Miyauchi Koka: I'm Sure I Can Awaken a Stand!

"So, this is the Stand ability that Bocchi awakened?" Kasumigaoka Utaha waved her hand in Gotou Hitori's dazed eyes, trying to bring her back to her senses.

"That should be the case, but we can't rule out the possibility that Bocchi encountered something outside these past few days that took away her shadow." Shinomiya Kaguya thought about how the You Know Who mentioned in the diary that Morioh not only had Stand User, but also many things that could be called urban legends, and she couldn't determine which situation it was for the time being.

She explained it this way, and then continued to question Gotou Hitori to confirm whether the other person felt anything unusual.

After Gotou Hitori finally came to her senses from the loss of her shadow, she carefully sensed it for a while, but still couldn't detect the slightest problem.

"I don't feel anything at all, so when exactly did my shadow run away from home?!"

She tried to recall, but the shadow was usually so barely noticeable that she couldn't remember it no matter how hard she tried.

"Or you could try controlling it with your mind?" Shinomiya Kaguya guided Gotou Hitori with her own experience of manipulating telekinesis, while simultaneously instructing Gotou Hitori to maintain the rhythm of Ripple Breathing.

This is something they gradually figured out over the past month.

This breathing rhythm is not very efficient at creating Ripple, but it can help people clear their minds of complicated thoughts in a short time and calm their mood.

In this state, it is also easier to sense changes in other forces.

For example, when she uses telekinesis, in that state, it is easier for her to use telekinesis to perform some precise operations.

Gotou Hitori tried his best to calm himself down and attempted to use his mind to sense his own shadow.

After trying for a while, I still got nowhere.

Gotou Hitori frowned, looking at the girls with a bitter expression, on the verge of tears. "I can't feel it at all. I've already spent a lot of Reading Points and I still can't feel the problem."

At this point, Shinomiya Kaguya had no choice but to seek help from Miyauchi Hiyage again.

At the very least, we need to figure out whether Gotou Hitori's current situation is due to her Stand ability or something else.

As Shinomiya Kaguya's call to Miyauchi Hiyage was answered, Shinomiya Kaguya quickly told Miyauchi Hiyage the current situation and then asked Miyauchi Hiyage what she should do now.

"It seems you guys are very efficient; you've discovered the first awakened person so quickly."

The first thing Miyauchi Hiyage said on the other end of the phone put everyone at ease.

Since it's a Stand ability awakening, it's definitely not some other random curse.

Everyone looked at Gotou Hitori with a mixture of envy and a sense of envy, but also with a feeling that it was only natural.

After all Gotou Hitori has a Guitar Hero account online. Although she is still far from being a super influencer like Miyauchi Hiyage, who can easily create a popular account with millions of followers, Gotou Hitori's guitar skills have long been undeniably at a professional level, and even in professional bands, Gotou Hitori's level is quite good.

Knowing that the awakening of a Stand depends to some extent on the skill level of each user, Gotou Hitori has been a popular candidate for the role.

I just didn't expect her to be so confused, not even realizing that she had awakened her Stand.

"So, where has her shadow gone now?"

"She's basically been running around Morioh. After confirming that she's harmless, I haven't paid much attention to her anymore. I have to congratulate Gotou-kun on this. It seems that her Stand is the kind that has high intelligence, can act independently of its user, and can also be very far away from its user."

"While I can certainly help you figure out the location of the shadows, I think it's more fun to explore something so meaningful on your own."

Miyauchi Hiyage said this, and then added, "Similar to the existence of Persona, Stands are also a reflection of the Stand User's inner thoughts. Just think about what Gotou-kun is thinking after her inner thoughts are released. I think finding her whereabouts shouldn't be too difficult."

As Miyauchi Hiyage finished speaking, the girl's gaze returned to Gotou Hitori, with a hint of inquiry in it.

It seems they wanted to figure out what Gotou Hitori was thinking.

Gotou Hitori felt her legs go weak.

To be honest, she herself didn't really know what her true desires were.

