Chapter 5: High School Students Hijack a Plane?

Fujihiro Shoji and Shixi Jian were pilots from Hamamatsu Base.

Don't be fooled by their youth—they were barely past thirty—yet they were Hamamatsu Base's ace pilots.

They had carried out numerous missions and completed them brilliantly, earning them a reputation as future ace candidates of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force.

Precisely because of this.

For this major mission of investigating the NH137 hijacking situation, Hamamatsu Base decided to entrust the task to the two of them.

High in the sky, white clouds and blue heavens.

Two fighter jets streaked across the high sky like meteors, each trailing two white cloud bands—magnificent to behold.

On the way to the airspace where NH137 was located, Fujihiro Shoji asked through the comms microphone, addressing Shixi Jian piloting the other jet:

"A-Jian, want to make a bet?"

"Bet on what?"

One mountain cannot house two tigers—as Hamamatsu Base's ace pilots, neither would naturally concede to the other, and every time they went out on a mission, the two would compete to see who was truly Hamamatsu Base's number one pilot.

This mission was no exception.

Fujihiro Shoji grinned: "We both just looked over the passenger and crew data on the plane, so we roughly know who's on board. Let's bet on who the hijacker is. How about it?"

"Deal!" Shixi Jian agreed without a second thought.

When it came to competition, it had already become their contest—there was no room for backing down.

As they spoke, the fighter jets they were piloting cut across the high sky at blinding speed, and they were about to reach NH137.

Time was short, and Shixi Jian quickly recalled the passenger and crew data he had reviewed before departure.

"There are a lot of people on board. If we only guess one, it's easy to be wrong. Let's guess a rough range."

"Fine, I'll go first. I guess it's someone on board aged over 35 to 40." Fujihiro Shoji jumped in.

Japan is one of Asia's major economic powers, and also a country with a large population but very little land.

This in turn leads to extremely fierce social competition, forming a high-pressure society.

The pressure at every moment is immense.

Their daily working hours are very long, starting in the morning and not ending until eleven or twelve at night.

Moreover, many office workers often have to work overtime, even spending the entire night in the office.

And under such high-pressure work, the pay often doesn't match the effort.

This causes them tremendous mental stress, easily leading to mental overload, and even schizophrenia—which is why Japan's suicide rate is so high.

Fujihiro Shoji's reasoning for his guess was simple.

Japanese society has always been high-pressure, especially for middle-aged people—when the years pile up but the career shows no progress, suicide comes easily.

"Then I'll guess 25 to 35." Shixi Jian replied right away.

In recent years, Japan's suicide rate has not declined.

Instead, the age of those committing suicide has been trending younger.

The reason lies in the fact that Japan places great emphasis on academic credentials, believing that credentials determine the future.

Precisely because of this, if Japanese students cannot get into a top university, their future is destined to be bleak, and 25 to 35 is precisely the very first stage when students graduate and step into society.

At this stage, students have just left university and are being 'crushed' by society.

If their willpower isn't firm, nine times out of ten they either become shut-ins at home or go commit suicide in the Aokigahara Sea of Trees.

"A-Jian, even though we're guessing age ranges, do you have a hijacker candidate in mind?"

The ever-talkative Fujihiro Shoji asked Shixi Jian.

"I do."

"Who?"

"Captain Hase."

"Hahaha, you think the same as me. Hijacking a plane isn't easy to pull off—the easiest way is to win over the captain, and if the captain himself is the hijacker, hijacking becomes even easier."

Fujihiro Shoji laughed heartily, and at that very moment, the endless sea of white clouds and high sky ahead finally showed a change.

A civilian airliner appeared.

It was NH137.

According to the plan agreed upon beforehand, Fujihiro Shoji piloted his fighter jet toward the other side of NH137, flanking it left and right to observe NH137's situation from multiple angles.

At the same time, the seasoned pilot Fujihiro Shoji continued.

"A-Jian, am I right about what I just said? You think the same as me, don't you… Hm? A-Jian, why aren't you saying anything?"

At this moment, the two fighter jets were positioned on NH137's left and right.

"A-Jian?"

Fujihiro Shoji was a little puzzled.

