the edge of the bed. She walked over to the door and said, "I'm really sorry but I'm going to have to lock the door."

  "Huh?"

  "I'm sorry. There's someone who's terrified. So please, just wait," Yukie said. She smiled kindly as she opened the door and went out. Her two braids of hair swung like some mysterious animal's tail, and he caught a glimpse of a gun stuck in the back of her skirt.

  There was a clacking sound from beyond the door. It might have been bolted shut. Was that how they locked him up?

  Shuya managed to raise his upper body with his right elbow and looked up at the window above his head. The window was sealed with wooden planks and light leaked in through the gaps. This was done to keep intruders out—but right now it also served as an ideal place to lock him up. The fingers of his near paralyzed left arm reflexively formed guitar chords under the blanket. The chords from that hit tune sung by the rock star the middle-aged man, the one who gave him his guitar, worshipped, "Jailhouse Rock."

  Shuya took a deep breath and lay down on his bed. The slight movement was enough to send sharp pain through the wound in his side.

  14 students remaining

  60

  The Okishima Island lighthouse was old but durable. It faced north with a tower seventeen meters high, and the living quarters, a single-story brick building, had been built as an annex to the tower on its south side. The dining-kitchen-living room was immediately south of the tower, and further south was the storage room and bathroom. Further down were two bedrooms, one large, the other small, along with another storage room right near the front entrance. The hall running on the west side of the building connected these rooms. (Shuya was resting in the small bedroom by the entrance.) In the corner of the kitchen-living room, which was at least as large as a classroom, was a small table that looked out of place. Yuko Sakaki (Female Student No. 9) was sitting on one of the stools around the table, slumped over the white tabletop as if she were dozing off. Unlike the other five girls, she had wandered around the island for hours on end, so a single night here had hardly alleviated her fatigue. No wonder. She had a reason for not sleeping at all last night.

  Yukie Utsumi's team used this room as their living quarters and slept here too. Someone had to keep watch at the top of the tower, but otherwise Yukie decided that everyone should stick together. Right behind Yuko, Haruka Tanizawa (Female Student No. 12) and Chisato Matsui (Female Student No. 19) were busily preparing the preserved food in front of the stove, where solid fuel was lit up in place of the shut-off gas. At 172 centimeters tall, Haruka was an attacker on the volleyball team. She and Yukie, who was a setter, formed a great duo. She had short hair, so next to the long-haired, petit Chisato they almost looked like a couple. The meal was a retort stew mixed with canned vegetables. Above them were planks of wood they found in the storage room and hastily hammered into the frosted glass window, which let in the dull light of the cloudy sky. The planks were there to keep intruders out. As soon as they had arrived Yukie and the girls immediately sealed off every entrance and exit from the inside of the building. (The front entrance was designated as their primary entrance-exit, which was where they took Yuko in, but now it was barricaded with desks and lockers.) Yuko had a clear view of the other side of the room where there was a writing desk with a fax machine and computer. To the left of it, Satomi Noda (Female Student No. 17) was sitting on a sofa placed against the wall, while the table that had been in front of it was now used to barricade the front entrance. Along with Yukie, Satomi was a model student, and although she always seemed a little frigid, now she looked pretty exhausted as she raised her wire-rimmed glasses and drowsily rubbed her eyes. To the left of the sofa, the kitchen's side door connected to the hall that led to the front entrance. On Yuko's right, the far door on the other side led to the bottom of the tower, and the first several
steel stairs leading up to the lantern room were visible. Yuka Nakagawa (Female Student No. 16) was up there, supposedly keeping watch. Yuko hadn't kept watch yet, but Yukie had told her that since the lighthouse faced the ocean, and since there was only one narrow path from the harbor behind the building, the rest of the area surrounded by mountains, it wasn't very difficult to keep watch. Yukie was now in the room right by the entrance where they'd kept Shuya Nanahara.

  Shuya Nanahara.

  Yuko felt the tremor of fear returning. Along with it the image that was burnt into her memory. The cracked head. The bloody axe removed from it. And the boy who held this axe. It was a chilling memory. And this boy—Shuya Nanahara—was now in the lighthouse, the same building she was in. That was—

  No, it's all right. It's all right.

