Saiki closed his eyes and focused on listening to the thoughts. Faced with the flood of incoming voices, he frowned.
There were already a ton of thoughts normally, and this was while Saiki was trying his best to avoid picking them up. Now that he was seriously listening, a huge wave of random thoughts poured into his mind—including some unhealthy ones—which annoyed him greatly.
Passerby [I really want ramen.]
(Not that one.)
Passerby [Damn it, making me wait so long. When I get there I absolutely won't forgive him… unless… unless he calls me baby.]
(Not that either.)
Passerby [Ahh, I really want to give the kindergarten bus a 5-star rating.]
(That makes sense, but not it.)
Passerby [Where is it? Where is it? Where exactly?]
(Could it be…)
Saiki stopped and traced the source of the voice. He finally spotted a very anxious man inside a delivery station.
The man looked tense as he searched around the station. After a while, he smiled brightly, pulled out a doll-shaped package wrapped heavily and labeled "discreet shipping," and slung it onto his back.
Passerby [Finally found my wife!!]
(Okay, guess not this one either.)
Saiki shook his head, then expanded his search range and continued looking.
...
Five minutes later, Saiki stopped floating in the air.
(Weird. I've searched three kilometers already. Did this kid really wander that far?)
"Saiki-oniichan, are we there yet? I…"
Kenta couldn't stand the blindfold anymore because it itched. When he took it off, he realized he was in the air. Looking down, the people below looked as tiny as ants, and birds were flying around him.
Kenta was still dazed, but he quickly understood the situation. Then he lowered his head, his body trembling as if building up energy.
[Hey! Kenta, don't cry!]
"So cool! Saiki-oniichan can fly in the sky! Are you an acrobat? Or maybe an alien? That's amazing!"
Kenta's eyes sparkled. Sitting on Saiki's shoulder, he waved his arms and enjoyed the breeze.
(What? He's excited? But normally a kid suddenly floating in the air like this would…)
"Hey hey, Saiki-oniichan, are you Superman?"
Saiki lifted Kenta—who was grabbing his hair and shaking excitedly—from his shoulder, held him in front, and spoke seriously.
[Yes, big brother is Superman. But you can't tell anyone else. Will Kenta keep this secret for me?]
"Mm!!"
Kenta's eyes shone with admiration as he looked at Saiki and nodded vigorously.
[Good kid.]
Saiki ruffled Kenta's head.
Passerby [Kenta… Kenta, Kenta, where are you!!]
Saiki looked down at a woman anxiously running toward the police station.
(That should be her!)
Saiki teleported to the ground, arrived at a corner ahead of the woman's path, and set Kenta down.
[Kenta, go see if that's your mom!]
Kenta was still reluctantly coming down from the flying sensation when he heard Saiki. He instantly remembered his mom and looked in the direction Saiki pointed.
"Mom!!"
"Kenta!"
"Mom!!"
The two met and hugged each other tightly.
(Yare yare daze, looks like we got the right one this time.)
"Kenta, where did you go? Mom looked for you for so long."
"Mom, sorry. Saiki-oniichan brought me back."
"Saiki-oniichan? Where?"
Kenta turned back to point where Saiki had been, but Saiki had already vanished, as if he had never been there.
"Eh! He was just right here…"
...
When Saiki returned to the police station, he saw Shin-chan still standing at strict attention like a guard at the entrance. His eyes were fixed straight ahead, completely motionless.
Shin-chan [I have to stand properly and wait for Saiki-oniichan to come back, and Officer Bebe too.]
(Oh, didn't expect this kid to be surprisingly obedient. He actually stayed put.)
Saiki had originally thought Shin-chan was just saying it and would get tired after a while and leave. But he was still here.
(Mm, this kid may look disobedient, but he actually cares about the good stuff.)
Shin-chan stood chest out, staring straight ahead, completely ignoring the passersby.
"Woof!"
A dog passed by. Shin-chan stayed in place.
Shin-chan [Waiting for Saiki-oniichan…]
"Ah, sorry manager, I'll be right there."
A man carrying a briefcase and talking on the phone rushed past. Shin-chan remained.
Shin-chan [Waiting for Saiki-oniichan…]
"So tired lately. My shoulders feel really sore."
"It's because your chest is too heavy. Jeez, I'm so jealous."
"Don't say that, haha."
Two young women passed by chatting and laughing.
Shin-chan [Waiting…]
"Pretty big sisters~ (≧▽≦)/~"
After the two women passed, Shin-chan's rigid stance instantly turned into a grinning chase.
(Was that serious look earlier all fake?)
"This, this kid…"
"What's wrong? Little brother, are you lost?"
The two young women looked puzzled at Shin-chan, who was clenching his fists shyly while gazing at them.
Shin-chan clutched his chest, eyes sparkling with affection, staring at the two young women.
"Big sisters, hello. I'm single. My name is Nohara Shin-nosuke. I'm five years old and attend Futaba Kindergarten. I'm a professional masseur with 20 years of massage experience. If your shoulders are sore, you can come to me."
"This…"
The two young women exchanged glances. They realized this was a troublesome kid who had approached them with a very abnormal pickup line.
"Big sisters…"
Before Shin-chan could finish, Saiki picked him up and covered his mouth.
[How do you have 20 years of massage experience at age five!]
Shin-chan pushed Saiki's hand away: "Saiki-oniichan, don't interrupt me chatting with the big sisters! We were just about to go find a quiet place for coffee and a nice massage!"
[That's not happening!]
Saiki pressed down on Shin-chan's head and apologized to the two women.
[Sorry, this weird little brat bothered you. I'll take him away. Bye.]
"Oh…"
In the blink of an eye, Saiki had quickly flown away with Shin-chan.
[Didn't you promise to wait here properly?]
Shin-chan scratched his head and laughed: "Ahaha, sorry, I accidentally forgot."
[You "accidentally" forgot, huh. Seriously.]
"By the way, where's Kenta?"
[Don't worry about him. We already found his mom.]
"Oh, as expected of Saiki-oniichan. You're so capable. So since there's nothing left to do, want to come to my house and play? Later we can watch Action Kamen eat chocolate cookies, then play the Action Kamen game, and then…"
[Hold on a second.]
Saiki rubbed Shin-chan's forehead and reminded him.
[Did you forget something?]
Shin-chan pressed a finger to his chin, thought seriously for a moment—his thick eyebrows twitching nonstop.
Right before he was about to fall asleep, he finally said earnestly.
"Mm… nope!"
A hint of amusement flashed in Saiki's eyes. Then he said in exasperation.
[Really? Okay then. You don't want Shiro anymore?]
"Shiro…"
After Saiki's reminder, Shin-chan suddenly realized: "That's right! I have to find Shiro!"
...