Tokyo Ghoul: Starting with Mangekyo Sharingan

Upon hearing that Arima also wanted to join in, Byakuya was slightly surprised. Why was he getting involved in this too?

"Even you, Arima?"

Taishi was even more incredulous.

These two transfer students seemed like perfect role models. Why would they want to hang around with delinquents?

"That's great! Our group will just keep getting bigger!"

Aki, however, didn't think much about it and commented cheerfully.

Taishi knew Aki was a bit scatterbrained and decided not to bother explaining.

"I'm Byakuya's friend. It's fine, right?"

Arima insisted on joining the gang.

"Whatever. Do what you want."

Taishi, still confused by the situation, chose not to question it further.

"But I'm warning you—if the teachers scold you, don't blame me."

"That won't happen" Byakuya reassured.

"Definitely not" Arima added.

And so, Byakuya and Arima followed Taishi.

Byakuya's intentions were clear, but he couldn't understand why Arima wanted to join the gang too.

In truth, Arima felt the same way about Byakuya.

From Arima's perspective, infiltrating a group of delinquents seemed unrelated to their mission of investigating ghouls. However, since Byakuya, an investigator respected by Kaiko, had chosen this path, Arima trusted his instincts and assumed there must be a reason behind it. So, he decided to go along.

As Byakuya and Arima left the classroom, Minami discreetly watched the door, her expression curious.

...

Although Byakuya left the school with Taishi and Aki, he had no intention of participating in their motorcycle activities.

He simply made up an excuse about not knowing how to ride and went off to handle his own business.

Taishi and Aki didn't mind, especially since they hadn't warned the new arrivals about their gang's illegal street racing activities.

Taishi, in particular, wasn't a fan of these dangerous antics. Besides attracting police attention, the risks of serious accidents were always present.

So, he decided to take a quick ride to unwind before heading back to school. After all, the person occupying his thoughts, Minami, was still there.

"Taishi... why don't you hang out with Ryou and me like before? We used to be together all the time..."

Knowing Taishi intended to return to school, Aki couldn't help but ask.

That day, she had only come to school to be with Taishi. Otherwise, she wouldn't have bothered showing up.

Back when Taishi abandoned his dream of playing baseball, he had started living a delinquent lifestyle.

During that time, Aki, Taishi, and Ryou spent their days together, rarely attending school. When they did, it was only to meet the minimum attendance required to avoid expulsion.

But at some point, Aki noticed Taishi had changed. He began attending school regularly. It felt strange to her.

Eventually, she started to suspect this had something to do with Minami, the transfer student.

"It's just... what you guys do is dangerous. And, well, going to school isn't such a bad thing, is it?"

Taishi explained.

He would never admit he was interested in Minami. Saying that out loud would make him a laughingstock in front of Aki and Ryou.

How could a delinquent, a member of a biker gang, fall for someone as quiet, studious, and exemplary as her?

"I see... but I think you're into someone, aren't you?"

Aki remarked with a mix of curiosity and dissatisfaction. "Maybe someone in our class?"

"You're kidding, right? That's impossible!"

Taishi retorted, flustered.

He hadn't expected Aki to catch on so quickly.

However, she didn't seem to know who it was and appeared to be guessing. That gave him some relief. At least she didn't know it was Minami.

That was something he would never admit!

"Coward..."

Aki muttered, noticing his obvious discomfort.

...

Meanwhile, Byakuya had already reached the 13th Ward, standing in a street lined with small hotels.

Arima was right behind him.

"As expected, you don't do anything without a reason..."

Arima commented.

This location was the scene of a recent attack by the ghoul known as Lantern. The incident had drawn enough attention that the CCG dispatched Byakuya and Arima to investigate.

"Something like that" Byakuya replied, neither confirming nor denying.

Soon, his sharp eyes caught something unusual—a shoe discarded nearby.

He approached and picked it up. "A 22 cm leather flat... Looks like the standard issue for students at Seishin High School. It seems our suspect might have left it behind"

It was clearly a girl's shoe.

In fact, the shoe belonged to Minami.

"Most of the time, the truth is hidden in small details. Amid the countless pieces of information, there are always fragments that matter the most"

Arima agreed with Byakuya's reasoning.

In the original timeline, it was Arima who found the shoe and began suspecting Minami. This time, however, it was Byakuya who led him there.

"Let's take this shoe to the local CCG office in the 13th Ward and find out which student it belongs to"

Byakuya suggested.

After delivering the shoe to the CCG for analysis, the two returned to school to resume their classes.

Although it was only their first day at the new school, Byakuya knew he would need to keep an eye on Taishi and his delinquent gang that night.

He realized that his and Arima's involvement with the group might accelerate Minami's animosity toward the delinquents.

In the original story, Minami viewed them as a negative influence on the new students, dismissing them as societal trash.

While the gang's reckless behavior—like illegal street racing that endangered civilians and taunted the police—was far from innocent, it didn't warrant death.

The real issue was Minami's twisted perspective and utter disregard for human life.