Arata went back to the place where he first met Shiro.
"Eh!? Arata, what are you doing here?"
"Oh yeah… I just remembered, this place is near Tanaka's house," Arata said, looking around.
"Sorry, Tanaka. I have to hurry."
"Wait, Arata! You look like someone's chasing you. I'm coming with you," Tanaka said seriously.
They ran together toward the park.
Suddenly, Shiro shouted, "Ha!!!"
"What is it, Shiro!?"
"The tunnel… it's closed!"
"What!?" Arata froze.
"Ha!!!" Shiro cried again.
Tanaka blinked in shock.
"Wait, Arata… did your cat just talk!?"
"Oh, right… I forgot to mention that," Arata replied quickly. "I'll explain later, but right now we need to find a way to open that tunnel again."
Shiro crossed his little paws. "We only need… Whiskas."
"What?" Arata and Tanaka said at the same time.
"Cat food?"
"Yes," Shiro said seriously. "If you want to enter this tunnel, you have to pay the guardian with cat food."
"What!? Are you kidding me?" Arata's jaw dropped.
Just then, raindrops began to fall.
"Waaa! It's raining so hard!" Arata shouted.
"Hey, Arata! Stay at my house tonight!" Tanaka offered.
"Yeah, Tanaka's right," said Shiro. "We'll go again tomorrow."
Arata sighed. "Yeah… alright," he said softly.
---
When they arrived at Tanaka's house—
"I'm home!" Tanaka yelled.
"Sorry, Tanaka. I've been troubling you," said Arata.
"Ha? Bro, don't say that. I'll always help my friends," Tanaka smiled.
"What about your parents?"
"Oh, they went on vacation to Malaysia."
"Ohh… no wonder your house is so quiet."
"Let's go take a bath first, then we'll plan for tomorrow," Tanaka suggested.
"Thanks, Tanaka."
---
After taking a shower, they sat together in the living room.
"So, Arata," Tanaka began while drying his hair, "how can your cat talk, anyway?"
"Oh, that's a long story…" Arata said, then started explaining everything — from the day he found Shiro to all the strange things that happened after.
Tanaka lifted Shiro up, grinning. "You're actually kinda amazing, Shiro."
"Heh! Of course I am!" Shiro replied proudly.
They spent the rest of the night planning their next move.
---
The next morning, the three of them went to a pet store.
Each of them wore a mask to avoid being recognized.
As they were walking, a familiar voice called out,
"Eh, Arata?"
"Oh, Yume!" Arata turned, surprised.
"Hahaha, why are you, Shiro, and Tanaka wearing masks?" Yume asked, laughing.
"Oh, that's because… someone's after us," Arata said.
"What!?" Yume gasped.
"I'll tell you everything," Arata replied.
After Arata told her the whole story, Yume clenched her fists.
"Alright, Arata. I'll help you."
"What!!?" Arata and Tanaka said together.
"Hey, Yume, this is dangerous," Arata said.
"Hmph! I don't care. I'm helping you," Yume said, frowning with determination.
"Okay, okay…" Arata sighed. "So what do we do first?"
Shiro jumped onto Arata's shoulder and grinned.
"Step one…" he said proudly,
"Buy Whiskas."
After they bought the Whiskas, they made their way toward the tunnel.
"Waaah, I didn't know this place even had a tunnel… it looks kind of creepy," said Yume.
"Yeah, same here. I only found out recently," Arata replied.
"So, how are we going to get inside?" asked Tanaka.
"Alright, give me the Whiskas and place it in front of the tunnel," Shiro instructed.
Tanaka raised an eyebrow. "Okay… and then?"
"I'll recite the incantation," said Shiro.
"Incantation?"
"Oh great tunnel, I wish to help Arata. Please, open the path before us.
The cat… the King to mankind!"
"What? Hey Arata, did your cat just say 'The cat, the King to mankind'?" Tanaka asked, looking shocked.
"Hey, Shiro, why does your spell sound so weird?" Arata asked.
"Oh, that's not my spell," Shiro replied calmly. "My teacher was the one who made it."
"What? Seriously?"
"Yeah, whatever—at least it's working," Arata said, shrugging.
Suddenly, the tunnel began to open slowly.
"Eh!? It's really opening!?"
"Alright, this is it! Let's go in!" Arata shouted.
"Hey, Yume, are you sure you want to come? Won't your parents worry?"
"Oh, I already told them I'm staying over at a friend's house," Yume replied casually.
"So… you lied?"
"Yep," she grinned.
"Alright then, let's go!!!"
They entered the tunnel.
"Ugh, it's so bright!" Yume covered her eyes.
"What the… what is this place?" Arata muttered as the light slowly faded.
"Waaah, I didn't expect there to be an entire village inside this tunnel!" Yume exclaimed, looking around in awe.
"Yeah… but this place looks more like something from the future," Tanaka added, scanning the glowing buildings and strange floating lights.
"Hey, Shiro, what is this place?" Arata asked.
"This," Shiro said, his tail flicking, "used to be the Kingdom of Ra."
"Ra?" Arata echoed.
"Yeah… your father was the one who created this place. He named it after you — Ren Arata."
Arata froze, eyes wide. "M-My father… built this place?" he muttered, staring at the village with disbelief.
"That's right," Shiro nodded. "You could say this place exists in another dimension."
Tanaka crossed his arms. "So, what do we do now?"
Shiro turned, his expression suddenly serious. "We need to meet my allies first. They're strong — and they can help us. Each of them wields powers similar to mine."
Arata clenched his fists. "Alright then… let's move. We don't have time to waste."
After a long walk through the shimmering streets, Shiro stopped. "Looks like we've arrived."
A group of tall figures appeared from the mist.
"I'm back," said Shiro.
"Oh, Shiro! It's been so long!" said one of them warmly.
"Wah! Why do your friends look like humans—and tall ones at that!?" Yume exclaimed.
"Oh, that?" Shiro grinned. "They can transform into human form. The only difference is their height and size."
"So you can transform too, Shiro?" Arata asked.
"Of course," Shiro said proudly.
"So, who are they, Shiro?"
"Oh, right! This is Daiki's son, Ren Arata. And these are his friends, Tanaka and Yume. They've helped me a lot."
"What!?" All of them gasped.
"You mean… you're Daiki's son?" one of them asked.
"Yeah," Arata nodded.
"Wah, forgive me then! I'm Toshiba Arata," said one.
"I'm Eten Arata."
"I'm Yoshi Arata."
"I'm Ninja Arata!" shouted a lively voice.
"And I'm Robot Arata!" came a metallic echo.
Yume blinked. "Wait, why do all of them have your last name, Arata!?"
"What? Hey Shiro, what's with that!?"
"Oh, that." Shiro chuckled. "Your father gave them those names."
"What!?"
"Yes. When we were young, your father took care of all of us. He gave each of us names… and treated us like his own children."
Tanaka scratched his head. "But… how can they talk like you, and why do they have powers?"
Shiro lowered his gaze. "That's because of your father's experiment. He told us one day, 'Drink this. It might give you a chance to live.'"
The group fell silent, the air growing heavy as the sound of faint humming echoed through the strange metallic sky.
Arata clenched his fists. "Father… just what were you trying to do?"