How could someone who was just chatting and laughing a moment ago now be silent?

If you said it was because they were approaching NH137, so he wasn't talking in order to focus on the mission, that couldn't be right either.

He knew the other man well—even on missions, Shixi Jian wouldn't go silent; he would always chat and laugh with him while carrying out the mission.

Just as Fujihiro Shoji was about to speak again.

A voice came through the comms microphone.

"Hey, Shoji, you, you need to look at NH137's cockpit."

Listening to Shixi Jian's words through the comms microphone, Fujihiro Shoji was slightly taken aback.

It wasn't because of what Shixi Jian said that he froze.

It was because of the tone of Shixi Jian's words.

That tone didn't sound like the usual Shixi Jian—it was very strange, carrying shock, a trembling voice, and a hint of disbelief.

Just like seeing a ghost.

"Looking at the cockpit?"

With curiosity and strangeness, Fujinaga Masaji looked toward the NH137 cockpit.

In an instant.

His pupils suddenly dilated.

Fujinaga Masaji screamed in shock.

"Me!! Fuck!!"

A chill shot straight to his scalp.

Fujinaga Masaji was stunned, even more so, he was terrified.

Terrified enough to speak a foreign language.

He felt as if he had seen a ghost in broad daylight; his expression was horrified, completely stunned by the scene before his eyes.

In his line of sight.

Inside the NH137 cockpit, sitting in the captain's seat was not Captain Hasegawa... it was someone else.

To ask why Fujinaga Masaji knew.

It was not that Fujinaga Masaji had seen a photo of Captain Hasegawa, but he knew very well that a captain could not look like that.

Because the person in that seat was far too young!

Too young to possibly be a captain.

Eighteen?

No!

It could even be seventeen.

Fujinaga Masaji stared fixedly at the face of the person in the NH137 captain's seat, his mind reeling.

"He is definitely not Captain Hasegawa. Where is Captain Hasegawa?"

A seventeen-year-old captain? Is that possible?

Impossible!!

Not to mention all of Japan, there is no captain in the entire world who could be seventeen.

Just then.

"Masaji, look quickly, look at the clothes that person is wearing."

Hearing this, Fujinaga Masaji knew very well who Shixi Ken was talking about and hurriedly looked.

At this sight, his body shook violently, and he almost lost his grip on the fighter jet's control stick.

"That is... a high school uniform??" Fujinaga Masaji's tone was filled with disbelief.

As he finished speaking.

He thought of a question, something far more thrilling than watching an action movie.

Right now, there are 231 people on NH137... and the one flying the plane is a Gao Zhongsheng...

What concept is this?

This is 231 people playing with their lives, entrusting their lives to a Gao Zhongsheng.

"Ken, is this really a hijacking? Are you sure it isn't a mass suicide event involving 231 people?"

Shixi Ken's mouth twitched violently, momentarily speechless.

What Fujinaga Masaji said struck a chord in his heart.

He was thinking the same thing.

Beep~

The communicator transmitted a reply from Hamamatsu Base.

"Fujinaga Masaji, Shixi Ken, have you arrived at your destination?"

"Reporting to Air Vice Marshal Suzuki, we have arrived at our destination." Fujinaga Masaji and Shixi Ken spoke in unison.

Now was not the time to consider the Gao Zhongsheng issue; the mission was important.

Air Vice Marshal Suzuki, who had established contact with Hamamatsu Base and connected the communication channel, nodded while seated in the office of the Air Self-Defense Force headquarters, then immediately spoke.

"Report everything you see regarding the NH137 situation to me; I want the most detailed intelligence."

"Hai!"

Immediately after.

Fujinaga Masaji and Shixi Ken looked at the NH137 cockpit, seeing the interior clearly through the cockpit glass window.

The two supplemented each other's observations and made their report.

"Air Vice Marshal Suzuki, the cockpit is messy; overhead bins are all open, luggage has fallen, oxygen masks have dropped; I see many people injured, but I have not seen anyone dead yet."

"The NH137 fuselage's left wing is damaged; judging from the scars, it should have been caused by icing at high altitude."

