Amazingly enough, it was Fuji whom first noted how distracted Ashitaba was.

It probably had to something to do with when Ashitaba began to eat his lunch instead of his own lunch laid out before him. Fuji didn't mind sharing others lunches, but he minded sharing his with others.

"Ashitaba- what on earth are you doing with my lunch?"

Eyes blinked slowly, and Ashitaba started in surprise. "Eh- EH? Sorry Fuji- I guess I was too distracted. You can have my lunch instead."

Fuji looked between the half-eaten bento he had brought, and Ashitaba's well-made home cooked bento that his mother had prepared for him- and went straight for Ashitaba's.

Mimisaka watched this with a slightly disgusted face and Kaburagi smiled brightly as she chatted up Hades-sensei.

It was such a normal lunch period- and one that Ashitaba realized he'd definitely miss if anything happened…

With a determined shake of his head, he went back to attacking Fuji's lunch. It was quite probably Nothing. Absolutely Nothing.

He gulped down his food at the same time Hades asked a question. "Ashitaba-kun, I heard you called Niburu with a strange question? Have you seen another disease demon lately?"

The food in Ashitaba's mouth described a beautiful arc straight onto Mimisaka's head. Ashitaba clutched at his chest, trying to get his wildly beating heart to slow down as he stuttered out, "N-No of course not! Other then the one I called you about yesterday-"

As Ashitaba groped for a reasonable explanation that he could quite possibly use, he instantly thought of the business card that he had used to call Niburu. "I- I was just thinking about maybe one day helping out Niburu-san hunt disease demons down!"

Dead silence fell, as more then one looked at him totally aghast. "I-I was just going to do it in a strictly informational way of course! B-Besides, I was wondering about byouma since we see them so often-"

The horrified looks fell away into smiling faces.

Hades smiled gently as he gestured at himself. "If you see any byouma, please leave them to me. Don't worry about what Niburu or Keiichi say."

Ashitaba smiled back, a hidden sadness in his eyes.

Fuji swallowed the bite of rice, and used his chopsticks to poke Ashitaba's cheeks. "Now what are you drifting off for?"

The middle-schooler flinched at the poke, turning to Fuji. "that disease demon was sprouting some crazy things about having eaten a humans soul! What if I get one that does that!"

"Relax Ashitaba." Mimisaka said, almost in disgust as he propped his head on his fist. "You're the most well balanced out of all of us. You haven't caught one yet."

Because I may be one.

Ashitaba pulled his school bag up on his shoulder, checking his cellphone.

While Motoyoshi was the best at looking stuff up, and Hanamaki was intellectually smart, he had a nose for disease demons. A really, really good nose. As in he attracted trouble like flies.

Technically all he had to do was encourage Yasuda, and it was practically guaranteed that a disease demon would come to him.

But he wasn't going to endanger a friend like that. Because he wasn't a disease demon.

No way, no how.

…

He was such a looser.

The black-haired youth quietly crept around the corner of the building he had marked down as a place where disease demons seemed to gather naturally- distantly he could hear the insane laughter that seemed to be the hallmark of a disease demon.

Ashitaba wondered what kind of insane laugh he would have- before shaking his head. He wouldn't have an insane laugh, because he wasn't a disease demon. That was that.

Of course, if he really believed that, then why was he here?

The laughter stopped as he rounded the corner. The disease demon, looking like a resplendent peacock, head slowly swiveled towards him. The too large eyes, that looked as if they'd been ripped out of a shojo manga, blinked at him.

Then, it said the dreaded words- "Are you a disease demon that swallowed a human soul?"

With that simple question, Ashitaba's held onto façade crumbled like dust.

Fuji stared up at the building, an eyebrow hiking ever higher. Next to him Kaburagi and Mimisaka stared at the building in disbelief.

…Hadn't Sensei defeated several disease demons in this building?

"Hey, guys- don't you think we're being extremely nosey?"

Fuji turned to Kaburagi, pointing out, "Weren't you the one that dragged Ashitaba out to spy on Hades-Sensei?"

"Wha-Wha-WHAT? H-H-HOW DID YOU KNOW ABOUT THAT?" The flushed girls' face was cherry red, as she frantically waved her hands in the air.

Fuji held up his cellphone. "I asked around."

"Anyways-" Mimisaka interrupted, "Why are we here?"

"Because Ashitaba's been acting weird lately, and I don't want to give up any more of my lunches. Thereby if we solve his problems, we can return back to normal after all the crazy things that have been happening lately. We'll be graduating soon, won't we? After that we'll only have one more year left in middle school."

That was true.

Mimisaka sighed, as he turned back to the building. "That's true enough-"

"Hello everyone."

Three screams of surprised terror split the air, as they turned.

The Death God of the Infirmary stood there, looking slightly shocked at the surprised screams and cries. "I-Is something the matter?"

"H-Hades Sensei! What are you doing here?"

"Well, disease demons gather here naturally, so I come here in order to clear them out."

"O-Oh." The three kids looked at each other, before their eyes widened. "Wait- Ashitaba-kun! He went in there alone!"

The kids and the adult stared at each other in horrified shock, before Hades dashed into the building.

An insane laugh cascaded around them, as a voice, inhuman in its intensity spoke, and "So, I see that some little humans have intruded in my hunting grounds- have you come here to stop me?"

"Show yourself! Now!" Hades bark into the air did nothing but to draw out more laughter.

Kaburagi's head tilted back to stare directly into the darkness, shouting, "Where's Ashitaba-kun?"

"Ashitaba? Sorry little humans, there's no one left here but us byouma."

The girls face went pale, as Hades hand clenched. "I'll take my leave now. You can search for your puny human all you want, but I can guarantee that he isn't here."

The byouma's presence faded. Hades clenched hand began to tremble from the intensity.

What was going on? Ashitaba acting so oddly, then coming to a building where disease demons gathered- and was the byouma actually stating that Ashitaba was a byouma…

"H-Hades-sensei?" The small terrified voice caught his attention, and everyone turned at the same time, staring out into the darkness.

Ashitaba stood there, eyes wide and fear lurking within them. One hand was lightly wrapped around his waist, and he was bent forward- as if something had attacked to him. "H-How- Why- I thought-"

"A-Ashitaba!" The two kids and one adult rushed towards him, as he took a shaky step forward, and slowly collapsed.

"Are you alright!"

Silence was the only answer.