Chapter 30: Re-Evaluation
List of Hikigaya's Current Shadows
Major:
Igris - Knight
Iris - Knight
Sasori - Scorpion
Shinai - Golem
Radhan - Knight
Kuma - Ice Bear
Kori - Barca
Tsu - Ozaki A-rank tank
Keiko - B ranked healer
Shiro - Wyvern
Minor:
6 B Rank Hunters
Ice Bears
Ice Elves
Yetis
Several knights and magicians
x x x
"The hell is all this?"
I opened the door to my bedroom and looked at the large pile of gift baskets and boxes on the room's left side. I dropped my laundry bag on the floor and stepped closer to the pile of gifts. I lifted one of the baskets and saw several snacks, expensive trinkets, and gift cards. I ignored them in favor of picking up the large, glorious envelope in the center.
"We of the Ninja Kamui Guild would like to set up a meeting with Hachiman Hikigaya regarding joining our Guild..." I stopped reading out loud and scanned the rest of the note. At the button was a stapled-on business card with the Guild Master's name and number. I looked over the various gifts and many envelopes and concluded they were all about the same thing. "Crap, could it be that everyone found out I had a double awakening?"
"Ah! Big bro! You're home!" Komachi said excitedly as she walked into my room, a look of surprise and joy on her face. I turned to her and saw she was wearing one of her casual outdoor outfits; the new bag I bought her hung in the crook of her arm. She ran towards me and jumped in my arms.
"Yeah, I'm home." I said as I held her effortlessly. She nodded happily and squeezed me tighter.
"Welcome home!" Komachi grinned and took a step back. She looked over at all the gifts and letters with an annoyed look and sighed. "I see you found all your offerings. You know, big brother, you've become pretty popular online. Everyone's talking about how you're the first to have a double wake-up thing. Whatever that means."
"Double awakening." I corrected her and picked up another letter. It was from the Soul Reaper Guild. "I guess the secrets out."
I placed the letter back into its basket and turned to Komach. I grinned and rubbed the top of her head. She laughed and swatted my hand away.
"Let's go grab some food. I'm starving."
x x x
I had taken Komachi to Kanidouraku Chiba. A relatively expensive crab focused restaurant off Chiba station. As we ate our food, I caught up on what I had missed during the two-and-a-half weeks I was gone. I smiled when I heard that she and Yui had finally talked. Komachi explained to me how she was finally able to move past her feelings regarding the car accident; she even told me that she and Yui were friends now.
I couldn't help but be proud of my little sister. It took a big person to be able to move past situations like these. Komachi was growing up to become a fine, mature woman. Afterward, she told me about everything she'd watched or had done over the weeks. I laughed when she told me she won five thousand yen from Ryuji during a bet over a Mario Kart match.
So after we had our fill of crab, I paid the bill, and we left the restaurant. I had suggested we stop by Inohana Park before we went home, and Komachi didn't mind the detour. As we walked around the trail, I couldn't help but smile at my surroundings. After being in the hellish landscape of the demon castle dungeon, I had forgotten how nice it was to go on a simple walk. Looking down, I saw Komachi grabbing my arm tightly as we walked. She was being especially clingy. It seemed she missed me more than I thought.
I've been keeping this from you long enough, Komachi.
"Hey, Komachi. There's something I have to tell you…"
x x x
I lay on my bed with a hand behind my head; in my right hand was an official letter from the Japanese Hunter Association. I had found it deep within the pile of mail and letters I had received in the time I was gone. The letter was an invitation for me to visit the headquarters in Tokyo to be re-evaluated and confirm my double awakening. Since the news that I was the first Japanese citizen to double awaken had spread so wide, they wanted to confirm that piece of news themselves. There was also a statement from the chairman that if I had become either an A or S rank, then it would be possible for me to get my official Hunters license immediately.
I sighed and placed the letter down on the floor. I was now at level ninety-four and had grown incredibly strong. My stats and levels have grown significantly after completing the demon castle and defeating Balan. I knew that I was now easily within the level of S-Rank. So it was all but guaranteed that I'd get my hunter license. But I wasn't looking forward to the inevitable attention I'd receive from the public and media for being Japan's newest S-Rank Hunter and the only person to have received a double awakening in the country.
"What a pain." I said as I rolled over to my side.
My conversation with Komachi had gone as I thought it would when I finished my story and demonstration. The demonstration being summoning a pair of weapons from my inventory and bringing out Igris to show her one of my shadows. She asked me several questions, and I tried to answer them as best as I could. Komachi had grown angry that I had kept the truth from her for so long and that I'd been lying this whole time. I had nothing to say to that because she was right. I had been lying to her. The only thing I could do was apologize and ask her to forgive me.
