Cardfight!! Vanguard: Heiwa - Volume II

-Part 5

Tate's incessant chase after the grey haired boy took him far and away from Heiwa. Whenever he ran past a corner, his target passed one far ahead of him. It was like the more he pursued him, the more distant he became.

That is, until Tate arrived at a riverbank, where the one he'd spent minutes pursuing sat peacefully on a bench, as if waiting for him.

"Yo. It's been a while, Tame-chan."

"Niji... Mura... Wha... What are- Hm!"

Tate suddenly gasped and covered his mouth with both hands. He dashed for the river and crouched next to it, right before puking into the water.

"Is everything alright? Do you want some water?" The boy asked, walking up to Tate, and offering him a bottle of water that he had within his trench coat.

"G-GET AWAY FROM ME!" Tate yelled, slapping the bottle away and crawling far from him. "W-why... WHY THE HELL ARE YOU HERE?!"

"Careful, the river did nothing to you, so don't go polluting it just like that." The boy sighed, and after fetching the bottle from the water before it could drift away from shore, he dried it with a handkerchief and returned it to his pocket.

"DAMMIT, ANSWER MY QUESTION, NIJIMURA!" Tate demanded, panthing harshly.

"That's a fair demand. But stop calling me that, you'll understand in a sec. Meeting you today was actually just a funny coincidence." The boy shrugged. "But this gives me the chance to do something I've been waiting to do for these past four years."

Tate braced himself and crossed his arms above his head to defend himself from the incoming blow, but nothing of the like happened. Instead, what he saw was a hand being offered to him.

"I'm sorry."

"Eh...? What are you... WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?!"

But instead of accepting his help, Tate slapped away the hand and quickly got back up on his feet. With a small bunch of dirt he grabbed from the ground, he took aim with a trembling hand and hurled it at his supposed opponent, but he only raised an arm to defend against it.

"YOU THINK YOU CAN JUST SHOW UP ONE DAY WHEN WE'RE LIVING OUR PEACEFUL LIVES AND APOLOGIZE FOR WHAT YOU DID?! YOU'RE THE BIGGEST SCUM OF THE WORLD, YOU DON'T DESERVE ANYONE'S FORGIVENESS!"

"Well, you aren't wrong there." The grey haired boy said, dusting off his sleeve. "And I don't care whether you accept it or not, but either way, I still wanted to say sorry for the whole Hirabayashi deal. It's the least I can do for myself to get some peace of mind, no matter how small it is. It's been four years since then, and alot changed, Tame-chan."

"STOP CALLING ME THAT, DAMMIT!"

"Alright, fair enough. Like I said, alot has changed since that day, Serebryakov-san. You probably heard some of it by now, probably got scolded by the school about it. The Nijimura's great and honourful legacy has fallen. I got kicked out of the family. That sort of stuff. Nijimura Nobuyuki is gone."

"THEN WHY THE HELL ARE YOU HERE?! WHY COME TO US AFTER ALL THIS TIME?!"

"Drop the yelling and maybe we can have a proper talk. I guess the point I'm trying to make is that... Nijimura Nobuyuki is gone. My name is Kotomine Junpei, the name my mother wanted to give me."

"NOBUYUKI OR JUNPEI, I DON'T GIVE A DAMN!"

Tate stepped forward, reaching out for Junpei's collar, but in a simple movement, Junpei dodged and stepped behind him.

"You really think you can actually take me on a fight? Alot has changed over the last four years, but this hasn't. You're still weak." Junpei mused.