The Human Torch (Fire Force) Chapter 5: Shinra's Introduction

[Third Person's PoV] 


Shinra stood in front of the cathedral of the 8th Brigade. Before he could say anything about the situation, Johnny opened the door. “Hey, newbie, the others are waiting for you inside.”


“Newbie? We graduated at the same time!” Shinra exclaimed as Johnny led him inside.


“Well, I have laid to rest two Infernals and been on two missions. You have not. Not to mention I was here before you, which means I have more experience and seniority over you... newbie,” Johnny confidently explained.


Shinra could only click his tongue. “I'll catch up rather quickly. You'll see.”


It wasn't long before Shinra stood in front of Obi, doing a salute. Obi, who was hanging upside down from an exercise pole, introduced himself, while Hinawa, who was sitting down organizing some papers, did the same.


Obi jumped down and began rummaging through some files. “Here we go, Shinra Kusakabe... what's with the smile?” he asked, looking at Shinra's picture on his file and seeing his signature devil-like grin.


Shinra just saluted. “Sorry, sir. My face compulsively tightens into a grin when I'm nervous or tense.”


Johnny, who was filling out a report nearby, chuckled to himself as he also found Shinra's compulsive grin amusing.


Obi went and stood face-to-face with Shinra, staring him in the eyes with a serious expression. Shinra's smile widened, exposing his shark-like teeth.


“HAHAHAHAHA!” Obi laughed. “Sorry, sorry. Well, aren't you just the cutest little thing. I bet you've gotten into a lot of misunderstandings because of that smile of yours.”


“More than I would like to,” Shinra admitted.


Johnny scoffed in amusement hearing that. “Ain't that right. I can't remember the number of times Ogun and I had to save your butt because that smile of yours kept getting you into trouble.”


Shinra looked embarrassed, which caused Obi to smile a bit. “So tell me, what's your reason for wanting to be in the Fire Force?”


Shinra's smile turned serious. “I want to be a hero!”


Obi nodded. “Heroic aspirations are all well and good, but remember, a brigade is a team. We have to work together.”


Hinawa, who was examining Shinra's file, looked up at him. “A hero, huh? You were labeled a demon in training school because of some incident that happened when you were little, correct?”


Shinra turned towards him as he continued.


“I'm not particularly interested in exploring people's pasts. But you didn't become a fire soldier for your bad reputation, now did you? Is that what you mean by hero?”


...


While that occurred, an interesting conversation was happening in the women's bath, where Sister Iris and Maki both showered after returning from the mission.


“It has to be fate, right!?” Maki asked as she peeked over at Iris. “I mean, what a coincidence that he was looking for the 8th Brigade to join, and he came and talked to me! You agree that it has to be more than a coincidence.”


Iris chuckled as she scrubbed her body, shaking her head with a smile.


“Sister...” Maki called out as she continued to peek from the top of the wall that separated them.


“Hm?”


“What did it feel like to be princess carried?” Maki asked expectantly and with hopeful eyes.


Iris couldn't help but laugh upon hearing her question. 'Maki is attractive and cool, but she is such a hopeless romantic,' Iris thought to herself.


“Umm, I don't really know how to describe it.”


“I mean, he was on fire when he carried you, now that I think about it. Didn't you get burned?” Maki asked, her expression turning to confusion.


“Huh?” Iris turned towards Maki. “Now that you mention it, you're right. He was on fire... He just felt warm, like when you sit by a campfire during a cold night. He didn't feel uncomfortably hot or anything of the sort.”


Maki then gained a teasing expression. “I thought you said you didn't know how to describe it.”


Iris decided to shut her mouth and keep washing herself. Her cheeks still couldn't help but flush.


“You naughty sister, lying is a bad thing, you know,” Maki continued teasing.


“I wasn't lying. I didn't really know how to describe it at the time. I had to think about it,” Iris muttered while turning to the side.


Maki just playfully scoffed.


...


They both appeared by the captain and gave their salutes.


“Do those pants fit okay?” Maki asked Shinra, pointing at his pants, which were above his ankles in support of his ability.


“Huh? Oh, yeah,” Shinra answered.


“Maki tailored your outfit to account for your abilities,” Obi informed Shinra.


As Maki leaned forward to examine his outfit more closely, Shinra looked down at his own outfit. “Ah, so that's it! I really appreciate it.”


His face flushed as he looked up and saw Maki's cleavage. He quickly stepped back with a flushed expression. “Thank—Thank you very much!”


He stepped back a bit too much and ended up knocking into Iris slightly. “Sorry,” he apologized.


“Are you alright?” Iris asked.


Shinra's smile tightened as he was able to catch a bit of her scent.


Johnny started blowing into the air, expelling smoke. The smoke shifted and formed the word “Pervert” above Shinra's head.


Obi cupped his hands around his mouth. “You aren't getting aroused by freshly showered girls, are you?”


As Shinra denied it while blushing, Maki looked towards Johnny. “Whoa, you can do something like that!? What else can you do?”


Johnny put two fingers by his lips and blew her a kiss with a wink, which sent out a heart with an arrow pierced through it made out of smoke.


Maki began turning red at the gesture. “I'll admit, that was smooth,” she muttered, a bit embarrassed.


Seeing that, Shinra rolled his eyes. “He's still the same flirty bastard as always,” he grumbled.


“No using your abilities in the office, or playing with your abilities in general,” Hinawa reprimanded sternly.


“Actually, playing with my abilities is how I trained them. It’s how my manipulation of them became so precise,” Johnny informed him.


“Is that how the sister wasn't burned or harmed when you picked her up?” Maki wondered.


Johnny nodded, but before he had a chance to say anything else, Hinawa interrupted by turning to Obi and saying, “Uh, Captain Obi, we should probably...”


“Alright, alright, since everyone is here, let's get started,” Obi announced as he walked around before lying down and began bench pressing.


“Less working out and more meeting,” Hinawa said, standing next to him with his arms crossed.


As Obi continued bench pressing, he started off by saying, “People die due to various causes: old age, suicide, diseases... This may fall under the category of fatal diseases, but nowadays the cause of death most feared in this world is death by fire.


“Now... even among those of us gathered here, we don't know when it might happen or to whom it might happen. The horror borne by all those who live in this world is the ‘Human Combustion Phenomenon,’” he said as he finished his reps, his expression turning serious.


“On any given day, people all over the world start catching on fire. These types have been labeled as the First Generation human combustion victims.


“The so-called second and third generation victims that followed adapted to the flames, even awakening the ability to manipulate them. But those first generations lose all reason, rampaging until their lives flicker out, becoming feared all over the world as ‘Flame People’ or ‘Infernals.’


“The duty we, the Special Fire Brigade, possess is to extinguish the fire of the ‘Flame People’ and save the souls of humans and ‘Flame People’ alike, all while trying to unravel the mystery of the ‘Human Combustion Phenomenon.’


Saving humans from the flames is our mission!!”