"I see the flight attendants; they seem to be saying something to the cabin passengers; it looks like they are comforting and apologizing."

The line of sight moved away from the cockpit.

"Air Vice Marshal Suzuki, the NH137 cockpit's front window is damaged; there are bird corpses; it is suspected to be a bird strike."

"A bird strike? Not a hijacking?"

Air Vice Marshal Suzuki was strange.

Hijacked, and then hit a bird.

NH137 was too unlucky; every misfortune a plane could suffer, it encountered all at once.

"Yes, I see bird corpses; I do not know the specific type of bird; the flesh and blood are blurred and unidentifiable."

"Understood. Continue your report."

"Yes, sir!"

Shixi and the other man reported again.

"Aside from the cockpit's front window being damaged, all the movable windows have been opened."

"The first officer is injured. It seems to be his eyes."

"Also, there are three people in the cockpit."

"Three people?" Air General Suzuki's eyes lit up sharply. "Aside from the captain and the first officer, who is the third person? Be sure to get a clear look at his face."

Clearly, Air General Suzuki had taken the third person to be one of the hijackers.

It wasn't just him—every senior figure listening to the report, from the Metropolitan Police, Hamamatsu Base, and Tokyo Air Traffic Control, all assumed the third person was the hijacker.

Some even pictured in their heads a scene of the third person pointing a gun or a knife at the captain and first officer while flying the plane.

"... Air General Suzuki, no, the captain isn't among the three." Fujihiro Shoji said awkwardly.

Air General Suzuki froze.

What did that mean?

The captain isn't among the three? Then who was flying the plane? The first officer?

If that's the case, where is the captain? And the three people in the cockpit—besides the first officer, are the other two both hijackers?

"Understood. Then tell me the appearance of the other two, aside from the first officer flying the plane."

After issuing the order, Air General Suzuki stretched out his hand, preparing to have the subordinate beside him compare the appearances against the passenger manifest to find information on the hijackers.

However—

The moment his hand reached out—

"Air General Suzuki, the one flying the plane isn't the first officer." Fujihiro Shoji was extremely uneasy.

With one denial after another, would Air General Suzuki get angry and make things difficult for him?

"Huh?"

Air General Suzuki's cheek twitched several times, momentarily speechless.

Not the first officer?

Then who was flying the plane?

Including Air General Suzuki, every senior figure from all sides listening to the report was filled with shock and doubt.

It seemed this was a planned hijacking.

Fearing the captain wouldn't cooperate during the hijacking, they had prepared a pilot in advance.

"Tell me the appearance of the hijacker flying the plane, and the other hijacker."

"Yes, sir!" Fujihiro Shoji replied very seriously. "The pilot has a very delicate face, short hair, is wearing a Gao Zhongsheng uniform, and is around seventeen or eighteen years old..."

"Wait! Wait!!"

Air General Suzuki cut him off, springing up from his seat in an instant.

At the same moment, the senior figures from all sides moved in exactly the same way.

"Fujihiro Shoji, I asked you to describe the pilot."

From Fujihiro Shoji's words, no matter how he listened, it sounded like he was describing a Gao Zhongsheng.

"Reporting to Air General Suzuki, I am describing the person flying NH137. Based on appearance and uniform, I can confirm he is a Gao Zhongsheng."

Dead silence.

Tokyo Air Traffic Control, the Metropolitan Police, Hamamatsu Base, and the Air Self-Defense Force headquarters were so quiet at this moment that a pin drop could be heard.

Air General Suzuki and the senior figures from all sides stood dumbfounded, feeling dizzy.

I didn't hear that wrong, did I?

A Gao Zhongsheng flying a plane?

"Hiss!"

A sharp intake of cold air suddenly sounded from beside Air General Suzuki.

Air General Suzuki looked at his subordinate.

That subordinate's gaze was horrified to the extreme. "Air General Suzuki, NH137 has been hijacked by a Gao Zhongsheng!"

His words were loud, and through the communicator, they were transmitted out.

The already silent Air Traffic Control, Metropolitan Police, and other senior departments grew even quieter.

A death-like silence.

(Begging for recommendation tickets!! Please, dear benefactors, toss some recommendation tickets my way!!)