"I'm still angry you lied to me. But… I guess I can understand why you kept it from me. I'm not exactly the biggest fan of you going into the Gates and risking your life, so if you had told me the truth, I'd probably try to get you to quit." Komachi said and leaned into my arm. "But I do forgive you. You're my big brother; I can't stay mad at you for too long. That won me a bunch of points just now!"
I sighed and began returning several of the missed texts I got from my friends while I was gone. I even saw that I had been invited to join a group chat. I scrolled through the chat and chuckled here and there. It was mostly them sending funny videos and memes to one another and several plans they'd made while I was gone.
RS: Yo! We should all head to the fireworks show in a few days! (O .O)
AT: Sounds fun! (w)/
SS: Sure, that would be a nice way to end our summer break.
II: Count me in! You'll be going too, right Hachiman?! ;)
HH: Yeah, I'll be going. I just have to take care of that re-evaluation in a few days first. I'll also invite Kitagawa and Sazaki so you all can meet them.
SN: That's wonderful! Is it okay if I bring Yuzuru?
HH: Of course, I'll bring Komachi as well.
From there, we all began to chat and send each other funny gifs. It wasn't until midnight rolled around that I fell asleep. I had to enjoy my peace while it lasted because, in two days, I would get re-evaluated and join the world of S-Rank Hunters.
x x x
"Who are they here for? Hiroyuki Sanada?" Komachi said as she held my arm. We stopped walking across the street from the main building for the Tokyo Hunter Association headquarters. Standing in front of the main entrance of the building were several dozen reporters, newscasters, and photographers. They were looking around excitedly, cameras and notepads in hand.
"I don't think we're that lucky." I said. I threw my jacket hood over my head, and we walked as stealthily as possible around the feverish paparazzi. We used the wide columns along the left side of the headquarters courtyard as cover. Komachi looked at me oddly. Her eyes suddenly twinkled in amazement.
"Ah! Are they here for you?" Komachi exclaimed excitedly and began to jump in excitement. I groaned and gave another sideways glance at the group of impatient reporters.
Komachi and I managed to sneak around them without incident and walked through the front doors of the building. Once inside, I saw a man in a black and white suit marching toward me. Hold on, this guy seems familiar. The man stopped in front of me and gave me a once-over.
"You must be Hachiman Hikigaya, the one claiming to have had a double awakening. I am Riku Ichida, a member of the Associations Surveillance Team. I'm here to guide you to the testing grounds." Riku said in an impatient voice and motioned for me to follow him.
It was then that I remembered who the guy was. It's thing one! Yes, I remembered him now. He was one of the two men from when I woke up from my coma, and he told me all about the new world alongside his partner. I also remembered he was a huge ass.
"Let me be clear. If you're doing this as a way to garner attention to yourself. Be prepared to suffer the consequences." Riku said in a threatening tone. He even began to release a bit of his power.
I felt Komachi stiffen around my arm. I looked down and saw her begin to shake due to Riku's power and aura. To another awakened human, this acted more as a way to demonstrate your level of power. But to a normal human, it was as if the air around you was trying to suffocate you, and your senses began to go haywire on alert. So, to see my sister shake in fear caused something in me to rumble.
"Oi."
Riku turned around and was pushed back when I released a sliver of my power. I had also manipulated my energy to form a protective shield around Komachi; this way, no other energy but my own would reach her.
"Stop that."
Riku's entire body was covered in sweat, and he looked at me with newfound fear and respect. I didn't let up my power and continued staring into his eyes. I was completely unaware that my eyes were glowing a mighty blue. Instantly, I brought in my power, and everything returned to normal. Komachi looked around in confusion. To her, It seemed that everything just happened in the blink of an eye, causing her to miss the intricacies of what just happened.
"O-of course. My apologies." Riku stuttered and bowed deeply. I nodded, and we continued onwards.
Once we reached the hall to the testing grounds, I saw other familial and not-so-familiar faces waiting around. They turned to us with varying expressions. One of the said individuals was Haruno Yukinoshita.
"Hikigaya! What's this? Komachi is here as well!" Haruno said as she walked over to us and waved.
"Ah, it's Yukino's sister! Yahello!" Komachi said with a wave.
"Haruno, it's good to see you." I said with a small smile. She turned to me and froze. I was confused as to why Haruno was looking at me oddly. Finally, she nodded with a grin. "What?"