After all, she's a bit socially anxious and usually just locks herself in the closet to play guitar; she doesn't have any other hobbies.

However, she also has to admit that she does have quite a lot of inner monologues, which can be considered a combination of adolescent delusions and chuunibyou that she doesn't show outwardly.

But this makes her even more unaware of what she's really thinking.

Under the expectant gazes of everyone, she could only stammer and dryly analyze how she had gradually become the socially anxious person she is today.

However, before she could say more about how she fell in love with the guitar, she was interrupted by Kasumigaoka Utaha, who knew her well.

"Okay, no need for such a tense self-analysis, we understand what you mean," Kasumigaoka Utaha patted Gotou Hitori on the shoulder. "You mean that you initially wanted to use the guitar to find more friends and become more popular, but you accidentally forgot to interact with others while getting into rock music, which resulted in you becoming bad at interacting with people."

"Don't forget, the You Know Who sent you your animation last month, and you even shared these resources in our group."

Upon hearing this, Gotou Hitori awkwardly scratched his head.

It seems there is such a thing.

During last month's Golden Week holiday, Jerry sent her a lot of comics, as well as an animated CD of Bocchi the Rock! and several albums by their band.

After reading her own story, she originally wanted to follow the guide directly, but her acting was a bit too clumsy. In order to prevent her band from collapsing halfway, she did share her work with everyone and ask for their suggestions.

Then, with the help of the girls in the group, she was able to complete the band formation and her first performance at a faster pace than in the original work.

Of course, this process was somewhat forced.

For example, Kita Ikuyo chose to run away because she couldn't play the guitar. After being found again, although she did practice very hard, her guitar skills couldn't be improved so quickly in just one month.

Even though Gotou Hitori secretly taught Kita Ikuyo some breathing techniques of Ripple Chi Kung in private, speeding up the process a little, Kita could still only barely complete some simple chords on stage.

Although Gotou Hitori had the script, she wasn't the type to comfort others, so she could only watch Kita Ikuyo struggle with herself, making the band's atmosphere a bit tense lately.

It was only after relaxing for a few days in Morioh that things improved considerably. This is an inevitable conflict that would arise from performing on stage ahead of schedule.

However, compared to the original work, Gotou Hitori is indeed much more cheerful now, thanks to the encouragement and support of the girls in the group.

However, Gotou Hitori still felt somewhat ashamed when this matter was brought up.

In fact, more than two months after receiving the Diary, the girls in the group felt much more ashamed of their original paths.

However, saying certain things can still elicit significant reactions.

Just like when Kasumigaoka Utaha is now being asked about the things she did in the original story to pursue Aki Tomoya, she reacts with a bit of embarrassment and anger.

Similarly, Shinomiya Kaguya is now quite sensitive to the word "photographer." Even though she has collected all her manga and read it several times from beginning to end, she still can't understand what kind of mentality she had when she said that line in the manga.

Gotou Hitori felt extremely ashamed of the messy and abstract inner monologues she portrayed in the anime.

Listening to the girls in the room speculating about her inner thoughts based on their own behavior in the anime, she really did have the urge to bury her head in the ground and pretend to be dead.

Fortunately, the analysis of her inner thoughts did not last long.

The girls quickly came to a conclusion.

Beneath her social anxiety facade lies a restless and abstract inner world.

"Deep down, you want more attention, but you seem passive because of your personality. But obviously, your stand-in doesn't have that concern."

"She might deliberately do something special in front of others in order to gain more attention."

Shinomiya Kaguya looked at Gotou Hitori, who had lost his shadow, and said, "Your Stand ability is definitely related to your shadow. Moreover, according to Hinakage-kun, it is probably still wandering around outside with your appearance on it, so your Stand probably still has a physical body."

At this point, Shinomiya Kaguya seemed to remember something, and then reminded Gotou Hitori: "Have you contacted your band members these past few days? Perhaps your stand-in has gone to see them without your knowledge?"

