"Just who is that guy?"
Hiyori sat in her classroom, her mind still racing with the events of the morning.
The boy's final act of stomping his foot had terrified everyone, herself included. If the principal hadn't arrived at that critical moment, she didn't know how things would have escalated.
"Hey, Hiyori, do you think he really is the principal's secret son? Why else would the principal be so polite to him?" the friend sitting next to her asked.
"I don't know. We probably shouldn't gossip too much about it," Hiyori whispered.
"Fair point. But Hiyori, do you like guys like him? He was scary then, but thinking back, he looked so imposing, kind of cool, actually. And he kept trying to talk to you, didn't he? Maybe he likes you? Our Hiyori-chan is truly a femme fatale."
"I think you're the one who likes him," Hiyori teased.
"I do not!"
"Hey, look, she's blushing!"
"Hmph! See if I don't teach you a lesson!"
"Ah, I'm sorry! Hiyori, save me!"
Hiyori smiled as she watched them play, but internally, her suspicions about the boy's identity only grew. If this were before, she might have just been shocked and moved on. But after the incident that changed her life recently, she couldn't simply choose to forget.
A normal person could never crack the ground like that so effortlessly. Even a master martial artist like Touno-sama couldn't do it. There's a high chance he's not human! Hiyori theorized.
What should I do? Should I tell Yato? Well, just to be safe, I'll mention it to him.
The school bell rang, snapping her out of her thoughts. The noisy classroom fell silent instantly. As the teacher entered, the class's collective expression turned to pure astonishment, for a boy was a boy following right behind.
It's him?! Hiyori's mouth fell open in shock.
"This is Kudo-kun, who has just transferred here. Please get along with him. Kudo-kun, please introduce yourself," the teacher said.
Ditto scanned the room and spotted Hiyori. After staring at her for a few beats, it said, "My name is Shinichi Kudo. I am here to experience life."
Hiyori felt her skin crawl under his gaze. Ignoring her friends' teasing looks, she raised her textbook to hide her face.
Experience life? What does that even mean? He really is strange.
The other students were equally confused. After a few seconds of silence, the teacher asked, "Is that all?"
"Yes."
"Ah... well, let's have a warm round of applause for our new classmate!"
Clap clap clap...
The classroom erupted in applause, mostly from the girls. In this form, Ditto's "packaging" was undeniably attractive.
"Alright, Kudo-kun, please take that empty seat in the corner."
Ditto nodded and strode toward the designated seat, which happened to be directly behind Hiyori. Heart pounding, Hiyori watched him pass. He sat down without any further incident, allowing her to let out a long breath of relief.
I need to find Yato as soon as possible.
Throughout the following lessons, Ditto behaved quite normally. It wasn't loud or disruptive; it simply sat quietly, observing everyone in the room. It was learning to mimic human social interaction.
Previously, it had mostly mimicked non-human creatures. Among humans, its primary model was Aomori, followed by Yujiro Hanma from Baki and Naoya Zenin from Jujutsu Kaisen. Consequently, its behavior had been somewhat overbearing or flippant for a while, until Aomori corrected it.
If Absol's personality was quiet, Pidgeot's was tsundere, and Darkrai's was shy, then Ditto's was "ever-changing." It was easily influenced by those around it, likely a byproduct of its early years spent in a cage, using Transform day after day until it became instinct. This didn't just affect its appearance; it bled into its personality and soul.
This was exactly why Aomori had sent it out to work alone: he wanted it to become independent and establish its own worldview.
Watching the students listen intently to the lecture, Ditto followed suit, even if it didn't understand the purpose of it all.
Hiyori, meanwhile, kept one ear turned backward, terrified that Ditto might suddenly snap and kick someone across the room. Naturally, if that happened, she'd be the first victim.
When the bell finally rang for the end of class, a swarm of girls immediately surrounded Ditto's desk.
"Hey, Kudo-kun, what did you mean by 'experience life' in your intro?"
"Kudo-kun, where are you from?"
"Kudo-kun, do you have a girlfriend?"
The boys watched this scene through gritted teeth but didn't dare voice their complaints, having seen the power of that "light stomp" earlier. No one wanted to test whether they or the pavement was harder, so they swallowed their jealousy in silence.
Ditto, however, looked overwhelmed by the chattering girls. Honestly, being surrounded by so many people made it nervous. Unlike the morning, it sensed no malice from them, only enthusiasm. This left it at a loss for how to respond.
Hiyori stole a glance back and was surprised to see Ditto's awkwardness.
He actually looks troubled by this. He doesn't seem like a bad person.
As she watched, she noticed Ditto looking at her with a gaze of pure interest, not the romantic kind, but the way a cat looks at a shiny new toy.
"Hiyori? That's weird, did she fall asleep again?"
"Ever since she was hit by that bus, she's had these narcoleptic episodes. I hope my Hiyori-chan gets better soon."
Eh?!! Hiyori turned her head and realized a pink tail had sprouted behind her. I knew it! My soul slipped out again!
Her physical body was currently facedown on the desk, "sleeping."
Hiyori's condition was the result of being hit by a bus while trying to save someone, only to find out later that the person she saved was actually a god. Since her physical injuries healed, she found her soul slipping out of her body far too easily, which was a nightmare for her school life. To make matters worse, that god, Yato, had promised to fix her but kept procrastinating. He clearly lacked sincerity.
Yato is such a big idiot!
After cursing him mentally, Hiyori froze. She was looking right at Ditto, and he was looking right back at her.
He can see me in my soul form! He really isn't human!
Just then, the bell for the next class rang, and the girls reluctantly dispersed. Hiyori didn't have time to worry about Ditto; her soul dove toward her body on the desk, trying to fuse back in. She tried several times to no avail, growing increasingly frantic.