  Trying to keep herself from trembling, she stared at the white tabletop and reminded herself, that's right, he's dying, he can't possibly wake up after so many injuries and so much bleeding. Someone tapped her on the shoulder and she looked up.

  As Haruka Tanizawa sat down next to her, she stared at Yuko and asked, "Did you get any sleep?" She was taking a break from cooking. Chisato Matsui seemed to be checking the cooking instructions, examining the package of preserved food. (Chisato had in fact been quietly weeping this morning. Haruka Tanizawa had whispered to her it was because of the 6 a.m. announcement of Shinji Mimura's death. Until then Yuko hardly knew Chisato had a crush on Shinji Mimura. Her eyes were still red.) Yuko forced a smile and answered, "Yeah, a little." It was all right. As long as she was with these other five friends she was all right. She was safe here. Even if that safety would expire when their time ran out. Still—

  Haruka brought up the matter. "What you said about yesterday."

  "Oh…" Yuko smiled. "It's all right now."

  That's right. It was fine now. She didn't even want to think about it. Just the memory sent chills down her spine. But…in any case…

  Shuya Nanahara wasn't going to wake up again. Then it was all right. Just fine. Haruka smiled ambivalently. "Well then, okay."

  That's right…When Shuya Nanahara was discovered unconscious in front of the lighthouse yesterday, Yuko had vehemently opposed taking him in. She had explained (she was shouting rather than explaining) what she'd seen, Tatsumichi Oki's split-open skull, how Shuya Nanahara had removed the axe, how dangerous he was, and how he would try to kill them if they let him live. Yuko and Yukie were on the verge of fighting, but then Haruka and the others insisted they couldn't just let someone die, so they brought Shuya in. Yuko looked on, face ashen, keeping her distance, while the others carried the blood-drenched Shuya. It was as if they were welcoming a strange, scary monster that haunted you in your childhood dreams into your house. No, that's exactly what it was like. But…as time passed Yuko convinced herself Shuya was dying. After all, he couldn't possibly survive those wounds. Knowing he would die of course was unappealing, but in any case she managed to hold herself back. The one condition she insisted on, though, was that his room be locked. Haruka continued. It was the same question they had asked several times yesterday. "You say you saw Shuya kill Tatsumichi, but it might have been in self-defense, right?" That was true. She'd been hiding in the bushes when she heard the thudding sound. By the time she looked, the only part she really witnessed was Shuya removing the axe from Tatsumichi Oki's head. Then she immediately ran away.

  In other words, as Haruka said (which was based on Yuko's own description), Yuko had only seen the aftermath. It was possible he had done it in self-defense. However…

  …no matter how many times Haruka and Yukie said this to her, Yuko just couldn't see it that way. No, she simply rejected the idea.

  What do you mean, "possible"? I saw that cracked skull. I saw Shuya Nanahara holding that axe. The bloody axe. The dripping blood.

  Her thoughts revolved around this scene now. Yuko couldn't be rational about Shuya Nanahara anymore. It was like a natural disaster, like a flood or tornado. The moment Yuko began thinking about Shuya, that scene and her fear would just wash it all away. The only thing left was an axiom that was nearly visceral— that Shuya Nanahara was dangerous.

  Yuko had her reasons. She abhorred violence. She couldn't stand it. Hearing a friend talk about a splatter film in Class B (was it Yuka Nakagawa? "Of course, it was funny, but, it wasn't a big deal, it should have more gory, ha ha ha") she felt sick enough to be taken to the school nurse. It was probably related to her memory of her father. Even though he wasn't a stepfather—he was her real father—he drank heavily and abused her mother, her older brother, and Yuko herself. She was too young back then…so Yuko didn't understand why. She was never able to ask her mother why he was like that. She didn't even want to remember it. Well, maybe there were no reasons at all. She didn't know. In any case, when her father was stabbed to death by a yakuza over some gambling dispute—Yuko was still in first grade—she felt more relieved than bereaved. Ever since then she, her mother, and brother led a peaceful life. They could invite friends over. They finally felt safe with the disappearance of their father.

  But she still sometimes had dreams about him. Her bleeding mother being beaten with a golf club (even though they were poor, this was the one expensive item in their home). Her brother being beaten with an ashtray, nearly losing his sight. And…herself, suffering cigarette burns, paralyzed with fear (her mother who tried to intervene would then be beaten again).

