Note: Unedited. No Beta. AU. OC's. Short chapters. Slow update.

Phantom Hands

05:

"What do you mean it's yours?" Mitsuko managed to ask after a couple of seconds just staring at her son in stunned shock. It's not an ideal reaction but those words Hikaru just told her...

They're bomb-worthy.

Her precious son doesn't like books, period. He had to be forced or even bribed before he would open even his textbooks. It has always been like that ever since he was young. It's always a pleasant surprise even when Hikaru still manages to pass his tests and quizzes.

Though that kind of attitude is kind of frustrating sometimes, she loves her son and she accepts his faults.

Even those that makes her want to rip her hair out of her head.

So that information...

"Reincarnation is mine mom. It's..." She didn't know what her expression currently is. She just knows that the second Hikaru looked at her, his sentence trailed off and he suddenly looked down at his food. She can't see his face in his new angle especially with his hair almost covering his face but his ears are red and still so noticeable.

Mitsuko smiled fondly at her son. Hikaru doesn't really get shy or abashed or embarrassed often because her son is a little shameless. He likes bragging a lot and is loud. Even though he has become a lot calmer as he aged (and how ironic is it that he's calmer in his teenage while still playing soccer than during his childhood days), he still has his moments of loudness.

Though more subdued than before. Still, that red on his face was rare and she couldn't help teasing him. Whenever Hikaru becomes shy, he just turns so adorable unlike his now maturing face that it takes her back to his childhood days where her son was quite the rambunctious child.

"So, my child is a bestselling author now?" she teasingly asked.

"Mom!" Hikaru whines as he finally looked at her, face fully red. Her smile widened at that. Already a teen yet still can be such a child...

Wait, if Hikaru is now a best-selling author since his book is literally what she had been hearing from her friends, even from her grandpa...

"How much are you earning honey?" She asked softly. Even though her mind is still stuck with the knowledge that his anti-book son really did manage to write and produce a book that is now being talked about by some people, and might even be gaining more popularity as each day passed (and how ironic is that?).

She wasn't that inclined to dismiss Hikaru's claims considering the Hikaru in front of her is almost vastly different from the Hikaru she had before. Also, he is her son and she always knows if he is lying or deceiving her or not.

Hikaru clearly did not when he told her that. She might need a bit of a proof later on when she isn't in quite a disbelief but she didn't have any doubt in her mind that Hikaru is telling her the truth.

"Earning?" Hikaru asked in confusion. Instantly, her full attention snapped on her son, now fully displaying her disbelief.

Did Hikaru just ask me about his earnings like he didn't know? She asked herself, feeling slightly alarmed as she stared at her son.

"Your earnings honey. You wrote the book. Surely you were paid?"

"Uhh... Yes. They made me create a bank account. You were my joint account holder there. You signed it remember? I asked you and you said it was a good idea to save my money?" In the end, Hikaru ended his statement in a confused question.

"Hikaru, did you sign any contract? Do you have a copy? Did you read it properly? Understand it? Why did you do something like this without telling me?" Did they do everything right? Did they cheat my son? So many scenarios came onto her mind, especially the contract her son must have signed.

"Mom, slow down! Everything was okay. They insisted on me getting a lawyer. I asked for a huge amount of money from you remember? I paid it to the lawyer I got."

Mitsuko froze and gave her son an intent stare. "What money? The one you asked me for to buy a new overall sports equipment for your soccer?" Hikaru's eyes widened and he gave her a skittish smile. Her eyes narrowed.

It seems the clever little boy before is really still inside of her son, even though she thought he already matured.

"S-sorry mom," he apologized meekly. Mitsuko released a sigh. Oh well, at least he used it properly unlike before where he used all his money buying foods and playing in the arcades all day after school. Still...

"From now on, you are not going to lie to me about important stuff, got it Hikaru?" she demanded sternly. She can't really get mad at him much. After all, this is also partially her fault. She hadn't been properly looking on her son.

She had already become suspicious of the money he asked her, and then him wanting to open up a bank account, but she had been preoccupied for the past months that it didn't really stand out inside her mind. It makes her feel guilty how she often neglects her son.

Hikaru might be more grown up now than before, but he still needs his mother. This is actually the closest they've ever been their entire life and it's kind of sad.

She won't let the two of them drift apart again. She wanted to be involved in her son's life now more than ever. Before they continue the talk about the book though...

"Why the secrecy? Why do you have to lie to me, Hikaru?" Even if she can let this go, she couldn't help feeling hurt. They've been close to each other ever since she talked to him properly about his mourning methods and to think that Hikaru could still lie to her about something like this, something important. To his own mother. It hurt.

"I-I'm sorry mom. I'm not sure." Hikaru looked conflicted as he said this, "I guess I thought the book would not really sell well so you did not have to know about it."