"Probably not. I practiced with them for a while this afternoon, and they didn't react in any particular way," but after being reminded by Shinomiya Kaguya, Ichiri Gotou Hitori quickly took out her phone to contact her teammates.

To her surprise, after Kita Ikuyo answered her call, Kita Ikuyo asked about her whereabouts with some confusion.

"Bocchi, why did you suddenly run away? I thought you had something urgent to do."

"W-Just now, I was with you?" Gotou Hitori's mouth was a little tied. After finishing her practice in the afternoon, she stayed in her room until Shinomiya Kaguya came out of Miyauchi Hiyage's room. She saw the message on her phone and then came to Shinomiya Kaguya's room to meet up.

"What's wrong with you? You've been helping me practice ever since we disbanded our practice session." Kita Ikuyo on the other end of the phone was also a little confused, seemingly finding Gotou Hitori of the phone a bit strange.

The girls in the room exchanged glances. It seemed that until just now, Gotou Hitori's stunt double had been practicing with Kita Ikuyo in her room.

This is indeed not an outrageous thing, and it even reduces the burden on Gotou Hitori, the original body. No wonder Miyauchi Hiyage didn't take this stand seriously.

Shinomiya Kaguya Hayasaka Ai immediately contacted Ai Hayasaka and asked her to retrieve the hotel's surveillance footage for investigation.

Gotou Hitori, fortunately, she had already mentioned some things about supernatural abilities when she was teaching her teammates Ripple Chi Kung. When she came to Morioh, she also briefly mentioned Stands because they might awaken Stands. However, apart from Yamada Ryo, the other two girls didn't seem to take it too seriously.

But as Gotou Hitori mentioned that he had been staying in his room since the afternoon's disbandment, Kita Ikuyo on the other end of the phone had to confirm several times before realizing that Gotou Hitori didn't seem to be lying.

"You mean, the person who helped me practice guitar this afternoon wasn't you, but your shadow?!"

Hearing Kita Ikuyo's panicked voice on the other end of the phone, Gotou Hitori could only ask her to come to Shinomiya Kaguya's room first, so that Yotsuya Miko could help check if her body had been affected in any way.

Meanwhile, Hayasaka Ai's team was also incredibly efficient.

After all, the hotel had already been booked by the Shinomiya Conglomerate, and to ensure everyone's safety, Shinomiya Family security guards were constantly monitoring the situation.

At Hayasaka Ai's request, the security guards quickly found the "stand-in" who looked exactly like Goto Gotou Hitori, who hurriedly left Kita Ikuyo's room and then disappeared in the next surveillance shot.

Chapter 358: Miyauchi Kouka: I'm sure I can awaken my Stand!

Ten minutes later, Kita Ikuyo looked somewhat timidly at the dozen or so girls staring at her.

Although she had performed on stage with the band a few times, the audience's presence back then wasn't as strong as that of these girls in front of her.

Especially since she had just encountered a "fake Bocchi," her emotions were still somewhat unstable.

After calming herself down, she began to explain what she had seen and heard to everyone.

Their band practiced for more than two hours in a nearby practice room this afternoon before disbanding, but she practiced a little more after disbanding.

She then practiced a little longer in the practice room. As she was about to return to her room with her guitar, she suddenly bumped into Bocchi on the roadside, who had just bought a lot of things from a store.

"To be honest, I did feel Bocchi there was something strange about your situation back then, because a lot of the clothes you bought seemed to be quite... fashionable."

Gotou Hitori usually wears the same classic pink tracksuit, and even when she went on this trip, she brought one with her in her luggage.

Although she might change into other clothes or her band's signature outfits at home and on her days off, Gotou Hitori's social anxiety means that she usually wears simpler styles when she goes out.

Of course, Gotou Hitori's wardrobe actually contains quite a few rock-and-roll style clothes. These were bought on impulse when she was fantasizing about them, and she has never worn them out. They have been gathering dust in the wardrobe ever since she bought them.

