Scissors and Screams

Yuki adjusted her scissor-shaped hairpins and smoothed her pink dress as she walked down the cobblestone path toward Nakaibito village. Her heels clicked rhythmically against the stones while her purple eyes sparkled with excitement about her first day as the village's new magical hairdresser.

The morning air carried the scent of cherry blossoms and something else—something that made her wrinkle her nose. As she rounded the corner near the village fountain, she spotted the source.

Five boys sat on a wooden bench, their hair so long and tangled it obscured most of their faces. The greasy strands hung past their shoulders, and Yuki could smell the unwashed locks from several feet away.

"Are those... boys?" she whispered to herself, squinting to see past the hair curtains covering their features.

One of them—a boy with particularly matted brown hair—looked up at her approach. His eyes went wide with terror when he noticed her scissors earrings glinting in the sunlight.

The Baker's Warning

"Excuse me," Yuki called out cheerfully, approaching the bench. "I'm the new magical hairdresser! Maybe I could help with your hair?"

The boy with matted brown hair scrambled backward so fast he tumbled off the bench. "No scissors!" he shouted, his voice cracking with fear.

The other four boys shot to their feet like startled rabbits. One had black hair so tangled it looked like a bird's nest. Another's blonde locks were so greasy they stuck to his cheeks.

"We don't need haircuts!" the blonde boy declared, backing away.

Just then, a plump baker emerged from his shop across the square, flour dusting his apron. He shook his head sadly as he watched the scene.

"Those poor boys," he called to Yuki. "Their parents tried everything. Even dragged them here by their hair last week, kicking and screaming. But nobody can get near them with scissors."

"Why are they so afraid?" Yuki asked.

The baker's expression darkened. "Three older boys—Daiki, Sato, and their leader Ryusei—they've been terrorizing kids with giant scissors. Cut off chunks of hair just for fun."

Yuki's purple eyes widened. Now she understood their terror.