"Only, it sold out well," she laughed lightly. It's just so typical of her son to underestimate himself. And she feels lighter somehow, happy that it wasn't because of her that her son lied. Hikaru gave her a surprised look even as he smiled sheepishly.

"So..." she leaned forward and gestured to her son to lean in too. "Are you going to make a sequel?" she asked, in part to tease and another because of her genuine want to read a sequel that leaves a happy ending. The book Hikaru wrote is bittersweet somehow. She feels conflicted.

On one hand, she dearly loved it. It has humor, family, friendship, adventure, and angst. It reflects everyday life to a T. It's realistic. And normally she would be satisfied with that. But in this one, she could not help but want a happy ending.

"Mom!"

She laughed at her son's wide-eyed, indignant expression, though she is unsure why he looked like that.

She proceeded to needle her son about it.

She might be an adult and a mom, but she is a book nerd at heart. She could not help herself when it comes to a good book and the author right in front of her.

Even if it is her son.

. . . . .

Akira stared at the book he had bought three days prior simply because it is a fiction book with Go as the main element. It was actually a first time for him to see it.

Usually, anything Go related are beginner books, advanced, tips and other dry books that teens would have found boring and dismissed it immediately. The only interesting Go related stories are in the magazine and only then it was mostly because of interviews and a reporter's flair for writing.

So to see a novel with Go as the center point of the main character is surprising. Not only that, it's even popular, so much that he had to resort to reserving it to get one copy. And he had to wait for two days before he gets one as the queue of people who reserved the same book were enormous.

But it was worth it. The money spent and the amount of time he spent waiting to get one is worth it.

It has some information about Go for every beginner, the players the characters fought, the main character's plays... Everything in it is refreshing. It's a book for everyone.

Not only is the story entertaining, the kifu's inside are enlightening. He often uses the kifu in the book as a study guide even if the play style seemed to be a little outdated. It corresponds well to book-character-Sai's circumstances of a person from the ancient era reincarnating in the modern times.

Not only is Sai's play style commendable, even his best friend in the book, Haruka's play style is intriguing.

The book might be an excellent story, but the thing that really caught his attention after reading is how the author made the kifu's. They looked exactly like the play style of internet go sensation player Sai

Everything looked genuine. Like it was really played in real life. Book-Sai's style is understandable as it could be studied through the surviving kifu's of Sai on the internet. But not to this extent that it looked like the games really came from the genuine player. Not to mention Haruka's.

He had a feeling that Haruka is real. That the kifu's inside the book were played before by two real people.

That Book-Sai is really based on real Sai and Haruka is based on Sai's real companion.

That means the author of this book, Yamato Kei, might know the real Sai.

He must confirm first.

Perhaps he could give this book to his father? Or at least let him read since he quite like this book and see the kifu inside?

Then he must know who this author is. Whether he knows Sai or not, there is no doubt that he knows Go.

He might even be the companion of Sai...

Akira's eyes gleamed in excitement.

. . . . .

Despite the slight stress Hikaru felt about this book business, he hadn't neglected his career in sports. He instead focused all of his attention on it and even went so far as to pour all of his frustrations on the sport whether in practice and in official plays.

Even his teammates think that he was possessed.

Despite all of that, he still could not take all of the stress accumulating inside him because of that book he wrote because what his editor said was right on dot.

His book was asked to be translated and there were cries for a sequel.

It hasn't even reached a year yet! The craziness that is happening because of the book he wrote is both flattering and stressful.

He was just thankful that this summer, he could rest for a bit. He also decided not to accept any calls from anyone for at least a week unless it is someone important. Though Sakurazaki-sab's calls are important, he already decided to not accept his calls because he tends to give him a stack of letters passed to the publishing house by the book's fans asking for a sequel or needle him into considering to write it.

What would he write a sequel anyway?

In the book, Haruka is dead. Sai, despite still feeling sad and grieved moved on gradually and continued playing Go as a commemoration for his dearest friend who is also a brilliant Go player because of the many times he slaughtered him every time without consideration while they were playing even before his friend knew the game.

It has closure. He also got his goal, to make everyone know Sai.

Hikaru sighed.

For three days, he stayed in the house watching television or playing games. He planned to do this for the rest of his first summer week when his mom gave him a letter.

"What's this mom?" His mother gave him an amused and exasperated smile.

"Open it up, Hikaru."

He opened it and there was a letter inviting him to join the summer high soccer camp inviting all players from various schools to represent Japan in an international competition.

His eyes went wide and all matters about his book flew out of his mind.

TBC.

A/N:

Phew! I'm done. Can't believe I struggled with this chapter. Anyway, I returned back to Hikaru's life. I... might have Hikaru play Go soon even though I didn't plan on doing it.

Anyway, continue supporting. And by the way, I also updated some of my stories along with this one. Check them out.

Review!