Kita Ikuyo briefly described the clothes she saw Gotou Hitori buy: several pieces of leather pants and trench coats that looked a bit exaggerated, and several cool sunglasses, earrings, and rings that didn't seem to fit Gotou Hitori's style at all.

However, considering that Gotou Hitori was not only socially awkward but also quite eccentric, Kita Ikuyo didn't dare to ask anything at the time and just greeted him.

At this point, the girls were still a little curious.

After all, that fake Bocchi was most likely a stand-in in disguise, so where did she get the money from?

Gotou Hitori, however, seemed to have thought of something and shakily pulled a small wallet out of his pocket.

Her parents gave her a lot of pocket money when she went out this time, but that wasn't the main amount.

Besides her parents' allowance and her wages from working at the Starry Stage, her biggest source of income now is the Otherworld Navigator App program to the Impression Space that she got from Sudo Ayami.

She didn't have the time or the courage to go to the Impression Space, so she simply shared her phone in the group chat, and Shinomiya Kaguya planned the users according to the list of those who wanted to go to the Impression Space.

In return, she receives a share of the earnings from each person who uses her phone to access her Impression Space, and she also receives a rental fee based on the number of visits.

Although it hasn't been a long time, with these extra earnings, Gotou Hitori now has over 100,000 yen in pocket money.

However, Gotou Hitori herself didn't have much desire to spend money. Even though she came to Morioh, thanks to the expense reimbursement from Miss Shinomiya Kaguya, she didn't spend much money these past few days.

But after Kita Ikuyo reminded her, she checked her wallet and discovered that half of the more than ten thousand yen bills that were originally in her wallet had disappeared into thin air.

Her stand-in didn't even inform her after awakening, and just took half of her allowance!

Even though he was socially awkward, Gotou Hitori felt his fists harden slightly at this moment.

Kita Ikuyo was still talking about her and the fake Bocchi.

After the two met, Kita Ikuyo did feel that there was something wrong with Bocchi during the process, and even offered to help her practice after learning that she had just practiced for a while. However, considering that her guitar skills were still far from being up to standard, Kita Ikuyo agreed.

To her surprise, the other person actually took her guitar and started showing off their skills on the street, saying that they wanted to use this method to overcome their social anxiety.

Finally, seeing that more and more onlookers were gathering, the fake Bocchi continued to play and teach her on the street. Even the outgoing Kita Ikuyo felt too ashamed and finally pulled the other person back to her room.

The two continued practicing in the room for about an hour until about ten minutes ago, when Kita Ikuyo couldn't play anymore and said she needed to rest for a while. Then the fake Bocchi seemed to realize something and said goodbye and left her room.

Along with Kita Ikuyo's explanation, Hayasaka Ai also timely presented evidence—a short video taken by a passerby on the street showing Goto Ichiri Gotou Hitori Kita Ikuyo playing guitar and showing off their skills.

Although the video and audio quality are not very good, it is indeed 100% Guitar Hero's skill. In fact, because it may be a stand-in, the handling in some parts may be even smoother than the real Gotou Hitori.

After listening to Kita Ikuyo's explanation and watching the video that proved Kita Ikuyo, Shinomiya Kaguya also briefly summarized the current situation.

Gotou Hitori awakened her Stand in the last two days.

Her Stand should be a medium for shadows, and now that Gotou Hitori has lost her shadow, it means that her Stand is no longer by her side.

Furthermore, this Stand possesses intelligence and communication abilities no less than the original user, and seems to have a great deal of independence, able to take money from the original user when Gotou Hitori is not paying attention and go shopping according to her own preferences.

However, she seems to be much more cheerful than Gotou Hitori in terms of personality, and you could even say that she has gone from being socially anxious to being socially anxious in a different way.

The only difference is that the former suffers from social anxiety disorder, while the latter is a social terrorist.

But considering that this is Gotou Hitori's stand-in, it doesn't seem so strange.

"According to the surveillance footage, Bocchi's Stand should also have the ability to hide, which is why it was able to disappear shortly after leaving the room."

"Since she shows no sign of returning, where do you think she might have gone?"