Ditto found this girl cute and felt a natural affinity for her. Furthermore, Aomori was always looking for "special" humans.
This situation definitely counts as a special human. Ditto had never seen a person split in two, let alone one who couldn't put themselves back together.
"I can help you," it said.
Since Aomori had transitioned into a spiritual physique, his pets had inherited certain traits, such as the ability to see and touch spirits. Ditto had an intuition that it could help her two halves become one.
"Eh?" Looking at Ditto's serious face, Hiyori gritted her teeth. She might as well try anything at this point. "Then... please, Kudo-kun."
Ditto reached out a hand, placed it on Hiyori's soul-head, and shoved her straight down.
The Hiyori on the desk snapped her eyes open. She checked her hands, looked behind her to confirm there was no tail, and let out a massive sigh of relief.
I'm actually back. Kudo-kun is way more reliable than Yato. And since he hasn't done anything alarming yet, maybe I can ask him to cure this condition. But I have to wait until we're not being watched, otherwise I'll become public enemy number one for all the girls.
With that thought, she waited until school ended for the day.
Kudo-kun is too popular. There's no chance to talk to him.
Students began heading home. Hiyori's two friends packed their bags and asked, "Hiyori, want to walk home together?"
"Ah, yeah," Hiyori replied, quickly gathering her things. Forget it, I'll wait until tomorrow.
At that moment, Ditto picked up its backpack, walked over to Hiyori, and said expressionlessly, "Come home with me."
All three girls froze. Then, the two friends reacted first.
"Eeeek! So bold! Is this a confession?!"
"Hehe, we won't get in your way. Hiyori, go for it!"
With that, the two friends bolted, though Hiyori could clearly see them peeking from the classroom door.
"Those two..." Hiyori was speechless. She looked at Ditto and asked, "Kudo-kun, you aren't confessing, are you? What do you actually want?"
"Confession? You mean the way a man expresses romantic interest to a woman? I do like you quite a bit, but probably not in that way. Besides, my Aniki said that women only slow down a man's sword-draw. They're basically useless. I think he's right. Keep your distance; just looking is enough."
Strong men should stick to "true men" like Yujiro.
"Uh..." Hiyori didn't know what expression to make, so she settled for a polite smile. "Your brother has... unique views. Is he a swordsman?"
Ditto recalled Aomori occasionally holding a sword. That probably counted. It nodded. "He is a swordsman, but not just a swordsman. He has many identities. Currently, he is a god."
"A... a god?!" The image of the flighty, unreliable Yato flashed through Hiyori's mind, and she quickly shook it away. "Are you a god too?"
"I am not. You can split your soul; you are a 'person of destiny' that Aniki is looking for. I can take you to see him. He can solve your troubles."
"Really?" Hiyori was overjoyed.
"Of course. He is omnipotent," Ditto said seriously.
Hiyori thought about it. It was worth a shot. A god probably wouldn't have any use for plotting against her. However, she couldn't go right now. If she followed him home now, the rumors tomorrow would be everywhere.
"Tell me your address. I'll come visit when I have time."
"Address?" Ditto pulled out its phone and showed her the location on the map.
After Hiyori noted the address and swapped contact info with Ditto, she waved goodbye. Stepping out of the classroom, she was predictably intercepted by her two friends.
"So? So?!"
"So what?" Hiyori played dumb.
"Didn't he confess? You two looked like you were having a great chat. You didn't say yes, did you?"
"Hiyori, listen to me, even if you say yes, don't go to his house alone. Boys turn into monsters and eat you up!"
"No, no, no! He didn't confess, and I didn't say yes!" Hiyori broke free from their grasp and walked away.
"Liar! we clearly heard him!"
"Exactly! Just confess, we won't tell anyone!"
"It really wasn't like that," Hiyori improvised. "He used to be one of my father's patients. He recognized me and wanted to invite me and my father to his house for dinner. I told him I had to ask my dad first, so I just took his address and contact info. That's all it was."
"Really?"
"Really!"
Seeing Hiyori's sincere expression, they believed her.
"Well, that's basically like being childhood friends then. You've got a head start!"
"Yeah, do you really have zero interest in him?"
"Zero. This is a critical time for exams; I won't be distracted," Hiyori said firmly.
"Fair point."
The three left the school laughing and chatting, while Ditto followed the GPS back home.
Aomori was already there. He had visited the shrine and patrolled the area, but aside from slaying a few evil spirits, he hadn't found much.
Seeing Ditto return, he smiled and asked, "So? How was your first day of school?"
Back at Aomori's side, Ditto's expression relaxed significantly. It shook its head. "Exhausting. More tiring than being an undercover agent in the Monster Association."
At least back then, fists did the talking and there was no need to hide who you were or watch your every move.
"Heh, you'll get used to it. Sometimes language is a power too. You should practice your eloquence."
"Mm." Ditto nodded seriously. "By the way, I found a 'person of destiny' at school."
"Oh? Tell me more."
Ditto recounted everything about Hiyori. Aomori listened with growing interest.
"That's not a clone; it sounds like astral projection. What's her name?"
Ditto shook its head. "Too complicated, didn't remember. But I have her phone number. I invited her here, but she said she needs to wait."
"You did well. We'll wait for her then; there's no rush."
As he spoke, Aomori's expression tightened slightly.
"What is it?"
"The barrier at the shrine has been tripped. It seems another 'person of destiny' has appeared."
Aomori smiled at Ditto. "You stay here and play your role as Kogoro Mori. The detective agency is officially open for business."
With all the ads out, someone was bound to show up. As for himself, he had to return to the shrine to meet his newest guest.