  Maybe all of that was related, maybe not. In any case, Yuko was absolutely convinced Shuya Nanahara was dangerous.

  "Right?" She heard Haruka say that emphatically, but her words didn't register. A chill ran through her body, accompanied by a vision. Everyone including herself, the six of them lying on the floor, their skulls cracked open, and Shuya Nanahara grinning with an axe in his hand…

  No, no. It's going to be over. Shuya Nanahara won't be around for long.

  "Yes." She looked up and nodded. In fact, she had no idea what Haruka was talking about. But in any case as long as Shuya couldn't recover there was no reason to throw the team off balance. Haruka seemed to be seeking some indication she was convinced.

  "Y-yes. It was just me. I was so tired too."

  This seemed to put Haruka at ease. She said, "Shuya's a good guy. They're aren't too many around like him."

  Yuko looked at Haruka as if she were a mummy exhibited in a museum. She had thought so too, until recently. Shuya seemed strange, but all in all there was something very likable about him. In fact, she'd even thought he was kind of cool.

  But any memory of this feeling had completely fallen by the wayside now. Maybe it was more accurate to say the cracked-skull scene had smothered out all her other memories.

  What? What are you saying, Haruka? That he's good? What are you talking about?

  Haruka looked into Yuko's eyes dubiously, but added, "So even if he gets up, don't provoke him, okay?" Yuko was horrified. There was no way he was going to wake up. If…if that ever happened…

  But a portion of her rational faculties were still intact enough for her to nod and say, "I'm fine. No problem."

  "Good. I feel much better."

  Haruka nodded back, turned towards Chisato without getting up, and said, "Smells good." Along with the steam, the smell of the stew came drifting from the stove pot. Chisato turned her head around and said in her quiet, thin voice, "Yes, it looks pretty good. It might be better than yesterday's soup."

  She had been crying over Shinji Mimura for a long time, but she seemed all right for the time being. Even Yuko could see that.

  Right then, the door to the hall opened up. It was Yukie Utsumi. As usual she maintained her perfect posture and walked forward confidently. After Yuko's arrival, Yukie still did a good job leading the group, but she seemed a little tired. Ever since they took in Shuya she looked even more distressed. (It was in fact because she was on the one hand happy to see Shuya, but on the other worried his wounds might prove to be fatal, but this was beyond the scope of Yuko's perception.) Yuko fe
lt like it'd been a while since she last saw Yukie so energetic, but now her face was beaming. Yuko felt as if a caterpillar was crawling up her spine. She had a bad feeling about this. Yukie stopped, put her hands on her waists, and looked around at everyone. Then she comically cupped her hands against her mouth in the shape of a megaphone.

  Then she said, "Shuya Nanahara has arisen."

  Haruka and Chisato cried out with joy while Satomi got up from her sofa, but next to her…

  …Yuko turned pale.

  14 students remaining

  61

  "Really? Can he speak?" Haruka asked.

  "Uh huh. He says he's hungry too." Yukie nodded and then looked over at Yuko and said, "It's all right. I locked the door to his room so you wouldn't have to worry."

  She wasn't being sarcastic. It sounded more like she was doing what she should do as the leader. But that wasn't the point, Yuko thought. No, actually she had considered it over and over last night. While she was certain he would never recover, what if he did? Then how would she deal with it?

  And…then the odor drifted by.

  What timing. They were about to eat. Besides…it wouldn't be that odd for a guy in critical condition to die suddenly, would it?

  Yuko forced a smile (indeed, it was impeccable) and shook her head. "I'm not worried," she continued,

  "I'm sorry. I was all screwed up yesterday. I won't hold anything against Shuya anymore." This seemed to relieve Yukie. She took a deep breath.

  "Well then, I guess I didn't need to lock the door." She smiled at Yuko and added, "What happened with Tatsumichi Oki was an accident. That's what Shuya said."

  Hearing Tatsumichi's name, Yuko had a flashback of that scene which sent another chill down her spine, but she managed to keep her smile and nodded. An accident. Well, I suppose it was quite an accident for Tatsumichi Oki.

  Yukie then said to Haruka, "Hey, Haruka, can you go get Yuka? There's something I need to discuss." Haruka asked back, "Shouldn't she be keeping watch?"