"Nothing, nothing. Come on, there's several people here who want to meet you." Haruno said. Komachi and I followed after her and stopped in front of Ryuji Goto and a young man with light green eyes and brown hair reaching the sides of his neck. He wore a pristine purple and white suit. The brown-haired man smiled at me and held a hand for a handshake.
"Ah, the talk of the country. It's nice to meet you, Hikigaya. I am Reiji Sukimoto, S-Rank Hunter and Vice Master of the Draw Sword Guild." Reiji said. Komachi let my arm go and took a small step back. I shook Reiji's hand and nodded at the man.
"Hachiman Hikigaya. It's nice to meet you." I said as I took my hand back.
I looked behind the man and saw Izumi Shiori. Beside her were several other people. They were all looking at me with curious and suspicious eyes. I squinted at them and couldn't help but be slightly annoyed. Are these people Guild Masters?
"Ah, don't mind them. They're just here to see the results of your evaluation." Ryuji Goto said as he walked up to me. "Your life as a hunter will be determined by the end of this test. Let's see if you're worth all this attention."
x x x
I looked around the extremely large training room. The floors and walls were lined with reinforced steel. The room was three stories tall, with bright luminescent lights overhead, filling the room with bright light. Up in the viewing galley stood Komachi and Haruno watching from behind the guard rails. On the other side of the room stood Ryuji, Reiji, Izumi, and several other Guild Masters.
Quite the audience. I sighed and looked up as a young woman in her early twenties walked across the room and stopped before me. She had short black hair and was dressed in a black and white suit. "Hello, I'm Hanekawa. I'll be the one to conduct your evaluation." Hanekawa said.
"So, to begin, I'm going to classify you based on your abilities. Can you show me what you're capable of?" Hanekawa said and looked at me expectantly.
Hmm… how much should I show them? I looked up at the Komachi and Haruno. Komachi smiled and gave me a thumbs-up. I smiled back and returned the gesture. I suppose I can show off a little in front of my little sister.
"Come forth."
A large portion of my shadow army rose from all over the training ground. Hanekawa jumped in surprise and spun around to look at my soldiers. I didn't summon Radahn, Shinai, and Shiro. There was no reason to show off all my cards.
"A-are all these your minions?" Hanekawa said in shock. I nodded.
"Yeah. I can summon around eighty of them." I said. I made sure to say this louder than usual.
I looked up and smirked at the awed and shock-filled looks. Komachi was looking around in amazement at each of my soldiers. Haruno was wide-eyed as she looked around; slowly, a tiny grin of excitement grew on her face. Ryuji and Reiji looked around in disbelief. Ryujis's eyes even began to narrow as his stare landed on me. Izumi and the rest of the Guild Masters were slack-jawed at my display.
"E-eighty of them!" Hanekawa said in disbelief. "How can this be?"
x x x
Ryuji Goto couldn't believe what was happening in front of him. He could have sworn that Hachiman wasn't anywhere near this level of power the night he first met him! This was impossible! The kid was barely at the level of an S-Rank when he first met him at the red gate, yet his aura was now on a completely different level. Perhaps even greater than his own… no, that was impossible. Inconceivable!
"What incredible power…" Izumi Shiori said as she and the rest of the Guild Masters watched Hachiman's mana being read by the association's large and state-of-the-art mana reader. The number display was spiraling out of control and didn't seem to stop rising.
"N-no way! That amount of mana is unbelievable!" A man with bright red hair said in awe. He leaned over the railing. He wore a black and white tux, and his eyes shook.
"It's as if he has his own personal guild at his fingertips." A woman with blonde hair said as she cupped her chin with her hand. She wore a blue suit with a pencil skirt.
"This level of mana is much greater than Goto's! But… this can't be." Reiji whispered in shock and denial.
Ryujis head snapped to his Vice Master and glared at his treacherous words. Japan's once strongest Hunter returned to Hikigaya and bore his burning gaze into the young man's head. Ryuji was Japan's strongest hunter and the world's next national-level hunter! He wouldn't be outshined by some kid.
He wouldn't allow it.
x x x
Authors Note
Hello, dear Readers!
I'm back with a new chapter. I do apologize for no longer posting any new chapters. The reason for that is that I lost interest in writing the story. I may have written myself into a corner with all the additions to Hachiman's inner circle and pushed all of Snafu's main cast into the background. Something that I am now not a big fan of. I'm only posting this chapter because I had written it months ago and kept it in my documents. I am still determining whether or not I will continue this story. I am sincerely sorry for this. Thank you for reading what I've written so far!
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone